CBH Torah Study: Chayei Sarah -- 11-11-25

Sarah’s lifetime—the span of Sarah’s life—came to one hundred and twenty-seven years.

(2) Sarah died in Kiriath-arba—now Hebron—in the land of Canaan; and Abraham proceeded to mourn for Sarah and to bewail her.

When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold nose-ring weighing a half-shekel, and two gold bands for her arms, ten shekels in weight.

(1) Abraham was now old, advanced in years, and יהוה had blessed Abraham in all things. (2) And Abraham said to the senior servant of his household, who had charge of all that he owned, “Put your hand under my thigh (3) and I will make you swear by יהוה, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I dwell, (4) but will go to the land of my birth and get a wife for my son Isaac.” (5) And the servant said to him, “What if the woman does not consent to follow me to this land, shall I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” (6) Abraham answered him, “On no account must you take my son back there! (7)יהוה, the God of heaven—who took me from my father’s house and from my native land, who promised me on oath, saying, ‘I will assign this land to your offspring’—will send a messenger before you, and you will get a wife for my son from there. (8) And if the woman does not consent to follow you, you shall then be clear of this oath to me; but do not take my son back there.”

ושני צמידים AND TWO BRACELETS (the word for bracelet signifies something joined or united) — a symbol of the two Tablets of stone, joined one to another (Genesis Rabbah 60:6).

“Come in, O blessed of GOD,” he said, “why do you remain outside, when I have made ready the house and a place for the camels?” So the man entered the house, and the camels were unloaded. The camels were given straw and feed, and water was brought to bathe his feet and those of his entourage. But when food was set before him, he said, “I will not eat until I have told my tale.” He said, “Speak, then.” “I am Abraham’s servant,” he began. “GOD has greatly blessed my master, who has become rich—giving him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female slaves, camels and donkeys. And Sarah, my master’s wife, bore my master a son in her old age, and he has assigned to him everything he owns. Now my master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I dwell; but you shall go to my father’s house, to my kindred, and get a wife for my son.’ And I said to my master, ‘What if the woman does not follow me?’ He replied to me, ‘GOD, whose ways I have followed, will send an angel with you and make your errand successful; and you will get a wife for my son from my kindred, from my father’s house. Thus only shall you be freed from my adjuration: if, when you come to my kindred, they refuse you—only then shall you be freed from my adjuration.’ “I came today to the spring, and I said: ‘O ETERNAL One, God of my master Abraham, if You would indeed grant success to the errand on which I am engaged! As I stand by the spring of water, let the young woman who comes out to draw and to whom I say, “Please, let me drink a little water from your jar,” and who answers, “You may drink, and I will also draw for your camels”—let her be the wife whom GOD has decreed for my master’s son.’

ואבא היום AND I CAME THIS DAY — Today I started on my journey and today I have arrived here. Hence we may infer that the earth (the road) shrunk for him (i. e. that the journey was shortened in a miraculous manner) (Sanhedrin 95a). R. Acha said: The ordinary conversation of the patriarchs' servants is more pleasing to God than even the Torah (religious discourse) of their children, for the chapter of Eliezer (the account of his journey) is repeated in the Torah (i. e. it is written once as a narrative and again repeated as part of the conversation of the patriarch’s servant) whereas many important principles of the Law are derived only from slight indications given in the Text (Genesis Rabbah 60:8).

(54) Then he and the entourage under him ate and drank, and they spent the night. When they arose next morning, he said, “Give me leave to go to my master.” (55) But her brother and her mother said, “Let the maiden remain with us some ten days; then you may go.” (56) He said to them, “Do not delay me, now that יהוה has made my errand successful. Give me leave that I may go to my master.” (57) And they said, “Let us call the girl and ask for her reply.” (58) They called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will.” (59) So they sent off their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his entourage.

(60) And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “O sister! May you grow Into thousands of myriads; May your descendants seize The gates of their foes.”

(63) And Isaac went out walking in the field toward evening and, looking up, he saw camels approaching. (64) Raising her eyes, Rebekah saw Isaac. She alighted from the camel (65) and said to the servant, “Who is that man walking in the field toward us?” And the servant said, “That is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. (66) The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. (67) Isaac then brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he took Rebekah as his wife. Isaac loved her, and thus found comfort after his mother’s death.

האהלה שרה אמו INTO HIS MOTHER SARAH’S TENT — He brought her into the tent and she became exactly like his mother Sarah — that is to say, the words signify as much as, [And he brought her into the tent] and, behold, she was Sarah, his mother). For whilst Sarah was living, a light had been burning in the tent from one Sabbath eve to the next, there was always a blessing in the dough (a miraculous increase) and a cloud was always hanging over the tent (as a divine protection), but since her death all these had stopped. However, when Rebecca came, they reappeared” (Genesis Rabbah 60:16).