ALL PARSHA - The Malbim on Parshas Vayeira

Welcome my boy, and welcome everyone to a special edition of all parshas parshas Vayeira the Malbim Reb Meir Leibush ben Yechiel Michel the Malbim on parshas Vayeira. The Malbim, aside from being one of the greatest commentaries and commentators on the Tanakh, was also extremely proficient in the realm of Kabbalah. He was a student of Reb Tzvi Hirsch of Zidichov, who [clears throat] was known as the Sar Beis HaZohar. In fact, if you want to know the esteem the Malbim had for Reb Tzvi Hirsch of Zidichov in the Hakdamah of the Artzos HaChaim, which is the Malbim's commentary on Or HaChaim, he says B'chochmas Olam Es, my eyes were illuminated by my master, Ish Kadosh Kadosh Go In Tzevaos Yisrael, Reb Tzvi Hirsch of Zidichov. The Kol Aryeh says that we have a tradition that when the Malbim was 18 years old, he went to be mesamech in the Beis Medrash of Reb Tzvi Hirsch of Zidichov, and Reb Tzvi Hirsch gave the Malbim Smicha in Kabbalah, whereupon the Malbim locked himself up in a dark room for 18 months until the Malbim completed the Eitz Chaim and the Pri Eitz Chaim and all of the Kisvei Arizal. I'd like to present to you in a certain way the Malbim's take on the Akedah. Want to share three Malbims, and this will give you a uh a little bit of an inkling of the Malbim's general approach to Akedas Yitzchak, and you'll have a flavor for the Malbim's attention to the nuances and the details of the wording of the psukim. >> [snorts] >> Hashem tells Avraham Avinu perek kaf beis pasuk beis, Kach na es bincha es yechidcha asher ahavta es Yitzchak. And Rashi's bothered by their superfluity of the expressions as you hit a shower after just say take it talk. So Rashi says Hashem brought it upon Abraham slowly so that he shouldn't startle him and people would say no Abraham Avinu only acceded to Hashem's request because he was shocked. The Malbim has an amazing perspective and amazing interpretation of these second. The Malbim says the test of the kid was not whether Abraham Avinu would do the kid. The current saying of the kid that I was was Abraham Avinu's love for God so powerful, so transcending that all other loves were but were nullified relative to the love of Hashem. And the more Abraham loved something else, he would offer that thing to God. So really the test of the kid was not for Abraham to sublimate his love for Isaac. Was for Abraham to focus and magnify the love he had for Isaac and nevertheless compared to the highest rich way shall have see ya of us have the love the burning fiery passionate love for Hashem would transcend any human earthly love. So Hashem says listen, you have to be careful. Don't just take Isaac and then you're going to block out of your mind. He's your son. He's your beloved son. No, take his been I know you know he's your son, but while you're doing the mice of that kid, you need to be focused on that this is my son. And then don't say to yourself or try to convince yourself, you know, I have another son. I have you smile. So it's not the end of the world if I slaughter Isaac. No, focus on Yichud Hashem. He's the only thing you have. Yishmael doesn't is not a close second. You only have Yitzchak. And don't block out of your mind your love for him. You need to focus on your love for him. And don't think he's just a plain ordinary son. Don't forget what a chacham he is, what a tzaddik he is, and still you're willing to sacrifice him for Hakadosh Baruchu. That's the emphasis. Kachna bincha, focus on the fact he's your son. He's your only son. You love him. He's a chacham and a tzaddik, and you're doing this because your love for Hashem is so much greater. >> [snorts] >> Now, the Malbim deals with a very fundamental question. Namely, >> [snorts] >> if Hashem told Abraham, Kachna bincha asher yachadcha shaftei as Yitzchak v'lech l'cha aretz Hamoriah v'ha'aleihu sham l'olah, then until Abraham gets word from Hashem himself, why is Avraham Avinu listening to the malach? So, regarding that question of why is Hashem Why is Avraham listening to the malach? Avraham Avinu understood that when the malach was speaking, this was the direct word of Hashem. So, the Malbim's question is not how could Avraham pay attention to the malach when he got direct word from Hashem to bring Yitzchak up, and he now is hearing from a malach not to? But why did Hashem do it that way? Why is Hashem sending the malach to tell Avraham not to? Why is Hashem not coming himself? >> [snorts] >> So, the