Our two-year old daughter is beginning to understand the concept of time. Ask her what time she goes to sleep and she’ll says “7 o’clock.” She’s pretty good: we usually put her to sleep around 7:30. Ask her what time she wakes up, she says “7 o‘clock.” Again not too bad: she never sleeps until 7 but wakes up somewhere in the 6’s. The jig is up when you ask her any other question that has to do with time. What time is lunch? 7 o’clock. What time is it now? 7 o’clock.
Towards the end of our parsha, Rashi points out a recurring time of day that the Torah frequently uses.
Our parsha concludes with an introduction to the death of Moshe Rabenu:
| מח וַיְדַבֵּר ה’ אֶל-מֹשֶׁה, בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה לֵאמֹר. | 48 And the L-RD spoke unto Moses in the middle of that day, saying: |
Rashi points out two other places that G-d commands something “b’etzem hayom hazzeh.”
Noach boarded the teivah b’etzem hayom hazzzeh (Bereishit 7:13).
Hashem tells Moshe that the Jews should leave Egypt b’etzem hayom hazzeh (Shemot 12:51).
The common denominator, explains Rashi, is G-d demonstrating his might against an attempted resistance.
By Noach
ֶׁהָיוּ בְנֵי דוֹרוֹ אוֹמְרִים בְּכָךְ וְכָךְ אִם אָנוּ מַרְגִּישִׁין בּוֹ, אֵין אָנוּ מַנִּיחִין אוֹתוֹ לִכָּנֵס בַּתֵּבָה, וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא אָנוּ נוֹטְלִין כַּשִּׁילִין וְקַרְדֻּמּוֹת וּמְבַקְּעִין אֶת הַתֵּבָה, אָמַר הַקָּבָּ”ה הֲרֵינִי מַכְנִיסוֹ בַּחֲצִי הַיּוֹם וְכָל מִי שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּיָדוֹ כֹחַ לִמְחוֹת יָבֹא וְיִמְחֶה
Because his contemporaries said: By this and by that we swear; if we notice him about to do so we will not let him enter the ark, and not only that, but we will take axes and hatchets and we will split the ark in pieces. Thereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, said, “See, I will let him enter at midday and anyone who has power to prevent it, let him come and prevent it!”
In Mitzrayim:
לְפִי שֶׁהָיוּ מִצְרִיִּים אוֹמְרִים בְּכָךְ וְכָךְ אִם אָנוּ מַרְגִּישִׁין בָּהֶם, אֵין אָנוּ מַנִּיחִין אוֹתָם לָצֵאת, וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא אָנוּ נוֹטְלִין סְיָפוֹת וּכְלֵי זַיִן וְהוֹרְגִין בָּהֶם, אָמַר הַקָּבָּ”ה הֲרֵינִי מוֹצִיאָן בַּחֲצִי הַיּוֹם וְכָל מִי שֶׁיֵּשׁ בּוֹ כֹחַ לִמְחוֹת יָבֹא וְיִמְחֶה
Of Egypt, too, it states, (Exodus All. 11) “The selfsame day the Lord did bring [the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt]”: because the Egyptians said: By this and by that! If we notice them about to do so, we will not let them leave, and not only that, but we will take swords and other weapons and will kill them. Thereupon said the Holy One, blessed be He, “See, I will bring them forth in the middle of the day, and anyone who has power to prevent it, let him come and prevent it!”
And in our Parsha by the death of Moshe
לְפִי שֶׁהָיוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל אוֹמְרִים בְּכָךְ וְכָךְ אִם אָנוּ מַרְגִּישִׁין בּוֹ — אֵין אָנוּ מַנִּיחִין אוֹתוֹ, אָדָם שֶׁהוֹצִיאָנוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם וְקָרַע לָנוּ אֶת הַיָּם וְהוֹרִיד לָנוּ אֶת הַמָּן וְהֵגִיז לָנוּ אֶת הַשְּׂלָו וְהֶעֱלָה לָנוּ אֶת הַבְּאֵר וְנָתַן לָנוּ אֶת הַתּוֹרָה, אֵין אָנוּ מַנִּיחִין אוֹתוֹ, אָמַר הַקָּבָּ”ה הֲרֵינִי מַכְנִיסוֹ בַחֲצִי הַיּוֹם
Because the children of Israel said, By this and by that! If we notice him, we will not let him do so, — the man who brought us out of Egypt, and divided the Red Sea for us, and brought the Manna down for us, and brought a flight of quails for us, and made the “well” rise, and gave us the Torah: we will not permit him to go!” Thereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, said, “Behold, I will bring him unto his resting place in the middle of the day, etc.”
The implication of Rashi’s comparison seems unduly harsh.
We can envision accosting G-d’s decree with sledgehammers and swords. At least it is possible to smash an ark or to slay a runaway nation. But what can the Jewish people do to prevent Moshe from dying? There is no elixir of life that will keep Moshe in this world; if G-d chooses for Moshe’s soul to depart, there is nothing mortal man can do to prevent it. How could the Jewish people say “we will not permit him to go?” This seems delusional.
Some explain (I saw R Chaim Shmulevits quoted and was unable to find it, also saw this in Klei Chemdah) that their sledgehammers and swords are the power of tefillah. The Jewish people would gather together and pray, using these prayers on Moshe’s behalf to keep him with us.
This only reinforces the absurdity of the comparison.
The dor hamabul were wicked people. G-d seeks their destruction, and they want to prevent the righteous Noach’s salvation. Out come the axes and sledgehammers, and Hashem is more than up for the challenge as he maximizes the potential confrontation by scheduling a midday departure for the teiva.
The Egyptians threw our sons in the sea and enslaved us. They will fight our redemption with their swords and weapons. Again, Hashem fights them head on with a midday departure demonstrating their helplessness.
The Jewish people? It’s a new generation, removed from the sins of the desert, at a point of transition. They feel a special closeness to Moshe Rabeinu who brought them the Torah and was closer to Hashem than any human being before or after him. Their desire for him to stay seems reasonable. They want to gather to recite tehillim on Moshe’s behalf.
Why does Hashem magnify their anguish with Moshe arising the mountain b’etzem hayom hazzeh? To show the futility of their tefillah?
The Klei Chemdah shares a frightening comment based on a close reading of Rashi. Why did they want Moshe to remain?
שֶׁהוֹצִיאָנוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם וְקָרַע לָנוּ אֶת הַיָּם וְהוֹרִיד לָנוּ אֶת הַמָּן וְהֵגִיז לָנוּ אֶת הַשְּׂלָו וְהֶעֱלָה לָנוּ אֶת הַבְּאֵר וְנָתַן לָנוּ אֶת הַתּוֹרָה
The Torah is last on the list. Their priorities were out of place. They wanted Moshe because of the physical comfort his miracles provided. The spiritual impact of Moshe was an afterthought.
Hashem wanted to demonstrate openly that He would not answer their tefillot if spirituality was an afterthought, so he took Moshe b’etzem hayom hazeh.
On Yom Kippur we are concerned for our physical well being, and we balance that with a spiritual high. The best time to keep up the spiritual side of our tefillah is on shabbat, a day where we make no physical requests. We daven each Shabbos for spirutality. Kadshenu bmitzvosecha vtein chelkeinu btoratecha…vtaher libeinu lavdicha bemet. Let’s make sure we put thought into these tefillot as they provide the fuels for our teffilot all year long.
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