I
Have
Resided
with
Laban
21)
“This
is
what
you
shall
say
to
my
lord
Esau:
‘Your
servant
Jacob
says
the
following:
‘I
have
resided
with
Laban.’’”
Jacob
immediately
opened,
to
turn
into
a
slave
before
him
so
Esau
would
not
look
upon
the
blessings
that
his
father
had
blessed
him,
because
Jacob
left
them
for
the
end
of
days.
22)
What
did
Jacob
see
that
he
sent
for
Esau
and
said,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban”?
Did
he
do
it
on
a
mission
from
Esau?
Rather,
Laban
the
Aramean,
a
voice
walked
in
the
world,
as
no
man
has
ever
been
saved
from
him,
because
he
was
the
soothsayer
of
soothsayers
and
the
greatest
charmer,
and
the
father
of
Be’or,
and
Be’or
was
the
father
of
Balaam,
as
it
is
written,
“Balaam…
son
of
Be’or,
the
soothsayer.”
And
Laban
was
more
versed
in
soothsaying
and
wizardry
than
them,
but
he
still
could
not
prevail
over
Jacob.
And
he
wanted
to
destroy
Jacob
in
several
ways,
as
it
is
written,
“A
wandering
Aramean
was
my
father.”
For
this
reason,
he
sent
for
him
and
said,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban,”
to
let
him
know
of
his
strength.
23)
The
whole
world
knew
that
Laban
was
the
greatest
of
all
sages
and
soothsayers
and
charmers.
And
one
who
Laban
wished
to
destroy
could
not
be
saved
from
him.
And
all
that
Balaam
knew
came
from
Laban.
It
is
written
about
Balaam,
“for
I
know
that
he
whom
thou
blesses
is
blessed.”
It
is
all
the
more
so
with
Laban.
And
the
whole
world
feared
Laban
and
his
magic.
Hence,
the
first
word
that
Jacob
sent
to
Esau
was,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban.”
And
not
for
a
short
time,
but
for
twenty
years
was
I
belated
with
him.
24)
Also,
he
told
him,
“I
have
oxen,
donkeys,
flocks,
male
servants,
and
female
servants.”
Oxen
and
donkeys
are
two
sentences,
harm-doers,
for
when
the
two
conjoin,
they
join
only
to
damage
the
world.
This
means
that
it
is
not
their
way
to
harm,
except
when
they
conjoin.
This
is
why
it
is
written,
“Thou
shall
not
plow
with
an
ox
and
an
ass
together,”
since
by
doing
so
one
causes
these
two
varmints,
ox
and
ass,
to
conjoin
and
damage
the
world.
25)
“Flocks,
male
servants,
and
female
servants”
are
the
lower
Ketarim
[plural
of
Keter]
of
the
shells,
which
the
Creator
killed
in
Egypt.
They
are
called,
“first-born
of
cattle,”
“first-born
of
the
captive,”
and
the
“first-born
of
the
female
servant,
as
it
is
written,
“flocks,
male
servants,
and
female
servants.”
Esau
was
immediately
afraid
and
came
to
meet
him.
And
he
feared
Jacob,
as
Jacob
feared
Esau.
26)
It
is
like
a
person
who
is
walking
along
the
road,
and
as
he
walks,
he
hears
of
a
certain
robber
who
is
lurking
on
the
way.
He
meets
a
man
and
tells
him,
“Say,
who
are
you?”
He
tells
him,
“I
am
from
a
regiment
of
a
certain
army.”
He
tells
him,
“Turn
away
from
me,
for
all
who
come
near
me,
I
bring
a
serpent
and
I
kill
him.”
That
man
went
to
the
commander
of
the
regiment
and
told
him,
“A
man
is
coming;
and
anyone
who
comes
near
him,
he
throws
a
serpent
at
him,
which
bites
him,
and
he
dies.”
27)
The
commander
of
the
regiment
heard
it
and
feared.
He
said,
“It
is
best
to
walk
toward
him
and
appease
him.”
When
that
man
saw
the
commander,
he
was
afraid
and
said,
“Woe
unto
me,
the
commander
will
kill
me
know.”
He
began
to
bow
and
kneel
before
him.
The
commander
said,
“If
he
had
a
serpent
who
could
kill,
he
would
not
bow
like
that
before
me.”
The
commander
began
to
proud
himself
and
said,
“Since
he
bowed
before
me
so,
I
will
not
kill
him.”
28)
“Thus
says
your
servant
Jacob,
‘I
have
resided
with
Laban’”
I
stayed
with
him
for
twenty
years,
and
I
am
bringing
a
serpent
to
kill
people.”
Esau
heard.
He
said,
“Woe,
who
would
rise
against
him,
for
now
Jacob
will
kill
me
with
his
mouth”
because
he
thought
that
since
he
had
defeated
Laban,
Balaam’s
father,
his
strength
must
be
as
great
as
the
strength
of
Balaam,
of
whom
it
is
written,
“he
whom
you
bless
is
blessed,
and
he
whom
you
curse
is
cursed,”
and
he
whom
you
light
up
is
lit
up,
and
he
can
kill
with
his
mouth.
