The Limiting Letter “Nun”

Every commandment that I command you this day you shall keep (tishmerun) to do, that you may live (tiḥyun) and multiply, and come and possess the land that the Lord swore to your forefathers.                                                                          Deuteronomy 8:1

            Netziv’s systematic approach is that the addition of the letter “nun” at the end of a verb (tishmerun and tiḥyun in our verse) serves to limit that verb. Based upon his approach, Netziv explains that the form of the verb “tishmerun” teaches that even if not all mitzvot can be observed in practice, there is an obligation to study all mitzvot. There are mitzvot which will become obligatory only upon entering the Land, and others which will be apply only following the fourteen years of conquest and division of the Land, “yet Moses admonished Israel to study all the mitzvot in order to be able to practice them at the relevant times.”

            Netziv explicitly states the implied message:

From this we learn that the same is true in times of exile (which will follow Israel’s entry into its Land).

That is, it is incumbent upon us to study even those mitzvot which are not currently applicable, such as those connected to the Temple.

            Based upon Netziv’s approach, the word “tiḥyun” as well is delimiting, and indeed, he comments:

Spiritual vitality cannot be completely realized until Israel enters its Land.

Beauty

            Three of the four matriarchs are explicitly described as being beautiful women:

            Abraham, upon nearing Egypt, said to Sarah “I know that you are a beautiful woman.” [Genesis 12:11] Lest we think this was only Abraham’s subjective assessment, three verses later we read the Egyptians’ assessment: “When Abram reached Egypt, the Egyptians saw the woman, that she is exceedingly beautiful”.

            The Bible’s introduction of Rebecca includes the comment “the girl was of great beauty.” [Genesis 24:16] Netziv comments that Rebecca’s beauty was one of the reasons Eliezer, servant of Abraham chose to approach her as opposed to the other girls who had come to the well.  Malbim goes a step further and says it was Rebecca’s beauty which was the reason Eliezer approached her.

            Rachel is described as being “beautiful of form and beautiful in appearance” [Genesis 29:17].

            Leah is described (in the same verse which describes the beauty of Rachel) thus: “and Leah’s eyes were weak (rakot)”. Translation, by definition is also interpretation. Beginning with the first century Aramaic translation of Onkelos, many traditional commentaries understand the word rakot to mean tender or beautiful. Radak comments “Leah was beautiful, however her eyes were weak and teary.”

            Thus, it is possible that the Torah describes each of the matriarchs as being beautiful.

            Rabbi Kook comments that an appreciation of beauty and a sense of esthetics are spiritual strengths:

An appreciation of beauty is positive and expands the soul. One who is completely righteous and uses this appreciation positively acts well and pleasantly, for this great feeling towards beauty was not created for naught. Furthermore, an appreciation of beauty can develop one’s intellectual powers and as well expand one’s spiritual strength.

This Dvar Torah is dedicated to the memory of my wife Gloria, whose beauty was both spiritual and physical.

The Watchmen on Jerusalem's Walls

                The eighth verse of the haftara of Parashat Nitzavim, the final haftara of the “Seven of Consolation,” reads:

On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; all day and all night, they shall never be silent; those who call on the Lord, do not be silent.                                              Isaiah 62:6

                Iyyun Yaakov [Ein Yaakov, Berachot 3a] connects our verse to our Sages’ statement:

It has been taught: Rabbi Eliezer says: The night has three watches, and at each watch the Holy One, blessed be He, sits and roars like a lion. For it is written: “The Lord shall roar from above, and from His Holy Habitation He shall give forth His voice; roaring He does roar over His habitation." [Jeremiah 25:30]

As well, Iyyun Yaakov brings our attention to our Sages’ comment concerning the content of the statements of the watchmen, who are not to be silent:

“On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; all day and all night, they shall never be silent; those who call on the Lord, do not be silent.” What do they say? — Raba son of Rabbi Shila said (They say,) “You will rise, You will have mercy on Zion;” [Psalms 102:14 Rabbi Naḥman son of Yitzḥak said, (They say,) “The Lord is the builder of Jerusalem;” [ibid. 147:2] And what did they say before this? (prior to Jerusalem’s destruction) Raba son of Rabbi Shila said, (They used to say) “For the Lord has chosen Zion; He desired it for His habitation.” [ibid. 132:13]

                There are differing opinions among the classical commentators as to the identification of the watchmen. Radak presents three possibilities;

1) The watchmen are God’s angels, “Who pray to God that He return Jerusalem its settled state;”

2) They are the mourners of Zion, “Who pray day and night for Jerusalem;”

3) They are “All of Israel in their exile, for they keep watch and constantly look forward to Jerusalem’s rebuilding and mention ‘Who rebuilds Jerusalem’ in their prayers (the fourteenth blessing of the thrice-daily amida) and in their blessings (the third blessing of the Grace After Meals).

