In this week’s Parasha, we are introduced to Avraham Avinu. At the end of the Parasha, G-d makes a deal with Avraham concerning the Berit Milah ( a Berit is a covenant or deal). The Ramban explains this with a beautiful thought.
Hashem appeared to Avraham and introduced Himself:
אֲנִי א-ל ש-ד-י-I am El Shadai- (this is one of G-d’s names)
הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי
Walk in front of Me
וֶהְיֵה תָמִים:
And be perfect.
In these three statements, G-d introduces Himself with a novel name, and gives Avraham Avinu two commands:
1-Go in front of Me
2-Be Tamim/perfect
What does Tamim mean?
There are many explanations. One is that Tamim means complete. When you have a Berit Milah, you are complete.
Tamim can also mean perfect- as in passing a test properly.
We will focus on a third explanation, based on the Ramban, who says that the words
וֶהְיֵה תָמִים, be Tamim, match up with another pasuk, from Devarim, which says
תמים תהיה עם ה׳ אלקיך
Be Tamim/perfect with Hashem your G-d
The pasuk in Devarim is clearly referring to not following the signs of astrology, sorcery, and the like.
Ramban explains that G-d was telling Avraham Avinu to “be a “Tamim” person, that he shouldn’t don’t look at astrology and mazalot, and all the other indicators of what is going to happen naturally, because he is no longer controlled by nature. Hashem told Avraham that that they now had a new relationship, called,-הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי-Walk in front of Me
The more you walk in front Me, and the more connected you are to Me, the more it will cause things to change for the better.
Therefore Avraham could forget about paying attention to any of those indicators. The only thing to worry about is הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי
Walk in front of Me
Be a Tamim- don’t look into the future. And Hashem told Avraham a secret:
אֲנִי א-ל ש-ד-י
I am El Shadai-
I have a name called Shadai- which means He overcomes, and plunders the forces of nature. He can control all of the physical challenges.
That’s the power of the name
ש-ד-י
Shaddai
It’s the name of hidden miracles.
The Torah speaks only of hidden miracles in regard to Avraham Avinu, not open miracles.
All of the miracles of the Jewish people- rain coming on time, all the blessings and curses we read about in Bechukotai and Ki Tavo, they were all hidden miracles.
(With Moshe Rabbenu, Hashem used a different name, the name of open miracles (יה-ו -ה)
Here, Hashem was telling Avraham that he wasn’t dealing with open miracles, but rather with the belief that Hashem was the only One that makes things happen.
Therefore, when you hear predictions from sorcerers, don’t believe it must happen. Tell yourself that it’s up to G-d. G-d can change things.
The Ramban says this in Devarim as well, when he talks about the Mitzvah of
תמים תהיה- be Tamim
This was told to Avraham Avinu, and then told to the Jewish people at large, as a Mitzvah.
Ramban says,ונאמין שכל הכחות תהיינה אלינו כפי התקרבנו לעבודתו,
Believe that all occurrences depend on how connected we are to G-d’s service.
(Which is הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי-Walk in front of Me )
Ramban repeats this a third time, in his Sefer HaMitzvot, where he lists the mitzvot of the Torah. According to his opinion (and unlike Rambam), he lists תמים תהיה- Be Tamim, as one of the 613 Mitzvot.
We have to believe that only G-d makes things happen. Only He knows the future, and we should only be concerned with what G-d is going to make happen. We don’t look to palm readers or sorcerers. Furthermore, this doesn’t only apply to predictions from sorcerers. This applies to any predictions- be they from political pundits, doctors, or lawyers... predictions mean nothing to us. When we hear them, our answer, according to Ramban, should be הכל בידי שמים- It’s all in G-d׳s hands.
Numbers don’t mean anything. G-d can change everything.
According to Ramban, this is a fundamental of Emunah.
As this goes through your brain, you are fulfilling a positive commandment: believe that ונאמין שכל הכחות תהיינה אלינו כפי התקרבנו לעבודתו,
All the forces of energy will have relations to us, as much as we connect to Hashem.’s service.
That was Avraham Avinu’s deal, between G-d and the Jewish people. It’s the Brit/deal of the Avot.
Every Jewish male child has a Berit Milah. We re-seal this deal, that Hashem makes things happen depending on how much we connect to Him. That is a fundamental belief. It’s a mitzvat asseh ( positive commandment), and one of the first principles we learn from Avraham Avinu.
אני א-ל ש-ד-י
I am El Shadai-
This is the term we have on our mezuzot.
These letters stand for
שומר דלתות ישראל
G-d watches over the doors of the Jewish people.
The Rambam says that that we kiss the mezuzah and connect to G-d. We realize what it says inside,
Shema Yisrael, Hashem Elokenu Hashem Echad.
The lessons of the mezuzah connect us to G-d and the merit of that emunah protects us.
Bezrat Hashem, we will take this important lesson from the Parasha. This is not just a cute thought. This is a powerful, positive commandment and one of the first Mitzvah fundamentals that Avraham Avinu teaches us.
To recap, Hashem says,
1-
אני א-ל ש-ד-י
I am El Shadai, the G-d of hidden miracles.
2-
If you want to have hidden miracles,
הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי
Walk in front of Me
Connect to Me
3-
וֶהְיֵה תָמִים:
And be simple in your faith
Do not start looking for predictions and palm readers, because they don’t make a difference. They don’t guarantee anything.
The only thing guaranteed is your connection to G-d.
Have a wonderful day.