Abraham journeys | Rabbi Ari Kahn

Once again, once again this year, this year is being sponsored by Rabbi Michael and Jerry Laxmeter. And we will still determine for what in honor of what. There's a There's a Apparently, uh it it worked last year for the foolish llama for their granddaughter, Abby Gail. Okay. So, So, we're we're returning today to things that I've discussed in the past, which you you know, it doesn't make that much of a difference if I discussed in the past cuz many of you were not here when I discussed it, and some of you were here didn't hear it, and some of you heard it didn't understand it, and some of you understood it already forgot it. So, I I I thought I covered everyone just now. >> [laughter] >> But But But I uh I revisited some of the ideas, but the the most important element was is that I was looking at different sources along the way as I was doing this, and I'll I'll just tell you now already that the the the sources The sources include Who should we begin with? I'm going to start with Rabbi Breuer. He's one of the most most So, if you don't know who Rabbi Mordechai Breuer was, he was probably you know, it's hard to you know, to rank these things. He was probably the most important teacher of Tanakh while he was alive. And again, you can make arguments others, and uh you know, him and Rabbi Nachman Leibowitz were very very different in what they were trying to do and their approach. And uh he was also very opinion- opinionated, very outspoken. I think, and I once had a conversation with, uh, with Rav Lichtenstein about something which he had said. If you want, I can tell you more about it. And he said, "If he wasn't as rambunctious, he probably would be listened to a little bit more." And I think that was a exact quote from Rav Lichtenstein. That that had to do with the various repetitions when we read Megillat Esther. He proved that all of those repeti- When you read a word, right? He proved that all of those were incorrect, and that we know the exact tradition on it, and where those things came from. And I have a nice little pamphlet at home if anyone written by if anyone wants to see it. But he But he was somebody who certainly was full of full of, uh, personality. There was a Yeshiva that was opened many years ago by, uh, one of the sons of of Zalman Meltzer. And the the Rabbanim in that Yeshiva were Rav Breuer, Rav Amital, and Rav Shach. So, if you can imagine the three of those people together teaching in one Yeshiva, and, uh, maybe tells you a little bit how the world changed over over the years. But he was really quite exceptional, and he had his own approach. So, the reason I start with Rav Breuer was certain of the things that I was looking for, certain of the things that I was aware of, he was probably the first one who made me aware of a such things. I heard his classes well. My wife was actually much closer with him than I was. For years he taught in Matan, and she was his I'll say designated driver, but it ma- makes it sounds like he was intoxicated, but no, she Shh. Shh. She was his designated driver, and she got extremely entertained by all kinds of things that he would say. His look at the world was really quite interesting. So, so Rav Breuer was one. So, that now I went to probably, you know, one of the most recent sources that I've seen. It The other thing which changed was seeing a a ancient source, and that is the Book of Jubilees. Now, the Book of Jubilees is not part of our canon. It is not considered to be holy in any way or in any sense. Excuse me. From by uh from Jewish tradition. There are other peoples who find it to be a text of great significance. So, my reading of it is I would almost say, you know, like a midrash. And there are midrashim that quote certain things over there, but I I found the Book of Jubilees really quite interesting here. So much so that it got me to wonder not that Rav Hirsch is quoting it, but whether there was an awareness of it while he was writing what he was writing because there there are certain things there which were uh shall we say interesting. And And I'm going to you know, put it like this, one more word of introduction, and then we'll actually start. The things that I came up with were based upon reading what I was reading and looking what I was looking at. And I'll I'll I'll others along the way. The one of the earliest sources, well-known sources, that deal with what we're going to deal with is the Abarbanel, and I spent too many pages in your sources on the Abarbanel after cutting out some of it. And the other one is the one who the Abarbanel quotes, and that's the Ran. So, now you don't know what it is, you don't know what I'm talking about yet. But some of the things that I was getting to is not that any of them said it, it's that the questions that are being dealt with and some of the suggestions led me to think about certain things. So, I'm just giving you the constellation of the spheres of influence which got us to think about what we're thinking about. With all that, let's start at the beginning, and that is the beginning of Lech Lecha, which is not the beginning. That That That's actually part of the issue and part of the problem. So, right there we have a little bit of a challenge, and people ask about the challenge. People are troubled by this. I'm not sure why. And that is that the that the sequence is inverse. It should have said leaving your father's house first and then it should have subsequently said the other places leaving your birthplace and the and your land cuz that would seem to be the correct way, but it's not the correct way when we know what it is that we need to know. But because this isn't to the beginning. And then God makes promises. Now blessings are what's going to follow. Well, we'll read a little more blessings. We like blessings. Whoever blesses you will be blessed. Whoever curses you will be cursed. You say amen, right? Right here. Say amen. And all peace and all peoples will be blessed through you. So the one thing that I want to go back to are the last two words in the or last three words or four words in the first person. We don't know what that land is. We don't know what that place of destination is. Now, some of us have cheated and we've read ahead a little bit and we found out that it's actually a place which as of this moment is called the land of Canaan. So I will point out something which is a little ironic. And that is Canaan is best known till this point in the text for being cursed. So therefore you're going to go to the place I'm going to tell you to go to land which is based on the person which is cursed and therefore you're going to be blessed. So I hope that you appreciate that irony and if you never thought about that till this particular moment, you now realize that there is something a little bit more interesting about that and maybe even a reason why God doesn't say the place. I I understand. By not saying the place, you're going to tell you're going to give me a firm answer, right? You firm answer. No, that increases the reward. He doesn't know where he's going. By the way, if you don't know you're going, how do you start your trip? I know I'm I'm I'm being serious. >> [laughter] >> Okay, you walk out you You walk Exactly. You walk out of the