Kaisipang Hudyo sa 2 Mga Hari 3:15: Akeidat Yitzchak, Netivot Olam, Derashot HaRan & Eight Chapters

Maimonides, in his Moreh Nevuchim Chapter 32, Section 4, points out that the attitude of people to the institution of prophecy is similar to their attitude to creation ex nihilo. Those who cannot accept the latter, cannot accept the former either. They cannot accept that G-d is free to grant the status of prophet to whom He wants. The believers in creation ex nihilo, however, face no such difficulty and can accept that the gift of prophecy is bestowed by G-d on whom He chooses whenever He chooses. According to the Greek philosophers, if the necessary moral and other qualifications are present, prophecy status follows automatically. According to Jewish belief, G-d’s freedom to grant prophecy to a person who possesses the proper qualifications remains unimpaired. It is a little difficult to understand Maimonides who says that the failure of a person with the right qualifications to be elevated to the status of a prophet is a rare occurrence. Let us accept the premise then that prophecy is something most exquisite, unique, and belongs to the wonderful endowments that are beyond natural law. It is granted by G-d as a reward for the highest degree of closeness to G-d, which the person selected as a prophet had attempted to establish. This is the reason why original Adam already needed to observe commandments, by means of which he could attain that relationship with his Creator both qualitatively and quantitatively. We find this in increased measure with Noach, and in still greater measure with Abraham, of whom G-d said "for I know him, so that he will command his sons and his household to observe the ways of the Lord and to practice righteousness and justice" (Genesis 18,19). G-d related to Abraham via the institution of prophecy not because of his superior mental faculties, but because "Abraham listened to My voice" (Genesis 26,5). This is why we find the same characteristic amongst Israel and not other nations. As we say in Psalms 147, "He has not done so for any other nation." However, the prophet and his stature is interdependent with the people amongst whom he lives. The people influence his own stature either positively or negatively. The Talmud Sukkah 25 tells that all the students of Hillel deserved the same degree of Divine inspiration as had been granted Moses, but since their peers did not deserve it, it was withheld from them. The presence of a prophet in a given society is itself a gift for that generation. G-d explained to Jeremiah, when the latter was despondent because his prayer for rain had not been answered, that if he could lead his people to prayer before the Lord, he himself could prevail also. Under the existing conditions however, even the intercession of a Moses or Samuel would be quite ineffective, (compare chapter 15 in Jeremiah) As a concession to Jeremiah, G-d lowered the ante, saying that if Jeremiah could at least separate the relatively good people from the thoroughly rotten and corrupt ones, he would have some degree of success. “you will be My mouthpiece." (Jeremiah 15,19) All this means that the people amongst whom Jeremiah laboured, had an impact on his ability to be close to G-d. At the same time, G-d exhorts Jeremiah not to slacken in his efforts and to persevere in his mission. The point made is that as long as Jeremiah is seen to be involved with the people, there is a chance that they will turn to him; should he allow himself to become remote however, there would be no chance whatsoever. For these reasons, prophets throughout the ages have not been of equal stature, each having operated in a different environment from that of his colleagues. Each respective environment left its imprint on the respective prophet's personality. Many of the qualities and attributes that a person lacks, can be compensated for by devotion and dedication, which in turn leads to the gift of prophecy from G-d. This is proven conclusively by the experience of the Jewish people when they stood at the foot of Mount Sinai and said the famous words "we shall do and we shall listen." (Exodus 24,7) The Talmud in Nedarim 38, says that prophecy does not reside within a person who is not strong, wise, wealthy, etc., which suggests that G-d confers the gift of prophecy only on those who demonstrate their eagerness to translate theory into practice, either by way of their minds or their physical endowments. "Wisdom" helps to create wholesomeness of form in matters requiring study and contemplation of religious truths. In the words of Kohelet 7,12, "wisdom makes its owners come truly alive." Without this "wisdom," everyone is like a corpse, and it is not the corpse who can sing the praises of the Lord, (compare