Sefer Yirmiyahu, chapter 14: "That which was the word of Hashem to Yirmiyahu concerning the matters of the droughts." The word of Hashem to Yirmiyahu, a divine revelation concerning the matters of the droughts. What are these "droughts" (batzarot)? Rashi brings one explanation, from the language of famine. So too the Radak says that this word "batzarot" has a singular form, "batzarah." And there are commentators who explain that even the verse "in times of trouble" is to be understood this way, as the Ibn Ezra brings in the name of Dunash, though he does not agree with him. But there are commentators who explain that there too the word is from the language of "batzarot," from the language of "batzoret" (drought), the high cost of food, which is famine. This is also called a year of drought (batzoret), and this is the explanation most familiar to us. What is the source of the word "batzoret"? The Radak says it is from the language of "nothing will be withheld (yibatzer) from them of all they plan to do." "Yibatzer" means "will be prevented." So when there are "batzarot," the meaning is that there is prevention. Prevention of what? Prevention of rains. The upshot is that there is a high cost of living and a high cost of produce, since there is no produce and no merchandise, and consequently everything is withheld, "nivtzar" meaning prevented, and consequently all these things become expensive. And "the word of Hashem was to him" the Radak says before the drought, and essentially He is informing him about what is about to happen.
Another explanation: some explain that "batzarot," as Rashi brings in the name of Menachem, is from the language of "mivtzar" (fortress). Like "and the fortress of the stronghold of your walls." "Concerning the matters of the batzarot" here speaks of a fortress. And further on we will understand the matter better. The Malbim explains that here we will see that Yirmiyahu prayed about the withholding of rains that had occurred, and then consequently the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed Himself to him, the word of Hashem that was to Yirmiyahu concerning the matters of the droughts.
"Yehudah mourns and her gates languish, they are in gloom down to the ground, and the cry of Yerushalayim has gone up." "Yehudah mourns" means, in the language of destruction, like "the new wine mourns, the oil languishes." The Targum Yonatan explains that "Yehudah mourns" means from the language of mourning, the house of Yehudah went into mourning. "And her gates languish" is like that which is brought "all her gates are desolate, none goes out and none comes in." Or "the elders have ceased from the gate," this is the meaning of "her gates languish." And many times the prophet speaks in allegorical language, the meaning being that he as it were describes the physical things as though they are mourners, "her gates languish." Even though he actually intends to say that people no longer enter the gate, or that the elders have ceased from the gate. So although the action relates to people, nevertheless he describes it as though the gate itself became languished, and this is by way of a parable. So too here where it is written "they are in gloom down to the ground," the meaning is that those who dwell at the gates are in gloom down to the ground. The people, the elders who are at the gate, they sat down to the ground, this expresses the mourning they were in. "And the cry of Yerushalayim has gone up," the meaning is Yerushalayim, its people cry out because of the famine, because of the hardship, and their cry went up.
What is a "tzevachah" (cry)? There is "tze'akah," there is "ze'akah," what is "tzevachah"? There is an interesting explanation that the Malbim says, that "tzevachah" is also connected to "tzichei tzama" (parched with thirst). "Tzichei tzama" means that one's throat dried up from too much thirst. And when a person cries out until his throat becomes hoarse, that is "tzevachah." "Tzevachah" is a cry until one becomes parched (tzachah), therefore it is "tzevachah," it includes within it both the tzadi and the chet which express the thirst. The Malbim explains that here he proceeds in stages. "Yehudah mourns" speaks here of the entire country. "Her gates languish" speaks here of the fortified cities. And "the cry of Yerushalayim has gone up" speaks of the royal city, which had already been destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, and to which there is now added also the matter of the withholding of the rains.
"And her gates languish." It is written in the Metzudat Tziyon that "umlalu" (languish) is from the language of cutting off. "Have mercy on me, Hashem, for I am umlal." "Umlal" means from the language of "I have been cut off." And this is an expression that appears in Hallel, and many do not know its meaning, but here we have an opportunity to learn it. It is mentioned several times, "ki amilam" or "ki amilam." What is this "amilam" mentioned there? "Amilam" means "I will cut them off." Like the word which is essentially the cutting off of the foreskin, so "in the name of Hashem ki amilam," in the name of Hashem I will cut them off. So "umlal" also means from the language of cutting off, that he is indeed cut off from his source of life.
