‫בס״ד‬

Come and Inherit

‫ת־ה ָ ֑א ֶרץ ֚בֹּאוּ‬ ָ ‫יכם ֶא‬ ֖ ֶ ‫ְר ֵ ֛אה נָ ַ ֥ת ִתּי ִל ְפ ֵנ‬

‫ת־ה ָ֔א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ ֣שׁר נִ ְשׁ ַ ֣בּע ֠ה‬ ָ ‫ְוּר ֣שׁוּ ֶא‬
‫ַל ֲא ֨בֹ ֵת ֶ֜יכם ְל ַא ְב ָר ָ֨הם ְליִ ְצ ָ ֤חק וּֽ ְליַ ֲעק ֹ֙ב‬
‫יהם׃‬ ֽ ֶ ‫וּלזַ ְר ָ ֖עם ַ ֽא ֲח ֵר‬ְ ‫ָל ֵ ֣תת ָל ֶ֔הם‬

See, I have given the Land before you;

come and inherit the Land that God
swore to your forefathers, Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob, to give to them
and their descendents a﬈er them.

Deuteronomy 1:8
God’s Will 1
God’s Presence 7
A Desired Land 9
Longing 12
Sacrifice 16
The Future 19
 God’s Will
“Make His Will Your Will”
No factor should guide a person’s life decisions more than the Will of
his Creator. And the Creator wills, plainly, that the People of Israel
should live in the Land of Israel. The People’s relationship to the Land
is one of the main themes of the Bible, and many Rabbinic sources
stress the importance of living in the Land.
• HIS FIRST PRIORITY
The Land is the first idea God addresses when He speaks to each
forefather for the first time:
‫וּמ ֵ ֣בּית ָא ִ ֑ביָך‬
ִ ֖‫וֹל ְד ְתָּך‬
ַ ‫וּמ ֽמּ‬
ִ ֥‫ְך־לָך֛ ֵ ֽמ ַא ְר ְצָך‬
ְ ‫ל־א ְב ָ ֔רם ֶל‬
ַ ‫אמר ֙ה ֶא‬
ֶ ֹ ‫וַ ֤יּ‬
‫ל־ה ָ ֖א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ ֥שׁר ַא ְר ֶ ֽאךָּ ׃ וְ ֶ ֽא ֶע ְשׂ ָ֙ך ְלג֣ וֹי ָגּ ֔דוֹל וַ ֲא ָ ֣ב ֶר ְכ ָ֔ך ַ ֽו ֲא ַג ְדּ ָל֖ה ְשׁ ֶ ֑מָך‬
ָ ‫ֶא‬
‫אר וְ נִ ְב ְר ֣כוּ ְב ָ֔ך ֖ ֹכּל‬
ֹ ֑ ‫וּמ ַק ֶלּ ְלָך֖ ָא‬
ְ ‫ֶו ְֽה ֵי֖ה ְבּ ָר ָ ֽכה׃ וַ ֲא ָ ֽב ְר ָכ ֙ה ְמ ָ ֣ב ְר ֶ֔כיָך‬
‫ִמ ְשׁ ְפּ ֥חֹת ָ ֽה ֲא ָד ָ ֽמה׃‬

God said to Abram, “Go from your land, from your birthplace,
and from your father’s house, to the Land that I will show you.
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you and
make you great, and You shall become a blessing. I will bless
those who bless you, and he who curses you, I will curse. All
the families of the earth will be blessed through you.” (Gen.
12:1–3)

‫ל־תּ ֵ ֣רד ִמ ְצ ָ ֑ריְ ָמה ְשׁ ֣כֹן ָבּ ָ֔א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ ֖שׁר א ַ ֹ֥מר ֵא ֶ ֽליָך׃‬
ֵ ‫אמר ַא‬
ֶ ֹ ‫וַ יֵּ ָ ֤רא ֵא ָל ֙יו ֔ה וַ ֖יּ‬
‫תּן‬
֙ ֵ ‫י־לָך֣ וּֽ ְלזַ ְר ֲע ָ֗ך ֶא‬
ְ ‫֚גּוּר ָבּ ָ ֣א ֶרץ ַה ֔זּ ֹאת וְ ֶ ֽא ְה ֶי֥ה ִע ְמָּך֖ וַ ֲא ָ ֽב ְר ֶ ֑כךָּ ִ ֽכּ‬
‫ת־ה ְשּׁ ֻב ֔ ָעה ֲא ֶ ֥שׁר נִ ְשׁ ַ ֖בּ ְע ִתּי ְל ַא ְב ָר ָ ֥הם‬
ַ ‫ֹתי ֶא‬
֙ ִ ‫ל־ה ֲא ָר ֣צֹת ָה ֵ֔אל וַ ֲה ִ ֽ קמ‬
ֽ ָ ‫ת־כּ‬
ָ ‫ֶא‬
‫וֹכ ֵ ֣בי ַה ָשּׁ ַ֔מיִ ם וְ ָנ ַֽת ִ ֣תּי ְלזַ ְר ֲע ָ֔ך ֵ ֥את‬
ְ ‫יתי ֶ ֽאת־זַ ְר ֲע ָ֙ך ְכּ ֽכ‬
֤ ִ ‫ָא ִ ֽביָך׃ וְ ִה ְר ֵבּ‬
‫ר־שׁ ַ ֥מע‬
ָ ‫גּוֹי֥י ָה ָ ֽא ֶרץ׃ ֕ ֵע ֶקב ֲא ֶשׁ‬
ֵ ‫ל־ה ֲא ָר ֖צֹת ָה ֵ ֑אל וְ ִה ְת ָ ֽבּ ְר ֣כוּ ְבזַ ְר ֲע ָ֔ך ֖כֹּל‬
ֽ ָ ‫ָכּ‬
‫קּוֹתי וְ ֽתוֹר ָ ֹֽתי׃‬
֥ ַ ‫וֹתי ֻח‬
֖ ַ ‫ַא ְב ָר ָ ֖הם ְבּק ִ ֹ֑לי וַ יִּ ְשׁמ ֹ֙ר ִמ ְשׁ ַמ ְר ִ֔תּי ִמ ְצ‬

God appeared to [Isaac] and said, “Do not go down to Egypt.

Dwell in the Land that I will tell you. Live in this Land, and I
will be with you and bless you, for to you and your offspring
will I give all these Lands. I will thus keep the oath that I made

1
 to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as
numerous as the stars of the sky, and give them all these Lands.
All the nations on earth shall be blessed through your descend-
ants. All this because Abraham obeyed My voice, and kept My
charge, My commandments, My decrees, and My laws.” (Gen.
26:2–4)

