Weekly Torah Teachings

OH WELL, that's the way it goes. This week in our Torah portion we receive word of a great and terrible famine in the land of Canaan. Remembering the path his father walked, Isaac set out for the land of Egypt where there was plenty of food and water. But YHWH stopped Isaac and called him to have faith in his ability to provide for him even in the midst of famine. Isaac obeyed and YHWH delivered. While everyone else was struggling to survive and eke out a meager existence, Isaac's planting produced a hundred fold. But as we shall see in this portion blessings can sometimes become a curse. As Isaac increased, by the hand of YHWH, the Canaanites and Philistines decreased. King Abimelech astutely recognized that this shift of prosperity also brought with it a shift of potential political power. Soon Abimelech's men began fighting with Isaac over wells and water. Repeatedly Isaac was exiled from the wells he and his men had dug. But every time they moved YHWH would bless them with yet more water and prosperity. Soon Abimelch wanted to play "Let's Make a Deal" with Isaac. Here we see the beginning of a powerful pattern that will haunt the children of Israel right to the present day. We shall also see that not every well is the same. Join me this week at the "Wells of Isaac" and let us drink deeply of the pure Torah, as we journey together on the Ancient Path of Faith