Torah Portion Genesis 37:1-40:23
Material for this parsha comes from the JPS Tanakh, Midrash Rabbah and Torah study at Temple Beth Israel in Eugene. As I've mentioned before, this is a very dynamic group. Today both rabbis were present.
The parsha is named Vayeishev, "and he dwelled/settled". In Torah study, we talked about the Hebrew word meaning more that he rested/resided instead of making a permanent home and that there's a negative connotation to it. Rabbi Yitz and another gentleman chanted the opening lines of this parsha together in Hebrew. No doubt the other gentleman had never chanted this passage before, but they sang in unison, note for note. My fiance asked how and Rabbi Yitz said that there were small notations like dots under the letters, called Trope, that showed the musical form of the text, because the entire Torah was intended to be sung aloud. I remembered reading countless tales of how few written copies were available in Jewish schools throughout the ages, and that even four year olds learned by repeating word for word the changing of the school master. This continued into yeshiva (a Jewish school of higher learning). I was very impressed with the gentleman who without any warning, sang along so perfectly. My fiance and I decided in the car later that the ability to do that was one more good reason to learn Hebrew.
The second sentence of this parsha is: "This is the line of Jacob", but instead of naming all the children like the Bible typically does, it plunges right into the story of Joseph, as if Joseph were the only important child, which, of course, is the source of all his troubles.
At age 17, Joseph shepherded along with his brothers. The text is unclear; he may have worked with only the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's concubines, or he may have worked with all the brothers. The text says: "Joseph tended the flocks with his brothers, as a helper to the sons of his father's wives Bilhah and Zilpah. And Joseph brought bad reports of them to their father." Perhaps he shepherded with all brothers and reported negative things of all of them. Perhaps they were making fun of him even then. But it could possibly be that he worked only for the sons of the concubines but still brought bad reports of the other brothers. In Torah study, I asked if the Hebrew clarified this. It does not. Rabbi Yitz said one Midrashic story casts Joseph's behavior in a very favorable light, saying that Leah's sons were mistreating the sons of the concubines so Joseph, in attempt to keep the family together, told his father.
It is no surprise that the same brothers who destroyed a town because of one man's behavior with their sister should be unreasonably angry with Joseph for telling on them and for being the favored son. Jacob had given Joseph a gift of an especially fine, colorful tunic with long sleeves. (Rabbi Maurice said that the word for tunic here is the same word used for the cloak of virgin brides. Later there are other references to Joseph's androgynous beauty.)
The brothers' jealousy became worse when Joseph told them of dreams in which it appeared he ruled over them. (The submission of all the brothers' sheaves of wheat to Joseph's is important, since it is for lack of food among the brothers that Joseph actually is able to rule over them. More on this later. It is also significant that the brothers' sheaves are together in a circle and Joseph's is alone.) Jacob does scold him, but apparently takes it seriously; "his father kept the matter in mind." Midrash says that Jacob was able to foresee the ffuture when this would come to pass. Perhaps Jacob, who seemed to lack prophetic visions unless God beat him over the head with them, remembered his own dream of the Stairway to Heaven and considered that dreams could mean much larger things than they seemed to. Rabbi Maurice said that Joseph seemed like an Asperger's child, brilliant but socially lacking, and that someone, Jacob preferably, but possibly Reuben, should have taken him aside and asked him to stop his big talk.
One day Jacob called Joseph, who answered hinieni, which means "I am here" or "I am ready" in Hebrew. This word is repeated throughout the Tanakh when God calls. Jacob told Joseph to go to Shechem, where he believed the brothers were pasturing sheep, but they had actually gone a little father, to Dothan. (Why Shechem again? Does Jacob want Joseph to find them because he believes only evil can come of going back to the town they destroyed?) Midrash says they are also tending to themselves; they did not follow their father's instructions.
Joseph does not find the brothers in Shechem, so he consults a man who tells them they said they were going to Dothan. Rashi and Maimonides both said the man was actually an angel sent by God. (Rashi specifies the angel Gabriel.) We could wish that Gabriel would protect Joseph from what happens next, but eventually everything works out well, as Joseph tells his brothers much later in Egypt. The brothers saw Joseph coming. They scheme to throw him into a pit. Reuben, however, the same one who had sex with his father's concubine, entreated the other brothers not to kill the boy. Reuben actually intended to save the boy himself later from the pit. (Midrash says that he was in sackcloth and repenting, when he was not present for the sale of Joseph, so maybe during his period of repenting having sex with his father's concubine, he learned some empathy.) The men took Joseph's tunic, threw him into a pit without water - and then sat down to eat!!! Judah had the idea of selling Joseph rather than killing him and the others agreed. Thus Joseph was taken to Egypt. Reuben rent his garment when he found Joseph missing. The other brothers slaughtered a kid, smeared it's blood on Joseph's tunic and took the tunic to Jacob, who put on a sackcloth and mourned. It's rather fitting that Jacob, who deceived his own father earlier, is now the deceived father.
Midrash Rabbah says that Jacob suspected Judah of killing Joseph because Judah supposedly brought the torn and bloodied coat to their father.
As we later learn, with Joseph gone, Benjamin, the other son of the departed Rachel, becomes the favorite. It may not be that Joseph was favored for any other reason than his mother. However, the hardship Joseph suffered because his mother died and his brothers hated him may have helped him become wise and strong. Midrash Rabbah says Joseph was lost to his father for 22 years, just as Jacob was lost to his father for 22 years.
The story temporarily leaves Joseph and moves on to Judah, who has apparently assumed leadership of the brothers after Reuben, Simeon and Levi (the first three born) lost the favor of their father for their immoral and/or violent conduct. Judah left home, found a wife and began to begat sons. The first son displeased the Lord and did not live long enough to produce offspring by his wife, Tamar. Judah asked his second son, Onan, to marry the wife, but Onan did not want to produce any children by her because the firstborn would count as his brother's, not his own. So he pulled out. The Lord killed him, also. (Per Monty Python: Every sperm is sacred, every sperm is great! If one sperm gets wasted, God gets quite irate!) Judah asked Tamar to stay as a window in her father's house until the third son Shelah grew up, but he did not really want to give her to Shelah, for fear the third son might also die. (Apparently he considers her the likely reason the first two sons died rather than considering them to be at fault.)
Many years later, Judah came to the town of her father for sheep shearing. She covered herself with a veil and dressed as a harlot. Judah promised her a kid from his flock to pay for his services; she asked for his seal, cord and staff as proof that he would pay her. She conceived by him, put on her widow's garb again and went home. Judah did send a kid but could not find any harlot in town because there wasn't a harlot in town. When she was three months pregnant began to show, Judah was told that his supposedly chaste widow daughter in law was pregnant. He was angry that she should bring shame on the family and declared, "Let her be burned!" But she had his seal, cord and staff. He then admitted that he was at fault because he had promised her his son Shelah but had failed to keep his promise. Remember, this was a time when a woman must have a son in order to be guaranteed a secure future after the death of her husband.
Like Rebekah, Tamar had twins. The midwife tied a crimson thread on the hand that poked out the womb first, to signify that child was first born. But the child withdrew his hand and the other came out first. Peretz, whose name means break-through, one of the sons, was an ancestor in the Davidic line. (As an aside, Midrash Rabbah says that two women covered themselves with veils and had twins; the other being Rebekah.)
The story returns to Joseph. Joseph was purchased by the chief of Pharaoh, Potiphar. Because of Joseph, the Lord blessed Potiphar's household; Potiphar recognized this and made Joseph his personal attendant, in charge of everything he owned. Joseph again got a rather fine linen coat, as well as jewelry. (Midrash says that Potiphar wanted Joseph sexually.) Joseph was handsome, but thought nothing of Potiphar's belongings - or his wife. However, Rashi thought he was vain and that what happens next is punishment for his vanity. (Rashi actually wrote that Joseph curled his hair!)
Potifar's wife became increasingly a pest, bothering Joseph to have sex with her. One day she commanded, "Lay with me!" She grabbed his fine coat and as he ran off, it tore. Like the brothers before her, she used his coat as evidence for a lie. She told everyone, first her servants and then her husband that Joseph tried to rape her, she screamed and he fled. Potiphar believed his wife and threw Joseph in the same prison where the king's prisoners were confined. (Notice how this is the only woman whose desire for sex was stated outright rather than hidden in schemes or subdued while male family members decided whether to give her as a wife.)
The Lord favored Joseph in prison, too, where Joseph was given charge of all the prisoners. The Pharaoh's cup bearer and baker were jailed shortly thereafter. (A fly was found in wine and a stone in a loaf of bread.) Joseph showed concern for their feelings, which is one of the reasons people so love Joseph even today. His life was an exhaustive roller coaster ride, but he was kind, noticing they seemed downcast on one particular day. The cup bearer and baker were distraught because no one could interpret their dreams. Joseph said surely God could! And then he did. (The cup bearer is restored to his position but the baker is executed.) He asked the cupbearer, whose dream was favorable, to remember him when he got out, and to set him free, for he had done no wrong. Even though both of the dreams came true, the cupbearer forgot to set Joseph free. Midrash says that this is punishment for Joseph asking another human being to release him rather than asking God to.
Rabbi Yitz said this story is representative of the Jewish story, that Joseph is aware of his chosenness despite persecution and that he holds onto belief in his destiny as helping to bring the Messianic age. Rabbi Maurice says that Joseph is very accepting of the troubles that come his way. Torah often mentions others crying out, but there is no mention of this from Joseph when he is thrown into the pit, sold, or sent to jail. Rabbi Yitz also said that Midrash said that Jacob could not be comforted because he did not actually believe deep down that Joseph had died. You can not be comforted for the living.
I have to write a speech for my Speech 101 class. I am really impressed by how an event planned with evil intent led to the emotional growth of both Joseph and the brothers. By the end of the next parsha it is clear that they have all learned empathy and kindness.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Friday, November 26, 2010
Genesis 32.4-36:43
Genesis 32.4-36:43
It did not say at the beginning of this parsha who the messengers were that Jacob sent to meet his brother Esau before travelling further. My first thought was that they were angels, since that was how the previous parsha ended, but they acted in a very human manner, returning to say that Esau was heading their way with 400 men. They did not tell Jacob he had no reason to fear, so of course he was afraid and divided his camp into two, thinking that if Esau attacked one camp, the other might escape. Then he prayed to God, praising him for his steadfast kindness and protection in the past and asking for it again when Esau arrived. He reminded God of the promise to make his progeny too numerous to count!" (This reminding God of His promise in times of trouble seems to be a family trait.)
In Torah study, we discussed the repeated use of the word face in Hebrew; we're not entirely sure of the exact definition. An Israeli in attendance said it was not used like the English losing face. Rabbi Yitz said it was inner essence. There are a couple places where the Hebrew is used to indicate the face or faces of God (Panim = faces) and indicates turning.
Jacob selected a huge number of livestock to give to Esau as a gift and sent them ahead in droves to meet Esau. He intended each time for Esau to be pleased with his gift and think it was the last, then encounter another (and finer) gift. He waited out part of the night, then sent his wives, servants and eleven children plus all his possessions across a stream and remained alone.
A "man," interpreted to be an angel, wrestled with Jacob the rest of the night, leaving Jacob's hip wrenched out of his socket, but undefeated. This is, after all, the same Jacob who rolled the rock apparently several other men usually rolled off the well. The angel actually begged him to let him go at daybreak, but Jacob insisted on a blessing first. The angel said Jacob would be renamed Israel because he fought both human and divine and prevailed. Jacob asked the angel's name, but the angel refused and left. In Israeli society (and also American Indian) one can find out a lot about others by the names they are given. Unlike modern day Americans, who are often named after celebrities or ancestors, or just because the names sound good, Israeli names included a description of the individual. Talmud has two opinions, which are both considered true, that both a man and a god fought with Jacob. The sense is there is a blurred line between man and divine. My fiance and I talked about whether the wrestling is to deal with Esau or to wrestle with himself and that he had to end up crippled because his ego was so tied up in physical strength.
Thereafter, Jacob/Israel limped and therefore, the Bible says we Jews are not to eat the thigh muscle that attaches to the hip socket. (The Rabbis extend this prohibition.)
In Torah study, someone reminded us that God wanted to destroy Moses, too and Zipporah saved the family by circumcising the boys in a hurry. We still struggle with worry over whether God wants to destroy us or let others destroy us. We are not always as quick and bright as Zipporah.
Jacob (the text still calls him so here) divided his children and wives according to their dearness to him; he put the maids and their children first, then Leah and her children, then Rachel and Joseph. He went ahead and bowed low seven times as he approached his brother. When he and Esau met, they embraced and wept. (David said that wrestling with the angel prepared him for this meeting with Esau, since wrestling and embracing are related!) Esau was astonished by the number of wives and children Jacob had and protested about all the gifts Jacob had sent ahead. Esau said he had enough possessions of his own. But Jacob insisted.
From JewishJournal.com:
Esau's response is surprising. He embraces his brother. Kisses him. They weep together. Is 20 years enough time to erase the pain of a stolen birthright? Could a fleet of animals have warmed Esau's heart? To be sure, Esau is overwhelmed. “Looking about, Esau saw the women and the children. ‘Who,’ he asked, ‘are these with you?’ “ (Genesis 33:5). As it turns out, Esau has become a brother-in-law and uncle many times over. “And what do you mean by all this company which I have met?” (Genesis 33:8). He is perplexed by the number of animals representing Yaakov's wealth and prosperity. He might even be stunned by Yaakov's generosity, amazed by all that has transpired since Yaakov ran away.