Pslams 115) Once man has achieved this relative level of perfection, he can go on ascending by degrees and will become endowed with prophetic powers as a reward for and result of his own efforts. Daniel chapter 8 from verse 15 onwards, describes this process. "When I, Daniel had seen the vision and I sought understanding, then, behold there stood before me the likeness of a man." He explains that because of his intense desire to gain greater insights, the vision was granted to him. The word "man" implying an intermediary, refers to the angel Gabriel whom Daniel mentions first of all. The Talmud Berachot 25, explains that G-d grants wisdom to those who are intelligent already. This is illustrated by a parable in Kohelet Rabbah I, about the wealthy merchant who would display his wares only before the well to do, not before those who would not squander their money. Similarly, G-d does not bestow the gift of prophecy on shallow minded individuals on whom such a gift would be wasted. Therefore, we find in Exodus 31,6, "and in the heart of every wise-hearted person have I given wisdom." Divinely inspired wisdom would be paired with natural intelligence to help in constructing the materials needed for building the tabernacle in the desert. The Mechilta tells that anyone who lacked sight on one eye could not experience giluy shechinah, the revelation at Mount Sinai. This is what Daniel meant (chapter 10,7) when he said: "I, Daniel alone saw the vision; the people who were with me did not see the vision, but a great fear overcame them and they fled into hiding." Although Ralbag describes all this as being part of the vision, no one else having in fact been present with Daniel at the time, he does not cite any proof in support of his thesis. We will therefore assume that the verse is to be understood literally, i.e. as an actual occurrence. Daniel describes the progress of how prophets receive direct communication from G-d. First, it is received by the brain alone; it does not spread to the other faculties. On the contrary, it confuses them so that Daniel says "I had no strength left," standing on hands and knees. Later he stood on his feet but trembled; still later he stood on his feet but was dumbfounded. Finally, he was told chazak vechazak, grow stronger and stronger! (verse 19) At that point Daniel was able to reply and invite verbal communication. All this proves that proper prophetic insight and communication from G-d, requires physical strength and health. The relationship between body and mind is described like the relationship between the brain and the men who were with Daniel at that time. The latter symbolise the physical attributes. Wealth also belongs to the matters that help prepare perfection in one's external needs. Food, drink, clothing are all prerequisites for study and contemplation in an atmosphere of serenity. In Deuteronomy chapter 29, Moses stresses that during all the forty years Israel had been in the desert, G-d had not only provided food and water, but ensured that the people had adequate clothing, shoes etc. This proves that the provision of one's physical needs is a prerequisite for the successful pursuit of spiritual attainments. These three points were appreciated by the king of Babylon when he ordered to have Jewish children of aristocratic parentage brought to his Court, children who had no physical blemish, were intelligent and able to absorb the most intensive training in the Chaldean language. The king ordered these children to be given daily rations of food. He mentioned two specific physical attributes that were required in order that these children would qualify for that program, but stressed three additional mental attributes. The words va-yeman hamelech, the king provided, sound very similar to the word man, the food the Israelites ate in the desert. (Daniel 1, 3-6) In this connection it is interesting to note the instructions given to king Saul by the prophet Samuel immediately after he had anointed Saul. We read in Samuel I 10,2-6, "when you depart from me this day, you will meet two men at the grave of Rachel, in the territory of Benjamin, at a place called Tzeltach. They will say to you... the she asses you have come to search for, have been found. Your father has stopped worrying about the matter of the she asses and worries instead about you, saying "what can I do about my son?" Go from there quickly, you will come to Elon Tabor where three men seeking the Lord at Bet El will meet you. One of them carries three young goats, one of them carries three loaves of bread, and one of them carries a hose filled with wine. They will greet you and give you two loaves of bread which you should accept from them. After that, you will come to the hill of G-d where the Philistine