Parshat VaYera

Avimelch's Pact with Avraham

We have another strange episode in this week's parsha.

Avraham is an old man of one hundred years old. He is landless and wandering all over Canaan. Suddenly, out of the blue, Avimelech, king of Pelishtim comes to him with his general Phichol, and says: "God is with you in all that you do. Now, swear to me here by God, that you will not lie to me or to my son or to my grandson; according to the kindness that I have done with you, you shall do with me, and with the land wherein you have sojourned" (Bereshit 21:22-23).

Avimelech then proceeds to make a non-aggression pact with Avraham.

Why does Avimelech, a king with an army, want a non-aggression pact with Avraham, a nomad? What is he afraid of?

We could answer by saying that Avimlech recognizes Avraham's greatness especially the fact that God is with him in all that he does, and therefore, its logical for him to want to be in his good books.

However, if that is the case, then we must ask, why now? Avimelech already knew this. In fact, Avimelech and Avraham had already met some time earlier when Avimelech had taken Sarah his wife. Then God appeared to Avimelech in a dream saying that Avraham: "is a prophet" (ibid 20:7) and warning him not to hurt him.

Surely that would have been a more opportune moment for Avimelech to seek a pact with Avraham.

The answer lies in the timing. The episode begins with the words: "Now it came to pass at that time" (ibid 21:22). Something important had just happened. Avraham had just had son; he now had an heir. So what?

For many years, this old man Avraham had been travelling the length and breadth of Canaan preaching monotheism and that one day he would inherit this land.

Most people would not have taken him seriously; for he had no son. However, now he had that son. Suddenly Avraham is a threat to Avimelech. Avimelech knows first hand that God is with Avraham, but now that Avraham has finally had a son, he fears that Avraham's prophecy will come true. This means that his kingdom is not safe. Avraham's descendants will take it away from his. Therefore, Avimelech, comes with his top general and seeks a multi generational non-aggression pact.

With this pact Avraham now has now outside confirmation that his whole life's mission will succeed, and he uses it to his advantage.

First "he planted an eishel tree", signifying his ownership of the land, as well as planting something for his future descendants to enjoy. Then he "dwelt in the land of the Philistines for many days" and "called there in the name of the Lord, the everlasting God", (ibid 21:33-34) i.e. he spends the rest of his life travelling the land of the Pelishtim and preaching about God. But now he is able to use the pact with Avimelech, the Philistine king, as proof that even he now believes in God – shouldn't they?


Last year's Sedra Short for Parshat VaYera, entitled: "The Fate of Mrs. Lot" can be found at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2007/10/parshat-vayera-fate-of-mrs.html

Another Sedra Short for Parshat VaYera, entitled: " Yishmael the Impersonator" can be found at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2006/11/parshat-vayera-yishmael-impersonator.html

Another Sedra Short for Parshat VaYera, entitled: "She's my Sister – Again!!" can be found at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2005/11/parshat-vayera-shes-my-sister-again.html

Parshat Lech Lecha

The Repeated Promise

At the age of 70, Avraham Avinu begins a new chapter in his life.

God speaks to him for the first time and tells him to go to the land of Canaan and that He will make him a great nation there.

All this is fine, apart from the fact that this promise is repeated a further four times.

The first time: "Go forth from your land … to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation…" (Bereshit 12:1-2)

The second time: Avram passed through the land…and the Canaanites were then in the land. The Lord appeared to Avram, and He said, "To your seed I will give this land" (ibid 6-7).

The third time: "The Lord said to Avram after Lot had parted from him, "Raise your eyes and see... For all the land that you see I will give to you and to your seed to eternity" (13:14-15).

The fourth time: "On that day, the Lord formed a covenant with Avram, saying, "To your seed I have given this land" (ibid 15:18).

The fifth time: "I will give you and your seed after you the land of your sojournings, the entire land of Canaan for an everlasting possession, and I will be to them for a God" (ibid 17:8).

When the word of God was so precious, when God only spoke with Avraham five times over these 29 years, why did He give Avraham exactly the same message each time? Why was it necessary for God to repeat His message four times?

The answer can be found in a close reading of the text.

God had promised Avraham Canaan and that he would become a great nation there. However, when Avraham got there, he had a great shock: "The Canaanites were then in the land". This land was not an empty land waiting for a master. It was already fully inhabited by a strong and mighty nation.

This must have come to Avraham as a great surprise and must have given him doubts. Therefore, God immediately reassured him saying: "To your seed I will give this land". He adds that His promise was not going to be fulfilled immediately, but only in the future. Avraham "built an altar to the Lord" (ibid 12:8), showing that He trusted God.

That reaffirmation satisfied Avraham until he had another major crisis. Avraham had no children. His heir was Lot, his nephew, the man he brought up as his own son. He must have been satisfied that God would maintain his promise through Lot. However, Lot left him. His successor was gone. Therefore, God again reassured Avraham: "All the land that you see I will give to you and to your seed to eternity". God then tells Avraham to: "walk in the land, to its length and to its breadth" signifying his ownership of it. Avraham again shows his faith as "he built an altar to the Lord" (ibid 13:17-18).

