Sefer Yeshayahu, chapter 51, verse 1. "Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek Hashem; look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug." Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek Hashem, consider, look to the rock from which you were hewn, which Chazal expound as Avraham, and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug, which is Sarah. Sarah, who is essentially the woman, she is the female, is compared to the hollow of the pit, to a hollowed pit from which you were dug. The Radak, on the other hand, says that the Ibn Ezra explains it the reverse way. The rock is Avraham, the hollow of the pit is Sarah, but the Ibn Ezra says the opposite. The rock is Sarah, the hollow of the pit is Avraham. Why? Because he explains that in a man and a woman there is an active party and a passive party. There is active and there is passive. The rock from which you were hewn, says the Ibn Ezra, is Sarah. Because when I hew from the rock, which is the active one? The chisel or the rock? The active one is the chisel. The chisel means the axe with which I hew. Who is the passive one? That is the rock. So too with a man and a woman, the man is the active one, the woman is the passive one. So look to the rock from which you were hewn, this is Sarah Imenu, who is the passive one, like the rock. And to the hollow of the pit, the hollow of the pit is the tool with which one bores, from which you were dug, this is Avraham Avinu who is like the chisel, the borer, he is the active one. That is according to the Ibn Ezra.
The Malbim explains, listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek Hashem. What is the difference between one who pursues righteousness and one who seeks Hashem? Righteousness, says the Malbim, always comes to express matters between man and his fellow. Those who seek Hashem, that is between man and God. Look, you claim, we are few, you claim that after all most of the world are wicked, worshippers of stars and constellations, how can we become the great ones? How can we become the essential ones? How many are there of Am Yisrael? Fifteen million. How many gentiles are there? Seven billion. So, where are we and where are they? He tells them, do not make such a calculation. Look at history. Look to the rock from which you were hewn. Here, look, from where were you hewn? Avraham Avinu. After all, Avraham Avinu was alone in his generation. Avraham on one side and the entire world on the other side. And behold, in the end, what do you see? Avraham, the individual, the persecuted one, the one from whom seemingly we would not have expected anything to emerge, became a father of a multitude of nations. A father of a multitude of nations is simply unbelievable, because millions came from a single man. And if you wish you can also add to this Yishmael, for Yishmael too is descended from Avraham. And if you wish you can add to this all the children of Edom, for the children of Edom too are sons of Avraham, descendants of Avraham, for the children of Edom came from Yitzchak, from whom Esav actually came. So see how many emerged, and this is without taking into account those in the Far East, those who came from Hagar, who in the end are also sons of Avraham, the sons of the concubines. So come and see how many emerged from one man. But let us set aside all the gentiles, and relate only to Am Yisrael. Avraham was alone in his generation, publicized the faith, was persecuted by everyone, Nimrod wanted to cast him into the fiery furnace, and with all this he became a father of a multitude of nations.
Look to the rock from which you were hewn. The Malbim has here a truly wonderful explanation. The Malbim says, if for example there is some rock and a stone was hewn from it, and I now want to see from which rock this stone was hewn, what are the criteria that will help me determine from which rock the stone was hewn? Says the Malbim, two aspects. Two aspects with which we can examine this matter. One thing, whether the part resembles the whole. Rocks, take marble for example, there are all kinds of shades, there are all kinds of types, there are all kinds of depths, there are styles of stone. There are many things by which one can decide. I bring the one close to the other, one to one. The color matches, the strength matches, the type of stone matches, by this I can know. The quality of the stone, that can determine it for me. A second thing, says the Malbim, if I see a stone of a certain type, say a stone that is round, and it was hewn round from the rock, in order to know from where it was hewn, even if I am color blind, even if I have no sense to determine the nature of the stone, its strength, I take the stone and try to insert it into the place from which it was hewn. It fits exactly, so it was hewn from here. I know that it came from here. Here you see, I take it out, I put it back, look it fits perfectly. That is to say, by its external form, that I insert it into that place and it is equal to the cavity from which it emerged, by this I can know that this stone was hewn from there. So we have, if so, two comparisons. One comparison of quality and a second comparison of quantity. The quality of the thing, the type of thing, the character of the stone, its strength, its form, its color, that is what I mean. That is one criterion. A second criterion is quantity. I see, it matches in terms of quantity that hole from which it emerged, that means it is the same stone, the very same stone. The Malbim says about this, with respect to the comparison of quality, he says look to the rock from which you were hewn. Why? Because when I compare in terms of quality, I do not compare to a specific point. The whole rock. Look at the whole rock. The whole rock is this color, the whole rock is this strength, so this stone is from this rock. Here we are speaking now in terms of quality. And therefore he says to the rock from which you were hewn, because this I compare to the whole rock, to the whole boulder. On the other hand, regarding the comparison of quantity, he says look to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug. Because here we need to make the comparison to the boring. Boring means the hollowed out place, like a bored out eye. It means a place that is now sunken as a result of boring out the eye. So look to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug, to the place, the pit that remains as a result of the boring, as a result of removing that part. Here he speaks of quantity. That is, he speaks of seeing whether it is the same quantity, the same size, whether it fits, and if it fits it means this is the source, this is the foundation.
