Archive: December 2011

Give Truth to Yaakov

by Rabbi Dov Linzer
Posted on December 2, 2011

Give truth to Yaakov, loving-kindness to Avraham…” (Micah 7:20), the prophet Micha asks of God, and thus, in kabbalistic literature, Avraham comes to represent the attribute of chesed, loving-kindness, while Yaakov represents the attribute of emet, truth.  While it is not at all difficult to see how Avraham is associated with loving-kindness  – witness his welcoming of the angelic guests –  it is quite challenging to see Yaakov as embodying the principle of truth. …