Verses

July 5, 2020 - 13 Tammuz 5780

This page contains chiddushim (insights) that I've had about particular verses in the Tanakh, and will be updated. Because this is the first entry on this page, I have included the actual text, but in the future I will link to the individual pages.

Deuteronomy 21:18 - The Rebellious Child and Ishmael

The following may be taken as the Torah's implicit reference to Ishmael's rebelliousness through the unique juxtaposition of words (in the Hebrew):

If a man has a wayward and rebellious son, who does not obey his father or his mother, and they chasten him, and [he still] does not listen to them...

כִּי־יִֽהְיֶ֣ה לְאִ֗ישׁ בֵּ֚ן סוֹרֵ֣ר וּמוֹרֶ֔ה אֵינֶ֣נּוּ שֹׁמֵ֔עַ בְּק֥וֹל אָבִ֖יו וּבְק֣וֹל אִמּ֑וֹ וְיִסְּר֣וּ אֹת֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א יִשְׁמַ֖ע אֲלֵיהֶֽם... 

Notice the text that I highlighted below from the verse above:

כִּי־יִֽהְיֶ֣ה לְאִ֗ישׁ בֵּ֚ן סוֹרֵ֣ר וּמוֹרֶ֔ה אֵינֶ֣נּוּ שֹׁמֵ֔עַ בְּק֥וֹל אָבִ֖יו וּבְק֣וֹל אִמּ֑וֹ וְיִסְּר֣וּ אֹת֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א יִשְׁמַ֖ע אֲלֵיהֶֽם... 

The last three words in the verse above mean "does not listen to them." The parts of the words that mean "listen to" spell out the name "Ishmael."

For related content, see Islam.