Bitachon 202 - Entering Hashem's Hidden Place

You're listening to the 202nd edition of the podcast. We're studying together the 91st chapter of and today we're going to speak about you. Hashem are my protector. You are most exalted. I was placed or you placed perhaps me in your divine abode. before actually we read the mir as we're going to see in the before the 90th chapter of the is and it's mosher raen who wrote that chapter and it seems from the fortune that this chapter which is next is also written by mosher raenu so it's interesting to have that understanding as we go into item Shahi says that the author of this paragraph of is saying to us that you have placed he's talking to us and saying you have placed your protection and your secrets the place where you hide you have placed it in Hashem. He is the one who protects me. So I know Mosher Rabain was saying to us I know what it's like to be like you. We're in this together. We're with Mosher Rabin. When we are having, we're nestling in Hashem's wing. We're nestling in his shade. So, we're in the same location as Mosher Rab. And I'd like to point out if you're looking at me, so you see uh to the left of me, I think it's to my right. So, it must be to your left. There's a there's a cave. And it's actually and and behind me there's a structure which is a pretty round structure. These are ancient structures. And it's a sistern behind me. It's a place where people would keep their their water, right? And the water is of course the lifeblood of the human being. And Hashem is referred to as the one who gives us water. The Tyra is the water of life. And the cave, the cave that you see behind me, we could say is representative of the place that we can find ourselves nestled into Hashem, protected by Hashem. Mosher Rabenu receives the Tyra inside of a a hole in the rock. There he receives a revelation of Hashem and we too can be in that place. says God is exalted beyond anybody and we can be within his in his special abode, his holy abode. Hashem can do anything. And and the author of this chapter to him is saying to us that since I know what it's like to have and hashem I know what it's like to to live with hashem in my life to be protected by hashem to be in his nikra satsur the hole in the rock next to god I can assure you that you will be protected from all damage that's the miri the mayor he brings here since you hashem and your divine presence presence are my protection. I nestled there and I hope to you that you will do that which is needed for me. You will help me to succeed. Although it seems the buzz is saying it seems like God is very far away. His divine abode is up in the heavens very distant from us it would seem. And yet, and yet I know that if I'm trusting in you, I'm in your divine abode or you're going to come down to me. We'll see the different possibilities on that. He brings some you are my protector even though you're on the highest highest reaches of the heavens and your place is very high up. Nevertheless, I ask of you and I pray that you will watch over me. Now says the following. I know that you will protect the righteous individual who stays in the space of your right. We say you want to be from among those who sit in the hidden place that's on high. So I know that you protect that person who tries to do that and you protect that individual from all happenes quote unquote anything that might happen in the world because that's what you've done for me because I've trusted in you. What does it mean in the verse when it says exalted? You have made your abode because it's within your power to save those who trust in you. And no one will stop this. No one can prevent Hashem's hand as it were from saving us and taking care of us. You could have, excuse me, there's a bug here. Lots of bugs. You can have all of the enemies in the world, heaven forbid, they can do everything that they want and they wish and try their best to surround us with a ring of fire, seven directions. But God protects us and saves us. God, you're above all all of the can mean a a uh an army. It can mean the it it means an order mean orders of of legions legions and and units of the army. It can also mean the the legions of angels who are also in an order and have certain functions etc. So, Hashem is above all of that. He's above all of the plans of our enemies. He's above all of the accusing angels. We could say the author of the of this paric is saying to us is saying to us since you are righteous and you are similar to me you also desire to have a relationship with Hashem you also are working on you also are trying to get into the satsur into that location in the mountain and you're doing like my actions I promise you what what's what it says in the next verse. Nothing bad will happen to you. No evil thing will happen to you. No plague, no no wound will come into your tent. Your merit will help for everyone around you. In other words, not only am I going to be protected because of my but as some of you I'm sure have experienced and I remember hearing from one of the members of the group there's a beten that the those around us can grab onto or even if they're not even aware of it there's a protection that comes into my into into my family and to those who are close to me. It helps for all of the members of my household that nothing negative will occur to them. No no no no no damage will be caused to them. It makes me think of something that said he said that we say um there's a talk about in that which we say on Mondays and Thursdays after the Torah reading. So it speaks of that Hashem should protect. We ask we pray that Hashem should protect the scholars and their wives and their kids and their students and their students students. And what's the idea behind this protection for the for the Torah scholar? The one who desires spirituality, who desires connection to Hashem. The idea is that in order for me to be successful in my seeking, in order for me to be successful in my spiritual relationship with Hashem, I need those around me to also have success and all and to also be protected. And that's something that that is saying is promised to the individual who's working on the now we'll see another explanation. It comes out of this since you Hashem are my protector and you made your your abode to be very high and you left this world in a certain sense. You've left the place of your bikdash of your temple. So God has nowhere to be in this world. The whole world is still filled with your honor. And as a result, what it says in the next, no evil will befall you. Moshe is speaking to us. He's speaking to the to the Israelites. He's speaking to the Jew. He's speaking to