The Daily Chizzuk of Moreinu HaRav Eliezer Berland shlit”a — Nimrod tossed Avraham into the fiery furnace, and suddenly saw someone else with him inside
From Sunday, 16 Tishrei 5784 — “Rabbeinu lives and endures”
These are his holy words:
Avraham asked, “Who created the sun?” Nimrod said, “I created [it].” Then immediately everyone came and screamed at him [at Nimrod].
An old woman the age of seventy came and said, “I want an idol that’s the age of seventy.” Avraham took out for her a wrinkled idol, [with] a wrinkled face, and she paid him 1,000 pounds for the idol. She leaves happily, because she has an idol the age of seventy and she is a woman the age of seventy. Then Avraham says to her, “Wait a minute, wait a minute. Come here for a minute. Did you know that we took that out of the kiln five minutes ago? You’re seventy years old, but the idol came out of the kiln only five minutes ago!”
She says to him, “Ok, so give me the 1,000 pounds back.” Avraham gave her back the 1,000 pounds, and she threw the idol to him inside.
Now a Jew the age of ninety arrives who is all the more wrinkled, all the more slumped over. He says to Avraham, “Bring me an idol the age of ninety.” Ok, Avraham takes [it] out of the kiln for him — “Behold, a ninety year one.” He puts down for him 2,000 pounds.
He already leaves, reaches a distance of 100 meters. Avraham yells to him, “Hey Jew, come here, come back for a minute. Did you know that we took that idol out of the kiln a minute ago?”
“Ok, give back the 2,000 pounds.” Avraham gave him back the 2,000 pounds and took back the idol.
Now the ninety year old man and the seventy years old woman are walking together in the street and encounter Nimrod. They began to scream at Nimrod: “Deceiver, liar. Why do you tell us that there are idols the age of seventy, the age of ninety? They’re all-in-all the age of a minute, the age of two minutes.”
Nimrod saw this and understood that there was going to be an uprising here, civil disobedience. He immediately took Avraham and put handcuffs on him. He says, “Either you retract or [go] straight into the fiery furnace!”
Avraham said, “[Then] straight into the fiery furnace! I’m ready to for this [cause]; I did this.” So all the fire ascended upward. You see fire, fire. They grab Avraham Avinu. Already for seven days the fire is being flared up. The fire ascends to the heavens. This was in Ur Kasdim [lit. “Fire of Chaldea”]. You see fire, everything burning in fire, a giant inferno. They grab Avraham and throw him into the fire.
Suddenly, the king sees someone else in the fire. This is the angel Gabriel, [who] creates for Avraham Avinu flowers. Everything turned into flowers, roses. King Nimrod goes crazy — [everything] turned into flowers, roses.
The king says, “Remove him.” Ok, Avraham comes out of the fire. Nimrod prostrates himself to him, kisses his feet, says, “I have revealed a new idol.” Instead of saying “Hashem is God, Hashem is God” — one needs to know that Hashem is God, he says, “I have revealed a new idol. Very well, everyone bow down to him.”
Immediately, Nimrod gave him his son; said, “He will grow by Avraham Avinu.” Then Hashem said to him [Avraham], “Go for yourself from your land, from your relatives, and from your father’s house” (Bereishit 12:1) — this is exactly the numerical value of Shin Mem Gimel (343) — 7 times 7 times 7 — 777. So Avraham merited to 777, merited to Lemech whose lifespan was 777. Also Avraham merited to 777, “BeShaGaM Hu Basar — since he is but flesh” (Bereishit 6:3). Therefore this is exactly the numerical value of Shin Mem Gimel.
For above the pure Menorah which we read about in Parashat Beha’alotcha, “Its seven [shiva] lamps are upon it, and there are seven [shiva, shiva] ducts for each [lamp]” (Zechariah 4:2) — so they revealed that the number 777 is the holiest number — Shin Mem Gimel, “BeSheGam Hu Basar.”
Like it is written, “Seven times as strong as the light of the sun.” “And the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times as strong, like the light of the seven days” (Yeshayahu 30:26).
777, the main thing is that there will be light. Suddenly, there will be such light as has not been since the creation of the world. Now there is going to be such light as there hasn’t been since the creation of the world, such light that has yet to be created, for Rabbeinu lives and endures — Rabbeinu is present.
Therefore, everyone needs to travel to Uman today already. After the shiur, everyone travels to Uman without exception.
