THE APPOINTMENT OF THE SEVENTY ELDERS
The sad predicament of Moses on this occasion is partly traceable to the fact that he had
to face alone the murmurs and complaints of the people without the accustomed assistance
of the seventy elders. Since the exodus from Egypt the seventy elders of the people had
always been at his side, but these had recently been killed by the fire from heaven at
Taberah, so that he now stood all alone. This death overtook the elders because like Nadab
and Abihu they had not shown sufficient reverence in ascending Mount Sinai on the day of
the revelation, when, in view of the Divine vision, they conducted themselves in an
unseemly manner. Like Nadab and Abihu the elder would have received instantaneous
punishment for their offense, had not God been unwilling to spoil the joyful day of the
revelation by their death. But they had to pay the penalty nevertheless: Nadab and Abihu,
by being burned at the consecration of the Tabernacle, and the elders similarly, at
Taberah. [472]
As Moses now utterly refused to bear the burden of the people alone, God said to him:
"I gave thee sufficient understanding and wisdom to guide My children alone, that
thou mightest be distinguished by this honor. Thou, however, wishest to share this
guidance with others. Go, then, and expect no help from Me, 'but I will take of the spirit
that is upon thee and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people
with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone'" [473]
God bade Moses choose as his helpers in the guidance of the people such men as had already
been active leaders and officers in Egypt. In the days of Egyptian bondage it frequently
happened that the officers of the children of Israel were beaten if the people had not
fulfilled their task in making bricks, but "he that is willing to sacrifice himself
for the benefit of Israel shall be rewarded with honor, dignity, and the gift of the Holy
Spirit." The officers suffered in Egypt for Israel, and were now found worthy of
having the Holy Spirit come upon them. [474] God moreover said to Moses: "With kindly
words welcome the elders to their new dignity, saying, 'Hail to you that are deemed worthy
by God of being fit for this office.' At the same time, however, speak seriously with them
also, saying, 'Know ye that the Israelites are a troublesome and stiff-necked people, and
that you must ever be prepared to have them curse you or cast stones at you'"
God commanded the selection of the elders to take place at the Tabernacle, that Israel
might reverence them, saying, "Surely these are worthy men," but they were not
permitted with Moses to enter the Tabernacle and hear God's word. The people were however
mistaken in assuming that God's word reached the ears of the elders, for He spoke with
Moses alone, even though the prophetic spirit came upon them also. [475]
Now when Moses wished to proceed to the selection of the seventy elders, he was in a sore
predicament because he could not evenly divide the number seventy among the twelve tribes,
and was anxious to show no partiality to one tribe over another, which would lead to
dissatisfaction among Israel. Bezalel, son of Uri, however, gave Moses good advice. He
took seventy slips of paper on which was written "elder," and with them two
blank slips, and mixed all these in an urn. Seventy-two elders, six to each tribe, now
advance and each drew a slip. Those whose slips were marked "elder" were
elected, while those who had drawn blank slips were rejected, but in such a wise that they
could not well accuse Moses of partiality. [476]
By this method of appointment, it came to pass that there were six elders for each tribe
except the tribe of Levi. The names of those chosen were: from the tribe of Reuben, -
Hanoch, Carmi, Pallu, Zaccur, Eliab, Nemuel; from the tribe of Simeon, - Jamin, Jachin,
Zohar, Ohad, Shaul, Zimri; from the tribe of Levi, - Amram, Hananiah, Nethanel, Sithri;
from the tribe of Judah, - Zerah, Dan, Jonadab, Bezalel, Shephatiah, Nahshon; from the
tribe of Issachar, - Zuar, Uzza, Igal, Palti, Othniel, Haggi; from the tribe of Zebulun, -
Sered, Elon, Sodi, Oholiab, Elijah, Nimshi; from the tribe of Benjamin, - Senaah, Kislon,
Elidad, Ahitub, Jediael, Mattaniah; from the tribe of Joseph, - Jair, Joezer, Malchiel,
Adoniram, Abiram, Sethur; from the tribe of Dan, - Gedaliah, Jogli, Ahinoam, Ahiezer,
Daniel, Seraiah; from the tribe of Naphtali, - Elhanan, Eliakim, Elishama, Semachiah,
Zabdi, Johanan; from the tribe of Gad, - Haggai, Zarhi, Keni, Mattathiah, Zechariah,
Shuni; from the tribe of Asher, - Pashhur, Shelomi, Samuel, Shalom, Shecaniah, Abihu.
[477]
Moses gathered these seventy elders of novel extraction and of lofty and pious character
round about the tent in which God used to reveal Himself, bidding thirty of them take
their stand on the south side, thirty on the northern, and ten on the eastern, whereas he
himself stood on the western side. For this tent was thirty cubits long and ten cubits
wide, so that a cubit each was apportioned to the elders. [478] God was so pleased with
the appointment of the elders that, just as on the day of the revelation, He descended
from heaven and permitted the spirit of prophecy to come upon the elders, so that they
received the prophetic gift to the end of their days, as God had put upon them of the
spirit of Moses. But Moses' spirit was not diminished by this, he was like a burning
candle from which many others are lighted, but which is not therefore diminished; and so
likewise was the wisdom of Moses unimpaired. Even after the appointment of the elders did
Moses remain the leader of the people, for he was the head of this Sanhedrin of seventy
members which he guided and directed. [479]
The position of the elders was not of the same rank as that of Moses, for he was the king
of Israel, and it was for this reason that God had bidden him to secure trumpets, to use
them for the calling of the assembly, that this instrument might be blown before him as
before a king. Hence shortly before Moses' death these trumpets were recalled from use,
for his successor Joshua did not inherit from him either his kingly dignity or these royal
insignia. Not until David's time were the trumpets used again which Moses had fashioned in
the desert. [480]
ELDAD AND MEDAD
When Moses had completed the appointment of the elders and had asked them to accompany him
to the Tabernacle, there to receive the Holy Spirit, Eldad and Medad, two of these elders,
in their humility, did not obey his summons, but hid themselves, deeming themselves
unworthy of this distinction. God rewarded them for their humility by distinguishing them
five-fold above the other elders. These prophesied what would take place on the following
day, announcing the appearance of the quails, but Eldad and Medad prophesied what was
still veiled in the distant future. The elders prophesied only on this one day, but Eldad
and Medad retained the gift for life. The elders died in the desert, whereas Eldad and
Medad were the leaders of the people after the death of Joshua. The elders are not
mentioned by name in the Scriptures, whereas theses two are called by name. The elders,
furthermore, had received the prophetic gift from Moses, whereas Eldad and Medad received
it directly from God. [481]
