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Translation:
Note: The full sicha including footnotes, with side-by-side translation can be found at
Sichos in english
Introduction
The question begs to be asked: There are two Torah readings that begin in a similar manner: Parshas Noach begins Eileh toldos Noach, “These are the offspring of Noach,” and the Torah reading of the present week begins V’eileh toldos Yitzchak, “These are the offspring of Yitzchak.” Obviously, both these Torah readings could not be called Toldos. However, it would seem logical that Noach, the Torah reading that appears first, be called Toldos, and the present Torah reading be called Yitzchak to distinguish them from one another. Why then is this Torah reading called Toldos?
The question is reinforced by the teaching of the Baal Shem Tov1 that an entity’s name in the Holy Tongue conveys the life-force that brings the entity into being and grants it vitality. Extending the concept further, it can be said that the name of each Torah readingencapsulates its theme. This Torah reading focuses almost exclusively on the life of Yitzchak, one who by and large did not leave his private sphere and engage with others. How is the name Toldos, which in a broad sense refers to producing offspring, both biological children and spiritual “children” – bringing another person closer to G d and His Torah – a fitting name for a Torah reading that describes a person whose energies were predominantly pointed inward?
If anything, the name Toldos would have been appropriate for a Torah reading that described the Divine service of Yitzchak’s father, Avraham. Avraham was constantly involved with others. He would travel from city to city, gathering people, proclaiming G d’s existence. Yitzchak did not follow this path. Nevertheless, it is the Torah reading associated with Yitzchak that is named Toldos.
The Rebbe resolves these questions by focusing on the power of an inward focus, how it can bring about change, not only in a person himself but also in the people around him. Indeed, such inward intensity can motivate more lasting change in others than the inspiration that a person focused on outreach may arouse.
The Heritage the Patriarchs Transmitted
There is a well-known adage of our Sages,2 “Everything that happened to the Patriarchs (avos) serves as a sign for their descendants (banim).”3 In several sources, Ramban4elaborates upon this adage, explaining how the actions of the Patriarchs and the events in their lives foreshadow incidents that would occur to their descendants, the Jewish people.
The choice of the words avos and banim, literally, “fathers” and “sons,” is significant. With this phrasing, our Sages imply that the Patriarchs transmit a spiritual inheritance to their descendants. Thus, the actions of the Patriarchs are not merely signs5foreshadowing their descendants’ future. Rather, the Patriarchs’ actions and personal history empower6 their descendants7to face and overcome similar challenges in the future.
In our parshah, the Torah relates8 that there was a famine “in the land,” in Eretz Yisrael, and G d revealed Himself to Yitzchak and told him: “Do not descend to Egypt. Dwell in the land that I will tell you about. Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and bless you.”
Our Sages explain that after the Akeidah, Yitzchak was “a perfect burnt-offering.”9 Hence, he had to remain in Eretz Yisrael because “the Diaspora is not appropriate for you,”10 and unlike his father, Avraham, he could not leave Eretz Yisrael for the Diaspora (Egypt) when there was a famine in Eretz Yisrael.
The “sign” for Yitzchak’s descendants is immediately obvious:11The Jews’ true place is not in exile (the Diaspora), but in Eretz Yisrael, where they are “children eating at their Father’s table.”12Ultimately, G d will redeem them and bring them there. Thus, even when “we have been exiled from our land because of our sins,”13 and are not “at our Father’s table,” we cannot remain content and at peace in exile,14 knowing that this is not where we belong. We continue to hope15 and to plead with our Father to return us to His table, to Eretz Yisrael. Indeed, three times each weekday we request and press,16 “Speedily cause the scion of David Your servant to flourish”; and every day (even on Shabbos and festivals) we ask, “May our eyes see Your return to Zion with mercy.”17
This may be one reason why in the Ultimate Future we will say to Yitzchak specifically, “You are our father.”18 At that time the Jews will exhibit the qualities of inner perfection and fulfillment whose potential they derive from Yitzchak (the “perfect burnt-offering”). Therefore, at that time, they will be found in their true place, “at their Father’s table,” in Eretz Yisrael.
