The mission of Rachel’s nurse Deborah

In this week’s parasha, Vayishlah, we read about Jacob’s return from Haran, where he raised his large family, to Canaan, the land of his birth and where his parents, Isaac and Rebekah, lived. This journey was full of hardships.

At the beginning, Jacob had to deal with his fatherin- law, Laban, who chased him and tried to prevent him from returning to his land. Then Jacob’s family got into trouble with the people of Shechem, when the son of the local ruler kidnapped Jacob’s only daughter, Dinah, and wanted to marry her against her will. In a controversial military action, Jacob’s sons killed the people of Shechem and released their sister.

As the journey continued, another tragedy struck: Rachel, Jacob’s beloved wife, died in childbirth. Rachel’s is not the only death we read about in this parasha.

Two others die during the time frame of Jacob’s journey.

One is a familiar character – Isaac, Jacob’s father, dies in old age and is buried in the family plot in the Cave of the Patriarchs.

Another person who dies during the course of the journey is a mysterious and unknown woman. We read about it in the following verse: “And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried beneath Bethel, beneath the plain; so he named it Allon Bacuth” (Genesis 35:8).

We know nothing more about this woman’s life other than that she was Rebekah’s nurse, meaning her educator. Therefore, her death and burial are noted and the place of her grave is given a name, an unusual event in the Bible. Who was Deborah and why was it important to note her death? Careful study shows that Deborah is mentioned one other time in the Torah, but without her name. It was when Rebekah was leaving her parents’ home on her way to Canaan to marry Isaac. There it says, “So they sent away Rebekah their sister and her nurse…” (Gen.

24:59). Deborah, it seems, was the one who accompanied Rebekah as she joined Abraham’s family. This makes her a significant character in Rebekah’s spiritual growth and that of her children.

And what does Rebekah do in Beth-el where she died and was buried? The famous biblical commentator Rashi explains, “What connection does Deborah have with Jacob’s household? However, since Rebekah said to Jacob, ‘and I will send and take you from there’, [it was] Deborah [whom] she sent to him, to Padan-aram [to instruct him] to leave from there, and she died on the way.”

Jacob’s stay in Haran was coerced. He had fled from his brother Esau’s rage and found shelter with his uncle Laban. Then he had to stay there for 14 years so that Laban would allow him to marry his daughter Rachel.

At the end of those 14 years, we might have expected Jacob to return to his ancestral home in Canaan, but Jacob stays in Haran longer to establish himself financially.

And just as we would have expected Jacob to return to his homeland, so did his mother Rebekah; but she was disappointed.

After several years passed, she sent Deborah to bring Jacob back. On her way she met Jacob, who was already on his way with his family, camping in Beth-el. There Deborah completed her mission and died.

For Jacob, Deborah was someone who symbolized the connection with previous generations. That was why she was chosen to go bring Jacob back to his country.

The deaths of certain people cause us to remember their lives and what they symbolized for us.

A moment before Jacob returned and was reunited with his parents, the Torah tells us through this story of Deborah’s death that he was not separated from his parents’ heritage. On the contrary, he thought about it and felt connected to it.

This was expressed by his reaction to Deborah’s death as such a significant event as to warrant naming the site of her burial Allon Bacuth, meaning the Oak of Weeping, symbolizing the sadness over her passing.

The writer is rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites.