Chayei Sarah 5783

Question: 25:6 Appears to relate to the children of קטורה (and probably הגר). Since both are referred to previously as wives, why are they referred to as פילגשים?


Approach: It would seem that the epithet is given to show the lower status of these children, compared with יצחק, who was the only child of the main "wife", שרה. Quite what the phrase means in the time before marriage was made into a formal "institution" is a little difficult to understand, but the relative statuses seems clear (similar to בלהה & זלפה being referred to as שפחות later in the יעקב story)

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