Two Thrusts in Divine Service
Our Sages teach,19 “Only three are called Patriarchs.” “Are called” is present tense, teaching that the spiritual heritage with which our Patriarchs endow us exerts ongoing and timeless influence on every Jew’s spiritual makeup.20 In particular, each of the Patriarchs’ life stories include details (and general themes) that express that Patriarch’s individual nature, and these empower their descendants to emulate those particular traits. This applies not only to the Jewish people as a whole and in specific circumstances, but “in all generations… for every Jew” (personally), even in the era of exile, in both Eretz Yisrael and the Diaspora.
To elaborate: In general, the Jewish people are divided into two categories: Yissachar and Zevulun,21 “masters of Torah and masters of good deeds.”22
The former’s Divine service is directed mainly inward – to borrow the wording of the Torah,23 “Yissachar in your tents.” They are in their true place, totally devoted to Torah study.24 And there are others who are primarily involved in business activities. They leave the confines of Torah study to follow the motif of “Zevulun in your excursions,” engaging in worldly matters. Their Divine service follows the directives, “All your actions shall be for the sake of Heaven”25 and “Know Him in all your ways,”26 bringing holiness into mundane activities, “your actions” and “your ways.”
Each Jew27 is empowered by the Patriarchs to carry out both these thrusts of Divine service:
Avraham empowers all Jews to follow the motif of Zevulun. Accordingly, Avraham left Eretz Yisrael and descended to Egypt, into the boundaries28 and limitations of the Diaspora, and there he brought people to recognize and serve G d. He had done the same earlier, while still in Ur Kasdim and Charan, bringing people “under the wings of the Divine presence,”29 as our Sages comment30 on the phrase,31 “the souls he gathered in Charan.” His Divine service as a whole can be summarized by the verse,32 “There, he called forth in the name of G d, the eternal L rd.” As our rabbis state:33
He began to teach the people that it is fitting to serve only the G d of the world… and to proclaim loudly to the entire world, informing them that there is one G d who should be worshipped…. He would travel around, calling and gathering people, going from one city to another and from one kingdom to another… proclaiming G d’s existence, as it is written, “And he called there in the name of G d….”
In this way he eventually caused G d to be, so to speak, not only “the G d of heaven” but also “the G d of the earth,”34 part of the ordinary conversation of common people.35
Yitzchak, by contrast, never left Eretz Yisraelfor the Diaspora. As “a perfect burnt-offering,” he had to remain in Eretz Yisrael; even there, the Torah records few examples of him leaving his private sphere and engaging with others outside. In other words, his primary focus in Divine service was directed inward.
These two Patriarchs empower the Jewish people’s two complementary modes of Divine service:
Avraham teaches and empowers every individual Jew, and the Jewish people as a whole, to extend himself outward and work with others. All Jews, even those whose primary focus is directed inward, toward Torah study, must at times leave their own sphere and bring holiness outside its natural boundaries. They must also make G d’s name known in such places and “gather souls,” i.e., draw Jews closer to G d and His Torah.36
In this vein, our Sages taught,37 “One who occupies himself solely with Torah study is like someone who does not have a G d.” And they taught,38 “Anyone who says, ‘I have nothing but Torah,’ does not even possess Torah. Instead, the focus should be Torah, as accompanied by deeds of kindness.”39
Yitzchak teaches and empowers every Jew to carry out inward-directed Divine service. This also applies even to those whose main focus is on the outside world, engaging in mundane pursuits and drawing holiness into them (“your actions” and “your ways,” as mentioned above), and bringing G d’s word to Jews who are currently distant from G d and His Torah. From time to time, these individuals must also insulate themselves from their external environment and focus inward, on the study of Torah, with a devotion that leaves no room for other worries or thoughts. During those days or hours, they should be just like “the generation who partook of the manna”;40 the Torah must be their sole occupation at those times.41
Fathering Spiritual Children
As mentioned on many occasions,42 although the names of the parshiyos seem to be taken from keywords at the beginning of each parshah,43the names are significant in their own right,for the use of these name is entrenched as Jewish custom – and Jewish custom has the strength of Torah Law.44Moreover, as the Baal Shem Tov45taught, an entity’s name in the Holy Tongue conveys the life-force that brings the entity into being and grants it vitality. This indicates that the name of each parshah encapsulates that entire parshah’s theme.
