The Voice vs. the Hands

“Hakol kol Yaakov v’hayadaim yedei Esav – The voice is the voice of Jacob but the hands are the hands of Esau.” (Bereishit 27:22)

We all know the story. Yaakov dresses like Esav to receive Yitzchak’s blessing. Yitzchak, however, remains skeptical and feels to confirm that the one before him is Esav. In the end, sounds like Yaakov and feels like Esav, so Yitzchak gives Yaakov the blessing.

But why? If the person sounded like Yaakov, why shouldn’t Yitzchak assume it was Yaakov. Think about that old expression of “quacks like a duck.” Why dismiss the voice and follow the hands?

A number of answers are given. The Beit Halevi writes that sounding like Yaakov was a necessary part of the ruse. Esav suspected all along that Yaakov might take his blessing. He, therefore, told Yitzchak that he should only give the blessing to someone who spoke like Yaakov. Esav figured Yaakov would try to appear and sound like Esav to get the blessing, so he warned Yitzchak NOT to bless anyone who sounded like Esav and to only bless someone who sounded like Yaakov. Accordingly, it was a GOOD thing for Yaakov to sound like Yaakov to accurately present himself as Esav. If he didn’t (and pretended to sound like Esav), he WOULDN’T have received the blessing.

Talk about a conspiracy theory…

The Vilna Gaon highlights another aspect of the voice which Yaakov used, which led Yitzchak to bless based on the feeling of the hands instead of the voice. The verse reads: 

הַקֹּל קוֹל יַעֲקֹב וְהַיָּדַיִם יְדֵי עֵשָׂו׃

Notice how the first “kol” is spelled without the letter vav, while the second “kol” is spelled with a vav. The first one is called a chaseir, it is missing a letter or incomplete, and the second one is maleh, in its full, complete form. The Vilna Gaon explains that the first kol is missing a letter since Yitzchak heard a voice that sounded a lot LIKE Yaakov, but it wasn’t FULLY Yaakov’s voice. Something was missing.

Yitzchak decided the person in front of him must be Esav because he felt EXACTLY like Esav. He didn’t follow the voice because, while it sounded LIKE Yaakov, there was something missing. Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, Chief Rabbi of Britain, says what was missing was Yaakov’s authentic voice. Had Yaakov spoken wholeheartedly and full-throatedly like himself, Yitzchak would have heeded the voice. Instead, absent the clear and resounding voice of Yaakov, Yitzchak went with the hand.

What is our authentic voice? We should strive to always speak from the heart and mean what we say. We should also try to take our words more seriously. Today, people throw around words without fully considering the repercussions. Whether it be in politics or religion, words like “enemy” or “dog” are used to describe those who hold opposing views. Some of it is the rough and tumble nature of fighting for our opinions, but it can go too far. If we want to speak with an authentic voice, we need to be more careful, honest, and genuine in what we say.

Yesterday, Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned the incendiary language that has recently dominated politics and said the word “traitor” should be erased from the political discourse. Speaking on the anniversary of the assassination of Yitzchak Rabin, he said:

“I am shocked by the thought that today, November 4 — a date on which we learned where words can lead — I need to stand here and say again: the word ‘traitor’ must be struck out of the political discourse, and everywhere…Coalition and opposition, left and right. Accusations of treason imperil our democracy.”

Sure, there are traitors out there. But is everyone on the opposing side automatically a traitor? I think we live in a world in which, too quickly or flippantly, the answer is yes. It shouldn’t be that way. What Herzog proposed for the word “traitor” has parallels in other realms as well.

If we want to be heard, if we want to be known for our voices, then we need to try and ensure our voices – our kol – be full and authentic.