Shalom. Our Torah portion Chayei Sarah begins with, “And
this was the life of Sarah, one hundred years, and twenty years, and seven
years, the years of the life of Sarah.”
I apologize for my absence the last three weeks. I injured
my back and was unable to get off the floor for awhile, unable to walk, and
unable to get down the stairs. But I can now get to my computer, and am
overjoyed at being able to join you for a study of this week’s Torah portion.
Sarah and Ishmael
The sages say that the text is written in this form to say
that at age one hundred, Sarah had the innocence of a twenty year old, and at
age twenty, she had the natural beauty of a seven year old. They go on to say
that for every twenty years, Sarah only appeared to age seven years. They
explain that is why Pharaoh and later Abimelech desired her even though she was
well advanced in years.
Is there a problem with this rabbinic explanation? The next
to the last verse in our portion reads, “These were the years of the life of Ishmael,
one hundred years, and thirty years, and seven years, he expired and he died
and was gathered to his people.” Should we extend the interpretation of the
phrasing of the years of Sarah’s life to include Ishmael’s health and virtue?
That at one hundred Ishmael had the innocence of a thirty year old?
What is the difference between the innocence of a twenty and
thirty year old?
In Judaism, a great difference. A person is not accountable
for Individual sin until age twenty. Saying that Sarah was as innocent as a
twenty year old says basically that she was without sin. But Ishmael had ten
years to amass a sin record. When do people normally rack up sin? In their
youth, while they are still reckless and feel indestructible.
Carrying the rest of the rabbinic analogy through to
Ishmael, we would conclude that he was a very handsome man, youthful looking.
Borrowing from Israel’s later experience with Saul, we know that physical
attributes played a part in the status of leaders. Perhaps that is one of the reasons
Ishmael his twelve tribes accepted his ongoing leadership.
There is a difference between the account of Sarah’s death
that begins Chayei Sarah, and the account of Ishmael’s death that ends our
Torah portion.
Sarah’s account ends with, “The years of the life of Sarah.”
Ishmael’s account ends with, “He expired and he died and was gathered to his
people.” When the Torah speaks of Sarah, it speaks of her life, but when it
speaks of Ishmael, it speaks of his death.
The answer lies in the potential of each person. Sarah was
the matriarch of the Children of Israel. Her lineage becomes the inheritors of
the land, the covenant, and the promise of Messiah. Ishmael is the father of
many of the enemies of Israel. They are at odds with the promise given to
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. So the Torah gives us the life of Sarah and the death
of Ishmael.
The Inheritance of Isaac
This promised blessing is seen again as Abraham sends his
other children away with gifts, but the land and the inheritance lies with
Isaac who remains in the land. Even when Abraham sends Eliezer to find a wife
for Isaac, he makes it clear that under no circumstances is Isaac to be taken
out of the land. There was to be no question as to Isaac’s legitimate claim on
the land of Canaan.
Along the same thought lines, Abraham pays top dollar for
Sarah’s burial place. There is a teaching in Judaism that one is to pay well
for the blessing of performing a mitzvah. Abraham’s willingness to pay the
first stated price rather than haggling over it to reduce the price is one of
the bases for this teaching.
We might
mistakenly think Abraham bought a burial plot, like we are familiar with. A
small place to inter a body. But as we read the description we see a different
picture, “And the field of Ephron, which was
in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave
which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were
in all the borders round about, were made sure Unto Abraham for a
possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at
the gate of his city.” (Genesis 23:17-18)
What Abraham purchased was a tract of land. A beginning to
owning the entire land of Israel. The start of Israel’s legitimate claim to
Eretz Israel.
Tradition as a Teaching Aid
Tradition says that this is the same cave in which Adam and Chava
were buried, and that this location is the nearest portal to Gan Eden. Is it
really? For the sake of commonly held tradition and later references back to
this event, whether it is true or not is immaterial. It can still be used to
emphasize a teaching because most of the hearers in biblical times would know
of the tradition.
The same is true of many other traditional understandings.
They provide a teaching device that is easily and readily understood by the
hearers.
The Life of Sarah
Let’s look at what the Torah entitles “The life of Sarah.”
We don’t know the totality of a person’s until she is
deceased and is no longer doing more.
Even then, we only know the “Rest of the Story” when we see
the effects she has on the following generations. So we see that Abraham honors
Sarah. He buys a large tract of land to insure she is protected and has a
permanent resting place. Which, sadly enough, today is a dangerous place for
the Children of Israel to go.
Abraham weeps for Sarah. I once knew a man who professed the
belief that one had to endure the hell of marriage on earth so he could benefit
from going to heaven when he dies. Not so Abraham. There is a sense of great
loss when Abraham loses Sarah who had been his helpmeet for over one hundred years.
I have been married for slightly less than a hundred years.
But my wife and I have grown together as one to the extent that I can’t
conceive of how great a loss losing her would be. How much greater the loss
Abraham would have felt after all those years together.
The Small Letter
In the Hebrew of our text, verse Beresheit 23:2 there is a
small letter kaf. The word containing
the small letter is “to weep.” Why is the kaf
small? One of the Talmudic answers is that Sarah died between Yom Kippur and Sukkoth,
and as a result, Abraham’s period of mourning was cut short from the
traditional seven days of sheva.
Another explanation is that Abraham kept his grief private.
Outwardly he showed some emotion, but inwardly his grief was monumental. I like
this interpretation. I can see that as the days pass after Sarah’s death that
the impact of her absence would become more acute. As the little things like
waking up alone, eating alone, not having her to talk to and share with became
evident the reality and impact of her death would grow. Especially after all
their years together.
The seven day period of mourning is only the beginning of
the outpouring of sorrow. The flood that comes immediately. But the sense of
loss continues long after. We should be careful to honor the memory of the
deceased and the dignity of the survivors by being sensitive to the needs and
feelings of family members after a loss.
On one side, Abraham recognized that Sarah had gone on, that
only her body died, not her soul. On the other side, he must face the loss of
her companionship. No matter how sure we are that our loved on is “in a better
place,” we still miss them.
The Search for Isaac's Wife
Eliezer travels to find a wife for Isaac. He arrives at a
well in the land of Abraham’s birth, and asks for a sign from Elohim. As we
read this, we ask, “Is it appropriate to ask for a sign?” Perhaps there is no
easy answer to this question. Some say no, others yes. But let’s look at Eliezer's situation.
Eliezer is to find a wife for Isaac. How does he decide?
There are any number of criteria he could use. Each set would likely provide a
suitable wife who had the qualities necessary for a good wife. But Eliezer
takes the extra step in asking who Elohim wants for Isaac’s wife.
There is a lesson we can draw from this. At times we can
evaluate a situation and make an informed decision without help because the
outcome is not vital. Does Elohim care what car you drive? Maybe, maybe not. Or
what house you live in? But when it come to something as important as your spouse...maybe
we would be wise to get input from Him.
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