Midrash sur Les Nombres 17:13

R. Joshua b. Levi said also: "When Moses ascended to heaven, the ministering angels said unto the Holy One, praised be He! 'Sovereign of the universe, what has one born of a woman to do among us?' 'He has come to receive the Torah,' was the Divine answer. 'What!' said they unto Him. 'Art Thou about to bestow upon frail man that cherished treasure which has been with Thee for nine hundred and seventy-four generations before the world was created? What is mortal man that Thou art mindful of him, and the son of the earth that Thou thus visiteth him? O God, our Lord, is not Thy name already sufficiently exalted in the earth? Confer Thy glory upon the heavens! (Ps. 8, 2-5).' The Holy One, praised be He! then called upon Moses to refute their objection. Whereupon Moses thus pleaded, 'Sovereign of the universe, I fear lest they consume me with the fiery breath of their mouths.' Thereupon God told Moses to take hold of the throne of His Divine Majesty: as it is said (Job 26, 9.) He lays hold of the face of His throne and spreads His cloud over him. Concerning this R. Nachum said: 'This is intended to inform us that the Almighty spread the brightness of the Shechina, and beclouded Moses with encouragement.' Moses then said unto Him: 'Sovereign of the universe, what is written in the Torah which you are about to give me.' 'I am the Lord, thy God, who brought you forth out of Egypt' (Ex. 20, 2), was the reply. Moses then said to the angels: "Did you go to Egypt and serve Pharaoh? Of what use can the Torah be to you? Further, what else is written in it? Thou shalt not have other Gods before me (Ib. ib. 3). Are you living among nations who are worshipping idols [that you need this]? Furthermore, what else is written in it? Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy (Ib. ib. 8). Are you doing any work that you need rest? Again what is written there? Honor thy father and thy mother (Ib. ib. 12). Have you a father and a mother? And again, what is written in it? Thou shalt not murder, thou shall not commit adultery, thou, shalt not steal (Ib. ib. 13). Does jealousy exist among you? Does an evil impulse exist among you?' The angels at once confessed that the Holy One, praised be He! was right, for it is written (Pr. 8, 10.) O Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth, and no longer is written Confer Thy glory upon the heavens. Soon after this, every one of them became so befriended with Moses, that each of them disclosed to him some useful secrets, for it is said (Ib. 68, 19.) Thou hast ascended unto Heaven; thou captured the spoils; thou hast received gifts because they have contemptuously called thee, man, i.e., because they called you man hast thou taken presents as a reward. And even the Angel of Death revealed something to him, for it is written (Num. 17, 13) And he (Aaron) put on the incense and made atonement for the people, and it is said (Ib.) And he stood between the dead and the living. If the Angel of Death did not disclose this secret unto Moses, how did he know [so that he could tell Aaron that such a thing would stop the plague]?"

Just as one reaps row by row, so the plague acted upon the people (in rotation). Thereupon Aaron took as Moses spoke and ran into the midst of the assembly; and behold, the plague was begun (Num. 7:12). He found the angel standing among them and afflicting them. Aaron confronted him and would not permit him to continue. He forced him to stand idly among the dead. He said to Aaron: “Let me go that I may complete my task.” Aaron replied: “Moses sent me, and the Holy One, blessed be He, sent you, and both Moses and the Holy One, blessed be He, are in the Tent of Testimony; let us go to them.” The angel refused to go, and so Aaron seized him by his loins and dragged him in, as it is said: And Aaron returned unto Moses unto the door of the Tent of Meeting, and the plague was stayed (Num. 17:15).

(Numb. 20:25-26:) “Take Aaron [and his son Elazar] […,] And strip Aaron.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “See, you may console him that he is bequeathing his crown to his sons. [This is] something that you are not bequeathing to your [own] children.” (Numb. 20:28:) “So Moses stripped Aaron of his vestments and put them [on his son Elazar].” But if the high priest leaves the Temple mount in priestly vestments, does he not receive forty lashes, since [these vestments] are [made of] wool and flax?¹¹⁷Cf. Deut. 22:11, which forbids the mixture, and Kil. 9:1, which allows robes of this mixture for priests when they minister in the Temple. Cf. also Yoma 72a, according to which the forty lashes are for one who tears a priestly garment. However, [Scripture serves] to inform you that, with the wording by which he inducted him into the priesthood, when [the Holy One, blessed be He,] said to [Moses] (in Lev. 8:2), “Take Aaron,” with this very wording He also said to him (in Numb. 20:25), “Take Aaron.” (Numb. 20:27:) “So Moses did as the Lord commanded....” [This verse serves] to teach you that, even though He had spoken a decree against his brother, he did not hesitate.¹¹⁸See below, Numb. 6a:2. (Numb. 20:29:) “Then all the congregation saw that Aaron had died.” When Moses and Elazar came down [from the mountain], the whole congregation assembled themselves against them and said, “Where is Aaron?”¹¹⁹Numb. R. 19:20. They said to them, “He is dead.” They said to them, “How could the angel of death hurt him, a man who has halted the angel of death and held him back?” It is so stated (in Numb. 17:13), “So he (i.e., Aaron) stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was halted.” They said to them, “If you bring him [back], well and good; but if not, we will stone you [to death].” At that time Moses rose in prayer. He said, “Master of the world, bring us out from [this] suspicion.” Immediately the Holy One, blessed be He, opened the [burial] cave and showed him to [the congregation] for them. It is so stated (in Numb. 20:29), “Then all the congregation saw that Aaron had died.”