Parshas Bamidbar
Who Can We Be?
The count of the people of Israel and the recording of the names of the
leaders of its tribes, which forms the major part of this week’s Torah
reading, is especially poignant and bittersweet. We, the listeners to the
parsha, know in advance that all those counted and named, with few
exceptions, are doomed to die in the desert, never to reach the Land of
Israel. The Torah also knows that. So why did the Torah bother to take up
so much space in recording for us in detail all of these matters and names
when at the end of the day they apparently serve no purpose in the
development of the Jewish people and the conquest and settlement of the
Land of Israel?
As far as I am able to see, the major commentators to the Torah deal with
this problem only in an oblique and indirect fashion. I am not
presumptuous enough to tread here on ground that the greats of Israel in
the past have apparently avoided. Yet, I think that there is here a great
and important relevant message to us and to all generations of Jews. And
that is that one should realize the tragedy of opportunity and inherent
greatness squandered and brought to naught. Wasted potential is a tragic
thing and in national affairs it is often the deciding weakness that dooms
a people. The careful detailing of the numbers and names of the generation
that died in the desert emphasizes to us the tragedy of what could have
been and the failure to achieve that goal.
Implicit in Judaism’s idea of free will and free choice for human beings
is the fact that the Lord presents us with opportunities. In His
omniscience, He is aware of what use man will make of those opportunities.
But as Maimonides explains, God’s foreknowledge of the results of our
choices in no way influences or guides our abilities to make those choices
as we wish. The generation of the desert did not have to destroy itself
with its wrong behavior and mistaken attitudes. It had the opportunity,
because it was the dor deah – the generation of intellect and great
potential – to build the Jewish state and people in a most positive
fashion.
Its tragedy therefore lies not only in its behavior of folly but rather in
its failure to exercise its potential in a positive manner. Heaven
apparently measures us not only by who and what we are but also by who or
what we could be. Opportunities squandered are much more painful and
damaging than having no opportunities present at all. Our current State of
Israel is a miraculous opportunity that has been extended to our
generation. What we will make of this opportunity is the central question
of current Jewish life and society. Hearing the names and numbers of the
generation of the desert read to us this Shabat should sober us and make
us realize that such an opportunity should not be frittered away because
of lack of vision, faith and will. We can ill afford another generation of
the desert.
Shabat shalom.
Rabbi Berel Wein
Rabbi Berel Wein- Jewish historian, author and international lecturer offers a complete selection of CDs, audio tapes, video tapes, DVDs, and books on Jewish history at www.rabbiwein.com
Text Copyright © 2006 by Rabbi Berel Wein and Torah.org
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