A clear example of this is in the name of our parshah,46 Toldos. It begins with the words V’eileh toldos, “These are the offspring”; Parshas Noach begins similarly – Eileh toldos (Noach). Had the parshiyos been named solely by their first word(s), then Parshas Noach – which is the earlier of the two – would more appropriately have been named Toldos,because the word toldos is closer to the beginning of the parshah than the name Noach. The later parshah that begins with the words V’eileh toldos, would then have been called Yitzchak, to distinguish it from the other parshah that would have been called Toldos.
The fact that instead the first of these two is called Noach – and not Toldos – while our parshah is called Toldos,indicates that the name Noach encapsulates the theme of the earlier parshah,47 and the name Toldos encapsulates the theme of the present one. The theme of our Torah reading is thus Toldos, “offspring,” i.e., producing children.
The lesson to be derived from this name is that every Jew must produce spiritual “children” – making efforts to bring another Jew closer to G d and His Torah, and thereby “creating” a new Jew who keeps the Torah and its mitzvos as a result of his efforts to bring him closer to G d and His Torah. As our Sages taught,48 “Whoever teaches Torah to the son of another person is considered as if he fathered him.” Doing so fulfills the mitzvah of “Be fruitful and multiply” in a spiritual sense.49
Rashi alludes to this concept in his opening comment to this parshah, where he explains that the word toldos, “offspring,” refers to “Yaakov and Esav who are mentioned in the parshah.” “Yitzchak’s offspring” do not only include those who are on the level of Yaakov; they also include those who presently bear some degree of resemblance to Esav50 and with whom it is necessary to work so that they are fit to be “mentioned in the parshah.”51Efforts must be made to draw them close and bring them into the realm of the Torah and its mitzvos, enabling them to realize that they are “the offspring of Yitzchak” and should be educated in his spirit, taught the parshiyos of the Torah, and trained in its mitzvos.
Inwardness and Offspring
This last point demands explanation. How does this idea, that Yitzchak produces “offspring” correlate with what was explained earlier, that Yitzchak’s Divine service focused on insulating himself in Eretz Yisrael and turning his energies inward? It was explained that Yitzchak did not direct his energies “outward” – to “offspring” that did not resemble the “fathers”52 – by involving himself with people outside the realm of holiness.
Another question: Since the parshah focuses entirely on Yitzchak and his Divine service, seemingly it should not have been called Toldos, but Yitzchak. That would draw attention to the unique quality of Yitzchak vis-à-vis Avraham – that Yitzchak did not go out to the Diaspora to generate “offspring” outside the realm of holiness, whereas Avraham’s Divine service centered on just that, “the souls he gathered in Charan.”
In resolution: Yitzchak is one of the three Patriarchs and, to borrow the wording of our Sages, “the use of the term avos (“Patriarchs”; literally, “fathers”) indicates that there are toldos, “offspring.” The aim of Yitzchak’s Divine service, like that of the other Patriarchs, was to produce offspring.
Moreover, it is noteworthy that it is not the parshiyos that describe the Divine service of Avraham and Yaakov that are introduced by the word Toldos and called by that name, but rather this parshah, which focuses entirely on Yitzchak’s Divine service. This shows that the Divine service of Yitzchak is the primary generator of the potential for toldos, “offspring,” to an even greater degree than the Divine service of Avraham or Yaakov.
When the Nations Will All Stream to Zion
The above concepts can be better understood by first explaining how the Jews will conduct themselves in the Ultimate Future. This in turn will elucidate the thrust of Yitzchak’s Divine service – for, as explained above, in the Ultimate Future the Jews will address Yitzchak specifically with the phrase “You are our father.”
Rambam rules:53 “Moshe was commanded by the Almighty to compel all the inhabitants of the world to accept the commandments conveyed to Noach and his descendants.” Like all halachos, this ruling is eternally relevant, in all times and in all places. The ideal way for all mankind to fulfill their mitzvos, the Seven Universal Laws Commanded to Noach and his Descendants, is when they are influenced to do so by the Jewish people.
It is thus necessary to explain how the Jews will fulfill this role in the era of Mashiach. True, Rambam states that one of the hallmark achievements of Mashiach will be that54
He will then perfect the entire world,55motivating all the nations to serve G d together, as it is written,56 “I will make the peoples pure of speech, so that they will all call upon the Name of G d and serve Him57 with one purpose.”
