Chasidut zu Schemot 19:3
וּמֹשֶׁ֥ה עָלָ֖ה אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּקְרָ֨א אֵלָ֤יו יְהוָה֙ מִן־הָהָ֣ר לֵאמֹ֔ר כֹּ֤ה תֹאמַר֙ לְבֵ֣ית יַעֲקֹ֔ב וְתַגֵּ֖יד לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
Da stieg Mose hinauf zu Gott, und der Herr rief ihm zu vom Berge und sprach: Also sprich zum Hause Jakob und verkünde den Kindern Israel:
Kedushat Levi
Leviticus 1,1. “He called out to Moses;” the fact that the letter א in this verse is written in smaller script is explained by something we had discussed in Exodus 24,1 on the line: ואל משה אמר עלה אל ה', “and to Moses He had said: ‘ascend towards Hashem.’” When a person performs one of G’d’s commandments this makes an impression in the celestial spheres and helps to awaken in him the desire to perform additional commandments so that he will constantly be occupied with doing G’d’s will. It had been Moses’ will to continuously perform G’d’s will and to thereby continue to ascend ever higher and come closer to Hashem as stated by the Zohar when explaining the line: ומשה עלה אל האלוקים, “and Moses had ascended towards G’d,” (Exodus 19,3). G’d’s invitation recorded in Exodus 24 to ascend (once again) was the result of his having done so in Exodus 19,3 when he had commenced to do so before an invitation had been issued to do so. The Zohar II,69 ascribes the invitation to Moses in our verse to ascend to Hashem as a reward for Moses’ initiative in Exodus 19,3. This is reflected here by the letter א being written in small script. It acknowledges the humility of Moses which exceeded anyone else’s humility, i.e. the “small” א.
We have a rule when offering a sacrifice to G’d that this offering is to reflect the largesse that G’d has seen fit to bestow upon us, without us in the lower regions of the universe having performed any good deeds to deserve this. This is the reason that the animal sacrifice must be dedicated and consecrated while still alive, as the ultimate gift G’d can bestow us is life itself. Life can only be bestowed by G’d Himself.
Libations, i.e. offerings consisting of oil or wine (with additives) are a form of “mini-offering,” but they represent an input by the residents in this lower part of the universe, man having had to seed and plant the earth before eventually producing the product from which oil and wine is made. These libations also reflect G’d’s largesse, i.e. the largesse bestowed upon us as a direct result of our constructive activities on earth. In other words, the Israelites were allowed (only after the affair of the spies) to present such libations in recognition of their good deeds.
While the Israelites were in the desert they were in the position of receiving G’d’s largesse without having made an input of their own as they could not seed or plant orchards or grow grain in the desert. In recognition of their inability to do so, G’d provided heavenly bread, i.e. the manna for them. In lieu of their offering libations to Him, G’d provided them with a travelling well which took care of their daily needs for fresh water.
All this has been alluded to in Numbers 15,2 when the Torah begins to describe how the people’s lives will change once they will come to the land of their inheritance, i.e.כי תבאו אל ארץ מושבתיכם וגו', “when you will come to the land in which you will reside permanently, etc.” The Torah there continues with listing the various kinds of offerings (first animal) and then libations, in that order. The reason why these sacrificial offerings are linked to the people being in possession of their permanent homes in the Holy Land is because the sacrifices are reflections, i.e. acts of acknowledgment and gratitude for G’d’s largesse by giving them an ancestral heritage. This also explains why the sages have decreed אין אומרים שירה אלא על היין, “when intoning songs of thanksgiving to G’d one must only do so while saying a blessing over wine (and drinking it) as an acknowledgment of the most precious product that the earth (lower part for the universe) has to offer us by the grace of G’d.” (Compare Rashi on Erchin 11)
We have a rule when offering a sacrifice to G’d that this offering is to reflect the largesse that G’d has seen fit to bestow upon us, without us in the lower regions of the universe having performed any good deeds to deserve this. This is the reason that the animal sacrifice must be dedicated and consecrated while still alive, as the ultimate gift G’d can bestow us is life itself. Life can only be bestowed by G’d Himself.
Libations, i.e. offerings consisting of oil or wine (with additives) are a form of “mini-offering,” but they represent an input by the residents in this lower part of the universe, man having had to seed and plant the earth before eventually producing the product from which oil and wine is made. These libations also reflect G’d’s largesse, i.e. the largesse bestowed upon us as a direct result of our constructive activities on earth. In other words, the Israelites were allowed (only after the affair of the spies) to present such libations in recognition of their good deeds.