Malbim explains, well, that's part of the nisayon. Part of the nisayon was Avraham Avinu being able to discern that indeed the communication of the malach was the direct communication of Hashem, but the malach says something extraordinary. Rashi later on says that the reason why Yitzchak was blind was from the tears of the malachei hashareis who were crying at the Akedah. Those tears went into Yitzchak's eyes and they blinded him. Why exactly were the malachim crying at the Akedah? What were they crying about? Were they crying because it was so beautiful? Were Were these tears of joy? Were these tears of worry that Avraham would actually kill Yitzchak? What is the meaning of the tears that the malachei hashareis offered at the Akedah? And the Malbim says something amazing. The The Malbim explains that Chazal tell us whenever a person does a mitzvah, Hashem sends an angel to repay the person for that mitzvah. S'char mitzvah mitzvah. Now, every mitzvah that a person does, it's not just an angel is sent to repay the person, but rather the mitzvah itself creates the malach with which to repay the person. And therefore every step in Avraham Avinu in his preparation for shachting Yitzchak, he created malachim. When Avraham went to Har HaMoriah, when he tied up Yitzchak, when he put Yitzchak on the mizbeach. And the only thing is the reason why all of these steps created a malach is because all of these steps were desired by Hakadosh Baruchu. So, they created malachim. [clears throat] However, there is one step that would not have created a malach, and that is if Avraham would have shachted Yitzchak. Because Hashem did not want to to shacht Yitzchak. So, actually, if Avraham would have shachted Yitzchak, then he would have been considered a murderer because Hashem only wanted Avraham to bring Yitzchak up and not to shacht him. So, this malach that was created from Avraham's taking Yitzchak and preparing Yitzchak and bringing him up to the mizbeach and tying him up, this was a rather impressive malach. Actually, he was probably the most robust, impressive malach in the history of the world. No one in the history of the world ever was prepared to fulfill a mitzvah of this magnitude. This was the most handsome, strong, wise malach ever created. The only thing is, the malach was now in danger of disappearing because if Avraham Avinu would have shachted Yitzchak, then all of his preparations would have been sins for retzicha. So, the malach's very viability was on the line. So, the malach calls out from its from shamayim, "Don't do this. You're going to destroy me." To impress upon Avraham how fundamental it was that he cannot shacht Yitzchak. >> [snorts] >> The malach's very viability was at stake. The malach says, "We know everything we need to know." Ata yadaati ki yirei Elokim ata. We know what a God-fearing person you are, Avraham. You know how I know? Because v'lo chashachta because you did not withhold es bincha, your son, es yechidcha, your only son, mimeni. Mimeni doesn't mean you didn't withhold him from me. It's the malach talking. Ata yadaati ki yirei Elokim ata. Now I know you're God-fearing. You know how I know? Because v'lo chashachta es bincha es yechidcha. You didn't withhold your son, your only son. You know how I know how God-fearing you are? Says the malach, "Mimeni. I know it from looking me. I look at how robust I am, how strong I am, how wise I am, how great I am. And I realize you, Abraham, are responsible for creating this for creating me, the malach, says. For creating such an awesome malach. And therefore, don't do this cuz you're going to destroy me. Cuz if you shacht the Yitzchak, then all the mitzvahs you did to create me will have been for naught, and I will be self-destructed. I will you'll you'll destroy me now. Don't do this. Therefore, the malach calls out from shamayim, and he says, "V'lo chasta et bincha, et Yitzchak, mimeni." The Malbim toward the end of the Akeidah, perek chof beis, pasuk yud gimmel. Vayisa Avraham es einav, vayare v'hinei ayil achar nechez basvach. The Malbim quotes Tanna D'vei Eliyahu that anyone who says the pasuk, "V'shachat o yisa al yarech hamizbe'ach tzafonah." has remembers Akeidas Yitzchak. Says the Malbim, "Why does Shulchan Aruch legislate and recommend to say the parsha of the Akeidah every day before the parsha of korbanos?" >> [snorts] >> Says the Malbim, "I explained in my compilation to Shulchan Aruch, Artzos HaChaim, that really it is fitting for a person