Dedicated in memory of Adina Bat Yocheved by Paula Tawil, in honor of her mother’s yarzheit- Janet Feldman ah.
It’s snowing outside, at least for those of us in the tristate area. For those of you in Florida, I’m sorry that you’re missing out on feeling this important lesson.
There is a pasuk in Tehilim (perek קמז) that we say every day, which says
הַשֹּׁלֵ֣חַ אִמְרָת֣וֹ אָ֑רֶץ עַד־מְ֝הֵרָ֗ה יָר֥וּץ דְּבָרֽוֹ
G-d sends His word down to this earth, and His words run very fast
This means that G-d gives a commandment, and it happens.
One example of this is, as the pasuk continues,
הַנֹּתֵ֣ן שֶׁ֣לֶג כַּצָּ֑מֶר
G-d makes snow (white) like wool,
כְּ֝פ֗וֹר כָּאֵ֥פֶר יְפַזֵּֽר
He takes ice and spreads it out like ashes
מַשְׁלִ֣יךְ קַֽרְח֣וֹ כְפִתִּ֑ים
He throws out His cold in pieces,
לִפְנֵ֥י קָ֝רָת֗וֹ מִ֣י יַעֲמֹֽד
In front of His cold, who can stand?
We are talking about snow.
The Radak says that we have to take out time to thank Hashem for what he calls the דברים שהם תמידים לבני העולם
The things that are constant in the world.
We may not pay attention to these things, but he says they are
גבורות ונפלאות מהבין they are powerful, wondrous, and hard to understand.
Where does rain, thunder or snow come from?
Therefore, he says, we have to sing songs for His wondrous things, amongst which is snow.
Snow keeps people in their homes. It’s powerful. As the pasuk says,
לִפְנֵ֥י קָ֝רָת֗וֹ מִ֣י יַעֲמֹֽד
In front of His cold, who can stand?
When it’s very hot, people go outside. But when it’s very cold, people are locked in their homes.
G-d can quarantine everyone, at any given time.
There are strong lessons in G-d’s mercy in this. We will discuss some of them.
One is that Rashi says, ‘G-d gives the snow, according to כפתים/ ashes’ means that
הכל לפי משא הבריות
G-d gives snow based on a person’s ability to accept it.
העני לפי חוסר מלבושיו מיקל עליו
For a person who’s poor, due to lack of clothing, Hashem makes it easier.
Snow falls in a very specific way, with Hashgacha Pratit/ Divine intervention. Hashem will only give you snow if you can handle it.
The rabbis learn that this isn’t just a lesson in snow, it’s a lesson all yisurim/challenges.
G-d gives us challenges in a way that we can handle. If we couldn’t handle it, we wouldn’t get it. And that is what it means, that Hashem sends His snow like ash, in small bits.
If Hashem were to pour down all of the snow at one time, it would be impossible. But instead, it comes down in fluffy, little flakes. It could come down as a sheet of ice, it’s the same water. But Hashem brings it down in kindness, in a way that we can handle.
So, even when life is difficult, Hashem gives us the ability to withstand it. In the words of the Imrei Emet, on this Rashi,
“G-d does not bring evil down in one fell swoop, rather, little by little, in order that we are able to withstand it.”
So, we have two lessons in Hashem’s mercy. The first is that Hashem only gives a person what he’s able to handle, and the second is that it comes in small, bite size pieces.
So, when you look at the snow, even with all the wind and blizzard, nonetheless it’s able to be handled. We have boots, mittens and caps. We have shovels, and we have the ability to handle it. We are bundled up nicely, tucked in our homes, as all of this goes on outside.
That is all in a simple level.
But Rav Yerucham Levovitz points out that snow comes during the weeks of SHOVAVIM. We haven’t spoken about this yet this year, but these are the weeks of parshiot Shemot, Vaerah, Bo, Beshalach, Yitro, and Mishpatim, which, in Hebrew, spell out the acronym שובבים -SHOVAVIM, which means wayward ones. It’s based on the pasuk
שבו בנים שובבים
Return, wayward sons.
It’s a time of Teshuva. Great Kabbalists of old would be excited when it snowed during these days, because they would roll in the snow. We don’t roll in the snow today. But there is message in the snow for us, during SHOVAVIM. The Sefer Panim Yafot says something beautiful. He says in the pasuk we quoted from tehilim
הַנֹּתֵ֣ן שֶׁ֣לֶג כַּצָּ֑מֶר
G-d makes snow (white) like wool
the snow is compared to wool because on Yom Kippur they used to tie the red string to the goat L’Azazel- the goat that was to be pushed off the cliff. This evokes a pasuk in Yeshaya that says
, אִם־יִֽהְי֨וּ חֲטָאֵיכֶ֤ם כַּשָּׁנִים֙ כַּשֶּׁ֣לֶג יַלְבִּ֔ינוּ אִם־יַאְדִּ֥ימוּ כַתּוֹלָ֖ע כַּצֶּ֥מֶר יִהְיֽוּ
(Even) if you’re sins are red- colored, they can turn white like snow.
The Panim Yafot ( on Devarim 12/5) says that Hashem is giving us the message that even in the times of Galut/ exile, Hashem is cleansing our sins. All the white symbolizes the cleansing. He says that
כְּ֝פ֗וֹר כָּאֵ֥פֶר יְפַזֵּֽר
We take the snow and spread it like ashes means that just as the goat to Azazel is pushed off the cliff and spreads out everywhere, the snow spreading symbolizes our sins being broken up and spread out.
Be’ezrat Hashem, we have two lessons of snow.
One is a simple thank you lesson, that Hashem gives us the ability to withstand the snow.
Another important lesson from the snow is that it symbolizes Hashem breaking up our sins and giving us forgiveness, Be’ezrat Hashem.
Have a wonderful day.