The seven weeks of comfort in Haftorahs

SHIVA DENECHEMTA – Comfort Us!

This article appears with a lot more information on my website - livingwithmitzvos.com. I have also authored a book entitled Megillas Esther Explained (Mosaica Press) that is due to soon come out. I have also several articles under Collections - Megillas Esther Explained.

SHIVA DENECHEMTA – SEVEN WEEKS OF COMFORT
The Jewish year is composed of time periods, each with its own spiritual focus. For example, Adar is a time of happiness, during Nisan the focus is on redemption etc. The calendar does not merely commemorate historic events – through observance of the festivals, and their mitzvos and customs, the Jewish Nation experience the spiritual focus of each time of year.

With this in mind, let us examine the Shiva DeNechemta, the Seven Weeks of Comfort. This is a relatively unknown period in the Jewish calendar that follows the mourning period of the Bein Hametzorim, the three weeks from the fast of 17th Tammuz until the fast of Tisha B’Av, during which we mourn the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash, descent into galus and oppression suffered at the hands of the other nations.

The Shiva DeNechemta are the seven weeks from the Shabbos after Tisha B’Av until the Shabbos before Rosh Hashanah. They are thus named because the haftorahs read during these weeks express comfort for the churban. The three weeks of Bein Mametzarim are a period of aveilus, mourning, for the tragedies that befell our people. It follows that the subsequent period should somehow resemble the process of nichum aveilim, comforting the mourners.

שולחן ערוך, אורח חיים תכ״ח:ח׳

(ח) מי"ז בתמוז ואילך מפטירין ג' דפרענותא ז' דנחמתא תרתי דתיובתא ... שבע דנחמתא נחמו ותאמר ציון עניה סוערה אנכי רני עקרה קומי אורי שוש אשיש

Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chayim 428:8

(8) From the seventeenth of Tamuz onward, there are three "Haftarot of Rebuke," seven "Haftarot of Consolation," and two "Haftarot of Repentance." ... The Seven of Consolation are "Nahamu" (Isaiah 40:1-26), "Vatomer Tsiyon" (Isaiah 49:14-51:3), "Aniya So'ara" (Isaiah 54:11-55:5), "Anokhi" (Isaiah 51:12-52:12), "Roni Akara" (Isaiah 54:1-10), "Kumi Ori" (Isaiah 60:1-22), and "Sos Asis" (Isaiah 61:10-63:9).

How do we understand the Shiva DeNechemta? Why are so many haftorahs needed to provide comfort? And how do these haftorahs provide comfort?

THE CUSTOM OF HAFTORAH
Historically, the custom of reading the haftorah, a passage from Sifrei Neviim, the book of the Prophets, every Shabbos emerged as a substitute for Kriyas HaTorah, the weekly reading of the Torah portion, during a time when reading from the Torah itself was forbidden. The practice was retained even after the decree was lifted. The haftorah reading can reflect the spiritual focus of a particular time of the year, as is the case with the haftorahs chosen for the three weeks of Bein Hametzarim and the Shiva DeNechemta.

The prophecies recorded in Sifrei Neviim, the book of the Prophets, have two functions: to communicate the word of Hashem to the Jewish People, and to bring the Jewish People to teshuva. The haftorahs of Bein Hametzarim contain the harsh words of Yirmiyah HaNavi who, in vain, warned of the terrible calamities that would befall the Jewish People if they would continue to sin. In the haftorahs of the Shiva DeNechemta, Hashem offers the Jewish People words of comfort.

3 LEVELS OF COMFORT
Nechama, comfort, is brought about through a change of perspective (See Rashi, Bereishis 6:6).

רש"י על בראשית ו׳:ו׳

(א)וינחם ה' כי עשה. ... דָּבָר אַחֵר וַיִּנָּחֶם – נֶהְפְכָה מַחְשַׁבְתּוֹ שֶׁל מָקוֹם מִמִּדַּת רַחֲמִים לְמִדַּת הַדִּין, עָלָה בְמַחְשָׁבָה לְפָנָיו מַה לַּעֲשׂוֹת בָּאָדָם שֶׁעָשָׂה בָּאָרֶץ, וְכֵן כָּל לְשׁוֹן נִחוּם שֶׁבַּמִּקְרָא לְשׁוֹן נִמְלָךְ מַה לַּעֲשׂוֹת...

Rashi on Genesis 6:6

וינחם AND [THE LORD] REPENTED — The thoughts of God turned from Divine mercy to Divine justice: He considered what to do with man whom He had made on the earth. Wherever this term is used in the Scripture it means “considering what to do”...

