You Decide and Control - Parshas Beshalach 5769
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Loading ...כי בא סוס פרעה ברכבו ובפרשיו בים… (טו:יט)
“When the horses of Pharaoh, with their riders and chariots came into the sea…” (15:19).
There is a verse in Shir HaShirim (1:19) which is very difficult to understand. “Like the horses of Pharaoh I (Klal Yisrael) compare my beloved (Hashem).” What is the message being expressed in these cryptic words? How can we dare compare Hashem to a horse?! A proper understanding here yields a very fascinating point.
Hashem is All-Powerful and in truth any action that we take, whether good or evil, have absolutely no effect on Him whatsoever. However, Hashem created the world and placed man into it and gave him the opportunity to find happiness and fulfillment by pursuing perfection and utilizing his freewill properly. Amazingly, Hashem endowed man with the power to affect the world by his actions and even determine whether Hashem will act with compassion or judgment towards him. Thus, Hashem subjugated Himself to be effected, so to speak, by man’s actions.
The Nefesh Hachaim (Gate 1) cites a number of sources where this idea is portrayed. Chazal say, “what does ‘Eh-yeh Asher Eh-yeh’ (Shimos 3:14) mean? Just as you act towards Me, so I will act towards you!” Also, “Dovid Hamelech says (Tehillim 131) ‘Hashem Tzil’cha, Hashem is your shadow,’ meaning, just like your shadow does whatever you do (laugh, cry), so too Hashem deals with you as you act towards him!”
The two Cheruvim on top of the Aron expresses this idea as well. One Cheruv represented the Jews and one represented Hashem. They served as a constant meter, gauging the connection between the two. If the nation was at peace with Hashem, then the two Cheruvim faced each other warmly. However, if the Jews turned away from Hashem, then their representational Cheruv turned away from the one hinting to Hashem, and so too respectively Hashem’s cherub turned away from theirs as well.
R’ Chaim Volozhin continues and says that the Midrash writes that when the chariots of Pharaoh approached the Yam Suf which had just split and allowed the Jews to enter, the horses just kept chasing. Normally, says the Midrash, the horseman controls the horse, but in this case, it was the exact opposite; the horses controlled their master. This defied the natural order of the world! With this, the original verse can now be understood. The Jews compared Hashem to Pharaoh’s horses, namely, in the aspect that just as they defied the logical order and the subservient creature controlled its’ master, so too Hashem has placed man, his humble creation, as the controller on how He will act towards us. Hashem has created a world where the roles are reversed. He tells us, you control Me, just as the horse controlled its’ master!
This idea is expressed again as the Jews stood trapped moments before the Splitting of The Sea. Hashem told Moshe, “speak to the Jews and just travel!” R’ Chaim Volozin says that this means, Hashem said “you are in control! If you act with faithfulness and travel into the raging water, this will trigger a response from Me and surely a miracle will occur and the sea will split!” We must always be aware that it is our actions which determine how Hashem acts towards us!
