This week’s Haftorah is a short portion read from Yishayohu and it is the third Haftorah of Nechama. The first Passuk in the Haftorah addresses us as Lo Nuchama – the un-comforted one; the Passuk refers to us as a troubled nation (see Meforshim). The Haftorah then goes on to explain how our fortune will change for the best and we will end up at the top of the world in every way.

While our Haftorah is exceptionally positive and uplifting, it only tells us that we will be on top, it doesn’t actually tell us that we should be comforted. If the Navi starts by addressing us as being un-comforted why doesn’t the Navi tell us that we should be comforted by the revelation of our in-process salvation?

In English there is an expression: “time heals”. Rabbi Akiva and his Rebbe (Nachum Ish Gamzu) taught us that everything that happens is ultimately good (there are slight differences between the approach of Rebbi Akiva and his Rebbe). Very often things happen to us that at the moment we view as tragic. As life progresses and moves on, we often see that what originally seemed tragic was ultimately OK if not actually beneficial (often it will be beneficial). Thus it would seem that the expression “time heals” may be just a simplification of the idea that everything ultimately is for the good.

The Navi seems to be telling us the following: Am-Yisroel you are not comforted because you are living in the pains and suffering of the present. Yet while we are living oppressed in Galus, Hashem is setting the stage for our ultimate comeback. Right now we are all somewhat blind and oblivious as to all the good Hashem is in the midst of preparing for us because we currently perceive things as disastrous. The world isn’t painful – we only currently perceive it as such, but this pain is actually our salvation in the making.

Just because we are feeling pain doesn’t mean that things are really bad. The truth is that things are actually good because we are living through our ultimate good in the making. Let us not be blind to this good that is brewing; we must be ready that one day – any day we will awake and we will be at the top.

A very warm Good Shabbos, Rabbi Y. Dov Krakowski