May, 2025
On June 12th of 2014, three Israeli teenagers – Eyal Yifrach, Gilad Shaer, and Naftali Fraenkel, Hy”d – were kidnapped in the West Bank. To find them, the Israeli army launched a sweeping search mission, named Operation Brother’s Keeper. Unfortunately, the search ended tragically when, on June 30th, their bodies were discovered in a shallow grave near the town of Halhul.
Before they were found, a rumor had been circulating that Rav Binyamin Elyashiv (son of Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv) had performed a goral haGra regarding the whereabouts and status of these missing teens. In order to confirm this rumor, I contacted him directly the week of parshas korach 5774.
After confirming that he indeed did perform this goral, he then shared that he based himself on the mesorah from Rav Aryeh Levin, his grandfather.
He was referring to a celebrated incident Israel’s War of Independence.
It was a confounding time, and the young Elyashiv family had to move out of Meah Shearim and into the home of Rav Aryeh Levin, their grandfather (Rav Yosef Shalom’s father-in-law).
Tragically, Rav Binyamin’s youngest sister Leah – just a year-and-a-half old – was killed by a Jordanian missile shell.
Soon, news spread that thirty-five soldiers, who were sent to help secure Gush Etzion, were ambushed and killed, hy’d. The army was able to recover all the bodies, however, twelve of them could not be identified in a way to distinguish who was who, Hashem yeracheim.
Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank was approached as to what to do; how they should go about kevura for twelve these soldiers. Rav Frank suggested that a goral hagra be implemented. However, he refused to perform this himself and rather urged that that it be done by Rav Aryeh Levin.
And so it was.
After lighting candles and saying certain kpitelach of tehillim, Rav Aryeh stood in front of each of the twelve unidentified caskets. By the first casket, they arrived at a pasuk was from Yehoshua (21:4), which refers specifically to the tribe of Binyamin… by a goral! This grave was considered to be of Benjamin Bogulavsky.
{In truth, this was not the very first pasuk of teir goral, as they first performed a goral just to see if they were correct in what they were doing –they were!}
They stood by the next casket and came to a verse from Shmuel (I, 9:21) where the term ‘ben yemini’ is found. This was used to identify Oded ben-Yemini!
This continued for the rest of the identifications (The details of this event is recorded in many sefarim. For an accessible recounting, the reader is directed to the popular A Tzadik In Our Time, pgs. 162-170, as well as its Hebrew edition, p. 111-117).
So, Rav Binyamin Elyashiv had a clear mesorah as to how to perform such a goral.
I then asked him the question that was then on everyone’s mind: What pasuk his goral arrive at?
In response, he became energetic, and quoted the pasuk (shoftim 15:14):
“He [Shimshon] came to Lechi and the Philistines shouted at him, A spirit of Hashem came over him and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that had been singed in fire; his bonds melted from upon his hands” (translation follows Artscroll).
Not only is the pasuk a reference to being taken captive, but also has the Philistines shouting with excitement over their prisoner. When I commented that such diseased excitement is something that was pathetically then happening in real time, Rav Elyashiv also expressed amazement.
The town lechi where Shimshon was taken was only named so due to the miracle with the jawbone (lechi) that was about to take place, making the true name for this town a mystery. I therefore wondered aloud to Rav Elyashiv if the town of ‘lechi’ mentioned in the pasuk is a reference to Chevron, as some of the reports regarding Rav Elyashiv’s Goral HaGra assert.
Rav Elyashiv responded by quoting some peirushim who indeed say so.
However, he then gave me a stern warning. Not only was he not comfortable asserting any meaning to this ambiguous verse – as this verse could also indicate negative news -but such assertions can be damaging.
As we now know, his fears proved correct.
I often repeat this story as a warning to those who assert the koach to declare predestined victories theorugh remez.
This came to mind again last Wednesday, the 22nd of sivan, when many were speaking of similar messages.
Here is an example of one message:
“Historic call to the Jewish people: …Tomorrow, Thursday, June 19th, is 23rd of sivan-the day King Achashveirosh accepted Esher’s request allowing Jews to defend themselves against our enemies. This marked the beginning if the turnaround of Purim. And on this same day, in our generation, we once again see Hashem turning in favor of Israel….”
It’s all very tempting, as the story of Purim indeed took place in present-day Iran.
And, who knows? Even though we now know that noting visily took place last week, perhaps something occurred on that day that will lead to an ultimate salvation.
However, as Rav Elyashiv shared with me a decade ago, we must always weary of ‘predictions’, or that we are on the level to decipher such codes.
Many chashuvim were careful not to do so, and only to said that this is a day to give thanks to Hashem and daven that something similar happen.
When I was newly married, my in-laws lived in Toronto. Their neighbor
was Rav Reuvein Chinn, whose father was the renown rav in McKeesport, PA. Each sukkos, showing kavod to Rav Chinn senior, Rav Shmuel Kamenetzky would stop by the Chinn’s, and my wife and I would go to their sukkah to greet the rosh yeshiva.
It was there that I asked Rav Shmuel if the following story was true.
When his father, Rav Yaakov, was a rav in Toronto there was man who
kept his store open on Shabbos. One Shabbos morning, Rav
Yaakov was surprised to first see that this man’s store closed and to then be greeted by him in shul.
The man explained that he had to close his store this week, as a
certain mekubal in Yerushalaim said moshiach was arriving this coming
Tuesday!
Rav Yaakov is purported to have responded, “Of course, we hope for
moshiach every day, achakeh lo b’chol yom sheyavo. And, maybe he
will come this Tuesday, maybe even before and maybe, sadly, after. But I can assure you that even if moshiach arrives on Tuesday, it will have nothing to do with this ‘mekubal’”
The man took his rav’s words to heart, and upon taking in this information, he got up, took off his tallis, and left shul to open his store.
They asked Rav Yaakov, “Why would you dash his hope? He was
finally observing Shabbos?!”
Rav Yaakov explained that even though this man has thus far failed in his nisayon for paranassa and working on Shabbos, so long as he believes in the core tenants of yiddeshkeit there is always hope for his complete return.
However, if the reason he now chooses to close his store is only because he is certain moshiach will arrive on Tuesday, then what happens if challila moshiach doesn’t show?
We then risk that he will lose all faith, even in basic tenants, thus shattering any hope of his future return!
Rav Shmuel confirmed this story and shared that he was the one who asked!
As to Haman and present-day Iran:
Many wonder why Mordechai waited seventy days request a second letter declaring that Jews may defend themselves. Haman was hanged on the sixteenth of nissan, and klal yisroel was still in turmoil over the upcoming gezeira, so why wait?Rav Yonasan Eibishitz adds that there was no guarantee that Mordechai and Esther would have such palace opportunities again, or even be alive, so delaying this request until the 23rd of sivan seems inexplicable(Yaaros Devash, 1:17)?
Many answers are offered (see Maharal, Ohr Chadash 8:9; Ralbag, 8:3; Shevet Mussar; Ahavas Dovid (Chida) drush 5, et al.)
Since we mentioned the goral of his name, we will conclude with the Gra’s approach: By waiting, the very same people who delivered the first decree were available to deliver the second one. This would destroy any doubt as to the veracity of this second letter – from both Jew of Gentile.
In this regard, may we have a similar end to this conflict-crystal clear to all parties that innocent blood being shed will be tolerated no more.
Shul Chronicles 
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