Tag Archives: connections

September 11, 2014 · 19:07

Ki Tavo – A Portion in the World to Come

As the sixth of the seven Haftarot of Consolation, the Haftarah of Ki Tavo describes an advanced stage of Redemption. Unlike earlier stages, which are called by Chazal, “עתיד לבא”, “the Future”, this stage is called “עולם הבא”, “the World to Come”. Some of what we know about the World to Come is learned from a verse in this Haftarah:

כל ישראל יש להם חלק לעולם הבא שנאמר (ישעיה ס’) ועמך כולם צדיקים לעולם יירשו ארץ נצר מטעי מעשי ידי להתפאר
All of the Jewish People have a share in the World to Come, as it says, (Yeshayahu 60:21): “Your nation will all be righteous, forever they will inherit the land; the blossoms that I planted, My handiwork, in which I glory.”
(Mishna Sanhedrin 10:1)

Surprisingly, even though we learn from the Haftarah that all of the Jewish People will be righteous and have a share in the World to Come, a very small portion of its text describes the Jewish People and how righteous they are. The bulk of the Haftarah talks about the Nations of the World and their desire to contribute toward our Redemption. For instance, the Haftarah talks about the rebuilding of the Temple. We might have thought that it would describe how the Jewish People all contribute toward building it, just as the Torah describes the donations that were used to build the Mishkan in the desert. Instead, it says the following:

כָּל צֹאן קֵדָר יִקָּבְצוּ לָךְ אֵילֵי נְבָיוֹת יְשָׁרְתוּנֶךְ יַעֲלוּ עַל רָצוֹן מִזְבְּחִי וּבֵית תִּפְאַרְתִּי אֲפָאֵר…
כִּי לִי אִיִּים יְקַוּוּ וָאֳנִיּוֹת … כַּסְפָּם וּזְהָבָם אִתָּם לְשֵׁם ה’ אֱ-לֹהַיִךְ וְלִקְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי פֵאֲרָךְ…
כְּבוֹד הַלְּבָנוֹן אֵלַיִךְ יָבוֹא בְּרוֹשׁ תִּדְהָר וּתְאַשּׁוּר יַחְדָּו לְפָאֵר מְקוֹם מִקְדָּשִׁי וּמְקוֹם רַגְלַי אֲכַבֵּד
All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered to you, the rams of Nevayot, in your service, to be brought willingly at My altar, the House of My glory, I will make glorious….

To Me the islands gather…their silver and gold with them, in the Name of Hashem, your G-d, for the Holy One of Israel, who makes you glorious…..

The best of the forests of Lebanon will come to you, fir trees, pine trees, and boxwood, all together, to make glorious the place of My Temple, and the place of My abode I will make honored. (Yeshayahu 60:7,13)

According to these verses, it will not be the Jewish people who build the Temple. It will be the Nations of the World who contribute both money and raw materials toward its construction, with the goal of making it outstandingly beautiful and glorious.

Even when it talks about our achievements during that era, the Haftarah phrases them in terms of how they look to the Nations of the World:

וְקָרָאת יְשׁוּעָה חוֹמֹתַיִךְ וּשְׁעָרַיִךְ תְּהִלָּה
Your justice system will be called salvation, and your courts, a source of praise. (Yeshayahu 60:18)

Usually, the prophets describe the courts of the Jewish People as just and righteous. Here, the Haftarah describes them as being praised throughout the world.

The implication is that the World To Come is not about us and what we do. Instead, it is about what we project to others. It is all about the praise and the glory.

In Parshat Ki Tavo, we read a handful of verses can be easily overlooked, as they do not appear to tell us anything that we haven’t heard before:

וַה’ הֶאֱמִירְךָ הַיּוֹם לִהְיוֹת לוֹ לְעַם סְגֻלָּה כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לָךְ וְלִשְׁמֹר כָּל מִצְוֹתָיו:
וּלְתִתְּךָ עֶלְיוֹן עַל כָּל הַגּוֹיִם אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה לִתְהִלָּה וּלְשֵׁם וּלְתִפְאָרֶת וְלִהְיֹתְךָ עַם קָדֹשׁ לַה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֵּר
Hashem has committed you today to be for Him a unique nation, as He has told you, and to keep all His commandments. And to place you supreme among all the nations that He has made, for praise, for the Name, and for glory, and for you to become a nation holy to Hashem your G-d, as He has told you. (Devarim 26:18,19)

It begins with our familiar mission statement: to be G-d’s people and keep His commandments. Then, it lays out the objective of our mission: praise, reputation (“Name”), and glory.

It is not enough to just be holy, just to keep G-d’s commandments. It is not meaningful to be G-d’s representatives on Earth if nobody is aware that this is what you are doing . If people don’t see what it is like to have G-d’s Presence among human beings, then they will never believe that it is possible. If G-d’s light is hidden from them, then they will never aim to share in it. Therefore, in order to fulfil the purpose of the Torah, the entire world must be aware of the holiness that it creates in the Jewish People. There needs to be praise and glory.

The Haftarah tells us that the World to Come will be a time when the actions of the Jewish People are not only consistent with G-d’s will, but they are also understood by all to be G-d’s will. The relationship between G-d and the Jewish People will be so strong, so palpable, so visible, that it will inspire universal admiration and emulation, fulfilling the mission as stated in the Parsha. The Nations of the World will wish to be a part of the glory, they will wish to contribute to the Temple and to the connection with G-d that it represents, and G-d will welcome their participation.

All of the Jewish People have a portion in the World to Come. According to the Haftarah, the World to Come is not limited to the Jewish People; it has enough portions for the entire world.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

Leave a Comment

Filed under Connections, Ki Tavo, Sefer Devarim, Sheva de'Nechemta

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

August 21, 2014 · 15:42

Re’eh – The Standard of Leadership

As the third of the series of seven Haftarot of Consolation, the Haftarah of Re’eh talks about a time when the nations of the world will turn to the Jewish People for guidance and leadership.

הַטּוּ אָזְנְכֶם וּלְכוּ אֵלַי שִׁמְעוּ וּתְחִי נַפְשְׁכֶם וְאֶכְרְתָה לָכֶם בְּרִית עוֹלָם חַסְדֵי דָוִד הַנֶּאֱמָנִים: הֵן עֵד לְאוּמִּים נְתַתִּיו נָגִיד וּמְצַוֵּה לְאֻמִּים: הֵן גּוֹי לֹא תֵדַע תִּקְרָא וְגוֹי לֹא יְדָעוּךָ אֵלֶיךָ יָרוּצוּ לְמַעַן ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ וְלִקְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי פֵאֲרָךְ
Lend me your ears, and come to me, listen and your souls will live! I will make with you an everlasting covenant: like that of David’s steadfast loyalty. Truly, I have made him a witness to the nations, a leader and a commander of nations. Truly, you will call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you, will run to you, for the sake of Hashem, your G-d, for the Holy One of Israel, Who glorifies you! (Yeshayahu 55:3-5)

This is a reference to an earlier prophecy of Yeshayahu, which describes this era in greater detail:

וְשָׁפַט בֵּין הַגּוֹיִם וְהוֹכִיחַ לְעַמִּים רַבִּים וְכִתְּתוּ חַרְבוֹתָם לְאִתִּים וַחֲנִיתוֹתֵיהֶם לְמַזְמֵרוֹת לֹא יִשָּׂא גוֹי אֶל גּוֹי חֶרֶב וְלֹא יִלְמְדוּ עוֹד מִלְחָמָה
And he will judge between nations, and reprove many peoples, and they will beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning forks. Nation will not lift sword against nation,and they shall learn war no more (Yeshayahu 2:4)

