Toldot: The Holy City of Gaza

by Rav Netanel Yosifun, Rosh Yeshivat Orot Netanya , yeshiva.org.il, translated by Hillel Fendel.

It is told that a Jew once came to the late saintly Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Israel, 1983-1993), and told him that he was intending to reprint the exalted and famous Sabbath hymn Y-ah Ribon Alam. Rabbi Eliyahu said to him that where the name of the author, Rabbi Yisrael Najara (d. 1628) appears, it should also be noted prominently that he was the Rabbi of the city of Gaza (in which he was also buried). Why? Rav Eliyahu explained that it should be publicized that Gaza had a large Jewish population and that it is an integral part of our Holy Land.

The entire Land is sacred, of course, and in our times it is particularly important that we discuss and emphasize the holiness and prominence of the city of Gaza and of the Gaza Strip in general – especially this week when this area figures significantly in our Torah portion of Toldot (B'reshit 25,19-28,9). (There is even talk in some circles of resettling the area now, to "atone" for the Disengagement and destruction of Jewish Gaza, known as Gush Katif, in 2005.)

We read in Parashat Toldot that our Patriarch Yitzchak was commanded not to leave the Holy Land. He then went in the path of his father Avraham and lived in Grar – which, according to modern research, is located practically adjacent to the Gaza Strip, in the area known today as Re'im [the epicenter of the calamitous Hamas slaughter 14 months ago].

Our forefathers fought many times in history over this area with the Plishtim. In Toldot we read that the struggle was first expressed in the digging of wells: The Plishtim plugged up the wells that Avraham had dug, and Yitzchak re-dug them, and the Plishtim again fought with him over them. Only when Yitzchak dug a third well a bit further away did the Plishtim leave him in peace, and even forged a treaty with him.

The famous Biblical commentator Rav David Kimchi (the Radak, d. 1235 in France) writes as follows:

"All these stories about the digging of the wells and giving them names come to tell us that Yitzchak was able to dig without being bothered in the uncontested parts of the Land of Israel … And this was a sign for them that G-d was to give them and their descendants that land – but the land of Plishtim [known today as the Gaza Strip], even though it is part of Eretz Yisrael [emphasis added], was not securely in their hands, and this is why there was a fight about the border. All this says that this area will not be secure in their hands [until] the days of the Messiah."

That is to say: Our holy Patriarchs fought for this area because it is a part of the Land of Israel, but this struggle will last for all generations, until Messianic times.

And here we see something astonishing, which indicates the importance of the Gaza Strip as critical in the conquest of the entire Land and the building of Jerusalem:

The Torah tells us that both Avraham and Yitzchak forged treaties with King Avimelekh of Grar. In Deuteronomy (2,23) we read: "The Avites, residing in Hatzerim up to Gaza – the Caftorites living in Caftor destroyed them, and settled in their place." Onkelos translated the word Hatzerim as meaning Rafiach, none other than today's Rafah. This tells us that the Avites lived throughout the Strip, from the city of Gaza southward to Rafah.

Rashi there explains why the Torah saw fit to tell us this little tidbit: "The Avites are of the Plishtim… and because of the oath that Avraham made to Avimelekh, [we] his descendants were unable to take their land, therefore [G-d] brought the Caftories upon them; the Caftorites destroyed them and took their land – and now Israel is permitted to take that land from them."

We thus see that because of the covenant between Avraham and the king of Grar, we were unable to conquer the entire Strip, because the descendants of the Grarites lived there, until the Caftories took over, enabling us to inherit the Gaza Strip.

Let us go a step further. The Ramban states that this issue actually delayed the Israelites' entry into the Land following the Exodus from Egypt! He explains that this is why we did not enter the Land directly via the Gaza area – as is written, "G-d did not lead them along the Plishtim route even though it was shorter" (Sh'mot 13,17) – because "Israel did not inherit the land of Plishtim until the oath was expired, that is, after three generations of Plishtim had died."

The Ramban cites in this context the Medrash Mechilta as explaining "even though it was shorter" as meaning, more literally, "because it was short" – it was too soon after the oath between Avraham and Avimelekh!

This seems to apply even to Jerusalem. See Radak on Yehoshua 15,63, which implies that the reason the Israelites did not conquer Jerusalem in Yehoshua's time was because the Yevusites – descendants of Avimelekh – still lived there. Only after Avimelekh's grandson died did King David ascend and conquer Jerusalem.

We thus see that the liberation of Gaza is the key to our conquest of our entire Holy Land! With G-d's help, may we soon merit that our defeat of Hamas in Gaza will lead to the complete and absolute liberation of Jerusalem and to the construction of our Holy Temple, speedily in our times, Amen!