THE LORD WAS INCENSED AT ISRAEL, AND FOR
FORTY YEARS HE MADE THEM WANDER IN THE WILDERNESS, UNTIL THE WHOLE GENERATION
THAT HAD PROVOKED THE LORD'S DISPLEASURE WAS GONE.                                                            

(B'midbar 32:13)

THE SPIRITUAL
FATE OF THE GENERATION OF THE WILDERNESS – THE ENTRY TO THE LAND OF ISRAEL AND
THE ENTRY INTO THE LAND OF LIFE.

Our Sages taught: The Generation of the
Wilderness has no portion in the world to come, as is written "And
in this desert they shall perish and there shall they die" – "they
shall perish" – in this world; "and there shall they die"
– in the world to come.

And it us also stated (Psalms 95) "Concerning them I swore in
anger, They shall never come to My resting-place." – these are the
words of Rabbi Akiva.

Rabbi Eliezer says: They do come to the world
to come, as is written (Psalms 50) "Bring
in My devotees, who made a covenant with Me over sacrifices." How, then, to understand "I swore
in my anger?" – in my anger I swore – but I relented.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korcha said: This
passage refers only to the [immediately] following generations; "Bring
in My devotees" – these are the righteous of every generation; "Who
made a covenant with Me" – these are Channania, Mishael, and Azaria,
who surrendered themselves to the furnace of fire; "over
sacrifices" – [these are] Rabbi Akiva and his companions who
surrendered themselves to be slaughtered for the teaching of Torah.

Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya says: They do
enter the world to come, as is written (Isaiah 35) "And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come with
shouting to Zion."

Said Rabba bar bar Channa in the name of
Rabbi Yochanan: Rabbi Akiva desisted from his righteousness and said harsh
words, as is written (Jeremiah 2) "Go proclaim to Yerushalayim… I
accounted to your favor the devotion of your youth, Your love as a bride – how
you followed Me in the wilderness, in a land not sown" – if others
enter in their merit – then certainly shall not they themselves?

 (Bavli, Sanhedrin 110b)

THE SOJOURNING OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL:

GOALS
OR DESTINY?

Yosef-Hayim Benjo

It would seem possible
to call the beginning of the closing parasha in Sefer B'midbar – Parashat
Massey: "Invitation to a journey". But perhaps we are dealing
not with an invitation but with a necessary order? This idea may raise
thoughts about the value of travel and about the meaning of passage from place
to place in general: movement without purpose, escape, or perhaps actually a
course composed of various stages which advance the traveller to the desired
goal. And perhaps, all of these…

I shall attempt, in
this dvar Torah, to examine this idea with the help of Torah
commentators, although the personal experience of each of us can contribute to
the understanding of the subject.

Parashat Massey records
a long list of sites at which the Children of Israel camped, from their exodus
from Egypt till their arrival at the steppes of Moab. In some cases, mention is
made of the event which occurs at the site. Without doubt, this historical and
geographical list – ostensibly technical – demands explanation. It is
worthwhile to map out these verses against the background of the development of
events which the Chumash relates.

 Our parasha closes the Book of B'midbar.
The story of Israel and its desert tribulations ends. Before the beginning of
the Book of Devarim, which includes Moshe's final will, the Torah offers a
summation of the 40 year period in the wilderness.

A long journey has
reached its end. Journey's end marks a fundamental change – from a state of
slavery to a condition of national freedom, not dependent on any other nation
as it enters the Land. Indeed, like all other nations – yet totally dissimilar.
Here we have a nation receiving its land – a land in which it was not born, as
though to show the rest of the world an example of a nation which is not a
member of the family of nations, a society based upon justice and love of
the other. In order to point out this change, the Torah relates that the
entire generation (excepting Yehoshua and Caleb, of course) which left Egypt
died; it will be up to the new generation, which had never experienced
servitude, to create the new society.

Again, the same
question: Why such a technical list? To remind us what belongs to whom?
To remind the new generation of their parents' tribulations, or to remind them
of the events which they experienced, or perhaps also to point out that beyond
the generational change, there is a single thread which leads the Children of
Israel through 42 stages, from slavery to freedom.

Our commentators of old
dealt with these questions. Their answers can be organized into two major
categories:

1st.Why was it necessary to travel through 42 stations?

2nd.Why was it necessary to mention each of the stations and to detail some
of the events?

1st. As regards the journeys
themselves, Ibn Ezra
notes that they are part of the divine plan (as Rabbi Yehuda Halevi writes),
and are not the results of chance. Ibn Ezra comments on the verse "Moshe
recorded the starting points of their various marches as directed by the
Lord" as follows: the clause "as directed by the
Lord" refers to "their various marches" [and not, as one
might have thought, to "Moshe recorded"].

