Torah 101-Toldot

I.

ANSWERS TO LAST WEEKS STUDY QUESTIONS (from Chayei

Sarah)

1) Question for Genesis 23:

We know that initially Ephron the Hittite was willing to give Abraham land for free,
but when he was pressed to name a price, was that final price reasonable? How can
we know one way or the other?
Commentary on 23:15 from Bible.ort.org:
A shekel was a unit of weight, equal to 22.8 grams or 0.8 ounces. A silver shekel was
therefore a little smaller than a silver dollar, and worth around $1.00. Abraham
therefore paid 20 pounds of silver, or about $400 for the cave. Considering land
values at the time, this was highly excessive. Thus, for example, King Omri paid only
6000 shekels for the entire territory of Samaria (1 Kings 16:25), and Jeremiah paid
only 17 shekels for a property that was at least as large as Makhpelah Field (Jeremiah
32:9). For comparison, according to the Hammurabi Code of that time, a year's wage
for a working man was between six and eight shekels.
LEPHRON (lacking a VAV) 23:16 = TO EPHRON. Commentary from Stone, p.
109: ( To Ephron) Throughout this chapter, Ephrons name is spelled with a
VAV, but here, where money changed hands and the sale was consummated, the
VAV is omitted. Thereby Torah implies that his stature was diminishedhe started
out by making grandiose offers of a gift but then revealed himself as a greedy man
who extorted far more than the land was worth.
2) Question for Genesis 24:
How does the information in Genesis 24:15-16 help prove the rabbis wrong and (to
some extent) the Christians right about Yeshayahu 7:14?
NAARABEYTULA (24:15-16) = maidenvirgin. This usage brings us squarely
into the debate about a virgin birth in in Isaiah 7:14. The rabbis there use a word for
maiden as if to suggest she was not a virgin being prophesied to give birth to a son
who is Messiah. Christians counter that there is nothing miraculous about a young
woman conceiving and giving birth to a son with a common Hebrew name, making
the maiden meaning less likely in their eyes which a virgin birth is a miraculous
sign. This verse shows that the cultural assumption is that a maiden is in fact a
virginespecially when unmarriedunless the text specifically says otherwise.
3) Question for Genesis 25:1-18:

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Even before Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father Abraham there were
signs that some attempt at reconciliation was underway. What were those signs and
why did the attempt fail?
The answer is my Bonus Torah Thought for the Week that I gave last week on Scroll
to Scroll:
Isaac and Ishmael: The Summit that Failed

Isaac is a patriarch that I personally find fascinating. As we will see next week, I call
Isaac the Quiet Patriarch because relatively speaking, when compared with
Abraham and Jacob, there doesnt seem to be a lot going on. But I also think, again
anticipating our discussion next week, that said quietness is by design and evidence of
a righteous heart and deliberate planning from a brilliant mind that thinks things
through in the long term. Isaac is, in his own way, an unheralded genius.
Right now though what I would like to focus on is Isaac the behind-the-scenes leader.
He doesnt need a lot, but he surely earns what he has. Take his wife Rebeccahis
ONE wife Rebeccawho is more than enough for him. He loves her from the
moment he lays eyes on her to the moment she dies. This is his soul mateperiod
and end of story. How many of us can say that?
But Isaac also is clearly different than his father Abraham. Whereas Abraham
regretfully sent Ishmael away and seems to have moved on from that point with little
consideration for that part of the family afterwards, Isaac stands apart as a man and
leader who wants to check in on his step-mom and half-brother. The text is also as
seemingly quiet about the low key way it mentions these facts. Isaac settles in
Gerar or he lives in Beer ha Laroi but never Isaac was checking in on the
abandoned part of his family in the regions of Gerar and Beer ha Laroi. Maybe thats
because Isaac wanted it that way perhaps.
Isaac is in fact so subtle that we have determine his deeds not from the direct
references of them, but the effect those deeds had on other events in Genesis. Again,
the Torah doesnt trumpet this, but maybe it should. Isaac could have settled
anywherebut chose this particular region because he had a long-term agendaone
of reconcilement I believeand this was step 1 in carrying that agenda out.
One need only look at Ishmael to see the effects of Isaacs planning. After all, the
Torah is quite vocal about Ishmael being a wild ass of a man who fights with his
brothers but for whatever reason, it never says he fought specifically with Isaac!
Isnt that interesting?
But then, Ishmael becomes an archer and marries a pagan Egyptian woman, which
would further separate him from his Abrahamic ties and put him more in the direction
of his mothers ancestry. Isaac, for his part, could have written Ishmael off for that

