by Dovid Chechik
On November 13, 1985, Dovid Chechik of AT&T Information Systems in Holmdel, New Jersey, posted a weekly Torah commentary to net.religion.jewish — one of the earliest online forums for Jewish religious discussion. His commentary on Parashat Toldos (Genesis 25:19–28:9) explores a seemingly simple verse about Rivkah seeking guidance during her pregnancy and discovers in it a layered teaching on faith under uncertainty, the multivalence of the word "ledrosh," and the Vilna Gaon's (Gra's) resolution of a profound Talmudic difficulty. It is one of the earliest Torah commentaries ever distributed over a computer network.
D'var Torah — Parashat Toldos
Our Parasha contains the story of the birth of Yaackov Avinu and his brother Eysav. The Torah says that the children fought within her. The Midrash brought down by Rashi says that when she passed the door of a beis medrash, Yaackov wanted to go out, and when she passed the door of idol worshipers, Aisav tried to leave. Rivkah then says "Im kayn, lama ze anochi. Vataylech lidrosh es Hashem, Vayan hashem vayomar shnei goyim bevitneich ushnei goyim mimayayim yiporaidu" — literally, "If so, what am I? And she went to 'lidrosh' G-d, and He answered: Two nations are in your bosom, and two nations from your bosom shall depart." Rashi takes this to mean that she went to the Yeshiva of Shem and Ever to ask them what was going on inside her, and she received the answer to her questions.
There are several questions that can be asked on this story. Why did Rivkah have to go ask Shem what was happening within her? Was she not, in her own right, a Neviya (prophetess)? What does "ledrosh es Hashem" mean? The word ledrosh can mean to claim, to ask, to demand, to investigate, to require, to request, to enquire, to lecture, to preach, to explain, to expound, to interpret, to discourse, or to consult. Should it not say "lishol" (to ask)? Finally, G-d answers Rivkah Himself — He does not relay the message through Shem. Why is Rivkah Imaynu suddenly a prophetess?
The Gra explains most of these questions "all derech remez" — they are hinted at in the Torah but not stated explicitly. The Talmud tells that Shimon Ha'amusi interpreted all the occurrences of the word "et" in the Torah. Generally, "et" is a "ribbuy" — it comes to generalize on something. He stopped at "Et Hashem Elokecha Tira" (You are to Fear G-d): since "et" must come to include something other than the specified subject, he reasoned that this "et" must come to include some other deity. Clearly a contradiction to one of the basic tenets of Judaism. Rabbi Akiva explained that this "et" comes to include talmidei chachamim (Torah scholars).
Similarly, Rivkah had a serious problem: she was getting mixed signals. She knew she was sterile and had only conceived through prayer. Yet the child within her was moving both toward our religion and others. And so she said "im kayn, lama ze anochi" — which can be translated as "What is this Anochi?" — where anochi is the first of the Ten Commandments, which is that there is one G-d. Clearly, I (Rivkah) have physical evidence that there must be more than one deity.
However, despite her moral quandary, vateylech lidrosh et Hashem — she went to the Yeshiva of Shem and Ever to explain that the verse "et Hashem Elokecha Tira" did not imply two deities. And so, having passed a great test in believing the truth despite seemingly physical, concrete evidence, she is rewarded by Nevuah (prophecy). This is why she was answered directly by G-d, who said: do not even think that there are two deities, or that one child is leaning in two directions. There are two children within you — one will be a tzaddik (righteous one), the other a rasha (wicked one).
Colophon
Written by Dovid Chechik, AT&T Information Systems Labs, Holmdel, New Jersey. Posted to net.religion.jewish, November 13, 1985. One of the earliest Torah commentaries distributed over a computer network. The Gra (Vilna Gaon) he cites is Rabbi Elijah ben Solomon Zalman (1720–1797), the preeminent rabbinic authority of the Lithuanian tradition. The Yeshiva of Shem and Ever refers to the legendary school of Noah's son Shem and his great-grandson Ever, cited in Midrash as the oldest institution of Torah learning.
Preserved from the UTZOO Usenet Archive (news035f1.tgz, batch b55) for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026. Original Message-ID: [email protected].
🌲