Ramban on the Torah | 5785 | 03 | Vayera, by Rav Eli Weber
Why was Sedom punished? What does this have to do with Pilegesh BaGiv'a? What is the point of the Akeda?
KMTT - the Torah Podcast
Ramban on the Torah | 5785 | 03 | Vayera
(upbeat music) - Welcome back everyone to another week of Rabban Allah, Parasha, Valyaira, I'm sorry, Valyaira is an exciting Parasha, we're gonna focus on two significant stories in Valyaira, mostly on the story of the destruction of Saddam, which is, I think something we should give more attention to than we normally do. She is, you know, God just deciding to destroy Khalil, you know, a city in Aras Yisraelis or five cities in Aras Yisraelis, a significant step from God, by God. Second thing, we wanna return to some issues relating to the Akkida, obviously the Akkida is, you know, as significant an event in the history of our people as there ever was. This sadom part might be upsetting to some people 'cause the Ramban who's exceptionally moral and we'll see that over and over again even today. But he talks about Pilagish Beghiva and he says interesting things there. And okay, it's a risk I take. I feel like I have a relationship with you. Many of you write to me often. By the way, if you want to, I'd love to hear from you. It's l-e-l-i.weber with one be the number five at gmail.com, I'll do my best to answer. Okay, let's start learning. So God tells Avraham that he's going to destroy stone. There's a whole Masal Matan, there's a whole back and forth in terms of saving stone. And then the story takes place. And it turns out the people of stone really are as evil as God presents it. And then at some point they surround the house and they say (speaking in foreign language) Where are these visitors? (speaking in foreign language) Right, there isn't a sexual part of this, some sick idea that they want to have relations with the guests. So (speaking in foreign language) The purpose wasn't, ooh, there are these strangers here. Let's take advantage of them. Let's have relations with them. The purpose was to teach a lesson. Stone was going to cancel all immigration. They didn't want it. Why? (speaking in foreign language) Yavos, Shamrabim, they were worried. They live in a lovely place and it gets a lot of rain and it's very beautiful. All these unwanted people will join them. (speaking in foreign language) Right, that was like a philosophy for them. They were against the dakkah. So then why did they allow load to come there? Load hadn't lived there long. (speaking in foreign language) They're happy to take rich immigrants. It's the poor ones they're worried about. (speaking in foreign language) Or he asked for special permission. Or he was Avram's nephew. So they took Avram's nephew. (speaking in foreign language) The Torah testifies the purpose was to snuff out all immigration. (speaking in foreign language) The bottom line is they did not believe in dakkah, they did not believe in social justice, they did not believe in social network and helping people. They were each for themselves. That's a (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Why was it particularly painful takkah, (speaking in foreign language) Because they were cruel to poor people. (speaking in foreign language) The sense you get is when you're poor to the downtrodden. Right, God often is protector of your (speaking in foreign language) Gare, things like that. It's offensive takkah, (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) They had, (speaking in foreign language) don't need to find one particular sin that all the terrible character traits. (speaking in foreign language) Because they were against helping the lower classes of society and you could learn whatever lessons from this you want, it's certainly beyond me. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Right, they sinned in all kinds of ways, including sexual deviancy. But the thing that identified them as (speaking in foreign language) The thing that offended (speaking in foreign language) the most was the fact that they were mean to poor people, to widows, to orphans, that they had a society that was built on the premise of we're keeping all these people out. (speaking in foreign language) Even bad people take care of the lower class. Even bad people have some kind of social support group. (speaking in foreign language) There was not any part, any human society that was built, right? It wasn't that they had an instinct to sin. People have instincts to sin all the time and they have desires and they have to overcome it. But Stome got together and they built a society that basically said we don't want anybody who needs anything, we don't want poor people, we don't want the downtrodden, we don't want anybody who's gonna be a drag on our perfect selfish life. And he says (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Notwithstanding how evil they were, had they been in Ohio, had they been in Johannesburg, had they been in London, God wouldn't have destroyed them. But when you're that bad, and you're in Eretz