When Women Went Shopping, There Were No Men in the Street -- Daily Chizzuk

THE DAILY CHIZZUK OF OUR REBBE RAV ELIEZER BERLAND SHLIT"A -- "RIVKA WAS THE ONLY MODEST ONE AMONGST MILLIONS OF GIRLS"

FRIDAY, 24 AV 5783 -- "WHEN [SOMEONE] REQUESTS FROM A PERSON ONE CUP TO DRINK, ONE NEEDS TO GIVE HIM IMMEDIATELY TWO CUPS."

These are his holy words:

"THE GIRL WAS EXTREMELY GOOD-LOOKING; A VIRGIN WHOM NO MAN HAD KNOWN" (BEREISHIT 24:16).  RASHI SAYS: "VIRGIN" -- THAT RIVKA WAS THE ONLY ONE; ONE IN THE ENTIRE AREA AMONGST MILLIONS OF GIRLS.

"The girl was extremely good-looking; a virgin whom no man had known; she descended to the spring."  It is written here (Bereishit ch. 24) nine times "her jug."

"She hurried and emptied [her jug]" (ibid 20).  Eliezer, Avraham's slave, said: I am only asking for water, a drop of water.  If I start telling Rivka to also give to the camels, to the donkeys -- here I have with me ten camels, it will take thirty hours to give water to them.  It is impossible to give water to ten camels fast.

Now it is before sunset.  Now it is "evening time" (ibid 11), because they only come out at evening time, and then it is forbidden for men to be in the streets.  When women walk in the street, it is forbidden for there to be men.  That is how it was in Yemen -- it was forbidden for men to go out at the time when women would go to make purchases.  They had two hours that they would go to make purchases, and it was forbidden for any man to remain in the street at this time.  If his wife was sick and she could not go out, he would go at a different time, but not when the women would go.

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS GOING OUT WHEN WOMEN ARE WALKING IN THE STREET -- IT IS COMPLETELY FORBIDDEN.  NOW IS EVENING TIME -- THE ZOHAR SAYS THAT NO MAN WAS IN THE STREET.

Eliezer went to Charan; he was the only one in the street, and he asked Rivka: Give me a little water.  She begins to say to him: I will also give to the camels, not only to you.  When [someone] requests from a person one cup to drink, you need to give him immediately two cups.  A person requests: Bring me a cup to drink -- bring him two.  Perhaps he did not drink all day.  Such a hot day, 50 degree (C) heat.

The "Maor HaAfela" [of Rabbeinu Natanel ben Yeshaya zt"l, one of the great Rabbis of Yemen in the 14th century] in parashat Chayei Sarah says that Rivka's jug jumped by itself.  Behold, no person, no man could give water to ten camels.  This would take him exactly ten hours.

The jug jumped by itself and would draw water.  Rivka stood at the spring and the water would always rise.  For if she would descend and ascend in order to draw water, she would not have sufficed to give them water.  Rather, Rivka stood still at the edge of the spring, and the water came up by itself; the jug jumped by itself.