Musar for Numbers 12:20

Therefore, one who bears insult and is silent is recognized to be truly modest. And so have we found in Shabbath 31b concerning Hillel the Prince, when a man insulted him and said, "Let there not be many like you in Israel," that Hillel did not fly into a temper. And there is a statement in the Midrash, "No one can be called modest unless he can hear himself reviled and not answer as if it is written: 'And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses! (And it does not say that Moses responded). And following this it is written : And the man Moses was exceedingly modest.' "

First of all, the episode of the serpent, who spoke lashon hara of the Holy One Blessed be He and thereby brought death to the world. And (Bereshith 29:20): "If G-d will be with me and guard me," concerning which Chazal have said: "if He will guard me against lashon hara." And the episode of Joseph (Ibid. 37:2): "And Joseph brought their evil talk to their father," this being the catalyst of the descent of the Jews to Egypt. And (Shemoth 2:14): "In truth, the thing has become known" (see Rashi there and what we shall write below). There, too, (4:1) Moses our teacher, may peace be upon him, says: "But they will not believe me," and the Blessed L-rd counters (Ibid. 2): "What is this in your hand?" … (3) …and it became a serpent." Also there (6): "And, behold, his hand was leprous as snow." And (Ibid. 17:2): "And the people quarreled with Moses… (7) …over the quarrel of the children of Israel, etc." followed by (8): "And Amalek came and warred with Israel, etc." And (Ibid. 23:1): "You shall not bear a false report, which applies to both the speaker and the receiver [of lashon hara] (as we find in Makkoth 23a), followed by (2): "Do not be after many to do evil." And, in reference to the me'il [the outer robe of the ephod] (Ibid. 28:32): "A border shall there be to its mouth roundabout," and the entire section. And (35): "And its sound will be heard when he comes to the sanctuary, etc." And the entire section of Tazria and Metzora: the plague-spots of houses, the plague-spots of clothing, the plague-spots of men, (Vayikra 13:46): "Solitary shall he sit"— even outside of the camp of Israel. And his atonement— "chirping" birds. And (Ibid. 19:16): "Do not go talebearing among your people," (Ibid. 17): "Reprove, shall you reprove your neighbor, but you shall not bear sin because of him." And (Ibid. 25:17): "You shall not wrong, one man, his fellow," which relates to verbal wronging, which is also in the category of evil speech. And (Bamidbar 5:1): "And they shall send out of the camp every leper"— even if he were as great in Torah as Doeg. And (Ibid. 12:1): "And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, etc." And the entire section of Shelach Lecha, which speaks about the spies. And (Ibid. 21:5): "And the people spoke against G-d and against Moses." And (Devarim 23:10): "When you go out as a camp against your foes, guard yourself against every evil thing [davar ra]," concerning which Chazal have said: "davar ra" may be read as "dibbur ra" [evil speech]. And in Tetze, the "giving out of an evil name [motzi shem ra]," and (Ibid. 24:9): "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam, etc." And (Ibid. 27:24): "Cursed be he who smites his friend in secret," which refers to lashon hara. And it is known that all of the "cursings" were preceded by blessings; and they opened with blessing, saying: "Blessed is he who does not smite"— whence we derive that one who is heedful in this is blessed.

Yalkut Shimoni item 177 on Exodus 6,12, where we have another instance in which Moses uses the word לאמור when speaking to G–d, says that there are altogether four such instances. Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah claims that Moses demanded that G–d reply to him, i.e. “לאמור, whether He would redeem the Children of Israel or not. G–d responded in Exodus 6,1: "Now you will see what I shall do to Pharaoh, etc." A similar incident occurred when the Torah reported Moses as using this expression in Numbers 12,13 when he wanted an immediate answer whether G–d was going to heal Miriam or not. There, too, G–d is reported as responding to this outcry in verse 14, indicating that Miriam would be healed after a week. We also have such an instance in Numbers 27,15 where Moses wanted a reply from G–d to his request that He appoint a suitable leader in his stead. G–d responded in verse 18 that Joshua would be the new leader of the people. Lastly, the Yakut quotes the verse in our portion where Moses supposedly demanded an immediate response to his request to enter ארץ ישראל.

We learn from this that if even a Moses, of whom G–d Himself had testified that "he is trusted in My entire House" (Numbers 12,7), felt it incumbent to render an account to the people, no Jewish trustee, however well reputed, should feel it below his dignity to offer an accounting of how he spent the public funds entrusted to him.

And we learn in Sifrei (Devarim 24:8): "Be heedful of the plague-spot of leprosy, etc.," followed by (Ibid. 9): "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam, etc." What is the rationale of the juxtaposition? We are hereby taught that she was punished only because of lashon hara [(Miriam having slandered Moses because of the Kushite woman that he had taken.)] Now does this not follow a fortiori? viz.: If Miriam, who had spoken thus only of her younger brother, was punished, then one who speaks thus of someone greater than he, how much more so [should he be punished!] Another interpretation: Now, if Miriam, who, when she spoke, was heard by no one but the Holy One Blessed be He alone, as it is written (Numbers 12:2): 'And the L-rd heard,' was punished thus, how much more so, one who speaks demeaningly of his friend in public!"

