Did you hear the news? Guess who’s not in town? Assad and regime are gone! Miracles are happening before our eyes! The Syrian dictator Assad, who has caused so much grief and hardship for Klal Yisrael, has been chased out by his own people! Who’s taking over? We’re not quite sure yet who they are, or if they’re friendlier or worse than Assad. Some are terror elements. However, at the moment, Israel has taken control of strategic areas on the Syrian border as a security zone until things settle down, and to prevent terror groups from gaining a foothold. As well, Israel (and the U.S.) are bombing Syrian Army stockpiles of advanced strategic, chemical, and biological weapons, to prevent them from falling into the hands of terror groups. These are all things Israel could have only dreamed of doing two weeks ago! Thank you, Hashem!
I heard someone say the following (It was a joke, but there is truth to it.): “One day, our grandchildren will be reading Megillas Gog U’magog, and they will read about how Iran and their allies fired hundreds of drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles at Eretz Yisrael, and no one was killed, very few were hurt, and they didn’t do teshuvah!” We hope it’s not true. But do we appreciate it enough?
We find an essential ingredient for success in this world in this week’s parshah. Hakaras hatov- recognizing the good Hashem does for us and thanking Him for it.
Yaakov Avinu exemplified this midah. When he first headed for Charan, he promised that if Hashem would return him home in peace, he’d bring korbanos and give a tenth from all his possessions as a thank you to Hashem. We also see this from his tefilah, when he asked Hashem to save him from Eisav. “I have few merits to protect me, as You have blessed me with great chesed. I had nothing more than a staff, and I requested from You food and clothes. And now I have two huge encampments, with all types of wealth, all belonging to me! Thank you! Please save me from Eisav.” And when Yaakov arrived in Shechem after being saved from Eisav, as a thank you to Hashem he made improvements for the city, either by improving their markets, bathhouses, or currencies. The Torah Temima explains that it was done out of appreciation for that place for hosting him, even though he paid for the property! His hakaras hatov even went that far!
Yaakov also treated everything he owned with respect. Everything he got was through honest dealings (his midah was emes, truth; any untruth was abhorrent to him), and was given to him as a gift from Hashem. Since he acknowledged all that, how could he treat anything he received from Hashem with disrespect? This is the reason why he went back for pachim ktanim, small vessels, after he had transferred his entire family with all his possessions across the river to escape from Eisav. He returned to get them. To have said, “they’re cheap; I’ll just abandon them,” would have been kofui tov, denial that good was done for him by Hashem.
Everything from Hashem is a gift and we must recognize it, appreciate it, and be thankful for it.
At the end of the parshah, we find the opposite of hakaras hatov, kofui tov. The Torah goes through Eisav’s family tree. Eisav’s son Eliphaz had a pilegesh, concubine, named Timnah. She was a noble woman from Seir, where Eisav had recently moved. She had a great desire to marry into the family of Avraham Avinu, and the Torah praises her for that. She really wanted to marry Yaakov, but he refused her offer, as her lineage was “problematic,” to keep it simple. She knew who was the first choice when she approached him. (Rav Chaim Vital said that had Yaakov taken her, he would’ve lost the right to be buried in Me’aras Hamachpelah.) Yaakov also had the excuse that he had sworn to Lavan not to marry any other women besides for his daughters (Bilha and Zilpah were also his daughters from pilagshim). So, she turned to Eisav’s family, and Eliphaz was willing to take her as a pilegesh. That was the closest she could come to Avraham Avinu’s family. Their son was Amalek. He was raised with a great hate for Klal Yisrael, because he blamed them for rejecting his mother. It’s not fair! Really, he was set-up with the best-case scenario for him. Had he been in Yaakov’s family, he would’ve been the least important from them all. In Eisav’s family, he could’ve been the best of the bunch! His parents were the best of Eisav! Eliphaz grew up in the home of Yitzchak Avinu, and Timnah’s aspirations for kedushah gave her distinction. However, Amalek’s haughtiness got in the way. If it wasn’t what he wanted or as he thought things should be, then it’s all rejected. No appreciation at all - that’s being kofui tov. Amalek was also influenced by both Eisav and Yishmael. Eisav was a kofui tov. For example, after Yaakov had properly advised him how to beat Nimrod, Eisav mocked him, completely lacking appreciation. Yishmael, Amalek’s great-uncle, was a kofui tov to Yitzchak for being the favored son of Avraham. Yishmael was only born after Sara gave his mother, her maidservant, as a wife to Avraham! Where was his hakaras hatov for his own existence?
There’s a new hit song (at least in Israel) that is being played and sung everywhere. Hashem Yitbarach tamid oheiv ohti v’tamid oseh li rock tov… v’od yoter tov - Hashem is constantly loving me, and constantly does only good for me… and more and better good. Everyone is singing it - religious, non-religious, anti-religious - it’s catchy. Is there a problem with the message, praising Hashem that He only does good for me? Don’t we need to praise Him for everything, even what doesn’t seem good? They asked this to Harav Dov Kook shlita (a great mekubal who lives in Teveria). He answered that it’s chizuk, encouragement, and it’s true that everything from Hashem is good, and that’s the concept of emunah, belief. Emunah is knowing that Hashem is all good, and bitachon, trust, is putting it into practice. If the song is giving chizuk, that’s good, and it’s also strengthening one’s bitachon!
We’ll end with the following medrash at the end of the parsha. The Torah brings a list of ten kings from Eisav who will rule in Edom, before any kings will rule from Klal Yisrael. Chazal explain that it doesn’t mean before Shaul and Dovid; rather it means before Moshiach’s arrival. Also, they aren’t names of any individual kings per-say, rather of monarchies or governments. The Medrash Rabah brings various explanations for the names of these kings and leaders, why they’re listed, and what’s the message behind them. The Medrash says that it was revealed to R’ Ami that when the Roman emperor Lotyanus was crowned, that he was Mogdiel, the second to last of these kings, beginning the second to last dynasty.
The last of the kings is Ee-rom, which R’ Chanina explained: In the future he will bring treasures to Melech Hamoshiach. Now, have we had any time throughout this almost 2,000-year golus that the nations have given such gifts to Klal Yisrael as we’ve had in the past 100 or so years? From the Balfour Declaration through the establishment of the Jewish state by the U.N., to all the financial and military support given to Israel from all the various western countries (at different times) but notably from the U.S. Even with difficulties that came along with various American administrations, the Obama and Biden administrations gave enormous gifts to Israel! At no financial charge! Also, several European counties have apologized for their mistreatment of the Jews! The Pope apologized! Some reparations have also been made. When has this happened before? Perhaps because we are in the times of the last kingship of Edom, and Melech Hamashiach is near!
We must always have hakaros hatov and properly thank Hashem, appreciating everything He gives and does for us! It is an important key to help bring Moshiach closer!
Based upon shiurim given by Rav Yisrael Altusky shlita, Yeshiva Torah Ore, Yerushalayim.
By R’ Dovi Chaitovsky
