An analysis of why Avraham was the first to call God 'Adon' (Master), exploring the fundamental difference between being God's subject versus His servant, and how this shapes our relationship with the divine.
This shiur examines a Gemara (גמרא) in Brachos that states no one called God 'Adon' (Master) until Avraham Avinu. The speaker analyzes Tosafos (תוספות)'s question on this Gemara and develops a profound understanding of the difference between viewing oneself as God's subject versus His servant. The discussion begins with a philosophical analysis of the Rambam (רמב"ם) versus Ramban (רמב"ן)'s understanding of emunah (אמונה) (faith). While the Rambam defines emunah as knowledge of God's existence as the supreme being, the Ramban adds that emunah includes recognizing our obligation to serve Him. This distinction resolves the philosophical problem of how there can be a mitzvah (מצוה) of emunah - one must already know God exists before He can command belief in Him. The shiur then explores Tosafos's insight that while Shem (Noach's son) understood there was a God to be served, as evidenced by the phrase 'Elokei Shem' (God of Shem), Avraham innovated the concept of Adonus - being God's slave rather than merely His subject. This difference is illustrated through the story of Malki-Tzedek (identified as Shem) meeting Avraham. When Shem blessed Avraham before blessing God, he lost the priesthood because he treated man as God's subject whose greatness reflects on the King. Avraham corrected this, explaining that as God's servant, man derives all greatness from his Master, not the reverse. The practical difference between these perspectives is demonstrated through two Mishnayos in Pirkei Avos. Both Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi and Akavya ben Mahalalel teach methods to avoid sin, but with different language: 'v'ein atah ba li'dei aveirah' (you will not sin) versus 'v'iy atah ba li'dei aveirah' (you cannot sin). A subject refrains from wrongdoing due to external oversight - knowing God watches and records everything. A servant, however, has internalized that sin is impossible because he has no independent existence or rights apart from his Master. The subject maintains his identity while serving the King; the servant has no separate self, belonging entirely to his Master. This represents Avraham's revolutionary understanding: complete self-nullification before God, where even the capacity for sinful thought disappears because one's very being belongs to the Almighty.
Rabbi Zweig explores how Israel becomes God's 'mother' through accepting divine kingship, analyzing the deeper meaning of 'crowned by his mother' in Shir HaShirim and its connection to the grammatical ambiguity in 'Bereishis bara Elokim.'
Rabbi Zweig explores Eichah Rabba's interpretation of 'Bas Galim' (daughter of waves), revealing two distinct types of teshuvah: decisional repentance based on personal choice, and instinctive repentance rooted in learned behaviors from our forefathers.
Brachos 7b
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