Who Is the Only One Who Can Conquer All of Jerusalem? The Daily Strengthening

The daily chizuk from our teacher, the Gaon and Tzaddik, Rav Eliezer Berland shlit"a - How is Avraham's oath to the Children of Heth regarding the Cave of the Patriarchs connected to Jewish rule in Jerusalem?

II Samuel, Chapter 5: "And David captured the stronghold of Zion, which is the City of David. And David said on that day, 'Whoever strikes the Jebusites and reaches the water shaft, and the lame and the blind, who are hated by David's soul...'"

I Chronicles, Chapter 11, Verse 5: "And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, 'You shall not come in here.' Nevertheless, David captured the stronghold of Zion, which is the City of David."

Thursday, 28 Menachem Av 5782 – Only one who performs acts of kindness 24 hours a day, like Avraham Avinu and Yoav ben Zeruiah, will be able to conquer Jerusalem.

These are his holy words:

How could Yoav stand against the oath of Avraham? This is the difficulty, this is our question!

Because David was afraid (to enter Jerusalem); they told him, "You will not enter the city, you will not be able to enter the city." They shouted at him from the walls, "You will not enter the city! Look at the oath (of Avraham), look at the notices, giant tablets with the oath of Avraham (that his descendants would not conquer Jerusalem)."

"Now therefore, swear to me by Hashem here that you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my grandson" (Genesis 21:23). There is an actual oath of Avraham here – so why was Yoav not afraid of the oath?

The answer is within the verse, and the Gemara explains what it means. There are two verses: 1. "And Yoav would revive the rest of the city" (I Chronicles 11:8). 2. And he died... and he saw his death in the desert, but he did not die in the desert; he died in Jerusalem?

Herein lies the secret: who are the blind and the lame? The Midrash says these were the idols! So what, is it impossible to fight with idols? After all, an idol is both blind and lame: "They have a mouth, but they cannot speak; they have eyes, but they cannot see" (Psalms 115:5). These are the lame, so what is the problem with fighting them?

These were idols that held giant tablets! Tablets with letters of 'Kiddush Levanah' (sanctification of the moon), letters that could be seen from several kilometers away. Written in these letters was the oath that Avraham swore to the Children of Heth, because the Jebusites are the Children of Heth. Araunah the Jebusite (who sold Jerusalem to David) is of the Children of Heth, and Avraham swore to the Children of Heth.

Because Avraham wanted the Cave of the Patriarchs (therefore he was willing to promise not to enter Jerusalem). In the Cave of the Patriarchs, there was darkness and gloom. It is written in Rebbe Natan (Likutey Halachot, Choshen Mishpat, Part II) that the Cave of the Patriarchs was a place of darkness and gloom; people were afraid to approach it.

Hashem arranged it this way so that they would not discover that Adam and Eve were there. If they had known that Adam and Eve were there, they would not have sold it for billions – even if they had brought them billions, they would not have sold it.

Precisely the holiest place, which is the gate to the Garden of Eden – precisely this place which is the gate to the Garden of Eden – is where Adam and Eve are guarded. There, all prayers ascend through the Cave of the Patriarchs, exactly there.

So the Cave of the Patriarchs was called a place of darkness and gloom, demons and spirits. Everyone was certain that there were demons and spirits there; they were afraid to approach the place and said that it was a place of demons, a place of spirits. Today there are no longer demons, but in the past, there were demons.

Regarding the Cave of the Patriarchs, they said such a terrible thing. Why? Because Hashem confused them, Hashem blinded their eyes, He struck them with blindness. He struck all the inhabitants of the land with blindness, He struck all the inhabitants of Hebron with blindness so that they would think it was a place of demons and spirits and be afraid to reach this place.

And Avraham, in the merit of the hospitality he performed – if a person performs hospitality, then there are no demons and no spirits. A person rises at midnight, sits at noon (during the Three Weeks) on the ground, then he defeats all the demons and spirits – this was the power of Avraham Avinu, that he succeeded in defeating all the demons and spirits.

These were the Children of Heth, Jebus is the Children of Heth. Afterwards, they went up to Jerusalem, and the oath was that Avraham swore to the Children of Heth: "You receive the Cave of the Patriarchs on the condition that you will not conquer Jerusalem, that you will not enter our Jerusalem."

Because they knew that Avraham was receiving the Land of Israel, "To your seed I will give this land" (Genesis 12:7). They knew there was such an oath – so who can fight with the blind and the lame? In other words, who can stand against the oath of Avraham Avinu?

This is the question, this is the problem. Avraham made an oath that Jews would not conquer Jerusalem; he swore that a Jew would not conquer Jerusalem, that it always belongs to the Gentiles. If the Jews arrive, then woe is us – they would say this even now, only they do not know that such an oath exists at all. They would immediately tell this to Biden, "There is an oath here, what does it mean? It is ours."

Avraham swore to the Ishmaelites, and they are all Ishmaelites, that the People of Israel would not conquer Jerusalem. He swore to them literally; they told him, "You will not enter the Cave of the Patriarchs unless you swear to us." And they wrote the oath on giant notices, on massive tablets, that one does not conquer Jerusalem, that you are forbidden to conquer Jerusalem.

David asked, "Who is not afraid of the oath of Avraham? I cannot! Is there one here who is not afraid?" Yoav said, "I am not afraid." Why was he not afraid?

It is written in the verse, "And Yoav would revive the rest of the city" (I Chronicles 11:8). Just as Avraham had it open 24 hours – Avraham performed hospitality for 24 hours – so who merited that for him, too, the hospitality was open 24 hours? Only Yoav ben Zeruiah.

This is what the Gemara says (Sanhedrin 49), Yoav was the only one in all of the People of Israel who did not have gatekeepers. At Yoav's, everyone would enter and eat, drink, like at Reb Yeshaya'le of Kerestir.