Haftarat Shabbat Ha-Gadol
The Jewish Story: Vicious Cycle or Upward Spiral?
Rabbi Dr. Aharon Hersh Fried
Origins:
In general, haftarot have a connection to the parashah with which they are read; similarly, in the case of the haftarot read on Yamim Tovim or special parashiyot (such as the four parashiyot Shekalim, Parah, Zakhor, and Ha-Chodesh), the theme of the Torah reading of the holiday or Shabbat is connected to the message of the haftarah associated with it. However, the haftarah of “Ve-arvah,” taken from Malachi (3:4), is an enigma. Unlike the haftarot of the four parashiyot, which are codified in the Mishnah and discussed in the Talmud,1 the haftarah for Shabbat Ha-Gadol is not mentioned in the Talmud, nor does the Talmud even refer to any Shabbat by the name “Shabbat Ha-Gadol.” The concept of this special Shabbat does not appear until the Middle Ages, and its source is a mystery. In fact, as far as the haftarah goes, most of the early discussions amongst the commentators revolve around its connection to Parashat Tzav, rather than to Shabbat Ha-Gadol per se, which has no special Torah reading associated with it.
Perhaps the most convincing explanation of why we read this particular haftarah on this Shabbat is that offered by Dr. Yosef Offir of Yeshivat Har Etzion.2 Dr. Offir reminds us that originally there were two customs for Torah readings, that of Babylonia, which had a one year cycle, and that of Eretz Yisrael, which followed a three year cycle. An analysis of a number of listings of the haftarot, including those found in the Cairo genizah, found that the tradition of Eretz Yisrael, which was a triennial cycle for reading the Torah, had a corresponding cycle of more than one hundred and fifty haftarot. These haftarot were usually connected to the parashah by a correspondence of some of the words at the beginning of the sidrah in Torah, with the some of the words of the first pasuk of the Navi (a gezeirah shavah of sorts), and did not at all overlap with the haftarot read in the Babylonian readings, which followed an annual cycle. Eventually (as late as about seven hundred years ago), the tradition of the annual cycle practiced in Babylonia took hold everywhere. When this occurred, some also adopted the Babylonian tradition of haftarot, in which the haftarah of Parashat Tzav was, “Oloteichem safu al zivcheichem” (Yirmiyahu 7:21). Others, namely those of the Byzantian tradition, retained the practice from the triennial tradition of having haftarot most closely corresponding to the beginning of a sidrah in the annual cycle. The haftarah for the sidrah beginning with Vayikra 6:13, “Zeh korban Aharon u-vanav….minchah” was “Ve-arvah la-Shem minchat Yehuda” (Malachi 3:4) This was then adopted, by some, as the haftarah for Parashat Tzav (Vayikra 6:1), which was not the beginning of a sidrah in the triennial cycle. A certain tension then existed between the preference of each of the two haftarot (the annual and the triennial) - Parashat Tzav/Shabbat Ha-Gadol. In some communities, a compromise of sorts then followed, with some reading the haftarah of “Ve-arvah” only when Shabbat Ha-Gadol did not fall out on Erev Pesach, and otherwise reading “Oloteichem safu;” meanwhile, others read “Ve-arvah” only when Shabbat Ha-Gadol did fall out on Erev Pesach. Some communities, like practitioners of today’s predominant minhag Ashkenaz, always read “Ve-arvah” on Shabbat Ha-Gadol.
R. Elchanan Samet of Yeshivat Har Etzion points out3 that while the source of an enduring tradition may sometimes be cloudy, the tradition takes on a life of its own, and is in time imbued with meaning. That meaning, often based on derash, then allows the tradition to continue in a meaningful way. It is in this spirit that I will attempt to give this haftarah and its connection to Shabbat Ha-Gadol and Pesach meaning.
The haftarah, its meaning, and its connection to Pesach:
וְעָרְבָה לַה' מִנְחַת יְהוּדָה וִירוּשָׁלִָם כִּימֵי עוֹלָם וּכְשָׁנִים קַדְמֹנִיּוֹת:
(Then) the offering of Judah and Jerusalem
will be pleasing to God as in the days of old and in previous years.
It is with this verse from Malachi (3:4) that the haftarah of Shabbat Ha-Gadol opens. These words are oft repeated in our daily tefilot (prayers), sometimes following the trebled repetition of the three pesukim (ה' צבאות עמנו משגב לנו וכו', ה' צבאות אשרי אדם בטח בך, ה' הושיע המלך יעננו וכו') that speak of Hashem’s presence and involvement in our lives even in Galut (exile), of our faith in Him despite the length of the Galut, and of His eventually coming to our aid with the final redemption in His role as the King who implements justice (rather than mere pity or mercy) in His world.4 At other times, we read this pasuk following prayers for the rebuilding of the Beit Ha-Mikdash and God’s return to Zion (e.g. at the end of the amidah we say יהי רצון וכו' שיבנה בית המקדש במהרה בימינו וכו' ושם נעבדך וכו', וערבה לה' וכו'). The pasuk is thus read both as a prophecy (i.e. a promise – “it will be pleasing”) and a prayer for the fulfillment of that prophecy (i.e. “it should be pleasing”).
