פרשת חיי שרה
This week’s Parsha opens with how Sarah Imenu passed away and how Avraham Avinu purchased a burial plot for her from the Bnei Ches and specifically from Efron. Although at the beginning Efron made it seem like he was going to give the field to Avraham for free, in the end he took the entire 400 Shekel sum and Avraham made it a point to pay the sum in full with everybody watching. This detailed accounting that the Torah gives of the transaction made between Avraham and Efron seems a bit uncharacteristic of the Torah which usually does not record insignificant details. Furthermore, there is a Midrash in Parshas Noach which states that the words “Bnei Ches” are repeated ten times in this week’s Parsha which signifies that anybody who helps a Tzadik complete his transaction is considered to have kept all ten commandments. This Midrash too seems strange. Is there anywhere in Chazal which we find that the Bnei Ches are mentioned for their outstanding righteousness that they were considered to have kept all ten commandments?
R’ Chaim Kamil explains this seemingly strange portion of the Torah based on the commentary of the Malbim. He begins by saying that Avraham’s goal was to instill in the entire world a strong belief in the world to come and that this world doesn’t end upon one’s death. By paying in full for Sarah’s burial plot, and making such a public spectacle of this event, Avraham wished to demonstrate that when a person dies, they continue to live on in the world to come. With this explanation, we can answer our two difficulties that we raised. Firstly, we see how important it is for the Torah to record this transaction, because this was the first evidence in the Chumash for the existence of the world to come and the Torah wished to make known Avraham’s dedication to the publication of this important fact of life. And secondly, we can understand what a great potential reward Efron could have had if he would have merited to be a part of this enormous Miztvah, even if only a secondary role. However, it is important to note that because of Efron’s great desire for money, he lost out on the vast reward he would have received. This is why the Torah later records his name missing a “vav”, in order to publicize the fact that Efron’s craving for wealth caused him to lose the unimaginable recompense he would have received for helping Avraham. R’ Chaim concludes by observing that more often then not, a person needs to work their whole lives in order to receive their reward in the world to come. However, there are times, like the one offered to Efron, in which one can grow by leaps and bounds in a very small amount of time. One should constantly be on the lookout to take advantage of such opportunities so that when that special one comes, he doesn’t miss the boat. The Mesillas Yesharim says that if one is not careful in the trait of watchfulness, one can transgress a great many sins without even knowing. R’ Chaim adds that in addition to not sinning, if one is careful to foster the mannerisms of watchfulness, one will also find oneself being able to take advantage of great spiritual opportunities as well.
Moshe Rabenu, the greatest of all men, never ceased to be on the constant lookout for growth opportunities. The Gemorah says that when all of the Jewish people were busy plundering the spoils of the Egyptians at the Read Sea, Moshe was busy dealing with the remains of Yosef Hatzadik, and making sure he could fulfill the Jewish peoples’ promise to their forefather. This is what the verse in Mishlei means when is says, “The wise-hearted will always pursue Mitzvos”. The verse says, “One who is wise of heart”, and not one who has a great intellect. Wise of heart refers to a person who has a strong desire for growth and the verse is teaching us that desire, above all else, will facilitate a person’s growth. One who has a sincere desire to grow, and fosters that desire, will always be on the lookout for the prospect to develop themselves, and this is a Jew’s obligation. Many times a person wants to perform a good deed, but erroneously believes that righteousness is beyond their capability. This is not the correct attitude. That person is tricking themselves because they just don’t want it enough. If they wanted it, they would try to get it in spite of the fact that it seemed out of their grasp. One must foster in themselves a great desire for growth and they will find themselves being able to take advantage of opportunities that were, until now, unavailable to them.
Similarly, we find that at the end of Moshe Rabenu’s life, when he had already amassed an unimaginable spiritual fortune, he was very intent upon fulfilling the Mitzvah of the cities of refuge. This work on Moshe’s part was in spite of the fact that he knew that he could not complete this task, because the cities of refuge are only binding when the 3 in the Jordan are established and the 3 in Israel are established. But Moshe knew with absolute certainty that he would not be entering into the land. He nevertheless did not hesitate to set the cities up outside of Israel even though he knew he could not complete this Mitzvah. Such is the desire we must foster to perform every Mitzvah, even the seemingly “insignificant” Mitzvos and even the partial Mitvos, and take advantage of every opportunity.
I would just like to conclude with the inspiring story of the Sedeh Chemed. The Sedeh Chemed, R’ Chizkiya Medina is the author of one of the most monumental and prolific works in the Jewish library. It is well known that when he was younger, there was a certain person in the community who attempted to bad-mouth him and spread rumors about him what a wicked person he was. For a while, R’ Medina completely lost his reputation, but in time, the entire story blew over and was shown to be false. A short while later, R’ Medina was in a position where he could have completely destroyed the tale bearer who had maligned him but in order to fulfill the commandment to not take revenge, he sat back and did nothing. R’ Medina writes that shortly afterward, he felt a well spring of Torah entering into his heart and mind and from that time and onward, his mastery of Torah had changed forever. We see from this incredible story how careful one must be to be on the constant lookout for any Mitzvah opportunity. Had the Sedeh Chemed not been careful about this one Mitzvah, and given in to the tremendous urge to avenge his name, we would not have his invaluable work today on our shelves.
May Hashem bless us to never miss an opportunity to perform any Mitzvah!