Rising Tide

כָּל הַנָּשִׁים יוֹרְדוֹת וּמְמַלְּאוֹת מִן הָעַיִן, וְזוֹ כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָהּ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ

When Eliezer reached Aram Neharayim, he offered a Teffilah, asking that Hashem allow him to swiftly find the proper wife for Yitzchok and show him signs indicating the young lady’s qualifications. This Teffilah was apparently answered in full, as the Passuk tells us: וַיְהִי־הוּא טֶרֶם כִּלָּה לְדַבֵּר וְהִנֵּה רִבְקָה יֹצֵאת, Rivka emerged before Eliezer finished Davening. The Pessukim continue, telling us of their initial interaction in relative detail.

One of the litmus tests that Eliezer had established for his mission concerned the way a potential mate would respond to his request for water: וְהָיָה הַנַּעֲרָ אֲשֶׁר אֹמַר אֵלֶיהָ הַטִּי־נָא כַדֵּךְ וְאֶשְׁתֶּה וְאָמְרָה שְׁתֵה וְגַם־גְּמַלֶּיךָ אַשְׁקֶה אֹתָהּ הֹכַחְתָּ לְעַבְדְּךָ לְיִצְחָק. In order for this trial to be carried out on Rikva, however, she would first need a full jug of water, and indeed the Passuk tells us that she approached the well and filled her container: וַתֵּרֶד הָעַיְנָה וַתְּמַלֵּא כַדָּהּ וַתָּעַל.

At first glance, the word וַתָּעַל in the Passuk seems to be extra: if Rivka lowered her bucket into the spring to fill it up, it seems obvious that she then raised it up. What does this word teach us?

The Medrash, here, answers this question: כָּל הַנָּשִׁים יוֹרְדוֹת וּמְמַלְּאוֹת מִן הָעַיִן, וְזוֹ כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָהּ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ. Whereas all the other ladies had to lower their vessels to fill their containers, when Rivka approached, the water rose to meet her.

This Nes did not go unnoticed, it seems.

The next Passuk tells us: וַיָּרׇץ הָעֶבֶד לִקְרָאתָהּ וַיֹּאמֶר הַגְמִיאִינִי נָא מְעַט־מַיִם מִכַּדֵּךְ. Eliezer not only approached Rivka, but ran towards her. Rashi explains why: לְפִי שֶׁרָאָה שֶׁעָלוּ הַמַּיִם לִקְרָאתָהּ. When Eliezer saw the water rise to Rivka, he understood that this was someone special and wasted no time in putting the next part of his plan into play.

How did Elizer know this? Kishuf and other forms of supernatural activity were relatively common at that time, making it possible that the water had risen due to forces that are the antithesis of Kedusha. How, then, did Eliezer know that Rivka was someone that he should be approaching, to the extent that he ran towards her, as the Passuk indicates?

Later we see the extent to which Eliezer was taken by the actions of Rivka. After she provided water to Eliezer and his Gemalim, the Passuk says וְהָאִישׁ מִשְׁתָּאֵה לָהּ and Rashi explains: מִשְׁתּוֹמֵם עָלֶיהָ, he was astonished by her. Why? What was it about Rivka that caused this reaction? If we understand that it was the Nes of הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלו, we must again explain why this Nes was so notable to Eliezer, to the extent that it caused him to be astonished. Why was this Nes so important?

As we consider the Medrash, there is another question that must be answered.

We know that Nissim do not happen without a reason—HKBH does not change the Sidrei HaTeva unless there is a purpose—why then did the waters rise to meet Rivka? Why was this Nes necessary, and what do we learn from it?

The Medrash seems to address this question, at least partially, with the continuation of the Memra: אָמַר לָהּ הַקַּב׳׳ה אַתְּ סִימָן לְבָנַיִךְ, מָה אַתְּ כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָךְ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ, אַף בָּנַיִךְ כֵּיוָן שֶׁהַבְּאֵר רוֹאָה אוֹתָן מִיָּד תִּהְיֶה עוֹלָה. Hashem told Rivka that she would serve as a Siman for her offspring: just as the water rose to meet here, the water of the Be’er would rise towards Bnei Yisroel after Yitzias Mitzrayim. The Medrash concludes by bringing a Passuk to prove that the water of the Be’er rose towards Klal Yisroel: אָז יָשִׁיר יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת הַשִּׁירָה הַזֹּאת עֲלִי בְאֵר.

It seems that the Nes that happened when Rivka approached the Ayin was in the realm of מַעֲשֵׂה אָבוֹת סִימָן לְבָנִים: because the water rose to Rivka at that time, it would later rise towards her offspring in the Midbar. How can we understand this? How were the Ayin in Aram Naharayim and the Be’er in the Midbar connected to one another? Why was Rivka’s Nes rewarded, so to speak, all those years later?

In order to answer this question and explain not only the Medrash but also the surrounding Pessukim, we must better understand the Shira said so many years later and mentioned here.

Some Medrashim, including the Sifri cited by Rashi, indicate that this Shira was only said once, at the point in Sefer Bamidbar in which it was said. There is, however, another approach found in Chazal.

The Medrash Tanchuma, in the beginning of Sefer Bamidbar, describes the Be’er and the way it worked: וְהֵיאַךְ הָיְתָה הַבְּאֵר עֲשׂוּיָה. כְּמִין סֶלַע כְּמִין כַּוֶּרֶת, אוֹ כַּדֹּרֶת, וְהָיְתָה מִתְגַּלְגֶּלֶת וּבָאָה עִמָּהֶן בַּמַּסָּעוֹת. The Be’er was round, and it rolled along as Bnei Yisroel traveled, stopping at each new encampment. Then, כֵּיוָן שֶׁהָיוּ הַדְּגָלִים חוֹנִין וְהַמִּשְׁכָּן עוֹמֵד, הָיָה אוֹתוֹ הַסֶּלַע בָּא וְיוֹשֵׁב לוֹ בַּחֲצַר אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד. Once the Degalim were setup, the Be’er would be located outside the Ohel Moed, and the Nesi’im would stand near it and sing עֲלִי בְאֵר עֱנוּ לָהּ, at which point the water would begin to flow.

