BS”D
FAITHFULNESS FOREVER: PARSHAT
CHUKAS
Shira Smiles shiur 2020/5780
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
The
adaptation of this shiur is written l’iluy nishmat my dear friend since
childhood, Marta Schraub Schron, Mottel Leah bas Yosef Avimelech Halevi, who
went to her olam haemet on Thursday, Tamuz 3.See extra attachment for some
memories.
Miriam
had died, and the well that had sprung from the rock in her merit dried up.
Bnei Yisroel again approached Moshe, complaining that it would have been better
in Egypt rather than dying in the desert without water. Hashem then tells Moshe
to take his staff, speak to the rock and tell it to give forth water.
Moshe and Aharon then took the staff, gathered the people around them and Moshe
said, “Listen, you rebels, shall we bring forth water for you from this rock?”
Then Moshe hit the rock and abundant water poured forth.
We
can easily see the discrepancy in Moshe’s fulfilling Hashem’s command. Hashem
had told Moshe to speak to the rock, but Moshe hit the rock. This failure to
accurately fulfill Hashem’s command elicited this response from Hakodosh Boruch
Hu: “Because you did not he’emantem Bi/believe in Me lehakdisheinu/to
sanctify Me in the eyes of Bnei Yisroel, therefore you will not bring this
congregation to the Land that I have given them.”
The
simplest question on this incident is why did Moshe veer from Hashem’s explicit
command? At least equally important is how Moshe’s action demonstrated a lack
of faith, especially, as the Sifsei Chaim notes, Hashem declared Moshe
to be the most faithful in His entire house, in the whole world? Finally, how
was Hashem’s decree that Moshe would not lead Bnei Yisroel into Eretz Yisroel
an appropriate response?
Every
sin has an element of lack of faith, writes Rabbi Goldstein in Shaarei Chaim.
It is only through a lack of awareness of Hashem’s constant presence that one
will fall into sin. Even though Moshe had confronted Hashem on other occasions,
especially to plead for Bnei Yisroel, those confrontations were in private
while this one was public, spurring a lack of faith in others.
Continuing
this idea, Rav Wolbe in Alei Shor reminds us that the mitzvah of kiddush
Hashem in public/sanctifying God’s Name is so important that we are
commanded to even die if necessary to achieve this goal. In this, Moshe fell
short, continues Rabbi Wolbe. Had Moshe spoken to the rock instead of hitting
it, people would have reasoned that if an inanimate object which can neither
see nor hear and requires no sustenance immediately heeds God’s command, how
much more so must we do so as human beings. Further, adds Rabbi Zelig Epstein,
merely speaking to the rock would have shown that the rock obeyed Hashem’s will
through its own choice rather than through coercion, a goal compromised by
hitting the rock, when obedience seems to have been achieved by force rather
than by faith. Rabbi Reiss in Meirosh Tzurim builds on this concept. Our
desire to do Hashem’s will should be so strong that we should feel as if we
have no other choice. That way, our desire itself forces us to do His will.
Along
these lines, Rabbi Schorr in Halekach Vehalebuv draws on the words of
our Morning Prayers. Every morning, we ask Hashem “to compel our Evil
Inclination to be subservient to You,” as He had compelled us to [continue to]
accept the Torah at Sinai even though we had already declared our acceptance of
the Torah. At Sinai, we had reached the level of integrating Hashem’s will into
our own, so that intuitively we would follow His commands. The impurity of the
negative inclination had left us, and we were in a totally pure state. However,
that state did not last long, and negativity again entered our psyche when we
made the golden calf. Speaking to the rock would have demonstrated that doing
Hashem’s will is the natural order of the world while sinning is unnatural.
Moshe’s
hesitancy in following Hashem’s dictate, irrespective of not following it
exactly, also contributed to a lack of faith, writes Birkat Mordechai
Ezrachi. That hesitancy could give Bnei Yisroel the idea that one can hesitate
and ponder whether one should follow the command or not, even if one eventually
complies. It is like answering someone’s request with, “I’ll think about it,”
implying that their request was not that important to you, adds Rabbi Bernstein
in Aggadah.
Moshe
himself certainly knew the difference between speaking to the rock and hitting
the rock, but his mission, and the mission of every Jew, is to instill in
others the love of Hashem, writes Rabbi Reiss citing the Ramban. By hitting the
rock, Moshe failed to instill additional love for and faith in Hakodosh Boruch
Hu in Bnei Yisroel.
The
Slonimer Rebbe in Netivot Shalom takes a different approach to this
incident. Citing verse Tehillim 37:3, “Trust in Hashem… that you may enter the
land with faithfulness,” the Slonimer Rebbe suggests that speaking to the rock
would generate in Bnei Yisroel the trust and faith necessary to properly enter
the Land. But Moshe underestimated the faith of Bnei Yisroel, and therefore he
hit the rock not once, but twice. He even called Bnei Yisroel “the rebellious
ones.” Moshe mistakenly assumed that if, after the splitting of the Sea and so
many other miracles of the time, Hashem had told him to strike the rock to
bring forth water, certainly now, after Bnei Yisroel complained for forty years
in the desert, they would have even less faith. But Moshe did not calculate the
effect of receiving the Torah would have on Bnei Yisroel. Entering Eretz
Yisroel required a certain amount of bitachon/faith, and the purpose of
entering the Land was to continue building that faith. Hashem wanted this
experience of witnessing the rock obeying the spoken command without any human
effort to be part of the process of building that faith. Instead, by hitting
the rock, Moshe undermined this belief. He failed to understand that Bnei
Yisroel were inherently believers, albeit that faith could be hidden. What
Hashem wanted of Moshe was that he reveal the inner faith that Bnei Yisroel
already possessed.
