By Rabbi Shlomo Zargari
״ואבא היום״
I came today (24:42)
Shalom, our hachamim teach us that the speech of our forefather’s servant is
“superior” to the Torah given to later generations, as evidenced by the fact that the Torah gives two detailed accounts of how Eliezer found a wife for Yitzhak, while many fundamental hal-achot of the Torah are conveyed through a subtle hint (Rashi, 24:42).
Why is such great importance attributed to the servants’ speech?
The Torah uses the speech of our forefathers’ servants as a way of transmitting the guidelines of derech eretz. Eliezer’s every action and expression was rooted in derech eretz, and therefore constituted a crucial lesson for future generations. Yet, we may wonder, why is derech eretz so important? Our sages say, “Derech eretz kadmah laTorah” – derech eretz precedes Torah (Tanna Deve Eliyahu 1:1).
When a person goes shopping, he needs a bag to hold the potatoes and a container to hold the eggs, because he cannot bring his purchases home without a proper receptacle. This concept holds true with regard to spirituality as well. Torah must be placed in a proper vessel, and that vessel is derech eretz .
Derech eretz can be defined as those actions and behaviors that every person should recognize as defined as those actions Derech eretz can be defined as proper without being taught. Before a person starts to learn Torah, he must first behave in accordance with the dictates of common sense and intuition. Once he does so, he has reached the level where he can be called a human being; indeed, one who lacks basic derech eretz is referred to by חז״ל as worse than an animal’s corpse (Vayikra Rabbah 1:15).
Only once a person has reached the level of a human can he hope to internalize words of Torah, which elevate him above other human beings and bring him to a supernatural level.
There is yet another form of derech eretz. The Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah 13:16) writes that Torah learning must be interspersed with acts of hessed ( kindness), as the mishnah states (Avot 2:2), “It is good to learn Torah along with derech eretz, for the two together eliminate sin”.
We see from here that hessed is also included in derech eretz. If we pay close attention to the story of Eliezer’s meeting with Rivkah, we can glean numerous insights into how to conduct our lives with both forms of derech eretz.
Shabbat Shalom
Harav Wolbe זצוק״ל
(Shiurei Chumash, Parashat Haye Sarah 24:42)