Musar sur Les Nombres 25:23

בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם . We learn from this that when a person observes a public desecration of the name of G–d or His Holy Torah, he must display jealousy on their behalf. The reward Pinchas received is sufficient evidence of how highly G–d rated his action seeing that He granted him שלום.

Zeal is goodly only in the service of God, as thou knowest from (the case of) Phinehas, of whom it is said (Num. xxv. 11), "While he was zealous for my sake," and the good reward which he merited thereby, as it is said (id., 12), "Wherefore, say, behold I give unto him my covenant of peace."

It is necessary to devote this quality to the service of God, as thou knowest from (the story of) Moses, peace be upon him, when he retaliated upon the people by saying to the children of Levi (Ex. xxxii. 27), "Put every man his sword by his side"; and as thou knowest from Phinehas in the matter of his zeal. Thus it is said (Num. xxv. 7), "And when Phinehas, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation and took a javelin in his hand." This quality of valor never fails to be conspicuous in the souls of mighty men and courageous heroes. With reference to valor and patience in facing danger, the poet spake: "There came a day in the heat of which some people warmed themselves, but though there was no fire, they acted as if in the fire's midst. But we had patience until the day was done. Likewise, a case of misfortune can be brought to a close only through patience." Among the things which have been said in order to encourage the use of valor is: "Crave death, and life will be granted thee." The Arabs were accustomed to call the man of valor "safe."

One who does not perpetuate a dispute against those who stand on a path that is not good, and those that haul in iniquity, is surely punished for their transgressions in all their sins (of the actual sinners); and [also] transgresses a negative commandment - as it is stated (Leviticus 19:17), “and not bear sin because of him..” And it is stated (Hosea 10:9) “You have sinned more, O Israel, than in the days of Gibeah; there they stand; shall they not be overtaken [as] at Gibeah by a war upon scoundrels?” Its explanation is [that] if that generation (of Hosea) was standing there, they would not have overtaken those in Gibeah in war, to destroy the evil, as that generation had overcome [the evildoers of that time] in war. The understanding of “there they stand” is, if they stood there. And likewise “and leave his father” (Genesis 44:22) is, if he left. [This is] meaning to say, that their sin was of the type of sin of Gibeah. However [the earlier generation] was better than these, since they gathered and stood with their lives to destroy the evil. And it is stated (Judges 5:23), “‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the Lord; ‘Bitterly curse its inhabitants, because they came not to the aid of the Lord, to the aid of the Lord among the warriors.” And it is stated (Deuteronomy 1:17), “do not fear in front of a man.” And anyone who is for God, may He be blessed, should give over his life for the sanctification of God, as it is stated (Exodus 32:26), “‘Whoever is for the Lord, come to me’; and all the Levites gathered to him.” And it is [also] stated (Numbers 25:7), “And Phinheas saw, etc. and he took a spear in his hand.” And it is an obligation on all that fear [God] - even if he is one that loves pureness of heart - to arouse zealotry when he sees that behold, the officers and the prefects are in trespass, as it is stated (Ezra 9:2), “and it was the hand of the officers and prefects who were in this trespass first.”

And [the law of a man] who has sexual relations with a maidservant is similar to those liable for the death penalties of the court in two ways. For our Rabbis, may their memory be blessed, said (Sanhedrin 81b), “One who has intercourse with an Egyptian woman, zealots may accost him,” like the matter which is written (Numbers 25:8). And this matter is more severe than the death penalties of the court, for they do not put to death, except with witnesses and a warning and by the decision of a Sanhedrin, which is not the case here.

The missing letter ו in the name of Jacob, (which is usually written defective), was added to the name ו-יוסף, on occasions such as in Exodus 1,5 (or altogether, since that name too could have been spelled defective). The "small" ו in the word שלום, Numbers 25,12, alludes to another verse in Zachariah 8, 19: והאמת והשלום אהבו "and the truth and the peace they loved." The attribute which distinguishes Jacob is אמת, truth, whereas the attribute הברית השלום is the one that distinguishes Joseph. The Zohar has already explained how the terms ברית and גוף overlap (cf. Sullam edition Lech Lecha page 134-135). We name something or somebody because we desire the name to reveal their nature. Joseph was the "revelation" of the mystical dimension of Jacob, the secret of how the covenant between G–d and man influences the ability of determining the nature of him who is about to be born.

