The Torah relates that Avraham and Sara were childless for many years. Sara, wishing that her husband Avraham have a child, recommended to Avraham that he take their maidservant Hagar as a surrogate wife. Avraham acquiesced and together they had a son Yishmael.
In his youth, Yishmael basked in the spiritual influence of Avraham. In fact, when Avraham was instructed by G-d to circumcise himself and the males in his household, Yishmael, who was 13 at the time, did not protest and allowed himself to be circumcised. As a result, it became the custom for Yishmael’s descendants to be circumcised at the age of 13.
Our Parsha begins by telling us that G-d appeared to Avraham as he was convalescing on the third day after his circumcision. Avraham was sitting at his doorway on an extremely hot day.
Our Sages tell us that Avraham was the epitome of Chesed and G-d orchestrated the heatwave so that Avraham would have a reprieve from guests so that he could rest up and be healed. But this did not stop Avraham’s quest to entertain, feed and teach his visitors. In fact, he was pained that no guests were showing up due to the extreme heat of the day.
The Torah tells us that G-d sent three guests – angels disguised as nomads ― and Avraham ran to them and provided for all their needs.
The Torah tells us that Avraham ran to the cattle and he gave it to the lad to prepare. Rashi tells us that the lad was Yishmael and Avraham wanted to involve him to do Chesed for others.
My father o.b.m. asked, if Avraham was teaching Yishmael to perform Chesed, why was it necessary for Avraham to run to get the cattle? Why didn’t he instruct Yishmael to do it all, to get the cattle and also prepare it?
He explained that Avraham was teaching us that in order to motivate a child and instill the passion to do Chesed or something spiritual, it will only be effective if the father/instructor involves himself with the deed. They will only follow, ‘When I say and I do’.
Yishmael began to display bad and sinful behavior after Sara and Avraham were granted their son Yitzchok. This led Sara to tell Avraham to expel Hagar and Yishmael so that he would not negatively influence Yitzchok. G-d agreed with Sara’s assessment, and Avraham sent Hagar and Yishmael off with food and drink.
The Torah relates that while they were traveling Yishmael got dehydrated and was teetering between life and death. A distraught Hagar left the child alone and began to weep.
The Torah tells us that G-d heard the voice of Yishmael and sent an angel to Hagar instructing her to tend to the lad. G-d then opened Hagar’s eyes and she saw a rushing well of water with which she gave Yishmael to drink and his health was restored.
Rashi tells us that Hashem listened to the voice of the sickly lad – even though Hagar was crying as well. This teaches us that there is nothing as powerful as the prayer of the sick person himself.
Rashi also relates that the ministering angels weren’t too keen about restoring Yishmael’s health because they saw that in the future, when the Jews were exiled from Israel to Babylonia, the Jews would ask the descendants of Yishmael for food and drink and they would give them salty food and flasks of drink. But the flasks would be filled with air and when the Jews would open them to drink, the burst of air would enter their bodies and they would die. The angels said to G-d, “How can we justify giving Yishmael water, when in the future they will forget G-d’s kindness of the restoring waters and use water to kill the Jews?”
G-d said, “Look at him right now, is he righteous or not?” The angels said that he was righteous. G-d said, “I am judging him as he is right now.”
It is interesting to point out that just days before this episode, Yishmael was expelled from Avraham’s home for being wicked, and all of a sudden, he is righteous? Perhaps, when Yishmael was stricken ill, he prayed to G-d and pleaded for forgiveness for his sins, which had the power to change his position from wicked to righteous!
The Medrash relates that Yishmael bragged to Yitzchok and said to him, “I am better and dearer to G-d than you, for I had a Bris/Circumcision, a blemish done to my body, when I was thirteen years old and I didn’t object, while you were only eight days old when you had a Bris; perhaps if you were older when you had yours, you would have protested.”
Yitzchok thought to himself, ‘I wish I could have been challenged to give up one of my limbs for the sake of Hashem.’ At this point G-d appeared to Avraham asking him to offer Yitzchok upon an Altar as a sacrifice. The Torah relates that Yitzchok went through it willingly and both Yitzchok and Avraham passed the ultimate challenge of trust in G-d. Eventually, G-d instructed Avraham not to sacrifice his son.
Interestingly, the greatest deed of sanctification of G-d came about due to Yishmael’s challenge to Yitzchok.
Today, Yishmael’s descendants, Hamas, Hezbollah and all terrorists continue to be the impetus of our Sanctifying G-d’s Name. Whatever evil they do, or try to do to us, reinforces our trust in G-d through our sincere prayers, our awesome acts of kindness and how we strengthen our resolve to live more enriched and elevated by clinging to G-d’s Torah and Mitzvos.