In order for there to be peace among the nations, there first needs to be justice and leadership. The Tanach’s gold standard against which all leaders are measured is King David. Whenever the Tanach judges his descendants, it uses what one might call a Davidic scale. For instance, his great-grandson Asa is described thus:

וַיַּעַשׂ אָסָא הַיָּשָׁר בְּעֵינֵי ה’ כְּדָוִד אָבִיו
Asa acted in an upright manner in the eyes of Hashem like his father David (Melachim I 15:11)

And a later descendant, King Amatziah ben Yoash, who did not quite live up to the standard:

וַיַּעַשׂ הַיָּשָׁר בְּעֵינֵי ה’ רַק לֹא כְּדָוִד אָבִיו
He acted in an upright manner in the eyes of Hashem, but not like his father David. (Melachim II 14:3)

Apparently, to be “like his father David”, one has to ” act in an upright manner in the eyes of Hashem.” The parallel description of the kings in Divrei HaYamim uses a slightly different wording – a king has to be not only upright, but also good:

וַיַּעַשׂ אָסָא הַטּוֹב וְהַיָּשָׁר בְּעֵינֵי ה’ אֱ-לֹהָיו:
Asa acted in a good and upright manner in the eyes of Hashem, his G-d. (Divrei HaYamim II 14:1)

Parshat Re’eh uses this term as well. When Moshe tells the Jewish People what G-d expects of them, he says:

שְׁמֹר וְשָׁמַעְתָּ אֵת כָּל הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי מְצַוֶּךָּ לְמַעַן יִיטַב לְךָ וּלְבָנֶיךָ אַחֲרֶיךָ עַד עוֹלָם כִּי תַעֲשֶׂה הַטּוֹב וְהַיָּשָׁר בְּעֵינֵי ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ
Observe and listen to all these things that I command you; in order that it will be good for you and your children after you forever, if you will act in a good and upright manner in the eyes of Hashem your G-d. (Devarim 12:28)

So, then, what is this “good and upright manner”, and how does it differ from simply “observing and listening to all the commandments”? The Ramban explains the term:

והכוונה בזה, כי מתחלה אמר שתשמור חקותיו ועדותיו אשר צוך, ועתה יאמר גם באשר לא צוך תן דעתך לעשות הטוב והישר בעיניו, כי הוא אוהב הטוב והישר:
וזה ענין גדול, לפי שאי אפשר להזכיר בתורה כל הנהגות האדם עם שכניו ורעיו וכל משאו ומתנו ותקוני הישוב והמדינות כלם, אבל אחרי שהזכיר מהם הרבה, כגון לא תלך רכיל (ויקרא יט טז), לא תקום ולא תטור (שם פסוק יח), ולא תעמוד על דם רעך (שם פסוק טז), לא תקלל חרש (שם פסוק יד), מפני שיבה תקום (שם פסוק לב), וכיוצא בהן, חזר לומר בדרך כלל שיעשה הטוב והישר בכל דבר
…The idea is that first it says to keep all the laws that He commanded, and now it says that even the things that were not commanded, one should set one’s mind on acting in a good and upright manner in His eyes, because He loves what is good and upright.

This is an important concept, because it is impossible for the Torah to list all the ways a person behaves with his friends and neighbors, and all his business dealings, and all policies for running a society. However, after listing many of them, such as “do not gossip”, “do not take revenge or bear a grudge”, “do not stand by when your friend is in danger”, “do not curse a deaf person”, “stand up before the elderly”, and so on, it also repeated it in a general form, that one should act in a good and upright manner in every way. (Ramban Devarim 6)

The Ramban says that it is not sufficient to scrupulously keep the commandments of the Torah. G-d expects more. He expects us to extrapolate, based on the commandments that He gave us, what He means by “good and upright”, and use that as our standard of behavior.

The time of peace among the nations will come when the Jewish People are a beacon of what is good and upright in G-d’s eyes, the way that King David had been, the way the Torah expects us to be. It is a very high bar to reach, but when we have done so, when our leaders are of the caliber of King David in justice and righteousness, then the nations of the world will no longer resort to war to solve their problems. Instead, they will look to Jerusalem for moral guidance and do what is good and upright in G-d’s eyes.

PDF for printing, 2 pages

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

Leave a Comment

Filed under Re'eh, Sefer Devarim, Sheva de'Nechemta

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

August 14, 2014 · 16:57

Eikev – Impossible Hope

In the second of the series of seven Haftarot of Consolation, the Haftarah of Eikev begins by airing a specific fear of the Jewish People:

וַתֹּאמֶר צִיּוֹן עֲזָבַנִי ה’
Tzion said, “Hashem has abandoned me (Yeshayahu 49:14)

The Jewish People feel that the endless exile and the desolation of the Land of Israel is a clear sign that G-d no longer cares about them. In order to give them faith and hope that they will resettle and rebuild Jerusalem, the prophet reminds them of their forebears, Avraham and Sarah:

הַבִּיטוּ אֶל אַבְרָהָם אֲבִיכֶם וְאֶל שָׂרָה תְּחוֹלֶלְכֶם כִּי אֶחָד קְרָאתִיו וַאֲבָרְכֵהוּ וְאַרְבֵּהוּ
Look to Avraham your father, and to Sarah, your founder.
For he was alone when I called him, I blessed him and multiplied him. (Yeshayahu 51:2)

How are Avraham and Sarah relevant to the Jewish People’s fear of abandonment? The Midrash explains:
כשם שנתיאשו ממנה האומות שלא נבנית והיא תבנה שנאמר האומר לירושלים תושב. … אם תמהים אתם הביטו אל אברהם אביכם ואל שרה תחוללכם (ישעיה נא) כשם שעשיתי לאברהם ולשרה כך אעשה לירושלים.
It’ll be just as the nations will have given up on her that she will ever be rebuilt, and she will be rebuilt….If you are incredulous, “look at Avraham your father and Sarah your creator” (Yeshaya 51) – just as I did it for Avraham and Sarah, so I will do for Jerusalem. (Midrash Tanchuma VaYeira 16)

The Midrash says that in order to keep up our hope that Jerusalem will be rebuilt, and not to give up in despair, we should consider what G-d did for Avraham and Sarah. Avraham and Sarah had been barren for years, and G-d promised them that they would be the founders of nations. The years passed, and they were still barren.
The Midrash explains just how impossible their hope for children actually was:

אמר רב נחמן אמר רבה בר אבוה: שרה אמנו אילונית היתה שנאמר: +בראשית י”א+ ותהי שרי עקרה אין לה ולד אפי’ בית ולד אין לה.
R’ Nachman said in the name of Rava bar Avuha: Our mother Sarah was sterile, as it says, “Sarai was barren; she had no child” (Breishit 11) – she did not even have the organs for childbirth. (Talmud Bavli Yevamot 64a)

Avraham and Sarah knew that what they were asking for was close to impossible, but G-d had promised, so they kept praying and kept hoping.

Why did G-d create this situation? Of all the people in the world whom He might have picked to be the father and mother of His nation, why did G-d pick someone who lacked the physical ability to be the father and mother of anyone at all?

א”ר יצחק: מפני מה היו אבותינו עקורים? מפני שהקב”ה מתאוה לתפלתן של צדיקים
R’ Yitzchak said: Why were our forefathers barren? Because G-d desires the prayer of the righteous. (Talmud Bavli Yevamot 64a)

If they could have had children without G-d’s help, then they would not have needed to ask for His help. Their prayers, over decades, filled with increasing desperation and the ebb and flow of hope, created a deep relationship with G-d.
In Parshat Eikev, we learn that the same dynamic is present in G-d’s choice of the Land of Israel. Instead of giving us a land like Egypt that requires minimal effort to provide water for crops, G-d gave us a land which depends on rain from the Heavens. The reason for this is stated explicitly: to deepen our relationship with G-d.