And they also expounded (in Vayikra Rabbah 16) the verse (Koheleth 5:5): "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to your flesh" — do not speak lashon hara with your mouth to punish all of your flesh with this sin. The Rabbis applied this verse to Miriam: "Do not allow your mouth" — you, Miriam, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): "And, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "that it was an error" — as it is written (Numbers 12:11): "wherein we [(Aaron and Miriam)] have erred and wherein we have sinned." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "Why should G-d be angry at your voice?" — at the lashon hara you have spoken against Moses, as it is written (Numbers 12:9): "and the anger of the L-rd burned against them, and He departed." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "and [He shall] destroy the work of your hands." R. Yochanan said: "With her mouth she sinned, and all her limbs were smitten, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): 'And the cloud departed from the tent, and, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow.' This is the intent of: "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to [destroy] your flesh" … (Mishlei 21:33): 'He who guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from troubles.'"

And they also expounded (in Vayikra Rabbah 16) the verse (Koheleth 5:5): "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to your flesh" — do not speak lashon hara with your mouth to punish all of your flesh with this sin. The Rabbis applied this verse to Miriam: "Do not allow your mouth" — you, Miriam, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): "And, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "that it was an error" — as it is written (Numbers 12:11): "wherein we [(Aaron and Miriam)] have erred and wherein we have sinned." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "Why should G-d be angry at your voice?" — at the lashon hara you have spoken against Moses, as it is written (Numbers 12:9): "and the anger of the L-rd burned against them, and He departed." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "and [He shall] destroy the work of your hands." R. Yochanan said: "With her mouth she sinned, and all her limbs were smitten, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): 'And the cloud departed from the tent, and, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow.' This is the intent of: "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to [destroy] your flesh" … (Mishlei 21:33): 'He who guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from troubles.'"

And they also expounded (in Vayikra Rabbah 16) the verse (Koheleth 5:5): "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to your flesh" — do not speak lashon hara with your mouth to punish all of your flesh with this sin. The Rabbis applied this verse to Miriam: "Do not allow your mouth" — you, Miriam, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): "And, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "that it was an error" — as it is written (Numbers 12:11): "wherein we [(Aaron and Miriam)] have erred and wherein we have sinned." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "Why should G-d be angry at your voice?" — at the lashon hara you have spoken against Moses, as it is written (Numbers 12:9): "and the anger of the L-rd burned against them, and He departed." (Koheleth, Ibid.): "and [He shall] destroy the work of your hands." R. Yochanan said: "With her mouth she sinned, and all her limbs were smitten, as it is written (Numbers 12:10): 'And the cloud departed from the tent, and, behold, Miriam was leprous, [white] as snow.' This is the intent of: "Do not allow your mouth to cause sin to [destroy] your flesh" … (Mishlei 21:33): 'He who guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from troubles.'"

The second is from Moses, our teacher, peace be upon him. He was the choicest of the creations of the Creator. We know that his excellence was honored in his life, and so was it in his death. We know that his soul had a superiority over other souls and certainly did not perish, and just as in his lifetime he ascended to Heaven, and the Creator, blessed be He, showed him his mysteries, as it is said (Numbers 12:7), “He is trusted in my house,” so does our reason compel us to believe that his soul was not lost in his death. For if his soul were lost, what superiority did it have over others? Since the Lord spoke with him, we know that the power of God’s speaking with him left in him an advantage after his soul had separated from his body, an advantage from which there could be inferred the difference between it and the souls of other creatures with whom God did not speak. If this is so, then this is its good reward. Just as at his death, his soul ascended to the academy on high and did not perish, so will the souls of the righteous rejoice, each according to his service to God and his righteousness.

והאיש משה עניו מאד מכל האדם . "Moses was more humble than any other human being." We can appreciate the value of the virtue of humility after we see that the only praise the Torah accords Moses, the father of all prophets, the man who maintained closer contact with G–d than anyone before him or since, is the reference to his humility. This teaches us to try and practice this virtue to the extreme. We are reminded of the Mishnah (Avot 4,4) which says: "be very very humble." When the Torah here says "more than any other human," we know of three humble people, Moses and Aaron who had said of themselves: "נחנו מה," who are we? (Exodus 16,7); then there was Abraham who said of himself: ואנכי עפר ואפר, "and I am only dust and ashes," (Genesis 18,27). Finally, there was King David, who said of himself: ואנכי תולעת, "and I am a worm." The most humble one of them all was Moses, since he did not even compare himself to anything else, but said:"We are nothing!" This is what the Torah meant when it said “מכל האדם”. The three letters in the word אדם, are the first letters respectively of אברהם, דוד, משה.

And concerning Moses, it is written : "In all my house he is faithful" (Num. 12:7). And it is said in the Midrash : "Great is faith before the Holy One, Blessed is He, for because of the merit of the faith that our fathers believed there dwelt upon them the Holy Spirit and they uttered song as it is said : 'And they believed in the Lord and in Moses His servent. Then Moses and the Children of Israel sang' " (Exod. 14:31, 15:1, Exodus Rabbah 22-23).

ויחר אף ה' בם, וילך . It is difficult to understand why G–d's anger is mentioned only here, after He had already dressed down Miriam and Aaron (12,4). The reason is that as soon as Miriam and Aaron had heard from G–d Himself that they had sinned, they should have confessed their sin, as David had done when the prophet Nathan told him he had committed a wrong with Bat Sheva (Samuel II 12,13).

והנה מרים מצורעת כשלג . Here we see the severity of the sin of gossiping. Look at what happened to the prophetess Miriam who had indulged in an ordinary conversation with her brother Aaron, making some remark about her brother Moses! We are reminded to recite the verse זכור את אשר עשה ה' אלוקיך למרים בדרך בצאתכם ממצרים, "Remember what the Lord your G–d has done to Miriam on the way when you had come out of Egypt" (Deut. 24,8). It is one of the six זכירות, commemorations, a person is to recite daily.

