We continue to study the pesukim of Perek Shira.ֶToday we will discuss the song of the Water.
מַיִם אוֹמְרִים. לְקֹול תִּתֹּו הֲמֹון מַיִם בַּשָּׁמַיִם
וַיַּעַל נְשִׂאִים מִקְצֵה אָרֶץ (ירמיה י,יג)
To the voice (or the noise) when great amounts of waters come up in
the skies, and Hashem brings clouds upon
the earth.
The first question is what noise are we talking about? What voice
are we talking about? The Talmud Bavli 59A says this refers to the thunder.
Another explanation, from the sefer Kehilat Yaakov, by one
of the Mekubalim (in the letter
starting with Mem) says the water is telling us a secret:You think, says the water, that rain comes down
because of weather? Because of forecasts, because of anything natural? No. That's not the reason water comes down. Water comes down because people are
learning Torah, and people are praying. I'm the water, and I'll tell you the
truth. I see what's happening. I know what's going on. The water's song
describes to us how the rain comes down.
The water experienced it.
The Abarbanel adds another interesting twist to the song of the
water, which is that the water is telling us Lakol, the world is
praying for rain. All of the people are praying to their idols that there
should be rain, and there are even good indicators for rain, because naturally
it seems like there's Mayim B'Shamayim, it looks like the water is
ready to come down. But then Hashem decides, No, I don't think there should
be rain., I'm not going to answer their prayers. Then Hashem brings clouds
that blow it away and the rain doesn't come down.
So, the water is tellig us, I see what's going on behind the
scenes. I see how Hashem controls nature. Hashem controls the rain and
Hashem's control of the rain is ultimately impacted by the Jewish people, not
by anybody else.
Another additional point on this pasuk is brought down in
the Megila 15A, where Rav Chanina
tells us that Hashem is different than human beings. Human beings first put
a pot down, then put water in the pot and start cooking. But Hashem doesn't
follow natural rules. Hashem can put the
water first and then the pot. That's
what this pasuk means. It says God puts the water and then
it says He brings the clouds. It would seem that the right order would
be first the clouds and then the water. But the water says, I want to show
how the rain has nothing to do with what it looks like naturally. The water has
nothing to do with the clouds. The water is there because Hashem wants the
water to be there. Clouds, water, weather, formations, none of it is natural.
It is not anything to do with anything. That's why, whenever Hashem talks about
reward and punishment, it says, I'll stop the heavens and they will not give
rain. Or, I'll bless you with rain. Why is rain always the focus of
blessings and curses? Because weather is nature that's not nature. If
you cut your finger, you're going to bleed. There are certain rules of nature that,
changing them would be a miracle. But when a weather formation changes, it's
not a miracle. There's something about the weather and rain that there is no
exact science to it, even with all the predictions. That's the song of the
water. The song of the water is to let you know that I have nothing to do
with nature. I'm just the will of God. That's
all. בַּשָּׁמַיִם וַיַּעַל
נְשִׂאִים מִקְצֵה אָרֶ/ The voices, the noises that are connected to the water in the
heavens, in the clouds from one end of the earth to the other.
Have a wonderful day.
