For the past ten weeks we have been reading the stories of the Patriarchs and their faltering steps in the 18th century BCE, at the time of the birth of our nation. The story of Abraham tells of his spectacular rise to fame in the midst of a pagan civilization. For the first time in […]
Vayigash Joseph 5775 The most extraordinary aspect in the story of Joseph is that the brothers repented of their grave crime and that Joseph appears to have forgiven them. Yet, Joseph had every justification to bear a grudge against his siblings for ever. After all, they tried to kill him and only decided to […]
Commentary on the Sidra of Vayeshev 5775 By Rabbi Yaakov Grunewald South London Synagogue At the centre of the Sidra, in chapter 38, we find the story of Judah’s separation from his father and brothers. This was after Joseph’s disappearance. The family was in a state of deep shock. Judah, who had proposed Joseph’s sale, […]
The Sidra of Vayechi begins with the information that Jacob lived in the Land of Egypt for 17 years, and that he was now 147 years old. It would seem that these 17 years were the happiest years of his life. The mediaeval commentator Rabbi David Kimchi makes the observation that Joseph was 17 when […]
The sidra of Vayigash begins in the middle of chapter 44 and in the midst of the account of the most dramatic confrontation between Joseph and his brothers. In the last few verses of Mikketz, the Torah relates how Joseph accused his brothers of stealing the cup as soon as they arrived back in his […]
The Sidra of Mikketz describes Joseph’s meteoric and miraculous rise to power, after having been imprisoned for 12 years. When the Butler was released two years before him, Joseph had hoped that he would help him regain his freedom. On the day that the Butler left prison, Joseph specifically asked him to remember him to […]
The main stories in this Sidra focus on Joseph and Judah whose tribes became the leading tribes of the Israelite nation, later in Biblical history. In today’s Sidra Joseph and Judah play a major role, as individuals. They clashed bitterly. The Sidra recounts their terrible and tragic downfall. Joseph ended up in a pit; was […]
In this Sidra the Torah relates the events that took place in Jacob’s life on his way from MACHANAYIM to SHECHEM. Machanayim, which is a last word in the Sidra Vayetze, means ‘two camps’. Jacob gave this name because he saw two camps of angels accompanying him as he was arriving back in the land […]
In the first part of this week’s Sidra, the Torah relates that our father Jacob left his home in Beer Sheva and arrived at the place which he thought was safe and appropriate to settle down and to go to sleep. Some commentators have remarked that it is most interesting that he went to sleep, […]
The Sidra of Chayye Sarah can be divided into three distinct sections. The first section deals with Sarah’s death. The second very long section tells us the interesting and detailed story of the search and process of selection of a wife for Isaac, which was entrusted to Abraham’s loyal servant. The third section of the […]