Thus,
he
began
to
walk
toward
him
to
appease
him.
29)
And
when
Jacob
saw
him,
it
is
written,
“Then
Jacob
was
greatly
afraid
and
was
distressed.”
And
when
he
came
near
him,
Jacob
began
to
kneel
and
to
bow
before
him,
as
it
is
written,
“and
bowed
himself
to
the
ground
seven
times.”
Esau
said,
“if
he
had
so
much
power,
he
would
not
have
bowed
before
me,”
and
he
began
to
pride
himself.
30)
It
is
written
about
Balaam,
“And
God
came
unto
Balaam
at
night.”
Of
Laban
it
says,
“And
God
came
to
Laban
the
Aramean
in
a
dream
of
the
night.”
Thus,
Laban
was
as
great
as
Balaam.
It
is
written,
“And
[He]
said
to
him,
‘Be
careful
lest
you
speak
to
Jacob.’”
Laban
did
not
chase
Jacob
by
the
power
of
men
to
wage
war
against
him,
because
the
power
of
Jacob
and
his
sons
was
greater
than
theirs.
Rather,
he
chased
him
to
kill
him
with
his
mouth
and
to
obliterate
everything,
as
it
is
written,
“A
wandering
Aramean
was
my
father.”
This
is
why
it
is
written,
“thou
speak
not,”
and
it
is
not
written,
“thou
do
not.”
31)
This
is
the
testimony
that
the
Creator
commanded
to
testify.
It
is
written,
“And
thou
shall
speak
and
say
before
the
Lord
thy
God:
'A
wandering
Aramean
was
my
father.”
“…and
say”
means,
as
it
is
written,
“Thou
shall
not
bear
false
witness
against
thy
neighbor,”
and
so
he
so
bore
against
his
brother.
32)
It
is
written
about
Balaam,
“he
went
not,
as
at
the
other
times,
to
meet
with
enchantments,”
for
so
is
his
way,
because
he
was
an
charmer.
Also,
it
is
written
about
Laban,
“I
enchanted,”
for
he
looked
in
his
charms
and
his
magic,
to
know
Jacob’s
dealings.
And
when
he
wanted
to
destroy
Jacob
with
soothsaying
and
charms,
the
Creator
did
not
leave
Jacob,
for
He
told
him,
“lest
you
speak.”
33)
As
Balaam,
the
son
of
Laban’s
son
said,
“For
there
is
no
enchantment
with
Jacob,”
meaning
who
can
overcome
them?
This
is
because
my
old
man
wished
to
destroy
their
father
with
his
enchantment
and
charms
and
failed,
since
the
Creator
did
not
enable
him
to
curse,
as
it
is
written,
“For
there
is
no
enchantment
with
Jacob,
neither
is
there
any
divination
with
Israel.”
34)
And
Laban
worked
against
Jacob
with
all
ten
kinds
of
soothsaying
and
magic
from
the
illumination
of
the
lower
Ketarim
but
could
not
overcome
him,
since
Laban
had
made
them
all
against
him
and
he
did
not
succeed
in
harming
him,
as
it
is
written,
“and
changed
my
wages
ten
times;
but
God
suffered
him
not
to
hurt
me.”
And
it
is
written,
“unto
the
satyrs,
after
whom
they
go
astray.”
Counting
are
kinds,
and
ten
kinds
are
of
soothsaying
and
magic
in
the
lower
Ketarim
of
the
shells,
and
Laban
had
made
them
all
against
him.
35)
They
are
ten
kinds,
as
it
is
written,
divination,
a
soothsayer,
or
an
enchanter,
or
a
sorcerer,
or
a
charmer,
or
one
that
consults
a
ghost
or
a
familiar
spirit,
or
a
necromancer,
thus
ten.
And
it
seems
as
though
The
Zohar
considers
the
word
“soothsaying”
as
two
kinds,
since
it
is
in
plural
form
[in
Hebrew].
36)
Divination
and
charm
are
two
kinds,
and
they
count
as
one
degree.
And
when
Balaam
came
up
against
Israel,
he
used
divination,
as
it
is
written,
“divination
in
their
hand.”
But
against
Jacob,
Laban
came
with
an
enchantment,
but
he
did
not
succeed,
as
it
is
written,
“For
there
is
no
enchantment
with
Jacob,
neither
is
there
any
divination
with
Israel.”
37)
Balaam
said
to
Balak,
“Who
can
defeat
them,”
since
all
the
divination
and
charms
in
our
Ketarim
from
the
illumination
of
the
upper
Malchut
are
crowned,
and
he,
ZA,
is
tied
to
them
in
Israel,
as
it
is
written,
“the
Lord
his
God
is
with
him,
and
the
shouting
for
the
King
is
in
him.”
This
is
why
we
cannot
defeat
them
with
our
charms.
38)
Balaam
did
not
know
anything
of
the
upper
Kedusha
[holiness],
since
the
Creator
did
not
want
any
nation
or
tongue
to
use
His
name
but
only
His
Holy
sons,
Israel.
