From the Torah ofRav Dovid Matisyohu Rabinowitz of Bialaרבי דוד מתתיהו רבינוביץ מביאלאProfile ›
Emunas Chachamim: The Light the Greeks Sought to Darken
The Gemara finds Chanukah’s command in “You shall not turn aside,” yet Rav Nechemyah reaches instead for “Ask your father.” Why another verse? Why did the Greeks decree against the new month, of all mitzvos? And why does Al HaNissim say they sought to make Israel “forget” the Torah?
Name a tzaddik: tap for who he wasTitle a sefer
Devarim 32:7
זְכֹר יְמוֹת עוֹלָם בִּינוּ שְׁנוֹת דֹּר־וָדֹר שְׁאַל אָבִיךָ וְיַגֵּדְךָ זְקֵנֶיךָ וְיֹאמְרוּ לָךְ
Remember the days of old, consider the years of each generation; ask your father, and he will tell you; your elders, and they will say to you.
1“One who lights a Chanukah lamp must say a blessing … What blessing does he say? ‘Who has sanctified us with His commandments … to light …’ And where did He command us? Rav Avya said: from ‘You shall not turn aside.’ Rav Nechemyah said: from ‘Ask your father, and he will tell you; your elders, and they will say to you.’”1
הַמַּדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל חֲנוּכָּה צָרִיךְ לְבָרֵךְ וְכוּ׳, מַאי מְבָרֵךְ, מְבָרֵךְ אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹותָיו לְהַדְלִיק וְכוּ׳. וְהֵיכָן צִוָּנוּ, רַב אַוְיָא אָמַר מִלֹּא תָסוּר, רַב נְחֶמְיָה אָמַר שְׁאַל אָבִיךָ וְיַגֵּדְךָ זְקֵנֶיךָ וְיֹאמְרוּ לָךְ (שבת כג, א).
- Shabbos 23a; Devarim 17:11; 32:7. Chanukah is a mitzvah instituted by Chazal and is not written in the Torah, hence the question “Where did He command us?” The verse “You shall not turn aside” commands following the rulings of the Sages. ↩
In shortThe Gemara finds the “command” behind Chanukah's blessing in “You shall not turn aside” or in “Ask your father.”
2We need to understand Rav Nechemyah's view. He learns the mitzvah from the verse “Ask your father, and he will tell you.” Why was Rav Avya's verse, “You shall not turn aside,” not enough for him? The Gemara says that all the enactments of Chazal rest on the prohibition “You shall not turn aside.”2 What, then, is different about the mitzvah of the Chanukah lamp?
צָרִיךְ לְהָבִין אֶת דַּעַת רַב נְחֶמְיָה דְּיָלֵיף מֵהַפָּסוּק ״שְׁאַל אָבִיךָ וְיַגֵּדְךָ״ (דברים לב, ז), מַדּוּעַ לֹא הָיָה לוֹ דַּי בַּפָּסוּק שֶׁהֵבִיא רַב אַוְיָא ״לֹא תָסוּר״ (דברים יז, יא), הֲלֹא אָמְרוּ בַּגְּמָרָא (ברכות יט, ב) דְּכָל מִילֵּי דְּרַבָּנַן אַסְמְכִינְהוּ עַל לָאו דְּ״לֹא תָסוּר״, וּמַה נִשְׁתַּנָּה מִצְוַות נֵר חֲנוּכָּה.
- Berachos 19b. ↩
In shortAll of Chazal's enactments rest on “You shall not turn aside,” so why does Rav Nechemyah need another verse for Chanukah?
3We know that the Greeks decreed against Shabbos, circumcision and the sanctifying of the new month.3 Why did they decree against these three mitzvos in particular? The decree against the new month is especially hard to understand. Shabbos and circumcision, granted, are foundational mitzvos, and the Torah calls each of them a covenant.4 But what did the Greeks see in the mitzvah of Kiddush HaChodesh, sanctifying the new month, that they decreed against it?
