רעב Gen. 26:1

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Isaac Fried
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Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:32 pm

רעב Gen. 26:1

Post by Isaac Fried »

We read there
וַיְהִי רָעָב בָּאָרֶץ מִלְּבַד הָרָעָב הָרִאשׁוֹן אֲשֶׁר הָיָה בִּימֵי אַבְרָהָם וַיֵּלֶךְ יִצְחָק אֶל אֲבִימֶלֶךְ מֶלֶךְ פְּלִשְׁתִּים גְּרָרָה
KJV: "And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar"
The root רעב is kindred to רעף, רבב and רפף, and signals, methinks, not only scarcity of food, but also a wider loosening התרופפות of the social order and norms of behavior.
Isaac went to the Philistines not only for food, but also to live under their tighter political organization and better citizen protection.

Isaac Fried, Boston University
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