There are a lot of hints that Yaakov Avinu foresaw the future of Klal Yisrael, and he mentioned them in the birchas Yaakov. Chazal tell us that Yaakov Avinu foresaw how Shimshon Hagibor will defeat the enemies of Klal Yisrael in an unbelievable way and Yakov thought that Shimshon was going to be the Moshiach, but since he saw that Shimshon was going to die, Yaakov Avinu realized he’s not going to be the Moshiach. So, what did Yaakov Avinu say next?
Today, I want to discuss an interesting question that was posed to me. It is something that I experience quite often when meeting people. The question is: “What is the level of Yiddishkeit, of frumkeit, of religion that Hashem expects of me? Does Hashem expect everybody to be committed to the same degree?” It would be very difficult to imagine that Hashem would expect from a little fellow from Chicago the same that He would want from a fellow from Lakewood or Meah Shearim
Yaakov Avinu was close to the end of his life. He called for his children and told them to gather around: האספו, gather together, “and I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen with you in the end of days” (Bereishis 49:1). I’m trying to imagine that. Yaakov Avinu, was the bechir ha’avos. Yaakov’s passing marked the end of the Avos era – the culmination and perfection of the foundation of Klal Yisrael.
