Parshat Masei

by Rav Yosef Zvi Rimon

Founder and Board Chairman, JobKatif

“These are the journeys of the people of Israel, who went out from the land of Egypt…Moshe wrote their starting places according to their journeys by the commandment of G-d…They departed from Rameses…They departed from…And camped in…” (Bamidbar, Chapter 33)

 

This week’s parasha is a bit strange. It spends a lot of time detailing the travels of the Nation of Israel through the desert, explicitly mentioning every place they visit. The Torah could have just written where they began and where they ended. We are never even told what happened in any of these places, so why the need for this list?

 

Rashi Exlains: “Rebi Tanchuma explains in another drasha: ‘This can be analogized to a king that had to take his sick son to a far away land to see a doctor. The father told his son afterwards: This is where we rested, this is where we admired the scenery, this is where you washed your head etc.”

 

I heard my teacher and Rebbi, Rav Aharon Lichtenstien Shli’ta explain this drasha in an incredible way.

 

Why does the father review all the places that they passed until the son recovered? The reason is that the father wanted to show the son that the outcome of a journey is not the only thing that is important, the work that they did to recuperate was also vital.

 

This is what the Torah wanted to teach us by detailing the journey through the desert.

 

There is an approach that says that the purpose of today is always for tomorrow. This approach believes that there is no value in today, only what will come after. This approach is against our viewpoint and our way. It values the ends over the means and makes everything acceptable; you can trample over and crush every one in your way just as long as the goal is achieved.

 

This is the approach of the socialist movements and the approach of various messianic movements.

 

We too wait for the redemption, for Mashiach. There is also a place for the world to come, so much so that this world can be seen as a corridor to the next (this discussion is expounded upon in the beginning Misilat Yisharim, The Path of the Just)

 

Our sages say in Pirkei Avot (89): “More Beautiful is one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world, than an entire life in the world to come.”

 

If one hour in this world is so beautiful, then how much more so with all of the hours in this world.

On the one hand we see that there is great importance to this world. On the other, our sages and following in their foots steps Misilat Yisharim say that this world is similar to a corridor that leads to the next world, which is the more important world, and our world is only the means to the ends.

 

How does this idea sit with our sage’s idea that was mentioned above?

 

Our purpose, is to bring holiness out in this world, to reveal it. On the one hand the world to come is greater because it is completely holy.  In that way this world is seen as a corridor to the next. But, only in this world can we combine profanity and sanctity! Only in this world can we work, achieve and implement holiness  Only in this world can we create, fix and accomplish.

 

In Masechet Shabbat (30a) it writes about a conversation between King David and G-d. “David said before G-d: ‘Creator of the Universe, tell me when I am going to die.’ G-d says to him ‘On Shabbat you will die.’ David says ‘Why not on Erev Shabbat?’ G-d says ‘I would prefer to be in your courtyard (one more day where you learn Torah) over the one thousand (sacrifices that Shlomo will bring on the alter after you are gone).”

 

Just imagine to yourself how spiritual one thousand sacrifices would be and yet, G-d would prefer one day of Torah learning. What is the value of one day of Torah learning? Even if from this one day you will  become a great scholar, will you be able to teach others when you are going to die tomorrow?

 

Despite this G-d would still prefer this learning of Torah more then one thousand sacrifices. Since, as we know one hour of Torah and good deeds in this world is better then eternity in the world to come.

 

We see from here that learning is valuable in of itself and not for the future, even if tomorrow we will forget all we have learned. Can we even imagine a group of people memorizing pages of medicine or law, knowing they will not practice it in the future, and knowing that they forget these things in a few days?

 

This is what the Torah is teaching us when it describes the details of our journey in this week’s parasha. There is purpose to every process, and not only what lies ahead. Many times we look to the future when in fact today is what truly matters. Because “more beautiful is one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world, than an entire life in the world to come.”

 

Shabbat Shalom!