They also expounded "the city of Sichon" in a different fashion, viz. (Ibid. 28): "For a fire has gone forth from Cheshbon, a flame from the city of Sichon. It has consumed Ar of Moav, the possessors of Arnon" — If a man makes himself like a young ass [ayir - similar to ir, "city"], which docilely follows the cajoling talk [(sicha, intimated by "Sichon") of its driver], in this case, the yetzer, "A fire will go forth from Cheshbon" — from those who reckon the account of the world, "a flame from the city of Sichon" — the tzaddikim, who are referred to as "sprouts" [sichin, intimated by "Sichon"], and it shall consume those who make no reckoning of their end." The explanation (in my humble opinion) is, according to the other phenomenon of which Chazal apprise us, that the rasha takes his portion and the portion of his neighbor [the tzaddik] in Gehinnom. This is the intent of "for a fire has gone forth from Cheshbon" — that is, the fire of Gehinnom, created by the sins of the tzaddikim will go forth from them, i.e., it will not prevail over them. And over whom will it prevail? Over the reshaim, who make no reckoning of their end. And thus, the conclusion of the verse: "It has consumed Ar of Moav" — intimating that it will consume the lusters, (viz. [Ibid. 25:1): "And the people began to lust after the daughters of Moav"). (Ibid. 21:28): 'the possessors of the heights of Arnon' — the haughty of spirit."

I believe that he found such an allusion in the word נא used by Moses when he declined to accept the mission himself. That word seems superfluous at first glance. The Zohar alludes to it in his commentary on our portion when he quotes Job 4,7: זכר נא מי הוא נקי אבד ואיפה ישרים נכחדות, "Consider, what innocent man ever perished? Where have the upright been destroyed?" The following is the text of that commentary: "When Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai studied this portion of the Torah, his son came to him and asked: 'What would have happened with the reincarnation of the souls of Nadav and Avihu if there had been a Pinchas in the world at the time they died (they were two sons of Aaron who died prematurely)? Had Pinchas been born after these sons of Aaron died, their souls could have been re-incarnated in Pinchas's body. Pinchas then could have rehabilitated these sons for whatever shortcomings they had displayed during their first life on earth. Assuming however, as we must, that Pinchas had been born prior to the death of Nadav and Avihu, and that he therefore already had been equipped with a soul, how could the souls of Nadav and Avihu have been re-incarnated within Pinchas?'" Rabbi Shimon answered his son that we are dealing here with a supremely guarded secret of the way G–d works, and that the truth is that at the time the two sons of Aaron died, their souls did not enjoy the protection of the "Holy Rock," i.e. the emanation called מלכות (lowest of the 10 emanations). We know this because the Torah makes a point of mentioning that they had no children at the time they died (Numbers 3,4). They had diminished G–d's image by not having married and sired children as was incumbent upon them. As a result, they were unfit to serve as High Priests. At the time, Pinchas proved his jealous concern for G–d's honor to the myriads of the Jewish people when he displayed the bodies of the adulterers he had speared with his lance, his soul fled from him when he saw the tribe of Shimon approach him in a threatening posture vowing to take revenge for their prince Zimri whom Pinchas had slain. The two unattached souls of Nadav and Avihu, which had not yet found a resting place, entered Pinchas and restored him to life. This enabled Pinchas's own soul to unite with the souls of Nadav and Avihu. In this way Nadav and Avihu attained the position of High Priest which they had been intended for if their lifestyle had justified it. Pinchas, as it were, benefitted from the souls of Nadav and Avihu, and this helped him become High Priest (after the death of his father Eleazar). This is what is alluded to in Job 4,7. "The innocent (Pinchas) had not perished, nor had the upright (Nadav and Avihu been destroyed)." This is also why the Torah in Numbers 25,11 and on some other occasions describes Pinchas as both the son of Eleazar (his father) and as the son of Aaron, i.e. the father of Nadav and Avihu.

Pinchas was innocent (of murder), his soul did not perish. He was restored to physical life through the transfer of the souls of Nadav and Avihu. The word נא alludes to this since it is made up of the first letters in the name נדב and אביהו respectively. This stratagem of G–d is what is referrred to in Job when both the "innocent," נקי, and "the upright," ישרים are described as surviving. This is also why Pinchas is usually described in the Torah and the Book of Joshua as not only the son of Elazar, but as בן אהרון, to indicate that his soul was connected to the soul of the High Priest whose priesthood was confirmed by שמן המשחה, "the holy oil of anointing" (Exodus 29,7). The Torah also mentions Nadav and Avihu as having been the sons of Aaron on repeated occasions (Numbers 3,4; 26,61) after they had been reported as having died. Mentioning their names does not seem to contribute anything in the context of what the Torah then discusses. The reason must be that their souls were absorbed by Pinchas, that their deaths were not absolute. At first glance these comments of the Zohar appear contradictory to the commonly held opinion that the priesthood was conferred on Pinchas (25,13) only as a reward for his fearless loyalty to G–d in risking his life by executing Zimri the prince of the tribe of Shimon. Actually, Pinchas's elevation to the priesthood was not merely a reward for his conduct, but by his absorbing the souls of Nadav and Avihu whose priesthood had been something conferred upon them by the holy oil of anointing, Pinchas became a priest בעצם, i.e. in essence. The priesthood was not just an attribute of his, such as when it is conferred upon a person through heredity. In order to convey this to us the Torah, when describing Pinchas's elevation to the priesthood, says: "והיתה לו," not as we would have expected: "ותהי לו." The meaning of the former is: "he remained," whereas the meaning of the latter is: "he became."