representatives are stationed. When you arrive at the town, a band of prophets will encounter you from the altar. They are carrying musical instruments and prophesy. The spirit of the Lord will come over you also, and you will join them in prophesying. You will be turned into a different person." The reference to the she asses symbolises material wealth. (Jacob had said "I have acquired oxen and donkeys," Genesis 32,6) The second symbol, physical well being, is represented by the two loaves of bread Saul was to accept and consume. This was in order to give him physical strength. The third sign, that of the musical instruments, is symbolic of the medium that would enable him to receive Divine inspiration. We see this point confirmed in Kings II 3,15, when the music put the prophet Elisha in the mood to receive Divine communication. These three otot, signs, enable a person who is so equipped to become capable of receiving Divine inspiration. A causal relationship definitely exists here. Once one has received such Divine inspiration, definitely exists here. Once one has received such Divine inspiration, one becomes a person of different stature. The prophet Samuel had told Saul something of great importance when he said to him "do for yourself whatever you think yourself capable of, for the Lord is with you." (verse 7) The message is that Saul should not be satisfied with what he had achieved up to that point, but see it as a link in a chain to still greater achievements he should strive for. Jeremiah expresses a similar thought (Jeremiah 9,23) when he calls out "let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the wealthy of his riches etc., but if he must boast, let him boast about the degree of closeness to Me he has attained." The lesson is that we are never to consider the possession of any attribute as an end in itself, but only as an aid towards realising our task in life. Another interpretation of that verse in Jeremiah could be that G-d says "I, the Lord, find the performance of deeds of loving kindness, justice etc. appealing, as distinct fom the splendid isolation in which philosophers like to wrap themselves, ignoring the supposedly "lower" masses." When Elijah departed this world and Elisha was consecrated as his successor, the former describes three journeys he had to undertake. A great deal can be learned from that. (Kings II chapter 2) It is worthwhile noting that the destinations of the three journeys are progressively further away from the center of the land of Israel. Since the Shechinah resides in Israel, one would have expected these journeys to focus progressively on sites nearer the heart of Israel, the holy Temple etc. It appears that Elijah was desirous of matching the stature of Moses. Therefore, G-d sent him to the area where Moses had been buried. His first journey to Bet El was to signal that he should not use his physical attributes to traverse the length and breadth of the country and to enjoy such a trip physically, but he should go to Bet El and benefit from the wisdom of Torah and Avodah. Just as the physical exuberance and strength of children tends to be sapped in school when they apply all their energies to their studies, so the concentration on spiritual values would sap the physique of Elijah. He hinted to Elisha that his mission was merely to walk to Bet El, to the presence of the Shechinah, and to remain on the threshold of the house of G-d. He asked Elisha to consider seriously if he was able to subjugate his whole body so that it would be employed only in pursuit of spiritual values. Elisha's reply, of course was "by your life, I will not abandon your path." Afterwards Elijah said to Elisha that G-d had ordered him to go to Jericho. We know from the book of Joshua that all the captured loot from the captured city of Jericho had been declared "holy to the Lord," the metal going to the temple treasury, the balance being burned. (Joshua chapter 6) This was a hint to Elisha that all material wealth is useful and permitted only when it is put in the service of the Lord, if such a person wants to attain the perfect character that leads to the gift of prophecy. Here too, Elisha responded that he would remain at Elijah's side, and he accompanied him to Jericho. After that, Elijah said to Elisha that G-d had sent him to the river Jordan, which must be symbolic of the intense longing for wisdom. Our sages paraphrase the thought by saying "eyn mayim ela Torah", the only water that really quenches thirst is true Torah knowledge. Solomon expresses it in Proverbs by saying "drink water from your true fountain," i.e. your Creator. (Proverbs 5,15) Elijah impresses upon Elisha the importance of clinging to wisdom with the utmost tenacity, never to be satisfied with what had already been