Who do we pray for?
“He (Jacob) encountered the place and spent the night there… (Genesis 28:11). Rashi comments that the word for “encounter” (va’yifga) means prayer. (This seems to be the meaning of the word in Jeremiah 7:16.) However, a few verses later, we are told explicitly that Jacob prayed that God should be with him, guard him on […]
Unconditional love
“Isaac loved Esav because he ate his game; but Rebecca loved Jacob.” (Genesis 25:28) The actual Hebrew of this verse reads that Rebecca “loves” Jacob, in the present tense. According to Rabbi Isaiah HaLevi Horowitz, we can understand this verse according to a teaching of our sages in Chapters of the Fathers (5:16). “Any love […]
Becoming desensitized
“And they (the two Hittite women that Esav married) were a source of bitterness to Isaac and to Rebecca.” (Genesis 26:35) The Midrash notes that the source of aggravation was because these women were idol worshipers. The Midrash also picks up on an interesting detail in the verse. It doesn’t say they were a source […]
A test of character
“Let it be that the girl…will say: Drink, and I will also water your camels, will be the one who You have determined for your servant Isaac…” (Genesis 24:14). Abraham’s home was built on kindness and caring for others, so his servant sought this quality when seeking to find a wife for Abraham’s son Isaac. […]
The silent scream
“God heard the voice of the lad…” (Genesis 21:17). After Sarah complained about Yishmael harassing their son Isaac, Abraham reluctantly sent Yishmael and his mother Hagar away. Lost in the desert and with their water used up, Hagar cast her son under one of the bushes and wept in a loud voice as she waited […]
Torah adds up!
“For I have known him so that he may command his children and his household after him that they keep the way of Hashem to do righteousness and justice…” (Genesis 18:19) In the phrase here “אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְצַוֶּ֜ה אֶת־בָּנָ֤יו” (that he may command his children”) – the last letter of each word forms the word TORAH […]
Abraham’s concern
There is a puzzling sequence of verses in this week’s Torah portion: In Genesis 15:5, the Almighty promises a very old and barren Abraham that he will have a huge progeny – as many as the countless stars in the heavens. Abraham fully trusts in this promise and God accounted this faith as righteousness (15:6). […]
Transforming negativity
“I will bless those who bless you, and those who curse you I will curse… (Genesis 12:3). The Hebrew terms here break symmetry in an interesting way. The root for ‘bless’ (BRCH) is used twice in the verse. But there are two different Hebrew roots for cursing (KLL and ARR). God says: Those who curse […]
CHANGE MAKERS
“…Noach was a righteous man, flawless in his generation, and Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:9). With these credentials, why wasn’t Noach tapped to be the progenitor of God’s chosen nation? The Alshich notes that Noach walked with God, but wasn’t so connected to the rest of humanity. If we compare him to Abraham, we […]
Hacking the Haftorah: BEREISHIS
This series explores the connection between the weekly Torah portion (Parashat HaShavuah) and its Haftorah. The Five Books of Moses are read publicly in synagogues each Shabbat morning and completed over the course of a year. There is an ancient custom to follow this with a portion from the writings of the Prophets. The most […]