Learn about something from the nothing היש מהאין
The Parasha in the everyday life - Parashat Chukat - Rabbi Eliezer Shenvald- 5780
The sin of 'Waters of Meribah' (meaning that the Israelites quarrelled with Hashem) occurred in the year 40 near the entrance to the Land of Israel and the transition from the miraculous desert leadership to the leadership in the Land of Israel by nature. The discussion about the sin tends to focus on the sin of Moshe and Aharon. But was there also a sin of the people of Israel? Apparently, there was a legitimate request for water:
וְלֹא־הָ֥יָה מַ֖יִם לָעֵדָ֑ה וַיִּקָּ֣הֲל֔וּ עַל־מֹשֶׁ֖ה וְעַֽל־אַהֲרֹֽן׃
"The community was without water, and they joined against Moshe and Aharon" (Bamidbar 20:2)
The Chizkuni explains:
ויקהלו על משה ועל אהרן לא לקו עכשיו כמו שלקו בשאר תלונות כי הדין עמהם מאחר שלא היה להם מים.
"And they joined against Moshe and Aharon - they were not punished now as they were in the other complaints, because now they have a case. There really is no water (after Miriam's death)".
The Rambam thinks alike, (Maimonides' introduction to Tractate Avot - Ethics of the Fathers - Chapter 4), but some commentators believe that the people sinned for not settling on a concrete complaint to Moshe:
הנה המריבה עם משה היתה באמרם ולמה הבאתם את קהל ה' אל המדבר הזה. אמנם היתה גם על האל יתברך כאשר העיד באמרו אשר רבו בני ישראל את ה' וזה היה באמרם ולמה העליתנו ממצרים:
"the subject of the quarrel was why Moshe had brought the people to such a desert as the one they found themselves in at the time. However, there was also a complaint against G-d Himself, as the Torah testifies in verse 13 where the Torah writes: אשר רבו בני ישראל את ה', “in that the Children of Israel quarreled with G-d.” This referred to the words (verse 5) “why did you take us out of Egypt?” (Sforno 20:3)
“And in all of the trials in the wilderness, their great sin was when they said, "Why did you take us up from Egypt," in that they wanted to be slaves to their haters with crippling work, [rather] than being with G-d like a son that serves his father. And so the verse states (Bamidbar 11:20), "since you have rejected Hashem that is among you, and you cried in front of Him, saying, 'Why is this, that we went out of Egypt.' And in the first time they said less than this (Shmot 17:3) - “Why did you bring us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” - and there was a great fury against them; and [there was also] great blame, as it stated (Shmot 17:7), "The place was named Massah and Merivah (quarrel), because of the Israelites' quarrel etc." And here it is written explicitly (Bamidbar 20:13), "Those are the Waters of Merivah - that the Israelites quarreled with the Lord." (Ramban 20:8))
This statement was full of imprudence, blaming Hashem blatantly, with disbelief, ungratefulness and lack of appreciation for all the miracles they had experienced so far that made them survive in the desert: the water, the Manna and the Clouds of Glory.
In response, Hashem commands Moshe to do a phenomenal miracle, to speak to the rock and get water out of it:
…וְדִבַּרְתֶּ֧ם אֶל־הַסֶּ֛לַע לְעֵינֵיהֶ֖ם וְנָתַ֣ן מֵימָ֑יו וְהוֹצֵאתָ֨ לָהֶ֥ם מַ֙יִם֙ מִן־הַסֶּ֔לַע וְהִשְׁקִיתָ֥ אֶת־הָעֵדָ֖ה וְאֶת־בְּעִירָֽם׃
“… and before their very eyes order the rock to yield its water. Thus, you shall produce water for them from the rock and provide drink for the congregation and their beasts.” (Ibid 8)
The speech to the rock in front of the people was supposed to be for their ears and for their hearts, for them to understand the message:
שֶׁאִלּוּ דִּבַּרְתֶּם אֶל הַסֶּלַע וְהוֹצִיא, הָיִיתִי מְקֻדָּשׁ לְעֵינֵי הָעֵדָה, וְאוֹמְרִים מַה סֶּלַע זֶה שֶׁאֵינוֹ מְדַבֵּר וְאֵינוֹ שׁוֹמֵעַ וְאֵינוֹ צָרִיךְ לְפַרְנָסָה מְקַיֵּם דִּבּוּרוֹ שֶׁל מָקוֹם, קַל וָחֹמֶר אָנוּ:
“For had you spoken to the rock and it had brought forth water I would have been sanctified before the whole congregation, for they would have said: What is the case with this rock which cannot speak and cannot hear and needs no maintenance? It fulfils the bidding of the Omnipresent G-d! How much more should we do so?” (Rashi 20:12)
והיה אם כן המכוון ממנו ית' בזה הענין לעורר בם דעת ותבונה על יוקר וחשיבות דבור האלקי בצוויו אליהם…
“Why did He have to make such wonders? Hashem did this to teach knowledge to Bnei Yisroel. Although the urges of a man’s heart are ignoble, and it is against his nature to study Torah and fulfill mitzvos, nevertheless, with Heavenly help it is possible. Just as a hard rock brought forth water against its nature through Hashem’s power, so too, a person’s heart can be an overflowing spring in Hashem’s commandments”. (HaKtav VeHaKabalah Ibid: 8)
Dealing with this crisis, was supposed to make the people understand their mistake, but that goal was missed by the striking!
