Maharal on the Sedra

The Humble Prince

The Humble Prince

Vayikra 4:22 - If a leader will sin and negligently do one of the commands of Hashem which should not be done, and be guilty.
Rashi - The word for “if” in this verse is ASHER, related to ASHREI, which means fortunate or happy. Fortunate is the generation whose leader puts his heart to seeking atonement for his mistake, ever more so for his intentional misdeeds.
Gur Aryeh - The language is different here from 4:3, 4:13, and 4:27, all of which begin with IM, meaning if. Our verse begins with ASHREI, which usually means fortunate. It certainly does not mean that the leader who puts his heart to his error is fortunate, for if he sins he would not be called fortunate. Rather the generation, who did not sin, and has such a leader, is fortunate. When this leader sins, he regrets his error. He is not embarrassed to say, “I sinned”, and does not say that he is too great and too important to say “I sinned”. His humility is the good fortune of his people, and on account of it, his reign shall endure.
Secular power and honor remove a person from the world, as it is written, [D’varim 17:20]: “In order that he not allow his heart to exult over his brothers, and in order that he not turn aside from the commandment to the right or to the left, so that his days be lengthened upon his throne, he and his sons in the midst of Israel.” The leader must be mindful that if he is arrogant in his rulership, his arrogance will bury him. Rulership is not for his personal benefit, but for turning to his people to supervise them and fix what is lacking.
How does it happen that the ruler acquires this arrogance that shortens his life as ruler? The ruler is alone when he rules, so separate and above his people that he privately considers himself unique. This way he has less power than he would if he remained among his people. It is well known that water in a vessel is not long to survive - it will be lost by pollution or consumption. However, water in the middle of a river is bound to continue to flow. Why did Yosef not live as long as his brothers? It was because he acted like a ruler [Sota 13b]. A person gets his life and his continued existence from Hashem, may He be blessed, the living God who provides life to all living things. When a person makes himself a mekabel [receiver], by humbling himself, he is fitting to receive life from Hashem. But a leader who exercises rule over someone else is not acting as a mekabel and cannot go on receiving life from Hashem.

• Other Maharal on the Sedra
• Where is Yehuda's Rod Today?
• The Command to Teach Your Children the Holy Tongue
• The Impact of a Righteous Person on a Place