house. Okay, now I do you go right do you go left you go you go around the block a couple times which means what if you don't know where you're going then how do you know where you're going? So so and how do you get there? It's sort of like driving with your husband who won't ask for directions, right? So like how [clears throat] don't know I'm being I'm being extremely I'm being extremely practical maybe too practical. Now if you all want to you know you want to be me you want to do it okay you can make up a midrash. Okay. And say no just like when the Jews are traveling the desert there was a cloud that was leading them and therefore our Avram sees the cloud and leads them. Okay, I just made this up in the last 30 seconds. I don't know if anyone's ever said this before but why not? Okay, and then Avram's journey becomes the prototype for the later journey that Am Yisrael is going to take and you know what? It's the kind of thing if you go searching now maybe somebody said it and I know I keep saying this you like dead rabbis more than live rabbis. You find someone who's dead who said it then you're happy and what can you do if I'm still alive so deal with it. So Baruch Baruch Hashem you say Baruch Hashem. Okay. >> [laughter] >> No, we want to make you more authoritative. Okay, so let's let's continue that. We have built in problems but I'm going to say it again Canaan is cursed Avram is blessed. Avram's blessing becomes when he goes to a place which is cursed. Can I go back to the book of Jubilees right now? Book of Jubilees says that Noah or Noach for us promised the land which we will know as land of Israel to the descendants of Shem. And Canaan who's on his way down to Egypt right Egypt is connected to the sons of Ham as well. Canaan is on his way to Egypt and he says "Wow, look at this great land." And he steals it. And the Book of Jubilees only utilizes this much later on when Am Yisrael come back. It's almost like a a Zionist argument. We're going to do a lot of Zionism today. I hope you realize Lech Lecha is a is a time for Zionism. So then there is the Zionist argument that when the Jews start the conquest of the lands of Israel, then the Canaanites can complain, "Hold it, this is our ancestral lands." So what are you talking about? It was promised by Noach. Noach gave that land since the flood and you are usurpers and it's not your land and we are taking back our ancestral land. So I hope you appreciate all that. And and again, all that gets played out later on, but now you're all going to go out and buy your copy of the Book of Jubilees for your for your Zionist propaganda. So So as of now, we haven't gotten to any problems yet. But what we have noticed is a little bit more nuanced and a little bit more again, something a little bit more interesting. And then we continue and our real problems will start with pasuk dalit and then subsequently with pasuk kaf. Pasuk dalit says, "Vayeilech Avram k'asher diber Hashem." So by the way, I pause there. It's not the place to pause, but I want to pause there. So Avram does what God told him to do. And and that sounds very good. That that is a uh that's a nice thing to do. It's a good thing to do. And then we get to the next phrase, "Vayeilech It Lot." And Lot went with him. And this is where our problems begin. Does Lot go with him because God told Avram to go and therefore is Lot on a religious mission right now? Which means God spoke to Avram. I believe that God spoke to Avram and I want to be part of this Abraham prophecy and therefore if Avram's told to go to a land and the blessing is coming, I want to be with Avram. I I to help Avram. I want to take care of Avram. I I want to be there in case he needs something along the way. I will be Avraham and again you realize I'm extending to what it didn't say. I'm just asking what those words mean by Lot. Or I'll I'll be a little bit clearer now. Is he going with Avraham the first two words or is he going with the next couple words by the word of Hashem. Is is Lot on a religious mission? So now now I can continue and say so how cynical do we want to be? So or is Lot saying listen, I got a wealthy uncle who doesn't have any heirs so I'm sticking with him. So right? So hold it a second. That that that just turned this into something completely different. Now, if this we didn't get to the end of the verse yet. The the Avraham been 75 years old when he goes. Now in previous years the question I would ask in order to just to bother you was and how old was he when God spoke to him? And you'd say 75 and I say how do you know? And you'll say cuz it says 75 when he left. But but as we've noted many times this two there's a later in partial which is of the and there it adds in another phrase. What's the phrase? Avraham gets up early in the morning and he goes. Here we're not told anything about the timeline between God saying it and Avraham doing it which is something again that space right there is something where some commentaries will say undoubtedly without any question we can see some of them in a moment. Avraham left immediately because that's who Avraham is. And on the other hand some say no no there's a little bit there's a little bit more intrigue over here taking place and the Torah doesn't spell out all of the intrigue but there are other considerations that we need to be aware of. But but that is not our problem yet. Our problem is the next possible. The next possible cuz what does it say in the previous one? Vayelech Avram. So, if you were then to explain this to me, and make believe I don't know anything, so what happened in pasuk daled? What happened is loco- motion, right? He he he starts to move, right? This is a description, correct? Kinetic energy moving from one place to the other. It is right? That that's certainly what it sounds like. And then you get to the next pasuk, Vayikach Avram et Sarai ishto, ve'et Lot ben achiv, ve'et kol rechusham asher rachashu, ve'et hanefesh asher asu beCharan, vayetze'u lalechet artza Canaan. And then they left to go to Canaan. Vayavo artza Canaan, they came to Canaan. So, why do I have vayetze'u at the end of pasuk kaf when I already had vayelech in the beginning of pasuk daled? Moreover, why does the sequence in pasuk daled only say that Lot goes with him, and on the other hand pasuk kaf, it says that he takes Sarai, and and then he says he took Lot. Why did he have to say he took Lot? Lot already went with him. So, what's going on? Is there more than one Lot? Right? Is there an imposter Lot in the story? So, again, you want to make anything up that you want, go ahead. But, you have you have Avram going twice, and you have Lot going with him both times, and why does it have to tell us that? And on top of everything else, notice another thing, where are they heading out to? Lalechet artza Canaan. They're going to the land of Canaan. Hold it. Where did that get into the story? Didn't God say aretza sharetza? So, now one possibility is, okay, between Okay, he has to tell him where you're going, else you don't know where you're going. So, at some point, God said the land I'm going to tell you, or land I'm right? I'll show you. Right, show you is more interesting, cuz show you again takes you back to the midrashim by the akedah, right? You remember that he sees the cloud on