Israel, (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Eretz Israel is a living, breathing entity as we've seen in the Ramban before. And therefore, Eretz Israel can't stomach having a society like that, having an evil society like that within its boundaries. (speaking in foreign language) Stome has wiped out forever because it's in Eretz Israel. (speaking in foreign language) Because they were proud of themselves for the corrupt society that they built. (speaking in foreign language) And God wanted it to be an example of the fact in Eretz Israel. And again, it's not okay to have desires that you act on. It's not okay to be sexually immoral, but it's not as bad as coming together and building a society that's based on an opposition to Staka, building a society that refuses or actually stops you from being (speaking in foreign language) Right, building a society that's immoral. So the Ramban, that's not acceptable (speaking in foreign language) That's not acceptable in Eretz Israel. And that's the unique evil that identified Stome. Okay, that's the first Ramban. The second Ramban is harder. 'Cause the second Ramban, okay, deals a little bit with the evil of Stome, but then it talks about shad in a story that we refer to it's, and say for Shof Tim, (speaking in foreign language) And there are many, many textual parallels between the two stories and Ramban, once you know, they're not the same. So if you got a parakhet, we're in, I'm sorry, you got a posakhet, we're in parakhet, the people say that first load says, (speaking in foreign language) I have two virgin daughters. (speaking in foreign language) Take them, rape them. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) But these people are my guests, you had to leave them alone. Now, it's kind of shocking that any father could say that. So the Ramban says, (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Load is doing a good thing. He's being (speaking in foreign language) and he's standing up for them. But through his commitment to that good thing, we see something terrible about him. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Right, he felt responsible for the guests 'cause they'd come into his house and he was on some level responsible to them. (speaking in foreign language) Yeah, but the way to protect them by giving your daughters to the mob, he said, that's evil, that's corrupt. (speaking in foreign language) He says, sexual immorality was not that distance from load. It wasn't that discussed at him. (speaking in foreign language) If he thought it was so bad, he wouldn't have done it to his daughters. They were his daughters. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) This we can all identify with. The custom of the world is (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) A person basically stands up for his wife, for his daughters. He either kills their attackers or they kill him. But literally he would defend them to the death. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) He willingly gives his daughters over for them to be mistreated. (speaking in foreign language) God says it's a strange line, says the marriage. Oh, you're pretending for yourselves. Meaning, when the story's over, load himself is gonna have drunken relations with these daughters. So Khazawa, so upset by his behavior, that they said, oh, he must have been doing it for himself. Okay, something we'll come to in a few minutes. But the bottom line says the Ramban, the great thing the load was doing, his commitment to Khazawa says, (speaking in foreign language) is commendable. But at the end of the day, it's destroyed by the fact that he doesn't take over his own daughters. It's one thing to be a (speaking in foreign language) But if your family has no food, if you, to be (speaking in foreign language) ahead of your own family, that's difficult. And the Ramban says that's not morality and he's upset by that. Okay, but now, as I mentioned before, the Ramban sees this as a parallel in some ways for Khazal, see it, most of us see it as a parallel to the story of Pilegis Bhigiva. Right, Pilegis Bhigiva was, is the story in Shofthim and Parak Yutest of an old man who took in a guest and the people surrounded the house and they demanded that he give the guest to them, you know, for sexual immorality. And he says, no, take my Pilegis. And they take their Pilegis and they rape her repeatedly overnight and eventually she dies. And the man is so disgusted that he chops up her body and sends it to old Shofthim, all over Arachis Ral. And they are disgusted by this behavior and they decided to make an example of the people of Benjamin and they attack it. And sadly, on the first day, they don't win, even though they're massively outnumbered. Benjamin is massively outnumbered by the rest of Ami Sural. And even the second day, they win, but not really. And only on the third day that they win. And the Ramban sees many, many important and significant moral lessons in this. He says, (speaking in foreign language) He says, yes, many people compare Pilegis Pilegis Pilegis