Parshas Behar - Emunah and Bitachon Open New Channels for Livelihood

00:00 This is a story the Rebbe told several times—briefly, its main point. I heard it from the Rebbe several times at farbrengens. But this particular account was told by the chossid Reb Shimon Dovid Raichik, who was present when it happened. He says it was on the night after Yom Kippur in 5701. The Frierdiker Rebbe had arrived in America not long before, in those first months after escaping the war. On the night after Yom Kippur 5701, the Frierdiker Rebbe summoned a chossid named Reb Shlomo Aharon Kazarnovsky. Reb Shlomo Aharon Kazarnovsky was one of the trusted members of the Rebbe’s household, among the Frierdiker Rebbe’s closest associates, and a prominent communal activist who did a great deal for the Rebbe’s work in those years. The Frierdiker Rebbe asked him to call in a Jew named Reb Chanon Glazer. That was his name, Reb Chanon Glazer. He was, as the account explains, a simple man. The Frierdiker Rebbe asked for him to be called in. When Reb Chanon entered, the Frierdiker Rebbe told him: “Today, on Yom Kippur, the Tzemach Tzedek came to me.”

01:48 “And he came to me with a demand. He said to me: Why am I not printing his responsa? Why am I not printing the responsa of the Tzemach Tzedek?” What had been printed years earlier was certainly not [unclear]. The Frierdiker Rebbe related that the Tzemach Tzedek had come to him that day, Yom Kippur 5701, and said: “Why aren’t my books being printed—the responsa of the Tzemach Tzedek?” So the Frierdiker Rebbe told that Jew, Reb Chanon, whom people called Mr. Glazer, to undertake to print the books. It was no small task. The Tzemach Tzedek’s books contain hundreds of responsa. And in America in those years, as you know, it was an enormous expense. Printing something like that required tremendous effort and work. Nevertheless, the Frierdiker Rebbe asked it of him. The chossid was not a wealthy man. [unclear] He drove a car, worked as a driver, and did not earn much. And here the Frierdiker Rebbe was asking him to undertake the task of printing the Tzemach Tzedek’s books. Reb Chanon said to the Frierdiker Rebbe: “What I have, I give.” As you know, he was among those who contributed to the Frierdiker Rebbe’s charitable work, “but more than that

03:18 I don’t have.” The Frierdiker Rebbe told him: “I have a tradition that when a Jew wants to give more tzedakah but lacks the means, lacks the ability, yet wholeheartedly undertakes to give—he says he wants to give and truly means it—new channels open for him from Heaven. That gives him the opportunity for a generous livelihood, so he can fulfill his wish and give generously what he wants to give.” That, more or less, was the story, and that is indeed what happened. As the saying goes, what happened then happens now. A few days later, a channel of livelihood opened for him miraculously, from Heaven, and he managed to raise all the money, all the resources, everything that was needed. That made it possible to print the writings, the books, the responsa of the Tzemach Tzedek, and we have them to this day. The Rebbe also told this story. I heard it from the Rebbe at several farbrengens. The Rebbe was very enthusiastic about it and told it with warmth and excitement. I remember one farbrengen where the Rebbe told it at length, and the point was that you don’t always have to wait until first I

04:48 But when a person stands behind what he has undertaken and remains wholehearted in his desire to carry out the task, a new channel opens for him, a new flow of blessing. This gives him new hope and greater means for the things he wants to accomplish. In the weekly parsha, Parshas Behar, we find powerful verses about trust in Hashem. Parshas Behar speaks about the Shemitah year, the seventh year. The parsha sets out all the laws that must be observed in the seventh year. Later, the verses also speak about the Yovel year: not working the land, “You shall not sow,” “You shall not reap,” and all the laws that must be observed then. “The land shall rest, a Shabbos for Hashem”—the land must rest in the seventh year. Later, in chapter 25, verses 18 and 19, the Torah promises all these good blessings: “You shall perform My statutes and keep My laws and perform them, and you shall dwell securely in the land.” And it concludes: “The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and dwell securely upon it.” In other words, Hakadosh Boruch Hu promises that in the merit of observing the mitzvah—as Rashi says, these words relate to the mitzvah of Shemitah—because a Jew observes Shemitah, Hakadosh Boruch Hu will bless him with every blessing, during Shemitah and Yovel and in all matters, until he merits—

06:25 “The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill.” He has nothing to worry about. And as Rashi says, there will be blessing within his stomach. Then comes verse 20. Verse 20 says: “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” If a person asks, “What will we eat in the seventh year? What will we eat in the seventh year? ‘For we will not sow, nor gather in our produce’”—where will our food come from? Verse 21 answers; the Torah says: “I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year.” Hakadosh Boruch Hu promises to bless us and to put a blessing into the crops sown and cultivated in the sixth year. Hakadosh Boruch Hu will bless the crop, and it “will produce enough for three years.” That work will yield so much produce that it will last for three years rather than one: the sixth year, the seventh year, and the eighth year, as the following verses say. These are very rich verses about faith and trust: a Jew must place his trust completely in Hashem, not worry, and rely entirely on Hakadosh Boruch Hu to take care of his needs and give him blessing and everything he needs. But here a simple question arises: At first glance, verse 20 makes no sense. What does the Torah mean by “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” After all, a blessing has already been promised.