top of the mountain. So, we hear again, he sees something, right? There's this magical cloud. Or, those of you who are more inclined, follow the yellow brick road, or or or something to that effect that Avram says kind of a divine message that he knows where he's going to, but by time he gets to Pasuk Hey, they are Vayeitzei, they go L'lechet Artza Canaan, Vayavo Artza Canaan, and they arrive in the land of Canaan. So, if I go back to Pasuk Daled, it says Vayeilech Avram K'sher Dibber Hashem, he goes, he sets off on the mission. If I look in Pasuk Hey, it again says Vayeitzei L'lechet, they start the mission, but it says L'lechet Artza Canaan. So, I hope you realize that all I've done so far is I've pointed out that if until this point in your lives, all that you've ever done is just read Pasuk Daled and Hey quickly together and never realized that there may be some intrigue over here. So, yes, there's some intrigue over here. Now, if I get way ahead of myself, Rav Breuer thinks that either Avraham went twice or Avraham is on two different missions. Rav Breuer loves the always having complexity of two different things taking place or two different perspectives, the same story being told by different perspectives, and so on, or as he would call it Shnei B'chinot, two aspects of what's happening, but he again, in terms of my knowledge, the first one whoever pointed out to me that there's a problem over here. By the way, that's like the whole beginning of education is realizing that there may be indeed a problem in this text. So, once you see the problem, then you can begin to be sensitive to different kinds of solutions. So, there's a problem over here. The problem is is that we're told that twice that Avraham goes, and why is that necessary, and what does that mean, and what is going on? So, now we realize that we have a host of problems taking place. If you want to get more complex and more difficult, then there is a backstory, right? And it's always important to know the backstory. See, I already gave you one backstory, and what was that? That was the backstory that Canaan is cursed. And it's cursed, so now we can begin to question, you know, the blessing and the curse as we already did or question based upon what we saw. The the rights that Canaan had to this place. If we continue actually a little bit more. Vayavor Avram It's possible love Vayavor Avram b'eretz Shechem ad Elon Moreh v'haKna'ani az b'aretz. Again, the emphasis, the Canaanites are there. Canaan is there. It's It's Canaan. Canaan is there. Is Canaan there rightfully or are they going to lose it? Do they have a right to be there to a certain point and so on? Vayera Hashem el Avram l'emor l'zar'acha eten et ha'aretz hazot. Which means he told him to go there or told him it's going to be good and now God confirms this land will [clears throat] be yours. Vayiven sham mizbe'ach l'Hashem hanireh elav. And he built an altar for the God who appeared to him. I'm going to mention something that I'm not going to get into too much today, but if you're bored with everything else I have to say, so then you can think about this. And it's two points connected to this. One is that Avram builds altars along the way and never puts anything on the altar. Yitzchak may be the first thing he puts on an altar. Says he builds it, doesn't mean brought any carbonot. Okay, so I'm saying that's just one thing to note along the way. The the other thing is that even though God speaks to Avram all the time, he does not speak to him all the time. There Just for example, he gets there and he goes from one place to the other to the second to the third and then there's a famine and he goes down to Egypt. Now, I know there's a whole discussion that we're not going to have. Ramban and others or Chaim question how old it How could he go down to Egypt? The Ramban says that again, we're doing Zionism today. The Ramban says terrible sin. He's going to the land of Israel. Now, he leaves Israel. He First of all, he's not told the borders yet about, you know, where I can go, where I can't go, what is this land that's his. The second thing is that God speaks to him when it's convenient for God, not when Abram necessarily needs a message. Wouldn't have been good if God would have said to him right then, "Okay, don't worry about the famine. I got you." Right? What do you want to say? There There There are grocery stores. Osher Ad. Happiness forever, right? You You You You will uh Right? What? Well [laughter] Well By the way, it doesn't really bring happiness forever. >> [laughter] >> It It It It's It's good. It's good. Um I mean, he could have said, "Stay here." Or he could have said, "Go down to Egypt for a bit." Or which means there's silence then. Which means as as much as you would love to think, "Oh, God micromanages and has this constant conversation with Abram." There is revelation and then there's concealment. And there's not this constant information of being told at every step, "What do you do and how do you handle this?" And you can chart every single event of Abram's life and then look next to it, where was there a Where was there a conversation? Where was not a conversation? Where there's a promise and where there's instructions and so on. And you realize that Abram's on his own a lot even though there is this general uh instructions or promises that take place. But um you know, bring a Being a prophet is not as easy as you think it is. Okay? Let's Let's continue. Source number two. And And if you did not realize that this is the start of the story, then you didn't understand the story. Again, I keep telling you that my job is to make you feel inadequate. Otherwise, you will not keep on coming back and say, "I I all of that already." So, if you look at source number two, it's the end of parshat Noach. The told that Terach, Terach will lead Avram, right? This is the beginning of the story, right? This is the beginning of the Avram story. And Nachor and Haran, Haran will lead Lot. But you might turn around open a Terach Avram in Ur of the Chaldeans. And Haran died. Now, there's certain midrashim that tell us about Haran's death. Do you If we're really going to do the Book of Jubilees today, you want to know what the Book of Jubilees says? It says that Avram set fire to his father's idolatry straw store, and Haran ran inside and tried to put out the fire. And he got killed by Avram's arson. One second. That that's like a a little more interesting. The midrash that talks about it, it says that when Avram's thrown into the furnace, he kind of sits on the fence, and he says, "If Avram wins, I'm on Avram's team. And if Nimrod wins, then I'm on Nimrod's team." And then when And then again, he ends up getting then thrown in the furnace also. Again, it's because of Avram, but not really. It's because of his Over here also, you could say it's because of him. Who told him to go tell him to put out the fire? But nonetheless, I'm just saying when the authorities look into and investigate the death of Haran, you may realize that Avram is responsibility or does this now perhaps explain why Avram is willing to take Lot with him? Does Avram feel any kind of responsibility for Lot? By the way, that that there's two questions. I only asked one before, and you should have asked the other