However, a question arises: In that era, all Jews will be redeemed from their exile in the lands of the nations, and will live in Eretz Yisrael. Now, the halachah states that:58
When the Jewish people are in power over the non-Jewish nations, it is forbidden for us to allow an idolater among us. Even a temporary resident, or a merchant who travels from place to place should not be allowed to pass through our land unless he has previously accepted the Seven Universal Laws Commanded to
Noach and his Descendants.
Under such circumstances, how will the Jews introduce all non-Jews to the observance of these Seven Universal Laws?59
A resolution can be reached based on the prophecies of Yeshayahu regarding the Ultimate Redemption:60
And it shall be at the end of the days that the mountain of the L rd’s house shall be firmly established at the top of the mountains… and all the nations shall stream to it. And many peoples shall go, and they shall say, “Come, let us go up to G d’s mountain, to the House of the G d of Yaakov, and let Him teach us of His ways, and we will go in His paths,” for from Zion will emerge the Torah…. He will judge between the nations…. and they will beat their swords into plowshares. They will ask of Israel,61 “O house of Yaakov, come and let us go in the light of G d.”
This prophecy implies that in the Ultimate Future, non-Jews will also learn the ways of G d and serve Him. This change will not be prompted by the Jews leaving the Holy Land for the Diaspora to influence the non-Jews. Instead, this transformation of the non-Jews will be motivated by their own realization of the truth. The Jewish people, Eretz Yisrael, and the Beis HaMikdash will reach a consummate level of perfection, and G d’s light will shine forth openly and be obvious to all mankind. Inevitably, this will motivate non-Jews throughout the entire world62 to the extent that “all the nations shall stream to the Beis HaMikdash. And many peoples shall go, and they shall say, ‘Come, let us go up to G d’s mountain… and let Him teach us of His ways.’ ”
In the Ultimate Future, then, Jews will not have to go out and involve themselves with humanity as a whole. Instead, they will be focused on studying the Torah and its wisdom,63as Rambam writes:64 “The Jews will therefore be great Sages and know the hidden matters, and will attain an understanding of their Creator to the full extent of human potential.” Even though the energies of the Jews will be centered inward, on the Torah, they will nevertheless inspire the non-Jewish nations, who as a result “shall go” to Eretz Yisrael and say, “Let us go in the light of G d.”
Why the Philistines Recognized Yitzchak’s G dliness
Yitzchak’s character and his form of Divine service were a semblance, and indeed a microcosm, of this future state.65
Unlike Avraham, who produced spiritual offspring by going “from city to city and from kingdom to kingdom” to make G d’s name known (as explained above), Yitzchak66 accomplished this by remaining in one place in Eretz Yisrael. There he drew all mankind toward him, like a large torch to which sparks are attracted.67
This theme runs through the entire parshah. When “there was a famine in the land,”68 Yitzchak thought of descending to Egypt, as his father did in a time of famine.69 Knowing well “the fundamental principle that Avraham implanted,”70 that G d is the master of the entire world and controls everything that happens in it, Yitzchak took that fundamental principle to its logical conclusion: Divine providence had Avraham descend to Egypt, so he, Yitzchak, should do the same and leave Eretz Yisrael for the Diaspora. There, as his father Avraham had done during a famine in Eretz Yisrael, he would make G d’s presence known.71
G d, however, informed Yitzchak that his path of Divine service would be different from Avraham’s, and therefore told him, “Do not descend to Egypt… dwell in the land….” Our Sages72 interpret that command as meaning, “Cause the Divine presence to dwell in the land.” Yitzchak’s Divine service revealed G d’s presence not by descending to the Diaspora – and certainly not to its nadir, Egypt, “the nakedness of the land”73 – but rather, by “causing the Divine presence to dwell in the land,” in Eretz Yisrael. Through his Divine service there, the knowledge of G d’s presence would reach all mankind.
