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Beit Midrash
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- Chemdat Yamim
- Parashat Hashavua
- Torah Portion and Tanach
- Bereshit
- Lech Lecha
Chazal identify the palit as Og, King of the Bashan, with whom Moshe fought in the desert hundreds of years later (Nida 61a), and he had escaped from the mass death of the flood. The midrash (Bamidbar Rabba, Chukat 19) explains that he escaped being killed or captured by the Mesopotamian kings, which is what enabled him to make it to Avraham and update him about Lot.
Before Moshe fought Og, Hashem had to reassure Moshe that he need not fear, as Moshe would conquer him and his nation. The gemara (ibid.) explains that Moshe had been concerned about Og’s merit for having helped Avraham. Chazal do not tell us in merit of what did he make it to that point in the first place, i.e., that he had not been killed in the flood or by Nimrod and friends. His merit in regard to Avraham is also hard to understand according to Chazal, who say that his plan was to draw Avraham into an unwinnable battle, so that after Avraham’s death he could marry Sarah. Is that a good deed that deserves merit?!
Let us answer with a look back at the social norms in the time of Sefer Bereishit. We are told that the powerful people took beautiful women without so much as asking anyone’s permission (Bereishit 6:2). Then the generation of the flood continued corruption in the field of adultery (Sanhedrin 57a). Avraham had reason to believe that Paroh and the Egyptians would kill him because of his wife and indeed they seized her without permission (see Bereishit 12:12-15). When these are the societal norms, Og’s plan to entice Avraham to go out to battle, without Og trying to kill Avraham himself, makes him better than the other giants and other powerful men of his time.
How do we combat these sinful tendencies that people at the time had? We see the answer in our parasha. Beyond the covenant with mankind about not destroying mankind with another flood, Hashem made a covenant with Avraham using the foreskin at the place of a man’s organ linked to sexual desires. It is not by coincidence that Avraham was told about this new covenant and about the coming birth of Yitzchak at the same place that he came in contact with Og. As it proved to be, in the merit of keeping to this covenant, Bnei Yisrael merited things such as conquering Og, who had much lower level accomplishments in these regards.
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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Israel and the Nations A Few Minutes & Many Innovative Ideas on Antisemitism & What to do About It
As we approach the High Holidays, this short lecture (18 minutes) deals with the unfortunate situation of how Israel and the Jewish People stand against antisemitism, analyzing its cause according to Rav Kook, and how to deal with the issue pragmatically & via our prayers.
Ha'azinu PURSUIT is PERFECTION
p. Ha'azinu, Shabbat Shuva
Rav Kook deals with the question of the seemingly hopeless nature of Tshuva. For G-d Himself knows that He created us with free will, which inevitably means we will sometimes make mistakes and choose wrong. This can easily be frustrating, freezing us into inaction and ye'ush (loss of hope). If one sins even once, does he chalila have no choice but suicide?! Moreover, our Godly conscience demands justice, righteousness and perfection, but we all know this is impossible, so what's the solution? Rav Kook's innovative thinking, strongly based on chazal (our sages), offers an inciteful and important aspect to this topic, especially this time of year!
Sukkot Bug-Free Sukkah: Essential Halachic and Practical Schach Guide
How to inspect, clean, and store bamboo mats and palm branches to protect your mitzvah and holiday meals.
