Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Our sefer and parasha begin with the celebrated pasuk: “These are the words (aleh hadevarim) which Moshe spoke to all of the Jewish people on that side of the Jordan in the desert, in the plain opposite the Red Sea, between Paran and Tofel and Lavan and Hazeroth and Di Zahav.” (Sefer Devarim 1:1, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, with my emendations)  The Midrash Sifrei on our verse asks a straightforward question:

And is it the case that Moshe prophesied only these words; did he not write the entire Torah?! As the text states: “Then Moshe wrote this Torah…” (31:9)  As such, what is the Torah imparting when it writes, “aleh hadevarim which Moshe spoke?” It is coming to communicate that these were specifically words of admonition, as we find in the verse, “And Yeshurun (the Jewish people) became fat [that is, economically and politically powerful] and rebelled…” (32:15 midrash translation my own)
 
Rashi zatzal (1040-1105) expands on the Sifrei’s statement, “it is coming to communicate to us that these were specifically words of reprimand,” and suggests this explanation as to why the Torah employs the phrase, “aleh hadevarim”:

Since these are words of rebuke and he [Moshe] enumerates here all the places where they angered the Omnipresent, it, therefore, makes no explicit mention of the incidents [in which they transgressed], but rather merely alludes to them, [by mentioning the names of the places] out of respect for the Jewish people (mipnei k’vodon shel Yisrael).
 
In his posthumous Torah commentary, Darash Moshe, HaRav HaGaon Moshe Feinstein zatzal (1895-1986) notes that the concept of mipnei k’vodon shel Yisrael in Rashi’s gloss is quite difficult to understand:

For is it not the case that soon thereafter the Torah mentions the Sin of the Spies at great length? And, so, too, in Parashat Eikev, does not the Torah cite the complete narrative of the Golden Calf? If so, why at the beginning [of the sefer] does it utilize allusion alone and concern itself with the respect of the Jewish people (v’chas al k’vodom)? (Rav Moshe Dovid Yitzchak Tendler zatzal, Rav Dovid Feinstein zatzal, and Rav Shalom Reuven Feinstein shlita editors, Parashat Devarim 1:1, page 140, this, and the following translation and brackets my own)
 
Rav Moshe offers the following answer to his question:
​
…while it is true that this generation, [on the verge of entering Eretz Yisrael,] did not commit these earlier sins, and, therefore, could not be directly reproved for them, none the less, they [that is, these sins] are alluded to at this time (amar b’kan b’remez). For even the new generation needed to be admonished regarding the sins that were done by the previous generation, since it is necessary for each person to know that if they see someone sin, they should never say concerning themselves that it would be impossible to sin [in this manner, simply] because one knows that this matter is proscribed and believes in Hashem and His Torah… And this reproach was based on the notion that they, too, could sin; as such, [at the beginning of Sefer Devarim] they were reprimanded through allusion, to maintain their honor, as they had not yet sinned in actual practice.
 
I believe that Rav Moshe is teaching us a crucial lesson for this Shabbat day before Tisha b’Av: “It is necessary for each person to know that if they see someone sin, they should never say concerning themselves that it would be impossible to sin because one knows that this matter is proscribed and believes in Hashem and His Torah.” Instead, we must be vigilant in studying and fulfilling Hashem’s Torah and ever seek to be His true servants, for this, too, is mipnei k’vodon shel Yisrael. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org.
 
Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Parashat Mattot begins with the topic of hafarat nedarim (revocation of vows) by a father on behalf of his daughter, and by a husband for his wife. The general outlines of this mitzvah were formulated by the Rambam (Maimonides, 1135-1204) in this manner: “The 95th [positive] mitzvah that we are commanded is regarding the annulment of vows. This does not mean that we are obligated [per se] to annul vows, but rather that there are certain laws to be followed when so doing [wherein their fulfillment constitutes the mitzvah] …The annulment of vows done by a father [for his daughter] and a husband [for his wife] is explained in detail in the Torah.” (This, and the following quote from the Rambam, Sefer HaMitzvot, Positive Commandment 95, translation, Rabbi Berel Bell, with my emendations)
 
It should be noted that we no longer engage in hafarat nedarim in our time, since it is unclear as to exactly which nedarim may be revoked by the father or husband. Instead, we actively pursue the Torah She'Ba’al Peh (Oral Law) practice of hatarat nedarim (nullification of vows) that may be undertaken by either a recognized Torah scholar or a beit din. The Rambam speaks directly to the role of the talmid chacham in this Rabbinic act: “Furthermore, we know from the Oral Tradition that a Torah scholar can nullify anyone’s vow or oath.” (See, Talmid Bavli, Ketuvot 74b). Rabbi Herschel Schachter shlita aptly summarized the role of the beit din in this process:

