Bilam in his nevuah to Am Yisrael הן עם לבדד ישכון ובגויים לא יתחשב (Bamidbar 23,9) said: Behold they are a nation who dwells alone. The Medrash is bothered with the seemingly superfluous word הן (behold)! The Medrash gives the following interpretation. Every letter of the Aleph Beis, whether in the singles or tens, has a partner that together add up to the basis number. For instance, in the single class, the letter א partners with a ט adding up to ten, a ב with a ח adding up to ten etc. The only letter that remains a loner without a match, is the ה which must partner with itself for a double of ה which equals ten. The same process is with the tens. The letter צ partners with the י to equal 100, the letter פ partners with a כ adding up to 100 etc. The remaining letter נ stands alone and must therefore join and double itself to reach shelaimus of one hundred. So too, says the Medrash, Am Yisrael are compared to the letters הן which do not have a partner but themselves. We are essentially and intrinsically separated from the gentile nations in uncountable light years differences and we are not ובגויים לא יתחשב reckoned with them.
Let us use this interpretation to bring out another unique idea that has been relevant to Am Yisrael's history especially in our current events. In Hallel we say:
הללו את ה' כל גויים שבחוהו כל האומים כי גבר עלינו חסדו ואמת ה' לעולם הללוקה
When Moshiach will come and bring the final geulah we will say to the nations of the world to start broadcasting your praises to Hashem for all His kindness bestowed to us during our existence as His people. הודו לה' כי טוב כי לעולם חסדו. Following their proclamation Yisrael will then step up and announce to the world their personal gratitude to Hashem יאמר נא ישראל כי לעולם חסדו. One might be taken aback and rightfully so to ask how can this possibly be the scenario at the time of Moshiach and the final redemption that Yisrael will actually be second placed and give precedence to the goyim to be the first to praise Hashem for His benevolence?
The answer given to this question is that Yisrael can only thank Hashem for all the miraculous salvations that He delivered to us on the events that we know and experienced. However, concerning the miracles that Hashem performed for us behind the scenes of which we are totally unaware of, we cannot thank Hashem for. A mashal given to this is a goy hated his neighbor who was a blind Yid. One day he planned to kill him by digging a deep pit in the middle of the path that he walks on every day alone. He watched with excitement as the Yid began his walk relishing the fact that in a few seconds this Jew will be out of his life forever. Lo and behold as the Yid came to the pit he suddenly stopped and made an about face returning home. The goy couldn't believe how that happened, what luck. The next day he waited again for the Yid to tumble into the pit. This time the Yid walked up to the pit and walked around it and continued on his journey. The third day the same scenario occurred. He ran up to the Yid and confessed of his evil plan to harm him. "You have such an incredible G-d who is always concerned with protecting you from misfortune of which you are totally oblivious to."
Of course when Moshiach will come, Yisrael will be the first to praise and thank Hashem for removing us from harm's way and destruction intended by the goyim. However after we exhausted the praise to Hashem of which we are aware of being saved from our enemies' evil plot and intentions, we turn to the goyim and say now it has come the time to relate all the miraculous chesed that Hashem did on our behalf of which we don't have an inkling of but you do because Hashem foiled your evil plans. כי גבר עלינו חסדו. Now it is the time for you gentiles to praise His kindness towards us in order יאמר נא ישראל כי לעולם חסדו in order for us to give a "new" praise to Hashem for every miracle behind the scenes of what we were totally unaware of and even oblivious to.
This same interpretation is explained in the Shir Hamalos we say before bentching.
אז ימלא שחוק פינו ולשוננו רינה אז יאמרו בגויים הגדיל ה' לעשות עם אלה הגדיל ה' לעשות עמנו היינו כחולמים
When Moshiach will come our mouths will be full of joy and song. Then the nations of the world will say הגדיל ה' לעשות עם אלה Hashem did greatness to these Yidden and then we will say Hashem did great miracles עמנו with us. At this momentous time in History, we will be exuberant and praise Hashem for His kindness. Then the goyim will relate all the hidden chesed and salvations that he did to Klal Yisrael of which they alone were privy to. Only after their enumeration of billions of unrevealed chasdei and hashgachos Hashem that saved us throughout history from their evil conspiracies, we will begin once again to thank Hashem for His never ending benevolence in saving us from horrific tzaros intended for us by the goyim.
It has been broadcast more than once when Arabs have been questioned by the press how could it be that with hundreds of missiles being shot at Eretz Yisrael all at once, not even one hit their target even though they were completely missed by the Iron Dome. The Arabs confess openly that it is not that we don't aim correctly on the targets. Rather it is your G-d who moves them around in mid-air and redirects them to fall on vacant places. After Israel and United States attacked Iran a week later it was discovered that the next day after our offensive attack they planned to send a barrage of five hundred rockets at Eretz Yisrael all at once. That is not called Good Timing on part of IDF or Shin Beis. It is called nothing else but הנה לא ינום ולא יישן שומר ישראל and Hashem has many tools available with which He orchestrates our yeshuos.
The classic example of this in the Torah is found in our parsha. It is the story of Balak and Bilam who come to curse Yisrael in the exact moment that technically the curse could have been unfortunately fulfilled. Unsuccessfully, they went to curse from sight to sight and still it did not work. Yet all of this sinister plan took place right under the noses of Am Yisrael without their awareness. Had it not have been that the Torah revealed this in the parsha we might still not have known until today that we were then in the greatest danger of annihilation. With this concept in mind the meforshim explain this theme in הודו לה' כי טוב when we say (Tehillim 136,4) לעושה נפלאות גדולות לבדו כי לעולם חסדו that Hashem performs wondrous acts on our behalf לבדו by Himself without the Yidden knowing about it, only the goyim for it was they to whom Hashem said "No you don't".
Let us return to the description of Am Yisral as a הן people described by Bilam himself. Just like Hashem is considered "by Himself", so too we are לבדד unaware of such showering of chesed on our behalf as He saves us from our enemies. We are not knowledgeable of the hidden chasadim of Hashem saying No to Yisrael's enemies by foiling their deadly plans against us. However soon be"h we will hear from the goyim directly all Hashem's unknown No's to us, that Hashem said to them as their plans blew up in their own faces which of course they did not admit to.
This is what the passuk ends off with ובגויים לא יתחשב that our praise to Hashem will start all over again when we will hear from the goyim כי גבר עלינו חסדו all the 'No's that Hashem showed to them alone without us being privy to. At that time the No's will be יתחשב accounted for with enormous preciousness to us and to the entire world. It is then that all humanity will acknowledge הנה לא ינום ולא יישן because Hashem is Shomer Yisrael. אכי"ר
Rav Brazil,
Gut Shabbos
