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Monday, October 19, 2026

Lech-Lecha 2

Bereshis 12:10 through 13:18. Avram goes down to Egypt in a famine, Sarai is taken to Pharaoh's palace, and Avram leaves rich. He then returns to Canaan, separates from Lot and receives the promise of the land. Along the way we look at where Pharaoh came from, as Sefer HaYashar tells it. One question runs through all of it: how much is a person meant to rely on Hashem, and how much on his own planning? Rashi and the Ramban answer it differently in the famine, and the Ramban raises it again in the plan to call Sarai his sister. A second thread is that what happened to the Avos (the forefathers) is a sign of what would happen to their children. Avram's descent and rich exit point to the Egyptian exile, and Pharaoh's plagues point to the ten plagues.

The pesukim

Bereshis 12:6–9 (review)
At 75, Avram traveled from Charan to Canaan, passed through Shechem and built an altar between Beis El and Ai. Ai is where the Jewish people would later stumble because of Achan, who took forbidden loot from Yericho, as the book of Yehoshua tells. Avram saw this in prophecy and built the altar to help protect his future children there. He then moved slowly south, staying about a month in each place.
Bereshis 12:10

וַיְהִ֥י רָעָ֖ב בָּאָ֑רֶץ וַיֵּ֨רֶד אַבְרָ֤ם מִצְרַ֙יְמָה֙ לָג֣וּר שָׁ֔ם כִּֽי־כָבֵ֥ד הָרָעָ֖ב בָּאָֽרֶץ׃

There was a famine in the land. Abram headed south to Egypt to stay there for a while, since the famine had grown very severe in the land.

There was a severe famine in the land, and Avram went down to Egypt to stay there for a while. The famine was only in Canaan; the rest of the world had plenty. That is why Avram, who had a household depending on him, had no way to get food without leaving. Leaving Eretz Yisrael is forbidden, and that still applies today. One of the exceptions is a famine, when a person cannot earn a living there, so Avram was allowed to go down to Egypt, southwest of the land.
Bereshis 12:11–13

וַיְהִ֕י כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר הִקְרִ֖יב לָב֣וֹא מִצְרָ֑יְמָה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אֶל־שָׂרַ֣י אִשְׁתּ֔וֹ הִנֵּה־נָ֣א יָדַ֔עְתִּי כִּ֛י אִשָּׁ֥ה יְפַת־מַרְאֶ֖ה אָֽתְּ׃

As they approached Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, "I realize that you are a good-looking woman.

וְהָיָ֗ה כִּֽי־יִרְא֤וּ אֹתָךְ֙ הַמִּצְרִ֔ים וְאָמְר֖וּ אִשְׁתּ֣וֹ זֹ֑את וְהָרְג֥וּ אֹתִ֖י וְאֹתָ֥ךְ יְחַיּֽוּ׃

When the Egyptians see you, they will assume that you are my wife and kill me, allowing you to live.

אִמְרִי־נָ֖א אֲחֹ֣תִי אָ֑תְּ לְמַ֙עַן֙ יִֽיטַב־לִ֣י בַעֲבוּרֵ֔ךְ וְחָיְתָ֥ה נַפְשִׁ֖י בִּגְלָלֵֽךְ׃

If you would, say that you are my sister. They will then be good to me for your sake, and through your efforts, my life will be spared."

As they neared Egypt, Avram told Sarai that she was beautiful and that the Egyptians would kill him to take her. He asked her to say she was his sister. His plan had two parts: first hide her in a chest under his belongings, and since she could not stay hidden forever, call themselves brother and sister. He gave the same instructions to Lot and everyone with him, and told Sarai to call him 'brother' from then on, so she would not slip and call him her husband. The reasoning was that murder is against the law in Egypt, but so is taking another man's wife. Murder breaks the law once, while living with a man's wife breaks it every day, so they would rather kill the husband and be done with it.
Bereshis 12:14–15

וַיְהִ֕י כְּב֥וֹא אַבְרָ֖ם מִצְרָ֑יְמָה וַיִּרְא֤וּ הַמִּצְרִים֙ אֶת־הָ֣אִשָּׁ֔ה כִּֽי־יָפָ֥ה הִ֖וא מְאֹֽד׃

When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that his wife was very beautiful.

