Questions tagged [vayera]
The weekly Torah portion of Vayera (Genesis 18:1-22:24)
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Avraham going down to Mitzrayim: contradiction between the Satmar Rav and Noam Elimelech
The Noam Elimelech teaches us that Avraham Avinu went down to Mitzrayim to "influence" the wicked in his generation. In order to do this, a tzaddik sometimes needs to "descend to a ...
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Yom tov and non-Jews
How was Avraham Avinu able to cook for the melachim if he thought they were Arabs and you’re not allowed to cook for non-Jews on yom tov?
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Noam Elimelech and the primary aspect of a mitzvah
In this article By Rabbi Abba Wagensberg, a teaching from the Noam Elimelech is cited. It reads:
The primary aspect of a mitzvah is not its technicalities and details, but rather the love we put into ...
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Doors and Doorways in Parshat Vayeira
In this week's parsha of Vayeira, I counted 6 references to the words דלת and פתח, all in the story of Lot and Sodom. I don't believe this is a coincidence, since it's all about standing in the door, ...
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Why did Abraham run to greet the visitors in Genesis 18?
Did he run because he knew they were angels?
Or did he run to exhibit hospitality to strangers in the desert?
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Why is the name of mercy YHWH is mentioned exclusively in the story of Sodom?
The name YHWH is associated with mercy whereas the name Elokim is associated with justice (Refer to Rashi on Devarim 3:24 quoting the Sifrei here).
I noticed that the name of YHWH is used exclusively ...
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Why didn't Avraham tell Sarah about Hashem's promise to have Yitzchak?
At the end of Lech Lecha, Hashem promises Avraham that Sarah will give birth to Yitzchak, which is followed by Avraham performing a bris on his entire household including himself. Three days later, ...
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Did Avraham invite the angels into his house?
Avraham sits at the entrance to his tent waiting for guests. When the three angels arrive he runs out to greet them and pleads that they stay. He then tells them (Bereishit 18:4):
יֻקַּח-נָא מְעַט-...
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Why did Hashem wait until the 3rd day to visit Abraham?
B"H
At the beginning of parshas Vayeira, Rashi says that Hashem came to Avraham to "visit the sick" on the third day after the bris.
And [the Lord] appeared to him: to visit the sick (...
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Why didn't Abraham ask straight how many Tzaddikim are there in Sodom?
Maurice asked "why didn't Abraham ask "How many righteous people do there have to be in that place for you not to destroy it?"
From Rasi it is clear that Abraham knew that 10 Tzaddikim ...
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Genesis 18:21 then I will know?
I find it strange that Genesis/Bereshit 18:21 seems to imply that G-d has limited knowledge of what's going on in Sodom and Amorah, so I wondered if the word eda'ah (אֵדָעָה) could be translated as: ...
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One visitor healed Avraham
From were was the idea derived that one of the angels/messengers who visited Avraham healed him?
Although tradition teaches us that Avraham had just been circumcised, the text in itself doesn’t ...
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Have known him OR to have made him known
Bereshit 18:19 starts with the words 'For I have known him (כִּי יְדַעְתִּיו)', the Sefaria website translates these words as 'For I have singled him out', Rashi as 'I know him intimately'. In line ...
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Why did Avraham argue with G-d about Sodom but not about his son's sacrifice?
Are there any Mefarshim who commented on why Avraham chose to advocate on behalf of Sodom when G-d tells him that the city will be destroyed, but chose to remain silent and just accept the decree when ...
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Why did God listen to Lot's prayer to save Sodom, yet didn't listen to Abraham's?
After all of Abraham's wondorous prayers to Hashem to save Sodom the posuk says (י״ח:לג):
וַיֵּ֣לֶךְ יְהוָ֔ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר כִּלָּ֔ה לְדַבֵּ֖ר אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֑ם וְאַבְרָהָ֖ם שָׁ֥ב לִמְקֹמֽוֹ
God 'went' when ...
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Why the long delay for Akeidas Yitzchak?
In Bereishis 21:8 the pasuk writes:
וַיִּגְדַּ֥ל הַיֶּ֖לֶד וַיִּגָּמַ֑ל וַיַּ֤עַשׂ אַבְרָהָם֙ מִשְׁתֶּ֣ה גָד֔וֹל בְּי֖וֹם הִגָּמֵ֥ל אֶת־יִצְחָֽק׃
The child grew up and was weaned, and Abraham held a ...
