1885-1981
Rabbi Yoseph Tzvi Salant (1885-1981) was a talmid chacham known for his derashot, mostly delivered in the “Churva Shul” in the Old City of Yerushalayim. He was the son-in-law of Rabbi Nota Tzvi Weiss, the Maggid of Yerushalayim. He received smicha at the age of 25 from Rav Chaim Berlin (and others). His collection of derashot was published as the Be’er Yoseph.
HebrewBooks:
Bereishit
Bereishit 1:1
Rashi tells us on the first word of the Torah that it needs "darshuni" to teach that we need Chazal in order to explain any of the Torah, i.e., Torah shebe'al peh (oral law) and Torah shebichtav are completely inseparable
Bereishit
Bereishit 1:7
The lower water wouldn't separate from the upper water, to remain pure and connected to Hashem, letting go to be part of nisuch hamayim. How great are mitzvot: It spends all its time in tuma just to be part of an annual mitzva (in the mikdash)
Noach
Noach 7:7
Rashi: Noach didn't enter the teiva until the rain started as he had little faith; how is that possible, as he did all Hashem said, built the teiva, etc.? He thought Hashem would have mercy and forgive everyone and not destroy the world, but he is referred to as of little faith, because once Hashem had commanded him to go in, he should listen, even if Hashem would eventually forgive everyone
Lech Lecha
Lech Lecha 12:1
Why didn't Hashem tell him which land? (Rashi - to give more reward) - Leaving it vague allowed the possibility that Avraham can leave to Mitzrayim during the famine, setting in motion many positives that would help Am Yisrael out (from being careful about arayot they were zocheh to geula)
Lech Lecha
Lech Lecha 12:12
Avraham told Sarah that they will kill him and keep her alive; how does the second part help him convince her? If he is alive, an eishet ish is allowed to choose death rather than having relations with someone else. A penuya is not allowed to choose death. If they kill him and keep her alive, she will be stuck staying married to whichever non-Jew acquires her.
Lech Lecha
Lech Lecha 12:13
It sounds like Avraham was hoping to get presents. But really, he was afraid they would kill him immediately, so if she says she is his sister, they will negotiate giving him presents, giving him the opportunity to speak to them and get them to convert and fear Hashem
Lech Lecha
Lech Lecha 12:16
1) If Avraham was given presents for allowing Sarah to marry Pharaoh, why didn't he return them as they were taken in false pretenses? 2) Why did he take presents from Pharaoh and not from Avimelech? 1) The presents were given for Sarah, as a king doesn't pay for a bride, rather people pay for the honor of having the king marry their daughter. Rather he gave the presents to show his great satisfaction, like Achashverosh giving a tax discount during the party for Esther. 2) The neis of Pharaoh getting afflicted and returning Sarah was known only to those around the palace, so Avraham took the presents back to Canaan, back to the inns at which he stayed on the way to spread the miracle. For Avimelech, his neis of his victory in battle was already known to the world, so he didn't take any presents.
Lech Lecha
Lech Lecha 13:7
Lot's shepherds let their sheep eat anywhere, as the land was promised to Avraham and Lot is his next of kin (as Avraham didn't have children). This has an internal contradiction - the land was promised to Avraham's offspring, and only if the promise of offspring comes true is the land given to them. With or without offspring, Lot gets nothing. This shows how one can ignore poor arguments when it gives a person what he wants.
Vayera
Vayera 18:1
Rashi: Hashem appeared to Avraham in Elonei Mamre because Mamre recommended that he get a bris; Be'er Yoseph: Avraham was asking about periah. Even according to those that said Avraham did mitzvot without Hashem's command, he didn't do the bris a) because Hashem hid it from him to make the nisayon greater, b) he wanted to do it as metzuveh v'oseh and you can only do it once. But once he did the bris, he was only commanded in bris, not periah, and that Avraham did without a command.
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