Parshas Lech Lecha is centered upon Avraham Avinu, the first of three patriarchs of the Jewish people. The Mishna tells of his greatness and that he was considered an acquisition of the Almighty.
The Sages taught in a Tanaic bereisa:
Text 1
The Holy One, Blessed be He acquired five acquisitions in His world. These are: one acquisition is the Torah, one acquisition are the heavens and the earth, one acquisition is Avraham, one acquisition is Yisroel (the Jewish people), and one acquisition is the Beis Hamikdash. The Torah, as it is written, "G-d acquired me as the beginning of His way, before His works of yore." The heavens and the earth, as it is written, "So says G-d: ‘The heavens are My throne and the earth is My footstool; what house, then, can you build for Me, and where is My place of rest?’"; and it says, "How many are Your works, G-d, You have made them all with wisdom; the earth is filled with Your acquisitions." Avraham, as it is written, "And he blessed him, and said: ‘Blessed be Avram to G-d, Most High, acquirer of heavens and earth.’" The Jewish people, as it is written, "Until Your nation, G-d, shall pass, until this nation You have acquired shall pass"; and it says, "To the holy who are upon earth, the noble ones, in whom is all My delight." The Beis Hamikdash, as it is written, "The base for Your dwelling that You, G-d, have achieved; the Sanctuary, G-d, that Your hands have established"; and it says, "And He brought them to His holy domain, this mount His right hand has acquired."
Pirkei Avos 6:10
This statement expresses that in the vast world that G-d created, there are five individual things that G-d specifically acquired to be His own. These five entities are (1) Torah; (2) heaven and earth; (3) Avraham; (4) Yisroel (the Jewish people); and (5) the Beis Hamikdash.
This statement, however, require further understanding:
- Firstly, the wording of the bereisa is puzzling. The statement, “G-d acquired five acquisitions in His world,” seems to insinuate that the entire world on its own is not an acquisition of G-d, but rather that He procured separate acquisitions in His world. Yet, being that G-d created everything that exists, obviously the entire universe, must already belong to Him! This is not merely a logical conclusion, but is a concept that is explicitly expressed in Tehillim:
Text 2
The land and the fullness thereof are G-d’s; the world and those who dwell therein. For He founded it upon seas and established it upon rivers.
Tehillim 24:1-2
There are other difficulties in this teaching as well:
- Heaven and earth are not only individual objects, they include everything that exists in the universe. Once it has already been said that heaven and earth belong to G-d, what else is there outside of these, which are not included?
- Heaven and earth are two separate entities. Why then, are heaven and earth considered one acquisition and not two?
- As a proof that G-d owns heaven and earth, we bring two obscure verses. Why do we not bring the straightforward verse, (which is in fact brought in connection to Avraham) “G-d acquires heaven and earth?”
- Why is it, that Avraham is considered a distinct acquisition, and not simply included in the acquisition of the Jewish people? This would seem particularly fitting, being that Avraham was the primal founder of the Jewish people, and the first of the three patriarchs.
- The verse which is brought to support the acquisition of Avraham seems to make no mention of Avraham being an acquisition of G-d. It seems to merely comment on Avraham’s own procurement of heaven and earth!
- Why are each of the five acquisitions continuously prefaced with the words, “one acquisition?” Why does the bereisa enumerate them as “one acquisition is the Torah, one acquisition is heaven and earth, etc.,” rather than number them in escalating order (the second acquisition, the third acquisition)? Additionally, why is it necessary to have preceding words before each acquisition at all?
Belonging to G-d
There are commentators who explain that the intent of the term “acquisition” here is not to express that these five things are simply in G-d’s jurisdiction—as this applies to all of creation equally. Rather, the idea conveyed in this statement is something more profound.
All other objects in the world, though under the Almighty’s authority, have their own identities. They are called G-d’s property in the sense that He is the Master of the world, and He is able to do with them as He sees fit. They themselves though, are not particularly expressive of G-dliness.
These five acquisitions however, in their very definition are property of G-d. Their whole being is to be expressive of G-dliness and to serve a divine purpose.
G-d’s objects
According to the above, we can explain the seemingly contradictory statement found in the bereisa. It begins with the words, “G-d acquired five acquisitions in His world,” yet this statement is inherently contradictory. If the world is already His—as the Mishna clearly states—how is it possible to acquire anything in it?!
The bereisa could have said that G-d acquired five things in the world, without using the word “His.” From the fact though that it did express this statement in this curious manner, it is understood that the bereisa is teaching something that otherwise would not have been known.
According to the explanation presented above, the answer to this question is readily apparent. The bereisa is indicating, that what is being discussed is a deeper level of ownership—an acquisition where the identity of the object is solely to express its owner.
The rest of creation, even when it does express the authority of the Almighty and its being possessed by Him, the expression is in a way in which it still retains its own identity. Any G-dly revelation is merely superimposed on its essential nature.
The world, by definition, is a place that conceals G-dliness to the point that G-d’s presence is not readily observed within it.
This is expressed in the term for “world” in Lashon Hakodesh (The Holy Tongue). The word “olam,” world, is made up of the same letters and shares the same meaning as the word “helem,” meaning hidden. See figure 1.
Figure 1
עולם העלם
