"It was to preserve life that God sent me before you". (Breishis 45:5)
Not Just a Drunkard
My holy ancestor, R' Eliezer Tzvi from Komarno zt"l, shares in his 'Sefer Zakein Beiso', a story that he had heard directly from his father, R' Yitzchak Isaac from Komarno zt"l:
There was once a man who was going through a tremendously difficult time. He was suffering and he needed salvation. He decided to go to the Maggid of Mezritch zt"l and ask for a blessing.
"I cannot help you," explained the Maggid, "but I know of a man in a particular city who can offer you the salvation that you seek."
"But listen carefully," the Maggid continued, "this man is drunk all the time. You can usually find him passed out in the streets intoxicated like a homeless person. Therefore, you need to speak to him before he begins drinking. At first light, find this man before he starts davening, while he is still sober. Wait until he finishes davening, and immediately explain your troubles and ask for a blessing, before he has a chance to start drinking. Anything he says to you, will - without a doubt - come to fruition."
The man did exactly as the Maggid instructed. He received the blessings, and immediately his suffering was alleviated and he merited a tremendous salvation from his troubles.
Afterwards, the man returned to the Maggid, to discover what was so special about that individual, that he was able to have his blessings materialize immediately, while the Maggid could not.
The Maggid proceeded to tell him the backstory about this drunk:
"At one point, this man was extraordinarily wealthy. But, he lived a life pursuing the sinful desires of his heart. In fact, he never passed on an opportunity to sin.
"He once heard that there is a woman in another town whose beauty is unmatched. She is willing to be with any man who would pay her 400 gold pieces. When he heard this, his Yetzer Harah flared up inside him, and he could not contain his desire to be with this woman. So, he collected gold, hitched his wagon, and rode off to be with this woman.
"While travelling, he passed by a Jewish man in shackles being escorted along the road with some guards. 'What have you done?" asked the man. The prisoner explained, 'I had rented a tavern from a landlord, and I fell behind on my rent for three years. I owe the landlord 400 gold pieces, which I cannot afford. As a punishment, I am going to be thrown into a pit.'
"When the man heard this, he overpowered his Yetzer Harah and the desire to sinfully be with that woman, and he took the gold that he had been carrying to pay her, and he gave it to the non-Jewish guards instead. And they set the Jewish man free.
"When the Heavens saw this, there was an awesome commotion. Seeing someone like this – who lived a life of sin - overpower his big desire to be with that woman, for the sake of another Jew's well-being, aroused a tremendous Nachas Ruach for Hashem. As a reward for this act, Hashem wanted to bestow upon this man the power to always have his prayers answered. And the man heard a proclamation from the Heavens, informing him, that for the remainder of his life, any blessings and prayers that he offers someone else will be answered immediately.
"However," the Maggid went on, "when the Heavenly Court saw this, they pondered: such a person, someone without any Torah knowledge, who doesn't have any idea about the way how Hashem leads his world, could be dangerous for the world if he has the power to overturn the decrees of the Heavens for the benefit of the world below!?
"The Heavenly Court ruled, that everything Hashem has bestowed upon this man will surely manifest itself, but this person's spiritual capabilities needed to be concealed. Therefore, they decreed that this man become a drunk, someone the entire world overlooks and avoids. Someone that everyone would be embarrassed to even talk to. And so, it was.
"However," concluded the Great Maggid, "I knew about all of this. And, when you came to me for a salvation that I knew I could not provide, I sent you to this man, the man whose prayers and blessings Hashem answers immediately."
Change Our Will
The story illustrates the incredible esteem that the Heavens have for someone who overcomes their desires, who denies their Yetzer Harah's temptations, in order to fulfill Hashem's Will.
We know that Hashem rewards a person measure for measure. Therefore, when someone does everything in their power – literally breaking their natural tendencies – to fulfill Hashem's Will, then Hashem does everything in His ultimate power to fulfill our will expressed through our tefilos. As it says in Pirkei Avos (2:4), "Make that His will should be your will, so that He should make your will to be as His will. Nullify your will before His will, so that He should nullify the will of others before your will". Meaning, as the commentators explain, that Hashem will nullify His Will to fulfill the request of the yidden.
It is cited in the name of many tzaddikim, that when someone faces a spiritual test or challenge – like turning away from seeing something that they should not – and they overcome that challenge, it is an opportune time to have their tefilos answered in all matters.
The Message of Yosef
This is Yosef's message to his brothers when he said, "for it was to preserve life that God sent me before you". Hashem sent Yosef to Egypt and orchestrated the incredible challenge with Potiphar's wife to create the opportunity for Yosef to overcome those challenges and merit to have his tefilos answered. Therefore, when the famine came and Yosef prayed, the grains miraculously did not rot, as the Pirkei D'Reb Eliezer explains (Chapter 38) that this was a big miracle. Yosef went through those challenges, orchestrated by Hashem, so that he could preserve life through his tefilos.
This was a physical sustenance during its time, and it is a spiritual nourishment for all time, because this story teaches us the incredible reward for overcoming one's temptations, for refraining from indulging in Yetzer Harah's temptations.
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