Weekly Inspire

The Hidden Goodness


Listen Later

Avraham Avinu sent his trusted servant, Eliezer, to his homeland, where was born – Aram Naharayim – in order to find there a suitable match for Yitzhak. The Torah tells that Eliezer went to Aram Naharayim with כל טוב אדוניו בידו – "all his master's goodness in his hand" (24:10). The commentaries explain this to mean that Eliezer took with him the official document in which Avraham promised to bequeath his enormous fortune to Yitzhak. Eliezer took this in order to convince the girl and her family to agree to the match. However, the Shelah Ha'kadosh takes note of a slight but important nuance in this pasuk . The word טוב is punctuated not as it usually is, with the dot on top of the ו , such that it would be pronounced tov , but rather with the dot in the middle of the letter ו , resulting in the pronunciation tuv . This raises the question as to the difference between the Hebrew words tov and tuv , and why this might matter in the context of Eliezer's mission to find a wife for Yitzhak. The Shelah Ha'kadosh explains the difference. The word tov refers to goodness that can be easily seen, that is clear, that is unmistakable. Avraham's legacy, which he passed onto Yitzhak – and to all of us – includes many wonderful blessings and precious gifts that are very clear to us. There is no mistaking the great blessing of Shabbat, of family, of Torah learning, and of the many joys that we are privileged to experience by being part of the Jewish Nation. But Avraham also bequeathed to us tuv – a hidden goodness, blessings which are more difficult for people on the outside to perceive and understand. This hidden goodness is the faith that accompanies a person during times of hardship. When an heir of Avraham Avinu is struggling, or in pain, people see the hardship – but they probably don't see the faith and hope that is sustaining that person and helping him carry on. This gift of emunah , the knowledge that Hashem is with us even in life's most difficult moments, is incredible. It provides a person with the "wings" he needs to rise and soar when life might otherwise pull him down and shatter his spirit. Before Hashem brought the seventh plague upon Egypt, He commanded Moshe to come before Pharaoh and warn about the plague – בא אל פרעה . Literally, this means "Come to Pharaoh." Instead of saying "Go to Pharaoh," Hashem said "Come to Pharaoh" – emphasizing that He would be there, too. Moshe knew that Pharaoh would be furious with him after six plagues had already befallen the country. For good reason, Moshe felt hesitant and uneasy about confronting Pharaoh yet again. And so Hashem assured him that he wasn't going alone, that He would be there holding his hand. Whenever we're going through a hard time, whenever we're dealing with a very difficult problem – either big or small – feeling Hashem holding our hand can make all the difference in the world. There is nothing like the feeling of knowing that we're not dealing with this alone, that Hashem is helping is through this situation, every step of the way. This is the tuv – the precious gift – that Avraham Avinu bequeathed to each and every one of us.
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Weekly InspireBy Rabbi Joey Haber

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

21 ratings


More shows like Weekly Inspire

View all
The Ben Shapiro Show by The Daily Wire

The Ben Shapiro Show

153,989 Listeners

Nitzotzos: Inspiration to Keep Your Spark Alive with Rav Mordechai Burg by Nitzotzos

Nitzotzos: Inspiration to Keep Your Spark Alive with Rav Mordechai Burg

33 Listeners

A Torah State Of Mind by Rabbi Shlomo Farhi

A Torah State Of Mind

82 Listeners

Parsha Perspectives by Rabbi Efrem Goldberg

Parsha Perspectives

66 Listeners

Meaningful People by Meaningful Minute

Meaningful People

2,003 Listeners

TorahAnytime Daily Dose by TorahAnytime.com

TorahAnytime Daily Dose

45 Listeners

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing by The Times of Israel

The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

1,097 Listeners

Kiddush Club - News for Jews by KiddushClubPodcast.com

Kiddush Club - News for Jews

232 Listeners

Featured Shiurim by Rabbi Aaron Lopiansky

Featured Shiurim

40 Listeners

Gedale Fenster - Podcast by Gedale Fenster - Podcast

Gedale Fenster - Podcast

402 Listeners

Inspiration for the Nation with Yaakov Langer by Living Lchaim

Inspiration for the Nation with Yaakov Langer

1,122 Listeners

Stories Of Hope With Tzipora Grodko by Meaningful Minute

Stories Of Hope With Tzipora Grodko

341 Listeners