Lech Lecha

That's to translate it literally and see what happens.

The souls that they made in Haran.

Here, too, I think we'll see a good example of the difference between Pshat and Drash whereby people might commonly say the difference between Pshat and Drash is that Pshat is the literal translation and Drash is the non-literal translation.

As we've seen many times, not only is that not the case, it is sometimes the opposite.

It's specifically the Drash that will engage to translate the word literally whereby the Pshat, on the other hand, will back off and exercise a bit of latitude.

And here's a good example because HaNefesh Asher Asu Becharon, it sounds like they literally made souls.

But how do you make a soul? Well, the Pshat, says Rashi, is that the word Asa doesn't mean to make, but it means to acquire.

Like we find On occasion, the term asa means to acquire.

So we see that asa doesn't mean literally made on a pshat level.

It means the people that they'd acquired there, household members and so on.

That's the pshat.

And interestingly, Rashi brings the pshat second.

What he brings first is the medrash, and I believe we're more familiar with the medrash.

Ultimately, we need to know both.

And the Medrash is, these are people that Avram converted.

And in that regard, it's like he made them.

He's made their souls.

He's brought them to an entirely new level of existence.

So the Medrash engages in the word Asa literally.

I hesitate to say Kipshuto because it's not the chat.

It's the literal word.

rendition of the word Asa is to make them.

But how do you make a soul? By converting them.

What does conversion look like in Avram's time? That's an interesting Shaila.

After all, it's not clear whether Avram himself is Jewish in the sense of Kedushas Yisrael at that early stage.

That's to translate it literally and see what happens.

The souls that they made in Haran.

Here, too, I think we'll see a good example of the difference between Pshat and Drash whereby people might commonly say the difference between Pshat and Drash is that Pshat is the literal translation and Drash is the non-literal translation.

As we've seen many times, not only is that not the case, it is sometimes the opposite.

It's specifically the Drash that will engage to translate the word literally whereby the Pshat, on the other hand, will back off and exercise a bit of latitude.

And here's a good example because HaNefesh Asher Asu Becharon, it sounds like they literally made souls.

But how do you make a soul? Well, the Pshat, says Rashi, is that the word Asa doesn't mean to make, but it means to acquire.

Like we find On occasion, the term asa means to acquire.

So we see that asa doesn't mean literally made on a pshat level.

It means the people that they'd acquired there, household members and so on.

That's the pshat.

And interestingly, Rashi brings the pshat second.

What he brings first is the medrash, and I believe we're more familiar with the medrash.

Ultimately, we need to know both.

And the Medrash is, these are people that Avram converted.

And in that regard, it's like he made them.

He's made their souls.

He's brought them to an entirely new level of existence.

So the Medrash engages in the word Asa literally.

I hesitate to say Kipshuto because it's not the chat.

It's the literal word.

rendition of the word Asa is to make them.

But how do you make a soul? By converting them.

What does conversion look like in Avram's time? That's an interesting Shaila.

After all, it's not clear whether Avram himself is Jewish in the sense of Kedushas Yisrael at that early stage.