Prayer and Torah Learning Protect Us

Various Ma'amarei Haza"l about how Torah study and prayer protect the Jewish people:

Vayikra Rabba 25:1:

אמרי רב הונא בשם ר' בנימין בן לוי אמר משל למלך שאמר לבנו צא לפרקמטיא אמר לו אבא מתיירא אני בדרך מהלסטים ובים מפני אפורטין מה עשה אביו נטל מקל וחקקו ונתן בו קמיע ונתנה לבנו ואמר לו יהי המקל הזה בידך ואי אתה מתיירא משום בריה אף כך אמר הקב"ה למשה אמור לישראל בני עסקו בתורה ואין אתם מתייראים משום אומה

They say that Rav Huna said in the name of Ribbi Binyamin Ben Levi: It is a parable to a King who told his son to go out for business. He [the son] said, "Father, I am afraid of thieves on the road and pirates at sea!" What did his father do? He took a staff, made an engraving in it, and put an amulet inside and gave it to his son and told him, "Let this staff be in your hands and you will not fear any creature." Similarly, HKB"H said to Moshe, "Tell Israel: My children: busy yourselves with Torah and you will not fear any nation."

Sota 21a:

א"ר יוסף מצוה בעידנא דעסיק בה מגנא ומצלא בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא תורה בין בעידנא דעסיק בה ובין בעידנא דלא עסיק בה מגנא ומצלא מתקיף לה רבה אלא מעתה דואג ואחיתופל מי לא עסקי בתורה אמאי לא הגינה עלייהו אלא אמר רבא תורה בעידנא דעסיק בה מגנא ומצלא בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא מצוה בין בעידנא דעסיק בה בין בעידנא דלא עסיק בה אגוני מגנא אצולי לא מצלא

Rav Yosef said: A mitzva, while you are busy with it, protects [you from suffering - Rashi] and saves [you from the Yetzer Hara - Rashi]. While you are not busy with it, it protects, but does not save. Torah, while you are busy with it or not busy with it, protects and saves. Rabba attacked this statement: If that were true, Do'eg and Ahitofel, did they not busy themselves with Torah? Why did it not save them [from their Yetzer Hara - Rashi]? Rather, Rava says: Torah, when you are busy with it, protects and saves. When you are not busy with it, it protects, but does not save. A Mitzva, while you are busy with it or not busy with it, protects, but does not save.

Tanhuma Matot 3:

 ויש אומרים, שלשת אלפים מכל שבט ושבט. שנים עשר אלף חלוצי צבא, ושנים עשר אלף לשמור את הכלים, ועליהם הוא אומר, שניך כעדר הקצובות וגו' (שה"ש ד ב). ושנים עשר אלף לתפלה. ומנין. שכך כתיב, אלף למטה אלף למטה, הרי שני אלפים. וימסרו מאלפי ישראל. מהו וימסרו. שהם נמסרין זוגות זה לזה.

And some say 3000 [men went to war against Midian] from each tribe. [Altogether,] it is 12,000 soldiers and 12,000 men guarding the armaments, and upon them, it is said: שניך כעדר הקצובות וגו' (Shir Hashirim 4:2). And 12,000 for prayer. And how do we know this? As it is written, "1000 per tribe, 1000 per tribe" - that's 2000. "So there were delivered, out of the thousands of Israel, [a thousand of every tribe]" [- adding another 1000 per tribe to make 3000.] What does it mean, "So there were delivered?" That they gave themselves up to pair up one for the other.

Soheir Tov 27:4:

אם תחנה עלי מחנה, אומות העולם לא יירא לבי, ואם תקום עלי מלחמה בזאת אני בוטח, בתורה שנקראת זאת, שנאמר זאת התורה

[It says:] "Though a host should encamp against me" - of the nations of the world - "my heart shall not fear" and "though war should rise up against me, even then will I be confident." With the Torah that is called Zot, as it says, "Zot Hatorah...".

Gittin 7a:

...דום לה' והתחולל לו דום לה' והוא יפילם חללים חללים השכם והערב עליהן לבית המדרש והן כלין מאליהן

...[It says]: "Resign thyself unto the LORD, and wait patiently for Him." Resign yourself to Hashem and He will cause [your enemies] to fall as many corpses. Get up early and stay up late against them in the Beit Midrash and they will be destroyed automatically.

