A gazlan (one who steals by day) and a gonav (one who steals by night) decided that rather than operating independently, they would form a partnership (to steal, of course). Everything went well, and the two gangsters were making money 24/7. Eventually the King heard of their nefarious enterprise and dispatched his soldiers to close them down. They were brought before the King for judgment. "We throw ourselves on the mercy of the King!" the two pleaded.
"Very well, I have made up my mind," the King said solemnly. "The punishment of the gazlan is ten years in jail. And the punishment for the gonav is to be beheaded." The gonav asked for permission to speak. "Granted," the King replied.
"Your Majesty, if the gazlan, who steals by day and shows no fear of His Highness nor of mankind received a ten year sentence, then shouldn't I who at least showed fear of mankind by hiding my actions in darkness, be sentenced to a lesser punishment?" The King explained, "You feel you have a finer character than your friend because you feared your fellow citizen, however - you did not fear me. You were able to reason and discern when it was convenient to steal and nonetheless you did not come to a rational conclusion that my laws need not be obeyed. Your friend, on the other hand, has an addiction, he does not calculate what he does. Rather, he blindly rushes to steal no matter who may see. I have no proof that he does not fear me personally, as King. Hopefully, the jail sentence will alleviate him of his addiction.”
The Nimshol is: At the end of days Amelek will come before Hashem saying, "The evil I brought into the world is not my fault. I was created with an addiction to cruelty and aggression. Therefore, I should not be punished!" However, Hashem will answer, "Rasha! If you were acting out of pure compulsion then you would have immediately charged at Am Yisrael. However, you waited and calculated the best time to attack, when they were "ayaif v'yagai'ah" tired form their journey. You logically came to your strategy, nonetheless you did not reason that you have to fear Me or My children!" The Briser Rav says that this is the reason that Hashem has a war with Amelek for all generations.
We can learn from this that the mitzvos we do and the aveiras we avoid must be done with only one reason in mind – that the Almighty commanded us. Our calculations are meaningless. We have to do mitzvas without focusing on the reward and keep far from aveiras simply because we are told to. When we do our mitzvas, without any calculation of compensation it shows that are aware of Hashem's omnipotence. Our true nature is to follow, unconditionally, the word of Hashem.
Over the years people have asked me if I would ever draw cartoons depicting some of the cases found in Yora Daya. Well, the answer is yes! I recently published a sefer called The Great Game of Kashrut. Click on the link to find out more: The Great Game of Kashrut
Speaking of temptation, is you are thirsty are you allowed to purchase a quenching drink in a non Kosher restaurant? When you're sitting there will you be tempted to buy a cheeseburger? And what about people who see you drinking, will they suspect you of eating non Kosher food even though it's clear you're not? Are we, as Jews, commanded to be suspicious or commanded to give the benefit of doubt? Or perhaps some judgement "in between"?
To order a copy of The Great Game of Kashrut follow this link: The Great Game of Kashrut
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Good Shabbos,R’ Channenjudaism613.org