Between Laughter and Tears
PARASHAT VAYEIRA (“[he] appeared”) describes several encounters between God and members of Abraham’s household. In one sense, this parashah recounts the birth and survival of the next generation, Isaac and Rebekah: it begins with the announcement of Sarah’s forthcoming pregnancy and Isaac’s forthcoming birth (Genesis 18), continues with the challenges that stand in the way of the future, and concludes with Rebekah, Isaac’s future wife (22:20–24).
Questions of identity and self-definition continue, as covenantal blessings demarcate the distinction between Sarah and Isaac on the one hand, and Hagar and Ishmael on the other. A subtext concerns Abraham’s role in fulfilling God’s plan. But the individual episodes do more than chart the hazards and successes that follow God’s promises of progeny and land (see the previous parashah). Rather, they vividly depict the challenges, anguish, and joy that human beings experience as they create families and discover the complexities of multiple commitments.
The most famous of these episodes is the “Binding of Isaac,” where Abraham is asked to sacrifice his beloved son (Genesis 22). This story has its counterpart in that of a mother with an imperiled child: the heart-wrenching story of Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness (Genesis 21), in which Hagar despairs of her son’s survival. Women are prominent through-out. At long last Sarah learns that she shall have a son (Genesis 18), and finally becomes a mother (Genesis 21). Tension between two mothers—Sarah and Hagar—each one seeking the welfare of her child, frames the story of Lot’s daughters, who act together (Genesis 19). These tales offer glimpses into women’s world and presumed concerns. The closing report about Rebekah’s birth far from the land of Canaan sets the stage for when she becomes Isaac’s wife (in the next parashah).
—Tammi J. Schneider
Outline—
I. SARAH BECOMES A MOTHER
Announcement of Isaac’s Birth; Threats to Conception, Birth, and Survival (18:1–21:7)
A. Divine messengers visit Abraham and Sarah, announcing that Sarah will become a mother (18:1–33)
B. Divine messengers visit Sodom and Lot, and Lot’s daughters become mothers of nations (19:1–38)
C. Abraham and Sarah “visit” Abimelech (20:1–18)
D. Sarah becomes a mother (21:1–7)
II. FIRST THREAT TO ISAAC
Two Mothers Clash Protecting Their Sons (21:8–21)
A. Sarah seeks to protect Isaac: the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael (vv. 8–13)
B. The rescue of Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness (vv. 14–21)
III. SECOND THREAT TO ISAAC
Abraham’s “Binding of Isaac,” or “The Akedah” (21:22–22:19)
A. Abraham settles in Beersheba (21:22–34)
B. Abraham’s “test”: the binding of Isaac (22:1–19)
IV. PREPARATION FOR THE FUTURE
Rebekah’s Birth (22:20–24)