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Delving into the Daf by Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow
Delving into the Daf
Without Delay
By Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow
The Gemara (Sukkah 44a) relates an enigmatic episode: A wealthy man approached Rebbe Elazar Bar Tzadok and told him that he owns villages, vineyards, and olive orchards. During Shvi’is (Shemittah) the villagers till the soil in the vineyards and take olives as payment. He asked Rebbe Elazar if this was proper since the villagers are taking the fruits of Shvi’is as payment for their services. (The fruits of Shvi’is are supposed to be ownerless and free for anyone to take.) Rebbe Elazar answered that it was improper. The wealthy man departed, whereupon Rebbe Elazar commented: “I have lived here for 40 years, and I have never seen an individual follow the proper path like this man.” Later, the wealthy man returned and asked for specific guidance to establish a proper procedure for the future.
Rav Yisrael Salanter wondered what Rebbe Elazar found so exceptional about this man. He simply asked a halachic question and complied with the answer. Although he acted nobly, surely others did similarly. Additionally, why did the wealthy man make an abrupt departure immediately after receiving his initial answer, only to be forced to return for more guidance later? He should have asked his follow-up question immediately!
Rav Yisrael Salanter explained that the two questions answer each other. Once the man learned that his current practice was improper, he went at once to put a halt to it; he did not even wait to finish his conversation. He wanted the villagers to stop taking the olives immediately. It was this zealousness to act without the slightest delay that so impressed Rebbe Elazar.
In Pirkei Avos, the Mishna says that, according to some, Avraham Avinu’s ram that was used as a substitute sacrifice in place of Yitzchak was created at the end of the Six Days of Creation. Such arichas yamim! The ram lived for around 2,000 years. What did it use for its arthritic joints?
HaRav Ovadiah MiBartenura says that the ram was not actually created then. Hashem just decreed that a ram should have its horns trapped in the thicket at the precise time after the Akeidah. The Meiri explains further: Hashem created the world to follow what we perceive as laws of nature. Hashem at the time of Creation stipulated that the world will not follow that pattern when a miracle is supposed to occur. So Hashem’s decree that the normal earthly pattern be altered regarding the ram’s entrapment took place during the Six Days of Creation; the fulfillment of that decree took place at the time of the Akeidah.
This fits well with the S’forno (Parashas Vayeira), who explains that Avraham Avinu viewed the ram’s entrapment as a heavenly sign that he should offer it as a sacrifice.
Rashi, however, explains differently: The entrapment of the ram was not meant to help Avraham; just the opposite! It was a hindrance! The ram was running toward Avraham, and the Satan caused it to be entrapped. The fact that the ram was caught in the thicket was meant to stop Avraham Avinu from offering it as a sacrifice. But this explanation is mystifying. The commentators explain that the 10 tests that Avraham faced were given in order of increasing difficulty. Avraham Avinu had just passed the final and most difficult test: he was ready to sacrifice the son whom he had waited and prayed for many years; the son who was supposed to be his heir. The Midrash tells us that
there were many obstacles put in his path on the way to the Akeidah, including a raging river. Yet, Avraham Avinu overcame everything. So why would he – having just reached the ultimate level of total dedication to Hashem – fail to offer a sacrifice because the animal was trapped in the bushes? Would Avraham Avinu just say, “C’mon! Enough’s enough! I just passed the most difficult test! Why must I do more?! If I’m supposed to bring a sacrifice, at least make this one easy!”
HaRav Henoch Leibowitz, zt”l, answered that the sacrificing of the ram was never in question; of course, Avraham Avinu would do it. He just reached the highest level of subservience to Hashem. He was ready to sacrifice his own son. However, Avraham wanted to sacrifice the ram with the same dedication and devotion that he had experienced when he held the knife to slaughter his son. The Satan knew that inspiration fades quickly. Every second of delay might mean that Avraham Avinu would lose an infinitesimal amount of spiritual elevation. Yes, the sacrificing of the ram was a foregone conclusion, but to cause Avraham Avinu to descend a minuscule amount from his spiritual pinnacle, thereby slightly decreasing the “value” of the sacrifice. If a time delay is a danger for
the emotion and feeling behind the action was not.
Every moment of inaction is a danger, even for someone who has reached the pinnacle of Divine fidelity. The Satan realized that the brief delay caused by the entrapment of the ram might be just enough time Avraham Avinu, it is certainly perilous for us. If an individual is inspired and makes a commitment, he must act on it immediately. Rebbe Elazar was impressed by the wealthy man’s fulfillment of this creed – he took action in middle of a conversation!
In Sefer Yonah, the verse states that after the storm subsided, the sailors took vows. They were inspired to act after witnessing the miraculous events. Some meforshim explain that they never actually fulfilled them: The vows could only be fulfilled on land, and by the time they came ashore they had already lost their inspiration.
This happens many times – people make commitments in moments of inspiration, only to see them unfulfilled because of the delay in their performance. Many of us will, be”H, make commitments on or before Rosh Hashanah. The trick is to act on them immediately, before it’s too late.
Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow is a rebbe at Yeshiva Ateres Shimon in Far Rockaway. In addition, Rabbi Sebrow leads a daf yomi chaburah at Eitz Chayim of Dogwood Park in West Hempstead, NY. He can be contacted at ASebrow@gmail.com.
