The Gemarah in Berachot ( daf ד, amud ב)
tells us
אֵיזֶהוּ בֶּן הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא זֶה הַסּוֹמֵךְ גְּאוּלָּה לִתְפִלָּה שֶׁל עַרְבִית
Who will go to Olam Haba/ the World to Come? Someone who is careful to connect the Ga’al Yisrael to the Amida, even of Arbit ( and of course in Shaharit, says Rashi)
This means he doesn’t break between telling over the miracles of Yetziat Mitzrayim and the fact that G-d saved us, and his own prayers.
This is something that everyone does. We say Ga’al Yisrael, and then continue on, to the Amida. So Rabbenu Yona is bothered by this. What is the secret that this small act brings about the greatest of rewards, Olam Haba?
He explains that when a person mentions the story of Yetziat Mitzrayim, which we do daily ( from keriat shema and onward), he shows that he relies on Hashem in his prayer. He has described all the wonders that G-d did, and he describes how G-d saved them. That lesson in Bitachon should tell him, “If G-d saved them then, , G-d can save me now. I’m going to rely on G-d like they relied on G-d, and I will ask Him.”
He says that this concept of bitachon is mentioned in the Midrash on the story of Yetziat Mitzrayim. When the Jewish people saw the wonders and miracles of what Hashem did in such a supernatural way, בטחו בו
They relied on Him
On that, it says, they saw the great hand that G-d performed against the Egyptians, they were afraid of G-d and they believe in G-d.
This is an important principle, he says. They saw miracles and they feared G-d. You can’t really be have true Yirat Shamayim, be truly afraid of G-d, unless you are aware of G-d in your life. The bitachon is the cause for having Yirat Shamayim and having Emunah. If you live a life of reliance on G-d, with that comes fear of G-d and belief, just like it happened in Mitzrayim. So every single day, when we go through our prayers, we are reliving the Yetziat Mitzrayim experience. We are reliving the feeling of the miracles, and we are reliving the clarity and emunah that they had. And then we say, “if that’s the case, now I’m going to ask for all of the things that I need. Give me healing, give me sustenance, give me all the things that I need..” all the nineteen requests in the Amida, and then some.
He says that going through this experience will bring one to Bitachon, which in turn brings one to fear of G-d and Emunah, and therefore, it brings one to Olam Haba. This is an entirely different prayer experience. This is really reliving the story, beginning from Az Yashir. The whole build up, in both Shaharit and Arbit, is a build up of the story of Yetziat Mitzrayim. This is important.
It’s not just reading something. We are supposed to be feeling those lessons, to the point that we reach a level of Bitachon, and with that, we reach a level of Yirat Shamayim.
So this is yet another example of how Bitachon is not just a way to get what we want. Bitachon has many, many advantages. It is a way to get what you want, but it’s also a way to increase your Yirat Shamayim, because if you see G-d, you fear G-d, and you increase your Emunah. Therefore, the Bitachon tool is actually getting you to Olam Haba, because it’s giving you the most important tools that a person needs, to live his life like a Jew.
Rabbenu Yonah, in Mishleh
(perek יח pasuk י) says
“A person who relies on Hashem will be called a Sadik, because real Bitachon brings with it fear of G-d.”
If you rely on Hashem at every moment, and you’re talking to Him, and asking Him, thanking Him and connecting to Him, how can you sin? He’s there, He’s with you. That’s the added advantage, or almost the main advantage- the concept that Bitachon will bring you to Yirah, Emunah and Olam Haba.
This is a concept we have mentioned in the past from Rabbenu Yonah: Don’t just think of Bitachon as, I got the parking spot, or I didn’t. Bitachon is a way to be constantly connected to G-d.
As we have mentioned in the past from the Meshech Chochma,
ובו תדבק
Cleave to G-d
That is a source of bitachon, but I would like to bring it up again, to our prayers. The Baalei Mussar say that we are praying anyway, so we should do it with some feeling, with some heart.
The more you feel Yetziat Mitzrayim, and feel those lessons, and then pray based on those lessons, that’s a different prayer, a prayer that, B’ezrat Hashem, will get us all to Olam Haba.