one. What was the one that I asked? I asked, "Why does Lot go with him?" And I gave you a couple of possibilities. I didn't ask you, "Why does Avram agree to take him?" So, again, I'm I'm I'm trying to get Okay. And and and hopefully we'll see commentaries that will say that but as I said we have to at least ask the question. We good? Continue. So positive was that Haran died. By the way note. Eretz Molotov or Kasdim. Or Kasdim. Some of there's a midrash. There is a Targum Yonathan that says Or Kasdim is literally the furnace, the fire that was in Kasdim. God says I took you out of Or Kasdim. I saved you from the furnace but here you have a positive if you that's the interpretation that then implies like the midrash then tells us, oh he died in the furnace. Of Kasdim. Okay? And and as I said midrash says that. Next. And so on. But he Sarah in the flood and Notice. This is actually pretty close. To our positive K before. Positive K is so the difference is a sequence. He goes with his own family first blood before right? A daughter-in-law. The tummy Or Kasdim. The land of Canaan. So right there you have to stop a second and say, hold it a second. What in the world is going on? Terah is already on his way to Eretz Canaan which then you have a whole bunch of questions to ask. Why is Terah on his way to the land of Canaan? But he only made it to Haran and he and he settles there. And then we're told about his death even though if you look at Rashi, Rashi will even do the math for you and he will point out that Terah lives another 65 years after this, which means he lives till Yitz till Avram's 135 years old, which means Yitzhak is already 35 years old at that point, which means the closest thing that happens maybe the Akedah or or Sarah's death is 2 years later, which means he almost lives to the point that Sarah passes away, which means Terah's alive for a long time after this. And there's also a contradiction, which I'm not going to explain today. I have it other times that at the end of over here at the end of Noah, he's Rashi says that Avram left cuz he was an idolater and a wicked person. And later on in by the by the Brit Bein HaBetarim, he says that he did teshuvah. So my explanation for that is as long as Avram's there, he's wicked, but when Avram leaves, then he says, "Hold it." Which means he was able to I said I wasn't going to explain this. He was able to rely on Avram the whole time, which means I don't have to keep kosher. My son's ultra-Orthodox, right? I mean, he's doing all the stuff for me. I don't I don't have to do anything myself. And then once Avram's not there anymore, then then he has to come to terms. But all that doesn't explain something else. Why in the world does he want to go that way? Which by the way, just like his son sits on the fence, maybe there's a certain aspect of Terah also sitting on the fence. He's on the way, but he goes halfway, but we don't know why he's going. Do you want to do the Book of Jubilees again? Book of Jubilees, the land of Canaan was promised to a descendant of Shem. Now, it doesn't connect the dots like I am, like I'm about to do. So maybe Terah is on the way there. This is inheritance. He's from Shem. Canaan is there illegally. I want to go there and stake my claim and say, "This is my land." Which by the way, notice what I just now did. I just now turned Terah's going there completely for financial reasons, which by the way may then have influ- It may also impact the way that we look at Lot, which mean Okay, I'm going to try to be a little a clearer now cuz you're not necessarily following everything I'm saying. What's the matter? Why are you laughing? Clarity is good? What's the most important difference between Avraham's journey and Terach's journey? Which means Avraham, and we have to say this, is on a mission from God, right? Okay. On the other hand, Terach apparently is not. By the way, would you be willing to call Terach a secular Zionist? Would you Would you be willing to call a secular Zionist who dreams of getting into the land, but he never makes it there? He's got his JNF pushka or something in the but you right away you should get it now. I said it's I said a secular Zionist. >> Secular Zionist? >> The Zionist part still has some connection to Syria or whatever. There's a reason he didn't care for religious why this plot got somewhere else. It's something >> Semitic Semitic motivations. It was promised It's the promised land. Again, I'm going back to my book of It's >> to them? >> He promised to the No, I'm going back to the book of Jubilees. It was promised to the people of Shem. >> Okay. All right. >> But by the way, you have a better explanation why I Look, look, I I I know that there will be commentaries who will then say, "Oh, Terach must have realized that this was a spirit He's a spiritual searcher searcher, and he realized that this is a spiritual place." Which by the way, what are they going then going to do? They're going to read an Avraham type of story into Terach as well and say, "Oh, Terach is doing it for the same reasons that Avram is doing it, which of course is not the easiest thing to say. You just now turned Terach also into the spiritually sensitive person. He knows that this is the holy land. He knows that this is again and and by the way, so now the only shift that it took place instead of my calling him a secular Zionist, which again, you want to be overly technical with me. No, secular Zionism is only in the 19th century and it's a political movement and it has nothing to do at all. But I think you are By the way, I was having a conversation with chat GPT on the way here and that's what it said to me then. No, you can't say such a thing. And I'm saying you're a fool. I like what what what what Of course I could say that. Don't be overly technical. We we we discussed lots of things about about the Who else am I going to talk to? >> [laughter] >> on the way. But but but I'm doubling down on this. I'm doubling down on on saying that maybe he wants to come here. It says he wants to go to land of Canaan. All I'm asking you is why. So if you want to give him religious motivation for it, I'm fine with that. But it's absent. By the way, now look at dalet and hey again. Are we able to do that? dalet and hey, what do you notice in dalet? Avram is told to go to a place. Right, which means it goes back to it modifies aleph. He's going to places unknown and he's on this mission from God going to where God told him to go and he and it doesn't say what that place is. And what about does hey talk about that mission from God or not? hey talks about going to land of Canaan. So now I'll ask you again, are dalet and hey describing the same mission or are they describing You can say, of course it's the same mission, but one And that's only if you read one into the other. But but but I have to be clearer with you. I have to be clearer. Otherwise this wouldn't wouldn't work. What I'm really asking is is it possible You see what I just now did. Is it possible You know what I'm going to ask now, right? Is it possible that in some way, shape, or form Abraham is continuing the trip that his father started. Okay? Okay, is that is that is is that By the way, go back to Lot. Is Go over that my question about Lot. Abraham goes as God commanded