וַיִּרְא֤וּ אֹתָהּ֙ שָׂרֵ֣י פַרְעֹ֔ה וַיְהַֽלְל֥וּ אֹתָ֖הּ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֑ה וַתֻּקַּ֥ח הָאִשָּׁ֖ה בֵּ֥ית פַּרְעֹֽה׃

Pharaoh's officials saw her, and spoke highly of her to Pharaoh. The woman was taken to Pharaoh's palace.

When Avram reached Egypt the Egyptians saw how beautiful Sarai was, Pharaoh's officials praised her to him, and she was taken to the palace. She was hidden in the chest, but at customs the officers wanted it opened. Avram offered to pay the tax as if it were full of gold, then as if it were full of precious stones. That only made them more suspicious, so they forced it open and found a woman whose face seemed to glow. The officers fought over her and finally decided she was fit only for the king. According to Pirkei d'Rabbi Eliezer, she was taken to Pharaoh on the first night of Pesach, the 15th of Nissan, and Pharaoh was so pleased that he gave many gifts to the officials who had told him about her.
Bereshis 12:16

וּלְאַבְרָ֥ם הֵיטִ֖יב בַּעֲבוּרָ֑הּ וַֽיְהִי־ל֤וֹ צֹאן־וּבָקָר֙ וַחֲמֹרִ֔ים וַעֲבָדִים֙ וּשְׁפָחֹ֔ת וַאֲתֹנֹ֖ת וּגְמַלִּֽים׃

He treated Abram well because of her, and [Abram] thus acquired sheep, cattle, donkeys, male and female slaves, she-donkeys, and camels.

Because of Sarai, Pharaoh treated Avram well and gave him sheep, cattle, donkeys, servants and camels. The question is why Hashem made Avram rich in such a strange way, through the king taking his wife. The answer is ma'aseh avos siman labanim: what happened to the forefathers is a sign of what will happen to their children. Avram went down to Egypt, suffered and left with great wealth, and his descendants would go down to Egypt, suffer and leave with great wealth too.
Bereshis 12:17

וַיְנַגַּ֨ע יְהֹוָ֧ה ׀ אֶת־פַּרְעֹ֛ה נְגָעִ֥ים גְּדֹלִ֖ים וְאֶת־בֵּית֑וֹ עַל־דְּבַ֥ר שָׂרַ֖י אֵ֥שֶׁת אַבְרָֽם׃

God struck Pharaoh and his palace with severe plagues because of Abram's wife Sarai.

Hashem struck Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Sarai, Avram's wife. They were punished in three ways. A skin disease (ra'atan) made marital relations very difficult and left Pharaoh impotent. Women in the palace got stuck in the middle of giving birth, and the palace filled with screams. When Pharaoh still tried to get near Sarai, an angel beat him without mercy all night. As soon as he committed to leaving her alone, he was completely healed.
Bereshis 12:18

וַיִּקְרָ֤א פַרְעֹה֙ לְאַבְרָ֔ם וַיֹּ֕אמֶר מַה־זֹּ֖את עָשִׂ֣יתָ לִּ֑י לָ֚מָּה לֹא־הִגַּ֣דְתָּ לִּ֔י כִּ֥י אִשְׁתְּךָ֖ הִֽוא׃

Pharaoh summoned Abram and said, "How could you do this to me? Why didn't you tell me that she was your wife?

At daybreak Pharaoh called Avram and asked, 'Why didn't you tell me she was your wife?' The wording is exact: he does not ask why Avram said she was his sister, but why he did not tell him. Pharaoh admitted the Egyptians were shameless and really might have killed Avram. His complaint was that Avram should at least have told him, the king, privately, and spared the palace all that suffering.
Bereshis 12:19

לָמָ֤ה אָמַ֙רְתָּ֙ אֲחֹ֣תִי הִ֔וא וָאֶקַּ֥ח אֹתָ֛הּ לִ֖י לְאִשָּׁ֑ה וְעַתָּ֕ה הִנֵּ֥ה אִשְׁתְּךָ֖ קַ֥ח וָלֵֽךְ׃

Why did you say that she was your sister so that I should take her to myself as a wife? Now here is your wife! Take her and go! "

Pharaoh went on: 'You said she was your sister, and that is why I took her as a wife. Here is your wife, take her and go.' He was blaming Avram's words. As we will see with Aharon, children tend to resemble their mother's brothers, and Pharaoh wanted children like Avram. 'Take her and go' was not meant as an insult. It was a warning not to stay around Egypt, because its immoral people would cause more trouble.
Bereshis 12:20

וַיְצַ֥ו עָלָ֛יו פַּרְעֹ֖ה אֲנָשִׁ֑ים וַֽיְשַׁלְּח֥וּ אֹת֛וֹ וְאֶת־אִשְׁתּ֖וֹ וְאֶת־כׇּל־אֲשֶׁר־לֽוֹ׃

Pharaoh put men in charge of [Abram], and they sent him on his way along with his wife and all that was his.

