Reply To: Short & Sweet

Vayeitzei: God Always Wins

The Gemora tells us that after Yaakov asked Rochel to marry him, she gave him a warning: my father is a trickster, and he will not let you marry me before my sister gets married. Yaakov cryptically answers: אחיו אני ברמאות, I am his brother in trickery. Yet, we do not find that Yaakov ever tried to trick Lavan. What was he trying to say?

Perhaps we can suggest that Yaakov was referencing a deeper truth. In reality, nothing any person does can change the divine plan. Man plans and God laughs, for at the end of the day עצת ה׳ היא תקום.

Based on this, when Yaakov said “I am his brother in trickery” he may have meant “I don’t care if Lavan tricks me”. It wasn’t relevant to him whether Lavan seemed to have gotten away with his plans. He knew that what Hashem decided would happen, no matter what.

לע״נ דוד חיים בן ישראל דוב הכהן
לע״נ ר׳ חיים דוב בן ר׳ בןציון שלום