While the Israelites were in the desert they were in the position of receiving G’d’s largesse without having made an input of their own as they could not seed or plant orchards or grow grain in the desert. In recognition of their inability to do so, G’d provided heavenly bread, i.e. the manna for them. In lieu of their offering libations to Him, G’d provided them with a travelling well which took care of their daily needs for fresh water.
All this has been alluded to in Numbers 15,2 when the Torah begins to describe how the people’s lives will change once they will come to the land of their inheritance, i.e.כי תבאו אל ארץ מושבתיכם וגו', “when you will come to the land in which you will reside permanently, etc.” The Torah there continues with listing the various kinds of offerings (first animal) and then libations, in that order. The reason why these sacrificial offerings are linked to the people being in possession of their permanent homes in the Holy Land is because the sacrifices are reflections, i.e. acts of acknowledgment and gratitude for G’d’s largesse by giving them an ancestral heritage. This also explains why the sages have decreed אין אומרים שירה אלא על היין, “when intoning songs of thanksgiving to G’d one must only do so while saying a blessing over wine (and drinking it) as an acknowledgment of the most precious product that the earth (lower part for the universe) has to offer us by the grace of G’d.” (Compare Rashi on Erchin 11)
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Kedushat Levi
Another approach to the verse: כי תשא את ראש בני ישראל לפקודיהם ונתנו איש כופר נפשו וגו', we have a rule that we learned from the Zohar on Exodus 19,3 ומשה עלה אל האלוקים ויקרא אליו ה' מן ההר, “and Moses had ascended towards G’d, and Hashem called out to him from the Mountain, etc,” that ”all spiritual ascents of man must be oriented toward his declaring the Creator as his King.” This idea has also been alluded to in our verse when the Torah speaks about elevating the Children of Israel, i.e.כי תשא את בני ישראל. The root פקד occurs already in Esther 2,3 where we are told that the king appointed officials by writing: ויפקד המלך פקידים, “the king appointed officials etc.” The half shekel that the Israelites were to pay as ransom for their souls, were intended to insure that they would progress towards their task of appointing G’d as their King. This is the reason why the Torah added the word לה', i.e. “for Hashem.” after the word נפשו.
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Kedushat Levi
Exodus 19,3. “meanwhile Moses had ascended to G’d, [lowest of the celestial domains, Ed,], and Hashem called out to him from the Mountain, saying: ‘thus you shall speak to the house of Yaakov and tell in detail to the Children of Israel.’”
We need to analyze a number of points in this verse (paragraph). 1) What precisely is the meaning of the word כה? Why could the Torah not simply write: ויקרא אליו ה' לאמור לבית יעקב, “Hashem called to him to say to the house of Yaakov, etc.?” 2) Why, in verse 4, does G’d refer only to the Exodus from Egypt as examples of what He had created? 3) What is the meaning of the line (verse 5) והייתם לי סגולה מכל העמים, “you have become more precious to Me than any of the other nations,” after the condition: "if you will surely listen to My voice and observe My covenant?“ Are we to assume, G’d forbid, that if we had not been given the covenant and had accepted it enthusiastically, that we would not be superior to the other nations? Does G’d love us only on account of our being loyal to the covenant? Moreover, G’d should have said that if we observe the covenant we are also dearer to Him than all the angels, as when we –who are free to choose- observe the covenant, we are on a spiritually higher level than the angels, even?
It appears to me that the answer to all these questions can be found already in the Midrash. [I have not found this Midrash. Ed.] which describes Moses’ reception in the lowest of the seven layers of the celestial regions. When Moses arrived at that level he found himself surrounded by many thousands of different categories of angels, including the holy seraphim, all of whom were standing in awe and reverence [before the Lord, I assume, Ed,] so that he was overcome by a great fright and was trembling not knowing with whom he should commence to speak. He remained in this condition until G’d Himself spread some of the brilliance of His Presence over him.
We find numerous occasions when other prophets when addressed by G’d, stood in awe and trembling before G’d so much so that their normal senses became totally disoriented and dysfunctional.