This was famously demonstrated by Rabbi Akiva who refocused his colleagues’ despair at the sight of the ruins of the Beis HaMikdash to laughter and a vision of hope for the future. They responded: Akiva You have comforted us! (Makkos 24b)

מכות כ״ד ב

שׁוּב פַּעַם אַחַת הָיוּ עוֹלִין לִירוּשָׁלַיִם, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעוּ לְהַר הַצּוֹפִים קָרְעוּ בִּגְדֵיהֶם, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהִגִּיעוּ לְהַר הַבַּיִת רָאוּ שׁוּעָל שֶׁיָּצָא מִבֵּית קׇדְשֵׁי הַקֳּדָשִׁים, הִתְחִילוּ הֵן בּוֹכִין וְרַבִּי עֲקִיבָא מְצַחֵק. אָמְרוּ לוֹ: מִפְּנֵי מָה אַתָּה מְצַחֵק? אָמַר לָהֶם: מִפְּנֵי מָה אַתֶּם בּוֹכִים? אָמְרוּ לוֹ: מָקוֹם שֶׁכָּתוּב בּוֹ ״וְהַזָּר הַקָּרֵב יוּמָת״, וְעַכְשָׁיו שׁוּעָלִים הִלְּכוּ בּוֹ, וְלֹא נִבְכֶּה?! אָמַר לָהֶן: לְכָךְ אֲנִי מְצַחֵק, דִּכְתִיב: ״וְאָעִידָה לִּי עֵדִים נֶאֱמָנִים אֵת אוּרִיָּה הַכֹּהֵן וְאֶת זְכַרְיָה בֶּן יְבֶרֶכְיָהוּ״ – וְכִי מָה עִנְיַן אוּרִיָּה אֵצֶל זְכַרְיָה? אוּרִיָּה בְּמִקְדָּשׁ רִאשׁוֹן, וּזְכַרְיָה בְּמִקְדָּשׁ שֵׁנִי! אֶלָּא: תָּלָה הַכָּתוּב נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל זְכַרְיָה בִּנְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה. בְּאוּרִיָּה כְּתִיב ״לָכֵן בִּגְלַלְכֶם צִיּוֹן שָׂדֶה תֵחָרֵשׁ״, בִּזְכַרְיָה כְּתִיב ״עוֹד יֵשְׁבוּ זְקֵנִים וּזְקֵנוֹת בִּרְחֹבוֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם״. עַד שֶׁלֹּא נִתְקַיְּימָה נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה הָיִיתִי מִתְיָירֵא שֶׁלֹּא תִּתְקַיֵּים נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל זְכַרְיָה, עַכְשָׁיו שֶׁנִּתְקַיְּימָה נְבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל אוּרִיָּה – בְּיָדוּעַ שֶׁנְּבוּאָתוֹ שֶׁל זְכַרְיָה מִתְקַיֶּימֶת. בַּלָּשׁוֹן הַזֶּה אָמְרוּ לוֹ: עֲקִיבָא נִיחַמְתָּנוּ, עֲקִיבָא נִיחַמְתָּנוּ.

Makkot 24b

On another occasion they were ascending to Jerusalem after the destruction of the Temple. When they arrived at Mount Scopus and saw the site of the Temple, they rent their garments in mourning, in keeping with halakhic practice. When they arrived at the Temple Mount, they saw a fox that emerged from the site of the Holy of Holies. They began weeping, and Rabbi Akiva was laughing. They said to him: For what reason are you laughing? Rabbi Akiva said to them: For what reason are you weeping? They said to him: This is the place concerning which it is written: “And the non-priest who approaches shall die” (Numbers 1:51), and now foxes walk in it; and shall we not weep?Rabbi Akiva said to them: That is why I am laughing, as it is written, when God revealed the future to the prophet Isaiah: “And I will take to Me faithful witnesses to attest: Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah” (Isaiah 8:2). Now what is the connection between Uriah and Zechariah? He clarifies the difficulty: Uriah prophesied during the First Temple period, and Zechariah prophesied during the Second Temple period, as he was among those who returned to Zion from Babylonia. Rather, the verse established that fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah is dependent on fulfillment of the prophecy of Uriah.In the prophecy of Uriah it is written: “Therefore, for your sake Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become rubble, and the Temple Mount as the high places of a forest” (Micah 3:12), where foxes are found. There is a rabbinic tradition that this was prophesied by Uriah. In the prophecy of Zechariah it is written: “There shall yet be elderly men and elderly women sitting in the streets of Jerusalem” (Zechariah 8:4). Until the prophecy of Uriah with regard to the destruction of the city was fulfilled I was afraid that the prophecy of Zechariah would not be fulfilled, as the two prophecies are linked. Now that the prophecy of Uriah was fulfilled, it is evident that the prophecy of Zechariah remains valid. The Gemara adds: The Sages said to him, employing this formulation: Akiva, you have comforted us; Akiva, you have comforted us.

