Riddle
What's the connection between Rabbi Claude and this week's Parasha?
Moshe gave "Semicha" to Joshua
Recap from last week:
The Israelites are in the area of Shittim and they commit immorality with the Midianite women worshipping Baal Peor
Just then one of the Israelites came and brought a Midianite woman over to his companions, in the sight of Moses and of the whole Israelite community who were weeping at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.
When Phinehas, son of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, saw this, he left the assembly and, taking a spear in his hand, he followed the Israelite into the chamber and stabbed both of them, the Israelite (a Prince of Shimon) and the woman, through the belly. Then the plague against the Israelites was checked.
(10) The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, (11) “Phinehas, son of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the Israelites by displaying among them his zeal (passion) for Me, so that I did not wipe out the Israelite people in My jealousy.
Question: How did Moshe react? How would you have reacted?
Without permission,
without warning,
without a trial,
without a verdict
- Pinchas has effectively murdered two people - one of which is one of the princes of the tribe of Shimon.
This is an act of religious fundamentalism! What kind of precedent does this set?
Gd's reaction in the next verse is just as puzzling!
(12) Say, therefore, ‘I grant him My covenant of peace. (13) It shall be for him and his descendants after him a pact of priesthood for all time, because he took impassioned action for his God, thus making expiation for the Israelites.’”
So what is happening here?
Why did Pinchas act in the way he did and why does Gd reward him?
Where else in the Torah do we see someone taking the law into their own hands and acting with zeal?
Rabbi Fohrman on Aleph Beta makes an fascinating point:
("What Does It Mean To Be Zealous For God? A Lesson From The Great Zealots In The Bible" - https://www.alephbeta.org/playlist/what-it-means-to-be-zealous-for-god)
(11) But Moses implored the LORD his God, saying, “Let not Your anger, O Lord, blaze forth against Your people, whom You delivered from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand.
Moses says to Gd "please don't get angry with the people"
(19) As soon as Moses came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he became enraged; and he hurled the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain.
So Moshe has asked Gd not to get angry, yet he has done exactly the same thing! He even broke the luchot in his fury!
Without permission,
without warning,
without a trial,
without a verdict,
Moshe has broken the tablets that Gd gave him - carved with His own hand.
Moshe has acted unilaterally - human expression of Divine anger is this "zealous" behaviour.
This expression of zealous behaviour for Gd - becomes the precedent for a certain type of behaviour
Moshe is asking Gd not to be angry, but let him (Moshe) express Gd's anger, because at the end of the day, it will not be as destructive as the wrath of Gd being unleashed on the people.
In the case of the Golden Calf, Gd wants to destroy the entire people
In the case of the idol worship of Baal Peor, Gd wants to destroy the leaders, because they have let the people down.
Moshe is a partner with Gd, in taking the Jews out of Egypt.
Using a metaphor:
A child is extremely rude to his parents. The father wants to punish the child but the mother heads off the father - she says "let me express our disappointment" - she needs to show the child that she is as angry as she can be - but she will never punish the child as violently as the father. So, in their partnership, the mother sorts the problem out.
When Moshe smashed the tablets, the inanimate objects, he brought peace to the people by avoiding their destruction by Gd
Pinchas, therefore uses Moshe's example as acting zealously on behalf of Gd. When he kills the two people who have sinned (in particular the prince of the tribe), he averts a national disaster that would have occurred had Gd unleashed his fury instead. Pinchas, the mother in the relationship, saves the day and brings peace. This doesn't meant that he is not angry - He is just as angry as Gd, but his anger is ultimately weaker than that which could be expressed by Gd.
(יב) לָכֵ֖ן אֱמֹ֑ר הִנְנִ֨י נֹתֵ֥ן ל֛וֹ אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֖י שָׁלֽוֹם׃ (יג) וְהָ֤יְתָה לּוֹ֙ וּלְזַרְע֣וֹ אַחֲרָ֔יו בְּרִ֖ית כְּהֻנַּ֣ת עוֹלָ֑ם תַּ֗חַת אֲשֶׁ֤ר קִנֵּא֙ לֵֽאלֹקָ֔יו וַיְכַפֵּ֖ר עַל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
(12) Say, therefore, ‘I grant him My covenant of peace. (13) It shall be for him and his descendants after him a pact of priesthood for all time, because he took impassioned action for his God, thus making expiation for the Israelites.’”
The shared relationship between either Moshe or Joshua and Gd can only work if the human is able to demonstrate the understandable anger - because the result of this, is peace.
When Gd showed His anger, we saw floods, the 10 Plagues and the numerous punishments meted out on the Israelites in the desert.
Conclusion
The incident of Baal Peor and Pinchas' subsequent behaviour is on the face of it, deeply troubling. If not understood, it could lead people to believe that Gd sanctions fundamentalist actions by holy individuals.
It is therefore crucial that we understand Pinchas' pure motives for acting in the way he did.
In our modern day eyes, this may seem like a harsh way to behave, but put into context and understanding the time and place when this occurred and how Gd has manifested His "behaviour", we can see how important it was that a satisfactory resolution was enacted.
By granting Pinchas the Kehunah, the Priestship, Gd was giving the message that such zealousness needed to be challenged in the right direction. Now Pinchas and his descendants could demonstrate their pure devotion to Gd by performing the Avodah - the Holy Service in the Mishkan or later, Temple.
May we merit the coming of the Messiah and the rebuilding of Jerusalem so that the priests may return to their duties and may we be blessed with everlasting peace - may it come in our days. Amen
Shabbat Shalom