Shnayim Yomi - Ki Tavo - Rishon - #1 - Reb Eliav Friedman - Understanding Arami Oved Avi

Parshas Ki Savo, the Torah portion of Parshas Ki Savo, so exciting to be having opportunity to spend this week with everybody. The beginning of the parsha jumps immediately into the mitzvah of bringing bikurim. When a person brings bikurim, there's a declaration that they're supposed to be making, and they bring some English to bring the bikurim. It's a whole process. Check out in in the Mishnayos, discusses it at length. A person comes and they bring their stuff to the Beis Hamikdash, give it to the kohen, brought to the mizbeach, etc. And then they make an announcement, "Im ani saver amarti Hashem Elokecha You claim in front of Am Yisrael, "Arami oved avi." Who's this Arami? Arami oved avi, what does that mean? There's actually different shittos. Some people say that Arami is referring to Yaakov Avinu himself. Some people say it's Avraham Avinu. The Seforno says that. We classically understand according to Rashi, Onkelos, Sifrei Mikra. What do we know? It's talking about Lavan Ha'Arami. Rebbe Yaakov Kamenetsky, zichronah livrachah, asked the question, "Why are we speak calling Lavan Arami as opposed to Lavan Ha'Arami?" Why is Arami oved avi? Since if you look at the Midrashim in those parshiyos, all right, where Yaakov comes to get married, Lavan wasn't the only person who pulled a fast one on on Yaakov Avinu. Yaakov wants to marry Rachel. Lavan invites the entire town and tells everybody [clears throat] he wants to marry Rachel, I'm giving him Leah. We're going to pull a fast one. So, and in so doing, his goal was to upend the whole creation of Klal Yisrael somehow by making the switch of giving Leah instead of Rachel. I don't know exactly what the plan was. I don't have that detail perfectly clear. If anyone knows, please put it in the comments. But apparently, by giving making that switch, he was going to The Haggadah tells us he was trying to destroy Klal Yisrael before it was even ever built. The pasuk says, Rebbe Yaakov Kamenetsky, "Arami oved avi" because it wasn't just Lavan Ha'Arami who was trying to destroy Klal Yisrael. It was every Arami. It was everybody in Charan that was trying to do that. So, the Arami is said in that general way because it was everyone who was out to get us. It's something to think about also nowadays. We have a tendency to think, "Oh, these people do like us. These people don't." Be wary. Be careful. Yidden love Yidden. We should and we do. Other people, can't always be sure.