07:55 In verses 18 and 19, the Torah speaks of a blessing, and that blessing is that there will be every good thing: “The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and dwell securely upon it.” Well, we have already received a blessing. And suddenly the Torah raises a question: “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” What is the question? And why does it answer with the same thing again: “I will command My blessing”? It has already stated the blessing. At first glance, the entire lengthy passage in verses 20, 21, and 22 is hard to understand. A number of commentators ask this question. One explanation is given by Sforno. Sforno gives a wonderful answer that explains the verses more according to their plain meaning. What does he say? He says that the first blessing is, as Rashi says, “a blessing within the stomach.” That implies a blessing in quality. A person will not have a sufficient quantity in the sixth year, but the blessing Hakadosh Boruch Hu promises in “You will eat your fill” is that he will not need to eat very much. The little food he eats will be blessed within his stomach, and so it will last him through the sixth, seventh, and eighth years. That is the first blessing Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives: a blessing in quality, so that a small amount of food will satisfy a person. Sforno says of the verse that this is where the question arises: An ordinary person

09:34 may begin to have doubts. He sees that there is only a little; no additional crops were sown, and the amount of flour has not increased either. He wonders: What will he eat? He is told that through something he cannot see—and because he cannot see it, he does not know where the blessing will be—that small amount, the same as he has each time, each year and each day, will last the entire period. Yes, that is how he also explains the way to dispel the doubts. For the person sees that no flour has been added, that what is in storage remains as it was, and then he must know that the flour he does have is what he can use. That is an explanation given in a book, which explains the verses this way. I say it is closer to the plain meaning of Scripture, because the commentators offer other explanations as well. But here we will explain the verses as they are explained more in the works of Chassidus. There is a very rich interpretation in Noam Elimelech that we will explain now. Rabbi Elimelech brings an interpretation from his brother, and afterward we will discuss the wonderful explanation the Rebbe gave on the subject—both an explanation according to the plain meaning of Scripture and an explanation of the whole matter that opens up the meaning of the entire sequence of verses.

10:58 How can this be explained even according to Rashi, though Rashi does not pause to address it? And that is indeed one of the questions: why doesn’t Rashi address it? The Rebbe’s explanation is wonderful. After that comes an explanation in avodas Hashem—a spiritual interpretation in the path of Chassidus—that gives us a way of serving Hashem that we can learn from these verses. Let’s begin with what he brings in Noam Elimelech. He says, “I heard from my brother, the renowned chossid”—I think; I’m not quoting the wording exactly. In other words, he repeats something his brother, Reb Zusha, said. As is known, this is said to be the only place—so it says in several sources—where he quotes his brother, Reb Zusha. After all, it is said that he named the book Noam Elimelech “Noam” out of affection for his brother: in Yiddish, that means zissel, Zusha, ziss—sweet. But in this book, as far as I know, he brings an interpretation from his brother once, and specifically in this parsha. Reb Zusha asks precisely this question: Why does the Torah go through this whole back-and-forth, with the question and the answer? It would have been better for the Torah to state the promise right away. After all, mountains of halachos are derived from every letter and every word.

12:14 And here, after the blessings have already been given, the Torah adds a question? Why raise questions? If there were no questions, there would be no need for another answer. That is what Reb Zusha of Anipoli asks. He explains that these verses tell a person: Be one who “fears the word of Hashem,” and walk in Hashem’s ways. The Torah is saying this: Generally speaking, a Jew should know that the Master of the Universe has channels for providing a livelihood. The Master of the Universe gives every Jew [unclear]. A person has no reason to worry. The Master of the Universe is the source of blessing; He wants to give, and He gives generously and abundantly. The Master of the Universe is entirely good and entirely kind, the channels are always open, and He gives every Jew what they need. The Torah comes and says: Know that this is the meaning of the preceding verses—“The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill.” That is the reality. There are channels of blessing through which the Master of the Universe gives, and blessing through... But sometimes a person chooses to worry. He does not want to rely on Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and worries, distractions, and doubts begin to arise: What will happen? “Lest I lack bread”—what will happen tomorrow? The very doubt a person raises damages the channels. The very question,

