"בנינו עורבים אותנו"
“Our children shall be our guarantors.” (Midrash Rabbah, Song of Songs 1:3,1)

QUESTION: According to the Midrash, when the Jewish people stood at Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, Hashem asked for a guarantee that they would keep it. They replied, “Avoteinu orvim otanu” — “Our ancestors will be our guarantors.” When this was unacceptable, they offered, “Nevi’einu areivin lanu” — “Our prophets will be our guarantors.” This, too, Hashem did not accept. When they said “Baneinu orvim otanu” — “Our children will be our guarantors” — Hashem replied, “Indeed these are good guarantors. For their sake I will give it to you.”

Why did Hashem favor the children over the ancestors and prophets?

ANSWER: Homiletically the Midrash can be explained as follows: Hashem wanted the Torah to be studied diligently and observed meticulously throughout history, so He asked the Jews for the requisite assurance.

With their first reply, “Our fathers will be the surety” the Jewish people were actually saying “When our parents reach old age and no longer are an asset in the business world, we will set them up in a senior citizen’s club or a home for the retired, and to keep them busy we will arrange Torah study groups for them.” Hashem rejected this as an assurance that Torah would flourish among the Jewish people. With only the elderly learning, little would be accomplished.

Afterwards the people responded, “Nevi’einu areivin lanu.” The Hebrew word for prophet “navi” (נביא) is derived from “niv sefataim” (ניב שפתים) — “speech of the lips” (Isaiah 57:19). With this they indicated that they would hire Rabbis who would serve as orators; they would study Torah, and the laymen would be free to engage in business. Wanting Torah to be studied and observed by all, Hashem rejected this offer too.

Finally, the Jews said, “Our children will be our surety.” Although their intention may have been to send the children to yeshivah when young and to put them into business when older, Hashem accepted this knowing that once a child would enter yeshivah, he would be molded into a Torah-loving Jew and refuse to leave.Moreover, the children would influence their parents to also learn Torah and to observe mitzvot. Thus, through them, the continuity of Torah study and observance is guaranteed for posterity.

(לקוטי שיחות ח"ב)


"בנינו עורבים אותנו"
“Our children shall be our guarantors.” (Midrash Rabbah, Song of Songs 1:3,1)

QUESTION: This sounds like a mockery: will a loan officer in a bank accept a young child as a guarantor when his father applies for a loan?

ANSWER: There are many young men and women who attended institutions for Torah learning and acquired an authentic and thorough Torah education. Unfortunately, when they marry and enter into the world at large they do not set aside time to learn Torah, and at times, even their Torah observance has slackened.

When Hashem, blesses them with a family, and the children start attending Torah learning institutions, the parents suddenly wake up. Upon hearing from their children what their rabbi/teacher instilled in them, the parents decide that they had better improve their yirat shamayim in order not to appear strange-looking in the eyes of their child.

As the child becomes older and advances in his Torah study, the parent also starts learning again, in order to be able to keep up with the child’s scholarship and in order not to be a Torah ignoramus in the eyes of the child.

Hashem was thus very satisfied with the guarantors given Him, for He knew that even if, G‑d forbid, the parents’ Torah study and observance would become weaker, it would strengthen again when their children would attend Torah learning institutions.