"And their nobles sent their young ones for water; they came to the cisterns, they found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded and covered their heads." He describes the reality that the great people, "their nobles," sent their young ones for water. They sent the young ones to the water, meaning to the wells, so that they would bring them water, for we are describing a drought, we are describing a situation in which there is no rain. "They came to the cisterns" and they arrive at the cisterns. "Gevim" are places where water gathers. They arrive at the cisterns because there was already no water in the wells. So what remained? What remained were the cisterns. Like "to draw water from the cistern (geve)," which means all kinds of pits where perhaps rainwater still remained, all kinds of puddles, a place where water gathers. And behold there is no rain, no water, and therefore he describes that they had shame and they returned and their vessels were empty. And this is what is written "they returned with their vessels empty." "They returned," according to this explanation, means the young ones returned but their vessels were empty. Their vessels were empty.
And there is another explanation that "they returned with their vessels empty" means together, "their vessels returned empty." Their vessels returned empty. And what of the people themselves? The people themselves, the young ones who went to bring water, they themselves did not return. So how did the vessels return? The Radak says: by means of one who returned them. Meaning others went and returned their vessels empty. And what happened to the young ones who went to bring water? The Malbim says the young ones did not return because they died of thirst. And therefore he describes for you such a situation, that they sent the young ones to bring water, they came to the cisterns, they found no water, as a result they died of thirst, and then "their vessels returned empty." Only the vessels returned empty, while those who went to bring the water did not return at all. And by means of this, that they went to bring water and did not return, "they were ashamed and confounded and covered their heads." They had great disgrace, for behold they were ashamed from the trouble and covered their heads. Covering the head expresses mourning. Here their sons died, says the Malbim, and therefore you will also understand why they covered their heads, over the mourning for their sons.
"They were ashamed and confounded." What is the difference between shame (boshah) and confounding (kelimah)? The Malbim explained this several times, that shame is always what a person is ashamed of before himself. And confounding is when he stands humiliated. "Nichlam" is always before others. He had confounding from being disgraced before others. And here, since they went and toiled and exerted themselves and in the end returned with their vessels empty, there was here both shame and confounding. Shame regarding themselves and confounding regarding others.
"Because the ground was cracked, for there was no rain in the land, the farmers were ashamed, they covered their heads." "Because the ground was cracked (chatah)." "Chatah": chet, tav, heh. What is "chatah"? They explain that "chatah" is from the language of breaking. The meaning is that when the ground dries out, you can see images of it all cracked. This creates a situation in which the ground itself breaks. "Because the ground was cracked." What is "because" (ba'avur)? "Ba'avur" is a giving of reason. A giving of reason for what? The Radak explains that one can explain that this is a giving of reason for the end of the previous verse. As we explained, the previous verse ended that "they returned with their vessels empty, they were ashamed and confounded and covered their heads." And regarding this he tells you why? "Because the ground was cracked." Since the ground broke from too much dryness, for there was no rain in the land. Another possibility is that "because the ground was cracked" is a reason for the end of the verse here. "Because the ground was cracked, for there was no rain in the land, the farmers were ashamed, they covered their heads." The "farmers were ashamed, they covered their heads" - why? Because the ground was cracked. So "because the ground was cracked" may refer back to the end of the previous verse, and may refer to the end of this verse.
The farmers are the workers of the ground, the Malbim explains, they covered their heads because the ground was cracked, since every person expects water and grain, he can buy it from somewhere. The farmers, by contrast, are those who grow the grain, and through this they have the disgrace of famine. For if a person engages in one of the professions, then he can buy grain from somewhere else. But if he is a farmer, he does not even have the possibility to buy, because he has no money. Since all his livelihood is from the field. And the moment there is no place in the field to bring forth grain, then I have no grain, so what shall I eat, I have none, and to buy I also cannot, because I have no money to buy. And we will see further on that it was also no simple problem for them to buy from the nations around them.
"Even the hind in the field gives birth and abandons, because there is no grass." "Even the hind in the field," the hind that is in the field, even though she gives birth and she loves her offspring, nevertheless she "gives birth and abandons." She gives birth to her offspring and abandons it. Why? "Because there is no grass." Since there was no grass, consequently it was not possible to provide sustenance for that offspring. And that hind could not bear to see the death of her young, and since this was so, she abandoned it and left, for she has nothing with which to sustain it. And this is like what is written "her princes became like harts that found no pasture." This is akin to what he mentions here, that the hind in the field had no pasture.
