In the Beginning

Abraham, the first Jew, came from a family of idol worshippers. He broke with their traditions and became a believer in one God, who promised him and his wife, Sarah, that their descendants would become a great people, as numerous as the stars in the sky. God renewed this promise with their son, Isaac (Yitzhak), and his wife, Rebecca (Rivka), and with their son, Jacob (Yaakov) and his wives Rachel and Leah.

God led Abraham and Sarah across the river, Euphrates, to the land of Israel (then called Canaan), but warned that their descendants would be strangers in a strange land, enslaved for 400 years. And that just made them blissfully happy and hopeful.


haggadah Section: -- Exodus Story