Transcript
Good morning. It is great to resume the parsha class. I'm sorry we missed several weeks, but it's good to be back and please God we will hopefully have a good string and smooth sailing from here. I want to thank our sponsors this morning, Roslyn Greenberg Haskel in loving memory of her husband Lester Greenberg. Thank you so much. His נשמה neshama should have an עליה aliyah.We have the privilege this morning of studying פרשת וירא Parshas Vayeira. We're in the Artscroll Stone חומש Chumash page 78. And as always, we'll do an overview of the פרשה parsha, touch on some of the different points within the פרשה parsha, and then delve into some specific פסוקים psukim together. And we're going to pick up exactly where we left off last year. I had made a note. I think last year we did a whopping two פסוקים psukim together. And I made a note exactly where we left off. Hopefully we'll do more than two פסוקים psukim today, and we'll continue to plow forward studying through the פרשה parsha. So וירא Vayeira ends, or וירא Vayeira rather begins where לך לך Lech Lecha left off. The ברית מילה bris milah had happened. Avraham circumcised his son, ישמעאל Yishmael at the time. ישמעאל Yishmael was how old? 13. Avraham was even more advanced in his age. A major procedure, a circumcision, a surgery on himself. The recovery is not easy at eight days old, certainly it's not easy at that advanced age. So Avraham is sitting outside his tent. He's recovering. And he's visited by none other, we know, the רבונו של עולם Ribono Shel Olam. וירא אליו השם באלני ממרא Vayera eilav Hashem b'elonei Mamre, והוא יושב פתח האהל כחם היום v'hu yoshev pesach ha'ohel k'chom hayom. Hashem appears before Avraham while he's sitting outside. Why is Avraham sitting outside? Usually you come home from the outpatient surgical center, you get into bed, and you milk it as long as you can, you have other people wait on you hand and foot. You take the wonderful narcotics, you live in the world, the never-never land, and you enjoy. Avraham instead is sitting right outside. He comes home, he's positioned right outside his tent. And the answer is because for Avraham, the thought of being inhospitable, the thought of being self-centered, the thought of not being there to help others was more painful than recovering from surgery. When the anesthesia would wear off, it would be more painful to retreat and not be helping others than it would be to even be outside recovering. Avraham is being visited by Hashem. We learn we walk in Hashem's ways, we emulate him. מה הוא רחום אף אתה רחום Mah hu rachum af atah rachum, just like Hashem is מבקר חולים mevaker cholim, Hashem visits the sick, so too we visit the sick. So Hashem and Avraham are involved in a visit, in a dialogue, in ביקור חולים bikur cholim. Avraham is engaged in a conversation with Hashem when all of a sudden the phone rings. Three strangers he sees walking off in the distance and he says to Hashem, would you mind holding on a minute? I've got to welcome these strangers. We've spoken about this at length in the past, I'm not going to get into it right now. But חז\"ל Chazal learned from here, גדולה הכנסת אורחים gedolah hachnasas orchim. Hospitality is so great that it even transcends, it's greater than קבלת פני השכינה kabbalas pnei haShechinah, in the middle of a conversation with God, God would rather you interrupt him and go be hospitable to his people. Which is a strange formulation. I would think that there's nothing greater for humanity than being in conversation with our creator. What could be greater? So to say hospitality, offering a drink, offering shade, offering sleeping arrangements, that's greater? Why is it greater? We've discussed it in the past, we're not going to get into it now.So Avraham is sitting. The pasuk describes that Avraham is sitting when Hashem, when Hashem visits. והוא יושב פתח האהל V'hu yoshev pesach ha'ohel. Avraham is sitting. Rashi on these words says, ביקש לעמוד bikesh la'amod. God visits Avraham, so if an important, significant scholar, righteous person, man or woman walks in the room, you want to stand, you want to rise, you want to honor them. So all the more so Avraham is being visited by Hashem, he wants to stand and honor him. אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא שב ואני אעמוד Amar lo HaKadosh Baruch Hu, shev v'ani e'emod. You sit, I'll stand. The עתה סימן לבניו שאני עתיד לעמוד בעדה של דיינים והם יושבים V'atah siman l'vanav she'ani asid la'amod ba'eidah shel dayanim v'hem yoshvim. And this is a symbol for the future, because God says, I will stand while your children sit. And when is that? What is that foreshadowing? אלקים נצב בעדת קל Elokim nitzav ba'adas Kel, that God stands at a communion, at an עדה קל adas Kel, when the דיינים dayanim, when there's a דין תורה din Torah taking place, and the three דיינים dayanim, the three judges sit. And when the three judges sit, the presence of Hashem can be felt. That's why there's a הלכה halacha in שולחן ערוך חושן משפט Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpat, the דיינים dayanim are supposed to sit with כיסוי הראש kisui harosh. They're supposed to sit with their heads covered. Because when Hashem is present, we feel the weight of Hashem, we have not only a physical humility and modesty, an intellectual humility and modesty. Intellectual humility and modesty is symbolized by a covering on one's head. That's Rashi. So Rav Soloveitchik wonders, what in the world is the connection between God doing ביקור חולים bikur cholim to Avraham who's sitting outside his tent, and a judge who's adjudicating, who's listening to a trial, to a case, and God being present in the background of that judge. What's the connection between these two things? Why would Rashi join them together? So listen to what the Rav says. He was sitting at the entrance of the tent. יושב Yoshev is the present tense, but the ו vav is missing, allowing the word to be read as יָשַׁב yashav in the past tense, יָשַׁב yashav. Rashi here quotes a strange medrash. Avraham was seated, he wanted to get up. Hashem said remain seated, I'll stand. And the fact that you remain seated symbolizes something will happen in the future. Note that judges must sit when they accept testimony, when they render a decision. Rashi continues, God said, I will stand, the judges will be sitting. As it says, God stands in the congregation of God. What idea did Rashi want to convey? When an important, dignified person comes to us, we rise and receive them. The host stands at the door receiving his guests. The holy one came to visit Avraham, so Avraham jumped up from his seat. Hashem said, you're making a mistake, Avraham. You consider yourself the host and I the guest, but the opposite is true. I am the host, and you are the guest. I'm receiving you, not in your tent, but in my tent. This is my tent. Nothing on earth is truly yours, so remain seated. It's an amazing insight, right? The host gets up in order to receive the guest. But Hashem says, you sit and I'm standing because I want you to realize that the whole world belongs to me, that I am in fact the host and you are the guest. And now we see the connection, says the Rav, because the same is true in every courtroom. Judaism has never accepted the concept of one person judging another. How can a human being who's just as imperfect as the accused render judgment on him? What right does a judge have? Who made the judge so perfect and in such a position to be able to judge others? Judgment belongs to Hashem, the pasuk says. Yet the Torah indeed allows human judgment because if human beings were not permitted to judge their fellow man, anarchy would prevail. Nonetheless, the judge must always remember that he is just, here's a great word from the Rav, a plenipotentiary. Anyone know what that word is? Plenipotentiary? You gotta bring your dictionary to the parsha class when you invoke the Rav. A judge must always remember he is a plenipotentiary, which means, for you boors, I'll define it for you, just joking, the Rav explains it here, I had no idea what it was, an agent or a messenger from the Almighty who is the real judge. What does it mean אלקים נצב בעדת קל Elokim nitzav ba'adas Kel? He is the owner. He is the master. We are guests and tenants who will be invited to take a seat, while Hashem the host remains standing. Why is it that God stands when there's a congregation of judges? So the judges realize that they are ambassadors, they're emissaries of Hashem, they're not in a position to judge others. Only Hashem can. So Hashem is standing there with them. He is the real judge, they are just his mouthpiece. They should feel the weight of godliness, the significance, the responsibility, the awesome responsibility. That's really what's going on here. Okay, the Rav has more, but we'll continue. So the angels come, and Avraham welcomes them. He's held accountable for the fact that he doesn't jump up, he sends his son Yishmael to go take them, which seems bizarre. Wouldn't you think he's doing the right thing, he's trying to educate his son? What does Rashi say? Because he sends