This week’s Parashah covers Genesis 44:18 to 47:27. After 22 years of separation, Joseph and his brothers draw near to each other. After the brothers pass Joseph’s tricky tests of their moral character, he reveals himself to them as the brother they thought was dead. He forgives them, assuring them that everything that happened was…
This week’s Torah portion covers Genesis 41:1 to 44:17. The text follows Joseph’s meteoric rise from forgotten prisoner to the pharaoh’s chief economic advisor, second in command only to Pharaoh. It exposes Joseph as a brilliant leader as he secures Egypt’s food supply in preparation for the coming seven years of plenty followed by seven…
This week’ s parashah is Genesis 37:1 to 40:23. The text covers the first chapters in the long story of Joseph. The story of Joseph is one of the fullest narratives in the entire Torah. It has all the key elements of great literature: intrigue, a central hero, a dramatic backdrop, symbolism, and redemption. In…
This week’s parashah is Genesis 32:4 to Genesis 36:43. At the start of the text, we find our patriarch Jacob returning to the promised land after 22 years of living in Haran. That means it has been 22 years since he has faced his brother Esau. The whole episode is filled with suspense as a…
This week’s parsha is Genesis 28:10 to 32:3 This week’s Torah portion begins with Jacob leaving Beer Sheva for Harran. On the first leg of Jacob’s journey, he has a dream where angels are ascending and descending a ladder. God appears and gives Jacob the assurance that he too is a recipient of the special…
This week’s parsha is Genesis 25:19 to 28:9 Before the Bible enters into a long episode about Jacob, I want to give Isaac his proper due. He is the most mysterious of the patriarchs. We know very little about Isaac compared to his father Abraham or his son Jacob. Besides chosenness, what do we really…
This week’s parsha is Genesis 23:1 to 25:18 Parashah Chayei Sara covers an important event in Abraham’s faith journey. In Genesis 23, Abraham has lost his wife Sara. The details given are not about his mourning but rather the intricate negotiations between Abraham and the Hittites over a burial place for Sara. Considering this summer’s…
This week’s Parsha is Genesis 18:1 to Genesis 22:24 The question that has come up for millennia is why was Abraham chosen? Before Abraham, Noah was chosen, the Bible says, because he was perfect in his generation. Later, we know Moses was in a unique position to lead in that he was born the son of…
Read up for Next week’s Torah Portion: Vayera, Genesis 18:1 to Genesis 22:24