(י) כִּי הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה בָא שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ לֹא כְאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם הִוא אֲשֶׁר יְצָאתֶם מִשָּׁם אֲשֶׁר תִּזְרַע אֶת זַרְעֲךָ וְהִשְׁקִיתָ בְרַגְלְךָ כְּגַן הַיָּרָק: (יא) וְהָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם עֹבְרִים שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ אֶרֶץ הָרִים וּבְקָעֹת לִמְטַר הַשָּׁמַיִם תִּשְׁתֶּה מָּיִם: (יב) אֶרֶץ אֲשֶׁר ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ דֹּרֵשׁ אֹתָהּ תָּמִיד עֵינֵי ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ בָּהּ מֵרֵשִׁית הַשָּׁנָה וְעַד אַחֲרִית שָׁנָה:

(10) For the land that you are coming to inherit, is not like the land of Egypt, that you have left, where you would plant your seeds, and irrigate on foot like a vegetable garden. (11) The land that you are crossing to inherit, is a land of hills and valleys. By the rain of the heavens you will drink water. (12) The land that Hashem your G-d scrutinizes; the eyes of Hashem your G-d are always upon it, from the beginning of the year, until the end of the year.

The land that G-d had promised to give to the descendents of Avraham and Sarah requires constant prayer. We can never take it for granted that there will be water, and we rely on G-d for our very survival, year by year. The flip side of this is that G-d’s attention is always upon this land, year by year. Whatever happens here, for better or for worse, is because G-d means for it to happen, and is a direct reflection of our relationship with Him.

Avraham and Sarah had an impossible dream; it took years of prayer and hope and waiting, but ultimately they were answered and were blessed with all the bounty they had been promised. The dream of the Jewish People, to return to their land and rebuild it, had seemed just as impossible, and the wait seemed interminable. But the act of waiting, the prayers and the hoping was not a sign that G-d has abandoned us, but quite the contrary. It has always been a sign of our relationship with Him, and of our faith that everything He does for us has meaning and purpose.

PDF for printing 2 pages

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

Leave a Comment

Filed under Connections, Ekev, Sefer Devarim, Sheva de'Nechemta

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

August 7, 2014 · 20:50

VaEtchanan / Nachamu – The First Step

On the Shabbat after Tisha B’Av we read the first of the seven Haftarot of consolation, known as the Sheva de’Nechemta. This Haftarah begins with G-d commanding the prophets to give hope and comfort to the Jewish People, “Nachamu, Nachamu ami.” As a result, this Shabbat is known as “Shabbat Nachamu.”

But how should the prophet go about consoling the Jewish People for the seemingly unending series of tragedies that is Jewish history? What can he say that will give us comfort and rather than causing additional pain? If he describes the glorious future that awaits us, will that help? Or would it be so far-fetched, so distant from our experience of anguish and hopelessness, that we would dismiss is as unrealistic? The nations that stood in the way of us returning to our land – the Babylonians, the Persians, the Romans, the Byzantines, the Caliphates, the Ottomans, the British – each of these was an empire of epic proportions. How is it possible for a tiny nation with no political or military resources to defy them?
Thus, the first thing the prophet needs to do in order to give us hope is to prove that the path to Redemption is a possibility, and that G-d is capable of affecting history and bending it to His will.

מִי מָדַד בְּשָׁעֳלוֹ מַיִם וְשָׁמַיִם בַּזֶּרֶת תִּכֵּן וְכָל בַּשָּׁלִשׁ עֲפַר הָאָרֶץ וְשָׁקַל בַּפֶּלֶס הָרִים וּגְבָעוֹת בְּמֹאזְנָיִם:…הֵן גּוֹיִם כְּמַר מִדְּלִי וּכְשַׁחַק מֹאזְנַיִם נֶחְשָׁבוּ הֵן אִיִּים כַּדַּק יִטּוֹל:
Who measured the sea with His handfuls, and affixed the sky with a ruler? And placed in a measure all the dust of the earth, weighed mountains on a scale and hills on a balance? …
The nations are a drop in a bucket, reckoned like dust on a balance, so, the continents are like a dust mote. (Yeshayahu 40: 12, 15)

The Haftarah reminds us that G-d created the universe and all that is in it. When measured on the scale of the Universe, nations and empires are infinitesimal. What power do they have relative to the Creator?

Likewise, in the Parsha, Parshat VaEtchanan, which is always read on Shabbat Nachamu, we read how Moshe Rabbeinu reminds the Jewish People of their personal experience of G-d’s power over history:

אוֹ הֲנִסָּה אֱלֹהִים לָבוֹא לָקַחַת לוֹ גוֹי מִקֶּרֶב גּוֹי
בְּמַסֹּת בְּאֹתֹת וּבְמוֹפְתִים וּבְמִלְחָמָה וּבְיָד חֲזָקָה וּבִזְרוֹעַ נְטוּיָה
וּבְמוֹרָאִים גְּדֹלִים כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה לָכֶם ה’ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם בְּמִצְרַיִם לְעֵינֶיךָ:
אַתָּה הָרְאֵתָ לָדַעַת כִּי ה’ הוּא הָאֱ-לֹהִים אֵין עוֹד מִלְבַדּוֹ:

Has G-d attempted to come and take Himself a nation from another nation,
with miracles, signs, and wonders, with war and a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with great awe, like everything that He did for you, Hashem, your G-d, in Egypt, before your eyes?

You were shown so you would know that it is Hashem who is G-d, there is nothing besides Him. (Devarim 4: 34-5)

Having experienced the Exodus, the Jewish People know for a fact that G-d can depose any tyrant and bring ruin the most invincible of empires. No so-called “superpower” can stand in the way of G-d’s plans for our destiny.

The Haftarah goes on to point out that the Jewish People do not actually need any proof of this fact, as it is something that they already know:

הֲלוֹא תֵדְעוּ הֲלוֹא תִשְׁמָעוּ הֲלוֹא הֻגַּד מֵרֹאשׁ לָכֶם
הֲלוֹא הֲבִינֹתֶם מוֹסְדוֹת הָאָרֶץ:
וְאֶל מִי תְדַמְּיוּנִי וְאֶשְׁוֶה יֹאמַר קָדוֹשׁ:
Do you not know, have you not heard? Has it not been foretold to you?
Do you not understand the foundations of the earth? ….
To whom can you liken Me, and find Me equal? says the Holy One.
(Yeshayahu 40:21,25)

According to the Haftarah, the Jewish People are expected to know that G-d is not only the creator of the world, but also the only power in it. We are have been shown that He can affect not only the forces of nature, but also the forces of history. If He wants the Jewish People to come back to the Land of Israel, nothing will stand in His way.

Still, in the midst of pain and tragedy, it is hard to remember that this is so, and we need the prophet to remind us.

By renewing our buried memory of G-d’s intervention in our history, the Haftarah begins the process of renewing our faith in our future. This is the first step in the seven-step process of comforting the Jewish People and giving us a vision of our destiny as a feasible, attainable goal.

PDF for printing 2 pages
Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

2 Comments

Filed under Connections, Sefer Devarim, Sheva de'Nechemta, VaEtchanan

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

July 31, 2014 · 17:00

Devarim / Chazon – Eicha?!

On Tisha B’Av, we read Megillat Eicha, lamenting the destruction of Jerusalem. On the Shabbat before Tisha B’Av, known as Shabbat Chazon, we read two other Eichas, one in the Parsha and the other in the Haftarah.