"And the wild donkeys stood on the bare heights, they gasped for air like jackals, their eyes failed because there was no herbage." "And the wild donkeys stood on the bare heights." Wild donkeys are a type of animal. That these animals stood on the bare heights. "Shefayim" is a high place. And why would they stand on a high place? The Radak says: in order to see from this place whether in some place there is grass. So one climbs to a high place and thus he can see on the horizon perhaps there is some green place. So "the wild donkeys stood on the bare heights," seeking to see whether there is grass in some place so as to go to see there. "They gasped for air like jackals." "They gasped for air like jackals" the Radak explains that the main gasping, meaning the heavy breathing and the inhaling, is by the jackals. That is to say, he tells you that there is here as it were some poetic expression, grasping air in his hands. They went up to search for grass, and what in the end? What did they gasp? They gasped air like jackals. That is what he received. He received air, he did not receive grass. "They gasped air like jackals." That is, he was filled with air, more than that, nothing. In short, he went up the mountain, he only got some fresh air. But to receive from this food and sustenance, they had nothing.
"Their eyes failed because there was no herbage." "Their eyes failed" means their eyes look into the distance, their eyes failed from too much looking. As if he wants to say there is no more, as they say, our eyes gave out from too much looking. "Their eyes failed, and there is no herbage." That is, as much as we looked, we still did not see any herbage on the horizon. And this matter the Radak says was in punishment for their sins, both in the settled areas and in the wilderness. And for the rest of the nations we will see further on that there was plenty. Since this was so, the Holy One, blessed be He, punished them that in the settled areas and in the wilderness there would be no source of sustenance for them, they would have no herbage. And this, as we will see further on, was a unique punishment for the people of that generation.
The Malbim explains, in the previous verse we saw "the hind in the field, there was no grass (deshe)." "The wild donkeys stood on the bare heights because there was no herbage (esev)." The Malbim says: what is the difference between "deshe" and "esev"? The Malbim explains that "esev" is the clothing of the earth with grasses, sorry, "deshe" is the clothing of the earth with grasses, that is called "deshe." And a special herbage, a specific plant is called "esev." Therefore he says the hind seeks "deshe" for pasture. "Her princes became like harts that found no pasture." But the wild donkey seeks a special herbage, green herbage from which it can nourish itself. For the hind, any "deshe" is good. Any clothing of the earth in green is called "deshe," that suffices for her. But the wild donkeys seek a special herbage, they seek certain growths, and they did not find herbage. For "esev" expresses a special growth called "esev," a plant as an individual is called "esev," as a singular it is called "esev." But the clothing of the entire earth in green is called "deshe."
"If our iniquities testify against us, Hashem, act for the sake of Your name, for our backslidings are many, we have sinned against You." "If our iniquities testify against us." If our iniquities have witnessed against us. The prophet sees the evil that is about to be, and then the Radak says he includes himself within the whole of Israel. He should have said "if their iniquities testify against them." Did you, the prophet, sin? The Radak says no, he includes himself with them. Even though he himself had no iniquity in him. He says "if our iniquities testify against us, Hashem, act for the sake of Your name." Do not wonder, Moshe Rabbeinu also spoke this way, "and forgive our iniquity and our sin and take us as Your inheritance." Our iniquity, did I sin? I did not sin. He should have said "forgive their iniquity and their sin and take them." Why does he speak in the plural, including himself with them? This is a way of humility and to associate himself with the trouble of the public, that even though I have no sin, nevertheless I include myself with them. As is known, the Pele Yoetz also mentions, and in other books it is written, that when one wishes to rebuke the public, he should not say "you have a problem, you are sinning." The chances that his words will be accepted are exceedingly slim. Rather he should speak in the plural, "we have a problem, we tend to stumble in..." and so on in this way. He should always include himself with them even though he never did this thing and never stumbled in it. Nevertheless when you say "we have a problem," this includes himself with them, so the public tends to accept the words. But when you come as one who rebukes, "I am whole, you are deficient," then it is hard for the public to accept it. Even if they know it is true. That you are Moshe Rabbeinu and you are Yirmiyahu and you and you are whole. Nevertheless, the way of rebuke is always to include oneself with them, and so too here he turns to the Holy One, blessed be He. "If our iniquities testify against us," "our iniquities" includes himself with them. What is the meaning of "our iniquities testify against us"? "Testify against us" is from the language of "they witnessed against us." "You shall not testify (ta'aneh) falsely against your fellow." "Ta'aneh" means you shall testify. "If our iniquities testify against us," the meaning is if the iniquities are what witness against us. Behold, come and see, the rain stopped only among you, not among the nations. So it comes out that there is here clear testimony that you have a deficiency. They testify about us that behold we are stricken. Nevertheless, act for the sake of Your name. The great name that is called upon us. The meaning is: Master of the Universe, even if we are not worthy, act for the sake of Your name. Rashi says: for the sake of the great name that has gone out for You, that You rule over all and we are Your people and the flock of Your pasture. And it is not fitting that You give the credit of Your victory to the idols. The meaning is that when the nations succeed, they say behold their idols succeeded. Their god overcame us. Our God as it were is weak, for behold you see that we have famine and they have plenty. Because they pray to their idol and it brings down rain, and we pray and cry out and no rain comes down. It comes out then that when Israel suffers there is in this a desecration of the Name. And therefore we ask and say: Master of the Universe, act for the sake of Your name, that at least Your name not be desecrated among the nations.
