Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 when they gave birth to Yitzchak. That means they’re 10 years apart. And Sarah is the daughter of Abraham’s younger brother Haran. So when Sarah was born, Abraham was 10, meaning Haran who was younger must’ve been 8 maximum (because Nachor was in between). And so when Sarah was conceived he must’ve been 7. Do any mefarshim address issues like this or give any creative answers, or do most ignore it or just say “nature was different back then”
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See Sanhedrin 69b– SholomCommented Nov 14 at 4:54
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The Gemara says that Haran was 8 when Sarah born. But that is based on presuming 1) Avraham was the oldest and 2) Yiskah = Sarai. These presumptions are found in midrashim but are not clear in the Torah itself.– conceptualinertiaCommented Nov 14 at 5:18
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Note we don't rule like the midrash that Sarah is Haran's daughter judaism.stackexchange.com/a/73964/759– Double AA ♦Commented Nov 14 at 13:37
1 Answer
According to Seder haDoros year 1916, Terach was 38 years old and had Haran and Nachor born (Sefer haYashar Noach). In the year 1948, Terach married a different woman named Amatlaah bas Carnevu who gave birth to Avram. I.e. Haran was older than Avram by 32 years. In the year 1955 Haran was 39 years old, he married a woman who gave birth to Lot, then Milka, and then Sarah. In the year 1958, Haran was 42 years when Sarah was born.
Gemara Sanhedrin 69b states that Avram was older than Nahor by 1 year, and older than Haran by 2 years. So it implies that Haran was 8 when Sarah was born. I do not know how to reconcile all these numbers. It can be that Terach's 1st wife was getting very sick and died when Avraham was just 1 year old. Terach married Avraham's mother to help him with sick wife, who later adopted both Nachor and Haran.
Regarding "nature was different argument" in year 1957 Seder haDoros states that Avram could have a child at the age of 9 years old. This is within halacha, but Haran's ability to do so at 8 is not. Thus, one may accept that the number 8 years is hinting to some additional information.
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related (about giving birth at 8) judaism.stackexchange.com/q/20415/759 (see linked questions there too– Double AA ♦Commented Nov 14 at 13:43