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From: Ephraim Frank To: Shevet Achim Subject: Parashat Vayera
Hebrew Insights into Parashat Vayera: Genesis 18 - 22
"Vayera", which is translated "appeared", actually means "and he showed himself", and even more literally: "and he caused himself to be seen". The word stems from the root r.a.h. (resh, alef, hey), meaning "to see". Some of its other derivatives are: "is seen", "to show", "to be seen", and "sight." Certainly, "seeing" plays a major role in this Parasha. Yes, YHVH does appear before Avraham - but it seems that it is incumbent upon the latter to do the "seeing". Thus, according to18: 2, "seeing the three men, he sees...." The peculiar wording of the text indicates that Avraham has to look beyond what meets his eye. Accordingly verses 1 and 2 state that "YHVH appeared to him... and he lifted up his eyes and saw... three men!"
The principle promulgated by Yeshua in Matthew 25:40, namely, "inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me," is apparent throughout this chapter. Avraham appears to be keenly aware of the fact that by entertaining strangers, one could, unknowingly (or knowingly) be entertaining (at the very least), angels...(ref. Hebrew 13:2). These strangers, whether one of them is, or not, YHVH, are greeted by their host, in word and deed, with the homage due the King of kings.
This passage contains significant interchanges between single and plural
persons. In verse 3, Avraham addresses the three men whom he had just seen,
as one. He calls them "Adonai" (translated "Lord"), and says: "...If now I
have found favor in your [singular] sight, pass not away from your
[singular] servant". Verses 4,5,8 and 9 all employ the second person
plural. But in verse 10, where the promise of the son who is to be born to
Sarah within the year is pronounced, there is a switch to the singular again
("and he said I will return.." italics added). In verses 13 and 14 the name
YHVH is actually mentioned as the One addressing Avraham regarding Sarah's
response, while in 16 the men rise up, and get ready to leave. Starting in
verse 17 the scene changes altogether. In the passage which commences here
(relating Avraham's intercession on behalf of the cities of Sdom and Amora -
Gomorrah), YHVH and the men, who just appeared to represent Him, are
referred to as totally separate 'entities', ("And the men turned their
faces away from there, and went toward Sodom. But Abraham still stood before
YHVH", v. 22). The unclear distinction between the three persons leaves us
baffled as to 'who is who' here, and raises the question whether there is a
hidden message in this unusual and enigmatic wording*.
The God who "showed Himself" to Avraham determines (v. 17) not to (literally) "cover" His plans from His servant, and to inform him what it is that He was about to do (to Sdom and Amora). In fact, YHVH declares that He Himself aims to "come down and see if they had done according to the outcry that had come" to Him (18:21 italics added). In this instance, the "seeing" is a symbolic "inspection", or a declaration of intention that will obviously be followed by action on YHVH's part.
Following Avraham's 'bargaining' scene with YHVH, we meet his nephew Lot, as
he is sitting in the evening by the gate of Sdom (whereas his uncle had been
sitting at the door of his tent in the heat of day). Now it is his turn to
"see" (19:1). Lot greets the two messengers (quite likely of the same
three-men-party that had visited his uncle) by rising up and bowing down,
just as his relative had done. He too offers to have his guests' feet
washed, and is anxious to supply them with refreshments. As it is evening
time, Lot also offers them a place for the night, which they are very
reluctant to accept (or are they simply testing him?), and do so only after
much imploring on the part of their host. The meal served by Avraham under
the tree was far more peaceful than the feast at Lot's house in the town of
Sdom. No sooner are they done, and the town's evil men surround the house.
The messengers, however, quickly and supernaturally blind the
would-be-assailants (ref. 19:1). Next, Lot tries to talk his family into
leaving town, but his sons-in-law perceive it to be a joke ("laughing", is
the word in Hebrew), although their laughter obviously does not last for any
length of time... as in verse 25 YHVH overthrows the two cities, and in
verse 28 we meet Avraham seeing ("vayar", again of our root r.a.h) "the
smoke of the country."