What does he now want to say with this? So we will check in terms of the resemblance of quality, in terms of the resemblance of quantity, that is it, we are from there, fine. What does this actually mean? Look to Avraham your father and to Sarah who bore you, for when he was but one I called him, and blessed him, and made him many. Look to Avraham your father. Here, see, Avraham was a single individual against many nations who were all in error, pagans, idol worshippers. Once Avraham Avinu was the only one who revealed His Godliness, blessed be He. And today what is most of the world? Worshippers of Hashem or worshippers of idols? Most of the world are worshippers of Hashem. What are the Christians called? Worshippers of Hashem. What are the Muslims called? Worshippers of Hashem. Where are the idol worshippers found? Somewhere in India, somewhere in China and all sorts, though China in truth is not really, because China is a communist country, but they have no faith at all. But in all sorts of remote places, you see such people who still take an idol and bow to it. They take an image and prostrate to it. Today most of the world believes in one God. And even here in the Land they want to tell you that most of the public is secular, as the head of the abhorrent party said upon the Knesset, but this is an attempt to blur the facts. Because the reality is, according to a Gallup poll, that ninety five percent of those dwelling in Zion are people who believe in the Creator of the world. That is to say, how many do they represent? How many do the deniers represent? Barely five percent. And even those five percent, suddenly something happens to a person, Master of the world save me. That is when you need to speak on the media or in polls, you are of the five percent. But if, God forbid, there is some trouble that should not befall any Jew, suddenly you see that even this person is a hidden believer. A believer, he is a hidden tzaddik. Suddenly it turns out to you that this person, in secret, truly does believe, perhaps it is uncomfortable, listen, it is not so respectable today to speak about the Creator of the world, but truly you see that something happens and the faith of that person is revealed too. This means, that in fact the reason that today most of the world are believers in one God, to whom is this attributed? To Avraham Avinu. Until then everyone was idol worshippers. Few, isolated individuals were those in the study halls of Shem and Ever, how many were they? You could count them on your fingers. And today most of the world believes in one God. Today to say you are an idol worshipper, taking an idol and bowing to it, you are considered some bushman from the forests of Africa, you are perceived as some backward person. Simply so, as a person who is mentally deficient. But the refined nations, the advanced nations, all believe in one God. All believe that there is a Creator of the world. So there are those who believe He also has a false prophet whom they called Muhammad, and there are those who believe in the impure trinity. All this is additions. But the very belief in one God, in whose merit did the whole world become believing? Avraham. He made a revolution of one man. The revolution of 1948. Avraham Avinu was born in 1948, yes? Not to the birth of that man, but to the creation of the world, yes? That is to say we understand that one man made a revolution that transformed the entire world. And if you wish, when was the true revolution of forty eight? In 2448. What happened? The giving of the Torah. That is the true revolution of forty eight. Let them not confuse you with another forty eight, yes? Let them not confuse you with numbers. That is the true forty eight. Yes, the one that truly establishes for all generations and for all eternity.
So here, see, Avraham was a single individual against many who erred. And corresponding to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug, he says look, now let us speak of the physical aspect, as we explained, for here I am speaking of the resemblance. Here look, this was hewn from here, he is speaking here of quantity. Quantity is the physical aspect. Look also from the physical aspect, there was no chance that anything would emerge from you. For what was Sarah Imenu? Barren. And behold this barren woman not only bore seven, here she bore millions. Who can describe and comprehend such a thing? So you, you speak in earthly, physical terms? Here see that your historical reality does not stand by any parameter and any earthly physical criterion. You are entirely above nature. Because by earthly physical criteria there was no chance that one man would bring about a transformation in the entire world, a spiritual transformation. And there was no chance that a woman of ninety who had no womb, Chazal say she did not even have a womb, she had no uterus, that she would give birth and from her would emerge many millions. So here, what are you talking about, about reality? Forget about reality. You have to look to your foundations. And your foundations operate above nature, above reality. And if so, through this you will understand that even now, even though you see that we are in exile, and you see that the nations are the majority, and you see that they set the agenda for us, how could we suddenly become the essential ones? Suddenly everything will be reversed? Suddenly there will be redemption? Suddenly Mashiach will come? What, has it never happened before? Says the Holy One, blessed be He, learn history. Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug. Look to Avraham your father and to Sarah who bore you. And how did all this happen? Do you think it just happened? For when he was but one I called him, and blessed him, and made him many. When he was but one I called him, here there was the aspect of one. One is something that does not multiply. And with all this, says the Holy One, blessed be He, I called him and gave him the power and made him many. And with all this I blessed him with what? That he would be able to bring merit to the many. And in the merit of the blessing of the Creator of the world, through this he became a father of a multitude of nations, everyone knew Avraham and through this he taught the erring ones understanding. So from where did all this come? From Hashem. Says the Holy One, blessed be He, I am still here. I am still here, and what you see that has been, is also what is destined to be.