Eldad now began to make prophecies, saying: "Moses will die, and Joshua the son of
Nun will be his successor as leader of the people, whom he will lead into the land of
Canaan, and to whom he will give it as a possession." Medad's prophecy was as
follows: "Quails will come from the sea and will cover the camp of Israel, but they
will bring evil to the people." Besides these prophecies, both together announced the
following revelation: "At the end of days there will come up out of the land of Magog
a king to whom all nations will do homage. Crowned kings, princes, and warriors with
shields will gather to make war upon those returned from exile in the land of Israel. But
God, the Lord, will stand by Israel in their need and will slay all their enemies by
hurling a flame from under His glorious Throne. This will consume the souls in the hosts
of the king of Magog, so that their bodies will drop lifeless upon the mountains of the
land of Israel, and will become a prey to the beasts of the field and the fowls of the
air. Then will all the dead among Israel arise and rejoice in the good that at the
beginning of the world was laid up for them, and will receive the reward for their good
deeds." [482]
When Gershon, Moses' son, heard these prophecies of Eldad and Medad, he hurried to his
father and told him of them. Joshua was now greatly agitated about the prophecy that Moses
was to die in the desert and that he as to be his successor, and said to Moses: "O
lord, destroy these people that prophesy such evil news!" But Moses replied: "O
Joshua, canst thou believe that I begrudge thee thy splendid future? It is my wish that
thou mayest be honored as much as I have been and that all Israel be honored like
thee." [483]
Eldad and Medad were distinguished not only by their prophetic gift, but also by their
noble birth, being half-brothers of Moses and Aaron. When the marriage laws were revealed,
all those who had been married to relatives by blood had to be divorced from them, so that
Amram, too, had to be separated from his wife Jochebed, who was his aunt, and he married
another woman. From this union sprang Eldad, "not of an aunt," and Medad,
"in place of an aunt," so called by Amram to explain by these names why he had
divorced his first wife, his aunt. [484]
THE QUAILS
The prophecy of these men concerning the quails turned out as they had predicted, the
quails being, as God had foretold to Moses, no blessing for the people. For God said to
Moses: "Tell the people to be prepared for impending punishment, they shall eat flesh
to satiety, but then they shall loathe it more than they now lust for it. I know, however,
how they came to have such desires. Because My Shekinah is among them they believe that
they may presume anything. Had I removed My Shekinah from their midst they would never
have cherished so foolish a desire." Moses, knowing that the granting of the people's
wish would be disastrous to them, said to God: "O Lord, why, pray, dost Thou first
give them flesh, and then, in punishment for their sin, slay them? Who ever heard any one
say to an ass, 'Here is a measure of wheat; eat it, for we want to cut off they head?' Or
to a man, 'Here is a loaf of bread for thee; take it, and go to hell with it?'" God
replied: "Well, then, what wouldst thou do?" Moses: "I will go to them and
reason with them that they may desist from their lusting after flesh." God: "I
can tell thee beforehand that thy endeavors in this matter will be fruitless." Moses
betook himself to the people, saying to them: "Is the Lord's hand waxed short?
Behold, He smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; He can
give bread also; can He not provide flesh for His people?" The people, however, said:
"Thou are only trying to soothe us; God cannot grant our wish." [485] But they
erred vastly, for hardly had the pious among them retired to their tents, when upon the
godless, who had remained in the open, came down quails in masses as thick as snowflakes,
so that many more were kill by the descent of the quails than later by the tasting of
them. The quails came in such masses that they completely filled the space between heaven
and earth, so that they even covered the sun's disk, and settled down on the north side
and the south side of the camp, as it were a day's journey, lying, however, not directly
upon the ground but two cubits above it, that people might not have to stoop to gather
them up. Considering this abundance, it is not surprising that even the halt that could
not go far, and the lazy the would not, gathered each a hundred kor. These vast quantities
of flesh did not, however, benefit them, for hardly had they tasted of it, when they gave
up the ghost. This was the punishment for the grave sinners, while the better ones among
them enjoyed the taste of the flesh for a month before they died, whereas the pious
without suffering harm caught the quails, slaughtered them, and ate of them. This was the
heaviest blow that had fallen upon Israel since their exodus from Egypt, and in memory of
the many men who had died because of their forbidden lusting after flesh, they changed the
name of the place where this misfortune occurred to Kibroth-hattaavah, "Graves of
those who lusted." [486] The winds that went forth to bring the quails was so
powerful a storm that it could have destroyed the world, so great was God's anger against
the ungrateful people, and it was only due to the merits of Moses and Aaron that this wind
finally left the world upon its hinges. [487]
AARON AND MIRIAM SLANDER MOSES
When the seventy elders were appointed, and the spirit of the Lord came upon them, all the
women lighted the candles of joy, to celebrate by this illumination the elevation of these
men to the dignity of prophets. Zipporah, Moses' wife, saw the illumination, and asked
Miriam to explain it. She told her the reason, and added, "Blessed are the women who
behold with their eyes how their husbands are raised to dignity." Zipporah answered,
"It would be more proper to say, 'Woe to the wives of these men who must now abstain
from all conjugal happiness!'" Miriam: "How does thou know this?" Zipporah:
"I judge so from the conduct of thy brother, for ever since he was chosen to receive
Divine revelations, he no longer knows his wife." [488] Miriam hereupon went to
Aaron, and said to him: "I also received Divine revelations, but without being
obliged to separated myself from my husband," whereupon Aaron agreed, saying"
"I, too, received Divine revelations, without, however, being obliged to separated
myself from my wife." Then both said: "Our fathers also received revelations,
but without discontinuing their conjugal life. Moses abstains from conjugal joys only out
of pride, to show how holy a man he is." Not only did they speak evil of Moses to
each other, but hastened to him and told him to his face their opinion of his conduct.
[489] But he, who could be self-assured and stern when it touched a matter concerning
God's glory, was silent to the undeserved reproached they heaped upon him, knowing that
upon God's bidding he had foresworn earthly pleasures. God therefore said: "Moses is
very meek and pays no attention to the injustice meted out to him, as he did when My glory
was detracted from, and boldly stepped forth and exclaimed, 'Who is on the Lord's side?
Let him come unto me.' I will therefore now stand by him."
