Reply To: Short & Sweet

Chayei Sarah: Be You

When it came time to find a wife for Yitzchak, Avraham seemed to have the perfect choice right under his nose: his top disciple Eliezer had a daughter. Yet Avraham refused to even consider this option, saying only “I am ברוך and you are ארור”. What is that supposed to mean?

R’ Ahron Lopiansky points out that the word ברכה actually means to increase. We refer to a ברכה as a blessing only as a kind of shorthand; an increase in one’s physical possessions or spiritual abilities is indeed a blessing.

Yitzchok was not supposed to be just another Avraham. He was his own man, with his own special way of serving Hashem. That is the very definition of ברוך. By contrast, Eliezer was דולה ומשקה מתורתו של אברהם, only a repetition of what Avraham said and who Avraham was. Avraham refused to consider Eliezer’s daughter for Yitzchok because he needed a spouse that valued originality.

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