The Rising Lion

The Texas meteorologists said that they gave warnings. So why did nobody heed them? 

The Floods

The floods in Texas captured everyone’s attention—especially during those first few days when there was still hope of rescuing more people. Tragically, it became clear that there were at least 111 deaths, and nearly 200 people are still missing. The governor of Texas openly stated that the number could still rise.

And like always, whenever disaster strikes, the finger-pointing starts right away. Some blamed the meteorological service for not issuing a strong enough warning before the flood. The forecasters argued that they did give adequate warning, but it was the local authorities who didn’t take it seriously.

The governor of Texas added that the real problem is that in that area, there are no sirens or alarm systems in place to warn people about extreme weather events. He even gave Israel as an example—where, when a missile is incoming, alarms blare so loudly that it’s nearly impossible to ignore, giving everyone a chance to take shelter.

So who really is at fault?

When Lives Are At Stake

We have a member of our community who studied meteorology at university, and became a military weather forecaster after he graduated in 1968.

He told me that when he was stationed in the desert between San Diego and San Francisco, he one day received word that his colonel—the commanding officer responsible for the entire area—wanted to see him. They sent a special vehicle to drive him sixty miles just to meet with the colonel. He was a young and nervous soldier, and as you can imagine, he was a bit overwhelmed at the thought of meeting such a high-ranking officer.

He arrived at the meeting and the colonel said to him, “I’m about to send more than three hundred soldiers into the desert for survival training. I called you here because I need to know what kind of weather they’ll be facing.”

He was eager to be useful. “Sir,” he said, “during the day, the desert heat can soar up to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, but at night, it gets freezing cold. It can drop down to 40 degrees.”

In short, he tried to explain to the colonel that surviving in the desert wasn’t just about heat—it was about extremes: searing heat by day and bitter cold at night. But the colonel suddenly began yelling at him: “That’s nonsense! If it’s hot during the day, it can’t possibly be cold at night—it’s a desert!” And with that, he angrily dismissed him from the office.

A month later, he got a call from the colonel’s office. The colonel wanted to see him the next morning at 6:00 am —and the person delivering the message made it clear: “The colonel is not happy with you at all.”

The moment he walked into the office, the colonel shouted, “Stop right there!” and started yelling at him: “Why didn’t you tell me how cold it gets in the desert at night?! I have thirty soldiers in the hospital suffering from hypothermia—some of them almost lost consciousness from the cold! Sixty more are sick with fevers and severe colds—all because you failed to warn me how dangerous the nighttime temperatures are!”

The soldier tried to defend himself. “Sir, I did tell you it gets very cold at night. I even said they’d need proper clothing.” 

But the colonel shouted back, “Maybe that’s what you said—but it’s not what I heard! All I heard was that it’s a desert and it’s hot during the day.” 

Then the colonel added something the soldier never forgot: “You should never have left my office until you were sure I understood the danger. And next time I ask you something this important—if you know you’re right—you stand your ground. Even if I throw you out of the office. Even if I fire you. If lives are on the line, don’t back down. Make sure I get it.”

The man who told me this story ended by saying, “That was one of the most important life lessons I ever learned.”

In a way, that’s exactly what happened last week in Texas. The meteorologists said there might be flooding—but maybe they said it the way someone would announce a weather update, not a life-threatening catastrophe. As a result, the local authorities didn’t take it seriously. Sadly, many people paid the price with their lives.

Who Is Really In Charge

This week we read about the prophecy of Bilam. His vision ends with the verse, “כרע שכב כארי וכלביא מי יקימנו, He crouches and lies down like a lion, and like a lioness—who dares rouse him?” (Bamidbar 24:9). 

The Rebbe explains in a maamar that this verse refers to two periods in history. 

“He crouches and lies down like a lion” hints to the time of exile—when the Jewish people are in a state of spiritual slumber. 

When someone is asleep, they lose the power of sight; they cannot see what’s happening around them. When we say that the Jewish people are “asleep” in exile, we mean that their spiritual vision is dulled. What is spiritual vision? The prophet Isaiah says, “שאו מרום עיניכם וראו מי ברא אלה, Lift up your eyes on high and see: Who created these?” (Yeshayahu 40:26). A Jew is meant to open their eyes, look upward, and recognize that the entire magnificent world around them is the handiwork of G-d.