on the surface. It's exactly the same thing. Many people compare Pilegis Pilegis to stone. But he says, they're not the same. (speaking in foreign language) The evil people of Pilegis Pilegis Pilegis (speaking in foreign language) They weren't trying, that's the same point that Ramban keeps making, right? They weren't trying to stop immigration. They weren't trying to stop poor people from moving in. They weren't trying to stop Hachnasat Orim. (speaking in foreign language) They were sexually immoral. They lived a life of improper activity. (speaking in foreign language) The purpose was that they wanted to rape the guest. (speaking in foreign language) Okay, when the man said, no, don't take my guest, take my Pilegis, that was okay with them. They weren't gonna push it further. I'm skipping a few lines. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) They were willing to sacrifice the Pilegis for the life, wasn't like, they were gonna kill her or he didn't know that, right? They wanted to sacrifice the Pilegis for the Oreach. And now it's an important point in the Ramban. (speaking in foreign language) For the Ramban, a Pilegis is not a wife. (speaking in foreign language) It's not a marriage minus. It's some other relationship. In addition, he says, the Pilegis wasn't such a saintly woman, right? 'Cause we know already, (speaking in foreign language) She already cheated on her non-husband, but who she's supposed to be faithful to. Okay, but (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) In addition, it's not like all of Shavet Binyamin was doing it, right? In stone was (speaking in foreign language) There was no moral person in stone who was willing to stand up and say, this is not how we build a society. Okay? (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Yes, it was the leaders of Givah, it was the leaders of Shavet Binyamin who were immoral. (speaking in foreign language) Okay, so the people didn't feel like they had the political strength to challenge their leaders, but all of Shavet Binyamin was not corrupt. There was a level of corruption and it was amongst the leaders mostly. Now, the word comes to (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) It's not that they had done a sin that's punishable by death. Shavet Binyamin was not (speaking in foreign language) But Binyamin saw this as an example to make an example of them, to say, we don't want this in our midst. They want to make it (speaking in foreign language) like (speaking in foreign language) like other (speaking in foreign language) It's not also (speaking in foreign language) but they want to make it (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) We want to kill them. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Right? (speaking in foreign language) It wasn't okay to do, but that's not the same as saying (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) It's true. They afflicted a (speaking in foreign language) who had already cheated on her sort of husband. Right? (speaking in foreign language) I guess translated most easily as concubine. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) They didn't intend to kill her. Right? In fact, she didn't die, you know, during the series of rapes that took place. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Yes, they directly caused her death, says the Ramban. But they didn't kill her in the sense that she was healthy enough after it was over, you know, to get up and walk back home. Okay, I'm skipping a little bit more. (speaking in foreign language) Says the Ramban, (speaking in foreign language) They're allowed to make it get there. We often have situations where (speaking in foreign language) Right? The guy's not (speaking in foreign language) But best in things, society needs this person to be punished. It's a necessary idea that people will see that such an activity is not okay. And they often give (speaking in foreign language) They can give me such a (speaking in foreign language) They're allowed to do that. So that's what Pena Yisrael did. They wanted to make an example of (speaking in foreign language) Even though the punishment (speaking in foreign language) at least didn't fit the crime. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) So Shaveen, I mean, objected. You know, we don't have a Shaveen Misa. (speaking in foreign language) Also, (speaking in foreign language) didn't act properly. What they should have done was called up Shaveen Misa and had a meeting and said, you know, you need to take a stand against this, but they didn't. