"He assembles like a wall the waters of the sea, He places the deep waters in vaults. Fear Hashem, all the earth; of Him be in dread, all inhabitants of the world. For He spoke and it came to be, He commanded and it stood firm."

Eitz Yosef writes that this passage serves to dispel the notion that Hashem created the world long ago and then left it to its own devices. At the time of creation, says the psalmist, Hashem collected the waters of the earth into the seas. Yet even today those who live near the sea live in constant fear. For they never know when a new storm might come which would cause the waters to swell and overflow, inundating the land where they live. This serves as an example: Hashem has created the world in such manner as to prevent man from becoming overly complacent about his surroundings.

That is why our verse continues, "Fear Hashem, all the earth ... For He spoke and it came to be, He commanded and it stood firm." Hashem spoke long ago at the time of creation, and all the world came into being. But even today, it is only at his command that the world continues to stand firm.

It is perhaps particularly appropirate to discuss this idea this year, when we have been hearing so much about the El Ninio weather system wreaking havoc throughout the land. We have made such great strides in science and technology that we are in danger of deluding ourselves into thinking that we can entirely control our surroundings. We might think that it is we who are in control. But when we look upon the weather systems, and we see that there is still so little that we can do about them; when we feel ourselves so helpless in the face of the El Ninios that come up--it is then that we remind ourselves that the world has a Creator. And it is He, and only He, who is in command.

Our Sages teach in the Talmud, "Thunderbolts were created for the purpose of straightening out the crookedness in the human heart." We may know intellectually that the world has a Creator. But we dupe ourselves into thinking that in our lives, it is we ourselves who are in charge. For this, Hashem sends the "thunderbolts." These have a special purpose, teach the Sages: they teach us that we must look to heaven, and not become overly complacent and feel that we have all of the answers.

Copyright (c) 1998 by Rabbi Levi Langer

Courtesy of www.JewishAmerica.com
Have a good Shabbos!