Haran died in front of Terach his father in his homeland in Ur Kasdim. (Bereishis 11:28)
Chumash Bereishis is called Sefer Hayashar because it tells of the Avos, of their outstanding straightness and righteousness, and their absolutely awesome dedication to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. The Torah recounts all this so that we, too, will follow in their footsteps, and walk on the straight path, each according to his ability.
Besides the Avos, the Torah also tells stories of people less righteous. It is very important to pay attention to what may be learned from their deeds, too. If the Torah went out of its way to recount the story, it must bear an important lesson for us.
Our pasuk tells of Avraham Avinu’s brother, Haran, who died “in front of Terach his father in his homeland in Ur Kasdim.”
What happened to Avraham’s brother? How did he meet an early death?
The Midrash explains that when Avraham smashed the idols of his father Terach, after which the wicked king Nimrod decreed that Avraham should be cast into a fiery furnace, Haran was standing on the side, hesitating. He thought to himself: “If Avram wins, I am with him. And if Nimrod wins, I am with him.”
In the end, Avraham emerged unscathed from the fire, which was an open miracle. They then put Haran, Avraham’s brother, to the test: “Whose side are you on?” Haran answered, “Avram’s.” They cast him, too, into the fiery furnace, and there he died.
Avraham gave up his life for the sake of Heaven – and was saved. Haran did not have the same lofty kavanah. He had in mind to go with the winner, whoever it would be. He died in the furnace. No miracle took place for him.
We need to understand what happened here. Why did Hashem withhold reward for Haran’s good deed? True, Haran may not have had the purest intentions, but still, he threw himself into the fire in the Name of Hashem. Why wasn’t he saved?
It teaches us an important lesson.
Let’s take a look at Haran’s children. He fathered Sarah, who is the Matriarch of the entire Jewish people, and Lot, from whom descended two very great tzaddikos: Rus and Naomi. They are the matriarchs of the Davidic dynasty and of Mashiach.
This shows that every good deed, even if it lacks pure intentions, even if it was not performed for the sake of Heaven, is very greatly rewarded!
Sometimes we see people doing good deeds, such as pledging donations in shul, or assisting with a certain matter, and it is clear that their intentions are not so pure. They want to earn a good name for themselves and build up their status in the community, and so forth.
It’s true that this is not the optimal way to do mitzvos, but we mustn’t make light of it, either. It has a lot of value. Chazal say:
A person should always engage in Torah learning and mitzvos, even if it is not for Hashem’s sake, because from doing it not for Hashem’s sake, he will come to do it for Hashem’s sake.
As a reward for the forty-two korbanos that Balak offered, he merited that Rus will descend from him.
Chazal said further:
He who says, “This coin is for tzedakah so that my son may live,” or “So that I will merit the World to Come,” is a perfect tzaddik.
We may not be on the highest madreigah. Perhaps our deeds are not so pure. But we should still do whatever we are capable of. Chazal promised that from shelo lishmah, we will come to lishmah. In the end, we will purify our kavanos and do our deeds with proper sheleimus.