Laughter was also part of the scene we had referred to above. Avraham's three visitors came in order to reaffirm once again the promise of a son. This time it is Sarah who laughed, and although she tried to conceal the fact (18:12-15), quite obviously there is nothing that is hidden from YHVH's eyes. Yet, this is not the end of her laughter! After giving birth exactly within the year, as YHVH had declared, Sarah says, "Elohim has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of it will laugh at me" (21:6). "And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian... mocking (the word is again "laughing" v. 11, italics added)." "Seeing" this "laughter" results in the banishment of Hagar and her son Yishmael (Ishmael). The banished handmaiden wanders in the wilderness by Beer Sheva (Beer Sheba), and when her drinking water is used up, she places her son under a shrub and exclaims: "Let me not see the death of the boy. And she ... lifted up her voice and cried" (ve.16 italics added). "And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went and filled the bottle with water, and gave drink to the boy" (v. 19 italics added).
Hagar's eyes are opened in the wilderness of Beer Sheva, and the following
story (21:22 - 34) expounds on the meaning of that town's name. Beer Sheva
is literally "the well of seven". The words "adjure", "charge" and "oath"
share the same root (sh.v.a, shin, bet/vet, ayin). "Satisfaction", or to
"have had enough" (especially regarding food), is "sovah" being of the same
root (although the letter "shin" is modified to a "sin"). The usage of the
number seven is often indicative of "fullness" and "completeness", and as
such it is also a solemn promise, or an oath that could be guaranteed simply
by repeating it seven times (or by using multiplications of seven). The
connection between these two words ("seven" and "oath") is well illustrated
in our story here, namely in Avraham and Avimelech's (Abimelech) settlement
(21:22 - 34). Avraham places seven ("sheva") ewe lambs in front of
Avimlelech as a witness to the fact that he had dug a disputed well.
Following that action "he called that place Beer Sheva, because there the
two of them took an oath (sh'vu'ah)". In Matthew 18:21, we see Peter
proclaiming that the act of forgiving up to seven times is sufficient.
Yeshua, of course, goes beyond that, but He too stays within the 'realm of
seven', saying..."up to seventy times seven." Truly, " ...The words of YHVH
are pure words; as silver... refined seventy times" (Ps. 12:6). The figure
'seventy' tells us that His words promise to guarantee full satisfaction.
"...On the day when YHVH binds up the fracture of His people and heals the
bruise He has inflicted... the light of the sun will be seven times
brighter, like the light of seven days" (Is. 30:26b, 26a). Again, the
guarantee of fullness in the form of "sevens" renders it like an oath. The
sunrise and sunset dictate the formation of any given day, just as the sun
and the moon control the length of the months and seasons of the Biblical
year. The seven-day week, however, seems to be quite arbitrary - but is it?
God chose to create the world in six days, and then to add one more at the
end, which He set apart for rest, remembrance and declaration. The
sanctification of the seventh day, and the commemoration of the number
"seven" (in naming the "week" "shavu'a"), the fullness and completeness of
what God has accomplished and their guaranteed fulfillment, are all innately
expressed in the Hebrew language in the root sh/s.v.a. "In Your presence
there is fullness ("sova") of joy; I will be satisfied ("es'be'ah") with
Your likeness when I awake" (Ps. 16:11 & 17:15).
The next scene is the famous "binding of Yitzchak (Isaac)", known in Hebrew as "Akedat Yitzchak". After a three-day journey with Yitzchak and two of his servants, "... Avraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar"...(22:4 italics added). Responding to his son's question, as to the whereabouts of the lamb for the sacrifice, Avraham says..."Elohim will see for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son" (v.8 literal translation, italics added). YHVH does indeed "see" (which is translated "provide") a substitute for Yitzchak in the form of a ram. "And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and behold, a ram was caught in the thicket by his horns. And Abraham called the name of the place 'YHVH Yir'eh - will see' - as it is said to this day - 'it shall be seen on the mountain of YHVH'" (v.13-14).
