Haftarah Zachor: Background III

Transcribed and prepared by Anna Beller: Now there is another human being, we learn from midrash hayom, who looks exactly like Adam, who was that? Yaakov, Jacob looks exactly the way Adam did. So its interesting that what does the snake has to do? He has to attack Yaakov, right? Now the snake saw that there was another time when the Jews were almost able to destroy the yetzer harah– the evil inclination / Satan. When was that?

When they received the Torah at Sinai. So Satan was desperate. And therefore he had to find a way to insinuate himself into this situation so that he could prevent his destruction.  And the way he did it midrashikly– is that he showed a funeral bier with Moshe’s body, so the Jews were convinced that Moshe had died and the Jews had to turn to the golden calf, he won.

Now this is the third time you have a situation, because is Shaul wipes out Amalek that’s it it’s the end, there’s no more yetzer harah, Satan would be destroyed. And therefore, he has to insinuate himself into this battle because this battle is not just a war with another nation but this is a war against the whole essence of evil.  Shaul we will see, understands this very clearly, its not just a question of destroying Amalek, its also about destroying evil, and the evil inclination. And Shaul has to make calls on this in his own mind.