Why is chapter 36 included in the Torah? Why does one need to know who was Esav’s descendants?
Radak (on 36:19) explains that the list of descendants is either to show respect for Yitzhak or for the Jewish people to know who was a descendant of Esav in order that they would not live in their land.
Abravanel suggests two other answers. One, the chapter is to tell us of the incestuous practices of Esav’s descendants, and two, the chapter is to show that the blessings that Esav received from Yitzhak, 27:39,40, were realized.
We will try to develop another possibility. We will start with a review of the chapter.
Chapter 36 can be divided into five units. The first unit is 36:1-8, which records the activities of Esav in the land of Canaan, and that he left Canaan to live in Mount Se’ir. This same process occurred with Lot, 13:5-13. Similarly, Lot's descendants received land on the east bank of the Jordan River, the land of Moav and Ammon. Devarim 2:5 records that G-d promised the land of Se’ir to Esav and Devarim 2:9,19 records that G-d promised the land of Moav and Ammon to Lot as an inheritance. Thus, just as the Torah records Lot’s departure from the land and the sordid story of his children (19:30-38), so too the Torah records Esav's departure from the land and his children.
The second unit in chapter 36 is 36:9-19, which records that the children and/ or grandchildren of Esav became chieftains or heads of families in the land of Mount Se’ir (Rashi on 36:15). The children of Esav had already been mentioned in the first unit, as they had been born in the land of Canaan, but as 36:9 starts a toledot section, then the genealogical information is repeated. (For similar occurrences, see 4:26-5:3, 5:32-6:10, 11:26,27 and 25:19.)
The second unit of chapter 36 is similar to the list of sons of Yishmael, as in both cases, their children become leaders of families that were like tribes, 25:16 and 36:15-19. In both cases, the lists seem to be a fulfillment of prophecies from G-d, by Yishmael, 21:13,18 and by Esav, 25:23, that nations would derive from them. In addition, these sections are also similar to 19:30-38 which record the births of Lot’s children/ grandchildren, Moav and Ammon. Both Lot and Yishmael, like Esav, were potential participants in the covenantal process, and hence just as the Torah records the descendants of Lot and Yishmael, the Torah records the descendants of Esav. In all three cases, the family member who did not remain in the covenantal process, Lot, Yishmael and Esav, were not completely disregarded, as the Torah records their descendants. Hence, the second unit of chapter 36 is significant. We are left to explain the significance of the last three units of chapter 36.
The third unit is 36:20-30, which records the chieftains or families of the sons of Se’ir the Horite, who lived in the land of Se’ir before Esav. The fourth unit is 36:31-39, and records the kings of Edom. The fifth unit, 36:40-43, records another list of families or chieftains of Esav, some of whose names correspond to the list of the second unit and some who are new.
Robert Sacks (1990) suggests a fascinating way to understand chapter 36. He notes that there are numerous textual problems with the chapter, which he calls “the most artless chapter in Bereshit and perhaps in the whole Bible.” Just a few examples: Ana is apparently a woman based on 36:2 but 36:20 seems to refer to Ana as a man. Korah is initially just a member of the Oholivama branch of Esav’s family, 36:14, but then he appears as a chieftain in both Oholivama’s and Elifaz’s branch of Esav’ family, 36:16,18. 36:20,21 record that one family has two brothers, Dishon and Dishan, but then in 36:26, Dishon seems to become Dishan. While the commentators give reasons for each anomaly, Sacks suggests that the text records the history of Esav as if it had been preserved by Esav’s children, and this is why there are so many “mistakes” in the list since Esav’s children did not keep careful records. Why would the Torah deliberately allow mistakes in the text? Sacks answers that this demonstrates the “artless character of Esav himself.”
Sacks points out a difference between the list of descendants of Esav and Yishmael. With regards to Yishmael we only have a list of his sons but not his later descendants, while for Esav his later descendants are also recorded. Sacks explains (throughout his commentary on Bereshit) that the family of Avraham was starting a New Way, which was a life based on the covenant, and this covenant is based on laws and tradition. A crucial part of a life based on laws and tradition is keeping records and thus people who were part of the New Way had to keep records. Yishmael was not part of the New Way since he was referred to as a wild ass, 16:12, and Sacks writes “the way of a wild ass is not a way that keeps records. But Esav as a strange mixture between the New Way and the wild ass does keep records. However, they tend to get scrambled a bit.”
There is also a genetic difference between Yishmael and Esav. By Yishmael only his father, Avraham, was part of the covenant with G-d, while Esav was Yitzhak and Rivka’s son, and Avraham and Sara’s grandson. Accordingly, Esav was entitled to have his history recorded, and the last three units of chapter 36 record the history of the rise and fall of Esav.
