Sarah Oppresses Hagar

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1. The Suffering of Hagar and the Enslavement in Egypt

   Prof. Jonathan Grossman

   God tells Avraham that his children will be enslaved in Egypt; and the angel describes – in similar terms – Hagar suffering Sarah’s oppression. The Torah links the enslavement in Egypt with Sarah’s treatment of Hagar.

2. "Sarah Treated Her Harshly" - Did Our Matriarch Sin in This Regard?

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   There are several stories in Tanakh where the conduct of one of our national forebears or leaders arouses within us a certain sense of discomfort and surprise. At times we cannot but ask: Is this behavior appropriate for a person of such distinction? Does it not seem morally lacking?

3. By What Shall I Know? Question and Covenant

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman

   We tend to think of a divine covenant, a treaty with God, as something good - not just good, but wholly good. It is a gift from God, granted to the forefathers and passed on to future generations. We expect our covenants to include the promise of nationhood, possession of the land of Israel, the promise of divine caring and perhaps some form of religious responsibility. However, we do not expect them to include suffering. The "covenant between the pieces" ("brit bein ha-betarim") shatters this expectation. In the very first formal covenant granted to Avraham by God, God promises suffering, and much of it.

4. Sarai and Hagar

   Rabbi Ezra Bick

   Sarai offers her maid-servant Hagar to Avram. What motivates her offer? What is she afraid of? His lesson will compare Sarai's offer with Rachel offering Bilhah to Yaakov. What was the result of Avram's marriage to Hagar? Why is Sarai angry at Avram? Why does she mistreat Hagar?

5. Radak on Hagar: Ego Inflation

   Rabbi David Silverberg

6. Sara, Hagar, and the Egyptian Oppression

   Rabbi David Silverberg

7. Sara's Anger at Avraham's "Theft"

   Rabbi David Silverberg

8. Yitzhak and Be'er Lachai-Roi

   Rabbi David Fuchs

9. The Sins of Biblical Figures

   Part 2

   Rabbi Amnon Bazak

   Two fundamental approaches exist regarding three incidents involving Avraham: one maintains that the plain reading of the text suggests that the acts in question were wrong – perhaps even serious sins – and are recorded with a view to instructing the readers how not to behave. The other view seeks to cast their actions in a positive light and regards them as a model for emulation.

   Those who seek a favorable interpretation of all questionable actions of biblical characters rely, as one of their central sources, on a well-known discussion in Massekhet Shabbat (55b-56b) which lists six figures who seem, according to the plain text, to have committed various transgressions – some of them extremely serious ones. In each case, Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachmani teaches, in the name of Rabbi Yonatan, that "anyone who says that so-and-so sinned, is simply mistaken."

10. Radak - Rav David Kimchi

    Dr. Avigail Rock

    The Radak — R. David Kimchi — was born and active in Provence, in southern France, near Spain. The Radak was a member of a family of Spanish grammarians and exegetes. Like R. Avraham ibn Ezra, the Kimchi family brought the fundamentals of linguistics and grammar from Spain to France.

    Despite the fact that Radak sees himself as a pashtan, he does not hesitate to cite derash. However, when the Radak quotes these sources, it is obvious that he has a distinction between peshat and derash.

    Two principles guide the Radak in citing Midrashic sources:

    • When it is difficult to resolve the peshat without the derash.
    • For the lovers of derash - in order to explain the text and engage his readers.

    The view of the Radak is that the Torah is not a historical tome. Those stories of the Patriarchs which have been selected to put into the Torah with all of its details must fulfill one criterion: teaching a moral lesson.

    Just as one may learn from the positive acts of the forefathers, so one may learn from their negative acts. The Radak does not engage in apologetics; instead, he writes explicitly that the narratives which describe the negative acts of the Patriarchs have been written in order to help us avoid this sort of behavior.

    The Radak points out consistently that the Torah often uses repetitious language, not because each word introduces new meaning, but because the verse seeks to stress the significance of a given issue. This view stands in stark contrast to that of Rashi, who argues that generally speaking, one must assign meaning to every word, as there cannot be any redundancy in the biblical text.

11. Parshat Lech Lecha Part 5: Sarai and Hagar

    Rabbi Alex Israel | 28 minutes

    Perek 16 describes the story of Hagar and Sarah. What transpires in this story? What can we understand about Sarah’s actions? A close analysis of the text reveals a new understanding of this story, and an appreciation of Sarah’s great sacrifice.  

    Courtesy of www.tanachstudy.com

12. Family and Law

    Rabbanit Dr. Michal Tikochinsky