יום רביעי, כ״ז אלול תשפ״וWednesday, September 9, 2026
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Neither Yosef nor Yehudah panicked. They did not know how the next parsha would begin, but they did know that the larger story had to have a happy ending.
The Maharal reconciles the two Gemaras by explaining that indeed, normally, it is necessary to broadcast the miracle to the outside.
When Tamar's life was threatened, she did not save herself by throwing Yehuda "under the bus".
The lighting of the menorah was one mitzvah among many mitzvot, arguably not even the most important mitzvah, that had come to be neglected under the oppression of the Seleucid Greeks.
We can say Modim for our health. What about for our car and for our phone? Most of us would be crippled, so to speak, if we were missing just one of these. We could also incorporate into our Modim prayer that we are able to pay the mortgage or pay the rent.
As internal conflict over the Hebrew clan's direction leads to tragic consequences for Yosef and Yehuda, each must discover his own messianic potential.
To become fully alive a person must have goals and aims that transcend himself. -Herbert A. Otto
The potency of a mitzvah lies in the individual’s optimal and enthusiastic execution of the mitzvah with all the proper kavanos (intentions), including mastery of the laws pertaining to this particular mitzvah, and consummating the mitzvah to fulfill the will of Hashem.
Do "clothes make the woman"?
From the outset, there was seething sibling rivalry that eventually erupted explosively. The sons of Leah regarded the sons of the maidservants Zilpah and Bilhah with disdain, and they hated Yosef.
Rashi brings from Chaza"l that the "Nachala" of Yaakov, as opposed to Avraham, is limitless.
The Torah is ambiguous regarding who, exactly, is right in this story. Did, indeed, the brothers go too far? Did Yaakov face a battle shortly thereafter, as one midrash indicates? Were they both right on some level?
As Yaakov returns back home to his land, he and his family are met with new challenges that ultimately transform them into the nation of Israel.
The Yaros Devash teaches us that Yerushalayim is called Kisei Hashem, the Throne of Hashem.
“Flattery is all right if you don't inhale.” -Adlai E. Stevenson
Ya'akov's youth resembles that of his passive and isolated[…] father, his adult life resembles the trials and tribulations of Abraham among the nations.
The Arizal finds not only this earthly, historic struggle in these passages but the roots of corruption in Creation.
R’ Dancziger points out that our sages tell us that before all else Yaakov Avinu prayed, not that he did teshuva. We would think that repentance would have been the more instinctive response if Yaakov Avinu thought he might have sinned. Why did he engage in prayer?
Before becoming Israel, Yaakov had to first spend several years in exile learning to be more like Esav.
Rashi suggests here that while Yaakov has faith that G-d will bring him back in one piece and that his children will inherit the land promised to his fathers, he does not know whether all of his children will be worthy of this promise.
He who knows he has enough is rich. -Lao-Tzu
If we are constantly looking for the ideal, we may never find it, but if we start doing the possible, we may find that the ideal is just down the road
Yaakov is now so confident in his newly acquired ability to protect himself from the scammers of the world, that he feels that he doesn’t need G-d’s help. So he heads straight for the web of deception in Charan. Something makes him pause, however.
There are people who, while they voice Hashem will help, they really put their trust solely in the doctor, or in the medicine, but not in Hashem.
It appears that we have circumstances where the day became dark, even though it was still daytime and, in contrast scenarios where there was light in the darkness. Both portend good for the Jewish nation.
Hashem’s bounty descends from the sources of His will, and the deeds of the tzaddik ascend from the dust of the earth from which we are all made.
Why does Yitzchak's blessing seem to start mid-sentence?
How do the character traits of Esav and Yaakov find expression in the rival civilizations they produced?
It seems that Rivkah understood that she had twins, but she thought that they belonged to the same nation. She worried that they were engaged in a civil war.
I am convinced that meeting Yitzchak was a much more intense experience than meeting Avraham.
Typically, when we think of Esav’s hatred for Yaakov, we don’t first think of the Roman Empire or about gentiles in general. In fact this relationship remains complicated, but ultimately our role of being a light unto the nations entails uplifting them as well.
Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet. -Albert Einstein
Who do we see coming to the aid of earthquake victims buried underneath rubble and crumbled buildings in all corners of the world? The little nation of Israel is the first to send assistance and personnel.
In the last few decades, the lowest estimation is that the elite and Ivy League colleges received eight billion dollars in Arab funding. A whopping four billion dollars came from Qatar, the source of the recently proclaimed ‘Global Day of Jihad.’
