Naso: 5784 - The parable of the barrel of water that turned into "liquor," and the special message for our times, as we are surrounded like "one sheep among seventy wolves": Presented by Rabbi Shimon Zonnenfeld, at the conclusion of…

00:01 Speaker 1 Thank you very much.

00:02 Speaker 2 There was a man who made his living producing vodka, and his vodka was famous—excellent vodka. The local landowner would buy it from him, and thank G-d, he earned a good living from it. Then, unfortunately, the man fell ill and passed away. He left behind a widow and orphans. She had no income. What was she going to do? The landowner sent his servant to buy vodka. Well, there was still a barrel her husband had made in the storeroom, so she gave him some from that barrel. But little by little it ran out. Now the barrel was empty. She had no way to earn a living, and she had children. What do you do in a situation like that? There was a tzaddik in the area, one of the students of the Maggid of Mezritch. She went to him and told him her whole problem. What could she do? The landowner would come asking for vodka, and she would have none to give him. It was a difficult situation. The tzaddik told her, “I’ll tell you what to do. When the barrel runs out, fill it with water and keep selling vodka.” She thought, What? But if he said so, he said so. So that’s what she did. She filled the barrel with water. When the landowner’s servant brought him the vodka, the landowner said he had never tasted vodka like it. It was the most delicious he had ever had. And so it continued. She would fill the barrel with water and keep selling vodka, and thank G-d, she had a livelihood. The woman said, “Master of the Universe! I racked my brains trying to imagine how the tzaddik and Hakadosh Boruch Hu could help me in a situation like this. I have orphans to support. How? Would I find a hidden treasure? Would the landowner die? What? But an idea like this—filling the barrel with water and continuing to sell

02:14 Speaker 2 vodka—that never occurred to me.” She was amazed. That’s the parable. What’s its lesson? We find ourselves in a very, very complicated situation. If we look here in this country, we have the Kaplan protesters on one side, the opposition, the attorney general. We have so many problems, within and without—Hashem protect us. To the north and south, and in Judea and Samaria, we have enemies who, if they had the chance—Hashem protect us. It really is like seventy wolves. In the wider world, we have the European Union, the International Court, and all sorts of other troubles on every side. Master of the Universe, how can we get out of all these problems? They are so complex that, by human reasoning and the natural order, there is simply no solution. But “When Hashem returns the exiles to Zion, we will be like dreamers; then our mouths will be filled with laughter.” Wow, we never thought of that! In a single moment, when Hashem returns the exiles to Zion, Hakadosh Boruch Hu will solve all the problems. That’s an idea we never thought of. May Hakadosh Boruch Hu help it happen very soon, with Hashem’s help.

03:28 Speaker 3 Amen.