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). […]
Spreading the light
“He took him outside and said: Look toward the heavens and count the stars…And He said to him – so will your descendants be.” (Genesis 15:5) Abraham’s descendants are compared to the stars of the heavens whose light is able to bring illumination to the darkness of night. God appointed Israel to be a light […]
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 […]
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 […]
Light up your words
“…A window you shall make for the ark.” (Genesis 6:16) The Hebrew word for window is ‘tzohar’, which can also mean illumination or light. The word for ark is ‘teivah’, which can also mean word. Based on this, the Baal Shem Tov derives a teaching about prayer: You shall illuminate your words! Polish them with […]
Noah Illuminated
“Make a tzohar for the ark…” (Genesis 6:16). Rashi* cites two views regarding what the tzohar was. One understanding is that it was a window that functioned as a skylight for the ark. The other view is that it was a luminous stone. Previously, Rashi presented two views of what was meant by the qualifier […]
Light vs Darkness
God called the light day and the darkness He called night… (Genesis 1:5) Rabbi Elijah of Vilna, known as the Gaon (genius) of Vilna used this verse from the beginning of the Torah to illuminate a passage from King Solomon’s book of Ecclesiastes: And I perceived that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness (2:13). […]
Now we begin…
“In the beginning God created…” (Genesis 1:1) The Almighty only created the beginning. He left the rest to mankind. (Rabbi Leibele Eiger of Lublin)
First things
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1) The first thing you must know is that God created the heavens and the earth! (Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sassov)
Where are You?
Rav Tzadok HaCohen of Lublin famously taught that the first time a word appears in the Torah is its headquarters. This is an appropriate idea to keep in mind as we begin our study of the Torah again this week with the portion of Bereishis – In the Beginning. In this week’s portion, we find […]