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) says Raman, that's why Pena Yisrael lost at the beginning. (speaking in foreign language) Right? It wasn't proper, historically, to go to war over this, to literally have a civil war that's gonna wipe out, you know, tens of thousands of Jews. (speaking in foreign language) This was something, you know, in America, they call this state's rights, right? There are federal rights, there are states rights. (speaking in foreign language) Shaveen are supposed to look after themselves. They're responsible for themselves. And Shaveen Misa Min should have done it themselves, and Pena Yisrael should have given them an opportunity to root out this evil from within their own Shaveen. (speaking in foreign language) It's their responsibility to take care of themselves. (speaking in foreign language) He says, (speaking in foreign language) This is a horrible thing that happened. So they were worthy of punishment because of the horrible thing that happened. (speaking in foreign language) Because they started a civil war to make a lesson out of something, and the Ramban thinks maybe it wasn't inappropriate to start a war over this. You don't have a civil war over a particular crime that's not even an Isr Del Ricea. Again, the Ramban thinks it's immoral, it thinks it's a terrible thing. But this cheating concubine, you know, it was immoral to hurt her. It was immoral to rape her. But is that gonna be the cause of a civil war? (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Right, (speaking in foreign language) Didn't take responsibility when they should have. (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) In addition, says the Ramban, they didn't ask God for permission to do this. They didn't wait. In the story, they go to the Uruin-Vitumim. So says the Ramban, it's a subtlety, but it's really important. He says, no, they asked God, (speaking in foreign language) Right, we're sure we're doing the right thing, but which shave it should be first? And even the second day, they asked God, you know, something similar. They referred to be in (speaking in foreign language) So there is a question about going to war, but it's not the question they should have had. They should have gone to the Uruin-Vitumim, they should have gone to God and said, this terrible thing has happened, what should we do? But says they didn't do that, says the Ramban, and they tried to make an example where maybe an example shouldn't have been made, they were punished. Finally, he says, (speaking in foreign language) Finally, in the end, they actually asked God, should we do this, will we win? And they did Chewva for the fact that they were arrogant, and they did Chewva for the fact that they saw themselves as being morally superior. So it's really interesting, I think, for people who learn Ramban, and he's so moral, and he cares so deeply about morality, but he says sometimes when you pick a fight, when you want to show that you're more moral, that's also a mistake. It's not for you to be morally superior. It's for you to do your best to make people moral. They should have called up (speaking in foreign language) They should have told them, they should have demanded them, maybe, maybe at the end, had they gone through (speaking in foreign language) had they gone through Chewva for the fact that they would have been punished with the massive losses that they suffered in the first two days of the war. And says Ramban, that's also a crime, and that's also something that people should be aware of. And so I think it's kind of the opposite lesson, which is, of course, you need to be moral. And of course, Saddam was as corrupt as corrupt can be, 'cause their sin wasn't that they desired something, and so they acted on it. And that's immoral and that's inappropriate, but at least it's generated by a desire, by a physical desire. When a town comes together and says, let's cancel immigration, let's make sure that no poor people move here, that's corrupt. But with respect to Chewva Binyamin, that's not corrupt. It was a desire to act on their own desires. It's not a good thing, but it's not corrupt. And the Ramban things, Benet Yisra'el acted morally superior when maybe they had the same weaknesses, maybe they didn't. They shouldn't have done what they did. They didn't ask God, therefore they were punished as well. And so the two stories, Saddam and Pilegis Binyvah are not really parallels, right? They're not really the same story told over in two different parts of the Torah. They're completely different stories. Okay, that was a lot of time on stone. Hopefully that went over well, don't know. Let's do very quickly the Akkadat Yitzhak. And here, basically the question must be seen as follows. If God knows the future and he does, so that he knew that Avram would be willing to sacrifice Yitzhak. And if he didn't, so that we misunderstand God, what does it mean when God says, (speaking in foreign language) What does it mean that God's giving a test? Why would God ever have to give a test if he knows how the person's gonna do? (speaking in foreign language) So what's the test? So ambiance is something famous and important. (speaking in foreign language) First thing he says, the test, you have to understand, man has absolute (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) So what's the test? He says (speaking in foreign language) (speaking in foreign language) Says the Raman, there's a difference between a person who would potentially do something and a person who actually does