Midrash sobre Números 25:17

(Fol. 38) When the daughter of R. Samuel b. Juda died, one of the Rabbis said to Ulla: "Let us go and console him." He said to them: "What have I to do with the consolation of a Babylonian, for it may turn into a blasphemy, as they are in the habit of saying in such cases. What can be done? [against the will of God,] which means that if something could be done against His will they would, [and this is certainly a blasphemy]. He then went alone, and he began his consolation on the following passage: (Deut. 2, 9) And the Lord said unto me. Do not attack the Moabites, nor contend with them in battle. Could it, then, even enter Moses' mind to engage in war without the consent of the Lord. But Moses drew an a fortiori conclusion for himself, saying thust: 'If concerning the Midianites who only came to help the Moabites the Scripture says [Num. 15, 17) Attack the Midianites, and smite them, how much more so should (Ib. b) it be applied to the Moabites themselves?' The Holy One, praised be He! then said: 'Not as it struck your mind, did it strike Mine. Two good doves I have to bring forth from them; namely, Ruth the Moabite, and Naomi the Ammonite.' Now is there not a fortiori conclusion to be drawn? If for two good doves the Holy One, praised be He! has saved two great nations and did not destroy them, how much more so would He have saved the life of the master's daughter if she were to be righteous and something good would have to come forth from her!"

4 (Numb. 25:17) “Harass the Midianites”: Why? (As in Numb. 25:18,) “Because they are harassing you.” Hence the sages have said, “If someone comes to kill you, act first to kill him.”⁷Ber. 62b; Sanh. 72a. R. Simeon says, “Whoever causes a person to sin is worse than the one who kills him. Because whoever kills [a person] kills him in this world, but he [still] has a share in the world to come. However, the one who causes him to sin kills him in this world and for the world to come. Two peoples encountered Israel with the sword, and two with sin: The Egyptians and the Edomites with the sword. [Thus it is stated (of the Egyptians] (in Exod. 15:9), “The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake, I will empty my sword.’” [And Edom did the same, as stated] (in Numb. 20:18), “But Edom said unto him, ‘You shall not pass through me, or else I will come out to meet you with the sword.’” Moreover, two [peoples encountered them] with sin, the Moabites and the Ammonites. Concerning the ones who encountered them with the sword, it is written (in Deut. 23:8), “You shall not abhor an Edomite …; you shall not abhor an Egyptian.” But concerning the ones who encountered them with sin to cause Israel to sin, it is stated (according to Deut. 23:4), “No Ammonite or Moabite shall come into [the assembly of the Lord] even to the tenth generation, forever.”

5 (Numb. 25:17) “Harass the Midianites”: Even though I have written (in Deut. 20:10), “When you draw near unto a city to fight against it, you shall offer terms of peace (shalom) unto it”; however, in regard to these [peoples] you shall not do this; (according to Deut. 23:7), “You shall not seek their welfare (shalom) and benefit.” You find that the one who came to them with the trait of mercy, in the end came to disgrace, war and distress. And who [was that]? David, as stated (in II Sam. 10:2), “David said, ‘I will do kindness with Hanun son of Nahash.’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “You are transgressing My word, as I wrote (in Deut. 23:7), ‘You shall not seek their welfare and benefit,’ and you are doing acts of kindness with them? (Eccl. 7:12) ‘Do not be greatly righteous,’ such that a man should not forego [what is written in] the Torah. And this one is sending [word] to console the Children of Ammon and to do kindness and good to him?” And in the end, he came to disgrace [as stated] (in II Sam. 10:4), “So Hanun seized David’s courtiers, clipped off one side of their beards and cut away half of their garments at the buttocks, and sent them off.” And he came to war with four nations: Aram-Naharayim, with the kings of Zova, with the kings of Maakha and with Children of Ammon. And it is written (about this in II Sam. 10:9), “Joab saw that there was a battle line against him [both front and rear].” What caused this to David? That he sought to do good to those about whom the Holy One, blessed be He, told him, “You shall not seek their welfare.” Hence it is written (Numb. 25:17), “Harass the Midianites.”

6 Another interpretation (of Numb. 25:17) “Harass the Midianites”: Since I have written (in Deut. 20:19), “When you besiege (rt. tswr) a city a [long time] […], you shall not destroy its trees,” in the case of these (i.e., Moab and the Ammonites) you shall not do so. On the contrary, their trees you shall destroy. And so you find that when Joram king of Israel, Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and the king of Edom went to fight with Moab, (according to II Kings 3:9) “they circled around on a seven-day march, so that there was no water for the army or for the animals that were with them.” They began to weep, and (according to vs. 10) “The king of Israel said, ‘Alas, for the Lord has summoned these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.’” Jehoshaphat answered (in vs. 11), “Is there no prophet of the Lord here through whom we may inquire of the Lord […]?” [This passage is] to make known the wickedness of Joram, in that he did not acknowledge Him, but rather only Jehoshaphat acknowledged Him. (Vs. 12) “Then Jehoshaphat said, ‘The word of the Lord is with him’; so the king of Israel, Jehoshaphat, [and the king of Edom] went down unto him”: Why is Jehoshaphat not called a king here? In order to make known the humility of that righteous man, in that he did not want to go down before the prophet in royal garb, but as a commoner.⁸Gk.: idiotes. But some say, “[It was] because an edict had been decreed that he would be killed with Ahab that the scriptural text has reckoned [the reign of] his son from that hour. For that reason ‘king’ was not written.” But as a reward for their going down to the prophet, they attained the right to see all those miracles. When the king of Israel saw Elisha, Elisha said to the king of Israel (according to vs. 13,) “What have I to do with you; go unto the prophets of your father and unto the prophets of your mother,” as he never asked him [anything] all of his days. He began to implore him, (as in ibid., cont.) “And the king of Israel said to him […].” (Vss. 14-17) “Elisha said, ‘As the Lord of hosts lives […]. Now then get me a musician […].” He gave them the water that they needed. Moreover, he said to them “The Moabites shall fall into your hands, (in vs. 19) ‘thus you shall smite every fortified city and every choice city, [you shall also fell every good tree].’” They said to him, “[But] the Holy One, blessed be He, said (in Deut. 20:19), ‘You shall not destroy its trees’; yet you are saying [to do] so.” He said to them, “He gave the command with reference to the rest of the nations, but this one is insignificant and contemptable,” as stated (in II Kings 3:18), “This one is insignificant in the eyes of the Lord, so He will give Moab into your hands.” It is [also] stated (in Deut. 23:7), “You shall not seek their welfare and benefit (literally, their good).” [That is referring to] the good trees. It is therefore stated (in Numb. 25:17), “Harass the Midianites.”