achieved. Elisha was tested to see if indeed he could walk on the waters of the river, thereby displaying an achievement surpassing that of Elijah's other disciples. Elijah gave of his spirit to him and not to the others, some of whom had not even reached the level of going to Bet El. Whereas Bileam is a prime example of the misuse of natural endowments and wealth, Moses is an example of someone who was endowed with all the attributes mentioned, employing them all exclusively in the service of G-d and his great mission. For this reason, he merited to rise to the highest level of prophecy possible. G-d explained this when Miriam and Aaron discussed Moses in a disparaging manner. (Numbers chapter 17, see details on this in chapter 76). It is this subject matter that our sages had in mind when they quote Rabbi Samuel son of Nachman in Vayikra Rabbah 1, as saying that the eighteen commandments involving erection of the tabernacle corresponded to (a) the eighteen vertebrae in our spine, (b) the eighteen benedictions in our central prayer the amidah, (c) the eighteen remembrances in the keriyat shema and the eighteen remembrances in Psalm 29. We need to understand why the number eighteen is so central to this statement. It will be demonstrated that all eighteen relate to the physical and material attributes needed to achieve the goal of perfection. None are to be used except in the service of G-d given directives. The attributes of physical beauty, strength, health and dignity of bearing, are symbolised by the eighteen spinal cords which are the backbone of all that is important physically, without which even upright posture is impossible for man. The eighteen commandments involving the erection of the tabernacle mean that we must serve the Lord by employing all our physical endowments when constructing the tabernacle, the prefabricated equivalent of the Temple. Concerning the use of one's health in an approved manner, this is expressed by prayer, seeing that all these matters are the subjects of the requests we make in our central prayer the amidah. As the Mishnah in Avot expresses it, "we temporarily abandon eternal life in favour of the prerequisites of life on this planet." This statement was made concerning those who indulge in unduly long prayers, stressing their requests for material blessings. Concerning attributes of mind and spirit, all of which are subsumed under the heading "wisdom," our sages say that these are symbolised by the eighteen remembrances contained in the Keriyat Shema. It is obvious that all paragraphs deal with aspects of faith in one way or another, as well as knowledge of, love and reverence for G-d. The ultimate perfection, the goal of which is understanding of G-d to the maximum extent that it is given to humans to achieve, is found symbolised in the eighteen remembrances contained in Psalm 29. This Psalm beautifully describes both maasseh merkavah and ma-asseh bereshit, i.e. esoterics and the story of Creation. As we discussed in the previous chapter, perfect praise can be bestowed only by one who is himself perfect to the extent that such perfection is attainable by his species. Anyone who conducts himself perfectly in these four areas, (the 4-times 18) and leads a saintly life, qualifies for being called upon by G-d, is called EL, an elevated being. After having completed the tabernacle, G-d called Moses EL, i.e. "vayikra el Moshe (Leviticus 1,1). This was in reward for having performed "ka-asher tzivah hashem et Moshe,” exactly as G-d had commanded Moses. After Moses had built the palace for the King, as it were, he was invited to come into the palace. From all the foregoing we have potent proof that prophecy resides only within those who possess the qualifications discussed, and who use those qualifications properly. If a Moses who had been endowed with outstanding natural attributes, required all these preparations to achieve his highest stature, how much more so must others not so generously endowed at birth labour before they can qualify! The Midrash Shocher Tov on Psalm 19, goes to some length to explain how Moses, while he was in Heaven "for forty days and forty nights," could distinguish between day and night. The point, of course, is to make us aware that even a man who had risen to the level of Moses, could never become completely oblivious to conditions of life as they are on earth. The Torah needed to tell us only that Moses remained on or above Mount Sinai for forty days, and we would have concluded that the nights were included. The emphasis on the word "nights" then suggests that he remained aware of the difference even when in a world where such differences do not exist. (Jonah's having remained inside the whale for three days and nights is a different situation).

