Congregation Beth Shalom

Torah Portion: Hukkat

Book of Numbers
Chaps. 19:1-22:1
July 1, 2011

It must have been the worst news Moses ever heard. ". . .therefore you shall not bring this people into the land which I have given them" (Numbers 20:12). For 40 difficult years Moses led the Israelite nation from the slavery in Egypt to the entrance of the Promised Land. For 40 years he successfully navigated storms of hunger, thirst, rebellion, loss of faith, and distrust of authority. Strong leadership anchored by a faith in the One God made Moses the "Rock of Gibraltar" in the eyes of a young fledgling people.

What grievous action did Moses perform costing him the reward of entering the Promised Land? The incident at Meribah. In the sweltering heat of the summer sun, after just suffering the death of his oldest sister Miriam, the Israelites whine to Moses that they haven't enough water to drink. They complain they were better off in Egypt! In response to their cries, Moses and Aaron beseech God to provide water. Moses is instructed by God to speak to a certain rock and water will come forth. In anger at the impatience of this "stiff-necked people" and the death of his sister, Moses strikes the rock twice instead of speaking to it. Water comes forth. The Israelites thirst is quenched. Moses is told he will not enter the Promised Land. Does the punishment fit the crime? Should one so devout and loyal for 40 years be treated in this manner?

Rabbi Bradley Artson notes, "Anger is not always sinful; there are times when anger is a righteous and appropriate response, as Moses demonstrated against the Egyptian taskmaster or against the Jewish rebel, Korah. What made this outburst of anger sinful was that it blinded Moses to the real possibilities that dialogue would have offered. He was so angry that all he could see were his own grievances and his rage. All he could remember was the long list of abuses he suffered at the hands of the tribes. Lashing out at the past, Moses misread the present. How often do we become so blinded by the hurts and wounds of the past that we carry them into our present, precluding the possibility of ever transcending the very wounds that hurt us? In a very real way, we become our own torturers, making certain that old injuries continue to harm us, that old cuts continue to sting."

Pinhas Peli provides further insight into this incident, "The Lord orders [Moses] to "take a rod," to go back to the days of his youth, when with the rod in his hands he would rise to overcome many a crisis. He is to talk to the rock and bring forth water. Moses, however, misunderstood the call. Instead of showing the strength of dignified leadership, his temper flares, and he insults the people: "hear now, ye rebels!" And in the same mood, he commits another mistake, an unforgivable one. Instead of talking to the rock, he smites it. This is why the dreadful verdict has been pronounced. Moses who knew how to face stormy situations in the past, now runs away and falls on his face. Moses, who set an example in how to treat his flock firmly but respectfully, now heaps insults on them. He could not be the leader anymore. He would not steer the people to the land."

One teaching, two important interpretations: 1) Our past is just that, our past. Tomorrow is a new day. 2) We lead and learn by example.

Rabbi Howard Siegel