Torah Reading for Chayei Sarah

means “he was astonished and perplexed,” for he saw his mission close to success, but he did not yet know if she was from Abraham’s family or not. Do not be puzzled by the ת of מִשְׁתָּאֵה, for you do not find any word whose first root letter is ש that, when used in the hitpa’el (reflexive) form that usually has a ת before the root letters, does not have this ת separating between the first two letters of the root instead, e.g., מִשְׁתָּאֵה; מִשְׁתּוֹלֵל 5 of the same root as שׁוֹלֵל; וַיִּשְׁתּוֹמֵם 6 of the same root as שְׁמָמָה; and “the statutes of Omri will be kept (וְיִשְׁתַּמֵּר)” 7 of the same root as וַיִּשְׁמֹר. Here, too, מִשְׁתָּאֵה is of the same root as תִּשָּׁאֶה.

Now, just as you find the expression מְשׁוֹמֵם, usually meaning “desolate,” applied to a person who is shocked, speechless with amazement, and deep in thought about what is happening, as in: “Those who come after him will be astounded (נָשַׁמּוּ) at his day of misfortune”; 8 “Heaven, be astounded (שֹׁמּוּ)”; 9 “he was dumbstruck (אֶשְׁתּוֹמַם) for a time”; 10 similarly you should explain the expression שְׁאִיָּה, also usually meaning “desolate,” as referring to a person who is perplexed and deep in thought. Onkelos, however, translates מִשְׁתָּאֵה in the sense of “waiting” (שְׁהִיָּה): וְגַבְרָא שָׁהֵי “the man waited” – i.e., he was waiting and standing in one spot to see “whether God had made his journey successful.” מִשְׁתָּאֵה cannot be translated שָׁתֵי “drinking,” for it is not an expression of שְׁתִיָּה “drinking,” since the letter א does not appear in the words of the root שתה (“to drink”).