Pharaoh put men in charge of Avram, and they sent him away with his wife and everything that was his. 'Everything that was his' includes the gifts Pharaoh had given in exchange for Sarai. Pharaoh had every reason to demand them back, since the marriage never happened. As the Ramban and the Zohar bring, a miracle kept him from thinking of it, so that Avram's reputation would grow and he would leave Egypt with great wealth.
Bereshis 13:1–4

וַיַּ֩עַל֩ אַבְרָ֨ם מִמִּצְרַ֜יִם ה֠וּא וְאִשְׁתּ֧וֹ וְכׇל־אֲשֶׁר־ל֛וֹ וְל֥וֹט עִמּ֖וֹ הַנֶּֽגְבָּה׃

Abram headed northward to the Negev along with his wife and all that was his, including Lot.

וְאַבְרָ֖ם כָּבֵ֣ד מְאֹ֑ד בַּמִּקְנֶ֕ה בַּכֶּ֖סֶף וּבַזָּהָֽב׃

Abram was very rich, with livestock, silver and gold.

וַיֵּ֙לֶךְ֙ לְמַסָּעָ֔יו מִנֶּ֖גֶב וְעַד־בֵּֽית־אֵ֑ל עַד־הַמָּק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁר־הָ֨יָה שָׁ֤ם אׇֽהֳלֹה֙ בַּתְּחִלָּ֔ה בֵּ֥ין בֵּֽית־אֵ֖ל וּבֵ֥ין הָעָֽי׃

He continued on his travels, from the Negev toward Bethel, until [he came to] the place where he originally had his tent, between Bethel and Ai,

אֶל־מְקוֹם֙ הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ אֲשֶׁר־עָ֥שָׂה שָׁ֖ם בָּרִאשֹׁנָ֑ה וַיִּקְרָ֥א שָׁ֛ם אַבְרָ֖ם בְּשֵׁ֥ם יְהֹוָֽה׃

the site of the altar that he had built there at first. Abram called in God's name.

Avram went back up to the Negev with his wife, everything he had, and Lot. He was very rich in livestock, silver and gold, and he traveled on toward Beis El, to the place of his first tent and altar, where he called in Hashem's name. The Torah puts his wealth right next to 'he continued on his travels' to teach that he stopped at every place on the way to repay his debts. He may have carried his wealth as precious stones and not wanted to sell them cheaply on the road, so he borrowed for the trip down, planning to sell the stones in Egypt for their true value. Now that he was rich, he went back and paid everyone, because Avram was a man of complete honesty.
Bereshis 13:5–6

וְגַ֨ם־לְל֔וֹט הַהֹלֵ֖ךְ אֶת־אַבְרָ֑ם הָיָ֥ה צֹאן־וּבָקָ֖ר וְאֹהָלִֽים׃

Lot, who accompanied Abram, also had sheep, cattle and tents.

וְלֹא־נָשָׂ֥א אֹתָ֛ם הָאָ֖רֶץ לָשֶׁ֣בֶת יַחְדָּ֑ו כִּֽי־הָיָ֤ה רְכוּשָׁם֙ רָ֔ב וְלֹ֥א יָֽכְל֖וּ לָשֶׁ֥בֶת יַחְדָּֽו׃

The land could not support them living together; their wealth was so great that they could not stay together.

Lot, who went with Avram, also had flocks, cattle and tents, and the land could not hold both of them. There was only one Lot, so the extra words 'who went with Avram' are teaching something. Lot had everything he had only because he stayed with Avram.
Bereshis 13:7

וַֽיְהִי־רִ֗יב בֵּ֚ין רֹעֵ֣י מִקְנֵֽה־אַבְרָ֔ם וּבֵ֖ין רֹעֵ֣י מִקְנֵה־ל֑וֹט וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִי֙ וְהַפְּרִזִּ֔י אָ֖ז יֹשֵׁ֥ב בָּאָֽרֶץ׃

Friction developed between the herdsmen of Abram's flocks and those of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizites were then living in the land.

