Shabbat Midrash (Teaching) Outlines

• This portion begins with Ya’akov (Jacob) sending messengers to his brother Esau in order to let it be known that he had prospered in his sojourn (refers to the number 613; number of commandments in the Torah) with Uncle Lavan, and that he was coming home at Yah’s direction.

• As Ya’akov complies with Yah’s request, he finds himself caught between obeying Yah and fleeing his brother Esau out of self-preservation.

• The messengers that Ya’akov had sent out now return to inform him that his brother Esau is approaching with 400 men; actually there are 400 men plus Esau, thus equaling the number 401.

• The number 401 speaks directly of Messiah

• Messiah is represented by the Hebrew letters aleph and tav which are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet and have a numerical value of 401 according to the gematria (numerical coding of the Hebrew alphabet) - aleph has a value of 1 and tav has a value of 400).

• Ya’akov still possesses a healthy fear of his brother Esau. His fear will become the determining factor in his decision making process.

• Ya’akov is so awed by Yahweh’s sending messengers (angels) to encourage and strengthen him prior to meeting Esau that he says, “This is the camp of Yahweh”, and named the place Mahanaim, meaning ‘two camps’. His two wives and their children are truly “Two Camps”. This is prophetic of the actual two camps or “Houses” that will come from Leah and Rachel called the House of Judah and the House of Israel.

• During the night Ya’akov sends his two wives, his maidservants, and his eleven sons across the Yabok River. Yabok means ‘pouring out’ or ‘emptying’. Ya’akov was now alone; having no family or possessions. He had to come to a place of self-emptying where every human resource is given up so that Yah can replace them with His Life.

• Ya’akov gave up trying to pretend and “wing it”. He was now ready for a face to face encounter with Yah.

• There is nothing wrong with using brains and talents to get through, but it is the anointing that comes from surrendering our lives to Yah and the infilling of the Ruach HaChodesh (Holy Spirit) that breaks the yoke of bondage to ‘self’. New wine can then be put into ‘new wine skins’.

• Ya’akov is attacked by a man in the night who struggles with him until the rising of the sun. In the dark of night, Ya’akov might possibly have thought this man was his brother Esau, trying to kill him. The daybreak revealed his ‘ish’ (man) to be something more: He is our Messiah Yeshua!

• In our spiritual darkness we often fear worldly things and conflict with them in the same way that Ya’akov feared his brother. Yah leads us to face them in the same way that Ya’akov is led to face Esau.

• Through the struggle we sometimes find that the conflict that we thought we were fighting against some worldly power was really a struggle against a fear inside of us; the fear that Yah would abandon or forsake us.

• In just this way the darkness caused Ya’akov to believe he was struggling with his brother, but when the light shone on them, it was revealed that he was actually being tested by Yah.

• Notice that Ya’akov was in the ‘wilderness’ and asleep when the encounter begins. Many of us find ourselves in the wilderness experience and many have ‘fallen asleep.’

• The wilderness is a place of circumcision followed by empowerment. Circumcision is done on an individual basis while alone with Yah. It is not something that ‘people’ can take you through. They actually ‘prevent’ us from taking that final step of being alone with Yah, as many of us are dependent on an ‘enabler’ to get us through and not Yahweh.

• We need a one-on-one, face to face encounter with our Creator so that we can move from the Outer Court experience of the Tabernacle to the Inner Court or Holy Place. Nothing of ourselves enters this holy sanctum. If we reach this point in our spiritual lives and turn back not allowing Yah to have ownership of our lives, we will sadly continue to stall or even die, as much of the Outer Court ministry is ‘self-life’. ‘His Life’ is in the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. This becomes the goal of our hearts when we surrender and empty ourselves to Yah, the Giver of Life!

• Romans 13:10-14 says, “Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law. And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not is sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealously. Rather, clothe yourselves with Yeshua the Messiah, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature (the flesh).

Two Camps

• As mentioned earlier, great fear fell upon Ya’akov when he heard that his brother Esau was coming to meet him.

• Taking matters into his own hands, Jacob divides his family and animals into two camps saying, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.

• Jacob had to face his past, which was one of trickery and deceit. His very name meant ‘trickster’ or ‘deceiver’. Instead of seeking G-d’s protection, he makes his own plan.

• After he thanked Yah for his protection, he prepared a ‘gift’ for his brother. He divided his animals into five groups (symbolic of grace) and instructed his servants that when the time came to meet Esau they were to go before him offering Jacob’s gifts saying “your servant Jacob is coming behind us.” Jacob is attempting to use diplomacy to appease his brother.

• It looks good to us, so we offer our righteousness and think it is acceptable to Yahweh, but this is from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and it is as filthy rags before Yah! We offer Him our worldly offerings or ‘works’ but they are unacceptable before a Holy G-d.

• These habits and beliefs were ingrown into Jacob’s very being and character, having been passed on through his generations. Nothing but a face to face encounter with Yah could change him.

• Yahweh had more for Jacob, just as he does for us, and he needs to change our hearts. But before this can happen, we have to die spiritually so that we may experience rebirth as people after G-d’s own heart.