I’d like to convey two answers offered by one of the greatest Torah scholars of the early twentieth century, Rav Shlomo Yosef Zevin ZT”L, in his classic “La-torah V’La-Moadim”.

1) We are all born with innate characteristics, or Middot. It is up to us to decide how to apply them. For example, someone who is born with a tendency toward spilling blood, can choose to be a murderer, or a Mohel or Shochet. God instilled Pharaoh with a strong tendency towards stubbornness. He hardened his heart. Pharaoh had the free will to apply his powerful stubbornness to either stand firm against his emotional desire to maintain power and lordship over an innocent nation, or to stand firm against the plagues sent to convince him to release that same nation. Pharaoh freely chose to direct his hardened heart against the Jews.

2) Doing something because you are forced to is not a sign of freedom. It is a sign of powerlessness. If Pharaoh had released the Jews solely as a reaction to the horror of the plagues, he would not have been acting out of his own free will. Therefore, God hardened his heart, in order to neutralize his fear of the plagues, and allow him to decide whether to release the Jews solely based on his own free will and moral character. By hardening Pharaoh’s heart, God actually allowed him to exercise his free will.

Rashi explains that the “name” represents absolute truth. Since God did not fulfill His promises to the Patriarchs (to build them into a great nation and give them the land of Israel) in their lifetime, He could not represent Himself with that name. Since the Jews would be redeemed from Egypt by Moses, God could finally use the name of absolute truth.

I’d like to offer another explanation. According to the mystical teachings, the four letter name of God represents Chesed-Giving, or Rachamim-Mercy. The Patriarchs had hard lives. Their wives suffered years of barrenness. They faced persecution and pursuers, enemies and rivalries. They dealt with family strife, rebellious children, and hostile relatives. They were constantly being tested by God. They were only shown the Din-Judgment representation of God, not the Chesed-Rachamim-Mercy aspect, as represented in the four letter name. The Jews in Egypt, however, could only see the name of mercy. They did not deserve redemption on the basis of their own merit. Their redemption was solely based on the Chesed-Mercy of God, as represented in His four letter name.

Listen to a podcast on Parshat Vayigash-Vayehi right here.

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Abraham never stopped moving, teaching, building, caring, loving, striving, achieving, and fulfilling his mission, his destiny. His legacy to us is the same message that God first spoke to him.

What are you waiting for?

In his answer, the Rambam explains that prior to eating of the Tree of Knowledge, Man possessed the ability to differentiate between Emet-Truth and Sheker-Falsehood, which are objective categories. After the sin, this objective clarity was clouded by the subjective categories of Good and Bad. No longer would Man see the world, and himself, with absolute clarity and navigate between truth and falsehood with complete objectivity. This pre-sin state was represented in the Torah by Man’s nakedness, which was, after the sin, hidden by clothing. The clothing represents the doubt, insecurity, and confusion that prevent Man from seeing the objective Emet and Sheker.

Our job is to cut through the “cloudiness” and differentiate between Emet and Sheker.

The lesson that we can take from this is powerful. Although the ten spies sinned, they were not “sinners”. They were righteous men who sinned, and were punished for it, but their essense was not evil. Every person has a pure and holy soul (neshama) that constantly strives to connect with God. That soul remains pure regardless of what our evil inclination compels our mind and bodies to do. We have the power to bury our soul under layers of obstacles, or to remove the obstacles and let it soar.Whatever we decide to do, the essence of our soul remains pure and holy.

When ten Jews join together they form a holy bond of pure souls, regardless of their sins. This is the power of the Minyan.

One possible reason is that the Torah is making clear that it is an obligation to work. Whatever form that work takes it is an obligation for every person to use their talents, abilities, and creativity to help build civilization. By doing so, we become partners with God in Creation. When we observe Shabbat we emulate God by resting from creative activity. Therefore, by engaging in creative activity during the rest of the week we are emulating God’s own creative acts.

Another way of answering our original question is that there needs to be a contrast between Shabbat and the rest of the week in order to make Shabbat stand out and appreciated by us. When we enter Shabbat from a busy work week we experience the spirituality and holiness of Shabbat much differently than if we enter Shabbat from the midst of a vacation. Therefore, by working during the week we are certain to appreciate Shabbat more fully.

There is one final answer that I think sheds a totally unique light on our understanding of Shabbat. Shabbat is not an isolated event in time. Rather, it is the climax of a process representing creation. That process begins on the first day of the week, crescendos in the middle, and climaxes on the seventh day, Shabbat. If Shabbat is part of a process then that process, and therefore Shabbat, is affected by what we do not only on Shabbat but also during the rest of the week. In other words, if Shabbat is 75% of the “process” and the rest of the week is 25%, we cannot reach a 100% level of fulfillment without both parts.

Based on this new understanding it is no longer possible to be a “holy” Jew on the Shabbat while acting dishonestly in business during the week for our weekday improprieties impinge upon our total fulfillment of Shabbat. We can’t just be Jews one day a week. We need to imitate those Manhattan drug stores and be open 24/7 for Torah and Mitzvah observance. By doing so we will attain the wholeness and balance that will enhance our spiritual lives and contribute to our overall fulfillment.

Our Sages teach that the numerical value of “Amalek” is equal to the word “Safek”, which means doubt. By being the first to attack to the Jewish nation after their exodus of Egypt, Amalek sowed doubt into their hearts, by showing that they were susceptible to the same trails and tribulations like any other nation, and that perhaps they weren’t as “chosen” as they thought. Amalek made the Jews question their relationship with God. Was God actually still with them as He had been during the splitting of the sea? For a moment, it seemed as though God was gone, hidden from view. The Sages call this idea of God “hiding” from the world, “Hester Panim”.

Now we can begin to understand why we read this special torah portion right before Purim. The name of God is not mentioned at all in the entire Book of Esther (Megillat Esther). There are no open miracles that occur to save the Jews from destruction at the hands of Haman. Instead, it is Esther, whose very name implies Hester Panim, who serves as the tool of God’s salvation, along with Mordechai and the Persian king Achashverosh. When all seems lost for the Jews, Haman is reigning supreme, and God seems nowhere to be found, everything suddenly turns upside down, and salvation comes.

Purim is a lesson in destroying Safek (doubt). It teaches us how to see God even when he is “hidden”, how to wipe out the Amalek within each of us.

May we be blessed with the strength to overcome the doubts that plague us and hold us back from achieving our full potential, and to see God even when it looks like He’s not there.