Tag: Parashat Vayishlach

The Torah portion Vayishlach, which means “he sent,” covers Gen. 32:3-36:43.

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Discussions Torah

Price of passivity: Jacob, David & the consequences of inaction (Genesis 34)

Price of passivity: Jacob, David and the consequenes of inaction. When Israel didn't step up to defend Dinah (Genesis 34)

This study on Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“he sent,” Gen. 32:3–36:43) discusses the importance of living according to God’s will and obeying His laws. The biblical lessons of biblical stories of Dinah, Jacob, Simeon/Levi, Esau and King David teach us that the Body of Messiah must beware of toxic elements in the community. There are disastrous consequences to the spiritual health of individuals and the community of ignoring evil within and shirking personal responsibility for competently and lovingly dealing with it.

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Torah readings

Torah reading Vayishlach (וישלח): Genesis 32:3–36:43

Studies in Torah

In Torah section וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“he sent,” Gen. 32:3–36:43), Ya’akov is back at Beit ’El, this time wrestling with Heaven over blessing. He buries the hatchet with his brother, yet two of his sons bury their hatchets into townsmen to avenge their ravaged sister. These three hardly have the makings of “pillars” of the people of Holy One of Yisra’el, right? Not as they are but as they would be after “conversion.”

Have you ever wrestled with your desire to do something that deep down you know you shouldn’t? “Conversion” sometimes get so spiritualized that what’s actually happening to you gets lost. The important transformation to the “new creation” (Gal. 6:15; 2Cor. 5:17; Eph. 2:10, 15; 4:24; Col. 3:10) is the theme of Vayishlach.

Learn how this Torah passage informs the gospel message.

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Torah

When divisiveness is toxic to the people of God but essential to humanity’s survival (Genesis 32–36; 1Corinthians 5)

When divisiveness is toxic to the people of God but essential to humanity's survival (Genesis 32-36; 1Corinthians 5)

God hates divorce — schism in what should be a supportive whole. But Heaven also brings division to separate truth from falsehood — good from bad — for the sake of all humanity. That’s a key lesson from the Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“and He sent,” Genesis 32:4–36:43) that shows why those who live like Eysau (Esau) can’t be part of the legacy of Israel: Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus).

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Discussions Torah

Why the Way to the Kingdom of God is both open-armed and divisive (Genesis 32–33; Romans 8)

Why the Kingdom of Heaven is both open-armed and divisive (Genesis 32-33; Romans 8)

One would think that a direct encounter with Heaven would have made Ya’akov (Jacob), an ancient founder of Israel, more bold in how he acted in life. But what we see recorded in the Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“and he sent,” Gen. 32:3–36:43) looks more like fear than faith. After all, he sent his stuff and those closest to him on ahead in a meeting with his enraged brother Esau.

But one key lesson from this division and many others in the Bible is why God separates the righteous and the wicked. Yet we learn from the Prophets, Gospels and Apostles is that this separation is more about what’s happening with development of the open-hearted character than on external appearances.

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Prophets and Writings Torah

Reconcile by your actions, not just words (Genesis 32–33; Obadiah; Matthew 5)

“Love is a verb.” That couldn’t be truer than in the Hebrew of the Bible. And we see that lived out in Jacob’s heartfelt and wallet-open reconciliation with his brother, Esau, as recorded in the Torah section וישלח Vayishlach (“he sent,” Genesis 32:3–36:43). This study will explore the parallels with the teachings on reconciliation by Yeshua (Jesus) in the Sermon on the Mount and the prophetic warnings about unforgiveness that echo down to the Day of the LORD in Revelation 18.

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Discussions Prophets and Writings Tabernacles Torah

Genesis 32–33; Hosea 11–12: Sick of the false allure of the temporary?

The Torah reading וַיִּשְׁלַח Vayishlach (“and he sent,” Gen. 32:4-36:43) gives us an active example of what the apostle Paul calls the “ministry of reconciliation” (2Cor. 5:18).

What we see in Jacob and Esau is a profound message for us today, buried amongst sibling rivalry. We should strive to live at peace with everyone, but there still must be a division between the Kingdom of the Eternal and the Kingdom of the Temporary. God wants everyone to leave the Kingdom of the Temporary and join Him in the Kingdom of the Eternal, because the Kingdom of the Temporary will be destroyed on the Day of the LORD.

The LORD sends us into the world to be His ambassadors and part of the kingdom of priests. Will we go? Will we face challenges of our own making or ones that are out of our control?

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Torah

Genesis 32:3–36:43: How to wrestle with and wait on God together joyfully

Word Cloud using entire text from 2018 hallel fellowship talk on Parashat Vayishlach.

The LORD sends us into the world to be His ambassadors (2Cor. 5:20) and part of the kingdom of priests (Ex. 19:5–6; 1Pet. 2:9–10; Rev. 5:9–10). Will we go? Will we face challenges of our own making or ones that are out of our control? Division is toxic to the Kingdom of God. How are we living this out?

In this study of the Torah reading וישלח Vayishlach (Genesis 32:3–36:43), we will go over a few of Yeshua’s parables that will make Ya’akov’s WWE match with the Angel of the LORD look logical. We will learn more about how God teaches us. We have been sent to a world full of brokenness while experiencing brokenness ourselves. How we deal with the brokenness of others and divisions and disagreements in the Body is a sign of our spiritual maturity.