Musar for Shabbat 62:6

We must always remember that nothing evil descends upon Israel from the Celestial Regions, since Israel remains at all times in the category of בנים אתם לה' אלוקיכם, "you are children of the Lord your G–d" (Deut. 14,1). Even when G–d is angry at Israel, such as when He allows the destruction of the Temple and Israel's dispersion among the nations of the earth, this is only for Israel's good. Just as the discipline a father administers to his son is due to his love for him, so the Lord disciplines us, and it is all for our own good. Such discipline aims to refine us who are His first born among all the nations. He aims to cleanse us of the stains of sins and iniquity, and thereby cause us to return to Him in penitence, so that ultimately we will be totally pure, without any blemish. We will explain this when we discuss the portions that are usually read in public during the period between the 17th day of Tammuz and the 9th day of Av, the anniversary of the destruction of the Holy Temple. When that objective will have been reached, the prophecy contained in Psalms 30,2: "I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up and not let my enemies rejoice over me, "will be fulfilled. The word דליתנו can mean one of two things. It could be explained as coming from the root דל, "poor," or it could be an expression denoting "elevation." Poverty and troubles may be the causes that bring us a surfeit of light, over and beyond the light we enjoyed prior to our having been plunged into darkness (through exile, etc.). This great light emanates from the very darkness into which G–d has plunged us, so that thereby great enlightenment may emerge, a process similar to blood which eventually is converted into milk that is pure white. In a similar fashion, G–d turned the curse (of Bileam) into a blessing. The curse was not replaced by a blessing, but eventually became a blessing. Thus the destruction of the Temple is actually the beginning of its restoration. It was the catalyst that alone would lead to the condition of תם עונך בת ציון, "Your iniquity is expiated, Fair Zion; He will exile you no longer" (Lamentations 4,22). At that time, the great Temple, the everlasting one will be built. Because חורבן is the commencement of rebuilding, we conduct ourselves with dignity just as we did when the Temple was still standing; destruction is the true cause of an enduring Temple, i.e. the true ישוב. Halachah recognizes this phenomenon. We are culpable for certain kinds of destructive activities on the Sabbath despite the rule of כל המקלקלים פטורים, "all who ruin something on the Sabbath are not culpable" (Shabbat 106). The exceptions are destructive activities which are a necessary precondition to constructive activities, such as the tearing down of a structure in order to enable a new structure to rise in its place (compare Shabbat 31b). Our prophets have assured us that the fast-days we observe nowadays on the 17th of Tammuz and the 9th of Av respectively will become great holidays on the reconstruction of the Temple (Zecharyah 8,19).

Though Pharaoh had intended the opposite, and even Moses had remonstrated with G–d (Exodus 5,22-23), he was taught that this was an occasion when in order to build anew, one must first tear down the old. The very addition of affliction resulted in accelerated redemption.