Omer 2016 Day 38: Esau's wives

What is the Omer? | Go back to Day 37 | Skip to Day 39

Day 38: Tiferet in Yesod, Balance in Connection

"Esau realized that the Canaanite women displeased his father Isaac. So Esau went to Ishmael and took to wife, in addition to the wives he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, sister of Nebaioth." (Genesis 28:8-9)

The Torah made it pretty clear when Abraham was finding a wife for Isaac that marrying a local Canaanite woman simply would not do, so when Esau married Judith and Basemath the Hittites, it was no surprise that Isaac and Rebecca were unhappy about it (Genesis 26:34-35). In an attempt to appease his parents, Esau tried to balance his wives by adding a third, Mahalath, with whom he had a family connection.