The Malbim says: "if our iniquities testify against us," the meaning is that although from our own standpoint we deserve punishment, our iniquities indeed testify against us, and if there is testimony then it cannot be denied. Nevertheless we ask, act for the sake of Your name. And now he explains. "For our backslidings are many," first, our backslidings are many. "Meshuvoteinu" means from the language of "shovevah," that is, deviation from the way. Another matter, also from the very essence of the sin, "we have sinned against You." So there are here two things, there are here two reasons to punish us. First, our sins are many, "our backslidings are many." Second, when you have sinned much, if it is against your neighbor it is bearable, but if it is against the king it is very severe. And if it is against the King of kings of kings, then there is no end to its severity. So "our backslidings are many" and moreover "we have sinned against You." "To You" is the Master of the Universe, against You. So then, from this standpoint our sins reach up to the heavens. And therefore we say, nevertheless, Master of the Universe, act for the sake of Your name. The meaning is: Master of the Universe, although there is on our part a great sin in two aspects, both from the standpoint of the multitude and from the standpoint of the view of against whom we sinned, which is very great. But Your name is also great, Master of the Universe, so act so that Your name not be desecrated among the nations.
The Malbim says: what is the difference between "avon" (iniquity) and "meshuvoteinu" (our backslidings)? We say "if our iniquities testify against us" and afterwards we say "for our backslidings are many." We do not say "for our iniquities are many." That is to say, there is a difference between "our backslidings" and "our iniquities." The Malbim says: iniquity is from the standpoint of the distortion of the intellect. By contrast, backsliding is from the standpoint of the wildness of the soul and spirit through habituation in foreign and evil views and traits. That is to say, when we become accustomed to living like the nations, this can be called "shovevah." Therefore see that it is written "I will heal their backsliding." That is, it became a habit for them to live with evil views and traits like the nations, "I will heal," this requires healing. And we explained in the past that "chet" (sin) generally expresses a failure that stems from desires. "Avon" is a distortion. Distortion means a person who has already built an ideology around his sin. "Avon" expresses heresy. This is the distortion of the intellect. But a person who has a desire, his intellect is not distorted. He knows the truth but goes after the desire of his heart. This is the expression of "chet." But by contrast "avon," "avon" is a person who insists on claiming that what he does is the truth. That is to say, he has already so twisted his intellect that he already finds intellectual arguments for the transgression he commits.
"O Hope of Israel, its Savior in time of trouble, why should You be like a stranger in the land, and like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge?" "O Hope of Israel" the Radak says, even though they turned aside from Your ways, nevertheless You are the Hope of Israel. "Hope of Israel" means You are their hope, to You they hope. "And You are its Savior in time of trouble." The meaning is also historical: Master of the Universe, every time they had trouble You were their Savior. So now too, Master of the Universe, have pity on them, have mercy on them in the time of trouble in which they find themselves. "Why should You be like a stranger in the land." This expression is directed against whom? According to the plain meaning of the text it is directed against the Hope of Israel, the Holy One, blessed be He. So what is he actually saying here? Master of the Universe, why are You like a stranger in the land and like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge? The Radak says: do not wonder, in many places the Torah spoke concerning the Creator in the language of human beings. The Holy One, blessed be He, like a stranger in the land, a traveler who has turned aside to lodge? Yes, many times you see that the verses relate to the Holy One, blessed be He, in what is called anthropomorphism. By way of a parable, as a comparison to the human. As you see that they attribute to the Holy One, blessed be He, that Hashem sees and Hashem hears and Hashem descends and Hashem smells and the hand of Hashem and the feet of Hashem, the throne, the footstool of My feet, and so on. That is to say, we see that there is as it were an anthropomorphizing of the Creator, to speak in parables that we can understand. And the Rambam elaborates on this matter in the Moreh Nevuchim and says that it is all essentially by way of a parable so that we understand the matters, for the Holy One, blessed be He, has no body and no form of a body. The Radak says an interesting thing: nevertheless, always when the verses do such a thing, Onkelos or the Targum Yonatan distanced from the Creator the attribution of qualities. And note also that here too they interpreted the verse in a different way. Let us read the wording of the Targum Yonatan. Onkelos is on the Chumash, the Targum Yonatan is on the Prophets. Come, hear how he translates. "The hope of Israel, its Redeemer in the time of trouble." The meaning is "hope" from the language of "lemisbar," yes, the hope of Israel, like "savarna," as if our hope. "Redeem them in the time of trouble," You redeem them in the time of their trouble. "Why should Your anger fall upon us?" Why should Your anger fall upon us? "And we are like sojourners in the land and like a traveler who turns aside to lodge." And we are like a stranger in the land and like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge. Did you notice? He turns the verse toward us. Even though it is written "why should You be like a stranger," and the beginning of the verse means it about the Holy One, blessed be He, "You are the Hope of Israel, its Savior," "why should You be like a stranger," nevertheless he says "why should it be" as if it refers back to the Congregation of Israel. Why should the Congregation of Israel be like a stranger in the land and like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge? The Radak says: thus in every place where the verse as it were adopts expressions of anthropomorphism toward the Holy One, blessed be He, the Targumim adapt the verse in a different way, interpret the verse in a different way, so that human expressions concerning the supreme providence are not implied. And therefore he says he wished to distance from Him, blessed be He, even by way of imagery. Even that you not say it by way of a parable, even this Onkelos and the Targum Yonatan do not accept, and therefore they generally interpret the verses in a different way.