Yaakov and Esav each had a name from the ethical approach, a name that they chose for themselves through their actions.
Following her death, Sarah's powerful legacy continued to influence Avraham and play a major role in their family's development into a nation.
For six years I underwent dialysis until he arrived and saved me.
In this epic reunion, you have two multi-billionaires, each with a different life philosophy. Eisav’s is rav, a lot; Yaakov’s is kol, everything. How do they differ?
Avraham Avinu, who exemplified the attribute of kindness, purchased Me’arat HaMachpela as a final kindness to his beloved wife and to future generations of Israel.
A prayer in its simplest definition is merely a wish turned Godward. -Phillips Brooks
On the last daf of Sotah, the Talmud speaks of the generation preceding the arrival of Moshiach, and describes dismal conditions, concluding with the words, And upon what is there for us to rely? Only our Father in Heaven.
That Hagar went against her natural inclination and remained faithful to Avraham was a supreme exhibition of breaking her nature and doing good.
Avraham’s plan to outwit the angel of death did not work and for some reason Sarah tarried in Hebron, perhaps packing up the household in preparation of the move, and that is where the angel of death met her.
What can the dynamics between Yitzḥak and Yishmael in Parshat Vayeira teach us about Israel’s ideal relationship with the Muslim world?
It seems that we are living in a dream world. Reality is more outlandish than anything imaginable.
If you look beneath the surface of the story of the three angels visiting Avraham and the feast he served them, you will see it is a replica of a korban todah.
The nosei b’ol thinks about the wife of a soldier or his mother waiting in fear for the next text message to hear that they are still alive.
We should remember that though Avraham was the first Jew, Yitzchak was the first born Jew. In other words, a certain paradigm of Jewish existence is created by Yitzchak’s birth, a birth in total contradiction to the physical reality of other men.
There are times, mercifully limited in their frequency, when the servants of Hashem are tested and given an opportunity to transcend the base materialism and the limited perspective of, for example, the servants of Avraham who were left behind when he and Yitzchak proceeded to the akeida.
Every charitable act is a stepping stone toward heaven. -Henry Ward Beecher
We see how Divine Providence orchestrates everything from the beginning of creation until the end of time – always setting the stage for the future.
Every single person is a galaxy! Every person is a universe! When you look at another person, realize that he is like a star.
How the leader of a universal spiritual movement learned to reorient himself to the understanding that his goals for humanity could only be achieved through the vehicle of a nation in a specific land.
Not all of us are perfect, and some of us have veered far from the course.
It is therefore always a good idea to put a time limit on our negative emotions. Instead of just saying, 'It's very hard for me,' say 'It's very hard for me right now.'
History teaches us that it is a fatal mistake to become too comfortable in our surroundings and not to believe in an imminent redemption.
Why is Lot so important that Avraham took him along and risked his life to save him?
According to the Kedushat Levi, is what lies at the root of Avram’s question. He knows it is within the power of Hashem to miraculously multiply his offspring and he understands that Hashem has the right to give the Land to whomever He sees fit.
Certainly, Sarah possessed the “good eye” to facilitate the change in Hagar and to influence her to conduct herself in the proper way. But Hagar was not of the mindset to change her attitude, to yield to Sarah, and she fled to the desert.
Noah was commanded to empty the ark of its inhabitants, but why was he commanded?
Why does the Torah use the Name that connotes Divine mercy rather than Divine judgement when telling of the Creator's decision to destroy humankind? Could there be more to this story?
In Sodom the Hamas was so pervasive and in Mitzrayim the grip of slavery so unbreakable to the extent that nobody who lived in these societies had any hope for a better future.
But the Jews who are loyal to his Torah are compared to chol hayam, the sand of the sea that fells the waves and protects the land from their invasion.
We should beseech Hashem that the elderly and the sick children shouldn’t be woken up in the night to run to bomb shelters and sealed rooms.
How could it be that the animals did not attack Noach and his family, or kill each other? They comprised all different rungs in the food chain.
Our acts of chesed, our personal sacrifice and selfless dedication to others, our tzedakah, are all powerful advocates in Heaven on behalf of the defense of Eretz Yisrael.
It seems natural to him that the Torah would begin with the creation of the world. After all, the foundation of our beliefs and the basis for our election by the Creator for the purpose of carrying out His commandments is predicated upon the stories in the Torah that precede the Exodus.
