Parshat Vayera

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Three angels visit Abraham, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the birth of Isaac, and the Binding of Isaac (the Akedah). Genesis 18:1-22:24.

Isaac's Vision

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:72

According to Legends of the Jews, Isaac's alarm wasn't just a feeling; it was a vision. He saw Gehinnom, hell itself, practically clinging to Esau's heels! The moment Esau stepped ...

Hell/GehennaPatriarchsTorahMessiah

Esau's Transgression and Isaac

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:73

The scene is set: Isaac, old and blind, intends to bless his elder son, Esau. But through a clever ruse orchestrated by his mother, Rebekah, Jacob receives the blessing instead. Im...

Hell/GehennaPatriarchsEstherPrayer

Isaac's Legacy of Esau

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:75

We all know the story: Jacob, with a little help from his mother Rebecca, receives the blessing intended for his older brother Esau. Understandably, Esau isn’t thrilled. He’s furio...

PatriarchsPrayer

Isaac's Transgression and Esau

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:77

Take Isaac's blessings to his sons, Esau and Jacob. On the surface, they seem like simple pronouncements of fortune, but scratching beneath the surface reveals a complex theology a...

HeavenPatriarchsJobPrayer

Isaac: Jacob's Transgression

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:84

After Jacob, disguised as his brother Esau, received Isaac's blessing, a lesser man might have tried to retract it. But Isaac, despite the deception, understood the weight of what ...

PatriarchsPrayer

Faith of Esau

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:163

He's got his family, his flocks, and a whole lot of baggage—emotional and otherwise. He's facing the very real possibility of a showdown with his estranged brother, Esau, and the c...

AngelsPatriarchsHoly Land

Jacob Wrestles the Angel and Michael

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:189

We find ourselves in that very situation with Jacob, our patriarch, fresh off his epic nocturnal struggle. The scene opens right after the wrestling match, where Michael, no less –...

HeavenAngelsPatriarchsMysticism

Levi Wrestles the Angel

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:193

Remember him? One of Jacob's sons? According to Legends of the Jews, Michael, the archangel himself, took Levi up to heaven! Imagine that for a moment. A whirlwind trip to the cele...

CreationHeavenAngelsPatriarchs

Judah in Battle and Isaac

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 6:231

That's the scene as described in Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg, drawing upon a wealth of midrashic and talmudic sources. The story unfolds with Judah, ever the fiery leader...

HeavenPatriarchs