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Why does the Torah (תורה) use the verb "likhros" (to cut) when making a covenant, when a bris should join people together? The shiur presents an alternative to Rashi (רש"י)'s interpretation. Rather than cutting out others, likhros bris means the parties must cut themselves open to recognize their incompleteness, allowing two halves to fuse into one unified entity.
The shiur addresses a fundamental linguistic question about the term "likhros bris" - why the Torah (תורה) uses the verb "to cut" when describing the making of a covenant, which by definition should join parties together. Rabbi Zweig first reviews Rashi (רש"י)'s interpretation from the previous shiur, which explains that cutting creates boundaries or walls on each side, with the covenant parties passing between them. According to this view, seen in the bris bein habesarim with Avrohom, the bris functions by cutting everyone else out, creating an exclusive relationship. The shiur then presents an entirely different interpretation using the same source material. Rather than viewing the cut animals as creating barriers, this approach sees the cutting as taking a whole entity and dividing it in half, with the goal of reconnecting the halves into a unified whole. A bris, therefore, is not a partnership of two separate interests but the creation of genuine oneness from two incomplete entities.
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Why didn't Noach daven for his generation while Avrohom advocated for Sedom? Noach viewed each person as an independent island responsible only for their own teshuvah. Avrohom understood that all humanity is interconnected through shared perspective and values, making prayer for others both possible and necessary.
