Part II. The Gift of Eternity
Many Happinesses
Part II. The Gift of Eternity
Many Happinesses
Now, if we would make an attempt to speak about what the happiness of the Torah is, we would never go home because there’s so much. Just the zechus of looking in the Torah, of learning those words is a very great merit. It’s a merit just to say the words in the Chumash. Any kind of Torah is a big merit — we’ll soon see how big it is.
Also the zechus of mitzvos. Any mitzvah. Every mitzvah means you lived successfully, no question about it. And each mitzvah is arichus yamim; like it says when you send away the mother bird before you take her nestlings and the eggs, it says וְהַאֲרַכְתָּ יָמִים – you’ll have long life because of that mitzvah (Devarim 22:7). So the Gemara says if a little mitzvah like that that’s so easy to fulfill, and the Torah gives you a length of days, then all the other mitzvos which are not so easy, surely (Chullin 142a). So the mitzvos are arichus yamim. When people live according to the laws of the Torah, they’ll certainly live longer.
And we live more happily in this world because of the Torah, no question about that. When you live with the regimen of the Torah, you’re guaranteed against many misfortunes. Torah is constructed for the purpose of reinforcing a man’s life, giving him a wholesome and healthy lifestyle; Torah u’mitzvos mean shalom and good health. There’s no question that fulfilling the Torah is the best plan for a man’s wellbeing in this world.
The Foundation of Har Sinai
And so there are a lot of things included in the gift of the Torah, and we’ll talk about some of them later. But there’s something that comes before that, something that encompasses all of the benefits of the Torah. The most fundamental happiness of Shavuos is the understanding that at Har Sinai we became the Am Yisroel. It was that day that we were separated forever from the rest of mankind to be the Am Hashem.
The Gemara in Mesichta Shabbos (89a) asks a question: why is it called Har Sinai? Now, we know it’s called Har Sinai because that’s its name, but the Chachomim understood that it’s not random; there’s a hint there in the name Sinai — it’s telling us something. And the Gemara says that it’s related to the word שִׂנְאָה, hatred. מַאי הַר סִינַי – Why is it Har Sinai? הַר שֶׁיָּרְדָה שִׂנְאָה לְאֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם עָלָיו – Because it’s the mountain that caused a hatred to come down to the gentile nations; a hatred came down to the world.
When Hashem Hates…
So you have some seforim which misinterpret this. They say it means that when the Torah was given, a hatred against Jews developed in the world — antisemitism. But that’s not what the ma’amar is saying. It could be it’s true, because when they accepted the Torah they accepted the yoke of the hostility of the nations, and they knew that throughout their history they would have to contend with various enemies; some who wielded the sword and some the pen. But in pashtus that’s not what the ma’amar is saying. You have to look in Rashi; he explains it. He says that when the Torah was given, a sinah came down against the nations. That’s the plain meaning, that from Shavuos and on, Hakadosh Baruch Hu is not pleased anymore with the nations of the world. They weren’t mekabel the Torah and from then on they went down.
At Har Sinai there was a big change in the history of the world. Now, most people have never heard this but you should hear it now. Up until Matan Torah, all the nations were equal; we’re all Bnei Noach, all the same. That’s why when Avraham Avinu wanted to practice hospitality and he saw people coming whom he suspected of being idolaters — they worshipped even the dust of their feet — nevertheless, there was no difference to him. He ran out to greet them. He prostrated himself on the ground and begged them to eat with him, to rest by him. He went to all the limits that he could to show them hospitality. But after Matan Torah, we don’t find such a thing. After the Torah was given, no more. To fellow Jews, yes, but to everyone else, no more.
The Day Everything Changed
What happened to cause that change?
The answer is, up until Matan Torah all the nations were in Hashem’s good graces. We were all the descendants of Noach, all one big universal family, and so it was considered a proper practice of kindliness to go out of your way for your fellow man. Even to slaughter an ox for each guest, like Avraham did, to do the most extreme, lavish hospitality in order to entertain his guests. Because as great as Avraham was, to a certain extent all of man was his equal.
But after Matan Torah, no more! Lo sichaneim — lo titein lahem matnas chinam (Avodah Zarah 20a). A tremendous change! You can’t give a gentile a gift of friendship, of equality; you can’t even praise him too much: lo titein lahem chein (ibid.). Because at Har Sinai the nations of the world descended; they fell down and became lower, and the Am Yisroel ascended. Up until then, we weren’t Yisroel, but what happened on that first Shavuos was a revolution; the whole world turned upside down. We became Yisroel!
We actually became geirim at Har Sinai and now we are a separate people; we’re chosen from all the nations. By receiving the Torah, first of all we all became Yisroel. Before Matan Torah, even the Avos were called Bnei Noach. The nation became geirim at Sinai. The Gemara says that (Kerisus 9a). We all became geirim at Sinai. And we became Bnei Yisroel. That’s the first chiyuv upon us, to rejoice in the fact that we belong to the Am haTorah. A real rejoicing! By receiving the Torah, first of all we all became Yisroel.
Chosen for Love
That’s what Hashem said at Har Sinai. וִהְיִיתֶם לִי סְגֻלָּה מִכָּל הָעַמִּים – “And you will become now for Me a special treasure from all the nations” (Shemos 19:5). “I’m going to do something now,” said Hashem, “that’s going to change the nature of the entire people. When you stand at Har Sinai and you say, ‘na’aseh v’nishma,’ I’m going to make you into an Am Segulah, an exceptional type of people, something way above the nations of the world.”
