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Why does Hashem (ה׳) choose Avrohom based on chesed (חסד) rather than more dramatic acts like entering the kivshan ha'esh? The shiur develops a fundamental yesod: after bris milah, Avrohom accessed a new level of chesed — God-like chesed driven not by responding to need but by an innate desire to do good. This transformed chesed from obligation into imitatio Dei, making it the defining trait of Am Yisrael.
The shiur opens with a fundamental question on Parshas Vayeira: Why does Hashem (ה׳) choose Avrohom and Klal Yisrael specifically because "I know him that he will instruct his family to do Derech Hashem" — which the Gemara (גמרא) in Yevamos identifies as gemilus chasadim? Why should chesed (חסד) be the basis of bechirah when Avrohom demonstrated far greater commitment through acts like bris milah and entering the kivshan ha'esh? Rabbi Zweig distinguishes between two fundamentally different types of chesed. The first is v'ahavta l'rei'acha kamocha — responding to another person's need, treating others as you would want to be treated. This is chesed as obligation. But there exists a second, higher level: chesed Elokai, God's chesed. Hashem's desire to do good existed before creation itself — "Adon Olam asher molach b'terem kol yetzir nivra" — demonstrating that God's chesed flows from an internal ratzon to be meitiv, not as a response to need. This is chesed as an expression of divine nature.
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Parshas Vayeira 18:19
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What is the primary purpose of the cities of refuge - protecting the accidental killer or something else? The shiur argues that creating respect for law takes precedence over providing sanctuary. True deterrence comes from recognizing the gravity of murder itself, not fear of punishment.
