Edited and Adapted from Ari’s Grill & Torah
All right, everyone, it’s time for some Grill and Torah.
This week’s parasha is an amazing, amazing parasha. Parashat Eikev—we’re coming right after Va’etchanan. Remember, last week we read about Moshe Rabbeinu begging God to make it into the Land of Israel. Moshe was being punished for hitting the rock. Well, I’m not going into it this week, but it wasn’t exactly hitting the rock; it was getting angry. Instead of causing God’s name to be honored, and that Bnei Yisrael should see that there was a massive miracle going on, he hit the rock and therefore desecrated God’s name. As a result, he was not allowed to come into the Land of Israel.
Crazy, crazy punishment for a leader who was doing everything for the nation of Israel for years and was punished for what seems to be a little mess-up. But this week, we’re going to go into something else, because if last week was a warning to Moshe Rabbeinu—a warning to Moses—this week is a warning to all of Israel.
Our Place in Israel Is Conditional
We have the parasha called Eikev. The word “eikev” means “as a result of.” In other words, it is being very clear that our being in the Land of Israel is on condition. We are not guaranteed anything in this land. It is on condition.
Actually, that’s not even true. We are guaranteed if we keep to the terms and conditions that God sets out for us. “Eikev tishme’un”—the words this week’s parasha starts out with—means “if you listen,” or “the result of your listening.” The result of your listening to God’s word will be your success in the Land of Israel.
But we’re going to go on a little bit, because there are serious, serious questions that people in Israel really, really struggle with. How much is our success our own effort? How much are we even allowed to put effort into it?
Think about this for a second. Someone gets sick, God forbid. Are they allowed to go to a doctor? If you believe that God is in charge of everything, then maybe you shouldn’t be able to go to the doctor. You have to suffer the consequences of whatever happened, the reason you’re getting sick. Obviously, maybe we did something wrong, or there is something we have to fix. I don’t know what.
But perhaps you shouldn’t be allowed to go to the doctor, because if you’re going to the doctor, you’re saying, “Well, God, I got this sickness, but I’m going to try to get rid of it on my own.”
Right off the bat, I will tell you: No. That is not Judaism at all. “V’rapo yerapei.” The Torah gives permission to doctors to heal and gives permission to go to doctors and get treated. In fact, you are not allowed to say, “I’m not going to the doctor.”
But when it comes to the nation, how do we balance personal effort and belief in God? In other words, if you put too much effort in, you might think, “It’s me. It’s because of what I did.”
So the question I asked is: The IDF or God? Personal effort versus belief in God. If I put in personal effort, doesn’t that mean that I don’t believe God would be able to do it on His own? Where is the balance?
Man Does Not Live on Bread Alone
Like I said, this week’s parasha is Eikev, and it talks about the conditions for how to succeed in the Land of Israel. Throughout our trip in the desert and in Mitzrayim, there were a couple of tests we had to go through. We had food problems and water problems. We prayed, and God gave us whatever we needed.
So the question is: Shouldn’t we just pray?
It says, “Vaya’ancha, vayar’ivecha, vaya’achilcha et haman.” God made you hungry, and God gave you the manna—that special food that came from the heavens. “Asher lo yadata, v’lo yad’un avotecha.” You didn’t know anything about it in the past, and your forefathers didn’t know anything about this manna, this special food that God was giving us.
Why did He give it to us? “Lema’an hodi’acha.” In order to let us know: “Ki lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam, ki al kol motza fi Hashem yichyeh ha’adam.” Man will not live on bread alone. Rather, man lives through whatever comes out of the mouth of God.
The question is: Is that true? I don’t get manna today. We don’t get manna today. We don’t pray to the heavens and have manna coming down. No, we have to work. “B’zei’at apecha tochal lechem.” You have to work the field. You have to go and make some money, and then you’ll be able to buy food.
So what is it saying here when it says, “Lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam”? Man will not survive on bread alone, but only on what comes out of God’s mouth? Frankly, that doesn’t seem true. We see many people who are not religious, and they’re millionaires. They’re living quite well.
So how do we deal with that sentence?
The answer, or at least one of the things that I thought about, is that there is life, and there is life. If life is just living and enjoying life, that’s not human life. That’s animal life.