And in the midst of animals, wives and children, two brothers acknowledge a new reality:
Yesh li rav, Esav says. “I have enough. Let what you have remain yours.”
Yesh li kol, Ya’akov says. “I have plenty. Please accept.”
And suddenly, where once there was only enough for one, it seems there is enough for everyone. Twenty years earlier, a perceived scarcity was the source of great fear and anger, dividing the family. Twenty years later, surrounded by family and livestock, both brothers proclaim, “I have what I need,” and they embrace.
There is something magical about this declaration, “Yesh li kol.” I have enough. I have everything I need. In Parashat Vayishlach, it transforms a scene between brothers.
Pasted from
It appeared that Jacob may have deceived his brother again when he asked that Esau go on home and Jacob would travel at the pace of his children and livestock and meet Esau at his home. JPS says " But Jacob journeyed on to Succoth and built a house for himself and made stalls for his cattle."
In this home, Dinah, Leah's daughter, "went out to visit the daughters of the land." (Rabbi Yitz says dinah/din means judgment.) The Talmudic Rabbis saw this as very unwomanly behavior; no wonder she was raped by Shechem! Rabbi Yitz and the Israeli in Torah study said it was unclear in Hebrew. The same word is used in the relationship between Sarah and Hagar. It might be all of the following: oppressed, responded, humbled, humiliated and defiled, purposely allowing multiple meanings.
Likewise, we don't know what to think about the fact that Shechem wanted his father to get him Dinah as a wife. Was he repentant or just a control freak? So the father, Hamor, went to speak with Jacob. Here Jacob acts like Abraham; he knew what happened, but kept silent until his sons came home. Hamor intended to speak with Jacob, but the sons met him first.
Jacob's sons were very angry and were not impressed by Hamor's entreaties for them to intermarry with his city's daughters in return. Hamor promised them that they could settle in the land. Shechem offered to pay whatever bride price and to ply them with gifts if he could have Dinah for a wife.
Jacob's sons tricked the men by saying they could not agree to let any of their women marry uncircumcised men. But if they and the others in their town would be circumcised, they could settle in peace, intermarry and become like kin. Shechem and Hamor went into town and pleaded with the townspeople to be circumcised so they may live as kindred. The men did so. (There is no record if they knew that Shechem had actually raped Dinah or just wanted her for his wife.) On the third day Simeon and Levi went into town with swords and slew all the men, who were in too much pain to fight. They took Dinah back home. The other sons plundered the town, seizing not only goods and livestock, but also all the women.
In Torah study, my fiance brought up that the men of the town were circumcised but not for religious reasons, but for profit. Rabbi Maurice says it was not done in repugnance of intermarrying because they took the women of the town. Rabbi Maurice also brought up the final blessing in a later parsha - in which the tribal head of the priesthood kills men when he is angry and maims cattle when he is not. This may serve as a warning for later.
Dinah is not treated as a human being here. I think since she is not a matriarch, Torah did not consider it important that she has a personality. Unlike the matriarchs, she was not shown to feel love, jealousy, hurt, anger or joy. She was an extra rather than a character actor; it was more important how Jacob and the sons react to what happened. (Nahmanides, in contrast to all the other sages, said that Dinah was not described, even though all the other women of the Bible are, because the Bible does not want to blame the victim by saying she was pretty, shapely, etc. The other sages assumed she did something to deserve what happened to her.)
Jacob chastised them, saying their actions would make them enemies of all the Canaanites and Perizzites, and that they could be destroyed. The sons answered, "Should our sister be treated like a whore?" This strikes me as harsh, to ruin a town and kill all the men because one behaved badly, especially since that one attempted to make amends. However, this behavior is still fairly common in the Middle East today.
Jacob heard a call from God to go to Bethel and build an altar "to the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau." Are we to take it that God did not believe Himself adequately thanked? When Jacob dreamed of the stairway to heaven, he turned his pillow stone to become a pillar, poured oil on it, renamed it Bethel and promised that IF God stayed with, fed and clothed and protected him, God would be his God and that he would tithe, Torah records that he built an altar on the land he bought from Hamor in Canaan. It does not record a return to Bethel, tithing or any particular pattern of worship. In fact, Jacob told his people to rid themselves of their idols and the rings in their noses, so we can only assume they worshipped pagan gods rather than the Lord.
Jacob told his family to purify themselves, including changing their clothes and he buried the idols and earrings before they left. God sent a terror to all the cities surrounding them so that no one pursued them. Jacob took his family to the same place where he had laid his head on a stone, formerly called Luz but now renamed Bethel, meaning that God resided there. Jacob built and altar and named it El-bethel. El, again, is the name of the Canaanite God.
Again, the idols are treated in a manner that could almost be humorous: they are so small one can bury them along with earrings!
God appeared and told Jacob he was to be called Jacob no longer, but Israel. God told him "I am El Shaddai." El-Shaddai means God of the mountain. El is the name of the Canaanite highest god. More on this later. He repeated the commandment to be fertile and multiply, promised that nations would be born of him and kings would spring from his loins. Apparently when Jacob ran away from clear and present danger in Canaan and came to build an altar, God forgave him.
Israel and his family continued on their journey. Rachel went into difficult labor and the family had to stop. The midwife tried to comfort her, saying she had another boy, but Rachel died. She named the boy Ben-oni, son of my suffering. Israel called him Benjamin, which means either son of the south of son of the right hand. Rachel died and was buried on the road to what is now Bethlehem.
Reuben had sex with his father's concubine Bilhah and Jacob/Israel found out, but the text does not tell us if he punished Reuben in any way at this point. But Jacob/Israel did not forget, as we will later see.
Israel at last reached his father, Isaac, who made it to 180 years old before he died and was buried by both sons, Esau and Israel. Intereting he made it this long, because when he blessed the sons, he was already blind and weak. Since then at least 35 years have passed in my estimation, based on the sexuality of the children and the fact that Jacob said when he left Laban that he had promised to serve seven years but ended up serving twenty.
Esau took his large family and livestock and moved because Canaan was not fertile enough to support both his family's and Israel's. Esau's descendants were called Edomites. One of his grandchildren by Esau's son Eliphaz and a concubine was Amalek, who would fight with Israelis later.
It did not say at the beginning of this parsha who the messengers were that Jacob sent to meet his brother Esau before travelling further. My first thought was that they were angels, since that was how the previous parsha ended, but they acted in a very human manner, returning to say that Esau was heading their way with 400 men. They did not tell Jacob he had no reason to fear, so of course he was afraid and divided his camp into two, thinking that if Esau attacked one camp, the other might escape. Then he prayed to God, praising him for his steadfast kindness and protection in the past and asking for it again when Esau arrived. He reminded God of the promise to make his progeny too numerous to count!" (This reminding God of His promise in times of trouble seems to be a family trait.)
In Torah study, we discussed the repeated use of the word face in Hebrew; we're not entirely sure of the exact definition. An Israeli in attendance said it was not used like the English losing face. Rabbi Yitz said it was inner essence. There are a couple places where the Hebrew is used to indicate the face or faces of God (Panim = faces) and indicates turning.
Jacob selected a huge number of livestock to give to Esau as a gift and sent them ahead in droves to meet Esau. He intended each time for Esau to be pleased with his gift and think it was the last, then encounter another (and finer) gift. He waited out part of the night, then sent his wives, servants and eleven children plus all his possessions across a stream and remained alone.
A "man," interpreted to be an angel, wrestled with Jacob the rest of the night, leaving Jacob's hip wrenched out of his socket, but undefeated. This is, after all, the same Jacob who rolled the rock apparently several other men usually rolled off the well. The angel actually begged him to let him go at daybreak, but Jacob insisted on a blessing first. The angel said Jacob would be renamed Israel because he fought both human and divine and prevailed. Jacob asked the angel's name, but the angel refused and left. In Israeli society (and also American Indian) one can find out a lot about others by the names they are given. Unlike modern day Americans, who are often named after celebrities or ancestors, or just because the names sound good, Israeli names included a description of the individual. Talmud has two opinions, which are both considered true, that both a man and a god fought with Jacob. The sense is there is a blurred line between man and divine. My fiance and I talked about whether the wrestling is to deal with Esau or to wrestle with himself and that he had to end up crippled because his ego was so tied up in physical strength.
Thereafter, Jacob/Israel limped and therefore, the Bible says we Jews are not to eat the thigh muscle that attaches to the hip socket. (The Rabbis extend this prohibition.)
In Torah study, someone reminded us that God wanted to destroy Moses, too and Zipporah saved the family by circumcising the boys in a hurry. We still struggle with worry over whether God wants to destroy us or let others destroy us. We are not always as quick and bright as Zipporah.
Jacob (the text still calls him so here) divided his children and wives according to their dearness to him; he put the maids and their children first, then Leah and her children, then Rachel and Joseph. He went ahead and bowed low seven times as he approached his brother. When he and Esau met, they embraced and wept. (David said that wrestling with the angel prepared him for this meeting with Esau, since wrestling and embracing are related!) Esau was astonished by the number of wives and children Jacob had and protested about all the gifts Jacob had sent ahead. Esau said he had enough possessions of his own. But Jacob insisted.
From JewishJournal.com:
Esau's response is surprising. He embraces his brother. Kisses him. They weep together. Is 20 years enough time to erase the pain of a stolen birthright? Could a fleet of animals have warmed Esau's heart? To be sure, Esau is overwhelmed. “Looking about, Esau saw the women and the children. ‘Who,’ he asked, ‘are these with you?’ “ (Genesis 33:5). As it turns out, Esau has become a brother-in-law and uncle many times over. “And what do you mean by all this company which I have met?” (Genesis 33:8). He is perplexed by the number of animals representing Yaakov's wealth and prosperity. He might even be stunned by Yaakov's generosity, amazed by all that has transpired since Yaakov ran away.
And in the midst of animals, wives and children, two brothers acknowledge a new reality:
Yesh li rav, Esav says. “I have enough. Let what you have remain yours.”
Yesh li kol, Ya’akov says. “I have plenty. Please accept.”
And suddenly, where once there was only enough for one, it seems there is enough for everyone. Twenty years earlier, a perceived scarcity was the source of great fear and anger, dividing the family. Twenty years later, surrounded by family and livestock, both brothers proclaim, “I have what I need,” and they embrace.
There is something magical about this declaration, “Yesh li kol.” I have enough. I have everything I need. In Parashat Vayishlach, it transforms a scene between brothers.
Pasted from
It appeared that Jacob may have deceived his brother again when he asked that Esau go on home and Jacob would travel at the pace of his children and livestock and meet Esau at his home. JPS says " But Jacob journeyed on to Succoth and built a house for himself and made stalls for his cattle."
In this home, Dinah, Leah's daughter, "went out to visit the daughters of the land." (Rabbi Yitz says dinah/din means judgment.) The Talmudic Rabbis saw this as very unwomanly behavior; no wonder she was raped by Shechem! Rabbi Yitz and the Israeli in Torah study said it was unclear in Hebrew. The same word is used in the relationship between Sarah and Hagar. It might be all of the following: oppressed, responded, humbled, humiliated and defiled, purposely allowing multiple meanings.
Likewise, we don't know what to think about the fact that Shechem wanted his father to get him Dinah as a wife. Was he repentant or just a control freak? So the father, Hamor, went to speak with Jacob. Here Jacob acts like Abraham; he knew what happened, but kept silent until his sons came home. Hamor intended to speak with Jacob, but the sons met him first.
Jacob's sons were very angry and were not impressed by Hamor's entreaties for them to intermarry with his city's daughters in return. Hamor promised them that they could settle in the land. Shechem offered to pay whatever bride price and to ply them with gifts if he could have Dinah for a wife.
Jacob's sons tricked the men by saying they could not agree to let any of their women marry uncircumcised men. But if they and the others in their town would be circumcised, they could settle in peace, intermarry and become like kin. Shechem and Hamor went into town and pleaded with the townspeople to be circumcised so they may live as kindred. The men did so. (There is no record if they knew that Shechem had actually raped Dinah or just wanted her for his wife.) On the third day Simeon and Levi went into town with swords and slew all the men, who were in too much pain to fight. They took Dinah back home. The other sons plundered the town, seizing not only goods and livestock, but also all the women.
In Torah study, my fiance brought up that the men of the town were circumcised but not for religious reasons, but for profit. Rabbi Maurice says it was not done in repugnance of intermarrying because they took the women of the town. Rabbi Maurice also brought up the final blessing in a later parsha - in which the tribal head of the priesthood kills men when he is angry and maims cattle when he is not. This may serve as a warning for later.
Dinah is not treated as a human being here. I think since she is not a matriarch, Torah did not consider it important that she has a personality. Unlike the matriarchs, she was not shown to feel love, jealousy, hurt, anger or joy. She was an extra rather than a character actor; it was more important how Jacob and the sons react to what happened. (Nahmanides, in contrast to all the other sages, said that Dinah was not described, even though all the other women of the Bible are, because the Bible does not want to blame the victim by saying she was pretty, shapely, etc. The other sages assumed she did something to deserve what happened to her.)
Jacob chastised them, saying their actions would make them enemies of all the Canaanites and Perizzites, and that they could be destroyed. The sons answered, "Should our sister be treated like a whore?" This strikes me as harsh, to ruin a town and kill all the men because one behaved badly, especially since that one attempted to make amends. However, this behavior is still fairly common in the Middle East today.
