Why
Are
Four
Questions
Asked
Specifically
on
Passover
Night?
Article
No.
22,
1989
As
we
see,
when
does
one
ask
questions?
When
he
is
lacking.
He
is
asking,
“Why
do
I
need
to
suffer
from
not
having
what
I
think
I
need?”
He
comes
to
the
Creator
with
complaints
and
demands
and
asks,
“Why
do
I
need
to
suffer?”
But
when
a
person
has
abundance,
what
questions
are
there
to
ask
when
he
feels
that
he
is
free,
that
he
is
not
enslaved
by
anything,
or
feels
that
what
he
does
not
have
pains
him,
giving
him
room
to
ask,
“Why”?
Therefore,
we
should
understand
why
we
ask
questions
specifically
on
Passover
night,
which
is
the
festival
of
freedom.
Also,
they
are
called
“four
questions,”
meaning
four
times
“Why,”
precisely
when
he
is
not
lacking
anything.
According
to
what
the
ARI
says,
Passover
night
is
more
complete
than
the
eve
of
Shabbat
[Sabbath].
He
says
that
on
the
eve
of
Shabbat
there
is
an
ascent
of
Malchut
to
Mochin
de
Neshama,
but
on
Passover
night,
there
is
an
ascent
of
Malchut
to
Mochin
de
Haya,
such
as
on
the
day
of
Shabbat
(see
Shaar
HaKavanot).
Thus,
we
should
understand
why
we
ask
questions
specifically
at
a
time
of
wholeness.
Certainly,
there
are
many
answers
to
this,
and
we
will
interpret
this
in
the
work.
It
is
known
that
the
work
we
were
given
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
[commandments]
is
so
that
through
them
we
will
correct
ourselves
to
be
worthy
of
receiving
delight
and
pleasure,
since
for
this
man
was
created,
as
it
is
known
that
the
purpose
of
creation
is
to
do
good
to
His
creations.
However,
to
avoid
the
shame
upon
reception
of
the
pleasures,
since
every
branch
wishes
to
resemble
its
root,
and
since
the
root
bestows
upon
the
creatures,
there
is
disparity
of
form
between
the
giver
and
the
receiver,
which
causes
us
shame.
Therefore,
to
correct
it,
a
Tzimtzum
[restriction]
and
concealment
were
placed
on
the
upper
Providence.
Thus,
through
the
Tzimtzum
and
concealment,
a
place
was
made
in
which
we
are
so
far
from
the
Creator
that
it
causes
us
to
have
very
little
understanding
of
His
guidance
over
His
creations.
It
is
written
about
it
in
the
“Introduction
to
The
Study
of
the
Ten
Sefirot”
(Items
42-43),
where
he
says
that
if
Providence
were
revealed,
and
for
instance,
one
who
ate
something
forbidden
instantly
choked,
and
one
who
performed
a
Mitzva
[commandment/good
deed]
immediately
discovered
a
wonderful
delight
in
it,
similar
to
the
greatest
pleasures
in
our
corporeal
world,
what
fool
would
even
contemplate
tasting
something
forbidden
when
he
knew
he
would
immediately
lose
his
life
for
it,
or
wait
to
receive
a
great
corporeal
pleasure
when
it
came
into
his
hand?
Thus,
the
Tzimtzum
and
concealment,
which
were
made
to
correct
the
shame,
cause
us
all
the
labor
and
remoteness
from
the
Creator.
It
follows
that
the
Tzimtzum
and
concealment
were
made
to
benefit
the
lower
one.
Thus,
there
is
no
point
in
asking
about
Providence,
“Why
is
the
Creator
treating
us
as
it
seems
to
us,
for
we
do
not
see
the
good
and
we
suffer
in
exile,
poverty,
and
so
on?”
In
other
words,
everyone
complains
about
why
the
Creator
behaves
with
undisclosed
guidance
toward
us,
that
it
is
only
good.
For
this
reason,
it
is
forbidden
to
slander
His
guidance—the
way
He
behaves
with
the
creatures.