In Parshat Devarim, as Moshe Rabbeinu reviews the history of the Jewish People, the very first topic he talks about is justice. Moshe knew that as their leader, the ultimate responsibility of providing justice was his, and he shares some of his worries about implementing it properly:

וָאֹמַר אֲלֵכֶם בָּעֵת הַהִוא לֵאמֹר לֹא אוּכַל לְבַדִּי שְׂאֵת אֶתְכֶם:
ה’ אֱ-לֹהֵיכֶם הִרְבָּה אֶתְכֶם וְהִנְּכֶם הַיּוֹם כְּכוֹכְבֵי הַשָּׁמַיִם לָרֹב:
אֵיכָה אֶשָּׂא לְבַדִּי טָרְחֲכֶם וּמַשַּׂאֲכֶם וְרִיבְכֶם:
הָבוּ לָכֶם אֲנָשִׁים חֲכָמִים וּנְבֹנִים וִידֻעִים לְשִׁבְטֵיכֶם וַאֲשִׂימֵם בְּרָאשֵׁיכֶם:

I said to you at that time, saying, I will not be able to bear you alone.
Hashem, your G-d, has multiplied you;
now you are today as many as the stars in the heavens…
How could I bear alone, your bothering, your burdens, and your conflicts?
Get yourselves some men, wise and understanding and well known to your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads. (Devarim 1:9-13)

If the Jewish People were a small group of people, than Moshe could handle their case load on his own. If they were a harmonious, amicable people, then despite their size, Moshe could handle the case load on his own. But Moshe Rabbeinu himself describes the Jewish People as quarrelsome and litigious. It is not possible to have a single address for all their disputes, and Moshe has no choice but to look for people who could be trusted to serve as judges. He then describes the Torah’s expectations of justice:

וָאֲצַוֶּה אֶת שֹׁפְטֵיכֶם בָּעֵת הַהִוא לֵאמֹר
שָׁמֹעַ בֵּין אֲחֵיכֶם וּשְׁפַטְתֶּם צֶדֶק
בֵּין אִישׁ וּבֵין אָחִיו וּבֵין גֵּרוֹ:
לֹא תַכִּירוּ פָנִים בַּמִּשְׁפָּט
כַּקָּטֹן כַּגָּדֹל תִּשְׁמָעוּן
לֹא תָגוּרוּ מִפְּנֵי אִישׁ …
I instructed your judges at that time, saying,
Hear what is between your brothers and judge righteously,
between a man and his brother, and between a convert.
Do not show favoritism in court,
listen to the great and small alike;
do not fear any man… (Devarim 1: 16-17)

The expectations are high: honesty, impartiality, equal standing before the law regardless of social standing and connections. But for the Torah, this is just a starting point. Rashi explains that these commandments are not about the court case itself – not showing favoritism in court has already been commanded, it is obvious, it is a given. These commandments are for the people appointing the judges in the first place:

לא תכירו פנים במשפט: זה הממונה להושיב הדיינין, שלא יאמר איש פלוני נאה או גבור, אושיבנו דיין, איש פלוני קרובי, אושיבנו דיין בעיר, והוא אינו בקי בדינין נמצא מחייב את הזכאי ומזכה את החייב. מעלה אני על מי שמנהו כאילו הכיר פנים בדין

Do not show favoritism in court: This refers to the one responsible for appointing the judges, so that he shouldn’t say this candidate is handsome or brave, let me appoint him, or that candidate is my relative, I’ll appoint him; and he’s not competent in law – it will turn out that he convicts the innocent and acquits the guilty. I consider whoever appointed him, as if he showed favoritism in court.

The Torah places the responsibility for justice not only on the judges themselves, but on all of society. Those who appoint judges are just as responsible for the outcome as the judges themselves.

When Moshe asks, “Eicha?” “How”, he is worried that this responsibility will prove too much for the Jewish People. He knows how hard it is for him, Moshe Rabbeinu, to dispense justice in a timely manner to the contentious Jewish People, he knows how hard it is for him to find judges who are “wise and understanding”. How will future generations manage? How will they handle the high expectations that the Torah has for them? Will they be able to maintain the high standards that it sets for justice and righteousness?

The Haftarah confirms Moshe’s worst fears:

אֵיכָה הָיְתָה לְזוֹנָה קִרְיָה נֶאֱמָנָה?
מְלֵאֲתִי מִשְׁפָּט צֶדֶק יָלִין בָּהּ וְעַתָּה מְרַצְּחִים
כַּסְפֵּךְ הָיָה לְסִיגִים סָבְאֵךְ מָהוּל בַּמָּיִם:
שָׂרַיִךְ סוֹרְרִים וְחַבְרֵי גַּנָּבִים כֻּלּוֹ אֹהֵב שֹׁחַד וְרֹדֵף שַׁלְמֹנִים
יָתוֹם לֹא יִשְׁפֹּטוּ וְרִיב אַלְמָנָה לֹא יָבוֹא אֲלֵיהֶם:

How has she become a whore, the faithful city?
I filled her with justice, righteousness would find rest there,
but now there are murderers!
Your silver is dross, your liquor is diluted with water.
Your ministers are crooks, associates of thieves,
all loving bribes, and chasing graft;
an orphan they would not judge,
the cause of a widow would not reach them. (Yeshayahu 1: 21-23)

Instead of justice and righteousness, Jerusalem is full of fraud, corruption, and even murder. There is no equality before the law; unless you know someone who knows the judge, your case will not get a hearing in the first place. If you have no one to protect you, no “protektzia”, then no one will stand up for you.

The prophet cries out “Eicha?!” – how it is possible? How can the nation of the Torah, the people of Moshe Rabbeinu, of whom so much was expected, how can they sink so low?!

The result of that failure leads directly to the third Eicha, the Eicha that we will read on Tisha B’Av, as we lament the destruction of Jerusalem:

אֵיכָה יָשְׁבָה בָדָד
הָעִיר רַבָּתִי עָם הָיְתָה כְּאַלְמָנָה
How does she sit alone?
A city full of people, has become like a widow?! (Eicha 1:1)

The prophet describes the destroyed Jerusalem as widow – alone and helpless, who needs someone to stand up for her and plead her cause, and no one does.

That is how corruption and injustice is repaid, measure for measure. When the Eicha of Moshe, worrying about the best way to organize a justice system, is replaced by the Eicha of Yeshayahu, distraught about a justice system that serves only the wealthy and powerful, then the result is the Eicha of Lamentations.

But the Haftarah does not leave us without hope. The Jewish People are tasked with being the beacon of justice and righteousness in the world, and even if we have failed in the past, the future is before us, and G-d will make sure that we will succeed.

וְאָשִׁיבָה שֹׁפְטַיִךְ כְּבָרִאשֹׁנָה
וְיֹעֲצַיִךְ כְּבַתְּחִלָּה
אַחֲרֵי כֵן יִקָּרֵא לָךְ עִיר הַצֶּדֶק
קִרְיָה נֶאֱמָנָה:
צִיּוֹן בְּמִשְׁפָּט תִּפָּדֶה
וְשָׁבֶיהָ בִּצְדָקָה:
I will restore your judges as at first,
and your advisors as at the beginning;
after that, you will be called the city of justice,
the faithful city.
Through justice, Tzion will be redeemed,
and those who live within her, through righteousness! (Yeshayahu 1:26-27)

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

PDF for printing, 3 pages A4

Leave a Comment

Filed under Connections, Devarim, Sefer Devarim, The Three Weeks

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

July 24, 2014 · 15:48

Mas’ei – Defiling the Land

Regardless of the way the calendar comes out, the second Haftarah of the Three Weeks of mourning the destruction of Jerusalem always falls out on Parshat Mas’ei. In order to understand the message of this Haftarah, we must look at its intersection with the Parsha.