him. What's Lot doing? Is Lot going Again, we gave Lot all kinds of motivations. One is that it's a religious motivation. Another is this dedication to Abraham. Another is possibly financial. And another could be that that's what his grandfather started to do and therefore he's going along the same way. So, I'm I'm just again pointing out complexity. So, maybe we maybe we finally have enough uh enough energy. >> [clears throat] >> See, the other thing that we then have to play into all of this is source number three, which is the eventual separation between Lot and Abraham. If they're in this together, so then at which point and why do they separate? I'll note that the separation takes place as we're told that Lot has a great deal of wealth as well. I'm not saying that necessarily cuz by the way, one good thing about wealth is you can always stand more of it, right? I mean it it it doesn't it won't hurt, right? Anybody willing to take more or no? Listen, I've maxed out, right? I don't I don't want to go to that next tax bracket. I mean this is a Many billionaires would like to. Right? I mean none of you unless you speak from experience, but uh but why not? He's very limited with only 1 billion. You can't buy a professional sports team with 1 billion. You need significantly You need more. You need more capital. Okay. Right? You ever hear of the definition of a bar mitzvah? When you realize it's more likely for a Jewish kid to own an NBA team than to play in the NBA? >> [laughter] >> Statistic No, statistically, look how many owners and how many players, right? No, there's a couple There's a couple. Yeah, you have a couple You have a couple of players. What I'm saying, look at how many players out of how many players there are, and look at how many owners out of how many owners there are, and you have a far better chance of owning a team than playing in the NBA. So, once you understand that, then you've become a Jewish man, right? That That That's That's the definition of adulthood. You know, now you've understood Now you've understood reality. Okay. So much wisdom you're picking up today. No. That That Namshich. So, at which point does Lot separate from Avram? At the point that he becomes very wealthy. So, now maybe At which point does Lot separate? At the point that he no longer is in need of Avram to get his own personal comfort. And that is again the whole discussion after they come back from Egypt. Compare it to God, you'd Gimel, source number three. And uh they come up from the south. And Avram says, "Let's separate." And then Avram says to him, and you have to be careful about this, he says, "If you go left, I'll go right. You go right, I'll go left." I want I want to be careful now. It's north and south. Is because the orientation is facing the east. If you're not sure about this, you'll look in uh Targum Onkelos already. It describes this as north and south, which means that they are in the country, and Avram's essentially saying the land of Canaan could be divided. And what Lot then does, instead of choosing north or south, he chooses to go east, and he goes to Stone. And that itself is incredibly telling, cuz if I say that Lot came because of spiritual reasons, then he ends up choosing to go to Stone, which the the Torah, if you will, the narrator attests, and it says about Stone, it says that these people were exceedingly wicked. If you want, we can find that exact uh words, pasuk gimmel, the anshei Stone, ra'im v'chata'im la'Hashem m'od. So, I may even have understated it. They are exceedingly wicked, and Lot says, "Oh, I think I'd like to move to the place which is exceedingly wicked." And or you know, what is my choice over here? I can stay with Abraham, the greatest man in history of the world to this point, and he kind of discovers monotheism, and he's and he's trying to do good for the entire world, and opens up his tents, and prays, and prays, and calls out in the name of God. Or, let me go and become a Sodomite. So, the the choices over here are just really, really interesting, and Lot What? And and and Lot chooses that. Now, again, you want to defend Lot, I'm happy to defend Lot. It doesn't work out all that well, then. I'm I'm just going to note that. It doesn't work out that well. But if you want to defend him, you can say, "Okay, Avram's going to the land of Canaan, a place which is cursed, and he's going to bring blessing to it. Maybe Lot imagines that he can now go to Stone and bring blessing to it." Again, you want me to download kavsklood for Lot, I'll download kavsklood, I have a hard time saying this, cuz I would kind of think that as long as Avram's alive, you know, you don't have to become the rebbe of Stone yet, right? He becomes the chief rabbi of Stone. You don't have to become the rebbe of Stone as long as Avram's still alive. Maybe there's still something he can learn from Avram, and be with Avram, be inspired by Avram. So, it seems a little unfortunate that you get you let this financial situation get in the way, and but and then they separate. So, again, I have to go back and ask, "Well, why did he join in the first place, and what was it all about, and what was the motivation, and is it religious, and is he following Terah? Again, you you've seen all the moving parts right now. Yes? >> I just feel uncomfortable thinking that the mission that Avram was given wasn't a special mission to include both in that concept takes away from the importance of Avram Avinu. >> As a participant in this year. So, let let let me help you. Let me help you. When God instructs Avram in the very beginning and he says lech lecha me'artzecha u'moladetecha u'mibet avicha. And I said that that really wasn't a good question to say "bet avicha" was last. Why not? Because Terah already left the place they were born, which means we were thinking geogra- in terms of geography, his father's home has moved. His father's it's much more tragic cuz his father's home is on the way to Canaan. But he settled halfway along the way. And what does God say to him? And remember, Avram will become an av hamon He's going to inspire everybody in the world. And what does God say to Avram? Yeah, you're going to inspire everybody, but leave your father behind. One second. Leave your father behind. And his father's home now you realize it's even worse cuz his father's on the way. Can you imagine Avram again, he negotiates with stone. Can you imagine turning around and saying "Hold on a second. My dad's on the way to Canaan. He's on the way to the place you're sending me anyway. How in the world could you tell say to leave my father's house?" I'm just saying that that instruction to leave your father's house, which is the last element said here, leave the place you were born, he already did that. Leave your land, he already did that. Leave your father behind. I'm saying it's worse than you thought cuz it's much easier when you say "Okay, Terah is an oved avodah zarah and Terah is is stuck there." No, Terah is on the way. And why does Terah come? I mean, what is his motivation? I mean, there are those who claim Okay, I'm going to give you the radical reading, which is uh implied from the Siftei Me'at. Siftei Me'at is dealing with something slightly slightly different. You know the famous question, why does uh God choose