We jews we like to be happy, we like nothing more than to celebrate a simcha or have a big fat meal with our friends, in fact its a mitzvah to be b’simcha (happy). However we all have low points and what better thing to do to help lift us out of these depressing times is to have a good chat with a friend or someone who can help comfort us! Dont we always feel better after that?
This shabbos is shabbos Nachamu (shabbath of comfort) because the haftorah starts Nachamu Nachamu Ami, Yomar Elokeichem – Comfort Comfort my people says your G-d. It comes just after Tisha B’av but why?? well like i said earlier there is nothing a person needs more after a depressing time then for someone to comfort them! and who better to comfort us then Hashem Our G-d!
Tisha B’av is the lowest most depressing day in our calendar so we all need a bit of a lift! Shabbos Nachamu comes immediately after talking about our final redemption to bring our spirits higher and the hope that we can bring Moshiach!
In fact if you look at the bigger picture you actually notice that all of the next seven weeks are shabbosim nachamu all the way up to Rosh Hashannah!! The reason being that in the three weeks we read about all the calamity the jews have gone through and we are sad, in the 7 leading up to Rosh Hashanna we are comforted and told that if we do Teshuva we will experience the Redemption, then we have two Haftoros where we are told about the Teshuva we are supposed to do!
There are 144 verses altogether in the seven haftaros of consolation/comfort, and 143 verses contained in the portions of admonition in the Torah recorded in Bechukotai, Ki Tavo, Nitzavim, and Ha’azinu – and we see that the consolation exceeds the admonition.
Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin, ZT”L Says the following regarding these 7 comforting shabbosim
“On the first Shabbos, the Holy One says through the Prophets, ‘Be comforted, Be comforted, My People.’ But the People refuse to accept the words of the Prophets. So that we hear on the second Shabbos, ‘And Zion answered, “HaShem has left me, and the L-rd has forgotten me!” On the third Shabbos, the Prophets report to HaShem ‘The impoverished, the storm-tossed one has not been comforted’ – ‘She refuses to accept comfort from us; she wants to hear it from You alone!'”
“Therefore, on the fourth Shabbos, the Holy One, Blessed be He, assures the People, ‘It is I, even I Who is comforting you.’ And on the fifth Shabbat, He continues to raise their spirits, ‘Sing out, you who were barren, who had not yet given birth.’ And even on the sixth, ‘Arise, give forth light, for your light has come.’
“Then and only then, on the seventh Shabbat does the People of Israel believe that her time of suffering is over, ‘I will rejoice in HaShem, my soul will delight in my G-d…’ ”
Thus, by allocating three Haftarot to “Mussar,” reproof and warning of dire punishment, and seven to consolation and promises of future redemption, did the Rabbis take note of human nature, and of the principle that “HaShem’s reward is greater than His punishment.”
So we see it is not just good timing that Nachamu and the 6 other haftoras of the next 7 weeks are read here!! It is for us Jews to stand up from our lowly depressed three week mourning period and to raise ourselves to the two weeks of Teshuva and Speed up the redemption and the coming of Moshiach!!
May we, in the Zchus of our teshuva see the redemption, the coming of Moshiach and the rebuilding of Yerushalayim Bimhera V’yomeinu!
