The following story was told over by R’ Yitzchok Zilberstein shlit’a, who marvels at the greatness of a Jew to become a “partner” with Hakadosh Boruch Hu and merit tremendous z’chusim and even miracles on his behalf.
A wealthy Jew did business in a number of African countries. He had numerous contacts there, and a few times a year, he would travel all over the continent in the course of his business dealings. Recognizing the dangers inherent for a religious Jew in some of these far-flung outposts, the pious and sincere man would say, “Before each and every trip I take to Africa, I daven that Hashem should be my ‘partner’ and He should protect me and help me be successful. With the proceeds of my dealings, I support numerous yeshivos and mosdos, and in this way, I honor my part of the ‘partnership.’”
The Jew relates how on one of his trips, he found himself in an African village far away from civilization. He generally kept to himself, and one evening, he was walking back to his quarters on a dirt path. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a huge mountain of a man blocked his way. The man was so large, he had never come across a human of this size. The towering and intimidating African man was barely clothed and was glaring at him. He came a few feet closer, and the Jew began to recite viduy, thinking that this hulking interloper meant him deadly harm. To his surprise, though, the African man let out a whimper, turned, and ran into the brush. The Jew stood still in his place for a few minutes, just trying to catch his breath.
He did not recall how long he was standing in that spot when he heard more noises and people running toward him. At first he was scared, but then a group of uniformed African policemen suddenly appeared, and they asked him if he had seen a huge man running down this path. The Jew finally managed to talk and said that he had just been accosted by him not more than a few minutes ago on this very dirt road.
The policemen paused and began asking him questions. What did the man look like? What was he wearing? In which direction did he run? The Jew answered to the best of his recollection and pointed off to the brush.
A few policemen took off in pursuit and one stayed behind. He explained that they were searching for the most wanted murderer in all of Africa. This man had killed many people and was brutal in nature. It took many years to bring him to justice, and he was serving a lifetime sentence in a secluded prison which happened to be not far from this village.
Unfortunately, continued the officer, the man had escaped just the other day, and a nationwide manhunt was underway to locate him. Even in the past 24–48 hours, this monster had killed and robbed a handful of people. He was brutal and ruthless and would stop at nothing to take whatever he wanted. The officer looked at the slight Jew and wondered aloud why he hadn’t harmed him, especially since he was standing right in front of him! He could have easily killed him.
The Jew was visibly shaken and made arrangements to leave the village and head to one of the bigger cities right away. The police took his statement and told him they’d be in touch if and when they caught the man.
It took a few days, but wonder of wonders, they actually caught the murderer. His face was plastered on the front page of every newspaper, and the story of his capture was headline news for days. The Jew received a phone call from the police, and they told him that during the interrogation process, they asked the hulking African if he remembered encountering a short Jewish man in the village. He said he did remember, and they asked him why, if he had killed so many others, he left this one man alive. The man said that as he was running, he came across this little man, but the two massive bodyguards surrounding him were what made him run away. It was a smart move to bring bodyguards along, said the murderer. At the time, he thought he could take out one, but since both looked serious and dangerous, he didn’t bother and ran away instead. The police were surprised since, when they saw the Jew, he was all alone. Where were his bodyguards?
The Jew understood that with the Almighty as his “business partner,” Hashem had sent His angels to protect him. “Ki malachav yetzaveh lach lishmarcha b’chol derachecha”—He was awed to be the beneficiary of such Divine assistance, and he kept up his generous ways.
Rabbi Dovid Hoffman is the author of the popular “Torah Tavlin” book series, filled with stories, wit and hundreds of divrei Torah, including the brand new “Torah Tavlin Yamim Noraim” in stores everywhere. You’ll love this popular series. Also look for his book, “Heroes of Spirit,” containing one hundred fascinating stories on the Holocaust. They are fantastic gifts, available in all Judaica bookstores and online at http://israelbookshoppublications.com. To receive Rabbi Hoffman’s weekly “Torah Tavlin” sheet on the parsha, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.