Once Jacob died, Moses became the second "husband" of the relevant שכינה [presumably the "upper" one, בינה, seeing that Moses had attained 49 of the 50 levels of בינה Ed.]. However, this union could last only while Moses lived on this earth, since upon the death of a wife's second husband she "returns" to her former husband, having only been on "loan" during the interval. Since Jacob was by then in the Holy Land, Moses, automatically had to remain outside the Holy Land. The reason that Jacob was buried body and bones in ארץ ישראל is that he represented the גוף, body, of the ארץ של ישראל סבא, as we have mentioned before. Joseph, being the extension of his father, was the extension of the גוף, limbs or bones. These "bones" symbolize the spiritual forces or permutations of G–d's Ineffable Name that radiate in all directions from the emanation בינה, enabling a physical universe to take shape. A צדיק, as such is also called צבאות, part of G–d's armies or executive arm. It was therefore appropriate that Joseph's bones rather than his entire body were interred in ארץ ישראל. None of this reflects negatively on Moses. On the contrary, whereas Moses was able to establish a union with the "upper" level of the שכינה during his life on earth, Jacob established his union with that level of the שכינה only after he had departed. We find an allusion to Moses' intimacy with that part of the שכינה in Numbers 7,89, where the way the Torah describes Moses' being at home in the אהל מועד, the visible manifestation of the בינה on earth, is most striking. Moses did not need to be invited in; he acted as if he were the owner of that domain. The author finds in the number of the 600,000 Jews that left Egypt allusions to the radiations of the various combinations of G–d's Name in all the six directions of the compass, proof that Moses led the people by means of the power inherent in the emanation בינה. If Moses was already on such a level while his soul was still enshrined in his body, it is clear that once Moses died, his soul would ascend to an even higher region than the level represented by בינה. That level, which we have described elsewhere as יובל, is beyond any level associated with any of the three levels to which the term ארץ can be applied. Moses' being "buried" in what we commonly call חוץ לארץ is a compliment to him thus rather than a reminder of some inadequacy on his part. In fact, once Moses' life on earth had come to an end, he joined the souls of "his" 600,000 people who also had not been buried in the Holy Land. If we find that Moses separated from his terrestrial wife Tzipporah –something used by his sister Miriam as an accusation against him in Numbers 12,1 – the reason was simply that Moses had already "used" [in the sense that one has relations with one's wife. Ed.] the spiritual light from extra-terrestrial regions as we know from Exodus 34,29 where Moses is described as emitting supernatural light from his face. Having a "wife" in those regions, it is easy to understand that Moses could no longer share life with a wife on earth. Jacob, on the other hand, had married four wives and had shared a fully terrestrial life with them, one of the reasons that his bed, מטה, was called שלימה, "complete" by our sages. This means that only upon his death did his רוח ונשמה, soul and spirit, merit entry to the seventh level i.e. בינה.

והעם לא נסע עד האסף מרים . They accorded her honor by not moving on until she had been healed and released from quarantine (12,15). We learn from here that if one sees a Torah scholar or other righteous person suffering from an affliction or poverty one should show such a person increased respect, since G–d disciplines those whom He loves. Unfortunately in our days people do the very reverse. Nowadays people look down on a Torah scholar who is poor. Woe to the people who so insult Torah! He who cherishes the word of G–d will display even more respect for Torah scholars who are poor and thereby honor both G–d and Torah.

We shall explain in detail this verse ["Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam on the way when you went out of Egypt"], so that every man of intelligence can see that our words are correct. The holy Torah noted for us in the mitzvah of remembering, four things: 1) "Remember what, etc."; that is, what was done. 2) To whom did He did it? To Miriam. 3) In what place did He do it? On the way. 4) When did this occur? When you went out of Egypt. Why does the Torah mention these four specifically? What difference does it make to us that the punishment was tzara'ath [leprosy] and not any other punishment? Or whether this happened in the house or on the way? Or whether it happened at some other time and not at the exodus from Egypt? But the truth is that these four details are essential for "remembering" and there is great benefit in reflecting upon them. And for this reason it is written "Remember what He did." That is, one should remember and reflect upon the greatness of the punishment inflicted upon her because of her speaking against Moses, our teacher, may peace be upon him. And that punishment was tzar'ath, an extremely severe punishment, which [illness] it is impossible to cure unless the Holy One Blessed be He conduct himself with him [the leper] above the bounds of nature. As we find in Midrash Rabbah Vayikra 16 on (Vayikra 14:5): "And the Cohein shall command and he shall slaughter the one bird" — Why does he slaughter one and release the other? To teach us that just as it is impossible for the slaughtered bird to return, so is it impossible [within the bounds of nature] for the plague-spots to return [there being no possible cure in the interim]." And [the degree of] his uncleanliness is extremely severe. For he must sit outside the three camps, as opposed to all the other unclean ones. And he also renders unclean all who enter his tent as mentioned in the verse [(an intimation that all those who keep company with the slandered become unclean, as he is)]. And he is also considered like a dead man, as Chazal have said (Nedarim 64b). This explains "Remember what He did, etc." And to whom did He do it? To Miriam, who was a great tzadeketh, in whose merit the well rose [for Israel], and also a prophetess, as it is written (Shemoth 15:20): "And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron took, etc." And she spoke only against her brother, whom she loved as herself, having risked her life to save him from the water. And she did not speak demeaningly of him, but only likened him to the other prophets (as Rambam writes at the end of Hilchoth Tumath Tzara'ath). And she did not speak to his face to shame him, and not in public, but only to her holy brother, in private, her intent being only the betterment of society. And he [Moses] was indifferent to all of these things, as it is written (Bamidbar 12:3): "And the man, Moses, was extremely humble, etc." And in spite of all this, all of her good deeds did not avail her, and she was punished with tzara'ath because of this. And in which place was this punishment inflicted upon her? "On the way," her merits not sufficing her to suspend her judgment until they came to camp in some place, where it would not have been so conspicuous. But now that she was punished immediately on the way, as they were walking, as it is written (Bamidbar 12:15): "And the people did not journey until Miriam had been gathered in," the greatness of her shame was revealed to all, as it is written (Ibid. 14): "Will she not be shamed, etc.?" And when did this happen? When they went out of Egypt, in the beginning of the second year of the exodus, when the greatness of its punishment was not yet known. (As to its being written in respect to Moses our teacher, may peace be upon him, [that his hand became leprous (viz. Shemoth 4:6)], it [the leprosy] was immediately removed from him, as it is written (Ibid. 4:7): "And, behold, it had resumed its fleshy appearance" — as opposed to what happened afterwards, when they had to enter Eretz Yisrael and this was aborted through the lashon hara of the spies. For in this instance the sin was far greater, their having witnessed the punishment of Miriam and not having taken mussar [reproof] — wherefore the parshah of Shelach was juxtaposed with that of Miriam (See Rashi there).

