The haftorah for parshas Lech
L’cha is from the prophet Isaiah (40:27 – 41:16). In it the nation of Israel,
also called Jacob, is in exile and complains that G-d does not see what is
happening to them as well as the injustices to which they have been subjected.
The prophet responds that the holy One, blessed be He, created the edges of the
world inferring that He knows exactly what is going on. In addition He does not
get tired or weary and His knowledge is impossible to fathom. The nation is
reassured those that hope to G-d shall renew their strength and will run
without tiring.
The prophet then describes
Avraham our father saying that he subdued kings and had victory over nations.
He pursued them, crushed them totally, and then moved on, promptly and without
injury. The enemy is described as a smug mob of halfwit apostates. On a
metaphysical level the prophet says that G-d is the one who is determining the
course of history and that Abraham is His beloved worker.
Israel then is depicted in a
contradictory fashion. They are called a worm because it has no strength (See
Rashi Isaiah 41:14). On the other hand, though, they are described as a new
grater with razor sharp teeth that pulverizes mountains and crushes hills to
chaff. The haftorah concludes that this is a metaphor for Israel and its
enemies. Namely that Israel will throw them to the wind and a storm will
scatter them. The nation with then rejoice in Hashem and be praised through the
sacred One of Israel.
The haftorah parallels the
adventures of Avraham, particularly concerning Pharaoh and Avimelech the king
of the Plishtim, as well as capturing the feelings that would be expected. Both
of them seize Sarah for their harems thinking that she is the sister of
Abraham. The couple has in fact kept their marriage secret and used this story
as a pretext because they fear that Avraham could be killed over Sarah. The
residents of Sodom are certainly capable of doing something like this. Pharaoh
and Avimelech are headed in a bad direction. However they have some good in
them and it seems that this ruthless they are not. It comes out that Avraham
seems to be behaving naively.
The haftorah refers to the
nation of Israel by the name Ya’akov and Ya’akov is described by the Chumash as
an innocent, which is an aspect of naivety. Ya’akov is also described as a man
who lives in the library. Similarly when Avraham settles in an area he “calls
out in the name of G-d” ויקרא
בשם ה' (Genesis 12:8) meaning that he is a preacher. In other words
they are both involved with education. Therefore one can ask, if people,
including kings, have the wrong idea why not simply educate them the way a
teacher instructs a student?
The answer is because this
lesson they will not be absorbed from a classroom. Consequently Hashem creates
a situation to dramatize their error. Therefore tsaddikim appear to be weak and
behave in a silly way. Common folk make their typical errors. Difficulties
ensue and in the end the truth is revealed.
One can understand the pain
and expense suffered by the thickheaded and the wrongheaded but what about the
aggravation suffered by the righteous. If the wife of a good person is
kidnapped by the king, it’s possible to wonder if G-d sees what’s happening and
if there is justice in the world.
The answer seems to be “according to the grief is the gain”
(Ethics of our Fathers 5:23). Sarah was released unharmed; the kings paid a
generous award, and even asked for a treaty of peace. Humanity accepted that
one may not snatch a woman simply because they have the physical power to do so
as was done by the generation of the flood.
Avraham and Sarah were also
barren for a very long time. In the end instead of having a child naturally in
their youth, they had a child miraculously in their old age. They also emerged
as wiser and better people. Likewise at the end of days the Jews will emerge
for their long exile and they will rejoice in Hashem and in the Holy One of
Israel, be praised.
לע"נ, הדוד ,שמואל בן נח ז"ל נלב"ע
ט"ו אב תשס"ט,
Acknowledgements to websites:
תורת אמת, וויקיטקסט, http://dictionary.reference.com/, http://hebrewbooks.org/,
וגם בדואר אלקטרוני
ניתן באתר http://dyschreiber.blogspot.co.il
Blogger Hebrew http://dyschreiber.blogspot.com/2014/10/97.html
YouTube http://youtu.be/Af0tdFvFSbY