Friction broke out between Avram's herdsmen and Lot's, and the Canaanites and Perizzites were living in the land then. Lot's shepherds were wicked and let his animals graze in other people's fields. Their reasoning was that Hashem had promised the land to Avram, Avram had no children, so Lot would inherit and the land was already theirs. Avram's side answered that this is theft. Avram is still alive, and Hashem had promised the land to his offspring and had not yet given it.
Bereshis 13:8–9

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אַבְרָ֜ם אֶל־ל֗וֹט אַל־נָ֨א תְהִ֤י מְרִיבָה֙ בֵּינִ֣י וּבֵינֶ֔ךָ וּבֵ֥ין רֹעַ֖י וּבֵ֣ין רֹעֶ֑יךָ כִּֽי־אֲנָשִׁ֥ים אַחִ֖ים אֲנָֽחְנוּ׃

Abram said to Lot, "Let's not have friction between me and you, and between my herdsmen and yours. After all, we're brothers.

הֲלֹ֤א כׇל־הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ לְפָנֶ֔יךָ הִפָּ֥רֶד נָ֖א מֵעָלָ֑י אִם־הַשְּׂמֹ֣אל וְאֵימִ֔נָה וְאִם־הַיָּמִ֖ין וְאַשְׂמְאִֽילָה׃

All the land is before you. Why not separate from me? If you [go to] the left, I will go to the right; if to the right, I will take the left."

Avram said to Lot: let there be no fighting between us, for we are brothers. The whole land is before you, so separate from me. If you go left, I will go right, and if you go right, I will go left. He proposed that they split up in peace. 'Left and right' meant that each would choose a direction and then stay inside his own area from then on.
Bereshis 13:10–13

וַיִּשָּׂא־ל֣וֹט אֶת־עֵינָ֗יו וַיַּרְא֙ אֶת־כׇּל־כִּכַּ֣ר הַיַּרְדֵּ֔ן כִּ֥י כֻלָּ֖הּ מַשְׁקֶ֑ה לִפְנֵ֣י ׀ שַׁחֵ֣ת יְהֹוָ֗ה אֶת־סְדֹם֙ וְאֶת־עֲמֹרָ֔ה כְּגַן־יְהֹוָה֙ כְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם בֹּאֲכָ֖ה צֹֽעַר׃

Lot looked up and saw that the entire Jordan Plain, all the way to Tzoar had plenty of water. (This was before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) It was like God's own garden, like the land of Egypt.

וַיִּבְחַר־ל֣וֹ ל֗וֹט אֵ֚ת כׇּל־כִּכַּ֣ר הַיַּרְדֵּ֔ן וַיִּסַּ֥ע ל֖וֹט מִקֶּ֑דֶם וַיִּפָּ֣רְד֔וּ אִ֖ישׁ מֵעַ֥ל אָחִֽיו׃

Lot chose for himself the entire Jordan Plain. He headed eastward, and the two separated.

אַבְרָ֖ם יָשַׁ֣ב בְּאֶֽרֶץ־כְּנָ֑עַן וְל֗וֹט יָשַׁב֙ בְּעָרֵ֣י הַכִּכָּ֔ר וַיֶּאֱהַ֖ל עַד־סְדֹֽם׃

Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot dwelt in the cities of the Plain, having migrated as far as Sodom.

וְאַנְשֵׁ֣י סְדֹ֔ם רָעִ֖ים וְחַטָּאִ֑ים לַיהֹוָ֖ה מְאֹֽד׃

But the people of Sodom were very wicked, and they sinned against God.

Lot looked up and saw that the whole Jordan plain was well watered, like Hashem's garden and like Egypt. He chose it, moved east and pitched his tents as far as Sodom, while Avram stayed in Canaan. The Torah then adds that the people of Sodom were very wicked and sinned against Hashem, which seems out of place. It is telling us why Lot went there. Sodom's three main sins were idolatry, sexual immorality and bloodshed. Lot chose the worst place he could find so that he could sin openly and still be accepted as one of them. Rashi adds that when a wicked person is mentioned, his wickedness is mentioned right away, which is why Sodom's wickedness comes as soon as Lot pitches his tents there.
Bereshis 13:14–18

וַֽיהֹוָ֞ה אָמַ֣ר אֶל־אַבְרָ֗ם אַחֲרֵי֙ הִפָּֽרֶד־ל֣וֹט מֵֽעִמּ֔וֹ שָׂ֣א נָ֤א עֵינֶ֙יךָ֙ וּרְאֵ֔ה מִן־הַמָּק֖וֹם אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֣ה שָׁ֑ם צָפֹ֥נָה וָנֶ֖גְבָּה וָקֵ֥דְמָה וָיָֽמָּה׃

After Lot left him, God said to Abram, "Raise your eyes, and, from the place where you are now [standing], look to the north, to the south, to the east, and to the west.