As it is in the beginning, so it is at the end of the Parasha - YHVH reveals Himself. In the opening verses, Avraham "sees" Him as he uses his 'inner eyes' and discernment, even when looking upon the three men. YHVH is also seen as the One who reveals His "secret to His servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7) before resorting to judge Sdom and Amora, though not before doing His own "seeing" of the state of affairs there. Further, His messengers' aura of light impairs the vision of the spiritually blind. He is seen in a dream by Avimelech, and thus prevents the latter from sinning with Sarah. The latter's "seeing" causes her to send Hagar and Yishamael away, but their needs are seen to by YHVH in the wilderness. And finally, He is the One who "sees" (present tense) for Himself the sacrificial Lamb provided by Him for all time.
Earlier we noticed that Avraham was sitting at the tent door "in the heat of the day" (18:1), while Lot was sitting at the gate of the city of Sdom "in the evening" (19:1).
But in the Parasha as a whole, it is the expression "early in the morning" that keeps reoccurring. In the three, out of four times, it relates to Avraham (19:27; 21:14; 22:3), and one time to Avimelech (20:8). "And he rose early" is, each time, "va'yashkem" of the root sh.ch.m (shin, kaf/chaf, meme) which is "shoulder". This is illustrated very graphically in 21:14: "And Abraham rose up early - "va-yashkem" - in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder -"shichma" - (21:14 italics added). The connection of those two terms is thought to be imbedded in the very reason for rising early, which is to put one's shoulder to work.
In 19:37 and 38 we learn of the origin of the Moabites and the Amonites. Since they are the product of an incestuous relationship, the name of the oldest - Mo'av - testifies to that fact. "Mo'av" stems from "m'av", meaning "from a father", as the boy had been begotten by his mother's father (his own grandfather). The second boy's mother names him "Ben Ami" (Ammon), meaning "son of my people", also in reference to the close family tie.
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From: Ephraim Frank To: Ephraim Frank Subject: Parashat Cha'yey Sarah
Hebrew Insights into Parashat Cha'yey Sarah: Genesis 23 - 25:18
Even though the name of this week's Parasha means "Sarah's Life", it is actually her death and burial which the opening verses describe. At this point, Avraham is looking to purchase a burial plot for his family. He has his eye set on a particular site in Kiryat Arba, opposite Mamre "which is Chevron"* (23:19). In order to strike the real estate deal, Avraham seeks out Efron (Ephron), who is the owner of a cave called Machpela. "Machpela" stems from the root k.f.l (kaf, fey, lamed - the consonant sounds ch and k are often designated by the same letter, kaf or chaf), which means "double". The name itself is not specifically explained, though it may have been given to this cave because it possibly had two or more chambers. Efron's name, quite appropriately, is derived from the root "ah'far" (a.f.r., ayin, fey, resh) meaning "dust of the ground". It is the same dust that is mentioned in B'resheet (Genesis) 3:19: "For dust you are and to dust you shall return," the famous words that were pronounced over Adam after he had succumbed to temptation. "Ah'far" is also the term YHVH uses when He makes His promises to the Patriarchs concerning the multiplicity of their seed (Gen. 13:16; 28:14). Perhaps the 'equation' of dust (in Efron's name) and duplicity (in the name of the burial cave), points to this very promise, in spite of the themes of death and burial and in their very presence.
Avraham pays in full (23:16) for his acquisition, as did his grandson Ya'acov when he purchased a field in the town of Sh'chem (Shechem, in Gen. 33:19), and likewise David, generations later, when he bought Ornan's (Araunah) threshing floor in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem, 2nd Sam. 24:24, upon which the Temple was later erected). Not coincidentally, Chevron, Sh'cehm (Ya'acov's son's tomb) and the Temple Mount are currently the three most contested spots in the entire land of Israel!