Moses was jealous of the Egyptian, as it is said, "And he smote the Egyptian" (Exod. 2:12). And so we find in the case of Elijah, when he said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant" (I Kings 19:10). And so is it said, "In that he was very jealous for My sake among them" (Num. 25:11), and the Lord, may He be Blessed, gave him his reward for this as it is said : "Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace!" (Num. 25:12). And it is said, "… Ye shall not be afraid of any man …" (Deut. 1:17). Now he who reveres the Lord, may He be Blessed, will gladly offer his life for the sanctification of God's name. As it is said, "Whoso is on the Lord's side, let him come unto me. And all the Levites rallied to him" (Exod. 32:26), and it is further said, "And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand" (Num. 25:7).

Moses was jealous of the Egyptian, as it is said, "And he smote the Egyptian" (Exod. 2:12). And so we find in the case of Elijah, when he said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant" (I Kings 19:10). And so is it said, "In that he was very jealous for My sake among them" (Num. 25:11), and the Lord, may He be Blessed, gave him his reward for this as it is said : "Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace!" (Num. 25:12). And it is said, "… Ye shall not be afraid of any man …" (Deut. 1:17). Now he who reveres the Lord, may He be Blessed, will gladly offer his life for the sanctification of God's name. As it is said, "Whoso is on the Lord's side, let him come unto me. And all the Levites rallied to him" (Exod. 32:26), and it is further said, "And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand" (Num. 25:7).

Moses was jealous of the Egyptian, as it is said, "And he smote the Egyptian" (Exod. 2:12). And so we find in the case of Elijah, when he said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant" (I Kings 19:10). And so is it said, "In that he was very jealous for My sake among them" (Num. 25:11), and the Lord, may He be Blessed, gave him his reward for this as it is said : "Behold, I give unto him My covenant of peace!" (Num. 25:12). And it is said, "… Ye shall not be afraid of any man …" (Deut. 1:17). Now he who reveres the Lord, may He be Blessed, will gladly offer his life for the sanctification of God's name. As it is said, "Whoso is on the Lord's side, let him come unto me. And all the Levites rallied to him" (Exod. 32:26), and it is further said, "And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand" (Num. 25:7).

Rabbi Judah, the son of Tema, said, "Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, fast as a deer, mighty as a lion to do the will of your Father in heaven" (Aboth 5:24). See how they warned that one make himself light and strong in order to fulfill the commandments! Thus did David say, "I made haste, and delayed not, to observe Thy commandments" (Ps. 119:60). Thus did our Rabbis expound : " 'And ye shall observe the matzot (Ex. 12:17), do not read it as matzot (unleavened bread), but read it is as mitzvot (commandments)" — meaning if an opportunity comes to you to do a good deed, do not let it grow stale but do it at once (Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, vol. I., p. 74). It is very necessary to be agile and alert and strong in order to strive against the wicked — to be mighty of heart as Moses, our teacher, when he said, "Put every man his sword upon his thigh" (Ex. 32:27). And to be like Phinehas of whom it is said, "And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation and took a spear into hand" (Num. 25:7). Therefore, take care to be quick to separate yourself from the company of the wicked, so that you will not be part of their designs and their plans. Above all it requires zeal to do repentence. One must hurry and he should not delay to follow the paths of repentence, and let him not be wicked for even one hour before God, may He be Blessed. See how alert the servants and ministers of kings are in the performance of their duties. All the more so must we be careful to be alert in our service to the King of Kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He.