וְהִנֵּה נוֹדַע (מגילת אנטיוכוס) שֶׁהַיְּוָונִים גָּזְרוּ עַל שַׁבָּת מִילָה וְחוֹדֶשׁ, וְיֵשׁ לְהָבִין לָמָּה גָּזְרוּ דַּוְוקָא עַל שְׁלֹשָׁה מִצְוֹות אֵלֶּה. וּבְיוֹתֵר קָשֶׁה מֶה הָיָה הָעִנְיָן שֶׁגָּזְרוּ עַל חוֹדֶשׁ, דְּבִשְׁלָמָא שַׁבָּת וּמִילָה הֵם מִצְוֹות יְסוֹדִיּוֹת, וְנֶאֱמַר עֲלֵיהֶם ׳בְּרִית׳, אַךְ מַה רָאוּ הַיְּוָונִים לִגְזוֹר עַל מִצְוַות קִידּוּשׁ הַחוֹדֶשׁ.
In shortWhy did the Greeks single out Shabbos, circumcision and the new month, and above all the new month?
4Notice also the wording of Al HaNissim: “to make them forget Your Torah.” Why did they choose the words “to make them forget,” and not “to make them abandon Your Torah”?
עוֹד יֵשׁ לְדַקְדֵּק בְּנוּסַּח תְּפִילַּת עַל הַנִּיסִּים, ׳לְהַשְׁכִּיחָם תּוֹרָתֶךָ׳, מַדּוּעַ נָקְטוּ לְשׁוֹן ׳לְהַשְׁכִּיחָם׳ וְלֹא אָמְרוּ ׳לְבַטְּלָם׳ מִתּוֹרָתֶךָ.
Sources here
In shortWhy does Al HaNissim say the Greeks sought to make Israel “forget” the Torah, and not to make it abandon the Torah?
5aWe may say that the Greeks knew full well that Bnei Yisrael would give their lives for the mitzvos and the words of the Torah, offering themselves like burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Greeks turned to cunning. They tried to bring a different spirit into Bnei Yisrael, a spirit of not believing in the words of the Sages, Heaven forbid, and of doubting emunas chachamim, faith in the Sages. As is well known, without the Oral Torah it is impossible to understand almost any of the Written Torah, and we find this most of all with these three mitzvos, Shabbos, the new month and circumcision. About holy Shabbos the Torah says, “You shall not kindle fire in all your dwellings.”5 At first glance the verse means that one must sit in the dark all Shabbos, and that is in fact how the Tzedukim, the Sadducees, who rejected the Oral Torah, explain it.6 But Chazal expounded: “On the Shabbos day you may not kindle, but you may kindle on Erev Shabbos for Shabbos.”7
אָכֵן אֶפְשָׁר לוֹמַר, כִּי הַיְּוָונִים יָדְעוּ נֶאֱמָנָה שֶׁבְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל יִמְסְרוּ נַפְשָׁם כְּמוֹ עוֹלוֹת וּשְׁלָמִים עַל מִצְוֹות וְדִבְרֵי תּוֹרָה, וּלְכָךְ בָּאוּ הַיְּוָונִים לִנְהוֹג בְּעָרְמָה, וְזֹאת עַל יְדֵי שֶׁרָצוּ לְהַכְנִיס אֵצֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל רוּחַ אַחֶרֶת שֶׁלֹּא לְהַאֲמִין בְּדִבְרֵי חֲכָמִים ח״ו, וּלְהַטִּיל סָפֵק בֶּאֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים. וְהִנֵּה יָדוּעַ כִּי בְּלִי תּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה אִי אֶפְשָׁר לְהָבִין כִּמְעַט אֶת כָּל הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁבִּכְתָב, וּבְיוֹתֵר מָצִינוּ כֵּן בִּשְׁלוֹשָׁה מִצְוֹות אֵלּוּ שַׁבָּת חוֹדֶשׁ וּמִילָה, דִּבְעִנְיַן שַׁבָּת קוֹדֶשׁ כָּתוּב בַּתּוֹרָה ״לֹא תְבַעֲרוּ אֵשׁ בְּכֹל מוֹשְׁבוֹתֵיכֶם״ (שמות לה, ג) שֶׁלִּכְאוֹרָה מַשְׁמָעוּת הַכָּתוּב שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לָשֶׁבֶת כָּל הַשַּׁבָּת בַּחוֹשֶׁךְ וְכָךְ בֶּאֱמֶת מְפָרְשִׁים הַצָּדוֹקִים (מגיד מישרים, ילקוט ראובני ויקהל שם), אַךְ חז״ל דָּרְשׁוּ (מכילתא שם) בְּיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת אִי אַתָּה מַבְעִיר, אֲבָל אַתָּה מַבְעִיר מֵעֶרֶב שַׁבָּת לְשַׁבָּת.