It is quite true that this was not the only occasion on which Moses proved himself humble
and gentle, for it was part of his character. Never among mortals, counting even the three
Patriarchs, was there more meek a man than he. The angels alone excelled him in humility,
but no human being; for the angels are so humble and meek, that when the assemble to
praise God, each angel calls to the other and asks him to precede him, saying among
themselves: "Be thou the first, thou are worthier than I." [490]
God carried out His intention to uphold Moses' honor, for just as Aaron was with his wife
and Miriam with her husband, a Divine call suddenly reached Amram's three children, one
voice that simultaneously called, "Aaron!" "Moses!" and
"Miriam!" - a miracle that God's voice alone can perform. The call went to Moses
also, that the people might not think that Aaron and Miriam had been chosen to take Moses'
place. He was ready to hearken to God's words, but not so his brother and his sister, who
had been surprised in the state of uncleanness, and who therefore, upon hearing God's
call, cried, "Water, water," that they might purify themselves before appearing
before God. [491] They then left their tents and followed the voice until God appeared in
a pillar of cloud, a distinction that was conferred also upon Samuel. The pillar of cloud
did not, however, appear in the Tabernacle, where it always rested whenever God revealed
Himself to Moses, and this was due to the following reasons. First of all, God did not
want to create the impression of having removed Moses from his dignity, and of giving it
to his brother and sister, hence He did not appear to them in the holy place. At the same
time, moreover, Aaron was spared the disgrace of being reproached by God in his brother's
presence, for Moses did not follow his brother and sister, but awaited God's word in the
sanctuary. But there was still another reason why God did not want Moses to be present
during His conference with Aaron and Miriam - "Never praise a man to his face."
As God wanted to praise Moses before Aaron and Miriam, He preferred to do so in his
absence. [492]
Hardly had God addressed Aaron and Miriam, when they began to interrupt Him, whereupon He
said to them: "Pray, contain yourselves until I have spoken." In these words He
taught people the rule of politeness, never to interrupt. He then said: "Since the
creation of the world hath the word of God ever appeared to any prophet otherwise than in
a dream? Not so with Moses, to whom I have shown what is above and what is below; what it
before and what it behind; what was and what will be. To him have I revealed all that is
in the water and all that is upon the dry land; to him did I confide the sanctuary and set
him above the angels. I Myself ordered him to abstain from conjugal life, and the word he
received was revealed to him clearly and not in dark speeches, he saw the Divine presence
from behind when It passed by him. Wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against a
man like Moses, who is, moreover, My servant? Your censure is directed to Me, rather than
to him, for 'the receiver is no better than the thief,' and if Moses is not worthy of his
calling, I, his Master, deserve censure." [493]
MIRIAM'S PUNISHMENT
God now gently rebuked Aaron and Miriam for their transgression, and did not give vent to
His wrath until He had shown them their sin. This was an example to man never to show
anger to his neighbor before giving his reason for his anger. The effects of God's wrath
were shown as soon as He had departed from them, for while He was with them, His mercy
exceeded His anger, and nothing happened to them, but when He was not long with them,
punishment set in. Both Aaron and Miriam became leprous, for this is the punishment
ordained for those who speak ill of their neighbors. [494] Aaron's leprosy, however,
lasted for a moment only, for his sin had not been as great as that of his sister, who
started the talk against Moses. His disease vanished as soon as he looked upon his
leprosy. Not so with Miriam. Aaron in vain tried to direct his eyes upon her leprosy and
in this way to heal her, for in her case the effect was the reverse; as soon as he looked
upon her the leprosy increased, and nothing remained but to call for Moses' assistance,
who was ready to give it before being called upon. [495] Aaron thereupon turned to his
brother with the following words: "Think not that the leprosy is on Miriam's body
only, it is as if it were on the body of our father Amram, of whose flesh and blood she
is." Aaron did not, however, try to extenuate their sin, saying to Moses: "Have
we, Miriam and I, ever done harm to a human being?" Moses: "No." Aaron:
"If we have done evil to no strange people, how then canst thou believe that we
wished to harm thee? For a moment only did we forget ourselves and acted in an unnatural
way toward our brother. Shall we therefore lose our sister? If Miriam's leprosy doth not
now vanish, she must pass all her life as a leper, for only a priest who is not a relative
by blood of the leper may under certain conditions declare her clean, but all the priests,
my sons and I, are her relatives by blood. The life of a leper is as of one dead, for as a
corpse makes unclean all that comes in contact with it, so too the leper. Alas!" so
Aaron closed his intercession, "Shall our sister, who was with us in Egypt, who with
us intoned the song at the Red Sea, who took upon herself the instruction of the women
while we instructed the men, shall she now, while we are about to leave the desert and
enter the promised land, sit shut out from the camp?"
These words of Aaron, however, were quite superfluous, for Moses had determined, as soon
as his sister became diseased, to intercede for her with God, saying to himself: "It
is not right that my sister should suffer and I dwell in contentment." [496] He now
drew a circle about himself, stood up, and said a short prayer to God, which he closed
with the words: "I will not go from this spot until Thou shalt have healed my sister.
But if Thou do not heal her, I myself shall do so, for Thou hast already revealed to me,
how leprosy arises and how it disappears." This prayer was fervent, spoken with his
whole heart and soul, though very brief. Had he spoken long, some would have said:
"His sister is suffering terribly and he, without heeding her, spends his time in
prayer." Others again would have said: "He prayeth long for his sister, but for
us he prayeth briefly." God said to Moses: "Why dost thou shout so?" Moses:
"I know what suffering my sister is enduring. I remember the chain which my hand was
chained, for I myself once suffered from this disease." God: "If a king, or if
her father had but spit in her face, should she not be ashamed seven days? I, the King of
kings, have spit in her face, and she should be ashamed at least twice seven days. For thy
sake shall seven days be pardoned her, but the other seven days let her be shut out from
the camp." For want of priest who, according to the tenets of the law, must declare a
leper clean after the healing, God Himself assumed this part, declaring Miriam unclean for
a week, and clean after the passing of that period. [497]
Although leprosy came to Miriam as a punishment for her sin, still this occasion served to
show how eminent a personage she was. For the people were breaking camp and starting on
the march when, after having saddled their beasts of burden for the march, upon turning to
see the pillar of cloud moving before them, they missed the sight of it. They looked again
to see if Moses and Aaron were in the line of procession, but they were missing, nor was
there anywhere to be seen a trace of the well that accompanied them on their marches.