֖ ֵ -‫ֹלהי ַא ְב ָר ָ ֣הם ָא ִ֔ביָך ֵוֽא‬

‫ֹלהי יִ ְצ ָ ֑חק‬ ֙ ֵ -‫אמר֒ ֲא ִנ֣י ֗ה א‬
ַ ֹ ‫וְ ִה ֵ֨נּה ֜ה נִ ָ ֣צּב ָע ָל ֮יו וַ יּ‬
‫וּלזַ ְר ֶ ֽעָך׃ וְ ָה ָי֤ה זַ ְר ֲע ָ֙ך ַ ֽכּ ֲע ַ ֣פר‬
ְ ‫יה ְלָך֥ ֶא ְתּ ֶנ֖נָּ ה‬
ָ ‫ָה ָ֗א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ ֤שׁר ַא ָתּ ֙ה שׁ ֵ ֹ֣כב ָע ֔ ֶל‬
‫ל־מ ְשׁ ְפּ ֥חֹת‬
ִ ‫וּפ ַר ְצ ָ ֛תּ ָי ָ֥מּה וָ ֵ ֖ ק ְד ָמה וְ ָצ ֣ ֹפנָ ה וָ ֶנ֑ גְ ָבּה וְ נִ ְב ְר ֥כוּ ְבָך֛ ָכּ‬
ֽ ָ ‫ָה ָ֔א ֶרץ‬
‫ר־תּ ֔ ֵלְך‬
ֵ ‫וּשׁ ַמ ְר ִ֨תּ ֙יָך ְבּ ֣כֹל ֲא ֶשׁ‬
ְ ‫וּבזַ ְר ֶ ֽעָך׃ וְ ִה ֵ֨נּה ָ ֽאנ ִֹ֜כי ִע ָ֗מְּך‬
ְ ‫ָ ֽה ֲא ָד ָ ֖מה‬
‫ם־ע ִ֔שׂ ִיתי‬
ָ ‫ל־ה ֲא ָד ָ ֖מה ַה ֑זּ ֹאת ִ ֚כּי ֣ל ֹא ֶ ֽא ֱעזָ ְב ָ֔ך ַ ֚עד ֲא ֶ ֣שׁר ִא‬
ֽ ָ ‫וַ ֲה ִ ֣שׁב ִֹ֔תיָך ֶא‬
‫ֵ ֥את ֲא ֶשׁר־ ִדּ ַ ֖בּ ְר ִתּי ָ ֽלְך׃‬

Behold, here was God standing over [the ladder], and He said
[to Jacob], “I am God, Lord of Abraham your father, and Lord
of Isaac. I will give to you and your descendants the Land upon
which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of
the earth, and you shall spread out to the west, to the east, to
the north, and to the south. All the families on earth will be
blessed through you and your descendants. Behold, I am with
you; I will protect you wherever you go and bring you back to
this soil. For I will not leave you until I have fully kept this
promise to you.” (Gen. 28:13–15)

Likewise, the Land is a major point in Moses’s first prophecy, Joshua’s

first prophecy, and so on.
• THE HOME OF THE MITZVOT
The essence of the commandments is fulfilled only in Israel. Many
commentators infer this from Deut. 11:18, including Rashi:
‫ הניחו‬,‫ושמתם את דברי
אף לאחר שתגלו היו מצויינים במצות‬
‫ וכן הוא‬.‫ עשו מזוזות כדי שלא יהיו לכם חדשים כשתחזרו‬,‫תפילין‬
:‫אומר )ירמיה לא( הציבי לך ציונים‬
“You shall set these words of Mine”: Even a﬈er you are exiled,
distinguish yourselves with My commandments; lay tefillin
and make mezuzot, so that they will not be new to you when

2
 you return. And so it is said, “Set up markers for yourself” (Jer.
31:20).
Ramban adds the Sages’ explanation (comm. Lev. 18:25):
‫ כי עיקר‬,‫ופירשו בהן כדי שלא יהו חדשים עלינו כשנחזור לארץ‬
.‫כל המצות ליושבים בארץ ה׳‬

They explained the reason as being so that they will not be

new to us when we return to the Land. For the essence of all
the commandments is for those who live in the Land of God.

Moreover, over two hundred of the 613 commandments do not apply

at all outside the Land of Israel, such as those involving agriculture or
the Temple service.
‫דרש רבי שמלאי
מפני מה נתאוה משה רבינו ליכנס לארץ‬
‫ישראל? וכי לאכול מפריה הוא צריך? או לשבוע מטובה הוא‬
‫צריך? אלא כך אמר משה
הרבה מצות נצטוו ישראל ואין‬
‫ אכנס אני לארץ כדי שיתקיימו כולן‬,‫מתקיימין אלא בארץ ישראל‬
.‫על ידי‬

Rabbi Simlai interpreted: Why did Moses our teacher yearn to

enter the Land of Israel? Did he wish to eat of its fruits or be
satiated from its bounty? Rather, thus said Moses: “Many
mitzvot were commanded upon Israel which can only be
fulfilled in the Land of Israel. I wish to enter the Land so that
they may all be fulfilled by me.” (BT Sot. 14a)

Some of these commandments still apply in Israel today.

• A MITZVAH IN ITSELF
The majority of authorities hold that se﬉ling the Land of Israel is a
positive commandment, even today (Encyclopedia Talmudit vol. 25,
p. 676). Ramban expresses this most strongly (Shikhehat Ha-ʿAsin 4):
‫ל יתברך‬-‫מצוה רביעית שנצטוינו לרשת הארץ אשר נתן הא‬
‫ויתעלה לאבותינו לאברהם ליצחק וליעקב ולא נעזבה ביד זולתינו‬
‫ והוא אמרו להם )מסעי לג( והורשתם את‬.‫מן האומות או לשממה‬
‫הארץ וישבתם בה כי לכם נתתי את הארץ לרשת אותה‬
‫ ונכפל כזה העניין במצוה זו במקומות‬.‫והתנחלתם את הארץ‬
3
 ‫אחרים כאמרו יתברך )דברים א( באו ורשו את הארץ אשר‬
[. . .] .‫נשבעתי לאבותיכם‬

‫ואומר אני כי המצוה שהחכמים מפליגין בה והיא דירת ארץ‬

,‫ וש״נ‬,‫ישראל עד שאמרו )ת״כ בהר פ״ה ה״ד וכעי״ז כתובו׳ קי ב‬
‫מלכים ספ״ה( שכל היוצא ממנה ודר בחוצה לארץ יהא בעיניך‬
‫כעובד עבודה זרה שנאמר כי גרשוני היום מהסתפח בנחלת ה׳‬
‫לאמר לך עבוד אלהים אחרים וזולת זה הפלגות גדולות שאמרו‬
‫בה הכל הוא ממצות עשה הזה שנצטוינו לרשת הארץ ולשבת‬
.‫בה‬

‫אם כן היא מצות עשה לדורות מתחייב כל יחיד ממנו ואפילו בזמן‬
(‫ ולשון ספרי )ראה יב כט‬.‫גלות כידוע בתלמוד במקומות הרבה‬
‫מעשה ברבי יהודה בן בתירה ור׳ מתיה בן חרש ור׳ חנניה בן אחי‬
‫ר׳ יהושע ור׳ נתן שהיו יוצאין חוצה לארץ והגיעו לפלטיה וזכרו‬
‫את ארץ ישראל וזקפו את עיניהם וזלגו דמעותיהן וקרעו בגדיהם‬
‫וקראו המקרא הזה וירשתה וישבת בה ושמרת לעשות אמרו‬

‫ישיבת ארץ ישראל שקולה כנגד כל המצות שבתורה‬

The fourth mitzvah: we were commanded to inherit the Land

that God, may He be blessed and exalted, gave to our fore-
fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and we should not aban-
don the Land in the hands of another nation or in a state of
desolation. Thus He told them, “Clear out the Land and live in
it, since it is to you that I am giving the Land to occupy; and
you shall se﬉le the Land” (Num. 33:53). This ma﬉er is reiter-
ated elsewhere, as He said, may He be blessed, “come and
inherit the Land that [God] swore to your forefathers”
(Deut. 1:8). [. . .]

