Chukas
Being able to enter into the Land of Israel and dwell there permanently is
not an easy achievement. It is not easy today to integrate one's self into
modern-day Israel, even if somehow one accomplishes "making aliyah." There
is obviously a wealth of factors that are factored into one's decision and
actions regarding moving to Israel. But the Torah teaches us that coming to
Israel is dependent upon heavenly approval as well. There have been many
great, brave, pious, stoutly determined Jews who have attempted to arrive
in the Land of Israel and failed in that attempt. In the past centuries,
some of the greatest leaders of the Jewish people, such as Rabbi Elijah of
Vilna (the Gaon of Vilna), Rabbi Yisrael Meir HaCohen Kagan of Radin (the
Chofetz Chaim) and Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (the Netziv) among
others, attempted to leave their Eastern European exile and move to the
Land of Israel and failed to realize their goal. Heaven seemingly always
intervened to deny them the realization of this life-long, fiercely-held
dream. And Heaven always has its own inscrutable calculations and It also
has the last word on the matter. This is certainly obvious from the
narrative that appears in the Torah reading of Chukat.
Moshe is denied entry into the Land of Israel by God. His striking the rock
at Meriva instead of speaking to it as God had instructed him is the
proximate cause for his punishment of being excluded from leading the
People into the Land of Israel. How this apparently severe punishment fits
the transgression of Moshe, is the subject of much discussion among the
commentators to the Torah. But, however we will resolve this matter of
crime and punishment, transgressions and retribution, the basic fact of the
Torah remains - Moshe was prevented by Heaven from realizing his goal of
entering the Land of Israel. And Moshe's tragic disappointment led to
dramatic consequences for all of Jewish and world history. Midrash teaches
us that if Moshe, instead of Yehoshua, had led the people of Israel into
the Land of Israel, the Jewish people would never have been exiled from the
Holy Land. Another, more dedaly and dreaded heavenly punishment would have
then been devised to punish Israel for its sins. And, according to this
line of interpretation, this fact was also taken into consideration in the
heavenly decision to bar Moshe from entering the Land of Israel. Thus, it
is not only the merits of Moshe that decided the issue but other variables,
unconnected to his direct behavior, also played a role in the sad result.
Probably the same type of insight and logic can be applied to the failures
of other great Jews to achieve their dream of returning personally to Zion
and Jerusalem. Heaven, from its eternal point of vantage, intervened to
thwart their hopes, but perhaps that was somehow for the benefit of the
people and Land of Israel in the long run.
Man proposes but God disposes. Yet man must always continue to propose and
attempt. If Heaven decrees otherwise, that in no way frees us from our
responsibilities to struggle to achieve the dream of the Jewish ages - Zion
and Jerusalem rebuilt, secure, faithful and strong, and teeming with Jews.
It is therefore mysterious, if not downright disappointing, that millions
of Jews have not attempted to avail themselves of the opportunity to pursue
their dream of entering the Land of Israel in a more meaningful, concrete,
practical fashion. Every day when I walk in the streets of Jerusalem, I
remind myself that I am doing what the great Moshe was forbidden from doing
- living in the Land of Israel. Why God has allowed me, and millions of my
fellow-Jews to enjoy what Moshe could not, is beyond me. But I thank Him
daily for so doing.
Shabbat Shalom.
Rabbi Berel Wein
Text Copyright © 2000 Rabbi Berel Wein and
Project Genesis, Inc.
