Evil is Removed Through Torah Study:
Sefer Bais Aharon quotes his father, Rav Osher of Stolin zy”a, as explaining the words of Rashi in Brachos (47B): “L’hotzi rabim yedei chovasam”, to mean that one can take others out of their obligations and their sins. (The word “l’hotzi”, which is usually used to mean to have someone in mind when you say a bracha so that they fulfill the mitzvah as well, literally means “to take out.”)
With this in mind, the Bais Aharon says that the word “metzorah” can be translated...
Chayei Sarah
She Always Felt Good:
Rashi states that the reason the word “years” was written after every digit is to tell us that every digit is to be expounded upon individually. When she was one 100 years old, she was like a 20-year-old regarding sin. Just as a 20-year-old has not sinned, because she is not liable to punishment, so too when she was 100 years old, she was without sin. And when she was 20, she was like a seven-year-old in regards to beauty. Rashi then says: “The years of the life of Sarah: All of them were equally good.”
The Yesod Ha’avodah of Slonim zy”a (quoted in Sefer Kisvei Ramam) explains Rashi’s words by saying: “It was always good for her.” Since she completely believed and trusted that everything Hashem does is for her benefit, she always felt good with whatever He caused to happen to her.
One Who Trusts in Hashem is Surrounded by Chesed:
A certain individual once came to Rav Shlomo of Zhvil zy”a and tearfully told him that he worked in a factory where an announcement had recently been made that since there was an overload of work, everyone would have to work on Shabbos. Repeated pleas to the factory owner that he was shomer Shabbos and could not work on the holy day did not help. The owner simply told him that if he did not want to work on Saturday, he should find another place to work. This worker told the Rebbe that his entire livelihood depended on this work, and if he had to leave this job, he would not have bread to eat.
Rav Shlomo said to him, “Tell me, how many people are there in the world?”
The man replied, “Several billion.”
The Rebbe asked him, “Who is the one who provides for all of them? The Ribono Shel Olam! Do you believe that?”
He answered, “Yes, of course I believe that Hashem provides for all of His creations!”
Rabbi Shlomke continued to ask him, “And does everyone work in the same factory that you work in?”
He answered, “No.”
The Rebbe said, “So you see that in order to make a living, you don’t have to work in this particular factory. Rather, there are many ways that Hashem can provide for you. Therefore, my advice is that you do what is incumbent on you, that you go to the factory owner and tell him that you will not work on Shabbos, and if he fires you, just trust in Hashem to provide for you.”
The man was very inspired by the Rebbe’s words. He went to his boss and said, “There’s nothing to talk about. I don’t work on Shabbos!”
The owner of the factory asked, “Yesterday, you were begging me to allow you to continue to work here but to take off on Shabbos. How did you became so much braver today?”
He told him that he had gone to the Rebbe of Zhvil, who had explained that Hashem provides for every living creature, and one must trust in Him. And if one does so, he will be taken care of.
The owner then declared, “Aha, I am talking to a Jew who has faith! I will allow you to take off on Saturdays!”
Learning Emunah from the Tavernkeeper:
It is related that the Baal Shem Tov Hakadosh zy”a once heard a Heavenly announcement telling him to travel to a village near Senitin, where he would learn a lesson about emunah and bitachon from the local tavernkeeper. He immediately set out with his disciples to that village. When they arrived at the tavern, the tavernkeeper joyfully came out to meet them, invited them to spend the night as his guests, and set out a large repast for them.
The next morning after Shacharis, the balhabos prepared breakfast for them. Suddenly, a policeman entered with a large stick, approached the table, and struck it three times. With a frown on his face but without saying a word, he walked away. The talmidim were frightened by the policeman, but the tavernkeeper was calm, as if nothing had happened. The talmidim thought that perhaps the policeman was just drunk, and since the balhabos knew him, he wasn’t afraid of him. However, the same thing happened during lunch. The policeman again entered, hit the table three times, and left in anger.
The Besht asked the tavernkeeper to explain, and he said, “This is the policeman appointed by the village’s portitz. His custom is that on the day when the rent is due, the policeman is sent three times to hit the table as a warning. If by the end of the day the rent is not brought to him, the poritz will come and take me and my household to prison.”