Jacob heard a call from God to go to Bethel and build an altar "to the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau." Are we to take it that God did not believe Himself adequately thanked? When Jacob dreamed of the stairway to heaven, he turned his pillow stone to become a pillar, poured oil on it, renamed it Bethel and promised that IF God stayed with, fed and clothed and protected him, God would be his God and that he would tithe, Torah records that he built an altar on the land he bought from Hamor in Canaan. It does not record a return to Bethel, tithing or any particular pattern of worship. In fact, Jacob told his people to rid themselves of their idols and the rings in their noses, so we can only assume they worshipped pagan gods rather than the Lord.
Jacob told his family to purify themselves, including changing their clothes and he buried the idols and earrings before they left. God sent a terror to all the cities surrounding them so that no one pursued them. Jacob took his family to the same place where he had laid his head on a stone, formerly called Luz but now renamed Bethel, meaning that God resided there. Jacob built and altar and named it El-bethel. El, again, is the name of the Canaanite God.
Again, the idols are treated in a manner that could almost be humorous: they are so small one can bury them along with earrings!
God appeared and told Jacob he was to be called Jacob no longer, but Israel. God told him "I am El Shaddai." El-Shaddai means God of the mountain. El is the name of the Canaanite highest god. More on this later. He repeated the commandment to be fertile and multiply, promised that nations would be born of him and kings would spring from his loins. Apparently when Jacob ran away from clear and present danger in Canaan and came to build an altar, God forgave him.
Israel and his family continued on their journey. Rachel went into difficult labor and the family had to stop. The midwife tried to comfort her, saying she had another boy, but Rachel died. She named the boy Ben-oni, son of my suffering. Israel called him Benjamin, which means either son of the south of son of the right hand. Rachel died and was buried on the road to what is now Bethlehem.
Reuben had sex with his father's concubine Bilhah and Jacob/Israel found out, but the text does not tell us if he punished Reuben in any way at this point. But Jacob/Israel did not forget, as we will later see.
Israel at last reached his father, Isaac, who made it to 180 years old before he died and was buried by both sons, Esau and Israel. Intereting he made it this long, because when he blessed the sons, he was already blind and weak. Since then at least 35 years have passed in my estimation, based on the sexuality of the children and the fact that Jacob said when he left Laban that he had promised to serve seven years but ended up serving twenty.
Esau took his large family and livestock and moved because Canaan was not fertile enough to support both his family's and Israel's. Esau's descendants were called Edomites. One of his grandchildren by Esau's son Eliphaz and a concubine was Amalek, who would fight with Israelis later.
Thoughts and Concerns About Conversion
Thoughts and Concerns About Conversion
Friday, November 12, I met with my rabbi about the progress of my conversion activities. As I mentioned before, I brought along my laptop, in which I have probably a hundred pages of my notes from Jewish studies. I didn’t bring it to try to convince him I’m brilliant; but to show my dedication because I am not. Unlike my paternal grandmother, I cannot look at a page and literally memorize it. About six months into my studies I realized how much I had already forgotten. I had two choices: slow down the reading or make an organized system of notes. I am too enthusiastic to do the former.
Despite my serious study, I have been concerned that people might misunderstand my reason for converting. Since I didn’t know anyone in Eugene before moving here June 1st, no one knows how many times I considered converting before I actually worked up the nerve to register for a class and begin attending services. I met my fiancé in Torah study. A few weeks later we had one conversation alone. That was all it took to make us inseparable! We became engaged on October 3rd.
The Talmudic Rabbis said that God Himself arranged marriages at birth; “This one is intended for that one.” A year ago I would have said that was hogwash. But how else can I explain the peace, happiness and certainty we feel together?
My rabbi said he knew I would convert even if I weren’t engaged, that I studied hard and often came to synagogue even before I met my fiancé. However, he did not feel inclined to choose the date I chose, January 3rd, which was the day I first checked a stack of Jewish books out of the library. He wanted to give it another month or so for me to think about it and until the year anniversary of when I actually began classes, so the conversion is more likely to be the middle of February.
I have read in several books and websites that some women felt like they were treated as lesser Jews because they converted right before marriage. Does it matter what brings one originally to Judaism? Isn’t it more important that the convert feel a deep desire to be Jewish?
By the time I was 21, I had been church-hopping for years, dissatisfied. Is it somehow more honorable that I, who had only met one Jewish person before that year, was driving by a synagogue and literally changed lanes to pull into the parking lot and go inside? I didn’t know what I was doing – and they refused me. If I had met an honorable, kind and studious man like my fiancé first, I doubt so many years would have passed before I set foot in a Temple again.
After we discussed my engagement, we I moved on to discuss my spiritual beliefs and how far I followed laws of kashrut. I said I am comfortable with Biblical kashrut except that women may not even be touched during their periods, but I am not comfortable with Rabbinical kashrut, which not only extends the time women are “unclean,” but also makes food preparation, storage and clean up a tremendous chore. He asked why Biblical and not Rabbinical; I answered (and one of the four people who reads this blog might object) that I am far more inclined to believe that the Torah is the word of God (except for some editorializing) than I am inclined to believe all commentaries are the word of God. Therefore, I am more inclined to willingly obey Biblical kashrut laws rather than be so grudging and halfhearted in my obedience to Rabbinical kashrut laws that I may as well not try.
We discussed various books of the Tanakh. I said Ezekiel would be locked up as crazy if he roamed the streets today… but women in ponytails and workout clothes buy bread named after him, Ezekiel 4:9 bread! The rabbi immediately laughed, knowing exactly what I meant. The recipe for this bread is given in Ezekiel 4:9: wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and emmer. But the instructions for baking it on human excrement are given in Ezekiel 4:12!
We got serious about the conversion itself. He, the Senior Rabbi and a third knowledgeable person, usually a woman, would meet with me and ask me to talk about my spiritual journey. They would ask a few questions. He said they rarely turned anyone away who got that far, but sometimes if there was too much stress in an applicant’s life, they would ask for a little more time before they proceeded with the conversion. After the session with the three (the Bet Din), I would go to the mikveh for my ritual immersion. I would need to find two women to be my witnesses. Once that was done, I would be considered a legal member of the Jewish community. They do not charge for the conversion itself, but it is traditional to give a donation to the couple that operates the mikveh.
I didn’t tell the rabbi this, but I am a little uncomfortable about the mikveh. I will have to undress and dunk myself in front of others.
The rabbi and I stood and shook hands in parting.
Later, cooking dinner with my fiance, I was stressing a little over whether the other two in the Bet Din might confuse my wish to marry with my wish to convert. My fiancé reminded me that the Senior Rabbi not only approved, but was very excited to hear about our engagement. (And he was! We went up to him after service and told him. His eyes opened wide, he laughed and threw back his head and exclaimed, “It’s what the world NEEDS!” He laughed again and hugged us both and wished us mazel tov!)
My fiancé took my hand and gave me a look I have never seen on anyone’s face but his, a look that says he believes in me wholeheartedly. “Once you begin speaking with them, you will relax and do beautifully because you know in your head and heart that you don’t want to be Jewish – you are Jewish.”
Friday, November 12, I met with my rabbi about the progress of my conversion activities. As I mentioned before, I brought along my laptop, in which I have probably a hundred pages of my notes from Jewish studies. I didn’t bring it to try to convince him I’m brilliant; but to show my dedication because I am not. Unlike my paternal grandmother, I cannot look at a page and literally memorize it. About six months into my studies I realized how much I had already forgotten. I had two choices: slow down the reading or make an organized system of notes. I am too enthusiastic to do the former.
Despite my serious study, I have been concerned that people might misunderstand my reason for converting. Since I didn’t know anyone in Eugene before moving here June 1st, no one knows how many times I considered converting before I actually worked up the nerve to register for a class and begin attending services. I met my fiancé in Torah study. A few weeks later we had one conversation alone. That was all it took to make us inseparable! We became engaged on October 3rd.
The Talmudic Rabbis said that God Himself arranged marriages at birth; “This one is intended for that one.” A year ago I would have said that was hogwash. But how else can I explain the peace, happiness and certainty we feel together?
My rabbi said he knew I would convert even if I weren’t engaged, that I studied hard and often came to synagogue even before I met my fiancé. However, he did not feel inclined to choose the date I chose, January 3rd, which was the day I first checked a stack of Jewish books out of the library. He wanted to give it another month or so for me to think about it and until the year anniversary of when I actually began classes, so the conversion is more likely to be the middle of February.
I have read in several books and websites that some women felt like they were treated as lesser Jews because they converted right before marriage. Does it matter what brings one originally to Judaism? Isn’t it more important that the convert feel a deep desire to be Jewish?
By the time I was 21, I had been church-hopping for years, dissatisfied. Is it somehow more honorable that I, who had only met one Jewish person before that year, was driving by a synagogue and literally changed lanes to pull into the parking lot and go inside? I didn’t know what I was doing – and they refused me. If I had met an honorable, kind and studious man like my fiancé first, I doubt so many years would have passed before I set foot in a Temple again.
After we discussed my engagement, we I moved on to discuss my spiritual beliefs and how far I followed laws of kashrut. I said I am comfortable with Biblical kashrut except that women may not even be touched during their periods, but I am not comfortable with Rabbinical kashrut, which not only extends the time women are “unclean,” but also makes food preparation, storage and clean up a tremendous chore. He asked why Biblical and not Rabbinical; I answered (and one of the four people who reads this blog might object) that I am far more inclined to believe that the Torah is the word of God (except for some editorializing) than I am inclined to believe all commentaries are the word of God. Therefore, I am more inclined to willingly obey Biblical kashrut laws rather than be so grudging and halfhearted in my obedience to Rabbinical kashrut laws that I may as well not try.
We discussed various books of the Tanakh. I said Ezekiel would be locked up as crazy if he roamed the streets today… but women in ponytails and workout clothes buy bread named after him, Ezekiel 4:9 bread! The rabbi immediately laughed, knowing exactly what I meant. The recipe for this bread is given in Ezekiel 4:9: wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and emmer. But the instructions for baking it on human excrement are given in Ezekiel 4:12!
We got serious about the conversion itself. He, the Senior Rabbi and a third knowledgeable person, usually a woman, would meet with me and ask me to talk about my spiritual journey. They would ask a few questions. He said they rarely turned anyone away who got that far, but sometimes if there was too much stress in an applicant’s life, they would ask for a little more time before they proceeded with the conversion. After the session with the three (the Bet Din), I would go to the mikveh for my ritual immersion. I would need to find two women to be my witnesses. Once that was done, I would be considered a legal member of the Jewish community. They do not charge for the conversion itself, but it is traditional to give a donation to the couple that operates the mikveh.
I didn’t tell the rabbi this, but I am a little uncomfortable about the mikveh. I will have to undress and dunk myself in front of others.
The rabbi and I stood and shook hands in parting.
Later, cooking dinner with my fiance, I was stressing a little over whether the other two in the Bet Din might confuse my wish to marry with my wish to convert. My fiancé reminded me that the Senior Rabbi not only approved, but was very excited to hear about our engagement. (And he was! We went up to him after service and told him. His eyes opened wide, he laughed and threw back his head and exclaimed, “It’s what the world NEEDS!” He laughed again and hugged us both and wished us mazel tov!)
My fiancé took my hand and gave me a look I have never seen on anyone’s face but his, a look that says he believes in me wholeheartedly. “Once you begin speaking with them, you will relax and do beautifully because you know in your head and heart that you don’t want to be Jewish – you are Jewish.”
Genesis 28:10 - 32:3
Genesis 28:10 - 32:3
Collected from my thoughts, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group and Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about the behaviors of our patriarchs and matriarchs.
In previous parsha, Jacob has already received the birthright blessing of his father Isaac through trickery that was Rebekah's idea. Jacob did not protest that that was dishonest, just that his father would recognize his smooth, hairless skin and would curse him as a trickster. (Esau must have been very, very hairy if Rebekah had to affix goat kid skin to him!)
Jacob left his home before Esau could kill him because Rebekah has persuaded (through negativity) Isaac to make sure Jacob found a wife from among their kin. Isaac told Jacob to go choose a wife from Laban's daughters. (Laban is Rebekah's brother, so all these girls would be his nieces.) Isaac says, "May El Shaddai bless you..."
This parsha begins with "Jacob left Beer-sheba and set out for Haran." The place where he first stopped for the night was a holy place, actually Mount Moriah according to the Rabbis, although Jacob did not know it. He placed his head on a stone for a pillow. Rabbi Eliezer said Jacob "met" this place; other rabbis said that the word for his arrival could also mean "prayer", though it was not the usual expression for prayer. Somehow it connotes that the earth, or even the mountain, sprang forward to meet him there. I am afraid I don’t yet know Hebrew, so I can not explain how this is. In Genesis Rabbah, the Rabbis also said the sun set suddenly, forcing him to stop there in this holy place. Genesis Rabbah further goes on to say that "he lay down in that place" implied a restrictiveness, that he never laid down to rest during all his service with Laban, because he was so engaged in Torah study!!!
And is this the inspiration for the Eagles' Stairway to Heaven? "He had a dream; a stairway was set on the ground and its top reached to the sky and angels of God were going up and down on it." God appeared to him in the dream, saying, "I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac..." Here, although it is a little early, we can use Martin Buber's idea:
Martin Buber - "Why do we say: 'our God and the God of our fathers'? There are two kinds of people who believe in God. One believes because he has taken over the faith of his fathers, and his faith is strong. The other has arrived at faith through thinking and studying... The advantage of the first is that, no matter what arguments may be brought against it, his faith cannot be shaken; his faith is firm because it was taken over from his fathers. But there is one flaw in it: he has faith only in response to the command of man and he has acquired it without studying and thinking for himself. The advantage of the second is that, because he found God through much thinking, he has arrived at a faith of his own. But here too there is a flaw: it is easy to shake his faith by refuting it through evidence. But he who unites both kinds of faith is invincible. And so we say 'our God' with reference to our studies and 'God of our fathers' with an eye to tradition. The same interpretation has been given to our saying 'God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob' and not 'God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob', for this indicates that Isaac and Jacob did not merely take over the tradition of Abraham; they themselves searched for God."
