Torah Study 2022/5783: Vayera
Torah study on Vayera, focusing on the prophecy of the birth of Isaac and the meaning of laughter

TRANSLITERATION

Baruch atah, Adonai Eloheinu, Melech haolam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu laasok b’divrei Torah.

TRANSLATION

Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Sovereign of all, who hallows us with mitzvot, commanding us to engage with words of Torah.

  • Dedications: To a smooth and safe election day
  • Any others?
(ט) וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ אֵׄלָ֔יׄוׄ אַיֵּ֖ה שָׂרָ֣ה אִשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ וַיֹּ֖אמֶר הִנֵּ֥ה בָאֹֽהֶל׃ (י) וַיֹּ֗אמֶר שׁ֣וֹב אָשׁ֤וּב אֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ כָּעֵ֣ת חַיָּ֔ה וְהִנֵּה־בֵ֖ן לְשָׂרָ֣ה אִשְׁתֶּ֑ךָ וְשָׂרָ֥ה שֹׁמַ֛עַת פֶּ֥תַח הָאֹ֖הֶל וְה֥וּא אַחֲרָֽיו׃ (יא) וְאַבְרָהָ֤ם וְשָׂרָה֙ זְקֵנִ֔ים בָּאִ֖ים בַּיָּמִ֑ים חָדַל֙ לִהְי֣וֹת לְשָׂרָ֔ה אֹ֖רַח כַּנָּשִֽׁים׃ (יב) וַתִּצְחַ֥ק שָׂרָ֖ה בְּקִרְבָּ֣הּ לֵאמֹ֑ר אַחֲרֵ֤י בְלֹתִי֙ הָֽיְתָה־לִּ֣י עֶדְנָ֔ה וַֽאדֹנִ֖י זָקֵֽן׃ (יג) וַיֹּ֥אמֶר יי אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֑ם לָ֣מָּה זֶּה֩ צָחֲקָ֨ה שָׂרָ֜ה לֵאמֹ֗ר הַאַ֥ף אֻמְנָ֛ם אֵלֵ֖ד וַאֲנִ֥י זָקַֽנְתִּי׃ (יד) הֲיִפָּלֵ֥א מֵיי דָּבָ֑ר לַמּוֹעֵ֞ד אָשׁ֥וּב אֵלֶ֛יךָ כָּעֵ֥ת חַיָּ֖ה וּלְשָׂרָ֥ה בֵֽן׃ (טו) וַתְּכַחֵ֨שׁ שָׂרָ֧ה ׀ לֵאמֹ֛ר לֹ֥א צָחַ֖קְתִּי כִּ֣י ׀ יָרֵ֑אָה וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ׀ לֹ֖א כִּ֥י צָחָֽקְתְּ׃
(9) They said to him, “Where is your wife Sarah?” And he replied, “There, in the tent.” (10) Then one said, “I will return to you next year, and your wife Sarah shall have a son!” Sarah was listening at the entrance of the tent, which was behind him. (11) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years; Sarah had stopped having her periods. (12) And Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “Now that I’ve lost the ability, am I to have enjoyment—with my husband so old?” (13) Then יי said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I in truth bear a child, old as I am?’ (14) Is anything too wondrous for יי ? I will return to you at the same season next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” (15) Sarah lied, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was frightened. Came the reply, “You did laugh.”
(ב) כעת חיה. כָּעֵת הַזֹּאת לַשָּׁנָה הַבָּאָה, וּפֶסַח הָיָה, וּלְפֶסַח הַבָּא נוֹלַד יִצְחָק, מִדְּלָא קָרֵינַן כְּעֵת אֶלָּא כָּעֵת:
(2) כעת חיה means at this time next year — it was the Passover, and on the next Passover Isaac was born — since we do not read כְּעֵת (at “a” time) but כָּעֵת (at this time).
Rabbenu Bahya;
The angel simply may have told Avraham that by the following “Passover” his mind would be at rest as he would have a son by his wife Sarah.
תַּנְיָא, רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר: בְּתִשְׁרִי נִבְרָא הָעוֹלָם, בְּתִשְׁרִי נוֹלְדוּ אָבוֹת, בְּתִשְׁרִי מֵתוּ אָבוֹת, בַּפֶּסַח נוֹלַד יִצְחָק, בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה נִפְקְדָה שָׂרָה רָחֵל וְחַנָּה, בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה יָצָא יוֹסֵף מִבֵּית הָאֲסוּרִין.
It is taught in a baraita that the tanna’im disagreed about this point: Rabbi Eliezer says: In Tishrei the world was created; in Tishrei the Patriarchs were born; in Tishrei the Patriarchs died; on Passover Isaac was born; on Rosh HaShana Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah were remembered by God and conceived; on Rosh HaShana Joseph came out from prison;