When
a Jew feels that his emunah/faith is lagging, he must repeat for
himself, almost as a mantra, that he believes, and the repetition will grow
that inherent belief in himself. [Modern day life coaches know the value of
self talk to generate lagging confidence. CKS] Just as the sun is always there,
even when hidden by the clouds, so too is a Jew’s faith always there, even when
the challenges of life shake that belief. Moshe needed to get Bnei Yisroel
ready for entry into Eretz Yisroel by awakening that dormant belief.
What
exactly does emunah/belief/faith mean? The Sifsei Chaim gives us
two meanings, that complement each other, and both are alluded to when we answer
“Amen” to a brachah. One is in fact a validation of what was already
said, I also believe that Hashem is the Creator and He has the ability to do
all. The second meaning is more subtle. It is the trust I have in Him that He
will keep the faith with me and continue to take the action to fulfill that
trust, and I too will act on that faith.
This
is the concept advanced by Rabbi Akiva Tatz, especially to guide teenagers for
life. Emunah does not mean faith, but faithfulness, loyalty, acting on
what is already known and believed. Unfortunately, humans often act in complete
contradiction to what they know to be true, what they believe to be the right
thing to do. This is the essence of free will, and this is the work of emunah.
It’s
not enough just to believe abstractedly in Hashem, writes the Sifsei Chaim.
One must rely on Him in every situation. Relying on Him will strengthen your emunah.
That’s why the one who responds Amen to a brachah is greater than the
one who actually recited the brachah. The Sifsei Chaim explains what the
acronym AMeN stands for. A(E)l,
the God of kindness; Melech, the King and Master; Ne’eman,
Who is trustworthy to act on that kindness. By responding with Amen, I am
recognizing Hashem in my life and am relying on Him.
It
is this dual message that we convey every morning at the end of Modeh Ani,
“Rabah emunatecha/abundant is Your faithfulness.” We are grateful
both that we can rely on his kindness to us, but also acknowledge that, having
returned our souls to us for another day of life, He also has abundant faith in
us. [In dark and challenging times, what a comforting and reassuring message.
CKS]
Rambam
suggests that Moshe was punished for expressing anger at Bnei Yisroel, calling
them Rebels. Rav Asher Weiss and the Tiferes Shimshon both explain why
this anger was such a grave sin in Moshe’s case. Everyone knew that Moshe was
Hashem’s spokesperson to Bnei Yisroel. Now, when Moshe expressed anger, Bnei Yisroel
assumed that Hashem Himself was angry at Bnei Yisroel, diminishing their faith
in Hashem’s kindness. In fact, Hashem was not angry. Hashem merely instructed
Moshe to bring them water, as the request was a legitimate one. But it is also
possible that Moshe himself had a momentary lapse in faith, adds Rabbi Pincus.
We
obviously inherit our faith through our Avot/Patriarchs. They were our Rosh
Tzurim/immovable rocks of faith that even the gentile Prophet Bilaam
recognized, explains Rabbi Yerucham Levovitz. Had Moshe’s faith been intact and
pure, he would have remained joyful, not gotten angry and not have hit the
rock. The anger was a symptom of a lack of faith. By hitting the rock in anger,
Moshe eroded the faith Bnei Yisroel had that they could ask Hashem for
anything, adds Rabbi Shmulevitz in Sichot Mussar.
Rav
Schlesinger takes our whole premise and turns it around. If Moshe sinned by
hitting the rock to bring forth water, how could we ask Hashem to provide
water/rain for us in Moshe’s merit when we pray for rain on Succot? To answer
this question we must explore Moshe’s mindset in hitting the rock. Had the rock
obeyed Hashem’s command after simply being spoken to, it would reflect badly on
Bnei Yisroel who constantly don’t listen to Hashem. As previously in his life,
Moshe was willing to sacrifice his own life for the benefit of his people.
Therefore, it is Hashem, the merciful aspect of God Who speaks to Moshe.
Hashem’s words to Moshe, according to Rav Schlesinger, is not a punishment, but
a natural extension of Moshe’s concern. Had Moshe led the nation into Eretz
Yisroel and built the Beit Hamikdosh, the Beit Hamikdosh would have been
eternal in Moshe’s merit. Then, when Bnei Yisroel would sin, as would
inevitably happen, Hashem would not be able to vent His anger (so to speak) on
the wood and stones of the Beit Hamikdosh, but would have had to destroy Am
Yisroel. Not granting Moshe entry into Eretz Yisroel was actually a way
of fulfilling Moshe’s greatest wish, the survival of Bnei Yisroel. Moshe’s deep
love of Bnei Yisroel allowed him to give up his deep desire of entering Eretz
Yisroel.
At
what level of trusting in Hashem are we, of knowing and acting on that faith?
Equally important, how trustworthy are we to others who depend on us? While we
can never approach the bond that Moshe had with Hashem, being the most trusted
in all the world, we can strive to build that bond every day from when we wake
up in the morning with Modeh Ani until we introduce our final Shema
of the day with E-l Melech Ne’eman.
Marta
Schraub Schron was a woman of tremendous faith who lived her life with
simplicity, ready to give to others and always cognizant of the gifts Hashem
blessed her with. Tehei zichrah boruch.