We shall explain in detail this verse ["Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam on the way when you went out of Egypt"], so that every man of intelligence can see that our words are correct. The holy Torah noted for us in the mitzvah of remembering, four things: 1) "Remember what, etc."; that is, what was done. 2) To whom did He did it? To Miriam. 3) In what place did He do it? On the way. 4) When did this occur? When you went out of Egypt. Why does the Torah mention these four specifically? What difference does it make to us that the punishment was tzara'ath [leprosy] and not any other punishment? Or whether this happened in the house or on the way? Or whether it happened at some other time and not at the exodus from Egypt? But the truth is that these four details are essential for "remembering" and there is great benefit in reflecting upon them. And for this reason it is written "Remember what He did." That is, one should remember and reflect upon the greatness of the punishment inflicted upon her because of her speaking against Moses, our teacher, may peace be upon him. And that punishment was tzar'ath, an extremely severe punishment, which [illness] it is impossible to cure unless the Holy One Blessed be He conduct himself with him [the leper] above the bounds of nature. As we find in Midrash Rabbah Vayikra 16 on (Vayikra 14:5): "And the Cohein shall command and he shall slaughter the one bird" — Why does he slaughter one and release the other? To teach us that just as it is impossible for the slaughtered bird to return, so is it impossible [within the bounds of nature] for the plague-spots to return [there being no possible cure in the interim]." And [the degree of] his uncleanliness is extremely severe. For he must sit outside the three camps, as opposed to all the other unclean ones. And he also renders unclean all who enter his tent as mentioned in the verse [(an intimation that all those who keep company with the slandered become unclean, as he is)]. And he is also considered like a dead man, as Chazal have said (Nedarim 64b). This explains "Remember what He did, etc." And to whom did He do it? To Miriam, who was a great tzadeketh, in whose merit the well rose [for Israel], and also a prophetess, as it is written (Shemoth 15:20): "And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron took, etc." And she spoke only against her brother, whom she loved as herself, having risked her life to save him from the water. And she did not speak demeaningly of him, but only likened him to the other prophets (as Rambam writes at the end of Hilchoth Tumath Tzara'ath). And she did not speak to his face to shame him, and not in public, but only to her holy brother, in private, her intent being only the betterment of society. And he [Moses] was indifferent to all of these things, as it is written (Bamidbar 12:3): "And the man, Moses, was extremely humble, etc." And in spite of all this, all of her good deeds did not avail her, and she was punished with tzara'ath because of this. And in which place was this punishment inflicted upon her? "On the way," her merits not sufficing her to suspend her judgment until they came to camp in some place, where it would not have been so conspicuous. But now that she was punished immediately on the way, as they were walking, as it is written (Bamidbar 12:15): "And the people did not journey until Miriam had been gathered in," the greatness of her shame was revealed to all, as it is written (Ibid. 14): "Will she not be shamed, etc.?" And when did this happen? When they went out of Egypt, in the beginning of the second year of the exodus, when the greatness of its punishment was not yet known. (As to its being written in respect to Moses our teacher, may peace be upon him, [that his hand became leprous (viz. Shemoth 4:6)], it [the leprosy] was immediately removed from him, as it is written (Ibid. 4:7): "And, behold, it had resumed its fleshy appearance" — as opposed to what happened afterwards, when they had to enter Eretz Yisrael and this was aborted through the lashon hara of the spies. For in this instance the sin was far greater, their having witnessed the punishment of Miriam and not having taken mussar [reproof] — wherefore the parshah of Shelach was juxtaposed with that of Miriam (See Rashi there).