the one who seeks God. Don't think that just cuz we don't have a mdash that just we don't have a mishk a place for God's presence as it were that God can't still protect you what happened before and this is a great thing to think about as we come into PES and we we are coming into the story of Matim. So, one of the points that happens in Egypt is that Pyrus says, we're about to read this inside, but Pyro says to Moshe, he says, "You're going to try to get out of Egypt, but I see the star. There's a star called that evil star. There's bad luck that's going to greet you out there in the wilderness." So, Hashem has not yet commanded Amish to have a Mishkon. And Amis is walking into danger. And yet nevertheless, although Hashem's presence is not yet seen in the Mishka and in a place of his dwelling and God's presence as it were still exalted and beyond, it's in the in the highest abode. Nevertheless, no evil will befall you. He said, "Look, there's something bad coming for you." say it's reference to a particular star. If not for Hashem's presence and God being with you, you wouldn't be saved. Pik also refers to that no plague will happen to you. It's a reference to the the plague of the firstborn that happened to the Egyptians. The Pik refers to the nega, the plague, the last plague, the final plague that God is going to bring upon him. Firstborns of all of the Egyptians will die. That's not going to come into your tent. Obviously, we don't need to say that the firstborns of the Jewish people wouldn't die. Right? Let's say an Egyptian said, "You know what? I figured things out. Okay, I get it. The Jews are protecting themselves. They're bringing a carbon pes. They put the blood on the doorpost. They're going to be protected from the mash, from the angel of destruction who's going to kill all the firstborns. I'm going to stick my firstborn into a house of a Jew. And this way, he'll be protected. Nothing will happen to him." Says, the scarif. So, so what could the Egyptians think? Well, maybe that angel's going to come in and try to kill my kid, but he'll also end up killing a Jewish kid, right? Don't worry. There's a reassurance here that when we are in conssonance with Hashem and we are connected to Hashem, there could be destruction in our midst, but it doesn't come with an angel. An angel can have a a hard time discerning between an Egyptian and a Jew, but Hashem himself comes inside and takes away the soul of the Egyptian. And Hashem has the ultimate discernment and knows who is faithful to him and who is not. An angel might not have that, but Hashem himself does. That's something we say on in the we say speaks of the final blow to Egypt as something that he himself did that why was it done that way so that no Jew would be affected by Makaris would be punished in that way heaven forbid they would all go out free they would all experience redemption that's the al-shik beautiful idea It brings here from Moshe is telling the Jewish people, "You are my protector. I place my trust, my hope in Hashem that Hashem will bring about success in all of my paths. Not like the nations of the world for the nations of the world. So their approach is that God is very high up very very exalted. Maybe he created the world as some divine intelligence perhaps. Everything is so beautiful and so intricate. But God is very high up. He's not intimately involved in our lives. Don't think they think that God dwells in the heavens and heaven forbid he doesn't have any connection to the lower realms. But you, the people of Israel, know something different. You know that God is exalted indeed, but he's not so far. God is high up, but you can go there. You can connect to there and you can draw that down into this world. You can connect into the hole in the rock where Mosher Rabenu is or where he was and you can be there as well. So you can have that protection. says the Malb the now is explaining why is it that no evil thing will come into my presence won't won't get in when you make when I make when we make the God's divine abode to be the place that we want to be God is our protector What happens is we're not in this world anymore. We we time travel. We We travel into space, into God's space. I transport myself into God's world, into Hashem's presence. And I might look like I'm here, but I'm not here. I'm with Hashem and with Hashem no physical things can have an effect on me. And therefore no evil of this world will affect you. Just like an angel, an angel who lives in the highest realms. No evil of this world can affect him. Right? We can also be that way. All we need to do is continue to work on our that's what the Malim says. Finally, there's a which I put a star next to it because it's a very important idea. When an Israelite, right? And remember what is an Israelite? The word is means direct. We're trying direct to connect direct. person feels that he's distant from Hashem. He feels like God is not inside of me. I lose I I feel a lack of connection to Hashem. Heaven forbid. But sometimes feels like God has raised himself out of where I am. I feel like God is not in my midst. He's not in my encampment. Hashem has risen. The God of judgment has risen out and is not with me anymore. Heaven forbid person's experiences that I feel he's far can nearly says that when a person has a nega he has he's he's spoken negatively of others he's he's caused them damage he's he's become gyic he's become ego-driven ego bound so he can get a negative on his house there can be on his house a lepous patch nearly and in that moment there's another it's near Hashem is I see Hashem but from afar it seems like God is distant from me when a person sees a lepous patch on his house it shows that he's done wrong He's being egotistical and he's been distanced from Hashem. It seems like his dear one is his beloved, Hashem, his beloved has has traveled away from him. And this is hinted to in this which says, "Hashem, you are my protector. When you make it look like you're far from me, heaven forbid, you're actually doing something to take care of me. If you make yourself look distant from me, you're in a a high abode where it seems like I can't get there. But when I feel that distance, I recognize that I need to do chuva. I need to change. I need to be better. I need to try to return to you. I need to try to get into your abode. You're far from me. Let me climb back up there where you are. That's the experience. So when you are doing that, when you are far away, when it seems you're far away, that's supposed to be an impetus for me to redouble my efforts in to redouble my efforts in connection to you. Thank you so much for listening. We'll see you again next time.