And what will be? For Hashem has comforted Zion, He has comforted all her ruins, and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Hashem; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of song. For Hashem has comforted Zion. So too you should hope and wait and yearn that Hashem will comfort Zion. Zion is now desolate, and Hashem will comfort her. And Hashem will comfort her ruins. You see Eretz Yisrael when it is ruined and desolate for two thousand years already, Hashem will comfort her ruins. And Hashem will make her wilderness be like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Hashem. What is the difference between wilderness and desert? Between Eden and the garden of Hashem? Rashi explained that the difference between wilderness and desert is that both are desolate, only the desert had been settled and was destroyed. On the other hand a wilderness, there was never any settlement in it. But let us see how the Malbim explains. The Malbim says, the difference between wilderness and desert, the wilderness is a desolate land. On the other hand the desert is places where thorns and thistles and brambles grow. These are not places of gardens and orchards, but it is a place that is already, it is not completely arid. There are thorns, thistles and brambles in it. The desert is within the wilderness. Like the gardens and planted places within a settlement. Just as there is a settlement and within it there is a garden and orchard, so too there is a wilderness and within it there is a desert. What is a desert? Places with a little growth, thorns, thistles. About this he comes and says, and He will make her wilderness like Eden. The Holy One, blessed be He, the wilderness, which as I said is the completely desolate place, He will make it like Eden. And her desert like the garden of Hashem. The wilderness which is the desolate place will be like Eden. Eden, what is that? A garden, what is that? One must know, there are many who get confused and think that Gan Eden is one thing. The garden is separate and Eden is separate. These are explicit verses, we do not need Gemara for this, these are explicit verses. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden. That is to say you understand that the garden is separate and Eden is separate. It emerges, then, that the Holy One, blessed be He, planted a garden in Eden in the east. So says the verse, and He planted a garden in Eden in the east. The place is called Eden, and within it the Holy One, blessed be He, planted a garden. And if so, when we want to apply this comparison to ourselves, the Holy One, blessed be He, the wilderness, the most desolate place, He will make it like Eden. And the place that is desert, which as we said is already a place that has some growth, has thorns and thistles, has some life, brambles and the like, this which is already more praiseworthy, He will turn into a garden. And her desert like the garden of Hashem. The desert, her desert meaning her desert, and the desert He will turn into the garden of Hashem. What does he want to say? Says the Malbim, the meaning is a place that is ruined of people, you see the place desolate, it will become a place of settlement, and a choice settlement in the aspect of Eden. Today it is a wilderness, but it will be Eden. And on the other hand, a place where wicked people dwell today, for the desert is a place of the growth of thorns, thistles, brambles, which are really the wicked, this will be the garden of Hashem. This will be a place of the dwelling of the righteous. Like a garden that is in Eden. And then in a place where robbery and destruction were heard, in a place where only the revelry of the wicked was heard, things that break the heart, what will be there, joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of song. What is the difference between joy and gladness? The Malbim explains, joy is external. Gladness is the inner joy that accompanies a person. The Gaon of Vilna also says that gladness always comes to express the joy of the soul. So this place that until now was either desolate or settled with idolaters, will have in it joy and gladness, thanksgiving to the Master of the world and the sound of song. They will give thanks and praise to the Creator in a place that until now was a place of crime.
