Vayeira - 1st Portion

Join me as we learn together paras which is chapter 18 verse one the fourth Torah reading in the Torah is paras for day one Sunday [clears throat] we are now talking and continuing of last week's Torah reading where we spoke about the having circumcision And now Abra is recuperating on the third day after his circumcision which happens to be on the 15th of Nissan in the year 2047 and God appeared to Abra in the plains of Mamre why there will soon Rashi explains and was sitting at the entrance of his tent at the heat of the day. There's the well-known story of the Reb. While the Reb Rashab was a child of five or six years old, he came to his grandfather and he asked his grandfather the why was it that Abraumerited that God should appear to him. The responded and said as a yead to 99 that when a Jew sadic a holy person at 99 years old decides to circum circumcise himself he is worthy that God should visit him. The Reb expounded on this that the very fact that the previous Reb told us the story about a child means that we also can learn something from it. a that we should always aspire that we should want to see God, but even more so that even young children have the opportunity that we should teach them and educate them about the greatness of Hashem and never to think that a child is too young to learn about spirituality and godliness. Why did God appear to him? Rashi comes to tell us it doesn't say that God spoke to him, but first it says that he came to see him and he appeared to him. Why did he appear to him to visit the sick said being that this was the third day of his to his after his circumcision which then the pain is at its worst. So a god came to see how he is feeling. How do we know that the third day is the most painful? Later on in the story of Shm when they kidnapped Dina and Shim and Levy wiped out the city of Shem, they did it on the third day because that was the most painful day of the circumcision after they had their circumcision. Why does the Torah tell us Mamre? It was in the plains of Mam because it was Mamre who gave advice to Abraham that he should do the circumcision out in the public and not be afraid of it. Therefore, God is a reward of came and appeared himself to in the area of if we look at the word generally for you would have you would have av there. However, it says without one can read it was sitting. He was sitting and he wanted to get up in honor of the divine presence of the came to Abraham. God said to him, you sit and I will stand and you will be a sign. This will be a sign for your children that I will stand amongst the judges and they will be sitting as it says that whenever the judges are judging a person in rabbitical tribunal, God is amongst them and God stands together with them. Why does it say at the entrance of the tent? This is teaching us that even though Ara was ill at the time because he was suffering from the circumcision he was sitting at the entrance of a stand to see him if there's any passerbyers coming and I'll be able to welcome them in his home as we're going to see that that's why God in fact sent the angels at the heat of the day God took out the the sun from its lens from its uh layer that protects it that it shouldn't hurt people that sun has a cover on it. So that it should be really hot and guests should not bother him and he should be able to recuperate. But since Hashem saw that tired that is going to be in pain because guests weren't coming to visit him brought he sent the angels that they should look in the form of humans. This way should have some guests that he should invite in his home as we see and going to see him. Verse two. And Aram lifted his eyes. He looked up and behold and he sees. There were three men standing before standing before and he saw them and he ran towards them. He pass from the opening from the entrance of his tent and he prostrated himself to the ground tells us why were there sent three? Why couldn't one do the job? S one was there to tell Sarah that she was going to have a child and one came to overturn Sadim and destroy Sodom as we're going to see in the next part of the Torah reading the other came to heal why did he need three why couldn't one just do all the jobs explains to us and tells us because one Malik one angel cannot do two errands they can't multitask maybe they're like men, they can't multitask. They have to do one job at a time. You should know that every errand that is done through each individual Malik and throughout the Torah reading where he mentions the angels together in multitude and they ate and they said they but when it comes to the actual case of where they go to do their particular jobs for example when they tell and notify Abraham about the birth of singular term we will return and so too when they are overturning the city of Saddam it says I'm not able to do anything again singular term without not able to return not able to overturn it until telling lo until he leaves the place of Saddam Rafal the angel shar Abra that went that healed he went from there to stone to save Lot. So if you look that the only after he finished doing the job of healing did he go do a similar job which was to save Lot from Sodom. That's why later on when you see when it comes to the verses in it says when it was when he took them outside save your life. What you have from here is there was one person saving there was one person overturning one angel I should say that was turning you over Saddam one angel that was saving Lo and another angel that was telling Sara about the birth of Yak. So you see that when it talks about the angels, it will use a plural because they were all doing things, eating, speaking, whatever may be. However, when it came to their particular jobs, it's singular term because one angel can only do one errand. What does it mean? They were standing on him meaning before him. We find this in many places as we mentioned earlier in rash. But all of him was the tribe of Manasha. The reason why over here it uses a terminology, it uses a respectful term, a clean term for the angels that they're considered standing above the human being as they are in a higher level. And he saw. Why does it say