Vayeira 21:7 · unit 1

Parashas Vayeira · Passuk 21:7

The Complete Passuk

וַתֹּ֗אמֶר מִ֤י מִלֵּל֙ לְאַבְרָהָ֔ם הֵינִ֥יקָה בָנִ֖ים שָׂרָ֑ה כִּֽי־יָלַ֥דְתִּי בֵ֖ן לִזְקֻנָֽיו׃

And she said, “Who would have said to Avraham that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Chabad / Judaica Press

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Bava Metzia 87a.

TT lemma: היניקה בנים שרה.

Sefaria — Bava Metzia 87a

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
הֵינִיקָה בָּנִים שָׂרָה. וְכִי כַּמָּה בָּנִים הֵינִיקָה שָׂרָה? אָמַר רַבִּי לֵוִי, לְפִי שֶׁהָיוּ אֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם מְרַנְּנִים וְאוֹמְרִים רְאִיתֶם זָקֵן וּזְקֵנָה שֶׁהֵבִיאוּ אֲסוּפִי מִן הַשּׁוּק וְאוֹמְרִים בְּנֵנוּ הוּא; מָה עָשָׂה אַבְרָהָם? הָלַךְ וְזִמֵּן אֶת כָּל גְּדוֹלֵי הַדּוֹר וְשָׂרָה זִמְּנָה אֶת נְשׁוֹתֵיהֶם וְכָל אַחַת הֵבִיאָה אֶת בְּנָהּ עִמָּהּ בְּלֹא מְנִיקְתָּהּ, וְנַעֲשָׂה נֵס בְּשָׂרָה אִמֵּנוּ וְנִפְתְּחוּ דַּדֶּיהָ כִּשְׁנֵי מַעְיָנוֹת וְהֵינִיקָה אֶת כֻּלָּם.

English: “Sarah would nurse children.” How many children did Sarah nurse? Rabbi Levi said: Because the nations of the world were murmuring, “See this old man and old woman who brought a foundling from the marketplace and say, ‘He is our son,’” what did Avraham do? He invited all the great men of the generation, and Sarah invited their wives, and each brought her child without her wet-nurse. A miracle was performed for Sarah our mother, and her breasts opened like two fountains, and she nursed them all.

On the daf / in context: The plural “children” is explained by a public demonstration that silenced the skeptics who claimed Yitzchak was adopted.

Type of Learning

Derash on the verse (Bavli sugya) — not a formal named middah of the 13. The plural form is expanded into a narrative of miraculous public nursing.

What Is Learned

Sarah nursed many infants at once to refute the claim that Yitzchak was a foundling; her breasts became like two fountains by miracle.