Parashat Ekeb- There’s No Such Thing as a “Small” Misva
The beginning of Parashat Ekeb lists the rewards that God promises to grant Beneh Yisrael in exchange for their observance of the Torah. In this context, the Torah uses the word "Ekeb," after which the Parasha is named, and which literally means "heel." The Rabbis explain that the Torah here refers to a specific category of Misvot – those which people have the tendency to "step on," to neglect and not to treat seriously.
The lesson that the Torah conveys through this word is that we are incapable of "weighing" Misvot, of determining which is more important and which is less important. We must approach all Misvot with equal vigor and seriousness – even those Misvot which, for whatever reason, appear to us as less important than others. Only God knows the relative values of the different Misvot; we are not privy to this information. This is why the Torah promises the reward of longevity to two very different Misvot – honoring parents, and Shilu’ah Ha’ken (sending away the mother bird before taking the eggs or chicks). The Misva of Shilu’ah Ha’ken is among the easiest Misvot; one simply takes a broom, chases away the bird, and he’s finished. Honoring parents, by contrast, applies at every moment that one’s parent is alive, and often entails immense responsibility. The Torah promises the same reward for these two Misvot to demonstrate that we cannot possibly determine the value of a Misva based on our intuition. What seems to us as a simple, ordinary Misva may in fact carry immense weight.
I recall when in the seventh grade my class went outside to recite Birkat Ha’hama, the Beracha recited every twenty-eight years when the sun returns to its original place where it was at the time of creation. Needless to say, this was an exciting moment, and we all recited the Beracha with great fervor and intensity. Afterward, the school gave us sodas in honor of the event. As unfortunately many people generally do, we mumbled the Beracha of "She’hakol" without any thought or concentration; the soda was practically halfway down our throats by the time we finished the Beracha. Sadly, this is what happens with Misvot to which we have grown accustomed. Rare Misvot, such as Birkat Ha’hama, naturally inspire excitement and enthusiasm, whereas regular, ordinary Misvot are "stepped on," are treated lightly and without serious thought or concentration.
We must remember that there is no such thing as a "small" Misva. With every Misva we perform, we earn eternity. How can any Misva be "small" or unimportant if this is the reward? Every Misva is valuable and should be treated as such; even seemingly trivial Misva acts have inestimable worth.
The Gemara relates that the grandfather of King Shaul, a man named Abiel, is referred to in one place as "Ner" ("candle") because he used to light candles along the roads that led to the yeshiva. Students would be afraid to go to the yeshiva at night because there was no illumination on the way to and from the yeshiva. Recognizing this problem, Abiel took it upon himself to provide lighting along the roads. In the merit of this Misva, the Gemara says, Abiel’s grandson, Shaul, became the first king of Israel.
Imagine – such a reward for putting up lights! We would never have considered this Misva significant enough to earn this kind of reward. But then again, what do we know about the value of Misvot? We do not have access to this information, so we have no way of assessing the relative values of different Misvot.
No Misva should ever seem small or insignificant. Each one is precious, and each should be approached with fervor, excitement and seriousness, as another opportunity to serve our Creator and thereby earn a share in the eternal world.
