Hagaon
Rav Chaim
Yosef David Azulai zt”l on Parshat Eikev
(from
Kisei
Rachamim on Masekhet Sofrim 18)
Land
of Iron, Men of Iron
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Among the praises of
the land of Israel mentioned in this week's parsha
appears (Devarim 8:9), "It is a land whose stones
are iron and from its mountains copper can be hewn."
In Hebrew: "Eretz asher avaneha barzel umeiharareha
tachtzov nechoshet."
The Chida, inspired by a number of midrashic passages,
sees this verse as hinting to the unique sages,
the unique talmidei chakhamim of the land of Israel.
A land whose stones are iron -- these are
the sages of the land of Israel who are referred
to (Taanit 23b and elsewhere) as the powerful ones
(takifi) of the land of Israel. Their special qualities
draw on the special qualities of the land of Israel,
for the very air of the land of Israel brings wisdom
("Avira d'Eretz Yisrael machkim" -- Bava Batra 158b).
Asher avaneha barzel (its stones are iron)
-- They learn Torah and bring the Divine Presence
in the merit of the four matriarchs -- Bilhah, Rachel,
Zilpa, and Leah -- whose acronym spells out "barzel",
Umeiharareha (and from its mountains) --
and in the merit of the three patriarchs -- Avraham,
Yitzchak, and Yaakov -- who are referred to as "the
mountains" (Shemot Rabba 15:4, and Vayikra Rabba
36:6),
Tachtzov nechoshet (you can hew copper) --
Through their merit the forces of good in the world
can overcome evil, represented by the snake -- "the
nachash" -- and his band of four-hundred powers
-- represented by the letter "tav", whose numerical
value is four-hundred and recalls Eisav's four-hundred
men.
Through learning Torah for its own sake in the land
of Israel, following the path of the matriarchs
and patriarchs, the world's evil forces can be overcome.
[prepared
by Eliezer Kwass]
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