Bitachon 258 - Ups and Downs of Bitachon

You're listening to the 258th edition of the BeTalkin podcast. And we're going to continue again this time with three more Sukum in Divrei Hayamim in Chronicles. And it underscores a very important point. And that is that it's possible for a person who has developed their BeTalkin. A person who has been working on BeTalkin, developed our relationship with Hashem. It's possible to have a rift in It's possible to have a weak moment. And to lose that BeTalkin and to suffer as a result of it. It's important to know this. We're human. It happens to all of us. And it's important to be able to recognize it and to get out of it. To get back into our relationship with Hashem. Lest we suffer the consequences. The Sukum we're going to discuss today are in Divrei Hayamim Bais. Perek Tes Zion, chapter 16. Sukum Zion through Tes. Vayisa Hi Bo Chanani HaRo'eh el Asa Melech Yehudah. At that time Chanani the seer and he was a Navi. He came to Asa the king of Yehudah. Vayomer elav. He says to him Bisha'ancho el Melech Aram. You have depended upon the king of Aram. Velo Nishanta el Hashem Elohecha. You did not depend on Hashem your God. Al kein Nimlat Cheil Melech Aram MiYadecha. You should understand that what happens when you depend on a human being instead of Hashem is that you get left to natural consequences. The Melech Aram, the king of Aram who you depended upon you're going to lose out. You're going to lose, it's going to fall out from your hand so to speak. Halo HaKushim VeHaLuvim Hayu LeChail Ra'av. Now, he reminds him of some history. It's important to know our history. There was a group of Cushim, people from Cush and Lud, they had a tremendous amount of armies. L'rakhav ul'farashim ul'harbi me'od, they had tanks, they had airplanes, or in those times chariots and and horses. V'hish'anu al Hashem elokei Yisrael b'emet. Now, when you trusted in Hashem, Hashem gave them into your hands. You were successful in battle. Why? Because of your bitachon. Ki Hashem einav meshutatot ba'aretz Hashem is looking, as it were, Hashem, when we depend upon him, he sees that. And he's looking for those people who are depending upon him. It's It's an encouraging fact that if we depend upon Hashem, Hashem is looking for it, and he's interested in manifesting in our lives to the degree that we do that. Niskalta al Hashem elokecha, al ken lo hayah imcha l'chomim. But in this matter, because you depended on the king of Aram, said Hanani to King Asa, because you depended on the king of Aram, so you've done a foolish deed. And that's why you're going to have wars now. The wars that you encounter are because of lack of faith. If I'm going to say something a little controversial if you live in Israel. If the If all of the youth of the Jewish people would be sitting and studying the Torah and developing a relationship with Hashem, we wouldn't need such a big army. Cuz our enemies wouldn't have any sway or power over us. And in fact, it's something which I believe I mentioned previously, that when they see us, when the Arabs see us bowing in full in full bow to Hashem, they're afraid. They know that those who completely bow to Hashem have the power, which is what we're talking is about. Rashi says like this, "Okay, Nimlai chill chulta loi lama? Shalom talked about why were you not able to overcome your enemies? It's because you did not trust in Hashem. Kima talked about Kishi Buvak Yisrael Melcha Ramelachu. If you would have trusted in Hashem when the king of the northern kingdom and the king of Aram made a covenant and they made a covenant to battle you. Kishim talked about Kishibov Alaiha Kushim. You trusted in Hashem when it came to the people of Kush. Lo Nimlai Min Yadacha Yisrael Korum. If you would have trusted in Hashem in this circumstance as well, you would have been victorious. You would have escaped. Kishim uh sorry. Aflo Isam Avim Chayil. You won't have had to lose your money. Shinasata Likedila Hafri Brisa Im Basha. He tried to give him money in order to to break his covenant that he had made with the king of Israel. The northern kingdom. I touch talked about Boku. And now that you did not trust in Hashem, Avata Maimonicha Gam Melach Aram Nimlai Min Yadacha. You've lost your money. You wasted your your payoff money. Your blood money and he's escaped. You've lost his support as well. So, bottom line is we think often we think often that and and I would say it comes from a normal human weakness or normal human uh situation where we're not sure. It's just not It's not clear, you know, is my debating going to work maybe. Maybe Hashem helped me last time, but who says he's going to help me this time? And the fear creates the problem, as we spoke about. The fear creates the problem. And we say, "Well, maybe I should do some hishtadlus. Maybe I should pay off some blood money." And it doesn't work out so well for us. He brings here from the Maskil L'David Hashem from the from Rabbeinu Avraham ibn Ezra of Amishai men who betake with Hashem Yisrael and Amardu. He says a very strong statement. He says that if a person does not trust in Hashem, he's considered a rebellious person. L'kach Yanu She'u Hashem Yisrael K'ros Es Parnasa'i. If a person it's not just like, oh, it's a good idea to trust in Hashem to develop our bitachon, it's a good thing to do, it's effective. Understand, first of all, that it's a mitzvah, and second of all, it's a danger if I don't do it. Cuz if I he says that if a person does not trust in Hashem, he's considered rebellious of Hashem, a reb- you know, he's rebelling against Hashem, and therefore Hashem will punish him, and he will lose his parnassah, lose his livelihood. K'mo She'omar David B'Nigla