BS”D
The Chofetz Chaim says, “All students of Chumash, Mishna and Gemara, have a duty to band together in their respective groups to advance G-d’s glory. Public, daily Beis Midrash study of Torah will protect us from the wars and looting that have entered the world “because Torah study was neglected” (Shabbos 33).
Parashah Trivia (mishmash of Lech Lecha, Vayera, Chaye Sarah and Toldos)
Shavua Tov! Gut Voch! I’m resurrecting the Parasha Trivia in this manner. Please note that there may be more than one answer. Please feel free to share what you know. I will try to post my answers during mid-week. Thank you for your participation. In the merit of learning a little bit of Torah from this trivia, may we bring more light into the FB world instead of darkness.
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Which three Torah personalities have faces resembling Avraham Avinu?
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How did wine appear in the cave where Lot and his daughters hid in?
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We don’t know a lot about Lot’s end. Do you know anything more about where he lived after the incident in the cave and how long he lived? I will share something short in my answer. Please share if you know more.
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The word “Na’ar” (נער) is written in Parashas Chaye Sarah to refer to Rivka 5 times, but we read it as “Na’arah” (נערה). Does anyone have any insight on this? I don’t have an answer. Will share if I do.
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When Rivka was riding the camel, was she riding side-saddle? How do we know?
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In Parashas Vayera, Rashi comments that Avraham thought that the three men who visited him were Arabs who worshipped the dust on their feet. However there is an opinion that the Arabs were not literally worshipping the dust on their feet but rather placed their trust in their feet. How do we reconcile the worry of Avodah Zarah by Avraham?
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Whose deaths do we indirectly learn about in this week’s parashas Toldos?
Answers:
1. Yitzchak’s face resembled Avraham’s (Bava Metzia 87a),
“Come, blessed one of Hashem (Bereishis 24:31). Lavan said this, thinking Eliezer to be Avraham since his face resembled Avraham’s. (Bereishis Rabbah 60:7)
Lot’s face resembled Avraham’s (Bereishis Rabbah 41:6) Rashi comments on the phrase “Anashim Achim” (Bereishis 13:8) Midrashic explanation is: they had similar features.
Many thanks to Chaya S. "Chazal’s statement that the malachim sought to harm Moshe Rabbeinu when he ascended to Shamayim to receive the Torah. At that point Hakadosh Baruch Hu made Moshe Rabbeinu’s face resemble Avraham Avinu’s. “Aren’t you embarrassed?” He asked the malachim. “Is this not the one to whom you descended and in whose house you ate?”
2. In Sodom, there was an abundance of wine which the Sodomites would hide in caves and which Lot and his daughters took when Sodom was destroyed (Etz Yosef).
I found in both Meam Loez and The Midrash Says that wine was placed miraculously in the cave by Hashem.
3. Lot ben Haran, died in the 39th year of Yitzchak’s life. Lot lived 142 years (Sefer HaYashar, Chayei Sarah).
4. ~~~~~~~~~ Kesubos 44b (Many thanks to Tziporah Tirtza!)
§ Reish Lakish said: The defamer of a minor girl is exempt, as it is stated: “And give them to the father of the young woman [na’ara]” (Deuteronomy 22:19). The word na’ara is written in full, with the letter heh at the end, whereas elsewhere in the Torah it is written without the heh. This indicates that the verse was speaking of a female who has fully attained the status of a young woman, rather than a minor who has not yet reached the state of being a young woman.
Rav Acḥa bar Abba strongly objects to this: Is it correct that the reason is that it is written with regard to her “na’ara” in full, but if that were not so, I would say that even a minor is included in this halakha? Isn’t it written: “But if this matter is true, that the tokens of virginity were not found in this young woman, then they shall bring out the young woman to the entrance to her father’s house and the men of her city shall stone her” (Deuteronomy 22:20–21)? And since a minor is not eligible for punishment, this verse evidently is referring to a young woman, not a minor, and therefore there is no need for the aforementioned exposition.
Rather, the verse should be understood as follows: Here, where it is evident that the Torah is referring to a young woman, it writes na’ara with a heh, from which it may be inferred that wherever it is stated na’ara without a heh at the end, it indicates that the verse is referring even to a minor girl. The term na’ara without a heh is referring to both a minor and a young woman and excludes only an adult woman.
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5. Rashbam explains that Rivka slid off the camel out of modesty. The Talmud (Pesachim 3a) writes that is immodest for a woman to ride an animal in the usual manner. She should ride side-saddle. However, because of fear of falling off the camel, Rivka rode in the usual manner. However, when she saw Yitzchak walking toward them, she slid off the camel, so as not to ride in an immodest manner in his presence.
Maharzav on Bereishis Rabbah (60:14) writes that, although it is immodest for women to ride in the usual manner, in the East, where camel riding is the usual mode of transportation, they must ride in this manner lest they fall off their lofty perch on the camel’s back.
6. Rav Tzadok HaKohen explains that this is not to be taken literally. Rather, it is a reference to the fact that the livelihood of Arabs is based on travelling from place to place selling their wares, and they therefore tend to place their trust solely in the feet that transport them from place to place, instead of in Hashem. Such trust is tantamount to idol worship. Anyone who places his hopes for success in business in his efforts or talents is guilty of the same iniquity. ~ R’ Moshe Sternbuch, shlita
7. a) Avraham’s death. “Please give me a swallow of this red [pottage] for I am exhausted.” (Bereishis 25:30) Rashi comments on “from this red pottage” that Yaakov was cooking lentils as the first meal for a mourner since Avraham died on that day so that he would not see Esav falling into bad ways as this would not be the “good old age” that Hashem promised him.
b) Yishmael’s death. “So Esav went to Yishmael, and he took Machalas, the daughter of Yishmael ben Avraham, the sister of Neyavos…” (Bereishis 28:9) Rashi says about the phrase “the sister of Nevayos” to indicate that Yishmael died after bethrothing her to Esav before her marriage, and her brother Nevayos gave her hand in marriage.
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