Gleaning from Relationships

Following Avraham’s victorious war victory between the four kings and the five kings, he sits with one of the kings. We are told that his name is מלכי צדק מלך שלם, and he was also a כהן.

We learn further that this king known as Malki Tzedek is none other than Shem the son of Noach. And at some point in time, he established the Yeshiva of Shem and Eiver, that Yakov Avinu attended.

The Rabbis asked about this post war meeting as to what exactly Avraham and Shem talked about during their meeting. They compared this to a long meeting that was held between two Chassidic giants and their discussion.

Each was known for a particularly strong character trait. They met to try to see how they could learn from one another, so that each could go higher in their service of Hashem.

The same was true with the Avraham-Shem meeting. Avraham was fascinated how Shem was able to bring people to study Torah. And Shem was impressed with אברהם’s legendary הכנסת אורחים, welcoming guests. Each of these giants wanted to learn how to glean the good from each other.

Similarly, in our relationships with people we respect and admire, we should be able to glean from one another, so that we, too, can grow in our closeness to Hashem.