Moshe: From Lo Ish Devarim to Eileh Hadevarim

Rav Itiel Gold
Devarim | From Actions to Words
VI. Words and Deeds
As mentioned at the beginning of this shiur, the interaction between Moshe and the people in the previous books is more characterized by deeds and less by speech. Moshe often performs miracles and wonders with his staff; he does less with his mouth. I wish now to suggest that this is his conduct specifically in relation to the first generation. With that generation, Moshe and God sometimes look like parents, who talk about their children without them hearing and go to them after already having made their decisions.
At this point, let us go back and remember that Moshe described himself as one who is slow (“heavy”) of speech and of a slow (“heavy”) tongue. His power was not in his mouth, which suited his leadership of the first generation. In the second generation, however, the situation is reversed: the leader of slow speech succeeds in communicating with the people of Israel. God’s words flow through him to the people, and the people listen. His difficulty of speech decreases, because on the other side there is a generation that is ready and willing to listen.
In light of this, it seems that Moshe’s difficulty of expression was an emotional issue and not a physical stutter. In such a situation, the identity and nature of the listening party can make a dramatic difference. The first generation was not open to listening – already in Egypt (Shemot 6:9), and so too throughout their journey in the wilderness. This situation shut down the slow-of-speech Moshe even more. However, with the second generation, something opens up.
In his opening speech, Moshe essentially compliments the second generation for opening a channel for dialogue. In doing so, he clarifies the basis for the entire book of Devarim. Now, with the openness of the second generation, it is possible to create the book of Devarim – to expound the Torah to them, and to direct them towards entering the land.
This situation allows for a new approach. Leadership through words is not like leadership through actions. Leadership through actions is quite cumbersome, and based on rewards and punishments. Complex or delicate messages cannot be conveyed in this way. Indeed, such messages appear for the first time in the book of Devarim. Thus, for example, only in the book of Devarim do we find the commandment to love God (6:5), lofty conversations related to faith and providence (especially in Parashot Va-etchanan and Ekev), and discussion of repentance (Chapter 30). The book of Devarim deals for the first time with emotional and internal processes: the path to faith in God (4:32-40), fears that are liable to arise (7:17-26), and others. These issues can only be addressed through speech; leadership through actions would only touch the externals of these matters, and could not penetrate inside. Only the second generation, capable of listening and looking inward, is capable also of taking possession of the land. The first generation, which was less refined, was forced to die in the wilderness.
VII. Why did Moshe not enter the land of Israel?
The conventional explanation for Moshe's being denied entry into the Land of Israel is his sin at Mei Meriva, when he hit the rock, as described in the book of Bamidbar (20:13-14). However, in our parasha, we are surprised to hear that it was because of the sin of the spies:
And the Lord heard… and was angry, and swore, saying: Surely not one of these men, even this evil generation, shall see the good land… Also the Lord was angry with me for your sakes, saying: You also shall not go in there. (1:34-37)
Why was God angry with Moshe because of the sin of the spies? Ostensibly, he should have been judged positively, as Calev and Yehoshua were, for he too encouraged the people not to listen to the spies. Furthermore, how can this be reconciled with what is stated in the book of Bamidbar, that the decree regarding Moshe was issued because of the sin at Mei Meriva?
It seems that these questions can be answered in light of what we have stated above. In the end, Moshe belongs to the leadership of the first generation. Moshe's power lay in his staff, in his doing wonders on behalf of the first generation, in order to push them out of Egypt into the wilderness. But he is incapable of leading in the Land of Israel. The sin of the spies made this clear once and for all, when Moshe failed to create a dialogue with the first generation and dispel their fears. The lines of communication collapsed, and so it became clear that Moshe was no longer capable of advancing the people.
It is true that Moshe underwent a process together with the second generation and managed to "reinvent himself." Thanks to the openness of the second generation, he began to lead through speech and by engaging with more internal processes. This allowed him to begin the conquest of the east bank of the Jordan together with the second generation – which led Moshe to think that he had become worthy to lead the people into their land. This explains why he then appealed to God that he be allowed to enter the land, as described at the beginning of the next parasha (which is a continuation of the oration in our parasha[14]):
And I appealed to the Lord at that time, saying: O Lord God, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness, and Your strong hand… Let me go over, I pray You, and see the good land that is beyond the Jordan, that goodly hill-country, and Lebanon. (Devarim 3:23-25)
God, however, does not accept his prayer. Despite the connection and dialogue with the second generation, Moshe is still too deeply rooted in the patterns of the first generation.
This explanation for Moshe's non-entry into the land also relates to the incident at Mei Meriva. Moshe's sin was in striking the rock, instead of speaking to it as he had been commanded. Many commentators had difficulty with this story: What is the big difference between striking the rock and speaking to it? Moreover, in the parallel story in the book of Shemot, Moshe is in fact asked to strike a rock (Shemot 17:6).[15] The Rashbam (Bamidbar 20:10) explains that Moshe erred in that he tried to reenact the miracle in the book of Shemot and strike the rock. He did not think that speaking to the rock would suffice. In light of the above, it may be understood that this is not a random mistake. The striking of the rock symbolizes the leadership of the first generation, who was led by force by way of the staff. Striking the rock hints to the people that they will be led by force, despite their objection to the journey and to entering the land. They are basically similar to the rock, which, if hit hard enough, will eventually release water.
The story at Mei Meriva, on the other hand, takes place with the second generation. Here, Moshe is commanded to use speech with the rock. The second generation must be led through speech. Moshe, however, is still deeply rooted in the first generation and therefore identifies the behavior that suited the first generation with the desired behavior for the second generation. Once again, Moshe strikes the rock and tries to lead by force – thereby demonstrating to God that he is no longer suitable for the leadership of the second generation. God therefore issues the decree that bars him from entering the land.
In our parasha, the same point is explained, but from a different direction; the collapse of Moshe's communication with the first generation, in the sin of the spies, symbolizes his difficulty in leading the second generation.
However, where you find the fall of Moshe, there you find his greatness. Despite God's determination that Moshe is not suitable for the second generation, he does not despair and tries to the best of his ability to change his previous mode of leadership, to open the channel of speech, to stand before the people and give them an invaluable gift – the book of Devarim.