The Haftarah accuses the Jewish People of having defiled the Land of Israel with their actions:

וָאָבִיא אֶתְכֶם אֶל אֶרֶץ הַכַּרְמֶל לֶאֱכֹל פִּרְיָהּ וְטוּבָהּ וַתָּבֹאוּ וַתְּטַמְּאוּ אֶת אַרְצִי וְנַחֲלָתִי שַׂמְתֶּם לְתוֹעֵבָה:
I brought you to the land of plenty to eat her fruit and her goodness; you came and you defiled My land, you have made loathsome. (Yirmiyahu 2:7)

Parshat Mas’ei contains the following verse, which uses the same terms:

וְלֹא תְטַמֵּא אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם יֹשְׁבִים בָּהּ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹכָהּ כִּי אֲנִי ה’ שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
And you must not defile the land in which you are living, within which I dwell, for I, Hashem, dwell within B’nei Yisrael (Bamidbar 35:34)

We might have thought that what defiles the land is idolatry, or perhaps sexual immorality. That is also true, but the Parsha is talking about a different matter. This verse appears at the conclusion of the laws of the City of Refuge. Those laws mandate that a person who kills someone by accident must run away to a designated city , and the family of the victim may not avenge his death, at least not until he has his day in court. If he is in fact innocent of murder and it was not intentional, he must live in this city until the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) dies. Murder, even accidental murder, must be punished. It is in the context of these laws that the Torah tells us, “Do not defile the land.”
The Midrash makes this explicit:

ולא תטמא את הארץ אשר אתם יושבים בה, מגיד הכתוב ששפיכת דמים מטמא הארץ ומסלקת את השכינה ומפני שפיכות דמים חרב בית המקדש

“And you must not defile the land in which you are living”: the Torah tells us that murder defiles the land, and banished the Divine Presence, and it is because of murder that the Beit HaMikdash, the Temple, was destroyed. (Midrash Sifri Bamidbar Mas’ei 161)

According to this Midrash, the First Temple was destroyed because of murder. This refers to the purges of King Menashe’s reign, when he tried to forcibly institutionalize the worship of the pagan god Ba’al. Those who tried to maintain their loyalty to G-d – such as the elderly prophet Yeshayahu – were executed. When later kings attempted to revive the worship of Hashem, the prophets told them that the sins of Menashe cannot be erased. The impact of Menashe’s reign on the Jewish People affected not only their religious beliefs, but also their perception of the sanctity of life. Once murder is part of society, once it is conceivable that a person can kill another and get away with it, or worse yet, when the state can execute people for political reasons, there is no going back. You can’t make it inconceivable again.

The Midrash tells us that the Divine Presence refuses to be part of that kind of society. Murder “defiled” their land, destroyed their civilization, and the only way to fix it was to tear it down and start over.

Unfortunately, the second time around wasn’t much better. The Midrash continues with a particularly disturbing story that took place at the time of the Second Temple.

מעשה בשני כהנים שהיו שוין ורצין ועולין בכבש וקדם אחד מהם לחבירו בתוך ארבע אמות נטל סכין ותקעה לו בלבו בא רבי צדוק ועמד על מעלות האולם ואמר שמעוני אחינו בית ישראל הרי הוא אומר כי ימצא חלל באדמה וגו’ (שם /דברים כ”א/ א) בואו ונמדוד על מי ראוי להביא את העגלה על ההיכל או על העזרות געו כל ישראל בבכייה ואח”כ בא אביו של תינוק [ומצאו מפרפר] אמר להם אחינו הריני כפרתכם עדיין בני מפרפר וסכין לא נטמאת ללמדך שטומאת סכינים חביבה להם יותר משפיכות דמים

There was the story of two Cohanim who were racing up the ramp of the altar, and one of them passed the other, so he took a knife and stabbed him in the heart.

R’ Tzadok came and stood on the stairs of the hall of the Temple and said,
“Listen to me, my brothers, the House of Israel! It says in the Torah that if a dead body is found, the nearest community must take responsibility. Let us come and measure, who should bring the atonement, the sanctuary or the temple courtyards?” Everyone present burst into tears.

But then the father of the boy came and realized that he was still breathing. He said to them, “Brothers, I swear, my son is still alive, that means that the knife has not been defiled!”

This tells us that the ritual status of the knives was more important to them than murder. (Midrash Sifri Bamidbar Mas’ei 161)

The Parsha tells us that even an accidental murder must be punished, even when the murderer bore no malice toward the victim. R’ Tzadok quoted a related commandment, where a city must take responsibility for an unsolved murder that took place outside its walls. So what is there to say about two Cohanim who stab each other because they lost a race to be the first one up the ramp of the altar? What is there to say about the father of the victim, who cares more about the ritual purity of the knife than about his son’s life?

When people stab each other in anger and the society looks the other way, because it has other priorities, it does not matter what those priorities are, the Divine Presence wants no part of it. G-d will not tolerate a defiled society where murder is an option.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

PDF for printing, 2 pages

Leave a Comment

Filed under Mas'ei, Sefer Bamidbar

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , ,

July 10, 2014 · 18:03

Pinchas – Outrage

The story of Pinchas is actually told at the end of the previous Parsha. In the very first encounter the Jewish People have with a civilized nation after 40 years in the desert, the men are seduced by Midianite women. One in particular, the head of the Tribe of Shimon, takes a Midianite princess, parading her in front of Moshe and the elders, directly into his tent. G-d tells them to get rid of these people, but everybody, Moshe included, is paralyzed with shock. Pinchas grabs a spear, barges into the tent, and skewers the man and the woman together, in flagrante delicto.

Was this act of vigilante aggression, murder? Should Pinchas have been tried and executed?

Our Parsha begins with G-d making a special announcement pardoning Pinchas:

פִּינְחָס בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן הֵשִׁיב אֶת חֲמָתִי מֵעַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּקַנְאוֹ אֶת קִנְאָתִי בְּתוֹכָם וְלֹא כִלִּיתִי אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּקִנְאָתִי:
Pinchas, son of Elazar, son of Aharon the Cohen, turned My anger away from the People of Israel, as he was outraged on My behalf and I did not decimate the People of Israel due to My outrage. (Bamidbar 25:11)

G-d gives his stamp of approval for Pinchas’ violent zeal on His behalf. Is the message of the Torah that outrage on behalf of G-d is legitimate?

The Haftarah tells us another story of outrage, but with a very different reaction from G-d. Eliyahu tries to quit his job as a prophet (and quit his life while he’s at it), and tells G-d the following:

קַנֹּא קִנֵּאתִי לַה’ אֱ-לֹהֵי צְבָא-וֹת כִּי-עָזְבוּ בְרִיתְךָ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת-מִזְבְּחֹתֶיךָ הָרָסוּ וְאֶת-נְבִיאֶיךָ הָרְגוּ בֶחָרֶב וָאִוָּתֵר אֲנִי לְבַדִּי וַיְבַקְשׁוּ אֶת-נַפְשִׁי לְקַחְתָּהּ
“I am outraged on behalf of Hashem, the G-d of Tzva’ot. For the People of Israel abandoned Your covenant; Your altars, they destroyed; Your prophets, they put to the sword. I was left all alone – and they tried to take my life.” (Melachim I 19:10)

Like Pinchas, Eliyahu expresses his outrage on behalf of G-d. Unlike Pinchas, G-d does not offer Eliyahu a big pat on the back. Instead, He tells him to go train a replacement. This is how the Midrash describes G-d’s reaction to Eliyahu’s declaration of outrage:

ויאמר קנא קנאתי לה’ א-להי ישראל כי עזבו בריתך בני ישראל, אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא בריתי שמא בריתך, ואת מזבחותיך הרסו, אמר לו מזבחותי שמא מזבחותיך, ואת נביאיך הרגו בחרב, אמר לו נביאי ואת מה איכפת לך …[] ובאותה שעה שאמר אליהו על ישראל לשון הרע אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא אליהו עד שאתה מקטרג את אלו בא וקטרג את אלו הה”ד (מלכים א יט) לך שוב לדרכך מדברה דמשק

Eliyahu said, “I am outraged on behalf of Hashem that the People of Israel abandoned your covenant!”
G-d said, “It is My covenant, unless it is your covenant?”
“They destroyed your altars!”
He said, “They are My altars, unless they are your altars?”
“Your prophets, they put to the sword!”
He said, “They are My prophets. What business is it of yours?”
[…]
That time that Eliyahu was saying negative things about the Jewish People, G-d said to him,
“Eliyahu, before you start condemning the Jewish People, go condemn the idol worshippers in Damascus.” (Midrash Shir HaShirim Rabba 1)

G-d essentially tells Eliyahu to mind his own business, and save his outrage and condemnation for Israel’s enemies.