It is instructive to note that the words of this haftarah, the last prophecy to the Jewish people, are read as the haftarah of Shabat Ha-Gadol in anticipation of our commemoration and in celebration of the very first era of prophecy presented the Jewish people as a nation (as opposed to the prophecies experienced by the Avot as individuals). This seems to follow the tradition practiced on the occasion of a siyum mesekhta (the completion of study of a tractate in Talmud) and the like, of “shiluv sofah bitchilatah” (going full circle and connecting the end to the beginning), with the end informing the beginning - usually with the hope that the new beginning will portend a better, more informed, upcoming cycle.
To understand a haftarah it is necessary to first understand the words of the Navi, and then to examine the words for a connection to a specific parashah and/or a specific time of the year. There are a number of themes in Malachi’s last prophecy that have been noted by those trying to connect the haftarah to Pesach. Some even attribute the source for calling this Shabbat “Ha-Gadol” to a verse at the powerful climax of the prophecy in the haftarah, Malachi 3:23:5
הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי שֹׁלֵחַ לָכֶם אֵת אֵלִיָּה הַנָּבִיא לִפְנֵי בּוֹא יוֹם ה' הַגָּדוֹל וְהַנּוֹרָא
Behold I send you Eliyahu the prophet
before the coming of the great and awesome day of Hashem.
Naming is an attempt to define the essence of a thing. The essence of Pesach, which this haftarah precedes, is indeed contained in this pasuk – a statement of the certainty of eventual and full redemption; the lack of belief in which makes the entire Pesach commemoration meaningless.
Jewish history may be seen as a series of cycles consisting of (1) exile, slavery, and despair, (2) crying out to God, (3) followed by redemption, spiritual and physical rejuvenation, (4) a level of comfort, (5) followed by a loss of consciousness and of purpose, (6) leading to unavoidable eventual moral and ethical stagnation, and finally ending in(7) exile and enslavement. This has been the cycle of our history. It is our eternal hope and belief that we are not merely going in circles and traveling in a vicious cycle. We believe that these cycles are part of an upward spiral and that eventually we will break out of the circle and experience the full and final redemption. Regardless of our faith in the ultimate redemption we continually wonder and ask “matay avo ve-eira’eh penei Elokim” - When will I come and see the countenance of God? This is the question which I hear the last prophet addressing. The Navi does more than just reassure us of the final geulah - the Navi also describes the phases in the cycle that the Jewish people have been going through since their first redemption, and, in this final prophecy, offers a prescription for breaking out of that cycle.
As we approach Pesach, commemorating the first redemption, we cannot help but ask, “What is the purpose of this celebration?” The Gemara points out regarding Purim and Hallel – the psalms of praise we recite to commemorate a miracle and redemption, “akati avdei Achashveirosh anan6” – We are still enslaved to Achashveirosh! The miracle of Purim did not make us sovereign as a people. Why, then, should we say Hallel?! The question could be asked about Pesach, as well. What is it that we are celebrating? We have been freed from Pharaoh, but are we free? Are we sovereign? Does it matter whether we are subject to a Pharaoh, an Emperor, a Czar, or other rulers? Why do we perform the Seder? Why do we recite Hallel? What element of our Exodus from Egypt is eternal? The essence of this haftarah serves to answer this question and define the substantive commemoration with which we engage on Pesach.
The prophet Malachi outlines the cycle that the Jewish people regularly complete, and the causes for this seemingly never-ending cycle. In the prophecy, Hashem speaks to His people as a father - an abandoned father - speaks to His children. He says, “ahavti etchem” – “I have loved you.” But His children, Benei Yisrael, respond like children who are estranged. They have lost hope of ever breaking out of an endless cycle of suffering, and are a nation who now goes through the motions of serving God, but does so subconsciously, in an unknowing and unthinking daze. They have forgotten God’s love for them, and ask, “How have you loved us?” They serve God in a perfunctory and disrespectful manner, but seem unaware of the disrespect they have shown. God has to remind them of their misbehavior. Regarding their shameful offerings to God’s altar, He says, “present it, if you please, to your governor. Would he be pleased or show you favor?” Even the Kohanim and the Leviim are chastised: “for the lips of the Kohein should safeguard, and people should seek teaching from his mouth, for he is an agent of Hashem, Master of Legions. But you have veered from the path, you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says Hashem, Master of Legions.” And in the natural course of events, the Jewish people betray not only God, but each other, as well. Men cast aside their Jewish wives and “seek the daughter of a foreign god,” causing their discarded wives to be “covering the altar of Hashem with tears.” And to add insult to injury, they hypocritically fail to divorce and free the rejected wife, which would at least allow her to seek solace with another who would love her.7 When we suffer while others prosper, we justify and rationalize our sinful behavior by and questioning, God’s justice and finding fault in the way God carries out justice. As the Navi says, “by your saying, ‘Everyone who does wrong is good in the eyes of Hashem, and He favors them; or else where is the God of Justice?’” (2:17).