Yishmael, Hashem too is going to interact with us through an intermediary. And you think, well what do you mean? Isn't it the right thing to teach his son to go and be hospitable? Wasn't that the right thing? Why is God punishing him or holding him accountable? So commentary say because Avraham should have led by example. Before you could tell your son, you go do, your son needs to see that you go do. He should have been the one to jump, to react, to lead by example because that's the most powerful lesson, it's the most powerful influence on his son. So Avraham treats his guests who he thinks are human beings, but of course we know they're the three angels who came to carry out these three independent and separate missions. And what does he say to them? יקח נא מעט מים Yukach na me'at mayim, ורחצו רגליכם והשענו תחת העץ v'rachatzu ragleichem v'hisha'anu tachas ha'etz. Take some water, wash your feet. What was Avraham concerning himself with? What did he want to not enter his home? That their feet were used in the process of עבודה זרה avodah zarah and Avraham didn't want exposure to that idolatry. So he says, you wash your feet and then I'll give you something to eat. Later when Lot welcomes his guests, when he's living in Sdom, what does he do? First he says come rest, have something to eat, and then later he gives them, it's in the opposite order. And Rashi there tells us why. So here Rav Soloveitchik points out, the cruelty of Sdom is portrayed in terms of cruelty to guests and strangers. In contrast, Avraham's kindness expressed itself particularly in הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim. There are so many ways to practice kindness. Why is הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim so emphasized here? גדולה הכנסת אורחים Gedolah hachnasas orchim. Greater than a dialogue, a conversation, greater than a rendezvous with Hashem is hospitality, is welcoming guests. What's so great about welcoming guests? Enjoy the company of guests. Why is that greater than giving צדקה tzedakah? It's greater than when I take from my hard-earned money, my savings, my wallet, my checkbook, my Venmo account. Why is it greater even hospitality? So Rav Soloveitchik says, הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim is often for the poor. A rich man is in no need of hospitality. He can find an inn or a place to stay. Yet הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim differs from צדקה tzedakah or material help to others in a crucial way. Giving צדקה tzedakah demonstrates sympathy. הכנסת אורחים Hachnasas orchim, however, demonstrates full human equality, the belief that every human being has dignity and is just as important as any other. It is much easier to give someone money and send them away than to invite him in under your own roof. If I invite him or her in, it means that no matter what his station in life, I'm treating him with respect as an equal. הכנסת אורחים Hachnasas orchim is a symbol of our personal relationship, the understanding that all Jews are בני מלכים bnei melachim, princes, regardless of differences in wealth or knowledge. That is why the Torah gives us this picture of Avraham. Avraham was not a philanthropist. He was a rich man and there's no doubt that he was charitable to others, but to a certain degree it's easy to write a check. If certainly it doesn't deplete or take away from your lifestyle, if it's not going to hurt your quality of life to write a check, is easy. But to take someone in, to go beyond your comfort zone, to forfeit your privacy, to offer hospitality, that's even greater than charity. It takes much more and it conveys a greater message. When you give charity, what's the message you're conveying? You're poor, you're indigent, you need my help, and I'm greater than you. I'm the one with the large bank account. I'm the one that you had to come grovel and beg to. I'm the one who can save you, provide for you. צדקה Tzedakah communicates superiority. הכנסת אורחים Hachnasas orchim communicates equality. We're gonna break bread, we're gonna sit, we're gonna communicate. Because the rich person could pay to stay at a hotel, but when you offer them הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim, you could eat, you could afford food. You could afford food, but the הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim says I have respect for you, I recognize you. We had over recently a group of singles, and afterwards we were talking and the challenge of how many שבת Shabbos come by with they're not invited by anyone. They sit by their Shabbos table all alone. And my heart literally went out, my heart was broken as one of the women described, she said my neighbors don't even know my name. What would be one more seat at their table? They have large families, I see they have these meals with all these families together. Do they not have room for one more chair? And she said, I can afford to eat on my own. I can go buy food, I can make my own food. It's not a money issue. It's exactly the Rav's insight here. She said it's not a money issue. I don't need a handout. I can make my own meal, I can buy my own meal. But the company, the dignity, to overcome the loneliness, for the single who every week is waiting, will I get invited, will I not get invited? Do I have to grovel? Do I have to hint? Do I have to ask? Can I have the basic dignity of someone else thinking of me, inviting me, welcoming me, making room for me? It's something that we all need to work on and redouble our efforts to be mindful as we enjoy our tables that we always have room, a chair or many, for others because הכנסת אורחים hachnasas orchim is not about the money. צדקה Tzedakah is all about the money. Now even the way you give the money can be with dignity, without dignity, how we give צדקה tzedakah, the hierarchy of the levels of צדקה tzedakah, the greatest צדקה tzedakah, anonymous, and you don't know the recipient because you preserve the dignity. Of course there's hierarchy within צדקה tzedakah, but צדקה tzedakah is all about the money. הכנסת אורחים Hachnasas orchim is almost not about the money at all. Linda gets calls every week, there are people who come to town who are either visiting a irreligious loved one and need a place for Shabbos, or they have a religious loved one who is in a hospital they need hospitality. Okay, the people who just want a free place to stay in the winter, that's already taking advantage and not so simple, although we try to accommodate everybody. But there are people who need and they don't need it, they don't need money, they don't need a handout. It's not צדקה tzedakah. They need dignity, they need respect, they need love, they need to be made to feel like equals. And that's גדולה הכנסת אורחים מקבלת פני השכינה gedolah hachnasas orchim m'kabbalas pnei haShechinah. That's what it means to be like God, because God is sensitive and cares. To God, nobody's invisible, nobody's inconsequential. To Hashem, everybody matters. And גדולה הכנסת אורחים gedolah hachnasas orchim. How do we most emulate Hashem? I think we say it every year because it's such an important insight. When you're speaking to God, you interrupt it to be hospitable. Why? Because Hashem says, if I have the choice of either you're talking to me or you're being like me, I'd rather you be like me. If I have the choice of you either talking to me or emulating me, I'd rather you go emulate me. Imagine your child, you're on the phone with your child and your child says, I'm sorry אבא Abba, there's a knock on the door, there's somebody who need something. Do you mind if I just go help them? Would you say, yeah, I mind, you're talking to me with חוצפה chutzpah? Let them knock, let them wait. Or you'd say, you're going to help them? Everything I paid all that money for that Jewish education, everything I tried to teach you by example, and you want to hang up on me so you could go help someone? You can't hang up fast enough. Absolutely hang up on me, go help them. Because I'd rather you be like me, I'd rather you actualize the values I've tried to teach you, than even to continue a conversation with me. צדקה Tzedakah anyone can do. הכנסת אורחים Hachnasas orchim is even greater. It's the measure of Avraham and it's the measure of us. So these angels came, they have a mission. What's their mission? Three angels, three missions. One of them is they come to tell Avraham, I know you're a gazillion years old and your wife is a gazillion years old, but she's going to have a baby. Which is a pretty radical, radical promise. It's a pretty crazy, pretty, pretty crazy thing. And where is Sarah when the angels having this conversation with Avraham? In the tent. And the angel says, איה שרה אשתך Ayeh Sarah ishtecha? Where's Sarah your wife? And Avraham says, הנה באהל hineh ba'ohel. She's in the tent. So Rav Soloveitchik says, these travelers were not ordinary people whose eyes see only the surface. They were angels of Hashem. Their glimpse penetrated and apprehended the image of the true leader, teacher, and prophetess, to whom everything should be credited. Nonchalantly