The two words "לאמר" that we mentioned earlier as apparently superfluous, have something in common. The repeated "דבור" suggests that there was an exoteric (נגלה) as well as an esoteric (נסתר) element in what the Torah tells us here. In 25,10 the exoteric meaning is to inform the people of the noble lineage Pinchas was descended from, whereas in 25,12 they are to be informed of an additional dimension of Pinchas' greatness, i.e. that he is equated with the prophet Elijah. This is alluded to in the words "because he displayed jealous fervor on behalf of his G–d" (25,13). The letters in the expression “לאל-היו,” are identical with the word “לאליהו,” “to Elijah.” The latter also excelled by displaying jealousy on behalf of G–d, something that he himself is quoted as saying to G–d in Kings I 19,10. He referred to his having slain four hundred Jewish priests who had forsaken the Torah to serve the idol Baal instead. Elijah's performance on Mount Carmel was similar to that of Pinchas at Shittim. The name אליהו (which in the Bible is frequently spelled without the letter Vav at the end) contains two names of G–d, i.e. El and Ya-h. In his encounter with Zimri Pinchas restored the honor of the name El, since the Israelites at the time had been guilty of insulting that name of G–d by serving the El of the Moabites and Midianites, "וישתחוו לאלהיהן" (Numbers 24,2). The second of the Ten Commandments specifically prohibits a Jew prostrating himself before an alien deity (Exodus 20,4). Pinchas' deed restored the relations between G–d and Israel which the people's behaviour had upset. His deed, when analysed, consisted of discrediting a man and a woman who respectively were leaders of their tribes, or, in the case of Cozbi, whose father was an ancestral tribal head. The Torah emphasizes the word איש and אשה, when referring to these two both in 25,8, and in 26,14-15, although there is no need for this. We have mentioned repeatedly that the letters "י and ה" in the Hebrew for "man" and "woman" teach us that only when they remain aware of G–d's Presence in this world are they safe from burning up in the passion of their sexuality, seeing that without those letters of G–d's name their names would signal merely masculine and feminine "fire" respectively. The name of G–d contained in those two people whom Pinchas slew was Ya-h. These two had disgraced the name of G–d by their conduct. The Torah in order to draw our attention to all this repeats: …. ושם … איש … ושם האשה, (26,14, 26,15). Rashi already explained that at the count of the people after this episode the peculiarly worded names of the tribes i.e. ה-ראובנ-י, and not simply ראובן demonstrated that the name of each tribe contained the name of G–d. G–d thus personally testified-that the members of all these tribes were conceived while their respective parents maintained absolute chastity. This too is the meaning of Psalms 122,4: שבטי י-ה עדות לישראל, "Israel are G–d's tribes, as per G–d's personal testimony." The letter ו in the word שלום, is "amputated" in 25,12. Baal Haturim points out that the numerical value of that word equals זהו משיח, "this is the Messiah." By diminishing the size of that letter, it is as if one had not thought about the last letter in the name of אליהו. Elijah is the prophet who announces the imminent arrival of the Messiah and prepares people for that. Removing part of the letter ו is meant to convey to us that Elijah (as alluded to by the absence of the last letter in his name), will materialise when one least thinks of him.. The letters added to the names of the tribes during this count therefore can be viewed as making up the second name of G–d contained in the name אליה, the name Ya-h. The Torah informs us in Exodus 6,25 that Pinchas' father had married one of the daughters of Putiel, who according to Midrash Hagadol fattened (play on word Putiel) all the idols in the world and the other tribes despised him on account of his ancestry. Since the name פוטיאל concludes with the letters of the name of G–d, however, the Torah alerts us to the fact that he converted to monotheism, i.e. El Ya-h. The whole verse is an allusion to Joseph who controlled his desire in his involvement with the wife of his master Potiphar, whose similarly sounding name reminds us of what took place then. Just as Joseph preserved the holy covenant with G–d at that time, so Pinchas, his descendant maternally, restored the holy covenant with G–d by taking G–d's revenge on Zimri. As a result, G–d granted him "My covenant Peace." Targum Yonathan on that verse says that Pinchas was made into an angel who would live until he could announce the final redemption. It is further written (of Pinchas) that G–d's covenant of life and well-being was with him (Malachi 2,5), that "the true Torah was in his mouth. He walked with Me in peace and equity, nothing perverse was on his lips. He served Me with complete loyalty; he held many back from committing iniquity, for the lips of a priest guard knowledge and people seek Torah from his mouth, seeing that he is an angel of the Lord G–d of Hosts" (Ibid 6). This verse clearly alludes to Pinchas, since Pinchas became an angel, as our sages comment on Joshua 2,4, (Tanchuma quoted by Rashi). Since Pinchas held back many from sinning, he is described by the prophet as having the true Torah issuing forth from his mouth. "Truth" is an element that reinforces and strengthens religious belief and practice. It is not something merely personal, but is something that must be demonstrated to the community in order to be capable of convincing such a community to do penitence. Such a result is called אמת, truth. Truth is something of an everlasting nature.

