The yahrzeit of Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk, the author of the Noam Elimelech, the Rebbe of the third generation of Chassidut and one of the prominent students of the Maggid of Mezritch, falls on the 21st of Adar.

It is told that once the tzaddik, the author of the 'Noam Elimelech', was sitting at the Rosh Chodesh meal with his holy group, his chassidim and students, when two men came and stood at the entrance.

Rabbi Elimelech turned and said: 'Have you ever seen two men as bare of mitzvot as these? All because they dared to inform on a man of God - Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov.'

Rabbi Elimelech asked the two to recount the event that left them bare of their mitzvot so that perhaps a rectification and atonement could be found for their souls, and thus they told.

We harassed our accountant until we finally bought his house for a third of its real value, but instead of writing in the bill of sale: 'All this was done willingly and not under duress', the accountant wrote: 'All this was done under duress and not willingly.'

The events greatly saddened the accountant, and shortly thereafter he passed away. His sons, who expected to inherit a large sum, were surprised to hear that a month earlier he had sold us the house for two hundred rubles. The sons, puzzled by this, turned to the city's rabbi, the holy Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov.

When we came before Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov, we presented the bill of sale, confident we would win the case, but since the document was made under duress and falsehood has no standing before the tzaddik, the letters flew off the document, leaving it blank.

'Have you come to mock me by showing me a blank paper?' Rabbi Michel asked us. He immediately took the document, tore it to pieces, and threw it to the ground. With no choice, we returned home, downcast and angry, deciding to keep the matter and eventually take our revenge.

Jealousy drove them out of their minds, and they went to inform on Rabbi Michel

We approached a great duke living near Zlotchov and told him that all the Jews leasing his estates and taverns ask every year to reduce the lease fees, all because of Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov. For this rabbi decreed that no Jew should encroach on his fellow's boundary, nor set his eyes on others' leases, even if offered at half price, and anyone who defies Rabbi Michel is punished by his spells and magic. Therefore, everyone fears and dares not lease from the duke a business already in the hands of another Jew. Hence, the lessees demand the duke lower the lease fees, knowing their hold will remain.

The duke was very angry and after a few days gathered all the nobles and dukes for a great feast. There he told them the reason they are losing much money by lowering the lease fees, and it is all the fault of the city's rabbi, Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov. Therefore, his sentence will be death in three months from today.

On that day, two Jews from Zlotchov happened to be at the duke's house, traveling through the villages with their wares. In the palace kitchen, they offered their goods to the servants and maids, and one of the cooks turned to one of the Jews and said: 'Give me as a gift the pair of earrings I chose, and I will reveal to you a great secret in return.' She then told him about the ministers' decision to kill Rabbi Michel.

The Jew who spoke with the servant found no rest for his soul, and doubt arose in his heart whether her words held truth. Ultimately, he decided to go to Rabbi Michel and tell him about the evil schemes being plotted against him. However, one of the attendants at the rabbi's house blocked his way. 'I have something very important to tell the rabbi,' he said to the attendant. 'Tell me your words, and I will convey them to the rabbi.'

The peddler told him the entire plot, but the attendant rebuked him angrily: 'What does the duke have to do with the rabbi? They have never met or spoken. It seems the duke's servants wanted to mock and frighten you, so they fabricated these things.'

When the Jew heard the attendant's words, he calmed down from his fears, left the rabbi's house, and told the people outside the entire story, thanking Hashem for preventing him from being harmed by the rabbi's displeasure. After three months, suddenly two soldiers arrived in town on horses with weapons in hand. They stopped in front of Rabbi Michel's house and announced that the duke sent them to bring Rabbi Michel to him.

Rabbi Michel of Zlotchov was summoned for arrest and execution due to the informing

Immediately, a great commotion arose throughout the city, and fear fell upon all the Jews, for they recalled the words of the Jewish peddler and saw that there was truth in his words. Rabbi Michel's close associates entered his room, not telling him the peddler's words, but informing him that the duke had summoned him.

Rabbi Michel said: 'Did you not see today that when I approached to pray, I retreated several times, fearing to approach in prayer, all because I saw my holy father, Rabbi Yitzchak of Drohobych, standing before me, and I understood that surely something would happen. But you should not be saddened, just tell the duke's messengers that after the prayer I will come to him.

Meanwhile, the duke saw that the two soldiers did not return with the rabbi and sent many more soldiers, but even they did not dare to enter the rabbi's house. When the rabbi finished his prayer, he went out to the soldiers and together with them went to the duke's palace. When they reached the large fence surrounding the palace, the soldiers turned to all the people accompanying the rabbi with tears and said, 'Only the rabbi enters the duke's palace, and whoever enters, his blood is on his head.' At the entrance stood a choir of singers and musicians with drums and flutes, playing loudly so that the nobles would hear the cries and sighs of the Jews.

All the ministers and nobles gathered to witness the verdict, but since they had a custom that the minister who decreed the sentence would not witness the execution, the duke locked himself in the inner room and locked the door. The rabbi walked inside, and behold, the musicians' hands were paralyzed, and they stood in place. Even the one in charge of carrying out the sentence was paralyzed with the sword in his hand.

How did you dare to inform on such a holy tzaddik?

Rabbi Michel continued inward until he reached the last room. When the duke saw him, he asked: 'Who are you, and who brought you here?' 'I am a Jew from a lineage of people who for 16 generations have not been found guilty of any sin, and I do not know why I have been brought here.'.

The duke understood that this was the Jew brought for execution and wondered how he was saved. The duke ran outside to see what had happened and saw everyone frozen in place. He immediately fell on his face before the holy rabbi and, crying, said: 'I have sinned before my lord, and from now on I will not harm him anymore, nor will I disrespect him. Let the rabbi pray that the people return to their normal state.'.

Rabbi Michel replied: 'I will fulfill your request on the condition that all the ministers, together with you, promise and sign not to do any harm to any Jew residing in your estates, not to evict anyone from their lease, and not to increase your burden on the Jews.' The duke immediately agreed to his conditions, and indeed the state of the ministers and musicians returned to normal.

'The duke also wanted to decree death upon us,' recounted the two Jews who spoke ill of Rabbi Michel before him and caused all this, but the rabbi asked that no harm befall them, for God, the righteous judge, will plead his case and execute his judgment.'

Thus, the two men recounted before Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk, and the rabbi responded and said: 'Indeed, God judged the two sinful Jews and demanded the tzaddik Rabbi Michel's honor, and both descended and lost all their possessions until they had to beg for a piece of bread and wandered from city to city. Thus, they eventually arrived here - until today, there was no rectification for their souls, but since they confessed their sin publicly today and recounted their wrongdoing, their sin is removed, and their transgression is atoned.'

A month later, these two men passed away and went to the World to Come.