L'Dosh Hashem. King David said in in contra distinction to those who seek Hashem, K'firim Rashu V'Ra'evu. The powerful lions, so they became poor, and they became hungry. But the Dorshei Hashem Lo Yachseru Kol Tov, those who seek Hashem, they are not missing anything good. So, those who think that they have their own power, >> [sighs] >> so they end up in trouble. It's a dangerous statement to make. Uh K'fi She'hu Yotzei M'Yadi, it's a very dangerous statement to make. >> [sighs and gasps] >> We can stand up against our enemies today, not like in the Holocaust. It's a dangerous statement to make. We have to keep saying with Hashem's help, with Hashem's help we'll be successful. Chana Amora, Sva'im ulach im nisgaru. Chana says, those who are satisfied with bread, they get their reward. I'm not sure I didn't see the pasuk in side and context, but I imagine from the from the context here that it's trying to say that those who think that they are satisfied with what they have done in order to get their bread, so they get the reward of that. Which is that they are left to their to their own devices and it doesn't always work. And then we're on Doeg, it says about Doeg, Gam al Yitzcha, al Yitzcha lanetzach. V'yiru tzaddikim v'yiru v'yig'u. There's going to be something that I think it's saying that that Doeg will not have Hashem on his side forever. Those who are righteous will see this circumstance and they'll be fearful. Al yis'chaku. And about this there will be a joke or a uh I don't want to say rejoicing exactly, but a recognition that that brings about happiness. In Agur layosam Elohim uzai. V'yivtach b'orech v'oshri. Cuz people will see that a person who places his trust in his own strength, and he trusts in his own in in his great wealth. Ya'az b'havasai. So, his existence becomes one of brazenness. He doesn't really have the strength if he doesn't trust in Hashem, he doesn't have the source of all strength. Asher sam sim les parnasosai. The Maspic continues and says that such a person will have a limited amount of livelihood. It's an element of sorrow and agony. You got to pay somehow. You got to pay somehow. It's going to be says the Masbic that if a person does not place their trust in Hashem, so the parnossa is going to come in a difficult way, in a challenging way. When it says in Tehillim, "Ochlei lechem atzab." The possuk says in Tehillim it speaks of those who eat the bread of depression, the bread of of nervousness. Right? A person can find livelihood to be a stressful type of endeavor. Why does that happen? Because a person has a rift in his trust in Hashem. He has a weakness in his trust of God. V'lo yada Asah Melech Yehuda b'al osam el Yehuda b'al chatas. You know that which it says about Asa, the king of Judah, and about his sin. Zanak u'mida es b'itachon Hashem. In some measure he lost his bitachon, his faith in Hashem. B'ishoncha Melech Aram v'lo nishanta al Hashem Elokecha, al kein l'gomer. He didn't trust in Hashem. He lost his trust in Hashem. He depended upon the king of Aram. So, the bottom line here is, and we're going to keep reading here. There's more to say, but just a a recap where we have to make sure that our bitachon is in Hashem. We have to make sure that we don't get caught up in our own success or in our own belief of what brings success. We have to watch out for that and keep returning. It is It's a constant avoda, constant work to keep returning, to remind ourselves, remember it's Hashem's who's in charge of my parnossa. It's Hashem who's in charge of my parnossa. He brings here from the Barbanel. Ki Hashem einayim meshutatos b'chol ha'aretz l'hischazek im l'vavam shalem im Hashem. Hashem's eyes, as it were, seek out in the entire land to to strengthen to strengthen those whose hearts are complete with him. Meaning, those who indeed trust in Hashem, Hashem strengthens them. Our possuk says that you made this foolish mistake, and that's why you have wars now. It was Hashem's intent. It was supposed to be that the southern kingdom of the Jewish people, Melech the king Asa, and the northern kingdom, the kingdom of Israel, they should have re- convened, re- rejoined. Not re-convened. They should have come back together. But Lefishnei Nishan Asa l'Aram u'nasan Asa b'ishei Hashem l'vein Hadad Melech Aram, lo chazra. But because Asa trusted in and placed his faith in and gave money, blood money, to the king of Aram, the the two sides of the Jewish people, the north and the south, did not come back together, and ultimately, the northern kingdom would be lost for all time. They were sent out into galus, and maybe a few of them are coming back, the Bnei Menashe, from India, the people from Ethiopia, but for the lot for the most part, the northern kingdom is gone. Mishum basa Yisrael u'Mishum yosrei liba. The problem was that instead of placing his faith in Hashem, and I would say that when I when I join my heart, when I bring my lower self back into a relationship with Hashem, the result is that I create unity around me, as well. I'm creating unity with myself and Hashem, and it results also in unity between myself and the people around me. And for a king like Asa, he had the potential of creating unity in Klal Yisrael, and he missed that opportunity. Well, as Asa Siba Gam Ken Chalas Raglav, interestingly, a parallel issue that occurred was that his legs became weak. He lost he became lame. Mida K'neged Mida, and he was an old man at this time, as we're going to see, but it corresponded it was measure for measure. He sent this money and messages to the king of Aram that he should save him. Ki Lo Lo Hayu Lo Raglav Laleches El Lo Chaim Ben Basha. As if he didn't have the feet to be able to go and walk. He