Be on the Lookout for Blessings in Disguise

 In Degel Machaneh Ephraim the Baal Shem Tov's grandson says that God's blessings sometimes come in a form that we perceive as not welcome, and as a result, we may run away from them. The Torah assures us that the good that God intends for us will occur even if we try to avoid it. This is the meaning of the verse: “May goodness and loving-kindness pursue me all the days of my life” (Psalms 23:6). We pray that if, in our limited understanding, we try to avoid a concealed kindness, that it pursue and overtake us.

Rabbi Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev once saw a person running in the marketplace. “Where are you running to?” he asked.

The man answered, “I'm running for my parnassah (livelihood).”Rabbi Levi Yitzchok said, “How do you know your livelihood is in front of you? Perhaps it is behind you and you are running away from it.”

What we think is a blessing may actually be bad for us, while what appears at first glance as a curse may be the best thing we could get.

Parshat Nasso contains the Birkat Kohanim, the blessing from Hashem to the Jewish People offered by way of the Kohanim. The blessing is referred to as the bracha hameshuleshet, a three-pronged blessing. The first blessing reads as follows:

“May Hashem bless you and safeguard you.”

Although there are two clauses in this statement, it is understood to be one blessing.

This first blessing is associated with material success. How might we understand the connection between the phrases “bless you” and “safeguard you”?

Rashi suggests that the first phrase means that Hashem should give us all that we need/ want. The second clause is the blessing that once we have it, no one should be able to take it away from us, ie Hashem gaurds it to insure it stays in our possession.

The Netziv offered a different perspective on the relationship between the phrases. He explains that sometimes what we thought would be a blessing ends up being a tremendous challenge. Wealth is a good example. People think, as King Solomon said, that money will answer all problems. Yet studies consistently show that wealth is not a good indicator of a person’s level of happiness. Wealth can be a great blessing- but it can also be a great challenge and the source of much strife. So in the first of the priestly blessings, we are blessed that what we thought would be a blessing- in fact should remain a blessing and be perceived as such by us.

The Netziv’s approach reminds us of an important fact of life: Sometimes what might be considered a great blessing can turn out to be a great challenge. Similarly, something that was considered to be a great challenge can very well turn out to be life’s greatest blessing.