SPEAK TO THE CHILDREN AND TAKE FROM THEM A STAFF FOR EACH FATHER'S HOUSE FROM ALL THE CHIEFTAINS ACCORDING TO THEIR FATHERS' HOUSES... INSCRIBE AARON'S NAME ON THE STAFF OF LEVI, FOR THERE IS [ONLY] ONE STAFF FOR THE HEAD OF THEIR FATHERS' HOUSE... THE STAFF OF THE MAN WHOM I WILL CHOOSE WILL BLOSSOM... AND ON THE FOLLOWING DAY MOSES CAME TO THE TENT OF TESTIMONY, AND BEHOLD, AARON'S STAFF FOR THE HOUSE OF LEVI HAD BLOSSOMED! IT GAVE FORTH BLOSSOMS, SPROUTED BUDS, AND PRODUCED RIPE ALMONDS.

(Bamidbar 17)

 

And Aaron's staff. Some say that it was the staff that had been in the hand of Judah, in regard to which it says, And your staff that is in your hand (Bereishit 38:18). Others say that it was the staff that had been in the hand of Moses. It blossomed of its own accord; as it says, and behold, Aaron's staff... had blossomed. Others again say that Moses took a beam and, cutting it into twelve planks, said to the princes: "Take your sticks every one of you from the same beam." Why did he do this? Because it is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife; but every fool will be snarling (Proverbs 20:3). He did it in order that they should not say that Aaron's staff was fresh and that this was the reason why it blossomed.

(Bamidbar Rabbah 18:23, following the Soncino translation)

 

R. Aha bar Ze'era said: At this also my heart trembles and leaps from its place (Job 37:1). What is the meaning of and leaps? "Jumps," as it is said, with which to jump upon the earth (Vayikra 11:21). Moreover, we translate it as "to jump" (in the Targum Onkelos of Vayikra 11:21). When Titus the Wicked entered the Holy of Holies and sawed open the curtains, he entered in peace and came out in peace; but the sons of Aaron entered to offer sacrifice and came out destroyed by fire, as it is stated, when they offered sacrifice before the Lord.

(Tanhuma Aharei Mot 4, based upon Townsend translation)

 

Many say - even today - that if God would now show us manifest miracles a spirit of repentance and true fear of God would fall upon us all, "and they all shall form one band to do Your will full-heartedly," but since we have no manifest miracles and do not see His wonders with our own eyes those of little faith have grown numerous and truth has become scarce...

...this is not the truth of the matter. Miracles can only serve as proof for he who sees them and is prepared to see them. Lack of faith is simply lack of will.

(Nehama Leibowitz, Iyunim be'Sefer Bamidbar, pg. 242)

 

In Praise of Disagreement

Nahem Ilan

Most of parashat Korah deals primarily with the controversy in which Korah and his followers stood against Moses and Aaron and with the consequences of that controversy. Korah, Dotan and Aviram came out against the concentration of leadership and the priesthood in the hands of Moses and Aaron. They protested what seemed to them an unjust distribution of senior offices among the other tribes, and even among the Levites themselves.

I would like to consider two different attitudes towards the controversy, one found in Midrash Hefetz, a medieval Yemenite midrash, and the other in Midrash Shemuel, which was composed in the Land of Israel in the beginning of the Renaissance period at the end of the 16^th century.

Midrash Hefetz is a midrash upon the Torah. It was written in Hebrew and Judeo-Arabic by R. Zekhariah ben Shelomo the Physician in Yemen in the year 1420. R. Zekhariah writes:

Woe unto Korah, for what he did to himself, to his sons, to his property, to Moses, and to the Israelite People! He caused himself to be burned and swallowed up, he caused his young sons and property to be swallowed up, he caused Moses to become angry and the People Israel to be objects of the Omnipresent's anger. Regarding him it is said, A man's pride shall humble him (Proverbs 29:23), for he sought greatness and controversy, for [the word] vayikah - and he took - can only refer to cajoling people with words, for he cajoled great men of Israel and the people into following him.

The author of the midrash criticizes Korah for not having confronted Moses on his own, instead causing harm to himself, to his children, to Moses, and to the entire people. Midrash Hefetz presents a short and dense paraphrase of the biblical story. In a few Hebrew sentences, R. Zekhariah the Physician translates the Biblical Hebrew into simpler language, making it understandable to his audience. This practice was typical of a midrash that seems to have been based upon oral discourses that were only set down in writing at a later stage. Succinct and simple language that manages to quickly express both the story and its message is the strength of this work.

