Month: November 2023

November 25, 2023 – Shabbos Parshas Vayetzei

On By Avrohom Meir MorgensternIn Divrei Torah, My Life, ParshaLeave a comment

Walk to Chabad of East Lakeview

Genesis Verse 29:21 – כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י

Maskil L’Dovid – Rabbi Dovid Pardo (1718-1790)

Got up at 4:15 AM Shabbos morning to prepare for my Shiur at Chabad of East Lakeview.  Left for the Shiur at 8:30 AM and arrived at Chabad at 10:30 AM.  There was no minyan when I arrived as many people were away for Thanksgiving.   About 15 minutes later, the Minyan came.  Kiddush was great as always.  The Cholent is phenomenal.   Davened Mincha.

Gave my Shiur at 2:00 PM.  It was a smaller Shiur than usual.  I went through Perek 29 which starts with Yakov arriving in Haran, meeting Rochel, their mg B arriage, and the birth of their kids.  .  I read the rich dialogue and explained it using Rashi.  I explained the deception, what is like for Yakov to wake up the next morning thinking he married the love of his life and it was someone else;  Leah’s prayers changed history, what she must have felt like during the seven years that Yaakov worked for the family, Yakov before he introduced himself kissed Rochel, was she wearing a veil or not,  he knew that Rochel is my life mate, but there will be problems, etc, etc.

I said that tragedy and hardships in life produces greatness.  I mentioned my mother and June chimed in about her life.  

Walked back home at 3:55 PM and got home at 5:40 PM.  

This is my Torah from this week.

Genesis Pasuk 29:21

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יַעֲקֹ֤ב אֶל־לָבָן֙ הָבָ֣ה אֶת־אִשְׁתִּ֔י כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י וְאָב֖וֹאָה אֵלֶֽיהָ׃

Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time is fulfilled, that I may cohabit with her.”

Fulfilled is an okay word but completed would probably be a better word.  In Hebrew  כִּ֥י כלו יָמָ֑י .  

There seems to be a Machlokes in how to translate Yakov’s statement כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י.  Onkleys and Rashbam says that it means I worked for you for seven years, I fulfilled my end of the bargain.  Rashi does not say this but rather it means two things 1) that I have completed the days that my mother told me to stay in Haran and then come back home.  2) It is time for me to get married and raise my family.  

I will end up saying that Rashi agrees with Onkelys and the Rashbam, but adds depth to Yaakov’s words.

The Explanations:

Onkelys:                                          וַאֲמַר יַעֲקֹב לְלָבָן הַב יָת אִתְּתִי אֲרֵי אַשְׁלֵמִית יוֹמֵי פָלְחָנִי וְאֵעוֹל לְוָתַהּ:

Yakov said to Lavan, “Deliver my wife, for my days have been completed, and I will come to her”.

Rashbam:             כי מלאו ימי – שבע שנים עבדתיך.

כי מלאו ימי, “I have served you for seven years.”

Rashi:

מלאו ימי. שֶׁאָמְרָה לִי אִמִּי, וְעוֹד מָלְאוּ יָמַי, שֶׁהֲרֵי אֲנִי בֶן פ”ד שָׁנָה וְאֵימָתַי אַעֲמִיד י”ב שְׁבָטִים? וְזֶהוּ שֶׁאָמַר וְאָבוֹאָה אֵלֶיהָ, וְהֲלֹא קַל שֶׁבַּקַּלִּים אֵינוֹ אוֹמֵר כֵּן? אֶלָּא לְהוֹלִיד תּוֹלָדוֹת אָמַר כֵּן:

MY DAYS ARE FULFILLED — which my mother told me to remain with you. And another explanation is: MY DAYS ARE FULFILLED for I am now eighty-four years old and when shall I beget twelve tribes? That is what he meant by adding “that I may go in unto her”; for surely even the commonest of people would not use such an expression. But he said this because his mind was intent upon having issue (to fulfill his mission of rearing children who would carry on the religious traditions of his fathers) (Genesis Rabbah 70:18).

Rashi is Difficult:

The question on Rashi is that the simple meaning is clearly like Onkelys and Rashbam.  Why does Rashi come up with two other reasons and does not say the simple meaning.  Is Rashi saying that Yakov’s words of כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י is not telling Lavan that I have finished my years of service., but rather the two other things.    Yes, says the Maskil L’Dovid. Yakov wasn’t saying that I Completed my service because Lavan knew that Yakov completed the seven years and he did not have to tell Lavan this fact..  The Maskil L’Dovid as quoted by Artscroll page 324, note 2.  “Rashi does not understand ‘my days are filled” as referring to Jacob’s term of labor, as Targum Onkelos does, because that would have been obvious to Laban and Jacob  would not have needed to mention it.”

I do not agree with the Maskil L’Dovid.  There is no question in my mind that Yakov told Lavan, I fulfilled my end of the bargain, now I want you to fulfill your end of the bargain.  This is how people talk and especially to an evil person.   This Sedra is rich with dialogue and I am sure this is the dialogue between Yakov and Lavan.  There was no need for Rashi to explain that Yakov said I have completed my days because this is obvious from the context of the words and anyone reading the Torah would understand this.  Rashi does not come to tell us the obvious.  Onkelys is a translation so he translates it as we read it.  

Why does Rashi then come up with two other explanations for  כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י.   The answer is that while the reason for Yaakov saying  כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י  is the obvious reason and Rashi agrees to this, Yakov had other emotions and motivations which he expressed to Lavan.  Rashi is speaking to these deeper emotions of Yakov.  Yakov told Lavan that it has been 21 years since I left my parents and I want to go back home.  Rashi also expresses Yakov’s second motivation, that I am 84 years old and when will I establish twelve tribes if I do not get married now. 

(I am not sure if he actually expressed this to Lavan.  As I thought about it Yakov who was an Ish Tam did express it.  Lavan, who was a Rasha, did not want Yakov to leave because he and his town were blessed because of Yakov.  There is a medresh on this that the townspeople did not want to trick Yakov but Lavan convinced them that they had to trick Yaokv to get Yakov to stay in Haran.)  

When I told my Torah to Rabbi Revah he disagreed and said just because I feel this way does not make it so.  The answer to Rabbi Revah is as follows.  How did Rashi know that Yakov expressed these other reasons?  The language Yakov used is כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י .  The language Yakov should have used is   כִּ֥י כלו יָמָ֑י , meaning I ended/completed the terms of our agreement.  By using כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י, Yakov is saying other reasons.  Yakov is saying I have fulfilled my mother’s statement that you will stay in Haran for  יָמִ֣ים אֲחָדִ֑ים .  Verse 27:44.  The  reason of fathering twelve tribes is in Rashi itself and learning from the end of the Pasuk,   וְאָב֖וֹאָה אֵלֶֽיהָ.  