Attend to Me, My people, and give ear to Me, My nation, for Torah will go forth from Me, and I will set My justice as a light to the peoples. And therefore, attend to Me, My people. You who are My people, attend to Me. Do not refuse any longer the words of the prophet. What is the difference between My people and My nation? Says the Malbim, My people is from the standpoint of governance. My nation is from the standpoint of religion. Whenever one speaks of a nation, it is a group that has a unified religion. I can define the Christian nation. On the other hand, I can say the French people. Even though you could say listen, the French people too are all believers in Christianity. But when I speak of a people, I speak of a group that has a certain governance, a political governance. And on the other hand when I speak of a nation, I speak of a group that has a certain religious governance. That is to say, they all go by the same, by the same faith, by the same religion. So when I speak of religion, I can speak of the Arab nation. And when I speak of a people, I can begin to detail among them, to speak of Egypt and Iraq and... because I am speaking here of the governances of a people. And therefore he says, give ear, My nation. Give ear to Me, My nation. My nation as we explained, nation is from the expression of a group that has a certain religion. So give ear, My nation, what will you give ear to? For Torah will go forth from Me. Give ear to My Torah for from Me Torah will go forth to the whole world. Because as we explained, My nation speaks of the Torah governance, of the faith that the entire nation has. And attend to Me, My people, what is the meaning of the proper mode of governance between man and his fellow? For after all political governance is meant to create some cooperation by which groups of people can live together. Why is governance needed? So that people do not devour one another alive. It is more for the sake of matters between man and his fellow, so that there will be an overall governance for the collective. So attend to Me, My people, why? For I will set My justice as a light to the peoples. When one speaks of political governance, which as we explained is the expression people, I will establish justice and governance and customs by whose light many peoples will walk. So the Holy One, blessed be He, promises here two things. Give ear, My nation, which is the aspect of a nation connected to matters of religion, here Torah will go forth from Me. All the peoples will recognize the Torah of Hashem. And attend, My people, which speaks of earthly governance, as we explained political governance, that I will set My justice as a light to the peoples. Everyone will go according to the justice of Hashem in the governance between man and his fellow. The Malbim says that there is a difference between attending and giving ear. Notice, attend to Me, My people, and give ear, My nation. Says the Malbim, what is the difference? Attending is lesser than giving ear. Because at first a person attends a little, then he really begins to give ear. At first I attended somewhat, then I gave ear. Giving ear is always more than attending. And therefore notice, with respect to the Torah he says and give ear to Me, My nation. Because when it comes to the holy Torah, here one must give ear. You cannot listen with a loose hearing. You cannot just have some temporary attending. You must truly give ear. And therefore here one must give ear for Torah will go forth from Me. But justice, justice will be a light to the peoples. And since justice is a light to the peoples, they attend from afar. And therefore notice, attend to Me, My people. Because when it comes to justice that all the peoples will need to hear in matters of governance, here it is attending from afar. And especially since when one speaks of the Torah, the Torah is essentially to us. And therefore we must give ear, for here He turns to Am Yisrael, I am speaking to you, so give ear. But on the other hand when He speaks of political governance, in fact here the address is more to the other peoples, that they should have political governance according to the Torah of Hashem. So this is attend to Me. What is the meaning of attend? Attending from afar, not from up close, because here He is really addressing the other nations. And then, if so it will be, then I will set My justice as a light to the peoples. Through My justice the peoples will attain light and peace of mind. Peace of mind means governance, they will be led with tranquility, with ease, with peace of soul.
My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, and My arms will judge the peoples; the islands wait for Me, and for My arm they hope. The Malbim explains, until now they would see the governance of Hashem and had questions. Why is a righteous person suffering, and a wicked one prospering? Why are the wicked at ease and the righteous suffer? Why does Hashem not give reward and punishment? Says the Holy One, blessed be He, do not worry, My righteousness is near. The time is near when righteousness will be revealed in the world. When? When My salvation goes forth and My arms judge the peoples. When it goes from potential to actuality and My salvation is revealed. My salvation is the deliverance. Deliverance for whom? For the righteous. And then you ask, well and what about the judgment of the wicked? And My arms will judge the peoples. And then there will also be the judgment of the wicked. So My righteousness is near, that is to say soon, very soon, you will already see the righteous judgment of the Holy One, blessed be He, carried out in the world. The islands wait for Me, and for My arm they hope. What is the difference between waiting and hoping? Says the Malbim, there is a difference between waiting and expectant hope. Waiting is also for something that was not promised to me and for which I have no fixed time. I have no target date for it. What do you say, will it be like this or not? Listen, I wait. What does wait mean? Who promised you? No one promised me, I wait. When? When are we talking about? Hashem knows. Waiting is not promised and also is not about a certain date. Waiting, one waits. On the