So what does the Torah actually mean? Is this outrage good or bad?

A different Midrash, based on the tradition that identifies Pinchas with Eliyahu , has G-d relating to both events:

ויאמר קנא קנאתי אמר לו לעולם אתה מקנא קנאת בשטים על גלוי עריות וקנאת כאן
Eliyahu said: “I am outraged!”
He said, “You are always outraged. You were outraged in Shittim about the debauchery, you’re outraged now. ” (Midrash Yalkut Shimoni Balak 661)

Shittim was the location of Pinchas’ story. What the Midrash is saying here is that once was enough. At that one unique place and time, in those precise circumstances, it was just exactly the right reaction, and G-d issued Pinchas a pardon. But there will not be any other situation like that, ever.

According to the Haftarah, G-d neither needs nor wants anyone’s outrage against the Jewish People. Not even when the entire Jewish People worships the pagan god Ba’al. Certainly not for anything less.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

PDF for printing, 2 pages

2 Comments

Filed under Pinchas, Sefer Bamidbar

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

July 3, 2014 · 17:40

Balak – G-d does not work for us

When discussing the relationship between G-d and the Jewish People, as prophets often do, the Haftarah mentions Balak and Bilaam:

עַמִּי זְכָר נָא מַה יָּעַץ בָּלָק מֶלֶךְ מוֹאָב וּמֶה עָנָה אֹתוֹ בִּלְעָם בֶּן בְּעוֹר מִן הַשִּׁטִּים עַד הַגִּלְגָּל לְמַעַן דַּעַת צִדְקוֹת ה’:
My nation! Remember what Balak king of Moav conspired, and how Bilaam ben Beor answered him, from the Shitim to the Gilgal – in order to know the righteousness of Hashem. (Micha 6:5)

But then instead of explaining what it is we have to remember about that story, the Haftarah continues with an apparent non-sequitur, questioning the purpose of sacrifices:

בַּמָּה אֲקַדֵּם ה’ אִכַּף לֵא-לֹהֵי מָרוֹם הַאֲקַדְּמֶנּוּ בְעוֹלוֹת בַּעֲגָלִים בְּנֵי שָׁנָה; הֲיִרְצֶה ה’ בְּאַלְפֵי אֵילִים בְּרִבְבוֹת נַחֲלֵי שָׁמֶן הַאֶתֵּן בְּכוֹרִי פִּשְׁעִי פְּרִי בִטְנִי חַטַּאת נַפְשִׁי:
With what gift shall I greet Hashem, submit to G-d Above? Shall I greet Him with offerings, with yearling calves? Will Hashem be pleased by thousands of rams, by myriads of rivers of oil? Should I give my first-born for my crime, my offspring for the sin of my soul? (Micha 6:6-7)

What do these questions about sacrifices have to do with Balak and Bilaam?

Parshat Balak tells us of Balak, king of the nation of Moav which would share a border with the land of Israel. He saw how the Jewish People destroyed Sichon and Og, the powerful kings of the Emori, and did not want the same thing to happen to him. He knew that he was much weaker than the Emori, and that on the military front, he would have no chance against the Jewish People. He also understood that a major component of their success was G-d’s blessing and favor. He thus decided to attack the Jewish People on the religious front, and approached a well-known miracle man, the non-Jewish prophet, Bilaam ben Beor. When Balak asked him to curse the Jewish People, he piously answered, “I can only say what G-d tells me.” And less piously, “but I’ll give it my best shot.”

Bilaam’s mission was to drive a wedge between G-d and the Jewish People. To that end, he asked Balak to build him seven altars and to sacrifice three animals on each. These sacrifices did not yield the desired effect: the words G-d put into his mouth were words of blessing. He tried again, from a different angle, with seven new altars, and yet again a third time. Despite the multitude of sacrifices, G-d continued to bless the Jewish People. Finally, Balak and Bilaam gave up in frustration.

What did Balak and Bilaam think they were going to accomplish with these sacrifices? Why would they turn G-d against the Jewish People? The Midrash connects Bilaam’s seven altars with the verses in the Haftarah, turning them into a conversation between Bilaam and G-d:

בלעם הרשע הוא היה סנגורן של אומות העולם ועל ידי האומות הוא מדבר הדבר הירצה ה’ באלפי אילים ברבבות נחלי שמן רוצה הוא מה שאתם מקריבין לו לא לוג שמן אתם מקריבין לו אנו מקריבין לו רבי רבבות נחלי שמן מה הקריב אברהם לפניו לא איל אחד … אם רוצה אנו מקריבין לו אלפי אלפים ומה הקריב אברהם לא בנו אני אקריב לו בני ובתי …ראה בלעם הרשע כמה היה ערום התחיל אומר את שבעת המזבחות ערכתי לא אמר שבע מזבחות אלא המזבחות אלו הן משנברא אדם הראשון עד עכשיו שבע מזבחות בנו ואני מקריב שבע כנגד שבעתן … אמר ליה הקב”ה רשע מה אתה עושה בכאן אמר ליה את שבעת המזבחות ערכתי ואעל פר ואיל במזבח אמר ליה הקב”ה הירצה ה’ באלפי אילים…א”ל הקב”ה רשע אלו הייתי מבקש קרבן הייתי אומר למיכאל ולגבריאל והיו מקריבין
Bilaam the Villain was arguing for the nations of the world. He said, “Will Hashem be pleased by thousands of rams, by myriads of rivers of oil? (Micha 6:6) Does He want what you, the Jewish People, bring to Him? Barely a pint of oil? We, the Nations of the World, bring Him millions of rivers of oil! What did Avraham bring, barely a ram? We bring thousands of rams! What did Avraham bring, not even a son? I’ll bring my son and my daughter!”

Look at this villain Bilaam, how devious he was! He said, “I have arranged these seven altars” (Bamidbar 23:4), not just “seven altars”, but very specific seven altars. He said, “Since Adam was created until now, the Jewish People have built seven altars, and I am going to bring seven altars to counteract them.” G-d said to him, “You villain! What are you doing here?” He said, “I have arranged these seven altars and brought cows and rams on the altar”. G-d said to him, “Will Hashem be pleased by thousands of rams?” (Micha 6:5) “Villain! If I had wanted a sacrifice, I would have told [the angels] Michael and Gavriel, and they would have brought them for Me!” (Midrash Tanchuma Tzav 1)

Bilaam attempts to discredit the Jewish People by pointing out to G-d that the nation He has chosen is not sufficiently dedicated to Him. The sacrifices that they bring are pitifully small. The Nations of the World are willing to do much more. They are willing to bring thousands of rams, rivers of oil, their sons and daughters; without limit.