Rabbi Mayer Twersky in his Sefer, Insights and Attitudes, adds depth to Yakov’s last reason.  He says, page 44, “Upon reflection, there is a remarkable message in Yakov Avinu’s words.  On the one hand, he knows through Ruach Hakodesh that he is destined to father twelve tribes.  Yet, on the other hand he is very concerned that he may not do so.  The message is clear:  Hashem may prepare a destiny for us, but he does not not decree fulfillment of that destiny.   We must, with alacrity and determination, apply ourselves to realize that destiny.  Hashem may assign us a role in history, but we must carry out that assignment.  Otherwise, our destiny will remain unfulfilled and Hashem will find other means to guide history according to His will.

Rabbi Mayer Twersky is saying that  כִּ֥י מָלְא֖וּ יָמָ֑י – I have to complete my days that I was put on this earth to accomplish, I have live my destiny which is to have twelve tribes and create a nation.  I cannot lose it.  

I compare this to myself.  Everything I do has a primary reason and secondary reasons embedded into my primary reason.  For example – I love going to Tel Aviv Pizza to eat.  What are my reasons?

Primary reason:

  1. The primary reason is to have lunch

Secondary reasons:

  1. When I was a kid, there were no restaurants in Chicago and even if there were, my parents  would not have spent the money going to restaurants.  Going to restaurants and having someone serve me food without having to prepare the meal is a treat for  me.  I still feel that deprivation and the subsequent joy of going to restaurants to this day.
  2. To give the owner business
  3. To schmooze with people.
  4. I have an open line of credit and look around to pay for people’s meals.
  5. I love pizza stores and they are needed in the frum world.  Frum people need relatively inexpensive places to feed their families.  Pizza stores are places of Chesed.

Additional Information:

Maskil L’Dovid –  Rav Dovid Pardo (1718-1790)

מלאו ימי שאמרה וכו׳ לא ניחא ליה לרבינו לפ׳ כי מלאו ימי יומי פולחני וכדתרגם אונקלוס דהא הוה ידע לבן שעברו הז׳ שנים ולא הול״ל אלא הבה את אשתי ותו לא.

 ומה שהוצרך לפרש עוד שהרי אני בן פ״ד שנה וכו׳ משום שגם בפי׳ ימים שאמרה לי אמי יש בו דוחק דהא לא חזי׳ עד השתא שהזכיר יעקב מידי מהימים אחדים שאמר׳ לו אמו ואיך שייך לומר לו סתם מלאו ימי מהיכן יבין לבן כוונתו

I do not understand what Reb Dovid Pardo means that how would Lavan know.  According to Rashi, Yakov told him that he missed his parents and wanted to go back home.

 ועל פי׳ הב׳ ג״כ ק״ק דלא שייך בזה לשון מלאו דמשמע נשלמו ומ״ש רש״י על ואבואה אליה והלא קל שבקלים אינו אומר כן וכו׳ ק׳ דמאי נ״מ שלהוליד תולדות אמר כן והלא הקו׳ במקומה עומדת והלא קל שבקלים וכו׳ שהרי יכול להוליד תולדות מבלי שיאמר כן. ונר׳ שכוונת יעקב באומרו ואבואה אליה משום דידוע שיעקב לא הו״ל כסף מידי ולא שוה כסף לקדש את רחל ואם בדמי העבודה הו״ל מלוה וקי״ל המקדש במלוה אינה מקודשת ולכך א״ל ללבן דאפ״ה יקדישנה בביאה ועל זה מקשי רבינו והלא קל שבקלים וכו׳ אינו אומר כן דאפילו דיבור אסור דהויא פריצותא דאמרי׳ רב מנגיד אמאן דמקדש בביאה דפריצות׳ היא ולכך משני שהוצרך לומר כן כדי שלא ידחהו לבן עד שיהיה לו כסף לקדש והוא היה צריך להוליד תולדות לכך הוצרך לומר לו כן 

There is a Ramban that discusses this Rashi and I am not sure I understand the Ramban.

Ramban

כי מלאו ימי שאמרה לי אמי ועוד כי מלאו ימי הריני בן פ”ד שנה ואימתי אעמיד י”ב שבטים לשון רש”י (רש”י על בראשית כ״ט:כ״א):

FOR MY DAYS ARE FULFILLED. This means “the time which my mother told me to remain away from home.” Another explanation is: For my days are fulfilled — “I am now eighty-four years old and when shall I beget twelve tribes?” These are the words of Rashi.

29:27

מלא שבוע זאת דבק הוא בחטף שבוע של זאת והן ז’ ימי המשתה גם זה לשון רש”י (רש”י על בראשית כ״ט:כ״ז) ואם כן למה לא פירש הרב מלאו ימי על שני העבודה והתנאי ששלמו כדברי אונקלוס (תרגום אונקלוס על בראשית כ״ט:כ״ז) והוא משמעות הכתוב באמת ובשביל הימים שאמרה לו אמו גם מפני זקנתו לא יתן לו לבן בתו קודם זמנו אשר התנו שניהם ודי שיקיים תנאו וכדברי אונקלוס הוא שנצטרך לפרש מלא שבוע זאת על ימי המשתה כי ימי העבודה שלמים היו כאשר אמר לו יעקב וכן פירש רבי אברהם (אבן עזרא על בראשית כ״ט:כ״ז) ואני לא ידעתי כי שבעת ימי המשתה תקנת משה רבינו לישראל (ירושלמי כתובות פ”א ה”א) ואולי נאמר שנהגו בהם מתחלה נכבדי האומות כענין באבילות דכתיב (בראשית נ׳:י׳) ויעש לאביו אבל שבעת ימים ומה שלמדו כאן בירושלמי (מו”ק פ”א ה”ז) ובבראשית רבה (בראשית רבה ע׳:י״ט) שאין מערבין שמחה בשמחה סמך בעלמא ממנהגי הקדמונים קודם התורה אבל בגמרא שלנו (מו”ק ט) לא למדוה מכאן ודרשוה מויעש שלמה את החג (מלכים א ח סה) ויתכן לומר כי היה זה מחלוף משכורתו עשרת מונים (בראשית ל״א:מ״א) כי יעקב אמר לו מתחלה כי מלאו הימים ולבן שתק ונתן לו לאה ואחר כן אמר לו לבן מלא שבוע זאת כי עדיין לא מלאו ימי עבודת לאה וקודם זמני נתתיה לך ויעקב שמע אליו וימלא אותם כדברי לבן כי מה יוכל לעשות והוא ברחל יחפוץ ולכן לא אמר הכתוב בתחילה “ויהי במלאת הימים ויאמר יעקב וגו'” ועוד יתכן לומר כי כאשר היה בשנה השביעית אמר יעקב ללבן הבה את אשתי כי מלאו ימי שזו שנת מלאת הימים וכן זקן עם מלא ימים (ירמיהו ו יא) הוא אשר הגיעו לשנת סופו וכן עד יום מלאת ימי מלואיכם (ויקרא ח לג) עד יום השביעי שבו ימלאו ימי המלואים או שאמר “מלאו” בעבור שהיו קרובים להמלא וחשובים כמלאים וכמוהו רבים וכן בסדר האחר (בראשית ל״ה:י״ח) בצאת נפשה כי מתה בהיותה קרובה לכך וחשובה כאילו מתה וזה טעם ואבואה אליה כלומר לא שתתן אותה ואלכה אבל שאשאנה ואשלים מעט הימים אשר עלי כי מעתה לא תירא ממני שאעזבך ורבותינו עשו מדרש (ב”ר ע יח) בלשון “ואבואה אליה” בעבור שאיננו דרך מוסר להזכיר כן אף כי בצדיקים אבל הכוונה היא מה שאמרתי ואחרי כן אמר לו לבן מלא שבוע השנים של לאה זאת כי אולי בעבור שעברתי על דעתך לא תשלים אותן או כדי שיהיה ידוע מתי התחילו ימי עבודת רחל ואז אתן לך האחרת בעבודה אשר תעבוד עמדי לאחר הנישואין:

FULFILL ‘SHVUA’ (THE WEEK OF) THIS ONE. The word shvua is in the construct state for it is punctuated with a sheva. It thus means the seven days of this wife, referring to the seven days of the wedding feast. These too are the words of Rashi.

But if so, [i.e., if Rashi interprets shvua as referring to the seven days of the wedding feast rather than, more simply, the seven years of labor, thus implying that the seven years of work had been completed], why did not the Rabbi [Rashi] explain the verse above, my days are fulfilled, as referring to the years of work and the condition which were completed, as Onkelos has it, and which is the true sense of the verse, [instead of explaining it as referring to the length of time his mother told him to remain there or to his advanced age]? For merely because the days his mother told him to remain with him were completed or because of his advanced age, Laban would not give him his daughter before the mutually agreed time, and it is enough to expect of Laban that he fulfill his condition. It is according to Onkelos, [who says that Jacob’s seven years of work had been completed], that we are bound to explain, fulfill ‘shvua’ this one, as referring to the seven days of the wedding feast for as Jacob had told him, the days of work had already been completed. So also did Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra explain it. 

And I do not know [how the reference here could be to “the seven days of the marriage feast,” as Rashi claims], for “the seven days of the wedding feast” is an ordinance established for Israel by our teacher Moses.  Perhaps we may say that the dignitaries of the nations had already practiced this custom of old, just as was the case with mourning, as it is written, And he made a mourning for his father seven days. And that which the Rabbis have deduced from here in the Yerushalmi and in Bereshith Rabbah, “One must not mix one rejoicing with another,” that is merely a Scriptural intimation based upon the customary practices of the ancient ones prior to the giving of the Torah. But in our Gemara, the Rabbis did not derive it from here, [i.e., from Laban’s statement], but instead they deduced it from the verse, And Solomon held the feast etc.

Now it is possible to say that this was part of “the changing of the hire ten times” of which Jacob accused Laban. For Jacob told Laban originally that the days were fulfilled, and Laban kept quiet and gave him Leah. Later, Laban told him, “Fulfill ‘shvua’ this one, for the work period for Leah has not been fulfilled, and I gave her to you before the time I had agreed upon.” And Jacob listened to Laban and completed the days as defined by Laban, for he desired Rachel, and what could he do? Therefore, Scripture does not say at first, “And it came to pass when the days were fulfilled, and Jacob said, etc.,” [for this would have indicated mutual agreement concerning the completion of the work period, whereas Laban, as explained, claimed that that time had not yet arrived].

It is also possible to say that when the seventh year arrived, Jacob said to Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, meaning that this is the year in which the days will be fulfilled. Similarly, The aged with him that is full of days, which means, “he who is attaining his final year.” Similarly, Until the day of your consecration be fulfilled, which means, “until the seventh day in which the days of your consecration will be fulfilled.” It is possible that Jacob said, My days are fulfilled, because they were about to be fulfilled and are considered as if fulfilled. There are many similar examples in Scripture. Likewise, in the next Seder (portion of the Torah), As her soul was departing, for she died, which means, “when she was near death, and was considered as if she had already died.” And this is the meaning of the expression, that I may come unto her, that is to say, Jacob said, “My request is not that you give her to me and I will then leave, but rather that I marry her and complete the few days which are still obligatory upon me for now that the period is almost over, you will not be afraid that I might leave you.” Our Rabbis have given a Midrashic interpretation to the words, that I may come unto her, because it is not the ethical way to mention it in this manner, the more so with righteous people, but the intent is as I have said.

Laban then told Jacob, “Fulfill the seven years of this one, Leah, for perhaps since I transgressed your will by giving you Leah instead of Rachel you will not fulfill them.” Perhaps he mentioned it in order that it be known when the days of work for Rachel begin, and then he told him, “I will give you the other daughter, Rachel, for the service which thou shalt serve with me after the wedding.”

History of the Maskil L’Dovid – Rabbi Dovid Pardo

The twelfth of Sivan is the yahrzeit of Rav Dovid Pardo (1718-1790). Born into a rabbinical family in Venice, he was orphaned at a young age. He and his sister were raised by a wealthy, childless relative named Shmuel Ashkenazi. Mr. Ashkenazi left his fortune to the sister, Rachel, as she had helped him with household chores, with the stipulation that she marry a worthy young man. Unfortunately, she died before she had a chance to marry.

The executors of the estate refused to allow the fortune to pass to Rav Dovid because they felt that since it had never passed to his sister, he had no rights to it. Instead, they gave it to nephews of Mr. Ashkenazi. Desperate for funds and upset at the outcome of the inheritance, Rav Dovid moved to Croatia where he took a position as a tutor. There he became a student of Rav Avraham Dovid Papo, who was the rav of Split, and after his passing Rav Dovid was appointed as rabbi.