HaShem's Divine Oneness and the harmonious unity of existence within Him is the deterministic blueprint of all human history that will be revealed to mankind through the story of Israel.
Adam HaRishon was so exalted that the angels wanted to sing his praises as they did for Hashem, yet he fell very low into sin and changed the course of humanity forever. Nevertheless, Hashem forgave Adam.
Now we know that the key to success is change. By changing, by bettering ourselves, we will reach our highest goals. And we also know what gives us the ability to change.
The lesson to us is as follows: It is critical and crucial for us to realize that each and every person is a constellation! Every single person is a galaxy! Every person is a universe!
The Torah is not merely some disjointed ritual precepts but rather the Divine Ideal from before existence placed into this reality for the sake of elevating our world beyond its current limitations.
While it is true that a tzaddik can stumble and sin, when he does falter he immediately picks himself up and repents.
The pasuk completely blows us away with the statement that the enemy will come Ka-asher yideh hanesher – Like the eagle sweeps, a perfect description of the sudden attack of two widespread huge airliners.
Some of his most important contributions to Jewish mysticism are in the form of diagrams that were particularly unsuited to widespread transmission by the technology of his era.
Just as the essence of Shavuot is completely different from the essence of Pesach, so too the essence of Shemini Atzeret is completely different from the essence of Sukkot.
It's the story of two girls in Auschwitz who wanted to fast on Yom Kippur (even though according to halacha or Jewish law they were not, of course, required to do so).
It is especially at the time of harvest, when we celebrate the abundance of our crops, that the Torah instructs us to leave our secure homes and go into the succah. The succah commemorates the Clouds of Glory, and alludes to the Divine Providence that enveloped the Jewish Nation in the Midbar.
We must know that the Gemara teaches us, Yitzro shel adam misgaber alav b’chol yom v’im ein HaKodosh Baruch Hu ozro, eino yachol lo – A person’s inclination prevails upon him every day and if Hashem wouldn’t help him, he wouldn’t be able to prevail.
One who fully comprehends higher truth understands that there are many valid approaches to achieving such awareness, and he loves and respects his fellow who shares this vision but who might have a different individual perspective.
Stories and thoughts for Sukkot.
What does this have to do Yom Kippur?
Human history – like any great piece of literature – presents a story that is not only inspiring and dramatic on the surface but also allegorically rich with hidden meaning and deep moral lessons.
Although it is difficult to imagine, it seems that Dovid HaMelech – the exalted individual, leader of the Jewish nation, fearless warrior of Hashem – was afraid that he had possibly accrued so many sins that he could no longer repent.
Many of us, after making an honest and blunt cheshbon hanefesh, a personal reevaluation of our behavior during the past year, might be filled with despair and despondency at our chances for a good judgment.
All of this would be true even if it were not so that a general education is required for gaining an appreciation of G-d’s wisdom, philosophy, ethics, and laws.
The heavens have been programmed by G-d to supply rain. Instructing them not to do so is against their nature. It is only harsh and insistent words that will convince the heavens to go against their own nature.
Rav Kook examines the opening concepts of the parsha: The heavens should listen, the earth will hear, teachings fall like rain and sayings soak in as the dew. He explains that in our world, we find things in a pure state of nature and we also see them altered by the intervention of men.
Hashem wants us to visit Him every day, to have a loving daily connection with Him and to ask Him for what we need. A relationship that even when we have what we need, we continue to visit the palace.
Moshe relates that people are now coming into the store to talk about the sign, but not to seek an apology.
When we ask Hashem on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur for renewed life and menuchas hanefesh, a contentment of spirit, our petition is much more effective and successful if we give Hashem a strong reason to grant our request.
Even at a time of such great danger, he forgot his own pain and suffering and only desired to be involved in a heavenly pursuit. It is that devotion that stirred the mercy of Heaven, saving him and all the passengers from certain death.
I just want to ask a simple question. Who said anything about tying Yitzchak up? Hashem certainly didn’t tell Avraham to tie Yitzchak up; He told him to offer Yitzchak as an olah.
On Rosh Hashana we blow the shofar, recite distinctive prayers, and perform Tashlich to recognize the Creator of the Universe as the source of all mercy and forgiveness.
Hakhel was not performed on the Shemittah year, but rather in the year that followed.
More than merely fostering personal piety among Jews, tshuva that begins with a reawakening of Hebrew identity will lead Israel to express kedusha in every sphere of national life.
This night proved that Judaism does not belong only to grandma, but also to her grandchildren.
September 4, 2026 
