parshat Vayishlach

After leaving Lavan’s house, Yaakov and family passed through Gilad, Sukkot and, on the other side of the Jordan, camped near Shechem. 600 years later, David led his troops, as described in Tehillim 60, in the opposite direction, from Shechem in the west, through Sukkot and Gilad to the east (ibid. 9). This mizmor is introduced with the heading as relating to the very successful battle against Aram, which is also discussed in Shmuel II,10.

Yitchk'a silence give an answer to a question all parents have: Should we always "bail out" our kids, or is there a point where we allow them to make their own decisions? Do we continually save them from poor choices, or do we sometimes hold back?

The struggle with Eisav’s angel represents a spiritual and intellectual fight. The meeting with the physical Eisav in turn represents the struggle of the Jewish people to simply stay alive in a bigoted, cruel, and nearly fatal environment.