Rav Michel Zilber shlita explains that there are 3 ascending levels of nechama:

(1) Consolation for one’s loss – the classic example of this is nichum aveilim. At this level a person accepts a loss and continues despite it.

(2) A higher level of comfort is when the loss is regained and the mourner reverts to his original state of existence. Yet, the perspective of most people would be that they would have preferred not to have suffered the loss to begin with.

(3) The highest level of comfort is where hindsight proves that suffering was worthwhile and valuable as it brought about a higher level of happiness that would have been unattainable any other way. This is what we will experience with the coming of Moshiach.

The mourning of Bein Hametzarim is imposed from outside us with halachos of aveilus. However, the change of direction and perspective of comfort are not brought about through halachos of simcha, but instead are something that we have to realize from within ourselves. We read the word of Hashem in the haftorahs chosen for the Shiva DeNechemta, taking the words to heart in order to change our perspective. Only then can we be consoled.

7 HAFTORAHS
The 3 levels of comfort are beautifully contained with the haftorahs for the Seven Weeks of Consolation. Following is a very brief overview.

Week 1: Dabru al lev Yerushalayim – speak to the heart of Yerushalayim: the lowest level of comfort in which we are urged not to be pained but to adjust to the situation and continue with life.

Week 2: Vatomer Tziyon azavani HaShem – and Tziyon said HaShem has forsaken us: the Jewish People’s reply to the Navi that they remain extremely unhappy and are not consoled by the advice to adjust to their new situation as this implies that they would chas vesholom remain in exile. The Navi then says that they will be redeemed. This is the second level of comfort – that the loss will be restored.

Week 3: Aniya so’ara – afflicted storm-tossed one: the Jewish People respond despondently that they are still unhappy; why must they undergo the galus and then be redeemed? Why the need for this process?

Week 4: Anochi, anochi hu menachemchem – I only I am He Who comforts you: the Jews are told by Hashem that He will redeem them and they will then attain a level of closeness to Him that they never experienced before. The highest level of comfort – that the suffering of exile will have been worthwhile to bring about a new, better, level of existence!

Weeks 5-6: Roni akara and kumi ori – rejoice barren one, and arise – give light: these instruct the Jewish People to rejoice and be very happy

Week 7: Sos asis baHaShem – I will rejoice with HaShem: the Jewish People reply that they accept this comfort and rejoice with Hashem.

PATTERNS IN TIME
The 7 weeks from Pesach to Shavuos, and the 7 weeks from Tisha B’Av to Rosh Hashanah always begin on the same day of the week (OC 428:3) reflecting that there are spiritual similarities between them.

שולחן ערוך, אורח חיים תכ״ח:ג׳

(ג) סימן לקביעת המועדים א"ת ב"ש ג"ר ד"ק ה"ץ ו"ף פירוש ביום א' של פסח יהיה לעולם ת"ב וסימן על מצות ומרורים יאכלוהו ביום ב' בו שבועו' וביום ג' בו ר"ה ביום ד' בו קריאת התורה שהוא שמחת תורה ביום ה' בו צום כיפור ביום ו' בו פורים שעבר:

Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chayim 428:3

Both involve a journey towards a greater closeness to Hashem. At Yetzias Mitzrayim, the Exodus, the Jewish People were on the lowest spiritual level and raised themselves until Shavuos to a level worthy of receiving the Torah. Similarly, on Tisha B’Av, the Jewish People mourns its distance from Hashem in galus, but on Rosh Hashanah we celebrate Yom Tov despite that it is the Yom Hadin, because our closeness to HaShem gives us confidence that He will render us a positive verdict.

The three weeks of sadness that preceded the Shiva DeNechemta, are contrasted with three weeks of spiritual growth from Rosh Hashanah to Shemini Atzeres (See Maharsha, Bechoros 8b).

The climax of sorrow was on Tisha B’Av; the pinnacle of happiness is on Shemini Atzeres when Hashem rejoices with the Jewish People. During Sukkos the 70 oxen representing the 70 nations are brought as korbonos.