Think about it. I say to people all the time: If there is no God, and we really don’t have any moral responsibility at all because it’s all made up, then who lives a better life—a dog or a human being?
A dog eats whatever it wants, wherever it wants. It takes whatever it wants. It has relations with whatever it wants. It sleeps wherever it wants and gets up just to do what it needs. There’s no status in terms of who is cooler, who has the bigger car or who has the bigger house.
Again, there is no moral consequence. A dog bites another dog because it wants the other dog’s bone—no problem. A dog bites another dog in order to get the dog’s food—no problem. We humans speed through a red light, and we get punished for it.
So in a godless world—a world where there are no real moral consequences, not even just social moral consequences—a dog’s life is much, much easier because it has no consequences.
When it says, “Lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam,” it says “ha’adam”—man. Not animals. Not just living beings. Man. Because man, according to the Torah at least, has a much higher, much more celestial, heavenly reason to live.
There is something that we have as humans that animals do not have. We have a neshamah. We have a soul. That is the real difference between us.
People say, “Oh, dogs have four legs, and we have two.” So what? That’s the difference? We talk? It’s not true. Dolphins talk.
What is the difference? Think about it. What is the difference between man and an animal, between a man and a cow? If you’re just talking in terms of intelligence, we are more intelligent than a cow. But what about a human being who, God forbid, is brain-dead? Do we kill him? Can we eat his meat now because he is brain-dead and less intelligent than us? I hope not.
Apparently, the difference is not only intelligence. The difference is not only because we walk on two legs and animals walk on four. There is a much bigger difference here.
So when the Torah says, “Lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam,” that man will not live on bread alone, we are not talking only about physical life. Obviously, man can live physically on bread alone. If man only had bread and water, no problem. We can live for as long as we can live.
So what does it mean? It means that if you want life as quality—what life is supposed to be as a human being, something higher than the animal kingdom—it’s not about bread.
Your Money Is Not Who You Are
It goes further than that. Yes, we can work, and we can make a lot of money. But at the end of the day, “Lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam.” That’s not what you’re living for.
I tell people all the time who are doing very well in business—well, I don’t tell people too straight—but think about this. Someone who is a billionaire through real estate, banking, Apple or Microsoft—whatever people are making a lot of money from.
Think about Steve Jobs. It’s interesting that Steve Jobs did not want “Creator of Apple” on his grave. Why? That’s who he was.
Well, that’s not who he was.
“Lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha’adam.” Man’s survival is not based on the bread. It’s not based on the money he made. It’s who he was.
Steve Jobs was a tremendous philanthropist. He had his own belief system. That, to him, was who he was. The fact that we looked at him and said, “Oh, he’s the creator of Apple. He made millions and trillions of dollars,” that’s not who he was. That’s not who he was at all.
At the end of the day, we have to make an effort. We have to go to work. We have to make money and do whatever we can in life. But at the end of the day, we have to say thank you to HaKadosh Baruch Hu. We have to say thank you to God.
“My Strength and the Power of My Hand”
How does this have to do with Israel, with the nation of Israel, with the Land of Israel and with the world?
God is about to bring us into the Land of Israel, and there are so many pesukim here—so many passages—that are warnings to the nation of Israel. God says: I am bringing you to this place out of the desert, out of the hard rock and the wilderness. I am bringing you to a place that your forefathers did not know and that you did not build yourselves.
You get to this place, and you defeat the enemies of Israel, even though they outnumber you. Things don’t change. They outnumber you by a lot. They are stronger than you.
Then it says: “V’amarta bilvavecha: Kochi v’otzem yadi asah li et hachayil hazeh.” You will say in your heart that the reason we won this war was because of my strength and courage.
If you dare say that, it is a warning from the Torah. You came, and you did it. You defeated the enemies. You went to the army, and you defeated the enemies. But if, after you defeat the enemies, you say that your strength and your courage were the things that allowed us to be victorious over the enemy, that is a big no.
What does the Torah say? “V’zacharta et Hashem Elokecha.” Remember. Remember HaKadosh Baruch Hu. Remember God. “Ki Hu hanotein lecha koach la’asot chayil.” God gives you the strength to do those amazing things. “Lema’an hakim et brito asher nishba la’avotecha kayom hazeh.” In order to uphold the covenant that He promised to your forefathers.
