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Why did Rivka's pregnancy involve fully developed children running around rather than normal fetal development? The shiur explains that Yitzchok prayed for a child while Rivka prayed for natural conception; God answered him, creating a pre-sin miraculous pregnancy requiring ongoing prayer. This teaches that prayer should seek Divine guidance and information—not just solutions—enabling us to make objective decisions despite our subjective interests.
This shiur analyzes Parshas Toldos, focusing on the miraculous pregnancy of Rivka and the nature of prayer. Rabbi Zweig addresses several textual difficulties: Why does Rashi (רש"י) interpret Rivka's words "lamah zeh anochi" as present tense ("why am I praying") rather than past tense? Why does the Torah (תורה) emphasize that God answered Yitzchok's prayer and not Rivka's, seemingly insulting her righteousness? Why does the Torah describe the children as "running around" (mitrotzatzim) in her womb, which seems absurd? And why was Rivka surprised at the birth of twins when she had already been told about them prophetically? Rabbi Zweig explains that there are two fundamentally different types of miraculous pregnancy for a barren woman. In the first type, God heals the woman's body, restoring her fertility so that conception and gestation proceed naturally according to post-sin biological processes (nine-month pregnancy). In the second type, God does not heal the woman's infertility but creates a miraculous pregnancy anyway—one that mirrors the pre-sin pregnancy of Chava in Gan Eden, where a child was fully developed within an hour.
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Why does Moshe respond to the splitting of the sea with shirah rather than praise or thanksgiving? Rashi's use of "al libo" reveals that shirah is an emotional expression—a response of love to love. When Hashem shows personal care, the only adequate response is "I love You too," not mere gratitude or praise, and this principle applies to all relationships.
Bereishis 25:21-24 (Parshas Toldos)
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How could Avrohom keep the entire Torah before it was given, including rabbinical laws? The key insight is that mitzvos represent eternal spiritual realities, not just historical commemorations, so Avrohom could access these truths through his genuine search. His entire 172-year journey—even his early idolatry—retroactively became service of God once he reached ultimate truth.