During the course of the makkot, after Moshe Rabbeinu’s warning to Pharaoh about the imminent arrival and danger of the plague of hail, the Torah (Shemot 9:20-21) tells us, “those of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of Hashem took their slaves and cattle indoors. And those who paid no heed to the word of Hashem left their slaves and cattle in the fields.” The Imrei Emet, the Rebbe of Gur, points out that the Torah’s juxtaposition of “those who feared the word of Hashem” with those who “paid no heed” suggests that the opposite of Yirat Shamayim (fear of Hashem) is “paying no heed,” i.e. leading a life lacking in contemplation and consciousness about what one is doing. Invariably, this kind of life results in “ve-atem sartem min ha-derekh” – and you have strayed from the path” (Malachi 2:8). “Ve-sartem” – straying from the path, as the pasuk in Keriyat Shema says, eventually leads to “va-avadetem elohim acheirim” – “and you will worship other gods.” This, in fact, is what the Navi is complaining about, as he says in Malachi 2:2, “ve-gam arotiha ki einchem samim al-lev” – “Indeed I have already cursed it, for you do not take to heart.”
This, then, is our cycle: redemption, elation, and then comfort - which has almost always lulled us into becoming unaware, unconscious, and uncaring. As certain as it is that a vehicle whose driver is lulled by the ease and comfort of an open and straight road will eventually veer off the road, so too, is it certain that a people who is lulled by comfort will naturally stray from the path of the morality and the ethics of Torah - a “ve-sartem” which is, in turn, followed by bad times (either by direct punishment from Hashem, or by His averting His eyes from us). These bad times invariably lead to our questioning His justice, or even the existence of justice as a concept. However, this questioning is not really so much a questioning, rather it is a rationalization of our failure to pay heed to God’s omniscience.
The Prophet then turns around, addresses these negative thoughts, and tells us that Hashem will send His messenger, who will be “like the smelter’s fire and the launderer’s soap” (3:2). Hashem will eliminate the wicked in preparation for the Messianic Era. The Prophet promises ultimate salvation and redemption.
And this is where the haftarah for Shabbat Ha-Gadol begins: “Ve-arva - (Then) the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to God as in the days of old and in previous years.” It is then that we will see justice, and Hashem “will bear witness against the sorcerers, the adulterers, and those who swear falsely, and those who extort the wages of the worker, the widow and the orphan, and those who wrong the stranger. For I, Hashem, have not changed.” (I.e., If the wicked have prospered, it is not because I, Hashem, have changed and value their way of life, but rather, as a result of My mercifulness and My patience with sinners. After all, this patience also guarantees your continued existence as a (sinful) people.) Hashem now turns to Benei Yisrael and says, “Since the days of your forefathers you have veered away from my laws and you have not observed them. Return to me, and I will return to you!” Here, Hashem tells us the way out of this seemingly eternal cycle of exile, return, and exile. He points out that we need to be reminded of where and when we have sinned. He implores us, “bring your tithes … and let it be sustenance in my Temple. Test me if you will, see if I do not open for you the windows of the heavens, and pour out upon you blessing without end” (3:10). The Prophet then tells the people that their words against Hashem have been too harsh. Those who fear Hashem will speak differently and. Hashem will listen to and hear those people. Then Hashem “will have mercy on them as a man has mercy on his son who serves him. Then you will see the difference between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.” Here we are given the key to breaking out of the cycle, the way to avoid the asher lo sam libo (not paying heed). “Zikhru,” the Navi tells us, “torat moshe avdi” – “Remember the Torah of Moshe, My servant.” “Remember” - denotes proactive remembering,8 not merely the passive “not forgetting.”
“The Torah of Moshe my servant” - not “my prophet”, but “my servant”, for active memory requires service that is not only intellectual, but also physical.
That is what Hashem seeks from us - not prophecy, nor some intangible ethereal spirituality. The antidote to forgetfulness, to a lack of awareness, is to actively remember, in word and in deed. Observe Torat Moshe avdi - be active in your commemorations and you will be saved on that great day – the yom Hashem ha-gadol ve-hanora. On that day, the cycle will finally be permanently interrupted. On that day, children and parents alike will seek to serve Hashem. Those of the future, the children, will look back at those from the past, their parents, and with the benefit of a brighter vision, they will beckon their parents to follow in the service of Hashem.