That’s why Akdamos portrays how the nations of the world propose that we should go along with them and we’ll share together with them the greatness that they promise us. But we say to them, “No matter what you’ll give us, רְבוּתְכוֹן מָה חֲשִׁיבָא קָבֵל הַהִיא שְׁבַחְתָּא, it’s nothing compared to the greatness that Hashem already gave us at Har Sinai when He chose us.״
But not only chosen. Har Sinai means that in the entire huge universe there is nothing that Hashem is as interested in and loves as much as Am Yisroel. That’s what the Mishnah says, that at Har Sinai, Hakadosh Baruch Hu married us with the Torah (Taanis 26b). At Har Sinai, Hashem chose us to be His bride forever, the only one He’ll ever love.
Now, you might think, is that fair? Is it democratic? That’s not our problem to answer. We didn’t do it; Hashem is the One Who chose us. It’s up to Him. And when He gave us the Torah that’s what He did; it was a demonstration that we are the Am Yisroel now.
Chosen For Happiness
And therefore it’s a great obligation in avodas Hashem to think how fortunate we are that we have the Torah — אֲשֶׁר בָּחַר בָּנוּ מִכָּל הָעַמִּים. Ay yay yay! He chose us! He chose us from all the nations! That’s the obligation of a Jew more than any other thing, to think what a great gift he received from Hakadosh Baruch Hu; the happiness of knowing that he’s included in the Klal Yisroel. That’s what’s expected of you when you say that blessing every day.
Men and women, boys and girls, everyone should be happy at all times. שִׂמְחוּ צַדִּיקִים בַּה׳ – You tzaddikim, rejoice in Hashem (Tehillim 97:12). Tzaddikim means the Jewish people, frum Jews. You’re a plain Jew who does mitzvos? Even a plain person, an am ha’aretz, as long as he keeps and doesn’t rebel against the Torah, he could rejoice all the days of his life. All of Williamsburg. All of Boro Park. All the frum Jews in Flatbush, in Eretz Yisroel, wherever you have frum Jews, we tell them שִׂמְחוּ צַדִּיקִים בַּה׳. Because of what happened on Shavuos 3,000 years ago, a Jew can never be sad.
Of course sometimes he’s sad because he wants to be a better Jew; that’s all right. But never be sad because other people have more money or other people have more pleasures in the world. That’s nothing. It’s all nothing if you are the one who has been chosen by Hakadosh Baruch Hu. He put us on a level far above the rest of the world. That’s enough to make us extremely happy at all times.
And that’s the first chiyuv upon us, to rejoice in the fact that we belong to the Am haTorah. A real rejoicing! The entire Torah is to us a gift more precious than any kind of wealth or happiness that could be found in this world. And that’s your function; you have to be happy in this world, happy that you’re a Yisroel.
Chosen for Eternity
But there’s a second thing. Because what does it mean to be a Yisroel? Just to be chosen? Okay, very good, it’s a happiness to be elected. After all, who is the happiest man in the world today? President Bush. He’s sitting on top of the world. He was chosen as the head of the most important country for four years. He’s intoxicated with happiness while poor Gore just can’t bear to see it slip out of his hands by such a small amount. You cannot estimate the extent of Bush’s delirium of joy of being elected; you have no idea how Bush’s blood is boiling with joy and simcha.
And why not? We would be the same way. Suppose you were elected President, you with your payos. So you’re ready now to go into the White House and you’ll bang up mezuzos on all the doors, you’ll kasher the kitchen. Wonderful. You’ll be a tzaddik, yes. But still, you’ll be delirious at the fact that you were chosen President.
Trump is Temporary
But you have to know that being a Yisroel means you were chosen for something much, much greater. You know why? Because everything else is temporary. The time will come when even the best President will go down into the dust. He will be yoreid la’afar; that’s all, he’s finished. And even though there might be statues and monuments, the statues can’t speak for them. They’re not here anymore; they became dust. And so Bush, after some time he will pass away. He won’t live forever. One day he’ll retire back to his ranch in Texas and he’ll die there and it’s all over. They’ll put his body into the ground. Finished. No more Bush.
A Yisroel, however, lives forever. Because by receiving the Torah and becoming Yisroel, all the promises that Hakadosh Baruch Hu made to the Bnei Yisroel are promised to him, too. And the biggest promise is Olam Haba! At Har Sinai, when we became Yisroel, everyone received an entrance card: כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל יֵשׁ לָהֶם חֵלֶק לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא – Every Jew is given a ticket to Olam Haba (Sanhedrin 90a). That’s why in the bracha on the Torah you say, חַיֵּי עוֹלָם נָטַע בְּתוֹכֵנוּ – You planted everlasting life among us. Because it was then, when You gave us the Torah, that we acquired Olam Haba.
Now, Avraham and the kadmonim before Matan Torah they also got Olam Haba, but they earned it not because of Yisroel; they earned it with a very great merit. Reuven, Shimon, Levi, Yehudah, they earned it because they were very great people. But after Matan Torah, even though you’re not great, just a plain Jew that goes along with the derech haTorah, you’re promised כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל יֵשׁ לָהֶם חֵלֶק לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא.
That’s Shavuos, pashut sheb’pashut. No chiddushim here. When the Torah was given, every one of us was given a ticket: “You’re entitled to Olam Haba.” That’s the biggest of all possible gifts that He could give. חַיֵּי עוֹלָם נָטַע בְּתוֹכֵנוּ, everlasting life! All the great happiness with all the pleasures, unlimited and forever and ever and ever, that’s yours because you received the Torah and became Yisroel.
continued
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