In shortKnowing the Jews would die for the mitzvos, the Greeks turned to cunning: sowing doubt in the Sages, without whom even Shabbos cannot be understood.
5bWe find the same with the mitzvah of circumcision. The Torah does not say explicitly which organ is to be circumcised. We know it only from the Sages' exposition: “It says here ‘his orlah,’ and it says there ‘its orlah.’ Just as there it means something that bears fruit, so here too it means something that bears fruit.”8 The great power of the Sages is seen most of all in the sanctifying of the new month. As Chazal said, “‘You’: even in error; ‘you’: even deliberately.”9 The whole fixing of the festivals depends on the earthly beis din, for they are the ones who sanctify the month. So it is with all the mitzvos of the Torah: the Torah cannot be fulfilled without the explanation of the Oral Torah, and to accept the Sages' words one needs emunas chachamim. This is why the Greeks decreed against these three things in particular. They wanted to uproot from Bnei Yisrael emunas chachamim, the foundation of the whole Torah, and in this way, they reckoned, they would succeed in making the Jews abandon the whole Torah and its mitzvos.
וְכֵן מָצִינוּ גַּם בְּמִצְוַות מִילָה, שֶׁלֹּא נִתְבָּאֵר לְהֶדְיָא בַּתּוֹרָה אֵיזֶה אֵבֶר צְרִיכִים לָמוּל, אֶלָּא מִמַּה שֶׁדָּרְשׁוּ חֲכָמִים (שבת קח, א) נֶאֱמַר כָּאן עָרְלָתוֹ וְנֶאֱמַר לְהַלָּן (ויקרא יט, כג) עָרְלָתוֹ, מַה לְּהַלָּן דָּבָר שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה פְּרִי, אַף כָּאן דָּבָר שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה פְּרִי. וּבְיִחוּד אֵצֶל קִידּוּשׁ הַחֹדֶשׁ נִרְאֶה בְּיוֹתֵר גּוֹדֶל כֹּחַ חֲכָמִים, כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמְרוּ (בראש השנה כה, א) ׳אַתֶּם׳ אֲפִילּוּ שׁוֹגְגִים ׳אַתֶּם׳ אֲפִילּוּ מְזִידִים, שֶׁכָּל קְבִיעוּת הַמּוֹעֲדוֹת תָּלוּי בְּבֵית דִּין שֶׁל מַטֵּה, שֶׁהֵם הַמְקַדְּשִׁים אֶת הַחוֹדֶשׁ. וְעַל דֶּרֶךְ זֶה הוּא בְּכָל מִצְוֹות הַתּוֹרָה, שֶׁאִי אֶפְשָׁר לְקַיֵּים הַתּוֹרָה בְּלֹא פֵּירוּשׁ הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה, וּלְקַבֵּל דִּבְרֵיהֶם צְרִיכִים אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים. וְזֶה הָיָה כַּוָּונַת הַיְּוָונִים, שֶׁגָּזְרוּ דַּוְקָא עַל שְׁלוֹשָׁה דְּבָרִים אֵלּוּ, כִּי רָצוּ לַעֲקוֹר מִבְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת הָאֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים שֶׁהִיא יְסוֹד כָּל הַתּוֹרָה, וְעַל יְדֵי זֶה יַצְלִיחוּ לְבַטְּלָם מִכָּל הַתּוֹרָה וְהַמִּצְוֹות.
