Toldot, תּוֹלְדֹת - Generations
Torah Portion: Genesis 25:19-28:9
Genesis 25:19–26:5
25:19 This is the history of the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son. Abraham became the father of Isaac. 20 Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban the Syrian, to be his wife. 21 Isaac entreated Hashem for his wife, because she was barren. Hashem was entreated by him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 The children struggled together within her. She said, “If it is like this, why do I live?” She went to inquire of Hashem. 23 Hashem said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb.
Two people will be separated from your body.
Some people will be stronger than others.
The elder will serve the younger.”
24 When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first came out red all over, like a hairy garment. They named him Esau. 26 After that, his brother came out, and his hand had hold on Esau’s heel. He was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.
27 The boys grew. Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field. Jacob was a quiet man, living in tents. 28 Now Isaac loved Esau, because he ate his venison. Rebekah loved Jacob. 29 Jacob boiled stew. Esau came in from the field, and he was famished. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with some of that red stew, for I am famished.” Therefore, his name was called Edom.
31 Jacob said, “First, sell me your birthright.”
32 Esau said, “Behold, I am about to die. What good is the birthright to me?”
33 Jacob said, “Swear to me first.”
He swore to him. He sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew. He ate and drank, rose up, and went his way. So Esau despised his birthright.
26 There was a famine in the land, in addition to the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, to Gerar. 2 Hashem appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt. Live in the land I will tell you about. 3 Live in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you. For I will give to you, and to your offspring, all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. 4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the sky, and will give all these lands to your offspring. In your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed, 5 because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my requirements, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
Today’s Meditations:
In the last few verses of today’s reading, we see Hashem promising to Isaac the land (Israel) and the people. And in the very last verse, He explains this because Abraham followed “Hashem’s commandments, statutes and laws.” You may wonder, like I did, how this could be. The Law has not yet been given on Mt. Sinai.
But maybe it has. The Law is eternal. It has always been and will always be. So, it was given to man beginning with Adam. Maybe not in its entirety, but progressively. Remember, Abel sacrificed an animal. So did others. There were also clean and unclean animals entering the ark. We see many glimpses of the Law up to this point. If the Law is eternal, we'd better be following it to the best of our ability today.
Today’s Challenge:
We are just beginning to learn about the Law, the Commandments of Hashem. Today, I challenge you to consider whether you are obligated to follow the Commandments. And I am not just talking about the Ten Commandments, but ALL of them. Of course, there are some we cannot follow today, like those regarding the Temple or priestly duties. Think and pray about this. As we continue to read the Torah this year, we gain a deeper understanding of the Law. It would be good if, in your heart, it is settled whether the Commandments are for you or not.
