All We Have Is Hers

How could Rabi Akiva say that every bit of his Torah, and even all that of his disciples, was in Rochel’s merit?

Chazal (Yerushalmi, Shabbos 6:1) tell us that Rabi Akiva bought his wife, Rochel, a marvelous piece of jewelry called “Jerusalem of Gold” as a token of appreciation. Rabban Gamliel’s wife became jealous and demanded that her husband honor her with a similar gift.

Rabban Gamliel responded, “When your ahavas Torah equals Rochel’s, I will honor you the same way.”

We are to understand that Rochel’s ahavas Torah was a cut above that of Rabban Gamliel’s holy wife, and any other woman’s, by extension. But this is not so simple, and requires further examination.

Let’s back up a bit. Rochel was the daughter of Kalba Savua, one of the wealthiest men in Yerushalayim. Rochel herself was extraordinary and possessed all the qualities one could desire in a wife. She could have chosen any young man she wanted. But she had her eye on Akiva, a simple, illiterate, 40-year-old shepherd.