Eishes Yeravam

Hide-and-seek is a classic children’s game. The challenge comes when we fail to outgrow the game and as adults we still try to hide. At the dawn of history when Adam Harishon ate from the Eitz Hadaas he hid from Hashem upon hearing His voice in the garden. Adam despite knowing Hashem is everywhere still tried to hide. Of course there was nowhere to hide and his attempt was poignant in its futility.

We too often try to hide. At times we even masquerade as others to avoid personal responsibility. A classic example of this dynamic is found in the wife of Yeravam ben Navat.

Yeravam was one of the greatest Torah scholars of his generation. He succeeded Shlomo Hamelech as the king over ten tribes ruling the majority ofIsrael. Yeravam’s Achilles heel was his pride. He feared that if the nation traveled to Yerushalayim for the Shalosh Regalim they would look to Rechavam the son of Shlomo as the real king and he’d lose his kingdom. He therefore set up sentries preventing the people from the pilgrimage and even erected two golden calves as places and means of worship. Yeravam embarked on a slippery slope in which he slowly moved farther and farther away from Hashem and took the people along with him.

Disguise

Yeravam’s son Aviyah fell deathly ill and he asked his wife to go to the navi Achiyah Hashiloni to daven for their son’s life. Yeravam instructed his wife to go disguised as a common woman and to take along with her a gift typical of that brought by a poor person.

Malbim notes that the disguise was first and foremost to ensure that other people wouldn’t recognize her: if people saw her going to an authentic navi the false prophets Yeravam established would be discredited.

Second and more importantly Yeravam wanted to fool Achiyah. He wanted the Navi to daven for his son as he would any regular person. He didn’t want Achiyah to know he was davening for the king’s son as this might lead him to scrutinize Yeravam and his worthiness. Yeravam was afraid that just as Achiyah pronounced him king he could give a prophecy about the demise of his kingdom.

The wife of Yeravam dressed the part and went toShiloh. At this point the Navi’s eyes were dimmed and he was unable to see. As soon as she entered Achiyah received a prophecy that the wife of Yeravam was approaching disguised and he was told to give her a very harsh prophecy. When Achiyah heard her footsteps he told her to enter referring to her as the wife of Yeravam and asked her why she was disguised.

The irony here is profound. A navi who can’t see physically has a deeper ability to see than most people with sight. The mefarshim point out that the harsh prophecy was deserved as Yeravam and his wife were not just trying to fool Achiyah but as it were Hashem Himself. The lesson is clear: one can’t hide we all need to realize that we must take personal responsibility for ourselves and our actions. We can’t pretend to be someone we’re not; Hashem will ensure that we’re reminded of who we really are.

Punishment

Achiyah prophesized a very harsh punishment for Yeravam and his family. The entire family would be decimated he told them; dogs would eat those who died in the city and birds would consume those who died in the field. The only person who would be buried was this child Aviyah who would die as soon as the mother reentered the city.

The Navi explained that since there was one good thing this child had done he deserved a burial. The Gemara elaborates on this good deed: Aviyah removed the barriers preventing the people from aliyah l’regel thus allowing people to go to the Beis Hamikdash on the Shalosh Regalim.

Mishbatzos Zahav notes that his very name reflects this idea; he made Hashem his “father” and went against the corruption his biological father had perpetrated. The goal of going up to the Beis Hamikdash is to “see Hashem” and to “be seen” by Him. Aviyah represented the antithesis of his parents; instead of hiding he understood that Hashem’s presence is everywhere.

The seforim note that one should reflect on the pasuk “shivisi Hashem l’negdi tamid” right before going to sleep and as soon as one awakens in the morning. When we live with this constant awareness we gain a heightened sensitivity that all of our actions and thoughts are heard and seen and we behave accordingly. If we were to focus on this idea each time we said Hashem’s name in a brachah we’d have a deeper appreciation of our connection to Him throughout our day.

Achiyah’s prophecy went on to describe how the Jews would be sent into galus. The imagery he used was that the Jews would be sent “over the river” and would be hit “like a reed in the water.” Upon these words the Gemara notes: “Better the curse of Achiyah than the blessing of Bilaam.”

Bilaam blessed the Jewish People that they be like a cedar on the water. A cedar may be a mighty tree but it’s vulnerable: when a strong southerly wind arrives it breaks the cedar in two. The reed may be small and thin but its flexibility means it can survive all winds. Likewise the Jews will be sent into the tumultuous waters of exile but they’ll never be broken and will always remain Jews.

Birkas Mordechai teaches us a profound lesson from this gemara. We see subconsciously that Achiyah’s whole being was one of profound love for his people; even the imagery he used at a time of wrath was full of love. The Birkas Mordechai learns from here how we need to ingrain our love for Hashem so deeply within us that it’s expressed in every nuance of our behavior. Of course this is a lofty level but we all know that speaking softly listening with an expression of empathy and offering generosity reflects our higher selves and reflects our inner godliness. Living in a family setting and interacting with those closest to us on a daily basis gives us constant opportunities to practice this.

Timely Calculations

The wife of Yeravam went to Tirtzah and when she entered her house she found that Aviyah had died. Rav Chaim Kanievsky shlita notes that Tirtzah is never listed as one of the places in which Yeravam lived. Rather the wife of Yeravam felt that if she went to another city she’d be able to push off the decree and allow the boy to live longer. She understood the words of the Navi literally: only when she walked into her city would the boy die. Therefore she didn’t want to walk into the city. Once again the wife of Yeravam failed to understand that one can’t outsmart Hashem.

Yalkut Lekach Tov explains the phrase “A time to be born and a time to die” as highlighting the reality that when the time comes for birth or death Hashem will bring about outside causes to cause this result. Human nature is human nature and when we hear of someone’s passing we often ask “How old was he?” If the deceased was young we ask: “What happened?”

The answer to both questions is the same: the person’s time in This World was over. Car accidents illness etc. are just mediums Hashem employs to remove a person’s soul.

Likewise people can attribute the birth of a child to a tzaddik’s blessing not recognizing that the blessing of the tzaddik came at the juncture when Hashem wanted the couple to be blessed with a child. Had this tzaddik’s blessing come years before the blessing wouldn’t have had the same effect. Hashem wanted Aviyah to die at this time; his mother hiding out in another city wouldn’t change this decree. Therefore when she finally arrived home she found that the boy was already dead.

The wife of Yeravam demonstrates the futility of trying to hide from Hashem and His Will. Aviyah and Achiyah model for us a life of consciousness of awareness of Hashem at every moment. Living with the understanding of our responsibility and accountability with an awareness that we were created to bear witness to the existence of Hashem at every moment will alter our consciousness and bring us to live an elevated life.