                If the watchmen are angels, the intention is that it is God’s will that Jerusalem be rebuilt, since angels are  not independent entities, but executors of the Divine will, who have no free choice. It seems that this is the meaning of the comment of Midrash Zuta [Lamentations 1:16]:

When God destroyed the Temple, He appointed watchmen on Jerusalem’s walls, (in effect saying:) “You must comfort Me, ‘Give comfort, give comfort, My people’ [Isaiah 40:1] - Comfort Me, comfort Me.”

                Parenthetically, according to this Midrash, the conclusion of reading the seven haftarot of consolation connects directly to its commencement, which is “Give comfort, give comfort, My people.”

                This being the case, the question which begs asking is: if the Divine will is to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, what prevents God from doing this? Why have we not yet been privileged to see the Temple rebuild and Jerusalem reestablished?

                However, the Divine will to rebuild Jerusalem is the Divine attribute of mercy, which goes beyond the strict letter of the law embodied in the attribute of justice. Because of our sins (especially our failure to rectify “baseless hatred” which was the cause of the destruction of the Second Temple), the attribute of justice requires maintaining the state of the Temple’s destruction.

                The angels express the Divine will, however, realizing His will depends on us. Ultimately, through our yearnings and prayers for the Temple’s rebuilding, and even more so, our proper behavior in rectifying the sin of baseless hatred, we have the ability to assist the angels in fulfilling the Divine will. This is our obligation.

                As such, the three identifications of the watchmen appointed on Jerusalem’s walls are complimentary, not contradictory.

Man Created from the Place of His Atonement

And the Lord God formed man of dust from the earth, and He breathed into his nostrils the soul of life, and man became a living soul.                       Genesis 2:7

Rabbi Berechya and Rabbi Ḥelbo, quoting Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, say: “Man was created from the place of his atonement, as Scripture says ‘You shall make an altar of earth for Me,’ [Exodus 20:21] the Holy One, blessed be He said: ‘Behold, I create him from the place of his atonement.’”

                                                  Breishit Rabba 14:8

            Our Sages taught that Adam was created from the site of the altar on Mount Moriah, the place where he brought the first sacrifice offered to the Creator.

            Maimonides considered this point sufficiently important that he cited it at beginning of his description of the Temple altar:

It is a tradition accepted by all that the place where Abraham built the altar upon which he bound Isaac was the same place where Noah built his altar when he left the ark, and this is the altar where Cain and Abel made their offerings. And so Adam the First made his offerings there after he was created. Indeed Adam was created from there, as the Rabbis said: "Adam was created from the place where he made his atonement". [Laws of the Temple 2:2]

            Zohar [2:24b] expands the Midrashic comment and specifies:

Rabbi Shimon (quotes that which) Rabbi Ḥizkiya stated: when the Holy One, blessed be He created Man, He created him from the dust of the earthly Temple, and gave him his soul from the dust of the heavenly Temple.

That is, Man’s body was created of the dust of the earthly Temple, while the source of his soul is the dust of the heavenly Temple.

            Rabbi Moshe Alshikh writes [commentary on Leviticus 1:3] that the altar “Is at the place of the gate of heaven - which is the point of connection between this world and the upper world.” Based upon Zohar’s comment, Man is the creature who combines within itself the heavenly and the earthly, thus it is only natural “that Man connect with the source from which he was detached,” and at this place to regain closeness to his Creator.”

            Alshikh further explains that our Sages chose their words carefully and exactly. They did not say “Man achieves atonement from the place of his creation,” rather “Man was created from the place of his atonement;” indicating that “From the inception, God’s intention was to create Man from earth which is conducive to attachment to the upper sanctity, in order to facilitate his approach to holiness,” and there to achieve atonement after he sinned. “Thus, it will not be foreign to Man to repent his sins, for the earth of which he was created is the point of connection to sanctity, and it is easy to reach holiness there.”

            Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch [commentary on Genesis 12:5] writes that the implication of Man’s creation from the dust of the site of the altar is that the place of Mankind’s birth is the very place where Man is continually renewed spiritually and morally.

Destination: Mount Moriah

The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land I will show you.”                                 Genesis 12:1

Netziv comments that the intention is not for Abram to reach the Land of Israel, “Since he already knew the Land’s qualities and yearned for her, as the verse has already stated: (Abram set out with his father Teraḥ ‘To go to the land of Canaan.’” [Genesis 11:31] Rather, the explanation of “The land I will show you” is that “Within that land, I will show you which direction to turn, as the verse states ‘To the land of Moriah.’” [Genesis 22:20]

Rabbi Menaḥem Kasher, in his work Torah Shleima, quotes the manuscript of Midrash Or haAfela, which states: “‘To the land I will show you’ refers to the land of Moriah.”