בחר לנו אנשים. Rashi sees in the word לנו proof that Moses equated Joshua with himself in this task. The Rabbis deduced from this a rule that a teacher should always be as concerned with the honour of his student as with his own. The honour of someone of equal status to oneself, however, should be placed on a par with the honour of one's teacher. The source for this is found in Numbers 12,11 where Aaron, Moses' older brother, addresses him with the words: בי אדוני, "Please my lord!" The honour of one's teacher should be treated as equivalent to the honour of G–d Himself. We derive this from Numbers 11,28 where Joshua pleads with Moses to kill Eldod and Meydod for prophesying the death of Moses. The words used are: אדוני משה כלאם. Joshua felt that insubordination against his teacher Moses deserved the same penalty as insubordination against G–d Himself. We can now understand why we are taught in Avot 4,1: "Who is truly honoured? He who honours G–d's creatures."

The person suffering from צרעת, however, is afflicted with the essence of the impurity, and there is no way for him to avoid it. Hence he has to leave all three camps as long as he is afflicted. Such impurity in any Jew is of the kind that infects even the נפש, i.e. part of the camp of the Israelites. This is in accordance with Proverbs 21,23 שומר פיו ולשונו שומר מצרת נפשו – that "he who guards his mouth and tongue, keeps his soul from troubles." The Zohar suggests that the reading of מצרת is equivalent to מצרעת, i.e. from that skin eczema. Our sages are agreed that evil gossip is a principal cause of this affliction. Classic examples are Miriam (Numbers 12,10), and Moses (Exodus 4,6), both of whom were punished for having made inappropriate comments about Moses or Israel respectively. We observe many slanderers in our day who are never afflicted with this disease; this makes the matter even worse for them, since they have already forfeited the part of the נפש that would be stricken, and they are therefore no longer capable of being rehabilitated through that disease and the subsequent purification process. The מצורע, at any rate, has to leave all three camps.

(Bamidbar 12:1): "And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, etc." From this parshah we learn several things [concerning lashon hara]:

His father answered, “For three days they were feverishly preparing your bedroom. They opened windows on your behalf so that you would have illumination from all four directions. When I saw your place I rejoiced, saying, “Fortunate is your lot … Up until a moment ago the souls of twelve righteous scholars were preparing to come to you. But while they were setting out a voice went out throughout all the worlds, saying, ‘Who are these scholars standing here preparing to meet the soul of Rabbi Yitzchak and to escort it to Gan Eden? Depart and return to your places! For Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai has made a request and it was granted to him.” Not only in this was the power of Rabbi Shimon great. Because the granted to him “seventy” — for the seventy adorned places that are mentioned here are his. And each place leads to seventy worlds, and each world leads to seventy messengers (of God), and each messenger leads to seventy lofty crowns. From there, the paths lead to the obscure Ancient One, so that they could view the lofty sweetness, the One who illuminates and delights all beings. As it says, “To behold the pleasantness of Hashem, and to meditate in His Sanctuary.” What is the meaning of “to meditate in His Sanctuary”? This is what is written: “In my entire House he is trusted.”

The use here of (the word) "eyes" shows that the quality of pride is to be attributed to the sense of sight. Of meekness it is said (Hab. i. 13), "Thou art of humbler eyes than to behold evil," and so forth. With regard to the impudent, thou observest in most cases that his eyes stare and he is indifferent to shame; thus it is said of them (Isa. iii. 9), "The shew of their countenance doth witness against them." Thus thou wilt notice that the eyes of the unrighteous, the impudent, are troubled and restless, like those of whom it is said (Job xi. 20), "The eyes of the wicked shall fail." Again it is said of the impudent (Jer. v. 3), "They have made their faces harder than a rock." On the other hand, thou wilt find that the prudent man lowers his eyes so that he may merit, by reason of this, the abundant favor of God and men, as it is said (Prov. iii. 34), "He giveth grace unto the lowly"; and as we, with the help of God, exalted be He, will explain very clearly in the successive chapters. This favor can be acquired only by means of (the faculty of) sight, having regard to him that sees and that which is seen. Thus it was said of Moses our Master, peace be unto him (Num. xii. 3), "The man Moses was very meek." Previously it was said, corresponding to this (Ex. xi. 3), "The man Moses was very great."

A view quoted in Midrash Rabbah 30,10 points out that the words בדורותיו, "in his generations," mean that had Noach lived in another generation, he would not have been considered outstanding, is well known. Whereas the Midrash compares the generations mentioned in our פרשה with those of Moses or Samuel, Rashi compares them with the generation Abraham lived in. The Torah says of Moses: בכל ביתי נאמן, "He is trusted throughout My household" (Numbers 12,7).

The category of destructive agents mentioned above are called “Evil.” Concerning them it states, “No Evil shall befall you” (Tehillim 91:10). Their victim resembles a sick person who has before him every delicacy in the world, yet he is unable to enjoy any of it because of his sickness. Thus the miser derives no benefit from his deeds in this world or the next, other than the shrouds in which he is buried. This is the meaning of the verse in Koheles (6:2), “As for the man upon whom God bestows wealth, property and honor, but God does not give him dominion over it, this too is a sickly evil.” Therefore let a man be sure to do what is upright in the eyes of God and men. For, “a good name is better than fine oil” (Koheles 7:1). Then all will be well with him while he is here, he will pass from the world with a good name and he will also enjoy good fortune in the World to Come.