The Baal Shem Tov heard his words, and said, “From the look on your face, it’s clear that you’re not worried. It seems that you already have the money for the rent. If so, why wait until evening? Why don’t you go right away and pay him?”
The man replied. “I don’t have a single gold coin in my hand. But I trust in Hashem that He will send me the money, just like He always does. So there’s no reason to be afraid.”
The policeman then came in again and struck the table angrily with his stick three times. The talmidim of the Baal Shem Tov were very surprised that the man still was not shaken or afraid. The Besht told them to recite Birchas Hamazon. The man then took off his weekday clothes, put on his Sabbath clothes, and left the house.
The Besht and his disciples walked behind him to see if Hashem would protect him. They saw him walking on the road leading to the poritz’s palace, and suddenly they saw a carriage approaching from afar. A man emerged from the carriage and spoke to the tavernkeeper. They argued for a little while until the man got back into the carriage, and the tavernkeeper continued on his way. After a short time, the carriage returned, and the man got out and talked to him again. This time, he gave the tavernkeeper a bundle of money. He took the money and went to the poritz’s house.
The owner of the carriage arrived at the tavern and got out, and the Besht asked him what he had talked to the tavernkeeper about. He replied, “I also am a tavernkeeper. I own a tavern in a village not far from here. For several years now, I have been buying homemade whiskey from this man. I always pay him twenty prutos per liter. I have already tried several times to buy from others, and I have had no success.
“Since I saw that I had to buy from him, I hurried o get here early in the season so that he wouldn’t be bought out by others before I got here. When I met him, he demanded twice the usual amount. I did not agree at first. However, when I got back in the carriage, I was afraid that if I did not agree, he might sell it to others. So, I ran after him and gave him the amount he requested.”
The Besht turned to his students and said, “Hashem commanded us to come here to learn the power of bitachon of a simple Jew.”
Seeing Only the Good:
My grandfather, Rav Tzvi Hirsch of Kretchnif zy”a (Sefer Toras Chaim V’Emunah) writes that the simple explanation of Rashi’s statement that all of Sarah’s years were equally good is that she would always say, “Kol mah d’avid rachaman l’tav avid. Whatever Hashem does is good.” Additionally, this is a hint to the request we recite in the tefillah of Rav Elimelech of Lizhensk zy”a that is traditionally recited before davening: “And put in our hearts for everyone to see the good qualities of their friends and not their deficiencies.” Accordingly, Rashi is saying that all of Sarah’s years were good in the sense that she always saw only the good in others.
Emunah Peshutah as an Inheritance:
The Medrash (Bereishis Rabbah 58:1) states: “The days of Sarah were...This is as is stated (Tehillim 36:18): ‘Hashem knows the days of temimim (simple people) and their portions shall be eternal.’ Just like they are complete, their portions are complete.”
Rav Meshulim Zushe of Chernobyl zy”a (Sefer Tzur Tzadik) explains that the main avodah of a person in this world is to work on having emunah peshutah, simple belief in Hashem, and to reach a level of temimus, serving Hashem unquestioningly. This is as Rashi states on the verse (Devarim 18:13): “Tamim tihiyeh im Hashem Elokecha.” You shall be simple before Hashem. You should walk with him with temimus and not worry about the future.
He writes: “One must review these words of Rashi many times. This type of emunah is desired by Hashem more than anything else.”
Chazal say (Nedarim 32A) that Avrohom recognized Hashem as the creator and ruler of the world when he was three years old. This means that he recognized this fact through his own deduction and investigation. At this point, he reached a level of recognizing Hashem based on his own intellect. Later, he rose to the level of believing in Him based on emunah peshutah and temimus, which was much more desired and beloved by Hashem. Regarding this, the pasuk states (Bereishis 15:7): “And he believed in Hashem and it was considered for him as righteousness.” Once Avrohom surpassed the level of believing in Hashem based on his own intellect and attained the level of emunah peshutah, Hashem considered him to be truly righteous.
So too, when Klal Yisroel was about to receive the Torah, they first needed to reach a level of emunah peshutah. This is seen from the pasuk (Devarim 32:7): “Am naval v’lo chacham”, which Targum Onkelos translates to mean “a nation that accepted the Torah without wisdom. In other words, Klal Yisroel accepted the Torah with temimus – without using their own wisdom. In this way, we merited receiving the Torah.
