Seven Crowns

When Jacob begins his journey to Egypt after being informed that Joseph is still alive, God comes to him in a night vision and addresses him as Yisrael (Genesis 46:2). The Ba’al HaTurim points out that there is a tradition that the letter shin of Yisrael (ישראל) has seven crowns instead of the usual three. He then quotes the verse: “Seven times a tzaddik will fall and [yet still] arise” (Proverbs 24:16). These seven crowns symbolize the seven difficulties that Jacob faced and was saved from: 1) the hatred of Esau, 2) the deception of Lavan, 3) his battle with the angel, 4) the rape of Dina, 5) Joseph’s disappearance, 6) Shimon’s imprisonment 7) his separation from Binyamin.

These seven crowns in the name Yisrael remind us that it is, in many instances, our falls and obstacles and how we deal with them, that makes us who we are. Yisrael means, as the angel reveals to Jacob when he receives his new name: to struggle with God and man and to prevail. Jacob’s struggles in light of his being an archetypal figure are our struggles and they foretell Jewish history. Yet, along with the struggles are triumphs, and along with the challenges are opportunities. Despite virtually non-stop challenges to our existence, the Jewish people have left a positive and lasting mark on virtually every area of human development. Jacob/Yisrael arose from every difficulty and paved the way for each generation to do the same.