Parshas Matos-Maasei 5785
- Torah Tavlin
- Jul 24
- 2 min read
כה אמר ה' מה מצאו אבותיכם בי עול כי רחקו מעלי וילכו אחרי ההבל ויהבלו (ירמי' ב-ה)
This week’s Haftorah marks the second of the three weeks of calamities in which Yirmiyahu HaNavi castigates the nation for having transgressed the cardinal sin of idol worship. Interestingly, Hashem lamented how the nation “distanced themselves from Me, and they went after futility and themselves became futile.” But is it not obvious that one will become futile if he chases after futility?
R’ Mendel Hirsch zt”l (Seder Haftoros) explains that practicing idolatry was not a rational decision made on a person’s part, rather it was prompted by one’s evil inclination which harassed him relentlessly into submission. On the whole, Jews eschew idol worship and find greater pleasure in serving the Almighty due to their deep spiritual connection to Hashem and His Torah. While everything in the world was created for and is meant to be used in the service of the Almighty, as dictated by the Torah, if it should ever be used for idolatry, it will lose its meaning and become a futile object with no purpose in the world.
As a result, a Jew who just stops living an observant Torah life, rachmana litzlan, is simply lost and the hope is that eventually he will find his inner spark which will reignite his passion for Torah and Mitzvos and redirect him back to the more fulfilling life of a G-d-fearing Torah Jew. However, a Jew who defects from a Torah lifestyle and adopts other cultures or beliefs will find himself leading a tragically futile life with no end in sight.