            Based upon the above, we understand that the purpose of Abram’s journey from his country, his relatives and his father’s house was specifically to reach Mount Moriah, and this was the Divine designation for this journey.

Indeed, eight verses after we read God’s call on Abram to go to the land which He will show him, the verse informs us that “Abram traveled, continually traveling southward.” Rashi comments: “All of Abram’s journeys were to the south of the Land of Israel, the direction of Jerusalem.”

It is not surprising that the Divine designation of our Father Abraham’s first journey is Mount Moriah. Mount Moriah includes the holiest spot in the world, the Foundation Stone, the site of the Holy of Holies and the place from which God commenced creation. [Mishna, Keilim 1:6; Babylonian Talmud, Yoma 54b] Maharal of Prague’s approach is that the sanctity of the Land derives from the fact that the Holy City, and in particular, the Temple Mount, the holiest place in the world, are located within her. Thus, in order to benefit from the Land’s sanctity, Abraham needed to reach its ultimate source: Mount Moriah.

            Thus, the destination of Abram’s journey was Mount Moriah.

The Paradigm of Jewish Land Purchase

And Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, accepted by the merchant.                                    Genesis 23:16

        The opening chapter of Parashat Ḥayye Sarah presents in detail the negotiations between Abraham and the sons of Heth for the purchase of the Machpela Cave, the first land purchase in Israel by a Jew, including the purchase price.

            When Jacob instructed his son Joseph to bury him in the Land of Israel, Jacob did not merely mention that the burial place must be the Machpela Cave, but added the information “This is the field Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site.” [Genesis 49:30] As well, the description of Joseph’s execution of his father’s request includes the information that the place was purchased by Abraham, with the name of the seller and the purchase price again stated explicitly:

They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.                             Genesis 50:3

            Similarly, we find the verse specifying the price paid for the parcel of land in Shechem purchased by Jacob:

He bought the section of the field where he pitched his tent from the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father, for one hundred qesitahs.                    Genesis 33:19

Here, as well, when the parcel of land is mentioned again (as the burial place of Joseph) the verse again specifically notes the purchase price and the seller’s name:

Joseph's bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the parcel of land Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father, for one hundred qesitahs .It was an inheritance for Joseph's descendants.     Joshua 24:32

            There is a third land purchase for which the Bible details the purchase price and the seller’s name: the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, which is the Temple Mount:

The king answered Araunah, "No, I insist on buying it from you for a fair price, for I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost (me) nothing." David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. II Samuel 24:24

            We may note that in King David’s purchase of the threshing floor of Araunah, as Abraham’s purchase of the Machpela Cave, the Jewish buyer refused to accept the land for free.

            Also concerning the purchase of the site which became the capital of the Kingdom of Israel during the reign of Omri, we read details of the seller and the purchase price:

He purchased the hill Samaria from Shemer for the price of two talents of silver, and he built a town on the hill, naming it Samaria, after Shemer the (previous) owner of the hill.                   I Kings 16:24

            Thus, our parasha presents the paradigm of Jewish land purchase in the Land of Israel.

            Rashi, in his first comment on Ḥumash, quotes the comment of Rabbi Yitzḥak (whose source is Midrash Tanḥuma), according to which the right of the Nation of Israel to its Land rests upon the Divine will to give us the Desired Land. However, we find a Midrash which states:

There are three places (in the Land) which the nations of the world cannot deceive Israel and claim they are stolen, and these are they: the Machpela Cave, the Temple and Joseph’s Tomb.          Breishit Rabba 79:7

That is, our rights to these three places rest upon their legal purchase by our fathers and our king.

            Clearly, there is no contradiction. Rabbi Yitzḥak’s words are addressed to the Nation of Israel internally. We must understand and appreciate that our claim to the Promised Land flows exclusively from God’s will that His nation be in His Land. However, we cannot expect the nations of the world to understand and accept this truth. Therefore, Breishit Rabba presents a claim to which the nations can relate: our rights stem from our ancestors’ purchases. It is for this reason that the Bible stresses the details of these purchases: the buyer the seller and the sale price. In essence, this information serves as the purchase deed which confirms our property rights.

            Ultimately, the comments of Rabbi Yitzḥak quoted by Rashi presents the basic condition for our property claims. It is perfectly obvious that if we, the Nation of Israel, do not understand and accept that the Land was given by God to us and only to us, the nations of the world will not accept our claim.

            This perhaps explains the irony of our current reality in Israel. In a sense the three most hotly contested areas of the country are those “Which the nations cannot claim are stolen by Israel” My rabbi, Rabbi Yaakov Wahrhaftig, explained that the intent of the Midrash is that if the Nation of Israel fully understood the truth that these three places belong to us exclusively, no one could have the audacity to claim otherwise. Since this is not the case, we ourselves have given the nations the possibility of claiming we have stolen the Land.

This Dvar Torah is based upon a lesson of Rabbi Amnon Bazak.