It is not possible to pass on emunah that is reached through one’s own intellect and reasoning to the next generation. Since a person reaches this level through his own thought process and investigations, it is personal to himself and cannot be given over to one’s children. However, emunah peshutah becomes instilled into a person’s nature and, therefore, can be passed down as an inheritance to one’s children. This is stated in the pasuk (Tehillim 19:10): “Fear of Hashem is pure, it lasts forever.” If one’s yiras Hashem is pure, meaning that it is a result of emunah peshutah, it is passed on to future generations and lasts eternally.
This explains the pasuk that is quoted by the Medrash: “’Hashem knows the days of temimim.’ This refers to tzadikim who follow Hashem with temimus. Their legacy will be passed down to future generations and will last forever. Their descendants will follow their ways and they too will serve Hashem with emunah peshutah.
Yitzchok Avinu Didn’t Know About the Death:
Rabenu Bechaya asks why it says that only Avrohom eulogized and cried for Sarah. Why doesn’t it mention that Yitzchok did the same, as he certainly also eulogized and cried for his mother?
To answer this question, Rabenu Bechaya suggests that it is possible that Yitzchok was unaware that his mother had died. Since she died as a result of hearing about the akeidah, it is possible that he was not told about her death.
He adds that it seems that Yitzchok was not present at all for his mother’s death or burial, as he is not mentioned at all in relation to those events. In fact, after the akeidah it only says that Avrohom returned to Eliezer and Yishmoel. It does not say that Yitzchok returned. This may be because Yitzchok stayed on Har Hamoriah for the next three years, until he turned 40-years-old and married Rivkah. Therefore, he was unaware of the events that took place regarding Sarah’s death and burial.
We can learn an important lesson from this about how much one must be careful to avoid causing pain to a fellow Jew, as we see that Yitzchok was not informed about his mother’s death so as not to cause him pain. He would have felt very bad if he had known that his mother died as a result of something that had to do with him, so he was not informed about it. This teaches us that one must always try to never cause anguish to anyone.
Lying to Revive a Jew’s Spirit:
A young granddaughter of Rav Aharon of Chernobyl zy”a once became very sick. Her mother immediately traveled to her father, Rav Aharon, to ask him to daven for her. She entered his room and began weeping as she asked for a bracha for her daughter.
Rav Aharon told her, “You have no reason to worry. You can go home now. She is already healed.”
She was very happy to hear this and set off for home right away. However, when she arrived in her city, she saw her family coming back from the levaya.
At the end of the shiva, she went back to her father and asked, “You knew the truth, so why did you deceive me?”
He answered, “It is permitted to say a lie in order to revive the spirit of a Jew.”
Relating Good Tidings:
Rashi says that the story of Sarah’s death is placed next to the story of Akeidas Yitzchok because when Sarah was informed that her son had almost been killed, her soul flew out of her body and she died. Rav Shimshon Pinkus zt”l (Sefer Tiferes Shimshon) writes that this teaches us how careful one must be with every word he says.
The messenger who came to Sarah had good intentions. He wanted to inform her that her son was still alive. However, he started off by telling her about how he was about to be slaughtered and waited until the end to tell her that he was saved. Before she heard that her son had been saved, she got so shaken up that her neshama left her, and she died. Had he first told her that Yitzchok was alive, and then told her the sequence of events that occurred before he was saved, she would have been overjoyed and she would never have been in danger. But since he wasn’t careful with how he phrased his words, he went from being a messenger of good news to becoming the cause of Sarah’s death.
We should learn from this how careful we must be with our words. To give an example: Imagine if a man meets his friend and says, “Didn’t your son go on a trip with his class today? I heard that the bus got into an accident... but all the boys were fine.” For that one second after he mentioned the accident but before he said that all the boys were uninjured, he caused the father to worry. He may not have collapsed on the spot or had a heart attack, but he definitely did feel a pang of fear in his heart. This could have been avoided had the message been given in a more tactful way.
And if a piece of bad or scary news can have such a major effect on a person, it is certain that good news can lift a person’s spirits greatly, even if it seems not all that important. For example, if someone is a bit late coming home and he calls his family to let them know he’s okay, he is lessening their worry and bringing them joy.