Halachic queries from all over the Balkans were sent to Rav Dovid and he opened a yeshiva in which a number of leaders of the next generation were educated. In 1761 Rav Shlomo Shalem, the rav of Belgrade, moved to Amsterdam to take up a position. Rav Dovid went to Belgrade with the understanding that the position would be given to him, but then found out that Rav Shlomo was refusing to relinquish the title despite his moving to Amsterdam. In 1773 Rav Dovid was appointed rav of Sarajevo where he spent nine years. His student Rav Shabsi Ventura took his place in Split. Most of Rav Dovid’s seforim and piyyutim were authored while he was in Sarajevo. He also opened a yeshiva there and founded Torah study initiatives for the lay people and created welfare institutions for the community.

In 1775 Rav Dovid traveled to Livorno to publish a sefer and met the Chida who was there raising funds for Chevron Kollel. The two immediately became close friends (although they often argued about interpretations of Chumash) and Rav Dovid’s son Avraham married Simcha, the daughter of the Chida. While in Livorno, Rav Dovid also met Rav Yom Tov Elgazi and Rav Yaakov Chazan who were also traveling to raise funds for the community in Yerushalayim. They wrote approbations for his seforim and ignited within him a desire to move to Eretz Yisrael. He also met Rav Chaim HaKohen Dwek in Belgrade while Rav Dwek was there raising funds for the community in Teveriah.

Rav Dovid arrived in Yerushalayim in 1782 and was immediately invited by the Ri”t Elgazi to join the Bais Din. Shortly thereafter he was invited to serve as rosh yeshiva in Yeshivas Chesed L’Avraham. He lived in Yerushalayim until his passing.

Rav Dovid was a prolific writer. Among his more well-known seforim are Chasdei Dovid a Rashi-like commentary on the Tosefta and Maskil L’Dovid a super-commentary to Rashi’s commentary on Chumash. He also wrote on mishna and halacha.

Week of October 22 -26, 2024 – Week of Parshas Lech Lecha

On By Avrohom Meir MorgensternIn Family CelebrationsLeave a comment

Florida

Manchester, TN

Simon Shoes, Henderson, KY

Wedding of Sori Chase and Eli Wechsler

Back in Yeshiva

Dairy Star Closing for the Season

October 20, 2023:  We started off the week in DelRay Beach, FL.  We spent four weeks in Florida, solely to help my kids in Boynton Beach.  Time to head back.  We said goodbye to the kids and were on the road by 8:30 AM.  We drove 13 hours and stopped overnight at a Comfort Inn in Manchester, TN.   

October 21, 2023:  This is me davening the next day outdoors.  When I stop overnight I always daven outdoors.  The air was crisp and refreshing.  

We had a good breakfast of oatmeal and were back on the road at 9:30 AM.  Normally I take 65 in Kentucky up through Louisville and into Indiana through Indianapolis.  However, Google maps led us to the western part of the state through Henderson, KY which is a twin city across the river to Evansville, IN, up through Terre Haute, IN traveling along Route 41.  Going through Indiana on Route 41 was using the back roads of Indiana.  I drove through many small towns and stretches of farmland, ending up in Hammond, Indiana.  Quite scenic.

In Henderson,Kentucky I stopped by Simon Shoes.  Simon Shoes was honored by Rand Paul in June 2022 on the Simon Bros 100th year anniversary.  I receive Rand Paul’s monthly newsletter.  Since then I wanted to stop by and say hello.  They are the remnants of the Jewish merchants that dotted small town America throughout the South and the entire country.   They are an old style shoe store that fits their customers and they shoe generations of families.  There are also few of these types of stores that fit shoes properly.   Many of these communities had Shuls and Jewish cemetaries.  Brian Simon, the third generation to operate the store, told me that Jeiwsh merchants just closed up shop when they were old.  Mostly, their children were not interested in keeping the store going.  July 5, 2022 article when they were honored by the Governor of Kentucky, Rand Paul..

A downtown Henderson shoe store has risen from humble beginnings to honors from a senator

Chuck Stinnett   Special to The Gleaner  July 5, 2022

HENDERSON, Ky. – Simon’s Shoes has long been an anchor in downtown Henderson, a magnet for shoppers from near and far seeking quality shoes in a range of sizes wider than a typical department store offers.

It could hardly have had more humble beginnings. Yet more than a century later, a U.S. senator recently visited the store to present it a statewide honor that celebrates its rich history.

Store founder Jacob W. “Jake” Simon immigrated to Henderson from Lithuania in 1910, following his two brothers who made Henderson their new home years before.

He disembarked from a train at the local Union Station and hailed a fellow who provided transportation with his horse and wagon. Simon, who knew essentially no English, uttered three words he had memorized: “Mrs. Youngbecker’s Hotel.”

That’s where, in an earlier letter, his older brother Ben had told him to go.

“Mrs. Youngbecker was German, and I could talk to her,” Simon told a Gleaner reporter more than 60 years later. 

“Her hotel was located where Tapp’s Funeral Home is now,” he recalled. “The food there was wonderful — good German dishes.”

Within a few weeks, Simon had gone into business for himself. Like many immigrants without a trade, he became an itinerant peddler. His brother bought him his first $26 of merchandise to peddle.

“I had a big pack on my back and two smaller packs under my arms,” Simon, who stood 5-foot-6 as a young man, said in the mid-1970s interview. “They were filled with buttons, laces, combs, bedspreads and needles. I carried all my stock.”

His first sale was a comb, for 10 cents, according to a short history written many years later by his granddaughter, Ellen Simon.

“I walked into the county to sell my wares. I went to Baskett Station, Spottsville, all those little country towns. Because I couldn’t speak English, the people were at first a little suspicious of me,” Simon said.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, left, recognizes Simon’s Shoes as his Senate Small Business of the Week during a visit on June 28 while current owner Bruce Simon looks on.

In those early days, farmers unsure of this foreigner would permit him only to sleep in their barns. “Sometimes he was so lonesome he would cry because they wouldn’t keep him at night,” Ellen Simon wrote.

“After a while, my face became familiar to them and my language seemed a little less strange,” Jacob Simon recalled. “Then the children began to look forward to my visits as if I were Santa Claus. The wares in my packs fascinated them.

“In the hot summer months, elderly ladies would spot me coming down the road and run out to the cistern where they kept cold jugs of buttermilk. They would draw me out a cup full, and it would taste better than anything. Those ladies began to call me their ‘boy.’ When they saw me walking toward their houses, they would say, ‘Here’s my boy!’ “

Eventually, some came to trust the young peddler and allowed him to spend the night in their farmhouses.

“In a short while, I grew to love these people … I was a stranger in a strange land, and they made me feel at home,” Simon recalled warmly.