This is the message we need to read and take to heart as we approach Pesach and the Seder. Pesach is not meant as a mere commemoration of past events, it is meant to give us the opportunity to relive those events. “Chayav adam lirot et atzmo ke-ilu hu yatza mi-mitzrayim” – each and every person is required to see himself as if he had himself gone out of Mitzrayim.
The Benei Yissaschar9 points that whilst there are many miracles recorded in Tanakh, we do not commemorate or celebrate them all on their anniversaries. Thus, we do not commemorate Yehoshua’s stopping the sun, the fall of Sancheirev, or Nachal Arnon.10 On the other hand, we commemorate Pesach, Sukkot, Shavuot, and along with them, Chanukah and Purim, two post- Biblical miracles. What determines what we are to commemorate and what we do not? He answers that there are miracles whose hashpa’ah (influence) was a one-time historical event, with no continued influence for the future. These are not recorded in the Torah with an explicitly stated date of occurrence, and these we do not commemorate. Then there are miracles whose hashpa’ah is eternal, i.e. the day of that date, whenever it arrives again, is eternally imbued with the same hashpa’ah and strength that was granted it when the miracle first occurred. As we say in the berakhah (blessing), “she-asa nissim la-avoteinu, ba-yamim ha-heim ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “He who performed miracles for our forefathers in those days at this time.” This is taken to mean that the ohr (light) which was revealed “ba-yamim ha-heum” - “in those days,” is present again, “ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “at this time.” (He further points out that some sephardi versions of this berakhah actually have it as “u-ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “and also in this time” – i.e. the light of this miracle appeared then and again now.) Lastly, he interprets the words of the Sheiltot of R. Achai Gaon, who stated “ the children of Israel are obligated to thank and to praise Hashem at the time that a miracle happens to them” as follows: the Gaon could not mean to say that we are obligated to thank Hashem at the actual time when the miracle occurs, for that is obvious. Therefore, it must be that the Gaon refers specifically to the “time of the miracle,” i.e. when that time comes around again on the calendar.
Each year, as we approach the commemoration of our first redemption, of our infancy and evolution into nationhood, we wish to connect to the power of that original redemption. Just as the first Galut is the prototype for all subsequent galuyot, so too, is the first redemption the prototype and the source for all subsequent redemptions. If we intend to touch base with the source of light and power that brought about our redemption from Mitzrayim, we need to approach the chag with the message of the last nevuah – that the full benefit of Pesach is derived from seeing it not as a commemoration of redemption, but as a time of redemption. Each Pesach, there is an opportunity to reconnect to the original light of redemption, and to hopefully ride it, this time, to the full and final redemption. What does that require of us? Only, as the Navi tells us, to fulfill “zikhru torat Moshe avdi” - above all, remain aware, in word and in deed, of following the Torah and its dictums. Remain aware of your heritage, of your connection to Hashem, of His love for you, but above all, of your obligation to serve Him as outlined in His Torah. Teach the Torah to your children, and then you will find that “ve-heishiv lev avot al banim” – “the hearts of fathers will be turned to their children.” You will sit at a Seder and speak to all of your children, and be assured that “hineih anokhi sholeach lakhem et Eliyahu ha-navi lifnei bo yom Hashem ha-gadol ve-hanora.”
1 Megillah 29a-b.
2 Ofir, Yossi, Haftarat Shabbat Ha-Gadol, http://www.etzion.org.il/dk/1to899/332daf.htm#Heading3.
3 Samet, Elchanan, Haftarat Shabbat Ha-Gadol, Hinei Anochi Sholeach Lachem, Har Etzion,
www.etzion.org.il/vbm/archive/5-parashah/28metzora.rtf
4 Chanoch Zundel ben Yosef, in his commentary Eitz Yosef, in Otzar Ha-Tefillot, Volume 1, pg. 154.
5 Drishah on the Tur, Orach Chaim, 130. The Maharshal rejects this this opinion, while other commentators defend it.
6 MegilLah 14a
7 I cannot help but wonder whether the Navi is here also describing the frustration (ke-veyakhol) felt by Hashem in His being tied to His rebellious chosen nation, which, though estranged from Him, will not let Him go. Because of His promise to their forefathers, He cannot “un-choose” them. Is this not an echo and a parallel to the statement above (Malachi 1:10) in which Hashem says,” If only there were someone among you who would shut the Temple doors, so that you could not kindle upon my altar in vain….” ?
8 Malbim, Ha-Torah Ve-Hamitzvah, 166, Devarim 25:17
9 Bnei Yissoschor, Zvi Elimelech Shapira, Maamarei Chodshe Kislev-Tevet, Maamar daled, ot 8.
10 On the miracle that took place at Nachal Arnon, see Rashi, Bemidbar, 21:17.
The Jewish Story: Vicious Cycle or Upward Spiral?