Instead,
we
must
believe
with
faith
above
reason
that
it
should
be
precisely
as
we
see
it.
And
concerning
what
we
feel,
we
should
walk
in
the
ways
of
Torah,
as
the
sages
have
instructed
us
how
to
behave
with
all
these
feelings
that
we
feel,
and
to
say
about
them
with
faith
above
reason,
“They
have
eyes
and
see
not,”
as
is
written
in
the
article
from
1943.
It
is
known
that
there
is
a
prohibition
on
slander.
However,
it
is
commonly
thought
that
slander,
which
is
so
bad,
is
between
man
and
man.
But
in
truth,
slander
is
primarily
between
man
and
the
Creator,
as
it
is
written
(Shemot
Rabbah,
Chapter
3,
12),
“Moses
caught
the
act
of
the
serpent,
who
slandered
his
Creator,
as
it
is
said,
‘For
God
knows
that
in
the
day
you
eat
from
it,
your
eyes
will
be
opened
and
you
will
be
as
God,
knowing
good
and
evil.’”
With
the
above-said,
we
can
see
why
slander
is
worse
than
other
things.
It
is
because
slander
is
primarily
from
the
serpent,
who
slandered
the
Creator
and
told
him,
“The
Creator
commanded
you
not
to
eat
from
the
tree
of
knowledge,
but
to
keep
it
in
concealment
and
in
hiding.”
The
serpent
told
him
about
that,
“You
shouldn’t
obey
what
He
told
you,
that
the
tree
of
knowledge
should
remain
hidden
from
the
lower
ones.”
Instead,
his
argument
was
that
everything
should
be
open.
That
was
the
serpent’s
slander.
It
follows
that
he
spoke
about
Providence,
that
the
Creator’s
conduct
with
the
creatures
of
undisclosed
guidance
was
wrong.
But
in
truth,
the
concealment
is
only
so
that
the
creatures
will
be
able
to
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
without
shame.
This
can
only
be
when
the
creatures
receive
everything
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator,
meaning
that
all
the
reception
will
be
only
in
order
to
bestow.
It
follows
that
the
serpent’s
slander
is
not
a
part.
Rather,
he
spoke
about
the
entire
correction
that
was
executed
on
Malchut
so
that
the
lower
ones,
who
extend
from
her,
would
be
able
to
achieve
Dvekut
[adhesion],
called
“equivalence
of
form,”
by
which
there
would
be
the
correction
that
enables
them
to
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
without
any
unpleasantness,
called
“shame.”
Because
of
this
correction,
we
were
given
the
Torah
and
Mitzvot
by
which
to
be
able
to
emerge
from
self-love,
which
is
separation
from
the
Creator,
and
achieve
equivalence
of
form,
as
our
sages
said,
“I
have
created
the
evil
inclination;
I
have
created
the
spice
of
Torah.”
According
to
the
serpent’s
slander,
there
will
be
open
Providence,
meaning
everything
will
be
disclosed,
even
though
the
Creator
explicitly
told
Adam,
“But
of
the
tree
of
knowledge
you
shall
not
eat.”
Instead,
this
discernment
must
be
covered
and
only
at
the
end
of
correction
will
it
be
possible
to
illuminate
this
discernment.
About
that,
too,
the
serpent
told
him
not
to
obey
the
Creator.
In
other
words,
the
Creator
did
not
do
this
in
Adam’s
favor,
that
the
Creator’s
guidance
over
the
creatures—the
Good
who
does
good—will
be
undisclosed,
but
for
other
reasons.
It
turns
out
that
the
serpent’s
slander
was
a
general
thing,
meaning
he
said
that
all
the
corrections
we
should
do
by
the
power
of
Torah
and
Mitzvot
are
not
for
the
man’s
purpose.
This
is
the
reason
why
slander
is
the
most
severe
of
all
prohibitions,
since
it
encompasses
the
whole
of
the
Torah.