And I say that the mitzvah the Sages distinguish is that of

dwelling in the Land. They go so far as to say that anyone who
leaves Israel to live in the Diaspora is viewed as an idolater, as
it says, “For they have driven me out this day that I should not
cleave to the inheritance of the Lord, saying: ‘Go, serve other
gods.’” Moreover, they made many great distinctions about
this; these all come from this positive commandment of
inheriting and se﬉ing the Land.

4
 ‫‪Thus, this is a positive commandment for all generations‬‬
‫‪obligating every individual, even during the exile, as is known‬‬
‫‪from many places in the Talmud. In the words of the Sifre‬‬
‫‪(Re’eh 12:29): “R. Judah b. Beterah, R. Matyah b. Heresh, R.‬‬
‫‪Hananiah b. Ahi, R. Joshua, and R. Nathan were leaving the‬‬
‫‪Land; they reached the border and recalled the Land of Israel.‬‬
‫‪They li﬈ed their eyes and their tears streamed down; they rent‬‬
‫‪their clothes; and they read this verse, ‘You shall inherit it, and‬‬
‫‪se﬉le it; and be sure to keep all the mitzvot that I am‬‬
‫‪commanding you today’ (cf. Deut. 11:31–32). They inferred,‬‬
‫‪‘The se﬉lement of the Land of Israel is equal to all the mitzvot‬‬
‫”’‪of the Torah.‬‬

‫‪• CODIFIED LAW‬‬

‫‪The Rambam’s codification (MT Hil. Mel. 5:9–12):‬‬
‫עוֹלם‪ֵ ,‬א ָלא ִל ְלמֹד‬
‫חוּצה ָל ָא ֶרץ ְל ָ‬
‫]ט[ ָאסוּר ָל ֵצאת ֵמ ֶא ֶרץ יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ְל ָ‬
‫יוֹצא‬
‫תּוֹרה‪ ,‬אוֹ ִל ָשּׂא ִא ָשּׁה‪ ,‬אוֹ ְל ַה ִצּיל ִמיַּ ד ַהגּוֹיִ ים‪ ,‬וְ יַ ְחזֹר ָל ָא ֶרץ; וְ ֵכן ֶ‬
‫ָ‬
‫חוּצה ָל ָא ֶרץ‪ָ ,‬אסוּר‪ֵ ,‬א ָלא ִאם ֵכּן ָחזַ ק‬
‫הוּא ִל ְסח ָוֹרה‪ֲ .‬א ָבל ִל ְשׁכֹּן ְבּ ָ‬
‫ָשׁם ָה ָר ָעב‪ַ ,‬עד ֶשׁנַּ ֲע ָשׂה שׁוֹוֶ ה ֵדּינָ ר ִח ִטּין ִבּ ְשׁ ֵני ֵדּינָ ִרין‪ַ .‬בּ ֶמּה ְדּ ָב ִרים‬
‫מוּרים‪ְ ,‬בּ ֶשׁ ָהיוּ ַה ָמּעוֹת ְמצוּיוֹת וְ ַה ֵפּרוֹת ְבּי ֶֹקר‪ֲ .‬א ָבל ִאם ָהיוּ ַה ֵפּרוֹת‬
‫ֲא ִ‬
‫רוּטה ִמן‬
‫ְבּזוֹל‪ ,‬וְ לֹא יִ ְמ ָצא ָמעוֹת וְ ל ֹא ַבּ ֶמּה יִ ְשׂ ַתּ ַכּר‪ ,‬וְ ָא ְב ָדה ְפּ ָ‬
‫ַה ִכּיס—יֵ ֵצא ְל ָכל ָמקוֹם ֶשׁיִּ ְמ ָצא בּוֹ ֵרוַ ח‪ .‬וְ ַאף ַעל ִפּי ֶשׁ ֻמּ ָתּר ָל ֵצאת‪,‬‬
‫דוֹלי ַהדּוֹר ָהיוּ‪ִ ,‬מ ְפּ ֵני‬
‫ֵאינָ הּ ִמ ַדּת ֲח ִסידוּת
ֶשׁ ֲה ֵרי ַמ ְחלוֹן וְ ִכ ְליוֹן ְשׁ ֵני ְגּ ֵ‬
‫דוֹלה יָ ְצאוּ‪ ,‬וְ נִ ְת ַחיְּ בוּ ְכּ ָליָ ה ַל ָמּקוֹם‪.‬‬
‫ָצ ָרה ְגּ ָ‬

‫וּמנַ ְשּׁ ִקין‬
‫חוּמי ֶא ֶרץ יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל‪ְ ,‬‬
‫דוֹלי ַה ֲח ָכ ִמים ָהיוּ ְמנַ ְשּׁ ִקין ַעל ְתּ ֵ‬
‫]י[ ְגּ ֵ‬
‫אוֹמר ״ ִכּי־ ָרצוּ ֲע ָב ֶדיָך‬
‫ֵ‬ ‫וּמ ְת ַגּ ְל ְגּ ִלין ַעל ֲע ָפ ָרהּ; וְ ֵכן הוּא‬
‫יה‪ִ ,‬‬
‫ֲא ָב ֶנ ָ‬
‫יה; וְ ֶאת־ ֲע ָפ ָרהּ יְ חֹנֵ נוּ״ )תהילים קב(‪.‬‬
‫ֶאת־ ֲא ָב ֶנ ָ‬

‫חוּלין‪,‬‬
‫ווֹנוֹתיו ְמ ִ‬
‫שּׁוֹכן ְבּ ֶא ֶרץ יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל‪ֲ ,‬ע ָ‬
‫]יא[ ָא ְמרוּ ֲח ָכ ִמים‪ָ ,‬כּל ַה ֵ‬
‫אמר ָשׁ ֵכן‪ָ ,‬ח ִל ִיתי; ָה ָעם ַהיּ ֵֹשׁב ָבּהּ‪ ,‬נְ ֻשׂא ָעוֹן״‬
‫וּבל־י ֹ ַ‬
‫ֶשׁנֶּ ֱא ָמר ״ ַ‬
‫עוֹלם ַה ָבּא‪.‬‬
‫זוֹכה ְל ַחיֵּ י ָה ָ‬
‫)ישעיהו לג(‪ַ .‬א ִפלּוּ ָה ַלְך ָבּהּ ַא ְר ַבּע ַאמּוֹת‪ֶ ,‬‬
‫וּכ ִאלּוּ ַה ָמּקוֹם ְשׁהוּא בּוֹ ִמזְ ַבּח ַכּ ָפּ ָרה‪,‬‬
‫וְ ָכל ַה ָקּבוּר ָבּהּ‪ ,‬נִ ְת ַכּ ַפּר לוֹ‪ְ ,‬‬
‫אוֹמר‬
‫ֵ‬ ‫וּב ֻפ ְר ָענוּת הוּא‬
‫ֶשׁנֶּ ֱא ָמר ״וְ ִכ ֶפּר ַא ְד ָמתוֹ ַעמּוֹ״ )דברים לב(‪ְ .‬‬
‫קוֹל ַטתּוּ ֵמ ַחיִּ ים‪,‬‬
‫דּוֹמה ְ‬
‫״ ַעל־ ֲא ָד ָמה ְט ֵמ ָאה ָתּמוּת״ )עמוס ז(‪ .‬וְ ֵאינוּ ֶ‬
‫דוֹלי ַה ֲח ָכ ִמים ָהיוּ‬
‫יתה‪ .‬וְ ַאף ַעל ִפּי ֵכן ְגּ ֵ‬
‫קּוֹל ַטתּוּ ְל ַא ַחר ִמ ָ‬
‫ְל ִמי ֶשׁ ְ‬
‫יוֹסף ַה ַצּ ִדּיק‪.‬‬
‫יהן ְל ָשׁם; ֵצא ְוּל ַמד ִמיַּ ֲעקוֹב ָא ִבינוּ‪ ,‬וְ ֵ‬
‫מוֹל ִיכין ֶאת ֵמ ֵת ֶ‬
‫ִ‬
‫‪5‬‬
 ‫ ַא ִפלּוּ ְבּ ִעיר ֶשׁ ֻר ָבּהּ גּוֹיִ ים; וְ ַאל‬,‫עוֹלם יָ דוּר ָא ָדם ְבּ ֶא ֶרץ יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל‬
ָ ‫]יב[ ְל‬
‫חוּצה‬
ָ ‫יּוֹצא ְל‬
ֶ ‫ וְ ַא ִפלּוּ ְבּ ִעיר ֶשׁ ֻר ָבּהּ יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל
ֶשׁ ָכּל ַה‬,‫חוּצה ָל ָא ֶרץ‬
ָ ‫יָ דוּר ְבּ‬
‫שׁוּני ַהיּוֹם ֵמ ִה ְס ַתּ ֵפּ ַח‬
ִ ‫ ֶשׁנֶּ ֱא ָמר ״ ִכּי־גֵ ְר‬,‫בוֹדה זָ ָרה‬
ָ ‫עוֹבד ֲע‬
ֵ ‫ ְכּ ִאלּוּ‬,‫ָל ָא ֶרץ‬
.(‫ֹלהים ֲא ֵח ִרים״ )שמואל א כו‬
ִ ‫ְבּנַ ֲח ַלת ה׳ ֵלאמֹר ֵלְך ֲעבֹד ֱא‬
.(‫אוֹמר ״וְ ֶאל־ ַא ְד ַמת יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵאל ל ֹא יָ בֹאוּ״ )יחזקאל יג‬
ֵ ‫וּב ֻפ ְר ָענוּת הוּא‬
ְ

