Shabbos Parashas Lech Lecha - 5775

Shabbos Parashas Lech Lecha - 5775 Rabbi Hal Miller

After these events, the word of Hashem came to Avram in a vision, saying, "Fear not,

Avram, I am a shield for you. Your reward is very great." [Bereishis 15:1]

Why did G-d need to tell Avraham not to be afraid? What did Avraham fear?

We get a partial answer from the next verse: "And Avram said, "My Lord, Hashem/ Elohim, what can You give me seeing that I am going childless, and the steward of my house is the Damascene Eliezer?" But this doesn't seem to be a complete answer since

G-d in our verse tells him "I am a shield for you". Shield from what?

Rashi and others say that Avraham was afraid that he used up any merit score he might have racked up in the past when he killed the armies of the kings while rescuing Lot. It was obvious that a miracle was performed for him, and he thought that this miracle was the total reward for his past acts of righteousness. Thus G-d tells him here, "Your reward is very great." But this still does not explain the 'shield' phrase. Rashi then says that this means "I am a shield for you against punishment, that you will not be punished for all those lives which you have killed." Ramban has a different explanation. In Midrash Rabbah, Rabbi Levi explained Avraham's fear as more physical. The kings whom he defeated had sons and followers who were not present at, nor killed in the battle. Avraham was afraid that they would form new

and powerful armies and come to wreak vengeance. According to Ramban, our verse tells Avraham that G-d will shield him from those armies.

Rav Hirsch notes that not only was "fear not" told to Avraham earlier as well, but would later be told to Yitzchak and again to Yaakov. He gives the reasons listed by Ramban, but adds a couple more. Avraham had left his homeland and was sojourning in lands he did not truly know, which is disconcerting to any human. More importantly, Avraham realized that he would not live forever, that he was getting older, and that he had not yet completed his mission in this world. His fear then was that he might fail to accomplish what G-d

really wanted of him. If he had killed any innocent men in the battle, he feared that G-d would no longer consider him fit to continue in that mission. G-d thus assures him in our verse that things are still on track: "fear not, what I have to tell you is not a change from your own personal past. I remain your shield." Shlomo HaMelech gives us a lesson from our verse: "A wise man fears and turns from evil."[Mishlei 14:16] If we follow this advice, G-d will continue to protect us from our fears, and continue to shield us too.