they remarked, where's Sarah your wife? What were they saying is, without her, you could not play the part that God assigned to you. Where is she? You're half a person without her. Avraham, you're outside, you've welcomed us, you've engaged us. Avraham's very humble, so they don't mean you think you're all that, but they're saying, where's Sarah? Where's your other half? Or we would say, where's your better half? Why do people not know the truth? Why is she been trailing behind you? Why does she not march in front of you? After all, the covenant cannot and will not be realized without her. Avraham, you're incomplete. Avraham, you're just a dream and an aspiration without her. She is the one who enabled and empowered you to get it done. And what does Avraham answer tersely? הנה באהל Hineh ba'ohel. She's in the tent. Indeed, she's enveloped in mystery. Sarah, the biblical woman, is modest, humble, self-effacing. She enters the stage when she's called upon, acts her part with love and devotion in a dim corner of the stage, and then leaves softly by a side door without applause and without the enthusiastic response of an audience which is hardly aware of her. She returns to her tent to anonymity and retreat. Only sensitive people know the truth. It's interesting, says Rav Soloveitchik, that although Avraham survived Sarah, how many more years did Avraham live than Sarah? A long time. 38 years. His historic role came to an end with Sarah's passing. We no longer see Avraham making an imprint on history after Sarah died, because in fact, he is incomplete without her. He's a man of dreams, his head's in the clouds, he's charismatic, he's an orator, he's incredibly incredible person. But without his life partner who helps him actualize his potential, who gives his expression to his dreams, without his life partner who's not his equal. She's not his equal. What is she in fact? His superior, she's greater. We're told Sarah has greater נביאה nevuah than Avraham Avinu. She has a greater prophecy than Avraham. So when she leaves the stage, she takes him with her. Even though he lives 38 more years, he is retired the moment she passes. יצחק Yitzchak leaves the stage with Rivka. יעקב Yaakov relinquishes his role to Yosef with the untimely death of רחל Rachel. Without Sarah, there would be no Avraham, no יצחק Yitzchak if not for Rivka, no יעקב Yaakov without רחל Rachel. Rav Soloveitchik, this is from Family Redeemed, but in this, and I'm not going to get into this, both because I don't want to spend the time and because I value my life, but I'm not going to get into it in depth. But I think with this, Rav Soloveitchik, who we know Rav Soloveitchik is not, you know, from the traditionalist camp, he doesn't have this archaic, fanatical view of the world and of women. Rav Soloveitchik, the first person who gave a shiur to women in Gemara at Stern College. Rav Soloveitchik who was so progressive in so many ways. But really in this passage, I think the Rav articulates very beautifully some of the gender differences and roles. And without making his statement right now, I think it's interesting to reflect on. He paints a portrait of Sarah who, in fact, is really at the forefront. She's greater than Avraham. Only in partnership do they achieve what they do. Right? Last week's parsha, we're told that when they travel, when they journey, they bring with them the הנפש אשר עשו בחרן hanefesh asher asu b'Charan, the souls they crafted, they molded in חרן Charan, which Rashi tells us, who are these souls? Was Sarah in the kitchen making them potato קוגל kugel and Avraham was the one teaching them all about the Bible codes? No. אברהם מגייר את האנשים ושרה מגיירת את הנשים Avraham megayer es ha'anashim v'Sarah megayeres es hanashim. Each of them is playing an educational role, a פדגוג pedagog role. Nobody's in the background of the other. They're equal partners in transforming the world. But I think what's outstanding about the Rav's description is that there's no need for fanfare, spotlight, notoriety, fame. It's not about elbowing or edging who has the bigger name or the recognition. It's about the mission and accomplishing it. And Sarah is able to preserve a sense of modesty, humility, even mystery or anonymity. הנה באהל Hineh ba'ohel. She's satisfied being in the background because to her, the goal is the mission, is getting it accomplished, is having it achieved. I wrote an article a couple years ago, I had come back from the opening of a brand new beautiful Chabad center and I won't say where, I don't think I said where in the article either, and I came back with a conclusion that the greatest feminists in the Orthodox community today by far are חבד Chabad. What do I mean by that? Not feminist in the in the activist sense, but you know how many חבד Chabad רבצינס rebbetzins are really running the חבד Chabad house? In many of them where the חבד Chabad רבצין rebbetzin maybe has a little bit more charisma or leadership qualities, they're up there, they're the MC at the event, they're the speaker, they're raising the money, they're functioning as an assistant rabbi or maybe the senior rabbi and their husband's functioning as the assistant rabbi. And I saw that night at that opening. So why does it work? How come those who are so concerned or defensive or protective against feminism within the Orthodox community haven't even noticed that that's what's happening within חבד Chabad? And I would argue the reason is because these חבד Chabad רבצינס rebbetzins are not about, they're not doing it as women. They're not advocating, lobbying, say we women, look what we can do, we're women, we need notoriety, fame, recognition. They're doing it because they're very dedicated and devoted to the mission. It's not about their gender, it's not about a power struggle, it's not about who did it. It's about the mission. It's about the goal. It's about achieving it. And I think that's very beautifully what Rav Soloveitchik describes here about איה שרה אשתך ayeh Sarah ishtecha. Where's Sarah? Everyone knows she's your superior, she's a greater prophetess. Where is she? Why isn't she here at the forefront? Why isn't she center stage? Why isn't she standing under the spotlight? To which Avraham says, הנה באהל hineh ba'ohel. She is greater than I, and Avraham's off the stage once she's gone. But she's satisfied באהל ba'ohel. It's about the mission, it's not about the notoriety or the or the fame. Hashem approaches Avraham and says, Avraham, after this promise about children, again, we won't get into this, we've spoken about this in the past, but Sarah reacts by laughing. She's held accountable by God for laughing, highly criticized. That's very troubling because what happened at the end of last week's parsha? When Hashem tells Avraham, you're going to have a child, and he says, what do you mean, I'm an old man? How does he react? He laughs. Rashi in last week's parsha already recognized this. Avraham laughs, no problem. Sarah laughs, she's criticized, she's condemned. Later, you're going to laugh again, and in fact, what do they name this child? יצחק Yitzchak. Laughter. So is the laughing good? Is the laughing bad? Unkelos is the key to understanding that. We've discussed it in the past. So the what, they come, God tells Avraham, listen, Avraham, you're my main man. That's paraphrasing. But basically, you're my main man. Where's this pasuk? המכסה אני מאברהם אשר אני עושה Hamechaseh ani me'Avraham asher ani oseh? I can't cover, I can't conceal from Avraham what I'm going to do. והאברהם היו יהיה לגוי גדול ועצום ונברכו בו כל גויי הארץ V'Avraham hayo yihyeh l'goy gadol v'atzum v'nivrichu vo kol goyei ha'aretz. He's the father of humanity. He's going to transform the world. Avraham's my main man. So I have a right hand man in Avraham, I'm about to intervene in the world in such an significant way. How can I keep that from Avraham? כי ידעתיו Ki yidativ, now why is he feel so compelled to share it with Avraham? What is Hashem attracted to about Avraham? That Avraham was מגייר את האנשים megayer es ha'anashim? That Avraham had a podcast, millions of listeners, introduced ethical monotheism to the world? Is that what God loves about Avraham? No. What does God love about Avraham? כי ידעתיו למען אשר יצוה את בניו ואת ביתו אחריו ושמרו דרך השם לעשות צדקה ומשפט למען הביא השם על אברהם את אשר דבר עליו Ki yidativ l'ma'an asher yetzaveh es banav v'es beiso acharav v'shamru derech Hashem la'asos tzedakah u'mishpat l'ma'an havi Hashem al Avraham es asher diber alav. Hashem loves that Avraham is successfully raising his child, his children, to follow his way. למען ידעתיו L'ma'an yidativ, because I know, כי ידעתיו ki yidativ, I know, אשר יצוה את בניו ואת ביתו אחריו ושמרו דרך השם asher yetzaveh es banav v'es beiso acharav v'shamru derech Hashem. So the Rambam wonders, what is this דרך השם derech Hashem? What exactly is the way of God, the דרך השם derech Hashem that Avraham taught for posterity? What is it that he successfully transmitted to his progeny, to his family, to his followers? What is this דרך השם derech Hashem? The book of the רמח\"ל