other hand, someone who hopes expectantly, I hope expectantly for something, I am already expectantly hoping for it. What does expectant hope mean? The thing was promised to me, a date was also set for me, I already hope expectantly that this thing will arrive. I hope expectantly and anticipate that this thing will come. The islands wait for Me. Says the Holy One, blessed be He, the islands will wait for My salvation. What is the meaning? This is by way of waiting. They do not hope expectantly, I did not promise to save the islands. They only wait by way of hoping. But for My arm, for My might, to punish the wicked, they hope expectantly. He says after all I promised this. For this I set a date. About this I said the great and awesome day of Hashem will come on which Hashem will exact retribution from the wicked. And there is a deadline. We all know that there is a fixed duration for the world. And the world will not exist forever. And we all know that the world will exist for six thousand years and one will be ruined. And according to this, if so, this is expectant hope. I hope expectantly for a thing that was promised to me, and I already anticipate when it will come, because I was also told regarding it some time by which the matter was limited, that it will arrive by this certain date. And therefore says the Holy One, blessed be He, do not despair of the waiting and the expectant hope. For even though many generations have passed, the expectant hope will arrive and the waiting will arrive. The Malbim says that they wait and hope expectantly, as I explained, waiting is something not promised and not limited in time, and hoping expectantly is a limited time that was set for me and promised to me. He brings examples for this, for good I waited, and I hope expectantly for light. Good, I only waited. No one promised me. But on the other hand light, I know when the day arrives. It is promised to me that every day at a certain hour the day will arrive. So for this I hope expectantly, I hope expectantly for light. Or I waited for Hashem, that I do not know, it is not promised to me, I only wait. And for His word, His promise, for His word He promised me, I hope expectantly. For this I already hope expectantly. Because for this one truly must hope expectantly, here a limited time was already set for me. Therefore we saw that seven days you shall wait expectantly. And he waited expectantly seven days. Why? Again, we are speaking here of a fixed date. Seven days you shall wait expectantly. Wait seven days, something was promised to me, at the end of the seven days, at the end of the seven days Shmuel says, I will arrive. So we always see that to hope expectantly means to wait for a promised thing for which I have a target date. On the other hand to wait, that is only anticipating that it will be good.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, and the earth will wear out like a garment, and its dwellers will die in like manner; but My salvation will be forever, and My righteousness will not be shattered. First of all, here you discover from where comes "the earth will wear out like a garment and the heavens will vanish like smoke" that we say in the Selichot. This is the source. Today we will also have the opportunity to understand what we say. Lift up your eyes to the heavens and look at the earth beneath, for the heavens will vanish like smoke and the earth will wear out like a garment. Rashi explains, what is this, the heavens will vanish like smoke? These are the ministering hosts of the gentiles in the heavens. This is somewhat difficult, since it is written here lift up your eyes to the heavens and look, for the heavens will vanish like smoke. We cannot see such a thing. How can I see that the ministering hosts of the idolaters in the heavens were destroyed? Unless I can say through the consequences of this on earth, so that I understand that this is what happened in the heavens. When I see what happens to them on earth, I understand that their ministers in the heavens were destroyed. When I see how Egypt is defeated before Bnei Yisrael, then I know that the minister of Egypt died on the seashore. That is to say, I draw the conclusions from this. Vanished, says Rashi, means wore out. Like worn out rags and tatters. A destroyed garment is called worn out. So the heavens like smoke were destroyed. An additional explanation Rashi says, vanished does not mean wore out but became confused. Says Rashi, the sailors, see a wonderful explanation. Why are sailors at sea called melachim? Because what do they do? They mix the waters with the oars. Well mixed, pure, holy, says Rashi, mixed. That is the meaning of well mixed. So when they salt something, what do they do to a dish when they salt it? They mix it, they stir it. So to salt, according to this, means to mix, to stir. Well mixed, mixed, pure, holy. So if so, see that the heavens became mixed, appear as though mixed in smoke. And the earth will wear out like a garment. What is the earth? According to Rashi it means the rulers of the earth. And its dwellers, meaning the dwellers of the earth, they too will die in like manner. But in any case, My salvation to My people will be. Nevertheless, says the Holy One, blessed be He, I will have salvation for My people. Another explanation Rashi says, that the heavens and the earth are literal. Literally they were destroyed. For now according to what he explained, heavens are the ministers of the heavens, earth is the rulers of the earth, the ministers of the earth. An additional explanation Rashi says, this is literal. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens and the earth and see. How strong and healthy they are? Nevertheless, they will wear out. And on the other hand, My righteousness and My salvation will be forever. You see that My charity and salvation are stronger than heavens and earth that are destined to wear out. But this immediately arouses a tremendous question. Charity and salvation for whom does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? For Am Yisrael. Where does Am Yisrael dwell? In the Land. The Land now, what did you say will happen to it? It will wear out and the heavens will vanish like smoke. So is this not a paradox? Hashem will give salvation to the Land, to Am Yisrael dwelling in the Land, and the heavens and the earth will wear out. So where will the salvation be? You are saying to save us. How can this be understood? And the Radak indeed asks the question, if this verse is according to its plain meaning, how can it say and My salvation will be forever? If the world is lost, how will there be salvation and charity? If there is no created world, if the world does not exist, then how will we have salvation? Therefore he explains one interpretation in the name of his father, that the meaning is as it were this will be and this will not be. I will not explain now, because we will soon see the Malbim, for this in fact fits with the line of the Malbim, and we will want to connect it with the Malbim. The Ibn Ezra explains that here it speaks of the soul of man. And he explains thus, the heavens are the air and the firmament. The earth is the inhabited place. He says look, it could be that there will be a situation where the heavens became polluted. Today we hear of all sorts of situations of air pollution. There is a situation where there is change and loss in the world's air. There is a situation of change in the earth. What is change in the earth? Here he speaks of earthquakes and the like. Notice, he does not speak of the earth being absolutely destroyed. Geological changes. And also change in the world's air. He says such a thing can indeed happen. Damages can indeed happen. And then as a result of this its dwellers will die in like manner. So if there are such changes and all the air becomes toxic and on earth there are earthquakes, then this also ensures that its dwellers will die in like manner. And what then does this mean? And My salvation will be forever, what are we talking about? About the soul. That the soul is spiritual and eternal and it will remain forever. It emerges that according to the Ibn Ezra, indeed so, it means that everything here will be destroyed, and what will remain in existence is the soul which is eternal. Does the soul need the earth? It does not need the earth. The soul will remain in existence.
An additional explanation the Radak brings from the great Rav, Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon. From the Rambam. An explanation of the Rambam in the Moreh Nevuchim. And the Rambam in the Moreh Nevuchim explains that as it were everything written here is really a parable. He says to them, here see that the heavens will as it were be destroyed, and the earth will as it were be desolate, everyone will die and you will remain in existence. What does he want to say by "as it were"? They, the gentiles, are considered as strong as the heavens. As it were this seems to you something that will never be nullified. And with all this they will perish quickly like the consuming of smoke. And likewise too, you see all that they built here on earth, the nations and all that is connected to them, they are strong, seem to us mighty and such that will remain here forever, like the earth. They seem strong like the earth. And with all this he tells you, the earth will wear out like a garment. What seems to you strong like the earth will wear out like a garment. What seems to you mighty and will remain forever like the heavens, in smoke will be consumed. That is to say, here we speak of a parable. They seem to you as strong and mighty as the heavens, do not be impressed by this. All this is destined to be nullified, all this will be shattered. And all these vanished. What is vanished? According to the Rambam, according to the Radak, this is destruction. Like a salt land that shall not be settled. The land was destroyed and will not be settled again. And all these, says the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were will perish. And My righteousness will not be shattered. The charity that I do will not be broken, it will remain in existence forever.
The Malbim explains in an interpretation that as I said earlier is closer to the line of the Radak's father. And I told you that always, when you hear an interpretation in the name of the Radak's father, examine it well because he had truly wonderful interpretations, the Radak's father, and from time to time he brings interpretations in his name. The Malbim says that he wants to tell them, as it were, even if the heavens are destroyed and the earth wears out, My salvation will be forever. That is to say, it does not mean that this is what will happen. Rather he says, even if this happens, My salvation will be forever. That is to say, My salvation is stronger than the heavens and the earth. Even if they wear out, My salvation will remain in existence. This is in fact what he wants to say to them. And therefore he says, lift up your eyes to the heavens and look at the earth beneath. See how strong they are. And with all this, even if they wear out, My salvation will be forever.
Even if it were imagined that you lift up your eyes to the heavens and look at the earth beneath and see that everything collapses, even if it were imagined that you see such a thing as the heavens vanishing like smoke, the earth wearing out like a garment, everyone, and as a result of this what would happen? And its dwellers will die in like manner. Even if it were imagined that all this happens, do not say, well then everything is finished, says the Holy One, blessed be He, no, know for yourselves My salvation will be forever. In this line the Radak also explains, that as it were He wants to say the heavens and the earth would sooner wear out before what I tell you will fail to be fulfilled. What does he want to say? As it were a person says there is no chance such a thing will happen to him, hair will grow here on the palm of my hand before this thing is fulfilled. So as it were He says here, do you want to say I would destroy the world rather than nullify My charity and salvation? My charity and salvation are so clear, so absolute, that the world would be ruined and there would be no situation in which the salvation and the charity would be nullified. It is clear absolutely, without any doubt, that there will be salvation and charity.