כִּ֧י אֶת־כׇּל־הָאָ֛רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֥ה רֹאֶ֖ה לְךָ֣ אֶתְּנֶ֑נָּה וּֽלְזַרְעֲךָ֖ עַד־עוֹלָֽם׃

For all the land that you see, I will give to you and to your offspring forever.

וְשַׂמְתִּ֥י אֶֽת־זַרְעֲךָ֖ כַּעֲפַ֣ר הָאָ֑רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֣ר ׀ אִם־יוּכַ֣ל אִ֗ישׁ לִמְנוֹת֙ אֶת־עֲפַ֣ר הָאָ֔רֶץ גַּֽם־זַרְעֲךָ֖ יִמָּנֶֽה׃

I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth; if a man will be able to count [all] the grains of dust in the world, then your offspring also will be countable.

ק֚וּם הִתְהַלֵּ֣ךְ בָּאָ֔רֶץ לְאׇרְכָּ֖הּ וּלְרׇחְבָּ֑הּ כִּ֥י לְךָ֖ אֶתְּנֶֽנָּה׃

Rise, walk the land, through its length and breadth, for I will give it [all] to you."

וַיֶּאֱהַ֣ל אַבְרָ֗ם וַיָּבֹ֛א וַיֵּ֛שֶׁב בְּאֵלֹנֵ֥י מַמְרֵ֖א אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּחֶבְר֑וֹן וַיִּֽבֶן־שָׁ֥ם מִזְבֵּ֖חַ לַֽיהֹוָֽה׃

Abram moved on. He came and settled in the Plains of Mamre, in Hebron, and there he built an altar to God.

After Lot left, Hashem told Avram to look north, south, east and west. All the land he could see would belong to him and his offspring forever, and his offspring would be like the dust of the earth. Hashem told him to rise and walk the land through its length and breadth. Walking it is how Avram took possession: from then on it was his as an inheritance, and no one could take it from him by law or by force. The Jewish people are its rightful owners by Hashem's word. Avram then settled in the plains of Mamre in Chevron and built an altar there.

English from The Living Torah by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, used with the permission of the Kaplan family. Hebrew: Miqra according to the Masorah (CC BY-SA).

Takeaways

  • Trust in Hashem grows step by step: start by doing your part, and the more you trust, the less you have to push.
  • Your livelihood can come from places you would never expect, so do your work but don't think your work is what makes you money.
  • Honor your wife: blessing comes into a home because of her, and peace at home keeps Hashem's presence there.
  • When relatives go the wrong way, stay close, because if you cut them off there is no chance they will come back.
  • Go back to the people who hosted you, and pay back every debt, even when you have moved on to better things.
Going deeper— the stories, Kabbalah and the reasons behind the reasons

How the kings of Egypt came to be called Pharaoh

  • Sefer HaYashar tells of a man in Babylon named Rekion who was brilliant, learned in the sciences and very handsome, but very poor. He traveled all the way to Egypt hoping the king would help him make a living.
  • He found out the king came out only once a year to judge the people. He tried selling vegetables in the market, but he did not speak the language and people laughed at him, so he gave up on that.
  • Determined not to go home empty-handed, he gathered 30 followers, many of them veteran soldiers. He set up at Egypt's City of the Dead and charged 200 gold coins to bury anyone, claiming it was a special tax ordered by the king. He did this for eight months and became very rich.
  • When the king held court, the Egyptian leaders complained about this tax on the dead. The furious king summoned Rekion, who sent a thousand richly dressed youths on horses with gifts and then came himself on a magnificent horse. He spoke with such wisdom that the king and his court were amazed.
  • The king told him he should no longer be called Rekion, meaning 'emptiness,' but Pharaoh, from pira'on, payment or ransom. He made him viceroy, and when the king died Pharaoh became king. From then on every king of Egypt was called Pharaoh, and this is the Pharaoh Avram is about to meet.