My late father of blessed memory has provided me with a brilliant insight into the words of Rashi (author talking). Briefly, he said that man has to perfect himself, i.e. his 248 organs and 365 tendons by performing 248 positive and 365 negative commandments. This is obviously impossible for any individual. [The author elaborated on this in his introduction.] Even a Moses could not fulfill all these commandments personally. As an example, he could not perform the priestly duties because he was not a priest. Numerous other commandments, such as a levirate marriage, simply did not present themselves for him to fulfil. We have therefore explained that the only way a person can gain credit for fulfilling these commandments is when he studies their details with a view to fulfilling them if given the opportunity. This Moses had already done to the best of his ability. Not being allowed to enter terrestrial ארץ ישראל would therefore not deprive him of these merits and the resultant new spiritual insights. G–d assured Moses then that he had already been credited with the merits of having fulfilled all of the commandments he had been unable to fulfill in person. Concerning Moses' second consideration, that of gaining a deeper understanding of the manner in which G–d guides the universe, etc., something which he thought the atmosphere of the land of Israel would provide, G–d said: אל תוסף. Whereas it is true that living in terrestrial ארץ ישראל adds to one's understanding of Celestial ארץ ישראל as far as Moses was concerned he had already reached the limits of what man on earth could achieve, even in the Holy Land. He had qualified as the "husband" of Matronita, a symbol of the attribute of מלכות ארץ ישראל של מעלה, as we have explained previously as the meaning of בכל ביתי נאמן הוא, "He is fully trusted in all parts of My house" (Numbers 12,7).

It states, “Do not eat the bread of one with a miserly eye … for it is like poison in his soul” (Mishlei 23:6-7). Most people understand this: “Do not eat the bread of one with a miserly eye, for it is like poison in the soul of the host.” That is, he tries never to give of his bread to others because giving anything away is like poison to him. The Zohar (3:3a), however, gives a different explanation: “Do not eat the bread of one with a miserly eye, for it is like poison in the soul of the guest.” That is, the food that one’s receives from a miser is like poison to the receiver. Moreover, not many days will pass before he actually takes ill, sometimes dangerously so. This is why Rabbeinu HaKadosh (Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi) did not wish to accept food from anyone (Chullin 7b), for he was afraid for his life lest he benefit from a miser and then inevitably take ill. It turns out, then, that the miser causes evil both to himself and to others.

Torah is perfect, the question is only when this perfection will be revealed to us all. Concerning that question, the Psalmist says משיבת נפש, when the soul has reached the stage where even in this world it can be called נשמה, rather than merely נפש. This will occur once this soul returns to the domain it has been "hewn" from, the domain we had earlier called חציבה. There were two human beings, Moses and Rabbi Akiva respectively, who happily had an understanding and personal experience of these eventual developments, these goals of the future, even while they still lived on this earth. They are the עדים, witnesses that there are indeed hidden meanings to Torah laws. This is what the Psalmist refers to when he says in the second half of verse eight, "עדות השם נאמנה מחכימת פתי," that there is testimony that G–d makes the simpletons wise. Moses, of whom it is said בכל ביתי נאמן הוא, "he is trusted in all parts of My house" (Numbers 12,7), is such "testimony." When Rabbi Akiva entered the פרדס, the spiritual and mystical domain of סוד, and emerged unharmed, as opposed to his three colleagues, he too had to face the opposition of the ministering angels who are residents of that region, just as Moses faced opposition of the angels when he came to take the Torah from the Heavens (compare Chagigah 14b). They wanted to deny him these spiritual visions by either harming him physically, or causing him to become insane. G–d came to his rescue. This is what the Psalmist had described as מחכימת פתי, when referring to the part of Torah called תורת אלוקים.

We must assume that the Mishnah speaks about the hidden aspects of the Torah and describes four categories of people, Joshua, the elders, the prophets and the men of the Great Assembly entering the aforementioned פרדס in order to acquire these secrets of the Torah. These four categories of people were not all on the same spiritual level. The men of the Great Assembly did not match the groups mentioned before them. Moses, of course, towered above them all spiritually, and it was not appropriate to describe him as "entering" the orchard. He was at home there, as G–d had testified (Numbers 12,7), בכל ביתי נאמן הוא. When someone enters or leaves his own home one does not bother to mention it. His ability to enter and leave his home without suffering spiritual harm is taken for granted. Joshua entered the orchard and returned from it unharmed. This is alluded to in Exodus 33,11 when the Torah describes Joshua as never departing fom the "tent," i.e. the Tent of Testimony (home of Torah). Our sages described the face of Moses as like that of the sun, whereas the face of Joshua, by comparison, is described as like that of the moon. The former radiates its own light, whereas the latter only reflects light received from another source.

The Chayat describes the same reference to receiving prophetic insights in his book folio 181b in these introductory words: "If you have received a valid prophetic insight via the mouth to mouth method, etc." Receiving confirmation of one's spiritual level is possible in five different ways. The most advanced of these ways is the one called by the Torah 'תמונת ה which we may call עטרה, crown. It is called thus because it represents the most unimpeded of the various kinds of (window-panes) i.e. visions, that different categories of prophets are able to receive. One perceives G–d [the source of the vision. Ed.] as inside seven Sanctuaries, one within the other. Each Sanctuary affords a category of prophets the kind of vision they are capable of absorbing without being harmed. Moses, of course, had access to the innermost Sanctuary accessible to any human being.