- Shabbos 108a; Vayikra 12:3; 19:23. The first verse speaks of circumcision; the second of the fruit of a young tree, called orlah, which is forbidden for its first three years. ↩
- Rosh Hashanah 25a. Three times the Torah writes osam, “them,” in “which you shall proclaim them” (Vayikra 23:2, 4, 37), and Chazal read it as atem, “you”: the dates the beis din fixes stand even if it erred. ↩
In shortCircumcision, and above all the new month, depend on the Sages; the Greeks struck these three to uproot faith in the Sages, the foundation of the Torah.
6This answers what we asked about Rav Nechemyah's view: why is the mitzvah of Chanukah, in particular, learned from the verse “Ask your father, and he will tell you; your elders, and they will say to you”? The main thing the Greeks sought to uproot was emunas chachamim. The Chashmona'im, the Hasmoneans, prevailed over the Greeks and defeated them by strengthening themselves to root deep this principle of emunas chachamim, the foundation of the whole Torah. So they went on to institute the mitzvah of the Chanukah lamp, and in this way they strengthened emunas chachamim at once, for people see that the Sages have the power to add new mitzvos of their own. That is why the Sages learned the mitzvah of the Chanukah lamp from the verse “Ask your father,” which speaks of emunas chachamim explicitly.
וּלְפִי זֶה יֵשׁ לְהָבִין מַה שֶׁהִקְשֵׁינוּ בְּדַעַת רַב נְחֶמְיָה, מַדּוּעַ דַּוְקָא מִצְוַות חֲנוּכָּה יָלְפִינַן מִקְּרָא דִּ׳שְׁאַל אָבִיךָ וְיַגֵּדְךָ זְקֵנֶיךָ וְיֹאמְרוּ לָךְ׳, וְהוּא מֵאַחַר שֶׁכָּל עִיקַּר מַה שֶׁרָצוּ הַיְּוָונִים לַעֲקוֹר הָיָה אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, וּכְנֶגְדָּם גָּבְרוּ הַחַשְׁמוֹנָאִים עֲלֵיהֶם וְנִצְּחוּם עַל יְדֵי שֶׁנִּתְחַזְּקוּ לְהַשְׁרִישׁ עִיקָּר זֶה שֶׁל אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים שֶׁהוּא יְסוֹד לְכָל הַתּוֹרָה. וְעַל כֵּן בָּאוּ וְתִיקְּנוּ מִצְוַות נֵר חֲנוּכָּה, וּבָזֶה חִיזְּקוּ מִיָּד אֶת עִנְיַן אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, עַל יְדֵי שֶׁרוֹאִים שֶׁיֵּשׁ כֹּחַ בְּיַד חֲכָמִים לְהוֹסִיף וּלְחַדֵּשׁ מִצְוֹות דְּרַבָּנַן. וְעַל כֵּן דָּרְשׁוּ חֲכָמִים אֶת מִצְוַות נֵר חֲנוּכָּה מִפָּסוּק ׳שְׁאַל אָבִיךָ׳, שֶׁבּוֹ מְפוֹרָשׁ עִנְיָן זֶה שֶׁל אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים.
In shortChanukah's war was over faith in the Sages, so its new mitzvah is learned from “Ask your father … your elders,” which teaches exactly that.
7This also lets us understand why Al HaNissim was worded “to make them forget Your Torah” and not “to make them abandon” it. The Greeks did not actually decree that the whole Torah be abolished. They pretended to have no intention of abolishing the whole Torah, and with their decrees sought only to abolish emunas chachamim. But by this they schemed to bring about, as a matter of course, confusion and the forgetting of the whole Torah. So the prayer was worded “to make them forget Your Torah”: they schemed that the Torah would be forgotten of itself.
