These two roles are intertwined, the latter deriving from the former. A tzaddik is not only a leader of his people, but also the master of his environment. (The chassidic master Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev (1740–1810) has an interesting insight here: Rashi’s and Maimonides’ explanations, says the Berditchever, are two sides of the same coin. Maimonides (Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, 1135–1204) has a different explanation: Moses’ failing was that he got angry and spoke harshly to the people (his “Listen, you troublemakers!” speech). Thus, he failed to “sanctify Me before the eyes of the Children of Israel” (extracting water by speaking would have been a greater miracle). Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040–1105) points out that G‑d instructed Moses to speak to the rock, while Moses struck it. The commentaries search the text for clues. What did Moses do wrong? What was the sin that warranted such a devastating punishment? Whereupon G‑d says to Moses and Aaron: “Because you did not believe in Me, to sanctify Me before the eyes of the Children of Israel, therefore you will not bring this congregation into the land I have given them.” Water gushes forth, and the people and their cattle drink. You shall speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will give its water.” When all are assembled before the rock, Moses addresses the people: “Listen, rebellious ones! Shall we bring forth water for you from this rock?” Moses raises his hand and strikes the rock twice with his staff. Moses calls on G‑d, who instructs him to “take the staff, and gather the people, you and Aaron your brother. “If only we had died,” they rage, “when our brethren died before G‑d! Why have you brought the congregation of G‑d to this desert, to die there, we and our cattle? Why have you taken us out of Egypt-to bring us to this evil place . . . ?” There is no water, the people are thirsty, and as they are wont to do in similar circumstances, they complain to Moses. As we speak, someone is writing a “ Parshah piece” that searches for some explanation of the event, or at least a lesson to be derived from it.īut first the facts (as related in Numbers 20:1–13):Īfter traveling for forty years in the wilderness, the people of Israel arrive in Kadesh in the Zin Desert, on the border of the Holy Land. One of the most puzzling passages in the Torah is the story of the Waters of Strife, in the wake of which G‑d decreed that Moses would die in the desert and would not enter the Land of Israel.Ī hundred generations of Torah scholars, beginning with Moses himself and continuing with the sages of the Midrash, the biblical commentaries and the chassidic masters, struggle with this enigmatic chapter.
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