In this week’s parsha, the last in the book of Sefer Bereshit, we see a very interesting pattern, the rejection of the first-born. When Yosef brought his two sons for a blessing from Yaacov, his father, who was old and ready to pass on, he did something very peculiar. Yaacov crossed his arms so that Efraim, who was the youngest, would be under his right hand and Menashe, who was older and purposely placed by Yosef at his grandfather’s right, got the left. Yaacov, who emphasized that Menashe also received a nice bracha, gave the more important blessing to Efraim.
We see through history that the first born, the well-respected elder, receives double the inheritance, losing, on many occasions, the status in which he inherited. This was apparent in the first generation of the world; Cain was the oldest; however Hevel got the reward. We know that Shem, (where our ancestors come from) one of three sons of Noach, was not the first-born. Abraham passed the baton to Isaac, the youngest, and not to Yishmael. The same is said about Isaac’s sons, Eisav, who was the bechor, but Yaacov was the brother chosen. Reuben, the eldest of the twelve tribes, neither got the first-born rights, the kingdom nor the kehuna (high priest).
First and foremost, the Torah is trying to emphasize, even though the first-born has changed the status of man and has made him a father of this precise bechor, nevertheless, the bechor has to earn the benefits that has been bestowed upon him. There’s an express, no job is safe. Apparently, it’s a demanding role and has to be maintained to the highest standard, or else he loses it.
Let’s examine the first-born. The obvious question asked, is there a general personality?
When the Jews were about to enter Israel, the tribes of Reuben, Gad and half of Menashe, wanted to settle outside Israel proper in trans-Jordan for financial gains. Moshe reluctantly agreed, but felt it was beneath them to make such a request. It just so happens that Reuben, Gad, and Menashe are all first born. In the old world, whether Jewish or not, the first born were not only the head of the family but regarded as the high priests, the ones closest to G-d. However, the spiritual status changed with the sin of the golden calf. The first born, the high priests, were responsible for the actions of the people and they failed to lead by example. Therefore, the status was taken away from them and given to the Levites who were not part of the sin.
Rabbi Yisroel Reisman quotes the Niztiv. When Yaacov was giving the brachot before his death, the passage quotes Yaacov in describing his dethroned bechor, Reuben, as ‘pachad mayim’ – rushed waters. This typifies Reuben’s character, as well as many first born, of one of tremendous energy, and when given the chance and the ability to focus, have tremendous drive to accomplish. Apparently, on occasions, they get so involved in what they are doing, they lose control (what happened to Eisav). Rabbi Reisman calls this type “A” personality – capable of achieving tremendous strides, very competitive under pressure, but the impulsive nature could be problematic.
Rabbi Reisman stresses that the key to the successes of the bechor is what history has designated him to be. His mission can only be fruitful if he goes through spirituality. This is what the first-born was meant to be. If his drive for materialistic needs is primary, then he is doomed for failure; only through spiritual channels will he succeed. If any one of those mentioned above would have dedicated more time to G-d, the Zohar says the scope of our history would have been different.
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