But mighty is the people

that dwells in the land,

And the towns are fortified and very

big,

And also the offspring of the giant

we saw there.

(Bemidbar

13:28)

"But" – the word 'effes' ['But'] indicates a deficiency or cancellation of something

preceding […] so here the intent of the scouts was to say of what benefit is

the fact that the land flows with milk and honey, all this is nothing [effes] and

worthless, because the people are mighty and the towns are fortified, and

therefore it cannot be that we will conquer the land.

(Rabbi Yitchak Shmuel

Reggio, ibid, ibid)

AND IT FLOWS WITH MILK AND HONEY. They said to Moshe, All the good

things of which you spoke in the name of the Lord are indeed to be found, and

as we heard so we saw, and this is the meaning of "we came to the land to

which you sent us". For were something to have been different, it would

seem that this was not the land to which you sent us since some of those things

described were lacking. And in addition to your words, it is also a land

flowing with milk and honey. But we did discover one inaccuracy in your words,

for you had given as a sure and proven sign that the mighty inhabitants dwell

in the unfortified communities, and regarding this they said "But the

people who dwell in the land are mighty and the towns are fortified and very

large". For the term "effes' means 'only' and 'but'. Read carefully and

note that they said towns are fortified and very large". In Devarim (1:28) however,

Moshe said that the scouts had said "large towns and fortified to the

heavens", but we do not find that they had said "to the heavens",

but Moshe detected in their words disbelief in the Holy One, for they said, "he

is stronger than we", implying that even the owner of the house cannot

eject his vessels (Sotah

35a). They are saying that this strength comes from the stars of heaven

and their constellations, and this is the meaning of "fortified to the

heavens", that their constellations in heaven are stronger than He, as it

were. And in the beginning they did not express such heresy explicitly, they

just said 'fortified and very large', but when Caleb rose and contradicted

them, they spoke explicit heresy "for it is mightier than Him". Their

final words reveal that their opening words also contained heresy, as if they

had said "fortified in heaven."

(Kli Yakar ibid,

ibid)

"We shall surely prevail over it"

Elon Langbeheim

The chapter of

the meraglim – the spies – is one of those

chapters which has become standard fare of adherents

to the Greater Land of Israel movement. The plain meaning of the text does not place

obstacles in the path of the anonymous commentator who wants to derive messages

which support his world view: the ten meraglim are described as demoralizers,

cowards and conspirators who implant faintheartedness in the populace. They

defamed the land, thereby causing our fathers to wander in the desert for forty

miserable and superfluous years. Opposing them were Caleb ben

Yefuneh and Yehoshua bin

Nun who swam against the current and inspired the people with faith, men carved

from the material of fearless leaders, the finest of our sons. What is the

political message to be learned from this parasha? At

first glance, the answer is simple: We must believe that the Holy One, Blessed

Be He, will assist us in conquering the Land of Israel

which was promised us, even though the mission seems impossible. The Jewish

people do not fear the long journey…

It is very

difficult to neutralize political and ideological tendencies when plain-reading

the passages of the weekly parasha; it is very

tempting to present the sin of the meraglim in an actual/nationalistic light. But, as

Professor Uriel Simon writes: "A

contemporary-political reading of Scripture which expresses itself in the enlistment

of texts in order 'to prove' the justice of a particular political path, is

improper, for it lacks the respect due the Bible and because it is

manipulative, impatient, and rushes to gather converts" (Bakesh Shalom V'radfeihu, p. 16). But despite this, the Bible can be

relevant. How? Prof. Simon suggests: "We must strive to understand the

Biblical values as they are, and only afterwards apply them to contemporary issues, and this with constant awareness of similarities and

differences between then and now". If we follow Simon's approach, we will

find the central value arising from the plain-reading of the text is, indeed,

that of faith and trust which God demanded of the meraglim as he tested them,

but this is not the sole value. From the meraglim's biased presentation that first

described the good of the land and later negated it with word effes' – 'But…" (13:28), and from the people's hysterical

reaction which followed, we can learn much about the power of manipulation. We

can conclude from this story the Biblical value of striving for objectivity,

relevant in our day, for example, to media coverage. Finally, one can also

learn about the importance which the Torah attaches to the minority's (Yehoshua and Caleb) standing up to express its moral voice

against the spurious presentation of the majority. This standing fast is also

important when the minority's voice is unpopular, when the majority seems

overriding and threatening violence ("And the community meant to pelt them

with stones" (14:10)). All these

values are relevant to various groups, and should not be used to justify a

particular political policy.

Although plain-reading

of the parasha demands unbiased reading, the tool of midrash

provides the opportunity to express personal and moral leanings, not remaining

on the level of loyalty to the written word. So, for example, Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk, author of "Meshech Chochmah", utilizes

a midrash

in order to weave the sin of the meraglim into the Biblical confrontation with idolatry.

