Devar/5770/Vayera
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< Devar | 5770
עברית
English
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore (Gen 22:17)
Similar to what He said in last week's portion (Gen 15:5), He promised Abraham that he would have very numerous offspring -- "as the stars of the heaven". In the portion last week, He said to Avram that he should count the stars if he could, and "so will your seed be".
Why did He ask this of Abraham? It was known even in the most ancient times that the number of stars visible to the eye -- though not a small number -- doesn't exceed two thousand or so. Anyone who is neither extremely smart or dull can count all the visible stars. So what indeed is the praise King David sang of God: He counteth the number of the stars; He giveth them all their names (Ps 147:4)? I too can count to two-thousand!
The Rambam explains to us in the Laws of the Fundamentals of Torah (4:19) that when we deeply contemplate God's works, and investigate and understand them -- then we are able to achieve love and fear of Him. It is known from scientific investigation that were one able to count one star every second, without stopping, even a period two-thousand times longer than the age of the universe (according to scientists, approximately 13 billion years) would not suffice to count them all. Certainly, such a task is beyond the abilities of flesh and blood! When Abraham was shown by prophetic vision, the true reality -- that there are not a few thousand, but an uncountable number of stars -- he understood that the Holy One blessed is He did not want to inform him he would have thousands of descendants. He wanted, may He be blessed, to inform him that it would be impossible to count them! Because, every person who comes to nestle under the wings of the Divine Presence is counted among the descendants of Abraham our forefather of blessed memory, and no human can peer into the thoughts of others and know their minds. Only One is there "Who counteth the number of the stars, Who giveth them all their names".
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