God also made the promise to Jacob that his offspring will be the "dust of the earth", which I read as uncountable, essential to living, frequently overlooked and mortal, as in we will return to dust. God said "all the families of the earth" (which could mean of the dust of the earth rather than literally everyone on the earth, since that would not be true) "shall bless themselves by you and your descendants." And still today, we Jews do. God promised he would not leave Jacob until he brought him back to the land and did what he promised. This is a better promise than Abraham got! But Jacob, although shaken and awed, still says "If God remains with me and protects me on this journey... and gives me bread... and clothing... (then) the Lord shall be my God... And I will set aside a tithe." Would you or I, if God spoke with us so, be so bold as to bargain and express disbelief? I hope not.
There's an unusual amount of detail about the well, Gen 29: how large the stone was that covered the well and that flocks of sheep had to wait for someone to roll the stone off the well before they could drink. It says there were three flocks of sheep waiting, but does not mention the shepherds; we are supposed to know that Jacob addresses them when he says, "My friends, where are you from?" In an amazing coincidence when he asked if the shepherds know Laban, they replied that his daughter Rachel was coming now with her father's flock. Jacob urged them to uncover the well but they said they have to wait for all the flocks. I supposed he is showing eagerness to get them off so he might speak with her. The Rabbis explained he thought they are loafing and should be working for their masters, so that is why he says they should water their sheep and go back to pasture.
Rachel was a shepherdess, a working girl! Jacob was so impressed by her; she was beautiful and shapely. He was filled with strength and rolled the stone off the well, ignoring what the others had said so she could water her sheep immediately. Then he KISSED! And he started crying and told her he was kin. The Rabbis thought he cried because he foresaw that they will not be buried together. Alternately, they thought it was because he came bearing no gifts. Even though kissing in welcome is a middle eastern thing, it must have still seemed overwhelming. She ran off to tell Laban, who ran up to greet him. Genesis Rabbah says Laban remembered how Abraham's servant brought many gifts and that is why he came running. The Rabbis so dislike Laban they say he hugged because he thought Jacob might have gold in his bosom and kissed because he thought Jacob might have pearls in his mouth!
Is this Laban the inspiration for Elton John’s Lebon, who liked his money and spent his days counting?
Jacob told Laban he was running from his brother and was penniless. He worked for Laban a month before Laban offered him wages. Jacob offered to serve Laban seven years for Rachel's hand in marriage. He specified Rachel, the younger daughter, lest there be any confusion. Although he wanted her and may have suspected Laban already, he had no gifts. Only his muscle.
The seven years passed very quickly. He asked for Rachel's hand so he "may cohabit with her!"
Laban made a big feast and Jacob must have gotten a little drunk. We are not told if Rachel knew what was happening (Megillot thinks she did and wished to spare her sister shame) but Laban gave Jacob Leah instead and somehow Jacob did not notice the difference until morning. Jacob complained to Laban, who said they marry the older girls first, but he can have the younger one also if he agreed to wait one week before taking possession of her and if he served another 7 years. It occurs to me here that the time for observing the wedding and sitting shiva are the same, 7 days.
The bitterness between these two sisters must have been great; jealousy from Leah and from Rachel, anger at the trickery and Jacob's enforced servitude.
In the Prayer class on the Jewish Day of Learning, Professor Deborah Greene said that it is possible that Leah prayed, because "The Lord saw that Leah was unloved and He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren." The first actual recorded prayer is later, from Samuel's mother, Hannah. But it seems likely that Leah cried out, at least.
Rachel, as we know from her later theft of idols, was an idolater. She went to Jacob and said, "Give me children or I shall die." "Jacob was incensed at Rachel and said, 'Can I take the place of God, who has denied you fruit of the womb?'" (Is this where the underwear company got their name?) So she gave him her maid Bilhah as a concubine. Unlike Sarah, Rachel was delighted to have children she could raise as her own, even if she had to find a surrogate. She said God had "vindicated her" and given her a son. When her maid bore a second son, she said she had waged "a fateful contest" against her sister and "prevailed." But I think unlike Sarah’s maid Hagar, Bilhah actually gave up her child.
Leah had already borne 4 sons before Rachel gave her maid as concubines. With the third son, Leah knew she had more than fulfilled the strongest interpretation of the commandment to be fruitful and multiply, which was to bear two sons. She named the first two. The third "was named" Levi, either by Jacob or by God. She realized how great the gift of the 4th son was; she named Judah and promised to praised the Lord. Leah clearly believed in God.
God had not withheld children from Jacob and Leah, but from Rachel. Maybe it was because of Rachel's idols? Or because she, as the more beautiful sister, was vain? Also, she seems to take her hold over Jacob for granted... See the mandrakes, below. When the maid's children are born, Rachel offers no praise, only an indignant sense that she is getting her due.
Leah, who was previously content, became unhappy that she has not borne any more children! So she gave her maid Zilpah to Jacob! Zilpah bears two sons.
Regarding my earlier comment that if I had to give my husband my maid as a concubine, I'd find a hairy and smelly maid, I suspect these women were not great beauties. After all, Laban, who was a greedy fellow, gave them up!
So far:
Leah's own children: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah, all sons.
Leah's sons by her maid Zilpah: Gad and Asher
Rachel's sons by Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali.
And there is this bizarre scene, where Rachel wanted a few of the mandrakes Leah's son brought home, and Leah answered, "Was it not enough for you to take away my husband, that you would also take my son's mandrakes?" I really must try some mandrakes, because I can't imagine equating the two... And then Rachel answered that she will let Leah have Jacob for the night in exchange for mandrakes! Then Leah went out and met Jacob as he came back from the fields. She actually told him he was to sleep with her because she purchased him with mandrakes. Whoa!!!! What could Jacob have thought over being sold so cheaply by his favorite wife? Upon reading this, I texted my fiancé, "May our lovemaking and cuddling remain priceless, no matter how many years pass."
In fact, the Rabbis thought that Rachel's and Leah's assumption that they could choose who Jacob slept with was worthy of big punishment. Therefore, Rachel died younger and was not buried with her husband. And Leah's actions were disdained; her daughter Dinah was considered as just above a harlot.
Although Rachel is often called our mother, really Leah is, because all the tribes but Judah and Levi were wiped out or disappeared; thus we are also related to Laban. In Torah study, a lady read aloud: Rachel, who was Jacob's intended for the spiritual world, bore Joseph, who saved Israel, Leah, his intended for this world, bore Levi and Judah.
God "heeded Leah and she conceived, and bore him a fifth son." Leah seems to clearly understand the precedent mentioned above; when she becomes pregnant, she says that God honored her giving of her maid to Jacob. Leah bears Issachar and Zebulun before finally bearing Jacob's only daughter, Dinah. The Rabbis thought that while in utero, Dinah was turned from a boy into a girl because Leah realized that one more son would expose her sister to ridicule.
God finally "remembered Rachel." She bore Joseph. The Rabbis thought that Esau, who strangely had not yet seen Rachel, somehow lusted for her. If a couple had been married 10 years, the man was expected to divorce her just because she was barren. So not only must her joy have been great, but also her relief.
At this point, Jacob asked Laban for permission to leave with his wives and children. Laban knew that he has been blessed with livestock and sons because of Jacob; he tried to strike a deal so as not to lose his good fortune. Jacob answered, "When shall I make a provision for my own household?" (which of course has now grown very large!) They agreed to Jacob's suggestion that he remove all the dark, spotted and speckled sheep and goats. Jacob said this way Laban will be able to easily see that Jacob is not stealing from him. Laban agreed, no doubt thinking these are less worthy animals and also more rare. But just in case, Laban took all the speckled, dark and spotted animals and had his sons pasture them three days' journey away from Jacob. Laban must not have cared one iota for the welfare of his daughters or grandchildren! Jacob answered this with magic: he peeled strips of bark off sticks of poplar, almond and plane (or hazelnut) and put them in the water troughs so when the flocks came to drink, they would see the rods, come into heat, mate and bring forth speckled, spotted and dark offspring. Jacob also ensured he had sturdy offspring by judicious placement of the rods; if sturdy animals came to drink, he placed the rods in and if weak animals came, he did not. Of course I can't miss the symbolism of placing a rod in a trough to ensure fertility!
Laban's sons started speaking badly of Jacob, as if he were stealing from them. Jacob called his wives out to the field and told them that he had served their father with all his might, but their father had cheated him time and time again. He told his wives the reason for his prosperity was not dishonesty, but because God would not let Laban harm him. He told them that God told him it was time to go home to his family. His wives sided with him.
Rachel then stole her father's idols. Jacob sent his wives, children and livestock on towards his homeland first, while continuing to serve Laban, presumably to give his wives a fair chance against being pursued. Then Jacob left. It was three days before Laban knew. Laban pursued them for seven days, finally catching them in Gilead. God appeared to Laban in a dream and warned against doing anything, good or bad, with Jacob. Laban said Jacob should not have run off without saying goodbye. He admitted that God warned him not to attempt anything with Jacob, but then he asked Jacob why he stole his gods!!! Jacob did not know Rachel stole idols so he said if anyone did indeed take Laban's gods, that person could die! I don't think that Jacob didn't think anyone stole it, but that he didn't want a thief in his midst.
Rachel places the idols, which must have been very small, in a camel cushion and sat on them, pretending to have her period. This brings up some "how could people be so blind" questions: If Rachel and Laban knew that God made Jacob prosperous and had heard the voice of God, why would they want these silly little idols that could be hidden in a cushion? In fact, Jacob calls the household goods. (or objects or utensils)
There are a few other possible interpretations. In Torah study a Hebrew scholar pointed out that the word for idols is singular. Laban knew that God would leave with Jacob. The "you have outwitted me" means you have stolen my heart, which could mean stealing his daughters. Someone in Torah study said we should not interpret Laban as bad; he is our ancestor. Laban means white.
My fiancé pointed out another theme in this parsha, that of leaving fathers. Jacob left his and now Rachel, leaving hers, takes mementoes with her. Jacob was confronted with his actions towards his father when he accused Leah of deceiving him that first night in bed and she answered that he was the original deceiver.
Jacob became quite angry at Laban for rummaging through his things as if he were a criminal. Instead of 7 years, he has spent 20 years in Laban's service. It's about time he got angry. And during this time not one of Laban's flock miscarried. Jacob did not eat any of his rams. He served in both scorching and frosty weather, even when unable to sleep. And if it weren't for God's help, Jacob would now be empty handed because Laban had not willingly paid him what he promised.
Laban conceded, ungracefully, although "all Jacob has is really his, what can he do about it now?" So they made a pact not to harm each other, built a mound of stones and made a sacrifice. Laban also said Jacob better not take any wives besides his daughters - I guess he has noted Jacob's randiness.
Laban kissed his family goodbye, then left. Jacob continued on until he encountered angels of the Lord.
Supplementary Readings:
In Hosea 12:3-7, Jacob is criticized for trying to supplant his brother and for fighting a divine being until the being wept. Summarized so, it sounds as if Jacob was proud to a fault. Hosea said that we (like Jacob) had to return to our God, like Jacob did at Bethel, and practice goodness, justice and trust in the Lord. Micah’s book ends in 7:18 -20 with “Who is a God like You, forgiving iniquity and remitting transgression…You will keep faith with Jacob, Loyalty to Abraham, as You promised on oath to our fathers in days gone by.”
Collected from my thoughts, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group and Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about the behaviors of our patriarchs and matriarchs.
In previous parsha, Jacob has already received the birthright blessing of his father Isaac through trickery that was Rebekah's idea. Jacob did not protest that that was dishonest, just that his father would recognize his smooth, hairless skin and would curse him as a trickster. (Esau must have been very, very hairy if Rebekah had to affix goat kid skin to him!)
Jacob left his home before Esau could kill him because Rebekah has persuaded (through negativity) Isaac to make sure Jacob found a wife from among their kin. Isaac told Jacob to go choose a wife from Laban's daughters. (Laban is Rebekah's brother, so all these girls would be his nieces.) Isaac says, "May El Shaddai bless you..."
This parsha begins with "Jacob left Beer-sheba and set out for Haran." The place where he first stopped for the night was a holy place, actually Mount Moriah according to the Rabbis, although Jacob did not know it. He placed his head on a stone for a pillow. Rabbi Eliezer said Jacob "met" this place; other rabbis said that the word for his arrival could also mean "prayer", though it was not the usual expression for prayer. Somehow it connotes that the earth, or even the mountain, sprang forward to meet him there. I am afraid I don’t yet know Hebrew, so I can not explain how this is. In Genesis Rabbah, the Rabbis also said the sun set suddenly, forcing him to stop there in this holy place. Genesis Rabbah further goes on to say that "he lay down in that place" implied a restrictiveness, that he never laid down to rest during all his service with Laban, because he was so engaged in Torah study!!!
