Chukas חקת : This Deaf Mute was Their Heart

In parshas Chukas HaKadosh Baruch Hu decrees that Moshe and Aharon will not enter the Holy Land with the children of Israel. This is foreshadowed by the death of Miriam which occurred slightly before. From the start of the exodus from Egypt until this time the nation has been led by Miriam, Aharon, and Moshe. Aharon and Miriam are of the caliber of Shmuel and Devora, however their greatness is eclipsed by the overwhelming stature of Moshe.

The decree is made when the children of Israel quarrel with Moshe because they have no water. "We wish we had died the death of our brothers before Hashem. Why did you take us out of Egypt to bring us to this bad place (אל המקום הרע הזה) (Numbers 20:3-5), they scream. This is reminiscent of the incident forty years earlier, when after leaving Egypt, they had found themselves with no water. Then they shrieked, "Why did you take us out of Egypt to kill me, my children, and my livestock with thirst", (בשלך Exodus 17:3). There attitude is still horrible but just the same improved. As such Hashem tells Moshe to assemble the nation, bring his stick, and talk to a rock about giving its water. This is milder than the response forty years ago when Hashem had Moshe actually hit the rock. The rock is a symbol for the children of Israel. So to speak this time Moshe should only threaten to hit them with a baton but not actually do it.

In a response very much out of character, Moshe vituperatively calls the nation rebels and thrashes the rock twice. Hashem speaks (ויאמר) to Moshe and Aharon saying that because they did not instill faith in the people and sanctify Him, they will not lead this congregation into the Promised Land. The stuma ends by saying that even though the children of Israel quarreled with Hashem, He was just the same sanctified. In addition the language of "speak" (ויאמר) is considered congenial as opposed to "talk" (וידבר) which is considered strong or harsh. This suggests an absence of anger from G-d.

There are barriers to understanding this passage. One is that our sense of justice seems to be violated. There are those that will say yes Moshe misbehaved but the punishment is excessive. A more subtle difficulty is the willing surrender of leadership. How can anybody quit being the boss, after all he gives the orders and gets his picture in the newspaper? In fact those who have sincerely been busy with the needs of the community know that it typically involves considerable work and aggravation. Moshe's perception of the land of Israel is the Temple and the Temple Mount in their perfection. Unfortunately that dream will not be come true for a very long time and before it is realized there will be much misery and exile.

During his final addresses to the nation, Moshe bares that he pleaded with Hashem to let him enter the Holy Land but was refused for the sake (למענכם) (Deuteronomy 3:26) of the people. Rashi explains that the nation caused this to happen as it is written, "They provoked him at Bitter Water and it went ill with (וירע) Moshe because of them (Psalm 106:32). The Psalm continues, "for he changed (or embittered) his spirit and he pronounce with his lips, (Ibid 33). It is possible to understand these illuminations that the accumulated aggravations caused Moshe to change. Consequently he became bitter and behaved badly. As a result he was no longer able to inspire the children of Israel and assume the major task of conquest and settlement of the land of Israel. This is like the commentaries that explain Ya'akov avinu said his years were few and bad (Genesis 47:9) because he did not wish to deal with a rasha like pharaoh, and consequently his life was shortened by 23 years. It is also similar to the Talmudic sages when faced with hardships, for which they would be compensated, reply they do not want the pain and they do not want the gain.

There is a story in the Talmud in which Rabbi Chisda groans when he sees the house of a great tsadik in ruins. His friend Ulah explains bringing a quote from Rabbi Yochanan that from the day that the Temple was destroyed it has been decreed that the homes of the righteous should be in ruins. When his friend is not consoled he continues that the situation of the servant should be like that of his rabbi (Brachos 58b). From the standpoint of metaphysics the story makes sense. From the standpoint of justice it is difficult.

There is another story from the Talmudic era about Rabbi Elazer ben Arach. He was reckoned as a genius and a wellspring that overpowers. After the destruction of the Second Temple, he moved to a pleasant place in the Galil and set up a yeshiva, however, no students ever came. When he considered relocating to Yavna, which had become the new Torah center, his wife asked who needs the other more you or the students? He replied they need me more. She then retorted does the barrel of wine (some say bread) go to the rats? Rabbi Elazer then stayed put and gradually lost all of his knowledge. When called to the Torah on Rosh Chodesh, he misread, "this month is to you" as "this deaf mute was their heart". The hint is the state of his brilliance in the heart of the Jews was the illiterate deaf mute standing before them. The Gemara is bothered by this tale and continues, perhaps apocryphal, that the people prayed for him and his wisdom was restored.

The hint concerning Moshe at Mey Miriva was that his hysterical vituperative behavior was the state of the Torah in the nation of Israel and he acted according to their expectations. Also just as Moshe remained in the wilderness so to did the Torah. One of ways that G-d's name is sanctified is by seeing how beautiful it is to keep a religious precept. Another way it is sanctified is by seeing how ugly it is to violate of a religious precept.

To a certain extent the nation had become acclimated to dealing with Moshe in a quarrelsome and obstinate way. Consequently HaKadosh baruch Hu had Moshe act like them, to demonstrate just how bad they were. This is not, though, the way Hashem wants the people of Israel to be led. He wants the leader to be a kind and exemplary. Because of this Yehoshua became the new leader.

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A discussion of how at times good leaders can conform to our negative expectations