The two words "לאמר" that we mentioned earlier as apparently superfluous, have something in common. The repeated "דבור" suggests that there was an exoteric (נגלה) as well as an esoteric (נסתר) element in what the Torah tells us here. In 25,10 the exoteric meaning is to inform the people of the noble lineage Pinchas was descended from, whereas in 25,12 they are to be informed of an additional dimension of Pinchas' greatness, i.e. that he is equated with the prophet Elijah. This is alluded to in the words "because he displayed jealous fervor on behalf of his G–d" (25,13). The letters in the expression “לאל-היו,” are identical with the word “לאליהו,” “to Elijah.” The latter also excelled by displaying jealousy on behalf of G–d, something that he himself is quoted as saying to G–d in Kings I 19,10. He referred to his having slain four hundred Jewish priests who had forsaken the Torah to serve the idol Baal instead. Elijah's performance on Mount Carmel was similar to that of Pinchas at Shittim. The name אליהו (which in the Bible is frequently spelled without the letter Vav at the end) contains two names of G–d, i.e. El and Ya-h. In his encounter with Zimri Pinchas restored the honor of the name El, since the Israelites at the time had been guilty of insulting that name of G–d by serving the El of the Moabites and Midianites, "וישתחוו לאלהיהן" (Numbers 24,2). The second of the Ten Commandments specifically prohibits a Jew prostrating himself before an alien deity (Exodus 20,4). Pinchas' deed restored the relations between G–d and Israel which the people's behaviour had upset. His deed, when analysed, consisted of discrediting a man and a woman who respectively were leaders of their tribes, or, in the case of Cozbi, whose father was an ancestral tribal head. The Torah emphasizes the word איש and אשה, when referring to these two both in 25,8, and in 26,14-15, although there is no need for this. We have mentioned repeatedly that the letters "י and ה" in the Hebrew for "man" and "woman" teach us that only when they remain aware of G–d's Presence in this world are they safe from burning up in the passion of their sexuality, seeing that without those letters of G–d's name their names would signal merely masculine and feminine "fire" respectively. The name of G–d contained in those two people whom Pinchas slew was Ya-h. These two had disgraced the name of G–d by their conduct. The Torah in order to draw our attention to all this repeats: …. ושם … איש … ושם האשה, (26,14, 26,15). Rashi already explained that at the count of the people after this episode the peculiarly worded names of the tribes i.e. ה-ראובנ-י, and not simply ראובן demonstrated that the name of each tribe contained the name of G–d. G–d thus personally testified-that the members of all these tribes were conceived while their respective parents maintained absolute chastity. This too is the meaning of Psalms 122,4: שבטי י-ה עדות לישראל, "Israel are G–d's tribes, as per G–d's personal testimony." The letter ו in the word שלום, is "amputated" in 25,12. Baal Haturim points out that the numerical value of that word equals זהו משיח, "this is the Messiah." By diminishing the size of that letter, it is as if one had not thought about the last letter in the name of אליהו. Elijah is the prophet who announces the imminent arrival of the Messiah and prepares people for that. Removing part of the letter ו is meant to convey to us that Elijah (as alluded to by the absence of the last letter in his name), will materialise when one least thinks of him.. The letters added to the names of the tribes during this count therefore can be viewed as making up the second name of G–d contained in the name אליה, the name Ya-h. The Torah informs us in Exodus 6,25 that Pinchas' father had married one of the daughters of Putiel, who according to Midrash Hagadol fattened (play on word Putiel) all the idols in the world and the other tribes despised him on account of his ancestry. Since the name פוטיאל concludes with the letters of the name of G–d, however, the Torah alerts us to the fact that he converted to monotheism, i.e. El Ya-h. The whole verse is an allusion to Joseph who controlled his desire in his involvement with the wife of his master Potiphar, whose similarly sounding name reminds us of what took place then. Just as Joseph preserved the holy covenant with G–d at that time, so Pinchas, his descendant maternally, restored the holy covenant with G–d by taking G–d's revenge on Zimri. As a result, G–d granted him "My covenant Peace." Targum Yonathan on that verse says that Pinchas was made into an angel who would live until he could announce the final redemption. It is further written (of Pinchas) that G–d's covenant of life and well-being was with him (Malachi 2,5), that "the true Torah was in his mouth. He walked with Me in peace and equity, nothing perverse was on his lips. He served Me with complete loyalty; he held many back from committing iniquity, for the lips of a priest guard knowledge and people seek Torah from his mouth, seeing that he is an angel of the Lord G–d of Hosts" (Ibid 6). This verse clearly alludes to Pinchas, since Pinchas became an angel, as our sages comment on Joshua 2,4, (Tanchuma quoted by Rashi). Since Pinchas held back many from sinning, he is described by the prophet as having the true Torah issuing forth from his mouth. "Truth" is an element that reinforces and strengthens religious belief and practice. It is not something merely personal, but is something that must be demonstrated to the community in order to be capable of convincing such a community to do penitence. Such a result is called אמת, truth. Truth is something of an everlasting nature.

