Becoming Like a Wall

By Rabbi Moshe Krieger, Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah (www.bircas.org)

 After Avraham succeeded in conquering the kings who had made war against Sedom and Amora, the inhabitants of these cities were now prisoners, and their possessions were essentially Avraham’s. The King of Sedom approached Avraham with an “offer.” Keep all the spoils of war, but return to me my subjects.

Avraham then makes a dramatic reply: “I have raised my hand towards Hashem, the most high G-d, owner of heaven and earth. Not from a thread to a shoe lace, not from anything that is yours will I take. You will not say, ‘I made Avraham rich'” (Bereishis 14:22-23).

Why did Avraham raise his hand? Rashi explains that Avraham swore publicly that he would not take any spoils of war for himself, presumably as a way to stand firm and rein in whatever desire he might have had to take from them. Onkelos states that Avraham “raised his hand in prayer,” asking  Hashem’s assistance in helping him restrain himself from taking spoils. The Ramban explains that Avraham meant to declare all the spoils of war as sanctified to Hashem (therefore he surely would not take it for himself).

The above three tactics that Avraham used to prevent himself from taking spoils makes it seem as if this was no small test he had to endure.  If Avraham saw fit to swear, pray and declare the spoils of war sacred and off-limits, it means he had reason to be afraid.

What was Avraham afraid of? He was already an extremely wealthy man (see Bereishis 12:17 and 13-2). Did he really have a desire to make himself still more wealthy? Would such a desire need so many drastic precautions?

Rather, R’ Simcha Zissel Broide explains (based on Rashi Bereishis 14:23) that Avraham reasoned: “Hashem promised to make me wealthy. If someone else can claim that he made me wealthy, this will take away from Hashem’s honor.” This was why Avraham was so careful to distance himself from the spoils of war. Not because of his own desire for money, rather since this was a matter of Hashem’s honor, he wanted to take every possible precaution.

R’ Simcha Zissel notes that Avraham’s concern seems exaggerated. Even if Avraham would take some of the spoils, would people really think that the King of Sedom had made him rich? Avraham Avinu was a prominent figure in Canaan, whose great wealth was common knowledge. Moreover, who could have made such a claim? The King of Sedom? He had just suffered a disgraceful defeat on the battlefield, and surely was not known for his sterling reputation, honesty or humility. Could he really have taken credit for Avraham’s wealth?

We see from here the extent to which Avraham was concerned about Hashem’s honor. If there was a slight chance of detracting from Hashem’s honor, Avraham viewed this as a nisayon — a test of his loyalty to Hashem.

Midrash Tanchuma (Lech Lecha 2) quotes from Shir Hashirim, “Our sister is yet small…If she is like a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver, but if she is like a door, we will enclose her with a board of cedar” (8:8-9). The Midrash explains that this verse refers to Avraham Avinu’s nisayon in Ur Kasdim, when he broke his father’s idols and was brought before the dictator, Nimrod.

Hashem declared: “If Avraham is like a wall, I will build him up [into a great nation]. If not, he will be erased like a [drawing] board of cedar.” When Nimrod gave Avraham the choice to recant or be thrown into a fiery furnace, Avraham stood firmly like a wall. Because he withstood this nisayon, Hashem built him into a great nation.

Hashem did not say these words of this Midrash directly to Avraham, but Avraham understood on his own the importance of this nisayon. His correct response to Nimrod’s test was what made him who he was.

We see that when it came to major tests, Avraham was “like a wall.” This is understandable, as giving in to Nimrod meant giving credibility to idol worship, chalila. In the case of the King of Sedom, however, we see that Avraham went all out to withstand even what seems to be a small nisayon.

This is a lesson for all of us: Whenever we are faced with a nisayon, great or small, we too must do all we can to succeed. The Mesilas Yesharim (1) states that our purpose for coming into this world is to serve Hashem and pass the specific tests designed for us in our lifetime. If so, we have to recognize the crucial importance of a nisayon and face it head-on with all the resources we can marshal.

Let’s say we find ourselves in a conversation that may slip into lashon hara. Instead of making a “reasonable” effort to keep quiet and not lead the other party into forbidden speech, we should either change the subject or stop the conversation entirely! We have to see this nisayon as perhaps the one that will either make us or break us.

Rav Yisrael Salanter offers additional advice about nisyonos (Shevivei Musar): When faced with a nisayon, the way to succeed is to keep focused on it. Do not leave it aside and move on to other things. No, the nisayon has to be on your mind. Think, strategize, how can I deal with this? Take protective measures.

Let’s say you have to go from one place to another. You’ll be on the street for a few minutes. Think, what nisyonos may I face? Perhaps people will not be dressed properly. Go out with a plan in hand. Don’t just enter the nisayon unprepared.

Once, Rav Salanter was living in a town and news spread that a tight-rope walker was touring the country and would be giving a performance in their area. People came from far and wide, gathering along the two banks of a river, where a rope had been set up for the tight-rope walker to cross.

The townspeople were surprised to see that Rav Salanter came as well. He too watched with interest as the tightrope walker cautiously but confidently strode on the rope and made it from one side to the other.

“We can all learn from this man,” Rav Yisrael explained to people afterwards. “He is 100 percent focused on his goal. If, as he was on the rope, he began dreaming about the honor or money he can expect from his act, he might not make it across! When he’s out there on the rope, he can only think about one thing — getting to the other side safely. Hashem put us in this world for a purpose, and we must keep focused on this purpose, and not let other things distract us.”

May we succeed in our nisyonos!