The Tiferes Shlomo (Eikev, on the pasuk עקב והיה תשמעון) teaches, "It is very proper for every person to understand and to know that due to the great darkness that exists today, any type of arousal to serve Hashem with Torah and tefillah is very precious before Hashem yisbarach, and He accepts it, even when one’s avodas Hashem isn't as it should be and it isn't with great kavanah in comparison to the services of previous generations. Nevertheless, the little bit that he does is precious before Hakadosh Baruch Hu, like that done years before. This is because due to our many aveiros, there is a lot of darkness in the world, the galus is very hard to tolerate, and there are many tzaros, and the Sitra Achara chases after us all day without letting up. Therefore, every drop of arousal for kedushah accomplishes a lot. As it is known, a drop of light banishes a lot of darkness. Therefore, it is proper that every person should strengthen himself and arouse himself to yiras Shamayim in this time, because keviyachol the King is waiting in the doorway for those who knock to do teshuvah, and He wants to accept them with love."
The Emes l'Yaakov of Sadigura zt'l (א"תרל) teaches in the name of the Arizal that all neshamos were contained in Adam HaRishon. The early generations were associated with Adam's head. There were generations of the רגליים, feet, and there are the generations of the עקב, the heel. The "heel" are these generations of today, the generations of דמשיחא עקבתא, "the heel of Moshiach", because they come from the heel of Adam HaRishon. Although we can't compare the neshamos that are עקב, heel, to the neshamos that are ראש, the head, nevertheless, Hashem's primary joy and pleasure comes from the avodah of the people of the lower generations, because they have to battle so much harder to do Hashem's will.
The Sadigura Rebbe says this is alluded to in Chazal (Tanchuma Acharei 2) "The heel of Adam darkened the light of the sun." He taught, "The neshamos of דמשיחא עקבתא, that are associated with the heel of Adam HaRishon, with their good deeds and with their Torah and avodah they darken the sun, the neshamos of the tzaddikim of the early generations who were associated with the head of Adam HaRishon..."
The Chasam Sofer zt'l says that when the Avos hakedoshim stand up at techiyas hameisim, it would seem that we will be like nobodies compared to them. But the Chasam Sofer said it isn't so. "After we suffered 1700 years of galus (and now it is two hundred years more than that!) and we suffered from the governments, we are equal to the righteousness of the early generations, which didn't have the tzaros and galus that we endure.... Your days will be considered greater than theirs..."
It states (Rus 3:10) ׁוֹןָרִאשה ִןמ ֲרוֹןַחָאה ְ דֵּ ךְַסח ְַּבְתֵיטה, "your latest act of kindness is greater than the first." Avodas Yisrael (haftarah of Vayeira) teaches that chesed, kindness, in this pasuk refers to avodas Hashem, and the pasuk is saying, "The Jewish nation does a greater chesed when they serve Hashem than the chesed (avodas Hashem) of the early generations, about which it states (Yirmiyahu 2:2) ֶדֶסח ָ ךְל ִּיַרְתזָכ ַ יִ ךְנְעוּר, "I remember to you the lovingkindness of your youth.' That wasn't so great because it is certainly not such a great chiddush [when the early generation served Hashem], for they saw all of the miracles that were performed for them in Mitzrayim and at the sea, and that the clouds of glory surrounded them, and the miracles of the manna, the well, and the slav. Undoubtedly, they should recognize Hashem. But us, that we don't see anything of Hashem's G-dliness, on the contrary, among all people of the world, the Jewish nation is always the most looked down at and despised – and, nevertheless, we trust in Hashem and He will save us speedily in our days."
The Midrash states, "You don't call a person by Hashem's name, but Hakadosh Baruch Hu calls Yisrael by His name, as it states (Tehillim 82:6) ֶּםַתא ִיםֱלֹקא ִּיַרְתָמא ֲנִיא, 'I said: You are Elokim...'" This is a great honor that Hashem gives to the Jewish nation. However, the Avodas Yisrael zt'l (Likutim Tehilim) asks that the next pasuk states, ֵןָכא ְּמוּתוּןת ָםָדכְּא, "Indeed, as a man you will die." In this pasuk Bnei Yisrael seem to be very human.
He answers, "But the truth is that we can explain ֶּםַתא ִיםֱלֹקא ִּיַרְתָמא ֲנִיא, 'I said: You are Elokim...' If you want to know the reason why I consider you so exulted until I call you by My name, it is because ְּמוּתוּןת ָםָדכְּא ֵןָכא, 'Indeed, as a man you will die.'"
The Avodas Yisrael explains that מיתה, death, means that they fall from their levels and fall into taavos. "Nevertheless, they don't give up and win against the yetzer hara. Therefore, I say ֶּםַתא ִיםֱלֹקא, you are Elokim.'"
In other words, the two pesukim ִּיַרְתָמא ֲנִיא ֶּםַתא ִיםֱלֹקא, 'I said: You are Elokim...' and ֵןָכא ְּמוּתוּןת ָםָדכְּא, 'Indeed, as a man you will die' aren't a contradiction. In fact, the latter pasuk explains why Hashem honors us and calls us Elokim. It is because we are human, have faults, fall from our level, and nevertheless pick ourselves up again. This is very precious to Hashem and for it, Hashem calls us אלקים.
Mesirus Nefesh
When the plague of tzefardeia ended, there were piles of dead frogs all around Mitzrayim, as it states (8:9-10) הצפרדעים וימתו משה כדבר 'ה ויעש השדת ומן החצרת מן הבתים מן, "Hashem did according to Moshe's word, and the frogs died from the houses, from the courtyards, and from the fields."ותבאש חמרם חמרם אתם ויצברו הארץ, "They gathered them into many heaps, and the land stank."
But there was one group of frogs that didn't die. Daas Zekainim writes, "The frogs that went into the ovens didn't die because they trusted in Hakadosh Baruch Hu and entered the hot ovens by Hashem's command."
We learn from this that when one is moser nefesh for Hashem, miracles will happen to him. Sefer Chasidim (196) states, "If a person runs away from sin, Heaven performs a miracle for him." The Bnei Yissachar (Igra d'Pirka 24) teaches, "Rebbe Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov zt'l said that when a person needs to accomplish something that is beyond nature, for example, if naturally, he isn't able to bear children, then he should do a great mitzvah beyond nature, and then he will be able to acquire and do things that are beyond nature."
Moshe said (6:12) ואיך אלי שמעו לא ישראל בני הן פרעה ישמעני, "Behold, Bnei Yisrael did not hearken to me. How then will Pharaoh listen to me?" The truth is, Bnei Yisrael had a reason why they didn't listen to Moshe. It states (6:9) משה אל שמעו ולא ישראל בני אל כן משה וידבר קשה ומעבדה רוח מקצר, "Moshe spoke thus to Bnei Yisrael, but they did not hearken to Moshe because of their shortness of breath and because of their hard labor." The meforshim ask that Pharaoh didn't suffer from קשה ומעבדה רוח מקצר, shortness of breath and hard work like the Jewish nation had, so why was Moshe certain that Pharaoh won't believe?
The Beer Mayim Chaim zt'l (Noach) answers that Moshe was saying that the Jewish nation didn't go beyond their nature to believe in Hashem. Moshe told Hashem that if they aren't going beyond their limits, miracles beyond limits won't happen to them.
