Halakhah zu Bereschit 21:8

And know and understand that it was about this intellectual meal of the resurrection of the dead that rabbis z”l interpreted in a midrash in Tractate Pesahim:⁸¹B. Pesahim 119b. “‘And Abraham made a great feast on the day of the weaning [ha–higamel], etc.’⁸²Gen 21:8. The Holy One, blessed be He, will in time to come make a banquet for the righteous on the day when He will reward [yigamel hesed] the seed of Isaac, and the cup of blessing will be given to Abraham to bless and he says to them, “I won’t say the blessing because Ishmael came from me.” The cup of blessing is given to Isaac to bless, and he says, “I won’t say the blessing because Esau came out of me.” The cup of blessing is given to Jacob to bless and he says to them, “I won’t say the blessing because I married two sisters while they were both alive.” The cup of blessing is given to Moses to bless, and he says, “I won’t say the blessing, because I didn’t merit entering the land of Israel.” The cup of blessing is given to Joshua to bless and he said to them, “I won’t say the blessing, because I never merited having a son. The cup of blessing was giving to David to bless, and he says to them, “I will say the blessing, and it is right for me to bless the King (may He be blessed), as it is said, “I raise the cup of deliverance and invoke the name of the Lord.”⁸³Ps 116:13.

Hokhmat Adam strongly decries the conduct of those who fail to serve a proper meal in conjunction with a circumcision but falls short of a condemnation for failure to fulfill a statutory obligation. Indeed, the halakhic origin and status of the meal offered guests upon the occasion of a circumcision is a matter of some controversy. As recorded in Pirkei de-Rabbi Eli'ezer, chapter 29, rabbinic interpretation of the phrase "beyom higamel et Yizḥak" in the verse "and Abraham made a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned" (Genesis 21:8) establishes that Abraham made a "great banquet" on the day of his circumcision of Isaac. Although this rabbinic comment does not unequivocally establish a normative obligation, Sha'arei Teshuvah, Oraḥ Hayyim 551:33, cites one authority who maintains that the repast is "a biblical mizvah." Sefer Haredim, chapter 40, section 3, records participation in a wedding banquet or a circumcision repast in his list of positive commandments derived "from the words of Holy Writ and from the words of the scholars." Yam shel Shlomoh, Bava Kamma 7:37, similarly writes that, in contradistinction to the celebratory meal accompanying the redemption of a first-born son, the circumcision repast constitutes a mizvah and is predicated upon the verse "I rejoice over your word like one who finds abundant spoils" (Psalms 119:162). On the other hand, Teshuvot Bet Ya'akov, no. 73, declares that the status of the repast is rabbinic in nature while Bi'ur ha-Gra, Oraḥ Hayyim 640:6, states that the repast "is not a biblical mizvah and there is no obligation of rejoicing."¹⁴See Sefer ha-Brit 265:159. Magen Avraham, Oraḥ Hayyim 640:13, interprets Teshuvot Maharik, no. 178, as asserting that the meal represents "a mere custom."¹⁵For a conflicting interpretation of Teshuvot Maharik see Eliyahu Rabbah 640:19. See also R. Shimon Konitz, Ot Brit 165:14. Elsewhere, Oraḥ Hayyim 546:5, Magen Avraham declares that a circumcision repast does not entail "rejoicing." However, Mordekhai, Mo'ed Katan, sec. 891, asserts that a mourner may not partake of a meal served in conjunction with a circumcision precisely because it involves rejoicing. That contention is based upon the interpretation by the Gemara, Shabbat 130a and Megillah 16b, of the verse "I rejoice in Your word as one who finds great spoil" (Psalms 119:162) as a reference to circumcision.

Yam shel Shlomoh, Beizah 2:5, develops the thesis that every joyous repast requires meat but that, subsequent to the destruction of the Temple, there is an additional requirement to drink wine in order to dispel melancholy. Magen Avraham, Oraḥ Hayyim 249:6, cites Maharam of Lublin who maintains that the "mizvah of rejoicing [on the occasion] of a circumcision cannot be fulfilled with dairy dishes."²¹Cf., however, Magen Avraham 151:5, who, in a different context, remarks that the requirement of a se‘udat miẓvah can be fulfilled with “bread and legumes.” R. Jacob Emden, Migdal Oz, naḥal 9, sec. 17:3, declares that both meat and wine must be served at a se'udat mizvah.²²Tosafot Ḥadashim, Sanhedrin 8:2, also indicate that a se‘udat miẓvah requires both meat and wine. Migdal Oz comments that a banquet is termed a "mishteh," as in Genesis 21:8, because of the drink that is served. He assumes that the noun "mishteh" is derived from the verb "shatoh," meaning "to drink." Migdal Oz finds an allusion to partaking of meat in particular at a circumcision repast in Psalms 50:5 which he renders as "those who enter into a covenant with Me by slaughter."

As noted earlier, the practice of serving a festive meal in conjunction with a brit is derived from the verse "And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned" (Genesis 21:8). Pirkei de-Rabbi Eli'ezer understands the Hebrew "higamel" (literally: he was weaned) as a combination of the letters "heh" (having the numerical equivalent of five) and "gimmel" (having the numerical equivalent of three) and the word "mal" (meaning "he circumcised") which renders the entire verse as "And Abraham made a great feast on the day 'heh gimmel' (having the numerical equivalent of eight) on which he circumcised Isaac." That comment is cited by Tosafot, Shabbat 130a, s.v. sas anokhi. Similar statements regarding a festive meal in conjunction with a brit are found in Midrash Tehillim, no. 112, and Yalkut Shim'oni, Parashat Lekh Lekha, no. 81. Indeed, the Gemara, Ketubot 8a, declares that inclusion of the phrase "Let us praise our God in whose habitation there is joy" in conjunction with recitation of Grace after Meals would have been required on such occasions if not for the fact that the circumcised child experiences pain.³¹See also additional sources cited by Sefer ha-Brit 265:158.