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Angels visiting Abraham during Pesach [duplicate]
I start it from the end: regarding Lot it is written (Bereishit 19:3):
וַיִּפְצַר־בָּ֣ם מְאֹ֔ד וַיָּסֻ֣רוּ אֵלָ֔יו וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ אֶל־בֵּית֑וֹ וַיַּ֤עַשׂ לָהֶם֙ מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה וּמַצּ֥וֹת אָפָ֖ה וַיֹּאכֵֽלוּ׃...
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The angels who accused Yishmoel – what action were they suggesting?
Beraishis 21 (17)
Hashem judges Yishmoel “בַּאֲשֶׁר הוּא שָׁם " - “in that condition in which he now is”. The ministering angels according to the Medrash said, “Master of the Universe, for him ...
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Were there any Tzaddikim in Sodom?
In Vayera, Avraham asks HaShem to save Sodom if even 10 righteous people exist. Sodom gets destroyed. Are there any sources that say Sodom had any righteous people, even if less than ten?
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Hashem vindicates Sarah's jealousy?
According to the Ibn Ezra (21,9), Sarah's demand to banish Yishmael was based purely on jealousy. Why would Hashem agree with her and instruct Avraham to send him away?
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Why did the Davidic dynasty need to come from questionable relations?
On the one side of the family, we have the union between Tamar and Yehudah, which, while technically a fulfillment of Yibum, Yehudah thought she was a harlot. From this union came Peretz (Bereishis 38:...
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Why was Abraham cheap with Hagar and his son Yishmael?
Following "why-would-Hagar-go-to-the-desert-to-die", IIRC Abraham was freakishly wealthy and he should be full of Chessed (toward his former wife and his own son), Sarah didn't deny any ...
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Source for Rashi's claim that some nations worshiped dust?
Rashi (Gen 18,4) on "יֻקַּח־נָא מְעַט־מַיִם וְרַחֲצוּ רַגְלֵיכֶם׃" says:
כַּסָּבוּר שֶׁהֵם עַרְבִיִּים שֶׁמִּשְׁתַּחֲוִים לַאֲבַק רַגְלֵיהֶם
He thought they were Arabians who worship the dust of ...
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I will descend to Sodom and Amorah
In Genesis 18:21 G-d seems to say something like: I will descend now and see, whether according to her cry, which has come to Me, they have done.
Did He really descend right at that moment in time or ...
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Did Abraham know that Lot survived the Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah?
In last week's Parasha, we all know the story of Abraham arguing with God to have God spare the cities on account of the righteous. However, I haven't heard much about the end of the story.
Genesis ...
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Hashem's inconsistent responses about Sedom
In parshas Vayeira there is a whole back-and-forth between Hashem and Avraham. Each time Avraham pleaded to save everyone if a certain number of righteous individuals would be found. Each time Hashem ...
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Changing our perspective
I once found this kind of quote online: "G-d grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference".
It popped up in my ...
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Was Lot, himself, sodomized when he first moved into Sodom?
In Genesis 19, Lot defends the angels who came under his roof against the demands of the local men who want a chance to sodomize the three visitors. From the Torah's description, and Rashi's take on ...
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God's response: "If I find fifty innocent ones..." - what does "if" mean?
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ה' אִם־אֶמְצָ֥א בִסְדֹ֛ם חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים צַדִּיקִ֖ם בְּת֣וֹךְ הָעִ֑יר וְנָשָׂ֥אתִי לְכָל־הַמָּק֖וֹם בַּעֲבוּרָֽם׃
And the LORD answered, “If I find within the city of Sodom fifty innocent ones,...
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Why doesn't God offer Sodom and Gemorrah the same chance to repent He offers Nineveh?
Why does God destroy Sodom and Gomorrah without warning, but offer Nineveh a chance to repent? The men who come to Lot's house could have just easily prophesied to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah ...
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Why did Avraham pray for Sodom
Sodom was one of the most morally corrupted societies that ever existed.
Wouldn't their disappearance be good for everyone (including themselves)?
Keeping those who are thoroughly wicked alive is not ...
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Why didn’t Avraham run the first time he saw the three men?
It becomes clear from Bereshit 18:2 that Avraham is looking around from the entrance of the tent and sees three men appearing, cause it reads: והנה שלשה אנשים נצבים עליו.
But what did Avraham see the ...
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Does Rashi refer to Arabs when describing the 3 people who visited Abraham?
The Torah writes (Bereshit 18:2)
[Abraham] saw three men standing near him
Rashi comments right after (on 18:4)
כַּסָּבוּר שֶׁהֵם עַרְבִיִּים
which can be translated "[Abraham] thought they ...
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Attributes of God--Why does God have to come down to check out Sodom and Gemorrah?
