As we have been discussing, lessons in Bitachon can be drawn from our illustrious history and from our day to day goings-on.
The story of Kriyat Yam Suf (the splitting of the sea) in Parashat Beshalach teaches a very strong lesson in Bitachon and Emunah, says the Rambam.
Bnei Yisrael were released and out of Egypt. A few days later they were once again on the run. The Egyptian army in its full force came to follow them and the people went into a state of panic. Some people wanted to go back, some people wanted to fight, they had no idea what to do! In the end, Hashem saved them in a way no one ever dreamt- He split the sea for them!
Says Rambam, this is a tremendous lesson in life. When Hashem saves you, He can do so in a way you’d never imagine. With all the panic and the plans to save themselves at that juncture, no one said “Let’s jump into the sea, it’ll split for us but then when the Mitzrayim come in to chase us it’ll come crashing down on them.”
We learn from the Gemara in Sotah סוטה ב,א) ) that a person’s parnassa is like Kriyat Yam Suf as well, in that when a person has a problem in business, he can think of a myriad of ways to fix it but in the end, when Hashem brings the salvation, it’s something he’d never have thought of. The same goes for Shidduchim as well.
There’s another lesson that the Rambam teaches us from Kriyat Yam Suf: Bnei Yisrael were at the cusp of their redemption. They were at the point where the whole Egyptian army was going to be wiped out; they’d end up with all the jewels and more money than when they left Egypt, they were about to be become multimillionaires-but just an hour before, they were in the gloomiest situation. They were so close to the Geulah and they didn’t even realize it. This is how Hashem works throughout history. The salvation comes at the bleakest of times; In the least predictable ways. . And when we’re up to the Geulah, it won’t happen in a progressive, sensible or predictable way either. The Rambam says that’s how G-d works. It will be the gloomiest of times but the Geulah will be right there and come in way we could never imagine.
I was recently at a shivah (mourning) house, paying respects for a holocaust survivor, where following story was told. The man was blond and blue eyed and could pass for Hungarian, so he’d been able to get fake papers but was constantly on the run. Then a bomb hit the building he was hiding in. The Hungarian soldiers who found him in the bomb shelter mistook him for an actual Hungarian and berated him for being a draft dodger. They said it was men like him that were causing them to lose the war and that they would be coming to get him the next morning to report for duty. It seemed like the end of the road for this man. After all his running and hiding he’d been caught. But then, the very next morning the Russians came and they were liberated! Again we see that even when it looks like it’s all over, we don’t give up. It will be like this for the Geulah (final redemption).
This concept is true today as well. If you look around today, things seem like they’re getting worse in certain political arenas. A recent liberal news journal published the following article, entitled: Israel is the New Divide, which explains that New Democratic Presidential hopefuls don’t necessarily care about courting the pro-Israel vote.
“Paying respect to the pro-Israel lobby was once a necessary step for Democrats aspiring to the White House. But ahead of 2020, that step has become much quieter — if it occurs at all. Stoked by grassroots activism, polls now show Democrats nearly split on the issue of Israel and Palestine. And the guest list for this year’s American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference notably lacks many Democratic presidential contenders. Analysts think support for Israel might prove to be the divisive issue in the upcoming presidential caucus.”
It’s possible that this is fake news put out to make Israel seem weaker, but the point is, we don’t exactly know what’s going on. Things do look bleak. What’s the answer? What’s the solution?
The Rambam says that’s the point. When it looks like there’s no solution, Hashem says: I can take you out in a way you never dreamed. But the key is, you have to rely on me, you have to count on me. And when that happens the sky is the limit.