Avraham? Right? Why does God choose So, the Siftei Me'at says that God that God spoke to every single person in the world, and the only person who I was going to say crazy, the only person who listens to voices is Avraham, and says and everyone else doesn't. But, I can now claim someone else listened also, and that's Terach. Terach also heard that call, and Terach starts going, cuz that's what God God said to everybody, "Lech lecha me'artzecha u'mimoladetecha u'mibeit avicha." And he starts to go as well, but he doesn't get all the way there. And now I ask you a different question, when does Avraham succeed in separating u'beit aviv? And my answer is when Lot separates from him. It's only when he when Lot leaves, which means Lot coming with him is counter to God's instruction. Now, you realize initially he doesn't take Lot. Initially Lot comes Should we read that pasuk again? Pasuk dalet. "Vayeilech Avram k'asher diber eilav Hashem." "Vayeilech Vayeilech Vayeilech ito Lot." Not "Vayeikach Lot." And Lot goes with him. Now, Lot going with him maybe at this point we don't know what to do with this. Later on, again, you want to interpret everything from the end working backwards, so Lot ends up in S'dom, and now you realize, "Hold it. This doesn't work." By the way, if if you read you back in source number three, and you the read the very end, "Va'anshei S'dom ra'im v'chata'im laHashem od." And that's where now Lot will make his home. Pasuk dalet, "VaHashem amar el Avram acharei hipared lo me'imo." After he leaves, and he says, "Oh, look around, S'dom u'Negba u'Keidma u'Yama." By the way, it's interesting. I mean, that goes back to the right and the left and so on. But, but Lot is off in S'dom right now, and God speaks to him after Again, Rashi notes, after Lot leaves, so now I have to go back and ask you this question, how does all of this information relate to again this other part, leave your father's house? And and is Lot coming with him? Contrary to the instruction of leaving your father's house. And again, I've just noted that it's more complicated once you realize more complex. Once you realize that Terah is actually along the way, you know, in that direction. Yeah. >> According to approach to this awesome message >> Yeah. >> everybody this opportunity this challenge What about all the people already there? So, where are they supposed to go? They're already in town. And I don't know how many people that is. >> Yeah, there's there's >> one thing for the ones who aren't there but are already there. >> Yeah, they're supposed to leave. They're not supposed to stay there. Yeah. It's it's interesting. >> It almost sounds like it's more metaphorical than >> Yeah. >> You know, leave your house and you leave leave that whole world of idolatry. >> I'll I'll I'll I'll help you a little bit. The Sfas Emes quotes the Zohar. So, I looked up the Zohar. I found it like in five different places, you know, the It doesn't say it. Okay. What the What the Zohar actually says is like it's It's like the sounds from Sinai is always speaking to us and we should listen to Torah. I mean, not exactly "No lech lecha" but the sound is always there and you know what's right. So, therefore, if you're Canaan and you're not supposed to be in the land of Israel, so you're supposed to leave. So, so I I again, I'm I'm just looking at that Sfas Emes and the source that he brings and then that that's the direction. I mean, do the right thing. That's what everyone should know to do the right thing, which is kind of like the Gemara, right? The aggadah in Maseches Niddah that says this angel comes before you're born and teaches you the entire Torah. So, deep inside you know the right thing. Which if you know what Rav Soloveitchik said about this, he said it's actually halakha. He goes, "Where do you see it's halakha?" He says that by the laws of get, it says that if the Beit Din says you should give a get, it says you they beat you until you say So, you say, "I'm going to do it." By the way, only a Jewish court, not a non-Jewish court. He goes, "But a get being given under under duress is not a get." So, he says, "No, a person really wants to do the right thing and it's the yetzer hara that doesn't want to do the right thing. So, you're hitting the yetzer hara, you're hitting the yetzer hara." But, he goes, "How do you know a person wants to do the right thing?" He goes, "Oh, no, that's the malach that taught you all the Torah before you were born." And he says, "No, that's the halacha. Halacha is inside we want to do the right thing and we know the right thing." So, again, it's it's it's incredible that he says that. By the way, unfortunately, the beit din does not beat enough people today. There are certain people that actually need to be beaten. So, we we we have not gone far enough today. So, let's start with source number four. Shouldn't have to prepare I shouldn't have to prepare so much. Let's look at source number four at the Chizkuni. He says, "Vayeilech Lot Meit b'Or Kasdim biglal Avraham Achiv." So, by the way, I don't I'm not even going to go there by saying, "Oh, did did he see what what what it says in the in the Book of Jubilees that he's putting out the fire that Avram set?" I don't think so. I I I I don't know. I don't I I don't I I can't comment on this. I'm not commenting. I don't know. The Midrash that says that he said that that he ends up after Avram's thrown in the furnace, but it's really interesting is that he goes with him, L'Fisha, right? K'Mosha Amru Raboteinu, "Hayah Lo Lot k'Ven Bayit." So, I think that's what that's what you were saying as well. That Lot be That Lot becomes for him like a son, as it were, surrogate son. But, it's interesting cuz this almost all which means is the comments of the Chizkuni talking about Lot's motivation or talking about Avram's motivation. "L'Fisha Haran Avav Meit b'Or Kasdim biglal Avraham Achiv." It It It sounds like it's going both ways that it's also this is Avraham's sense of responsibility as well. So, again, the Chizkuni, I think, is important. The Malbim says something which some of you will like. It's actually quite modern. I mean, Malbim doesn't live all that long ago. It's It's really quite modern and I can't be completely convinced by it, but why should I tell you what I think? Let let let's read what he says. He believes that pasuk dalet is all motivational and in his mind and what he's thinking about and pasuk hey describes what actually happened. So pasuk dalet mashak Avram kafol meaning that the two meaning He notes the problem. The two verses you don't need to say it twice. It says Avram goes twice. Why does it say it twice? The I'm skipping the 75 problem. Let's skip a little bit of Avram. What he says after this keep a mashak One is talking about intentionality. What's going on taking place in his mind. That in his mind now he has separated from his land. He's separated from his birthplace. Separated from his father's home. He doesn't say that from his father's home as God has said, which means it's all in his mind. Again making that daylight between the two of them. Lot did not create that same separation. Lot just goes because Avram So therefore Again Avram has to separate but Lot is saying this is my family. Again I can read this back with the What family