The Malbim explains: "O Hope of Israel, Hashem," You, Master of the Universe, Israel always hopes to You and You always save in time of trouble, this is Your name. So just as You have always done, so save me also now. "Why should You be like a stranger?" The Malbim explains: the prevention of saving can be pictured in one of three ways. The first possibility: lack of will. Why do You not save me? I do not want to save you. The second possibility: lack of knowledge. Why do You not save me? I did not know that you have trouble. So therefore I did not save you. The third possibility: why do You not save me? I have the will, I have the knowledge, but I could not save you. I do not have the power to save you. There are three reasons for the prevention of salvation. The Malbim says: against all three of them he speaks here. Against the will, that is to say perhaps Hashem does not want to save us, "why should You be like a stranger in the land." The stranger, when something happens in the land, I will give you an example, a person now arrives in America. They tell him, don't ask what a fire there is here in the region, don't ask... At most he thinks about his vacation that was ruined. But about the region that burned, what do I care? What concern is it to me? I am a stranger in the land. I am not local, I take the next flight, return home, let them solve their problems. The person who is a stranger, the local problems do not concern him. So regarding the possibility that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not want to save us, that is to say our problems do not concern Him, then Master of the Universe, why should You be like a stranger in the land? Against this he brings the argument, Master of the Universe, why should You be like a stranger in the land, like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge? For even here where it speaks of a traveler, the Malbim explains that even though the traveler is among the citizens of the land, but he is not permanent here. He is a traveler who has turned aside to lodge, he lives in another region. That is, it appears as if, Master of the Universe, You have no will to watch over the land, or from the standpoint that You handed over the governance of the land as it were to the system of the stars, and then the Holy One, blessed be He, is only like a stranger or a traveler who has turned aside to lodge, that is to say, as they say, He only checks from time to time how the machine works. It has been handed over to the stars, and we already spoke in the past that this was Iyov's claim throughout the entire Sefer Iyov. Whoever wishes should listen to the disc on Iyov, where in Iyov the main claim of his is that providence was handed over to the hand of blind fate, meaning to the hand of the stars, and they do injustice, they do that which is not just and proper, and there they confront him with this conception, as we explain at great length, and they confront him regarding this matter. In any case, in our matter it makes an impression, Master of the Universe, as if You handed over the governance to the hand of the stars, and You only periodically like a traveler who has turned aside to lodge, thus from time to time observe the clocks to see how the business functions, and no more than that. So You are like a stranger in the land. Why should You be like a stranger in the land? If there is a lack of will to save us.
"Why should You be like a man dumbfounded, like a mighty one who cannot save? Yet You are in our midst, Hashem, and Your name is called upon us; do not abandon us." The Malbim continues and says: what shall we say? We said there is lack of will, there is a state of lack of knowledge. Regarding this he says, Master of the Universe, why should You be like a man dumbfounded? "Nidham" is a person whose senses and feelings have ceased. He feels nothing. Why should You be like a dumbfounded man who as it were does not know what is happening with us? And then it is possible that because of this You do not save us, because there are here no senses and feelings, You do not sense what is happening to us. The third possibility we said is lack of ability. That is to say there is knowledge, there is also will, but limited. Regarding this he says, why should You be like a mighty one who cannot save? Why should You be like a mighty one who cannot save from someone stronger than himself? And regarding this he says "Yet You are in our midst, Hashem." This is the opposite of the traveler who has turned aside to lodge, for we know that You are not a traveler who has turned aside to lodge, there is here no lack of will. You are in our midst, Hashem. That is to say, You desire our good. "And Your name is called upon us," this is the opposite of the stranger. That is to say, You did not hand us over to the hand of the system, but rather we are governed by You. We are under Your providence. What remains for us? The lack of knowledge and ability. The Malbim says: regarding this he saw no need to respond, for it is a simple matter that Hashem has neither lack of knowledge nor lack of ability. What did he indeed need to respond to? Perhaps lack of will. Master of the Universe, how is lack of will possible, for Your name is called upon us and You are in our midst? So You desire our good. So then, why, Master of the Universe, will You abandon us? Why will You leave us in the terrible state in which we are?
