Moshe Rabbenu dreamed of being the one to take the nation into Israel. The original plan was to take the people out of Egypt and bring them into the land flowing with milk and honey [1]. Moshe never imagined that someone else would complete this mission. After forty years of dedicated leadership, guiding the nation towards the Promised Land, God said to Moshe: “you shall not bring this assembly to the Land [2].” Moshe was devastated and pleaded with God to allow him to enter [3], but God refused, saying to Moshe: “do not speak to me anymore about this [4]!”

The question of what Moshe did to deserve such a punishment has been debated throughout our history [5]. Rabbi Yishaq Arama [6] said that it is a great and strong question; we have the instruction of God, what Moshe did and then the astonishing response of God. What we lack is a settling explanation of what the transgression was [7]. The pesuqim are not clear as to what Moshe did wrong, as Ramban notes [8]. Some commentators suggest that this was a response to an earlier transgression [9]. Their point is strengthened by the fact that God also restricted Aharon from entering the land, yet Aharon did not have an active role in Mei Meriba. If so, why would Aharon be included in the punishment? To answer this, some commentators state that it must be that Moshe and Aharon were punished for a different reason. The difficulty with this approach is that God explicitly states that it was because of this incident, the ‘hitting of the rock.’

“The Lord said to Moses and Aharon, since you did not have faith in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly to the Land which I have given them [10].”

The details of what Moshe did wrong are not clear from this rebuke. What exactly did Moshe not follow, what was the opportunity he missed? As we noted above, there are many answers to these questions, and it is encouraged to analyze each of the approaches. For this piece, I would like to present one approach built on Rabbi Yishaq Shemuel Reggio and Rambam.

The story unfolds during the last year in the desert [11]. This was the new generation; almost everyone who left Egypt had passed. Miriam, one of the last few remaining from the previous generation, perished, and without her merit, the supply of water diminished. Without sufficient water, the nation became restless and contended with Moshe. They spoke at Moshe with harsh words, asking him rhetorically:

“Why have you taken us out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place; it is not a place for seeds, or for fig trees, grapevines, or pomegranate trees, and there is no water to drink [12].”

In response, Moshe and Aharon sought God’s instruction at Ohel Moed. God told Moshe to take the staff, and with Aharon gather the people to address them before the rock, vedibartem el hasela [13]. According to R. Yishaq Shemuel Reggio, Moshe was not instructed to speak to the rock, but rather to speak with the people in front of the rock. The goal was to make it clear that the miracle they were about to witness was from God. Reggio points out that water sprouting from a rock that has been hit or spoken to would be equally miraculous, furthermore, if Moshe’s transgression was hitting the rock instead of speaking to the rock, then why was Aharon punished as well, since he did not hit the rock. Finally, God does not state that the reason Moshe was restricted from entering the land was because he hit the rock [10].

Both Moshe and Aharon were instructed to speak with the nation before the rock. The plan was to elaborate on all the good that God had done for them, and let them know that God would perform a miracle for them by bringing forth water from this stone. Moshe began his speech, but his frustration with the people precluded him from finishing. He was unable to speak and relay the message that it was God who had and would continue to take care of His people.

Moshe began his speech with aggravation: “listen you rebels, from this stone can we bring forth water for you [14]?!” Aharon should have continued and elaborated, but instead kept silent. Therefore, the nation misunderstood this miraculous event and thought it was Moshe and Aharon who brought forth the water. The people later said: “A well dug by princes, carved out by nobles of the people, through the lawgiver with their staffs…[15]” They attributed the miracle to their leadership as opposed to God.

Moshe missed the opportunity of increasing the nation’s faithfulness in God through this miracle, and that is precisely what God described as the reason Moshe was not allowed to lead the nation into Israel: “The Lord said to Moses and Aharon, since you did not have faith in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly to the Land which I have given them [10].” The focus is on the missed opportunity of attributing the miracle to God and further establishing the nation’s emunah.

When faced with an intense situation we should remain calm, collected and clear headed. The outcome of a quick fiery response may cause more harm, not only to others, but also to us. The goal should be to reach a mutually acceptable solution or to relay a productive message. We should not respond until we are in a mental state where we can clearly communicate and enter into an effective dialogue. We should only respond once we have thought about the potential outcome of our words, tone, and actions. In this way we will have more success with our communication and relationships.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Meyer Laniado

 

[1] Shemot 33:1 [2] Bemidbar 20:12 [3] Debarim 3:23-25 [4] Debarim 3:26-27

[5] Hakham David Chelouche’s commentary on the Torah called Or Hadash gives an overview and analysis of many of the opinions.

[6] 15th century Spanish Rabbi and author of numerous commentaries on Tanakh

[7]”וזה כי מצות ה’ למשה כתובה לפנינו והמעשה אשר עשה לא נעלם מנגד עינינו, ומחרון אף ה’ ישתומם לבנו, ואין אתנו פירוש ישכך את האזן בחטא”

[8]החטא במי מריבה אינו מתפרסם בכתובים Bemidbar 20:8 [9] See Abarbanel [10] Bemidbar 20:12 [11] Bemidbar 20:1 Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Hizquni, Rashbam etc. [12] Bemidbar 20:5 [13] Bemidbar 20:8 [14] Bemidbar 20:10 [15] Bemidbar 21:18