I've always thought it rather curious that God came down to check out the corruption of the city:
כִּי יְדַעְתִּיו, לְמַעַן אֲשֶׁר יְצַוֶּה אֶת-בָּנָיו וְאֶת-בֵּיתוֹ אַחֲרָיו, וְשָׁמְרוּ דֶּרֶךְ ...
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Why was King David allowed to kill Phillistines?
In Breishit 21:23–24, Avimelech asks Avrahm to swear that his future generations will not destroy his sons or grandchildren.
Bechor Shor commentary says:
תעשה עמדי. כשתבא לידך שלא תגרש גם אתה את זרעי:...
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Date of the Akeida?
Are there sources in our tradition which discuss the Hebrew date of Akeidas Yitzchak? The fact that we read the Akeida on Rosh Hashana or, properly, every day suggests to me that the "real" date is ...
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Genesis 18:3 Adonai, My Lord or lords and why?
Rabbeinu Bahya (13th Century) wrote that in non-sacred usage the Nun of adonai has a Patah, and only with an Etnahta or Sof pasuk a Qamatz when the word stands on its own. ‘And for this reason in the ...
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Why does God appear to Avraham about Sarah’s laughter?
In Bereshis (Perek 18) why would God appear to Avraham regarding Sarah’s laughter and not appear to Sarah herself? Isn’t one’s relationship with God personal, not necessarily involving one’s spouse?
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Why did Sarah demand to expel Hagar?
IIRC, Hagar was [happily] married to Abraham for at least 17 years (one or two for pregnancy, 13 of Yishmael before his circumcision, one for Sarah's pregnancy, and two for Itzhak's Gmilah). If it was ...
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Why would Hagar go to the desert to inevitable death?
"Early next morning Abraham took some bread and a skin of water, and gave them to Hagar. He placed them over her shoulder, together with the child, and sent her away. And she wandered about in ...
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Is Sarah old and withered, or young and attractive when Abimelech captures her?
We see in the Torah:
Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old, or can Sarah bear a
child at ninety? (Gen. 17:17)
Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years; Sarah had stopped
having ...
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What are the limits of hospitality? [duplicate]
Hospitality is valued very highly in Judaism, witness Abraham [Gen. 18:1-5], Lot [Gen. 19:1-8], Laban [Gen. 24:28–32], Manoah [Judges 13:15-16] or the unhappy matter of the concubine of Gibeah [Judges ...
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Avraham's knife was called Ma'achelet. Why?
What is the reason behind the word Ma'achelet used for the knife used by Avraham in the binding of Yitzchok? Is it an indication of specific function? Is this name used elsewhere? Does it indicate any ...
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Did Abraham and Sarah say a blessing on hearing a good news about their future heir?
IIRC, one says a Brachah of "Hatov veha-Meitiv" on hearing good news (source needed).
When the angels came to inform Abraham and Sara of giving birth to Isaac in exactly one year, did they ...
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Washing feet before coming inside: Avraham vs. Lot
When the angels came to visit Avraham, he asked them (Bereishis 18:4) to "Bathe your feet, and recline under the tree". Rashi explains:
He thought that they were Arabs, who prostrate themselves to ...
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Does Hashem speak Lashon Hara about Sara?
In this week's Parasha, it seems to me that Hashem speaks L'H about Sarah, regarding her laughing about having a child (Genesis.18.13).
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ה' אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֑ם לָ֣מָּה זֶּה֩ צָחֲקָ֨ה שָׂרָ֜ה ...
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Did Avraham know the visitors were angels?
Related (among others)
When the three men walk past Avraham's tent, he runs out to bring them in and feeds them (expressions of Mid-Eastern hospitality). Does he know (think, guess?) at any point that ...
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Angels Eating: The case of Avraham Vs Lot
I came across a fascinating Tanna D'Vei Eliyahu Rabbah (12:1) which states:
וכל האומר לא אכלו מלאכי השרת עם אברהם אע"ה לא אמר כלום אלא בצדקתו של אותו צדיק ובשכר טורח שטרח בשבילם פתח להם הקב"...
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Why בניו if Yishmael is the Only Son Now?
Bereishit 18:19 says:
כי ידעתיו למען אשר יצוה את בניו וגו׳
At this point Avraham’s only son is Yishmael. Why does the pasuk say בניו and not בנו? Does he have more than one son now? Rashi even ...
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The sources of Abraham's wealth
The Torah specifies that Abraham profited well from deceiving Pharaoh and Avimelech by presenting Sarah as his sister:
וַיַּעַל אַבְרָם מִמִּצְרַיִם הוּא וְאִשְׁתּוֹ וְכָל־אֲשֶׁר־לוֹ וְלוֹט עִמּוֹ ...
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