There is no water in the desert! That's the natural situation! The water supply to the people of Israel was a supernatural intervention, a miracle - through Miriam’s well.
Like many things in life, at first, the wonder causes excitement, but over time, one gets used to it and the wonder gets taken for granted. The heart’s excitement disappears, it hardens like a stone, and the miracle owner stops recognizing it. Only when suddenly the miracle ceases and the regular natural state returns, they feel the missing.
The cessation of water was supposed to remind the people of Israel that so far, the water in the desert was a miracle, learn about something from the nothing! היש מהאין! And to thank G-d for that. But that didn't happen! And that was the sin.
The miracle of getting water from the fossilized rock by speech was to highlight the magnitude of the miracle of water supply so far, and that what seems to be self-evident is nothing short of a miracle, and only the opacity of a fossilized heart would not notice it and blame the Heavens for it.
That message was missed by Moshe hitting and not talking!
Not only were Moshe and Aharon punished for that! Am Israel was also punished as Moshe and Aharon were not their leaders anymore when they arrived into Eretz Israel.
Not everything is rational
On rationality, balance and criticism
Parsha and its Implementation - Chukat - Rabbi Eliezer Shenvald - 5779
The Mitzva of the Red heifer is the best way to point at the limits of the ability of human rationality.
"I have tried all with wisdom… Shlomo said: did not place wisdom in the world that I did not stand by, and then I came to the Parashah of the "Parah Adumah," and said,
כָּל־זֹ֖ה נִסִּ֣יתִי בַֽחָכְמָ֑ה אָמַ֣רְתִּי אֶחְכָּ֔מָה וְהִ֖יא רְחוֹקָ֥ה מִמֶּֽנִּי׃
"All this I tested with wisdom. I thought I could fathom it, but it eludes me". (Midrash Zuta- Ecclesiastes 7:23)
King Solomon was the wisest of all men: "
… הִנֵּ֣ה נָתַ֣תִּי לְךָ֗ לֵ֚ב חָכָ֣ם וְנָב֔וֹן אֲשֶׁ֤ר כָּמ֙וֹךָ֙ לֹא־הָיָ֣ה לְפָנֶ֔יךָ וְאַחֲרֶ֖יךָ לֹא־יָק֥וּם כָּמֽוֹךָ׃
I grant you a wise and discerning mind; there has never been anyone like you before, nor will anyone like you arise again." (1 Kings 3:12). The wisdom of King Solomon brought human rationality to the highest peak and to its fullest potential. From it, almost everything could be explained by logic and human reason:
וַיִּתֵּן֩ אֱלֹקים חָכְמָ֧ה לִשְׁלֹמֹ֛ה וּתְבוּנָ֖ה הַרְבֵּ֣ה מְאֹ֑ד וְרֹ֣חַב לֵ֔ב כַּח֕וֹל אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיָּֽם׃ וַתֵּ֙רֶב֙ חָכְמַ֣ת שְׁלֹמֹ֔ה מֵֽחָכְמַ֖ת כָּל־בְּנֵי־קֶ֑דֶם וּמִכֹּ֖ל חָכְמַ֥ת מִצְרָֽיִם׃
וַיֶּחְכַּם֮ מִכָּל־הָֽאָדָם֒ ...וַיְהִֽי־שְׁמ֥וֹ בְכָֽל־הַגּוֹיִ֖ם סָבִֽיב׃
"G-d endowed Solomon with wisdom and discernment in great measure, with understanding as vast as the sands on the seashore. Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the Kedemites and than all the wisdom of the Egyptians. He was the wisest of all men, His fame spread among all the surrounding nations". (1 Kings 5: 9-11).
His main advantage was in understanding the wisdom and logic of the world's reality: "Even Moses was not like him in the Nature's Wisdom… (Radak on I Kings 3:12-2)
"שהיה קהלת חכם עוד לימד דעת את העם איזן וחקר תיקן משלים הרבה לימד דעת את העם דאגמריה בסימני טעמים ואסברה במאי דדמי ליה איזן וחקר תיקן משלים הרבה אמר עולא אמר רבי אליעזר בתחילה היתה תורה דומה לכפיפה שאין לה אזנים עד שבא שלמה ועשה לה אזנים" (עירובין כא ב).