The payment that Avraham made was in hard cash: 400 shekels of silver. The three consonants that form the root for "shekel", sh.k.l (shin, kof, lamed), also form the verb "to weigh". Thus, the price paid for the plot was made up of 400 equal units of approximately one half ounce each. All in all Avraham paid about 200 "weighted" ounces, or 12 pounds, of silver. The name "Chevron" is made up of the root ch.v.r. (chaf, vet, resh), which is shared by the following: "to tie, bind, join, unite, friend, and company". Although in the course of its long history this town has not seen much unity and friendship (it served as David's capital during his seven-year rule over the house of Yehuda-Judah, before he united all of Israel, and is currently divided between the Muslims and the Jews), its name may point to days yet to come.
Chapter 24 highlights Avraham's senior servant, who "ruled over all his possessions" (v. 2). The servant is here described as a "moshel" (one of the words for "ruler"). "Moshel" is of the same root (m.sh.l, mem, shin, lamed) as terms like: "proverb", parable', example, to be like, resemble and comparable". In Tehilim (Psalms) 28:1 the writer cries: "I have become - "nimshalti" - like those who go down to the pit". The parable in Yechez'kel (Ezekiel) 22:2 is called a "mashal". In Shmuel Alef (1st Samuel) 10:12 Shaul (Saul) is made a public example of (as a prophet), with the use of "mashal". The people of Israel is likewise presented as a none-too-positive example among the nations; or in other words, an object lesson, such as in Yirmiyah (Jeremiah) 24:9 where they are called: "a reproach and a proverb... in all places whither I shall drive them" (italics added). There are many more of examples of the usage of the verb and noun emanating from m.sh.l, but how is this connected to the elderly servant?
The servant, as a representative of Avraham, carries out the duties
that are delegated to him. As such he strives to serve by approaching
his assignment in the same manner, as his master would have done.
This is the format, if you will, for the conduct of a true Godly
ruler, or leader, who takes his orders from above, endeavoring to
carry them out like his Master, thus becoming a representative
'sample', a "mashal" or a likeness, of the One whom he follows. The
God of Israel spoke..."he who rules over ("moshel") men, by ruling
("moshel") in the fear of the Lord, will shine as the light of the sun
in the morning...." (2nd Sam. 23:3,4). One such ruler was Yoseph,
whose physical trials and tests are defined as the purifying work of
"the Word of YHVH". Once he was 'confirmed' (another word which helps
define "m.sh.l") to this Word, he was appointed a "ruler over all of
the king's possessions" (Ps. 105:18-20). "What is man..." in the
eyes of His creator? Mentioned last in the list, found in Tehilim
(Psalms) 8:5-7 is, "a ruler over the works of YHVH's hand" (italics
added). "You have made him to rule" is the Hebrew verb "tam'shile'hu",
which can also be read, "you have made him like...", or, "you have
made of him a proverbial example." This, then, points to a
representational form of rule, or leadership. Avraham's servant
certainly displays this characteristic of conforming to his master, so
much so that his master's God becomes his! Yeshua's words attest to
the fact that he too operated by this principle: "I tell you the
truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees
his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does"
(Yochanan - John - 5:19).
Avraham's 'representative' servant is instructed to perform a mission,
but is not told how to carry it out. He chooses to present a 'fleece'
to "YHVH, the Elohim of my master Avraham" (24:12). The fleece and
its fulfillment focus on water, or on means of obtaining that
commodity which is so precious in that part of the world. We find
here "spring" (or "source"), "well" and "trough". The first two are
"ayin" and "be'er", respectively, and the last one is "shoket" (from
the verb "le'ha'shkot" - "to give a drink"). "Ayin" is also the word
used for "eye." Although the experts see no direct link between
"spring" (or "source") and "eye", Yeshua refers to the latter as a
type of a source when He says in Matthew 6:2: "The eye is the lamp of
the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full
of light." The root of "be'er" ("well") is identical to the root of
"ba'er" (b.a.r, bet, alef, resh), which means "to expound or clarify",
as it appears in Dvarim (Deuteronomy) 1:5; 27:8 and in Chavakook
(Habakkuk) 2:2 (where "inscribe" should read "clarify" or "expound").