Berachot 7b:

ואמר רבי יוחנן משום רבי שמעון בן יוחי כל הקובע מקום {לתפילתו\לתורתו} אויביו נופלים תחתיו...

And Ribbi Yohanan said in the name of Ribbi Shimon ben Yohai: Whoever sets a place for his {prayer/Torah study}, his enemies will fall below him...

Lemaan Shemo Be'ahava website:

ונאמר בתהלים (קי"ח, י') "כל גוים סבבוני בשם ה' כי אמילם, סבוני גם סבבוני בשם ה' כי אמילם, סבוני כדבורים דעכו כאש קוצים בשם ה' כי אמילם".

ידוע בשם ה' שמדובר בלימוד התורה, כפי שהגמרא בברכות (כ"א) למדה מהפסוק "כי שם ה' אקרא הבו גודל לאלוקינו". מכאן לברכת התורה לפני שלומדים תורה, שכל התורה היא שמותיו של הקב"ה, ומהפסוקים הללו למדנו היאך להתגבר על שונאינו ומבקשי רעתנו, שזה בלימוד התורה.

And it says in Tehillim (118:10) "All nations compass me about; verily, in the name of the LORD I will cut them off.  They compass me about, yea, they compass me about; verily, in the name of the LORD I will cut them off.  They compass me about like bees; they are quenched as the fire of thorns; verily, in the name of the LORD I will cut them off."  It is known that "in the name of the LORD" is speaking about Torah study, as the gemara in Berachot 21a learns from the verse "For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe ye greatness unto our God."  From here, we learn that we must recite Birkat Hatorah before we learn Torah because the entire Torah is the names of HKB"H, and from these verses, we learn how to overcome our enemies and those who seek to harm us - through learning Torah.

See more from Rabbeinu Bahye on Pirkei Avot starting here.

More about the importance of Torah study from Wikipedia:

• The study of Torah is considered to outweigh a number of mitzvot, such as visiting the sick, honouring one's parents, and bringing peace between people (Shabbat 127a). This paragraph was incorporated in the daily prayer service.
• A number of Talmudic rabbis consider Torah study as being greater than the rescue of human life, than the building of the Temple in Jerusalem, and than the honor of father and mother (Megilah 16b), provided that the individual's life will be saved by someone else.[citation needed]
• According to R. Meir, when one studies Torah for its own sake (Torah Lishma - תורה לשמה) the [the creation of] entire world is worthwhile for him alone, and he brings joy to G-d (Avot 6:1).
• As the child must satisfy its hunger day by day, so must the grown man busy himself with the Torah each hour (Yerushalmi, Berakhot ch. 9).
• Torah study is of more value than the offering of daily sacrifice (Eruvin 63b).
• A single day devoted to the Torah outweighs 1,000 sacrifices (Tractate Shabbat 30a; comp. Tractate Menachot 100a).
• The fable of the Fish and the Fox [1], in which the latter seeks to entice the former to dry land, declares Israel can live only in the Law as fish can live only in the ocean (Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot 61b).
• Whoever learns Torah at night is granted grace during the day and whoever neglects it will be fed burning coals in the World to Come. (Avodah Zarah 3b).
• God weeps over one who might have occupied himself with Torah study but neglected to do so (Tractate Hagigah 5b).
• The study must be unselfish: one should study the Torah with self-denial, even at the sacrifice of one's life; and in the very hour before death one should devote himself to this duty (Tractate Shabbat 83b).
• All, even lepers and the ritually unclean, are required to study the Torah (Tractate Berakhot 22a).
• It is the duty of everyone to read the entire weekly portion twice (the law of shnayim mikra ve-echad targum, Tractate Berakhot 8a).
• According to R. Meir, a Gentile who studies the Torah (for the purpose of finding out about the Noachide Laws) is as great as the High Priest (Tractate Avodah Zarah 3a).
• According to R. Yehudah, God Himself studies the Torah for the first three hours of every day. (Tractate Avodah Zarah 3b).