Rava also taught: What is the meaning of that which is written: “And besides being wise, Koheleth also taught the people knowledge; and he weighed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs” (Ecclesiastes 12:9). Rava interpreted homiletically: He taught the people knowledge, meaning he taught it with the accentuation marks in the Torah, and he explained each matter by means of something similar to it.
With regard to: “And he weighed [izzen], and sought out, and set in order many proverbs,” Ulla said that Rabbi Eliezer said: At first the Torah was like a basket without handles [oznayim], until Solomon came and made handles for it. By means of his explanations and proverbs he enabled each person to understand and take hold of the Torah, fulfill its mitzvot, and distance himself from transgressions. (Shir Hashirim Rabbah 1:8, Eruvin 21b). From then on, 'everyone began to study Torah' - even in the logical and rational way. Shlomo's point of departure was that wisdom and human rationality are the main tool for understanding the world, God's leadership and His Torah.
The midrash describes the dramatic turning point that took place when King Solomon dealt with the Parasha of Parah Adumah: "This is what it's written in the Scriptures:
בִּקֵּ֣שׁ קֹהֶ֔לֶת לִמְצֹ֖א דִּבְרֵי־חֵ֑פֶץ וְכָת֥וּב יֹ֖שֶׁר דִּבְרֵ֥י אֱמֶֽת׃
Koheleth sought to discover useful sayings and recorded genuinely truthful sayings. (Kohelet 12:10)
ביקש שלמה לעמוד על עסקי פרה דאמר ר' יצחק כל העוסקין בפרה מטמאין בגדים והיא עצמה מטהרת טמאין. (מדרש תהילים ט':ב')
Shlomo wanted to deal regarding Parah Adumah, said R' Itzhak: all who deal with the Parah impurifies clothing and itself purifies the impure". (Midrash Tehillim 9:2)
The systematization of human rationality cannot contain such a logical contradiction. When the same thing is in itself a contradiction. It purifies the impure and at the same time impurifies the pure. This leads Shlomo Hamelech to understand that wisdom and human rationality have a glass ceiling, from which it is at a dead end. That the world is also composed of things that cannot be put into rational patterns. That the pretense of "I thought I could fathom it" about everything that exists, and all the commandments of the Torah, is forced to conclude that "but it eludes me". To accept that there are things that are above logic, and where acceptance and faith are required.
The legacy of Parah Adumah and Shlomo's wisdom is very relevant today. Modern humanity must manage itself wisely and rationally. However, it must not ignore the fact that there are irrational elements in human behavior that the attempt to introduce them into rational patterns is intended to fail. Certain systems of the modern world give exclusivity to rationality and disrespect for anything perceived as irrational.
But in order to get a complete picture of the world, we must combine the two in a balanced way. To operate a balancing control system that will mark the rationality boundaries. On the other hand, there are other systems in the modern world that their purpose is precisely through the use of the irrational, emotional and social tools such as politics, advertising, public relations and public opinion design, etc. Which can be overwhelming from all sides and affect mainly the emotional and irrational human levels. In contrast, a balanced system of criticism must be applied to rational thinking that balances the irrational effects.
Even in the world of Judaism, Torah and faith require today more than any balance between the use of logic and rationality and the belief and acceptance of a Divine spiritual reality. On the one hand there is in Emunah, layers that can be understood with rational human logic. In the sense: "I thought I could fathom it". On the other hand, faith has higher layers that are not "not intellect and not emotion," in the sense that " but it eludes me".
There is a need for in-depth clarification of Torah and faith, while utilizing the tools of human logic. The world of faith and Torah cannot be based solely on acceptance and faith.
On the other hand, it must be understood that the understanding of the logic and rationality of the commandments is not a condition in the observance of the commandments! And even if it turns out that the mitzva is "but it eludes me" and it is impossible to understand the purpose and reason of the mitzva, it is not an exemption from receiving the yoke of Torah and fulfilling the mitzva with acceptance and faith.
On the contrary, the end of King Shlomo and the decline of his greatness when he failed in the mitzvot that were written explicitly in the Torah indicates that one should not rely solely on the understanding the reason for the mitzva:
אֲנִי אָמַרְתִּי: "אַרְבֶּה סוּסִים, וְלֹא אָשִׁיב אֶת־הָעָם מִצְרָיְמָה", וּבַסּוֹף הֲשִׁיבוֹתִי. אֲנִי אָמַרְתִּי: "אַרְבֶּה נָשִׁים וְלֹא יָסוּר לְבָבִי", וַהֲרֵי נִכְתַּב עָלַי "נָשָׁיו הִטּוּ אֶת־לְבָבוֹ".
"I said, “I will get many horses, but I will not return the people to Egypt,” but ultimately, I returned. I said, “I will take many wives, but they will not turn my heart away,” but it is written about me, “his wives swayed his heart.” (Rashi on Ecclesiastes 1:17:4).