13:46 the very doubt, the very worry, the very preoccupation—all these damage the channels; so to speak, they block the channel. That channel is connected to simple faith. When a Jew gives himself over with simple faith and knows that Hakadosh Boruch Hu provides, the channels are open. When he raises a doubt, that doubt blocks the channel. Then Hakadosh Boruch Hu has to, so to speak, go to the trouble of opening a new channel—so to speak, to disregard the concealments, the obstacles and the confusion the person has set up. And Hakadosh Boruch Hu opens another new channel for the Jew who raises these doubts, even though that, too, impairs the flow of blessing. But that is not the right way. A person should not create concealments and obstacles, block the source, and then have Hakadosh Boruch Hu open new channels. He should leave the channel open from the outset, and the blessing will come without delay. This is the true meaning of the verses as Reb Zusha explains them. First the Torah says: Know that there is blessing—“You will dwell securely in your land, the land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and dwell securely upon it.” All the blessings, all the channels, are open. The Torah says: Know this—don’t close the channels. “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’”—if you start asking and worrying, that damages the

15:11 channels. Then what will have to happen? “I will command My blessing.” That is why the Torah goes back and says: I will have to create a new channel. That is the meaning of “I will command My blessing.” I will disregard your worries and preoccupations, and nevertheless, “I will command My blessing”: I will open a new channel and create a new flow of blessing, so that all the blessings can reach you. Period. Yes, and what does “and it will produce a crop sufficient for the three years” mean? The Torah says to the Jews: Come on, don’t be foolish. Why make Hakadosh Boruch Hu go to the trouble of creating new channels? Stop worrying, rely on Hakadosh Boruch Hu, give yourself over to Hakadosh Boruch Hu, think good and it will be good. Here we can see it clearly, as in the well-known story—I can tell you—about the Tzemach Tzedek, who told the chossid Reb Michoel [unclear], “Think good and it will be good.” When a Jew gives himself over to Hakadosh Boruch Hu from the outset, the flow of blessing is already there, and things will be good in actuality, with visible and revealed good. That is Reb Zusha of Anipoli’s interpretation. The Rebbe goes on to bring another interpretation, a very fine explanation [unclear] of the verses, which also fits the plain meaning of the text. The meaning of the verses is this: In general, as the commentators understand it, this whole question is not one that stems from doubts. It is not a question asked by someone who, G-d forbid, has doubts about his faith. That is not what this is about. It is something else entirely. What is it? Rashi already

16:46 said earlier, in the previous parshiyos, in Parshas Bo, when the Torah speaks about questions, that this is not the first place the Torah presents a question. The Torah has already written about such a question. And do you know where? In Parshas Bo: “And when your son asks you tomorrow, saying...” And the other formulations written there as well—this is how the Torah tells us that there will be questions a son will ask. Rashi already said in the earlier parshiyos, when discussing Pesach and citing what is written in the Haggadah: “The Torah speaks in relation to four sons.” And that is interesting: Rashi is not a book of Haggadah or a book of Midrash, yet he brings this: “The Torah speaks in relation to four sons”—the wise son, the wicked son, the simple son, and the one who does not know how to ask. These are the verses that [unclear], that [unclear]. All kinds of questions will arise. And the Torah tells us how to relate to each Jewish child and his questions—and to adults as well. If he asks like the wise son, you have to answer him as you would the wise son. If he asks like the wicked son, you have to answer him as you would the wicked son. If he asks like the simple son, you have to answer him as you would the simple son. And the one who does not know how to ask must be answered accordingly. So the very idea, the concept of asking questions, is not something that appears only in a few parshiyos. And we see something else as well: asking

18:18 is not a bad thing. On the contrary, it is a very good thing. There are two kinds of questions. Some questions come from doubt, but there are also questions that do not come from doubt; they come precisely from understanding. “A wise and discerning people.” The wise son who asks his questions—“What are the testimonies, the statutes, and the laws?”—is not asking out of doubt. His question does not come from finding matters of faith, G-d forbid, difficult to accept. These are questions that come from wisdom. He certainly believes in Hakadosh Boruch Hu, believes in the Torah and mitzvos, and knows that Hakadosh Boruch Hu is the greatest and truest reality. So what is it? He asks how to do things the right way. Because Hakadosh Boruch Hu does not want only statutes, only mitzvos without a soul. Hakadosh Boruch Hu wants a Jew to serve Him as he should. And he asks about the things he is capable of understanding; he wants to understand the matters that Hakadosh Boruch Hu wants a Jew to understand. “A wise and discerning people”—that is the right thing. So this is not a question born of doubt; the question is how to do it the right way. What should I do? How should I do it? “What are the testimonies, the statutes, and the laws?” He asks about the details, the matters, the things handed down by tradition and their interpretations. And that is what Rashi already taught us in