In
other
words,
with
this
slander,
all
the
corrections
that
were
made
should
not
be
made.
Thus,
since
it
is
so
grave
between
man
and
the
Creator,
the
prohibition
between
man
and
man
is
a
grave
matter,
too,
as
we
said
about
“love
your
friend
as
yourself,”
which
Rabbi
Akiva
said
was
the
great
rule
of
the
Torah.
It
follows
that
one
who
slanders
acts
the
opposite
of
the
rule,
“Love
your
friend
as
yourself.”
Hence,
slander
between
man
and
man
is
also
a
rule.
This
is
why
it
is
such
a
grave
prohibition.
With
the
above,
we
can
interpret
what
our
sages
said
(Sanhedrin
38),
“Rav
Yehuda
said,
‘Rav
said,
‘Adam
HaRishon
was
heretical.’
And
RASHI
explains,
‘‘Was
heretical’
means
that
he
leaned
toward
idolatry.’’”
This
is
very
difficult
to
understand.
Adam
HaRishon
spoke
to
the
Creator.
How
can
one
who
speaks
to
the
Creator
be
heretical—that
his
heart
will
lean
toward
idolatry?
After
all,
the
Creator
spoke
to
him,
so
how
can
he
be
mistaken
to
the
point
that
his
heart
leaned
toward
idol
worship?
As
we
said
above,
the
Creator
told
him
that
the
tree
of
knowledge
should
be
in
concealment
and
must
not
be
disclosed
before
the
end
of
correction.
When
the
serpent
came
to
him
and
told
him
not
to
obey
the
Creator,
that
this
great
pleasure
was
found
in
the
tree
of
knowledge,
which
the
Creator
hid
from
him,
he
took
to
heart
the
serpent’s
slander.
This
is
called
that
he
“was
heretical.”
RASHI
interpreted
that
his
heart
leaned
toward
idolatry,
meaning
that
his
heart
leaned
toward
what
the
serpent
told
him—that
it
would
be
better
if
there
were
open
Providence
in
the
world,
as
the
serpent
advised
him.
This
is
called
“heretic,”
one
who
does
not
like
His
governance.
This
means
that
he
thought,
according
to
the
serpent’s
advice,
that
if
the
tree
of
knowledge
were
revealed
and
there
were
open
Providence,
many
would
engage
in
the
holy
work,
for
the
above
reason
that
everyone
would
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot
because
it
would
all
be
clothed
in
the
intellect,
within
reason,
and
not
that
everything
must
be
above
reason.
In
other
words,
the
tree
of
knowledge
means
that
everything
is
revealed
within
reason,
and
on
that
was
the
commandment
to
refrain
from
eating.
That
is,
our
work
toward
the
Creator
should
be
above
reason
and
not
within
reason,
although
it
is
reasonable
to
think
that
if
everything
were
clothed
within
reason,
the
servants
of
the
Creator
would
proliferate.
This
is
the
meaning
of
the
serpent’s
slander,
who
spoke
badly
about
Providence.
Since
the
Creator
made
the
work
of
the
Creator
above
reason,
it
does
not
mean
that
the
Creator
could
make
everything
within
reason.
Instead,
we
must
believe,
although
we
do
not
understand,
that
this
guidance
is
the
best.
And
so
did
Baal
HaSulam
say—that
the
Creator
chose
the
way
of
faith
above
reason
because
the
Creator
knows
it
is
the
most
successful
way
for
the
lower
ones
to
reach
the
goal
called
“Dvekut
with
the
Creator,”
which
is
equivalence
of
form,
called
“receiving
in
order
to
bestow.”
Although
the
sin
of
the
tree
of
knowledge
relates
to
high
degrees—the
light
of
the
end
of
correction—as
explained
in
the
“Introduction
to
the
Book,
Panim
Meirot
uMasbirot,”
with
regard
to
our
work—we
should
interpret
that
one
who
slanders
Providence,
saying
that
he
does
not
want
to
believe
that
His
guidance
over
the
creatures
is
benevolent,
and
that
it
is
so
to
believe
above
reason.