twice? And he saw him. Why does it say and he saw twice? The first one as a simple interpretation that he saw them from a distance. The second one the terminology of understanding. When you see something and you look into it a little deeply, he saw that they were standing in one place. Meaning that he now understood who these people were. They were intended to be guest for him. And he understood that they didn't want to bother him that much. Even though that the angels knew that the would go out to greet them, they stood in their place in his honor. They wanted to show him that they didn't want to bother him. But however, he anticipated them and he ran towards them. And that's way Rashi and the old rashi continue adds this whole last section that we mentioned. The Rashi continues and the tracted of Baba Mitsah the sages the Talmudic rabbis analyze this verse and say it says they were standing on him meaning that they were standing close to him and then it says he ran towards them. What is this telling us? Meaning that there was a certain distance that he had to go and run towards them. So the Talmud explains and says The Osar when he saw when they saw that he was busy with his bandages, opening his bandages and closing his bandages permanu they started taking a distance. That means they started coming close to be his guest. But then they saw that he was busy with his bandages dealing with his wounds. So they took a distance. When he saw that immediately he got up to chase them and bring them back. Verse three said, "My masters, if it will please you, if you have found favor in my eyes, please do not pass me your servant by." The third rash of third verse, he turned to them like in plural. even though there was many of them but he turned to the one that was the greatest of them he said he called all of them masters however he said to the main one the greatest of them please do not pass by him meaning do not continue on your way without stopping and being that the big one the oldest the greatest amongst them will not continue to travel So then his friends will stay with them and they will not travel as well. According to this uh terminology we can understand when it uses the terminology of the word sometimes it's God's name. However, in this case, it's not means a master and it doesn't mean God's name and therefore in it because it's not referring to God, one is able to say the word another explanation that actually it means and he is referring to God. The he actually was not referring to the angels he was talking to God. What was he saying? Please don't pass. meaning that God came to visit him and over here he's having guests. So he's telling please wait as he goes and welcomes his guest even though it only says it afterwards and he went out to get them. Still in all he spoke to them beforehand. This is the usual uh terminology of the verses to say things not necessarily in the order of events that happened but in the order of the way it's said like we already had this before in chapter 6 says that God should not judge a person after Noah was born we can say that the decree of the Bible happened after children of this decree was already before children were born 20 years. Both of these terminologies whether we're calling the master god or the master is the angels both of them are of these explanations are brought in braces raba verse four now that the angels comply and they are uh willing to stay in a's place so therefore a now offers them some water please let a little bit of water be brought and wash your feet and recline under the tree. What does he refer? Let water be brought through somebody else. And because Av was kind to the angels, therefore later on, same as well to Aram's children when they were traveling in the desert, God was kind to them as well and sent them water through a messenger which was Moshe to take out the water from the rock as it says and Moshe took it lifted his hand and hit the rock that water should come out and wash your feet. Why did they have to wash their feet? Because since they look like that they were Arabs and the people at the time would serve the dust on their feet was a person who believed the monotheism and any of these pagan religions that served any other type of idols. And he was careful not to bring any idolatry into his home. And therefore he wanted that they should wash their feet, not to bring in the dust that they served into their feet. In contrast, in contrast to lot that he did not care if any idolatry would be brought into his home. Therefore by lo he first says stay over at our home then and then wash your feet as it says later on in chapter 19 verse two rest over and wash your feet as Lot was careless about idolatry. What does this mean? It doesn't mean under a beam in his home because the word literally means wood. So Rashi explains means he had a tree for shade and he offered them some relaxation and to recline and to hang out under in the shade. Verse number five. And I will bring you a piece of bread so that can you can gather your strength and only afterwards will you continue on your way because after all you have paid a visit to your servant and they said yes we will do as you said. What does it mean? Where we where if you look at the different things that we're going to see that brings them and offers them, the only time that it uses the terminology of a meal is when it talks about the bread. As we see, we find this uh idea is mentioned in many verses, verses in the Torah, verses in the prophets, and verses in scriptures. the bread is what satiates the heart. We see this in the Torah right over here what we just read. I will take bread and you will be full of satisfied in prophets in the book of judges where it says and that your heart will be satisfied with a piece of bread and in scriptures where it says Psalm and bread is what satisfies satiates the heart of man. What does it mean your heart? I should say your heart the meaning both arts the evil inclination and the godly inclination of that it doesn't say here your heart this is teaching us meaning one heart the one inclination that the evil inclination does not have any uh jurisdiction and cannot rule on angels