Q:
Avram had his name changed to Avraham and it remained that way. Yaakov had his name changed to Yisroel and immediately after his name was changed he was called Yaakov again. Can you explain that?
A:
This kasha is in the Gemara already. Why is it that Yaakov’s name which was changed to Yisroel is still used sometimes, whereas the name of Avraham is the name that’s being used and not the previous name Avram at all.
And the Gemara explains that we find that Hakadosh Baruch Hu Himself called him sometimes Yaakov. So we see that the name of Yaakov still persists. Why? Because it’s a prophetic name. Yaakov is a prophetic name. I’ll explain that.
When Yaakov was born, it was a queer circumstance. They were twins and when the second one came out, he was holding onto his brother’s heel. It was a remarkable thing, very unusual. So they called him Yaakov from the word eikev, a heel. He was holding onto the heel.
Now what does that mean? It means he is the one who will come last. It means he’ll get there. It takes some time, but he’s going to get there in the end. In the end, Yaakov will get there. The people of Yaakov will, at the end, be on top. That’s why he’s holding onto the heel. So that’s what it means, this prophecy.
Yisroel also means something. It means ‘He will conquer.’ So these two prophetic names both have a place. And therefore when Yisroel was added, Yaakov was not discarded entirely, because it still has a lesson. It’s like the name Yitzchak which means ’he’s going to laugh in the end’ – the last laugh will belong to Yitzchak’s people. אז ימלא שחוק פינו – Then our mouths will be full of laughter; it means that even though goyim sometimes laugh in this world but the Jewish nation will laugh in the end. And that’s because Yaakov will come and win in the end.
TAPE # 150 (December 1977)
