Pinchas - Eliyah - Yaakov

There are multiple places in Chazal where it is written that Pinchas is Eliyahu. For one such example, see Pirkei D'Rebbi Eliezer chapter 46.

In BaMidbar 25:12 it is written:

לכן אמר, הנני נתן לו את בריתי שלום

Therefore say: Behold I give to him my Covenent of Peace.

In Masechet Kiddushin 66b it is written that the Vav of the word Shalom needs to be written in two parts, cut down the middle.

The Ba'al HaTurim says there:

ו' קטיעא כי פנחס הוא אליהו. וכן אליה כתיב חסר ו' ויעקוב מלא ו', שנטל ו' מאליהו למשכון עד שיבא עם המשיח ויגאל את בניו

A cut Vav, for Pinchas is Eliyahu, and Eliyahu is written without a Vav (Eliyah) and Yaakov with a Vav, for he took the Vav from Eliyahu as collateral until he comes with Moshiach to redeem his (Yaakov's) sons.

We see from this Midrash that Yaakov Avinu is holding on to a certain number of Vav's to make sure Eliyahu comes with Moshiach to redeem Am Yisrael.

There are 5 Vav's total that are out of place.

At the end of chapter 3 of Kol HaTor, it is recounted that in 5542 (the beginning of the 2nd hour of the day where 1000 is divided in to 24 parts), the GR"A set out to make Aliyah, to start the work of Kibbutz Galuyot, by himself. While he was on the way, he realized that he had advanced from the level of Yehoshua bin-Nun to the level of Moshe Rabbeinu, whose role is to send his student in to Eretz Yisrael. He then turned back to Vilna, in deep worry regarding the problems that faced the move back to Eretz Yisrael. He fasted for days and using secret methods, managed to attain a revelation of Yaakov Avinu. In this revelation, Yaakov Avinu transferred to him these 5 Vav's that he had taken from Eliyahu. The GR"A then handed this over to someone whose name is equal to Vav 5 times.

(Vav spelled Vav Aleph Vav is 13, 13 * 5 = 65, the Gematria of Hillel, implying Rav Hillel, author of Kol HaTor, who came to Yerushalayim 196 years ago)

Here is a list of the verses that make up the drash on the Vav's:

Yaakov - יעקוב

• Vayikra 26:42
• Yirmiyahu 30:18
• Yirmiyahu 33:26
• Yirmiyahu 46:27
• Yirmiyahu 51:19

Eliyah HaNavi - אליה הנביא

• Melachim 2 1:3
• Melachim 2 1:4
• Melachim 2 1:8
• Melachim 2 1:12
• Malachi 3:23

Notice we have 5 against 5. Four of each are from one sefer of Tanach, and a 5th from a different sefer. They mirror eachother.

Yaakov - יעקוב

• Vayikra speaks of rememberance, a word of Chesed.
• The verses of Yirmiyahu are all words of consolation, Chesed.

Eliyah - אליה

• The verses of Melachim are all verses of Din, punishment for sin.
• The verse from Malachi speaks of the Great and Awesome Day, invoking fear, and indeed this is confirmed in the next and last verse of the sefer.

From here it is not a big jump to arrive at other Kabbalistic concepts, like the idea of seeing the 10 Sefirot as 5 on the Right and 5 on the Left, from the perspective of Da'at (Kabbalistic relativity).

Eliyahu HaNavi

This post is in honor of my brother's first yartzheit. May his neshamah have an aliyah today. Moshe left us too early. May his zechuyot stand for his toddler daughters forever.

While my brother was on his deathbed on Shabbat Ki Tisa, already in a coma 7 days, I leined for him the parshah from a Chumash. The last Divrei Torah that entered his ears were the Haftarah of Eliyahu HaNavi at Mount Carmel. The last verse of the Haftarah serves to teach us about Eliyahu HaNavi's role.

מלכים א יח:לט - וירא כל-העם ויפלו על פניהם, ויאמרו ה' הוא האלקים ה' הוא האלקים

Melachim 1 18:39 - And the nation saw and they fell on their faces and they said Hashem is the Elokim, Hashem is the Elokim.

Eliyahu HaNavi's actions at Mount Carmel had a profound response. Hashem is the Elokim.

The name Hashem is representative of the Right, Spiritual Reality.

The name Elokim is representative of the Left, Physical Reality.

The Gematria of my name, son of my father's name, is equal to a single verse in the Torah.

שמות ו:ב - וידבר אלקים אל משה ויאמר אליו אני השם

Shemot 6:2 - Elokim spoke to Moshe and he said to him I am Hashem.

Perhaps it was fitting that he passed away davka on that Motzaei Shabbat, leaving Ki Tisa as his last parshah, with me in that hospital room leining for him. But alas cheshbonot are for Hashem.

It is the lonely job of Eliyahu HaNavi to make people realize the folly of turning Hashem and Elokim in to two separate domains. Eliyahu HaNavi is said to come between Moshiach ben Yosef and Moshiach ben Dovid. He comes between 2 different Geulot. It is his job to teach us that we are to appreciate both, to strive for perfection in both. If we write off one, we are not truly ready for the other. There is so much in this world that tries to convince us otherwise, but we must remain steadfast in our advance in both worlds.

We are in the final footsteps, and we must be careful not to go astray.