S'forno sees the trials and tribulations of the wilderness
as expressions of meritorious behavior on the part of Children of Israel; they
braved all the desert's misfortunes and adversities, and therefore "they
were deserving of entry into Eretz Yisrael." The journey is a means of
purifying the nation from the impurities of Egypt. This idea brings us back to
an incisive question: Entry into Eretz Yisrael – at what price?

Both commentators accept the following principle: In order
to move from a situation to an opposite situation, there must be a passage of
instability, of travel…

Rabbi Nachman of Breslav goes a great step further in
explaining the function of the journeys. He sees a connection between two
verses from different contexts: "These are the journeys of the Children
of Israel" and "These are your gods, Israel" (at the
sin of the golden calf). The transgression caused instability, inability to
continue on the straight path; it became necessary to wander in the wilderness
in order to return to the earlier condition, to repair it. "These are the journeys of the Children of
Israel" is to attain expiation for "These are your gods,
Israel" – for idolatry. The journeys are a means of shaking off all
remnants of idolatry. Rabbi Nachman details the process: Idolatry (the golden
calf) arouses God's wrath (instability) which leads to the sufferings of the
journey; subsequently God's mercies are aroused, and they, in turn stimulate an
equal measure of compassion among the Children of Israel.

2nd. And as regards the second subject: the reasons for
the detailed recording of the journeys.

Ramban disputes Ibn Ezra's position, claiming that the recording is part of the divine
plan. He reads our verse as: And Moshe recorded as directed by the Lord."

Rashi first tries to define the phenomenon: "Say not
that they were constantly in movement all 40 years, having no rest". On
the contrary, the itinerary was orderly and well-planned, and thus Rashi
explains the reason for the journeys: "To inform us of the goodness of the
Omnipresent". By careful examination of the journey's details, Rashi
reaches the conclusion that the journeys occurred in measure and in rhythm; "It
is seen that during 38 years they marched only 20 times." This provided
reasonable time for rest, and the Children of Israel were not in a state of
fleeing or aimless wandering.

Midrash Tanhuma offers yet another insight: Rabbi Tanhuma
compares writing to learning, "And Moshe recorded" = in order to teach future
generations. The journeys remind the Children of Israel of the misfortunes from
which they were saved by The Holy One, Blessed Be He, and it was necessary to
eternalize this knowledge. Otherwise, the journey would have been considered a
normal mission, say, punishment for the sin of the spies; however, after the
decree that the Children of Israel would wander 40 years, they discovered that
the route was ridden with obstacles and misfortunes, and each stage further
recalls the miracle of His saving of the Children of Israel. Rabbi Tanhuma
mentions that "One who flees bandits, violates the Shabbat and saves his
life… the saving of life takes preference over the Shabbat." Here, The
Holy One, Blessed Be He, violated His Shabbat to save the Children of Israel,
as He did at the exodus from Egypt, and continued to do so throughout the
desert period.

But when they reached the steppes of Moab, at the gate of
their entry to Eretz Yisrael, the series of miracles comes to an end; now the
Children of Israel face a new reality – freedom demands responsibility, and the
entry into their land means the entry into normal reality.

In his Guide for the Perplexed, Rambam develops this idea
and adds an interesting twist. He explains that the stories and the lists,
censuses and stations, all those chapters which are ostensibly technical, are
no less essential than the events or the laws recorded in the Torah. These
details are necessary in order to imbue the narratives with authenticity.
Rambam adds that this record is not intended for the Jewish nation alone, but
for other nations, lest they think that the Children of Israel lost their way,
and knew not where they were going, as is written "They are astray in
the land" – and so, adds Rambam, do they think until this very
day.

In Rambam's view, the list of journeys is relevant to every
period, until this day. The Jewish nation is seen as a wandering people, drifting
among the nations with no clear purpose, but, reminds us Rambam, "this was
not due to their having lost their way; they depended on the rising of the
pillar of cloud." Throughout its history, the Israelite nation passed
through many stages in order to reach the goal – entry into Eretz Yisrael. It may be said the
journeys of the Children of Israel in the wilderness were a kind of rehearsal
for our times in which we stand in the gate to Eretz Yisrael.

May it be His will that our current entry be deserving of
success.

Dr. Yosef-Hayyim Benjo is a
sociologist and educator

What's Happening in Our
Movement

Beth Midrash for
Peace

Lectures and sheurim
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