Do you have an alarm system in your home? Do you make sure to lock the car door when you drive through an unsafe neighborhood? As responsible human beings, we do all we can to make sure that we are keeping safe. We look both ways before we cross the street, we lock our doors at night, and we don’t go to places that are unsafe for us without another responsible person. But are our efforts enough?
In Parshat Eikev, there is a very fundamental mitzvah that can keep us safe—the mitzvah of mezuzah. The mezuzah is a small scroll with the Shema prayer written on it, which we affix to our doorposts. On the outside of the mezuzah, the scribe writes the Hebrew letters shin-daled-yud, which spell out one of the names of G‑d. These letters also represent the words shomer daltot yisrael, “He guards the doors of the Jewish people.” By affixing a mezuzah to our door, we are bringing G‑d’s protection to our home.
Rabbi Yehudah, a great sage during the era of the Mishnah, was close friends with the Persian king Artaban. One time, Artaban sent Rabbi Yehudah a very large and expensive diamond as a gift. In return, Rabbi Yehudah sent Artaban a small mezuzah scroll. Artaban was disappointed in the seemingly cheap present he got from Rabbi Yehudah. Rabbi Yehuda explained, “The present you gave me needs to be guarded, but the gift I gave you will guard you.”
Not only does the mezuzah watch over our home, but in Tehilim (Psalms) it says, “Hashem yishmor tzeit’cha uvoecha”—G‑d watches over your goings and your comings. When we have a mezuzah, we receive G‑d’s protection even when we are not home.
- G‑d watches over us at all times to keep us safe. A mezuzah is a spiritual protection for our homes and for our family.
- Does your home have kosher mezuzahs on all the doorposts?
- Has there been a time when you, or someone you know, felt that you needed extra blessing or an extra protection?