And the Holy One, blessed be He, says My salvation will be forever, why? For My righteousness will not be shattered. The charity through which I bring the salvation, charity is from the standpoint of the charity that Hashem does with us, kindness. So you might say, wait, and what if we are not worthy? He says I am speaking to you about charity, kindness you do even with someone who is not worthy. Says the Holy One, blessed be He, My charity will be forever, so consequently it also will not be shattered. Consequently the salvation will not be broken, the charity will not be shattered, will not be shattered means to be broken or to fear someone. It will not fear anything, the salvation will come. The salvation is promised, why? Because it is free kindness. Free kindness does not check merits, does not check whether we are worthy. So the Holy One, blessed be He, says everything in the world will be nullified before My salvation is nullified, if, God forbid, My salvation were to be nullified. You have nothing to worry about, before that everything will be nullified and My salvation will not be nullified. My salvation is so absolute and clear, like hair growing on my hands, and My salvation will not be nullified. The whole world will be nullified and My salvation will not be nullified. My salvation is certain, absolute, without any doubt or hesitation.
Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, the people who have My Torah in their heart; do not fear the reproach of man, and do not be shattered by their revilings. Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, after he spoke in the previous verses, he spoke about how we will see, lift up your eyes to the heavens, see the earth beneath, how the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth wears out like a garment, the salvation will come in any case, My salvation will be forever, My righteousness will not be shattered. Now he turns to the people and says to them listen to Me, you who know righteousness, the people who have My Torah in their heart, the gentiles who reproach you and say there will be no salvation, Am Yisrael will not be redeemed, they will not be delivered, you who know righteousness, the people who have My Torah in their heart, do not fear the reproach of man, what people reproach you with, and by their revilings do not be shattered, what they curse you with, do not be broken by it.
The Radak says the people who have My Torah in their heart, he has here a truly awesome statement. What is this, the people who have My Torah in their heart? Those who have My Torah in their heart, not in their mouth alone, for they will see the salvation. Do you hear? Who will merit the salvation? Those who have My Torah in their heart, not those who have My Torah in their mouth, only speaking about My Torah, but who truly have no connection to the Torah, but rather those who have My Torah in their heart.
Says the Malbim, what is this, listen to Me, you who know righteousness, the people who have My Torah in their heart? Righteousness always, says the Malbim in several places and explains this, speaks of matters between man and his fellow. Doing justice in a court of law, doing righteousness between man and his fellow. Righteousness always comes to express matters between man and his fellow. On the other hand Torah always comes to express something spiritual, matters of beliefs, opinions, the service of Hashem, blessed be He. So listen to Me, you who know righteousness in the mitzvot between man and his fellow, and you the people who have My Torah in their heart, meaning in beliefs, in opinions, in the fear of Hashem, in the service of Hashem, do not fear the reproach of man.
What is enosh, man? It does not say do not fear the reproach of ish. Says the Malbim that enosh always comes to express diminishment. The small one is called enosh, as opposed to ish which is an expression for the great one. The small enosh who reproaches you, this does not come to say small in age, but rather it means from the expression of the small people, that is what he wants to say, the belittled ones. The small enosh, what comes to reproach you for the fact that you still anticipate the redemption, still anticipate the salvation, do not fear the reproach of man and by their revilings do not be shattered.
What is reproach and what is reviling? Says the Malbim the difference between them, reproach is someone who reproaches. Reviling is always in matters of things of holiness. He always speaks of matters of observing the mitzvot, matters of the service of Hashem. Notice how the son of Shlomit bat Divri was called in the deed he did? Reviler. Because whom did he revile? Hashem, blessed be He. About what did he revile? What was his reviling about? What did he mock? They did not let him enter, but there was something else here that he reviled. The show bread. Reviling is always about a thing of holiness. That the show bread remained warm and that whole matter, he mocked it. So this is reviling. Reviling is always against things of holiness, against the Torah, against the mitzvot. As opposed to reproach, which can be simply cursing one's fellow, without connection to a thing of holiness, without connection to Torah and mitzvot.
Says the Malbim, if so it emerges that the phrases here are parallel. And notice, you who know righteousness, and we explained righteousness is in matters between man and his fellow, do not fear the reproach of man. What man reproaches you with, and reproach we always said is in earthly matters, what man reproaches you with in earthly matters concerning the fact that you know righteousness and have upright governance between man and his fellow, do not fear it. And you who are the people who have My Torah in their heart, observing and being meticulous in the mitzvot of Hashem, do not be shattered by their revilings, for reviling we always said is in matters of observing the mitzvot. So you the people who have My Torah in their heart, meticulous in the mitzvot of Hashem, do not be broken by the revilings with which they revile you for the fact that you fulfill the mitzvot of Hashem.