However,
a
person
says,
“If
there
were
open
Providence,
if
I
could
see
with
my
mind
that
the
Creator
bestows
benevolently
upon
all
creations,
and
if
it
were
within
reason,
only
in
this
way
would
I
be
able
to
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot.”
This
comes
because
of
the
sin
of
the
tree
of
knowledge—that
a
man
wants
to
go
specifically
within
reason
and
not
believe
above
reason.
Hence,
when
he
does
not
believe
that
He
is
good
and
does
good,
he
is
slandering
the
Creator.
This
is
rooted
in
the
time
when
the
serpent
slandered
the
Creator
to
Adam
HaRishon.
A
person
wanting
to
go
within
reason
is
called
“the
sin
of
the
tree
of
knowledge.”
This
sin
appears
in
two
ways,
in
two
questions
that
extend
from
it:
1)
Pharaoh’s
question,
who
asked,
“Who
is
the
Lord
that
I
should
obey
His
voice?”
meaning
it
is
hard
for
him
to
believe
anything
that
contradicts
reason.
And
another
thing
extends
from
it,
a
second
question,
“Why
should
one
work
to
benefit
the
Creator
and
not
himself?”
In
other
words,
he
is
asking,
“What
will
I
gain
by
working
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator
and
not
for
my
own
sake?”
With
the
above-said,
we
can
understand
what
we
see,
that
even
after
one
has
overcome
and
said
that
he
is
taking
upon
himself
to
walk
on
the
path
of
truth,
and
begins
to
believe
in
faith
in
the
sages,
reason
dictates
that
each
day
he
should
advance
and
move
forward.
Yet,
he
sees
that
it
is
actually
the
complete
opposite—each
day
he
is
regressing.
Thus,
reason
makes
him
say,
“This
work
of
going
in
bestowal
is
not
for
me.
Rather,
it
is
work
for
a
chosen
few.”
He
understands
that
he
would
be
better
off
escaping
the
campaign.
And
what
is
he
told?
That
he
should
once
again
go
with
faith
above
reason
and
disregard
what
reason
compels
him
to
do.
As
it
is
written
in
the
essay
“Faith
in
His
Rav”
(1943),
one
cannot
see
his
true
state.
Instead,
he
should
go
above
reason,
and
only
in
this
way
can
we
reach
the
goal
and
be
rewarded
with
Dvekut
[adhesion]
with
the
Creator.
However,
we
should
understand
what
it
gives
us
to
feel
within
reason
that
we
are
regressing
instead
of
progressing.
In
other
words,
for
what
purpose
does
one
need
to
feel
that
he
is
in
decline?
What
is
the
benefit
in
that?
We
see
that
in
a
state
of
ascent,
when
one
has
a
desire
for
spirituality
and
regards
mundane
pleasures—which
the
whole
world
chases
so
as
to
obtain
these
pleasures—as
though
they
were
created
needlessly,
meaning
that
it
would
be
better
if
the
Creator
created
all
creations
enjoying
spiritual
things.
Thus,
regarding
thoughts
of
declines,
what
does
one
gain
by
the
fact
that
after
each
ascent
he
comes
to
a
descent?
As
a
result,
a
person
always
asks,
“How
many
are
the
ascents
and
descents
and
why
are
they
needed
anyway?
It
would
be
better
if
I
could
stay
in
the
state
of
ascent.”
But
the
answer
is
that
it
is
impossible
to
appreciate
anything
without
knowing
its
importance.
In
other
words,
there
is
a
rule
that
the
joy
that
a
person
takes
in
something
depends
on
the
importance
of
the
matter.
Sometimes
a
person
is
given
something
important,
and
if
he
could
appreciate
it,
he
could
receive
great
pleasure
from
it.
But
since
he
does
not
know
the
value
of
the
thing,
that
person
cannot
enjoy
it,
except
to
the
extent
that
he
understands
its
importance.
