Never Walk Alone

And God’s anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the Lord placed himself in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants with him.       Numbers 22:22

            God’s anger against Balaam resulted from the fact that “he” chose to go with the emissaries of Balak. (The Hebrew, with the word “he” placed after the verb, can be understood to be emphatic, which is not conveyed by the English translation.) Rabbi Shlomo Wolbe explains that the divine anger was kindled by Balaam’s choice to go alone, without his Creator accompanying him. A human being should never go alone, without God’s guidance. Indeed, for Israel, Torah provides the accompaniment so that we never need to go through life’s journey alone. In fact, man’s purpose in this world is to go wherever he goes with God, and not alone.

            This point is made already in the first parasha of the Torah, where we read [Genesis 5:22]: “And Enoch (Ḥanoch) walked with God…”

            Similarly, we are told [ibid. 6:9] that Noah “walked with God.”

            Abraham, the progenitor of the nation of Israel, was instructed by God [ibid. 17:1] “walk before Me..,” while his descendants are commanded [Deuteronomy 13:5] “After the Lord your God shall you walk…”

            These verses, Rabbi Wolbe stresses, teach that one may walk with, before or after God, but not alone.