בְּפֶסַח נוֹלַד יִצְחָק, מְנָלַן — כְּדִכְתִיב: ״לַמּוֹעֵד אָשׁוּב אֵלֶיךָ״. אֵימַת קָאֵי? אִילֵּימָא בְּפֶסַח וְקָאָמַר לֵיהּ בַּעֲצֶרֶת — בְּחַמְשִׁין יוֹמִין מִי קָא יָלְדָה? אֶלָּא דְּקָאֵי בַּעֲצֶרֶת וְקָאָמַר לֵיהּ בְּתִשְׁרִי — אַכַּתִּי בְּחַמְשָׁה יַרְחֵי מִי קָא יָלְדָה? אֶלָּא דְּקָאֵי בְּחַג וְקָאָמַר לַהּ בְּנִיסָן.
It was taught in the baraita: On Passover Isaac was born. The Gemara asks: From where do we derive this? As it is written that the angel who informed Sarah that she would bear a son told Abraham: “At the appointed time [mo’ed] I will return to you, at this season, and Sarah shall have a son” (Genesis 18:14). This is understood to mean: At the time of the next Festival [mo’ed]. When did the angel say this? If we say that it was on Passover and he said to him that Sarah would have a son on Shavuot, can a woman give birth after only fifty days? Rather, say that it was Shavuot and he said that she would give birth on the Festival that occurs in the month of Tishrei, i.e., Sukkot. But still, can she give birth after only five months? Rather, you must say that it was Sukkot, and he spoke about the Festival that occurs in the month of Nisan, i.e., Passover.
(יב) וַתִּצְחַ֥ק שָׂרָ֖ה בְּקִרְבָּ֣הּ לֵאמֹ֑ר אַחֲרֵ֤י בְלֹתִי֙ הָֽיְתָה־לִּ֣י עֶדְנָ֔ה וַֽאדֹנִ֖י זָקֵֽן׃
(12) And Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “Now that I’ve lost the ability, am I to have enjoyment—with my husband so old?”
(א) ותצחק שרה. שחשבה שהיה דבר המלאך ברכת נביא בלבד כענין אלישע לא נבואה ושליחות האל ית'. וחשבה שלא יושג זה בזקנים בברכת שום נביא כי אמנם להשיב הבחרו' אחר הזקנה הרי הוא כתחיית המתים שלא תהיה זולתי במצות האל פרטית או בתפלה משגת חן מאתו:
(1) ותצחק שרה, she assumed that the words of the angel were merely a blessing, not a prophecy, as occurred with the prophet Elisha. (Kings II 4,16) She believed that when such a blessing is given to old people, people who would require a miracle for the blessing to come true, it would not be effective in her case. She considered the kind of rejuvenation required for her to bear a child as equivalent to reviving the dead. Such an act, in her opinion, required G’d’s personal attention, not merely that of a prophet. At the very least it would come about in answer to a prayer.
(א) ותצחק שרה כשבא תשרי אחר בשורת המלאכים וראתה בעצמה שלא נתעברה מיד נתייאשה מן הבשורה שלא היה לה רק ששה חדשים עד הפסח, ולא האמינה כמו אברהם לפי שאברהם עמד לו מפי הקב״‎ה ולכן האמין אבל שרה לא שמעה אלא מפי המלאכים והיא היתה סבורה שבני אדם הם, והיתה מסתכלת במעיה ואומרת אפשר קרביים הללו טוענין ולד, מיד, באותו פרק בתשרי ויאמר ה׳‎ אל אברהם למה זה צחקה שרה, למועד אשוב אליך, פי׳‎ למועד אשר קבע המלאך זהו פסח הבא אשוב אליך, כמו שאמר כעת חיה ולשרה בן. וכן עיקר הפי׳‎ שתי פעמים נתבשרה דקים לן פסח היה כשבאו המלאכים כמו שפי׳‎ רש״‎י, ועוד מדכתיב לאלתר גבי לוט ומצות אפה, לתשרי אחרון צחקה בקרבה כדמוכח בר״‎ה דבעי התם אימת קאי כדאמר למועד אשוב אליך ומסיק דקאי בתשרי. ועוד ר׳‎ אליעזר ור׳‎ יהושע דאמרי תרוייהו בר״‎ה נפקדה שרה ורחל וחנה. (ב) בקרבה במחשבתה ולבה. (ג) לאמר לפי פשוטו לאמר זה כמו שאר לאמר שבמקרא כלומר צחקה ונתכוונה לאמר דבור זה לבריות בענין ליצנות ולכך הקפיד הפסוק עליה יותר מעל אברהם. (ד) אחרי בלתי בתמיה כלומר, איך יוכל להיות שאחרי בלותי תהיה לי עדנה ובחרות ועוד שאדוני זקן וזהו השינוי שלא ספר הקב״‎ה כל דבריה ולא רצה לומר שאמרה ואדושם זקן . ואל תתמה מתיבת היתה שבהרבה מקומות במקרא מצינו משעבר לשון הבא ומשהבא לשון לשעבר.