Jacob Simon gradually prospered. Within two years, he was able to afford a horse named Prince and a buggy — perhaps a Delker-brand buggy manufactured in Henderson.

In 1916, he became an American citizen and he mastered English, speaking with only a “very slight” accent, according to his son, Larry.

After four years on the road, Simon established a small dry goods’ business on Elm Street, then moved to First Street. In January 1918, he sold his business to enter the army in World War I, though the war ended before he was deployed overseas.

Simon returned to Henderson and went into partnership with Arnold Kahn, who operated a small shoe and clothing store at First and Main streets. A year later, Kahn sold his interest to Simon.

On Jan. 19, 1919, Simon’s store was established, though it rented only a fraction of the big brick building it occupies today. In the 1950s, for instance, a portion of the ground floor of the building housed the Dairy Whip lunch counter and a jewelry store; the second floor directly above Simon’s held a lawyer’s and a doctor’s office, while the top floor housed a meeting hall.

The store proved to be a life-changing event for Jacob Simon, and not merely professionally. He periodically visited Louisville, where he purchased merchandise from a wholesaler named Louis Grossman. He became acquainted with his supplier’s daughter, and in 1921 Goldie Grossman became his wife. They remained together more than a half-century.

The store survived the Depression. But his poor upbringing, his lean early years in America and the turmoil of the Depression left a powerful impression on Jake Simon.

Jacob W. Simon was born in Lithuania May 18, 1890, came to Henderson in 1910, and founded what would become Simon's Shoes in 1919. He died Nov. 30, 1975.

“He was a very conservative man,” like many who lived through the Depression, Larry Simon said in a Gleaner interview several years ago.

“My dad was always very conscious to pay his bills on time,” he said.

“He was very frugal,” Larry said. “He was a concerned person, a worrier.”

Simon’s in recent decades has principally been a shoe and leather goods store. But for decades, it sold other merchandise, ranging from men’s suits and ties to long underwear. Beneath a large Florsheim sign on the side of the building in 1955, a smaller sign advertised Duck Head overalls. It even sold tobacco canvas that was used to protect tender young plants from late spring freezes.

During the infamous 1937 Ohio River flood, “We had to stay open on Sundays. Farmers wanted hip boots,” Larry Simon said.

“Farmers came in February or early March and bought on credit,” he said. “In November, after they sold their tobacco, they’d pay him.”

Larry joined the business in 1949 and, despite resistance from his father, nudged the business toward specializing in footwear.

Eventually, Larry bought the business, then later purchased the big building at First and Main. Years later, he acquired the former J.C. Penney building next door, which helps house the store’s large inventory.

During the past generation, Simon’s Shoes has become a destination store, drawing customers from Evansville, Owensboro, Louisville, even St. Louis, plus tourists traveling on Ohio River riverboats in recent years.

Today, the business is owned by Larry’s son, Bruce, who became the third generation of the family when he joined the business in 1979.

In 1975, then-85-year-old Jake Simon told The Gleaner, “When I draw my last breath, that store will be in my consciousness.”

The elder Simon might well have been astonished that U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, on June 28 visited the store to proclaim Simon’s Shoes the Senate Small Business of the Week.

“Congratulations to the entire Simon family and to the whole team at Simon’s Shoes,” Paul said in a statement entered into the Congressional Record. “I look forward to seeing their continued growth and success in Kentucky.”

Brian Simon and myself purchasing socks.

We arrived back in Chicago at 7:30 PM. 

October 24, 2023:

 On Tuesday October 24, 2023, I was back in Yeshiva.  Tonight is Sori Chase’s wedding in Lakewood, NJ.  I had tickets but cancelled.becuase I could not miss Yeshiva.  I called Ephraim Chase, the Kallah’s father, the night before and said I cannot make it to the wedding. At 10:00 AM my son-in-law calls me and insists that I go into the wedding.  He booked a ticket on the 2:17 PM flight to Newark.  Normally I would be in the Bais Medrash at this time and would ot even know I was getting a phone call.  My Chavrusa was late and I was pacing out of the building listening to a Shiur.   My proble was how to get to Lakewood from Newark.    B’Siatta Dismaya, Uri Kahanow was on the flight.  He was leaving the NIC conference early.  He was a customer of mine when I worked and  had wanted to contact me.  He had a driver picking him to to take him and Avi Katz  home to Lakewood and I got a ride with him.  

I was able to surprise the family by showing up at the wedding.  I stayed at the wedding until the end at 12:30 PM, went to Yakov Chase’s house and took a LYFT to the airport at 1:45 PM.  Took the 6:00 AM flight back to Chicago and was back at yeshiva at 10:00 AM.

The Chosson and Kallah.

Aaron Chase, Ephreim and Chavie Chase’s son.

October 25, 2023

I come back to the Yeshiva and discover that Chaim Weg is a new Bais Medrash Rebbe.  I walked into his Shiur and hugged him. He told me that I am a Navi because  I told him six months ago that he should be.will be a Rebbe in Skokie Yeshiva.   I sold him my previous house in 2021 and he paid top dollar for it.  I felt terrible that he paid such a high price.   I only used a broker because I did not want to meet the people purchasing my house at the top of the market.  I did not want to get involved at all, but it did not work.   I told him that I would guarantee appliances for twelve months.   I gave him $20,000 to pay for repairs and other incidentals, and gave him another $2,000 to support a Talmud Chacom.  Last month I had the outside railing of the house scraped and painted.  I had wanted to do this for years.   If I would not have given him the money I would not have been able to look him in the face.  He is a Talmud Chacom and I am associated with him. Boruch Hashem. 

October 26, 2023

Dairy Star is closing for the season and I loaded up.

Parshas Lech Lecha 2023 – October 28, 2023

On By Avrohom Meir MorgensternIn Divrei Torah, Family CelebrationsLeave a comment

Auf Ruf of Jeffrey Ostro

Acco Prison Escape

Mikros Gedolos – Oz Vehadar

My Torah on the Parsha

Genesis verse 12:3 –  וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה׃

Three Explanations – Rashi, Ramban, Rasbam

Lot

Yismael

Shabbos Activities – Auf Ruf of Jeffrey Ostro

First Shabbos back since we were in  Florida.  We left for Florida on September 20, 2023.  On Friday night Naftoli Glenner ate with us and Naftoli has to have liv-liv, so I get to eat chopped liver.

On Shabbos morning Serka and I walked to Congregation Yehuda Moshe on Touhy Avenue.  It is 2.8 miles from our house.  It was the Auf Ruf of Jeffrey Ostro.  He is marrying Noelle Bruno.   His mother, Gail Ostro, is our cousin, and my wife Serka is very close with her.  It was great having Kiddush with the Ostros and Gail’s family.  