But in exile, we are asleep. We are wrapped up in ourselves, convinced we are in control of our lives. We decide what should happen and how it should unfold—and when things don’t go our way, we get frustrated and angry. But if we would only open our eyes and recognize Who created the world, and who runs the show, we would be spared so much aggravation and heartache.

But there’s a higher level. The Gemara tells us that Alexander the Great once asked the Jewish sages, “Who is truly considered wise?” They answered him with the Mishnah’s definition: “איזהו חכם הרואה את הנולד, Who is wise? One who sees what is born.” (Tamid 32a)

On a simple level, it refers to someone who considers the consequences of their actions. If he eats too much candy, he knows his blood sugar will spike. If he overeats, he sees that weight gain and health problems will follow. If he yells at someone, he realizes it will lead to needing to apologize. A wise person sees the outcome.

But the Alter Rebbe, in Chapter 43 of Tanya, gives a revolutionary interpretation. He explains that “seeing what is born” means seeing how everything in the world is constantly being born—created—by G-d. A truly wise person looks at anything and immediately realizes: this came into existence from Hashem. It wasn’t here before, and it’s only here now because G-d is constantly creating and sustaining it. That’s someone who lives with deep awareness of the Creator.

In exile, we walk around with our eyes closed. Somehow, we just don’t see Who’s running the show. Just like in Texas—yes, the meteorologists gave warnings, but the officials were “asleep.” It’s not that they didn’t know—it’s that they didn’t internalize it. That’s exile: everyone knows G-d runs the world; we all say it. But we don’t live it. We don’t absorb it.

The Awakening

But then something shakes the world—and suddenly, the “lion” wakes up. The Jewish people wake up. And when they do, they rise like a lion—and like a lavi, a young lion. The Zohar teaches that the lion is powerful, but the young lion is even more fierce. When October 7th happened, it jolted us awake. And the Jewish nation rose—not just to fight, but to reconnect. To reconnect to G-d.

We see this awakening even in Israel’s Prime Minister. Since the war began, he’s been constantly invoking G-d’s name. He ends nearly every speech with the words, “With G-d’s help, together we will prevail.” Before launching the operation in Iran, he went to the Kotel to pray for G-d’s help in the success of the mission—and afterward, he returned again to thank G-d for the miracles.

Lately, he’s been publicly repeating that it’s the Rebbe who gives him strength to face the immense challenges he’s up against.

Last week, the deputy mayor of Beitar reached out to my brother, Rabbi Chaim Greenberg. He told him he had an upcoming meeting with Bibi and wanted to bring a meaningful spiritual gift to encourage him during this difficult time. My brother suggested giving him a dollar from the Rebbe—a dollar he had received from the Rebbe—as a source of strength. He passed it on, and they placed it in a beautiful leather cover, with an inscription noting that it was a gift for Bibi.

The deputy mayor did meet with Bibi and gave him the Rebbe’s dollar. The meeting took place just before Bibi’s flight to the United States for his meeting with the U.S. President. When Bibi received the dollar, he was visibly moved. Then he asked, “Is there any chance you have another dollar from the Rebbe? I’d like to give one to Trump.”

The deputy mayor reached out to my brother again, and he gave him another dollar. They raced to prepare an elegant case, and minutes before Bibi’s delegation boarded the plane, they handed it off to his team.

And indeed, when Bibi met with Trump, he gave him the Rebbe’s dollar. Along with it, he presented a mezuzah, encased in a custom holder shaped like the B2 stealth bomber—the plane used in the Iranian strike—crafted from the remnants of an Iranian missile. 

When the Prime Minister of Israel gives the President of the United States a mezuzah and a dollar from the Rebbe, it’s another sign that the spiritual lion is awakening. 

Soon, we will merit to see the final words of Bilaam’s prophecy fulfilled: “דרך כוכב מיעקב וקם שבט מישראל, A star shall go forth from Jacob, and a scepter shall arise from Israel”—a clear reference, our Sages say, to Moshiach himself.

(Adapted from Jewish Insights, Balak 5785, based on the maamar “Kara Shachav Ka’ari”, Yud Beis Tammuz 5716.)