Rabbi Dr. Aharon Hersh Fried
Origins:
In general, haftarot have a connection to the parashah with which they are read; similarly, in the case of the haftarot read on Yamim Tovim or special parashiyot (such as the four parashiyot Shekalim, Parah, Zakhor, and Ha-Chodesh), the theme of the Torah reading of the holiday or Shabbat is connected to the message of the haftarah associated with it. However, the haftarah of “Ve-arvah,” taken from Malachi (3:4), is an enigma. Unlike the haftarot of the four parashiyot, which are codified in the Mishnah and discussed in the Talmud,1 the haftarah for Shabbat Ha-Gadol is not mentioned in the Talmud, nor does the Talmud even refer to any Shabbat by the name “Shabbat Ha-Gadol.” The concept of this special Shabbat does not appear until the Middle Ages, and its source is a mystery. In fact, as far as the haftarah goes, most of the early discussions amongst the commentators revolve around its connection to Parashat Tzav, rather than to Shabbat Ha-Gadol per se, which has no special Torah reading associated with it.
Perhaps the most convincing explanation of why we read this particular haftarah on this Shabbat is that offered by Dr. Yosef Offir of Yeshivat Har Etzion.2 Dr. Offir reminds us that originally there were two customs for Torah readings, that of Babylonia, which had a one year cycle, and that of Eretz Yisrael, which followed a three year cycle. An analysis of a number of listings of the haftarot, including those found in the Cairo genizah, found that the tradition of Eretz Yisrael, which was a triennial cycle for reading the Torah, had a corresponding cycle of more than one hundred and fifty haftarot. These haftarot were usually connected to the parashah by a correspondence of some of the words at the beginning of the sidrah in Torah, with the some of the words of the first pasuk of the Navi (a gezeirah shavah of sorts), and did not at all overlap with the haftarot read in the Babylonian readings, which followed an annual cycle. Eventually (as late as about seven hundred years ago), the tradition of the annual cycle practiced in Babylonia took hold everywhere. When this occurred, some also adopted the Babylonian tradition of haftarot, in which the haftarah of Parashat Tzav was, “Oloteichem safu al zivcheichem” (Yirmiyahu 7:21). Others, namely those of the Byzantian tradition, retained the practice from the triennial tradition of having haftarot most closely corresponding to the beginning of a sidrah in the annual cycle. The haftarah for the sidrah beginning with Vayikra 6:13, “Zeh korban Aharon u-vanav….minchah” was “Ve-arvah la-Shem minchat Yehuda” (Malachi 3:4) This was then adopted, by some, as the haftarah for Parashat Tzav (Vayikra 6:1), which was not the beginning of a sidrah in the triennial cycle. A certain tension then existed between the preference of each of the two haftarot (the annual and the triennial) - Parashat Tzav/Shabbat Ha-Gadol. In some communities, a compromise of sorts then followed, with some reading the haftarah of “Ve-arvah” only when Shabbat Ha-Gadol did not fall out on Erev Pesach, and otherwise reading “Oloteichem safu;” meanwhile, others read “Ve-arvah” only when Shabbat Ha-Gadol did fall out on Erev Pesach. Some communities, like practitioners of today’s predominant minhag Ashkenaz, always read “Ve-arvah” on Shabbat Ha-Gadol.
R. Elchanan Samet of Yeshivat Har Etzion points out3 that while the source of an enduring tradition may sometimes be cloudy, the tradition takes on a life of its own, and is in time imbued with meaning. That meaning, often based on derash, then allows the tradition to continue in a meaningful way. It is in this spirit that I will attempt to give this haftarah and its connection to Shabbat Ha-Gadol and Pesach meaning.
The haftarah, its meaning, and its connection to Pesach:
וְעָרְבָה לַה' מִנְחַת יְהוּדָה וִירוּשָׁלִָם כִּימֵי עוֹלָם וּכְשָׁנִים קַדְמֹנִיּוֹת:
(Then) the offering of Judah and Jerusalem
will be pleasing to God as in the days of old and in previous years.
It is with this verse from Malachi (3:4) that the haftarah of Shabbat Ha-Gadol opens. These words are oft repeated in our daily tefilot (prayers), sometimes following the trebled repetition of the three pesukim (ה' צבאות עמנו משגב לנו וכו', ה' צבאות אשרי אדם בטח בך, ה' הושיע המלך יעננו וכו') that speak of Hashem’s presence and involvement in our lives even in Galut (exile), of our faith in Him despite the length of the Galut, and of His eventually coming to our aid with the final redemption in His role as the King who implements justice (rather than mere pity or mercy) in His world.4 At other times, we read this pasuk following prayers for the rebuilding of the Beit Ha-Mikdash and God’s return to Zion (e.g. at the end of the amidah we say יהי רצון וכו' שיבנה בית המקדש במהרה בימינו וכו' ושם נעבדך וכו', וערבה לה' וכו'). The pasuk is thus read both as a prophecy (i.e. a promise – “it will be pleasing”) and a prayer for the fulfillment of that prophecy (i.e. “it should be pleasing”).