The third unit of chapter 36, 36:20-30, records the people who lived in Mount Se’ir before Esav became in control of the land. This unit then describes the rise of Esav, that he took control of the land of Mount Se’ir, see Devarim 2:22. Seforno (on 36:20) notes that this list shows that the initial inhabitants of Se’ir were men of great renown, and still Esav was able to gain control of the land from them. Furthermore, Ramban (on 36:31, also see Radak on 36:24) writes that that the list of the leaders of Seir shows the fulfillment of Yitzhak's blessing that Esav would succeed in battle, 27:40.
Afterwards, the fourth unit of chapter 36, 36:31-39, records the kings of Edom and even one of their successful battles with Moav, 36:35. This unit shows the peak of the power of the nation Edom that Esav founded. However, as we discussed on 25:23, "Did all the aspects of the oracle told to Rivka occur?" it is curious that neither Esav nor his sons are listed as one of the kings of Edom. This implies that while Esav was the great figure whose land was named after him, in the end, he was subservient to other kings. This list might then be the (partial?) fulfillment of the oracle to Rivka that the "elder would serve a younger," which was fulfilled when Esav served these other kings of Edom.
Within this fourth unit, 36:39 records that the eighth and last king of Edom was Hadar and the verse even records the name of his wife, Mehetabel, and her father/ mother and grandfather/ grandmother(?). This reference to Hadar’s wife is unique in this list and even more surprising is the reference to Mehetabel’s ancestry.
The Bekhor Shor (on 36:29) and the Baal HaTurim (on 36:39, and I thank my son Dror for pointing this out) suggest that Mehetabel is mentioned since she was the reason that Hadar became king. Furthermore, Sarna (1989, p. 253) suggests that Mehetabel’s mother and grandmother are mentioned since this indicated that Mehetabel has a “very distinguished ancestry.”
Maybe there are two other reasons for mentioning Mehetabel and her ancestry. One, 36:39 is towards the end of the list of descendants of Esav, and the list began by mentioning the wives of Esav, 36:2. With regard to one of the wives of Esav, Oholibamah, the Torah also refers to her double ancestry just like by Mehetabel. Thus, the reference to Mehetabel could be a literary technique to match the conclusion of the list with the beginning of the list. (This might have been useful for people who knew the Torah by memory.)
A second possibility is that since Hadar was the last king in the list if one wanted to find out what happened afterwards, then it is helpful to have more information about the family. Thus, Hadar's wife Mehetabel and her ancestry are mentioned.
To return to the structure of chapter 36, the fifth unit, 36:40-43, records the fall of the family of Esav. During this period presumably some families had died out and other families became prominent. These new prominent families are the new names mentioned in this unit. Yet, these new prominent families were no longer kings. As noted by Rashi (on 36:40) after there were no longer kings of the nation of Edom, the family of Esav reverted back to smaller disjointed families, unit five of the chapter, which indicated their loss of power.
We can summarize the significance of each unit of chapter 36. The first unit, as by Lot, shows why Esav was not part of the covenant since he left the land of Israel. The second unit, as by Yishmael, shows that G-d’s prophecy in 25:23 that nations would develop from Esav was fulfilled. The third and fourth units show the rise of Esav, while the fifth unit shows the decline of Esav. These last three units give the general history of Esav’s family, which Esav as a son of Yitzhak and Rivka and a grandson of Avraham and Sara was entitled to have recorded.
To return to the structure of chapter 36, the fifth unit, 36:40-43, records the fall of the family of Esav. During this period presumably some families had died out and other families became prominent. These new prominent families are the new names mentioned in this unit. Yet, these new prominent families were no longer kings. As noted by Rashi (on 36:40) after there were no longer kings of the nation of Edom, the family of Esav reverted back to smaller disjointed families, unit five of the chapter, which indicated their loss of power.
We can summarize the significance of each unit of chapter 36. The first unit, as by Lot, shows why Esav was not part of the covenant since he left the land of Israel. The second unit, as by Yishmael, shows that G-d’s prophecy in 25:23 that nations would develop from Esav was fulfilled. The third and fourth units show the rise of Esav, while the fifth unit shows the decline of Esav. These last three units give the general history of Esav’s family, which Esav as a son of Yitzhak and Rivka and a grandson of Avraham and Sara was entitled to have recorded.
Sacks, Robert, 1990, A commentary on the book of Genesis, Lewiston, New York: The Edwin Mellen Press.
Sarna, Nahum (1923-2005), 1989, The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis, Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society.