The ministers of Pharaoh saw her, and praised her to Pharaoh, and the woman was taken to Pharaoh's palace.
"ויראו אתה שרי פרעה ויהללו אתה אל פרעה ותקח האשה בית פרעה." (בראשית יב:טו)
“The ministers of Pharaoh saw her, and praised her to Pharaoh, and the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s palace.” (Beraishis 12:15)
Avraham Avinu didn’t live the easiest of lives. He was tested from the time he was born, from when he was hidden away, unable to even see the sun or moon until he was thirteen years old, through being locked in a dungeon for years, having to leave his home, and enduring famines in the land where Hashem promised he would be successful. Now, his wife was taken from him and brought before Pharaoh to be his wife.
Like the others, Avraham passed the test, and thankfully, Hashem ended it quickly, but there is a subtle message here which could easily be overlooked. Avraham knew his wife was beautiful, so he hid her in a trunk. When the customs officials opened the box and saw her, they were in awe of her beauty. They said to each other, “Such a woman is fit for the king,” and that’s how she ended up being brought to the palace.
Rashi gleans the details from the phrasing of the posuk. The syntax indicates they didn’t speak to Pharaoh directly and extoll Sarah’s virtues. “El Pharaoh” indicates that they were speaking amongst themselves, and estimating that a woman of such beauty was fit for none less than the Pharaoh himself.
This means the catalyst for Sarah’s kidnap and transport to the palace - as well as all the great afflictions that befell Pharaoh and his people on Sarah’s behalf - was that people were talking about her. It wasn’t an ayin hara, an evil eye, but rather, simple prattling and “harmless discussion” about her beauty, which led to her being abducted. At that point, Hashem protected her, and her husband Avraham, by giving Pharaoh painful punishment.
The near-hidden message here is that we should watch our mouths. Not only should we avoid speaking negatively, but even things which are just unnecessary can lead to great damage and harm. These men knew Sarah was out of their league, and none could hope to marry her (see also Malbim on this subject.) There should have been no reason for them to speak about her. But since they professed to be connoisseurs of feminine beauty, they wagged their tongues and pontificated. This led to nothing but trouble.
There is a posuk in Iyov (31:1) which states, “I have made a covenant with my eyes, why should I think about a maiden?” There, he says that not only does he not gaze upon married women, but even unmarried women, which would be permissible, he does not allow himself. Some commentaries say because, at some point, she will get married, but others say it’s a slippery slope. What business do you have to look?
When we get into the habit of looking at things which aren’t relevant to us, we will think about them and likely comment on them. This can bring about so much evil for ourselves and others. Instead, we should be like Iyov and Avraham, who focused only on what they had, not others. They didn’t look, observe, or get involved in things that didn’t concern them. That covenant is what protected Avraham, and can protect us all.
R’ Shimon of Yaroslav lived to a ripe old age. When asked the secret of his longevity he replied: “Everything Hashem does is good. However, when things happen to people that they consider bad, they question Him and say that it was unfair, or should not have happened. He therefore has to take them to the Olam HaEmes, the World of Truth of the next world, to show them why what He did was not only just, but good and necessary.
I, on the other hand, am content with whatever Hashem does to me, because I know that all He does is for good. Since He has nothing to prove to me, He has no need to bring me to the next world just yet.”