It is instructive to note that the words of this haftarah, the last prophecy to the Jewish people, are read as the haftarah of Shabat Ha-Gadol in anticipation of our commemoration and in celebration of the very first era of prophecy presented the Jewish people as a nation (as opposed to the prophecies experienced by the Avot as individuals). This seems to follow the tradition practiced on the occasion of a siyum mesekhta (the completion of study of a tractate in Talmud) and the like, of “shiluv sofah bitchilatah” (going full circle and connecting the end to the beginning), with the end informing the beginning - usually with the hope that the new beginning will portend a better, more informed, upcoming cycle.
To understand a haftarah it is necessary to first understand the words of the Navi, and then to examine the words for a connection to a specific parashah and/or a specific time of the year. There are a number of themes in Malachi’s last prophecy that have been noted by those trying to connect the haftarah to Pesach. Some even attribute the source for calling this Shabbat “Ha-Gadol” to a verse at the powerful climax of the prophecy in the haftarah, Malachi 3:23:5
הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי שֹׁלֵחַ לָכֶם אֵת אֵלִיָּה הַנָּבִיא לִפְנֵי בּוֹא יוֹם ה' הַגָּדוֹל וְהַנּוֹרָא
Behold I send you Eliyahu the prophet
before the coming of the great and awesome day of Hashem.
Naming is an attempt to define the essence of a thing. The essence of Pesach, which this haftarah precedes, is indeed contained in this pasuk – a statement of the certainty of eventual and full redemption; the lack of belief in which makes the entire Pesach commemoration meaningless.
Jewish history may be seen as a series of cycles consisting of (1) exile, slavery, and despair, (2) crying out to God, (3) followed by redemption, spiritual and physical rejuvenation, (4) a level of comfort, (5) followed by a loss of consciousness and of purpose, (6) leading to unavoidable eventual moral and ethical stagnation, and finally ending in(7) exile and enslavement. This has been the cycle of our history. It is our eternal hope and belief that we are not merely going in circles and traveling in a vicious cycle. We believe that these cycles are part of an upward spiral and that eventually we will break out of the circle and experience the full and final redemption. Regardless of our faith in the ultimate redemption we continually wonder and ask “matay avo ve-eira’eh penei Elokim” - When will I come and see the countenance of God? This is the question which I hear the last prophet addressing. The Navi does more than just reassure us of the final geulah - the Navi also describes the phases in the cycle that the Jewish people have been going through since their first redemption, and, in this final prophecy, offers a prescription for breaking out of that cycle.
As we approach Pesach, commemorating the first redemption, we cannot help but ask, “What is the purpose of this celebration?” The Gemara points out regarding Purim and Hallel – the psalms of praise we recite to commemorate a miracle and redemption, “akati avdei Achashveirosh anan6” – We are still enslaved to Achashveirosh! The miracle of Purim did not make us sovereign as a people. Why, then, should we say Hallel?! The question could be asked about Pesach, as well. What is it that we are celebrating? We have been freed from Pharaoh, but are we free? Are we sovereign? Does it matter whether we are subject to a Pharaoh, an Emperor, a Czar, or other rulers? Why do we perform the Seder? Why do we recite Hallel? What element of our Exodus from Egypt is eternal? The essence of this haftarah serves to answer this question and define the substantive commemoration with which we engage on Pesach.
The prophet Malachi outlines the cycle that the Jewish people regularly complete, and the causes for this seemingly never-ending cycle. In the prophecy, Hashem speaks to His people as a father - an abandoned father - speaks to His children. He says, “ahavti etchem” – “I have loved you.” But His children, Benei Yisrael, respond like children who are estranged. They have lost hope of ever breaking out of an endless cycle of suffering, and are a nation who now goes through the motions of serving God, but does so subconsciously, in an unknowing and unthinking daze. They have forgotten God’s love for them, and ask, “How have you loved us?” They serve God in a perfunctory and disrespectful manner, but seem unaware of the disrespect they have shown. God has to remind them of their misbehavior. Regarding their shameful offerings to God’s altar, He says, “present it, if you please, to your governor. Would he be pleased or show you favor?” Even the Kohanim and the Leviim are chastised: “for the lips of the Kohein should safeguard, and people should seek teaching from his mouth, for he is an agent of Hashem, Master of Legions. But you have veered from the path, you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says Hashem, Master of Legions.” And in the natural course of events, the Jewish people betray not only God, but each other, as well. Men cast aside their Jewish wives and “seek the daughter of a foreign god,” causing their discarded wives to be “covering the altar of Hashem with tears.” And to add insult to injury, they hypocritically fail to divorce and free the rejected wife, which would at least allow her to seek solace with another who would love her.7 When we suffer while others prosper, we justify and rationalize our sinful behavior by and questioning, God’s justice and finding fault in the way God carries out justice. As the Navi says, “by your saying, ‘Everyone who does wrong is good in the eyes of Hashem, and He favors them; or else where is the God of Justice?’” (2:17).
