The King's Friend

[Yedidyah]

Based on an urban legend

By Bentzion Elisha

Once there lived a gentile king who delighted in having an audience with a particular rabbi who lived in the kingdom’s capital. The two would converse on various subjects, and the rabbi’s acuity and sharp intellect amazed the king again and again. No one could compare in counsel and wisdom to the charming rabbi.

The king had a fascination with outings to the country, and he would invite the rabbi so that they could discuss the kingdom’s happenings.

The rabbi had a way of always weaving into the conversation the idea of hashgacha pratit, divine providence, constantly seeking to connect the unfolding events with G‑d’s underlying presence and guiding hand.
On one of these outings, the king decided to go hunting. Accompanied by the rabbi, his companion of choice, the king insisted that the rabbi also hunt together with him.

Unfamiliar with the sport, the rabbi fumbled with the rifle, and a shot accidentally escaped from the weapon. A bitter scream pierced the forest, a scream from none other than the king himself! The rabbi had mistakenly shot the king, damaging his hand forever by shooting off one of his fingers.

Enraged, the bleeding king had his guards imprison the rabbi immediately, with swift orders to put him into one of the dungeon’s prison chambers.

Months passed, and the king’s injury slowly healed. His hand was getting stronger, and his desire to go on one of his outings finally made him plan a most extravagant trip to many far-off lands.

Throughout his trips, he missed the wisdom and companionship of the brilliant rabbi.

In one particularly exotic location, the king was warned not to leave the camp grounds, because hostile natives lurked. But the king’s adventurous spirit was sparked by the idea of seeing the area as it was.
On one of his forays outside the camp, the king was captured by cannibal tribesmen. As was their custom, they inspected their “merchandise” before cooking. They were alarmed to find that the enticing specimen before them had a missing finger. Immediately they declared it a bad omen, and discarded the king close to his campgrounds.

The king was beside himself with joy. The rabbi’s “blunder” had saved his life.

He immediately changed course and directed his entourage to return home. He had to speak to the rabbi.

When they arrived at the capital, the king immediately set the rabbi free.

He asked him:

“Dear rabbi, you have always spoken of divine providence, and how everything comes down from heaven for our good, and I see that here. But rabbi, I have one question: what was the divine providence as it relates to you? You were in the dungeon for months; where is the good in that?”
The rabbi smiled as he answered, “Your majesty, if I wasn’t in the dungeon, I would have been with you, and the cannibals would have eaten me, G‑d forbid.”

“What lesson can we take from all this?” asked the king.

After some thought, the rabbi answered.

“Perhaps the lesson is that everyone is essentially a friend of the ultimate King, the Creator of heaven and earth. Since He is a true and good friend who wants the very best for us, we must have faith that all our experiences, even the seemingly negative ones, are really for the best.”

[Questor]

In our world, our time/place, it seems that Abba has made more negative things than positive ones.

Most of us humans would, if we were the Rabbi in this story, have clutched the time in the dungeon to our bosom, mourned over the time lost, the opportunities fled, and eyed the King with hidden resentment from that point onward, perhaps being unable to rejoin the close friendship as we left it.

But it is not that there are more negative things than positive ones, nor bad occurrences than good ones, but that we each of us choose to perceive what has happened to us as a positive or negative experience.

Adonai uses all things that happen to us to our good, even if it seems painful to us, for He can always see a way to use even an unpleasantness.

Knowing this, we too can choose to look at what occurs in our lives, even if hard to bear, as at the very least, a learning opportunity, if not the prevention of a true evil, such as death by tribal hunger.

Alas that many of us, myself included, am not so quick to perceive that if not for one bad experience, I might have experienced much worse, only to see it with 20/20 vision long after the fact.

After many years of being forced to review my life, and see in it all the twists and turns all that each event in it has caused, and what Abba has enabled me to benefit from, no matter the cause, I am trying to see what good can come from even the most difficult days, the most obstinate pains. I am beginning to have some success, here and there, but I could benefit from those of you who have mastered this process.

How can we best be like the Rabbi, and see the good that comes from it as the bad is happening, or take the bad, and be patient with the results from wrong choices or bad action, whether we are at fault or not?

[alon]

Shalom, and welcome to the forum!

I don't think I've "mastered" anything yet, but there are a few knowledgeable posters here and a lot in the archives. Hope to benefit from your knowledge as well.

Dan

[Micha'el]

Shalom Questor and welcome,
As Dan has said, I too have not mastered this process either; however, I do offer some possibly helpful advice. What would Yeshua do? When I ask myself this question amidst a trial or situation that appears to be bringing severe suffering, I tell myself that my actions will become my future teachings and encouraging help to the ones who will soon experience a similar moment. How can I say I blew it miserably and expect to encourage someone? We need to endure with all of His help as we fall on Him completely. Then, we share how our total deliverance and restoration came from Him because we never gave up or gave in to what our situation tried to bring about. This is only a tidbit; often we need daily reminders from our close brothers.
Micha'el