A man went into business and, with the help of Heaven, succeeded and rose higher and higher. His wealth increased, and together with it, his prestige rose in the eyes of his friends. As the saying goes: if one has money, one has friends. Many people came to consult with him and to hear from him advice for success. Most of all, everyone wanted to hear from him the path he took, how he succeeded, what was the secret of his success. And he, in his great kindness, did not keep his success to himself, but helped and advised, with his great wisdom, all who sought it.
Then came difficult days. He began to suffer loss after loss, and his possessions declined lower and lower. Each time, he was certain that the next blow would be the great one from which he would no longer be able to recover, chas v’shalom. But to his great surprise, each time this occurred, he felt that an invisible hand protected him from falling completely. At that moment, he lifted his eyes to Heaven and said: “Master of the Universe, I thought that it was my great wisdom that brought about my success, but now I understand that it was only You who helped me succeed, and You are also the One who protects me from falling completely.”
In our parsha it is written: מאסתים לא אויביהם בארץ זאת גם ואף‘ ’אלוקיהם ’ה אני כי ...לכלותם געלתים ולא - ‘Yet even so, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not abhor them, nor will I reject them to destroy them... for I am Hashem their G-d.’ Rashi explains: ‘Even though I do to them this punishment that I spoke of while they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them to destroy them and annul My covenant with them.’ That is to say, HaKadosh Baruch Hu promises us that even when the Nation of Israel is in the lands of their enemies and surrounded by distress and suffering, Rachmana litzlan, He will continue to be our shield and will not allow us to be destroyed, chas v’shalom.
However, we must know that this promise has a condition — that they know and recognize “that I am Hashem their G-d,” that every Jew always knows that HaKadosh Baruch Hu is with him at all times, in every situation, and only He is the One who has done, does, and will do all things. It is explained in the Sefer HaBris that cleaving to HaKadosh Baruch Hu is what protects a person from all harm. As long as a person is cleaving to Him, no harm can have power over him. But, chas v’shalom, when he is not cleaving, there is nothing to stop evil from ruling over the person. And who knows how many misfortunes we can prevent through cleaving to Yisbarach!
Tiv HaTorah - Bechukosai