During the course of the makkot, after Moshe Rabbeinu’s warning to Pharaoh about the imminent arrival and danger of the plague of hail, the Torah (Shemot 9:20-21) tells us, “those of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of Hashem took their slaves and cattle indoors. And those who paid no heed to the word of Hashem left their slaves and cattle in the fields.” The Imrei Emet, the Rebbe of Gur, points out that the Torah’s juxtaposition of “those who feared the word of Hashem” with those who “paid no heed” suggests that the opposite of Yirat Shamayim (fear of Hashem) is “paying no heed,” i.e. leading a life lacking in contemplation and consciousness about what one is doing. Invariably, this kind of life results in “ve-atem sartem min ha-derekh” – and you have strayed from the path” (Malachi 2:8). “Ve-sartem” – straying from the path, as the pasuk in Keriyat Shema says, eventually leads to “va-avadetem elohim acheirim” – “and you will worship other gods.” This, in fact, is what the Navi is complaining about, as he says in Malachi 2:2, “ve-gam arotiha ki einchem samim al-lev” – “Indeed I have already cursed it, for you do not take to heart.”
This, then, is our cycle: redemption, elation, and then comfort - which has almost always lulled us into becoming unaware, unconscious, and uncaring. As certain as it is that a vehicle whose driver is lulled by the ease and comfort of an open and straight road will eventually veer off the road, so too, is it certain that a people who is lulled by comfort will naturally stray from the path of the morality and the ethics of Torah - a “ve-sartem” which is, in turn, followed by bad times (either by direct punishment from Hashem, or by His averting His eyes from us). These bad times invariably lead to our questioning His justice, or even the existence of justice as a concept. However, this questioning is not really so much a questioning, rather it is a rationalization of our failure to pay heed to God’s omniscience.
The Prophet then turns around, addresses these negative thoughts, and tells us that Hashem will send His messenger, who will be “like the smelter’s fire and the launderer’s soap” (3:2). Hashem will eliminate the wicked in preparation for the Messianic Era. The Prophet promises ultimate salvation and redemption.
And this is where the haftarah for Shabbat Ha-Gadol begins: “Ve-arva - (Then) the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to God as in the days of old and in previous years.” It is then that we will see justice, and Hashem “will bear witness against the sorcerers, the adulterers, and those who swear falsely, and those who extort the wages of the worker, the widow and the orphan, and those who wrong the stranger. For I, Hashem, have not changed.” (I.e., If the wicked have prospered, it is not because I, Hashem, have changed and value their way of life, but rather, as a result of My mercifulness and My patience with sinners. After all, this patience also guarantees your continued existence as a (sinful) people.) Hashem now turns to Benei Yisrael and says, “Since the days of your forefathers you have veered away from my laws and you have not observed them. Return to me, and I will return to you!” Here, Hashem tells us the way out of this seemingly eternal cycle of exile, return, and exile. He points out that we need to be reminded of where and when we have sinned. He implores us, “bring your tithes … and let it be sustenance in my Temple. Test me if you will, see if I do not open for you the windows of the heavens, and pour out upon you blessing without end” (3:10). The Prophet then tells the people that their words against Hashem have been too harsh. Those who fear Hashem will speak differently and. Hashem will listen to and hear those people. Then Hashem “will have mercy on them as a man has mercy on his son who serves him. Then you will see the difference between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.” Here we are given the key to breaking out of the cycle, the way to avoid the asher lo sam libo (not paying heed). “Zikhru,” the Navi tells us, “torat moshe avdi” – “Remember the Torah of Moshe, My servant.” “Remember” - denotes proactive remembering,8 not merely the passive “not forgetting.”
“The Torah of Moshe my servant” - not “my prophet”, but “my servant”, for active memory requires service that is not only intellectual, but also physical.
That is what Hashem seeks from us - not prophecy, nor some intangible ethereal spirituality. The antidote to forgetfulness, to a lack of awareness, is to actively remember, in word and in deed. Observe Torat Moshe avdi - be active in your commemorations and you will be saved on that great day – the yom Hashem ha-gadol ve-hanora. On that day, the cycle will finally be permanently interrupted. On that day, children and parents alike will seek to serve Hashem. Those of the future, the children, will look back at those from the past, their parents, and with the benefit of a brighter vision, they will beckon their parents to follow in the service of Hashem.
