October 31, 2025 – Dr. Susanna Kokkonen
Lech Lecha 5786 (2025)
Genesis 12:1-17:27; Isaiah 40:27-41:16
Lech Lecha, the name of this Torah portion contains a powerful lesson. It refers to Abram’s call. This is a familiar story to many of us. We know about blessings and curses. But we want to look at it more deeply. Our translations say that God told Abram to go:
“The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1 NIV)
The words in Hebrew “Lech Lecha” are deeper. The meaning is that Abram (later Abraham, father of nations) was living in an idol-worshiping culture, but he had to go inside himself, withdraw and then also leave the physical environment.
Rabbi Rashi, Rabbi Shlomo ben Yitzhaki (1040-1155), wrote a commentary on the entire Bible. Rabbi Rashi said that Abram had go “for himself” that is “for his own benefit.” As we recall from the Bible, Abram was by then in Haran. He had to go further. He had to go by the power of the Word since he had no ultimate destination.
Blessings and Curse
God told Abram that he and his nation would become a blessing to the entire world.
“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:2-3 NIV)
The two words blessing and curse in the original Hebrew language reflect different qualities altogether. The word blessing “bracha” Hebrew has the same roots as the word knee. It then implies kneeling, submission, and humility. It refers to us being humble before God and kneeling before Him. A blessing will follow from this attitude.
The word curse “kalel” in Hebrew has the same root as the word “kal” meaning easy or light. This implies that to curse someone is not just saying curse words or putting a curse on them but thinking that they are not important or have no value or meaning. The implication is that when cursing someone, we are looking down at them. We are not humble, but proud.
How much worse when this turns into action and acting against God’s people.
Choosing the Best
In this Torah portion, Abraham and his nephew Lot have arrived in the land. They both had so much property and herds that the land could not support both living together. So Abraham gave Lot a choice.
“So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herders and mine, for we are close relatives.
Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”
Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan toward Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)
So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company…” (Genesis 13: 8-11 NIV)
What looked the best and what Lot chose led to his downfall. What is so interesting is that the word “lot” in Hebrew means cover or veil. So it does seem like a covering was over Lot’s eyes, there was a veil, and he chose what looked the best. But this brought him close to complete destruction.
With regard the generous Abraham, something particularly important took place after Lot had departed. God gave Abraham a promise.
“The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west.
All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.
I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.
Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” (Genesis 13: 14-17 NIV)
War and Sanctification
Following the choice he had made, Lot got into trouble very soon. After arriving in Sodom, the city that he was living near to, there was a war. The enemy forces kidnapped Lot. Messengers came and told Abraham. He took his troops and went and rescued not just Lot, but everybody and their property, including the King of Sodom. Following this, a mysterious encounter took place.
“Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, and he blessed Abram, saying, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. And praise be to God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.” (Genesis 14: 18-20 NIV)
What happened here was that Abraham met “Melech Tzedek”, the King of Righteousness and a priest who lived in Salem. So this is the first mention of Jerusalem in the Bible. With bread and wine there happened “kiddush,” as in sanctification. So the name of Jerusalem, mentioned for the first time in the Bible, is in the context of holiness. I do also find it interesting that Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. It seems to imply that there is a connection between generousness and tithing and sanctification and holiness.
Inheritance
It is in this Torah portion that God told Abraham that he would have an heir who would inherit the land. I believe that because Abraham believed in the Lord, He made a covenant with him:
“Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6 NIV)
Here -for the first time- God defined the borders of the Promised Land:
“On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates—
the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,
Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,
Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” (Genesis 15: 18-21 NIV)
God’s Might
The God who was able to accomplish miracles in the life of his servant Abraham, He is a God of strength and power. In the prophetic portion, Prophet Isaiah describes the way He would not grow tired and would give strength.
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40: 28-31 NIV)
As in the text about Abraham and the nations receiving a blessing or a curse, Isaiah also speaks about nations and how God will confront them.
“Be silent before me, you islands! Let the nations renew their strength! Let them come forward and speak; let us meet together at the place of judgment. “Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow.
He pursues them and moves on unscathed, by a path his feet have not traveled before.
Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD—with the first of them and with the last—I am he.” (Isaiah 41:1-4 NIV)
The Holocaust Connection
Is it possible that a curse will extend itself over generations?
When God said to Abraham that “in him all the nations would be blessed or cursed,” what did it mean in terms of modern history?
When we think about Europe, and how its soil became blood soaked during WWII, with innocent blood of civilians, especially the Jews, what does that mean? To me we can never look at certain nations without remembering their past. We travel to certain countries to see places where horrors took place.
It does not mean that God cannot redeem everything, but that redemption requires repentance.
In the Holocaust Garden of Hope, we tell stories of Nazi descendants who repented from the past of their ancestors. This way, stories of survivors (and their descendants) come together with stories of perpetrators’ descendants. This coming together for a blessing is possible only because of repentance that breaks the curse.
Repentance
Repentance is an understanding that we have done wrong but God can forgive, and we can start again. It can apply to individuals and to nations. As we look at the issue of national blessings and curses, there is a need to understand the past and sometimes to actively repent for it.
Jesus repeatedly spoke about repentance.
“From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven ash come near.” (Matthew 4:17 NIV)
Jesus answered…But unless you repent you too will all perish.” (Luke 13:3 NIV)
Paul confirmed the need to repent.
“In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.” (Acts 17:30 NIV)
It is unthinkable that some of the same nations that were so treacherous toward their Jewish populations during WWII, are now judging Israel. It is unbelievable that some Nazi descendants are now condemning Israel and actively propagating against the Jewish State. This means that there has been no reckoning with the past.
But let us continue our work! Let us be a blessing and bring a blessing to our nation!
*For an explanation of the terms see the first The Torah Portion Blog.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 1:3 NIV
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
Psalm 119:105 NIV
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
Isaiah 60:1 NIV
…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:16 NIV
Torah Scrolls were attacked and desecrated during the Holocaust. The enduring images of the Kristallnacht (November 9-10,1938) are those of synagogues on fire and Torah Scrolls burning. Some of these desecrated Torah Scrolls disappeared, others were buried. Some were lovingly rescued and are on display in museums in various locations.