what does it mean after you will meaning after you finish eating and you have a meal then you'll continue on your way the meaning of the verse Rashi explains because of this thing after you finish eating I ask of you because you came by to visit me I ask you that in my honor eat something and then you'll continue on your way explains that the comes from the word like because of the so too anytime you have in the verse where it says for example later on in chapter 19 when talks about his angels he also uses the same terminology because they therefore came to visit me so too when speaks to that when there when it when I saw your case says about and therefore I did not give her and so too later on in the book of because you know how we are throughout the desert now that the angels agreed to stay and offers them food needs to go to the kitchen and get the food ready and hastened to the to the tent and who's in the tent S and he says hurry which is about 53 lbs 24 kilos of flour one should make and sift what kind of flour which is coarse flour then also use lushi and you should put it into and it should become a coarse flour then it should also have fine flour lushi you will need it and make loaves of bread literally the word ugis means cookies as we'll see according to some it was actually pes and this was referring to matas as we see rash what was he serving them which one was it was it a coarse flour or the fine flour kak means a coarse flour means a fine flour so he explains fine flour which is good for making these cookies. However, the coarse flour that's for the dough that they make. They would make a dough that would cover their pots. In those days, the lid of the pot was made out of a dough which would collect the sweat, the moisture from the pot and that's what they would put on the top of the pot. So, the kemak, the coarse flour was for the dough, for the cover of the pot. The fine flour was for the baked goods that they were going to make the Elhaboker. Now that he has Sah making the bread. Now Ara himself ran to the cattle and he took from the cattle a one tender and choice cast who was nice and soft, good and choice. and he gave this cattle to the lad who at the time was and he hurried to prepare it. So let's understand what he had here and what why the different terminologies and what was actually going on here. So Rashi explains and tells us Benbak over here there are three different terminologies that he calls the animal that he took a benbakar which is a tender and choice cast and then he uses the terminology as well that it's soft and tender. So the Benbucker it was a calath that was soft and tender. So there was three terminologies here. What do I learn from that? There were three cows, three to give them three tongues. So he needed to slaughter three different calves so they can all each have a tongue together with the mustard. That was the way the reason why he gave this to them. This was considered a king's meal to give somebody an entire portion and not just cut up the portion in parts. Elhar the childh this is the reason why he gave him jobs to educate him. So we see from here how do we educate our children is by role modeling not only telling them but showing them and being with them and giving them the opportunities to do mitzvah. Verse number eight and he took the butter and the milk. He brought some cream and milk and the calf that he made that he prepared for them name and he placed it before them and he stood over them under the tree and watched as they ate. So over here we have a few things in this verse. He brought them the actual cream. And but the bread that we mentioned before that he went into the tent to tell to make the bread. What happened to the bread? We only see about the cream and the meat cause all of a sudden at that time she started having a menstrual period. She started being back like the young women who then have their their menstrual period and she became impure. eats. So because of that and she touched the dough and the dough now became impure and they had no clean bread, no pure bread and therefore there was nothing for him to give them. What is cream? You have milk and then on the milk there's a certain cream fat of the milk that's on top and they you take it off and that's what you use for cream. What what does it mean? the cattle calf that he made ashik that he prepared. He didn't literally make the calf that God makes but he did all the preparations for it that they should be able to eat it as we know um and even though there were three of them. So over here we see that he would bring it each one as it got ready he would bring it before them and give it to them and they ate. I thought angels don't have to eat. We know up above there's no eating. They made as if they were eating. From here we learn a person should not change from the actual customs. Some ask how is he able to give them milk together even though it was before the Torah was given know they are forefathers uh kept the Torah. So if you look in the order first of all he gave them milk first and then he gave them the meat. First the cream and then the meat. Number two they were angels. They actually maybe they didn't even eat it. The fact that he gave them separately could have been that they ate first the milk and then the meat. And not necessarily were they eating it at the same time. And they said to him, verse number seven, no, verse number nine, I'm sorry. And they said to him, where your wife and he said, she he replied here in the tent. Rashi says if you look in a kish or even in the Torah the word a love there are dots on top of the generally whenever there are dots on top of a ver a word a word means that there's something more that the verse wants to tell us where there's letter there's little dots on the on the words of a lovely yud and v all have dots on them said any time you have a word that does not that there's no dots on the entire word you only read the parts that have the words together. So for example in this case you have alith and vv have dots that means there are more words more letters that have dots than letters that don't then read those letters with the dots on their own. So therefore in our