Avraham and the מלאכים
On which day after Avraham got a ברית מילה did the מלאכים come?
3rd
Why was לוט sitting by the gate of סדום?
He wanted to invite guests, as he had learned from Avraham (he had also been appointed an officer that day)
What happened to the entire household of אבימלך during the time he had taken Sarah?
No one was able to have a child. Even the chickens weren’t able to lay their eggs
How old was Avraham when Yitzchak was born?
100
How old was יצחק at the time of the עקידה?
37
Why did Avraham ask the guests to wash their feet?
He thought they were Arabs, who serve the dust. He didn’t want to bring עבודה זרה into his house
How did the people of סדום find out that לוט had invited guests, which was against the laws of סדום?
His wife went and asked her neighbor for salt. The neighbor asked why and she said because לוט had invited guests. The news quickly spread
What did Hashem say to אבימלך in the dream?
That he is חייב מיתה because Sarah is a married woman.
Hashem commanded him to return Sarah to Avraham
What did Hashem tell Avraham to do with הגר and ישמעאל?
To listen to what Sarah had said. Sarah had told Avraham to send them away because she saw ישמעאל doing bad things.
Why did the מלאך repeat Avraham’s name?
It is a language of being special, that he called his name twice. We find this by Yaakov and Moshe as well
What did Hashem tell Avraham that Sarah had said, which Sarah had not actually said, and why?
Hashem said that Sarah said האף אמנם אלד ואני זקנתי. Sarah had said ואדני זקן. Hashem changed it to maintain peace. Chazal say that maintaining peace is so important that it may be permitted to change the אמת
Why did Hashem want to tell Avraham what was going to happen to סדום?
Because Avraham was going to get all of these things, including these cities, and now they were going to be destroyed - and Avraham shouldn’t know?
Why did Avraham travel to גרר?
Since the nearby cities were destroyed, there weren’t many travelers and not a lot of guests
Rashi says a second explanation, that Avraham wanted to distance himself from לוט
Where do we see Avraham’s tremendous devotion to doing what Hashem wanted?
The passuk says וישכם אברהם בבקר - he got up early. Even though it was hard for him, he still did it immediately
We see this by the עקידה as well
When was the ram which Avraham shechted created?
During ששת ימי בראשית
Why were three מלאכים sent?
A מלאך can only do one job at a time. One was sent to give the news that Sarah would have a child. One was sent to destroy סדום. One was sent to heal Avraham - after the מלאך רפאל did this, he went to save לוט
When the מלאכים told לוט what they were doing, what mistake did they make?
They said כי משחיתים אנחנו - it is Hashem Who would destroy. There is a Medrash which says that these two מלאכים got in trouble and were not allowed back into שמים for many years
What is one of the reasons the parsha of Avraham davening for אבימלך is followed by Avraham and Sarah having a child?
Chazal say that if a person davens for their friend for something, and he himself needs that same thing, he will be answered first. It is a tremendous strength in בין אדם למקום to daven for someone else
Why did Hashem help them הגר and ישמעאל?
At that moment in time, ישמעאל davened to Hashem, and Hashem accepted his tefillos.
Even if a person is a רשע, Hashem judges them by what they are doing at the present. So even though ישמעאל was a רשע, he was doing teshuvah now and davening
Where did Avraham have a נבואה that both he and Yitzchak would return?
Avraham said to Eliezer and Yishmael ונשובה אליכם. He should’ve said ואשוב. He had a נבואה that indeed both would return
What is similar about the day that the מלאכים came to Avraham and something which will happen in the future?
The sun was removed from its covering. Normally there is a covering which blocks most of the heat, so that the world doesn't burn up. On this day, Hashem removed the sun so that Avraham wouldn't be bothered.
Chazal say by the goyim sitting in the sukkos לעתיד לבוא that Hashem will take the sun out of its covering
What is the difference between the names of the children of לוט's daughters, and why is it significant?
The older daughter was not צנועה in naming the child מואב. Therefore, many years later, when Hashem instructed Moshe Rabbeinu about not fighting with עמון or מואב, Hashem said we should not fight or pain עמון, but we should not fight with מואב - we can cause them pain however
What "curse" did Avimelech give to Sarah which eventually happened to יצחק?
He said to her הנה הוא לך כסות עינים - behold he is for you a covering of the eyes. Chazal give this as one of the reasons יצחק became almost blind in his later years, in Parshas Toldos
Which person from last week's parsha thought he would get all of Avraham's possessions, and when Yitzchak was born, everyone made fun of him? (Hint: הנפילים)
עוג מלך הבשן
Og thought that he would be able to take Avraham's possessions by force because he had no children. When Yitzchak was born, the other kings started to taunt him. Og wanted to see this miracle for himself
What are two explanations of what הר המוריה means?
It is a language of הוראה, or ruling. The Sanhedrin sat in the beis hamikdash, and from there, the Jews received proper halachic decisions
It is a language of מורא, or fear. When the בית המקדש stood and the Jews were doing what they were supposed to, even the non-Jews had fear of the Jews
Onkeles translates it as a language of עבודה, which Rashi says is referring to the קטרת