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As Abraham returned from the akeida, or near-sacrifice of his son Isaac, he thought about how to marry him off. He reasoned, if Isaac had died in the akeida, then G-d’s promise that he would have many descendents through Isaac would have gone un-fulfilled. Therefore, it was necessary to find a soul-mate for Isaac, as soon as possible. In short order, Abraham sent his servant, Eliezer, to his homeland to find a wife for Isaac. Eliezer, laden with gifts from his master, arrived in Charan and uttered a prayer for success. Before he even finished saying his prayer, Rivka appeared and offered to water his animals and provide hospitality. Since that was the content of his prayer, Eliezer knew that Rivka was Isaac’s soul-mate.
The Midrash (Rabba, 60:4) says in the name of R’ Shimon, “Three were answered while saying their prayers; Eliezer servant of Abraham (“He didn’t yet finish speaking and Rivka emerged” – Gen. 24:15), Moshe (“And as he finished speaking…the ground opened up” – Num. 16:31), and King Solomon (“And as Shlomo finished praying to G-d, fire descended from the heavens” – Chronicles 7:1). Since all three – Eliezer, Moshe and Shlomo – are mentioned in one Midrash, it’s obvious that there is a common thread between them. And yet, what did Eliezer, a servant, have in common with Moshe and Shlomo, who were kings and leaders in their respective generations? Even more-so, how is it possible that Eliezer was answered even faster than Moshe and Shlomo? Yet, that is what the Scripture says; Eliezer was answered even before he finished praying, while the others were answered only as they finished their prayers.
Another question that we could ask; what was the unique quality shared by these three that led to such a quick and immediate response from Above? Why does the Midrash single them out, and not others, to say that they were answered “while still praying”? Since they are so different from each other, and yet all were answered quickly, perhaps it wasn’t the people who had something in common, but their prayers. All of them prayed in such a way, about such a topic, that demanded and received an immediate answer from Above. And this had to do not with their personalities, but with the content and nature of their prayers. But if so, that demands explanation – what was special about their prayers such that they were answered “while they prayed”?
Nobody’s perfect. Everyone makes mistakes (although there are tzaddikim - righteous people - whose mistakes are so refined that we would never recognize them as such). But, G-d gave us the ability to make amends by doing tshuva – return to Him – after we distance ourselves by doing some form of transgression. About this, the Rambam says (Hilchot Tshuva 7:6); “Tshuva brings people close to G-d. Last night, one may have been detested by G-d, disgusting, loathsome and far, while today he is beloved, delightful, near and friendly.” And in the next halacha (7), the Rambam says, “How tremendous is the benefit of tshuva; last night one may have been separate from G-d…praying without being answered…and today he is cleaving to the shechina…praying and being answered right away.” The Rambam is very precise in his choice of words, so it is puzzling why he would seem to repeat himself from one halacha to the next. Why do both halachot (6 and 7) speak of one who was “last night far away” and now “close”? But in truth, the Rambam was describing two different levels of tshuva. In the first halacha, he described one who was far from serving G-d, but who “came closer.” But, in the second halacha (7), the Rambam describes one who not only approached and came near to G-d, but who “cleaved” to the shechina. That is, he became one with the shechina, united and cleaving. And it is for that reason that in the second halacha, the Rambam says that such a person prays and is “answered immediately.” It is the cleaving and unity with G-d that brings an immediate answer to his prayers. One who comes close to G-d receives answers to his prayers, sooner or later. But, one who cleaves to Him receives immediate answers, without having to wait at all.
From the Rambam, we learn the reason why someone praying might be answered only after a delay, if at all. When the person and G-d are two separate entities, then there is “space” between man and the Creator. Since they are two entities, even though one might strive to draw near and approach the other, there is “distance” between them and therefore a delay in receiving the response to one’s prayers. However, when the person praying “cleaves” to the One above, then the distance is erased. Since they become “one,” the person receives his answer from G-d immediately, without any delay.
This helps us explain how Eliezer, Moshe and Shlomo were different from most others who pray. Because they cleaved to G-d in their prayers, becoming as if one with Him, they were answered immediately. However, it doesn’t help us understand the difference between Eliezer, vs. Moshe and Shlomo, nor why these three were mentioned and not many others who cleaved to G-d in prayer. For this, we need to examine the subject of their respective prayers. And when we look at their prayers, we find that they correspond to the three different ways in which the world unites and cleaves with G-d. They are; unity of man and G-d (Moshe), unity of physical creation and G-d (King Shlomo) and unity of Torah and G-d (Eliezer).
Unity of G-d and man takes place in prophecy. As the Rambam wrote (Hilchot Yesodei Hatorah 7:1), “One of the foundations of our faith is that G-d causes man to prophesy.” And as the Ari said, G-dliness “is en-clothed in their mind and intellect by in a vision of prophecy, as well as their thought and speech.” In prophecy, G-d reveals His secrets to man, and in prophecy is where the greatest unity and cleaving of G-d and man occurs. And that’s why the Midrash quotes Moshe, saying, “by this you will know that G-d sent me to do all these thingsŔ When the earth immediately split and swallowed Korach and his group, it became clear that G-d had made Himself known to Moshe in prophecy, just as Moshe predicted, thus demonstrating the unity of G-d with man.
