ישועת ה׳ כהרף עין

Parshat מקץ is considered a Chanukah Parsha. The plight of Yosef is meant to demonstrate how quickly one’s fortune can change.

Yosef was in prison for twelve years for a crime he did not commit. His situation seemed pretty hopeless. As fate would have it, the dreams that got him into trouble, and led to his being sold to Egypt, had other dreams get him out of prison.

The lesson of this whole story, which is related to Chanukah, is that we must never despair. As difficult and hopeless a situation might look, we must never forget that all is in Hashem’s hands.

We clearly see how ישועת ה׳ כהרף עין, the salvation of G-d is like the blink of an eye. One minute Yosef is a lowly prisoner, and the next, he is the viceroy of Egypt.

The Jews are living under hopeless Greek oppression, and in a relatively short time, they witness the miraculous overthrow of the Greek army.

We must learn from Yosef and the Maccabees never to lose faith. Things can change very quickly in miraculous ways as long as we put our trust in Hashem. This is the message of Chanukah and of מקץ. These are examples of ישועת ה׳ כהרף עין.

Education

A major theme of פרשת וישב is חינוך. Yakov Avinu is reprimanded for giving preferential treatment to Yosef over his other children.

The Gemara writes that this should be a lesson for all parents to treat their children equally without favoritism. There is a natural tendency for siblings to be jealous of one another.

Parents need to teach their children from a young age not to be jealous, and to learn to be happy for each other’s success.

If this lesson is not learned in the home, the child will grow to be envious of others, and will not be happy with his lot in life.

Perhaps Chanukah carries forth this idea of education. The Chanukah story shows how the small group of Maccabees led by Judah and his brothers, overcame great odds. The brothers worked together harmoniously for the cause of saving עם ישראל. The message of unity and brotherly love, can have miraculous results.

Dreams

Starting with פרשת וישב, the idea of dreams, comes to the forefront. We first learn of Yosef telling his dreams to his brothers. This caused them to hate their brother, and ultimately sell him as a slave.

The dreams of the butler and the baker, were Yosef’s ticket to get out of jail. His correct interpretation of the butler’s dream, allowed him to meet Pharoah.

And when Yosef interpreted Pharoah’s dreams, he was promoted to a position of great importance. This led to the formation of the Jewish Nation in Egypt.

The Rabbis tell us that there are three types of dreams, and that dreams are one sixtieth prophecy.

The first type of dream is induced by demons and contain negativity and impure thoughts. This is why we say the nighttime Shema before bed, and wash our hands in the morning.

The second type of dream reflect the natural consequences of the day. We carry with us our thoughts and activities of the previous day. These dreams are not that significant.

The final category of dreams could be actual prophecy. This is the lowest level of communication between G-d and man, but it can be real. Since there is no longer prophecy in our times, it could still reflect some kind of Divine communication. One needs to be on a very high level to receive such dreams.

Today we are taught not to put too much weight on our dreams. However, if one wakes up totally frightened about a dream he had, he should either say a special prayer during the ברכת כהנים, or, if it’s particularly frightening, declare a fast that day, called, תענית חלום.

May all of our hopes and dreams for ourselves and כלל ישראל, come true.

הדלקה עושה מצוה

There is a principle related to the Chanukah candles, titled: הדלקה עושה מצוה, that the lighting of the Menorah, is what makes the Mitzva fulfilled.

This means that as long as the candles could burn for thirty minutes at the time of lighting, you have fulfilled the Mitzva. If, for example, an unexpected gust of wind came and blew out the candles, even after a few minutes, the candles do not need to be lit again.

This also explains why a blind person is obligated to light the Menorah, even though he can’t see the candles. This is different than the case of the Bracha on smell. If one has no sense of smell, he cannot make the Bracha of בורא מיני בשמים.

But since we say הדלקה עושה מצוה, that it is the lighting that constitutes the Mitzva, the blind man must light the candles even if he cannot see them.

The Pit, the Snake, לשון הרע

On the subject of the בור, the pit, that Yosef was thrown into, Rav Elazar Abuchatzeira זצ״ל, has an interesting take.

The Rav said that the brothers knew that the בור had snakes in it, and the snake was a symbol of לשון הרע. They felt that this was a deserving punishment for Yosef, who constantly spoke negatively to Yakov about them. However, since his intentions were for תועלת, improvement, Yosef was not guilty of לשון הרע, and he was saved.

The Rav went on to say that in Morocco, where he grew up, the government would kill you if one went against them. But in Israel, one can finish off another person, via לשון הרע.