do I have right now? I have Avram. I got my uncle. Who Who else do I have? So therefore he wants to stay with his family. Well Avram has to has to separate from the family. So you see again Lot becomes a little bit more interesting, but he also sets up two different motivations. Avraham is his intentionality, his thoughts, motivation is all having to do with the divine instruction. And then he says, "But what does that second verse come and say?" A chara one second posuk hey a chashi she bare lecha machshavit yes about the cover lecha before. Then after already spoke about the intention, so now talks about the reality of what then took place. So then again, you note this problem which may not have troubled us before we started today that how do you work out posuk dalet and posuk hey? So the Malbim just now gave you a very cogent answer. Again, why did I say it bothers me? What bothers me is one word in posuk dalet. What's that? Vayeilech. He went. [laughter] It shouldn't have said he went. It should have said that he listened. It should have said he obeyed. It should have said almost any other word. And that's why I stren- I stren- I stressed before the locomotion, the movement, the going. He's he he he's traveling. Vayeilech, he he goes. So therefore, I I I love what he said. I just kind of don't believe it. By the way, you disagree with me? You're allowed to say, "No, I like it." "Stop it." "I like it." You're allowed to like it. It's fine. Um the Or HaChaim stresses that he went right away in source number six. He has some other interesting things to say about this as well. But we're not going to uh I mean, he does this all out of obedience because God told him to do it. He goes He sets out not knowing where he's going, although obviously God has to tell him at some point. We're going to read something in source number seven. This is also something I found this week. Have you ever heard of Rav Mashash? So you actually have two opportunities cuz there were two of them. I mean, I'm sure there's many more than two. One was the chief rabbi of Haifa, and the other was the chief rabbi of Yerushalayim. Okay. This one that we're going to read today is of Yosef Messas. They're both rabbis from Morocco, both incredibly independent. If you think that all spider colossus begins and ends with Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, so here's your opportunity to see a counter, a different world. And Rabbi Yosef Messas was particularly, really particularly independent and in terms of thought and and and things that he said, again, really really interesting. Over here, he received a letter from another rabbi, Rabbi Yaakov Ifargan, again, another famous uh family, rabbinic family. And he's asking about coming to move to Israel and possibility of finding a job in a place, you know, how's this going to work out? Now, this is This is I have no date on this letter. The letter before and afterwards I had I found dates for. And if you any of you um looked online, if you still have the PDF I sent you, I I I put a link there. You can find the link You can link and and go to the letter if you really wanted to. Right? Yeah, you So, you see it You see it You see the There's a link there. I I received a letter from the start of my vocation. He goes, "I'm very sorry about your lack of uh of livelihood. You know, you ask my advice here. It's a no. You want to go to China. He wants to come here to Israel. That's not the way to Don't just come. Rock by a vote in the middle of a vote, Shavuot or Shavuot in the year of the end of Shavuot in the whole of today for the sake of the Shavuot in the whole of today for the sake of the Shavuot in the whole of today for the sake of the Shavuot in the whole of today for the sake of the Shavuot in the whole So, essentially, he told him, "Come on a pilot trip. Come on a pilot trip, take a look." >> He writes, "While Pirasti and I shall to the partial because of the issue to this incredible question. Drink for a moment to the ocean. The whole already said that I went to the desert to the ocean. So now you all know what's coming. He says, "We must what I said now it works. I have to go to the one to go to school to go to rent out a place to live. They went to find a home but I call a lawyer when to find a place that he can put down his tent. Well, the king called to get everything ready and then he went back and he got his wife. Which by the way is the exact opposite of the says God said and he went right away. He packed up everything right away. Took everything that he had because again is reading dollar to together as if they just said one thing and look how he takes everything and goes and he's saying hold it there's daylight between and and therefore it's not necessarily speaking about the precisely the same thing. >> [clears throat] >> I gave you a bunch of the things that he says here. I'm going to hold off on for a moment and just fill in a couple of other things and then we'll have hopefully time to end all of this properly. And one of the reasons is because approach or even this approach to the okay talk about two different trips. So the sites this you have the now all the way down in source 11 and I gave you a lot of it and just know there's more of it that I didn't give you. And the sites this and he doesn't like it. He says, "How can you say such a thing? How can you talk about two different trips?" And the one who he sites having said it is the run who's in source number nine which was a little bit harder to find. It's not necessarily in our printed editions as far as I can tell. I again I may be wrong. I didn't check all the bibliography. As far as I can tell, the run was published only in 1968, which by the way gives lots of people time to have found it since then. But, the run does talk about two different trips that that are being taken. Yeah. >> So, where did this trip start from, the run? >> That that that's that's a good question, and we'll have to get into Again, the nuance of each one. Where Bruer Now, we'll go backwards cuz say Again, just to fill in all the space over here, if I'm going to talk about the two trips Dalet and Hay being different, and with Mashash, you know, he suggests this as if he just came up with this. I would have thought he could have sought the Abarbanel, and also warn you something about the Abarbanel. More often than not, I'm sorry for saying this, but more often than not, ideas found in the Abarbanel are found in old in older sources. The Abarbanel is not terribly original. It's And that was There were a lot of books that did these kinds of things. So, and then the Malbim also, I believe, asked about Pasuk Dalet and Pasuk Kay. But, the Abarbanel does quote this run. Can clearly he had manuscripts, right? Before the the printing press. And he quotes this run. So, I presented the run for you. And when you have time, you look you'll look at the run, and you'll see that the run does believe that there was this dual trip taking place. And he believes that Pasuk Dalet and Pasuk Kay there's another motivation for all of this, which is something which on other occasions I've gone into much more, and that is the quick quick math on this. Avram was 75 years old when they left when when he left. I asked you before how old is he when God spoke, and