Perashat Shofetim 5778

Perashat Shofetim 5778

In Moshe Rabenu's parting words to Am Yisrael, he reminds them of their request at Mount Sinai to hear the Ten Commandments through Moshe's voice, and not directly from Hashem. The Midrash says that as G-d relayed the first commandment, the intensity of hearing His voice was so great that the souls of Am Yisrael vacated their bodies. After the first commandment Hashem resurrected them, only for it to happen again when He declared the second commandment. The nation's fear of dying was so strong after hearing the first two commandments that they begged Moshe to relay the commandments as a representative of Hashem.

Moshe recounts, "According to all that you asked of Hashem, your G-d, in Horeb, on the day of the assembly, saying, 'Let me not continue to hear the voice of the Lord, my G-d, and let me no longer see this great fire so that I will not die.'" Hashem surprisingly responded to Moshe saying, "They have done well in what they have spoken"(Debarim 18:17-18).

How are we to understand G-d's favorable reaction to Am Yisrael's rejection of Him giving them the commandments directly?

Am Yisrael recognized their own deficiencies and that they did not yet have the spiritual capacity to receive such divinity directly from G-d. They therefore pleaded with Moshe,  "You speak with us and we will hear, but let  G-d not speak with us lest we die" (Shemot 20:16). 

There is a fundamental principle we can learn here. While it is true that we all must make every effort to elevate ourselves to high holiness, we must also acknowledge our present status and the need for a slow progression of ourgrowth. We should realize that to reach spiritual heights, one must acquire the proper tools. If not, one might fail and descend to a lower spiritual level. Recognizing that it was in the nation's best interest to allow them the room to grow incrementally, Hashem accepted their request.

The commentators asked if Am Yisrael were not sufficiently ready, then why were they initially made to hear the commandments directly from Hashem? They explain that after Am Yisrael witnessed the miracles in Egypt and at theYam Suf, they might have thought that it was Moshe who created these wonders using his own spiritual powers. Therefore, Hashem raised their spiritual status to the level of Nevi'im, prophets, so they would hear His voice and be convinced that it was G-d Himself who gave them the Torah, not Moshe Rabenu who was simply G-d's messenger. As it says "Behold, I am coming to you in the thickness of the cloud, in order that the people hear when I speak to you, and they will also believe in you forever" (Shemot 19:9). Still, they were not truly prepared to hear the Torah from Hashem, as evidenced by their death.

During the month of Elul, we try to undertake more missvot and accept upon ourselves a stricter level of religious observance in preparation for the High Holy Days. While this is proper and encouraged, we must make sure we are ascending step by step. We should strive to gradually master one dimension thoroughly before moving up to the next.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Mimoun Miller