At the end of today’s daf (Chullin 88b) and continuing into tomorrow’s (89a), the Gemara teaches:
אָמַר רָבָא:
בִּשְׂכַר שֶׁאָמַר אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ
״אִם מִחוּט וְעַד שְׂרוֹךְ נַעַל״,
זָכוּ בָּנָיו לִשְׁתֵּי מִצְוֹת:
לְחוּט שֶׁל תְּכֵלֶת, וּרְצוּעָה שֶׁל תְּפִילִּין.
Rava said:
As reward for what our Patriarch Abraham said —
“That I will not take a thread nor a shoe-strap…” (Genesis 14:23) —
his descendants merited two mitzvot:
the thread of techelet and the strap of tefillin.
The Gemara continues:
בִּשְׁלָמָא רְצוּעָה שֶׁל תְּפִילִּין… אֶלָּא חוּט שֶׁל תְּכֵלֶת מַאי הִיא?
Granted, the strap of tefillin makes sense… But what is the special quality of the techelet thread?
דְּתַנְיָא, רַבִּי מֵאִיר אוֹמֵר:
מָה נִשְׁתַּנָּה תְּכֵלֶת מִכׇּל הַצִּבְעוֹנִין?
מִפְּנֵי שֶׁתְּכֵלֶת דּוֹמֶה לַיָּם,
וְיָם דּוֹמֶה לָרָקִיעַ,
וְרָקִיעַ דּוֹמֶה לְאֶבֶן סַפִּיר,
וְאֶבֶן סַפִּיר דּוֹמֶה לְכִסֵּא הַכָּבוֹד…
As it was taught in a baraita, Rabbi Meir says:
Why is techelet different from all other colors?
Because techelet resembles the sea,
the sea resembles the sky,
the sky resembles sapphire,
and sapphire resembles the Throne of Glory…
(Source: Chullin 89a)
On the surface, this seems strange. What is the connection between Abraham refusing the spoils of war after rescuing Lot and the mitzvot of techelet and tefillin?
I understand this Gemara as an expression of the core Jewish idea of imitatio Dei — “and you shall walk in His ways” (והלכת בדרכיו).
Abraham recognized the Creator, the First Cause of existence. As the Rambam describes in hus MT Yesodei HaTorah, once a person truly apprehends God, he naturally seeks to know Him by imitating His ways. That is why Abraham is remembered above all for gemilut chasadim — acts of kindness — a quality he learned by imitating God.
In the war of the kings, the balance of society was shattered. Injustice was done: hostages were taken, freedom was stolen, and property was seized. Abraham corrected that imbalance. He restored people and property to their rightful owners — and then refused to take even a single thread or sandal-strap as reward. He wanted the restoration to be pure. He would not introduce any new imbalance of self-interest. In doing so, he participated in rebalancing the world, just as God maintains balance and order throughout creation.
The Gemara is teaching a powerful lesson: this very religious ideal that Abraham pioneered — imitatio Dei — is embodied in the mitzvot we wear.
Tefillin reminds us (and those who see us) that we are called to imitate God’s ways in the world.
Techelet trains the eye and the mind to look deeper into creation until we reach the “Throne of Glory.”
According to the Rambam, the “Throne” is not a physical seat. In Guide for the Perplexed (Part I, Chapter 9) he writes:
“The original meaning of the word kisse (‘throne’) requires no comment… The term is used… to denote the rank, greatness, and authority of a person… When applied to God it signifies His greatness and majesty… not that the Omnipotent, Supreme God is supported by any material object.”
For the Rambam, the Throne represents God’s sovereign control and the ordered plan He implanted in creation. When we look at the techelet on our tzitzit, we are invited to contemplate that very plan — and to strive, in our own small way, to imitate it through lives of justice, balance, and integrity.
Abraham restored justice without taking anything for himself.
We wear the symbols of that act every day.
No comments:
Post a Comment