(1) ותצחק שרה, “Sarah laughed;” when the month of Tishrey began, six months after the prediction of the angels, and she had not experienced signs of pregnancy, she abandoned all hope of that prophecy becoming true, as there were only six months left for it to become true. Contrary to her husband Avraham, she had lost faith in the prediction. The reason that Avraham maintained faith in the prediction was that he had heard it from G-d directly, (the angel had spoken to him in the name of the Lord), whereas Sarah, had only been an eavesdropper, and possibly she had not heard correctly. She had assumed that the angels speaking to Avraham had been ordinary human beings. She took a look at her belly and asked mockingly whether such a belly could possibly produce a fetus. As soon as she had done so, in Tishrey, G-d asked Avraham why Sarah had reacted in such a manner, adding that at the time appointed, i.e. when a year had passed at the time of Passover, in the following year, the angel would return and she would have become a mother. In practice this means that the first time she heard the prediction she had heard it from the mouth of an angel whom she had believed to be a mortal human being. The second time Avraham heard it from G-d directly, i.e. 'ויאמר ה, “the Lord said;” this was followed by G-d adding: “Is anything impossible for the Lord to do?”Support for this interpretation can be found seeing that when the angels on the same evening met Lot, Lot offered them unleavened bread, matzot for supper, a hint that the date was the date that would later on become the night of the Seder of the Jewish people.

(ג) וַיִּפְצַר־בָּ֣ם מְאֹ֔ד וַיָּסֻ֣רוּ אֵלָ֔יו וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ אֶל־בֵּית֑וֹ וַיַּ֤עַשׂ לָהֶם֙ מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה וּמַצּ֥וֹת אָפָ֖ה וַיֹּאכֵֽלוּ׃
(3) But he urged them strongly, so they turned his way and entered his house. He prepared a feast for them and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
(ב) ומצות אפה. פֶּסַח הָיָה:
(2) ומצות אפה AND HE BAKED UNLEAVENED BREAD —It was Passover (Genesis Rabbah 48:12).

(יב) וַיְמַהֵר אַבְרָהָם הָאֹהֱלָה אֶל שָׂרָה וַיֹּאמֶר מַהֲרִי (בראשית יח, ו), רַבִּי אֶבְיָתָר אָמַר תֵּשַׁע סְאִין אָפְתָה, שָׁלשׁ לְעֻגוֹת, שָׁלשׁ לְחָבִיץ, וְשָׁלשׁ לְמִינֵי מִילוֹטָמְיָה. וְרַבָּנָן אָמְרִין שָׁלשׁ, אֶחָד לְעֻגוֹת, וְאֶחָד לְחָבִיץ, וְאֶחָד לְמִילוֹטָמְיָה. (בראשית יח, ו): לוּשִׁי וַעֲשִׂי עֻגוֹת, הֲדָא אָמְרָת פְּרוֹס הַפֶּסַח הֲוָה. רַבִּי יוֹנָה בְּשֵׁם רַבִּי חָמָא בַּר חֲנִינָא הִיא מִדְבַּר סִין הִיא מִדְבַּר אָלוּשׁ, מֵאֵיזוֹ זְכוּת זָכוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁנִּתַּן לָהֶם מַן בַּמִדְבָּר, בִּזְכוּת שֶׁל אַבְרָהָם שֶׁאָמַר: לוּשִׁי וַעֲשִׂי עֻגוֹת.