This is the message we need to read and take to heart as we approach Pesach and the Seder. Pesach is not meant as a mere commemoration of past events, it is meant to give us the opportunity to relive those events. “Chayav adam lirot et atzmo ke-ilu hu yatza mi-mitzrayim” – each and every person is required to see himself as if he had himself gone out of Mitzrayim.
The Benei Yissaschar9 points that whilst there are many miracles recorded in Tanakh, we do not commemorate or celebrate them all on their anniversaries. Thus, we do not commemorate Yehoshua’s stopping the sun, the fall of Sancheirev, or Nachal Arnon.10 On the other hand, we commemorate Pesach, Sukkot, Shavuot, and along with them, Chanukah and Purim, two post- Biblical miracles. What determines what we are to commemorate and what we do not? He answers that there are miracles whose hashpa’ah (influence) was a one-time historical event, with no continued influence for the future. These are not recorded in the Torah with an explicitly stated date of occurrence, and these we do not commemorate. Then there are miracles whose hashpa’ah is eternal, i.e. the day of that date, whenever it arrives again, is eternally imbued with the same hashpa’ah and strength that was granted it when the miracle first occurred. As we say in the berakhah (blessing), “she-asa nissim la-avoteinu, ba-yamim ha-heim ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “He who performed miracles for our forefathers in those days at this time.” This is taken to mean that the ohr (light) which was revealed “ba-yamim ha-heum” - “in those days,” is present again, “ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “at this time.” (He further points out that some sephardi versions of this berakhah actually have it as “u-ba-zeman ha-zeh” – “and also in this time” – i.e. the light of this miracle appeared then and again now.) Lastly, he interprets the words of the Sheiltot of R. Achai Gaon, who stated “ the children of Israel are obligated to thank and to praise Hashem at the time that a miracle happens to them” as follows: the Gaon could not mean to say that we are obligated to thank Hashem at the actual time when the miracle occurs, for that is obvious. Therefore, it must be that the Gaon refers specifically to the “time of the miracle,” i.e. when that time comes around again on the calendar.
Each year, as we approach the commemoration of our first redemption, of our infancy and evolution into nationhood, we wish to connect to the power of that original redemption. Just as the first Galut is the prototype for all subsequent galuyot, so too, is the first redemption the prototype and the source for all subsequent redemptions. If we intend to touch base with the source of light and power that brought about our redemption from Mitzrayim, we need to approach the chag with the message of the last nevuah – that the full benefit of Pesach is derived from seeing it not as a commemoration of redemption, but as a time of redemption. Each Pesach, there is an opportunity to reconnect to the original light of redemption, and to hopefully ride it, this time, to the full and final redemption. What does that require of us? Only, as the Navi tells us, to fulfill “zikhru torat Moshe avdi” - above all, remain aware, in word and in deed, of following the Torah and its dictums. Remain aware of your heritage, of your connection to Hashem, of His love for you, but above all, of your obligation to serve Him as outlined in His Torah. Teach the Torah to your children, and then you will find that “ve-heishiv lev avot al banim” – “the hearts of fathers will be turned to their children.” You will sit at a Seder and speak to all of your children, and be assured that “hineih anokhi sholeach lakhem et Eliyahu ha-navi lifnei bo yom Hashem ha-gadol ve-hanora.”
1 Megillah 29a-b.
2 Ofir, Yossi, Haftarat Shabbat Ha-Gadol, http://www.etzion.org.il/dk/1to899/332daf.htm#Heading3.
3 Samet, Elchanan, Haftarat Shabbat Ha-Gadol, Hinei Anochi Sholeach Lachem, Har Etzion,
www.etzion.org.il/vbm/archive/5-parashah/28metzora.rtf
4 Chanoch Zundel ben Yosef, in his commentary Eitz Yosef, in Otzar Ha-Tefillot, Volume 1, pg. 154.
5 Drishah on the Tur, Orach Chaim, 130. The Maharshal rejects this this opinion, while other commentators defend it.
6 MegilLah 14a
7 I cannot help but wonder whether the Navi is here also describing the frustration (ke-veyakhol) felt by Hashem in His being tied to His rebellious chosen nation, which, though estranged from Him, will not let Him go. Because of His promise to their forefathers, He cannot “un-choose” them. Is this not an echo and a parallel to the statement above (Malachi 1:10) in which Hashem says,” If only there were someone among you who would shut the Temple doors, so that you could not kindle upon my altar in vain….” ?
8 Malbim, Ha-Torah Ve-Hamitzvah, 166, Devarim 25:17
9 Bnei Yissoschor, Zvi Elimelech Shapira, Maamarei Chodshe Kislev-Tevet, Maamar daled, ot 8.
10 On the miracle that took place at Nachal Arnon, see Rashi, Bemidbar, 21:17.