Nowadays, when one seeks to nullify a neder, as is done on erev Rosh Hashanah, he stands before a beis din, which performs hataras nedarim (nullification of vows) based on pesach [an opening, that is], his not realizing how problematic observing the neder would be, and charatah, his regret for ever having undertaken the neder. The beis din then declares [three times], “It is permitted to you,” and the neder is annulled. (Rav Schachter on the Parsha: Insights and Commentary Based on the Shiurim of Rav Herschel Schachter, adapted by Dr. Allan Weissman, page 214, brackets my own)
 
While the practice of hatarat nedarim, whether by a talmid chacham or a beit din, is clearly based upon pesach and charatah, the mishnah in Talmud Bavli Chagigah 10a, boldly declares:

The halakhot of the dissolution of vows, when one requests from a Sage to dissolve them, fly in the air and have nothing to support them, as these halakhot are not mentioned explicitly in the Torah. There is only a slight allusion to the dissolution of vows in the Torah, which is taught by the Sages as part of the oral tradition. (Translation and explanation, The William Davidson Talmud, Koren Press, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz zatzal, editor)
 
The notion that the halakhot of hatarat nedarim “fly in the air and have nothing to support them,” since they have no direct textual support, is strong proof of the power invested in Chazal by the Torah She'Ba’al Peh to legislate laws that respond to the practical needs of our people. As such, as Rav Schachter notes, the entire community joins as one during Kol Nidre and performs a public rendition of the dissolution of vows:

We have an old custom to recite Kol Nidre on the night of Yom Kippur, which is really a public hataras nedarim, annulling the nedarim we had taken during the course of the year since the last Yom Kippur… The standard explanation of this custom is based on the following comparison of the Zohar. Just as in the case of hataras nedarim, the beis din serves to uproot the neder retroactively, making it into something that was never binding at all, so too, with powerful teshuvah, the aveiros [sins] will be uprooted from their source, as if they never occurred. (Rav Schachter on the Parsha, page 218, brackets my own)
 
This Shabbat is eight days before Tisha b’Av. With Hashem’s help, as we mourn the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash on this upcoming day, may we engage in heartfelt teshuvah and may our aveiros “be uprooted from their source, as if they never occurred.” This thought is echoed in the words of Megillat Eichah: “Hashiveinu Hashem alecha v’nashuvah, chadash yameinu k’kedem—Cause us to return unto You Hashem and we will return, renew our days as of old.” (5:21)  V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org.
 
Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah, Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav

 
Rabbi David Etengoff

Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The saddest part of our parasha is Hashem’s declaration to Moshe forbidding him from entering Eretz Yisrael: “Hashem said to Moshe, ‘Go up to this mount Abarim and look at the land that I have given to b’nai Yisrael. And when you have seen it, you, too, will be gathered to your people, just as Aharon your brother was gathered.’” (Sefer Bamidbar 27:12-13, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  One can only imagine the pain and sorrow Moshe felt upon being banned from the Land he longed to explore, his dream lying crushed, in ruins, at his feet.
 
Regardless of his personal misery, however, Moshe’s first response was to seek assurance from the Almighty that the Jewish people would have the fitting leader to bring them into Eretz Yisrael:

Moshe spoke to Hashem, saying: “Let Hashem, the G-d of spirits of all flesh (Elokei haruchot l’kol basar), appoint a man over the congregation, who will go forth before them and come before them, who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of Hashem will not be like sheep without a shepherd.” (27:15-17)
 
In his Commentary on the Torah on these verses, Rashi (1040-1105), citing Sifrei Bamidbar, Parashat Pinchas 138, notes that Moshe’s response to Hashem’s decree is emblematic of the manner in which tzaddikim (truly righteous individuals) react when their death is imminent: “This comes to make known to you the praise of tzaddikim when they are about to pass on from this world, [that is,] they ignore their own wants and actively focus on the needs of the community (v’oskin b’tzorchei tzibbur). (Leipzig manuscript, translation and brackets my own)  Perhaps because of Moshe’s consummate altruism, the Almighty immediately consented to his request:

Hashem said to Moshe, “Take for yourself Yehoshua the son of Nun, a man of spirit, and you shall lay your hand upon him. And you shall present him before Eleazar the kohane and before the entire congregation, and you shall command him in their presence. You shall bestow some of your majesty upon him so that all the congregation of the children of Israel will take heed. He shall stand before Eleazar the kohane and seek [counsel from] him through the judgment of the Urim before Hashem. By his word they shall go, and by his word they shall come; he and all b’nai Yisrael with him, and the entire congregation.” (27:18-21)
 
At first glance, Hashem’s choice of Yehoshua as the next leader of the Jewish people seems perfectly apropos. After all, as we find at the end of Parashat Beshalach, Yehoshua was an outstanding military leader:

So Moshe said to Yehoshua, “Pick men for us, and go out and fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of G-d in my hand…” Yehoshua weakened Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. (Sefer Shemot 17:9 and 13)
 
Moreover, and perhaps even more significantly in the overall view of Jewish history, following the Sin of the Golden Calf, we are explicitly informed of the special relationship that obtained between Moshe and Yehoshua, the latter never leaving his teacher’s tent of Torah learning (Rashi): “…but his [Moshe’s] attendant, Yehoshua, the son of Nun, a lad, would not depart from the tent.” (Sefer Shemot 33:11)  On measure, Yehoshua seemed the ideal candidate to carry the mantle of Moshe’s leadership into a glorious Jewish future.
 
There are, however, passages in Chazal that paint a very different picture of Yehoshua’s worthiness to succeed his rebbe. In Sefer Mishle 21:20 we find: “Precious treasure and oil are in the dwelling of the wise man (chacham), but man's foolishness (uchsile) will swallow it up.” The Midrash Yalkut Shimoni on this verse presents a startling interpretation, “Chacham—this refers to Moshe, uchsile—this refers to Yehoshua, for he was not a Torah scholar. Therefore, the Jewish people called him a fool!” An even more powerful indictment against Yehoshua’s candidacy is found in the following Talmudic passage:

Rab Judah reported in the name of Rab: When Moshe departed [this world] for the Garden of Eden, he said to Yehoshua: “Ask me concerning all the doubts you have [concerning any halacha].” He replied to him: “My Master, have I ever left you for one hour and gone elsewhere? [that is. “I have no doubts.”] Did you not write concerning me in the Torah: “…but his attendant Yehoshua, the son of Nun, a lad, would not depart from the tent?” Immediately the strength [of Moshe] weakened, [since it seemed that Yehoshua no longer needed him,] and [Yehoshua] forgot three hundred laws and there arose [in his mind] seven hundred doubts [concerning various areas of Torah]. Then all the Jews rose up to kill him. (Talmud Bavli, Temurah 16a, translation, The Soncino Talmud, with my emendations)
 
Why, then, did Hashem choose Yehoshua as the next leader of the Jewish people? The previously cited section from the Midrash Yalkut Shimoni provides us with the underlying rationale: “Because he [Yehoshua] was Moshe’s attendant, he merited the appointment as leader of the people (literally, zacha l’yerushato).” What did he do? The Midrash teaches us, “He [Yehoshua] honored him [Moshe] and arranged the covers on the benches [so the classes could be held.] Moreover, he sat at his [master’s] feet.”
 
Why did these behaviors qualify Yehoshua to be the next leader of our people? My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, provides us with a deeply insightful answer to this question:

Often, a leader’s successor was chosen not only because of his intellectual prowess but also because of his devoted service to his teacher. When the Baal Shem Tov passed away, the mantle of leadership was not given to Rav Yaakov Yosef, a Torah giant and the author of Toldot Yaakov Yosef. Rather, it passed to the Maggid of Mezeritch, who had served the Baal Shem Tov with great devotion and loyalty. Similarly, Rav Chaim of Volozhin became the successor to his teacher, the Vilna Gaon, partly because he was not only his student but his confidant. (Chumash Mesoras HaRav, with commentary based upon the teachings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Sefer Bamidbar, edited by Dr. Arnold Lustiger, page 218, underlining my own)
 
The Rav continues his assessment of Yehoshua’s candidacy in the following manner:

Joshua was not a greater scholar than Phineas or Eleazar, but the service of Torah [scholars] is greater than its study] (Talmud Bavli, Berachot 7b). Service does not merely signify physical toil; it also represents a special closeness and friendship between the teacher and disciple, a type of partnership. The chosen disciple not only receives information from his rebbe, but absorbs a way of life, until they are practically identical in their essence. Moses knew that through his student-colleague, the Torah would be transmitted to future generations. (Page 219)
 