Moses did not need to be separated from the source of his visions by any window-pane, as it is said of him (Numbers 12,8): ותמונת ה' יביט, "He is able to behold a picture drawn by G–d." Daniel 8,2 on the other hand, described himself as seeing himself in Shushan, though in his vision he actually stood on the banks of the river Ulai. Hoseah 12,11 may have referred to the difference between these two kinds of prophetic visions when he said: ודברתי על הנביאים ואנכי חזון הרביתי, "And I (G–d), spoke to the prophets, having granted many visions." Surely the verse should have said עם הנביאים instead of על הנביאים if the meaning is that G–d spoke with or to other prophets. [Kittel brings a version which has the word אל instead of על (as in our texts). The author may have had such a version of the Bible since he dwells on the meaning of the word אל as opposed to על. Ed.] When you understand the meaning of the word אל, you will understand that we are dealing here with a type of prophecy which exceeds in clarity of vision all other types of prophecy and which is referred to in our literature as אספקלריא דנהרא, clear vision. This kind of prophecy was granted to none other than Moses, the father-figure for all subsequent prophets. The Torah (Numbers 12,8) says of him: "I speak to him mouth to mouth, etc." The very word חזון is a reminder of the expression הוגד לי חזות קשה, "a harsh prophecy has been revealed to me "(Isaiah 21,2). We also find this expression used in the type of prophecy Abraham received before he was circumcised, such as in Genesis 15,1.

Now to the subject of the Hereafter. Israel had been afraid that if they were to continue to acquire greater insights, i.e. over and beyond what they were spiritually and intellectually equipped to digest, they would surely die. They therefore had asked Moses that he should approach G–d and serve as their intermediary. They did this because, since Moses had already experienced the insights other people achieve only in the Hereafter, he had no reason to fear premature death. They realized that Moses had attained the fiftieth of the שערי בינה. When you take the letter ה which symbolizes the 5 Books of Moses and the letter י which symbolizes the Ten Commandments and you multiply them which each other the result is 50, an allusion to the fact that between the Ten Commandments and the five Books of the Torah you have the wisdom contained in the fifty שערי בינה. When Israel sinned at the golden calf, G–d told Moses: לך רד, "go and descend from the lofty platform of לך=50," as we have outlined earlier. Now G–d said: אל תוסף (3,26). The message was that during one's lifetime on earth the fiftieth level of בינה would not again be attained. This had to await a person's death. Only when separated from his body would one's soul-personality be able to attain that level of insights. To demonstrate that Moses did attain this level again when he died, the Torah describes his death as an ascent, i.e. ויעל משה … אל הר נבו (34,1). I have already mentioned that the name of the Mountain can be read as נ-בו, "50 is attainable through this Mountain." The choice of the word ויעל here is, of course, the reverse of the word רד G–d used when He told Moses about the sin of the golden calf. Moses attained during his lifetime what other צדיקים achieve only after their death. Once their bodies are left behind on earth their souls may behold what the Psalmist describes in Psalms 17,15: אשבעה בהקיץ תמונתך, "When I awake I will behold a vision of You." Concerning Moses, the Torah has testified that already during his lifetime: ותמונת ה' יביט, Moses was able to behold visions of G–d at will (Numbers 12,8). No one has an idea of the quality of עולם הבא in store for Moses; it is beyond anything we can imagine seeing that only G–d knows where even his body is buried.

Jacob mentioned the merits of Israel as such, singling out a few individuals as examples of the outstanding people who would be part of his offspring. The reason he singled out David rather than Moses, although the latter too has been described as עבד ה' a true servant of the Lord, is because David or his namesake the Messiah is the ultimate purpose of G–d's creation, signalling a time when the whole function of Samael to act as an accuser would become defunct.

Furthermore, he alludes to the exercise of the qualities of prudency and modesty (id., xxxvii. 3), "So shalt thou dwell in the land and feed in faithfulness." His saying, first, "So shalt thou dwell in the land," and then "and feed in faithfulness," shows that long life on earth is the result of cultivating humility and prudency, which he calls "faith," as thou knowest from the saying (Num. xii. 7), "He is faithful in all my house," and that which preceded in the description of modesty. That which we have said of the meriting of life, even long life on earth, corresponds to the expression (Ps. xxxvii. 11), "The meek shall inherit the earth." In saying (id., 4), "Delight thyself also in the Lord," he alludes to the quality of joy, which the righteous exercises in that service of the Lord, wherein he delights. Thus he says elsewhere (Ps. xxxii. 11), "Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O ye righteous"; again, he says of the season of gladsome tidings (Isa. Ixi. 10), "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord." In saying (Ps. xxxvii. 4), "He shall give thee the desires of thine heart," he alludes to the quality of yearning which is love, for God satisfies the yearning of the righteous, as is promised them in the saying (Ps. xx. 6), "The Lord will fulfill all thy desires."

לא תעשה לך פסל וכל תמונה. The emanation מלכות is also known as תמונת י-ה-ו-ה. According to the Kabbalists G–d says of this emanation in Numbers 12,8: ותמונת ה' יביט "He (Moses) beholds a picture of G–d." The Rekanati says "I have already told you that actions performed down here on earth leave an imprint in the Celestial Regions. Anyone who constructs a graven image or picture of a deity diminishes the בנין, "the whole fabric" from which the universe is built." The prohibition pertains to לך, "for yourself, for your own purpose." When such images as the cherubs were fashioned for use in the Tabernacle or later in the Holy Temple, this does not fall under the heading of לך, since it is G–d Himself who derives satisfaction from such figures. The two cherubs symbolise the "two faced" nature of א-ד-נ-י and י-ה-ו-ה. The numerical value of the word תמונה is identical with the numerical value of the expression פרצוף אדם, =501 (the face(s) of the cherubs on the lid of the Holy Ark). This is the mystical dimension of תפארת אדם.