Now, the question is: If You promised something to my forefathers, why do I have to work at all? Why do I have to put any effort into it? Just snap Your fingers. We’ll be in the Land of Israel. No wars will be needed. The nations of the world will accept us, and everything will be lovely.
Why do I have to put in any effort?
Apparently, according to these passages, the idea that we can do everything without effort—that we only need to pray to God—is wrong. It is wrong according to the Torah. It is wrong according to what is written right here.
God gives you the power to do it. In other words, He gives you the energy and the power to do it, and then it is up to us to take the lead and go.
To go.
God brought us to the Red Sea when we left Mitzrayim. Moshe said, “What do we do?” God said, “Go. Go.” We know that Nachshon ben Aminadav went into the sea, and then the sea split.
Take action.
Your Traits Were Not Given to You by Accident
God gave you energy, power, courage and all your traits. Everybody has personal traits, and those traits were not given to you by accident. Those traits were given to you so that you could make a difference in this world based on those traits.
That’s who you are.
Not everybody has the same job in this world. Not everybody has the same goal in this world. If you play a musical instrument, you have to use your talents in order to make the world a better place. We know that King David—David HaMelech—had his harp. We know that music can be spiritual.
If you are funny, you have to make people happy, but you have to do it in an appropriate manner. If you are outspoken, courageous and willing to fight for justice, then that’s what you have to do. You can’t ignore your role in this world.
God says, “I have given you the power to do it in order that I should uphold My covenant.” God is saying: I am not upholding My covenant just by saying, “Okay, go into Israel.”
No. It is up to you.
I have given you the power to fulfill the covenant that I promised your forefathers, but it is up to you.
What Is God Asking From You?
Then it says: “V’atah Yisrael, mah Hashem Elokecha sho’el me’imach?” Now, Israel, what is God asking from you? What does God want?
“Ki im l’yirah et Hashem Elokecha, lalechet b’chol derachav, ul’ahavah oto, v’la’avod et Hashem Elokecha b’chol levavcha uv’chol nafshecha.” To have awe of God, to go in His ways, to love Him and to serve God with all your heart and all your soul.
With all due respect, it says, “What does God want from you?” He just wants you to have awe of God, follow His rules and do what He told you to do—as if it’s not difficult.
It’s like a father saying, “What am I asking you to do? Just take out the garbage.” God is saying, “What am I asking? Just have awe of God, follow His commandments and do what He told you to do.”
But is it really so easy? Are all the commandments in the Torah so easy? What does it mean, “What am I asking from you?”
It goes on: “Lishmor et mitzvot Hashem v’et chukotav asher anochi metzavcha hayom.” To keep all His laws and all His mitzvot that God commands you today.
In a second, I’ll explain what the word “today” means, because “today,” where I’m standing right here, is not that day. That was more than 3,000 years ago.
But the last two words of the pasuk are the most important: “L’tov lach.” For your own benefit.
Where have we seen those words, “l’tov lach,” before in the Torah? God said to someone: I am ordering you to do something for your own benefit.
Who was it? It was Avraham.
“Lech lecha mei’artzecha, umimoladetecha, umibeit avicha, el ha’aretz asher ar’eka.” Go from your land, your birthplace and your father’s house to the land that God will show you. “Lech lecha”—go for yourself, for your benefit.
But what’s the test if it’s for my benefit?
That is exactly the point. God says, “What am I asking you to do? Just follow My ways and do what you are supposed to do.” But at the end of the day, it is not about following God’s ways so that you don’t get struck by lightning. That is a childish way of thinking.
No. It’s morality. It’s what we are doing in this world. It’s the difference between us and animals. It is for our benefit that we follow HaKadosh Baruch Hu. We are not getting brownie points somewhere.
When mommy and daddy say to you, “Behave yourself. Behave like a nice person,” it is for your benefit. I remember my grandfather used to have a sticker that said: “It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.”
God is saying, “What am I asking Bnei Yisrael to do? I’m asking you to keep My laws for your own benefit.” Last week, we learned that when Bnei Yisrael keep God’s laws, that is when the nations of the world respect us.
