Tanach · Acharonim on Tanach · Or HaChaim · Torah
Or HaChaim on Genesis 27:23/אור החיים על בראשית כ״ז:כ״ג
אוְלֹא הִכִּירוֹ כִּי הָיוּ וְגוֹ׳. וְאַף עַל פִּי כֵן דָּחָה שְׁמִיעַת קוֹל מִלִּפְנֵי חוּשׁ הַהֶרְגֵּשׁ, כִּי הַקּוֹל יָכוֹל לְהִשְׁתַּנּוֹת, אוֹ לְצַד מַשְׁמִיעַ, אוֹ לְצַד שׁוֹמֵעַ, מַה שֶׁאֵין כֵּן הַרְגָּשַׁת שַׂעֲרוֹת הַיָּדַיִם הוּא סִימָן מֻבְהָק.
1 ולא הכירו כי היו ידיו כידי עשו, he did not recognise him since his hands were like those of Esau. Isaac rejected the doubt created by Jacob's voice since a person can change his voice or the listener may mistake a voice for that of someone else, whereas he cannot change the hairs on his hands, a very distinctive mark of identification.
בוַיְבָרְכֵהוּ. פֵּרוּשׁ, לְצַד כִּי מִקּוֹדֶם שֶׁמִּשְּׁשׁוֹ וְיָדַע כִּי עֵשָׂו הוּא, לֹא הָיָה לוֹ דָּבָר מַכְחִישׁ לַקּוֹל הַבָּא לְאָזְנָיו שֶׁאֵינוֹ עֵשָׂו, וַהֲרֵי זֶה מְתַעְתֵּעַ וְנִכְנַס בַּחֲשָׁשַׁת יַעֲקֹב שֶׁאָמַר ״וְהֵבֵאתִי עָלַי״ וְגוֹ׳, וַהֲגַם שֶׁלֹּא מָצִינוּ לוֹ שֶׁקִּלְלוֹ, אַף עַל פִּי כֵן הֵכִין לִבּוֹ לְשִׂנְאָתוֹ, וְדָבָר זֶה בַּצַּדִּיקִים יַפְעִיל, וְצֵא וּלְמַד מִדִּבְרֵי רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (בבא מציעא פד.) אִם הָיוּ מַקְפִּידִים בְּלִבָּם עַל הַזּוּלַת הָיוּ מְבִיאִים עָלָיו קְלָלָה, לָזֶה כְּשֶׁרָאָה יָדָיו שְׂעִירוֹת וַיְבָרְכֵהוּ לְהָסִיר הַהֵפֶךְ שֶׁהוּמְשַׁךְ מִקּוֹדֶם׃
2ויברכהו, he blessed him. Before Isaac touched Jacob and established that he was Esau nothing had contradicted his impression that it was Jacob's voice he heard and that therefore he was faced by a swindler. Isaac had begun to think along the lines Jacob had been afraid of, i.e. that the swindler deserved to be cursed. Even though Isaac had not yet thought that far, he did begin to hate the person who he thought was trying to swindle him. The Talmud reports in Baba Metzia 84 that when the righteous are looking at someone with displeasure this brings a curse in its wake. [Rabbi Yochanan's displeaure at Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish's remarks resulted in the latter dying. Ed.] The Torah reports Isaac as blessing Jacob as a result of feeling his hands to teach us that he reversed his erstwhile intentions.