My Torah below is inspired by the upcoming wedding of Jeffrey and Noelle Ostro, Noelle being a convert and giving Gail Ostro the Nachas of being able to walk her son to Chupa.  She saw her daughter, Elana, walking down with Gail’s grandchildren.

Acco Prison Escape

I was talking to Gail’s sister-in-law, Aurelia Malatzky-Ostro, and she tells me her father was an Irgun fighter in Israel’s war of Independence and that he was imprisoned in the infamous Acco prison. During the famous escape, her father  was the one who dropped the grenade between the prison bars to be able to escape.  His rabbi was Rabbi Aryeh Levin and Rabbi Aryeh Levin’s son married her and her husband, Mickey Ostro.  Quoting from the internet.

Looking to free Irgun and Lehi fighters imprisoned by the British in the fortress in Acco, the Irgun staged a daring and dramatic jail break. Having smuggled information and explosives to prisoners inside the prison, and staged a simultaneous attack from the outside by fighters dressed as British soldiers, the Irgun breached the prison for only the second time in its 800-year history.

By the end of the operation, 27 of the 41 escaped Jewish prisoners made it. Six were killed and eight captured. Of the Irgun attack force, three were killed and five captured; one British soldier was killed. The New York Times hailed it as one of the biggest jail breaks in history, Menachem Begin deemed it heroic, the Jewish Agency condemned it, the Yishuv loved it, and even the British acknowledged how bad it made them look. 

The prison break was immortalized in the 1960 film Exodus, starring Paul Newman.

Wikepdia has more information  The Mandate for Palestine aka Greater Israel by fact and law 1920: The Acre Prison Break, The Irgun: (May 4, 1947) – Draiman (themandateforpalestine-greaterisrael.blogspot.com)   

Aurilla Malatzky-Ostro also told me that her Shul, Shaarei Shomayim in Toronto, hosted Rabbi Meir Yaakov Solovechik as a scholar in residence and that he stayed for Shabbos in her house.  Serka and I were married at Shaar Shomayim.  Aurilla’s son, Jonathanl, is the President of the Shul.

Mikros Gedolos Oz Vehedar:

Last week I purchased a Oz Vehadar Mikros Gedolos.  It is a great Sefer and brings understanding of Chumosh to a new level.  There was the old Mikros Gdeolos which used Rashi script.  When I was younger it was hard to understand.   There was also the Penimin Mikros Gedolos from the 1950s which had a Perish Anshei Shem that is no longer printed and is almost gone.  I believe this Perish is in the Chok.    In 1990 the Hameor Institute  redid the Mikos Gedolos, removed errors, and changed the script to block letters, greatly enhancing the learning experience.  This is what I have used since it came out.  Artscroll came out with their version around 2015, however, I feel that it is really not an improvement over the Hameor and a little harder to use.  The Oz Vehadar is just on a completely different universe and leaves everyone in its dust.  I could only say the Pshat below using the Oz Vehadar.

My Torah from today:

Genesis Verse 12:3

וַאֲבָֽרְכָה֙ מְבָ֣רְכֶ֔יךָ וּמְקַלֶּלְךָ֖ אָאֹ֑ר וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה׃

At CUFI, banners are posted that say Genesis 12:3.    https://cufi.org/about/cufi-team/.  As Rabbi Bowman said, “and they believe in the Bible.”  Let us analyze the back half of the Passuk  וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה.

There are three explanations and a fourth comment:

1 – Rashi – his opinion is in green

2 – Ramban in his second explanation.  His opinion is in purple.

3 – Rashbam and Chizkuni.  Their opinion is in rust.

4 – Ibn Ezra criticizes the Rashbam and Chizkuni’s Pshat and agrees to the Ramban.  His opinion is in black.   

I started the Parsha at four in the morning and looked at Rashi on Verse 12:3.  I was stunned.  I always thought that this Passuk means that the world will be blessed  through Avrohom’s merit and great deeds.   Not only that Avrohom  brings Hashem’s goodness to the world, but through his actions, the world was a better place.  Just like Israel today.   My son Sholem for my birthday gave me the book, Start Up Nation.  The world benefits greatly from Israel’s innovations, discoveries,and patents in medicine, technology, and everything else.  If the world let, peace would break out from Israel.   Yet Rashi says that the simple meaning is that people will bless their children by saying, you should be like Avrohom.     

Interpretation 1:

Rashi says.

ונברכו בך. יֵשׁ אַגָּדוֹת רַבּוֹת, וְזֶהוּ פְשׁוּטוֹ, אָדָם אוֹמֵר לִבְנוֹ תְּהֵא כְּאַבְרָהָם, וְכֵן כָּל וְנִבְרְכוּ בְךָ שֶׁבַּמִּקְרָא, וְזֶה מוֹכִיחַ בְּךָ יְבָרֵךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר יְשִׂמְךָ אֱלֹהִים כְּאֶפְרַיִם וְכִמְנַשֶּׁה (בר’ מ”ח):

 AND IN THEE SHALL BE BLESSED — There are many Agadoth concerning this but the plain sense of the text is as follows: A man says to his son, “Mayest thou become as Abraham”. This, too, is the meaning wherever the phrase ונברכו בך “And in thee shall be blessed” occurs in Scripture, and the following example proves this: (Genesis 48:20) בך יברך “By thee shall Israel bless their children saying, “May God make thee as Ephraim and Manasseh”.

Interpretation 2:

Words of the Ramban on Pasuk 12:2: 

He starts by explaining the last two words of Pasuk 12:2.

והיה ברכה אתה תהיה הברכה אשר יתברכו בך לאמר “ישימך אלהים כאברהם” והוסיף עוד כי כל משפחות האדמה יתברכו בו לא אנשי ארצו בלבד או ונברכו בך שיהיו מבורכים בעבורו 

The Ramban uses Rashi’s explanation as the meaning of the last two words of verse 12:2 of  וֶהְיֵ֖ה בְּרָכָֽה. and first explains the וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה in 12:3 as a continuation of this idea that not only will your city bless there children saying too be like Avrohom but the entire world.

But then the Ramban has a second explanation for וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה    The Ramban says “ ונברכו בך שיהיו מבורכים בעבורו”.  The world will be blessed because of Avrohom.  You could explain this two ways and both are probably correct; 1 – through his righteous deeds, Hashem will bless the world, or 2 -because Avrohom was moral and good, he was an example for the world and the world was a better place because of him.  His goodzkeit spread to the world.  He was a world leader and people emulated him.  

