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Why does the Torah (תורה) begin Vayeira with a pronoun rather than Avrohom's name? The Midrash brings a kal vachomer from mizbeach to explain Hashem (ה׳)'s appearance after bris milah. Bris milah transforms Avrohom into Adam Rishon's pre-sin state, and like the mizbeach adamah that recreates man through kaparah, this transformation merits divine appearance and blessing.
The shiur analyzes a Midrash from Rabbi Yitzchok that explains why Hashem (ה׳) appeared to Avrohom at the beginning of Parshas Vayeira. The Midrash brings a kal vachomer from the mizbeach: if Hashem appears and blesses someone who builds a mizbeach, certainly He should appear to Avrohom who performed bris milah. Rabbi Zweig raises two fundamental questions about this approach. First, why is a kal vachomer necessary when the peshat already indicates the reason? The Torah (תורה) unusually begins Parshas Vayeira with "Vayeira eilav Hashem" using a pronoun rather than Avrohom's name. This departure from normal syntax when starting a new section indicates that we must refer back to the previous mention of Avrohom - "the circumcised Avrohom." The pronoun structure itself proves that Hashem appeared because of the bris milah.
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Parshas Vayeira 18:1
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