it. And God doesn't need sayon, God gives us a test. It's not really a test the way we think of it. It's a test (speaking in foreign language) the testee, but it's not a test from God. Why does that work? So for example, let's say, and I mean this sincerely, I think even if it was in the middle of the winter, if I was walking past a lake and I saw a little girl fall in, I think I'm the kind of person who would jump into Safar. I really do. But I don't know it. On the other hand, if it happens, then I'm walking past the lake in the winter and a little girl falls in. And then I jump in and I say for that's completely different. I'm not in potential. God's not rewarding me for being the kind of person who if, then if X, then why? No, it actually happened. There was X and I jumped in and now I'm a better person and now I know myself, right? There's a huge difference, I think, between suspecting and believing that you would do something if it came to it and then actually doing it, okay? (speaking in foreign language) God only tests Sadikim. (speaking in foreign language) God only gives us a nizayyun when he knows where it's Sadikim, we're gonna pass the nizayyun. Then Yitzavel, Tobinizayyun. However, (speaking in foreign language) All tests in the Torah are for the benefit of the person being tested. So I know the question and I don't think it's a great question, I wanna be respectful of it. The question is there are many times in the Torah that people fail. What does it mean God only tests us when he knows we're going to pass? It simply doesn't seem to be true in the stories in the Torah. And the answer I would suggest is there's a difference between living a life where circumstances challenge you, right, and living a life where artificially God shows up one day and says here's the test, right? There are all kinds of things that happen in the course of, you know, the brothers sold Yosef. So isn't that a nizayyun that they failed? No, 'cause it wasn't an external, it wasn't God put them in a situation and told them, let me see if you could withstand the desire to sin or not. Here, they had a relationship, events played out as they played out, and the brothers sinned. But that's different than a test. That's different than God artificially stepping in and saying, I'm now gonna test you to see if. With respect to Akhedad Yitzhak, it was a test, it was artificial, there was nothing that was happening in Abraham's life that would have otherwise caused him to even consider sacrificing his son. Okay, so that's what, that's the idea there. I'm bound would say that a test is something that God does to us and it's always done, (speaking in foreign language) It's always done to take something that's potential and make it actual. And God finds it easier to reward us for things that we actually did versus things that we could have potentially done. Okay, let's do one really quick one. When the Akhedad's over, the Mahlach cries out, impulsive, you'd bet. (speaking in foreign language) Now I know that you're a real Akhedad, (speaking in foreign language) At the same point, (speaking in foreign language) Originally, yes, Avram was a, was a Yarela Kim. And potentially he was the kind of person who would have responded to any kind of command from God including to kill his son positively. (speaking in foreign language) Now we know for sure, (speaking in foreign language) Now God can reward him fully, not just for potentially being a Yarela Kim, but for actually being a Yarela Kim. Okay, let's stop here. Yashkar to everybody, today we saw mostly the story of stone and how it was a culture that was built around immorality, not sexual immorality, it was a culture that was built around this idea that we want to keep out immigrants, we want to keep out poor people, that's offensive to Akhedad Shboh, who an offensive to Aretz Israel, says, (speaking in foreign language) that's much worse than (speaking in foreign language) We're okay, it's bad to be, to act on your sexual desires, but it's a real desire, okay? There wasn't an Israel Dall Reissa, and when (speaking in foreign language) chose to make an example of it, they were punished, (speaking in foreign language) because they should have spoken to Akhedad Shboh, they should have asked, they should have been more moral in their opposition to immorality. And of course, the Akhedad, the idea that God knew in advance that Avraham would succeed, but the idea is that the test is (speaking in foreign language) God doesn't need to know, but the person needs to know. I need to know, not that in potential, I'd save a little girl from a lake, not that in potential Avraham would sacrifice his only son, but actually, actually, actually it would happen, and then God can give these people, can give Avraham the fullness of his goodness, fulfill all of his brochos, not make it (speaking in foreign language) in whether we sin or not, but make it unconditional, that's the gift of the Akhedad. Okay, Yashkart, everybody, Shabbat Shalom, and see you God willing next week. (upbeat music) (upbeat music)