And is this the inspiration for the Eagles' Stairway to Heaven? "He had a dream; a stairway was set on the ground and its top reached to the sky and angels of God were going up and down on it." God appeared to him in the dream, saying, "I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac..." Here, although it is a little early, we can use Martin Buber's idea:
Martin Buber - "Why do we say: 'our God and the God of our fathers'? There are two kinds of people who believe in God. One believes because he has taken over the faith of his fathers, and his faith is strong. The other has arrived at faith through thinking and studying... The advantage of the first is that, no matter what arguments may be brought against it, his faith cannot be shaken; his faith is firm because it was taken over from his fathers. But there is one flaw in it: he has faith only in response to the command of man and he has acquired it without studying and thinking for himself. The advantage of the second is that, because he found God through much thinking, he has arrived at a faith of his own. But here too there is a flaw: it is easy to shake his faith by refuting it through evidence. But he who unites both kinds of faith is invincible. And so we say 'our God' with reference to our studies and 'God of our fathers' with an eye to tradition. The same interpretation has been given to our saying 'God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob' and not 'God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob', for this indicates that Isaac and Jacob did not merely take over the tradition of Abraham; they themselves searched for God."
God also made the promise to Jacob that his offspring will be the "dust of the earth", which I read as uncountable, essential to living, frequently overlooked and mortal, as in we will return to dust. God said "all the families of the earth" (which could mean of the dust of the earth rather than literally everyone on the earth, since that would not be true) "shall bless themselves by you and your descendants." And still today, we Jews do. God promised he would not leave Jacob until he brought him back to the land and did what he promised. This is a better promise than Abraham got! But Jacob, although shaken and awed, still says "If God remains with me and protects me on this journey... and gives me bread... and clothing... (then) the Lord shall be my God... And I will set aside a tithe." Would you or I, if God spoke with us so, be so bold as to bargain and express disbelief? I hope not.
There's an unusual amount of detail about the well, Gen 29: how large the stone was that covered the well and that flocks of sheep had to wait for someone to roll the stone off the well before they could drink. It says there were three flocks of sheep waiting, but does not mention the shepherds; we are supposed to know that Jacob addresses them when he says, "My friends, where are you from?" In an amazing coincidence when he asked if the shepherds know Laban, they replied that his daughter Rachel was coming now with her father's flock. Jacob urged them to uncover the well but they said they have to wait for all the flocks. I supposed he is showing eagerness to get them off so he might speak with her. The Rabbis explained he thought they are loafing and should be working for their masters, so that is why he says they should water their sheep and go back to pasture.
Rachel was a shepherdess, a working girl! Jacob was so impressed by her; she was beautiful and shapely. He was filled with strength and rolled the stone off the well, ignoring what the others had said so she could water her sheep immediately. Then he KISSED! And he started crying and told her he was kin. The Rabbis thought he cried because he foresaw that they will not be buried together. Alternately, they thought it was because he came bearing no gifts. Even though kissing in welcome is a middle eastern thing, it must have still seemed overwhelming. She ran off to tell Laban, who ran up to greet him. Genesis Rabbah says Laban remembered how Abraham's servant brought many gifts and that is why he came running. The Rabbis so dislike Laban they say he hugged because he thought Jacob might have gold in his bosom and kissed because he thought Jacob might have pearls in his mouth!
Is this Laban the inspiration for Elton John’s Lebon, who liked his money and spent his days counting?
Jacob told Laban he was running from his brother and was penniless. He worked for Laban a month before Laban offered him wages. Jacob offered to serve Laban seven years for Rachel's hand in marriage. He specified Rachel, the younger daughter, lest there be any confusion. Although he wanted her and may have suspected Laban already, he had no gifts. Only his muscle.
The seven years passed very quickly. He asked for Rachel's hand so he "may cohabit with her!"
Laban made a big feast and Jacob must have gotten a little drunk. We are not told if Rachel knew what was happening (Megillot thinks she did and wished to spare her sister shame) but Laban gave Jacob Leah instead and somehow Jacob did not notice the difference until morning. Jacob complained to Laban, who said they marry the older girls first, but he can have the younger one also if he agreed to wait one week before taking possession of her and if he served another 7 years. It occurs to me here that the time for observing the wedding and sitting shiva are the same, 7 days.
The bitterness between these two sisters must have been great; jealousy from Leah and from Rachel, anger at the trickery and Jacob's enforced servitude.
In the Prayer class on the Jewish Day of Learning, Professor Deborah Greene said that it is possible that Leah prayed, because "The Lord saw that Leah was unloved and He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren." The first actual recorded prayer is later, from Samuel's mother, Hannah. But it seems likely that Leah cried out, at least.
Rachel, as we know from her later theft of idols, was an idolater. She went to Jacob and said, "Give me children or I shall die." "Jacob was incensed at Rachel and said, 'Can I take the place of God, who has denied you fruit of the womb?'" (Is this where the underwear company got their name?) So she gave him her maid Bilhah as a concubine. Unlike Sarah, Rachel was delighted to have children she could raise as her own, even if she had to find a surrogate. She said God had "vindicated her" and given her a son. When her maid bore a second son, she said she had waged "a fateful contest" against her sister and "prevailed." But I think unlike Sarah’s maid Hagar, Bilhah actually gave up her child.
Leah had already borne 4 sons before Rachel gave her maid as concubines. With the third son, Leah knew she had more than fulfilled the strongest interpretation of the commandment to be fruitful and multiply, which was to bear two sons. She named the first two. The third "was named" Levi, either by Jacob or by God. She realized how great the gift of the 4th son was; she named Judah and promised to praised the Lord. Leah clearly believed in God.
God had not withheld children from Jacob and Leah, but from Rachel. Maybe it was because of Rachel's idols? Or because she, as the more beautiful sister, was vain? Also, she seems to take her hold over Jacob for granted... See the mandrakes, below. When the maid's children are born, Rachel offers no praise, only an indignant sense that she is getting her due.
Leah, who was previously content, became unhappy that she has not borne any more children! So she gave her maid Zilpah to Jacob! Zilpah bears two sons.
Regarding my earlier comment that if I had to give my husband my maid as a concubine, I'd find a hairy and smelly maid, I suspect these women were not great beauties. After all, Laban, who was a greedy fellow, gave them up!
So far:
Leah's own children: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah, all sons.
Leah's sons by her maid Zilpah: Gad and Asher
Rachel's sons by Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali.
And there is this bizarre scene, where Rachel wanted a few of the mandrakes Leah's son brought home, and Leah answered, "Was it not enough for you to take away my husband, that you would also take my son's mandrakes?" I really must try some mandrakes, because I can't imagine equating the two... And then Rachel answered that she will let Leah have Jacob for the night in exchange for mandrakes! Then Leah went out and met Jacob as he came back from the fields. She actually told him he was to sleep with her because she purchased him with mandrakes. Whoa!!!! What could Jacob have thought over being sold so cheaply by his favorite wife? Upon reading this, I texted my fiancé, "May our lovemaking and cuddling remain priceless, no matter how many years pass."
In fact, the Rabbis thought that Rachel's and Leah's assumption that they could choose who Jacob slept with was worthy of big punishment. Therefore, Rachel died younger and was not buried with her husband. And Leah's actions were disdained; her daughter Dinah was considered as just above a harlot.
Although Rachel is often called our mother, really Leah is, because all the tribes but Judah and Levi were wiped out or disappeared; thus we are also related to Laban. In Torah study, a lady read aloud: Rachel, who was Jacob's intended for the spiritual world, bore Joseph, who saved Israel, Leah, his intended for this world, bore Levi and Judah.
God "heeded Leah and she conceived, and bore him a fifth son." Leah seems to clearly understand the precedent mentioned above; when she becomes pregnant, she says that God honored her giving of her maid to Jacob. Leah bears Issachar and Zebulun before finally bearing Jacob's only daughter, Dinah. The Rabbis thought that while in utero, Dinah was turned from a boy into a girl because Leah realized that one more son would expose her sister to ridicule.
God finally "remembered Rachel." She bore Joseph. The Rabbis thought that Esau, who strangely had not yet seen Rachel, somehow lusted for her. If a couple had been married 10 years, the man was expected to divorce her just because she was barren. So not only must her joy have been great, but also her relief.
At this point, Jacob asked Laban for permission to leave with his wives and children. Laban knew that he has been blessed with livestock and sons because of Jacob; he tried to strike a deal so as not to lose his good fortune. Jacob answered, "When shall I make a provision for my own household?" (which of course has now grown very large!) They agreed to Jacob's suggestion that he remove all the dark, spotted and speckled sheep and goats. Jacob said this way Laban will be able to easily see that Jacob is not stealing from him. Laban agreed, no doubt thinking these are less worthy animals and also more rare. But just in case, Laban took all the speckled, dark and spotted animals and had his sons pasture them three days' journey away from Jacob. Laban must not have cared one iota for the welfare of his daughters or grandchildren! Jacob answered this with magic: he peeled strips of bark off sticks of poplar, almond and plane (or hazelnut) and put them in the water troughs so when the flocks came to drink, they would see the rods, come into heat, mate and bring forth speckled, spotted and dark offspring. Jacob also ensured he had sturdy offspring by judicious placement of the rods; if sturdy animals came to drink, he placed the rods in and if weak animals came, he did not. Of course I can't miss the symbolism of placing a rod in a trough to ensure fertility!
Laban's sons started speaking badly of Jacob, as if he were stealing from them. Jacob called his wives out to the field and told them that he had served their father with all his might, but their father had cheated him time and time again. He told his wives the reason for his prosperity was not dishonesty, but because God would not let Laban harm him. He told them that God told him it was time to go home to his family. His wives sided with him.
Rachel then stole her father's idols. Jacob sent his wives, children and livestock on towards his homeland first, while continuing to serve Laban, presumably to give his wives a fair chance against being pursued. Then Jacob left. It was three days before Laban knew. Laban pursued them for seven days, finally catching them in Gilead. God appeared to Laban in a dream and warned against doing anything, good or bad, with Jacob. Laban said Jacob should not have run off without saying goodbye. He admitted that God warned him not to attempt anything with Jacob, but then he asked Jacob why he stole his gods!!! Jacob did not know Rachel stole idols so he said if anyone did indeed take Laban's gods, that person could die! I don't think that Jacob didn't think anyone stole it, but that he didn't want a thief in his midst.
Rachel places the idols, which must have been very small, in a camel cushion and sat on them, pretending to have her period. This brings up some "how could people be so blind" questions: If Rachel and Laban knew that God made Jacob prosperous and had heard the voice of God, why would they want these silly little idols that could be hidden in a cushion? In fact, Jacob calls the household goods. (or objects or utensils)
There are a few other possible interpretations. In Torah study a Hebrew scholar pointed out that the word for idols is singular. Laban knew that God would leave with Jacob. The "you have outwitted me" means you have stolen my heart, which could mean stealing his daughters. Someone in Torah study said we should not interpret Laban as bad; he is our ancestor. Laban means white.
My fiancé pointed out another theme in this parsha, that of leaving fathers. Jacob left his and now Rachel, leaving hers, takes mementoes with her. Jacob was confronted with his actions towards his father when he accused Leah of deceiving him that first night in bed and she answered that he was the original deceiver.
Jacob became quite angry at Laban for rummaging through his things as if he were a criminal. Instead of 7 years, he has spent 20 years in Laban's service. It's about time he got angry. And during this time not one of Laban's flock miscarried. Jacob did not eat any of his rams. He served in both scorching and frosty weather, even when unable to sleep. And if it weren't for God's help, Jacob would now be empty handed because Laban had not willingly paid him what he promised.
Laban conceded, ungracefully, although "all Jacob has is really his, what can he do about it now?" So they made a pact not to harm each other, built a mound of stones and made a sacrifice. Laban also said Jacob better not take any wives besides his daughters - I guess he has noted Jacob's randiness.
Laban kissed his family goodbye, then left. Jacob continued on until he encountered angels of the Lord.
Supplementary Readings:
In Hosea 12:3-7, Jacob is criticized for trying to supplant his brother and for fighting a divine being until the being wept. Summarized so, it sounds as if Jacob was proud to a fault. Hosea said that we (like Jacob) had to return to our God, like Jacob did at Bethel, and practice goodness, justice and trust in the Lord. Micah’s book ends in 7:18 -20 with “Who is a God like You, forgiving iniquity and remitting transgression…You will keep faith with Jacob, Loyalty to Abraham, as You promised on oath to our fathers in days gone by.”
Torah portion Genesis 18:1-22:4
Torah portion Genesis 18:1-22:4
Collected from my thoughts, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group and the books Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin and People of the Covenant by a group of non-Jewish scholars who are occasionally obviously anti-Israel but otherwise have good points. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about Abraham’s and Sarah’s behaviors.
The parsha begins with Abraham sitting at the entrance of his tent on a very hot day. Three "men" appeared before him; some say they were all angels and some say one was God, Himself. Abraham had many servants, but he hustled about to serve these men himself. He asked Sarah to prepare cakes of choice flour and a servant boy to prepare a tender calf. Abraham served these cakes with the calf and with curds and milk! This could well have been a Biblically kosher meal, but it most certainly was not a Rabbinically kosher meal. (Biblically kosher because the Torah does not say not to serve milk and meat products together. It says not to boil a kid in its mother's milk, which I interpret as an injunction against insensitivity to the mother since we are also not allowed to take eggs in front of a mother bird or kill a calf in front of its mother.)
Even Moses never got to see and talk to God man to man the way Abraham did. I wonder if God knew the founder of Judaism needed more attention. Or maybe this was Abraham’s reward for waiting on them himself, instead of having his servants do it. Abraham's relationship with God was familiar, almost. Because Abraham's God was friendly and is called El-Shaddai and El-Roy in this parsha, and El was the name of the Canaanite high God, some scholars have believed Abraham's God was not indeed the God of Moses, who resembled the Midianite high God, who was a God of volcanoes, fire and war.