All he needs to do, is write a letter to מס הכנסה, income tax, that someone is a tax evader, that person can be ruined for life.

A story is told about Rav Elazar, that he once advised a Jew who was unfairly being destroyed by מס הכנסה to spend Shabbat in Tiberias. The disciple listened to the advice of the Rav and went to טבריה.

Right after Shabbat, there was a knock on the door by a stranger. He said that he noticed how distraught this Jew looked, and asked if he could help.

It turned out that this caring Jew was one of the heads of מס הכנסה. He reduced his penalty to a few hundred shekels.

When one is guilty of לשון הרע, he pays a heavy price. When he is innocent, Hashem often finds a way to save him.

Chanukah and Parshat וישב

Shavua Tov. פרשת וישב always falls on שבת חנוכה. There are two possible connections between Chanukah and the Parsha.

The first is related to Yosef being thrown into the pit by his brothers.

The Torah tells us, והבור ריק אין בו מים, that the pit was empty and had no water. It was filled with snakes and scorpions that certainly could have harmed Yosef. But in the merit of ארץ ישראל, the land of miracles, Yosef was miraculously saved.

This is the reason we say Hallel on Chanukah and not on Purim. The Chanukah miracle took place in Israel, and the miracle of Purim in Shushan.

A second minor connection to the Parsha is where Yosef ran away from Potiphar’s wife. The Pasuk says, וינס החוצה, that he moved himself outside. Within the Hallel prayer, we say, הים ראה וינס, that the sea saw and moved. Hence, two connections between the Parsha and Chanukah.

Chanukah

We are about to begin the holiday of Chanukah. This is a time when we celebrate the victory of the pure over the impure, and the good over evil.

Although we tell the story of the heroic struggle of the Maccabees/Chashmonaim over the Syrian Greeks, this struggle continues in every generation.

We are living at a time when there is great confusion in even being able to define what is good and what is evil. It is a time similar to that which was described by the Prophet Isaiah 5:20.

“Woe to those who speak of evil as good, and of good as evil; who make darkness into light, and light into darkness; they make bitter into sweet, and sweet into bitter!”

This Pasuk says it all. We need our own Chanukah miracle to bring clarity to the world. The cry of Judah Maccabee of ״Whoever is for Hashem, follow me,” is badly needed today. Truth, holiness, purity, and faith in Hashem, will again reign in this world, and the lights of Chanukah, will again shine brightly.

בכל מכל כל

The Gemara in בבא בתרא 17a says that there were three people who were able to have a taste of עולם הבא in this world. They were, Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yakov.

By Avraham, the Torah tells us that he was blessed with בכל, everything. Some say he had a daughter named בכל, while others say that he had a son. And בן, son, and בכל are equal to 52 in גמטריא.

When Eisav returned from hunting, and brought his father food, in order to receive the blessing, Yitzchak responded in shock. He said that he already gave the ברכה and ואכל מכל, “and I ate from it all.” This, too, refers to a taste of עולם הבא.

When Yakov met Eisav, he tried to separate from him in a courteous manner. He told him that they should go their own separate ways, because, יש לי כל, “I have everything.” He also tasted עולם הבא.

This is the basis for the passage in ברכת המזון that says, בכל מכל כל, when we thank Hashem for our food. We give thanks in the manner that the Avot recognized Hashem’s abundant blessings.

Shimon and Levi

The incident of Dina and Shechem, is most disturbing. The Midrash says that Shechem sent musicians and dancers to the tent of Dina, to get her to come outside.

It is also stated that Leah had four sons in three years, as each was born after seven months. This meant that שמעון and לוי may have only been eight months apart in age.

The Midrash further says that they were both thirteen years old when they killed 645 people in the city of שכם.

The חידושי הרי״ם said that their Bar Mitzva Drasha was to teach that just as a Goy is forbidden to keep Shabbat which is called an “אות”, a sign, and is חייב מיתה, a death penalty, so, too, is the prohibition of a Goy who does ברית מילה, which is an אות, is he חייב מיתה.

They took their Bar Mitzva speech very seriously and killed the people of שכם!

תמנע

The end of פרשת וישלח, talks about the families of Eisav. This shows the huge contrast between Yakov’s family that remained pure, and Eisav’s family that had many instances of incest.

There is a brief mention of a woman named תמנע. We are told that she was a concubine to Eliphaz, the son of Eisav. She gave birth to none other than Amalek.