Note that the Targum Yonatan here too continues along the same line. "Why should You be like a man dumbfounded, like a mighty one who cannot save," this does not refer to the Holy One, blessed be He, but rather refers to us. "Why should Your anger fall upon us, while we are tossed about and forsaken? And behold You are a mighty one able to redeem." Why should the Congregation of Israel again be like a man dumbfounded? Like a mighty one who cannot save? Is Hashem then a mighty one who cannot save? Behold, "You are a mighty one able to redeem." Behold, You are a mighty one who is able to save. So "like a man dumbfounded" is essentially a negative expression, the Yonatan explains, and it refers to us. Why should we be like a bewildered person, like a dumbfounded person without salvation, when You, Master of the Universe, have the power to save us? The Malbim explains that essentially the word "nidham" is an expression that is unique, it has no equivalent in Scripture. And its meaning is a person who has lost his senses, whose feelings have ceased. And this is an expression close to "damam" or "nidam," where too the meaning is that his actions ceased, or "nirdam," for all these expressions have the meaning of the ceasing of the senses and feelings. We ask, "Your name is called upon us, do not abandon us." The Malbim says: there is the expression "al tanicheinu" (do not abandon us), which is from the root "y-n-ch," and this generally indicates the placing of something in a certain place so that it will remain there. This is the expression "to place." By contrast, there is the expression of "azav" (forsake) and "natash" (abandon). The expression "azav" and "natash" means to leave the thing intentionally. And the expression "to place," "do not place me," means that I not remain and be placed in a place of danger. Like "do not leave me to my oppressors." The meaning is: You left me, You place me there, so I will remain placed, and now whoever comes will be able to harm me, whoever comes will be able to damage me. "And Your name is called upon us, do not abandon us." Since Your name is called upon us, then do not place us, for the moment You place us, anyone who comes will be able now to harm us. And the Malbim explains: since here he describes that Hashem is in our midst, only what? Hashem does not save. So in such a state he cannot say "do not forsake us." How can he say "do not forsake us"? For we just now said "Your name is called upon us," the Holy One, blessed be He, is with us. So I need not say, I cannot say, "do not forsake us." What can I indeed say? For He is with us, He is within us, one cannot say "do not forsake us." Only what? Hashem is with us and He has not forsaken us, but He places us. "Places" means others can come and harm us, I will be placed in a place of danger. Regarding this I ask, do not do this, but rather what? Take me from there. To forsake me is like to cast me down in this place, one cannot say so, for the Holy One, blessed be He, is indeed with us. What then? It is possible that He does not touch. "Does not touch" is placing us. He places us, the nations come and harm us, and therefore regarding this we ask.
A change of the decree. You still love to wander, you still love to wander, you do not remain in one place, cleaving to Hashem, still the backsliding daughter. And he continues and says, "their feet they did not restrain." That is to say, their feet still continue and go on the wrong way. "Chasachu" means like "to spare," to restrain, yes? They still do not restrain their feet from walking on the way of error.
A possibility, and it is possible, the Malbim says, that Hashem's will toward them would change for good, but Hashem did not desire them, and therefore he says "He will remember their iniquity," the meaning is that the Holy One, blessed be He, will visit their sin to punish them. And let us explain. It could very well be that from the standpoint of our deeds we are not worthy, but we will arouse the divine will toward us. Sometimes a father has mercy on his son even when he deviates from the way. And then it could very well be that here, although we are the backsliding daughter, and although they loved to wander, and although their feet they did not restrain, but Hashem desires us.
The Holy One, blessed be He, says: here this is not the reality, and Hashem did not desire them. Here the reality is that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not desire them, so it is not possible that Hashem's will toward them would change for good as long as they are in this reality. And consequently, now He will remember their iniquity and visit their sin. And the moment Hashem does not desire them, then consequently there is reason to exact retribution from them for their iniquity and for their sin.