Why the famine came: Rashi and the Ramban on Avram's test

  • The famine was a test. Rashi says the test was whether Avram would complain. He had left a comfortable life in Charan because Hashem promised him blessings, and now he could not even stay in the land he was promised. He had every reason to say Hashem's promises cannot be trusted, yet he never even thought of complaining, and so he passed.
  • The Ramban says the test was whether Avram would trust Hashem and stay in Canaan. In the Ramban's view he failed by going down to Egypt.

Two levels of trust in Hashem

  • Rabbi Berkovits explained that Rashi and the Ramban are not really arguing. They are talking about two different levels of bitachon, trust in Hashem.
  • On the first level, a person trusts Hashem and also believes Hashem wants him to do whatever makes human sense: go where there is a living, work for it, and let Hashem provide through that. This is Rashi's Avram.
  • On the higher level, a person trusts Hashem so completely that he does not need the normal human steps. He could sit and learn Torah all day knowing Hashem will take care of him. The Ramban held that Hashem expected this level from Avram.
  • This kind of trust has to be simple and obvious to you, not something you push yourself into. Once the thought 'I need to work' comes in, you have to work, and Hashem will not give it to you otherwise. For Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai in the cave it was so clear that a carob tree and a spring of water appeared for him.
  • People usually build up to this level. At first you work hard, and as your trust grows you work less while everything in your life goes up. Tehillim says, 'He gives His beloved ones sleep.'

Hashem prefers His help to look natural

  • The Yefeh To'ar says the famine let Hashem show Avram that He was keeping His promise to support him, even in a famine.
  • If so, why go down to Egypt at all? Because Hashem prefers to send His miracles through nature, and that is how He shows Himself in this world. By going to Egypt, Avram let Hashem's help stay hidden inside the natural way of things.

Another reason Avram went down: his guests

  • The Kesef Nivchar gives one more reason Avram left. His custom was to take in every traveler and treat him kindly, especially the poor.
  • In the famine he worried he could no longer keep doing this. In Egypt, where there was plenty of food, he could go on using it to do good.

What 'now I know you are beautiful' means

  • Avram had been married to Sarai for years, so it is strange that he only 'knows' now that she is beautiful. Her other name, Yiskah, comes from sacha, to gaze, because people stared at her beauty.
  • One reason Rashi gives: travel usually wears a person out, but Sarai stayed beautiful even on the road.
  • Another reason Rashi gives: the Egyptians were descendants of Cham, relatives of the Kushim. Rashi describes them as dark and unattractive and says they were not used to a beautiful woman, so Sarai was in real danger there.

The Ramban: the 'sister' plan as another lapse in trust

  • The Ramban counts the plan to call Sarai his sister as a second sin. Avram should have trusted Hashem to save him even if he said she was his wife, instead of making up a story and taking things into his own hands.
  • This is the same disagreement as in the famine. According to the Ramban, Hashem asked for a higher level of trust. Others see the plan as a righteous and responsible thing to do.

Why Avram didn't reveal the truth once Sarai was taken

  • Once the plan had failed and she was being taken to Pharaoh, why not just say she was his wife? Because the Egyptians never thought she was single.
  • Avram never told Sarai to say she was unmarried. She was to say: 'I am married, my husband could not come, and Avram is my brother.' That way nobody could take her, because she had a husband, and nobody could kill the husband, because he was not there.

Wealth can come from anywhere, and honoring your wife brings it

  • Avram became rich in the most unexpected way. Hashem can send a person a livelihood in a million ways he has no idea about. Do your business, but do not think your business is what makes you money; it can come from anywhere.
  • Rabbi Chelbo, in the Gemara in Bava Metzia 59a, learns from 'he treated Avram well because of her' that blessing comes to a man's home because of his wife. Rava told the people of Mechoza: honor your wives, so that you will become rich.
  • When there is no peace at home, Hashem's presence leaves the house. Not honoring your wife is a great sin.
  • The Me'am Loez, written in Ottoman Turkey where hitting one's wife was common, brings here the law that it is forbidden. A Jew does not do such things.

