In
preparation of their imminent arrival in Eretz Yisrael, Bnei Yisroel sent
twelve distinguished leaders to scout out the land. They failed in their
mission when they returned with a derogatory report about the land that Hashem had told them was good,
and in so doing, caused their entire generation to perish in the desert. Why
were the most distinguished men chosen for this mission, and what clouded their
perception to the point that they were convinced of their defeat should they
enter the Land of Israel?
Rav
Wolbe (Shiurei Chumash Parshas Shelach) quotes the Chiddushei HaRim’s
explanation of this infamous fiasco. Rashi on the first pasuk of the
Torah tells us that the purpose of Creation was for the Jewish People and for
Eretz Yisroel. Therefore, the sojourn of Bnei Yisroel in the desert was merely
transient, because the true goal was life in the Land of Israel. However, the
transition from living in the desert to life in their new country was not going
to be an easy one. In the desert Bnei Yisroel survived on miracles. Their food
fell from the heaven, their water poured forth from a rock; they were protected
from all elements by the clouds of glory, and they had Moshe Rabbeinu who was a
direct link to Hashem by means of “face to face” communication. This would all
change as soon as they entered the new land and became subject to the laws of
nature. Bnei Yisroel’s goal in the Land of Israel was to discern that nature is
a mere facade, and it is Hashem Who provides them with sustenance and for all they
lack. This was the very purpose of Creation and the key to Redemption.
It
was to this end that Bnei Yisroel spent a number of months in the desert.
During this period of time they were to gain an awareness of Hashem’s control
over all aspects of nature and His intimate involvement in every facet of their
lives. They were to take this crystal clear perception of the workings of the
world and bring it with them into Eretz Yisroel. This would give them the
ability to distinguish Hashem’s hand behind the veil of nature and realize that
it is He Who would provide for them in Eretz Yisroel no less than He had done
when they were in the desert. The task was not an easy one, so Hashem said to
send the greatest men of the generation to pave the way. They were to discover
how it feels to out walk out of the clouds of glory and into nature; all the
while being careful not to slip from their lofty spiritual level.
It
was exactly in this area that they failed. They entered the land and were
greeted by giants, “And we were in our own eyes like grasshoppers and so we
were in their eyes” (Bamidbar 13, 33). The spies had perceived things as nature
packaged them. They lost sight of Hashem’s involvement in all aspects of this
world and, therefore, they were awed by giants who were nothing more than a big
physical body. Had they all the while been cognizant of Hashem’s hashgacha,
they would have looked at the giants no differently than had they been made
from cardboard. The spies were not able to take the perception that they had
gained from the time they had spent in the clouds of glory, and properly
process what their natural eyes had seen. Thus, they failed in their mission.
This
is our goal and the purpose of Creation; to see Hashem behind the façade of
nature and to realize that it is a no less a miracle when bread grows from the
ground than when it falls from the sky.
This dvar Torah was compiled by the
family of the Mashgiach Harav Shlomo ben R' Moshe z"l,
l'iluy nishmaso
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