The two words "לאמר" that we mentioned earlier as apparently superfluous, have something in common. The repeated "דבור" suggests that there was an exoteric (נגלה) as well as an esoteric (נסתר) element in what the Torah tells us here. In 25,10 the exoteric meaning is to inform the people of the noble lineage Pinchas was descended from, whereas in 25,12 they are to be informed of an additional dimension of Pinchas' greatness, i.e. that he is equated with the prophet Elijah. This is alluded to in the words "because he displayed jealous fervor on behalf of his G–d" (25,13). The letters in the expression “לאל-היו,” are identical with the word “לאליהו,” “to Elijah.” The latter also excelled by displaying jealousy on behalf of G–d, something that he himself is quoted as saying to G–d in Kings I 19,10. He referred to his having slain four hundred Jewish priests who had forsaken the Torah to serve the idol Baal instead. Elijah's performance on Mount Carmel was similar to that of Pinchas at Shittim. The name אליהו (which in the Bible is frequently spelled without the letter Vav at the end) contains two names of G–d, i.e. El and Ya-h. In his encounter with Zimri Pinchas restored the honor of the name El, since the Israelites at the time had been guilty of insulting that name of G–d by serving the El of the Moabites and Midianites, "וישתחוו לאלהיהן" (Numbers 24,2). The second of the Ten Commandments specifically prohibits a Jew prostrating himself before an alien deity (Exodus 20,4). Pinchas' deed restored the relations between G–d and Israel which the people's behaviour had upset. His deed, when analysed, consisted of discrediting a man and a woman who respectively were leaders of their tribes, or, in the case of Cozbi, whose father was an ancestral tribal head. The Torah emphasizes the word איש and אשה, when referring to these two both in 25,8, and in 26,14-15, although there is no need for this. We have mentioned repeatedly that the letters "י and ה" in the Hebrew for "man" and "woman" teach us that only when they remain aware of G–d's Presence in this world are they safe from burning up in the passion of their sexuality, seeing that without those letters of G–d's name their names would signal merely masculine and feminine "fire" respectively. The name of G–d contained in those two people whom Pinchas slew was Ya-h. These two had disgraced the name of G–d by their conduct. The Torah in order to draw our attention to all this repeats: …. ושם … איש … ושם האשה, (26,14, 26,15). Rashi already explained that at the count of the people after this episode the peculiarly worded names of the tribes i.e. ה-ראובנ-י, and not simply ראובן demonstrated that the name of each tribe contained the name of G–d. G–d thus personally testified-that the members of all these tribes were conceived while their respective parents maintained absolute chastity. This too is the meaning of Psalms 122,4: שבטי י-ה עדות לישראל, "Israel are G–d's tribes, as per G–d's personal testimony." The letter ו in the word שלום, is "amputated" in 25,12. Baal Haturim points out that the numerical value of that word equals זהו משיח, "this is the Messiah." By diminishing the size of that letter, it is as if one had not thought about the last letter in the name of אליהו. Elijah is the prophet who announces the imminent arrival of the Messiah and prepares people for that. Removing part of the letter ו is meant to convey to us that Elijah (as alluded to by the absence of the last letter in his name), will materialise when one least thinks of him.. The letters added to the names of the tribes during this count therefore can be viewed as making up the second name of G–d contained in the name אליה, the name Ya-h. The Torah informs us in Exodus 6,25 that Pinchas' father had married one of the daughters of Putiel, who according to Midrash Hagadol fattened (play on word Putiel) all the idols in the world and the other tribes despised him on account of his ancestry. Since the name פוטיאל concludes with the letters of the name of G–d, however, the Torah alerts us to the fact that he converted to monotheism, i.e. El Ya-h. The whole verse is an allusion to Joseph who controlled his desire in his involvement with the wife of his master Potiphar, whose similarly sounding name reminds us of what took place then. Just as Joseph preserved the holy covenant with G–d at that time, so Pinchas, his descendant maternally, restored the holy covenant with G–d by taking G–d's revenge on Zimri. As a result, G–d granted him "My covenant Peace." Targum Yonathan on that verse says that Pinchas was made into an angel who would live until he could announce the final redemption. It is further written (of Pinchas) that G–d's covenant of life and well-being was with him (Malachi 2,5), that "the true Torah was in his mouth. He walked with Me in peace and equity, nothing perverse was on his lips. He served Me with complete loyalty; he held many back from committing iniquity, for the lips of a priest guard knowledge and people seek Torah from his mouth, seeing that he is an angel of the Lord G–d of Hosts" (Ibid 6). This verse clearly alludes to Pinchas, since Pinchas became an angel, as our sages comment on Joshua 2,4, (Tanchuma quoted by Rashi). Since Pinchas held back many from sinning, he is described by the prophet as having the true Torah issuing forth from his mouth. "Truth" is an element that reinforces and strengthens religious belief and practice. It is not something merely personal, but is something that must be demonstrated to the community in order to be capable of convincing such a community to do penitence. Such a result is called אמת, truth. Truth is something of an everlasting nature.

The seventeenth thing to remember is that it is a very good quality to keep away from people when he can save himself from them, and sit in his room alone. For most transgressions are committed by two or more — for example, fornication, gossip, lies and flattery — and from all of these he who sits alone is saved for he will not vaunt himself over any man and he will not hear their idle talk. For when he stays with them he is obliged to rebuke them in three ways : either by striking the offender, as Phinehas did when he took the javelin in his hand (Num. 25:7); or with words, as Moses our Teacher did, when he said to the wicked man, "Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow?" (Ex. 2:13); or in one's heart, as David said, "I hate the gathering of evil-doers, and will not sit with the wicked" (Ps. 26:5). And who can constantly keep quarreling with such people, inasmuch as they constantly transgress? But when you sit alone you avoid all this guilt and you are saved from many transgressions. But pious people one should join and one should sit near them and learn from them, as it is written, "He that walketh with wise men shall be wise" (Prov. 13:20).

This is what king David, peace be unto him, said: "O G-d, do I not hate those who hate You? Do I not contend with those who rise up against You? I hate them with an utter hatred; I count them my enemies" (Tehilim 139:21-22). And Eliyahu said: "I have been very jealous for G-d, the L-rd of hosts..." (I Kings 19:10). We already learned what he merited by virtue of his jealousy for G-d, as the Torah states: "because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the children of Israel" (Bamidbar 25:13).

