Fleeing honor returns glory to Hashem

במד' ויתאו המלך יפיך כי הוא אדוניך והשתחוי לו כו' עפ"י מ"ש רש"י להודיע טבעך בעולם וכן בפסוק ואגדלה שמך וכי הי' רצון אאע"ה להגדיל שמו וכבודו.

In the Midrash: "And the King will desire your beauty, for He is your Master, so bow to Him" (Tehillim 45:12) — based on what Rashi wrote, "to make your nature known in the world," and likewise on the pasuk "and I will make your name great" (Bereishis 12:2); but was it really the desire of Avraham Avinu to magnify his own name and honor?

The Sefas Emes raises the difficulty: the Torah promises Avraham a "great name," yet Avraham surely had no interest in personal glory — so what does this promise mean?

אך כי המלך חפץ בכבודו ובעבור זה הוא נכלל בכבוד המלך ב"ה וב"ש ז"ש ויתאו המלך יפיך כ"ה אדוניך דאיתא הבורח מן הכבוד הכבוד רודף אחריו ומה תועלת לו בזה כיון שאינו חפץ בו ובורח ממנו.

Rather, it is that the King desires His own honor, and on account of this Avraham becomes included in the honor of the King, blessed and praised be He. This is "and the King will desire your beauty, for He is your Master." For it is brought: one who flees from honor — honor pursues him; but what benefit is there to him in this, since he does not desire it and flees from it?

Avraham's "honor" is really Hashem's: Avraham is included in the King's glory. The Sefas Emes then asks about Chazal's saying that honor chases the one who flees it — what good is that honor to a person who genuinely wants nothing of it?

רק הפי' שצריך אדם לברוח מן הכבוד כדי שלא להתלבש ח"ו בלבוש המלך כי הקב"ה הוא מלך הכבוד ולכן זה שמחזיר הכבוד להשי"ת. אליו הכבוד רודף כדי להרבות כבוד ה' כי במה שמתכבד יותר ובורח ממנו עי"ז יחזור כל הכבוד למלך הכבוד ז"ש מכבדי אכבד וזה ענין מה שנקרא הקב"ה מלך הכבוד וז"ש כי הוא אדוניך כמ"ש חז"ל בעבור אברהם שקראך אדון כו'.

Rather, the meaning is that a person must flee from honor so as not to clothe himself, Heaven forbid, in the garment of the King — for Hashem is the King of Honor (Melech HaKavod). Therefore, the one who returns the honor to Hashem — to him honor pursues, in order to increase the honor of Hashem; for through being honored more while fleeing from it, all the honor returns to the King of Honor. This is "those who honor Me I will honor" (I Shmuel 2:30). And this is the matter of Hashem being called Melech HaKavod. And this is "for He is your Master," as Chazal said, "on account of Avraham who called You 'Master'…"

One must flee honor because kavod is the King's "garment," and to take it for oneself is to don the King's robe. The one who keeps deflecting honor back to Hashem is precisely the one honor chases — so that all of it flows back to the Melech HaKavod. "Those who honor Me I will honor" works through such a person, who turns every honor he receives back to Hashem.

ועי"ז שמצא הקב"ה לבבו של אבינו אברהם נאמן לפניו לכן רצה הקב"ה להודיע שמו וכבודו בעולם כדי להטות הכל אליו ית'.

And because Hashem found the heart of our father Avraham faithful before Him, therefore Hashem desired to make his name and honor known in the world, in order to turn everything toward Him, may He be blessed.

Since Avraham's heart was wholly trustworthy in deflecting all honor to Hashem, Hashem chose to magnify Avraham's name — precisely as a means of drawing the whole world toward Hashem.

וז"ש והשתחוי לו שבכח הכנעתו להשי"ת יכניע כולם שהם כפופים אליו כנ"ל.

And this is "so bow to Him" — that through the power of his submission to Hashem, he subdues all of them, who are bent toward Him, as above.

Avraham's own self-subjugation (hachna'ah) to Hashem has the power to bring everyone else into submission to Him as well.

וגם מ"ש ואעשך לגוי גדול כו' וכי צריך הקב"ה לחנפו בזה ההבטחה כי בודאי בלא זה יעשה רצון המקום ב"ה.

And also that which is said, "and I will make you into a great nation" — does Hashem need to flatter him with this promise? For surely even without it he would do the will of the Omnipresent, blessed be He.

Another difficulty: why promise Avraham greatness as if to entice him, when Avraham would obviously fulfill Hashem's will regardless of any reward?

רק הפי' שהודיעהו שהכל תלוי בו ושידע שבהתחזקו בעבודתו יטה את כל בנ"י אחריו ושיקבל עליו זה העבודה רבה וכמו כן צריך כ"א לידע שהכל תלוי בו כנ"ל:

Rather, the meaning is that He informed him that everything depends on him, and that he should know that by strengthening himself in his avodah he would turn all of Bnei Yisrael after him, and that he should take upon himself this great avodah. And likewise every person must know that everything depends on him, as above.

The promise was not flattery but information and a charge: Avraham's effort would draw all his descendants after him, so he must shoulder this great avodah. And the lesson is universal — each person must realize that everything depends on him.

Summary: The promise to "make Avraham's name great" was not about personal glory, for Avraham sought none. Because kavod is the "garment" of the Melech HaKavod, one must flee honor and deflect it back to Hashem — and such a person is the very one whom honor pursues, so that all glory returns to the King. Avraham's faithful, self-subjugating heart made him fit to have his name magnified, since that name would draw the whole world toward Hashem. So too the promise "I will make you a great nation" was a charge, not flattery: Avraham's avodah would draw all his descendants after him — and likewise every person must know that everything depends on him.