In the fifth chapter (mishnah 16/19) of Pirkei Avot we read:

All controversies that are for the sake of Heaven will endure in the end, and those not for the sake of Heaven will not endure. Which controversy is for the sake of Heaven? That is the controversy of Shamai and Hillel. And which is not for the sake of Heaven? That is the controversy of Korah and his party.

What distinguishes these two controversies from each other? The controversy of Hillel and Shamai was pursued in order to reach the truth, while the controversy of Korah and his party was aimed at creating vexation and promoting one of the sides. Truth itself was of negligible importance and perhaps entirely irrelevant to the controversy.

Midrash Shemuel on Pirkei Avot was composed by R. Shemuel di Ucedo, one of the most important French rabbis of the second half of the 16^th century. He wrote exegetical and philosophical works on various areas of study. Midrash Shemuel is a kind of encyclopedia of commentaries (mostly Sephardic) on Pirkei Avot. It has been printed often and in various places, four times in the course of the author's own life. This demonstrates the book's success and popularity. The commentary treats intellectual problems and was clearly intended for scholarly readers.

R. Shemuel brings a variety of interpretations of our mishnah, including this passage:

It is known that controversy between opposing sides in study and scholarship causes matters to come to light and for the truth to be known without doubt. Therefore, doubts, critical comments, and vexing questions are a necessary precondition for achievement of the goal [i.e., knowledge of the truth].

The Philosopher [Aristotle] himself said that doubts make people wise. This is something worthy of being grasped by all those who seek knowledge of the truth in any book or science. It is known that doubts can only reach their perfection when opposing parties exist, questions and answers bringing justice to light...for when there is no party offering opposition through tough questions and arguments regarding the area of investigation it is impossible for the thing to come to light and everyone can fall into error....

Sometimes questions are more important than answers; that is the significance of the quote from Aristotle (and it is not obvious that a gentile sage would be cited in such a work) brought by R. Shemuel. Questions and doubts advance one towards knowledge of the truth or to the discovery of things one would never become aware of otherwise. When controversy arises from genuine questions and is aimed at uncovering some new fact or insight it is a necessary condition for development and learning.

I should also point out that the explicit quotation from Aristotle teaches us, of course, not only that R. Shemuel knew the dictum and identified with it, but also that he had no qualms about naming its author. He appears to have known that some potential readers of his work would be familiar with Aristotle's name and would not find it abhorrent. Imagine that such had been the case in Safed during the highpoint of the Kabbalah's flourishing there - that Aristotle could be used to clarify the words of the Mishnah!

In conclusion, Midrash Hefetz formulates the story of the controversy between Korah and his followers and Moses, as well as the consequences of that controversy, in succinct and clear terms. In a few short sentences it illuminates not only the story, but also its lesson. Midrash Shemuel relates to the controversy as a general phenomenon, seeing its positive aspects when it is motivated by the will to reach the truth. The main instruments for reaching the truth are criticisms and questions.

A possible lesson for us is how vital the questions are which we ask and which are posed to us. There are not always answers to all of them, and the answers that are available are not always satisfying. Nonetheless, the questions inspire creativity and without them we are likely to remain in error. One of the strengths of any community is its ability to engage in controversy and debate, and to develop thanks to the power of those controversies and debates.

Prof. Nahem Ilan teaches in the MA program in Jewish Studies in the Lander Institute in Jerusalem (founded by Touro College)

 

Who is to be Punished - the Inciters or the Incited?

They flung themselves on their faces, and said: "O God, God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, at the entire community will you be furious?!"

It is revealed and known before you that the spirit of the masses are easily inflamed by dazzling claims, and a person such as Korah, who is spiritually superior and who enjoys full confidence heretofore unblemished, is able to dupe the people and lead them to sin. When the masses sin, the guilt can usually be attributed to a few instigators of high standing. When human beings intervene against the transgression, as a rule it is the incited masses - who are less guilty - who are hurt; the inciters themselves usually go unpunished. But you are God, God of the spirits of all flesh, because you are all powerful God, you have it in your power to punish whoever is guilty; and since you are God of the spirits of all flesh, you can discern in your wisdom the degree of every man's guilt. When one man sins - Korah alone was guilty, whereas the incited masses are deserving of your graces. We have noted a number of times in similar cases: when The Holy One, Blessed Be He, leads Moses to prayer, He arouses in his heart the understanding of His ways of supervision; He elevates his spirit, as it were, to think - along with Him - the thoughts of divine supervision.

(Rabbi S. R. Hirsch, Bamidbar 16:22)

 

The Ketoret (Incense) and the Torah - Elixir of Life or Potion of Death?

