WEEKLY TORAH
WEEKLY TORAH
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PARSHAT KI TETZEY
This week we have the privilege of reading Parshat Ki Tetzey. One of the basic principles mentioned in this reading focuses on the rights of the "B'chor" - the firstborn son.
"If a man will have two wives, one beloved and one hated, and they bear him sons, the beloved one and the hated one, and the firstborn son is the hated one's," Devarim 21:16. The next Pasuk teaches that the firstborn always inherits a double portion.
It appears that the firstborn son cannot lose this special right or status despite sibling rivalries and animosities that are common in families. He is the one who is expected to rise above the petty arguments and is recognized by the Torah as the family leader entitled to a double share. Why does the Torah use the extreme example of two wives and "the firstborn is the hated one's?" It almost appears as if the B'chor WILL be born to the hated wife!
Ohr Hachaim comments that this is, in fact, the way Hashem shows compassion for the neglected wife. He blesses her in special ways. She may have the first child as did our mother Leah who's sister Rachel was more beloved by Yaakov. Some husbands do not provide the nurturing, the attention and the love and respect that their wives deserve. As a result, they lose many of Hashem's blessings, for a man's blessings come to him through his wife - see Bava Metzia 59a four lines from end of page.
However, these women will be rewarded by Hashem in other ways for Hashem counts the tears of a woman and never forgets the brokenhearted.
Kol Tov! Our best to you...it's all good. Shabbat Shalom, CM
CHADISH FORUM - PLEASE TELL US
This week we learned about Hashem's compassion for the neglected wife. What can we learn from our ancestors' behavior towards their wives?
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