19:43 the previous parsha. I spoke about the four sons. And when we come to Parshas Behar, what does the Torah say? You must know that there is a Shemitah year. During the Shemitah year, the field must [unclear]—that is, “you shall not sow,” “you shall not prune”—these are the kinds of work done in the field. And you must leave the fields open so that everyone can enter. And so on, as the verses say, [unclear], all these things. And he asks a question: I have no doubts. [unclear]. But the question is, what should I do? In the sixth year I sowed a crop. The seventh year arrives, and I cannot sow. What does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want from me? Does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want me to sow in the sixth year in a way that will leave more over? Does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want me to sow as usual, and then a miracle will happen? Does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want to send manna from heaven that will turn into wheat and barley? Do I need to do other things, not [unclear]? What does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want? In other words, the question “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” is not a question born of doubt, nor is it a question born of worry. It is a simple question asked by a wise son. You tell a person—and this could be a great miracle—that for an entire year he must not sow his field, and yet, know that

21:19 that we need [unclear], and yet you say, “What will we eat in the seventh year?” But you do not tell me what I should do. So he asks, “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” That is the question. What do we want to know? How should we prepare for it? What does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want from me? [unclear] what we said, but do not [unclear]. So tell me: what should your approach to that year be? What should you do? Surely Hakadosh Boruch Hu will not leave us to fast like that. So there must be an approach, a way forward. A wise son asks—the same wise son who wants to understand the laws of Pesach—how should we conduct ourselves, what should we do, how should we prepare for a year in which [unclear]? And Hakadosh Boruch Hu tells you how it will happen: not that manna will fall from heaven, and not that He will send angels. On the other hand, you do not have to wait for a miracle; you will know what will happen. There will be “I will command My blessing.” And Hakadosh Boruch Hu says, “I will command My blessing,” and “it will produce a crop for three years.” This is a wondrous miracle, entirely beyond the course of nature. It is something that makes no sense logically. Why does it make no sense? Because I see that a field sown year after year grows weaker. The Gemara says in Bava Basra,

22:42 and it is a known fact of nature, that from time to time one must stop sowing a field. If you do not stop, but sow and sow again and again, the soil becomes very weak. That is why it is important to let the land rest for a time. The Gemara says that this strengthens the soil, so that all the produce grows better afterward. But here the Torah comes and says: no, six years. On the plain level, the Torah says that even in the sixth year, after six consecutive years, you must sow. Yet by the laws of nature, after six consecutive years, the sixth year is the hardest. In the sixth year almost nothing grows; growth is poor because the soil has already weakened. Then comes shemitah. And as several commentators here explain, and as the Rambam cites, stopping the sowing during shemitah strengthens the field according to nature. But the sixth year is certainly a difficult year. And yet Hakadosh Boruch Hu says: that is precisely the miracle. Know that when a Jew asks, “How should we conduct ourselves in the seventh year? What will we eat? What does Hakadosh Boruch Hu want? What should we do?” Hakadosh Boruch Hu says: Know that I have performed a great miracle. In the sixth year, the hardest year, when by the laws of nature the crop would barely grow, so much will grow that it will suffice not only for the sixth year but also for the seventh and eighth—for three years.

24:15 And this helps us understand why it is phrased as a question: “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” The Torah does not state it outright, because it truly is a miracle. It cannot be understood logically; to the mind, it really is astonishing. That is why it says, “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’” When a person looks at the course of nature, it is indeed a question. Hakadosh Boruch Hu tells him: Know that in the merit of all your faith and trust, and your willingness to rely completely on Hakadosh Boruch Hu and let the field rest in the seventh year, a Shabbos of complete rest, you will see a miracle beyond the course of nature. Precisely the sixth year, which by nature is the weakest, will be the best year, producing a crop for three years. Those are the verses. And here we come to a special, beautiful aspect of serving Hashem: how this is expressed in spiritual service. As explained in Chassidus, the Tzemach Tzedek and the Rebbe Rashab point out in their maamarim that these verses allude to the days of Moshiach. The idea of the seventh year already appears in the commentaries. The commentators, including the Ramban, explain that these laws—all the matters of “Six years you shall sow your field” and “In the seventh year there shall be a Shabbos of complete rest”—are a reflection and an example of the six thousand years. The six years