[9] To ever leave the Land of Israel is forbidden—except for

learning Torah, marrying a woman, or safety from Gentiles;
and a﬈erward one must return to the Land; and likewise one
may leave for trade. But residing in the Diaspora is forbidden,
unless there is intense famine and inflation to the point that
the worth of one dinar of wheat costs two dinar. This applies
only if money is available but produce is expensive; but if
produce is cheap and money is not available, one should go
wherever he can earn money. Nonetheless, the way of piety is
not to leave even when permi﬉ed, as Mahlon and Kilyon were
leaders of their generation who le﬈ due to great crisis, yet were
deemed for annihilation by God.

[10] The greatest of scholars would kiss the borders of Israel,

kiss its stones, and roll in its earth. And this is as it says, “Your
servants desired her stones, and yearned for her dust” (Ps.
102:14).
[11] The Sages said that the sins of one who resides in Israel
are forgiven, as is said, “The inhabitant shall not say: ‘I am
sick’; the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their
iniquity” (Is. 33:24). Even one who walks four cubits in the
Land merits the World to Come. Likewise one who is buried
there has his sins atoned, as though his location is an atoning
altar, as is said, “He expiates His Land, His People” (Deut.
32:43), and regarding retribution it says, “You shall die on an
impure land” (Am. 7:17). There is no comparison between
absorption in life and absorption a﬈er death, yet the greatest of
scholars would take their dead there; take this lesson from our
Father Jacob and Joseph the Righteous.
[12] A person shall always live in the Land of Israel, even in a
city of mostly Gentiles, and shall not live outside the Land,

6
 even in a city of mostly Jews. For anyone who leaves the Land
is almost like an idolater, as it says, “For they have driven me
out this day that I should not cleave unto the inheritance
of God, saying ‘Go, serve other gods’” (Sam. I 26:19). And
regarding retribution it says, “They shall not enter the Land of
Israel” (Ez. 13:9).

God’s Presence
“I Have Set God Before Me Always”
Nearness to God is the greatest aspiration of man. The Land of Israel
is where our relationship with God is strongest. It is the home of
prophecy and the land of direct Providence.
• HIS CONSTANT ATTENTION
ֶ֨ -‫ֹלהיָך דּ ֵ ֹ֣רשׁ א ָ ֹ֑תהּ ָתּ ִ֗מיד ֵע ֵ֨יני ֤ה ֱא‬
‫ֹלה ֙יָך ָ֔בּהּ ֵ ֽמ ֵר ִשׁ ֙ית‬ ֖ ֶ -‫ר־ה ֱא‬
֥ ‫ֶ֕א ֶרץ ֲא ֶשׁ‬
‫ַה ָשּׁ ָ֔נה וְ ַ ֖עד ַ ֽא ֲח ִ ֥רית ָשׁ ָנֽה׃‬

A Land that the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of God are
continually upon it, from the year’s beginning to its end.
(Deut. 11:12)

• HAVING A GOD
‫ אין אתם בארץ כנען‬,‫לוה‬-‫כל זמן שאתם בארץ כנען הריני לכם לא‬
.‫לוה‬-‫]כביכול[ איני לכם לא‬

While you are in the Land of Canaan I am your God; when

you are not in the Land of Canaan [some versions: it is as if] I
am not your God. (T AZ 5:2)

‫תנו רבנן לעולם ידור אדם בארץ ישראל אפילו בעיר שרובה‬
‫עובדי כוכבים ואל ידור בחוץ לארץ ואפילו בעיר שרובה ישראל‬
‫לוה וכל הדר בחוצה‬-‫שכל הדר בארץ ישראל דומה כמי שיש לו א‬
‫לוה שנאמר )ויקרא כה( לתת לכם‬-‫לארץ דומה כמי שאין לו א‬
.‫להים‬-‫את ארץ כנען להיות לכם לא‬

7
 Our Rabbis taught: One should always live in the Land of
Israel, even in a town most of whose inhabitants are idolaters;
but let no one live outside the Land, even in a town most of
whose inhabitants are Israelites. For whoever lives in the Land
of Israel may be considered as one who has a God, but
whoever lives outside the Land may be considered as one who
has no God. For it is said in Scripture, “To give you the Land
of Canaan, to be your God.” (BT Ket. 110b)

• EXCLUSIVE HOME OF PROPHECY

‫פתח עליה רבי אבא ראוי היה רבינו שתשרה עליו שכינה‬
‫אלא שבבל גרמה ליה מתיב רב נחמן בר חסדא ואמרי לה‬
‫רב חנן בר חסדא ָהי ֹה ָה ָיה דבר ה׳ אל יחזקאל בן בוזי הכהן‬
‫בארץ כשדים טפח ליה אבוה בסנדליה אמר ליה לאו‬
.‫אמינא לך לא תיטרוד עלמא מאי היה שהיה כבר‬

Rabbi Abba began [his eulogy for R. Nathan]: “Our Master

said that he was worthy of the Divine Presence resting upon
him, but his being in Babylon prevented it.”

