Thursday, July 3, 2008

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Chukas

The following is a brief summary of a thought said over by R' Frand in his shiur this evening. I have attempted to reproduce this vort to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistencies are the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.

Parshas Chukas contains a bizarre complaint by the Jewish people and a punishment that seems unconnected to the crime. In Chukas 21:5, the Jews complain about beong taken out of Egypt, saying to Moshe, "why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness, as there is no food or water and our soul is at is limit with the unsubstantial food." In response to the complaint, Hashem sends snakes out to bite the Jews and many Jews died.

The entire sequence of events seems illogical. It is known that the manna that the Jews ate in the desert tasted like whatever the consumer wanted it to be. I can recall learning as a child in day school that if a person wanted a steak, the manna would taste like steak, if a different person wanted ice cream, it would taste like ice cream. Additionally, in Parshas B'shalach the manna's taste is described as like a wafer in honey. So why did the Jews complain? And furthermore, although the Jews were wrong in complaining, why were snakes the vehicle for their punishment?

The Targum Yonasan Ben Uziel explains the rationale for the snakes, as Hashem said to the Jewish people, I took you out of Egypt and gave you the manna and you complain. Meanwhile, the snake that spends its days eating dust has no complaints. Therefore, the complainers should be bitten by the one that does not complain.

But how does this answer the questions?

R'Frand quoted the Alshich who explained that the reason that the Jews complained about the manna had nothing to do with its taste. Instead, the Jews were unhappy that every day they had to go and collect it, while every night they worried whether it would fall again the next day. They would have preferred receiving the manna on a weekly or monthly basis, as individuals prefer to be paid on a schedule and not to have to ask for their paycheck daily.

R' Frand then mentioned a medrash that compare the Jews/manna to a King who gave his son a year's allowance in advance. During the following year, the son did not visit with the King. Hashem did not want the Jews to be in that position where he would have no contact with them for an entire year. As such he sent the manna on a daily basis (with the exception of the Sabbath) so that he would have constant contact with them.

R' Frand (I believe quoting the Yalkut Yehuda) explained that this was the reason that the snake was sent as a punishment. The Torah writes in Parshas Bereishis that Adam, Eve and the snake were all punished differently. Adam was punished with the requirement that he must sweat in order to eat. Eve was punished with the pains of childbirth. The snake was punished that it must crawl on its belly and eat dust all day. But how is this a curse if the snake has all of its nutritional requirement met without effort? R' Frand answered that the snake was punished in a way much more severe than Adam and Eve. While Adam had to work for his food, he has the ability to connect with Hashem and ask for (and receive) help in his efforts. Eve does have to go through childbirth, but can petition Hashem for help with the process of birth, as well as raising the child.

The snake has no such ability to obtain help. While the snake's material needs are met, it has no ability to ask for help or to rise above the nature that it is condemned to. Instead, the snake wanders the Earth, eating dust. By utilizing the snake as a punishment for the Jews, Hashem is saying to the Jews, you don't want to be like this snake, wandering the Earth with no hope of salvation. Instead, you should appreciate your connection with Hashem and use it as a means to draw closer to Him.

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