to be makriv themselves as a korban. Really, a person if they need to offer a sacrifice because of a sin or out of gratitude, should really sacrifice themselves. But Hashem, in His infinite mercy, accepts in lieu of the person the gufa of the beheima. The gufa of the beheima is accepted in lieu of the adam. Okay? However, what about in lieu of the nefesh of the person? A person has a soul of intelligence. There's no replacement in a cow for the intelligent soul of a person. So, I understand Hashem accepts the body of the cow instead of the body of the person. But, what does Hashem accept in in lieu of a person's nefesh hamaskeles? Says the Malbim, in lieu of the nefesh of the Adam, a person offers his nefesh by having the machshava that he would offer himself when he's being makriv the korban, he thinks it's as if ke'ilu ani nishchad, ke'ilu ani nikrav. You should think it's as if I'm offering myself. And the machshava of a person is accepted in lieu of the person's nefesh hamaskeles. Who offers the nefesh of the person when a person brings a korban? The Gemara says in Chagigah, in the level of heaven called Zevul, there's a mizbe'ach and Michael is makriv the korban. Tosafot says, Michael is in the shamayim and he's makriv the nishamos of the tzaddikim. What does that mean? The The guf of the beheima is offered in lieu of the guf of the person. But, who's makriv the neshama, which is the machshava of mesirus nefesh? There's a mizbe'ach in shamayim and Michael offers it. So, you'll say, why does Hashem accept the person's thoughts that the body of the animals instead of the person's body, but the person's machshava is accepted in lieu of their soul, which is maskeles? The answer is, it seems like a shortcut. Just because a person says, "Yeah, I would offer myself as a korban." Why is that deemed as if they did? The answer is there was an epic event and achievement in the history of the world that created something called the mechanism of carbonus. Namely, when Yitzchak Avinu was willing to be schechted for the sake of Hashem and he was thinking he would actually do it, that created a new mechanism that when a Jew thinks, let it be deemed as if I was offered as a carbon, then Hashem takes it as reality that they really would do so. Really? Who says they would actually do so? Yitzchak says. The Akedah says. The Akedah establishes for all time that when a Jew thinks, let it be considered as if I was offered, it's considered that way because Hashem deems that you really would do so because Yitzchak was willing to do so. >> [snorts] >> And therefore, says the Malbim, the purpose of the mitzvah of the Akedah was that it should be a preparation for his descendants when they would be commanded for carbonus that Hashem would be mekabel demachshava of mesiras nefesh kamaisa. We had at the end of Lech Lecha, according to the Ramban, the entire Bris Bein HaBesarim was a covenant between Hashem and Avraham Avinu that Hashem would grant Klal Yisrael Eretz Yisrael forever through the medium of carbonus. So, the system of carbonus was vouchsafed vouchsafed to Avraham Avinu at the Bris Bein HaBesarim, but at the Akedah, Hashem created the mechanism through which carbonus works. Namely, when Yitzchak was willing to be sacrificed at the Akedah, that created a viable program called carbonus and therefore the introduction to carbonus every day and the introduction to the carbon tamid is reading the Akedah. Actually, if you look in Maseches Middos, there was a specific entranceway to the Har HaBayis that was used every morning for the carbon tommid and the the say that there was a tradition that through that area Abraham went to bring as a carbon for the so the purpose of the was to establish for all time the procedure the process the institution of carbon ice that when it was willing to be offered that established that for all time accepts the the thoughts of the of a Jew that accompany and that is brought up to the and is and that works through the mechanism of the therefore always remembers the when we say the of carbon ice so this is amazing approach of the to the of the approach of the why the were crying the were crying because they were about to be destroyed and that's what the says you know how I know me many I know it from me and this is the approach to the the entire purpose of the was to establish the procedure of carbon ice the great institution that is one of the three pillars that the world stands on wishing everyone but the stuff