Hence they were obliged to return again to camp, where they remained until Miriam was
healed. The clouds and the well, the sanctuary and the sixty myriads of the people, all
had to wait a week in this spot until Miriam recovered. Then the pillar of cloud moved on
once more and the people knew that they had not been permitted to proceed on their march
only because of this pious prophetess. This was a reward for the kind deed Miriam had done
when the child Moses was thrown into the water. Then Miriam for some time walked up and
down along the shore to wait the child's fate, and for this reason did the people wait for
her, nor could they move on until she had recovered. [498]
THE SENDING OF THE SPIES
The punishment that God brought upon Miriam was meant as a lesson of the severity with
which God punishes slander. For Miriam spoke no evil of Moses in the presence of any one
except her brother Aaron. She had moreover no evil motive, but a kindly intention, wishing
only to induce Moses to resume his conjugal life. She did not even dare to rebuke Moses to
his face, and still, even in spite of her great piety, Miriam was not spared this heavy
punishment. [499] Her experience, nevertheless, did not awe the wicked man who, shortly
after this incident, made an evil report of the promised land, and by their wicked tongues
stirred up the whole people in rebellion against God, so that they desired rather to
return to Egypt than to enter Palestine. The punishment that God inflicted upon the spies
as well as upon the people they had seduced was well deserved, for had they not been
warned of slander by Miriam's example, there might still have been some excuse. In that
case they might have been ignorant of the gravity of the sin of slander, but now they had
no excuse to offer. [500]
When Israel approached the boundaries of Palestine, they appeared before Moses, saying:
"We will send men before us, and they shall search out the land, and bring us word
again by what way we must go up, and into what cities we shall come." This desire
caused God to exclaim: "What! When you went through a land of deserts and of pits,
you had no desire for scouts, but now that you are about to enter a land full of good
things, now you wish to send out scouts. Not only was the desire in itself unseemly, but
also the way in which they presented their request to Moses; for instead of approaching as
they had been accustomed, letting the older men be the spokesmen of the younger they
appeared on this occasion without guidance or order, the young crowding out the old, and
these pushing away their leaders. [501] Their bad conscience after making this request -
for they knew that their true motive was lack of faith in God - caused them to invent all
sorts of pretexts for their plans. They said to Moses: "So long as we are in the
wilderness, the clouds act as scouts for us, for they move before us and show us the way,
but as these will not proceed with us into the promised land, we want men to search out
the land for us." Another plea that they urged for their desire was this. They said:
"The Canaanites fear an attack from us and therefore hid their treasures. This is the
reason why we want to sent spies there in time, to discover for us where they are hiding
their treasures." They sought in other ways to give Moses the impression that their
one wish was exactly to carry out the law. They said: "Hast not thou taught us that
an idol to which homage is no longer paid may be used, but otherwise it must be destroyed?
If we now enter Palestine and find idols, we shall not know which of them were adored by
the Canaanites and must be destroyed, and which of them were no longer adored, so that we
might use them." Finally they said the following to Moses: "Thou, our teacher,
hast taught us that God 'would little by little drive the Canaanites before us.' If this
be so, we must send out spies to find out which cities we must attack first." [502]
Moses allowed himself to be influenced by their talk, and he also liked the idea of
sending out spies, but not wishing to act arbitrarily he submitted to God the desire of
the people. God answered: "It is not the first time that they disbelieve My promises.
Even in Egypt they ridiculed Me, it is now become a habit with them, and I know what their
motive in sending spies is. If thou wishest to send spies do so, but do not pretend that I
have ordered thee."
Moses hereupon chose one man from every tribe with the exception of Levi, and sent these
men to spy out the land. These twelve men were the most distinguished and most pious of
their respective tribes, so that even God gave His assent to the choice of every man among
them. [503] But hardly had these men been appointed to their office when they made the
wicked resolve to bring up an evil report of the land, and dissuade the people from moving
to Palestine. Their motive was a purely personal one, for they thought to themselves that
they would retain their offices at the head of the tribes so long as they remained in the
wilderness, but would be deprived of them when they entered Palestine. [504]
SIGNIFICANT NAMES
Significant of the wickedness of these men are their names, all of which point to their
godless action. The representative of the tribe of Reuben was called Shammua, the son of
Zaccur, because he did not obey God, which was counted against him just as if he had
pursued sorcery. Shaphat, the son of Hori, was Simeon's representative. His name
signifies, "He did not conquer his evil inclination, and hence went out empty-handed,
without having received a possession in the land of Israel." The tribe of Issachar
was represented by Igal, the son of Joseph. He bore this name because he soiled the
reputation of the Holy Land, and therefore died before his time. Benjamin's representative
was Palti, the son of Raphu, so called because "he spat out the good qualities that
had previously been his, and therefore wasted away." The name of Gaddiel, the son of
Sodi, Zebulun's representative, signifies, "He spoke infamous things against God in
executing the secret plan of the spies." Manasseh's representative, Gaddi, the son of
Susi, was so called because he blasphemed God and aroused His wrath; for it was he who
said of the land, "it eateth up its inhabitants." But the worst one among them
was Ammiel, the son of Gemalli, the representative of Dan, for it was he who said,
"The land is so strong that not even God could go up against it," hence his
name, which means, "He cast a shadow upon God's strength," and he was punished
according to his wicked words, for he did not enter the promised land. Asher's
representative was Sethur, the son of Michael, who had resolved to act against God and
instead of saying, "Who is like unto God?" he said, "Who is God?"
Naphtali's representative was named Nahbi, the son of Vophsi, for he suppressed the truth,
and faith found no room in his mouth, for he brought forth lies against God. The last of
these spies, Gad's representative, bore the name Geuel, the son of Machi, for he was
humbled because he urged untruths against God.