Ramchal? What is the דרך השם derech Hashem? It's very ambiguous. What's this דרך השם derech Hashem that Avraham successfully transmitted, because that's the secret. That's the core. God says, why can't I conceal anything from Avraham? Why do I feel compelled to share everything with him? What I love about Avraham, what endears him to me, is he's given the דרך השם derech Hashem to his children. What is this דרך השם derech Hashem? So the Rambam famously writes towards the end of the first chapter of הלכות דעות Hilchos Deos, what is the דרך השם derech Hashem? The שביל הזהב shvil hazahav, to live life with the golden mean, to not be extreme in any direction, to be measured, to be moderate. Where Rav Schechter would call to be normal. Rav Schechter, Hashem wants you to be normal. Just wants you to, הלכה halacha is there not to make you fanatical. הלכה Halacha is there not to make you OCD. הלכה Halacha is there not to make you, הלכה halacha is there, normal. Be normal. Rav Schechter would translate דרך השם derech Hashem that Avraham gave his children is be normal. Follow Hashem's footsteps, embrace his values, live the lifestyle, observe the הלכה halacha, but be normal. What the Rambam calls the שביל הזהב shvil hazahav, the golden mean, moderation, be moderate. Don't grow angry easily, but don't respond passively. Don't withhold money from the needy, don't give it all away either. Don't overindulge, but don't deprive yourself. Everything is about the golden mean, to be moderate, to be moderate in everything, in everything that we do. So that's the דרך השם derech Hashem that Hashem loved about Avraham, is that Avraham was not fanatical, he wasn't extreme in any direction. There wasn't an agenda, an ism, he was moderate, he was normal. It was a golden, it was the golden mean. So what does he tell Avraham? I can't conceal from you, I have to share with you, I'm going to destroy סדום Sedom. To which Avraham protests, that's the part we're going to look at more closely together momentarily, that Avraham protests and says, no, no, no, you can't do that. And we'll see that. We'll see that together. The parsha continues, סדום Sedom is destroyed. And what happens when סדום Sedom is destroyed? Who is saved? Avraham is successful in saving one person, namely his nephew לוט Lot, his nephew לוט Lot. And when he saves his nephew לוט Lot, there's something really incredible, something really incredible in his saving לוט Lot. Why would you think he would not be motivated to save לוט Lot? Why might he not be motivated? לוט Lot represents the antithesis of his values. There wasn't enough room in Israel for the two of them. They went their separate ways. And yet, he's intervening. סדום Sedom, the destruction of סדום Sedom would represent Avraham's greatest triumph, if you think about it. סדום Sedom represents everything that Avraham has been preaching against, everything he's been protesting, everything he's been opposing. The destruction, the demise of סדום Sedom would be Avraham's greatest triumph. And yet, his nephew is there, and he suspects that there might be ten righteous people there. And if in fact there's righteous people within that city, even though it could be his victory, the pursuit or defense of justice for Avraham supersedes what could be his greatest victory. For Avraham, he's so humble that he's able to say the defense of righteous people is more important than even what could be his greatest triumph or his greatest victory over what were his enemies. לוט Lot is told, flee the city and what? אל תביט אחריך Al tabit acharecha. ויהי כהוציאם אתם החוצה ויאמר המלט על נפשך vayehi k'hotziam osam hachutzah vayomer himaleit al nafshecha, that לוט Lot is told go outside and don't turn around, אל תביט אחריך ואל תעמד בכל הככר ההרה המלט פן תספה al tabit acharecha v'al ta'amod b'chol hakikar harah himaleit pen tisafeh. Run. Don't turn around, flee to the hills lest you be swept away, swept away. And despite the warning of the angel, who couldn't help herself? לוט's wife Lot's wife. She couldn't herself. She looked, she turned around, and our tradition teaches us, she became a pillar of salt. In fact, the Jewish historian Josephus claims to have seen the pillar of salt which was לוט's wife Lot's wife. My son, my six-year-old son who loves learning the parsha, has these parsha books and is obsessed with these parshes, he keeps asking me, is the salt still there? Can we see it? What does it look like? Josephus claims he saw the salt. Why the emphasis on not looking back? What would have been so bad if they looked back? So the classic answer is, why shouldn't they look back? Because they weren't any more righteous than the people who are being destroyed. Don't turn around and gaze and look with some sense of superiority. Don't turn around and gaze as if you have virtue. You can't look, you're not any more righteous than those people. You don't deserve to witness their downfall. So don't turn around and don't look. That's the classic understanding of why they were told not to turn around. But the דברי שאול Divrei Shaul, Shmuel Weinberg of Slonim gives a different perspective. Listen to his פשט pshat, it's fantastic. He says, in telling לוט Lot and his family, אל תביט אחריך al tabit acharecha, don't look back, the angel was teaching a fundamental lesson in life. When you've made mistakes, you've showed poor judgment, you came up short, don't look back. Tomorrow will be another day. Only look forward. If you look back, filled with regret and remorse, you could beat yourself up. You become paralyzed. You become incapacitated. You not only lost the past, but you forfeit your present and you sabotage your future. If you want to be able to turn the corner and do better next time, אל תבט אחריך al tabeit acharecha. Don't get hung up, don't beat yourself up. Now, do we have to turn around to understand where we went wrong? Absolutely. חרטה Charata, regret, remorse is part of the process of תשובה teshuva. But אל תבט אחריך al tabeit acharecha means don't harp on the past. Don't turn around.Now whether Lot's wife was nostalgic for her sinful past, or she felt guilty about it, either way she turned into a pillar of salt. What's the symbolism? Did it ever occur to you why salt? Turn into a pillar of tar. Turn into a pillar of acid. Turn into a pillar of I don't know, spoiled fruit. Why salt? What does salt do? What is salt's quality? Salt preserves. And what it's spread on it keeps intact. Salt denies the ability to grow or to change or to move forward. Salt locks in as a preservative something exactly the way it is and holds it back from changing. אל תבט אחריך Al tabeit acharecha. Don't turn back because if you do, you'll be a pillar of salt. If you're focused and fixated, if you're debilitated by harping on the past, by beating yourself up, by being nostalgic, by being stuck, then you're a pillar of salt. Then you can't move forward, then you can't grow. This is the greatest way our יצר הרע yetzer hara works on us. The יצר הרע yetzer hara, the methodology of self-destructive. We tend to harp on our mess ups and mistakes. We see ourselves as incapable and unworthy. And therefore we have יאוש yeiush, we give up. Research shows that at least 70% of the time when we think about the past, we're reliving the negative aspects, not the positive ones. Most people when they focus on the past, 70% of the time they're not thinking about the wonderful vacation, the accomplishment, the achievement, what went right. They're thinking about what went wrong, the negative. אל תבט אחריך Al tabeit acharecha. When we're too focused on the past, we beat ourselves up, we turn into a pillar of salt that preserves us. והסר שטן מלפנינו ומאחרינו V'haser satan milfaneinu u'mei'achareinu we say at night in דאווענען davening. Hashem remove the שטן satan from before us and from behind us. שטן Satan before us I understand. Where is the שטן satan after us? The שטן מאחרינו satan mei'achareinu is אל תבט אחריך al tabeit acharecha. Don't turn around and be fixated and focused and preserved and locked in in the past. We spoke about this a few months ago also. ר' שלמה Rav Shlomo quotes ואנחנו נברך יה מעתה ועד עולם הללויה V'anachnu nevarech Kah mei'atah v'ad olam, Hallelukah. ואנחנו נברך קה V'anachnu nevarech Kah. How do I praise You, Hashem? When I live my life מעתה ועד עולם mei'atah v'ad olam. Today, going forward. I messed up yesterday. I didn't have the best week. This didn't represent my best month. So what am I going to do? Focus on that? Get stuck in that? Preserve, marinate in that? In the salt of of disappointment and failure? No. ואנחנו נברך קה מעתה ועד עולם V'anachnu nevarech Kah mei'atah v'ad olam. I'm not going to turn around, אל תבט אחריך al tabeit acharecha. Tomorrow will be a better day. It's a fresh start, it's a new beginning. I'm going to be able to grow from here when I bring the mentality of מעתה ועד עולם mei'atah v'ad olam. So לוט's Lot's wife turns around, she turns into a pillar of salt. סדום Sedom is destroyed, לוט Lot is saved. We have the episode of לוט Lot and his daughters. So we've discussed in the past, a bizarre