The Forgotten Offer
Between parshas Chayei Soroh and parshas Bo,
(until the parsha, "this month is the beginning of the
months for you"), each parshoh affords us
contemplation of the behavior of tzaddikim and,
conversely, of reshoim. This is all part of the
principle that, "He told His people about the power of His
deeds" (Tehillim 111:6), as explained in parshas
Bereishis. In this parshoh, we witness the
greatness of Avrohom Ovinu on the one hand, and the conduct
of Efron on the other.
The pesukim (Bereishis 23:4-16) say, "I am a
[temporary] sojourner and a dweller with you; give me
possession of a grave with you . . . " What do the words,
"geir vesoshov, a sojourner and a dweller" mean?
Rashi explains, "If you agree [to sell it to me,] I will be a
temporary resident [and buy it on such terms] but if you
don't, I'll be a dweller and I'll take it by right, because
Hakodosh Boruch Hu said, `I will give this land to
your offspring.' "
What was Efron's reply? "Hear us my master. You are a prince
of G-d among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our graves
. . . " Efron was prepared to give everything. Chazal tell us
that they wanted to crown Avrohom Ovinu as king.
However, Avrohom didn't want to accept Efron's offer: " `Let
him give it to me for the full price, among you, for the
possession of a grave . . .' And Efron replied, `No, my
master, hear me. I've given you the field . . . and bury your
dead.' "
But Avrohom didn't want a gift . . . "If only you would hear
me, I have given the money for the field, take it from me . .
. "
"Nu," Efron said to Avrohom Ovinu, "if you want to pay
. . . Four hundred silver shekels for the land,
between me and you, what is that?" . . .
"And Avrohom weighed out for Efron the money which he'd
spoken of in the hearing of the sons of Ches, four hundred
tradable silver shekels." Rashi explains that Efron
accepted large shekolim, known as kanterin,
which were accepted currency everywhere in the world.
Originally, he'd wanted to give it to Avrohom as a gift and
not accept anything but when he saw the money, he took it.
Chazal's comment on this is that, "Tzaddikim say
little but they do a lot, whereas reshoim say a lot
and don't even do a little" Bovo Metzia 87, Medrash Rabba,
Bolok 20:17). This characteristic of tzaddikim is
learned from Avrohom Ovinu, who said no more than, "Let a
little water be taken and wash your feet," but who, when it
came to actions, then "ran to the cattle," and served three
tongues with mustard to the mal'ochim whom he thought
were Arabs.
I heard from an avreich an explanation of why Avrohom
referred to just "a little" water. The reason is that it is
unseemly to tell someone, "Here, take water and have a wash,"
as though he were filthy. He therefore said "a little," to
show that that was all that was required. Wonderful!
That reshoim say a lot and don't even do a little is
learned from Efron, who at first wanted to give the field as
a gift without money, but who ended up taking large
shekolim which Rashi says were worth a hundred times
their value. If this incident is the source for Chazal's
comment about reshoim however, it would have sufficed
had the gemora merely said, "Reshoim are liars"
or that, "they make promises and don't keep them." Why is it
expressed in such a lengthy and roundabout way:
"Reshoim say a lot and don't even do a little"?
Here, Chazal reveal a very important aspect of human nature
to us. Hakodosh Boruch Hu implanted two impulses
within man: the yetzer hatov and the yetzer
hora. The latter is very powerful indeed, as the posuk
(Tehillim 37: 32-3) says, "The rosho," meaning the
yetzer hora, "watches out for the tzaddik and
seeks to kill him. Hashem will not let him . . . " Chazal
tell us that without siyata deShmaya, a person could
not stand up to the yetzer hora. "A person's
yetzer overcomes him each day . . . A person's
yetzer renews its attack on him each day . . . And if
Hakodosh Boruch Hu did not help him, a person would
not be able to stand up to him" (Kiddushin 30). The
tzaddik is aware of the power of his yetzer and
he prays to Hashem for help in preventing him from stumbling.
For example, we say every morning in shacharis, "and
save us today and every day from . . . bad occurrences, from
the yetzer hora . . . " Hakodosh Boruch Hu wants us to
pray to Him and if we ask for His help, He helps us.
