Chaya Sorah, sicha 3
ויהי הוא טרם כלה לדבר והנה רבקה יוצאת
"And before he had finished speaking, behold, Rivka came out." — Bereishis 24:15
Bereishis Rabbah 60:7:
“Three individuals were answered while the words were still in their mouths: Eliezer, the servant of Abraham; Moses; and Solomon.”
Eliezer: “And it came to pass, before he had finished speaking, that behold, Rebecca came out” (Genesis 24:15).
Moses: “And it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these words, that the earth split open,” etc. (Numbers 16:31).
Solomon: “And when Solomon finished praying to the L-rd, the fire descended from heaven,” etc. (II Chronicles 7:1).
Explanation is required: What distinguished these three individuals in particular, that they merited to have their prayers answered immediately?
And the explanation is as follows:
The reason some prayers are not answered immediately is that there exists, so to speak, a distance or separation between the Holy One, blessed be He, and the person praying.
Accordingly, when a person cleaves to the Holy One, blessed be He, to such an extent that there is no separation whatsoever between them, his prayer is answered immediately.
This is how we may understand the words of the Rambam, who distinguishes the virtue of a person who has repented through two different laws:
(a) Closeness
“Repentance brings those who are distant closer. Yesterday this person was hateful before the Omnipresent ... and today he is beloved and desirable, close and a friend.”
(b) Attachment
“How great is the virtue of repentance! Yesterday this person was separated from the L-rd, the G-d of Israel ... and today he is attached to the Divine Presence ... he cries out and is answered immediately.”
These two laws concern two levels in the service of repentance.
The first law concerns someone who has become close to the Divine Presence, while the second concerns a higher level — being attached to the Divine Presence.
It is therefore specifically in the second law that the Rambam mentions, “He cries out and is answered immediately,” because such complete attachment to the Divine Presence causes a person's prayers to be answered immediately, without any delay.
And since this matter depends on the person praying, it also follows that it depends on the content of the prayer: If the prayer concerns a matter of unity and connection, so to speak, with the Holy One, blessed be He, it is answered immediately.
And this is the reason why specifically these three prayers were answered immediately — because they dealt with three different ways in which G-dliness is revealed in the world through unity:
Shlomo: Unity in Physical Space
The prayer of Solomon concerned the revelation of the Divine Presence in the Holy Temple, which involved the physical location itself becoming united with G-dliness, to such an extent that its natural limitations were nullified — “The place occupied by the Ark was not included in the measurement.”
Moshe: Unity Through Prophecy
The prayer of Moses was about the revelation of the Divine Presence to a prophet who is a human being, as it is written, “By this you shall know that the L-rd has sent me.”
The essence of prophecy is the prophet's unity with the Holy One, blessed be He, which causes the L-rd to speak through the throat of the prophet.
Eliezer: Unity Through Torah
The prayer of Eliezer was connected with the revelation of the Divine Presence within the Torah.
As explained in Chassidus, the marriage of Isaac and Rebecca — “the conversation of the servants of the Patriarchs” — was the foundation for the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people — “the Torah of the children.”
For the essence of the giving of the Torah is that it granted the power, from the Holy One, blessed be He, to unite the “higher realms” with the “lower realms.”
This connection first took place in the marriage of Isaac and Rebecca.
For Isaac was of the category of the “higher realms” — being the son of Abraham, who was circumcised at ninety-nine years of age, and after the Binding of Isaac he had also become a “perfect burnt offering.”
Rebecca, on the other hand, was of the category of the “lower realms” — being the daughter of Besuel and the sister of Lavan, and having been born in Padan Aram.
And this is the reason why Eliezer's prayer was answered “before he had finished speaking.”
This was not the case with the other prayers, which were answered immediately after the completion of the prayer.
“The Torah and the Holy One, blessed be He, are entirely one.”
For the Torah is united with the Holy One, blessed be He, in an essential unity — “The Torah and the Holy One, blessed be He, are entirely one.”
This is unlike the other forms of revelation — prophecy and the Holy Temple — in which a unity is formed between two separate things.
The above explanation agrees with the explanation found in Chassidic teachings, according to which these three individuals were answered immediately because, through their prayers, they reached the Divine light that is above the order of hishtalshelus — the chainlike progression of the spiritual worlds.
As it is written:
For only from the Divine light that transcends the order of hishtalshelus can there come about unity between the world and G-dliness.
Central Chassidic Idea
The text distinguishes three levels of unity with Hashem:
The physical world becomes united with G-dliness through the Beis HaMikdash.
A human being becomes united with G-dliness through prophecy.
The union of Yitzchak and Rivkah represents the joining of the higher and lower realms, paving the way for Matan Torah.
The distinguishing point about Eliezer is that his prayer was answered before he finished speaking, whereas Moshe's and Shlomo's prayers were answered at the conclusion of their words.
This reflects the essential unity of the Torah with Hashem — Oraisa v'Kudsha Brich Hu kula chad (אורייתא וקודשא בריך הוא כולא חד).
When prayer is connected to a level of G-dliness that transcends the normal spiritual order, the usual separation between the request and its fulfillment can disappear.
Based on Likkutei Sichos, Volume 20, Chayei Sarah, Sicha 3
