From: Netvort@aol.com
Sent: Friday, July 21, 2006 2:31 AM
To: JoshHoff@aol.com
Subject: Netvort : parshas Mattos-Massei, 5766





                                                    Beyond Yourself
                  
                      By Rabbi Joshua (combatantly known as The Hoffer) Hoffman



  Parshas Mattos begins with the laws governing the taking of vows and their dissolution. Rav Amnon Bazak, in his Nekudas Pesicha, suggests that these laws are connected to a verse at the end of the previous parsha, Pinchas. Referring to the section on sacrifices brought to the mishkan and the Beis HaMikdash daily as well as on Shabbos, Rosh Chodesh and Yom Tov, the Torah there says, "These you shall do for God on your appointed festivals, besides your vows and our free-will offerings…" (Bamidbar 29:39). Since the Torah mentioned that one may vow to bring a sacrifice, it goes on to explain the process of taking vows. However, I believe that the section of vows also has a connection to the section which follows it, describing the war that the Jewish nation waged against the nation of Midian. Besides the fact that people are prone to make vows during a time of distress, such as war, and, in fact, the rabbis tell us that it is proper to do so in such times, I believe that there is an intrinsic connection between the subject of vows and the specific battle against Midian, as I will try to demonstrate.


  When commanding Moshe to wage war against Midian, God told him, "Take vengeance for the children of Israel from the Midianites ; afterwards, you will be brought in into your people" (Bamidbar 31:2). Thus, Moshe’s death was contingent upon the execution of the war against Midian. The Torah then says that Moshe spoke to the people and told them to arm men for the war. Rashi comments that even though Moshe knew that his death depended on this war taking place, he did not delay in carrying out God’s command, but acted immediately, with joy. Moshe thus acted with ‘mesiras nefesh,’ or a sense of self-sacrifice, in carrying out this war. Why was it necessary for there to be this sense of mesiras nefesh in this particular war ?


  Rav Avrohom Halevi Schorr, in his work HaLekach VeHalibuv, notes that when, after the war, Moshe berated the officers for not having killed the women of Midian, he said, " Did you let every female live ? See now, they were the ones who caused the children of Israel, by the word of Bilaam to commit a transgress against the Lord in the matter of Peor.." (Bamidbar 31:15-16). The words’ to commit a transgress’ - are, in Hebrew, ‘limsor ma’al’, meaning, literally, to give oneself over to  a transgression, although the usual words used for the term ‘to commit a transgression’ are ‘ limol ma’al.’ Rabbi Schorr cites Rabbi Dovid Kimchi, known as the Radak, who writes, in his dictionary Sefer HaShorashim, that  the use of the word ‘limsor’ - to give over - instead of ‘limol,’ indicates that the Midianites acted with mesiras nefesh, giving themselves over to commit a transgression. Thus, they acted with a sense of self-sacrifice when they caused the Jews to sin. Therefore, says Rabbi Schorr, in order to combat this factor, the Jews needed to have a sense of self-sacrifice in their battle of vengeance against Midian.


  Based on Rabbi Schorr’s comment, we can explain why there was a need for Moshe to know that he would die after the war against Midian was waged. By reacting to his awareness of this fact by immediately making arrangements for the war, Moshe was acting with a sense of self-sacrifice, thus providing the element that was necessary to be victorious in the war, and setting an example for the rest of the people to act in a similar way. In this context, we can understand why the laws of vows were given as a prelude to this war. The laws of vows provide a mechanism by which a person can, through his own speech, create obligations upon himself  that go beyond those imposed upon him by the Torah. This mechanism, therefore, provides a person with the means to go beyond his usual obligations, and thereby generate a spirit of self-sacrifice in his service of God. Since it was exactly this spirit of self-sacrifice that was needed to defeat the enemy in the war against Midian, it was appropriate to command these laws immediately before Moshe was commanded to wage that war.



  Please address all correspondence to the author (Rabbi Hoffman) with the following address - JoshHoff @ AOL.com.

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