Rising Above Nature | Rabbi Binyomin Weinrib

As Klal Yisroel was standing by the Yam, with the Mitzriyim chasing after them and the Yam in front of them and nowhere to turn, suddenly the miracle of קריעת ים סוף happened. Ask Chazal, מה ראה הים וינס? What was it that caused the Yam to split? ארונו של יוסף. It saw the Aron of Yosef HaTzaddik being carried by Klal Yisroel, out of Mitzrayim, to Eretz Yisroel, and that's what caused the Yam to split. Why specifically Yosef HaTzaddik? What zechus did Yosef HaTzaddik have that allowed קריעת ים סוף? Say the Sefarim HaKedoshim, Yosef HaTzaddik was somebody who rose above nature. Everything in nature told him to fall to the Nisayon of Eishes Potifar. Here’s a 17-year-old boy, away from his father, away from his brothers, away from all of Kedusha, being thrown into the pit by his brothers, being sold by his brothers. And he has every reason in the world to give up and to fall to the Nisayon of Eishes Potifar. Yet Yosef HaTzaddik rose above nature. He rose above the גוף, above that which he should have naturally done, and Yosef HaTzaddik showed that I'm a Neshama, that I can rise above nature. Therefore, when it came to קריעת ים סוף, which was something which was חוץ מן הטבע, it was outside of the realm of nature, it needed the Aron of Yosef. When it saw the כוח of Yosef, the Mesirus Nefesh of Yosef HaTzaddik, it allowed the Yam to also do something above and beyond nature, and to be able to split, allowing Klal Yisroel to walk in a dry path through קריעת ים סוף, getting away from Mitzrayim. We know Chazal tell us that זיווגין של אדם, that Shidduchim and Parnassa are both comparable to קריעת ים סוף. Perhaps what Chazal are telling us is that if we want to be zoche to have Shidduchim, both for ourselves and for other people, for our family members, for our friends, if we want to be zoche to have Parnassa for ourselves, for those around us, for all of Klal Yisroel, the secret is ארונו של יוסף. The secret is to act like Yosef HaTzaddik. Then when we're able to rise above nature, when we're able to show that although the world is going crazier and crazier, although the temptations in Shemiras Einayim are getting more and more difficult, and everything in the world of nature is telling us: Just fall already! and fall to the place of a פגם in Einayim, we say, nevertheless, we're going to rise above nature. In that zechus, we’ll be zoche to Parnassa, to Shidduchim, we’ll be zoche to experience our own קריעת ים סוף, and to be able to experience miracles which are beyond the realm of nature.