In an attempt to explain the words "about [lit. 'to']

Moshe" in the passage "And Caleb silenced the people about Moshe"

(13:30), the Meshech

Chochmah writes: " The people were afraid,

because they had heard Eldad and Medad

prophesying 'Moshe will die and Yehosuha will lead

into the land' (according to Sanhedrin 17a), and they saw that Moshe did not

protest nor rebuke them. If that be the case, to enter a fortified land and to

do battle with Amalek without Moshe would be

suicidal! … Therefore does it say : 'And Caleb

silenced the people' inasmuch they were attributing everything to Moshe – saying,

do not speak so nor even imagine that victory and miracle are contingent only

upon Moshe". The Meshech Chochmah

explains the root of the people's ostensible deficiency of faith, of lack of

faith in a people who had been witness to all the miracles in the desert, is

indeed strange. He argues that the Children of Israel had not yet liberated

themselves from their belief in Moshe as a god, a belief which, in its time,

had led to the idolatry at the sin of the calf. Aside from his motivation to

solve the difficulty of the words "about Moshe", the Meshech Chochmah is here trying

to cope with the problem of accusing the meraglim – chosen of the

people – of complete distrust. The motivation of fear of entering the land is

much more comprehensible in his eyes within the wider context of the sin of the

calf and the decline into idolatry.

A yet farther

reaching explication is suggested by the philosopher Emanuel Levinas in his lecture "Promised Land or Permissible Land". Basing himself on the Talmud

in Tractate Sotah 34a, he argues that "it is

possible to understand the meraglim,

that they had pure motives. They asked themselves: By what right are we going

into this land? What moral advantage do we have over the inhabitants settled in

this country?" (Nine Talmudic

Readings, P. 77). Levinas argues on the

basis of the Talmudic explication of the words "And Hebron was built seven

years before Zoan in Egypt" (13:22). He claims that the parenthetical statement regarding

the historical precedence of the establishment of Hebron over the building of Zoan,

raises the question of our right to expel the inhabitants from their homes.

Caleb's answer, according to the Talmud, is: "He said to them; and is this

all that ben Amram did for

us?… He took us out of Egypt and he split the sea for us

and he fed us the manna. If he should say to us, make ladders and climb to the

heavens, would we not obey him?" Levinas reads

Caleb's statement as an attempt to implant faith in Israel's

moral right to inherit the land: "Moshe took us out of Egypt, our history begins with the act of liberation. He split

the sea for us, he overwhelmed the forces of nature…

Is it conceivable that under his leadership we should conquer a country like

one conquers a colony? Can our act of conquest be an imperialistic act? We are

going – and here the text is extraordinarily explicit – we are going towards

this land in order to experience celestial life. "We shall ascend to

heaven!" We will not possess this land as it is usually possessed; we will

found a just community in the land".

Even though Levinas's midrash is a bit

far-fetched, almost bordering on the avant-garde, he turns the argument between

Caleb and the meraglim

into a profound debate with practical ramifications. It is not the conquest

itself that the meraglim

fear; they have no doubt that they will succeed. They are apprehensive about

inability to cope with the ethical challenge to follow. Levinas

lights up an imaginary aspect in the internal debate taking place among the meraglim

regarding the moral right to conquest of a land and the ethical compass which

should direct life in it. The lecture "Promised Land or Permitted Land"

was delivered in 1965, in

the twilight years of the social and principled ideal which the settlement pioneers

had formulated and exemplified. Since then, the ideal has dissipated. The words

which Levinas placed in the mouth of Caleb ben Yefuneh who believed in the

ability of the Jewish people to conquer the land and to establish a just

society – are silent. They have been replaced by a shallow reading of the text:

"Let us rise up and we shall inherit it, for we shall surely prevail over

it" How shall we prevail over it? With force, and, if

necessary, with deviousness and 'combinations'. Last summer saw the

beginning of a spontaneous social movement which instilled in us hope for the

possibility of a return to ideals, to the vision of creation of an exemplary

society, one cooperative and just. Let us not follow the disparaging counsel of

the meraglim… let us not appoint a head and return to Egypt. "We shall surely

prevail over it."

Elon Langbeheim is doctoral candidate and teaches physics.

An attitude of respect for the

land requires an attitude of respect for people

It has been taught, Said Rabbi El'azar ben Parta:

Come and see, from the story of the meraglim, how

great is the power of slander. If [such was the punishment] for the spies who

slandered only trees and stones, then libel of one's fellow, all the

more so!! As is written: "The men died, those bringing a report of the

land, an ill one"- because of the slander of the land which they

spoke.

 (Yalkut Shimoni,

Vayikra 14, 659)

"Brings forth" 'dibah' and "brings" 'dibah'

Know that he who "brings

forth 'dibah' " (Proverbs

10:8) is like a fool who speaks falsely, but he who tells a truthful [bad

report] is called "one who 'brings' dibah,"

as it is said, "and Joseph brought an evil report of them to their

father" (Genesis 37:2). It was for

this [false report] that they were punished by death through a plague, as it is

said, "And those men who 'brought forth' an evil report of the Land died

by the plague before G-d" (Numbers 14:37).