39)
Those
who
are
impure,
impurity
is
made
for
them
to
be
made
impure.
It
is
written
about
them,
“he
shall
dwell
alone;
without
the
camp
shall
his
dwelling
be,”
outside
of
Kedusha.
And
the
impure
calls
upon
the
impure,
as
it
is
written,
“and
shall
cry:
‘Unclean,
unclean.’”
This
is
because
one
who
is
impure
calls
upon
the
impure;
everything
leans
toward
its
own
kind.
40)
Is
it
fitting
for
Jacob,
who
was
holy,
to
say
that
he
was
defiled
by
Laban
and
his
charms?
Is
it
possible
that
this
is
considered
a
praise
for
him?
For
he
said,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban.”
It
is
written,
“I
am
Esau
your
first-born.”
Is
it
appropriate
for
a
righteous
such
as
Jacob
to
change
his
name
for
the
name
of
one
how
is
impure?
The
reason
is
that
in
the
Anochi
[I
am],
there
is
a
Taam
[special
pronunciation
of
the
text]
that
is
a
stop,
since
there
is
a
Pashta
[a
Taam
that
marks
a
stop]
under
the
Anochi,
and
a
Zakef
Katon
[a
less
noticeable
stop
then
the
Pashta]
under
“Esau
your
first-born.”
Their
pronunciation
separates
the
word
“I
am”
from
“Esau
your
first-born,”
and
this
means
that
he
said,
“I
am
who
I
am,
but
Esau
is
your
first-born.”
41)
“And
I
have
oxen,
and
donkeys,”
meaning
do
not
aim
your
heart
and
desire
to
that
blessing
that
my
father
blessed
me,
to
think
that
it
came
true
in
me.
He
blessed
me,
as
it
is
written,
“Be
lord
over
thy
brethren,
and
thy
mother's
sons
will
bow
down
to
thee.”
Because
of
that
I
tell
you,
“Your
servant
Jacob,
unto
my
lord
Esau.
He
blessed
me
with
plenty
of
grain
and
wine.
But
it
did
not
come
true
in
me
because
I
did
not
treasure
them.
Rather,
as
it
is
written,
“And
I
have
oxen,
and
donkeys
and
flocks,
and
men-servants,”
a
shepherd
in
the
field.
He
blessed
me
with
the
dew
of
the
heaven
and
the
oils
of
the
earth.
But
it
did
not
come
true
in
me.
I
only
resided
with
Laban
as
a
stranger
who
had
no
home.
It
is
even
more
so
with
the
oils
of
the
earth—it
did
not
come
true
in
me
for
I
had
no
land;
I
only
resided
with
Laban.
And
all
this
was
said
only
so
he
would
not
look
upon
Jacob
and
envy
him
for
the
blessings
and
will
complain
about
him.
This
is
why
he
said,
“I
have
dwelled
with
Laban.”
Not
because
he
was
vaunting
about
it
before
Esau.
On
the
contrary,
he
mentioned
it
in
condemnation,
to
prove
to
him
that
he
was
a
stranger,
without
a
land
and
without
a
home.
And
the
reason
he
brings
as
proof
the
verse,
“I
am
Esau,
your
first-born,”
is
to
prove
to
him
that
everything
follows
the
intention
and
it
is
not
considered
that
he
sinned
that
he
named
himself
with
the
name
of
an
impure
one.
Here,
too,
he
intended
only
to
disgrace,
and
it
is
not
considered
that
he
sinned
if
it
seems
from
the
words
that
he
was
vaunting
about
his
joining
an
impure
man.
42)
It
is
written
about
Jacob,
“a
quiet
[in
Hebrew—whole]
man,
dwelling
in
tents.”
He
is
called
a
whole
man
because
he
dwells
in
two
upper
abodes,
which
are
Bina
and
Malchut,
Rachel’s
tent
and
Leah’s
tent,
and
he
complements
to
this
side
and
to
that
side,
since
he
decides
between
the
right
line
and
the
left
and
complements
them.
And
when
he
said,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban,”
he
did
not
say
that
he
was
defiled
by
the
charms
of
Laban,
but
rather,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban,”
to
show
that
his
heart
was
whole,
in
gratitude
for
the
grace
and
truthfulness
that
the
Creator
had
done
with
him.
The
entire
world
knew
of
the
deeds
of
Laban,
and
no
one
can
be
spared
from
his
slandering,
for
he
wanted
to
destroy
me
and
the
Creator
saved
me
from
him.
It
is
for
this
reason
that
he
said,
“I
have
resided
with
Laban.”
It
was
all
so
that
Esau
would
not
envy
him
for
the
blessings,
so
he
would
not
think
that
they
came
true
in
him,
and
will
not
be
vengeful
toward
him.
It
is
written
about
that,
“For
the
ways
of
the
Lord
are
right,”
and
it
is
written,
“Thou
shall
be
whole-hearted
with
the
Lord
thy
God.”