Parshat Vayetze 5777
Rabbi Jablinowitz
We read in this week's parsha in the very first pasuk, Vayetzei Yaakov M'Beersheva, Vayelech Charanah. Yaakov went out from Beersheva and he went to Charan. Rashi comments that the Torah didn't need to teach us that Yaakov left Beersheva; the important point is that he was on his way to Charan. The fact that the Torah mentions first that Yaakov left Beersheva is in order to teach us that when a Tzadik leaves a place it makes an impression. While he is there, he is the splendor and glory of the place. And when he leaves, the glory and the splendor depart with him. The Torah tells us that Yaakov left Beersheva in order to emphasize what a tremendous impact his departure had on the place.
The Sfas Emes asks on Rashi's p'shat. He says the difficulty Rashi has with the pasuk is the fact that the Torah tells us that Yaakov left Beersheva. This is seemingly irrelevant information. We need to focus on where he is going, not where he came from. And now that Rashi teaches that Beersheva was left like a spiritual wasteland, the question is even stronger. Why emphasize how bereft Beersheva was when Yaakov left. The Torah ought to focus on the positive of where Yaakov was going, not to tell us negative things about the place he left behind.
The Sfas Emes answers with a unique p'shat in Rashi. Rashi is not telling us something negative about Beersheva. He is telling us something quite positive. The departure of Yaakov Avinu left an impression on Beersheva in a positive way. Even after he left, Yaakov's having been there was still felt. Yetzias Tzadik Min Hamakom Oseh Roshem. While Yaakov was in town the impression Yaakov had on the place was not apparent since he was still there. However, once the splendor of Yaakov actually departed and his impression was still felt, this was an indication that he had a lasting impact on Beersheva. Yetzias Tzadik Min Hamakom Oseh Roshem.
The Sfas Emes says a similar idea in a totally different context. He explains the uniqueness of the fruits of Eretz Yisrael in the following manner. All fruits begin as Tevel, fruits that have not had Terumah and Ma'aser removed. When the Terumah and Ma'aser are removed, what's left over is Chulin. Nonetheless, the Roshem left over from the Kedushah of the Terumah and the Ma'aser leaves an impression of holiness on the fruit. The Chulin fruit doesn't have a status of Kedushah itself; nonetheless the Kedushah that was there from the Terumah and the Ma'aser that was once part of the same pile of fruit leaves an impression of holiness on the remainder.
We learn from the Sfas Emes's interpretation of the Medrash an important trait of Yaakov Avinu. The pasuk says (Chapter 28, Pasuk 14), U'Faratzta Yamah Va'Kaidmah V'Tzafonah V'Negba. You shall spread out in all directions, east, west, north, and south. This is the portion of Yaakov Avinu and the Gemara in Shabbos 118B calls it a Nachalah Bli Metzarim, a portion without borders. His ability to have an effect on a place without being there is an expression of a portion without borders. According to the Sfas Emes, Yaakov Avinu had a lasting impact on a place he had already departed. Though Yaakov left and took his splendor and his glory with him, the impression of the presence of the Tzadik remained long after he left. Yetzias Tzadik Min Hamakom Oseh Roshem.
Good Shabbos
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