Sarai's prayer on the first night of Pesach

  • In Pharaoh's palace, Sarai, a married woman, was in grave spiritual danger, and she cried and prayed to Hashem all night.
  • Her prayer: 'Master of the Universe, You commanded my husband to leave his land and promised to make him a great nation. We obeyed, suffered on the roads, and wandered among people who did not know our language. Because of the famine we were forced to come here. Merciful Father, do not let Pharaoh touch me.'
  • Avram also prayed. The angel Gavriel came to Sarai that night, told her in Hashem's name not to be afraid, stayed with her all night, and promised to punish Pharaoh until he gave in.

Why Pharaoh's household was punished, and the hint of the ten plagues

  • Sefer HaYashar brings that everyone in the palace was beaten, not only Pharaoh. The Sifsei Kohen explains why: if Pharaoh had been punished more harshly than everyone else, people would have assumed he had touched Sarai. Since all of them were punished for bringing her to the palace, it was clear that no one had laid a hand on her.
  • Why was Pharaoh punished at all, if Avram called her his sister? The Bereishis Rabbah says Sarai told Pharaoh she was married, and he still wanted her. Every time he came near, she told the angel to strike him, and the angel struck him.
  • The plagues were also a sign of what Hashem would do later, when the Jews were in Egypt. The Zohar says Hashem brought ten plagues on Pharaoh here because of Sarai.

Leaving Egypt with honor, and why Avram stayed silent

  • Pharaoh gave his own daughter to serve in Avram's house. He told her it was better to be a servant in Avram's house than a princess in his palace, and that she would gain greatly by serving Sarai with all her heart.
  • Pharaoh sent troops and armed bodyguards to escort Avram through Egypt and went along with him himself. Later the Jewish people paid for this honor when slavery in Egypt was decreed. Nothing you receive from someone is free; one way or another you pay.
  • Avram did not defend himself to Pharaoh, although with Avimelech he later did explain himself. Pharaoh was telling him to leave, and offering an excuse would have sounded like he wanted to stay, which would have gone against Pharaoh's wishes and disrespected him. Avimelech invited him to stay, so there it was right to explain.

Going back to the same host

  • Avram returned to the very place where he had first pitched his tent. The Gemara in Arachin 16b learns from this that a person should not change his lodging. If someone hosted you, go back to the same host next time.
  • There are two reasons. If you stay with someone else, people will think badly of the first host, as if he must be a bad person. They will also think badly of you, as if you must have been thrown out.

What Lot earned by staying with Avram

  • Because Lot never left Avram's side, he became rich. He also merited to be the ancestor of two precious women, Rus and Na'ama.
  • Rus, from Moav, was the great-grandmother of King David. Na'ama, from Amon, was King Shlomo's wife and the mother of Rechavam, king of Yehudah.

'The Canaanites were then in the land'

  • This phrase gives Avram's side of the argument: for now the land belongs to the Canaanites and Perizzites.
  • So Avram muzzled his animals and let them graze only in public areas. His herdsmen rebuked Lot's for trespassing: we have no right to this land yet, it was promised only to Avram's offspring, and taking from its people is theft.

Four reasons Avram separated from Lot

  • Safety: together they had so much livestock that the locals might attack them. The Ramban explains that the custom was to graze an area bare and move on, and the people of the land would see so many flocks as a threat to their grazing.
  • Constant fighting: this was not the only dispute. Lot was very stubborn, and Avram saw that the quarrels were not good.
  • Mistaken identity: 'we are brothers,' although they were really uncle and nephew, because they looked so much alike. Avram did not want people to think he was the wicked one letting his animals graze on their fields.
  • Prophecy: Avram saw that Amon and Moav would come from Lot, and that the men of Amon and Moav may never marry into the Jewish people, even after converting. The word hipared, 'separate,' is related to pered, a mule. Just as a mule cannot have offspring, his descendants and Lot's would not be able to marry and have children together.

Lot turned away from the One who came before everything

  • 'Lot traveled mi-kedem,' from the east. Kedem also means 'before' or 'ancient,' and it can refer to Hashem, who existed before the world.
  • Lot was wicked at his core. By leaving Avram he also left Hashem, the One who came before everything, and wanted nothing to do with either of them.