And "avon," as we said, is the distortion of the intellect, and "chet" is the inadvertent transgression. The Malbim says: note that it is written here "He will remember their iniquity and visit their sin." What is essentially the connection between iniquity and remembering, and between sin and forgetting? The Malbim explains: remembering is the opposite of forgetting. That is to say, when I say I remember this thing, its meaning is I did not forget. By contrast, when I say "He will visit," "He will remember their iniquity and visit their sin." When I say "He will visit," the meaning is also to perform some act of recompense. I can only remember the thing without doing anything, and I can also both remember it and respond and also give punishment for this thing. "Visiting" (pekidah) is to act, therefore "He will visit upon them all their sin," "He will visit" means He will exact retribution from them for the sins they committed.
Therefore the Malbim says: note, "avon" is the distortion of the intellect, it is a matter of thought, and this thing is more connected to the expression of forgetting. He says to them: therefore Hashem will remember their iniquity, the distortion of the intellect which is a matter of thought, regarding this comes the expression of remembering, which is a matter of thought. And all the more so that the Holy One, blessed be He, remembers the sin, since sin is an actual deed. Iniquity is only in thought. So if that which is in thought Hashem remembers, that which you did in practice would He not remember? So this is a fortiori: if Hashem will remember their iniquity, certainly He will remember their sin.
By contrast, regarding the sin which is inadvertent, he says here it will not be only remembering, but "He will visit their sin." Regarding the sin which is inadvertent, the Holy One, blessed be He, punishes. And if for a sin that is inadvertent Hashem punishes, what will you say about iniquity which is intentional? A fortiori. So it comes out then according to the Malbim that "He will remember their iniquity" and all the more their sin, and "He will visit their sin" and all the more their iniquity. And "He visits" regarding sin means He punishes even though it is a sin done inadvertently, and all the more so regarding iniquity.
The Radak explains that what is written here, "Thus said Hashem to this people: So they loved to wander, their feet they did not restrain," about what wandering does it speak here? The Radak explains that they used to go to Egypt and to Assyria, they used to seek from them aid and assistance. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: they did not trust in Me, they did not spare their feet from walking, even though the prophet rebukes them, "what have you to do with the way to Egypt, to drink the waters of the Shichor, what have you to do with the way to Assyria, to drink the waters of the River," and he defines Egypt as "a staff of a broken reed." There is an explicit rebuke that tells you that salvation will not spring from Egypt. And nevertheless they do not restrain their feet from walking to Egypt, and the Holy One, blessed be He, says: ah, you love to wander among the nations, to seek help from them? The Holy One, blessed be He, says: I will make you wander among the nations. How awesome and terrible. In essence you seek to go to the nations, I will exile you among the nations.
The Radak says: and if you ask, behold Yirmiyahu prayed to Hashem concerning the matters of the drought. That is to say, there was here a prayer about the matter of the drought and about the matter of the famine. What is here the answer that the Holy One, blessed be He, answers him, "they loved to wander, their feet they did not restrain, Hashem did not desire them"? There is here no answer and no word about the withholding of the rain.
The Radak says that the meaning is that even though there is a withholding of rain, but as we mentioned at the beginning, there is a chance to make a living if we go to the lands of the nations and bring grain from there. There is also, in a situation where there is a drought here, they say that once they told the finance minister that they say next year is going to be a year of drought for wheat, and they... So he said to them, where? They said in the land. He said, ah, in the land, you scared me, I thought in the United States. Our wheat is all imported. If we need to worry about a drought, it is there, not here. Do you understand? So too here, even if we have a problem, we will go and bring from the nations around us. But here he describes a situation where the enemies were coming upon them every day, and then they could not go out at all, and this caused the famine to be stronger. And therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: My answer is about what? About the fact that the enemies rule over you and the enemies will exile you, and either way you understand that the famine is not going to end but is only going to worsen and intensify. So it comes out that there is here indirectly an answer to the matter of the famine, even though in it the Holy One, blessed be He, does not mention the rain at all, but rather he mentions possible solutions to go to the nations, and the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: know that this matter is not going to change for good because of their negative deeds, now He will remember their iniquity and visit their sin.
"And Hashem said to me: Do not pray for this people for good." The Radak explains: we saw that he prayed against some of them for evil, since there were those who tried to assassinate the prophet. And he said to Him: Master of the Universe, I want to see that You take vengeance on them, "take them out like sheep to the slaughter, prepare them for the day of killing." Therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: do not pray for them for good. That is to say, it is enough that you do not pray for good. You need not pray for them for evil.
