This parsha, Vayeira (Genesis/Bereshiet chapters 18 through 22) is probably one of the most…
…Critical, Prophetic, Demonstrative, Fundamental… (and so on!) in all of Scripture.
In the Erev Shabbat overlook look at the entire section, Mark explores why. From Sarah’s prophetic “laughter” at hearing she would bear a son at a ripe old age, to the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah, and “righteous Lot”, to one of the most important “tests” (or is it?) in the Book, this parsha has a LOT to consider.
This parsha is not only of the the Mostest of all of those various things outlined above, from prophetic to fundamental, it is also one of the most CONTROVERSIAL. Was Abraham REALLY asked by the Creator of the Universe to commit the heinous sin/crime of murder, or even human sacrifice? Certainly there have been no shortage of attempts to rationalize, justify, or even explain away a Torah-contradiction like that.
If you’ve heard Mark’s previous commentaries on this parsha, you know that this ‘test’ is nothing of the sort, and that is clear from the context, and the Text. But there is SO MUCH MORE, here. And so many ways that the Author has vowen together in this narrative, the prophetic fulfillment(s!) that follow, and in challenges that STILL confound us today, a message that has never been more apropos, or important.
Don’t miss this one!
“Laughter – and Waiting!”
The combined two-part teaching is here, available for download as well:
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