It came to pass when Rachel had born Yoseph, that Yaakov said to Lavan, "Send me away, and I will go to my place and to my land." (Bereishis 30:25) Rashi - WHEN RACHEL HAD BORN YOSEPH — after the birth of him who was to become Esau’s adversary (Bereishis Rabbah 73:7) — as it is said (Ovadiah 1:18) “And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame and the house of Esau for stubble“. Fire (Yaakov) that has no flame (Yosef) has no effect at a distance. Therefore, when Yoseph was born Yaacov put his trust in the Holy One, blessed be He, and wished to return home. Upon the birth of Yosef, Yaakov decides it is time to return home to Canaan. Rashi explains that Yosef is the adversary of Eisav and Yaakov can now feel confident that he will return to Canaan without fear of harm. The passuk in Ovadiah compares Eisav to straw, Yaakov to fire and Yosef to the spark. On a simple level this means that if I have a fire in one corner and straw in another, the straw is not in danger until the fire shoots out sparks. Now that Yosef, the spark, is born, Eisav can be defeated. Several questions come to mind. 1) What is the inner meaning of comparing Eisav to straw, Yaakov to fire and Yosef to a spark? 2) Rashi describes Yosef as the adversary to Eisav. - Do we ever find Yosef battling Eisav? - Upon returning to Canaan Yaakov confronts Eisav but Yosef doesn't seem to play any particular role in this story? - When Yaakov meets Eisav he says "Im Lavan garti" and Chazal explai
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