There is a beautiful thought about our prayers from the Gaon of Vilna. In our Amida, we say מִשְׁעָן וּמִבְטָח לַצַּדִּיקִים
God is both a Mish’an, something to lean on ( like a cane) and a Mivtach, a guarantee.
When a person relies on Hashem, he is guaranteed. But the Gaon of Vilna says that even when Hashem is the guarantee for the Sadikim that rely on Him, and will give them what they ask for, sometimes it doesn’t happen immediately. And so, before that time comes, He is a Mish’an/ a cane for them. Which is to to say that He helps them so that they don’t lose their Bitachon in Him, in the interim.
This is a beautiful concept. Besides relying on Hashem for the Yeshua/salvation, we also need Hashem‘s help so that we don’t lose the connection to Hashem while waiting for the salvation to come. This is the level called, Mish’an.
He brings, as proof, two cases from the past, and one case from the future.
Firstly, he says that before we got out of Egypt, Hashem showed us one year of miracles. Those miracles were intended to demonstrate that even though it wasn’t the right time to get out yet, (because 210 years had not yet passed), we shouldn’t lose all hope. The miracles helped us keep our Bitachon strong, until we left, with a full Yeshua/salvation, into the desert.
His second example is from the time of Ahashverosh. Before the Yeshua came, before Haman was hung, we were shown the greatness of Mordecai, as he was paraded through the streets on a horse.
Again, Hashem helped them keep their Bitachon, before they got out of the full darkness.Then they received the Torah for a second time, with great bitachon and simcha.
The Gaon of Vilna then says that the same will be true in future. As the pasuk says,
כימי צאתך ממצרים אראנו נפלאות
Just like when I took you out of Mitzrayim, I will show you wonders
This is referring to the wonders that we are going to see before Mashiah comes, which will help us stay strong.
All of our rabbis tell us that we are in the times of Mashiah.
Therefore, there must be wonders that we are seeing, which are being shown to us so that we don’t lose hope until the final Yeshua comes. If we keep our eyes open, we can see those wonders. This is not only true in a general sense, but it applies to every individual as well.
There are stories told about various Gedolim, which bring out this point, using two different pesukim.
One story is about the Chatam Sofer. Someone once came to him to pour out his heart about a certain problem.
After the man got the hizuk that he came for, he said that he was fully reliant that Hashem would help him, but he wanted to know what he should do until Hashem helped him. The Chatam Sofer told him that that was what the pasuk,
בטחו בה׳ עדי עד
Rely on Hashem forever, meant.
Even before the Yeshua happens, maintain your connection and reliance.
Similarly, someone once went to the Rebbi of Ruzhin to pour out his heart, asking to be saved in a certain area.
The Rebbi’s son, who was a young boy of eleven at the time, realized that this man was in a great problem; he saw the worry and the pain, and wondered what would happen. So after the man walked out of his father’s study, this young boy asked the man, “What did my father tell you?” The man answered, “I got a beracha from your father that Hashem should help.” The young boy then asked the man to go back into his father and ask what would happen until Hashem helps. So the man went back in and asked, and the Rebbi answered, “Until Hashem will help, Hashem will also help!”
Which means that even before the full salvation comes, there will be help to get us there and to keep us going.
Sometimes, when a person has a challenge, there are a little glimmers of hope that appear. Those glimmers of hope are there as a Mish’an, to give the person the strength not to give up hope. They see that something happened, and that there is a little hope on the horizon. That is the Mish’an, to give the person the strength to stay connected.
He connects this to the pasuk, “I will not forsake you, until I did what I have promised for you,” which means that even though Hashem didn’t yet do what He promised for us, He will not forsake you, and He will continue to help you.
This is an important lesson. We don’t always get what we want immediately. Until the final Yeshua comes, a person must be patient. He can’t give up hope. Hashem will send him a little glimmers, little Mish’ans to hold on to, so that he doesn’t lose his Bitachon.
Mish’an UMivtach Lasadikim.
God is both a cane and a guarantee.