EXTRA · Side-ring · Parashas Vayeitzei · Passuk 30:42
This page is an EXTRA derasha. It is not part of the main-ring PREV/NEXT chain.
But when the flock were feeble, he did not place them; so the feebler were Lavan’s and the stronger were Yaakov’s.
Classical sources beyond the TT-numbered main ring: context of the selective breeding narrative.
Lemma: ובהעטיף הצאן.
English: “But when the flock were feeble he did not place them” — when the weaker animals came into heat, he did not set the rods.
Derash / classical peirush — not a formal named middah of the 13. Deliberate non-application of the method to the weaker stock.
By withholding the rods from the weaker animals, Yaakov ensured that the feebler offspring stayed with Lavan while the stronger stock became his own.