Love Must Be Put Into Action
Last week, we read the first paragraph of the famous Shema prayer: “V’ahavta et Hashem Elokecha.” Love God.
The first paragraph is the romanticism. “I love You. I love You.” That emotional love. That is very important.
But now, in the second paragraph of the Shema, which appears in this week’s parasha, now comes the work. “V’haya im shamoa tishme’u el mitzvotai.” If you listen to the commandments that God gives you.
Now come all the mitzvot and all the commandments. Loving emotionally is nice, but if you don’t put your love into action—in terms of showing appreciation and doing what you have to do—it doesn’t mean much.
Someone tells his wife or tells his spouse, “I love you, I love you, I love you,” but he doesn’t listen to her. He doesn’t do anything for her. He doesn’t show any appreciation. It’s meaningless.
This week’s parasha says: Love is nice. Emotions are nice. But you have to put them into action.
How do you put them into action? Not according to what I decide is okay and not okay. Now the mitzvot and the commandments come into play.
I’ve seen a lot of people who say, “I love God. I love God. I love God.” And now what?
This week’s parasha says: “V’haya im shamoa tishme’u el mitzvotai asher anochi metzaveh etchem hayom.” If you listen to the commandments that I command you today.
Again, the word “today” keeps coming up.
My father, who is probably watching, once gave me this idea. If I’m not mistaken, he even gave me this blessing at my wedding.
What does the word “hayom”—today—mean? Mount Sinai wasn’t today. It was more than 3,000 years ago. What relevance does it have for me today?
The relevance is the following: Every day, we have to get up like it is a fresh day. Every day, it should feel like that was the day HaKadosh Baruch Hu gave the Torah at Mount Sinai.
That fresh feeling.
People get married and say, “I love you more than anything else.” The wedding night is wonderful. Then we know the percentage of divorces in America. It’s ridiculous.
What happened? What happened was that they forgot “hayom.”
That loving feeling they had on the wedding day—that total sacrifice for the person they were about to marry—kind of went down the drain after a couple of years.
People say they are falling in love. Well, when you fall in love, that’s an “oops.” If you fall in love, you can also fall out of love.
Love is a working process. There is a lot of work that has to be done. That is what this week’s parasha is talking about when it gives us the second paragraph of the Shema.
Now you have to keep the commandments.
How Can We Cling to God?
There is one other very, very important point. The Torah says:
“Ki im shamor tishmerun et kol hamitzvah hazot asher anochi metzaveh etchem la’asotah, l’ahavah et Hashem Elokeichem, lalechet b’chol derachav ul’davkah bo.”
If you keep all the commandments that God is commanding us to do—to love God, to go in His ways and to cling to Him.
I understand what it means to love. I understand what it means to go in His ways. You have to keep the mitzvot. You have to keep the commandments.
What does “ul’davkah bo” mean? What does it mean to cling to God? How can you cling to something that is invisible?
Rashi, right here on the spot, explains that if you want to cling to God, you have to emulate God. It’s a beautiful, beautiful Rashi.
Rashi says, “Efshar lomar kein?” Can we possibly say that you can cling to God? “Eish ochlah Hu.” God is like an all-encompassing fire. You can’t cling to fire.
Rather: “Hidabek b’talmidim uvachachamim.” Cling to those who are wise, to the rabbis and to the people who understand the laws. When you cling to those people who are keeping God’s laws, it is considered as if you are clinging to Him.
But there is another beautiful explanation. If you want to cling to God, cling to His ways. “Hu rachum v’chanun, af atah rachum v’chanun.” He is compassionate and kind. You have to be compassionate and kind too.
He gives tzedakah. You have to give tzedakah.
All the traits of God that we talk about are for emulation. That is what we have to emulate.
Obviously, to say “God is this” and “God is that” is ridiculous. God isn’t only this, and God isn’t only that, because God is all-encompassing. God is infinite.
To say He is “this” means that He is not “that,” and we can’t say that. We are talking about His traits, and those are the traits that we have to emulate.
Shabbat Shalom From Judea
Thank you, everyone, for watching and for being here all the time. Wishing everyone an awesome, awesome weekend.
Shabbat Shalom from the beautiful, stunning hills of Judea, Israel.
Have an awesome weekend, and God bless.