In our parsha the Torah speaks of a second famine, which occurred in the time of Yitzchak. Yitzchak Avinu thought about going down to Egypt, but G-d revealed himself to him and ordered him to stay in the Land of Israel. How is the leadership of Isaac different from that of Abraham, that one, Abraham, was allowed to descend into Egypt and this act was even to pass a test of G-d, unlike Isaac, who was not allowed to descend to the land of Egypt and despite the famine should he have remained in the Land of Israel? And what can we learn from this for our daily service to HaShem?
Each of our holy Patriarchs had a different form of leadership, which was a unique and direct path in service to G-d. Abraham, a kind man, took care of the simplest people, and he descended to the land of Egypt, the most impure of all the lands, to bring the revelation of the Divine even there. Yitzchak instead concentrated on inner work, learning Torah and serving G-d instead. The people of his generation and the whole world were enlightened by the power of his holiness and his service and therefore he had no need to go to Egypt, in a word, he was forbidden to leave the Holy Land, he was like a giant and shining lantern around which everyone gathers to enjoy its light. Our Sages Z"l said: "The acts of the parents are a sign for the children." From the acts of our holy Patriarchs we learn how to receive the strength for our service to G-d. We must learn from Abraham's conduct and lead every Jew, wherever he may be, to kindle the Divine spark within him. From Yitzchak's behavior we learn that even a Jew whose main job is to deal with the outside world, the material world, he must work to reveal the Divinity, must dedicate a fixed time each day to disconnect from all problems and immerse himself totally in Torah and service to HaShem.
We must travel safely the path that our holy Patriarchs opened for us.
Every Jew has an inner power, “the merit of the parents”, the inner spiritual merit that must be used to help a wandering soul and even “descend into Egypt” because the earthly has almost completely taken hold of it and closes and covers its special light. To illuminate this inner self in our souls, we must dedicate time every day, to immerse ourselves in the study of Torah and service to HaShem, and thus we will all deserve to receive our righteous Mashiach soon in our days.
