Then Amalek came and
fought with Israel at Rephidim.
Exodus 17:8
The battle against Amalek, described at the end of Parashat Beshalaḥ, was the first the nation of Israel was forced to fight.
Often, the first occurrence of an event serves as the prototype for repetitions of that event, and indeed, there are practical and contemporary lessons of the battle against Amalek.
Moses appointed his closest disciple, Joshua as the military commander; the greatest student of the pre-eminent rabbi of all generations was not instructed to cloister himself in the study hall, but to lead the Israelite warriors into battle. Beyond this, Rashi [commentary on 17:12], quoting Mechilta, notes that it was Moses himself who should have led the Israelite army into battle! Because Israel’s faithful shepherd was lax in performing the mitzva, his hands became heavy. According to this, rather than delegating the task of leadership in the battle to his student, Moses himself, the gadol hador, the greatest of his generation (and all generations) should have gone out to fight against Amalek.
Moses instructed Joshua to “choose men for us,” [Exodus 17:9] which the first-century sage Rabbi Yehoshua understood to mean “choose brave men who fear sinning.” [Lekaḥ Tov, Exodus 17:9] Yonatan ben Uziel translates “men who are brave and strong in fulfillment of mitzvot.” Alshikh (16th century) comments that our verse refers to righteous men. The ideal Israelite/Jewish fighter combines bravery and righteousness.
The mitzva in whose performance Moses was “lax” is fighting Amalek, which is defined as a mandatory war (milḥemet mitzva), as Maimonides writes in Sefer haMitzvot [Positive Mitzva 188]. Yet, even if fighting Amalek were not a specific mitzva, Israel’s first battle would still have been a milḥemet mitzva, as Maimonides codifies the definition of a mandatory war to include “a war fought to save Israel from an oppressor who attacks them.” [Laws of Kings and Their Wars 5:1] Without question, the wars and battles the I.D.F. has been and is forced to fight are subsumed in Maimonides’ definition of milḥemet mitzva.
Though Moses did not join the battle, he did participate actively by ascending to the top of a hill with Aaron and Hur, raising his hand so that “It came to pass that when Moses raised his hand, Israel would prevail, and when he would lower his hand, Amalek would prevail.” [17:11] Our Sages [Mishna, Rosh haShana 3:8] note that Moses’ hand did not have the power to determine the outcome of the battle, rather ”As long as Israel turned their eyes upward and subjugated their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they prevailed, and if not they fell.” In essence, not only Moses did his part in the battle, but all of Israel participated, some in actual battle, others in prayer. Pirkei d’Rebbi Eliezer describes: “The Israelites went out of their tents and saw Moses kneeling and bowing on his knees, and they knelt and bowed on their knees; they saw him fall on his face, and they fell on their faces; they saw him raise his hands to heaven and they raised their hands to heaven.” Mechilta d’Rebbi Shimon bar Yoḥai [17:12] adds that the entire congregation fasted throughout the day of battle, teaching that even civilians on the home front have an important role in determining the outcome of the campaign on the field of battle.
The inescapable conclusion and perhaps the essential lesson of the Israelites’ first battle is that physical strength is not sufficient to provide victory. The spiritual dimension, awareness of God’s protection of His people, must be added to the army’s physical prowess in order to achieve victory. In my father’s words, ultimately, it is the partnership between man and God which allows victory. The second indispensible requirement for Israel’s victory is national unity.
Indeed, our Sages understood the name of the battleground “Rephidim” to mean “laxness of hands (rifyun yadayim) – the Israelites’ hands were lax in fulfilling Torah” [Tanḥuma, Beshalaḥ 25]; hinting at the necessity of the spiritual component necessary for Israel’s victory. Kli Yakar adds that the name also implies internal disunity (pirud - detachment) within Israel, and explains that the detachment from God prevented the Israelites being saved by a miracle, while the internal disunity prevented the natural salvation of the individual coming to the aid of his comrade, since they were detached from each other. Indeed, until this day, the two keys to Israel’s victory are loyalty to God’s word and national unity. Thus, the name of the battleground conveys hints of each of the necessary components for Israel’s victory in battle.