lineage for משיח Mashiach. The משיח Mashiach himself comes from the most salacious, controversial, seemingly immoral, unethical events of Jewish history. יהודה Yehuda and תמר Tamar, לוט Lot and his daughters, דוד David and בת שבע Bat Sheva. משיח's Mashiach's lineage is filled, his יחוס yichus. We make the same joke every time. If משיח Mashiach had to present a שידוך shidduch resume, he wouldn't get one date. If they looked into who the parents, the grandparents, the great-grandparents were, the history, his lineage, he'd be a very lonely person. Be all alone. Why by design is the יחוס yichus like that? And what maybe in this episode between לוט Lot and his daughters, maybe the daughters had some, we spoke about רב משה Rav Moshe, met a man who on his deathbed had this dream. He had given a שיעור shiur where he ripped the daughters of לוט Lot for who they were, promiscuous, morally depraved. And they came to him in a dream, and this man on his deathbed tells רב משה Rav Moshe the story. רב משה Rav Moshe writes it in his introduction to אגרות משה Igros Moshe. The man on his deathbed says the daughters of לוט Lot came and said, \"Don't you understand? We didn't do what we did out of moral depravity. We did it because we thought that when סדום Sedom was destroyed, another מבול mabul had wiped out the world. And we needed to repopulate the world. We're heroines, we're heroes. We asserted ourselves in order to create a sense of continuity.\" So maybe that story isn't exactly as it seems and there's something to learn from that. I believe we've discussed that in the past as well. אברם's Avram's in גרר Gerar. שרה Sarah is abducted. We go through this process that we've seen before, the old story. אבימלך Avimelech appeases אברם Avram and שרה Sarah. יצחק Yitzchak is finally born. He's bizarrely named יצחק Yitzchak. We have this unfortunate interaction, and הגר Hagar and ישמעאל Yishmael are expelled. Hashem tells אברם Avram to listen to everything that שרה Sarah says, and that's been the mandate for Jewish men ever since. ישמעאל Yishmael, I'm not saying we listened as well as אברם Avram, but we have that charge nonetheless. It's a Jewish tradition. ישמעאל Yishmael is saved. The alliance with אבימלך Avimelech, and then we have the tenth and final test, which is the עקידה Akeida. According to some, it's the tenth and final test. According to others, רבינו יונה Rabbeinu Yonah says the tenth test comes at the beginning of next week's פרשה parsha, not not this one. The עקידה Akeida itself, of course, there's a gazillion things to talk about. I'll just draw your attention to a couple points within the עקידה Akeida and then we'll look at our specific פסוקים pesukim together. First of all, on Sunday I gave a שיעור shiur, it's available online. We're doing the סלונים רבי Slonimer Rebbe on the פרשה parsha. So he spoke about the only test that אברם Avram engages in, the only test he confronts where the word 'test' is included in the narrative, in the text about the test, is the עקידה Akeida. Why? So the סלונים רבי Slonimer Rebbe says because all the other tests were really מסירות הגוף mesirus haguf, not מסירות נפש mesirus nefesh. Was אברם Avram willing to die? Was he willing to be a martyr? Was he willing to give his body? Would he die in the כבשן האש kivshan ha'esh, in the fiery furnace? Would he give his life? For צדיקים tzaddikim, giving one's body is easy. We don't welcome it. We live for the here and now. The body is the instrument of free will. It's the ability through which we make the right choices which draws us close to Hashem. So לא המתים יהללו יה lo ha'meisim yehalelu Kah. You can't praise God in the next world. We live for today. Even the צדיקים tzaddikim don't hasten, they don't accelerate death, but they're not afraid of death. Because when one dies, one disrobes from the body which is constricting the soul. We are a soul and we have a body, the soul is wearing the body, and the soul can't wait to disrobe from the body and not live with the temptation, the distraction, and the restrictiveness of the body that holds it back. So צדיקים tzaddikim are not afraid from מסירות הגוף mesirus haguf. The willingness to die a martyr, to give one's body, the righteous are willing to do. But the מסירות נפש mesirus nefesh, when the נשמה neshama, to tell אברם Avram, I want you to die, אברם Avram says no problem. But now והאלוקים ניסה את אברם v'ha'Elokim nisa es Avram, to tell אברם Avram, I want you to kill your son. Here I empowered you, I charged you to teach the entire world that the worst thing you can do is kill a child, sacrifice your own flesh. And now אברם Avram, even though you've taken out ads, even though you've been all over, even though you've been on billboards and newspapers and podcasts and TV interviews telling the world, you got to stop slaughtering your own children, אברם Avram, I want you to go kill יצחק Yitzchak. That's not מסירות הגוף mesirus haguf, that's מסירות נפש mesirus nefesh. That's asking אברם Avram to do something which is incompatible with his values. And we too are asked to be מוסר נפש moser nefesh. To be willing to die sometimes is easier than be willing to conform, to be willing to submit to what the Torah asks us our values to be even when they even when they are incompatible with our Western values, our modern values, or the values which we feel inclined towards embracing. That's מסירות נפש mesirus nefesh. מסירות נפש Mesirus nefesh is greater than מסירות הגוף mesirus haguf and that's why the word test appears here for אברם Avram, והאלוקים ניסה את אברם v'ha'Elokim nisa es Avram. So they're walking all together, אברם Avram, אליעזר Eliezer, ישמעאל Yishmael, יצחק Yitzchak, and they get to a spot and אברם Avram tells them, שבו לכם פה shvu lachem po. He tells אליעזר Eliezer and ישמעאל Yishmael, you wait here עם החמור im ha'chamor, עם הדומה לחמור am ha'domeh la'chamor, you guys are just like donkeys. You wait here. The non-donkey יצחק Yitzchak and I are gonna keep going. It sounds very racist, discriminatory, doesn't sound very PC. What exactly did אברם Avram mean when he said that? A lot to talk about, not for now. But he tells them, שבו לכם פה shvu lachem po, but we are נלכה עד כה neilcha ad ko. You're gonna wait פה po, here. We're going עד כה ad ko, we're going where? There. What's the here and what's the there? Listen to Rabbi Soloveitchik. As אברם Avram walked with ישמעאל Yishmael and יצחק Yitzchak toward הר המוריה Har haMoriah, he indicated the tension, the fundamental difference in the destination of the non-Jew and the Jew. The word פה po, here, represents the universal commitment, the seven commandments that were given to נח Noach and are incumbent on all mankind. The word כה ko, which means beyond, suggests a point that's further. The Jew must go beyond פה po and endeavor to arrive at כה ko with higher ideals of spiritual attainment. פה Po is here. How do we navigate the here and now? How do we act ethically and morally in the here and now? The non-Jew is charged שבע מצוות בני נח sheva mitzvos bnei Noach, here are seven guiding laws or principles for how to navigate the here and now because this is what there is, the here and now. But the Jew is not living only with an eye on the here and now. For us it's not just about פה po. Where are we going? Where is our eye on? כה Ko. We are traveling there, beyond, to a higher ideal. The covenantal commitment creates an existential tension, because the Jew has a commitment with which the non-Jew does not understand. Non-Jews would like the Jews to have a general commitment to and identify themselves with their non-Jewish neighbors. But we repeat to them, to our friends and neighbors, the words אברם Avram addressed to the two lads: Stay here, פה po, with the donkey, and I and the boy will go כה ko. In this brief sentence, אברם Avram described in the most pointed manner the tension between a Jew and a non-Jew, between the two lads who had a universal commitment, and himself and יצחק Yitzchak who shared in the universal commitment but in addition had a covenantal commitment. The universal commitment is called פה po. The covenantal commitment he called כה ko. Stand here and wait for me, we must go there. We must go beyond. The Gentile does not understand the difference between פה po and כה ko. The conflict between us and our neighbors is acute, but to experience this tension is precisely what it means to be an elected community, the descendants of אברם Avram. The פה po, the here and now, subscribes to certain views. Marriage, identity, orientation, values, money. The פה po, the here and now, but we don't live in פה po. We live עד כה ad ko. We live in the world beyond. Our destination is above, is yonder. But I say I'd like to add also, what is the notion of כה ko? Perhaps the notion of כה ko also is based on last week's פרשה parsha. Hashem tells אברם Avram, go outside, I want you to look, count the stars. You're going to be as great as the stars. כה יהיה זרעך Ko yihiyeh zar'echa. So the מדרש Midrash says, the נלכה עד כה neilcha ad ko, where are you going to כה ko? You're going to the כה ko of כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa. What's the connection between these כה's ko's? And we have others in the Torah. So רב מאיר שפירא מלובלין Rav Meir Shapiro of Lublin, the founder of the דף יומי Daf Yomi, on last week's פרשה parsha says such a great insight. What does it mean כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa? Hashem tells אברם Avram, go outside. Look up. You see the sky is filled with stars? It's hard to see it in a place that has artificial light. I wrote an article after the summer, I was on a trip to Montana. And there on the top of the mountain it was like nothing I've ever seen before. I can't even describe to you. So in fact, actually, we're doing the series, Dr. Wolf, a member of our שול shul, who's a physics teacher at the high school, is doing a four-part series on science, and it's ending with a group trip trip to a...what's it called? Observatory, where he's going to teach us, we're going to look at the observatory to really appreciate this guy. I hope everyone will take advantage. You'll see it advertised soon. So Hashem tells אברם Avram, go outside. Sky is filled with gazillions of stars. I want you to count them. Now what would you or I have done? What would we say back to God? \"All right, God, I get it. It's a lot of stars, gonna have a lot of kids. Can we move on?