Notice another difference, says the Malbim, regarding righteousness it is written you who know righteousness. On the other hand regarding Torah it is not written the people who know Torah, but rather it says the people who have My Torah in their heart. Why? Because the Malbim in several places elaborates to explain that matters of Torah and ethics are things that a person must receive from a teacher. He must have someone teach him, must receive them from someone else. On the other hand matters of righteousness, which are matters of the laws, he says a person can, if he studies, delves deeply into the matters, arrive at them on his own. What is just, that one claims against his fellow this way and the other answers him that way, with whom the justice lies. Therefore he says listen to Me, you who know righteousness. Knowers, through examination one can arrive at knowledge. I examined the matters, tested them, now I know. On the other hand regarding the Torah, a person who sits and delves deeply into the matters for two thousand years will not arrive at a single mitzvah of the Torah. Regarding Torah it must be by tradition. Thus I received from my father who received from his father up to Moshe Rabbeinu up to the Holy One, blessed be He. Regarding Torah one cannot know, one cannot say I examined and saw that one must put on tefillin. There is no such thing. Or I examined and saw that the ethical governance is such. For you see that there are nations that say the ethical governance is exactly the opposite, and precisely in ethics we have no singular line that is the one determining what is ethical and what is not. And therefore how can I arrive at the Torah? The people who have My Torah in their heart. You shall keep in your heart what you received from your father and your father from his father. On the other hand regarding righteousness, the upright governance between man and his fellow, you who know righteousness. Examine the matter, you will know, you will understand it fully through the power of understanding, through the power of contemplation. You are not obligated to receive it from previous generations.
For the moth will consume them like a garment, and the worm will consume them like wool; but My righteousness will be forever, and My salvation for generation of generations. First of all says the Radak, this verse supports the interpretation of the Rambam. As you recall we saw that the Rambam explained that here what he said, the heavens will vanish like smoke and the earth will wear out like a garment, the Rambam explained that these are the nations, that the nations who fill the heavens and the earth will as it were perish like smoke. Now he comes and describes and adds to this and says how will they perish? Like a garment the moth will consume them, like wool the worm will consume them. Like the garment which the moth consumes, the worm the Radak defines as the brother of the moth. In short, another kind of moth. And they will perish from the earth and you will be forever, My righteousness will be forever and My salvation for generation of generations.
The Malbim explains that this is a continuation of the previous verse. The one who reproaches you will be like a garment which the moth consumes. This is one who reproaches, if you recall, reproach is in earthly matters. He reproaches us, simply curses us, like a garment which the moth consumes. On the other hand the one who reviles you, and this we explained reviling is always about the Torah, one who mocks the Torah and the mitzvot, reviles you for what, for the fact that you observe the mitzvot of Hashem, he will be worse, like wool the worm will consume them. What is worse? That the moth or worm consumes the wool or the garment? The wool, because after all the wool is before it becomes a garment. Already as wool the worm consumes it. Who? The one who reviles you. And the one who reproaches you, then he will be like a garment, a garment has already reached a certain completion, it was already spun, they wove a garment, and then the moth consumes it. But My righteousness will endure forever and My salvation will endure for generation of generations.
What is the difference between forever and generation of generations? This is a difference the Malbim explained in several places, that forever means in one complete continuity without any interruption, eternally. On the other hand generation of generations speaks from generation to generation, from generation to generation. You truly speak of generations, you can also say eternally, but it means that the thing passes from generation to generation. On the other hand when I say forever it means that it will be in one complete uniformity without interruption. What is the intent of the words? Says the Malbim, notice, when he speaks here of My righteousness, My righteousness speaks of the Holy One, blessed be He, the righteousness of Hashem. Hashem does not change, so too My righteousness will not change. Therefore it will be forever, without any change. On the other hand when he speaks of the salvation, the salvation depends on the recipients. The more the recipient is worthy, his salvation will be greater. If so, here there is indeed a variation with respect to the salvation. And if so, therefore with respect to the salvation he writes My salvation for generation of generations. It will unfold from generation to the generation after it, each generation according to how it is worthy of it. Each generation according to its situation, because here there is indeed variation, it depends on the salvation. On the other hand the righteousness of Hashem, Hashem is eternal and His righteousness is eternal.