רש"י על במדבר כ״ט:י״ח

(א)ומנחתם ונסכיהם לפרים. פָּרֵי הֶחָג שִׁבְעִים הֵם כְּנֶגֶד שִׁבְעִים אֻמּוֹת, וּמִתְמַעֲטִים וְהוֹלְכִים, סִימָן כְּלָיָה הִיא לָהֶם, וּבִימֵי הַמִּקְדָּשׁ הָיוּ מְגִנִּים עֲלֵיהֶם מִן הַיִּסּוּרִין (סוכה נ"ה):

Rashi on Numbers 29:18

(1) ומנחתם ונסכיהם לפרים AND THEIR MEAL OFFERING AND THEIR DRINK OFFERINGS FOR THE BULLOCKS — The bullocks offered on the Feast of Tabernacles are seventy in all, in allusion to the seventy nations of the world, and they gradually decrease in number each day, an omen to them of gradual annihilation, but during the period when the Temple existed and these sacrifices were offered they protected them against this misfortune (cf. Sukkah 55b).

On Shemini Atzeres, no representation is made of the other seventy nations, instead HaShem rejoices alone, so to speak, with the Jewish People, demonstrating His great love for the Jewish People, and their status of elevation as opposed to subjugation (Rashi, Bamidbar 29:36).

רש"י על במדבר כ״ט:ל״ו

(א)פר אחד איל אחד. אֵלּוּ כְנֶגֶד יִשְׂרָאֵל, הִתְעַכְּבוּ לִי מְעַט עוֹד, וּלְשׁוֹן חִבָּה הוּא זֶה, כְּבָנִים הַנִּפְטָרִים מֵאֲבִיהֶם וְהוּא אוֹמֵר לָהֶם קָשָׁה עָלַי פְּרֵדַתְכֶם, עַכְּבוּ עוֹד יוֹם אֶחָד, מָשָׁל לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁעָשָׂה סְעוּדָה כוּ', כִּדְאִיתָא בְמַסֶּכֶת סֻכָּה (שם)

Rashi on Numbers 29:36

(1) פר אחד איל אחד ONE BULLOCK, ONE RAM — these are an allusion to Israel who form one nation: “Stay with me a little longer”. And this conveys the idea of God’s affection for Israel — just like children who think to take leave of their father to whom he says, “Parting from you is very hard to me; stay one day more”.

In the absence of sin, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Succos would have been placed in Tammuz, Av and Elul respectively, so that each of the summer months would contain a Yom Tov (Yalkut Shemoni, Pinchos, 782).

ילקוט שמעוני על התורה תשפ״ב:כ״ג

אֲמַר רַבִּי לֵוִי בְּכָל חֹדֶשׁ וְחֹדֶשׁ [שֶׁבַּקַּיִץ] בִּקֵּשׁ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לִתֵּן לְיִשְׂרָאֵל מוֹעֵד, בְּנִיסָן נָתַן לָהֶם פֶּסַח, בְּאִיָּר נָתַן לָהֶם פֶּסַח קָטָן, בְּסִיוָן נָתַן לָהֶם עֲצֶרֶת, בְּתַמּוּז הָיָה בְּדַעְתּוֹ לִתֵּן לָהֶם מוֹעֵד גָּדוֹל וְעָשׂוּ הָעֵגֶל וּבָטַל תַּמּוּז וְאָב וֶאֱלוּל וּבָא תִשְׁרֵי וּפָרַע לָהֶם רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה וְיוֹם הַכִּפּוּרִים וְהֶחָג. אָמַר לָהֶם הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לַאֲחֵרִים הוּא פוֹרֵעַ וְשֶׁלּוֹ אֵינוֹ נוֹטֵל, תֵּן לוֹ יוֹמוֹ, בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁמִינִי עֲצֶרֶת תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם.

Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 782:23

...

So the arrival at Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of a sweeter set of three weeks is the ultimate comfort for the three weeks of Bein HaMetzarim.

The churban is something that must always be on our mind (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 560). Yet we are a nation that never despairs. Despite suffering persecution and tragedies, a Jew never gives up hope and belief in the future redemption. The ultimate purpose of the Seven Weeks of Comfort is our realisation that the tragedies experienced throughout history are the catalyst for a better future; that the pain will itself be the cause of future joy. May we see the fulfilment of the comforting words of the navi with the rebuilding of the Beis Hamikdash speedily in our days, Amen!

This article appears with a lot more information on my website - livingwithmitzvos.com. I have also authored a book entitled Megillas Esther Explained (Mosaica Press) that is due to soon come out. I have also several articles under Collections - Megillas Esther Explained.

Dov Levene

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