In the prayer of Al Hanissim, we recite: וְאַתָּה, בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים, עָמַדְתָּ לָהֶם בְּעֵת צָרָתָם: רַבְתָּ אֶת רִיבָם דַּנְתָּ אֶת דִּינָם נָקַמְתָּ אֶת נִקְמָתָם. מָסַרְתָּ גִבּוֹרִים בְּיַד חַלָּשִׁים, וְרַבִּים בְּיַד מְעַטִּים, וּטְמֵאִים בְּיַד טְהוֹרִים, וּרְשָׁעִים בְּיַד צַדִּיקִים, וְזֵדִים בְּיַד עוֹסְקֵי תוֹרָתֶךָ. And You, in Your great mercy, stood up for them in the time of their distress. You took up their grievance, judged their claim, and avenged their wrong. You delivered the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the wanton into the hands of the diligent students of your Torah.
Mefarshim famously ask: The fact that Hashem delivered giborim b’yad chalashim, the strong into the hands of the weak, and rabbim b’yad me’atim, the many into the hands of the few, is clearly a miracle. Yet what about the rest? What is noteworthy about the impure being delivered into the hands of the pure and sinners being delivered into the hands of tzaddikim? Why is this remarkable? It is only natural that tzaddikim should prevail upon reshaim!
The Chasam Sofer answers that the exemplary qualities exhibited by tzaddikim are often causes of a physical disadvantage. A person who is constantly engaged in Torah does not have the opportunity to learn war strategies, and someone who is completely pure and innocent lacks the cunning necessary to surmount the impure. Therefore, it was indeed miraculous that the Yidden, who were pure and righteous, prevailed over the powerful and cunning enemy.
Another explanation is that these descriptions are also a stunning portrayal of the inimitable koach that lead Klal Yisrael to victory.
There’s a famous line attributed to the Chiddushei Harim of Gur zy”a: “Even if it’s impossible, we must; and if we must, then we will, and if we’ll do it, we’ll succeed!”
Al Hanissim expresses Klal Yisrael’s approach to battling its enemies and why Bnei Yisrael dared to set out on a virtually impossible war against an invincible enemy. The Greek Empire was the most powerful nation in the world, boasting a highly-trained army equipped with the greatest military advancements and weapons of the era, elephants and phalanxes… How did the Chashmonaim dream that they could succeed in battle against such an enemy?
The answer is that Yidden cannot abide a situation when the wicked rule our nation, compel our children to sin and disconnect us from Torah. We cannot allow a nation whose very goal is to erase any vestige of purity, to destroy Klal Yisrael from the inside and cause us to assimilate among the nations to rule over us in our land.
When Klal Yisrael sets out in battle against our spiritual enemies, it is a battle to the death because we are fighting for our spiritual lives. And when we fight with all our passion and strength, then we inevitably succeed, as we continue reciting, וּלְךָ עָשִׂיתָ שֵׁם גָּדוֹל וְקָדוֹשׁ בְּעוֹלָמָךְ וּלְעַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל עָשִׂיתָ תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה וּפֻרְקָן כְּהַיּוֹם הַזֶּה. And for Yourself You made a great and holy Name in your world, and for Your people, Yisrael, You worked a great victory and salvation as this very day.
This pattern is interwoven throughout the fabric of Jewish history, beginning from Avraham Avinu’s lone battle against the four kings, continuing with Yaakov Avinu’s wrestling with the Sar of Eisav, with Basya, Pharaoh’s daughter, who stretched her hand to reach the teivah, despite the distance, with Nachshon ben Aminadav who leaped into the Yam Suf even though the waters reached his throat, and throughout every generation until Bnei Yisrael’s miraculous resurgence from the Holocaust despite all odds…
The Ponovezher Rav famously declared at the cornerstone-laying event of Shikun Vizhnitz in Bnei Brak after the war: “Who’s the crazy one here?” He explained that anything significant, permanent, and impactful needs the “the crazy one” who is willing to take risks in order to succeed. Only the intrepid risk-takers are capable of achieving truly magnificent accomplishments!
This is a powerful lesson that can be applied in every realm of life—from chinuch and parnassah to yedias haTorah: Regardless of the odds stacked against us, we can triumph and achieve phenomenal success!
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