(Yes, that's the title of the whole collection.) It's a wild ride through the aggadah – the stories, the embellishments, the "filling in the blanks" that surrounds the more straightforward text of the Torah.
So, Pharaoh. He's got his eye on Sarah. She is, after all, strikingly beautiful. But wouldn’t you know it, shortly after taking Sarah into his house, a terrible plague descends upon Pharaoh and his entire household! Talk about bad luck, right?
Pharaoh, naturally, is frantic. He needs to figure out what's causing this divine displeasure, and fast. So, he calls in his priests. Think of them as the ancient Egyptian equivalent of consultants. And after some… consultation, they realize the plague is connected to Sarah. But how?
Well, Sarah, in a moment of courageous honesty (and maybe a little bit of "I told you so"), confirms what the priests suspect: she's married. And not just to anyone. She's married to Abraham, a man blessed by the Almighty.
According to Legends of the Jews, Pharaoh then sends for Abraham immediately. He returns Sarah, untouched. Can you imagine the relief? He even offers a rather flimsy excuse, claiming he thought Abraham was just her brother and that he intended to marry into the family. Smooth, Pharaoh, real smooth.
To smooth things over even further, Pharaoh showers Abraham and Sarah with gifts. (Hey, sometimes guilt comes with perks!) And after a three-month stay in Egypt, which I imagine was quite tense, Abraham and Sarah leave for Canaan.
It makes you wonder, doesn't it? What if Pharaoh hadn't been struck by the plague? What if he hadn't listened to his priests? The whole narrative hinges on this moment of divine intervention. It’s a reminder that sometimes, the smallest details, the most unexpected twists, can alter the course of destiny.