Chayei Sarah – Page 11 – Peninim on the Torah

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5760

“Let it be that the maiden to whom I shall say, “’Please tip over your jug so I may drink’ and who replies, ‘Drink, and I will even water your camels,’ her will You have designated for Your servant, for Yitzchak.” (24:14)

That is exactly what happened. Rivkah passed the litmus test for becoming Yitzchak’s wife. She demonstrated that she possessed exemplary character traits. Her act of kindness towards Eliezer and his camels indicated that she was a baalas chesed, kind, sensitive, caring person. We have to ask ourselves: Is this enough to be the wife of Yitzchak, the Olah Temimah, perfect sacrifice? Is chesed all that one needs in order to become the wife of the one who lay still at the Akeidah, willing and ready to forfeit his life because his father was commanded so by Hashem? While chesed…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5760

“Then Lavan and Besuel answered and said, ‘The matter stemmed from Hashem.’” (24:50)

Three words – “mei’Hashem yatza ha’davar,” “the matter stemmed from Hashem.” Even the wicked Lavan and Besuel saw what so many who demonstrate spiritual myopia refuse to acknowledge: Everything comes from Hashem; He is the source of all that occurs. When we take note of what happens around us and how everything has transpired, how the various pieces of the puzzle many of us call life just “seem” to fit together, we will realize that it can only be attributed to Hashem’s guiding Hand. Stories abound which demonstrate the concept of “mei’Hashem yatza ha’davar.” One that is especially intriguing…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to bewail her. (23:3)

Rashi cites Chazal, who teach us that the narratives of Sarah’s death and the Akeidah follow one another in order to demonstrate that Sarah died as a direct result of the Akeidah. The Satan told Sarah that Avraham had slaughtered Yitzchak. When she heard this shocking news, she cried out in grief and died. The commentators offer various explanations for this Chazal. Interestingly, Rashi mentions this juxtaposition – in regard to the pasuk detailing Avraham’s reaction to Sarah’s death, his eulogy and mourning. He does not mention this Chazal at the onset of the parsha, which begins with Sarah’s…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

And Avraham was old, well on in years. (24:1)

The Midrash distinguishes between ziknah, old age, and ba ba’yamim, getting on in years. They maintain that some people attain ziknah, but do not have their “days.” Others have their yamim, days, but do not have their old age. Avraham Avinu had both; he was well-on in years, and he also achieved ziknah. What is the meaning of this Midrash? How does it apply to Avraham? Horav Mordechai Rogov, zl, explains that ziknah is a reference to the past, to what one learned as a youth, to the Torah and yiraas Shomayim, fear of Heaven, which he has attained. Yamim…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

And Avraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who controlled all that was his…that you not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani. (24:1,3)

The Torah places great emphasis upon Eliezer’s position in Avraham’s household. Certainly it was a high status position, considering Avraham’s great wealth. Horav M.D. Soloveitchik, Shlita, comments that Avraham Avinu placed incredible trust in Eliezer, appointing him to direct and control all of his material assets. When it involved spiritual pursuits, however, he exacted an oath from him. He did not simply rely upon his proven integrity and devotion. He sought a promise that would bind him to his word. Marriage was a spiritual endeavor for Yitzchak. He and the woman he would marry were to become the progenitors of…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

And Avraham was old, well on in years…and Avraham said to his servant…that you not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani. (24:1,3)

Nowhere in the Torah is so much space devoted to one incident, as it is to Avraham’s initial command to Eliezer, his servant, followed by the eventual securing of a wife for Yitzchak. Indeed, the Ten Commandments occupy only fourteen pesukim, while the story of Yitzchak and Rivkah take up sixty seven pesukim! We infer from here the overwhelming significance of Jewish continuity. Avraham’s mission in life, together with that of Sarah Imeinu, would die with them if there were to be no one faithful to carry on their legacy. Without a secure family, devoted and committed to the faith…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

Do not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani in whose land I dwell. (24:37)

Avraham Avinu rejected the Canaani as potential mechutanim, people from whom he was willing to take a wife for Yitzchak, because of their moral degeneracy. While his “family” were idol- worshippers, their iniquity was basically in the intellectual realm. Philosophic sin can be cured without leaving a blemish upon the individual’s character. A lack of morality and ethics affects the entire psyche of the person. Such a person was disqualified from being a mate for Yitzchak. We see that the Torah presents a picture of Lavan and Besuel, Rivkah’s brother and father, Avraham’s “family” who were acceptable for a shidduch…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5759

And Yitzchak went out to supplicate in the field towards evening. (24:63)

Chazal infer from this pasuk that Yitzchak initiated Tefillas Minchah. The afternoon prayer, Tefillas Minchah, is different from the morning prayer, Tefillas Shacharis, and the evening prayer, Tefillas Arvis. In the morning, a person arises rested after a night’s sleep. He has not yet become involved in the hustle and bustle of his daily endeavor. His thoughts are still peaceful, his emotions are relaxed. He can supplicate Hashem with a relaxed, peaceful frame of mind. He can have the proper kavanah, concentration and intention. Likewise, at the end of the day, regardless of the day’s trials and frustrations, business is…

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Moshe Marcovich In Chayei Sarah, 5758

And Sarah died in Kiryas Arba….And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to cry for her. (23:2)

Rashi explains that the narrative regarding Sarah’s death is juxtaposed upon the previous parsha, which relates the story of Akeidas Yitzchak, because her death is intrinsically related to the Akeidah. When she heard the news that her only child was about to be slaughtered, “parchah nishmassah,” her soul “flew out” and she died. We may question why Rashi discusses Sarah’s death and its connection with the Akeidah while commenting on the pasuk which mentions Avraham’s eulogy. He should have raised this issue in the beginning of the parsha, when the Torah says, “And Sarah died.” Second, it is difficult to…

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Moshe Marcovich In Chayei Sarah, 5758

I have given you the field, and as for the cave that is in it, I have given to you….bury your dead. Land worth four hundred silver shekels; between you and I–what is it? Bury your dead. (23:11,15)

What made Efron change his mind so radically? At first, he appeared to be a wonderful, refined gentleman who opened his land to Avraham. He granted him a place in which to bury Sarah without asking any compensation. Suddenly Efron showed a different side to his personality, when he “intimated” that he would be inclined to “give” the property to Avraham for a mere four hundred silver shekels, which constituted an outrageous amount of money. Something must have transpired that catalyzed this sudden change. What was it? Horav Yaakov Neiman, zl, cites the Alter M’Kelm who responds to the question…

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“Let it be that the maiden to whom I shall say, “’Please tip over your jug so I may drink’ and who replies, ‘Drink, and I will even water your camels,’ her will You have designated for Your servant, for Yitzchak.” (24:14)

“Then Lavan and Besuel answered and said, ‘The matter stemmed from Hashem.’” (24:50)

And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to bewail her. (23:3)

And Avraham was old, well on in years. (24:1)

And Avraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who controlled all that was his…that you not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani. (24:1,3)

And Avraham was old, well on in years…and Avraham said to his servant…that you not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani. (24:1,3)

Do not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaani in whose land I dwell. (24:37)

And Yitzchak went out to supplicate in the field towards evening. (24:63)

And Sarah died in Kiryas Arba….And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to cry for her. (23:2)

I have given you the field, and as for the cave that is in it, I have given to you….bury your dead. Land worth four hundred silver shekels; between you and I–what is it? Bury your dead. (23:11,15)

YEARS

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