Bilaam does a simple calculation: if G-d favors the Jewish People due to seven altars that were brought by their ancestors, then by offering triple the number of sacrifices, he is guaranteed to earn G-d’s favor.

G-d responds by pointing out that He does not actually need any of these “gifts” in the first place. G-d does not auction off His favor to the highest bidder. As Rachelle Fraenkel phrased it, G-d does not work for us. He is not an employee who will do whatever project his employer requests as long as he gets paid. We do not get to make demands on Him, He makes demands on us.

The prophet Micha says it explicitly, in the last verse of the Haftarah:

הִגִּיד לְךָ אָדָם מַה טּוֹב וּמָה ה’ דּוֹרֵשׁ מִמְּךָ כִּי אִם עֲשׂוֹת מִשְׁפָּט וְאַהֲבַת חֶסֶד וְהַצְנֵעַ לֶכֶת עִם אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ
He has told you, mankind, what is good, what Hashem demands of you: simply doing justice, and loving kindness, and walking modestly with your G-d. (Micha 6:8)

The demand that G-d makes – not only of the Jewish People, but also of the Nations of the World – is to do justice and kindness. It is the Jewish People’s commitment to His values of justice and kindness that is the reason why G-d continues to bless us, regardless of what the Bilaams of the world demand.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

ולעילוי נשמות יעקב נפתלי בן רחל דבורה, גיל-עד מיכאל בן בת-גלים, ואייל בן איריס תשורה, הי”ד

PDF for printing 2 pages A4

2 Comments

Filed under Balak, Connections, Sefer Bamidbar

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

June 20, 2014 · 15:20

Korach – Not Even a Donkey

PDF for printing – 2 pages A4

In Parshat Korach, Moshe is confronted by Korach and his mob:

וַיִּקָּהֲלוּ עַל מֹשֶׁה וְעַל אַהֲרֹן וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֲלֵהֶם רַב לָכֶם כִּי כָל הָעֵדָה כֻּלָּם קְדֹשִׁים וּבְתוֹכָם ה’ וּמַדּוּעַ תִּתְנַשְּׂאוּ עַל קְהַל ה’:
They congregated upon Moshe and Aharon, and said to them, “Enough! The entire assembly is holy, and Hashem is in their midst! So why do you lord yourselves over the congregation of Hashem?!” (Bamidbar 16:3)

By suggesting that Moshe and Aharon “lord over” the Jewish People, Korach accused them of acting out of self-interest, desire for power, and personal benefit. Similartly, when Moshe tried to settle the conflict and called for a meeting with Korach’s partners, Datan and Aviram, they responded as follows:

וַיִּשְׁלַח מֹשֶׁה לִקְרֹא לְדָתָן וְלַאֲבִירָם בְּנֵי אֱלִיאָב וַיֹּאמְרוּ לֹא נַעֲלֶה: הַמְעַט כִּי הֶעֱלִיתָנוּ מֵאֶרֶץ זָבַת חָלָב וּדְבַשׁ לַהֲמִיתֵנוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר כִּי תִשְׂתָּרֵר עָלֵינוּ גַּם הִשְׂתָּרֵר:
Moshe sent to call Datan and Aviram, sons of Eliav; they said, “We will not come up! Is it not enough that he took us from the land of milk and honey to kill us in the desert, that he should also rule over us? ” (Bamidbar 16:13)

Having called Egypt, “a land of milk and honey”, they accuse Moshe of being power-hungry, just for asking them to come to meet with him.
In response, Moshe turned to G-d with an unusual prayer:

וַיִּחַר לְמֹשֶׁה מְאֹד וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל ה’ אַל תֵּפֶן אֶל מִנְחָתָם לֹא חֲמוֹר אֶחָד מֵהֶם נָשָׂאתִי וְלֹא הֲרֵעֹתִי אֶת אַחַד מֵהֶם:
Moshe got very angry. He said to Hashem, “Do not accept their offering! I never took a donkey from them, I never did harm to any one of them!”(Bamidbar 16:15)

Moshe is very upset by their accusations, and defends himself by saying that he never took anything from them, in particular, not a single donkey.

In the Haftarah, we find the prophet Shmuel in a similar situation. After having dedicated his entire life to the Jewish People, literally from the cradle, and having served as arguably their most successful leader in centuries, he is told by the Jewish People that they would like to try a new political structure, “like all the other nations”. When handing over the reins to King Shaul, he asks the Jewish People:

הִנְנִי עֲנוּ בִי נֶגֶד ה’ וְנֶגֶד מְשִׁיחוֹ אֶת שׁוֹר מִי לָקַחְתִּי וַחֲמוֹר מִי לָקַחְתִּי וְאֶת מִי עָשַׁקְתִּי אֶת מִי רַצּוֹתִי וּמִיַּד מִי לָקַחְתִּי כֹפֶר וְאַעְלִים עֵינַי בּוֹ
Now answer me before Hashem and before His anointed, whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom did I oppress? Whom did I favor? From whom did I take a bribe, so that I would overlook him?” (Shmuel I 12:3)

Like Moshe, Shmuel also asserts that he never took a donkey from them. Why, of all things that they did not take from the Jewish People, did both Moshe and Shmuel mention donkeys? What made them get so upset?

לא חמור אחד מהם נשאתי מה שהיה דרכי ליטול לא נטלתי מהם בנוהג שבעולם אדם שהוא עושה בהקדש נוטל שכרו מן ההקדש ואני בשעה שהייתי יורד מן מדין למצרים היה דרכי ליטול מהן חמור שבשביל צרכיהם ירדתי ולא נטלתי וכן שמואל הצדיק אמר (שמואל א יב) הנני ענו בי נגד ה’ ונגד משיחו את שור מי לקחתי וחמור מי לקחתי … וכשהייתי חוזר ועושה דיניהם וצרכיהם והולך וסובב כל עיירות ישראל שנא’ (שם /שמואל א’/ ז) והלך מדי שנה בשנה וסבב בית אל דרך העולם בעלי דינין הולכין אצל הדיין ואני הייתי הולך וסובב מעיר לעיר וממקום למקום וחמור שלי

“I did not take a donkey from them”: Moshe said, “What should have been mine to take, I did not take from them. It is customary that a person who works for a charity can be paid by that charity, and I, when I left Midian to go to Egypt, I should have taken a donkey because I traveled for their benefit.”

Likewise, Shmuel said, “Whose donkey have I taken?” When he used to judge all their cases and see to all their needs, and he would travel around all the towns of Israel. He said, “It is the way of the world for the parties in a court case to go to the judge, and I used to go around from town to town and place to place, on my own donkey.” (Bamidbar Rabba 18:10)

Both Shmuel and Moshe dedicated their lives to serving the Jewish People. Neither one gained anything by it; not only did they not collect taxes, not only did they not accept gifts and offerings, but they did not even ask to be compensated for their expenses[1].
It was not only money that they dedicated to the Jewish People. The donkey that Moshe did not get compensated for was the donkey which he used to leave his home in Midian, upon which he placed his wife and sons to send them back while he was busy taking the Jews of out Egypt. The donkey that Shmuel never got compensated for was the donkey that he used to leave his home and family to travel on behalf of the Jewish People so they would have ready access to a judge and to spiritual leadership. They sacrificed not only their fortune, but also their homes and their family lives [2].

How ironic that the Jewish People would seek to supplant each of them with a political system that was the opposite of their attitude of self-sacrifice. Moshe was challenged by Korach, whose cry of equality was a thinly veiled bid for power and money. Shmuel was replaced by a monarchy, which would be sustained by taxes that are taken by force.

