The Secret of Be'er Sheva's Holiness: Avraham Avinu's Journey to Spread Emunah
Lesson No. 169 | Tuesday, Parashas Vayeshev, the eve of 20 Kislev 5759 - Awakening Gathering in Be'er Sheva
Why is Be'er Sheva considered the holiest place in the Land of Israel, and why did Avraham Avinu (our Patriarch Abraham) leave the holiness of Chevron (Hebron) to settle there? An in-depth article on the mesiras nefesh (self-sacrifice) of Avraham Avinu to spread emunah (faith), starting from his confrontation with Nimrod and the fiery furnace, all the way to the establishment of the global center for teshuvah (repentance) in Be'er Sheva.
"Hashem said to Avram, 'Go forth from your land, from your birthplace, and from your father's house, to the land that I will show you... And Avram went, as Hashem had spoken to him.'"
When Avraham Avinu went down to Egypt and returned from there, the Torah testifies about him: "And Avram was very heavily laden with livestock, with silver, and with gold." He returned from Egypt filled with abundance, silver, and gold. From this, we learn a tremendous foundational principle: The more descents a person experiences, the more they will merit spiritual and material abundance, provided they hold strong during the terrible descents and through all the suffering.
After leaving Charan, Avraham embarked on a long journey through the land of Canaan. He arrived at Shechem, at Eilon Moreh, and from there to Beis El. He went down to Egypt and returned again to Beis El. From there, he continued south and merited to reach Chevron, to Elonei Mamre, where he dwelled for twenty-five years and built an altar to Hashem. However, the next stop, the place to which he subsequently relocated his residence, was Be'er Sheva.
The Holiest Place in the Land of Israel
Chevron did not find enough favor in Avraham's eyes as the ultimate place to serve Hashem. The Ramban writes that the most chosen and holy place in the Land of Israel is Be'er Sheva. Regarding this place, it is stated: "And he planted an eshel (tamarisk tree/inn) in Be'er Sheva, and there he called in the Name of Hashem, God of the Universe." For twenty-six years, Avraham Avinu built Be'er Sheva and the massive eshel within it.
Avraham's eshel was open twenty-four hours a day. Tens of thousands of people would enter and exit, and all of Avraham's disciples served the guests without pause. When Yaakov Avinu dreamed of the ladder, Chazal (our Sages) say that its feet were in Be'er Sheva, the middle of its slope was opposite Jerusalem, and its top was opposite Beis El.
The Ramban asks: Why did the ladder have to start specifically in Be'er Sheva? After all, Yaakov slept in Beis El, and Mount Moriah leaped toward him, so the ladder could have gone straight up! The Ramban explains: Be'er Sheva is the first place that Avraham began to build himself. Shechem, Ai, Beis El, and Chevron were already built-up places, but in Be'er Sheva, Avraham laid the foundations for a massive enterprise of hachnasas orchim (welcoming guests).
The Highway of Teshuvah (Repentance)
Be'er Sheva was the central route, the "highway" of the ancient world. Anyone traveling to Egypt, Assyria, Iraq, Jordan, Turkey, or Europe passed through Be'er Sheva. Chevron, on the other hand, is situated in the mountains. In Chevron lies the Cave of Machpelah, the gates of the Garden of Eden. Avraham saw Adam and Chava there, along with all the supernal worlds, but he said, "My personal spiritual elevation and sanctification in Chevron is worth nothing compared to what I can accomplish in Be'er Sheva."
Avraham descended from the heights of the Garden of Eden in Chevron to plant an eshel in Be'er Sheva. When guests wanted to pay for their hearty meals, Avraham would tell them, "Say 'Shehakol nihiyah bidvaro' (that everything came into being by His word), say 'Hamotzi lechem min ha'aretz' (Who brings forth bread from the earth), recite Birchas HaMazon (Grace After Meals)." If someone refused to bless, Avraham demanded a full payment of thousands of dollars for the hospitality. Faced with such exorbitant sums, the guests preferred to bless and thank Hashem. In this way, Avraham Avinu brought the entire world back in teshuvah (repentance).
The Birth of Avraham and the Battle Against Nimrod
To understand the sheer power of Avraham, one must return to the beginning of his path. The Midrash HaGadol recounts that Nimrod built for himself seven firmaments out of different materials—wood, stone, copper, iron, silver, gold, and the seventh firmament out of diamonds. When he sat upon the seventh firmament, he believed that he ruled over the entire world.
The stargazers told him, "A son is about to be born to Terach, and he will bring you down from all seven firmaments." Nimrod immediately summoned Terach, but Terach hid his wife, and she gave birth to Avraham alone in a cave. Avraham grew up in the cave for thirteen years, with angels caring for him and feeding him, and the entire cave radiating with a precious light.
When he returned home, Terach was overjoyed and thought that Avraham would become the chief priest of idolatry. Terach was the "pope" of fire worship. He appointed Avraham to guard the idols and sell them.
Smashing the Idols and the Fiery Furnace
One day, a mighty man arrived and asked to buy a strong, muscular idol. Avraham handed him an idol and said, "Aren't you ashamed? This idol was taken out of the oven just this morning, and you are bowing down to it?" The man felt ashamed, threw the idol away, and left. The same thing happened with an elderly woman who came to buy an idol.
When Terach left Avraham to guard the idols and serve them food, Avraham took a stick, smashed all the idols, and placed the stick in the hand of the largest idol. When Terach returned and was furious, Avraham answered him: "Let your ears hear what your mouth is speaking! If they do not see, do not hear, and do not eat—why do you bow down to them?"
Later, when it was Avraham's turn to guard the thousands of idols in Nimrod's house of idolatry, he smashed them as well. Nimrod summoned him for an interrogation and demanded that he bow down to the fire. Avraham answered wisely: "If so, let us bow down to the water that extinguishes the fire. Or to the wind that carries the water clouds. Or to the human being who withstands the wind." Nimrod was enraged and cast Avraham into the fiery furnace.
The Secret of the Command "Lech Lecha"
The Zohar says: "After Avraham Avinu emerged whole from the fiery furnace, the entire world did teshuvah (repented) and began to believe in the One God."
When Nimrod saw that the whole world was doing teshuvah, he panicked and invented a new excuse. He told the masses: "Avraham was not saved in the merit of the Creator of the world. Avraham himself is a god! He has supernatural qualities that fire has no power over him; let us bow down to Avraham!" Immediately, Nimrod and his ministers began giving Avraham gifts and slaves, including Eliezer.
When Hashem saw that they were making an idol out of Avraham, He said to him: "Go forth from your land, and from your birthplace, and from your father's house." Get out of here, they are making you into an idol! Go to the Land of Israel; there you will have a new task - to call out in the Name of Hashem, the Everlasting God.
The Light of Teshuvah Emerges from Be'er Sheva
Avraham walked throughout the Land of Israel, from city to city, until he found peace of mind in Be'er Sheva. There he began to bring the masses, tens of thousands and millions, back in teshuvah.
Be'er Sheva is the key point for the entire Land of Israel. The moment Be'er Sheva returns in teshuvah, the entire Jewish nation will return in teshuvah. From here the light of teshuvah will go out to all of Israel, and from here the complete Geulah (Redemption) will come in the merit of the self-sacrifice and pure faith that Avraham Avinu instilled in us.
Part 1 of 4 — Lesson No. 169