(1) We have to understand this whole story as a continuation of the previously reported incident, in which G'd had criticised Moses openly for having appeared to doubt His ability to supply the people with large quantities of meat. Under the circumstances, Miriam and Aaron also found reason to criticise Moses. They believed that Moses, having married a woman belonging to another nation, had now become ashamed of this, and that this was the reason he had separated from her. They were convinced that his status as a prophet had nothing to do with this separation, since they too were prophets, and this did not interfere with their family life. If Moses were to use the argument of his being a prophet, they considered that this would be showing off his piety. This was their second sin, in fact. G'd heard all this, and decided to reprimand them more severely than He would have done, had their criticism been more factual, and if they had not chosen a point in time when they believed Moses to be out of favour with G'd. First of all, by testifying to Moses' humility, the Torah squelches the thought that he could have been showing off his piety. Secondly, it states that the separation had nothing to do with Moses having developed a dislike for his wife. Matters which would be considered private by other couples who conduct their sex life in the confines of their bedrooms, would assume a quasi public character in the case of Moses, since he had to be available for communication from G'd on a seven day, twenty four hour basis. He could therefore not afford to be found tamey, ritually impure due to the emission of seminal fluid at any moment. Even the brief space of time it would require to immerse himself in a ritual bath, would mean that he would keep G'd waiting, on occasion. Because Miriam and Aaron did not appreciate the different level of Moses' prophetic powers and stature, they had arrived at an opposite conclusion regarding Moses' motivation. By addressing them suddenly, G'd wanted to demonstrate to Miriam and Aaron that whereas they had not been tuned in to this communication and had been totally unprepared for it, their brother was perfectly at ease, comfortable with this "sudden" communication. Miriam and Aaron were forced to remain outside the tabernacle, whereas Moses was inside it. Only through Moses being in the presence of the shechinah, did they receive any communication at all. (2) G'd then proceeded to outline the qualitative difference between Moses' prophetic powers, and those of Miriam and Aaron respectively. Im yihye nevi-achem, "if he were a prophet according to your definition of the term," G'd would speak to him in a dream or through a reflection. (verses 6-8) Other prophets receive their communications in one of four ways. A) In a dream. B) Through a reflected image, while remaining awake but in a state of trembling. C) In a parable, through a riddle, by means of an angel. D) After having prepared themselves spiritually to a state necessary to receive a communication. In chapter seven of his sefer hamada, Maimonides has elaborated on the Talmudic statement in Yevamot 49, explaining that the prophecy of Moses was in the nature of a "clear vision," whereas all other prophets received only "clouded visions." Our Parshah explains some of the aspects of prophecy discussed by Maimonides, as well as others not dealt with in his sefer hamada. Mar-ah, is the mirror which is the means by which the prophet receives his message while awake or asleep. There are four basic deficiencies when one receives a communication by means of a mirror. They leave the recipient unable to comprehend the message in its entirety. 1) The viewer sees only what is immediately opposite him, anything behind a curtain, for instance, would not be seen, since only the curtain itself is reflected by the mirror. In this way, prophets receive an external view of things, without comprehending its substance. Abraham's belief that Isaac was to be sacrificed is an example of this. Although it appeared as if G'd had changed His mind, lack of comprehension of the true nature of G'ds command, only affected the viewer. Similarly, Samuel erred thinking G'd had wanted him to appoint Yishai's eldest son, until G'd told him not to be guided by the "exterior." i.e. mar-eyhoo. Even at the beginning of his career, he had mistaken the call of Eli, the High Priest, his mentor, no less than three times. (Samuel I chapter 3) This kind of communication is described by Solomon in his Song of Songs as "behold, He was standing behind our wall, observing through the windows, peering through the lattices." (chapter 2,9) Concerning all this, G'd says "not so My servant Moses; he is at home in any part of My house." The second deficiciency when perceiving by means of a mirror, is that all communication is only visual; the viewer cannot hear anything that may be spoken by the figure appearing in the mirror. Consequently, understanding is liable to be fragmentary, the whole picture is not communicated. Gestures may be observed, but no sound is audible. Zacharyah 4, and Daniel 10, are examples of the inadequacy to the prophet of this kind of revelation, unless there is further