\" What does אברם Avram start to do? One, two, three, four, five, six. Can you count the stars in the sky? Does that hold אברם Avram back from trying anyway? He's counting the stars in the sky is impossible. But אברם Avram does the impossible. The fact that it's impossible doesn't hold אברם Avram back from trying to do it anyway. Says רב מאיר שפירא מלובלין Rav Meir Shapiro of Lublin, that's what God was promising אברם Avram. כה יהיה זרעך Ko yihiyeh zar'echa. Your children will be like you, dream an impossible dream. For them nothing will be impossible. They'll take it all on. They'll turn the impossible into possible. Just like I just asked you to do something impossible but you're making it possible, כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa, your progeny, your children, your offspring will do exactly the same. They too will turn the impossible into possible. And if that's what כה ko means, כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa, they too will stretch for the impossible. Maybe that's what it means here also. ואני והנער נלכה עד כה V'ani v'hanaar neilcha ad ko. You guys live in a world where if it feels impossible, overwhelming, unattainable, you stop. But יצחק Yitzchak and I, we live in a world where nothing is impossible. That if Hashem asks us to do it, nothing's beyond our reach. So we are walking עד כה ad ko, they're going to the כה ko of כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa. כה אמר ה' זכרתי לך חסד נעורייך Ko amar Hashem, zacharti lach chesed ne'urayich. Now you're going to keep an eye, every time it says כה ko in תנ\"ך Tanach, כ\"ה kaf hei, כה ko. I spoke about this a bunch of years ago when the שול shul celebrated its 25th anniversary. כה Ko, 25. We are a people of כה ko of 25. כ\"ה Kaf hei. כה יהיה זרעך Ko yihiyeh zar'echa. No one here is having a 25th anniversary. Maybe somebody. It's a good anniversary speech. Some of you look like you're turning 25. So for your 25th birthday. But כה יהיה זרעך ko yihiyeh zar'echa, that quality, that capacity for כה ko for that number 25. כה יהיה זרעך Ko yihiyeh zar'echa. ואני והנער נלכה עד כה V'ani v'hanaar neilcha ad ko. כה אמר ה' Ko amar Hashem. We see it throughout. Okay, let's go back and look at our פסוקים pesukim in the few minutes that we have left. Now you know why we only get through a few. פרק י\"ח Perek yud ches, this is where we left off. Here's my little sticky note. פרק י\"ח פסוק כ\"ד Perek yud ches, pasuk kaf daled, chapter 18, verse 24. Chapter 18 verse 24. We're in the middle of the conversation where אברם Avram is protesting. ויגש אליו אברם Vayigash eilav Avram. אברם Avram has approached. The three ויגש's vayigash's, the three steps we take to begin our, our עמידה amida, the רקח Rokeach. So אברם Avram is already protested and he says to Hashem, אולי יש חמישים צדיקים בתוך העיר Ulay yesh chamishim tzadikim b'soch ha'ir. How could you destroy סדום Sedom? Now, like what do you mean? Could you imagine our saying, Hashem, how could you destroy Hamas? Maybe there's 10 righteous people. That's what אברם Avram is doing when he says, how could you destroy סדום Sedom? Maybe there's 10 righteous people. אולי יש חמישים Ulay yesh chamishim, maybe there's 50 righteous בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir. Why does אברם Avram delineate where these righteous people are? Do we care if they're in the city or the suburb? Are they work the field? Why is אברם Avram specifically identifying בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir. God, maybe there are 50 people בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir in the city. So... who did I see say something about this? בתוך העיר B'soch ha'ir. The אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra says בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir, and we'll see it repeated again. Maybe there are 50 people in the city. האף תספה ולא תשא למקום למען חמישים הצדיקים אשר בקרבה Ha'af tispeh v'lo sisa la'makom l'ma'an chamishim ha'tzadikim asher b'kirba? Would you still stamp it out rather than spare the place for the sake of the 50 righteous? What's רש\"י Rashi? What's he saying? Look at רש\"י Rashi. עשרה צדיקים לכל כרך וכרך Asara tzadikim l'chol k'rach v'k'rach. How did אברם Avram arrive at that number 50? Why did he start the negotiation with God with the number 50? Well, he said the following. סדום Sedom is the biggest, it's the metropolis. We call it סדום Sedom, but סדום Sedom was made up of how many little cities? Five. The five towns of סדום Sedom. עשרה צדיקים לכל כרך Asara tzadikim l'chol k'rach... I wasn't saying anything. חס ושלום Chas v'shalom. I was not... The five towns are a place of tremendous תורה Torah, amazing things. I'm serious, I'm not joking. They produced my wife. I would not be here. My children would not be here without it. That was, I wasn't joking. I mean it. עשרה צדיקים לכל כרך וכרך Asara tzadikim l'chol k'rach v'k'rach, כי חמישה מקומות יש ki chameisha mekomos yesh. There are five cities, five villages, five towns. ואם תאמר לא יצילו הצדיקים את הרשעים V'im tomar lo yatzilu hatzadikim es harisha'im, למה תמית את הצדיקים lama tamis es hatzadikim. So אברם Avram figures a minyan from each one, there's five of them, that's 50. So he starts the negotiation with 50. חלילה לך Chalila l'cha, פסוק כ\"ה pasuk kaf hei. חלילה לך מעשות כדבר הזה להמית צדיק עם רשע והיה כצדיק כרשע Chalila l'cha mei'asos ka'davar ha'zeh l'hamis tzadik im rasha v'haya ka'tzadik ka'rasha. God forbid! I love when אברם Avram tells God, God forbid. חלילה לך Chalila l'cha. God, God forbid you would destroy the righteous with the wicked. חלילה לך Chalila lach. השופט כל הארץ לא יעשה משפט Ha'shofet kol ha'aretz lo ya'aseh mishpat? Hashem, you have a reputation to uphold. You're the השופט כל הארץ shofet kol ha'aretz. You're the most righteous. You, the person who stands for justice and righteousness, are going to act in a holy, unjust and lack of righteous way? How could it be? How could that possibly be? השופט כל הארץ Ha'shofet kol ha'aretz? You are the source of righteousness. Look at the ספורנו Sforno. השופט כל הארץ Ha'shofet kol ha'aretz. כי בהיותך שופט כל הארץ אם תדין את כולם אחרי הרוב תשחית העולם בלא ספק כי רוב בני אדם רשעים Ki b'heyoscha shofet kol ha'aretz, im tadin es kulam acharei harov, tashchis ha'olam b'lo safek ki rov bnei adam r'sha'im. Why are you just destroying סדום Sedom? If this is in fact an act of justice to destroy סדום Sedom because most are wicked, you might as well eliminate the world again because most people are walking in the world struggle with wickedness. So why אלא מאי ela mai, why do you preserve the world? For the מיעוט mi'ut, for the minority who have righteousness. So if that's why you preserve the entire world community, the global community, then you should preserve סדום Sedom for the same argument, using the same reason. Says אברם Avram to Hashem. ויאמר ה' אם אמצא בסדום חמישים צדיקים בתוך העיר ונשאתי לכל המקום בעבורם Vayomer Hashem im emtza b'Sedom chamishim tzadikim b'soch ha'ir v'nasasi l'chol hamakom ba'avuram. Hashem says, \"good, I accept the negotiation. If there are in fact 50, yeah, I would spare everyone. I agree. That's righteousness.