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very reasonbut he didnt. Instead, he seems to have just set up his tents next door
to Hagar and Ishmael and waited.
It is, if I am reading between the lines correctly, a brilliant strategy. Isaac probably
knows that Hagar and Ishmael have ongoing resentments against his parents,
Abraham and Sarah. Rather than try to go around his parents wishes however,
Isaac simply waits for them to die and then he conveniently makes himself available
for his estranged relations to see if they will contact him.
When Abraham then at last dies at age 175and this is 33 years after his mother
Sarah diednext thing we know this happens:
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These are all the years of Abraham's life that he lived, one hundred and seventyfive years. 8 Abraham breathed his last and died in a ripe old age, an old man and
satisfied with life; and he was gathered to his people. 9 Then his sons Isaac and
Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of
Zohar the Hittite, facing Mamre, 10 the field which Abraham purchased from the
sons of Heth; there Abraham was buried with Sarah his wife. 11 It came about
after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac lived by
Beer-lahai-roi. (Genesis 25:7-11 NAU)
So after Isaac gets his brother Ishmael to help him bury their father, Isaac is blessed
by Abba YHWH and (coincidentally?) the first thing Isaac does is relocate to where
Ishmael is. In this light, the intent seems clear: Isaac had just re-connected with his
brother after many years and he wants to be accessible to him moving forward. Good
move for Isaac!
But, as good as Isaacs intentions were, we also know that he failed, but not for lack
of trying on his part. Ishmael, for whatever reason, did not reciprocate the olive
branch given to him by his brother.
Now some of you out there may say Of course, for such was prophesied but that
sort of misses the point. It may have been predicted, but Isaac still acted as if there
was a chance to change history for the better. He didnt throw up his hands in
disgust, nor does he appeared to have expressed frustration when his efforts
ultimately proved fruitless. For Isaac, I believe, it was enough that he made the effort
and did his best. Its a powerful lesson, but also a very quiet one.
4) Haftorah Question of the Week: 1 Kings 1:1-31
What does this Haftorah portion teach us about David and Bathsheba in their twilight
years?
I believe it teaches us that both David and Bathsheba have thoroughly repented of
their previous sins. David is not tempted in the slightest with the young girl who is
given to him to keep him warm and Bathsheba totally trusts David with her.
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Bathsheba also is very much a believer in Davids throne and is determined to keep
his legacy going. She is, in essence, both submissive and assertive to her husband at
the same time, whereas before Bathsheba obviously did not feel that same loyalty to
her first husband Uriah.

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II.

QUESTIONS FOR THIS TORAH PORTION (Toldot)

Please NOTE:

For clarity and time constraints, if I elect to not read the whole parsha (which
is the case this week) I may still ask questions relating to the portions I did not
read!
5) Question for Genesis 25:19-26:35
Where is ha-satan hidden in this portion?
6) Question for Genesis 27:
Jacob and Joseph will share a particular physical aspect that is rather irregular for
their ethnic group. What is it?
7) Question for Genesis 28:
What is the greatest prophecy here and what is its significance?
8) Haftorah Question of the Week: Malachi 1:1-2:7
Where is a major calendar clue hiding in plain sight?
9) Renewed Covenant Commentary: Romans 9:6-16
Romans 9:6
Not all Israelites after the flesh (physical birth) are the Israel of Elohim; see Galatians
6:16. The next two verses affirm this; it is not the children of the flesh who are the
children of Elohim, but the children of the promise are accounted for the seed.
Therefore, regardless if a person is born Jewish, Israelite or otherwise, the seed of
promise are those who enter into the Malchut (Kingdom) of Elohim in Y'shua and
permit Torah to be written upon their hearts.
Romans 9:10
Extra note: Our father Yitzchak. In Acts 18:2, the Emperor Claudius expelled all
Jews from Rome, but there is uncertainty as to exactly when the ban was lifted and
when Jews returned to that city. If Paul then is addressing the very small number of
Jews that remain in the city, it speaks to the original Torah-observant nature of that
assembly before it was taken over by Gentiles. However, if Paul is speaking to
Gentiles, it affirms his literal belief that they becomes part of the physical seed of
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Abraham when embracing Mashiyach and Torah observance! Either way, this little
aside from Paul carries huge implications that go contrary to what is taught in
traditional Catholic and Protestant systems.
Romans 9:13
Extra note: Yaakov I have loved but Esau I have hated. In spite of the horrible
bungling of Jacob and his mother, it was nevertheless prophesied that the greater will
serve the younger. Esaus frustration is understandable, because he was not well
served in that he was forced to grow up in ignorance of his true standing as being
secondary to Jacob. It would surely have been better if Esau was informed of this
much earlier and in a much more caring manner. And so, without realizing it, Esau
goes through years of hatred and torment over his brother that is unwarranted in the
sense that it does not turn back Abba YHWHs decision to demote Jacob. By working
then against that prophetic plan, Esau earns this level of enmity, but I would like to
believe, going beyond Malachi 1:2, that Esau becomes loved once more when he
reconciles with Jacob later on. Unfortunately though, Esaus descendants will not
follow his example, making their line hated once more.

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