assistance. Concerning this flaw which other prophets have to put up with when they receive G'ds communications, G'd says about Moses "I speak to him mouth to mouth." His ears, not only his eyes are part of his prophetic visions. The third disadvantage in perceiving by means of a mirror, is that one does not behold the actual form or shape of the object shown, but only its two dimensional reproduction, i.e. reflection. This is like making the recipient of the vision guess at the real essence of something. It is as if asking him to piece together parts of a puzzle, chidot. Mar-eh, spelled with the vowel segal, means a true image, not the reflected one. Moses receives mar-eh, not mar-ah. The fourth disadvantage of viewing by means of a mirror is that whoever wants to view things in a mirror, must first assume a position opposite, directly in front of the mirror. Whatever is seen however, appears inverted. What is right in reality and parallel to the viewer, appears as on the left of the viewer. The viewer must employ his brain to compensate for the distortion inherent in viewing things in a mirror. Moses, on the other hand, sees temunat hashem, the true image, not something distorted in a mirror. After G'd had outlined to Miriam and Aaron how different Moses' level of prophetic perceptions was from theirs, He challenges them "why have you not had enough reverence for him to talk about My servant etc." i.e. "about ME?" Here G'd makes the point that Moses is indeed the spiritual father of all prophets, and as such, a special reverence is required in our attitude towards him. When the Mishnah Avot 4, 15, says "may the reverence for your teacher equal the reverence for Heaven," our Parshah is its source. The sin of Miriam and Aaron was twofold, since in making derogatory remarks about Moses, they had actually criticised G'd by implication. Moses was G'ds chosen instrument, after all. Secondly, Moses' character was so perfect, that they had no right to impute base motives to any of his actions. When G'd had finished explaining to Miriam and Aaron how they had erred, He withdrew, and Miriam was struck by the skin disease, since it had only been she who had actually done the talking. Aaron had been included in the accusation, since by remaining a silent listener, he had become an accessory to the travesty committed. Proof that Aaron had kept silent, is the fact that the Torah does not say "Miriam and Aaron spoke," using the plural form, or the masculine form, which would have included Aaron. (3) The plea "do not lay sin upon us," means "since we have already admitted our guilt, do not reprimand us any further for this sin, but pray for us." In answer to Moses' prayer to heal Miriam of her affliction, G'd says "since even Aaron had not suggested that she go completely free, only that she should not die, her punishment would be temporary banishment. Her sin being also against her father in Heaven, said father would ban her from His presence temporarily." (4) The fact that the people did not continue their journey during Miriam's quarantine, was not an unmixed blessing for her. Though it reflected the fact that they held Miriam in high esteem, it was also the surest way of publicising what had happened to her, since the delay in travelling would lead to questions concerning the reason for the delay. All of this would result in increased respect for Moses and his prophetic powers. The Parshah teaches the lesson that one must be exceedingly careful when criticising one's leaders. Solomon, in Proverbs 18,12-14, summarizes the lesson to be learned from this Parshah. Moses, who enjoyed tremendous prestige and honour was exemplified by his humility, whereas Miriam the greatest prophetess, had let her pride cause her to slander her brother. The principal error to be avoided when criticising one's leaders, is not to apply one's own low standards of conduct to those of one's leaders.

And in the chapter of ‘These are the Words’ (Pesachim 66b): Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: any person that becomes angry: if he is a wise man, his wisdom departs from him; if he is a prophet, his prophecy departs from him. If he is a wise man his wisdom departs from him – as it is written (Numbers 31:14), “And Moses was wroth with the officers of the host”, and it says (Numbers 31:21) “And Eleazar the priest said…”, implying that it (the wisdom/laws) became hidden from Moses. If he is a prophet his prophecy departs from him – from Elisha, as it is written (II Kings 3:14): “…surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshapat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee,” and it is written (II Kings 3:15): “But now bring me a minstrel.’ And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the spirit [hand] of the LORD came upon him.” Rabbi Mani the son of Patish said: any person who becomes angry, even if he is destined for greatness from the heavens is lowered. From where do we know this? From where do we know this? From Eliab, as it is written (I Samuel 17:28) “and Eliab’s anger was kindled against David and he said..,”, and when Shmuel went to anoint him with reference to all of [David’s brothers] it is written, (I Samuel 16:8) "