didn't have on on what to stand to go battle with the king of the king of the north. Hayu Myon SheYesh Kol SheRa Raglav Venachla. So, his punishment was that his feet became weak, and he became sick. U'rak L'eisek Nachla Chalas Raglav, it says in Nachla that this was something that happened when he was old. The pasuk here says in Divrei Hayamim that this was in the 39th year of his kingdom. An- another parallel issue was that instead of davening to Hashem, instead of going to the navi and asking for divine assistance with his sickness, he went to the doctors. He went to the doctors instead of looking for a spiritual solution to a spiritual problem. And it comes back to the to the concept of his battle with Basha, the northern kingdom. V'Asa Lemelech Aram Shel Alai, Basha Lemelech Yisrael. When the battle was about to begin with Baasha, he didn't go to Hashem and ask for help, but rather he went to the king of Aram. This and this is considered a sin. In a parallel way, he didn't go to Hashem when he got sick. He went to the doctor. Kate I care because he does. There's another sin. Like we spoke about in the partial podcast. Uh in regards to Shaul HaMelech, King Saul. It's very easy for a person once they start making the mistake to compound the mistake. To compound the mistake. He was already Kate and he knew he was already he was 80 years old. What can the doctors do to help an old man whose legs are weak? It was foolish it was foolish not to ask Hashem for help. Because doctors work with natural means. But this is something that's beyond nature, you need a you need a nice. You need a miracle here. So he should have gone to Hashem just like it was foolishness. The doctors were right for him. But instead he went to the went to the doctors who you know, if he's going with the path of of the natural path. So he's not going to get any any benefit from them. But I would point out also that you know what what happens when a person turns away from Hashem? What happens is that Hashem leaves them to nature. And and naturally the person's going to fail. But he's just not strong enough to win the war or whatever it is. But if a person depends on a sham, so then he's above nature. That's what the Barbanel is saying. The bitachon of a person raises a person up out of the natural state of things. You know, I I understand. We've talked about this. We mentioned it. How in the magazines the Mishpacha whatever it is, so there's talk of how to succeed in life. I get that. We're we're used to doing hishtadlus, but I think that that kind of supernatural success is reserved for certain individuals. In order to get real supernatural success I need to strengthen my bitachon and not be marbeh be hishtadlus, be doing so much hishtadlus. Last point here is from the Yad Hakatanah. When Melech Asa was a tzaddik tamim b'shalem b'atzmo, and davik nafsho b'Hashem b'bitachon zach v'naki, if the King Asa was a a great righteous person and and he was he was a a person who had sought spiritual perfection for himself. If he would have attached his soul to Hashem with bitachon, which was pure and clean, v'sha'einah l'Hashem l'vadoi, to depend on Hashem alone, v'lo yamageish sim sibah and had not sought any kind of efforts, az k'mai kein I am his davik b'nafsho hashkachah she is bar hamidah b'simlah she umimtzai, so that Hashem would have attached his hashkachah, his divine providence to King Asa, without any kind of intermediary. V'soi's hatzlachah she lo yangvu, and he would have had limitless success. V's'natzel inyanei avodah she nitzav v'he could have experienced success even supernaturally. V'ein oven l'fanav gam Melech Yisrael gam Melech Aram. The king of the northern kingdom and the king of Aram would have fallen to him. Even though they were very many, there was a lot of them. Like the Navi says there. The Navi says, "Hey, you faced off with numerous enemies before and you succeeded when you trusted in Hashem." They would have been a tremendous kiddush Hashem. If you would have trusted in Hashem and won. But when is we talking to Hashem, his faith in Hashem was not whole. Why did he send a bribe to the king of Aram? Cuz he didn't have full faith in Hashem. He had a rift and he had a weakness in his in his faith. That's why Hashem left him. So then Hashem's true Hashem left him. Because the draw sends his bitachon that imperfection was a was a screen that separated between him and Hashem and prevented him from receiving Hashem's divine presence. So he divine providence, he created the problem with his fear. So it no longer was possible for Hashem to bring him a supernatural salvation. To get a supernatural salvation, you have to have a supernatural faith. In a natural way, if you're depending on natural means, so then it's not natural for you to overcome these two great kings. That's what he was saying. The Navi was saying to him, Hanani was saying, you depend on the king of Aram. You depend on Hashem, that's why they've uh they've escaped from you. For a person who's a tzaddik, a person who has a deep relationship with Hashem, a person who's developed his So, it's a tremendous sin. Because he had an opportunity to create a kiddush Hashem, he had an opportunity to sanctify Hashem's name by showing that those who trust in Hashem succeed supernaturally. Let's show the world. So, it's an it's it's a stark reminder, but it's an important reminder. We're on the derech of bitachon. We've been studying this together for years. We have to remain with our bitachon. We have to always trust in Hashem, return to our trust in Hashem, remind ourselves it's worked in the past. Let's hold on to him once again. Thank you so much for listening. We'll see you again next time.