And thus, it is the episode by the well which makes the results of his
mission clear to the inquiring servant, as he is "gazing at her [the
girl] in silence [and wondering]... whether the Lord had made his
journey successful or not" (24:21). However, he need not wonder for
long...
"Success" and "prosperity" is "hatzlacha", from the root tz.l.ch. (tzadi, lamed, chet), used in its various forms a number of times in this Parasha. The primary root, tz.l.ch, means "to advance, or cross" (such as in 2nd Sam. 19:18), and is used for "the coming of the Spirit," (also in Jud. 14:6). Whenever it is used to mean "success", the verb appears in the active causative form, rendering it: "to cause to advance." These, the verb and noun, teach us, then, that prosperity and success may be obtained only with the help of an 'external force', just as is exemplified here by the servant who is totally dependent on YHVH to "cause him to advance."
The servant's success, in this case, takes the form of a young maiden by the name of Rivka (Rebecca). Her rather curious name originates from the root letters r. v/b. k. (resh, vet/bet, kof), which are also the root letters of "marbek", that is, "stall"; in itself stemming from an Aramaic word meaning "to tie down" (the animals). "Marbek" is always used in connection with fatted calves (ref. Amos 6:4; 1st Sam. 28:24; Mal. 4:2; Jer. 46:21). Rivka's name seems to point, without question, to the importance her family attached to their possessions (and perhaps by naming her thus they were also expressing hopes regarding their livestock).
Upon her departure, Rivka's family blesses her saying "...Our sister, you will become [multiply into] thousands of ten thousands, and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies" (Gen. 24:60). This blessing is being uttered by Rivka's family members without being aware that a similar blessing, about the seed possessing the gate of their enemies, was also pronounced by YHVH's angel over Avraham, upon the latter's willingness to sacrifice Yitzchak (Gen. 22:17). It is quite likely that Avraham's servant had been informed about this blessing by his master, and upon hearing it again, in these present circumstances, the "success" of his assignment is being confirmed to him yet again.
"Gate" is "sha'ar" in Hebrew (sh.a.r, shin, ayin, resh). Because much of the administration, justice, and business used to take place by the city gate, he who possessed its gate also had charge over the entire city (or area). "The gate of the enemy" denotes, therefore, the enemy's area of control and dominion. Earlier on in our Parasha "gate" has also been referred to in Avraham's business transaction, in 23:10 and 18: "And Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the ears of the sons of Heth, of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying..." And: "The field of Ephron was certified... to Abraham for a possession in the presence of the sons of Heth, before all that went in at the gate of his city" (italics added).
Rivka's blessing, in addition to the themes of dominion and power, also speak of multiplicity: "tens of thousands". "Ten thousand" is "r'vava", whereas a "thousand" is "elef". "Elef" (a.l.f., alef, lamed, fey) may, with a slight modification, become the name of the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, "alef", lending it a place of importance, and hence, by implication, pointing also to a great numerical value. "Aluf" is "chief", but at times also means "a companion". It is perhaps a large group of "companions" that proverbially make up the number one thousand. "R'vava" is one of the words stemming from the very common root of r.v/b. (resh, vet/bet) meaning "much, great and chief". In the next Parasha (in Gen. 25:23) we will meet "the greater (who will serve the younger)" that will be designated by "rav".
The Parasha ends in the same way it had begun: burials are the order of the day. First Avraham dies..."in a ripe old age, an old man satisfied..." (25:8). "Ripe" here is "saveh'ah," which is also "satisfied", (of the root s.v.a, or sh.v.a), a word we examined last week when we looked at the figure "seven" and "oath". Avraham, too, is buried in the Cave of Machpela. Finally, the last verses of the Parasha deal with the death of Yishma'el, whose burial place is not mentioned.
Multiplicity in various forms, leadership, prosperity, dominion and greatness are some of the terms we encountered in this Parasha, whose main narrative is "sandwiched" in between deaths and burials. These deaths, however, seem to magnify all the more the blessings granted to the progeny left behind, accentuating the abundance of life that it is destined for.
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