Еврейская мысль к Амос 7:5

The Talmud Chullin 60 quotes the following conversation between the moon and G-d, in the name of Ben Azzai. This conversation is to help us understand the verse (Genesis 1,16), "The Lord made great luminaries; the large luminary to govern by day, and the small luminary to govern by night, and the stars." The moon said to G-d, "Is it possible for two kings to wear one crown?" The Lord said to the moon: "go ahead and govern both by day and by night." So the moon said "Who needs a lantern at noon?" G-d said, "Israel will count its days and years according to your movements." Even the days will be counted by reference to the moon as is written, "They will serve as signs, as fixed times, for days and years" (Genesis 1,14). He further said to him (the moon) that righteous people will be called like the moon (small) to wit Jacob and David (see Amos 7,5 and Samuel I 17,15). The moon, however, was still not placated. Thereupon G-d instructed that a sin offering be offered on His behalf to atone for G-d having reduced the size of the moon. It was Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish who interprets the verse "one he-goat as a sin offering for G-d" (Numbers 28,15) to mean that the he-goat is to be offered on behalf of G-d, to serve as atonement for having commanded the moon to reduce its size. Ben Azzai's parable has the moon question its own function. This describes the age old dilemma of whether what we observe in nature is accidental or whether it is the result of intelligent planning. If it is the result of intelligent planning, G-d’s major functionaries wish to be taken into His confidence as to their precise purpose and place in His scheme of things. "Can two kings wear the same crown?" means, "Is there duplication in this universe, seeing that all is the result of mere chance?" The reason that the moon serves as the example in this imaginary dialogue is that it is the only celestial body which apparently does not originate its own light. The question if this could be accidental is quite appropriate. The "smallness" of the moon would point to its accidental place in the scheme of things. G-d’s initial reply "Reduce your size" means "You may be sure that you are part of an intelligent overall design. Upon hearing this, the moon wants to know, "If that is so, why is my status such and such, compared to Your other planets? Why am I the only one that does not have its own light to give? Why, by not being a source of light, am I the apparent victim of chance?" G-d’s answer "Go and shine by day and by night," is, of course, facetious, but it points out that the moon's particular contribution to the universe lies in its shining by night only, and with reflected light only. The moon understood that by day its contribution to the light in this world would pale into such insignificance, that no one would even be aware of its existence. But it found no solace, not having comprehended why it had been chosen for that particular role. So G-d said that the apparent deficiency in not radiating its own light, would be compensated for by the needs of the Jewish people for the moon, to aid Israel's calendar requirements. The moon argued, however, that since days are normally counted in terms of the sun's movements, why cannot the sun reduce its size? To this G-d replied that since the righteous will be called "small," the moon's reduction in size was very crucial. It was part of G-d’s plan that a visible link exist between cause and effect, i.e. between benefactor and recipient. Since the sun was the primary source of light, and the moon was only a secondary source, it would not be fitting for the primary source to be smaller than the secondary source. The moral Ben Azzai wishes to teach is, of course, that the truly righteous always understate their own importance in the presence of anything or anyone deserving respect. However, no matter how much one tries to explain to people that they should be modest and humble, they will always wonder if they would get their fair share of things by practicing humility, they need the he-goat offering to atone for such doubts about G-d’s justice. Since it had been G-d’s intention to show the Jewish people favored treatment, whereas the Jewish people suspected Him of putting them at a disadvantage, that sin offering then is due to G-d’s intention as expressed by His desire to diminish the size of the moon. If our method of interpretation is correct, this should be reflected in the liturgy of the Mussaph service of Rosh Chodesh. We do indeed find such evidence: 1) "The new moons You have given to Your people as season for atonement for all their generations, when they brought free will offerings." 2) "He-goats as sin offerings to atone on their behalf,-a salvation of their soul from its enemy..." The "soul's enemy" refers to the evil urge which has prompted our doubts about the fairness of G-d’s justice. Continuing and referring to the future, we say, "A new altar will You set up in Zion, at which time the he-goat offerings will be offered in a state of grace." There will then be no need to offer the he-goats as sin offerings, since there will be no evil urge, i.e. a philosophical enticement to act contrary to the will of the Creator.