Why Hashem spoke only after Lot left, and staying close to family who stray

  • As long as Lot was with Avram, Hashem did not speak to him. Keeping Lot so close looked as if Avram were treating him as his heir, as if he did not believe Hashem would give him children of his own. Lot's wickedness was also a reason Hashem did not want to speak with Avram while he was there.
  • The Yefeh To'ar brings a debate between Hashem and the angels. The angels argued that Avram deserved to die for treating the wicked Lot as a friend and brother. Hashem did not take Avram's life, but His presence left Avram the whole time Lot was with him.
  • When Hashem did speak to him, the complaint was the opposite. Once you took Lot along, you should have improved him, so why is he still wicked? And now that he has left, you should not have put so much distance between you; you should have kept him close so you could still influence him.
  • The lesson: when relatives go the wrong way, stay close to them, because you never know when they will change. If you cut yourself off, there is no chance left. Hashem Himself did not want to cut Lot off.

Five ways the Jewish people are like the dust of the earth

  • Dust is too numerous to count, and so are Avram's offspring.
  • Dust is scattered all over the world, and the blessing in that is that the Jewish people can never be destroyed. In the Gemara in Pesachim 87b, a heretic told Rabbi Chanina that Yoav, King David's general, occupied Edom for six months and killed every male, while Rome had ruled the Jews for many years without killing them. Rabbi Chanina let a student answer, and Rabbi Oshaya said: it is not because you are kind. You cannot do it. The Jews are not all under your rule, and if you killed only the ones who are, your empire would be called a cut-off kingdom. Edom was in one place, but Hashem scattered the Jews everywhere. The heretic admitted that was exactly their thinking.
  • The same held in our time. Hitler killed six million, and still the Jewish people survived, because they are spread everywhere like dust.
  • Everyone steps on dust, so the Jewish people are to be modest and humble, because Torah cannot exist without humility. This is why we pray at the end of the Amidah, 'let my soul be like dust to all.'
  • Dust can make iron rust, so the Jewish people can wear down false beliefs, even ones as strong as iron.
  • Everyone tramples the earth and it is never harmed. Even when other nations trample the Jewish people and rule over them, we will never be destroyed.

The altar of thanks in Chevron

  • Avram settled in the plains of Mamre in Chevron, at the house of a good man named Mamre, and built an altar there.
  • He built it out of gratitude. He had escaped Pharaoh unharmed, he had become wealthy, and Hashem had promised him children and the land. So he built an altar and brought offerings.
Review questions
  1. According to Rashi, what was Avram's test in the famine, and how does the Ramban see it differently? How does Rabbi Berkovits reconcile them?
  2. Why did Avram think the Egyptians would kill him if they knew Sarai was his wife, but leave him alone if she was his 'sister'?
  3. Why did Hashem have Avram become rich through Pharaoh taking Sarai, and what does the Gemara in Bava Metzia 59a learn from 'he treated Avram well because of her'?
  4. What is precise about Pharaoh's question 'Why didn't you tell me she was your wife?', and why didn't Avram defend himself?
  5. Give four reasons Avram separated from Lot. What does the word hipared hint at?
  6. Name the five ways the Jewish people are compared to the dust of the earth.
Sources
  • Sefer HaYashar — the story of Rekion becoming Pharaoh; Pharaoh's whole household beaten
  • Rashi on Bereshis 12:10–11 and 13:13 — the famine tested whether Avram would complain; why Sarai's beauty was a danger in Egypt; mentioning the wickedness of the wicked
  • Ramban on Bereshis 12:10, 13:1 and 13:7 — Avram should have trusted Hashem and stayed, and should not have called Sarai his sister; Pharaoh did not ask for his gifts back; the locals threatened by the flocks
  • Rabbi Berkovits — Rashi and the Ramban describe two levels of bitachon
  • Yefeh To'ar — the famine showed Hashem's support; the angels' case against Avram for keeping Lot close
  • Sifsei Kohen — Sarai's face glowed; why the whole palace was beaten
  • Pirkei d'Rabbi Eliezer 26 — Sarai was taken on the first night of Pesach
  • Gemara Bava Metzia 59a — honor your wife and you will become wealthy
  • Me'am Loez, citing the Rema (Even HaEzer 154:3) — the law that hitting one's wife is forbidden
  • Bereishis Rabbah 41:2 — Sarai told Pharaoh she was married, and the angel struck at her word
  • Zohar — ten plagues on Pharaoh because of Sarai; Pharaoh did not ask for his gifts back
  • Gemara Arachin 16b — do not change your lodging
  • Gemara Pesachim 87b — the scattering of the Jews protects them from destruction
  • Tehillim 127:2 — 'He gives His beloved ones sleep'