EXTRA on Lech Lecha 14:13

EXTRA · Bereishis Rabbah (on the survivor who told Avram) · Parashas Lech Lecha · Passuk 14:13

Complete Passuk

וַיָּבֹא֙ הַפָּלִ֔יט וַיַּגֵּ֖ד לְאַבְרָ֣ם הָעִבְרִ֑י…

A fugitive brought the news to Avram the Hebrew…

Source

Rashi on Genesis 14:13 — Rashi distinguishes the plain reading (Og survived the battle with the Rephaim) from the midrashic reading, Genesis Rabbah 42:8, in which Og survived the Flood generation.

Sefaria — Rashi on Genesis 14:13

Sefaria — Bereshit Rabbah 42:8

Core Text

Core Text
הַפָּלִיט — זֶה עוֹג. לְפִי פְּשׁוּטוֹ פָּלִיט מִן הַמִּלְחָמָה; וּמִדְרָשׁ: עוֹג שֶׁנִּמְלַט מִדּוֹר הַמַּבּוּל.

English: The fugitive — this is Og. According to the plain sense, a survivor of the battle; midrashically, Og who escaped the generation of the Flood.

On the daf / in context: The midrash expands the unnamed survivor into Og, tying the war report to a figure who spans the Flood and later appears in the Moshe narratives. Avraham’s response to the news is thus framed as action that will echo across generations.
Type of Learning: Custom (aggadic identification)
What Is Learned: The report that triggers Avraham’s military campaign is itself midrashically layered: the messenger is not a random survivor but Og, preserving continuity of the wicked who oppose the covenant line.

Supplementary classical material not listed by Torah Temimah under this exact passuk.

← PREV ↑ Master Index NEXT (main ring) →
← PREV ↑ Master Index NEXT →
← PREV ↑ Master Index NEXT →