As the ten sinners were name in accordance with their actions, so too did the names of the
two pious spies among them correspond to their pious actions. Judah's representative was
name Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, because "he spoke what he felt in his heart and
turned aside from the advice of the rest of the spies." The pious representative of
Ephraim was Hoshea, the son of Nun, a fitting name for him, for he was full of
understanding and was not caught like a fish by the spies. Moses who perceived, even when
he sent out the spies, the evil intentions they harbored, changed Hoshea's name to Joshua,
saying: "May God stand by thee, that thou mayest not follow the counsel of the
spies." [505]
This change of name that was brought about by the prefixing of the letter Yod at last
silenced the lamentations of this letter. For ever since God had changed Sarai's name to
Sarah, the letter Yod used to fit about the celestial Throne and lament: "Is it
perchance because I am the smallest among the letters that Thou has taken me away from the
name of the pious Sarah?" God quieted this letter, saying: "Formerly thou wert
in a woman's name, and, moreover, at the end. I will not affix thee to a man's name, and,
moreover, at the beginning." This promise was redeemed when Hoshea's name was changed
to Joshua. [506]
When the spies set out on their way, they received instructions from Moses how to conduct
themselves, and what in particular, they were to note. He ordered them not to walk on the
highways, but to go along private pathways, for although the Shekinah would follow them,
they were still to incur no needless danger. If they entered a city, however, they were
not to slink like thieves in alleyways, but to show themselves in public and answer those
who asked what they wanted by saying: "We came only to buy some pomegranates and
grapes." They were emphatically to deny that they had any intention of destroying the
idols or of felling the sacred trees. Moses furthermore said: "Look about carefully
what manner of land it is, for some lands produce strong people and some weak, some lands
produce many people and some few. If you find the inhabitants dwelling in open places,
then know that they are mighty warriors, and depending upon their strength have no fear of
hostile attack. If, however, they live in a fortified place, they are weaklings, and in
their fear of strangers seek shelter within their walls. Examine also the nature of the
soil. If it be hard, know then that it it fat; but if it be soft, it is lean." [507]
Finally he bade them inquire whether Job was still alive, for if he was dead, then they
assuredly needed not to fear the Canaanites, as there was not a single pious man among
them whose merits might be able to shield them. [508] And truly when the spies reached
Palestine, Job died, and they found the inhabitants of the land at his grave, partaking of
the funeral feast. [509]
THE SPIES IN PALESTINE
On the twenty-seventh day of Siwan Moses sent out the spies from Kadesh-Barnea in the
wilderness of Paran, [510] and following his directions they went first to the south of
Palestine, the poorest part of the Holy Land. Moses did like the merchants, who first show
the poorer wares, and then the better kind; so Moses wished the spies to see better parts
of the land the farther they advanced into it. When they reached Hebron, they could judge
what a blessed land this was that had been promised them, for although Hebron was the
poorest tract in all Palestine, it was still much better than Zoan, the most excellent
part of Egypt. When, therefore, the sons of Ham built cities in several lands, it was
Hebron that they erected first, owing to its excellence, and not Zoan, which they built in
Egypt fully seven years later.
Their progress through the land was on the whole easy, for God had wished it so, that as
soon as the spies entered a city, the plague struck it, and the inhabitants, busied with
the burial of their dead, had neither time nor inclination to concern themselves with the
strangers. [511] Although they met with no evil on the part of the inhabitants, still the
sight of the three giants, Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai inspired them with terror. These
were so immensely tall that the sun reached only to their ankles, and they received their
names in accordance with their size and strength. The strongest among them was Ahiman,
beholding whom one fancied oneself standing at the foot of a mountain that was about to
fall, and exclaimed involuntarily, "What is this that is coming upon me?" Hence
the name Ahiman. Strong as marble was the second brother, wherefore he was called Sheshai,
"marble." The mighty strides of the third brother threw up plots from the ground
when he walked, hence he was called Talmi, "plots." [512] Not only the sons of
Anak were of such strength and size, but his daughters also, whom the spies chanced to
see. For when these reached the city inhabited by Anak, that was called Kiriath-Arba,
"City of Four," because the giant Anak and his three sons dwelt there, they were
struck with such terror by them that they sought a hiding place. But what they had
believed to be a cave was only the rind of a huge pomegranate that the giant's daughter
had thrown away, as they later, to their horror, discovered. For this girl, after having
eaten the fruit, remembered that she must not anger her father by letting the rind lie
there, so she picked it up with the twelve men in it as one picks up an egg shell, and
threw it into the garden, never noticing that she had thrown with it twelve men, each
measuring sixty cubits in height. When they left their hiding place, they said to one
another: "Behold the strength of these women and judge by their standard the
men!" [513]
They soon had an opportunity of testing the strength of the men, for as soon as the three
giants heard of the presence of the Israelite men, they pursued them, but the Israelites
found out with what manner of men they were dealing even before the giants had caught up
with them. One of the giants shouted, and the spies fell down as men dead, so that it took
a long time for the Canaanites to restore them to life by the aid of friction and fresh
air. The Canaanites hereupon said to them: "Why do you come here? Is not the whole
world your God's, and did not He parcel it out according to His wish? Came ye here with
the purpose of felling the sacred trees?" The spied declared their innocence,
whereupon the Canaanites permitted them to go their ways unmolested. As a reward for this
kind deed, the nation to which these giants belonged has been preserved even to this day.
[514]
They would certainly not have escaped from the hands of the giants, had not Moses given
them two weapons against them, his staff and the secret of the Divine Name. These two
brought them salvation whenever they felt they were in danger from the giants. For these
were none other than the seed of the angels fallen in the antediluvian era. Sprung from
their union with the daughters of men, and being half angels, half men, these giants were
only half mortal. They lived very long, and then half their body withered away. Threatened
by an eternal continuance of this condition, half life, and half death, they preferred
either to plunge into the sea, or by magic herb which they knew to put an end to their
existence. [515] They were furthermore of such enormous size that the spies, listening one
day while the giants discussed them, heard them say, pointing to the Israelites:
"There are grasshoppers by the trees that have the semblance of men," for
"so they were in their sight." [516]
The spies, with the exception of Joshua and Caleb, had resolved from the start to warn the
people against Palestine, and so great was their influence that Caleb feared he would
yield to it. He therefore hastened to Hebron where the three Patriarchs lie, and, standing
at their graves, said: "Joshua is proof against the pernicious influence of the
spies, for Moses had prayed to God for him. Send up prayers now, my fathers, for me, that
God in His mercy may keep me far from the counsel of the spies." [517]
There had always been a clash between Caleb and his comrades during their crossing through
Palestine. For whereas he insisted upon taking along the fruits of the land to show their
excellence to the people, they strongly opposed this suggestion, wishing as they did to
keep the people from gaining an impression of the excellence of the land. Hence they
yielded only when Caleb drew his sword, saying: "If you will not take of the fruits,
either I shall slay you, or you will slay me." They hereupon cut down a vine, which
was so heavy that eight of them had to carry it, putting upon each the burden of one
hundred and twenty seah. The ninth spy carried a pomegranate, and the tenth a fig, which
they brought from a place that had once belonged to Eshcol, one of Abraham's friends, but
Joshua and Caleb carried nothing at all, because it was not consistent with their dignity
to carry a burden. [518] This vine was of such gigantic size that the wine pressed from
its grapes sufficed for all the sacrificial libations of Israel during the forty years'
march. [519]
After the lapse of forty days they returned to Moses and the people, after having crossed
through Palestine from end to end. By natural means it would not, of course, have been
possible to traverse all the land in so short a time, by God made it possible by
"bidding the soil to leap for them," and they covered a great distance in a
short time. God knew that Israel would have to wander in the wilderness forty years, a
year for every day the spies had spent in Palestine, hence He hastened their progress
through the land, that Israel might not have to stay too long in the wilderness. [520]
THE SLANDEROUS REPORT
When Moses heard that the spies had returned from their enterprise, he went to his great
house of study, where all Israel too assembled, for it was a square of twelve miles,
affording room to all. [521] There too the spies betook themselves and were requested to
give their report. Pursuing the tactics of slanderers, they began by extolling the land,
so that they might not by too unfavorable a report arouse the suspicion of the community.