For
example,
a
person
buys
an
object,
a
book,
which
is
not
so
beautiful
on
the
outside,
and
later
that
book
is
reprinted
and
costs
more,
but
since
he
did
not
have
much
money,
he
bought
this
book.
The
seller,
too,
was
not
aware
of
the
importance
of
the
book
and
sold
it
to
him
for
a
low
price.
But
sometime
later,
a
man
comes
to
his
house,
sees
the
book,
and
says,
“Since
this
book
was
printed
300
years
ago,
this
book
is
worth
a
fortune,
as
there
are
only
three
such
books
in
the
world.”
Now
that
he
hears
about
the
great
value
of
the
book,
he
begins
to
take
pleasure
in
the
book.
The
lesson
is
that
we
do
not
know
how
to
appreciate
the
ascent.
That
is,
we
do
not
understand
the
value
of
a
single
moment
of
having
the
power
to
believe
in
the
Creator,
and
to
have
some
sensation
of
the
greatness
of
the
Creator.
In
a
state
of
ascent,
we
desire
to
annul
before
Him
without
any
rhyme
and
reason,
like
a
candle
before
a
torch.
Naturally,
we
cannot
enjoy
the
fact
that
the
Creator
has
brought
us
closer
and
has
given
us
some
nearness,
from
which
we
should
derive
the
joy
and
elation
that
it
should
bring
us.
But
since
we
haven’t
the
importance
to
appreciate
it,
we
can
only
enjoy
according
to
the
importance,
as
explained
in
the
allegory.
This
is
why
we
were
given
descents:
to
be
able
to
learn
the
importance
of
the
ascents,
as
it
is
written,
“as
the
advantage
of
the
light
from
the
darkness.”
Specifically
through
descents,
one
can
come
to
know
and
appreciate
ascents,
and
then
he
can
enjoy
the
ascents
and
come
to
feel
that
“They
are
our
lives
and
the
length
of
our
days.”
But
when
one
does
not
know
the
need
for
faith
because
he
thinks
that
engaging
in
Torah
and
observing
Mitzvot
is
enough
for
him
to
be
considered
a
servant
of
the
Creator,
he
is
not
given
descents
from
above
so
as
to
appreciate
the
ascents.
Their
work
is
on
the
outside.
They
have
no
intention
of
entering
the
inside.
That
is,
they
have
no
intention
to
completely
annul
before
the
Kedusha
[holiness/sanctity]—and
holy
means
“retired
and
separated
from
himself,”
as
it
is
written,
“You
will
be
holy
for
I
am
holy,”—at
which
time
there
is
only
the
authority
of
the
Creator
because
the
lower
one
wishes
to
annul
before
the
root,
and
all
he
sees
is
that
it
is
worthwhile
to
live
only
to
benefit
the
Creator.
For
a
person
to
be
in
a
state
where
he
wants
to
live
only
in
order
to
give
contentment
to
the
Creator,
he
must
provide
himself
with
great
faith
in
the
greatness
of
the
Creator,
to
make
it
worthwhile
to
annul
himself
for
the
sake
of
the
Creator.
The
faith
he
has
acquired
during
his
upbringing
is
not
enough
for
him.
With
the
faith
that
he
has
acquired
during
the
upbringing,
he
can
already
work
and
observe
the
Torah
and
Mitzvot
in
all
its
details
and
precisions.
This
is
because
he
does
not
have
to
annul
himself
before
the
Creator.
Instead,
he
asks
of
the
Creator
that
in
return
for
his
observing
the
Torah
and
Mitzvot
that
the
Creator
commanded
us
through
Moses,
the
Creator
will
grant
all
his
wishes.
He
believes
in
reward
and
punishment,
and
certainly,
as
our
sages
said
(Avot,
Chapter
2,
21),
“If
you
studied
much
Torah,
trust
your
landlord
to
pay
the
reward
for
your
work.”