R. Nahman, son of R. Hisda—some say it was R. Hanan, son

of R. Hisda—responded with the verse: “The word of the
Lord was expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in
the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar” (Ez. 1:3). His
father slapped him with his sandal, saying to him: “Have I not
told you not to bother everyone with this point? What is
meant by the double expression ‘Hayoh hayah,” ‘was
expressly’? That [the prophecy] had been before [he went to
Babylon and was still in Israel].” (BT MK 25a)

• DIRECT CONNECTION
The Ramban describes the Land’s unique providence (comm. Lev.
18:25):
‫להים ואדוני האדונים לכל‬-‫להי הא‬-‫והנה השם הנכבד הוא א‬
‫ אבל ארץ ישראל אמצעות הישוב היא נחלת ה׳ מיוחדת‬,‫העולם‬
‫ לא נתן עליה מן המלאכים קצין שוטר ומושל בהנחילו‬,‫לשמו‬

(‫ וזהו שאמר )שמות יט‬,‫אותה לעמו המיחד שמו זרע אוהביו‬

8
 ‫ וכתיב )ירמיה‬,‫״והייתם לי סגולה מכל העמים כי לי כל הארץ״‬
‫ לא שתהיו אתם‬,‫להים״‬-‫יא(
״והייתם לי לעם ואנכי אהיה לכם לא‬
.‫אל אלהים אחרים כלל‬

Behold, the Honorable Name is the Lord of lords and Master

of masters for the entire world; but the Land of Israel is the
center of civilization, God’s heritance, special to His Name.
He placed no governor from the angels over it when he
bestowed it to his People, the offspring of his beloved who
declare his Unity. Thus it says, “You will be a treasure to Me
from all nations, for the entire land is mine” (Ex. 19), and it is
wri﬉en, “You shall be for Me a People and I will be for you a
God” (Jer. 11)—there will be no other power over you whatso-
ever. (cf. BT Ta. 10a)

• THE TORAH OF THE LAND

.‫אין תורה כתורת ארץ ישראל ואין חכמה כחכמת ארץ ישראל‬

There is no Torah like the Torah of the Land of Israel, and no

wisdom like the wisdom of the Land of Israel. (BR 16:4)

.‫אוירא דארץ ישראל מחכים‬

The air of the Land of Israel makes one wise. (BT BB 158b)

A Desired Land
“The Land is Very, Very Good”
Israel is a land of beauty. Today Israel has 66 national parks, 190
nature reserves and hundreds more proposed reserves, ranging from
majestic deserts to thick forests. Israel has amazing biodiversity for
such a small area, with over 24,000 species of plants and 500 species of
birds (Israel Nature and Parks Authority).
Israel today is also a land of plenty. The Land was barren
throughout the exile, until the start of mass aliyah two centuries ago.

9
 Since the founding of the Jewish State, the agricultural production of
the Land has increased 16-fold (Israeli Foreign Ministry).
• THE GOOD LAND HE HAS GIVEN YOU
Praise from Moses:
‫וּליִ ְר ָ ֥אה א ֹֽתוֹ׃ ִ ֚כּי ֣ה‬ ֑ ֶ -‫ת־מ ְצוֹ֖ ת ֣ה ֱא‬
ְ ‫ֹלהיָך ָל ֶ ֥ל ֶכת ִבּ ְד ָר ָ ֖כיו‬ ִ ‫וְ ָ ֣שׁ ַמ ְר ָ֔תּ ֶא‬
‫מת ֹֽי ְצ ִ ֥אים‬
ֹ ֔ ֹ‫וּתה‬
ְ ‫טוֹבה ֶ ֚א ֶרץ ַנ ֲ֣ח ֵלי ָ֔מיִ ם ֲעיָ נ ֹ֙ת‬
֑ ָ ‫ל־א ֶרץ‬
֣ ֶ ‫יאָך֖ ֶא‬ ֶ֔ -‫ֱא‬
ֲ ‫ֹלהיָך ְמ ִ ֽב‬
‫ץ־ז֥ית ֶ ֖שׁ ֶמן‬
ֵ ‫וּת ֵא ָנ֖ה וְ ִר ֑מּוֹן ֶ ֽא ֶר‬
ְ ‫וּשׂע ָ ֹ֔רה וְ ֶג ֶ֥פן‬
ְ ‫וּב ָ ֽהר׃ ֶ ֤א ֶרץ ִח ָטּ ֙ה‬
ָ ‫ַבּ ִבּ ְק ָ ֖עה‬
‫א־ת ְח ַ ֥סר ֖כֹּל ָ ֑בּהּ‬
ֶ ֹ ‫ל־בּהּ ֔ ֶל ֶחם ֽל‬
֣ ָ ‫אכ‬
ַ ֹ ‫ְוּד ָ ֽבשׁ׃ ֶ֗א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ֨שׁר ֤ל ֹא ְב ִמ ְס ֵכּנֻ ֙ת ֽתּ‬
‫יה ַתּ ְח ֥צֹב נְ ֽחֹ ֶשׁת׃ וְ ָ ֽא ַכ ְל ָ ֖תּ וְ ָשׂ ָ ֑ב ְע ָתּ‬
ָ ‫וּמ ֲה ָר ֶ ֖ר‬
ֽ ֵ ‫֣יה ַב ְר ֶ֔זל‬
ָ ‫ֶ ֚א ֶרץ ֲא ֶ ֣שׁר ֲא ָב ֶנ‬
‫ן־לְך׃‬
ֽ ָ ‫ל־ה ָ ֥א ֶרץ ַהטּ ָ ֹ֖בה ֲא ֶ ֥שׁר ָנ ַֽת‬ ֶ֔ -‫וּב ַר ְכ ָ֙תּ ֶאת־ ֣ה ֱא‬
ָ ‫ֹלהיָך ַע‬ ֵֽ

And you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God,
to walk in His ways and to fear Him. For the Lord your God is
bringing you into a good Land, a Land of brooks of water, of
fountains and depths, springing forth in valleys and hills; a
Land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig trees and pome-
granates; a Land of olive trees and date honey; a Land where
you will eat bread without scarceness, you will not lack
anything in it; a Land whose stones are iron, and from whose
hills you will mine copper. You shall eat and be satisfied, and
bless the Lord your God for the good Land He has given you.
(Deut. 8:6–10)

• NORMATIVE GOODNESS
Detailed praise of the Land is a sine qua non of the Grace A﬈er Meals:
‫תניא רבי אליעזר אומר כל שלא אמר ארץ חמדה טובה ורחבה‬
‫בברכת הארץ ומלכות בית דוד בבונה ירושלים לא יצא ידי‬

‫חובתו‬

Rabbi Eliezer says: One who did not mention “a desired, good,
and broad Land” in the blessing over the Land . . . did not
fulfill his obligation. (BT Ber. 48b)

• THE GRANDEUR OF THE LANDSCAPE

From Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik’s eulogy for Rabbi Zev Gold:

10
 I will never forget the evening in 5695 [1935] when I visited
Rabbi Gold in Ramat Gan in Eretz Yisrael. He took me out to
the orange groves near his house. It was a beautiful night, the
sky was a perfect blue and there were endless stars. The bright
moon of Eretz Yisrael shone all over with an enchanted
beauty. From afar we could see the lights of the new all-Jewish
city of Tel Aviv glistening in the dark. The lights were telling
us the thrilling and intoxicating news of the rebuilding of the
Holy Land. Overwhelmed with emotion, Rabbi Gold gazed
toward the horizon and then turned to me and said: “Whoever
does not feel the presence of God in Eretz Yisrael on this beau-
tiful night while looking at this magnificent moon and at these
beckoning stars, breathing the clear and pure air filled with the
fragrance of blossoming growth, and above all when looking at
all the glistening lights of the city that was built entirely by
Jews, is simply blind.” Rabbi Gold continued: “Rav Yehudah
Halevi was right when he said that prophecy flows unhindered
in Eretz Yisrael and we need only a proper vessel to receive its
message.” As we stood there, Rabbi Gold picked up a small
pebble and kissed it, to fulfill Rav Abba’s dictum in the Talmud
that he would kiss the rocks of Akko (BT Ket. 112a). That night,
I thought to myself how insignificant I was compared to this
special Jew who was able to experience the glory of God
through the grandeur of the landscape of the land of Israel.