We know from Proverbs 14,30, "envy is iike rottenness of the bones," that ordinarily, jealousy is a natural cause of death. Greed, lust, cause man's death, while he remains unsated, since "man dies while half his desires remain unfulfilled" (Kohelet Rabbah 1,34). We also have the statement of our sages that "he who chases after glory and honour, glory and honour flee from him" (Jerusalem Talmud Avodah Zarah 3,1). On this the sages comment that he dies one hundred deaths from jealousy and not just one. Rashi explains the Mishnah in Avot by Rabbi Elazar Hakappor as applying to Adam; it was these negative virtues that caused him to become mortal. He describes the angels who had to serve him delicacies in גן עדן as becoming jealous of his status, his כבוד, honor. He cites Adam's greed to eat from the tree of knowledge as contributing to his death. The honour he enjoyed in Gan Eden caused him to be expelled. He quotes other opinions that apply this Mishnah to the jealousy displayed by Korach versus Moses and Aaron. Actually we have to view these three evils as the root causes of all impurities, i.e. טומאות, which include all negative virtues. When these three characteristics are used positively, they in turn are the root causes of all positive virtues. Concerning this fact, Ben Zoma asks at the beginning of that chapter in Avot "Who is a wise man? He who is willing to learn from any person. Who is a hero? He who is able to restrain his passions. Who is wealthy? He who is satisfied with his lot." "Heroism" is an aspect of "jealousy," as we know from Jeremiah 46,12, גבור בגבור כמותן, "for hero encounters a hero of similar stature" [the competitive element is the jealousy]. We also have Rashi's comment on Numbers 25,11, בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם, "when he displayed jealousy on My behalf," that this "jealousy" displayed by Pinchas was the retribution G–d was entitled to exact from Zimri, i.e. it was נקמה. We know that קנאת סופרים, a competitive spirit between scholars is laudable, since it means that a person battles his evil urge, trying to excel in good deeds and character traits. This is the most important battle a person has to fight in his life. We have the story of the philosopher who encountered soldiers returning from a great conquest. He told them: "you did win a minor battle, but you have failed to win the major battle, namely man's battle with his evil urge." The reason it is called "the great battle," is that it is a never-ending battle. Concerning that battle, Ben Zoma said that the true hero is he who vanquishes his evil urge. The statement "who is wealthy, he who is satisfied with his lot," is the exact opposite of the negative virtue of תאוה, greed, i.e. never being satisfied. This is why the rabbis said that a person who is afflicted with the disease of being greedy dies before he has achieved even half of what he had hoped for. Lastly Ben Zoma described the חכם, wise person, as someone who is willing to learn from anybody else. The true meaning of honour is to be considered a wise man, as we know from Proverbs 3,35: "The wise shall inherit honour." When a person does not chase after glory it is liable to pursue him. Rabbi Yossi is on record as saying: "I have learned a great deal from my teachers; I have learned even more from my friends; but most of all have I learned from my students" (Taanit 7).

"With three crowns was Israel crowned : the crown of the Torah, the crown of the Priesthood and the crown of Kingdom" (Aboth 4:17, Yoma 72b, Eccl. Rabbah 7:1). Aaron merited the crown of the Priesthood, as it is said, "And it shall be unto him, and to his seed after him, the covenant of an everlasting priesthood" (Num. 25:13). David merited the crown of Kingdom, as it is said, "His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before Me" (Ps. 89:37). As for the crown of the Torah — it lies there waiting for all Israel, as it is said, "Moses commanded us a law, an inheritance of the congregation of Jacob" (Deut. 33:4) : anyone who wants the crown of Torah can come and take it. And should you say that the other crowns are greater than the crown of Torah, then behold he says, "By me kings reign, and princes decree justice. By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth" (Prov. 8:15—16). From this you learn that the crown of the Torah is greater than the crown of Priesthood, and greater than the crown of Sovereignty. And the Sages said, "A bastard who is a scholar takes precedence over a High Priest who is ignorant" (Horayoth 13a). As it is said, "She (wisdom) is more precious than rubies" (Prov. 3:15). The Hebrew word "peninah" means both "ruby" and "inside", and the verse can therefore be interpreted as meaning : More precious is the Torah and he who studies it than the High Priest who enters the very inside of the Temple — into the Holy of Holies.