The men/angels/Lord ate while Abraham hovered, ready to do whatever they asked. The one presumed to be God said he would return this time next year and Sarah would have a son. Sarah, listening in the tent behind them, laughed quietly to herself; she had stopped menstruating. "Now that I am withered, am I to have enjoyment, with my husband so old?" God asked Abraham why Sarah laughed. Sarah was frightened and lied about her laughing. But you must realize, for 24 years they had been hearing this; I think a moment's disbelief would be expected.
(Sarah is the first of three very beautiful women who were all related and all barren until God intervened. One, Rebekah, was only able to conceive after her husband, Isaac, prayed to God for a child. Two of them, Sarah and Rachel, did not conceive until they gave their husbands their maids as concubines. A fourth relative, Leah, understood precedence and gave Jacob her maid as a concubine when she wished to resume bearing children. If I were placed in such a position, I would interview maids until I found one who was not only capable, but also hirsute and odiferous!)
Abraham accompanied the "men" on their way towards Sodom. God mulled over whether or not to tell Abraham his plans to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Finally he decided to tell him the purpose of the trip: to see if they had mended their ways. Abraham, who must have been thinking partially of his nephew Lot, answered, "Will you sweep away the innocent along with the guilty? What if there should be fifty innocent...? Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?" Abraham deals until God agrees to spare the land if there be but ten innocent. Then He and Abraham parted.
Lot met the "men" at the gate to Sodom and entreated them to stay with him. He prepared a feast for them. The townspeople began shouting at the door for him to bring them out. Lot went outside and tried to bargain with them to leave the "men" alone. As a woman, I truly hope he knew who was in his house, because what he does next to spare the men is terrible: he offers the townspeople his virgin daughters to do with as they please if they leave the men alone. The townspeople tried to break the door down, but the "men" grabbed Lot, brought him inside and struck those outside with a blinding light. The “men” urged Lot to get his family out of the city before the Lord destroyed it, to flee and not stop or even to look back. Lot was able not able to persuade his sons in law, but he took his two unmarried daughters and his wife and they fled. Lot's wife, however, looked back and was turned to a pillar of salt.
Abraham hurried the next morning to see that Sodom, Gomorrah and the Plains were all destroyed, with smoke rising still. We can only wonder if Abraham knew that Lot had been saved. The poor guy has repeatedly been promised that he will father a great nation and Lot is the closest thing he has to a son. In the paragraph below, you will notice that since only Lot’s virgin daughters survived, he almost did not continue his own line.
Lot was so afraid he and his daughters went to live in a cave. The girls, believing they would never again see another man, got their father drunk and had sex with him so they might have children. It is interesting, because God so repeatedly commands against incest, that the Davidic line has this incestuous start. (Not to mention all the half-sisters and nieces that became wives of the patriarchs.)
Abraham took his household to live between Kadesh and Shur. While traveling in Gerar, unfriendly territory, Abraham again said Sarah was his sister. King Abimelech (who was almost tricked again later by Isaac) took Sarah, but God appeared to him in a dream and warned he would die because Sarah was a married woman. Abimelech had not defiled her and protested that he was innocent and had believed lies. Abimelech called Abraham to him and ran him off after giving him many presents, including sheep and oxen, male and female slaves. So again Abraham profits from her!
However, after this, the Lord gave Sarah a son, whom they named Isaac. Abraham circumcised him at eight days old.
In Genesis Rabbah, the rabbis say that the matriarchs were barren because the Lord longed for their prayers. Once they turned their hearts fully to Him, He heeded their prayers. Moreover, when Sarah birthed, He filled the wombs of numerous barren women, healed many of deafness and blindness and insanity, removed doubt from those who did not believe, and even increased the brightness of the sun and moon, just because His heart was so gladdened by Sarah's prayer. Sarah was even said to produce fountains of milk so that noble women of many nations could bring their children to be suckled by her! The text says, 'Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would suckle children!' even though she only had one child. (Various Rabbis in Genesis Rabbah offer a number of other reasons for barrenness that seem a bit odd, like so she will remain beautiful to her husband… for 89 years, long past when their relationship was strained by the lack of children, long past when he could have divorced her for being barren? I prefer to believe that since they were all related, they may have had a family tendency towards inability to conceive.)
When Isaac was weaned, Abraham celebrated with a great feast. Then Sarah, watching Ishmael “playing” (which the Rabbis interpreted as playing lewdly or meanly) asked Abraham to cast away Hagar and Ishmael because she did not want them to receive Abraham's inheritance. (I like Judith Baskin’s comment, “Here, as elsewhere in biblical narratives, questionable human actions, driven by the most elemental emotions, are presented as fulfillments of a larger, predetermined plan.” If Hagar and Ishmael had been allowed to stay, Ishmael may have thwarted the divine promise that Isaac would carry on Abraham’s name as founder of a great nation.) So after losing Lot, Abraham now also loses Ishmael.
Abraham was upset to force his first child out, but God reassured him Ishmael would also live to found a great nation. Abraham gave them water and bread and sent them on their way. They became lost and Hagar cried, afraid that her son would die of thirst. An angel of God told Hagar that God heard the boy's cries and opened her eyes so she might see a well of water. Ishmael drank, and from there on, God was with him.
During this time period, Abimelech and Abraham made a pact not to deal falsely with each other. Abraham gave sheep and oxen to Abimelech. They agreed that Abraham dug and owned a well that had been in dispute. (They named it Beer-sheba and it would come up again later, when Jacob stopped there for the night.)
The parsha ends when God tells Abraham told to sacrifice his favorite son, Isaac, the son he waited a lifetime to have! Human sacrifice was common among pagans because they believed in order to guarantee future fertility, they had to sacrifice their firstborn child to fertility gods. Abraham may have been horrified, but we do not know it. Then again, he may have recalled how many times God had promised him that through Isaac, he would father a great nation, so maybe he did not believe it would actually happen. In any case, Abraham saddled his ass and took two servants and Isaac on a journey to Mount Moriah, which would later become the Temple Mount.
On the third day, Abraham asked his servants to stay and wait for them to return after they worship. He had Isaac carry the wood for his own funeral! Isaac asked his father where the ram was for the burnt offering and Abraham answered that God would provide it. When they reached the proper place, Abraham built an altar, built a fire and bound Isaac, who could have fought for his life, but apparently did not. Abraham had the knife ready when an angel of the Lord calls Abraham to stop. Abraham had passed this test. A ram appears in the thicket. Abraham released his son and offered the ram instead. The angel promised again that Abraham shall have "descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore."
Collected from my thoughts, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group and the books Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin and People of the Covenant by a group of non-Jewish scholars who are occasionally obviously anti-Israel but otherwise have good points. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about Abraham’s and Sarah’s behaviors.
The parsha begins with Abraham sitting at the entrance of his tent on a very hot day. Three "men" appeared before him; some say they were all angels and some say one was God, Himself. Abraham had many servants, but he hustled about to serve these men himself. He asked Sarah to prepare cakes of choice flour and a servant boy to prepare a tender calf. Abraham served these cakes with the calf and with curds and milk! This could well have been a Biblically kosher meal, but it most certainly was not a Rabbinically kosher meal. (Biblically kosher because the Torah does not say not to serve milk and meat products together. It says not to boil a kid in its mother's milk, which I interpret as an injunction against insensitivity to the mother since we are also not allowed to take eggs in front of a mother bird or kill a calf in front of its mother.)
Even Moses never got to see and talk to God man to man the way Abraham did. I wonder if God knew the founder of Judaism needed more attention. Or maybe this was Abraham’s reward for waiting on them himself, instead of having his servants do it. Abraham's relationship with God was familiar, almost. Because Abraham's God was friendly and is called El-Shaddai and El-Roy in this parsha, and El was the name of the Canaanite high God, some scholars have believed Abraham's God was not indeed the God of Moses, who resembled the Midianite high God, who was a God of volcanoes, fire and war.
The men/angels/Lord ate while Abraham hovered, ready to do whatever they asked. The one presumed to be God said he would return this time next year and Sarah would have a son. Sarah, listening in the tent behind them, laughed quietly to herself; she had stopped menstruating. "Now that I am withered, am I to have enjoyment, with my husband so old?" God asked Abraham why Sarah laughed. Sarah was frightened and lied about her laughing. But you must realize, for 24 years they had been hearing this; I think a moment's disbelief would be expected.
(Sarah is the first of three very beautiful women who were all related and all barren until God intervened. One, Rebekah, was only able to conceive after her husband, Isaac, prayed to God for a child. Two of them, Sarah and Rachel, did not conceive until they gave their husbands their maids as concubines. A fourth relative, Leah, understood precedence and gave Jacob her maid as a concubine when she wished to resume bearing children. If I were placed in such a position, I would interview maids until I found one who was not only capable, but also hirsute and odiferous!)
Abraham accompanied the "men" on their way towards Sodom. God mulled over whether or not to tell Abraham his plans to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Finally he decided to tell him the purpose of the trip: to see if they had mended their ways. Abraham, who must have been thinking partially of his nephew Lot, answered, "Will you sweep away the innocent along with the guilty? What if there should be fifty innocent...? Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?" Abraham deals until God agrees to spare the land if there be but ten innocent. Then He and Abraham parted.
Lot met the "men" at the gate to Sodom and entreated them to stay with him. He prepared a feast for them. The townspeople began shouting at the door for him to bring them out. Lot went outside and tried to bargain with them to leave the "men" alone. As a woman, I truly hope he knew who was in his house, because what he does next to spare the men is terrible: he offers the townspeople his virgin daughters to do with as they please if they leave the men alone. The townspeople tried to break the door down, but the "men" grabbed Lot, brought him inside and struck those outside with a blinding light. The “men” urged Lot to get his family out of the city before the Lord destroyed it, to flee and not stop or even to look back. Lot was able not able to persuade his sons in law, but he took his two unmarried daughters and his wife and they fled. Lot's wife, however, looked back and was turned to a pillar of salt.
Abraham hurried the next morning to see that Sodom, Gomorrah and the Plains were all destroyed, with smoke rising still. We can only wonder if Abraham knew that Lot had been saved. The poor guy has repeatedly been promised that he will father a great nation and Lot is the closest thing he has to a son. In the paragraph below, you will notice that since only Lot’s virgin daughters survived, he almost did not continue his own line.
Lot was so afraid he and his daughters went to live in a cave. The girls, believing they would never again see another man, got their father drunk and had sex with him so they might have children. It is interesting, because God so repeatedly commands against incest, that the Davidic line has this incestuous start. (Not to mention all the half-sisters and nieces that became wives of the patriarchs.)
Abraham took his household to live between Kadesh and Shur. While traveling in Gerar, unfriendly territory, Abraham again said Sarah was his sister. King Abimelech (who was almost tricked again later by Isaac) took Sarah, but God appeared to him in a dream and warned he would die because Sarah was a married woman. Abimelech had not defiled her and protested that he was innocent and had believed lies. Abimelech called Abraham to him and ran him off after giving him many presents, including sheep and oxen, male and female slaves. So again Abraham profits from her!
However, after this, the Lord gave Sarah a son, whom they named Isaac. Abraham circumcised him at eight days old.
In Genesis Rabbah, the rabbis say that the matriarchs were barren because the Lord longed for their prayers. Once they turned their hearts fully to Him, He heeded their prayers. Moreover, when Sarah birthed, He filled the wombs of numerous barren women, healed many of deafness and blindness and insanity, removed doubt from those who did not believe, and even increased the brightness of the sun and moon, just because His heart was so gladdened by Sarah's prayer. Sarah was even said to produce fountains of milk so that noble women of many nations could bring their children to be suckled by her! The text says, 'Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would suckle children!' even though she only had one child. (Various Rabbis in Genesis Rabbah offer a number of other reasons for barrenness that seem a bit odd, like so she will remain beautiful to her husband… for 89 years, long past when their relationship was strained by the lack of children, long past when he could have divorced her for being barren? I prefer to believe that since they were all related, they may have had a family tendency towards inability to conceive.)
When Isaac was weaned, Abraham celebrated with a great feast. Then Sarah, watching Ishmael “playing” (which the Rabbis interpreted as playing lewdly or meanly) asked Abraham to cast away Hagar and Ishmael because she did not want them to receive Abraham's inheritance. (I like Judith Baskin’s comment, “Here, as elsewhere in biblical narratives, questionable human actions, driven by the most elemental emotions, are presented as fulfillments of a larger, predetermined plan.” If Hagar and Ishmael had been allowed to stay, Ishmael may have thwarted the divine promise that Isaac would carry on Abraham’s name as founder of a great nation.) So after losing Lot, Abraham now also loses Ishmael.
Abraham was upset to force his first child out, but God reassured him Ishmael would also live to found a great nation. Abraham gave them water and bread and sent them on their way. They became lost and Hagar cried, afraid that her son would die of thirst. An angel of God told Hagar that God heard the boy's cries and opened her eyes so she might see a well of water. Ishmael drank, and from there on, God was with him.
During this time period, Abimelech and Abraham made a pact not to deal falsely with each other. Abraham gave sheep and oxen to Abimelech. They agreed that Abraham dug and owned a well that had been in dispute. (They named it Beer-sheba and it would come up again later, when Jacob stopped there for the night.)
The parsha ends when God tells Abraham told to sacrifice his favorite son, Isaac, the son he waited a lifetime to have! Human sacrifice was common among pagans because they believed in order to guarantee future fertility, they had to sacrifice their firstborn child to fertility gods. Abraham may have been horrified, but we do not know it. Then again, he may have recalled how many times God had promised him that through Isaac, he would father a great nation, so maybe he did not believe it would actually happen. In any case, Abraham saddled his ass and took two servants and Isaac on a journey to Mount Moriah, which would later become the Temple Mount.
