Rabbi Rabinowitz argues Jacob and Esau shared a single divine mission before their paths diverged

Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites, asserts that Jacob and Esau were originally intended to cooperate in fulfilling a singular spiritual destiny before their choices created a lasting conflict.

In a commentary on Parashat Toldot, Rabinowitz addresses the question of why two such opposing worldviews emerged from the same parents, Isaac and Rebecca. He notes that the Torah opens the portion with the phrase 'These are the generations of Isaac' (Genesis 25:19). The commentator Rashi explains this phrase as referring to Jacob and Esau, the sons described in the text. Rabinowitz interprets this as a reference to their shared potential rather than just their biological lineage.

The rabbi posits that the two brothers were designed to embody complementary aspects of serving God, based on the command in Psalms 34:15 to 'Turn from evil and do good.' Jacob was destined to focus on the latter, adding holiness to the world through Torah study and commandment observance. Esau was meant to carry the former, utilizing his strength to overcome evil and subdue material impulses. Rabinowitz explains that the Slonimer Rebbe, author of Netivot Shalom, taught that these two movements were meant to function together as a unified process.

According to Rabinowitz, a midrashic teaching states that the Twelve Tribes were originally meant to emerge equally from both brothers, with six tribes from each. This structure would have allowed both lines to participate in the rectification of the world. However, Esau abandoned his specific role in favor of a path disconnected from that responsibility. Consequently, the burden of completing the spiritual mission fell entirely on Jacob and his descendants.

This shift transformed the relationship between the brothers from cooperation into an ongoing struggle over the nature of the world and how the spiritual and material realms would interact. Rabinowitz states that this conflict will persist until the messianic era, when the verse in Obadiah 1:21 will be fulfilled: 'And saviors will ascend Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esau.' The rabbi emphasizes that because the twins shared the same source of human strength, they have always had only two options: cooperate in continuing Isaac's legacy or fight over what that path should be.

Rabinowitz advises that modern observers must remain faithful to the path of Jacob. He argues that contemporary Western civilizations, which focus primarily on removing evil without actively adding goodness, are proving purposeless. In his view, this approach often increases evil itself. Choosing Jacob's path requires actively building a world of meaning and establishing life upon firm spiritual and moral foundations.

The rabbi concludes that this path is the gateway to complete redemption. In that final state, evil will not merely be pushed aside, but goodness will spread in its place, allowing humanity to rediscover its true purpose.