All Israel Needs One Another

These are the chronicles of Isaac, the son of Abraham. Abraham begot Isaac. (Gen. 25:19)

The Baal Shem Tov understood this verse to be a question with an answer.

Question: "These are the chronicles of Isaac.... the son of Abraham?" How could it be that Abraham, who was the very embodiment of the quality of chesed, could be the father of Isaac, who is the embodiment of gevura? (Gen. 27:21)

When one lacks something, his friend can provide for him…

Answer: "Abraham gave birth to Isaac." Abraham indeed begot Isaac. Chesed gave rise to gevura, expansiveness to contraction. Contraction (tzimtzum) in the world causes a condition in which one finds himself lacking for something. When one lacks something, his friend can provide for him. As it is written, "...the world is built from chesed." (Psalms 89:3)

In this way there will always be a flow of chesed coming into the world. Indeed, Abraham gave birth to Isaac!

And Isaac prayed fervently [in Hebrew, "vaya'etar"] to G‑d in the presence of his wife.

"Just like a pitchfork [in Hebrew, a'etar] tosses up and turns over the stalks of grain on the threshing floor, so does the prayer ["ae'tar"] of the righteous reverses G‑d's way from judgment to compassion." (Talmud Bavli Tr. Yevamos 64a) The righteous convert any longing and desire into a desire for closeness to G‑d…

How is that the prayer of the righteous can reverse the conduct of G‑d from that of judgment to compassion? The answer: "measure for measure." Because the righteous convert any longing and desire into a desire for closeness to (i.e. love of) G‑d, so does G‑d convert his attribute of judgment into an attribute of mercy.

This doesn't apply only to the righteous. Every Jew has this potential. The Baal Shem Tov taught, "In all your ways you shall know Him..." (Proverbs 3:6) When one feels a desire for a certain person, food or any thing else, one should think, "Where is the source of desire, from where does it come?" When one feels love for a certain person or even an animal, one should think, "Where is the source of all love, from where does love come?" Inevitably one will arrive at the answer: from G‑d. In this way one is able to fulfill the dictate of the verse, "In all your ways you shall know Him…."

This type of transformation in a Jew is like the blast of a shofar, causing G‑d to leap from His Throne of Judgment onto the Throne of Compassion. Then we can hasten the days when "The whole earth will be full of the knowledge of G‑d as waters cover the seabed." (Isaiah 11:9)

[First published in B'Ohel Hatzadikim, Toldot 5759]