וּבָזֶה יֵשׁ לְהָבִין גַּם מַדּוּעַ יָסְדוּ הַלָּשׁוֹן ׳לְהַשְׁכִּיחָם׳ תּוֹרָתֶךָ וְלֹא ׳לְבַטְּלָם׳, כִּי הַיְּוָונִים לֹא גָּזְרוּ מַמָּשׁ לְבַטֵּל אֶת הַתּוֹרָה כּוּלָּהּ, אֶלָּא הֶעֱמִידוּ פָּנִים כְּאִילּוּ אֵין דַּעְתָּם לְבַטֵּל אֶת כָּל הַתּוֹרָה, אֶלָּא שֶׁבִּגְזִירוֹתֵיהֶם בִּיקְּשׁוּ לְבַטֵּל אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, אַךְ בָּזֶה זָמְמוּ לִגְרוֹם מִמֵּילָא לְבִלְבּוּל וְשִׁכְחַת כָּל הַתּוֹרָה. וְעַל כֵּן יָסְדוּ בִּתְפִילָּה הַלָּשׁוֹן ׳לְהַשְׁכִּיחָם׳ תּוֹרָתֶךָ, הַיְינוּ שֶׁזָּמְמוּ שֶׁמִּמֵּילָא תִּהְיֶה הַתּוֹרָה נִשְׁכַּחַת.
In shortThe Greeks openly targeted only faith in the Sages, scheming that the whole Torah would then be forgotten; hence “to make them forget.”
8aThis also lets us resolve the question of the : why was lighting established for eight days, when there was enough oil to burn on the first day?10 He answered that on the very first day they divided the oil into eight parts, so there was a miracle on the first day as well. But the Pri Chadash, the Eshel Avraham of Butshatsh and the responsa of the Mahari Assad challenged him:11 one does not rely on a miracle!12 If so, they should have put all the oil into the Menorah on the first day, and not left some over and relied on a miracle.
וּבָזֶה אֶפְשָׁר גַּם לְיַישֵּׁב קוּשְׁיַית הַבֵּית יוֹסֵף, שֶׁהִקְשָׁה לָמָּה קָבְעוּ לְהַדְלִיק שְׁמוֹנַת יָמִים, הֲלֹא הָיָה בַּשֶּׁמֶן דַּי בִּשְׁבִיל לְהַדְלִיק בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן. וְתֵירֵץ, שֶׁכְּבָר בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן חִילְּקוּ הַשֶּׁמֶן לִשְׁמוֹנָה חֲלָקִים, וּמִמֵּילָא הָיָה נֵס גַּם בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן. וְהִקְשׁוּ עָלָיו (הפרי חדש, אשל אברהם מבוטשאטש, שו״ת מהר״י אסאד סימן רא), הֲלֹא אֵין סוֹמְכִין עַל הַנֵּס (על פי זוהר ח״א רל, ב. ועיין פסחים סד, ב), וְאִם כֵּן הָיָה לָהֶם לְהַדְלִיק בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן אֶת כָּל הַשֶּׁמֶן, וְלֹא לְהַשְׁאִיר וְלִסְמוֹךְ עַל נֵס.
- Beis Yosef, Orach Chaim 670. ↩
- Pri Chadash; Eshel Avraham; Shu"t Mahari Assad §201. ↩
- Based on Zohar I 230b; see Pesachim 64b. ↩
In shortThe Beis Yosef says the oil was divided into eight parts from the first night; but, others ask, one does not rely on a miracle.
8bFrom what we have explained, we may say this. Here the wicked kingdom of Greece had risen against Israel to take away emunas chachamim and the Oral Torah, and so the greatness of emunas chachamim had to be shown. Here, then, it was a kind of hora'as sha'ah, a ruling for the needs of the hour. The people had to believe with a whole heart that if the Chashmona'im and the beis din of their generation ruled to divide the oil, the Holy One, blessed be He, would surely do a miracle for Israel. In this way the power of the Sages would be revealed. The rule is always that one does not rely on a miracle, but here they departed from it, because they needed to increase emunas chachamim, the very opposite of what the Greeks had schemed.
