Parshas Vaera 5785
- Torah Tavlin
- Jan 25
- 2 min read
בתפשם בך בכף תרוץ ובקעת להם כל כתף ... (יחזקאל כח-ז)
In this week’s Haftorah, Yechezkel HaNavi describes the downfall of a later-day Pharaoh which was similar to the downfall of the biblical Pharaoh who met his defeat at the hands of the Almighty in Mitzrayim. While the storyline may seem identical, what is the deeper message that we are meant to understand by comparing the two stories?
R’ Avraham HaKohen Pam zt”l explains that throughout our history many Jewish kings sought military alliances with Egypt only to be disappointed at Egypt’s double-crossing and failure to help them in their time of need. This was because the Jewish kings did not depend on Hashem and instead chose to turn to Egypt for help. Such a reliance on kingdoms of mere flesh and blood was their undoing and always seemed to end in disaster, or worse, catastrophe. Yechezkel compares this to a support pillar for a home that was made from a reed which can easily break when grasped. As Rashi notes, the person grasping the reed not only fails to be helped by it but sustains injury from it as well.
Thus, Chazal’s message here is that history often repeats itself and when one unfortunately does not learn from his mistakes of the past, he is bound to repeat them - as was the case in the times of Yechezkel HaNavi. The Jewish Nation must never depend on flimsy support systems - namely supposed friendly nations of the world - for our survival. For if we do, the foreign nation’s support will invariably end, and we will be hurt tremendously in the process.