Hence,
since
the
basis
obligating
him
to
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot
depends
on
the
reward,
not
on
the
giver
of
the
reward,
he
does
not
have
to
engage
in
the
greatness
of
the
faith
in
the
Creator,
but
in
the
greatness
or
smallness
of
the
reward.
Hence,
there
is
no
question
of
ascents
and
descents,
believing
in
the
greatness
and
importance
of
the
Creator.
Rather,
the
only
thing
that
is
pertinent
there
is
that
he
engages
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
or
that
he
grows
weaker
in
observance
because
he
does
not
always
believe
in
the
reward.
This
causes
those
who
engage
in
Torah
and
Mitzvot
in
order
to
receive
reward—who
are
sometimes
among
people
who
do
not
believe
in
reward
and
punishment—to
be
able
to
influence
a
person
with
their
thoughts.
This
might
cause
him
even
to
stray
completely
from
Judaism.
Hence,
they
must
not
come
in
contact
with
people
who
are
free
in
their
views,
since
they
bring
them
foreign
thoughts
about
faith
in
reward
and
punishment.
But
on
the
whole,
those
who
engage
Lo
Lishma
[not
for
Her
sake]
do
not
experience
ups
and
downs,
meaning
there
is
no
need
for
the
presence
of
descents.
But
those
who
wish
to
work
because
of
the
importance
of
the
Creator,
who
always
need
to
increase
the
faith
in
the
importance
and
the
greatness
of
the
Creator,
that
only
the
importance
and
the
greatness
of
the
Creator
obligates
them
to
observe
Torah
and
Mitzvot
in
order
to
achieve
Dvekut
with
the
Creator,
those
people
must
always
assume
and
value
the
greatness
of
the
Creator.
They
must
always
assess
that
if
they
have
some
grip
on
spirituality,
it
is
because
the
Creator
is
bringing
them
closer,
while
they
themselves
are
completely
powerless
unless
they
see
that
they
will
derive
from
it
some
benefit
for
themselves.
It
follows
that
the
main
work
is
to
annul
himself.
Yet,
this
is
against
nature;
only
by
His
salvation
can
they
achieve
it.
Thus,
during
the
ascent,
a
person
thinks
that
it
is
natural
and
that
he
does
not
need
the
Creator’s
help
at
all.
Hence,
a
correction
was
made,
called
“descents,”
where
one
is
always
shown
the
measure
of
his
strength—what
he
can
do
by
himself
and
how
he
sees
it.
But
when
he
is
tossed
off
from
his
state,
where
he
thought
he
was
already
human
and
not
like
the
beasts
that
work
for
themselves,
suddenly
he
cannot
even
feel
that
they
wish
to
throw
him
down
into
this
baseness,
in
which
he
discovers
himself
afterwards.
And
yet,
during
the
descent,
he
does
not
see
that
he
is
beginning
to
decline.
Rather,
when
he
descends,
he
remains
unconscious.
After
being
down
for
some
time,
he
also
gets
help
from
above
and
he
is
told,
“Know
that
now
you
are
in
decline.”
Before
he
is
told
that
he
is
unconscious,
he
does
not
know
a
thing.
However,
one
should
believe
that
this,
too,
is
so,
since
knowing
does
not
come
by
itself.
Instead,
one
should
know
that
these
descents
were
given
to
him
to
learn
how
it
is
possible
to
appreciate
the
state
of
ascent.
But
during
the
descent,
one
cannot
learn
anything
from
it.
However,
during
the
ascent
he
can
make
a
true
judgment
and
say,
“Now
I
am
in
a
state
of
faith,
and
this
came
to
me
from
the
Creator.
Otherwise,
I
would
immediately
fall
into
a
state
of
self-love.”
If
he
does
not
make
this
calculation
and
thank
the
Creator
for
bringing
him
closer,
he
is
immediately
thrown.
It
turns
out
that
it
is
impossible
to
obtain
real
pleasure
from
nearing
the
Creator
unless
he
can
appreciate
it,
as
said
above,
“As
the
advantage
of
the
light
from
the
darkness.”
