The Ozrover Rebbe, z.l., notes the deep-seated hatred that Eisav manifests for Yaakov. The Torah writes that Eisav hated Yaakov because of the blessing that his father had given him. It had nothing to do with Yaakov’s taking the blessing away from Eisav. The mere fact that Yaakov was blessed was enough to ignite this inexplicable hatred within Eisav. We now understand Chazal’s axiom, “Halachah, it is a halachic maxim that Eisav hates Yaakov.” This means that Eisav’s hatred has no rationale. A halachah is a rule or statement, which at times defies rationale. It is an absolute which transcends human reason and intellect. Likewise, Eisav’s hatred is inscrutable. Evil hates good – Eisav hates Yaakov. There was no reason for Eisav to hate Yaakov. The bechorah, birthright, was sold. Whatever Yaakov received from his father was his by right. So, what was Eisav’s problem? It bothered him that Yaakov received a blessing. He could not fargin, begrudge Yaakov anything – period – let alone a blessing.
This is the type of hatred we have endured for thousands of years. We must remember, however, that this type of acrimony is endemic only to Eisav – not to Yishmael. While the Arab world (Yishmael) may hate us, it is not the hatred of Eisav. The Arabs want land. They are a nation because that is their legacy from Yishmael. At least they have something which they wrongfully claim is “theirs.” The children of Eisav, the Christian world, who vilify us for no reason and for no practical gain, are the ones that should concern us. The world that stands idly by while Jewish blood is spilled; the children of Eisav and Amalek who have slaughtered us simply because we were Jewish – they are the ones about whom we should be concerned. We are the blessed people and that is why they curse us.
