IN A NUTSHELL
This parasha has three main stories. The first discusses how, after his wife Sara’s death, Avraham bought a field with a cave (the Cave of Makhpela, today in Ḥevron) to bury her. This was the first piece of the land of Israel to be owned by a Jew.
The second story tells us how Avraham’s servant searched for a wife for Yitzḥak. The servant understood that he must find a woman who lived by the same values as Avraham and his household, and so when Rivka showed him ḥesed (loving-kindness) by bringing him and his camels water, he knew he had found the right partner for Yitzḥak.
The third and final story describes the end of Avraham’s life, and his death. He remarried after Sara’s death, had six more children, and finally died peacefully at the age of 175.
QUESTION TO PONDER
Do you think Avraham had a good or a bad life? How do you think he coped with all the challenges and difficulties he had in his life?