rib@cord.UUCP (RI Block) (03/07/85)
Wednesday Erev Purim.
'Chag Purim Samaach' - a very happy Purim to anyone who reads this on
Purim and I hope all you who read this after Purim had a wonderful Chag
- holiday. Due to Purim among other things, my schedule this week is
crazy, so this will be brief.
This weeks Parsha is Ki Tissa, Shemos (Exodus) 30:11. The most
striking event of the Parsha is the incident of the Aigel Hazahav - the
Golden Calf. I will not deal with the making of the Calf and whether or
not it was idol worship. That would not be a brief topic, maybe for next
year. What I would like to look at is Moshe's Tefila - prayer to Hashem
on behalf of Bnei Yisrael. The Zohar on Parshas Vayareh comments on the
prayers of Avraham and Moshe as follows (loose summary):
Rabi Yehuda said, who has seen a merciful father (Abba
D'Rachmanusa) as Avraham. For by Noach, when Hashem told him that a
flood would come to distroy the world and he should make an ark, he was
silent and said nothing, while by Avraham as soon as Hashem told him
that he was going to destroy the cities of Sodom and Amorah, we are told
that Avraham immediately came forward and said 'could it be that you will
kill the righteous along with the evil. Rabi Eliezer says, even Avraham
did not reach completion, for he only asked for the righteous, but did
not ask for mercy. Who reached completion - Moshe. For when Hashem told
him that the Bnei Yisrael made the Aigel - Calf, it says 'and Moshe
beseeched Hashem' ending with ''yet now, if you will forgive their sin
-; and if not, blot me, I pray you, out of your book which you have
written'. Although they had sinned, he did not budge from there until
Hashem answered him 'I have forgiven as you asked'. Because of this,
Moshe is the 'Raeh Mihemna' - the faithful shepherd of the Jewish Nation.
Given the importance of this Tafilah - prayer of Moshe, I would
like to raise several points to think about. First, the statement of
Moshe's is somewhat difficult to understand. What does Moshe accomplish
by asking to be blotted out of Hashem's book if Hashem is unwilling to
forgive the Bnei Yisrael? The Ramban explains it in an extension of the
concept of the faithful shepherd. What Moshe said was, 'if not, blot me
out "instead of Bnei Yisrael" from the book of life, and I will accept
their punishment'. Moshe was ready to take upon himself their punishment
so that those who sinned might be forgiven. [For those interested this
is similar to the concept of Eved Hashem of Yecheskel perek nun-gimel -
- Vehamaskil Yavine.]
A second point which appears difficult to understand is verse
32:12.
'Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, saying: For evil did He
bring them forth, to slay them in the mountains and to consume them from
the face of the earth. Turn from thy fierce wrath and repent of this
evil against thy people.'
The Abravanel asks very cogently on this, 'is it proper that because of
the words of fools, the Medas Hadin-the attribute of justice should
refrain from judging the nation?'. However this same argument is used
again by Moshe in Bamidbar after the incident of the Spies in Bamidbar
(Numbers) 14:13-16.
'And Moshe said unto the Lord: "When the Egyptians shall hear -
for Thou brought up this people in Thy might from among them - they will
say to the inhabitants of this land, who have heard that Thou Lord art
in the midst of this people; inasmuch as Thou Lord art seen face to face
, and Thy cloud stands over them and Thou go before them in a piller of
cloud by day, and in a piller of fire by night; now if Thou shall kill
this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of
Thee will speak, saying: Because the Lord was not able to bring this
people into the land which He swore unto them, therefore He hath slain
them in the wilderness.'
The Ramban explains that the issue that Moshe is raising is that
of Chillul Hashem - desecration of the God's name. In Bamidbar, Ramban
comments that Egypt will think that despite the miracles it saw
performed by Hashem when the Bnei Yisrael left Egypt, the strength of
the gods of Canaan were too great for Hashem to protect Yisrael from
them. This then will be a great Chillul Hashem and a strengthening of the
supporters of idol worship. The Ohr Chaim in Shemos, agreeing with the
Ramban's interpretation, says that this explains the awkward
construction in verse 32:12 'the Egyptians will speak, saying:' - 'Yomro
Lamor'. The Egyptians will tell all the nations of the world: Yesterday
Hashem said Yisrael is my firstborn, send him out that he may worship
me, today he kills him out, the end shows the real story and it was
never for a good purpose that Hashem took out Yisrael. Hashem is then
perceived as a liar, leading to desecration of the holy Name.
It is in this context of Chillul Hashem (and see also Yecheskal
- Ezekiel 36:20-23) that Moshe argues successfully twice with Hashem
when Bnei Yisrael deserved to be destroyed, and, at least partly, Bnei
Yisrael are saved to avoid any Chillul Hashem - desecration of God's
name.
Have a Happy Purim and a good Shabbos.
Avi Feldblum
uucp: {allegra,ihnp4}!pruxa!ayf or
!erc3ba!gth