ייִדישער מחשבֿה אויף בראשית 24:3

We see, therefore, that the sons of Jacob displayed a total disregard for all these four character traits in their dealings with Shechem and his city. Aristo's lessons of self discipline are valid then for all those who have not had the benefit of the revelation at Mount Sinai, who have not heard the words G-d taught us in the Torah. Such people, if they want to attain wisdom and knowledge of G-d, must travel the path indicated by Aristo in his book of ethics. We Jews, however, are somewhat different trees inasmuch as instead of being rooted in the earth, we are rooted in heaven. Our roots, instead of going deeper into the ground, strive upwards. We learn the word of G-d as soon as we start learning how to walk: "The righteous lives by his faith" (Chabakuk 2,3). Our vital juices are our faith, and our body is the fruit nurtured by these Divinely inspired thoughts. This requires, on occasion, the very opposite of what Aristotele would call "ethical conduct." Abraham's unquestioning willingness to sacrifice Isaac, Jacob's subterfuge in securing the blessing intended for Esau, or his purchase of the birthright for a pittance, exploiting his brother's hunger, are all examples of this. In fact, practicing the finest human traits such as king Saul's pity for Agog, lost him the kingship (Samuel I Chapter 15). When the prophet (Kings I 20,35) says to his companion, "Strike me," and his companion refused, the companion was slain for his refusal to raise his hand against the man of G-d. The standards of ethical conduct for Jews are set from on high for the Torah oriented personality, and do not always correspond to the maxims espoused by mere human intellect, however well motivated. Generally speaking, there is no greater sin than disrespect for one's parents. King Chiskiyahu, who displayed that apparent disrespect when he dragged the remains of his father on a stretcher, may have referred to this publicly misunderstood action when he prayed for his survival on his deathbed, and referred to the upright ways of the Lord, invoking his own conduct as deserving recognition. Having obeyed G-d’s law, despite thereby creating a very unfavorable impression of himself amongst the people and thus having exposed himself to condemnation by his peers, he may have prayed for his survival as a sign from G-d that that conduct had been Divinely approved (Kings II 20,1-3). There are numerous examples of the truism (Proverbs 21,30) "No wisdom can prevail against the Lord." As long as the roots of our faith keep increasing and deepening, we will be nourished by the lifegiving waters of Torah, and need not be afraid of hostile phenomena around us, but we will be able to weather all onslaughts, as illustrated by the parable of the trees in the Mishnah we have quoted. Wisdom which is not based on the revealed will of G-d is apt to mislead its owner, and in times of stress may not protect him against the ravages of external forces. Since Jacob's sons’ roots were not in the earth, but were drawing their nourishment from heaven, they were able to defy all the normal rules of human conduct listed by Aristotele and yet succeed in their plan and its execution. Since the day Abraham had been commanded circumcision, his descendants had been set apart from those uncircumcised. They had, of course, been aware of all the trouble Abraham had gone to to avoid Isaac marrying a Canaanite girl, and the commandment of Isaac and Rebecca to Jacob not to marry a Canaanite. They had also observed that as a result of following these instructions, their father had established a family, all of whom were true to their heritage. Rape of their only sister then was a public desecration of G-d’s name, in the face of which ordinary rules of human conduct did not apply any longer. The brothers' deliberate flouting of all the four major rules of conduct was designed to impress the G-dly principles on which their lives were built, on the surrounding country. On all four occasions when the Torah describes the reaction of Jacob's sons to the rape, be it when they heard about it, when they negotiate with Chamor, when they slew the people in the city, or even when they reject their father's rebuke, each time they refer to the immoral act that had been perpetrated upon them, meaning their sister, and themselves by extension. The fact that the tum-ah defilement is mentioned only in connection with the brothers' reaction underscores that the Torah upholds their conduct (naturally, mention of the event and Jacob having heard about it prior to the brothers is a necessary part of the narrative).

The matter involving the "nobles" deserves to be explained in a constructive fashion, as some of our sages have done. (6) The people included in the list of those who "ascended," namely Moses, Aaron, Nadav, Avihu and the elders, had attained a level of insight into the workings of the Divine mind and His entourage which had not been attained by others. They could perceive that all the galaxies are merely tools of the Almighty. Their "vision," i.e. insight, is described as va-yeche-zu, a lower level of insight than va-yir-oo. The former viewed elokey yisrael, the nobles merely elokim, a far more general, less specific kind of understanding. The livnat ha-sappir, the sapphire brick, represents a figment of purity closer to the unity of G-d than even the highest galgalim, planets, galaxies. It is an insight similar to the one described by Ezekiel 1, even sappir. This is discussed in greater detail in chapter thirty one. (7) "G-d did not stretch out His hand" (24,11) means that G-d did not extend the gift of prophecy to the other numerous high ranking persons among the people. The description of “they ate and drank," refers back to the consumption of the peace offerings mentioned earlier in the passage. (4) After that came the call to Moses alone to ascend the mountain and meet with G-d. Joshua kept watch at the site from which Moses had ascended outside the encampment. Therefore, when Moses descended, the Torah says "Joshua heard the sound of the people acting wildly." (Exodus 32, 17) (8) Moses had instructed the elders to judge during his absence, and to refer difficult decisions to Aaron and Chur. The Mountain had been enveloped in cloud for six days to allow Moses preparation for his meeting with G-d. Our sages say that such preparation of six days is mandatory for someone who meets with the Shechinah. Not that there were specific impediments on Moses’s side that had to be overcome. No charadah, trembling is mentioned, such as was the case with the people. As soon as G-d called to Moses on the seventh day, the Presence of G-d manifested itself as a consuming fire. The forty days include the six days Moses had prepared himself to be addressed by G-d.

Because we cannot understand anything about Him except for His Name and that He exists. His glorious Name is also associated with heaven and earth and the Spirits, as Abraham said: "And I will make you swear by the L-ord, the G-d of heaven and the G-d of the earth" (Gen. 24:3), and Yonah said: "I fear the L-ord, the G-d of heaven" (1:9), and Moshe said: "the G-d of the spirit of all flesh" (Numbers 27:16). And the verse proclaims: "Behold, I am the L-ord, the G-d of all flesh" (Yirmiya 32:27).