(Ramban Numbers 13, 32)

"It is a land that eats

earth

"It is a land that eats up

its inhabitants, and all the people we saw in it are men of great

stature." If a land is bad and has scanty and poor water so that the Land

miscarries (II Kings 2:19), it does not

sustain men of great [physical] stature and its inhabitants are weak and

flabby, small in size and lacking in strength! [So the question appears in what

way is the spies' statement that the Land produces men of great stature an evil

report?] But the evil report of the spies consisted in saying that the Land has

an overpowering atmosphere and a heavy nature and its water and fruits are

thick and heavy, so that [the fruits] grow to a very large size, such that

people of an average temperament cannot bear them, unless they are giants and

men of powerful build who are naturally strong and exceptional in their height

and stature. Therefore the Land supports very tall men but brings [premature]

death to the rest of the people, as is the nature of coarse foods.

(Ramban Numbers 13, 32)

"And so we must have

looked to them"- Falsehood, Wild Imagination, or Reality?

Said Rav Mesharsheya: The spies were

liars. For it is understandable that they said, "and we were in our own eyes as grasshoppers" – that

is very well! But the statement "and so we were in their eyes" – how

could they have known that? [Evidently they were liars!). But it is not so

when [the Amorites] would serve the mourners' meal, they would serve it beneath

cedars. When the spies saw them [the mourners] coming, they were afraid, so

they climbed up and sat in the tress. They heard them [the Amorites] saying

"We see men that are like grasshoppers sitting in the trees."

(Bavli, Sota 35a)

And if Moses

had Sent Women to Scout the Land?

He specifically mentioned

said (Yalkut Shimoni Pinhas 5773:

27) that the men hated the Land and [this is evident since the men]

said let us make a leader and return to Egypt (Bamidbar 14:4), while the women

loved the Land and said, give us a holding (27:4). And so, God said: To my mind, I see from future events

that it would be better to send women who love the Land, for they would not

speak badly of it. But [God told Moses]: [Send ] yourself [men] –

that is, in accordance with your own opinion, for you think

that they are fit and that they love the Land. [Go ahead!] send men! That is why [it says] yourself, i.e.,

according to your opinion, but in My opinion,

it would be better to send women.

(Keli Yakar Bamidbar 13:2)

Eretz

spirit

In the land of Israel,

then, there remained remnants of the giants of the pre-deluge period. This fact

well suits the position (Zevahim 113a) that the flood did not affect Eretz Yisrael, and therefore all

the original vitality of the land was preserved. But in equal measure, this

strength can make the land appropriate for God's people, for this nation will

observe God's Torah and thus will the world return to its days of youth, and

the earth will be like the Garden of Eden. Let us not forget the dictum of Chazal to the effect that health and physical strength are

among the conditions necessary for supreme spiritual development (Shabbat

92a).Perhaps we will not err when we say that this is the relationship between

the strength of the land and the attributes of its inhabitants; Wherever

spiritual endeavor is suspended, the earth has the power to grow giants of

great physical stature; but if the dwellers of the land are of a spiritual

inclination, the vigor of the earth will be exploited for spiritual activity

and not for the giant body stature.

 (Rabbi S. R. Hirsch, Bemidbar 13:33)

Do not Follow

Your Hearts: Two Perspectives on Human Nature

Look at it and recall all the

commandments of the Lord (Bamidbar 15:39): Remember that you are servants

of Blessed God, and that you received His commandments with a vow and oath.

When you see the tzitzit, which is like a king's

seal upon his servants, you will stop following after your hearts' inclination

to gain wealth and honor, even through theft.

(Seforno Bamidbar 15:39)

Man's soul and its powers were

created upright, and the heart naturally tends towards the good. However, man

spoils his nature, devising evil in his heart. That is why it could not simply

say velo teilkhuaharei levevkhem (do not go after your hearts), but rather velo taturu aharei

levavkhem (literally: do not go scouting after

your hearts). If one were to walk according to the paths paved by the heart in

its original nature, his ways would be good and straight.

(Malbim on Bamidbar 15:39)

Regarding Torah and

"Natural Morality"

Morality, in its natural state,

in all the depths of its glory and its great power, must be imprinted in the

soul, and be a seedbed for those great influences which evolve from the power

of Torah. All Torah matters must be preceded by Derech

Eretz (proper comportment). If it is a matter

which is consonant with natural intelligence and integrity, it must

proceed on the straight path, with the heart's proclivity and the assent of the

pure desire imprinted in man.

The Torah was given to Israel so

that gates of light – which are clearer, wider, and holier than all the gates

of light of man's natural intelligence and spirit of natural morality – be

opened to us, and through us, to the entire world.

(From "Orot HaTorah",

Rav Kook, 69-71)

About us

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promoting the ideals of tolerance, pluralism, and justice, concepts that have

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