What does it mean to own something? What gives us the right of possession? Sarah dies in Kiryat Arba (the City of the Four) and Abraham seeks an appropriate site to bury her. He approaches Ephron the Hittite to purchase the Cave of Machpelah which is nearby. Ephron is willing to give it to Abraham, but Abraham insists that he will pay for it. He will not accept it as a gift.
God has promised Abraham the Land of Israel and descendents as numerous as the stars, but at this point in his life Abraham owns no land and has only two children, Ishmael who he banished to the desert so only Yitzhak remains to inherit his mission. It seems that God’s promises will not be fulfilled.
Commenting on this verse Rabbi Robert Orkand, (contemporary America) writes, “ The covenant with Abraham—indeed with the Jewish people—is not that God will act to bring it about. Rather, God lays out the promise, but Abraham and his children must do the hard work to bring about the desired outcome… We are challenged by God to fulfill the covenant and our future will depend on our meeting that challenge.”
If we want to bring about the Divine vision of a world made right, where all human beings can live together in dignity, then we must work to make it real, just as Abraham worked to make the Cave of Machpelah his.
Chayei Sara, Genesis 23:1-25:18, Parshat Ha Shavua for Shabbat, Saturday, October 30, 2021
October 29, 2021 by Dean Kertesz • Drashot
What does it mean to own something? What gives us the right of possession? Sarah dies in Kiryat Arba (the City of the Four) and Abraham seeks an appropriate site to bury her. He approaches Ephron the Hittite to purchase the Cave of Machpelah which is nearby. Ephron is willing to give it to Abraham, but Abraham insists that he will pay for it. He will not accept it as a gift.
God has promised Abraham the Land of Israel and descendents as numerous as the stars, but at this point in his life Abraham owns no land and has only two children, Ishmael who he banished to the desert so only Yitzhak remains to inherit his mission. It seems that God’s promises will not be fulfilled.
Commenting on this verse Rabbi Robert Orkand, (contemporary America) writes, “ The covenant with Abraham—indeed with the Jewish people—is not that God will act to bring it about. Rather, God lays out the promise, but Abraham and his children must do the hard work to bring about the desired outcome… We are challenged by God to fulfill the covenant and our future will depend on our meeting that challenge.”
If we want to bring about the Divine vision of a world made right, where all human beings can live together in dignity, then we must work to make it real, just as Abraham worked to make the Cave of Machpelah his.
~Rabbi Dean Kertesz