(Translated from Hebrew by Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff, in The

Rav: The World of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, 1999, vol. 2, p. 118.)
• NO GREATER MANIFEST SIGN
Another statement of Rabbi Abba:
‫ואמר רבי אבא אין לך קץ מגולה מזה שנאמר )יחזקאל לו( ואתם‬
.‫הרי ישראל ענפכם תתנו ופריכם תשאו לעמי ישראל וגו׳‬

Rabbi Abba said: There can be no more manifest sign of

redemption than this, as is said (Ez. 36:8), “But you, O
mountains of Israel, you shall send forth your branches, and
yield your fruit to my people of Israel, for they are at hand to
come.” (BT San. 98a)

11
 Rashi’s comment:
‫ ואין לך קץ‬,‫כשתתן ארץ ישראל פריה בעין יפה אז יקרב הקץ‬
.‫מגולה יותר‬

When the Land of Israel bears produce in generous quantity,

then the redemption will be near; there is no greater manifest
sign of redemption.

Longing
“Let Me Cross Now and See the Good Land”
For most of the last two thousand years the Land was a distant dream
that some risked their lives to fulfill. Today, the Land of Israel is only a
jet ride away for most Jews in the Diaspora; the trip is now short,
comfortable and inexpensive by history’s standards. How would our
ancestors have reacted to this reality?
• WHO COULD ASSURE ME?
‫רבי זירא כי הוה סליק לארץ ישראל לא אשכח מברא למעבר‬
‫נקט במצרא וקעבר אמר ליה ההוא צדוקי עמא פזיזא דקדמיתו‬
‫פומייכו לאודנייכו אכתי בפזיזותייכו קיימיתו אמר ליה דוכתא‬

‫דמשה ואהרן לא זכו לה אנא מי יימר דזכינא לה‬

When Rabbi Zera went up to the Land of Israel he could not

find a ferry to cross the river. He grabbed a rope bridge and
crossed. A Sadducee mocked him: “Hasty people, who put
your mouths before your ears [when you said “we will do”
before “we will listen” (Ex. 24:7)]! You are still clinging to
your hastiness.” Rabbi Zera replied, “The place that Moses
and Aaron did not merit to enter—who could assure me that I
should merit to enter?” (BT Ket. 112a)

• HOW CAN I SAVOR WHAT I EAT?

Two poems by Judah Halevi, a scholar from medieval Spain:

12
 ‫ִל ִבּי ְב ִמזְ ָרח וְ ָאנ ִֹכי ְבּסוֹף ַמ ֲע ָרב‬
?‫ֵאיְך ֶא ְט ֲע ָמה ֵאת ֲא ֶשר א ַֹכל וְ ֵאיך יֶ ֱע ָרב‬
‫ ְבּעוֹד‬,‫יכה ֲא ַש ֵלּם נְ ָד ַרי וֶ ֱא ָס ַרי‬
ָ ‫ֵא‬
?‫ִציּוֹן ְבּ ֶח ֶבל ֱאדוֹם וַ ֲא ִני ְבּ ֶכ ֶבל ֲע ָרב‬
‫ ְכּמוֹ‬,‫יֵ ַקל ְבּ ֵע ַיני ֲעזֹב ָכּל־טוּב ְס ָפ ַרד‬
.‫יֵ ַקר ְבּ ֵע ַיני ְראוֹת ַע ְפרוֹת ְדּ ִביר נֶ ֱח ָרב‬

My heart is in the east, and I in the u﬉ermost west.

How can I savor what I eat? How shall it be sweet?
How shall I render my vows and my bonds, while yet
Zion lies in the binds of Edom, and I in Arab chains?
How light in my eyes would it seem
To leave all the good things of Spain—
Seeing how dear in my eyes it would be
To behold the dust of the desolate sanctuary.

.‫יְ ֵפה נוֹף ְמשׂוֹשׂ ֵתּ ֵבל ִק ְריָ ה ְל ֶמ ֶלְך ָרב‬

!‫ָלְך נִ ְכ ְס ָפה נַ ְפ ִשׁי ִמ ַפּ ֲא ֵתי ַמ ְע ָרב‬
,‫ֲהמוֹן ַר ֲח ַמי נִ ְכ ָמר ִכּי ֶאזְ ְכּ ָרה ֶק ֶדם‬
.‫בוֹדְך ֲא ֶשׁר ָגּ ָלה וְ נָ וֵ ְך ֲא ֶשׁר ָח ָרב‬
ֵ ‫ְכּ‬
‫ ַעד‬,‫וּמי יִ ְתּנֵ ִני ַעל ַכּנְ ֵפי נְ ָשׁ ִרים‬
ִ
!‫ֲא ַרוֶּ ה ְב ִד ְמ ָע ִתי ֲע ָפ ֵרך וְ יִ ְת ָע ָרב‬
‫ וְ ִאם ַמ ְל ֵכְּך ֵאין ָבְּך וְ ִאם ִבּ ְמקוֹם‬,‫ְדּ ַר ְשׁ ִתּיְך‬
.‫ֳצ ִרי ִגּ ְל ֲע ֵדְך נָ ָחשׁ ָשׂ ָרף וְ גַ ם ַע ְק ָרב‬
‫ֲהלֹא ֶאת־ ֲא ָב ַניִ ְך ֲאחוֹנֵ ן וְ ֶא ָשּׁ ֵקם‬
!‫וְ ַט ַעם ְרגָ ַביִ ְך ְל ִפי ִמ ְדּ ַבשׁ יֶ ְע ָרב‬

Fairest of peaks, joy of the world, City of the King,

For you my soul pines from the ends of the West!
My passions swell as I recall ages past,
Your glory, now gone; your abode, now ruined.
Would I could fly on eagles’ wings, then
I could moisten your earth with my tears, making mud!
I seek you; though your King be absent, and
Your balm of Gilead supplanted by serpent and scorpion.
13
 How I long to kiss and embrace your stones
And taste your soil, sweeter to me than honey!

Judah Halevi journeyed to Israel in his middle adulthood and died

close to the time of his arrival.
• CONFESSION OF THE HAVER
From the Kuzari, by Judah Halevi (2:23–24):
Said the Khazar: If this be so, you fall short of the duties of
your Torah by not trying to reach that place and make it your
home in life and death. You say, “Have mercy on Zion, for it is
the house of our life,” and believe that the Shekhinah will
return there. Had it no other advantage than that the
Shekhinah dwelt there nine hundred years, this is sufficient
reason for men’s souls to yearn for it and find purification
there, as is done with the homes of the pious and the prophets.
Is it not “the gate of heaven”? [. . .] It seems to me that your
bowing and kneeling toward the Land is either fla﬉ery or
thoughtless worship. Your first forefathers chose to live there
in preference to their birthplaces, and lived there as strangers,
rather than as citizens in their own countries. This they did
even at a time when the Shekhinah was not visible, and the
country was full of immorality and idolatry; your fathers only
desired to remain in it. Nor did they leave it in times of famine,
except by God’s permission; and then they asked that their
bones be buried there.