The Malbim explains that Yirmiyahu wanted to pray a second time. And Yirmiyahu wants to pray on behalf of the people. And the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: do not pray for this people for good. What is the intent of the matter? The Malbim explains, an explanation that he mentions in several places, that the types of punishments of the Holy One, blessed be He, divide into two. There is one type of punishment where the punishment is hiding of the face. And at the time of the hiding of the face, the person is subject to the afflictions of nature. If there are troubles he will suffer troubles. If there are wars he is included in it. If there are disasters he is within it. But on the other hand it could very well be that the period is good, and then he will have no evil at all. Since he is essentially subject to the afflictions of nature, and by nature now there is no evil, so he will not suffer. There is an opposite situation where there is a punishment that is by providence. A punishment that is by providence means it does not matter what happens around, Hashem watches over you now to give you punishment.
There the Malbim explained on this basis the claim of Achav concerning the matter of the death of Chiel of Beit El, and what Eliyahu answered him, there is a very wonderful explanation there, whoever wishes can hear it on the disc on Sefer Melachim. In any case, it seems to us that the matter of the punishment by providence is worse, because then it does not matter, good or evil, by providence you will receive punishment. From the fact that Hashem watches over you, you will receive punishment. But the Malbim says the opposite is the truth. Since this punishment has in it good tidings, the Holy One, blessed be He, shows that He is still with you. He still watches over you. Whereas in the first punishment, the first punishment, although as we explained it stems from lack of providence and then you are subject to the afflictions of nature, but the most terrible of all is that you are not with the Holy One, blessed be He. That the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were forsook you. The Holy One, blessed be He, as it were is not with you.
Now what then essentially happens? That many times you can pray and it will not help. When the Holy One, blessed be He, does not watch over you and you are subject to the afflictions of nature, then the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were says... Like people ask, where was the Holy One, blessed be He, in the Holocaust? And the answer is, He was not there. What do you mean He was not there? He was not there and He announced that He would not be there. He announced in advance that He would not be there. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, "and I will surely hide My face from them." The Holy One, blessed be He, says: there will be a time when when Israel rebels, they will cry out and scream, I will not be there. And I announce this to you now while I am still here. That is to say, prepare yourself and change your ways. And if not, the Holy One, blessed be He, says, a stage will come when you will scream and there is none who answers. Why? Because Hashem gave you over to the afflictions of nature. And according to the afflictions of nature we are weak, by nature we are a sheep scattered among seventy wolves, by nature our situation is such that woe to us if the nations decide to gather against us. So that in practice, regarding the matter of lack of providence, this is the most severe punishment, even though within it sometimes it brings good periods, because there are situations in which there is no providence but by nature things are good. In any case, the very fact that there is no providence is the worst of all.
The Malbim says: the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: do not pray for this people for good. The Malbim explains that sometimes the Holy One, blessed be He, punishes by means of hiding of the face. And then essentially the punishment comes of itself. As it were, I do not bring it upon you, as they say I only forsook you. And since I forsook you, then the afflictions around are many. And then when a person prays about this, about what is he essentially praying? Master of the Universe, bestow upon us good. Do not hide Your face from us but rather bestow upon us good. This is "do not pray for this people for good."
And sometimes, the Malbim says, the punishment is by providence. And then the punishment comes from Him, blessed be He, in precise measures according to His will, blessed be He, according to what He determined in full providence. The example of punishments of providence are all the punishments that were in the wilderness. These were punishments by providence, because Hashem's providence was attached to us. And then when there is a punishment by providence, what do we pray? That please Hashem, do not do us evil. Since the punishment comes from You, it is by providence, do not do us evil. When the punishment is from the standpoint that Hashem placed us in the hand of fate, the Holy One, blessed be He, as it were does not watch over us, then we pray for good, Master of the Universe, bestow upon us good. And when the punishment comes from the standpoint of providence, that is to say the evil is from You, precisely from You literally, then I ask, Master of the Universe, do not do us evil, since the evil is from You.
And then the Malbim says, fasting and sacrifice do not help, because essentially the decree has been sealed, since the punishment came by providence, and then great repentance is needed in order to change the decree. Yirmiyahu, the Malbim explains, was certain that the punishments now came from hiding of the face. "Your name is called upon us, do not abandon us." As we explained, do not place us in the hand of chance, since Your name is called upon us. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: you have an error. You think that the entire matter here is from the standpoint of hiding of the face, and when there is hiding of the face one prays for good, please Hashem watch over us; He says to him: no. Do not pray for this people for good. The punishment here is not from the standpoint of hiding of the face, but on the contrary, this is a punishment of revealing of the face to punish them. To give them as they deserve. The punishment is by Hashem Himself, since here we are dealing with Hashem's providence for evil. Hashem's providence to punish them.