25:46 allude to the six thousand years of the world, the six thousand years of this world. And “in the seventh year, a Shabbos of complete rest”—that seventh year alludes to the seventh millennium, to the time of the days of Moshiach and the Resurrection of the Dead, the World to Come—to all the aspects of the Geulah. Accordingly, these verses contain a very profound message about serving Hashem. Moshiach will come, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu will grant all the blessings, all the abundance and all the revelations, the great reward He promised: “No eye has seen, O G-d, but Yours.” All the wondrous things Hakadosh Boruch Hu promised for the days of Moshiach, the time of the Resurrection of the Dead and the World to Come—there will be great things then, great things. And a Jew comes and asks: Wait a moment. All these revelations, all these things that will be drawn down in the future, depend on our deeds and our service. There has to be service here. A Jew says: I am in exile, in the harshest exile. I am at the end of the exile, in the sixth millennium, in the footsteps of Moshiach. This is a bitter time of rushing about, upheaval, spiritual slumber and bitterness in exile, when we have no strength. Our service of Hashem is weak. A Jew cries out to Hakadosh Boruch Hu: “And if you say, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year?’” Moshiach is about to come.

27:36 Then the seventh year will arrive, and with it the ultimate purpose of all the revelations for which all the work was done. The Alter Rebbe says in Tanya that all the future revelations, at the Resurrection of the Dead and in the days of Moshiach, depend on our deeds and our service during exile. But a person knows in his own heart: my service is no service. To this Hakadosh Boruch Hu says that if you want to know how it will happen, the verse says, “I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year.” Precisely the service of the sixth millennium—which according to nature and reason is indeed, as the Gemara says, the service of an impoverished generation—will be blessed: “I will command My blessing in the sixth year.” This simple service with self-sacrifice, which Jews carry out in a time of redoubled darkness, contains Hakadosh Boruch Hu’s greatest blessing. “I will command My blessing in the sixth year.” Chassidus explains that when Hakadosh Boruch Hu showed Moshe Rabbeinu all the generations and all the eras, and he saw the generation at the threshold of Moshiach, he was “very humble, more than any person on the face of the earth.” He saw our generation and became exceedingly humble. What gave rise to his humility? That Jews do not merit revelations, miracles or extraordinary things, and nevertheless serve Hashem with self-sacrifice. They stand proud and firm in their faith in Hakadosh Boruch Hu despite all these trials, the hardest trials in the world—and precisely there

29:07 is found “I will command My blessing.” This is what the Torah tells us: precisely this simple service, which truly does not make sense logically. It is not a service based on reason. “And if you say, ‘What will we eat?’”—you ask from the standpoint of reason, what is there here? Logically, it is difficult service. But this is not about reason; it is about self-sacrifice, about going beyond reason. It is precisely the service that comes from the quality of netzach, of perseverance in exile, in the hardest of times. Precisely in this service, which is not based on reason, is found “I will command My blessing.” It holds the greatest strength that Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives us Jews at this time, so that we can withstand the trials of exile. And from this come “the three years.” The Rebbe explains what “the three years” are—the three periods: the period of the days of Moshiach, followed by the period of the Resurrection of the Dead, and then the period of the World to Come. And those three years, those three periods, all flow precisely from service with self-sacrifice, from the way Jews serve Hakadosh Boruch Hu at the threshold of Moshiach. This service brings about the greatest revelations in the future, in the days of Moshiach. And this is what today’s parsha teaches us: the trust Jews have, to rely completely on Hakadosh Boruch Hu and know that it is He who gives every Jew, from His full, open, holy and generous hand, both materially and spiritually. Even in the hardest times of exile there is “I will command My blessing”

30:35 “in the sixth year,” in the sixth millennium. And so, through our service at this time, with this self-sacrifice, in the circumstances we find ourselves in now, we will soon enter—indeed, dance—into the greatest joy of the seventh year, into the revelations of the days of Moshiach. Especially since we are now approaching Lag BaOmer, and Lag BaOmer is the time when, as cited in Chassidus in the name of Kabbalistic works, the light of Moshiach shines. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai revealed the inner dimension of the Torah and showed how a Jew devotes himself to Hakadosh Boruch Hu, while Hakadosh Boruch Hu gives to him and bestows upon him from His full, open, holy and generous hand. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai also speaks in the Zohar about the generation at the threshold of Moshiach and says, “There will be no generation like that generation”—that the generation of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai will appear again, will be revealed again in the generation at the threshold of Moshiach. And this will be the generation that, through the inner dimension of the Torah, “will leave exile with mercy.” May we truly merit the true and complete Geulah through our righteous Moshiach. Amen, may it be His will.