It
follows
that
for
the
creatures
to
receive
the
delight
and
pleasure
and
feel
it,
those
descents
were
all
necessary.
They
are
called
“exile,”
and
this
is
called
“Shechina
[Divinity]
in
exile”
or
“Shechina
in
the
dust.”
Only
by
this
will
one
have
the
Kelim
[vessels]
to
feel
the
delight
and
pleasure.
With
the
above-said,
we
can
understand
why
specifically
at
the
time
of
freedom,
which
is
Passover
night,
the
complete
wholeness,
as
the
ARI
says,
that
Malchut
has
the
same
Gadlut,
since
Malchut
has
Mochin
de
Haya,
and
so
it
is
on
Passover
night.
The
answer
is
that
precisely
during
an
ascent,
when
one
thinks
of
descents
they
had
the
power
to
elicit
the
importance
of
ascents.
Otherwise,
it
is
akin
to
one
who
is
given
something
that
is
worth
a
fortune
and
he
uses
and
enjoys
it
as
though
its
worth
was
a
few
pennies.
Thus,
specifically
at
the
time
of
freedom,
it
is
possible
to
ask
the
questions.
That
is,
it
is
not
about
the
questions,
but
we
need
the
questions
in
order
to
understand
the
answers,
as
Baal
HaSulam
said
about
what
is
written,
“Speak
now
in
the
ears
of
the
people,
and
let
them
borrow
every
man
of
his
neighbor.”
RASHI
interprets
that
he
warned
them
that
that
righteous
will
say,
“He
kept,
‘And
they
shall
serve
them
and
they
shall
afflict
them,’
and
He
did
not
keep,
‘Afterward
they
will
come
out
with
great
possessions.’”
There
is
a
question:
“If
the
Creator
wished
to
give
great
possessions
to
the
people
of
Israel,
could
the
Creator
not
give
them?
Did
he
have
to
tell
the
people
of
Israel
to
be
fraudulent
and
borrow
vessels
of
silver
and
vessels
of
gold
from
the
Egyptians?”
The
answer
is
that
when
the
Creator
told
Abraham,
“To
give
this
land
unto
you
to
inherit
it,”
Abraham
asked,
“By
what
will
I
know
that
I
shall
inherit
it?”
“And
he
said
unto
Abram,
‘Know
for
certain
that
your
seed
will
be
a
stranger
in
a
land
that
is
not
theirs
...
and
afterwards
they
will
come
out
with
great
possessions.’”
He
asked,
“What
do
we
see
in
the
Creator’s
reply
to
Abram's
question,
‘By
what
will
I
know…,’
that
by
being
in
a
land
that
is
not
theirs,
meaning
in
exile,
Abram
could
be
certain
that
they
would
inherit
the
land?”
He
said
that
since
there
is
no
light
without
a
Kli
[vessel]—meaning
no
filling
without
a
lack,
and
Abram
said
to
the
Creator
that
he
did
not
see
that
they
would
need
such
great
lights,
called
“the
land
of
Israel”—the
Creator
told
him
that
by
being
in
exile
and
by
asking
the
Creator
to
deliver
them
from
exile,
how
will
He
deliver
them?
Only
with
great
lights,
since
“The
light
in
it
reforms
him.”
Thus,
then
they
will
have
the
need
for
the
great
lights.
He
explained
about
this
that
this
is
why
the
Creator
said
to
borrow
Kelim
[vessels]
from
the
Egyptians—meaning
take
the
hardness
of
the
Egyptians,
but
as
a
loan—to
receive
the
lights,
and
then
return
the
Kelim
to
them.
In
other
words,
they
took
the
questions
in
order
to
understand
the
answers.
It
is
as
was
said
above,
it
is
impossible
to
understand
the
light
if
not
from
within
the
darkness.
This
is
why
all
the
questions
come
specifically
at
the
time
of
freedom.