On the third day, Abraham asked his servants to stay and wait for them to return after they worship. He had Isaac carry the wood for his own funeral! Isaac asked his father where the ram was for the burnt offering and Abraham answered that God would provide it. When they reached the proper place, Abraham built an altar, built a fire and bound Isaac, who could have fought for his life, but apparently did not. Abraham had the knife ready when an angel of the Lord calls Abraham to stop. Abraham had passed this test. A ram appears in the thicket. Abraham released his son and offered the ram instead. The angel promised again that Abraham shall have "descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore."
Torah portion Genesis 12:1 – 17:27
Torah portion Genesis 12:1 – 17:27
Collected from my thoughts, my OneNote notes from multiple sources, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group, Ten Rungs by Martin Buber and the books Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin and People of the Covenant by a group of non-Jewish scholars who are occasionally obviously anti-Israel but otherwise have good points. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about Abraham’s and Sarah’s behaviors.
A theme here is that we should trust in God and follow his wishes even though many years may pass before we know the full instruction or the outcome. The Lord promised land, which soon after Abram moved, did not support his household. The Lord also promised offspring, but Sarai was barren until she was 90 years old. There were many faith trials (Maimonides outlined ten in Abram's lifetime) but everything turned out well for Abram (who became Abraham) in the end.
The parsha also suggests to me (through Abram’s repeated conversations with God) that maybe in addition to waiting patiently, there may sometimes be a need to ask God in order to receive what is promised us!
In the previous parsha, Abram's father began this journey to Canaan with his family and stopped at Haran, which means crossroads. Torah does not explain the reason for this journey. Abram's father died.
When Abram is 75, God told him (according to the translation Rabbi Martin Buber used, which is different from my JPS edition): "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee." Buber says: "'out of your country' means the dimness you have inflicted on yourself, 'out of your birthplace' means the dimness your mother has inflicted on you, 'out of the house of your father' means the dimness your father inflicted on you... Only then will you be able to go to the land I will show you." (See my thoughts, in italics, below) The Lord promised Abram would father a great nation, his name would be great and he would be a blessing. (Not that Abraham would bless us, but that he will be a blessing - meaning that others will learn and be blessed by Abraham's story.)
People of the Covenant says that within the Bible, there are three references to calculate the date of Abraham's journey. All start from the fourth year of Solomon's reign, which is accepted by science and religion to be accurate within a few years at 960 BCE. The arithmetic leads to dates of 1870, 2055 or 2085. People of the Covenant also says that there is no archaeological evidence that Abraham existed. Nor are there any extrabiblical sources mentioning him.
During this time period economic, environmental and political unrest caused civilizations to come and go quickly and many formerly agricultural types to revert to nomadism or semi nomadism. The Egyptians called wanderers who settled near them ‘Apiru, which later became Hebrew.
However, Jews, Muslims and Christians all claim Abraham as their ancestor. So we will assume that he existed for purposes of this parsha.
Why did God choose Abram? Since the parsha does not state it outright, we wonder and create theories. In Torah study, we discussed in 15:6 the Hebrew word for trust, which is related to word "amen", which means agreement. Abram's trust in God was his righteousness. Moreover, Midrash says Abram's father was an idol maker. Abram scorned worshipping things that could be burned or broken. He actually broke all the idols except the largest one, and then placed the sledgehammer in the lap of this last idol. His father returned and was furious when Abram suggested the big idol crushed all the smaller ones; his father exclaimed that idols cannot move! Abram had thus proved his point.
My thought: Leaving the house of his father could also mean leaving idolatry.
Midrash also says Abram testified mightily on God's behalf. The persons or souls (the word neshama is used in the text) he had acquired and brought with him to the Promised Land were converts (nefesh/souls). Included in these converts were Hagar, the daughter of Pharaoh and Eliezer, the son of Nimrod.
During the famine, Abram and his household left the land God promised him for Egypt. Curious that Promised Land would have severe famine so soon without any human wrongdoing.
Abram did eventually go back to his Promised Land - when he was tossed out on his rear for lying about Sarai. This is a difficult parsha for a woman to read. In Egypt, Abram asked Sarai to say she was his sister because she was very beautiful and someone desiring her might kill him to get her. Both Midrash and Torah say she was indeed his half-sister, so he wasn't completely lying. However, it appears to me he was pimping her so he could profit from her instead of possibly dying because of her. Since he didn't know, but only worried that he might be killed because of her, wasn't his behavior reprehensible? The Torah does not record Sarai's thoughts, but I'll bet they weren't happy ones. (However, Rabbi Maurice, in his devar at TBI, said he imagined a serious conversation between them and Sarai agreeing willingly.) As one lady pointed out in Torah study, at least she was "safe" since she was barren; she would not have a half Egyptian child.
Why wasn't Abram punished instead of Pharaoh? Pharaoh did not know he was taking a married woman. Was he rough with her? How did Pharaoh know that he was being punished by God because of Sarai ? Did God speak to him? My JPS version says simply that Sarai "was taken into Pharaoh's palace" but Rabbi Maurice said she was seized. If Abram had gone after her, I would be inclined to believe so, but the next sentence says because of her, Abram grew rich!
In our conversation later, Rabbi Maurice said he understands why I might not like Abraham very well after reading this parsha. He reminded me that a very serious famine forced them to travel to a foreign land that was very dangerous and beg for food. They were desperate. Sarai, especially, acted very bravely here. He also reminded me that the likeability of our patriarchs and matriarchs was never the point. We agreed that if they were perfect, we’d have less to study. But also he said we would be less likely to identify with them and feel that they were family. Rabbi Maurice said I might learn to identify with Abraham because like him, I firmly believe I should go against what I had been taught (and not taught) about religion by my family and society to vigorously pursue becoming Jewish. He said that Abraham's desire to worship only God in a land of idol worshippers was far more dangerous to him than my situation was likely ever to be for me, but perhaps though my own struggle, I might see how brave he was.
On the journey back to the Promised Land, Abram suggested he and his nephew Lot (who had lived with him since he was orphaned) split up amicably since there was not enough good pasture to support their livestock. Lot took the obviously lush pasture where they were rather than risking the return to the Promised Land. Thus, Abram made Lot happy without violating his own orders from God.
Abram showed great loyalty and bravery when Lot was captured. Lot, by the way, was an ancestor of Ruth, who was an ancestor of David, so it was a good thing Lot was saved! Since Abram only had 318 volunteer soldiers, none of them trained, his victory must have been with God's help. When allied kings offer him loot in reward, he says he wants nothing other than that his soldiers be compensated.
People of the Covenant, which I mentioned earlier is sometimes quite anti-Semite, had a really good point here that I somehow missed despite reading this parsha numerous times. Lot is the closest thing Abram has to a son for most of his life. When he and Lot split here, Abram has only Sarai. PotC does mention without belab
oring the son point that Abram rescues Lot. A sticky subject for many Torah readers is that Abram argues so earnestly to save Sodom but goes quietly up the hill to sacrifice Isaac. I think he does believe that Sodom will be destroyed (with his near-son Lot) but does not believe Isaac will be destroyed. More on that later.
God appears to Abram and tells him his "reward will be very great". Abram responds that he is childless and has only his faithful servant, who is not his flesh and blood. God asks him to look up at the heavens and try to count the stars; so will his own flesh and blood offspring be. God tells him to make a sacrifice. It was typical for people of that time to split an animal in half and for all the attendees of the sacrificial ritual to walk between the two halves, showing that they are accepting the animal's flesh in place of their own for the sacrifice. In this strange passage, only Abram and God are present. God is not physically present, but is a voice, and after Abram was acceptably fearful, a smoking oven and torch passed between the two halves of the offering. God speaks then, declaring "To your offspring I assign this land..." so it is fairly clear that God Himself has passed between the sacrificial animal halves. This is truly stunning.
Sarai, who was barren, gave Abram her maid Hagar to Abram as a concubine, hoping for offspring. In those times the firstborn son, and thus his mother, received half of his father’s inheritance. Any other sons split the remaining half. A barren woman received nothing. I suspect that Sarai expected to raise the child as her own and was disappointed to put it kindly, that Hagar kept the child.
When Hagar apparently was disrespectful to Sarai after she became pregnant, Sarai, instead of dealing with Hagar directly, chastised Abram! She actually says the Lord shall decide between him and her! She said it was his fault! (Who was it who didn't have children again? And who acted disrespectfully towards her mistress? Not Abram in either case. Since her anger towards him was irrational, I think she was still angry that she was traded to Pharaoh for livestock! She also seemed to expect Abram to stand up for her, which he did not.)
Genesis Rabbah excuses Sarai’s behavior by saying Hagar told others that if Sarai were truly righteous, she would not have been barren. If Hagar really spoke thus, Abram most certainly should have come to Sarai’s aid. Instead, he told her to do with Hagar whatever she thought was right. Embittered, Sarai was so cruel that Hagar ran away and had to be told by an angel to turn around and go back.
Even the Rabbis, who want so much to exalt Sarai and vilify Hagar, noticed the obvious sympathy towards Hagar at this point in the text. This meeting with an angel (or some say the Lord Himself) caused Talmudic rabbis, who did not themselves meet an angel (or the Lord) to wonder at the great merit this slave girl must have had, despite her relationship with Sarai.
Hagar's son was named Ishmael, which means "God will hear." His line also became a great nation, the nation of Islam.
God changed the names of both Abram and Sarai, adding an "h" sound to indicate holiness.
God told Abraham that every male in his household eight days old and up must be circumcised, even his purchased slaves. He further said he would bless Sarah with a son. Abraham threw himself to the ground, in the pose of submission he often took, possibly also to hide his laughter. Abraham threw himself on his face and laughed, as he said to himself, ‘Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old, or can Sarah bear a child at ninety?’ And Abraham said to God, ‘O that Ishmael might live by Your favor!’ God answered that Sarah will indeed have a son, to be named Isaac, for “laughter”.
Abraham immediately followed orders, circumcising possibly dozens of men and children on that very same day, including Ishmael. That cutting there should be a sign to God seems strange, but that organ is the organ the rabbis considered the one in charge of procreation (women's organs didn't count) and procreation is the only way we can be like God, by creating life.
The parsha ends here, just before Abraham meets three angels, one of whom may have been God Himself. This parsha is often read with Isaiah 40:27-41:16; in my ignorance I wonder why it is assigned to the parsha of Abraham, since it speaks often of Jacob. But I am struck by Isaiah 41:8, in which God says, “My servant Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My friend.” And as you will see, Abraham indeed meets three divine beings as friends.
Collected from my thoughts, my OneNote notes from multiple sources, Midrash (usually Genesis Rabbah), TBI’s Torah study group, Ten Rungs by Martin Buber and the books Midrashic Women by Judith Baskin and People of the Covenant by a group of non-Jewish scholars who are occasionally obviously anti-Israel but otherwise have good points. I blame no one but myself for all my negative thoughts about Abraham’s and Sarah’s behaviors.
A theme here is that we should trust in God and follow his wishes even though many years may pass before we know the full instruction or the outcome. The Lord promised land, which soon after Abram moved, did not support his household. The Lord also promised offspring, but Sarai was barren until she was 90 years old. There were many faith trials (Maimonides outlined ten in Abram's lifetime) but everything turned out well for Abram (who became Abraham) in the end.
The parsha also suggests to me (through Abram’s repeated conversations with God) that maybe in addition to waiting patiently, there may sometimes be a need to ask God in order to receive what is promised us!
In the previous parsha, Abram's father began this journey to Canaan with his family and stopped at Haran, which means crossroads. Torah does not explain the reason for this journey. Abram's father died.
When Abram is 75, God told him (according to the translation Rabbi Martin Buber used, which is different from my JPS edition): "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee." Buber says: "'out of your country' means the dimness you have inflicted on yourself, 'out of your birthplace' means the dimness your mother has inflicted on you, 'out of the house of your father' means the dimness your father inflicted on you... Only then will you be able to go to the land I will show you." (See my thoughts, in italics, below) The Lord promised Abram would father a great nation, his name would be great and he would be a blessing. (Not that Abraham would bless us, but that he will be a blessing - meaning that others will learn and be blessed by Abraham's story.)
People of the Covenant says that within the Bible, there are three references to calculate the date of Abraham's journey. All start from the fourth year of Solomon's reign, which is accepted by science and religion to be accurate within a few years at 960 BCE. The arithmetic leads to dates of 1870, 2055 or 2085. People of the Covenant also says that there is no archaeological evidence that Abraham existed. Nor are there any extrabiblical sources mentioning him.
During this time period economic, environmental and political unrest caused civilizations to come and go quickly and many formerly agricultural types to revert to nomadism or semi nomadism. The Egyptians called wanderers who settled near them ‘Apiru, which later became Hebrew.
However, Jews, Muslims and Christians all claim Abraham as their ancestor. So we will assume that he existed for purposes of this parsha.
Why did God choose Abram? Since the parsha does not state it outright, we wonder and create theories. In Torah study, we discussed in 15:6 the Hebrew word for trust, which is related to word "amen", which means agreement. Abram's trust in God was his righteousness. Moreover, Midrash says Abram's father was an idol maker. Abram scorned worshipping things that could be burned or broken. He actually broke all the idols except the largest one, and then placed the sledgehammer in the lap of this last idol. His father returned and was furious when Abram suggested the big idol crushed all the smaller ones; his father exclaimed that idols cannot move! Abram had thus proved his point.