They said: "We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with
milk and honey." This was not an exaggeration, for honey flowed from the trees under
which the goats grazed, out of whose udders poured mile, so that both mile and honey
moistened the ground. But they used these words only as an introduction, and the passed on
to their actual report, which they had elaborated during those forty days, and by means of
which they hoped to be able to induce the people to desist from their plan of entering
Palestine. [522] "Nevertheless," they continued, "the people be strong that
dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw children
of Anak there." Concerning the latter they spoke an untruth with the intention of
inspiring Israel with fear, for the sons of Anak dwelt in Hebron, whither Caleb alone had
gone to pray at the graves of the Patriarchs, [523] at the same time as the Shekinah went
there to announce to the Patriarch that their children were now on the way to take
possession of the land which had been promised to them of yore. [524] To intensify to the
uttermost their fear of the inhabitants of Palestine, they furthermore said: "The
Amalekites dwell in the land of the South." They threatened Israel with Amalek as one
threatens a child with a strap that had once been employed to chastise him, for they had
had bitter experiences with Amalek. The statement concerning Amalek was founded on fact,
for although southern Palestine had not originally been their home, still they had
recently settled there in obedience to the last wish of their forefather Esau, who had
bidden them cut off Israel from their entrance into the promised land. "If,
however," continued the spies in their report, "you are planning to enter the
land from the mountain region in order to evade Amalek, let us inform you that the
Hittites, and the Jebussites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and if you plan to
go there by sea, let us inform you that the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the
Jordan." [525]
As soon as the spies had completed their report, Joshua arose to contradict them, but they
gave him no chance to speak, calling out to him: "By what right dost thou, foolish
man, presume to speak? Thou hast neither sons nor daughters, so what dost thou care if we
perish in our attempt to conquer the land? We, on the other hand, have to look out for our
children and wives." Joshua, therefore, very much against his will, had to be silent.
Caleb now considered in what way he could manage to get a hearing without being shouted
down as Joshua had been.
Caleb had given his comrades an entirely false impression concerning his sentiments, for
when these formed the plan to try to make Israel desist from entering Palestine, they drew
him into their council, and he pretended to agree with them, whereas he even then resolved
to intercede for Palestine. Hence, when Caleb arose, the spies were silent, supposing he
would corroborate their statements, a supposition which his introductory words tended to
strengthen. He began: "Be silent, I will reveal the truth. This is not all for which
we have to thank the son of Amram." But to the amazement of the spies, his next words
praised, not blamed, Moses. He said: "Moses - it is he who drew us up out of Egypt,
who clove the sea for us, who gave us manna as food." In this way he continued his
eulogy on Moses, closing with the words: "We should have to obey him even if he bade
us ascend to heaven upon ladders!" [526] These words of Caleb were heard by all the
people, for his words were so mighty that they could be heard twelve miles off. It was
this same powerful voice that had saved the life of the spies. For when the Canaanites
first took note of them and suspected them of being spies, the three giants, Ahiman,
Sheshai, and Talmai pursued them and caught up with them in the plain of Judea. When
Caleb, hidden behind a fence, saw that the giants were at their heels, he uttered such a
shout that the giants fell down in a swoon because of the frightful din. When they had
recovered, the giants declared that they had pursued the Israelites not because of the
fruits, but because they had suspected them of the wish to burn their cities. [527]
Caleb's mighty voice did not, however, in the least impress the people or the spies, for
the latter, far from retracting their previous statements, went so far as to say: "We
be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we, they are so strong
that even God can not get at them. The land through which we had gone to search it is a
land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof through disease; and all the people that we
saw in it are men of wicked traits. And here we saw men upon sight of whom we almost
swooned in fright, the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of giants: and we were in our
own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight." [528] At these last words,
God said: "I have not objection to your saying, 'We were in our own sight as
grasshoppers,' but I take it amiss if you say, 'And so we were in their sight,' for how
can you tell how I made you appear in their sight? How do you know if you did not appear
to them to be angels?" [529]
THE NIGHT OF TEARS
The words of the spies were heard by willing ears. The people believed them implicitly,
and when called to task by Moses, replied: "O our teacher Moses, if there had been
only two spies or three, we should have had to give credence to their words, for the law
tells us to consider the testimony of even two as sufficient, whereas in this case there
are fully ten! [530] Our brethren have made us faint of heart. Because the Lord hated us,
He hath brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the
Amorites, to destroy us." By these words the Israelites revealed that they hated God,
and for this reason did they believe that they were hated by Him, for "whatever a man
wisheth his neighbor, doth he believe that his neighbor wisheth him." They even tried
to convince Moses that God hated them. They said: "If an earthly king has two sons
and two fields, on watered by a river, and the other dependent upon rains, will he not
five the one that is watered by the river to his favorite son, and give the other, less
excellent field to his other son? God led us out of Egypt, a land that is not dependent
upon rain, only to give us the land of Canaan, which produces abundantly only if the rains
fall." [531]
Not only did the spies in the presence of Moses and Aaron voice their opinion that is was
not advisable to attempt conquering Palestine, but they employed every means of inciting
the people into rebellion against Moses and God. On the following evening every one of
them betook himself to his house, donned his mourning cloths, and began to weep bitterly
and to lament. Their housemates quickly ran toward them and in astonishment asked their
reason for these tears and lamentations. Without interrupting their wailings, they
answered" "Woe is me for ye, my sons, and woe is me for ye, my daughters and
daughters-in-law, that are doomed to be dishonored by the uncircumcised and to be given as
a prey to their lusts. These men that we have beheld are not like unto mortals. Strong and
mighty as angels are they; one of them might well slay a thousand of us. How dare we look
into the iron faces of men so powerful that a nail of theirs is sufficient to stop up a
spring of water!" At these words all the household, sons, daughters, and
daughters-in-law, burst into tears and loud lamentations. Their neighbors came running to
them and joined in the wails and sobs until they spread throughout all the camp, and all
the sixty myriads of people were weeping. When the sound of their weeping reached heaven,
God said: "Ye weep to-day without a cause, I shall see to it that in the future ye
shall have a cause to weep on this day." It was then that God decreed to destroy the
Temple on the ninth day of Ab, the day on which Israel in the wilderness wept without
cause, so that this day became forever a day of tears. [532]
The people were not, however, content with tears, they resolved to set up as leaders in
place of Moses and Aaron, Dathan and Abiram, and under their guidance to return to Egypt.
