Hi,
"If you see that the merit of our patriarchs fails, and the merit of our matriarchs has failed, then go involve yourself in
acts of generosity. As Yeshayah 54:10 says, 'Because the mountains will depart,
and the hills will fall' – the mountains are the patriarchs, and the hills are
the matriarchs – 'but My generosity will never depart from you.'"
אם ראיתה זכות אבות שמטה וזכות אמהות
שנתמטטה לך והטפל בחסדים הה"ד (שם /ישעיהו/ נד) כי ההרים ימושו והגבעות
תמוטינה, הרים אלו אבות והגבעות אלו אמהות ואח"כ וחסדי מאתך לא ימוש
(Midrash, Vayikra Rabbah 36:6)
Have a great day,
Mordechai
I am bothered by something else in the medrash. Until this, I didn't get the impression that the imahos (matriarchs) were lesser than the avos (patriarchs). For example, we are told that the only reason why Yitzchaq's prayers were answered before Rivqa's is because his prayers also carried Avraham's merit, whereas she lacked a righteous ancestor. Perhaps the avos had showier jobs that got them talked about more, but not that they were holier or more righteous. But isn't such a ranking implied by this tanna's metaphor, if he speaks of the avos as mountains and the imahos as hills?
ReplyDeleteI don't get that impression here. The harim/gvaos metaphor for patriarchs/matriarchs appears in many midrashim, and I am not familiar with any source that sees a heirarchy between them.
ReplyDelete