Hashem said to Avraham, “Go for yourself, etc., from your father’s house, etc.” (12:1)
The Medrash (Rabbah 39:7) comments on this passuk, “What does it say earlier? ‘And Terach died.’ When Hashem commanded Avraham Avinu to leave his father’s house, Avraham was afraid that by doing so, thereby leaving his old father to fend for himself, he would create a stir and cause a chillul Hashem. To alleviate Avraham’s fears, Hashem told him, ‘I exempt you from the mitzvah of kibbud av (honoring one’s father). However, others, I do not exempt from honoring their fathers. Not only that, but your father will die before you leave, and a chillul Hashem will be avoided.’ This is why the commandment of ‘Lech lecha’ is preceded by the passuk telling us that Terach died.”
The Zera Shimshon asks the following questions on this Medrash. Firstly, since Terach, Avraham’s father, was an idolater, Avraham was not obligated to respect him. Why then did Hashem have to “exempt” him from kibbud av? Secondly, when calculating the years, it comes out that Terach died many years after Avraham Avinu’s test of “Lech lecha.” Avraham was born when Terach was 70 years old. Terach lived until he was 205 years old. And Avraham was 75 years old when Hashem told him to leave his birthplace. That means that Terach was 145 years old when Avraham was commanded to leave him. Terach lived for another 60 years after that. How then can the Medrash say that Terach died before Avraham Avinu left?
The Zera Shimshon explains that at this point, Terach had already begun to recognize his erroneous ways and do teshuvah for his idolatrous past. For this reason, Avraham Avinu was afraid to leave his side lest he return to his old ways, and this would be a great chillul Hashem. However, according to Tosafos (Baba Kama 7b), the Bris Bein Hebesarim happened five years before the test of “Lech lecha,” and Hashem had informed Avraham Avinu then that his father would repent entirely (see Rashi Bereishis 15:15). Referring back to this prophecy, Hashem informed Avraham that he need not fear, since eventually, Terach would repent entirely and there would be no chillul Hashem.
This is what Hashem meant when He said, “I exempt you from the mitzvah of kibbud av. However, others, I do not exempt from honoring their fathers.” Other people whose fathers are sinners in the process of repenting would not be allowed to leave their fathers’ side, since by doing so, they would possibly allow their fathers to return to their old ways. Hashem told Avraham that he was different since that would not happen in his case. Terach would eventually do a full teshuvah and not return to his old ways.
In other words, although Terach had begun the teshuvah process, and Avraham Avinu was now obligated to respect him since he was no longer an idolater, Hashem told Avraham that leaving his father at this point was not a breach in kibbud av, since Terach was strong enough on his own and would not return to his old ways, and no chillul Hashem would result from Avraham’s leaving.
To explain how the Medrash can say that Terach died before Avraham left to Eretz Yisroel (then Canaan), the Zera Shimshon explains this homiletically, based on a concept mentioned in the Zohar.
The Zohar (Naso 135b) says that anyone who goes from a higher status to a lower one can be referred to as having died. This being the case, before Terach did teshuvah, he was a wealthy idol merchant. Now, however, after Avraham was saved from the furnace, which was supposed to have been a punishment for not believing in idols, his father’s business suffered greatly since people’s belief in idols weakened significantly. (As well, Terach himself had begun to repent of his idol worship and probably left the business and was no longer a wealthy man with a flourishing business.) For this reason, the Torah refers to him as dead.
In other words, “and Terach died,” which, according to Zera Shimshon, now means that Terach had begun separating himself from idol worship, allowed Avraham Avinu to leave him without fearing that he would return to his old ways.
