By Rav Reuven Tradburks Parshat Shemot The Jewish people are in Egypt. A new Paro is concerned with the size of the Jewish people. He decrees hard labor, infanticide and then actively drowning the male babies. Moshe is born, raised in Paro’s daughter’s home. After seeing the...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks Vayechi means life, yet the parsha begins with talk of death and ends with death. Yaakov demands to be buried in Israel. Yosef swears he will. Yaakov elevates his grandchildren, Ephraim and Menashe to be equal to his children as tribes settling...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks The Parasha begins in the middle of the story. Yosef has just told Yehuda and all the brothers that Binyamin, the thief, will become a slave to Yosef. All the others are free to leave. Our Parasha begins with Yehuda’s long and...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks Yosef ascends from jail to complete control of Egypt. Paro has a dream. The Butler remembers Yosef in jail. Yosef tells Paro of 7 impending years of plenty followed by 7 of famine. Yosef is appointed to manage the hoarding of food...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks The sale of Yosef in Parshat Vayeshev is one of the most famous stories of the Torah. Yaakov settles, finally, in the land of Israel. Yosef is favored. Yosef has 2 dreams. Yaakov sends Yosef to inquire of his brother’s welfare. The...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks Yaakov’s challenges never seem to end. He returns to the land of Israel. He is fearful of a confrontation with Esav. He prepares by dividing his entourage. A man fights him through the night, changing his name to Israel from Yaakov at...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks Our Parsha begins with Yaakov fleeing the land of Israel from Esav’s murderous intent and it concludes with his return to the land of Israel. He dreams as he leaves of a ladder reaching to Heaven with G-d promising that He will...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks This is the parsha of Yitzchak and Rivka’s life. Rivka has twins, Esav and Yaakov. Yaakov buys the birthright from Esav. Yitzchak goes to Gerar in a famine, is told not to leave the land, digs the wells Avraham dug and renews...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks Our Parsha is the transition from Avraham and Sarah to Yitzchak and Rivka; Sarah dies at the beginning of the parsha, Avraham toward the end. Avraham buys Maarat Hamachpela where Sarah is buried. Avraham directs his servant to travel to Avraham’s land...
By Rav Reuven Tradburks The Parsha introduces the Jewish people. Avraham journeys to the Land of Israel, is promised the land, spends time in Egypt due to a famine, separates from Lot due to their great wealth, and rescues Lot when he is taken captive in...