On Leviticus 1,1 ויקרא אל משה אליו מאהל מועד, “G’d called to Moses from the Tent of Meeting,” Rashi comments that the words following: וידבר אליו, “He spoke to him,” might be understood as a repetition as at first G’d’s voice was not loud enough, therefore the Torah writes both in Numbers 7,89 and Deuteronomy 8,20, את הקול, “the ‘well known’ voice.” G’d’s voice was powerful but could not be heard outside the confines of the Tabernacle. The Bible repeatedly refers to the powerful voice of G’d being such that it felled cedars. (psalms 29) If a human being is fortunate enough to hear the voice of G’d proclaim the words: אנכי ה' אלוקיך אשר הוצאתיך וגו', “I am the Lord your G’d Who has taken you out, etc.;” each Shavuot, this is proof of how one must prepare oneself in order to hear the Lord’s voice. [Alas, none of us has been found meritorious enough to hear that voice. Ed.] We have a tradition that the tens of thousands of angels were overcome with trembling whenever they heard the voice of G’d. How much more so must we mortal human beings be overcome with such tremors if even the angels are described as being in such a state of terror? The three days of preparation described in the Torah as preceding G’d’s revealing Himself to the people at Mount Sinai are totally inadequate. Even if we were to prepare ourselves for a whole year this would not suffice for us to tolerate G’d’s voice without becoming seriously disoriented. Our verse indicates that although Moses had prepared himself for the encounter with G’d that he would face, and he had assumed that what G’d had to say to him was on a level that the people could not comprehend, G’d told him that this was not necessary, as what He had to say to him was intended for him to teach to the people.
We need to analyze a number of points in this verse (paragraph). 1) What precisely is the meaning of the word כה? Why could the Torah not simply write: ויקרא אליו ה' לאמור לבית יעקב, “Hashem called to him to say to the house of Yaakov, etc.?” 2) Why, in verse 4, does G’d refer only to the Exodus from Egypt as examples of what He had created? 3) What is the meaning of the line (verse 5) והייתם לי סגולה מכל העמים, “you have become more precious to Me than any of the other nations,” after the condition: "if you will surely listen to My voice and observe My covenant?“ Are we to assume, G’d forbid, that if we had not been given the covenant and had accepted it enthusiastically, that we would not be superior to the other nations? Does G’d love us only on account of our being loyal to the covenant? Moreover, G’d should have said that if we observe the covenant we are also dearer to Him than all the angels, as when we –who are free to choose- observe the covenant, we are on a spiritually higher level than the angels, even?
It appears to me that the answer to all these questions can be found already in the Midrash. [I have not found this Midrash. Ed.] which describes Moses’ reception in the lowest of the seven layers of the celestial regions. When Moses arrived at that level he found himself surrounded by many thousands of different categories of angels, including the holy seraphim, all of whom were standing in awe and reverence [before the Lord, I assume, Ed,] so that he was overcome by a great fright and was trembling not knowing with whom he should commence to speak. He remained in this condition until G’d Himself spread some of the brilliance of His Presence over him.
We find numerous occasions when other prophets when addressed by G’d, stood in awe and trembling before G’d so much so that their normal senses became totally disoriented and dysfunctional.
On Leviticus 1,1 ויקרא אל משה אליו מאהל מועד, “G’d called to Moses from the Tent of Meeting,” Rashi comments that the words following: וידבר אליו, “He spoke to him,” might be understood as a repetition as at first G’d’s voice was not loud enough, therefore the Torah writes both in Numbers 7,89 and Deuteronomy 8,20, את הקול, “the ‘well known’ voice.” G’d’s voice was powerful but could not be heard outside the confines of the Tabernacle. The Bible repeatedly refers to the powerful voice of G’d being such that it felled cedars. (psalms 29) If a human being is fortunate enough to hear the voice of G’d proclaim the words: אנכי ה' אלוקיך אשר הוצאתיך וגו', “I am the Lord your G’d Who has taken you out, etc.;” each Shavuot, this is proof of how one must prepare oneself in order to hear the Lord’s voice. [Alas, none of us has been found meritorious enough to hear that voice. Ed.] We have a tradition that the tens of thousands of angels were overcome with trembling whenever they heard the voice of G’d. How much more so must we mortal human beings be overcome with such tremors if even the angels are described as being in such a state of terror? The three days of preparation described in the Torah as preceding G’d’s revealing Himself to the people at Mount Sinai are totally inadequate. Even if we were to prepare ourselves for a whole year this would not suffice for us to tolerate G’d’s voice without becoming seriously disoriented. Our verse indicates that although Moses had prepared himself for the encounter with G’d that he would face, and he had assumed that what G’d had to say to him was on a level that the people could not comprehend, G’d told him that this was not necessary, as what He had to say to him was intended for him to teach to the people.
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