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Share“Who would have said to Abraham
That Sarah would suckle children!
Yet I have borne a son in his old age.” (8) The child grew up and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. (9) Sarah saw the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham playing. (10) She said to Abraham, “Cast out that slave-woman and her son, for the son of that slave shall not share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” (11) The matter distressed Abraham greatly, for it concerned a son of his. (12) But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed over the boy or your slave; whatever Sarah tells you, do as she says, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be continued*continued Lit. “called.” for you. (13) As for the son of the slave-woman, I will make a nation of him, too, for he is your seed.” (14) Early next morning Abraham took some bread and a skin of water, and gave them to Hagar. He placed them over her shoulder, together with the child, and sent her away. And she wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
כעת חיה - כעת הזו לשנה הבאה
On this date on the next year
(1) חדל להיות means [that] it had ceased from her. (2) אורח כנשים means the way of menstruation. (1) בקרבה [SARAH LAUGHED] WITHIN HERSELF (or, REGARDING HER INSIDE) — She reflected on her physical condition, saying, “Is it possible that this womb shall bear a child, that these dried-up breasts shall give forth milk” (Midrash Tanchuma, Shoftim 18). (2) עדנה means glistening flesh (skin), and so it is used in the Mishna (Menachot 86a): it makes the hair fall out and the skin smooth (מעדן).
(א) ותכחש שרה לאמר מכאן שהנשים פסולות לעדות לפי שמכחשות מפני היראה.
(1) ותכחש שרה לאמור, “Sarah denied the accusation, saying, etc.” this is the origin of the Rabbinic ruling that in most matters women are not acceptable as witnesses, as our matriarch Sarah had been guilty of lying to the Almighty.
(א) וה' פקד את שרה וגו'. סָמַך פָּרָשָׁה זוֹ לְלַמֶּדְךָ, שֶׁכָּל הַמְבַקֵּשׁ רַחֲמִים עַל חֲבֵרוֹ וְהוּא צָרִיךְ לְאוֹתוֹ דָבָר, הוּא נַעֲנֶה תְחִלָּה (בבא קמא צ"ב), שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וַיִּתְפַּלֵּל וְגוֹ', וּסְמִיךְ לֵיהּ וה' פָּקַד אֶת שָׂרָה, שֶׁפְּקָדָהּ כְּבָר קֹדֶם שֶׁרִפֵּא אֶת אֲבִימֶלֶךְ:
(ג) כאשר דבר. בְּלֵדָה. וְהֵיכָן הִיא אֲמִירָה, וְהֵיכָן הוּא דִּבּוּר? אֲמִירָה וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹקִים אֲבָל שָׂרָה אִשְׁתְּךָ וְגוֹ '(בראשית י"ז), דִּבּוּר הָיָה דְבַר ה' אֶל אַבְרָם בִּבְרִית בֵּין הַבְּתָרִים, וְשָׁם נֶאֱמַר לֹא יִירָשְׁךָ זֶה וְגוֹ' (שם ט"ו), וְהֵבִיא הַיּוֹרֵשׁ מִשָּׂרָה: (ד)
(1) 'וה' פקד את שרה וגו AND THE LORD VISITED SARAH —It (Scripture) places this section after the preceding one to teach you that whoever prays for mercy on behalf of another when he himself also is in need of that very thing for which he prays on the other’s behalf, will himself first receive a favorable response from God, for it is said (at end of last chapter), “And Abraham prayed for Abimelech and his wife and they brought forth” and immediately afterwards it states here, “And the Lord remembered Sarah” — i. e. he had already remembered her before he healed Abimelech (Bava Kamma 92a).
(3) כאשר דבר [HE DID TO SARAH] AS HE HAD SPOKEN — by granting her the birth of a son (Pesikta). Where are the expressions “saying ״ and “speaking” used respectively in regard to these? “Saying” is mentioned in the verse (17:19) “And God said (ויאמר): “nay, but Sarah, thy wife” etc.; — “Speaking“ is mentioned in (15:1) “And the word (דבר “speaking”) of the Lord came to Abraham”, and this was when He made the Covenant between the Pieces where it was stated, “This man (Eliezer) shall not be thine heir, [but one who shall be born from thee shall be thine heir],” and He brought forth this heir from Sarah.
(1) מצחק MAKING SPORT — This means worshipping idols, as it is said in reference of the Golden Calf, (Exodus 32:6) “And they rose up to make merry (לצחק).” Another explanation is that it refers to immoral conduct, just as you say in reference to Potiphar’s wife, (Genesis 39:17) “To mock (לצחק) at me.” Another explanation is that it refers to murder, as (2 Samuel 2:14) “Let the young men, I pray thee, arise and make sport (וישחקו) before us” (where they fought with and killed one another) From Sarah’s reply — “for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son״ — you may infer that he (Ishmael) was quarrelling with Isaac about the inheritance, saying, “I am the first-born and will, therefore, take a double portion”. They went into the field and he (Ishmael) took his bow and shot arrows at him (Isaac), just as you say (Proverbs 26:18-19) “As a madman who casteth firebrands, [arrows and death] and says: I am only מצחק mocking” (Genesis Rabbah 53:11).