Musar su Cantico dei cantici 8:7

The fifth quality: The pious man considers every labor and trouble a pleasure and a joy in serving God, blessed be He. For our father, Abraham, peace be upon him, was afflicted with wanderings and was tried by many trials, yet he endured them and accepted everything graciously. For from his very youth, the Creator, blessed be He, tried him by journeys, and afterwards by having Sarah taken from him twice, and after that by circumcision, and after that by directing him to send Ishmael away, and after that by instructing him to slaughter Isaac. If his service had been out of fear and not out of love, it could not have endured all those trials. But because of his love for God, blessed be He, everything was sweet in his eyes. As it is said (Song of Songs 8:7), “Many waters cannot quench love.”

Remember that Abraham's principal attribute was his characteristic of חסד. The mystical element of חסד is found in the מים העליונים, pure unpolluted waters of the Celestial Regions. The attribute of חסד is also the mystical domain of אהבה, love, as we shall explain. Once Abraham had acquired the virtue of חסד he could enter the domain of אהבה, love, and that is why G–d called him אוהבי. We are told in Song of Songs 8,7 that even מים רבים, many waters, cannot extinguish love. The waters referred to are the מקור מים חיים, the source of truly life-giving waters. There are, however, many cisterns, broken and yet filled, which cannot retain the waters in them. In Kabbalistic jargon these are called קליפות; they are alluded to in Genesis 37,24 as והבור רק אין בו מים, "the pit was empty it did not contain any water." We know from Psalms 52,3: חסד אל כל היום, that "G–d's חסד lasts all day long," though we also have a verse in Psalms 7,12 which appears to contradict this, namely א-ל זועם בכל יום, "G–d pronounces doom each day." The answer is simply that G–d pronounces doom over these קליפות, negative forces, reducing them to impotence. This is the חסד G–d performs all day long. Ezekiel 36,25 may have alluded to this when he says: וזרקתי עליכם מים טהורים וטהרתם מכל טמאותיכם, "I shall sprinkle on you pure waters and you will be cleansed from all your impurities. These waters wash off the accumulated pollution known as קליפות, the result of sins. It is these waters which are called מעטים, little. The reason that "a little water" is sufficient is that קליפות do not increase or multiply naturally, as opposed to קדושה, which increases and multiplies naturally; that is why מים רבים, many waters, are unable to extinguish the "fire" of love, and love continues forever. The principal aspect of the virtue of kindness is deeply rooted in the mystical domain of those מים רבים discussed above On occasion some of these waters have to be used in order to rinse off the קליפות and to "humble" such outgrowths due to sins. This is why Abraham spoke about "a little water to be taken."

To return to the miracle of the woodpile on the altar not being extinguished by rain. The corresponding fire in the Heavenly Regions is a mystical dimension involving the souls of the righteous which the archangel Michael sacrifices on that altar. We have explained that the word גשם in its original meaning expresses the outpouring of spiritual largesse to regions in the various worlds, such spiritual largesse eventually to be perceived in this physical world as rain. The ability to absorb such spiritual largesse without being overwhelmed by it is tested, so to speak, by the souls in those regions. The souls have to demonstrate their ability to maintain an affinity with the Divine while assigned to this world. The souls who pass this test have demonstrated love for their spiritual origin. Once they have done this theirs is the kind of love of which Solomon has said in Song of Songs 8,7 that the most powerful waters cannot extinguish such love, i.e. the fire symbolizing such love. So much for the five miracles that pertain to the body.