[533] But worse than this, not only did they renounce their leader, but also their God,
for they denied Him and wished to set up and idol for their God. [534] Not only the wicked
ones among them such as the mixed multitude demurred against Moses and Aaron, but those
also who had heretofore been pious, saying: "Would to God that we had died in the
land of Egypt! Or would to God we had died in this wilderness!"
When Joshua and Caleb heard these speeches of the people teeming with blasphemy, they rent
their garments and tried to restrain the people from their sinful enterprise, exhorting
them particularly to have fear of the Canaanites, because the time was at hand when God
had promised Abraham to give the land of Canaan to his descendants, and because there were
no pious men among the inhabitants of the land for whose sake God would have been willing
to leave it longer in their possession. They also assured the people that God had hurled
from heaven the guardian angel of the inhabitants of Palestine, so that they were now
impotent. [535] The people, however, replied: "We do not believe you; the other spies
have our weal and woe more at heart than you." [536] Nor were the admonitions of
Moses of more avail, even though he brought them a direct message from God to have no fear
of the Canaanites. In vain did he say to them, "He who wrought all those miracles for
you in Egypt and during your stay in the wilderness will work miracles for you as well
when you will enter the promised land. Truly the past ought to inspire you with trust in
the future." The only answer the people had to this was, "Had we heard this
report of the land from strangers, we should not have given it credit, but we have heard
it from men whose sons are our sons, and whose daughters are our daughters." [537] In
their bitterness against their leaders they wanted to lay hands upon Moses and Aaron,
whereupon God sent His cloud of glory as a protection to them, under which they sought
refuge. But far from being brought to a realization of their wicked enterprise by this
Divine apparition, they cast stones at the cloud, hoping in this way to kill Moses and
Aaron. This outrage on their part completely wore out God's patience, and He determined
upon the destruction of the spies, and a severe punishment of the people misled by them.
[538]
INGRATITUDE PUNISHED
God now appeared to Moses, bidding him convey the following words to the people: "You
kindle My anger on account of the very benefits I conferred upon you. When I clove the sea
for you that you might pass through, while the Egyptians stuck in the loam at its bottom,
you said to one another, 'In Egypt we trod loam, and He led us out of Egypt, only that we
might again tread it.' I gave you manna as food, which made you strong and fat, but you,
perceiving of it, said: 'How comes it to pass that twenty days a human being dies if after
four or five days he does not excrete food he had taken. Surely we are doomed to die.'
When the spies came to Palestine, I arranged it so that as soon as they entered the city
its king or governor dies, in order that the inhabitants, occupied with the burial of
their ruler, might not take account of the spies' presence and kill them. Instead of being
thankful for this, the spies returned and reported, 'The land through which we have gone
to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof.' To you I gave the Torah;
for your sake I said to the Angel of Death, 'Continue to hold sway over the rest of the
world, but not over this nation that I have chosen as My people.' Truly I had hopes that
after all this you would sin no more, and like Myself and the angels would live eternally,
without ever tasting death. You, however, in spite of the great opportunity that I offered
you, conducted yourselves like Adam. Upon him also did I lay a commandment, promising him
life eternal on condition he observed it, but he brought ruin upon himself by trespassing
My commandment and eating of the tree. To him I said, 'Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt
thou return.' Similar was My experience with you. I said, 'You are angels,' but you
conducted yourselves like Adam in your sins, and hence like Adam you must die. I had
thought and hoped you would follow example of the Patriarchs, but you act like the
inhabitants of Sodom, who in punishment for their sins were consumed by fire." [539]
"If," continued God, turning to Moses, "they suppose that I have need of
swords or spears to destroy them, they are mistaken. As through the word I created the
world, so can I destroy the world by it, which would be a proper punishment for them. As
through their words and their talk they angered Me, so shall the word kill them, and thou
shalt be their heir, for 'I will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than
they.'" [540]
Moses said: "If the chair with three legs could not withstand the moment of Thy
wrath, how then shall a chair that have but one leg endure? Thou are about to destroy the
seed of the three Patriarchs; how then may I hope that my seed is to fare better? This is
not the only reason for which Thou shouldst preserve Israel, as there are other
considerations why Thou shouldst do so. Were Thou to destroy Israel, the Edomites,
Moabites, and all the inhabitants of Canaan would say [541] that Thou hadst done this only
because Thou wert not able to maintain Thy people, and therefore Thou didst destroy them.