you know, you kind of ignored that. The reason is that something which is written in the Seder Olam Rabbah. Did I include that for you? What number? So, number 10. Seder Olam, you'll see Avram Avinu Hayu B'Shashim Shana. It's very B'Shashim Shana U'V'Shnayim Ben Shiv'im Shana. He when he years old by the birth of Abraham. So now you're going to say to me, what in the world is he talking about? How did he get He says it. This Rashi brings this in his commentary to the Chumash. If you've never heard this before, I can tell you I've seen a half a dozen different Rishonim cite this. And Why did One second. Am I correct? A lot of you never heard this never heard this. So, it's hard. Where does it come from? Because it says the ger is a chabur eretz lo lahem. Do vi nutam, right? And so on. Avram ochana. So, when do you start counting? When Yitzchak is born. So, from the birth of Yitzchak until Yitzchak Mitzrayim is 400 years. But, when they leave Egypt it says at a duration of 430 years, even after 30 years. Rashi on that pasuk says, because from when Yitzchak was born, you can start counting 400 ger years are achah. Yitzchak is a stranger in a in a land. Why do I say he's a stranger? He can't find a shidduch in the whole country. He has to go someplace else to find a shidduch. Right? Avram's a stranger in the land at that point. Why? He can't find a place to bury his wife. It's like the most fundamental thing. You live in your land, you find a place to bury someone. There's no cemetery for them. You're a stranger in this land. And I'll and I'll continue. Yakov is a stranger. The whole story with Dinah. I can go on and on. They're strangers in a land which isn't theirs. So, the 400 years begins at the birth of Yitzchak. This will hold up. Why 430? What's extra 30? So, Rashi says he's quoting the Seder Olam. That's where the Seder Olam comes from. It's because it says the duration of 430 years. So, 30 years prior to Yitzchak being born is when God said this. You have a problem. What is your problem? Your problem is is that Avram's only 75 when he leaves. So, now you see why some people are motivated to have a second time that Avram travels. And by the way, it doesn't help. Why doesn't help? Because the age of 75 was written in pasuk dalet, not in pasuk hey. If it were in pasuk hey, then I'd be a little bit more convinced about that too. But, that's part of what takes place over here. That's part of where the run is coming from. That's what the rabbinical doesn't like. How were you putting saying that I've been traveled twice meaning it's a very difficult argument. But again, I'll say it again. You want me to give you my hyper-zionist interpretation? When God describes to Avram the land, where is it from not brought all the way to uh Mitrayim? So, Avram could have been laying near in our pride and God says I'm going to give you this land. Right? Forget about the West Bank. Forget about the East Bank. We're taking Iraq, right? So, so we means once you realize the map could be much longer. So, then God could have promised him, you know, this land. Again, we don't know exactly when all this takes place. But the Seder Olam, if you read through the whole section, the whole the whole four kings and the five kings and the war and when does that take place in Avram's life? It's just this whole restatement of everything that you thought you knew about Avram's life here in Midrash of Chazal. I want to go back to Rav Breuer now and we'll try to finish up for today. Before we finish, you're going to have to think of a title for today. Okay? So, Rav Breuer believes that Avraham was on two different missions at once. He was on the mission that God had sent him on, but he's also continuing what Terach had begun. And he does not use the word secular Zionist and he but that's what I felt as I was reading him. I I I felt as if that the footsteps of Terach also seem to have some kind of what we would call Ma'aseh Avot Siman Banim. But by the way, part of the tragedy there is an uncompleted mission. It is the Jew who's on the way to Israel but doesn't actually make it over here. But Terach but but Avram does continue. Again, it because I see I wrote something about this. I don't know if I uh if I could find my exact line that I had used. Yeah, I wrote Avram must leave his father's household to reach his father's intended destination. That that that that was the that was the way that that right, I say that again. Avram must leave his father's household to reach his father's intended destination. Which means he he should not remain with Terach settled, but he continues to go with Terach meant to go. Which means that again, this is what Rashi brings out that part of what he's doing is he's continuing what his father had started and God over here does something really interesting by telling him to do what his father had started to do. So, there is some kind of chesed involved in that as well. Although, admittedly, when Avram's told to go, he's not told where it is to go and he goes, but it you can't help but realize that go Avram listens. Avram, you know, as Kierkegaard we have to throw Kierkegaard at some point. This is this week and next week is the night of faith. He goes and he does what God told him to do. He packs up and he goes with complete devotion, complete belief. And at some point he has this realization, "Oh, I'm going to land of Canaan. That's where my father was on the way. I'm going to continue what my father had started." Which means it's almost like you can't avoid that at some point. What's Terach's motivation? That's really interesting. But that Avram at some point is now on this dual type of mission or mission that accomplishes two different things. On the one hand, doing what God told him to do. On the other hand, doing what his father had intended to do. As I said, that that that then becomes a more interesting and maybe it then causes us to go back and to re-appreciate or re-evaluate Terach because Avram continues what Terach had started. Does this necessarily help us with pasuk dalet and pasuk hey? I don't know what to tell you, but I did tell you that that's what we were dealing with the whole time today. It's how you understand what is taking place and therefore Terach becomes half of the equation and Lot becomes the other half of the equation. Separating from your father's house is separating from Terach, also separating from Lot. Going where his father wanted to go. And now you go back to Lot. Maybe Lot is going to where his grandfather had wanted to go. If I read in that motivation that this was actually given by Shem to this Sorry, given by Noach to the Shem family, maybe Lot is going because he thinks he's going to be able to inherit it. He sees the reality of the land. Let me go over to stone, you know, it's a little these are my people. This is a little better place for me to be. Again, I'm going back and forth and I'm playing with all of this and trying to figure out what does these missions or dual missions tell us about Terach, about Lot, about Avram. So now again, you realize what my job is, to take things that were really simple that you knew before I started and make them complex and completely confuse you. Shabbat Shalom. Next week Next week I'm not here. I don't know what they're doing instead.