KMTT - the Torah Podcast

Vayishlach | 5786 | Thus says the Lord God Concerning Edom, by Rav Eli Weber

What was Esav's plan? Who is Edom?

Vayishlach | Hegemonism or Conquest? by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

ולזרעך נתתי את הארץ - What was at the core of Yaakov's dispute with his sons after the massacre of Sh'khem?

Continuously throughout Sefer Bereishit, our Patriarchs are promised by Hashem that their descendants will be "given" the Land - but there is no indication of how that gift will be given, of how that "inheritance" will be achieved. We explore what may have been the perspective of our Avot in that regard - and how and why it changed by the time we arrived in Mitzrayim.

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Vayetze | Back to Gerar (The Parenthetic Statement), by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

How do we explain the references to Avraham having passed away in Beresheet 26 if, as proposed, this narrative cycle took place before Yaakov and Esav were born (i.e. well before Avraham passed on).

As a follow-up to our shiur about Gerar and my argument that the events described in Bereishit 26:1-33 took place during the twenty years of Yitzchak and Rivka's childlessness, several thoughtful and pointed challenges were raised by podcast listeners and participants in the shiur. By surveying and classifying the various types of parenthetic statements in Biblical narrative, we respond to these challenges and, thereby, explain two anomalous verses (v. 15 and v. 18) in the Gerar narrative.

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And Thou Knowest No God but Me | Vayetze | 5786, by Rav Eli Weber

Hoshea 12:13-14:10. On the difficulties in the Jews' relationship with God

Yet I Love Yaakov. And I Hated Esav | Toldot | 5786, by Rav Eli Weber

Malachi 1:1-2:7. How should we worship God?

Toldot | The Gerar Conundrum, by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

What happened during Yitzchak and Rivka's twenty years of childlessness?

In reading through the presentation of Yitzchak's life in Parashat Toldot, there seems to be a disconnect between the opening narratives of the birth and early years of Yaakov and Esav, and the subsequent narrative cycle of Yitzchak and Rivka in Gerar (chapter 26:1-33). We propose what at first seems to be a revolutionary explanation for the puzzles this sequencing raises - but, on further reflection, note that it is built upon an approach that is well-anchored in rabbinic sources.

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Chayei Sara | Ketura and the Sons of the East, by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

Why Ketura? As the story of Avraham's life comes to a close, we are informed that at some point (perhaps after Sara died), he took another wife - Ketura and, as the straightforward reading indicates, he also took several concubines. He had children with all of these and sent the sons of his concubines away - to the east - with gifts. We aren't told where he directed Ketura's six sons and their progeny to go. More intriguing is the story itself - why did he marry again, and have so many more children - only to send them away? We explore several points in Avraham's life, informed by the opening charge to him (Bereishit 12:1-3) and how his understanding of this charge evolved over time.

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Now King David was Old | Haftara | Chayei Sara | 5786, by Rav Eli Weber

Rav Eli Weber begins a new series of shiurim, "This Week's Haftara". What is the legacy of David HaMelekh?

Lekh Lekha | Avraham's Early Years: The Genesis of Midrashic Visions, by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

What are the sources of the well-known Midrashim about Avraham's early years?

There are numerous Midrashim that explore the early years of Avraham, attempting to explain his selection as the progenitor of a great nation and the source of blessing for "all of the families of the earth." Some of these Midrashim portray Avraham as a philosopher, arriving at his belief in one God through observation and contemplation. Others describe him as more of an intuitive believer, imbued with a deep sense of God from his youngest years. Exploring passages from the proto-Midrashic literature found in the Apocrypha, we find that each of these approaches can be found in this literature. We also discuss these sources, their likely provenance and their impact on the literature of the Midrash with which we are familiar.

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Noach | "My Covenant", by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom

What Berit is Hashem referring to before the Flood?

In Hashem's instructions to Noach regarding the construction of the Ark, He prefaces the command that Noach, his family and the representatives of the animal kingdom all enter the Ark with an odd phrase - "I will fulfill My covenant with you" - והקימותי את בריתי אתך - to which ברית is this alluding? The Rishonim are divided on its referent; by exploring Beritot in the Torah and a telling passage in Yirmiyahu, we propose a new understanding of this enigmatic phrase which, in turn, illuminates the role for which Avraham was later chosen.

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