The description in the parshah of Yitzchak’s stay in Gerar indeed bears out how this came true. There he “became great. His greatness continued to increase, until he was truly prodigious.”74 “People would say, ‘Better manure from the mules of Yitzchak than the silver and gold of Avimelech, the king of the Philistines.”75
This outcome is further emphasized in the next part of the narrative. At first, Avimelech told Yitzchak, “Leave us, because you have become much vaster than us.”76 However, after Yitzchak moved elsewhere and built an altar where “he called upon the name of G d,”77 “Avimelech, together with a company of his comrades, and Pichol, the general of his army, went from Gerar to Yitzchak,”78 and – in answer to Yitzchak’s query,79 “Why did you come to me?” – answered,80 “We have definitely seen81 that G d is with you, and so we said,
‘Let there be an oath between us.’ ”
Clearly, when they said that they saw that “G d is with you” – and specifically, when this awareness motivated them to the extent that Avimelech left his home to travel to Yitzchak and establish a covenant with him – they had been inspired to conduct themselves in a way of which Yitzchak would approve.
The Posterity Inwardness Generates
On this basis, we can appreciate why this parshah, whichfocuses on the Divine service of Yitzchak82 – and not the parshiyos that describe the Divine service of Avraham or Yaakov – is called Toldos:
When one’s Divine service involves, as did Avraham’s, descending and bringing about change outside the realm of holiness, then those whom one affects cannot be said to be “offspring” to the fullest degree. They are indeed “souls gathered in Charan”; he influenced them, but they cannot be described as “offspring” that are “as though he fathered them.”83
The word toldos implies a certain resemblance to a “father,” like derivatives of a general category.84Such offspring can be produced only by Yitzchak’s model of Divine service, where one remains in his place and elevates mankind as a whole to his level. In this way, the others become toldos, “offspring” that resemble their “father.”85
A Twofold Focus
This is the eternal lesson that can be derived from the Divine service of Yitzchak that is alluded to by the name Toldos:
True, those “masters of good deeds” whose ongoing Divine service involves making G d’s presence known in their travels from place to place, thus creating “offspring” who seek G d and His Torah, must from time to time focus their energies inward. During those times, they should devote themselves to the study of the Torah, both nigleh, its revealed legal dimension, and pnimiyus haTorah, its inner, mystical dimension, and do so with the mindset that “Torah study is their sole occupation.”
But when doing so they are not, G d forbid, withdrawing from their mission of drawing Jews closer to G d and His Torah. On the contrary, they must realize that developing their own inner focus is a fundamental part of that mission. There are two reasons why this is so:
First of all, every Jew possesses within his soul an element of each of the Patriarchs – and, specifically, of Yitzchak. The element of Yitzchak endows him with the potential for his inner Divine service to affect his surrounding environment, including all those Jews whom Torah considers under his influence. Second, through these endeavors, he creates true offspring; not only “gathering” them and “bringing them under the wings of the Divine presence,” as did Avraham, but affecting them to the extent that it is “as if he fathered them.” They become his offspring, reflecting his qualities. Like a child who resembles his father, the students will resemble their mashpia, “spiritual mentor.”
“Those who dwell in the tents of Torah study,” whose energies are focused solely within the realm of Torah study, halachah, and prayer, must similarly expand their horizons.86 As described above, from time to time, they must also leave their restricted confines to draw Jews close to G d and His Torah. Beyond that, their own Divine service of Torah study and prayer must be permeated with the focus of generating “offspring” for G d. Their study must be “in order to teach.”87 Then, they will generate proper “offspring,” as explained above.
Such Divine service, deriving from Yitzchak’s mode of Divine service and learning from it to generate “offspring” for G d and His Torah, hastens the coming of the Ultimate Redemption, the era when “the Jewish people will tell Yitzchak, ‘You are our father.’ ” “Then our mouths will be filled with laughter.”88
Such Divine service arouses consummate laughter and pleasure Above,89 and this sublime laughter and pleasure will radiate downward and will be manifest within the Jewish people “then,” in the Ultimate Future. Even before “then,” a foretaste is possible. As the Arizal taught,90 commenting on the phrase,91 “Those who taste it will merit life,” just as on Friday, one should taste the food prepared for Shabbos, so too, in the present era, which is Friday afternoon in the context of the world’s spiritual history, we have the potential to – and should – taste the revelations of Mashiach’s time to the extent that every Jew can palpably perceive the Creator’s sublime pleasure,92which will be at its fullest when “the world will be filled with the knowledge of G d as the waters cover the ocean bed.”93
Likkutei Sichos, Volume 25, p. 123ff. (Adapted from sichos delivered on Leil Beis D’Chag HaSukkos, 5743, 5745 1982, 1984 and Shabbos Parshas Toldos, 5745 1984)
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