Why ketoret? Because Israel were maligning the ketoret, saying it is a potion of death, it caused the death of Nadav and Avihu, and because of it 250 people were killed. The Holy One, Blessed Be He, said: "You will see that it arrests the plague and that it is the sin which kills." (Rashi Bamidbar 17:13)

 

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: What is the meaning of And this is the Torah which Moshe set before the Children of Israel (Devarim 4)? If they are deserving, it will be an elixir of life, but if they are not deserving, it will be a potion of death for them. [The Hebrew for "set" is "sam". "Sam" may be spelled in two ways; spelled with a "sin" it means "set"; spelled with a "samech" it means a potion.]

(Yoma 72b)

 

Which you shall set before them -- if they are deserving it will be an elixir of life, but if they are not deserving, it will be for them a potion of death. The explanation for this is that this is the reason for Scripture using the word tasim ('set') - derived from the word sam [a "potion"] to teach that if the judge judges justly, he will be an elixir of life, and if not, he becomes a death potion. Similar to this is the Sages' explication of the verse (Devarim 11) vesamtem [and you shall set] these words - from the word sam - and this is what they meant when they said that if one acquires words of Torah, they become for him an elixir of life, but if he does not acquire them - they become for him a death potion.

(Rabenu Bahayeh, Shemot 21:1)

 

"Hillel said: Be among Aaron's disciples, one who loves peace and pursues peace, who loves people and brings them close to Torah."

(Avot 1:11)

Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: Great is peace, for Aaron the Priest was praised only because of peace, -- he loved peace and pursued peace, and greeted with "Shalom" and replied "Shalom", as is written He walked with me in peace and honesty, and this is followed by and he held the many back from iniquity (Malachi 2). It is taught that when he would see two men hating each other, he would go to one and say to him: "Why do you hate so-and-so? He came to me in my home, and prostrated himself before me and said ‘I have transgressed against so-and-so' - go and appease him." Then he left this man and went to the other and told him exactly what he had told the first, and thus he would establish peace and love and friendship between man and his fellow, so he held the many back from iniquity.

(Derekh Eretz Zutah, Perek HaShalom, Mishna 12)

 

"Loves peace" - how? It is taught that one should love peace between every one in Israel, just as Aaron loved peace between everyone, as is written: Proper rulings were in his mouth, and nothing perverse was on his lips. He served me in peace and honesty, and he held the many back from iniquity (Malachi 2). R. Meir says: What do we learn from the verse and he held the many back from iniquity? That when Aaron walked on the road and met a wicked man, he would greet him. The next day, if that man wanted to sin, he would say "Woe unto me! How shall I be able afterwards to set my eyes upon Aaron? I am embarrassed because of him because he greeted me," and so that man would refrain from sinning.

(Avot D'Rabbi Natan 11:8)

 

I Have Not Taken the Ass of Any One of Them: A Proper Characteristic of a Public Figure

According to the plain reading, custom was that the public ruler would be carried on a horse, as per Kohellet (10:7): I have seen slaves on horseback, and nobles walking... From here we see that the proper order is the reverse; but even the servant who accompanies his master on his travels is given a donkey. Not only did I never take one's horse [says Moses], I never even took a donkey to ride upon. Rashi explains this according to a Midrash of the Sages: even the donkey upon which my wife rode when we traveled from Midyan to Egypt was not theirs. It should be noted that he could have made an even more remarkable claim: that even the bread he ate in Egypt was not taken from the public. [But he does not make any such claim]. From this we learn that it cannot be rightfully expected of one who constantly engages in public affairs that he not eat from public funds, for then he would have to set aside some hour to make his living, which would result in his not attending to public needs. The public prefers that even that hour be devoted to their needs and that the leader eat at their expense. Moses, too, ate at public expense, and only the donkey on which he brought his wife was his. In fact, the presence of Moses' wife and children in Egypt was unnecessary - they returned to Midyan immediately - but she had asked him to be able to see the glory of the Exodus from Egypt (Mekhilta Yitro). This was not essential for the life of one who deals with public needs, certainly it is not a characteristic of the righteous to burden the public with more than is necessary for life's essentials.

(The NeTziV of Volozhin; Ha'amek Davar, Harhev Davar, Bamidbar 16:15)

 

It is proper, therefore, that we review and internalize that final passage of these thoughts of the NeTziV. They are worthy of being said to all generations - especially to this generation, in which it is not customary to emulate the attributes of Moses our teacher.

(Y. Leibowitz, Sheva Shanim shel Sihot al Parashiyot ha'Shavu'a, p. 694)

 

 

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