...[When Abraham asked Sarah to prepare bread] it was taking of bread for Passover.

  • Why the effort to tie Isaac's birth to Passover?

...And is laughing in surprise such a bad thing?...Maybe for Sarah the prophetess...

  • What are the different types of laughter?
AND SARAH DENIED, SAYING. I wonder about the righteous prophetess:103See above, Note 28, that Sarah was regarded as a prophetess. How did she deny that which G-d had said to the prophet,104Abraham. In Megillah 14 a, Rashi quotes the Hilchoth Gedoloth listing the forty-eight prophets who arose in Israel, and the three patriarchs are listed among them. and also, why did she not believe in the words of G-d’s angels?
The answer appears to me to be that these angels who appeared as men came to Abraham, and he, in his wisdom, recognized them. They announced to him, “I will certainly return unto thee,105Verse 10 here. and Sarah shall have a son.” And Sarah heard it, but she did not know that they were angels of the Supreme One, as was the case with the wife of Manoah.106Judges 13:6. It is even possible that she did not see them at all.
Ramban on 18:15

Rabbenyu Bahya, clarifying Ramban...

As to her denying that she had laughed when challenged, she did so out of fear of Avraham; she thought that Avraham had challenged her laughter (not the angel) not because he heard it but because he knew her psyche. When the angel insisted that Sarah had indeed laughed, it suddenly became clear to her that Avraham had been given a prophetic insight which had revealed to him that she had laughed. At that point she kept quiet.

Abraham laughed first...

(יז) וַיִּפֹּ֧ל אַבְרָהָ֛ם עַל־פָּנָ֖יו וַיִּצְחָ֑ק וַיֹּ֣אמֶר בְּלִבּ֗וֹ הַלְּבֶ֤ן מֵאָֽה־שָׁנָה֙ יִוָּלֵ֔ד וְאִ֨ם־שָׂרָ֔ה הֲבַת־תִּשְׁעִ֥ים שָׁנָ֖ה תֵּלֵֽד׃
(17) Abraham threw himself on his face and laughed, as he said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old, or can Sarah bear a child at ninety?”
(א) ויפל אברהם על פניו ויצחק. זֶה תִּ"אֻ, לְשׁוֹן שִׂמְחָה, וַחֲדִי, וְשֶׁל שָׂרָה לְשׁוֹן מָחוֹךְ; לָמַדְתָּ שֶׁאַבְרָהָם הֶאֱמִין וְשָׂמַח וְשָׂרָה לֹא הֶאֱמִינָה וְלִגְלְגָה, וְזֶהוּ שֶׁהִקְפִּיד הַקָּבָּ"ה עַל שָׂרָה וְלֹא הִקְפִּיד עַל אַבְרָהָם:
(1) ויפל אברהם על פניו ויצחק AND ABRAHAM FELL UPON HIS FACE AND LAUGHED — This word ויצחק Onkelos translates by וחדי which signifies joy (“and he rejoiced’’) but the similar verb in the case of Sarah (ותצחק Genesis 18:12) he translates as meaning laughter. From this you may understand that Abraham had faith and rejoiced, and that Sarah had no faith and sneered, and that is why God was angry with Sarah (when she laughed) but was not angry with Abraham.
(יט) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹקִ֗ים אֲבָל֙ שָׂרָ֣ה אִשְׁתְּךָ֗ יֹלֶ֤דֶת לְךָ֙ בֵּ֔ן וְקָרָ֥אתָ אֶת־שְׁמ֖וֹ יִצְחָ֑ק וַהֲקִמֹתִ֨י אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֥י אִתּ֛וֹ לִבְרִ֥ית עוֹלָ֖ם לְזַרְע֥וֹ אַחֲרָֽיו׃
(19) God said, “Nevertheless, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall name him Isaac; and I will maintain My covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring to come.