The Torah tells us that even prophets like Moshe and Shmuel are hurt by rejection. Those who dedicate their entire lives to the Jewish People without expecting anything in return, nevertheless need a modicum of appreciation.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

 

[1] The Midrash explains that they were independently wealthy, and even lists wealth among the ideal qualifications for being a prophet.
[2] It is not coincidental that both Moshe and Shmuel had sons who were not fit to take over from them.

Leave a Comment

Filed under Connections, Korach, Sefer Bamidbar

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

June 12, 2014 · 13:49

Shelach – As Insects in Our Eyes

Parshat Shelach tells the story of the delegation that Moshe to check out the Land of Israel just before they were supposed to begin the conquest. They returned with a dangerously mixed message: true, the land is beautiful, but there is no way that they could conquer it. This report destroyed the morale of the Jewish People, who refused to risk being killed in battle and demanded to go back to Egypt. G-d responded by decreeing that they must stay in the desert for forty years, with the hope that the next generation would have more courage and more faith.

The Haftarah takes place at the end of those forty years. The entire original generation is dead, and Yehoshua is now poised to take the Jewish People into the Land of Israel and begin the conquest. Like Moshe, Yehoshua sends spies to scout out the land. His “secret agents” are identified within hours of arriving in Jericho, and after a single conversation with one person (Rachav the prostitute), spend the rest of their time hiding out from the authorities. Nevertheless, the Haftarah relates their mission not as a failure, but as a success. By understanding what went right with Yehoshua’s spies in the Haftarah, we can begin to understand what went wrong with Moshe’s spies in the Parsha.

The final report of Yehoshua’s spies shows us that they achieved the purpose of their mission. It states:

כִּי נָתַן ה’ בְּיָדֵנוּ אֶת כָּל הָאָרֶץ וְגַם נָמֹגוּ כָּל יֹשְׁבֵי הָאָרֶץ מִפָּנֵינוּ
“… that Hashem has given the entire land into our hands, and all the inhabitants of the land are helpless before us.” (Yehoshua 2:24)

Yeshoshua’s spies were not sent to get information about the weaknesses of the city and its army. That is not what the Jewish People needed to know in order to conquer the land. What they needed to hear was more basic:

  • It is G-d who decides who wins and who loses
  • Those who currently live in the land are aware of this, and therefore do not have the courage to fight back.

Armed with this belief, they would be able to take on the conquest of fortified cities defended by experienced, trained armies. Without this belief, it would be not only impossible but pointless.

Did Moshe’s generation not share this belief? Did they not know that it is Hashem who runs the world? In the Haftarah, when Rachav tells Yehoshua’s spies the reasons why the people of Jericho are terrified, she points to the Splitting of the Sea as the event that showed G-d’s power and His intervention on behalf of the Jewish People. Moshe’s spies had been there in person, they themselves crossed the Sea. Moreover, in the Song of the Sea, they sang:

אָז נִבְהֲלוּ אַלּוּפֵי אֱדוֹם אֵילֵי מוֹאָב יֹאחֲזֵמוֹ רָעַד נָמֹגוּ כֹּל יֹשְׁבֵי כְנָעַן
Then the chieftains of Edom are shaken, the heads of Moav are gripped by trembling, all the inhabitants of Canaan are helpless (Shemot 15:15)

Moshe’s spies knew that the Splitting of the Sea would cause the inhabitants of Canaan to feel helpless and powerless to oppose them. How, then, did they come back from their mission and say the following:

לֹא נוּכַל לַעֲלוֹת אֶל הָעָם כִּי חָזָק הוּא מִמֶּנּו
No, we cannot go up against that nation, for they are stronger than we are.
(Bamidbar 13:31)

It is as if G-d is not part of the equation at all. And when you take Him out of the equation, then in reality, the Canaanites were much stronger, physically and militarily, than the Jewish People, and Israel had no chance against them. The spies continued to report from that perspective:

…הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר עָבַרְנוּ בָהּ לָתוּר אֹתָהּ אֶרֶץ אֹכֶלֶת יוֹשְׁבֶיהָ הִוא וְכָל הָעָם אֲשֶׁר רָאִינוּ בְתוֹכָהּ אַנְשֵׁי מִדּוֹת: וְשָׁם רָאִינוּ אֶת הַנְּפִילִים בְּנֵי עֲנָק מִן הַנְּפִלִים וַנְּהִי בְעֵינֵינוּ כַּחֲגָבִים וְכֵן הָיִינוּ בְּעֵינֵיהֶם:
“…the land that we toured through is a land that eats its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw there were men of measure. There we saw the Nefilim, the sons of the giant, of the Nefilim! We were as insects in our eyes, and so we were in their eyes. (Bamidbar 13:32-3)

It is true that Canaan is a difficult land. It is true that the people who lived there were “men of measure”, and it is even true that some of the cities were inhabited by a race that could be considered “giants”.
But it is their last sentence that sheds the most light on the spies’ failure. “We were as insects in our eyes, and so we were in their eyes.” The Midrash calls them to task for this statement:

אמרו ונהי בעינינו כחגבים אמר הקב”ה ויתרתי עליהם אלא וכן היינו בעיניהם יודעים הייתם מה עשיתי אתכם לעיניהם מי יאמר שלא הייתם בעיניהם כמלאכים
They said, “we were like insects in our eyes”. G-d said, I would have let this pass, but “so we were in their eyes”?! How do you know how I made you look in their eyes? Who says that you weren’t like angels in their eyes?!
(Bamidbar Rabba 16:11)

It is natural and understandable that while encountering such powerful people, the spies would feel “like insects in our eyes.” It does not bode well for a military campaign to have that self-image, but it might have passed. However, when they projected this image of themselves onto their opponents, they showed that they did not believe what they said at the Sea. They did not believe that G-d could cause the inhabitants of Canaan to feel powerless against them.

If you see yourself as an insect, and you don’t believe that G-d has any power over how others see you, then you are an insect, and have no business fighting giants.

But if you realize that how others see you is up to Him, then the giants are helpless before you. If G-d wants the inhabitants of Canaan to see the Jewish People as His avenging angels, then that is what they will see.

And so, a few chapters after the Haftarah, when the Jewish People fulfil the promise made to Rachav by Yehoshua’s spies to save her and her family, this is how they are described:

וְאֶת רָחָב הַזּוֹנָה וְאֶת בֵּית אָבִיהָ וְאֶת כָּל אֲשֶׁר לָהּ הֶחֱיָה יְהוֹשֻׁעַ וַתֵּשֶׁב בְּקֶרֶב יִשְׂרָאֵל עַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה כִּי הֶחְבִּיאָה אֶת הַמַּלְאָכִים אֲשֶׁר שָׁלַח יְהוֹשֻׁעַ לְרַגֵּל אֶת יְרִיחוֹ
And Rachav the prostitute and her family and all that was hers, Yehoshua protected; she lived among Israel until this day, for she hid the angels that Yehoshua sent to spy on Jericho (Yehoshua 6:25)

When Rachav encountered Yehoshua’s spies, she did not see two men who were amateur gatherers of military intelligence. She saw angels of G-d.

Moshe’s spies did not believe that they were seen as angels of G-d. They saw themselves as insects, and could not fathom that anyone might be helpless before them. They projected this self-image to the rest of the Jewish People, and made conquest impossible. Yehoshua’s generation, raised under the shadow of G-d’s Presence for forty years in the desert, internalized the concept that they are G-d’s People, representing Him as His messengers to the world. They had the courage and faith to be angels, and so they were seen by the inhabitants of Canaan.

PDF for printing, 3 pages A5 Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

Leave a Comment

Filed under Connections, Sefer Bamidbar, Shelach

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,