The mystical undercurrent of the whole legislation is continued by the Torah in the next paragraph which commences with: "If a man has two wives, etc.” The two "wives" in question are none other than Lilith and Machalat. The "wife" who is described as the אהובה, the beloved one, is none other than Machalat, who captures the imagination of many people who observe her because of her joyful attitude to the transient life on this planet. The other wife, the one the Torah describes as שנואה, the hated one, is Lilith. The firstborn son the Torah speaks of in 21,15, is an allusion to בני בכורי ישראל, Israel. Israel is to always prevail over the hated "wife," even during times when the war against half of the evil urge she represents is waged outside the Holy Land. If we do not properly observe the commandment לא תחיה כל נשמה "Do not allow any of your enemies to survive," then Israel the first born son may turn out to become a בן סורר ומורה, (21,18). Raising a son who turns out to be wayward and defiant is the result of our not having waged the war against the evil urge with all our might. The Zohar describes this passage in approximately the following way: Upon being given this passage of the Torah Moses asked G–d how a Jewish father and mother could be expected to take their own son to the Supreme Court in order to have him executed? This whole passage should be deleted from the Torah! G–d explained to him that it was included to enable us to receive a reward for studying it, though it would always remain in the realm of hypothesis only. At that time G–d called upon יופיאל, the "prince" of Torah, who asked Moses to allow him to explain the meaning of the passage. He explained that the word איש at the beginning of the verse כי יהיה לאיש refers to G–d Himself who is known to us as איש מלחמה from Exodus 15,3. The word בן in our verse refers to the people of Israel, G–d's firstborn son. The words סורר ומורה are an allusion to Hoseah 4,16: כי כפרה סוררה סרר ישראל, "Israel has balked like a stubborn cow." The words: איננו שומע בקול אביו ובקול אמו, refer to G–d the father and כנסת ישראל, the mother, respectively. Such concepts are alluded to by Solomon in Proverbs 1,8: אל תטוש תורת אמך, "Do not abandon the teachings of your mother." The words ויסרו אותו, "they disciplined him," are reminiscent of Kings II 17,13: "G–d warned Israel and Yehudah through all His prophets and seers: 'Turn back from your wicked ways, etc.'" The words: ולא ישמע אליהם are parallel to the words ולא שמעו אליהם in Kings II 17,13. The Torah continues in 21,19: ותפשו בו אביו ואמו והוציאו אותו אל זקני עירו ואל שער מקומו, "His father and mother will seize him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the public place of his community, etc." We must ask ourselves: Why did the Torah not write "their city" instead of "his city?" Why did the Torah not write מקומם, "their community" instead of מקומו? The subjects of עירו and מקומו are the city of G–d and the place of the כנסת ישראל respectively. The Torah alludes to the highest Tribunal in the Celestial Regions whence supervision of man's activities on earth is exercised. The Torah adds the apparently superfluous words בנינו זה "this son of ours" to emphasize that he is not a Canaanite. Suddenly the parents (i.e. the Torah) add a new accusation: זולל וסובא, "he is a glutton and a drunkard" to explain the background to the excesses of such a wayward son, i.e. the presence of Canaanites in Israel's midst from whom the Jewish lad picked up these bad habits and became a delinquent. Psalm 106,35 refers to the results of such social mingling between the Jews and the Canaanites: "They mingled with the nations (Canaanite) and learned their ways." The Torah itself testifies about the Israelites in Numbers 25,2: "The people ate and bowed down to their deities." The eating and drinking with the Canaanites eventually led to these people making obeisances to the deities of their Canaanite (actually Moabite) hosts. It is therefore fair to attribute the cause for turning into a בן סורר ומורה to someone associating socially with the Canaanites. The Torah continues in 21,21: "The men of his city shall thereupon stone him to death." The "men of his city" referred to are the forces G–d has appointed as agents to carry out sentence on people who have been found guilty. The reference to stones are the אבני קלעים with which we are familiar from Uzziah's army in Chronicles II 26,14.

When the people began to sleep with the daughters of Moab as reported in Numbers 25,1, and even Zimri the prince of the tribe of Shimon cohabited brazenly with Kosbi, a Midianite princess, it became necessary for Pinchas, who was a descendant of the tribe of Joseph on his mother's side – בנות פוטיאל – to repair the damage inflicted by this immoral act by means of killing the chief perpetrators, Zimri and Kosbi. When the Holy Covenant with G–d had been breached by the Israelites, it took a descendant of Joseph, who had starred by maintaining that Holy Covenant, to restore the harmonious relationship between Israel and G–d. [The word Putiel which appears in Exodus 6,25 as a father-in-law of Elazar, Pinchas' father, is a play on words, i.e. pitpet – someone who can overcome his passions. Eleazar clearly had been interested first and foremost to marry into a family with such a background, the name of his wife and Pinchas' mother being a secondary consideration. Ed.] In Numbers 38, 6 Moses and the leaders of the community are described as והמה בוכים, "they were crying." I have found a comment in a book called עשרה מאמרות, that the letters in the word בכים are the initials of the words ברוך כבוד ה' ממקומו. The relevance of this comment escapes most commentators. When considering my approach, however, the words of Rabbi Menachem Azaryah (author of עשרה מאמרות) make good sense. We have said that due to the holiness of the seed of Yehudah impregnating Tamar and in line with the allusion found in the word אי"ה, the Jewish people would ultimately attain the level of holiness which makes it necessary for the angels to inquire from them where G–d's holiness is to be found. In our days the angels can chant only ברוך כבוד ה' ממקומו, "Blessed be the Lord from His place" (wherever that may be). Rabbi Menachem Azaryah told us in a cryptic manner that Moses and the elders cried because -through an act by Zimri and his brethren- Israel would be placed in the position of not knowing where the site of G–d's holiness was to be found. It required a Pinchas, i.e. Elijah the prophet who will announce the arrival of the Messiah until Israel would once again be able to supply the angels with the correct answer as to the whereabouts of the site of G–d's holiness.