These will furthermore declare that the gods of Canaan are mightier than those of Egypt,
that Thou hadst indeed triumphed over the river gods of Egypt, but that Thou wert not the
peer of the rain gods of Canaan. Worse even than this, the nations of the world will
accuse Thee of continuous cruelty, saying, 'He destroyed the generation of the flood
through water; He rased to the ground the builders of the tower, as well as the
inhabitants of Sodom; and no better then theirs was the fate of the Egyptians, whom He
drowned in the sea. Now He hath also ruined Israel whom He had called, 'My firstborn son,'
like Lilith who, when she can find no strange children, slays her own. So did He slay His
own son." [542] Moses furthermore said: "Every pious man makes a point of
cultivating a special virtue. Do Thou also in this instance bring Thy special virtue to
bear." God: "And what is My special virtue?" Moses: "Long-suffering,
love, and mercy, for Thou art wont to be long-suffering with them that kindle Thy wrath,
and to have mercy for them. In Thy very mercy is Thy strength best shown. Mete out to Thy
children, then, justice in small measure only, but mercy in great measure." [543]
Moses well knew that mercy was God's chief virtue. He remembered that he had asked God,
when he interceded for Israel after their sin of the Golden Calf, "Pray tell me by
what attribute of Thine Thou rulest the world." God answered: "I rule the world
with loving-kindness, mercy, and long-suffering." "Can it be," said Moses,
"that Thy long-suffering lets sinners off with impunity?" To this question Moses
had received no answer, hence he felt he might now say to God: "Act now as Thou didst
then assent. [544] Justice, that demands the destruction of Israel, is on one side of the
scales, but it is exactly balance by my prayer on the other side. Let us now see how the
scales will balance." God replied: "As truly as thou livest, Moses, thy prayer
shall dip the scales to the side of mercy. For thy sake must I cancel My decision to
annihilate the children of Israel, so that the Egyptians will exclaim, 'Happy the servant
to whose wish his master defers.' I shall, however, collect My debt, for although I shall
not annihilate Israel all at once, they shall make partial annual payments during the
following forty years. Say to them, 'Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all
that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and
upward, which have murmured against Me. And your children shall be wanderers in the
wilderness forty years, and shall bear you whoredoms, until your carcasses be consumed in
the wilderness.'" [545]
This punishment was not, however, as severe as it might appear, for none among them died
below the ages of sixty, whereas those who had at the time of the exodus from Egypt been
either below twenty or above sixty were entirely exempt from this punishment. Besides only
such were smitten as had followed the counsel of the spies, whereas the others, and the
Levites and the women were exempt. [546] Death, moreover, visited the transgressors in
such fashion that they were aware it was meant as punishment for their sins. Throughout
all the year not one among them died. On the eighth day of the month of Ab, Moses would
have a herald proclaim throughout the camp, "Let each prepare his grave." They
dug their graves, and spent there the following night, the same night on which, following
the counsel of the spies, they had revolted against God and Moses. In the morning a herald
would once more appear and cry: "Let the living separate themselves from the
dead." Those that were still alive arose, but about fifteen thousand of them remained
dead in their graves. After forty years, however, when the herald repeated his customary
call the ninth day of Ab, all arose, and there was not a single dead man among them. At
first they thought they had made a miscalculation in their observation of the moon, that
is was not the ninth day of Ab at all, and that this was the reason why their lives had
been spared. Hence they repeated their preparations for death until the fifteenth day of
Ab. Then the sight of the full moon convinced them that the ninth day of Ab had gone by,
and that their punishment had been done away with. In commemoration of the relief from
this punishment, they appointed the fifteenth day of Ab to be a holy day. [547]
THE YEARS OF DISFAVOR
Although God had now cancelled His resolution to annihilate Israel, He was not yet quite
reconciled with them, and they were out of favor during the following years of their march
through the desert, as was made evident by several circumstances. During these years of
disfavor the north wind did not blow, with the result that the boys who were born in the
desert could not be circumcised, as the absence of the wind produced and excessively high
temperature, a condition that made it very dangerous for the young boys to have this
operation performed upon them. [548] As the law, however, prohibits the offering of the
paschal lamb unless the boys have been circumcised, Israel could not properly observe the
feast of Passover after the incident of the spies. [549] Moses also felt the effects of
the disfavor, for during this time he received from God none but the absolutely essential
directions, and no other revelations. This was because Moses, like all other prophets,
received this distinction only for the sake of Israel, and when Israel was in disgrace,
God did not communicate with him affectionately. [550] Indeed Moses' fate, to die in the
desert without entering the promised land, had been decreed simultaneously with the fate
of the generation led by him out of Egypt. [551]
But the most terrible punishment of all fell upon the spies who, with their wicked
tongues, had brought about the whole disaster. God repaid them measure for measure. Their
tongues stretched to so great a length that they touched the navel; and worms crawled out
of their tongues, and pierced the navel; in this horrible fashion these men died. [552]
Joshua and Caleb, however, who had remained true to God and had not followed the wicked
counsel of their colleagues, were not only exempted from death, but were furthermore
rewarded by God, by receiving in the Holy Land the property that had been allotted to the
other spies. [553] Caleb was forty years of age at the time when he was sent out as a spy.
He had married early, and at the age of ten had begot a son, still at the age of
eighty-five he was sturdy enough to enjoy his possession in the Holy Land. [554]
God's mercy is also extended to sinners, hence He bade Moses say to the people: "The
Amalekites and the Canaanites are now dwelling in the valley, to-morrow turn you, and get
you into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea." God did this because He had
firmly resolved, in the event of a war between Israel and the inhabitants of Palestine,
not to aid the former. Knowing that in this cast their annihilation was sure, He commanded
them to make no attempt to enter the land by force. [555] "It had been My
intention," said God, "to exalt you, but now if you were to attempt to make war
upon the inhabitants of Palestine, you would suffer humiliation." The people did not,
however, hearken to the words of God that Moses communicated to them, and all at once
formed in battle array in order to advance against the Amorites. They thought that after
they had confessed their sin of having been misled by the spies, God would stand by them
in their battles, so they said to Moses: "Surely these few drops have not filled the
bucket." Their transgression against God seemed to them only a peccadillo that had
long since been forgiven. They were, however, mistaken. Like bees the enemies swarmed down
upon them, and whereas these had in former times fallen dead of fright upon hearing the
names of the Israelites, now a blow from them sufficed to kill the Israelites. Their
attempt to wage war without the Holy Ark in their midst proved a miserable failure. Many
of them, and Zelophehad among these, met their death, and as many others returned to camp
covered with wounds. The wailing and weeping of the people was of no avail, God persisted
in His resolve, and they brought upon themselves grave punishment for this new proof of
disobedience, for God said to Moses: "If I were to deal with them now in accordance
with strict justice, they should never enter the land. After a while, however, I shall let
them 'possess the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give unto them.'" [556]
In order to comfort and encourage Israel in their dejection, Moses received directions to
announce the law of sacrifices, and other precepts laid down for the life in the Holy
Land, that the people might see that God did not mean to be angry with them forever. When
Moses announced the laws to them, a dispute arose between the Israelites and the
proselytes, because the former declared that they alone and not the others were to make
offerings to God in His sanctuary. God hereupon called Moses, and said to him: "Why
do these always quarrel one with another?" Moses replied: "Thou knowest
why." God: "Have I not said to thee, 'One law and one ordinance shall be for you
and for the stranger that sojourneth with you?'" [557]
Although the forty years' march through the desert was a punishment for the sin of Israel,
still it had one advantage. At the time when Israel departed from Egypt, Palestine was in
poor condition; the trees planted in the time of Noah were old and withered. Hence God
said: "What! Shall I permit Israel to enter an uninhabitable land? I shall bid them
wander in the desert for forty years, that the Canaanites may in the meantime fell the old
trees and plant new ones, so that Israel, upon entering the land, may find it abounding in
plenty." So did it come to pass, for when Israel conquered Palestine, they found the
land not only newly cultivated, [558] but also filled to overflowing with treasures. The
inhabitants of this land were such misers that they would not indulge in a drop of oil for
their gruel; if an egg broke, they did not use it, but sold it for cash. The hoardings of
these miserly Canaanites God later gave to Israel to enjoy and to use. [559]
Back | Main Contents
| Volume Contents | Forward
