A guest post by Rabbi Aaron Fink (my father), Dean of Ateres Bais Yaakov in Monsey NY. Part of a weekly Dvar Torah (Torah “Thought”) series.
Parsha Behar Bechukosai
V’tzivisi Birchasi
Giborei koach oseh Dvaro. The laws of Shmitta are well known as the barometer of personal and communal yiras Shamayim. Indeed., Chazal tell us that golus Bavel was a direct result of our being negligent in adhering to the Shmittah codes. In exploring the fascinating psukim and narrative of the parsha there are many fabulous lessons to be learned, one insight from the Alshich serves as a valuable reminder as we prepare ourselves for Shavuos.
The Torah tells us that Hashem Yisborach anticipates the insecurity Am Yisrael will feel while allowing their fields to remain fallow for an entire year. “What will we eat, they worry, when there are no crops in the field? We have not planted nor harvested the produce.” So Hashem Yisborach reassures us, “v’tzivisi es birchasi lachem bashanna hashishis v’asas es hativuah lishlosh hashnaim,” there will be enough bounty from the harvest of the sixth year to sustain all of your needs. What a gift from the Ribbono Shel Olam! It seems to good to be true. And… in a way it is.
The Alshich points out a critical diyuk in the words of the posuk. It says v’tzivisi es birchasi lachem. It would have been sufficient to state just vitzivisi birchasi. What does the lachem add? The explanation is simple says the Alshich. The word lachem comes to teach us that “habracha tihiyeh lifi ma’aseichem l’fi ma sheta’asu es chukosai!” The bracha we receive during the sixth year will be defined by us. The bounty we end up harvesting before the onset of shmitta will be reflective of the quality of our keeping His mitzvos. The greater our commitment to Him the better off we will be. Of course, now this bountiful blessing is much more complicated and personal. The maaminim bnai maaminim were blessed with plenty. But not everyone was so blessed. Unfortunately, those whose meager harvest in the sixth year filled them with angst had much to worry about, not just physically, but also spiritually. It was not easy to acknowledge their personal role in their sparse harvest. Instead of introspecting and doing tshuva, many blamed G-d for r”l failing to keep His promise. What they really needed to do was a self analysis of their own Yiras Shamayim. Golus came fast and furious. What a powerful yesod.
We need to remember that birchos Shamayim are a two way street. They are a reflection of our maasim tovim and an opportunity we must master. As the Rambam explains at the end of Hilchos Teshuva, every mizvah we do provides us the brochos and opportunities to perform even more Mitzvos with which to garner a greater place in Olam Habah. What better way to prepare for Matan Torah than to remember vitzivisi es birchasi lachem – Hashem gives His brachos to us dependent on our actions. With our comprehensive Kabbalos Hatorah on Shavuos we can iy”H count upon all of His blessings to follow.
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