My thought: Leaving the house of his father could also mean leaving idolatry.
Midrash also says Abram testified mightily on God's behalf. The persons or souls (the word neshama is used in the text) he had acquired and brought with him to the Promised Land were converts (nefesh/souls). Included in these converts were Hagar, the daughter of Pharaoh and Eliezer, the son of Nimrod.
During the famine, Abram and his household left the land God promised him for Egypt. Curious that Promised Land would have severe famine so soon without any human wrongdoing.
Abram did eventually go back to his Promised Land - when he was tossed out on his rear for lying about Sarai. This is a difficult parsha for a woman to read. In Egypt, Abram asked Sarai to say she was his sister because she was very beautiful and someone desiring her might kill him to get her. Both Midrash and Torah say she was indeed his half-sister, so he wasn't completely lying. However, it appears to me he was pimping her so he could profit from her instead of possibly dying because of her. Since he didn't know, but only worried that he might be killed because of her, wasn't his behavior reprehensible? The Torah does not record Sarai's thoughts, but I'll bet they weren't happy ones. (However, Rabbi Maurice, in his devar at TBI, said he imagined a serious conversation between them and Sarai agreeing willingly.) As one lady pointed out in Torah study, at least she was "safe" since she was barren; she would not have a half Egyptian child.
Why wasn't Abram punished instead of Pharaoh? Pharaoh did not know he was taking a married woman. Was he rough with her? How did Pharaoh know that he was being punished by God because of Sarai ? Did God speak to him? My JPS version says simply that Sarai "was taken into Pharaoh's palace" but Rabbi Maurice said she was seized. If Abram had gone after her, I would be inclined to believe so, but the next sentence says because of her, Abram grew rich!
In our conversation later, Rabbi Maurice said he understands why I might not like Abraham very well after reading this parsha. He reminded me that a very serious famine forced them to travel to a foreign land that was very dangerous and beg for food. They were desperate. Sarai, especially, acted very bravely here. He also reminded me that the likeability of our patriarchs and matriarchs was never the point. We agreed that if they were perfect, we’d have less to study. But also he said we would be less likely to identify with them and feel that they were family. Rabbi Maurice said I might learn to identify with Abraham because like him, I firmly believe I should go against what I had been taught (and not taught) about religion by my family and society to vigorously pursue becoming Jewish. He said that Abraham's desire to worship only God in a land of idol worshippers was far more dangerous to him than my situation was likely ever to be for me, but perhaps though my own struggle, I might see how brave he was.
On the journey back to the Promised Land, Abram suggested he and his nephew Lot (who had lived with him since he was orphaned) split up amicably since there was not enough good pasture to support their livestock. Lot took the obviously lush pasture where they were rather than risking the return to the Promised Land. Thus, Abram made Lot happy without violating his own orders from God.
Abram showed great loyalty and bravery when Lot was captured. Lot, by the way, was an ancestor of Ruth, who was an ancestor of David, so it was a good thing Lot was saved! Since Abram only had 318 volunteer soldiers, none of them trained, his victory must have been with God's help. When allied kings offer him loot in reward, he says he wants nothing other than that his soldiers be compensated.
People of the Covenant, which I mentioned earlier is sometimes quite anti-Semite, had a really good point here that I somehow missed despite reading this parsha numerous times. Lot is the closest thing Abram has to a son for most of his life. When he and Lot split here, Abram has only Sarai. PotC does mention without belab
oring the son point that Abram rescues Lot. A sticky subject for many Torah readers is that Abram argues so earnestly to save Sodom but goes quietly up the hill to sacrifice Isaac. I think he does believe that Sodom will be destroyed (with his near-son Lot) but does not believe Isaac will be destroyed. More on that later.
God appears to Abram and tells him his "reward will be very great". Abram responds that he is childless and has only his faithful servant, who is not his flesh and blood. God asks him to look up at the heavens and try to count the stars; so will his own flesh and blood offspring be. God tells him to make a sacrifice. It was typical for people of that time to split an animal in half and for all the attendees of the sacrificial ritual to walk between the two halves, showing that they are accepting the animal's flesh in place of their own for the sacrifice. In this strange passage, only Abram and God are present. God is not physically present, but is a voice, and after Abram was acceptably fearful, a smoking oven and torch passed between the two halves of the offering. God speaks then, declaring "To your offspring I assign this land..." so it is fairly clear that God Himself has passed between the sacrificial animal halves. This is truly stunning.
Sarai, who was barren, gave Abram her maid Hagar to Abram as a concubine, hoping for offspring. In those times the firstborn son, and thus his mother, received half of his father’s inheritance. Any other sons split the remaining half. A barren woman received nothing. I suspect that Sarai expected to raise the child as her own and was disappointed to put it kindly, that Hagar kept the child.
When Hagar apparently was disrespectful to Sarai after she became pregnant, Sarai, instead of dealing with Hagar directly, chastised Abram! She actually says the Lord shall decide between him and her! She said it was his fault! (Who was it who didn't have children again? And who acted disrespectfully towards her mistress? Not Abram in either case. Since her anger towards him was irrational, I think she was still angry that she was traded to Pharaoh for livestock! She also seemed to expect Abram to stand up for her, which he did not.)
Genesis Rabbah excuses Sarai’s behavior by saying Hagar told others that if Sarai were truly righteous, she would not have been barren. If Hagar really spoke thus, Abram most certainly should have come to Sarai’s aid. Instead, he told her to do with Hagar whatever she thought was right. Embittered, Sarai was so cruel that Hagar ran away and had to be told by an angel to turn around and go back.
Even the Rabbis, who want so much to exalt Sarai and vilify Hagar, noticed the obvious sympathy towards Hagar at this point in the text. This meeting with an angel (or some say the Lord Himself) caused Talmudic rabbis, who did not themselves meet an angel (or the Lord) to wonder at the great merit this slave girl must have had, despite her relationship with Sarai.
Hagar's son was named Ishmael, which means "God will hear." His line also became a great nation, the nation of Islam.
God changed the names of both Abram and Sarai, adding an "h" sound to indicate holiness.
God told Abraham that every male in his household eight days old and up must be circumcised, even his purchased slaves. He further said he would bless Sarah with a son. Abraham threw himself to the ground, in the pose of submission he often took, possibly also to hide his laughter. Abraham threw himself on his face and laughed, as he said to himself, ‘Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old, or can Sarah bear a child at ninety?’ And Abraham said to God, ‘O that Ishmael might live by Your favor!’ God answered that Sarah will indeed have a son, to be named Isaac, for “laughter”.
Abraham immediately followed orders, circumcising possibly dozens of men and children on that very same day, including Ishmael. That cutting there should be a sign to God seems strange, but that organ is the organ the rabbis considered the one in charge of procreation (women's organs didn't count) and procreation is the only way we can be like God, by creating life.
The parsha ends here, just before Abraham meets three angels, one of whom may have been God Himself. This parsha is often read with Isaiah 40:27-41:16; in my ignorance I wonder why it is assigned to the parsha of Abraham, since it speaks often of Jacob. But I am struck by Isaiah 41:8, in which God says, “My servant Jacob, whom I have chosen, Seed of Abraham, My friend.” And as you will see, Abraham indeed meets three divine beings as friends.
Catching Up and Torah Study in Eugene, Oregon
Catching Up and Torah Study in Eugene, Oregon
I am now working full time, going to college full time and in love full time, so I have neglected this blog for a while. In the next few days I’m going to upload essays and parshas I wrote days, weeks or even months ago.
Friday Nov 12, I met with Rabbi Maurice at Temple Beth Israel to discuss my conversion. I last met with him about 6 months ago. We discussed my progress and when to actually convene the Bet Din.
I showed him an enormous Jewish reference guide I’m making myself in Microsoft’s OneNote, with separate folders including History, Jewish Philosophers (with a separate folder just for Maimonides), Hebrew and Yiddish, Prayers and Rituals, Torah, Talmud, Midrash, Torah Portions, My Thoughts, Media (I’ve read or watched or want to read or watch), Kashrut, Jewish Feminism, Jewish Marriage, Denominations, the Arab Jewish Conflict, etc. He was pretty much blown away. Most of it is notes from books, especially the History one, which goes chronologically from Abraham to the present. I don’t bother quoting my sources there, but I do in the Philosophers, Torah, Talmud, etc.
For those of you who are new to Jewish terminology, portion and parsha are used interchangeably to indicate the weekly Sabbath reading from the Torah, the five books of Moses that Jews read in entirety on a yearly cycle. If you pick up a Torah, the portions are often listed after the Table of Contents. Jews worldwide in nearly every denomination follow the same schedule of readings (although an occasional group will read the Torah over a period of three years) and conclude the year with a ceremony, Simchat Torah, celebrating reading to the end of the Torah – and then begin back at Genesis on the same day! It’s one of many ways we are connected with each other, despite the vastness of the diaspora.
The Torah Portions folder is almost entirely written by me rather than quotes or thoughts from others. I do distinguish when I get an idea from Midrash or Talmud and usually reference it generally (i.e. Genesis Rabbah), rather than citing pages and sages. I rarely quote the text directly, partially because it usually begins: “Rabbi so and so said in the name of Rabbi such and such and Rav so and so…” and I would get so tired of typing I probably wouldn’t get very far. When using discussion from TBI’s Saturday morning Torah study group I will say “in Torah study” rather than naming individuals. I haven’t asked anyone for permission to quote them. I don’t really want to, either, for fear that people might speak a lot less naturally, in case one of the whopping four people who read my blog might have negative thoughts!
This Torah study group is fantastic; if you are ever in Eugene on a Saturday morning, you should definitely come by. The group varies in size from about 5 people to about 25 and exhibits the entire range of Judaism: those who lean towards Hasidism, or are straight from the Torah literalists, or consult astrology, or believe themselves culturally but not religiously Jewish, or are serious scholars, or are seriously-wanna-be scholars (me!), or are professionals in psychology fields, Israeli natives, conservatives, liberals, etc., etc. On my way driving in, I often think of seven or eight points I’d like to make, but often I am so fascinated to just listen and I may make only two or three points.
I will have time to write and upload about a quarter of the Torah portions. To search Torah portions on this site, just type the Book, chapter and verse, i.e. Genesis 12:1. I should warn that these are written rather quickly and include quite a bit of summary along with a few devar worthy bits. However, I have found that the observations of a thoughtful long time outsider are sometimes useful to someone who grew up Jewish.
I am now working full time, going to college full time and in love full time, so I have neglected this blog for a while. In the next few days I’m going to upload essays and parshas I wrote days, weeks or even months ago.
Friday Nov 12, I met with Rabbi Maurice at Temple Beth Israel to discuss my conversion. I last met with him about 6 months ago. We discussed my progress and when to actually convene the Bet Din.
I showed him an enormous Jewish reference guide I’m making myself in Microsoft’s OneNote, with separate folders including History, Jewish Philosophers (with a separate folder just for Maimonides), Hebrew and Yiddish, Prayers and Rituals, Torah, Talmud, Midrash, Torah Portions, My Thoughts, Media (I’ve read or watched or want to read or watch), Kashrut, Jewish Feminism, Jewish Marriage, Denominations, the Arab Jewish Conflict, etc. He was pretty much blown away. Most of it is notes from books, especially the History one, which goes chronologically from Abraham to the present. I don’t bother quoting my sources there, but I do in the Philosophers, Torah, Talmud, etc.
For those of you who are new to Jewish terminology, portion and parsha are used interchangeably to indicate the weekly Sabbath reading from the Torah, the five books of Moses that Jews read in entirety on a yearly cycle. If you pick up a Torah, the portions are often listed after the Table of Contents. Jews worldwide in nearly every denomination follow the same schedule of readings (although an occasional group will read the Torah over a period of three years) and conclude the year with a ceremony, Simchat Torah, celebrating reading to the end of the Torah – and then begin back at Genesis on the same day! It’s one of many ways we are connected with each other, despite the vastness of the diaspora.
The Torah Portions folder is almost entirely written by me rather than quotes or thoughts from others. I do distinguish when I get an idea from Midrash or Talmud and usually reference it generally (i.e. Genesis Rabbah), rather than citing pages and sages. I rarely quote the text directly, partially because it usually begins: “Rabbi so and so said in the name of Rabbi such and such and Rav so and so…” and I would get so tired of typing I probably wouldn’t get very far. When using discussion from TBI’s Saturday morning Torah study group I will say “in Torah study” rather than naming individuals. I haven’t asked anyone for permission to quote them. I don’t really want to, either, for fear that people might speak a lot less naturally, in case one of the whopping four people who read my blog might have negative thoughts!
This Torah study group is fantastic; if you are ever in Eugene on a Saturday morning, you should definitely come by. The group varies in size from about 5 people to about 25 and exhibits the entire range of Judaism: those who lean towards Hasidism, or are straight from the Torah literalists, or consult astrology, or believe themselves culturally but not religiously Jewish, or are serious scholars, or are seriously-wanna-be scholars (me!), or are professionals in psychology fields, Israeli natives, conservatives, liberals, etc., etc. On my way driving in, I often think of seven or eight points I’d like to make, but often I am so fascinated to just listen and I may make only two or three points.
I will have time to write and upload about a quarter of the Torah portions. To search Torah portions on this site, just type the Book, chapter and verse, i.e. Genesis 12:1. I should warn that these are written rather quickly and include quite a bit of summary along with a few devar worthy bits. However, I have found that the observations of a thoughtful long time outsider are sometimes useful to someone who grew up Jewish.
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