Between the fasts of 17th
of Tammuz and the 9th of Av the three haftorahs of “retribution” are
read. These are the rebukes of the prophets for the sins that caused the
destruction of the First Temple. The idea is to relive the period before the
destruction of the Temple and in doing so to rectify the sins which caused this
calamity.
The first two haftorahs are
from the book of Jeremiah and the third from Isaiah. Isaiah was the earlier
prophet and he prophesied during from the reign of King Uzziah into the reign
King Hezekiah. His main concern was the gradual social decay which was leading
to disaster. Jeremiah came later and prophesied starting with Josiah, king of
Judah, until after the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of Solomon's
Temple. In the interlude between Isaiah and Jeremiah, King Menashe and his son
Amon ruled Judah. Menashe is considered as the wickedest of the kings of Judah
and because of him, the exile became inevitable.
This haftorah does not rebuke
Israel for evil deeds like robbery or violence. Also they are not being accused
of bad character or neglect of Torah study. The nation is being rebuked for
rejection of Hashem. It is basically a soliloquy where, if it’s possible to
say, Hashem is a spurned soulmate. He is pondering and speaking out His
feelings towards His beloved who has rejected him in favor of being a cheap
whore. The haftorah is more or less a metaphor in which Israel rejects Hashem
in favor of empty vanities and foreign values. Because of this they have become
plundered and the beautiful land has become desolate. Nothing they do can
remove the stain which was caused by this rejection.
The tone of the book of
Jeremiah is considerably upset, excited and urgent for the obvious reason that
he is witnessing the progressive destruction and exile of Judah with its
attendant horrors. The northern Kingdom of Israel has already gone into exile.
The southern Kingdom of Judea has become a vassal of Babylon. Much of the
population has gone into exile and there has been much desolation from war. G-d
has told them through the prophet that if they serve its ruler, Nebuchadnezzar,
things will improve. Both the general population and its king, Tsidkiyahu,
though, are rebellious. Even so, Jerusalem and the Temple still stand.
Nebuchadnezzar is not one to
be trifled with and eventually they vex him once too often. When he besieges
Jerusalem, Tsidkiyahu fetches Yirmiyahu from the dungeon to request his advice.
Yirmiyahu is in jail because he was telling the nation they must cooperate with
Nebuchadnezzar. He tells him in the name of G-d to immediately surrender and if
he does so his life and the city will be spared, and if not, not. Tsidkiyahu
rejects the advice and throws Yirmiyahu back in the dungeon. Not long after
that the Babylonians take the city.
King Tsidkiyahu and his party
flee the palace, but are quickly captured by the Babylonians. The King of
Babylon then slays the sons of Tsidkiyahu in front of him then puts out his
eyes. Tsidkiyahu is to be taken into captivity but does not survive the
journey. Although it’s generally not observed, the date of this horror, the
seventh of Marcheshvan, is deemed a fast day by the Shulchan Aruch (Laws of
Fasts 580:1).
The book of Jeremiah ends on a
somewhat positive note. After being in exile for 37 years the King Judah,
Yehoyachin, who preceded Tsidkiyahu, is released from jail. He had surrendered
to the Babylonians, like he should have, during a previous rebellion. He is
then treated royally and his throne is placed above the thrones of the other
kings conquered by Babylon.
In fact the book of Jeremiah
can be extremely optimistic about the future. It invokes the lamentation and
bitter weeping of Rachel, our mother, crying for her children. G-d assures her
that her deeds will be rewarded and that there is hope for the future. Her
children will return to their own borders from the land of their enemy. He has
heard Ephraim moaning saying I have been chastised and I was chastised, return
me and I will return, for You Hashem are my G-d. For I have turned away and I
have repented, after I was instructed, I smote my own thigh, I was ashamed and
also confounded because I did bear the reproach of my youth. The holy One
blessed be He continues, is Ephraim my dear son? Is he a darling child? For
whenever I speak of him, I earnestly remember him. Inside I am moved by him. I
will surely have mercy upon him (see Jeramiah 31:15-19).
לע"נ הדוד לייב הערש בן אהרן ז"ל נלב"ע יז תמוז תש"ל.
ניתן באתר
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