וְעַל פִּי הַמְּבוֹאָר עַד הֵנָּה אֶפְשָׁר לוֹמַר, דְּכָאן כֵּיוָן שֶׁעָמְדָה מַלְכוּת יָוָן הָרְשָׁעָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל לְבַטֵּל מֵהֶם אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים וְתוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה, הָיָה צוֹרֶךְ לְהַרְאוֹת גּוֹדֶל אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, לְפִיכָךְ כָּאן הָיְתָה זֹאת כְּעֵין הוֹרָאַת שָׁעָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, אֲשֶׁר צְרִיכִים הֵם לְהַאֲמִין בְּלֵב שָׁלֵם שֶׁאִם הַחַשְׁמוֹנָאִים וּבֵית דִּין שֶׁבְּדוֹרָם הוֹרוּ לְחַלֵּק הַשֶּׁמֶן, וַדַּאי יַעֲשֶׂה הקב״ה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל נֵס, וּבְכָךְ יִתְגַּלֶּה הַכֹּחַ שֶׁל חֲכָמִים. וְאַף עַל פִּי דְּתָמִיד הַכְּלָל הוּא דְּאֵין סוֹמְכִין עַל הַנֵּס, כָּאן יָצְאוּ מֵהַכְּלָל הַזֶּה, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהוּצְרְכוּ לְהַרְבּוֹת אֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, הֵיפֶךְ מִמַּה שֶׁהַיְּוָונִים זָמְמוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת.
In shortDividing the oil was a ruling for the hour: to reveal the Sages’ power, Israel trusted that Hashem would perform the miracle their beis din relied on.
9May the Holy One, blessed be He, help the days of Chanukah strengthen us in emunas chachamim. Chazal said that in the merit of faith we will be privileged to be redeemed,13 and through this may the light of King Moshiach be revealed to us. Amen, may it be His will.
הקב״ה יַעֲזוֹר, שֶׁיְּמֵי חֲנוּכָּה יַשְׁפִּיעוּ עָלֵינוּ לְהִתְחַזֵּק בֶּאֱמוּנַת חֲכָמִים, וְאָמְרוּ רז״ל (ילקוט שמעוני ח״ב תקיט) שֶׁבִּזְכוּת הָאֱמוּנָה נִזְכֶּה לִיגָּאֵל, וּבָזֶה יִתְגַּלֶּה עָלֵינוּ אוֹרוֹ שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ הַמָּשִׁיחַ, אָמֵן כֵּן יְהִי רָצוֹן:
- Yalkut Shimoni II §519. ↩
In shortMay we draw from Chanukah strength in faith in the Sages, for in the merit of faith we will be redeemed and see Moshiach's light.
Why does Rav Nechemyah learn Chanukah’s command from “Ask your father,” when all of Chazal’s enactments rest on “You shall not turn aside”? Why did the Greeks single out Shabbos, circumcision and the new month, and why does Al HaNissim say “to make them forget”? The Rebbe answers that the Greeks, knowing Jews would give their lives for the mitzvos, turned to cunning and attacked emunas chachamim, faith in the Sages, without which the Written Torah cannot be understood; these three mitzvos depend on the Oral Torah most of all. Once that faith was gone, the whole Torah would be forgotten of itself. The Chashmona’im answered by strengthening it and instituting a new mitzvah of Chazal, learned from the verse that speaks of that faith. Even dividing the oil, relying on a miracle, was a ruling for the hour to reveal the Sages’ power.
Takeaway
The Greeks did not need to ban the Torah outright; it was enough to make people doubt the Sages, and the rest would be forgotten of itself. The Chashmona'im answered by strengthening faith in the Sages, even dividing the oil at their ruling and trusting Hashem to make it last. Every Chanukah lamp is a mitzvah of Chazal that proclaims this power, and lighting it can renew our resolve to “ask your father” and accept the Sages' guidance with a whole heart.
Learn this in the merit of Rav Dovid Matisyohu Rabinowitz of Biala. His yahrzeit and life ›
English translation, notes and summaries © Zechusam.