Based upon the Rav’s trenchant analysis, we are now better able to understand Hashem’s choice of Yehoshua to be the next leader of the Jewish people. Yehoshua, and not Pinchas, Elazar, or even Moses’ sons, was the one person who had completely absorbed Moshe’s values and way of life to the extent that he was able to emulate his rebbe’s very essence. Little wonder, then, that the Midrash Sifrei famously declares: “The face of Moshe was like the face of the sun, and the face of Yehoshua was like the face of the moon.” (Parashat Pinchas, 140)  This teaches us that Yehoshua’s very being reflected not only Moshe’s knowledge, but his entire persona. As such, he was the one disciple who was truly fitting to lead the Jewish people into Eretz Yisrael.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org.
 
Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah, Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav

Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The namesake of our parasha is Balak, King of Moab. He correctly believed that his country was existentially threatened by the fledgling Jewish nation. As such, he sought to annihilate us before we could become any stronger and wreak havoc upon his people. In order to achieve his malevolent goal, he hired Bilam ben Beor to curse our people and “stop us in our tracks.”
 
Talmud Bavli, Sanhedrin 106a focuses on Bilam’s authentic nature: “[It states in Sefer Yehoshua 13:22:] ‘… and Bilam, the son of Beor, the sorcerer (hakosame)…’ Was he a sorcerer? He is a prophet (navi)! Rabbi Yochanan says: ‘Initially he was a prophet, but ultimately, he lost his capacity for prophecy and remained merely a sorcerer.’” (Translation with my emendations, The William Davidson Talmud, Koren Press, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz zatzal, editor)  This passage helps us understand that even though Bilam was labelled a sorcerer in Sefer Yehoshua, he had been an authentic prophet at an earlier time. This transformation is trenchantly analyzed by the Maharal (Rabbi Yehudah Loew ben Bezalel zatzal, d. 1609):

Here is the explanation: He was initially a prophet, as his prophecies were vouchsafed to him prior to the Jewish people having left Egypt; in addition, at that time, he was also a navi to the nations of the world. Afterwards, when the Jewish people left Egypt, Moshe asked [the Almighty] to no longer allow His Shechinah to dwell among the nations of the world, but rather. solely among the Jewish people. Prior to this request, however, it had not been determined that prophecy would be removed from the peoples of the world; as such, Bilam, himself, who was from the nations of the world, agreed to the brachot for the Jewish people. At this juncture, the Shechinah departed completely from the nations of the world forevermore…” (Chidushei Aggadot, Sanhedrin 106a, translation and brackets my own)
 
According to the Maharal, Bilam was, indeed, a prophet prior to Moshe Rabbeinu’s entreaty to Hashem to cease His prophetic involvement with the nations of the world. Subsequently, however, Hashem honored Moshe’s request and Bilam was reduced to an ordinary sorcerer.
 
What kind of navi was Bilam? How did he compare to Moshe Rabbeinu? At least two midrashim speak directly to these questions:

Bilam had three characteristics that Moshe lacked: He knew Who was speaking to him, he knew when the Holy One blessed be He was going to speak to him, and he could speak with Him whenever he so desired. (Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah 14:20)
 
There were three things that made Bilam greater than Moshe: He could look upon the Shechinah (Hashem’s Divine Presence), he could join himself to the Shechinah, and he could immediately open his eyes and speak [at will] with the Shechinah. (Midrash Aggadah 24:17, translations and underling my own)
 
Based upon the metrics in these midrashim, Bilam’s prophetic characteristics, and the nature of his encounters with the Shechinah, surpassed even those of Moshe Rabbeinu.
 
Bilam’s status as an authentic navi, however, has not been universally accepted. One of the earliest sources that rejects this idea is Targum Onkelos. Throughout his interpretative Aramaic translation of the Torah, Onkelos (c.35-120 CE) utilizes the term, “itgali Hashem (Hashem revealed Himself),” in regard to authentic prophets. By way of example, he deploys this phrase ten times in reference to Hashem’s revelations to Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya’akov. In stark contrast, however, there is not one pasuk wherein Onkelos uses a form of “itgali Hashem” in reference to Bilam, this strongly suggesting that he did not recognize Bilam as a bona fide prophet. (See Rambam, Moreh HaNevuchim II:41for the basis of this analysis)
 