case there are more letters that have dots on them than letters that don't. So therefore you have to read what those dots are telling us. And what is those dots telling us? Means we're meaning that they didn't only ask where was they. They also asked where was it teaches us how to have respect. A person should ask how his hosts are doing. Alisha, you ask the woman about her husband, the Isisha, I'm sorry, is Alisha to the man about his wife and to the man a woman about her husband just like these angels did. They asked and that's why the word asking Sarah about and asking about sorrow the mit says the angels actually knew they knew where our matriarch Sah was. Ella, what is this telling us? To show the greatness of Sah that she was modest. They wanted to make her more beloved to her husband to show look how modest and therefore they said how where is your wife showing how great she is. said the reason why they asked where is to send her they were making him the blessing of wine after the grace after meals and they wanted to send her some of the wine that she should taste from it she is in the tent why is she in the tent she is modest stays stays out of the public eye and because of that she is hanging out of the tent not with us by the tree verse number And the second angel said, I will surely return to you at this time exact time at this exact time. And behold, sorry, your wife will have a son. Sorry. Here's behind the door and by the entrance of the tent and she is behind him behind the tent. exactly at this time in the coming year as we mentioned at the beginning of this uh Torah reading it was the 15th of Nissan and that's why they were making the crackers and then the coming was born because it does not say with the meaning at exactly this time I will be back. What does the word mean? Alive that this is going to be alive. Meaning it's going to be for sure. I guarantee it. You're both going to be alive, healthy, and well when this is going to happen. What does it mean? I will return. He didn't say that I will return to you. the that the angel will return he said this in as a messenger of God meaning that God will return to you at this time and we find this even by hugger where we see the angel tells her I will increase the angel doesn't have the ability to increase their children because he's talking as a messenger of god too over here as Well, he said this in the name of God. We s so this as we see this as well Alicia tells the woman of the shamis this exact time at this exact time you'll be hugging a child and she says to her master a man of God don't lie to your maidervant these angels that told Sarah about her birth of they said we will return at this appointed time meaning that they being that they wanted that their words should be believed. So too, meaning that the woman, the Shunavamis was telling uh Alicia when those angels promised her that she would have a child. They promised that they would return. So therefore, their words were believable. But you you didn't say that you're going to return and you're going to make sure that I'm going to have this childish respond to that woman that angels are not like humans. Those angels that they are for eternity that's why they said we'll return I that from flesh and blood today I'm alive tomorrow I can die therefore I cannot guarantee you. Therefore she says whether I'm alive or dead is exactly this time you will have a child. Over here what we see this is a rashi is comparing the two stories of where the woman of theamus was promised by Alicia that she would have a child and she tells Alicia don't lie to me. Why wouldn't she believe Alicia? Because she tells Alicia look when Sarah was promised that she would have a child they said we will be there for it to happen. which Alicia responded, "They're angels. They can promise they would be there. I can't." What does it mean he's behind it? The entrance. The entrance was behind where the angel was standing and she was standing behind that entrance. Verse 11, already very old. At that point they deeply internalized their experiences because as they were in an older age however Sah has ceased having her woman cycle the word means she stopped having it which means her woman cycle. burst well laughed at herself saying now that I am withered will my skin become smooth again besides my husband is old verse 13 uh verse 12 sorry rash the kerba meaning at herself malis of They looked at her at her body and said like in question after is it possible that this human being that this body is able to carry a child that these breasts would will be able to give milk and nurse the word means or smoothness of skinish. This is from the same language that the Mishna uses. Then when it comes to shabas, we're talking about laws about removing the hair and smoothening the skin another word that it means can means like a time meaning after that she's already stopped. She's in having a menstrual period. So therefore, she's saying, I no longer I'm already postmenopause and therefore I'm not able to have children. Verse 13, and God said, why did Lamer saying, "Will I really give birth and I am old?" Rashi says it even though it's true that she will can she give birth is it even possible is it even true that I can give birth and I am old if you noticed Sah didn't say I am old Sarah said but what does the Torah do it changes it why between husband and wife said she said my husband is old and because God didn't want to offend He changed what she said that should be no offense. From here we learn that we're allowed to sometimes change some words because of peace. Hashem verse 14 is anything what too wondrous for God at this exact time. I will return to you and Sah will have I will turn to you and Sah will have surely Sarah will have a son. What does the word mean as the translate? Is it even wondrous to you? Is there anything in this world which is too wondrous, too separate, too difficult or too hidden for me to do like my wish? I am God. I have the infinite powers. The word meaning to that exact time that I already set that I told you yesterday that the angel said this exact time but in another year. This concludes the first Torah reading for Sunday parasa.