The Ibn Ezra says Pshat like the Ramban, see the end of this piece of Torah., where I bring down the Ibn Ezra.

What do the Tragumin say?  (See Mikros Gedolos Oz Vehadar in their explanation of the Ramban)

Rashi aligns with theTargum Yonason Ben Uziel 

Targum Yonasan Ben Usiel

וַאֲבָרֵךְ יַת כַּהֲנַיָא דְפַרְסִין יְדֵיהוֹן בִּצְלוֹ וּמְבָרְכִין יַת בְּנָךְ וּבִלְעָם דִמְלַטֵט יַתְהוֹן אֵילוֹט וְיִקְטְלוּנֵיהּ לְפִתְגַם דְחָרֶב וְיִתְבָּרְכוּן בָּךְ כָּל זַרְעַיַת אַרְעָא 

And I will bless the priests who will spread forth their hands in prayer, and bless thy sons; and Bileam, who will curse them, I will curse, and they shall slay him with the mouth of the sword; and in thee shall be blessed all the generations of the earth.

Since the Tragum Yonasan uses the same word as the Torah uses, the assumption is that he is learning like Rashi

However Targum Onkelos and Targum Yerushalmi align with the Ramban:

וֶאֱבָרֵךְ מְבָרְכָךְ וּמְלַטְטָךְ אֵילוּט וְיִתְבָּרֲכוּן בְּדִילָךְ כֹּל זַרְעֲיַת אַרְעָא 

I will bless those who bless you, and he who curses you, I will curse; and through you [and because of you], will be blessed all the families of the earth.

Targum Yerushalmi

וַאֲבָרֵךְ מַאן דִי בְרִיךְ יָתָךְ וּמַן דְלַיִיט יָתָךְ יֶהֱוֵי לִיט וְיִתְבָּרְכוּן בִזְכוּתָךְ כָּל זַרְעַיַת אַרְעָא:

And I will bless him who blesseth thee, and he who curseth thee shall be accursed; and in thy righteousness shall all the generations of the earth be blessed.

How do the English translations line up?

Like Rashi.

JPS 2006:

And all the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you.”

Artscroll 2018 (Avrohom Morgenstern on Targum Onkelos)

And all of the families of the earth will bless themselves by you.

Torah Yesharah –  Kahana 1963

all the families of the earth will bless themselves with the wish that they might be like you.”

(רש”י.)

Silverstein – 2013

and they shall bless themselves in you [i.e., in your name] all the families of the earth.

Like the Ramban and Onkelys:

Artscroll 1993: 

And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.  

Soncino

And in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

Interpretation #3:

There is a third interpretation of וְנִבְרְכ֣וּ בְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל מִשְׁפְּחֹ֥ת הָאֲדָמָֽה and that is of the Rashbam, Chizkuni, and the Daas Zekeinim.  No English Chumashim translate it this way.  The word ונברכו is translated as  מבריך ומרכיב – grafting trees and layering – bending a tree branch back into the ground to grow a new tree.  Meaning that the non Jewish nations will want to marry into the Jewish nation.

Rashbam:

ונברכו – לשון מבריך ומרכיב, כלומר, יתערבו במשפחתך משפחות האדמה, שהרי משקל רפי הוא.

Chizkuni:

ונברכו משקל רפה, לשון ״‎מברכך ומרכיב״‎ (שביעית ב,ו), כלומר בך יתערבו משפחות שרי הארץ ולא תחשב כנכרי וגר ביניהם ולפיכך כתב כאן משפחת האדמה.

Daas Zekeinim:
ונברכו בך וגו’. כי יתערבו כל המשפחות שהכל יתאוו להתחבר עמך ונברכו לשון המבריך:

What is the source of the Rashbam et. al’s Pshat.  It appears to be a Gemora in Kidushim.

וְאָמַר רַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר, מַאי דִּכְתִיב: ״וְנִבְרְכוּ בְךָ כֹּל מִשְׁפְּחֹת הָאֲדָמָה״, אֲמַר לֵיהּ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְאַבְרָהָם: שְׁתֵּי הַבְרָכוֹת טוֹבוֹת יֵשׁ לִי לְהַבְרִיךְ בְּךָ: רוּת הַמּוֹאֲבִיָּה, וְנַעֲמָה הָעַמּוֹנִית.

 ״כֹּל מִשְׁפְּחוֹת הָאֲדָמָה״ — אֲפִילּוּ מִשְׁפָּחוֹת הַדָּרוֹת בָּאֲדָמָה אֵין מִתְבָּרְכוֹת אֶלָּא בִּשְׁבִיל יִשְׂרָאֵל. ״כׇּל גּוֹיֵי הָאָרֶץ״ (Bereshis 18:18)— אֲפִילּוּ סְפִינוֹת הַבָּאוֹת מִגַּלְיָא לְאַסְפַּמְיָא אֵינָן מִתְבָּרְכוֹת אֶלָּא בִּשְׁבִיל יִשְׂרָאֵל.

And Rabbi Elazar said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “And in you shall all the families of the earth be blessed [nivrekhu]” (Genesis 12:3)? The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Abraham: I have two good shoots to graft [lehavrikh] onto you: Ruth the Moabite, the ancestress of the house of David, and Naamah the Ammonite, whose marriage with Solomon led to the ensuing dynasty of the kings of Judea. “All the families of the earth” means: Even families that live in the earth, i.e., who have land of their own, are blessed only due to the Jewish people. Similarly, when the verse states: “All the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him” (Genesis 18:18), it indicates that even ships that come from Galia to Hispania are blessed only due to the Jewish people.

Maharsha:

שתי בריכות כו’ לכאורה מכל משפחות גו’ מריבויא דכל דריש אפילו משפחות האסורות לבא בקהל יבריכו בך נקיבות שלהם דעמוני ולא עמונית מואבי ולא מואבית ואך יש לדקדק דמעיקרא דריש ונברכו מלשון הברכה ולבסוף דרשו ליה מלשון ברכה ממש אפי’ משפחות הדרות באדמה אין מתברכות אלא כו’ וע”כ נראה דמלתא באנפי נפשיה הוא בא לדרוש כל דמשפחות גו’ כמו שדרשו כל הגוים גו’ כמ”ש התוס’ והשתא אפשר דמעיקרא לאו מריבויא דכל דריש אלא משום דכל הני קראי דכתיבי כיוצא בזה כמו והתברכו בזרעך מתפרשים כי אדם אומר לבנו תהא כאברהם תהא כאפרים ומנשה אבל הכא שינה הכתוב למכתב ונברכו מלשון נפעל ע”י אחרים דהיינו שיעשה הקב”ה מהן שתי בריכות בתוכך או מלשון שיתברכו מן השמים ודו”ק:

The Gemora in Kedoshim is a little difficult to understand, it does appear that the Gemora translates  ונברכו in two ways, grafting and being a blessing.