The Gemara in סנהדרין says that Timna was a princess who approached Avraham Avinu with the intention of converting to Judaism. Avraham made a serious error by rejecting her. He felt she was insincere and had ulterior motives that were not pure. Because of this error in judgement, we ended up with Amalek.

The Gemara continues and tells the story of a non-Jew who went to Hillel. He said he wanted to convert on condition that he be made the כהן גדול. Hillel accepted him and he proved to be a good, G-d fearing Jew.

This illustrates that the conversion issue is not simple at all. Even Avraham Avinu misjudged a potentially good convert.

A Tzaddik’s Behavior

The story of Yakov wrestling with the Angel, seems to be focused on the spiritual and the mystical. The entire incident is debated between the Rambam and Ramban, as to whether this was a dream, or it really happened.

The Ramban takes the position that the event really did take place. His proof is that Yakov came away limping. If it was a dream, he would not have woken up with an injury.

I believe that the focus of this incident should be on a small detail. Yakov was left alone because he went back to retrieve small packages that he left behind.

A truly righteous person is extremely careful not to be involved in גזל, theft. He takes great care to hold on to his own possessions and will not take what doesn’t belong to him.

Just as a צדיק is careful with his speech, and does not tell lies, or speak לשון הרע, he is also careful not to be accused of dishonesty on any level.

Because Yakov lived according to these principles, he merited an incredible spiritual experience.

Yakov’s Strategy

Shavua Tov. We learn that when Yakov confronted Eisav, he called him “אדוני” my master, eight times. He referred to himself as “עבדך” your servant, five times.

Yakov’s strategy in dealing with Eisav, is debated by the Rabbis. Some felt that it is permitted to flatter a רשע in this world. Yakov’s behavior was justified.

Other Rabbis felt that it was wrong of Yakov to humiliate himself before an evil person. A Jew should always have self respect and dignity. And perhaps such cowering before the Gentile might even show a lack of honor for Hashem.

This question is not really resolved. However, the Gemara tells us that Rav Yanai used to read the passage of the meeting of Yakov and Eisav, before meeting with Roman authorities. Perhaps he felt that if what Yakov did was successful, then he, too would be successful.

Don’t Rely on Miracles

The confrontation between Yakov and Eisav, teaches an important lesson. Yakov taught us how we are to cope with life’s challenges.

He taught us the principle of אין סומכים על הנס, that we are not allowed to rely on miracles. We must do our part דרך הטבע, in a natural way.

This is referred to as השתדלות, that we need to put things into motion so that we are able to allow Hashem to do His part.

It’s like the idea that we cannot expect to win a lottery unless we buy a ticket. We need to create the apparatus in which we become a vessel to receive Hashem’s שפע, His abundant blessings.

We are not meant to sit back and do nothing, and expect miracles. Like Yakov Avinu, we must act.

Yakov gave gifts to Eisav with the hope it would soften him up. He also prepared for war, and he prayed.

He did his השתדלות and did not rely on miracles. This is why he was able to withstand the threat of his evil brother.

Learn When to Keep Quiet

In Parshat ויצא, we learn a very valuable lesson that is most appropriate during these troubled times. This is the scenario:

Lavan is furious with Yakov and wants to kill him. Hashem comes to Yakov’s aid by appearing to Lavan in a dream. He warns him that he better not harm Yakov, or else. The next day, Lavan casually tells Yakov that his G-d spoke to him the previous night and he will not harm him.

If Lavan wasn’t a רשע, he might have been moved by his spiritual experience and should have considered doing Teshuva. Instead, he made light of this, and remained Lavan the Cheat.

We learn from this, that we need to carefully consider when it is worth our while to try to convince others of our opinion. We see that people can be so stubborn and set in their ways, that even Divine intervention will not move them.

We need to be wise enough to know where it is worthwhile to make efforts to influence, and when we are better off keeping quiet.

חומש

There is a Mitzva learned in the Parsha, regarding the giving of Tzedaka. It is known that we have a kind of deal with Hashem.

If we give our מעשר כספים, ten percent of our earnings to charity, Hashem always finds a way to return this money to us. In a sense, we are allowed to even test G-d in this matter, and we will not be left empty handed.

However, when Yakov made his vow about giving מעשר to Hashem, he used the words, עשר אעשרנו לך, a double language of tithing. The Rabbis learn from this that Yakov was referring to double מעשר, or חומש. This חומש means a fifth or twenty percent of our earnings.

This so called deal does not apply when one gives more than חומש. Such a person is careless and wasteful, and is not leaving his family enough to live on.