Said the Haver: You have shamed me, O Khazar king. This is
the sin which obstructed the Divine promise with regard to the
Second Temple, as was said, “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of
Zion” (Zech. 2:10). The Divine Providence was ready to
restore everything as it had been at first, if they had all willingly
returned; but only a part was ready to do so, while the majority
and the leadership remained in Babylon, preferring exile and
servitude rather than leaving their houses and their affairs.
Solomon may have alluded to this: “I sleep, but my heart
wakes” (Song 5:2). He compares the exile to sleep, and the
continuance of prophecy among them to wakefulness of the
14
 heart. “The voice of my beloved knocks!” is God’s call to
return. “My head is filled with dew” alludes to the Shekhinah
which emerged from the shadow of the Temple. The words “I
have removed my coat” refer to the people’s idleness in
returning. [. . .] Our reciting “worship His holy mountain” and
“worship at His footstool” (Ps. 99:5, 9) and “He who restores
His glory to Zion” and so on is nothing but a starling’s
cha﬉ering; we do not realize what we say, as you observed, O
Khazar king.

• OUR OWN PRAYERS

Quotations from Nusah Ashkenaz:
.‫קוֹמ ִמיּוּת ְל ַא ְר ֵצנוּ‬
ְ ‫יכנוּ‬
ֵ ‫תוֹל‬
ִ ְ‫ ו‬.‫יאנוּ ְל ָשׁלום ֵמ ַא ְר ַבּע ַכּנְ פוֹת ָה ָא ֶרץ‬
ֵ ‫וַ ֲה ִב‬

Bring us to peace from the four corners of the earth, and lead
us upright to our Land.

‫ וְ ַק ְבּ ֵצנוּ יַ ַחד‬.‫יּוֹתינוּ‬
ֵ ‫ וְ ָשׂא נֵ ס ְל ַק ֵבּץ ָגּ ֻל‬.‫רוּתנוּ‬
ֵ ‫שׁוֹפר ָגּדוֹל ְל ֵח‬
ָ ‫ְתּ ַקע ְבּ‬
.‫ֵמ ַא ְר ַבּע ַכּנְ פוֹת ָה ָא ֶרץ‬

Sound the great shofar for our freedom, raise a banner to

gather our exiles, and gather us together from the four corners
of the earth.

‫קוֹמ ִמיוּת‬
ְ ‫יכנוּ‬
ֵ ‫יוֹל‬
ִ ‫ וְ הוּא‬.‫ארנוּ‬
ֵ ָ‫ָה ַר ֲח ָמן הוּא יִ ְשׁבּוֹר ֻע ֵלּנוּ ֵמ ַעל ַצּוּ‬
.‫ְל ַא ְר ֵצנוּ‬

May the Merciful One break the yoke upon our necks, and
may He lead us upright to our Land.

If we do not feel a yearning to be in Israel, something has gone wrong

with our prayer.

15
 Sacrifice
“He Only Gave Them Through Suffering”
Our opportunity to live in Israel would not be as it is today had it not
been for the self-sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of Jews in the past
two centuries. The early pioneers who sought to cultivate the Land
faced poverty, hunger, disease, and hostile neighbors. About half of
the 30,000 immigrants of the First Aliyah (1882–1903) returned to the
Diaspora because the conditions were unbearable.
22,867 sons and daughters have fallen defending the Land of
Israel since 1860 as of Israel’s 2011 Memorial Day. They were people
like you and me; they laid down their lives so that Jews could live in
their homeland.
• RAV YISROEL OF SHKLOV
Rabbi Yisroel ben Shmuel Ashkenazi of Shklov was one of the Vilna
Gaon’s closest students. He brought his family with the third group of
the Gaon’s students to make aliyah in 1809. He joined the
impoverished community of Safed, but was soon sent on a mission to
collect funds that kept him traveling across Europe for three years. He
returned to his family in 1813, but before he could rest, a plague of
malaria drove them south to Jerusalem. His wife died on the way, and
soon a﬈er that he lost in succession a son-in-law, a daughter, a son,
another daughter, another son, and his parents.
He returned to Safed again, where he took on the leadership of
the community, began a new family, and continued to suffer. He
endured destructive rains that destroyed his house, a﬉acks by local
Druze, imprisonment by the O﬉omans, and a major earthquake that
killed over 2,000 people. Inspired by his hardships, he undertook to
compose a work on the laws of agriculture in the Land of Israel, which
he titled Pe’at ha-Shulhan. The work still influences how these laws are
kept in Israel. Rav Yisroel wrote in its introduction:
‫ארץ ישראל חביבה לי הרבה כי בייסורים רבים עמדה לי אשר‬
‫זכיתי להסתפח בנחלת ה׳ ולהתגנדר בעפרה זה שבעה ועשרים‬

16
 ‫ והרבה נתייסרתי והרבה יגיעות על תיקוני ישיבתה יגעתי‬.‫שנה‬
‫וכמה הרפתקאות עדו עלי מיום שבתי פחד דבר וחרב ורעב‬
‫טעמתי ובשבי הקשה בסוגר ישבתי סבוני גם סבבוני אויבי בנפשי‬
‫ ומה יעשה לי אדם אמרתי ובה׳ בטחתי ה׳ לי בעזרי‬,‫יקיפו עלי‬
‫עליו מרחם הושלכתי והרבה הצלתי ועזרתי ארץ הקדושה ואנשים‬
‫בה בע״ה בכל כחי עבדתי והנהגות כולל צבור טהור בכל כחי‬
‫עשיתי ועבודת למוד תורה ברבים קבעתי ויסודות ישוב ארץ‬
.‫הקדושה הרבה מחוץ ופנים יסדתי‬

The Land of Israel is very dear to me, for I have withstood

much suffering to a﬉ain it. I have merited a﬉aching myself to
the inheritance of God and adorning myself in its dust for
twenty-seven years. I have suffered and endured much pain in
trying to se﬉le it; multiple episodes befell me from the day I
returned: fear, plague, bloodshed; I tasted hunger; I sat in
difficult captivity in prison; my enemies enveloped and
encircled me. “But what can Man do to me?” I asked, and I
trusted in God; God is with me to help me, and upon Him I
am cast from my birth. I did much to save and help the Holy
Land and its people, with God’s help. I worked with all my
strength, and led the pure community with all my strength,
and I established the labor of Torah study among the masses. I
have laid the foundations of se﬉lement in the Holy Land from
within and without.

With simple faith, Rav Yisroel viewed his suffering in the context of
the rebuilding of the Land. His foremost feeling was gratitude for the
contribution he was able to make.
• AVRAHAM BUMI AVRAMOVITZ
Avraham Bumi Avramovitz was born in 1927 in Košice,
Czechoslovakia. He received both a Jewish and secular education and
continued his studies in yeshiva. The Nazis arrived in the beginning of
1944. A﬈er several months in a ghe﬉o, the deportations to Auschwitz
began in May. Both of Avraham’s parents were killed in the gas
chambers. He worked in the camp until the end of the war.