\" Now Hashem also answers back by saying בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir. If there are 50 in the city. What if a couple live in the suburbs? Why in the city, בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir? So the אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra writes, שיראם את ה' בפרהסיא sheyir'em es Hashem b'farhesia. וכן שוטטו בחוצות ירושלים V'chein shotetu b'chutzos Yerushalayim. Why does it say בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir? Because I'll spare the city for 50, but not if the 50 are Marranos. If the 50 are only righteous in private, but in public, in public, they're corrupt, I'm not sparing the city. I want people who are תוכו כברו tocho k'varo, who are consistent. If they're righteous in public as in private, I'll spare the city. But if they're only righteous in private, I'm not going to do it. So says the אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra, that's why God responds בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir. These people live in the city. The רמב\"ן Ramban has a different interpretation. Says the רמב\"ן Ramban, בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir, הנכון בעיני כי אברהם אמר בתוך העיר לאמור אפילו יהיה נאחזים בתוך ראשיהם שיצילום Ha'nachon b'einai ki Avraham amar b'soch ha'ir leimor, afilu yiheyu ne'echazim b'soch risha'im she'yatzilum. ואמר זה בעבור לוט וחשב אולי יש אחרים שם V'omar zeh ba'avur Lot v'chashav ulay yesh acherim sham. Why did he say בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir? Maybe there are strangers who are there. So they don't have to be born in the city. בתוך העיר B'soch ha'ir, they're visitors. They're guests. They don't have to be residents and citizens. Who did he have in mind? לוט Lot. So לוט Lot should go towards the count בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir. And God says fine, even בתוך העיר b'soch ha'ir, even a guest who's passing through, I'll include them in the count. You get to 50, I'll spare the city. But what happens? They don't get to 50. ויען אברהם ויאמר הנה נא הואלתי לדבר אל אדוני ואנוכי עפר ואפר Vayaan Avraham vayomar hinei na ho'alti l'daber el Adonai v'anochi afar va'efer. Now before the negotiation continues, it's interrupted by אברם Avram saying, \"by the way, by the way.\" What does he say? By the way, I want to speak to you Hashem, even though I'm only עפר ואפר afar va'efer, I'm dust and ashes. Why does אברם Avram interject that here? What happened? Continue the negotiation, 45, 40, 30, 20, 10. Why is it interrupted by his saying, isn't it obvious? הנה נא הואלתי לדבר אל אדוני Hinei na ho'alti l'daber el Adonai. I want to speak to you, God. Okay, you're in the middle of speaking to me. Why do you have to interrupt and say that? And what are you adding? ואנוכי עפר ואפר V'anochi afar va'efer. You're in the middle of pleading the case. Imagine a lawyer is going to tell the judge, \"you're advocating for a person and you're going to say, by the way, I'm your humble servant.\" I didn't hire you to stand there and be humble. So why is אברם Avram interrupting now saying he wants to talk to God, he's already talking to God, and by saying ואנוכי עפר ואפר v'anochi afar va'efer. רש\"י Rashi says what's עפר ואפר afar va'efer? קראוי הייתי להעשות עפר על ידי המלכים ואפר על ידי נמרוד K'ra'uy hayisi l'heiasos afar al yedei ha'melachim v'efer al yedei Nimrod. I should have been dust, the king should have killed me. I should have been ashes, I should have burned in the fiery furnace. לולא רחמיך שעמדו לי Lulei rachamecha she'amdu li. If not for your kindness, God. If not for your compassion, I am a goner. I shouldn't have even been here. So Hashem, I know it's bold, I know it's brazen of me to stand here protesting, telling you what to do. ואנוכי עפר ואפר V'anochi afar va'efer, I shouldn't even be here. I was a goner. I'm only here because of your compassion and your kindness. But if it will, can I approach the bench? I'd like to advocate anyway, nonetheless. That's what אברם Avram is doing. The אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra says עפר ואפר afar va'efer, כי עפר יסודי ואפר אשוב ki afar yesodi v'efer ashuv. The I came from the dust, and I will go back to the dust. ועיקר יסוד הגוף והם העצמות V'ikar yesod ha'guf v'hem ha'atzamos. So אברם Avram says with humility and modesty, I know where I'm from and I know where I'm going. And I'm not standing here because I'm so brazen to think I know more than you. I am finite and you're infinite. You're omnipotent and I am powerless. But from my little humble perch, from my position, from my perspective, how could I not protest? How could I not say, how could I not say something? The בעל הטורים Baal haTurim says, מכאן זכה לעפר פרה ועפר סוטה mikan zacha l'afar para v'afar sota. Because אברם Avram says, אני עפר ואפר ani afar va'efer, he merited the עפר פרה efer para, the ashes of the פרה אדומה para aduma, as well as the עפר afar of the סוטה sota, the concoction the סוטה sota drinks in order to exonerate herself. The ספורנו Sforno says עפר ואפר afar va'efer, ולא ירדתי עדיין לסוף כוונת דברי תשובתך v'lo yaradeti adayin l'sof kavanos divrei teshuvasecha. I know I'm humble. And I don't really understand your answer. But even though I may not understand your answer, I can't live with myself if I don't protest nonetheless. If I don't protest nonetheless. So אברם Avram describes himself as עפר ואפר afar va'efer. Two things I want to say about this. One is, perhaps this is a source for the idea that we say תחנון Tachanun. What am I talking about? What does תחנון Tachanun have to do with anything? What do we do? We stand up and we say the עמידה Amida. And the עמידה Amida is in first person. ברוך אתה ה' Baruch ata Hashem, אתה חונן ata chonein, אתה ata... God, give me this, give me this, give me that. This is how I see the world. Heal that person, give that person פרנסה parnasa. This is what should happen for justice. God, you, you, you, you, you, do this, do this, do this. Who are we? What right do we have? Where is our license to דאווען daven, to take three steps forward, as I said the רקח Rokeach, the three ויגש's vayigash's for אברם Avram, יהודה Yehuda, and אליהו Eliyahu, all ויגש vayigash. We too take an עמידה amida, we take three steps forward, and then like אברם Avram, you should do this, you should do that, you do the other thing. God says, excuse me? I should do what? Do you know who you are versus who I am? How categorically inferior, different, inconsequential, pathetic, nothing you are? What right? What license do you have to tell God what to do? The answer is ויגש אליו אברם vayigash eilav Avram, because אברם Avram stood up to tell God what to do. Now what happens when אברם Avram stands up and tells God what to do? Immediately, he recoils and he says, even though I've just been so brazen to tell you my interpretation of the world, he recoils and says, but I do recognize my place. I'm עפר ואפר afar va'efer, I'm nothing. What do we do right after our עמידה amida? We collapse on our arm and we say תחנון Tachanun. God, I'm a גורנישט gornisht, I'm a nothing, I'm pathetic, I'm sad, I'm invisible, I'm inconsequential, you're everything. We have a right to protest, to object, to stand up, to tell Hashem based on how we see the world what we think should happen, but we have to do it in the context of humility. We have to recognize afterwards that whatever Hashem responds, he's greater. We submit our protest, but then we accept whatever the result. הרי אנוכי עפר ואפר Harei anochi afar va'efer is parallel to our experience of תחנון Tachanun when we conclude our, when we conclude our עמידה amida. רב דסלר Rav Dessler has another interpretation of עפר ואפר afar va'efer. I heard this from משולם Meshulam who came and unsolicited, gave me a beautiful דברי תורה divrei Torah from רב דסלר Rav Dessler, which I really enjoyed. He said the following, and I reserve the right to use this for a יארצייט דרשה yahrzeit drasha sometime in the future. He said what does it mean when אברם Avram says I'm עפר ואפר afar va'efer, and we say we're עפר ואפר afar va'efer. What does that mean? עפר Afar is dust. אפר Efer is ash. What's the distance between, difference between עפר afar and אפר efer, dust and ash? One represents the past, and one represents the future. And what אברם Avram is saying to Hashem is, I have a past and I'll also have a future. When we say we're עפר ואפר afar va'efer, say in our end of our דאווענען davening, on יום נוראים Yamim Noraim, we're עפר ואפר afar va'efer, we invoke the same imagery, we're invoking the idea that we have a past, but we also have a future. We're part of a continuum. We're not here all by ourselves. This is a very powerful passage that אברם Avram is protesting, he's in this negotiation with Hashem, of which there's so much more to say. The כלי יקר Kli Yakar here talks about the negotiation of 50. How did he arrive at that number? רש\"י Rashi told us, 10 in each of these five cities. But then why did he go down to nine, why did he go all the way down, which would represent less than 10? 45, 40, 30, 20. So the כלי יקר Kli Yakar takes you through what אברם's Avram's calculation was in each of these. We have a הלכה halacha, when you do דבר שבקדושה davar she'b'kedusha, you need 10. To do a holy activity, say קדיש Kaddish, קדושה Kedusha, you need 10. What if your minyan began with 10 and somebody walked out? Can you continue? Can you say the קדיש Kaddish after שמונה עשרה Shmoneh Esrei? You begin חזרת הש\"ץ chazaras hashatz you had 10, somebody walked out. You only have nine. Can you say the קדיש Kaddish afterwards? The הלכה halacha is yes. So that was אברם's Avram's next argument. Maybe there were 10, someone walked out. But accept it if there's 40, now nine from every city, so someone walked out. The כלי יקר Kli Yakar goes through exactly what אברם's Avram's tactic, what his methodology was in advancing each one of these arguments. אולי יחסרון חמישים הצדיקים חמישה...