The only exception to this rule applies to a very wealthy person. He is allowed to give even more than חומש, because of his great wealth.

All of this is learned from Yakov’s double language of עשר אעשרנו.

Poverty

Rav Elazar Abuchatzeira זצ״ל, focused on Yakov Avinu’s request for לחם לאכול ובגד ללבוש, bread to eat, and clothing to wear.

Yakov was pleading with Hashem not to leave him impoverished. He understood the emotional strain that is placed on one who cannot provide for the basic needs of his family.

I know of people who give the majority of their צדקה to feeding the poor. Their reasoning is that, “Hungry people cannot learn.” We need our own wake up call to be reminded how fortunate we are that we know where our next meal is coming from.

The Gemara in בבא בתרא further emphasizes the difficulty of being poor. It mentions that איוב, Job, was consoled by his friends, that despite the horrible suffering he went through, he, at least did not have to go through poverty.

We need to be more sensitive to the needs of the poor, and not take for granted Hashem’s abundant blessings that he has bestowed upon us.

Making Vows

When Yakov set out on his mission of finding a wife, and dealing with Crooked Lavan, he made a נדר, a vow. He promised that he would give מעשר, a tenth, of all of his possessions to Hashem. He also promised his unflinching loyalty to Hashem, his G-d.

Many question if it was correct that Yakov made such a vow. In the Book of Kohelet, it says that it is better not to make a vow, rather than make a vow that is not fulfilled.

Nevertheless, the exception to this rule about making vows, is בעת צרה, during a time of trouble. At such a time, vowing to take on some kind of spiritual promise, could be in order.

It shows that the individual going through a difficult period, is putting his faith in Hashem for help. He is also promising to try to be a better person, by adding positive actions to his behavior.

Making vows could be an act of boasting and showing off. Not making good on promises is a very serious offense. This is the reason we begin Yom Kippur with Kol Nidrei. We cannot ask for forgiveness when there are outstanding promises that we did not keep.

We learn from Yakov Avinu that in exceptional cases, we can make a vow as a means of getting closer to G-d.

נחלה בלי מצרים

Shavua Tov-

Yakov Avinu was promised many things in his dream of the ladder.

One such promise was that the Land of Israel would be given to his seed, and the land would burst forth in all directions, as if there were no borders. This is referred to as a נחלה בלי מצרים, an inheritance with no borders.

This same phrase, נחלה בלי מצרים, is attributed to one who spends money to make his Shabbat עונג, an adornment. Even though it is said that one’s פרנסה, livelihood, is determined from one Rosh Hashana to the next, there is a promise that expenses spent on Shabbat, will be reimbursed.

This guarantee only takes effect if the emphasis on Shabbat is its spirituality. Buying expensive delicious food alone, is not enough. It must be accompanied with Torah and holiness. Only then will the guarantee of נחלה בלי מתרים, take effect.

Rachel’s Chessed

The stories in פרשת ויצא are filled with drama. We have the love story between Yakov and Rachel, the role that poor Leah played, and the difficulty of dealing with the deceitful Lavan.

It is probable that Rachel’s act of faithfulness to her sister, Leah, is one of the most admirable positive behaviors in all of Tanach.

Rachel was not prepared to see her sister humiliated, had she exposed Lavan’s deceitful plan. She allowed her own personal feelings of love for Yakov, to be put on hold, so that her sister would be able to become one of the matriarchs, and not be forced to marry Eisav.

For this reason, Rachel had eternal merit. Her prayers after the destruction of the Temple, and the subsequent exile, were heard over those of the patriarchs. She was able to remind Hashem of her mercy towards Leah. This allowed Hashem to be merciful to the Jewish people.

Rachel is to be remembered and emulated for her tremendous act of Chesed, and we should learn to follow her example.

התוכחה מביא שלום

Yitzchak Avinu had a confrontation with אבימלך regarding the wells that he dug, that Avimelech sealed. The Torah tells us that Yitzchak rebuked him about his jealous behavior. Eventually, they made peace and parted on good terms.

Based on this story, the Rabbis said that this teaches that התוכחה מביא לידי שלום, that rebukes lead to peace.

Often we avoid confrontations with individuals that we believe may have wronged us. But it is recommended that we give rebuke to such people. Aside from the good feeling we have about “getting things off our chest,” such sincere rebuke may have surprisingly positive results. Perhaps there will be sincere remorse on the part of the other party, and indifferences could be mended.

If Yitzchak Avinu was able to make peace with Avimelech by way of rebuke, we, too, can create peaceful results by not being afraid to rebuke.