The Power of Ashrei - Ashrei 20
The Power of Ashrei - Ashrei 20
רצון יראיו יעשה, ואת שועתם ישמע ויושיעם
The will of those who fear Him He will do; and their cry He will hear, and save them.
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What are we thinking and how are we feeling on those occasions when our tefilos go “unanswered”? We know, in fact, that they are answered but that in some cases, for now, the answer is no. This pasuk reinforces and strengthens the bitachon we discussed over the last couple of weeks.
Rav Chaim Kanievsky shlita quotes a Midrash Tanchuma (תרומה, סימן ט'), which quotes the pasuk of מלכים א' ח:לט. The pasuk basically says that Hashem will treat man according to his ways, for Hashem knows what is truly in his heart. The Midrash says that this means that only Hashem knows what will be truly good and, therefore, although one may ask for something that he thinks will be good for him, Hashem may not grant him his desire, because Hashem knows that it will ultimately be to his detriment. This is in contrast to פסוק מ"ג, which speaks of non-Jews and says that Hashem should listen to whatever they ask for so that they will fear Him as we do. We understand that Hashem knows what is best, so Hashem can “say no.” Non-Jews will not understand that, and therefore the pasuk says that Hashem should give them whatever they ask for.
We daven for something because we believe that it will be good for us. What Hashem gives us is what He knows will, in fact, be best for us. The word “רצון” here, according to Rav Chaim Kanievsky, is understood in a similar fashion to the way we understood the word “רצון” in the pasuk of “פותח.” Hashem gives those who fear Him their true desire (if they knew what Hashem knew), which is Hashem’s desire because He knows best. The end of this pasuk means that, while Hashem hears their cries, He will not necessarily “say yes” to their request, but He will rather “save them” by giving them what He knows will be in their best interest.
Based on the study of the sefer Nafshi Cholas Ahavasecha, perhaps we can suggest a three-step approach when making a request to Hashem, which the sefer advises that we should constantly be practicing:
- If You see that granting my request will, in fact, result in an elevation in my service to You, then please grant my request.
- If my request will be detrimental to my serving You, then please help me to accept Your will with love. If I still have pain from my request not being granted, please help me to accept that pain with love. Either way, help me to come closer to You as a result.
- If I am still feeling lacking and in pain because my request was not fulfilled, please let me be inspired to intensify my tefilos for others who are lacking in this same area.