Unity of G-d with the physical creation took place at the point where the shechina comes down to earth – where the holy Temple, or Beit HaMikdash stood. As the Midrash mentions, it was there that Shlomo prayed, “I have built a house for you, a place for your eternal dwelling” (Chronicles 2), and “the heavens and the heaven’s heavens can’t contain You, and how can this house that I built [contain You]?” (Kings 27, Chronicles 18). As Shlomo finished his prayers, he received his answer; a fire came down from Above to consume the offerings he had brought, demonstrating the ultimate unity of G-d and the physical creation.
Because both Moshe and Shlomo cleaved to G-d, their prayers were answered immediately. However, the scripture tells us that they were answered “as they finished” their prayers. How are they different from Eliezer, who was answered even before he finished praying?
Eliezer’s prayer represented the unity of G-d with the Torah. As we stated last week and the week before, with Abraham began the era of preparation for the receiving of the Torah. Before the Torah was given, there was a gulf between the upper spiritual realm and the lower physical realm; they never came together. With the advent of the forefathers and mothers, the two began to approach one another; the forefathers were able to bring spirituality down into the world, as well as uplift the physical creation, but only temporarily. As they did a “mitzvah,” G-dliness came down to permeate the physical object of the mitzvah, but once they finished doing it, the spirituality disappeared. This continued until the generation of Moshe, who gave the Jews the tool for permanently fixing spirituality in the physical world, and elevating the creation. The tool was the Torah, which enabled the Jews to transform the world permanently by doing mitzvoth. But, the years of the forefathers were the preparation for the Torah. The first time that a true unity between the upper and lower realms occurred was during the lifetime of Isaac and Rivka, when they got married.
Isaac was from the upper worlds – he was an olah temima – an unblemished perfect being who never left the land of Israel. He was brought up in the house of Abraham and Sarah, in a state of kedusha and holiness, which he never abandoned or diminished. Rivka, on the other hand, grew up among idol-worshippers and impure spirituality. She was a spiritual gem trapped in impure circumstances. Because of the gulf between them, her match with Isaac required miraculous intervention in the person of Eliezer, servant of Abraham. When he prayed, it was for the sake of Torah, for the sake of creating the first real match between the upper spiritual and the lower physical realms. The match between Isaac and Rivka was a meeting of the upper and lower worlds, in such a way as to produce a permanent, lasting effect upon the world. (This was not true of Abraham and Sarah, both of whom came from impure circumstances, from the homes of idol worshippers. They both completely rejected their circumstances and established a holy household together, but it cannot be said that they united the upper spiritual realm with the lower, since they both came from the latter.)
And that’s why Eliezer was answered even before he finished his prayers. The Midrash relates that during the six days of creation, G-d made a pact; if the Jews accept the Torah, the creation will be maintained, and if not, G-d will destroy it. From this we see that the necessity of Torah and mitzvoth is built into the creation. There can be no creation without Torah and mitzvoth, nor is there a need for mitzvoth without the physical creation. The unity is built-in and innate; one cannot exist without the other. The unity of G-d and the Torah (the source of mitzvoth) is qualitatively different from the unity between G-d and man (regarding the prayer of Moshe). It is also different than the unity between G-d and His physical creation (regarding the prayer of Shlomo). And therein lies the difference between the way Eliezer was answered and the way Moshe and Shlomo were answered.
When a prophecy would come to a prophet, it would be either before he began to prophesy, or during, or after, but he was never in a permanent state of prophecy. He and the prophecy were always two different entities. The same is true of revelation in the Beit Hamikdash; it was not permanent, as we see that the revelation in the second Temple was not as high as in the first, and that ultimately the temple itself was destroyed (though the holiness of the place remains). This indicates that G-d and man, as well as G-d and His creation, are two entities, separate from one another. However, G-d and the Torah cannot be separated. As the Midrash says, when G-d gave the Torah to the Jews, it was with the words “Anochi,” which is an acronym for “I took my soul, wrote it down, and gave it over.” The Torah is the soul of G-d and not something separate from Him. And that’s why Eliezer, representing the unity of G-d with Torah was answered even before he finished praying. If he had been answered as he finished (as were Moshe and Shlomo), it would have implied that G-d and the Torah were separate entities – united and cleaving, but nevertheless two. Put slightly differently, G-dliness is something ‘new’ to man, as it is to the physical world. But, G-d is not ‘new’ to the Torah. Because G-d is one with His Torah, and they are inseparable, Eliezer was answered even before he finished his prayer.
The lesson for us is obvious – to achieve the greatest possible unity and cleaving to the One above. The more we put aside our own egos and let G-d in, the more we are capable of praying with cleaving and unity with the One above. And then, we will be answered in ultimate speed, with the building of the third and permanent Temple and the renewal of prophecy among all the Jewish people immediately!
From Likutei Sichot of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, ztz’l, vol. 20, pp. 91-99
Rabbi David Sterne, Jerusalem Connection in the Old City of Jerusalem