Constant Awareness
Because of this, tzaddikim say only a little. They
heed Chazal's warning, "Don't be sure of yourself . . . "
(Ovos 2:4, Brochos 29), and are careful about what
they undertake. How can they make grandiose promises when
they are aware of the power of the yetzer hora and its
ability to cause them to stumble over their words and
promises?
After having said a little however, when the time for action
arrives, the tzaddik rouses himself to do whatever is
in his power, and Hashem responds with siyata deShmaya
and though he said very little, the tzaddik is able to
do a lot.
It is not so with reshoim who, in their hearts, glory
in themselves. If they are endowed with some good trait, they
consider it certain that they will fulfill whatever they
promise, for they think that they have the power to do it.
They forget about the existence of the yetzer hora,
which can bring about their failure. They therefore say a lot
but ultimately don't even do a little. It is not that they
mean to lie. That is never their intention. It is just a fact
that they don't achieve what they want.
Efron is the prime example of this. To begin with he was
ready to give everything away gratis. But that was all
before he saw Avrohom Ovinu's money. Once he saw the "four
hundred tradable silver shekels," he lost control of
himself. He "was flustered over financial gain" and he put
out his hand to accept the kanterin. He wasn't lying
when he said, "I've given you the field." He really meant it
when he said it. Only when he saw money, he lost his self
control.
I heard from our master and teacher (HaRav Leib Chasman
zt'l) that the yetzer hora doesn't merely try
to get people to stumble in some matter of extra piety. It
"seeks to kill" by involving a person in a serious sin that
carries the death penalty! Hashem however "won't leave a
person in his hand" (of the yetzer hora). The
tzaddik is careful with his promises because he
realizes that he may not receive the necessary siyata
deShmaya to vanquish the yetzer hora in order to
keep his word, while the rosho, oblivious to the power
of the yetzer, promises a lot and then doesn't even do
a little.
Retroactive Wickedness
The mishnah (Ovos 2:8) tells us, "Rabbon Yochonon ben
Zakai had five talmidim. They were, Rabbi Eliezer ben
Horkenos, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananioh, Rabbi Yosi HaCohen,
Rabbon Shimon ben Nesanel and Rabbi Elozor ben Aroch. He said
to them, `Go out and see which is a straight path to which a
person should attach himself.' Rabbi Eliezer said, `A
favorable eye' . . . He said to them `Go out and see which is
a bad path, from which one should distance oneself?' Rabbi
Eliezer said, `An unfavorable eye,' Rabbi Shimon said, `One
who borrows and doesn't repay, as the posuk (Tehillim
37:21) says, "a borrower is wicked who doesn't pay." '
"
The order of the words in the posuk is strange. If he
doesn't repay, he shouldn't be called a loveh rosho
but a rosho loveh, meaning, `he is wicked, who borrows
and doesn't pay.'
Let's think for a moment about what happens though. A man
enters a shop together with his wife and sees the latest
refrigerator. At the sight of the spanking new three-door
model, he thinks of his old refrigerator at home and is
gripped by a desire to own a new one. He takes out his check
book and starts to write and sign postdated checks . . . but
one moment: how do you know that you'll be able to pay off
such a large amount? He tells himself confidently that,
"Hashem will help." When he borrows the money for the
refrigerator he really wants to pay, he just isn't concerned
with the possibility that he might default on the payments.
At first he's therefore an ordinary borrower and only later,
when he doesn't pay, does he become a rosho.
This is how it is with all earthly desires. A person has
ungrounded hopes in his ability to withstand the yetzer
hora.
Our master and teacher added a comment on the posuk
(Bamidbor 21:27), "The rulers therefore say, `Come to
make a reckoning . . . ' " Chazal (Bovo Basra 75),
explain this posuk as meaning, "The rulers over their
yetzer hora therefore say, `Come to make a reckoning
about the world, the loss incurred by doing a mitzvoh against
the benefit earned . . . ' " Our master and teacher asked why
this should be known as "the reckoning of the world"? Isn't
an extremely simple and straightforward calculation to make?
And why is it only attributed to those who are "rulers over
their yetzer hora?"
The answer is that of course everyone knows the logic
involved but when it comes to actions, not everybody acts in
accordance with what they know.