In his Commentary on Sefer Yehoshua, the Abarbanel (Rabbi Don Isaac Abravanel zatzal, 1437-1508) explains the phrase, “and Bilam, the son of Beor, the sorcerer,” (13:22) in a straightforward manner in consonance with Onkelos’ approach: “He was a sorcerer in his very nature and true essence (kosame m’tivo v’amitato). For everything that is cited from his prophecy [in Parashat Balak] is simply something that he was gifted—solely for that moment—in honor of the Jewish people so that he could bless them.” (Translation and brackets my own)
 
Ultimately, Bilam attained infamy for having caused the death of 24,000 men of our nation through his nefarious plan concerning the b’not Moab (Daughters of Moab, Sefer Bamidbar 25:1-9). Little wonder, then, that Chazal gave him the appellation, “Bilam HaRasha (Bilam the Evil One, Pirkei Avot 5:19),” the name by which he will be known forevermore.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org.
 
Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah, Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Chapter five of Pirkei Avot tells a poignant tale: “With ten tests our forefathers tested Hashem in the desert, as is stated (Sefer Bamidbar 14:22), ‘… they tested Me these ten times, and did not listen to My voice.’” (Mishna 4)  In his Commentary on the Torah on this pasuk, Rashi (1040-1105) notes that two of the ten challenges against Hashem concerned the manna that He provided to our forebears for 40 years. One of these instances appears in this week’s parasha: “The people spoke against Elokim and against Moshe, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in this desert, for there is no bread and no water, and we are disgusted with this rotten bread [that is, the manna, Rashi].’” (Sefer Bamidbar 21:5, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
Hashem’s response to this challenge was swift and powerful; “[He] sent venomous snakes against the people, and they bit the people, and many of the people died.” (21:6)  Realizing their fundamental error, the people immediately reached out to Moshe, begging him to intervene on their behalf: “The people came to Moshe and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have spoken against Hashem and against you. Pray to Hashem that He remove the snakes from us.’ So Moshe prayed on behalf of the people.” (21:7)  Hashem then agreed to end the plague of the poisonous snakes and instructed Moshe to undertake the following action in order to achieve this outcome:

“Hashem said to Moshe, ‘Make yourself a serpent and put it on a pole, and all who are bitten will look at it and live.’” As always, Moshe fulfilled Hashem’s mitzvah: “Moshe made a copper snake and put it on a pole, and whenever a snake bit a man, he would gaze upon the copper snake and live.” (21:8-9)
 
A well-known mishnah in Talmud Bavli, Rosh Hashanah 29a presents the classic question regarding Hashem’s solution to end the makkah of the snakes and contextualizes it by noting its parallels to our victory over Amalek as found in Parashat Beshalach:

“And it came to pass, when Moshe held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed” (Sefer Shemot 17:11). It may be asked: “Did the hands of Moshe make war when he raised them or break war when he lowered them?” Rather, the verse comes to tell you that as long as the Jewish people turned their eyes upward and subjected their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they prevailed, but if not, they fell. Similarly, you can say: The verse states: “Make for yourself a fiery serpent and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass, that everyone that is bitten, when he sees it, he shall live.” (Sefer Bamidbar 21:8). Once again it may be asked: “Did the serpent kill, or did the serpent preserve life?” Rather, when the Jewish people turned their eyes upward and subjected their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they were healed, but if not, they rotted from their snakebites. (Translation, The William Davidson Talmud, Koren Press, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz zatzal editor)
 
The two questions presented in this mishnah, “Did the hands of Moshe make war when he raised them or break war when he lowered them?” and “Did the serpent kill, or did the serpent preserve life?” have the same answer: Salvation from trial and tribulation has but one source, Avinu she’b’Shamayim (Our Father in Heaven). If we raise our eyes, and turn our hearts and minds to Hashem, we will achieve the outcome for which we long. This essential principle of emunah (faith) is reminiscent of one of my favorite chapters from Sefer Tehillim:

A song for ascents. I shall raise my eyes to the mountains, from where will my help come? My help is from Hashem, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to falter; Your Guardian will not slumber. Behold the Guardian of Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. Hashem is your Guardian; Hashem is your shadow; [He is] by your right hand. By day, the sun will not smite you, nor will the moon at night. Hashem will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul. Hashem will guard your going out and your coming in from now and to eternity. (121)
 
May these powerful words of Dovid HaMelech ever be our guide as we strive to sanctify the Almighty in our lives. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org.
 
Please contact me at [email protected] to be added to my weekly email list.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah, Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link: The Rav