04 Aug PARSHA IN PRACTICE: SKILLS FOR BETTER LIVING RE’EH – IF AND WHEN

What a difference a
word makes!
Parshas Re’eh opens
on an intense note:
There will be blessing
for following Hashem’s mitzvos, and a
curse for defying them. But there is a
discrepancy in how these consequences
are presented. While the good things will
happen “when” we listen to Hashem, the
bad things will only occur “if ” we disobey
(Devarim 11:27-28).
The difference between these two words
may not seem significant, but Rav Shlomo
Ganzfried zt”l (author of Kitzur Shulchan
Aruch) has a beautiful explanation in his
commentary on the parshah, Apiryon.
In a professional setting, there is no
difference between good and bad
consequences – both come only after
the behavior (“consequently”). “If ” an
employee does his job, then he will be
paid, and “if ” he slacks off, then he will be
reprimanded. It would not make sense to
promote a worker before he earns it, nor

fire him until it is warranted.
However, parents do not deal with their
children in such strict terms – at least not
for good behavior. Consider parents who
are about to go out for dinner, leaving
their young children with a babysitter.
“We are ordering pizza and letting you
stay up later than usual,” they say as they
put on their coats. “We expect to hear
that you behaved well and went to sleep
nicely.” They don’t wait for the kids to first
prove themselves, and only then reward
them the following night. They give the
“consequences” before the good behavior
to show that they are confident that their
children will behave appropriately and
live up to expectations.
Does the same structure make sense when
anticipating bad conduct? “We expect that
you will be uncooperative and an overall
disaster tonight, so before we go, we are
confiscating your iPad and sending you
to your room.” That would never happen.
Punishments only come “if ” and after
undesired behavior occurs.

Rav Ganzfried explained that, out of
fatherly love, Hashem rewards and
punishes us the way a parent – and
not an employer – would. Now we can
understand why our heavenly Father
only gives negative consequences “if ” the
Jewish people disobey His mitzvos, but
ensures blessing will already be present
“when” we act as expected. Hashem works
with the assumption that we will follow
the Torah, and so He first gives us lives
full of blessing – and then expects us to use

those resources to earn the gifts that He
has already given us!
As we complete the month of Av (lit.
father), it is important to remember the
high expectations to which our Heavenly
Parent holds us. By reflecting on all the
goodness in our lives, we can appreciate
just how much confidence Hashem has
placed in us. The blessings we already enjoy
are not only rewards – they are expressions
of His faith that we will use them well.