Shabbos Parashas Lech Lecha - 5780

Shabbos Parashas Lech Lecha - 5780

Rabbi Hal Miller

There was a famine in the land and Avram descended to Egypt to

sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. [Bereshis 12:10]

God appeared to Avram in Ur Kasdim and told him to go to a place that He

would indicate. Avram began wandering until one day God told him, this is

the place I am giving to you and your descendants, the land of Canaan.

Then comes our verse. Why did God bring a famine just as Avram arrived?

Why does the Torah tell us twice in the verse that there was famine in the

land? Why did Avram then take off to "sojourn" in Egypt, away from where

God had just sent him?

Rashi tells us that this famine was a test for Avraham. Would he question

God's plan if it involved this kind of change so quickly? Rav Soloveitchik

agrees that it was a test, but says the purpose is a little different, when he

writes, "to test how Avraham would react to Egyptian culture and civilization.

Would he be overwhelmed and succumb to Egyptian society, to its ideals,

its philosophy, its views? Or would Avraham resist and emerge triumphant,

keeping his faith?" But perhaps Rashi and the Rav actually agree, since

Rashi notes that the famine, according to the replication in our verse, only

occurred in this one land, an obviously Divinely-inspired event.

According to Rashi's test-Avraham theory, Avraham passed. But Rav Hirsch

sees this verse differently. He believes that Avraham failed, and in fact

was punished for it. Rav Hirsch agrees that it was a test for Avraham, but

if Avraham truly believed in God, he would not have seen a need to leave

his new land and head for Egypt. True faith would include believing that

God would provide for him, and he would have stuck around. This opinion

demonstrates the very fine line between faith and hishtadlus, the

requirement that we believe as though God will take care of everything

but act as though it all falls on us to do things by natural means.

What was accomplished by this famine and Avraham's travels to Egypt?

Because of the famine, there was apparently not enough forage for

the herds of both Avraham and Lot, so they split up. One result of our

verse is that Lot and his followers were separated away from Avraham.

A second result, often mentioned, is that Avraham "paved the way" for

his descendants in the future relocation to Egypt in the time of Avraham's

grandson Yaakov. Exactly what this means is a big topic, for another day.

The third result is that we learn of the need to get up and do, not to just

sit and wait for someone (God or other) to take care of us. We have

responsibilities in this world, and must perform them as part of our

belief in God.