Yet some years later, Avraham experienced another crisis. He had defeated a military super-power and was now worried about revenge. God tells Avraham "Fear not, Avram; I am your Shield" (ibid 15:1). At this point Avraham asks what was the point of all this protection when "I am going childless" and "You have given me no seed, and behold, one of my household (Eliezer) will inherit me" (ibid 2-3).

God therefore tells him that Eliezer, the head of his household " will not inherit you, but the one who will spring from your innards-he will inherit you" (ibid 4). But He also goes when one step further than just making a promise; He makes a covenant with Avraham – the "Covenant Between the Pieces", committing Himself to this pact. Avraham once again "believed in the Lord" (ibid 6).

The final time that God makes the promise to Avraham is not the result of any fears that Avraham had expressed. Simply, the time had come for the promise to begin to be fulfilled. Sarah, Avraham's wife was about to conceive. However, before that could happen, Avraham had to have his name changed from Avram to Avraham, signifying his acceptance of his new role, and he had to enter the covenant of circumcision - the Brit Milla.

Just like Avraham had to wait for the promise to be fulfilled, so too his descendants, the Jewish people, had to wait. Just like Avraham had to have blood spilt before he could take possession of the land, so too the Jewish people have experienced blood shed. Nevertheless, God has been faithful and the land of Israel is now our "everlasting possession" (ibid 8).

Last year's Sedra Short for Parshat Lech Lecha, entitled: "The Cannanites Were Then in the Land” appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2007/10/parshat-lech-lecha-cannanites-were-then.html

Another Sedra Short for Parshat Lech Lecha, entitled: "Sarah, Wife of Avraham” appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2006/11/parshat-lech-lcha-sarah-wife-of.html

Another Sedra Short for Parshat Lech Lecha, entitled: "The Double edge of Circumcision" can be found at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2005/11/parshat-lech-lecha-double-edge-of.html

Parshat Lech Lecha

The Cannanites Were Then in the Land

God told Avraham to go "to the land that I will show you" (Bereshit 12:1). When he arrived there, the passuk tells us that "the Canaanites were then in the land" (ibid 6). The word "then" – "אז" in Hebrew, has troubled traditional Jewish commentaries for it implies that at the time Sefer Bereshit was written, the Canaanites were no longer in the land. Orthodox Jews believe that Sefer Bereshit was written by Moshe. That makes the word "then" problematic, for the Canaanites were the unchallenged rulers of Canaan in Moshe's day.

Rashi states that Avraham's time marked the beginning of the Cannanite conquest. The word "then" then implies that the Canannites were then taking control of the land, as opposed to today, Moshe's day, when the Cananites had supreme control.

This interpretation is difficult to accept for it cannot be historically justified. The Canannites were firmly in control of Canaan well before Avraham arrived on the scene.

The Chizkuni therefore, explains that the word "then" was included for later generations, such as ours, so that we should understand that when Avraham first arrived in Israel, it was actually a strong holding of the Canaanites.

Ibn Ezra however, has real trouble with world and hints, though he doesn't say it openly, that the word was added at a later date.

I would like to add an alternative suggestion that will make the traditionalists more comfortable. But before I do I would like to ask, why God repeats His promise to Abraham numerous times throughout the parsha, God had already told Avraham that he would become a great nation in the land. Why does God then repeat "To your descendants I will give this land," (ibid 7)?

If we recall, Avraham was not told specifically what land he was directed to go to and that he had never been to Canaan before. It is possible that Avraham assumed that he would arrive in a sparsely populated region, a place that he could claim and inherit to his children.

However, when he arrived in Canaan he was shocked. This land was already full of people, not just any people, but the Canaanites; a highly developed people with a distinct culture and strong army. Could this be the land where he was to become a great nation?

Therefore Avraham may have assumed that he was at the wrong place. God immediately appears to him therefore and says: "To your descendants I will give this land". God explains that the promise is to be fulfilled in the future. Avraham's immediate reaction is to build an altar and show his trust in God. The word "then" therefore, expresses to Israel four hundred years later, Avraham's shock and surprise.

Moshe explains that they should not think that when Avraham arrived in the land it was unoccupied and that he was claiming it for them. No, even in Avraham's day, the land was fully occupied and controlled by Canaan.

Therefore, the pesukim can be understood as follows: "Avram passed through the land, until the place of Shechem, until the plain of Moreh, and [found that] the Canaanites were [already] then [firmly entrenched] in the land. [In order to allay Avram's doubts] the Lord appeared to Avram, and He said, 'To your descendants I will give this land'. There [showing his faith and new understanding of God's promise] he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him" (ibid 6-7).

Therefore, the word "then" need not be a post-Mosaic addition to the text, but merely a tool to teach us and ancient Israel:

• That Avraham had problems understanding God's promise in light of the facts
• Why God repeated his promise to Avraham
• Why Avraham did not build the altar immediately upon arriving in the land.

Last year's Sedra Short for Parshat Lech Lecha, entitled: "Sarah, Wife of Avraham” appears at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2006_11_01_archive.html

Another Sedra Short for Parshat Lech Lecha, entitled: "The Double edge of Circumcision" can be found at http://parshablog.blogspot.com/2005_11_01_parshablog_archive.html