<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">A few points to ponder and questions on the parsha.</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">28:12 - Baal Haturim has very fascinating (chassidish?) pshat dh: Sulam</font></font></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">(the 2nd and 3rd). Ayin shom a few interesting ladder ideas.</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">28:19 – Luz. </font></font></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">The Midrash 69:8 says that the Malach Hamoves had no power in the city of Luz. So what happened to the senior citizens who were well past their use-by dates?
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Simple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>They were placed outside the walls of the city – where they died.</font></font></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">(Sounds a bit like the Eskimo solution..)</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Would this be the first published example of institutionalized euthanasia?</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">28:20 Baal HaTurim quotes a Yalkut Shimoni that the malach that battled Yaakov (next week's parsha) was Michoel!</font></font>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">The YS adds that the RBSO - kaveyochol - said to him - sarcastically - "You REALLY did nice - making my Kohen Gadol (i.e Yaakov) a baal mum..."
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Even stranger is the continuation of that Midrash saying that Michoel's punishment was that he had to become the Kohen Gadol in heaven !
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">This is all pretty puzzling stuff as for what reason would Michoel have battled with Yaakov Avinu? </font></font></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">(Although if it was Michoel - it makes sense why Yaakov Avinu demanded a brocho from the malach before letting him go, which is harder to understand when learning that story according to Rashi that the usual of that malach was the Samech Mem - saroy shel Esav.)
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">29:11 - Vayishak Yaakov leRochel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>2 pesukim later re Lavan kissing Yaakov "Veynashek Lo".
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Is there any difference between 'vayishak' and 'vaynashek'?</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">29:32 - Rashi dh Vatikra shemo Reuven - 'Omro re'u ma bein beni leben chami...'</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">The first obvious question is, the Torah gives a clear reason why Leah called him Reuven - 'ki ro'o Hashem be'onyi', so why is Rashi giving a different reason - which is also difficult to understand as Yosef, who is a main feature of this - was yet to be born...
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Also, reading Rashi, one could ask was the matter of the bechoreh the ONLY or most important difference between Reuven and the rasha Esav!?
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">To those of you for whom these questions may cause sleeplessness, may I suggest that they look up the source of this Rashi - Brochos 7b.
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">There the gemoro elaborates on the explanation of the bechoreh.</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Re the second question, see the Maharsho (chidushei Agados) and the peirush 'Hakosev' on Ein Yaakov - a beautiful piece talking about 'shmo goram' and which IMHO inadvertently brings a raya from the Torah itself on what is commonly mentioned that a father has a cetain Ruach hakodesh when naming his child.
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">(And as he also explains the name of Ruth, it may seem that even her father the Moabite - also may have had some degree of nevuah when naming her !
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">30-8 Naftulei Elokim Niftalti - Rashi mention sthat Unkelos teitches it miloshon Tefila.</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">I see that the Ikkar Sifsei Chachomim explains that we swap around the letters and place the tav before the pei - as in the word tefila.
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">But what I learned from this (by trying to check up what the 'full-flavoured' Sifsie Chachomim has to say about this - and finding noth at all) is that the ISCh is lav davka a kitzur form of the SCh and is in fact a separate sefer.
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">Does anyone know who the mechaber of this work was? </font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">30:27 Rashi dh Nichashti says that the proof that Lavan had no sons until Yaakov arrived was the fact that he sent Rochel to the well with his sheep,
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">But we see that his father Besuel who did have a son - Lavan - still sent his sister Rivka to do the same thing...?</font></font>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">31:33 - The Baal haTurim has a vort from his father - the Rosh.</font></font></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">31:34 - Am I understanding it correctly that Rochel was sitting on her cvamel INSIDE the tent? And if so, was/is this the done thing - having camels in the tent that you live?
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<div class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New">SBA</font></font></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font size="2"><font face="Courier New"><a href="mailto:sba@sba2.com">sba@sba2.com</a></font></font></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><font face="Courier New" size="2"><a href="mailto:sbasba@gmail.com">sbasba@gmail.com</a></font></div>
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