Exodus 17:8
The battle against Amalek, described at the end of Parashat Beshalaḥ, was the first the nation of Israel was forced to fight.
Often, the first occurrence of an event serves as the prototype for repetitions of that event, and indeed, there are practical and contemporary lessons of the battle against Amalek.
Moses appointed his closest disciple, Joshua as the military commander; the greatest student of the pre-eminent rabbi of all generations was not instructed to cloister himself in the study hall, but to lead the Israelite warriors into battle. Beyond this, Rashi [commentary on 17:12], quoting Mechilta, notes that it was Moses himself who should have led the Israelite army into battle! Because Israel’s faithful shepherd was lax in performing the mitzva, his hands became heavy. According to this, rather than delegating the task of leadership in the battle to his student, Moses himself, the gadol hador, the greatest of his generation (and all generations) should have gone out to fight against Amalek.
Moses instructed Joshua to “choose men for us,” [Exodus 17:9] which the first-century sage Rabbi Yehoshua understood to mean “choose brave men who fear sinning.” [Lekaḥ Tov, Exodus 17:9] Yonatan ben Uziel translates “men who are brave and strong in fulfillment of mitzvot.” Alshikh (16th century) comments that our verse refers to righteous men. The ideal Israelite/Jewish fighter combines bravery and righteousness.
The mitzva in whose performance Moses was “lax” is fighting Amalek, which is defined as a mandatory war (milḥemet mitzva), as Maimonides writes in Sefer haMitzvot [Positive Mitzva 188]. Yet, even if fighting Amalek were not a specific mitzva, Israel’s first battle would still have been a milḥemet mitzva, as Maimonides codifies the definition of a mandatory war to include “a war fought to save Israel from an oppressor who attacks them.” [Laws of Kings and Their Wars 5:1] Without question, the wars and battles the I.D.F. has been and is forced to fight are subsumed in Maimonides’ definition of milḥemet mitzva.
Though Moses did not join the battle, he did participate actively by ascending to the top of a hill with Aaron and Hur, raising his hand so that “It came to pass that when Moses raised his hand, Israel would prevail, and when he would lower his hand, Amalek would prevail.” [17:11] Our Sages [Mishna, Rosh haShana 3:8] note that Moses’ hand did not have the power to determine the outcome of the battle, rather ”As long as Israel turned their eyes upward and subjugated their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they prevailed, and if not they fell.” In essence, not only Moses did his part in the battle, but all of Israel participated, some in actual battle, others in prayer. Pirkei d’Rebbi Eliezer describes: “The Israelites went out of their tents and saw Moses kneeling and bowing on his knees, and they knelt and bowed on their knees; they saw him fall on his face, and they fell on their faces; they saw him raise his hands to heaven and they raised their hands to heaven.” Mechilta d’Rebbi Shimon bar Yoḥai [17:12] adds that the entire congregation fasted throughout the day of battle, teaching that even civilians on the home front have an important role in determining the outcome of the campaign on the field of battle.
The inescapable conclusion and perhaps the essential lesson of the Israelites’ first battle is that physical strength is not sufficient to provide victory. The spiritual dimension, awareness of God’s protection of His people, must be added to the army’s physical prowess in order to achieve victory. In my father’s words, ultimately, it is the partnership between man and God which allows victory. The second indispensible requirement for Israel’s victory is national unity.
Indeed, our Sages understood the name of the battleground “Rephidim” to mean “laxness of hands (rifyun yadayim) – the Israelites’ hands were lax in fulfilling Torah” [Tanḥuma, Beshalaḥ 25]; hinting at the necessity of the spiritual component necessary for Israel’s victory. Kli Yakar adds that the name also implies internal disunity (pirud - detachment) within Israel, and explains that the detachment from God prevented the Israelites being saved by a miracle, while the internal disunity prevented the natural salvation of the individual coming to the aid of his comrade, since they were detached from each other. Indeed, until this day, the two keys to Israel’s victory are loyalty to God’s word and national unity. Thus, the name of the battleground conveys hints of each of the necessary components for Israel’s victory in battle.
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