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Why did Yaakov marry Leah when Rochel was his destined match? The shiur develops the principle that Leah possessed Eisav's pure spiritual energy (yedayim yedei Eisav) without his corrupt choices. Through this marriage, Yaakov brought the koach of physical strength and warfare into Klal Yisroel—a force necessary for both prayer and battle, manifested in the tribes of Reuven, Shimon, Levi, and Yehuda.
This shiur addresses fundamental questions about the blessings in Parshas Vayechi and traces their roots back through several prior parshiyos. Rabbi Zweig begins by questioning why the Torah (תורה) records Yaakov's tochacha (rebuke) to Reuven, Shimon, and Levi. These incidents were already documented earlier—why must the Torah publicize Yaakov's private criticisms? More troubling, how can Yaakov accuse them of murder and theft when they were defending their family's honor? The shiur's central question emerges from Parshas Toldos: Why did Yitzchok want to give the blessings to Eisav? Yitzchok surely knew that Eisav was a murderer, idolater, and thief. Rashi (רש"י) himself points out that Yitzchok detected Eisav's rebelliousness, suspected him of theft, was blinded by the smoke of his wives' idol worship, and recognized that "the voice is Yaakov's voice" but "the hands are Eisav's hands"—showing that Eisav lacked any mention of Hashem (ה׳)'s name in his speech. How could Yitzchok possibly want such a person to father Klal Yisroel?
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Parshas Vayechi
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What is the primary purpose of the cities of refuge - protecting the accidental killer or something else? The shiur argues that creating respect for law takes precedence over providing sanctuary. True deterrence comes from recognizing the gravity of murder itself, not fear of punishment.