The Baal HaTurim draws our attention to the opening verse of our פרשה, and compares it with the last verse in the previous פרשה which speaks about performance of the commandments. He arrives at the conclusion that whereas the commandment has to be performed in this life, the reward for its performance, עקב, will have to await the Hereafter. Whereas the Baal HaTurim arrives at the same conclusion as the Talmud in Eruvin 22a where the word היום is stressed as opposed to the מחר, i.e. the Hereafter, when the reward is to be collected, he derives it from a different nuance in the text of the Torah. The reason may be that the Baal HaTurim found some problems with the exegesis of the Talmud. Had the interpretation of the Talmud been correct then all the Torah had to write in 7,11 is the whole verse without the word לעשותם at the end Furthermore, the Torah could simply have written לעשות instead of לעשותם. It seems therefore that the suffix ם is to contrast the difference between לעשותם and לעשותך. The difference between these two wordings is an allusion to the motivation which governs performance of the commandments. The Torah does not want us to perform the commandments for the sake of the eventual reward but לעשותם, for their own sake, i.e. לשמה. The fact that a new פרשה begins with the reference to the reward emphasizes that the reward is a corollary, a consequence of performance, but is not in a relationship of על מנת, "on condition that," to our performance of the מצוה. The humility implied in performance of the commandments on the basis of לעשותם (as we have explained the word) is further underlined by the Torah in 7,7: לא מרובכם מכל העמים .. כי אתם המעט מכל העמים, "It is not because you are the most numerous of all the nations that G–d took a liking to you….indeed you are the smallest of all the nations, etc." There was no need for the Torah to write that we are not the most numerous nation and to follow it up with the statement that we are the smallest nation. The last statement would have sufficed. The Talmud Chulin 89a concludes from this that the Torah's choice of language means that G–d likes us because, even when we are granted importance by G–d, we do not make this a pretext to become haughty, but we deprecate ourselves, behave humbly and modestly, ממעטים את עצמכם. This is reinforced in the lesson that Rabbi Levitas in Avot 4,4 urges us to heed: מאד מאד הוה שפל רוח, "Be exceedingly humble in spirit."

The camp of Ephrayim, which faces West, the direction of our prayers, the direction of the שכינה, the Holy of Holies, is the region behind which the angel רפאל is positioned We find an allusion to this in Moses' prayer for Miriam, 12,13, "א-ל נא, רפא נא לה" Prayer corresponds to the letter ו in the Ineffable Name of G–d, because the conditions for successful prayer are 3, i.e. in reality 6. 1) Prayer is called עין ולב, eye and heart. It is called "eye," because Psalms 145,15, says: "all eyes are on You." It is called "heart," since the Torah in Deut 11,13, requires us to serve the Lord "with all your hearts." This demand may appear as a contradiction in terms.

There are numerous references to this in our Midrashic literature. Shemot Rabbah 30,11, quoting Job 23,3-4, "would that I could find Him, reach His dwelling place, I would set out my case, משפט, before Him, fill my mouth with arguments," explains this in the following parable. A drunken prison guard rebelled, opened the gates to let the prisoners escape, cursed the picture of the ruler, and demanded to see the king, threatening that he would tell the king to his face what he thought true justice should be. He even went as far as stoning the king's image. He was shown the ruler sitting on a platform, dispensing punishment to a lady of aristocratic bearing, he observed the king handing down a verdict against his provincial governor, etc. At that point the palace guard became frightened and apologised, explaining that his drunken stupor had been the reason for his outrageous conduct, which included not recognising his king when he saw him. Similarly Job 23,4. When Job cursed the day he was born (Job 3,3/4) he in fact cursed the angel in charge of who will be born when and under what mazzal. This angel is called לילה. Later on Job reflected how G–d had punished Miriam for speaking out against Moses (Numbers 12,10); he further observed how G–d had punished Moses not allowing him to enter the Holy Land because he had struck the rock instead of merely speaking to it (Numbers 20,12). He also noted that G–d had blinded Isaac (for having loved the wicked Esau), see Genesis 27,1. He realised moreover that G–d had punished Abraham for having asked: "how do I know that I will inherit?" (Genesis 15,8) G–d had responded by telling Abraham that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land for four hundred years before being liberated (Genesis 15,13). G–d had also קרב קיסין, struck at Jacob with a piece of wood, causing the latter to limp as a result of the nocturnal encounter with the שרו של עשו, the guardian angel of Esau, to use the words of the Midrash. When Job had reflected on all this, he begged G–d's forgiveness for having spoken out rebelliously, and he excused himself by having been drunk. This is why it says in Job 19,4: “ואף אמנם שגיתי, אתי תלין משוגתי,” If indeed I have erred, my error stays with me overnight." All of this, because he did not realise the power of דין. So far the Midrash.

The Midrash which we quoted above, and in which five people close to G–d were each reported as having been punished by G–d, concerned itself also with the five qualities which must be possessed by a judge, and demonstrated how G–d possessed and demonstrated these five qualities in dealing with Miriam, Moses, Isaac, Abraham and Jacob. G–d did not show favoritism even to people as close to Him as Miriam and Aaron. If Miriam, Aaron and Moses had not displayed fear in dealing with people, litigants, etc., and acted like אנשי חיל, certainly no less could be expected of G–d Himself. The fact that Moses was of the calibre of אנשי אמת, is testified to by G–d Himself, when He said of Moses בכל ביתי נאמן הוא (Numbers 12,7). The quality of שונא בצע is hinted at in the judgment executed on Miriam. On the one hand Miriam was punished for her error, on the other hand, seeing she was such a deserving person, the people delayed their departure until she could join them again (verses 15,16).