
Why does God double Jacob’s name, and why does he call him Israel in the same verse?
And God said to Israel in visions of the night, and He said, “Jacob, Jacob!” And he said, “Here I am.”
Gen. 46:2
Rebbetzin Miriam Yerushalmi, CEO S.A.N.E; author, Reaching New Heights series
Night is the time of darkness, which represents evil, the absence of light and goodness. It represents concealment, the opposite of revelation, a time when we cannot easily see what is around us and aren’t sure what is or isn’t there. With this verse, Hashem comforts Yaakov that even though it is nighttime, He will give him a vision, clarity, the settled mind to understand that Hashem is always there with him. It is a message for us that even in the dark, we can say, “I see You, Gd.” There is a famous saying, “All is in the hands of heaven except yirat shamayim.” “Yirat [shamayim]” can mean fear [of heaven], but it can also mean sight. Gd is calling us to see Him even in the night. The more we see Him, the more we are seen by Him, the more we can say, “Here You are, and here I am.” With the light of emunah (faith), and bitachon (trust), we can “see” Gd in whatever is happening. The word emunah comes from the root l’amen, to train. We have to train ourselves to have emunah and bitachon. They are like night-vision goggles that allow us to see in the darkest darkness, to see through all the falsehood and recognize Hashem in everything. That is our ultimate free choice, and the way to bring miracles—because when you see G-d even in your challenges, Hashem reciprocates and sees you in them, and will bring about the miracles you need.
You can also find this article on the 'Accidental Talmudist' https://www.accidentaltalmudist.org/table-for-five/2024/12/30/vayigash-joseph-the-righteous/
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