In this vein, we find that one who relays good news is called an “ish tov”, a good man, as Dovid Hamelech said (2 Shmuel 18:27): “This is a good man, and he comes with good news.”
One Who Gives Good News Receives a Spark from Eliyahu Hanavi:
Sefer Me’ohr Einayim (Parshas Vayeitzei) writes that one who relays good news is instilled with a “nitzutz” (Divine spark) of Eliyahu Hanavi, as he is the “mevaser tov”, the one who relates all good news. He says that, therefore, if one has good news to say, he should run to say it because his Neshama feels that the spark of Eliyahu Hanavi wishes to come to him and it is eagerly waiting for it. And once one possesses this spark of Eliyahu Hanavi, he can serve Hashem on a much higher level and he will find it much easier to connect to Him.
Each One Loved Something Else:
Rashi states: “Bein shnei ahuvim kamonu. (Between two beloved friends like us).” The Imrei Chaim of Vizhnitz zy”a (Likutei Imrei Chaim) asks why Efron called Avrohom his beloved friend when he had just met him. He answers that when Efron said that they were both “ahuvim”, he meant that they both loved something – but they loved two different things. He loved money, whereas Avrohom loved mitzvos.
He was saying that for a man who loves money, 400 shekels is not a lot, as “one who loves money is never satisfied with (any amount of) money” (Koheles 5:9). And for a man who loves mitzvos, money is not important. Therefore, he said that since they both didn’t place much value on the money, “What is it between me and you?”
Praying to Sweeten Decrees:
Sefer Od Yosef Chai explains that when Eliezer arrived in Aram Naharim, he was faced with two conflicting “times”. It was “evening time”, which symbolizes middas hadin, and it was also “the time of drawing water”, which symbolizes middas hachesed. Since Eliezer was afraid of the middas hadin, he davened to Hashem and said, “Please cause to happen (hakrei) to me today and perform chesed.” The word “hakrei” connotes “kerirus”, cooling down. Thus, he was davening to cool down and sweeten the middas hadin and turn it into middas hachesed that is symbolized by the time of drawing water.
Avrohom Avinu Knew he Needed Chasdei Hashem:
The Medrash (Bereishis Rabbah 60:2) states: “And do chesed with my master Avrohom: Everyone needs chesed. Even Avrohom – for whom chesed swept around the world in his merit – needed chesed...”
The Sefas Emes (5632) explains in the name of his grandfather, the Chidushei Harim zy”a, that the reason Eliezer didn’t daven for Hashem to help him in the merit of his master, Avrohom, was because Avrohom taught everyone in his household that even a man like him needed Hashem’s chesed. The Sefas Emes adds that even a person’s good deeds and merits are not really his own, as one has no power or ability to do anything without Hasem’s help. Thus, even one’s merits are a chesed from Hashem.
Thus, when the Medrash says that chesed swept around the world because of Avrohom, it doesn’t mean that chesed was created because of his merits, as the only real source of chesed is Hashem. Rather, it means that Avrohom became a pipeline through which Hashem sent chesed down to this world.
The Neshamos of Tzadikim are Reincarnated in those Who Follow Their Ways:
Sefarim Hakedoshim tells us that when a tzadik excels in a specific mitzvah, and he wants to continue his good deeds even after his passing, his neshama returns to this world to help others who are engaged in this mitzvah. Accordingly, since Avrohom excelled in the middah of chesed, his neshama returns to this world as a gilgal within those who do chesed, in order to help them perform their acts of kindness.
This is hinted to in the words: “V’oseh chesed im adoni, Avrohom”, which can be translated to mean: “Those who do chesed are with Avrohom.” They are with Avrohom in the sense that his neshama is reincarnated within them to help them do chesed.
Don’t Give the Drink to an Animal:
Why does the pasuk tell us that she first emptied the pitcher before she drew more water for the camels?
Sefer Agra D’Kallah explains by citing the words of the Sefer Hachasidim (Siman 888) that if one makes a bracha on a cup of water and, after he drinks, some water is left in the cup, he should not give it to a gentile or an animal. Since Hashem’s name was recited over this water, it would be inappropriate to give it to an animal.
