Her Ways Are Pleasant and All Her Paths Are Peace
VaEra [And I Appeared]
183) “Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.” “Her ways are ways of pleasantness” are the ways of the Torah. Anyone who walks in the ways of Torah, the Creator brings upon him the pleasantness of Divinity, so it would never leave him. “And all her paths are peace” are the paths of the Torah, since all the paths of the Torah are peace—peace for him above, peace for him below, peace for him in this world, and peace for him in the next world.
One Who Disputes with Peace
Korah
6) The world stands only on peace. When the Creator created the world, it could not exist until He came and established peace on them, the Sabbath, which is the peace of upper and lower. Then the world persisted. Hence, one who disagrees with peace will be lost from the world.
If They Are at Peace, Judgment Does Not Rule Over Them
Miketz [At the End]
168) “Thus says the Lord, though they are at full strength and likewise many, Even so, they will be cut off and pass away.” When the whole people has peace in it, and no dispute is among them, the Creator has pity on them and the judgment does not govern them. And even though they are idol worshippers, if they are at peace, judgment does not rule over them, as it is written, “Joined idols,” idol worshipping, “Ephraim let him alone.” This means that even if one is serving idols, meaning idol worshipping, if they are nonetheless united, “Let him alone.”
Closeness of Righteous Increases Peace in the World
VaYigash [Then Judah Approached]
61) Happy are the righteous, whose closeness to each other brings peace to the world because they know how to unite the unification and to make nearness, to increase peace in the world. As long as Joseph and Judah were not close to one another, there was no peace. When Joseph and Judah drew close together, peace increased in the world and joy was added above and below while Joseph and Judah were brought closer. All the tribes were together with Joseph, and that closeness increased peace in the world, as it is written, “Then Judah approached him.”
He Who Walks on the Path of Truth
Miketz [At the End]
186) Rabbi Abba was sitting at the gate of the city of Lod. He saw a man coming and sitting on a protrusion that bulged at the side of the mountain. He was weary from the road and he sat and slept there. At that time, he saw a serpent approaching him, and a varmint came out and killed the serpent.
When the man woke, he saw the serpent dead in front of him. The man rose and the protrusion he had been sitting on was torn off the mountain and fell to the valley below it. But the man was saved. Had he been late standing up by even a minute, he would have fallen to the valley along with the protrusion and he would have been killed.
187) Rabbi Abba came to him and told him: “Tell me, what do you do?” for the Creator brought you these two miracles, saved you from the serpent and from the protrusion that fell. And that was not for nothing.
188) He told him. “Through my whole life, never has anyone done evil to me that I did not make peace with him and forgave him. Moreover, if I could not make peace with him, I did not go to my bed before I forgave him and all those who afflicted me, and I did not hold any grudge the whole day for that evil which he had done to me. And I do not suffice for that, but even more, from that day forth, I have tried to do them good.”
189) The deeds of this one are greater than Joseph’s, for with Joseph, the wrong doers were his brothers, and he certainly should have pitied them because of the brotherhood. But what this one did, when he did this with all the people, is greater than Joseph. He is worthy of the Creator bringing him a miracle over a miracle.
190) “He who walks in integrity walks securely” is a man who walks in the ways of the Torah. “Walks securely” means that the damagers of the world will not be able to harm him. “But he who perverts his ways will be found out.” Who will be found out? One who has strayed from the path of truth, and seeks to collect from his friend, who wishes to pay him evil for evil, and breaches “Thou shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge.” “Will be found out” means that it will be apparent to the eyes of all the litigants, that they will not lose the image of that person, so as to bring him to the place where they will avenge him, an eye for an eye. This is why it is written, “Will be found out.”