Parshas דברים is always read in the Shabbos prior to תשעה באב. This Shabbos is also known as שבת חזון, for the הפטרה that’s read, חזון ישעיהו. The word חזון, a vision, appears to be enigmatic if we look at the actual פסוקים in the הפטרה. The נביא admonishes כלל ישראל, by saying
בנים גידלתי ורוממתי והם פשעו בי
The רבש”ע complains that he raised and elevated His children, yet they turned against Him. This admonition continues throughout the הפטרה. What then is the vision here, if it’s only a scathing rebuke of כלל ישראל?
Another point to ponder ties in to the concept of אבילות in general. Mourning and sadness goes against the essence of Yiddishkeit which is meant to be lived בשמחה. How then do we understand the whole concept of the אבילות on the חורבן?
We find in Parshas Shmos, when משה רבינו is a put in the Nile and is discovered by Paroah’s daughter, the פסוק says:
ותפתח ותראהו את הילד והנה נער בוכה, ותחמול עליו ותאמר מילדי העברים זה.
What was it in his cry that made her realize this child is a Jew? The נתיבות שלום explains: when a Jew cries, it’s not meant to be a cry of יאוש, of despair. Rather it’s a cry of hope and yearning for a better future. That is what בת פרעה heard with the cry of משה, and that’s how she knew he was a Jew.
This concept is true for the אבילות of these days. We don’t cry in despair, rather we cry for a better future. We yearn to come back to ירושלים הבנויה and till that happens, we continue to mourn as we await that day, with the strong belief that we are still the chosen children of הקב”ה and we will not be satisfied until we once again merit His שכינה amongst us.
We now can understand why the הפטרה is called a חזון. The נביא is rebuking כלל ישראל. Yet nonetheless, even in the rebuke there’s a hidden vision. You are still called בנים- the children of הקב”ה. As חז”ל say based on these פסוקים
, בין כך ובין כך קרוים לך בנים
Whether we are in a good state or a bad state we are always Your children.
We’ll conclude with a beautiful משל from the Chofetz Chaim. A king had many servants and 1 young son. One evening, the prince along with some servants went to town to party. While there, they became completely intoxicated and wild. They eventually made their way back to the palace, still high. To their horror, they discovered the king himself waiting for them at the door. The king turned to the servants and sent them to their quarters. Then, he turned to the prince and roared his disapproval of his unruly behavior. ” You’re grounded for a full month and cannot leave the palace!” The prince responded, ” I understand why I’m being punished, but why were the servants completely left off the hook?” The king responded ” They are just servants. As long as they do their job here in the palace, I’m happy, and don’t care what they do in their spare time. But you are the prince, my pride and joy. You, I care about, and cannot stand when you misbehave!”
Says the Chofetz Chaim: When the nations of the world act out, it’s not as concerning to הקב”ה. But us, כלל ישראל, His precious children, הקב”ה cares about greatly, and as such we at times suffer the consequences of misbehaving.
That is what the אבילות of תשעה באב is all about. Understanding who we are, and yearning to once again merit The שכינה in our midst. May we be זוכה בקרוב to ביאת גואל צדק.
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