OU TORAH Noach By Rav Moshe Twersky, HY"D
Why is it that Chazal call rain gevuros geshamim, and why is it put together with techiyas ha’meisim? The Gra (in Aderes Eliyahu, parshas V’zos Ha’bracha) explains that rain does not function according to the parameters of nature. The sheim Elokim indicates the function of nature; it is well known that the gematria of Elokim is equivalent to that of ha’tevah. Nature is the chok nasan lo yaavor, the ratzon of Hashem that was engraved into creation and is permanent. (Hashem is mechadeish b’tuvo b’chol yom maaseh breishis, just that His ratzon is that it should be the same every day). The Gaon emphasizes that this is why throughout Maaseh Breishis, the sheim used is Elokim. It was during that time that the laws of nature were set up. Nature functions with a precise exactitude such that it is perfectly predictable. Scientists who master the chochma ba’umos taamin can tell you exactly when an eclipse took place 1,000 years ago – down to the second – and they can accurately predict when the next one will take place, and so on. Rain, though, is unpredictable. Sometimes there are dry spells, sometimes there are wet spells. Even when you know for sure that it is going to rain, no-one can tell you exactly where and when the first drop will hit.
Why is it that Chazal call rain gevuros geshamim, and why is it put together with techiyas ha’meisim? The Gra (in Aderes Eliyahu, parshas V’zos Ha’bracha) explains that rain does not function according to the parameters of nature. The sheim Elokim indicates the function of nature; it is well known that the gematria of Elokim is equivalent to that of ha’tevah. Nature is the chok nasan lo yaavor, the ratzon of Hashem that was engraved into creation and is permanent. (Hashem is mechadeish b’tuvo b’chol yom maaseh breishis, just that His ratzon is that it should be the same every day). The Gaon emphasizes that this is why throughout Maaseh Breishis, the sheim used is Elokim. It was during that time that the laws of nature were set up. Nature functions with a precise exactitude such that it is perfectly predictable. Scientists who master the chochma ba’umos taamin can tell you exactly when an eclipse took place 1,000 years ago – down to the second – and they can accurately predict when the next one will take place, and so on. Rain, though, is unpredictable. Sometimes there are dry spells, sometimes there are wet spells. Even when you know for sure that it is going to rain, no-one can tell you exactly where and when the first drop will hit.
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