כל העיר, ויאמר לא אשחית אם אמצא שם ארבעים וחמישה Ulai yachs'run chamishim ha'tzadikim chamisha...kol ha'ir, vayomer lo ashchis im emtza sham arba'im v'chamisha. So, fine, Hashem is satisfied, if I find 45. ויוסף עוד לדבר אליו ויאמר אולי ימצאון שם ארבעים ויאמר לא אעשה בעבור הארבעים Vayosif od l'daber eilav vayomar ulay yimatz'un sham arba'im vayomer lo e'eseh ba'avur ha'arba'im. Fine, 40. אל נא יחר לאדוני ואדברה אולי ימצאון שם שלושים...לא אעשה אם אמצא שם שלושים Al na yichar l'Adonai v'adabra ulay yimatz'un sham shloshim...Lo e'eseh im emtza sham shloshim. Fine, 30. הנה נא הואלתי לדבר אל אדוני אולי ימצאון שם עשרים ויאמר לא אשחית בעבור העשרים Hinei na ho'alti l'daber el Adonai ulay yimatz'un sham esrim vayomer lo ashchis ba'avur ha'esrim. What about 20? Fine, 20. ויאמר אל נא יחר לאדוני ואדברה אך הפעם אולי ימצאון שם עשרה ויאמר לא אשחית בעבור העשרה Vayomer al na yichar l'Adonai v'adabra ach ha'pa'am ulay yimatz'un sham asara vayomer lo ashchis ba'avur ha'asara. He's down to 10. וילך ה' כאשר כילה לדבר אל אברהם ואברהם שב למקומו Vayelech Hashem ka'asher kila l'daber el Avraham, v'Avraham shav l'mekomo. But he couldn't even find 10. And when he couldn't find 10, they went their separate ways. They went their separate ways. Why didn't אברם Avram ask about 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1? What if there's one righteous person in all five cities? Why did אברם Avram stop at 10? רש\"י Rashi tells us, על פחות לא בקש al pachus lo bikesh. אמר דור המבול לא היו חס... Amar, dor ha'mabul lo hayu chas... because the generation of the flood had eight, נח ובניו ונשיהם לא הצילו על דורם Noach uvanav v'nesheihem lo hitzilu al doram. There were eight, נח Noach and his family, they couldn't spare the whole generation. They weren't enough. ועל תשיעי הצלה כבר בקש ולא מצא V'al teshi'i hatzala k'var bikesh v'lo matza. And there's no ninth. So אברם Avram knew that less than 10, there's not even a chance. There's no shot, don't bother. וילך ה' Vayelech Hashem, God departs, כיוון שנשתתק הסנגור הלך לו הדיין keivan she'nishtatek ha'sanegor halach lo ha'dayan. When the lawyer has no more arguments, the judge retreats to his chamber. So אברם Avram was done, so Hashem left. ואברהם שב למקומו V'Avraham shav l'mekomo. נסתלק הדיין Nistalek ha'dayan, once the judge leaves, נסתלק הסנגור nistalek ha'sanegor. So then the lawyer, the defense attorney leaves. והקטיגור מקטרג v'ha'kategor m'katreg. And now it's time for the prosecutor to prosecute. ולפיכך ויבואו שני המלאכים סדומה להשחית U'lefikach vayavo'u shnei ha'malachim Sdoma l'hashchis. So God leaves because there's no more arguments, the judge is done. He goes back to his chamber. The judge left, the defense attorney has nothing more, he leaves. Who's left? Only the prosecutor to go and to sentence the person. So now you have the angels who go to סדום Sedom in order to destroy סדום Sedom. Says the אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra, where did אברם Avram go? ואברהם שב למקומו אל חברון v'Avraham shav l'mekomo el Chevron. He went to חברון Chevron. זאת הסברה היתה במקום אשר שלח אברהם את המלאכים משם השקיף על פני סדום ואף פי שהוא כתוב וישכם אברהם בבוקר וישכם על פני סדום Zos hasvara hayta bamakom asher shilach Avraham es hamalachim misham hishkif al pnei Sdom, v'af pi she'hu kasuv vayashkem Avraham baboker vayishkof al pnei Sdom. Even though it looks like this conversation is happening next to סדום Sedom, the אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra brings evidence that it's really happening where? In חברון Chevron. The ספורנו Sforno says, וילך ה' המתין שם אברהם עד שהפסיק כוונת לנבואה עד שנשתלקה השכינה על הפך ויצא קין מלפני ה' v'yelech Hashem himtin sham Avraham ad shehifsik kavanos la'nevua ad she'nistalka ha'Shchina al ha'hefech vayetze Kayin milifnei Hashem. קין Kayin left while God was still talking. אברם Avram only left when God had nothing more to say. Do we interrupt God because we've got something else to get to? Or do we only take leave when the moment of holiness has passed? ואברהם שב V'Avraham shav, שב מן המקום שדיבר עמו המלאכים שם שסיים שיחתו עמו בדבור shav min hamakom she'diber imo hamalachim sham she'siyem sichaso imo b'dibur. We'll just end with Rabbi Soloveitchik on this ואנוכי עפר ואפר v'anochi afar va'efer. He says, this phrase became a foundation of our world view, the הלכה halacha... built on the laws of modesty and the dichotomy of importance and worthlessness. We have this balance. On the one hand, we are ותחסרהו מעט מאלוקים vatachasreihu me'at me'Elokim, we're just beneath God. But on the other hand, we're עפר ואפר afar va'efer, we're nothing. That's the famous every Jew has to walk around with a פתק petek in each pocket. Sometimes you pull out and you say, בשבילי נברא העולם bishvili nivra ha'olam. When you're feeling low and insignificant, you say the whole world is for me. And when you're feeling high on your horse and arrogant, you pull out the אנוכי עפר ואפר anochi afar va'efer. I'm nothing. So on the one hand, we have to recognize our importance, the difference we can make, that we matter, but also with that, our modesty, the message of that we are dust and we are ashes at the same time.The expression used by Avram seems to conflict with the concept of human dignity, the very idea so well exemplified by Avram as he fulfilled the mitzvah of הכנסת אורחים hachnasat orchim. In fact, the opposing motifs of man's lowliness and greatness are both true. Here in the prayer to God on behalf of Sedom, Avram uses the expression אנוכי עפר ואפר anochi afar v'efer. The approach to God during prayer should reflect man's utter helplessness. So when do we feel important? When we're trying to make a difference in the world. When do we feel we're nothing? When we stand before Hashem in דאווענען davening. Avram here is modeling דאווענען davening. Avram is turning to Hashem and protesting for Sedom. So when I'm out there trying to make a difference in the world, when I'm using my initiative, taking human initiative, so then, it's all about me. Right? There's a famous statement, a famous saying. Act as if it's all up to you, pray as if it's all up to God. When we act, it's all up to us. We have to give it our best, we have to feel important, we have to feel significant. But when we're דאווענען davening, we have to realize אנוכי עפר ואפר anochi afar v'efer. I am absolutely nothing. I'm a גורנישט gornisht. It's really all up to Hashem. This passage is so important because this is the license we have to pray.We may have a תהילים Tehillim gathering tonight for somebody who unfortunately may need it. We'll know later. Why do we get together and say תהילים Tehillim? We're protesting to Hashem like Avram. We're saying, Hashem, you're omnipotent, we're עפר ואפר afar va'efer. In the end, we concede to your vision of the world and what's right for people. But how could we not, how could we live with ourselves if we don't protest? We're here to object. We're here to protest. We're here to say from our finite limited perspective and vision, this isn't just, it's not right. These are amazing people, people we love. That they have illness, that they have challenge, that they're suffering, we're protesting like Avram protested for Sedom. In the end, do we win? Some. And other times we lose. But no matter how many times we've lost, we've got to get up and protest the next time again with the mentality and with the context of עפר ואפר afar va'efer, with the understanding that we are nothing, and that we concede and submit to Hashem. But that doesn't hold us back from protesting and objecting nonetheless. That's our mission, that's what it means to be the progeny of Avram.Avram protested about Sedom. About the most morally depraved, corrupt, terrible society maybe ever. And yet Avram protested on their behalf. So for the amazing, righteous people we know, we're going to be silent? We're not going to take advantage of the opportunity to דאווענען daven? What is דאווענען davening if not our protest? Three times a day, we take three steps forward and we say, Hashem, I don't know if you want to hear it or not, but I'm here to tell you my view of how things should be. I'm עפר ואפר afar va'efer. I'm going to say תחנון Tachanun in a minute. Right after I do that, I'm going to collapse on my arm and concede and submit to your will, to how you see things. But first I got to tell you how I see things. Because I care about and love the people around me. Because if they're in pain, I'm in pain. Which is what we saw from the חתם סופר Chasam Sofer on שמחת תורה Simchas Torah in the women's שיעור shiur. That every act of prayer is a prayer for ourselves. So when I pray for someone else, what I'm saying is, if they're suffering, I'm suffering, and I'm here to protest. I'm here to object. What you'll determine, I'm עפר ואפר afar va'efer. I'll accept it. But I can't live with myself if I don't protest first.Alright everyone, have a great day.