It is clear from the Tanchuma that this Shira was not only sung once, at the end of the forty years, but constantly, each time the Nesi’im requested that the Be’er give forth water. We can understand the appearance of this Shira in Parshas Chukas, at the end of the years in the Midbar, as a record of what had taken place in the preceding decades, and unrelated to the Nissim of Nachal Arnon.

How can we understand the idea that the words עֲלִי בְאֵר עֱנוּ לָהּ are indeed so closely tied to the Be’er. Why were these specific words said in order to bring forth water?

Perhaps we can answer this question based on another Medrash Tanchuma, found at the beginning of Sefer Berashis.

The Medrash there tells us: בְּנֹהַג שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, חִטִּין מִלְמַטָּה וּמַיִם מִלְמַעְלָן. Generally, food grows from the ground, in the form of produce, and water comes from the sky as rain. In the realm of HKBH, however, the opposite is true: חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה...וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה. The examples that the Medrash brings to illustrate this rule is from the Midbar: the Monn came from the heavens, and the water from the Be’er which was on the ground.

The Tanchuma begs explanation: why did HKBH bring the food and water in the Midbar in the opposite way of the usual Derech? It is understood that Nissim were necessary in order to sustain Bnei Yisroel in the Midbar, but why were these Nissim brought in the inverse way of Teva?

The Aruch LaNer, in Minchas Ani, speaks at length about the purpose of the Nissim of the Midbar, and explains this Medrash based on his overall approach.

He notes that the Medrash uses the words וְהַקָּבָּ''ה אֵינוֹ עוֹשֶׂה כֵן in speaking about the way the food and water were provided in the Midbar, חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה...וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה . This, however, seems inaccurate: is it not HKBH who is bringing the sustenance in the form of חִטִּין מִלְמַטָּה וּמַיִם מִלְמַעְלָן as well?

He therefore explains that there was a specific reason that HKBH wanted to use Hanhaga of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה...וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה in the Midbar.

In the future, explains the Aruch LaNer, there will be individuals who desire to be wholly connected to Ruchnias, steeped in Limud HaTorah and Avodas Hashem, but may wonder where their Parnassah might come from. The Monn and Be’er were sent in this manner to address their concerns.

If the food had come from the ground, and the water from the sky, as is the usual Derech, one may have been led to think that the only way to obtain sustenance is through Teva: even in the Midbar, it was an appearance of Teva that provided their needs. Therefore, HKBH brought the food and water in the opposite way, חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה, to show that those who are Zoche can receive their sustenance without Teva, directly from HKBH. Those whose focus is Torah V’Avodah can achieve a level of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה, if they are disconnected from Gashmius in totality.

This is why the words עֲלִי בְאֵר עֱנוּ לָהּ were central to the Be’er: it was crucial that those who benefited from the Be’er understood its message. The fact that the water rose from the ground, מַיִם מִלְמַטָּה, was encapsulated by the words עֲלִי בְאֵר , and ensured that the lesson of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה was conveyed.

With this in mind, we can explain the Medrash that speaks about Rivka Immenu.

Rivka grew up in the house of Besuel, surrounded by Rishus, but maintained a connection to Ruchnias. She was elevated not only among her immediate family, but from all those in the area. When she approached the Be’er, this was made known: כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָהּ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ. The water rose toward her, in the guise of מַיִם מִלְמַטָּה, and filled her bucket.

When Eliezer saw this, he recognized that this was a special person, someone whose relationship with Teva was similar to that of his master, Avrohom Avinu. Seeing the water rise, Eliezer realized right away that Rivka was an appropriate match for Yitzchok Avinu, and he hastened to approach her: וַיָּרׇץ לִקְרָאתָהּ . It was this awareness that the Torah refers to later on, with the words וְהָאִישׁ מִשְׁתָּאֵה לָהּ : Eliezer was astonished that he found, in Aram Naharayim, someone who lived an existence of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה.

The Medrash then tells us the true effect of this Nes: מָה אַתְּ כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָךְ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ, אַף בָּנַיִךְ כֵּיוָן שֶׁהַבְּאֵר רוֹאָה אוֹתָן מִיָּד תִּהְיֶה עוֹלָה.

Because Rivka achieved the Madreiga of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה even while living among those who stood opposed to Kedusha, her children would later be Zoche not to the Be’er itself, but to its message. Rivka’s offspring, so many generations later, would be taught that they too could achieve levels in Ruchnias that supersede the Olam HaGashmi. If Rivka, living in Bais Besuel, could rise to a level of חִטִּין מִלְמַעְלָה וּמַיִם מִלְמַטָּה, those who followed her and remained steadfast in their commitment to Ruchnias could achieve the same.

The message of the Be’er, eternalized by the words עֲלִי בְאֵר עֱנוּ לָהּ, was passed on not only to the Dor HaMidbar, but to all of us. Just as Rivka rose above her surroundings to the point that כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאוּ אוֹתָהּ הַמַּיִם מִיָּד עָלוּ, we too can escape the confines of Teva and be Zoche to levels of Ruchnias that might otherwise seem beyond our reach.