Rashi clearly does not go like the Gemora in Yevamos at all..  The Rashbam is going like the Gemora in Yevamos, but only in the Gemora translation as grafting.  Why did the Rashbam choose grafting and not blessing,  It would seem that blessing would be the more plain meaning.  Perhaps he felt from the last two words of 12:2 והיה ברכה meaning that the world will be blessed through Avrohom, therefore the Rashbam has to explain that the meaning of Genesis 12:3 is grafting. 

The Gemora itself only talks about two people, Rus and Naama.     Perhaps the Gemara means Rus and Naama and all converts who convert to the Jewish nation.  The genoira seems to be saying that Rus and Naama who converted were beneficial to the Jewish nation and the Jeiwsh nation needed them.  The Rashbam says it refers to all converts from all the nations of the earth. The nations of the world will want to be part of the Jewish people and that the converts will be accepted as Jews. The Rashbam seems to be taking it that the non Jewish nations will want to feel a connection to the Jews.

Onkelos wanted to be connected to the Jewish people and he was a Torah scholar.  He published the first legitimate translation of the Torah into a foreign language.   He may have been the nephew of Titus.   Onkelos – Wikipedia. 

Ibn Ezra

There is no Ibn Ezra on this Pasuk in the regular Mikros Gedolos, however, the Oz Vehadar brings an Ibn Ezra on 12:3 from another source and it is simply great.  The Ibn Ezra was born in 1089 and lived to about 1164.   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_ibn_Ezra

The words of the Ibn Ezra:

בשיטה אחרת:  חכם גדול אמר בּספרד כי ׳ונברכו בך׳ מגזרת הברכת האילן (עיין רשׁבּ״ם), ולא ידעתי מי הביאו צרה ההזאת.  רק ׳ונברכו׳ מבנין נפעל על דרך נכבד, כי ׳מתברך׳ הוא כמו ׳מתכבד׳, והנה הטעם שיהיו משפּחות האדמה בעבורו מבורכות וראה גם מה שכתב רבינו להלן (יח יח) בביאור ׳ונברכו׳[ואינו כפירוש רש”י שאנשי העולם יברכו זרעם בו]

Translated as – a wise man from Spain said it means grafting. I love the Ibn Ezra criticizing the Rashbam’s explanation by saying  ולא ידעתי מי הביאו צרה ההזאת.  I do not know who brought this trouble.

Perhaps Ibn Ezra wrote this line because of the conversion of his son to Islam in 1140.  And perhaps he saw  that people converting to Judaism was leading to importing foreign ideas into the Jewish people and in his time it was not beneficial.  

Wikedpeia writes: 

Little is known of ibn Ezra’s family from outside sources; however, he wrote of a marriage to a wife that produced five children. While it is believed four died early, the last-born, Isaac, became an influential poet and later convert to Islam in 1140. The conversion of his son was deeply troubling for ibn Ezra, leading him to pen many poems reacting to the event for years afterward.[3]

Lot – Avrohom’s Nephew

Genesis Verse 12:4 and 12:5

וַיֵּ֣לֶךְ אַבְרָ֗ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר דִּבֶּ֤ר אֵלָיו֙ יְהֹוָ֔ה וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ אִתּ֖וֹ ל֑וֹט וְאַבְרָ֗ם בֶּן־חָמֵ֤שׁ שָׁנִים֙ וְשִׁבְעִ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה בְּצֵאת֖וֹ מֵחָרָֽן׃ 

וַיִּקַּ֣ח אַבְרָם֩ אֶת־שָׂרַ֨י אִשְׁתּ֜וֹ וְאֶת־ל֣וֹט בֶּן־אָחִ֗יו וְאֶת־כׇּל־רְכוּשָׁם֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר רָכָ֔שׁוּ וְאֶת־הַנֶּ֖פֶשׁ אֲשֶׁר־עָשׂ֣וּ בְחָרָ֑ן וַיֵּצְא֗וּ לָלֶ֙כֶת֙ אַ֣רְצָה כְּנַ֔עַן וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ אַ֥רְצָה כְּנָֽעַן׃

12:4 says that Lot  goes with Avrohom.  The first Pasuk says that Lot went with Avrohom.  12:5 says that Avrohom took Lot.   Is there a difference between the first Pasuk implies that Lot went on his own decision, while the second Pasuk seems to say that Avrohom took him, as if Lot did not know what to do and Avrohom grabbed him and siad your our coming with me.  Is there something to be learned from this?

In 12:4 its says  וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ אִתּ֖וֹ ל֑וֹט and not וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ ל֑וֹט אִתּ֖וֹ .  Does this word usage mean anything?

I saw a Ramban that I cannot find that Avrohom had no family going with him and Lot stepped up so Avrohom would have family with him.  I cannot find the Ramban.

Yismael:

Bereshis 15:15

By the Bris Bein Habesarim hashem tells Avrohom –

וְאַתָּ֛ה תָּב֥וֹא אֶל־אֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ בְּשָׁל֑וֹם תִּקָּבֵ֖ר בְּשֵׂיבָ֥ה טוֹבָֽה׃

As for you, You shall go to your ancestors in peace; You shall be buried at a ripe old age.

And Rashi says this means  that Yismael will repent in Avrohom’s lifetime.

Rashi:

תקבר בשיבה טובה. בִּשְּׂרוֹ שֶׁיַּעֲשֶׂה יִשְׁמָעֵאל תְּשׁוּבָה בְּיָמָיו, וְלֹא יֵצֵא עֵשָׂו לְתַרְבּוּת רָעָה בְּיָמָיו; וּלְפִיכָךְ מֵת ה’ שָׁנִים קֹדֶם זְמַנּוֹ, וּבוֹ בַיּוֹם מָרַד עֵשָׂו:

Why when Hagar was kicked out of Avrohoms’s house and Yismael was dying of thirst, the angels wanted Hashem to deny water to Yismael so he would die.  How do we understand this because Yismael will become a Tzadick and we also know that Avorhom loved Yismael.  The fact that 1,000 years henceforth, Yishmael’s descendants will kill  fleeing jews with thirst, we Jews have plenty of enemies.  In fact the Northern kingdom attacked the Yehuda during the first temple period.  Do we say that Hashem should have only had two tribes.  I will have to answer this next week.