17
 Avraham then lived in a displaced persons camp in Germany for
two years, where he received military training from the Irgun. On the
day of the approval of the UN Partition Plan, he wrote the following to
his relatives in Herzliya (from Gevilei Esh, ed. Reuven Grossman,
1952):
29.11.47 ,‫מוצאי שבת‬

!‫קרובי היקרים‬

‫ראשית כל אני מודיעכם כי שלום לי—דבר שברצוני לשמוע גם‬

.‫ אינני יודע באמת מדוע נפסקה חליפת המכתבים בינינו‬.‫מכם‬
‫בפעם האחרונה קיבלתי מכם ברכת ״לשנה טובה״ שנשלחה‬
‫ יש בברכה תמונת‬.‫ גם כעת היא מונחת על שולחני‬.‫בספטמבר‬
‫ מה יפה! ומראשי אינה מסתלקת התמונה כשהייתי ילד‬.‫הרצליה‬
‫ אני מסתכל‬.‫ את הזמן הזה בודאי שכחתם‬.‫בקרב הילדים שלכם‬
.‫ תקופת הילדות חלפה במהירות‬.‫בתמונה וחתימת הילדים עליה‬
‫לא רחוק הזמן ומה רב המרחק בינינו? בגיל עשרים אין המרחק‬
‫ קיר שקשה‬,‫ אלא שמישהו הקים בינינו קיר ברזל גדול‬.‫גדול כל כך‬
‫ מפני שגם בקרונות‬,‫ אבל תקות היהודים לא תמה‬.‫לשברו‬
‫ אנו נשבר גם את הקיר‬,‫שהובילו יהודים לאוישויץ היתה תקוה‬
‫ תתגשם‬,‫ וכשאהיה כבר אצלכם ואבקר בהרצליה היפה‬.‫הזה‬
‫ תשתוממו בודאי שתקותי היא ארץ ישראל ולא ארצות‬.‫תקותי‬
‫ אבל מדוע אלך למקום שאינו ביתי ביכלתי ללכת‬.‫הברית‬
?‫למולדתי‬

November 29, 1947

My dear relatives!

First of all I want you to know that I am all right—something I

also want to hear from you. I don’t know why we stopped
exchanging le﬉ers. The last thing I received from you was a
“Happy New Year” wish in September. It still sits on my desk.
There is also thankfully a photograph of Herzliya. How
beautiful! The image has not le﬈ my head from the time I was
a child among your children. You have certainly forgo﬉en
those days. I look at the picture and the signature of the
children is upon it. Childhood went by so quickly. The time is
not distant, but how great is the distance between us? At age

18
 20 it is not so great, but someone has placed a great iron wall
between us, a wall that is difficult to break. But the hope of the
Jews has not ceased, for even in the ca﬉le cars that brought the
Jews to Auschwitz there was hope; we will break through this
wall as well. When I will finally be with you and visit beautiful
Herzliya, my hope will be realized. You will definitely be
shocked to hear that my hope is the Land of Israel and not the
United States. For why would I go to a place that is not my
home when I can go to my homeland?

Avraham finally made aliyah soon a﬈er Israel’s independence, using a

friend’s papers as his own. He stopped in Herzliya as he promised and
then quickly joined the Givati Brigade to fight in the war. He gave his
life at Ivdis, in a pivotal ba﬉le for the control of the Negev.
The Givati took control of the position at Ivdis during the night
preceding July 9, 1948. The Egyptians returned in the morning with
heavy artillery fire and air support, causing dozens of casualties;
twenty-five Jewish soldiers lost their lives, including seven Holocaust
survivors. The Givati withstood the countera﬉ack and the ba﬉le
ended July 12.
Avraham was twenty-one years old when he fell on July 10, the
third of Tammuz. He was one of about 1,000 Holocaust survivors to
die in the War of Independence.

The Future
“And It Shall Be on that Day”
There have been three mass immigrations to Israel in history; the first
two eventually led to a Temple, and the third is still ongoing. Today,
with the rise of the Yishuv and the decline of the Diaspora, we are
nearing the halakhic status of rov yosheveha ʿaleha (“most of its
inhabitants are upon it”), which we have not had since the exile began.
The future of the Jewish People is in the Land of Israel.

19
 • THE CUTTING EDGE
Professor Gerald Blidstein, in Tradition 18:1 (1979):
The juices of Jewish history do run towards a restoration of
Jewish peoplehood in Israel. Or more carefully: the Jew who
loves his people wishes to experience its fullness, and the
adventure, the challenge, of Jewish fullness today is in Israel.
The Jew who identifies with his people wishes to be at the
cu﬉ing edge of its history and that, today, is in Israel.

• THE GREAT MOMENT

Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Kol Dodi Dofek, 1956 (tr. David Gordon,
1990, p. 26 ff.):
What is the essence of the story of the Song of Songs, if not the
description of a paradoxical and tragic hesitation on the part of
the love-intoxicated, anxiety-stricken Lover, when the oppor-
tunity, couched in majestic awe, presented itself? What is it, if
not the deferral of a great and sublime opportunity pregnant
with a possibility of which she dreamed, for which she fought,
which she sought, and for which she had searched with all the
fervor of her soul? The delicate and refined Lover, passion-
driven to her fair-eyed Beloved, who in days resplendent in
brightness wandered the paths of the vineyards, the mountain
ridges, through wheat fields and orchards, and in evenings
bathed in the pale light of an enchanting moon or gloomy with
darkness passed between the walls in search of her Lover—she
returned one rain-stormy night to her tent, tired and weary,
and fell asleep. The pa﬉er of quick-moving, light footsteps was
heard in the stillness of the tent. In that mysterious and strange
night, the Beloved for whom she had so hoped and kept watch,
suddenly appeared out of the darkness and beckoned at the
entrance of her tent. He knocked and pleaded that she open
the door for Him. “Listen! My Beloved is Knocking, saying,
‘Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for
my head is drenched with dew, and my locks with the damp of
the night’” (Song 5:2). The great moment for which she had
been waiting with such longing came at a time of ina﬉entive-

20
 ness. The elusive and secretive Beloved, weary of wandering
and tribulations, appeared with His curly locks, black eyes,
powerful build, and shining countenance. He stood in her
doorway and thrust His hand through the hole in the lock,
seeking shelter from the dampness of the night. He wanted to
recount to her His mighty love, His longing and yearning for a
life together filled with desire and joy, and of fulfillment of
expectations and realization of dreams. A simple extension of
the hand to turn the lock separated the Lover and her
Beloved—the great dream from its complete fulfillment. With
one leap the Lover could have a﬉ained all her life’s desires.
“Draw me, we will run a﬈er you. . . . We will be glad and rejoice
in you” (Song 1:4). Deceitful is the heart (Jer. 17:9), however,
and who can explain it? That very night, sloth, the result of a
strange inertia, took hold of the Lover. For one small moment
the flame of yearning that burned within her was buried, the
mighty desire withered, and her feelings and dreams were
silenced. The Lover refused to leave her bed. She did not open
the door of her tent to her handsome Beloved. A cruel
confusion swept her into forgetfulness and apathy. The Lover
become lazy and stubborn, she poured forth countless excuses
and pretexts to explain her strange behavior. “I have removed
my cloak, how shall I put it on again? I have washed my feet,
how shall I soil them?” (Song 5:3). The Beloved continued to
beckon, and as His beckoning became more persistent, so too
did the insanity that chilled and tainted the Lover.

We face an awesome opportunity. An opportunity to fulfill God’s Will

for the Jewish People; to experience God’s immediate Presence; to
enjoy a wondrous Land; to realize the hope of two thousand years; to
honor selfless martyrs; to take part in the Jewish future.

21