In this week's Haftorah, Eliyahu HaNavi stands before the people on Har HaCarmel and issues a challenge: עַד־מָתַי אַתֶּם פֹּסְחִים עַל־שְׁתֵּי הַסְּעִפִּים אִם־ה' הָאֱלֹקים לְכוּ אַחֲרָיו וְאִם־הַבַּעַל לְכוּ אַחֲרָיו. How long will you waver between two opinions? If Hashem is God, follow Him; and if Baal, follow him. (מלכים א יח:כא)
This is more than a theological ultimatum. Eliyahu is confronting a nation in crisis, a people who have lost clarity, wavering between faith in Hashem and allegiance to Baal. Their spiritual indecision threatens their very identity. A divided people cannot endure.
The Yismach Moshe highlights three occurrences of the word "Nachnu" (נחנו), each reflecting a different stage of our national struggle. When Yosef's brothers stand before him in Egypt, they declare, כֻּלָּנוּ בְּנֵי אִישׁ אֶחָד נָחְנוּ – We are all sons of one man (Bereishit 42:11). Their words emphasize unity, yet they had betrayed that very bond by selling their brother. Generations later, the tribes of Gad and Reuven pledge, נַחְנוּ נַעֲבֹר חֲלוּצִים – We will cross over armed (Bamidbar 32:32), committing to fight alongside their brethren before settling in their land. And in Eichah, as Bnei Yisrael face exile, they cry out, נַחְנוּ פָשַׁעְנוּ וּמָרִינוּ – We have transgressed and rebelled (Eichah 3:42), recognizing that their downfall came from within.
These verses tell the story of our people—our struggles, our failures, and our redemption. Unity is the thread that determines our fate. The Midrash notes that Shaul's generation was righteous, yet they fell in battle because of internal strife, while Achav's generation, despite their idolatry, was victorious because they stood together. Hashem despises sin, but He detests division even more.
Eliyahu's words remain as relevant today as they were on Har HaCarmel. We do not stand before prophets or altars, but we do stand before choices—between solidarity and separation, between focusing on what divides us or what unites us. The lesson of "Nachnu" is that unity is not about uniformity. It is about responsibility, about choosing to stand together even when we struggle, even when we fall.
Even when "We have transgressed and rebelled," we must still say, "We will cross over armed." We must be armed with faith, armed with commitment to each other, armed with the knowledge that our strength has never been in perfection, but in the bonds that hold us together.
May we merit to see the unity of "Nachnu" fulfilled—not in exile, not in division, but in the ultimate redemption of our people.
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