פרשת יתרו ומתן תורה
In this week’s Parsha, the Jewish people realize their purpose in leaving Egypt, and indeed, the purpose for the entire creation, by receiving the Torah at Har Sinai. In the verse which precedes that monumental occasion says, God says to the Jewish people, “And you will be for me a special nation, because the entire earth belongs to Me”. The Seforno explains this cryptic verse by saying that the Jewish people are unique in that God loves every inhabitant of this earth as they are His personal creations. However, the Jewish people are especially dear to Him, because they are the “chosen nation”. The Seforno elaborates that this can be seen clearly by the next verse in which God says, “And you will be for me a nation of royal priests, and a holy people”. Rashi comments on the words “Royal priests” that the Jews would be rulers.
This Rashi and the Seforno seem a bit strange. Generally, the idea of control or the ability to subjugate other nations are not considered admirable traits for the Jewish people. Why then would this trait be mentioned right before the Jewish people received the Torah, implying that this was in fact the reason why they were receiving it? Furthermore, the Rambam says at the end of the laws of kings, that the Jewish people do not yearn for their final redemption so that they can rule over the nations of the world, but rather they look forward to a time in which they are not being persecuted so that they can study the Torah and increase their wisdom in peace and happiness. If so, how can we justify Rashi saying that the trait of the Jewish people which allowed them to receive the Torah was this very trait of monarchy?
R’ Gedalya Sher explains beautifully that Rashi is not referring to the Jews’ ability to control other nations, but rather their ability to control themselves. This aptitude which the Jewish people displayed of being able to keep their own passions at bay was exactly the factor which earned them the right to receive the Torah and become the “chosen nation”. The Sefer Hakuzari records a discussion in which the king asked that Rabbi how he would describe a righteous person. The Rabbi responded by describing a parable of a king who rules wisely and with a strong hand, and whatever he decrees is revered by his subjects and upheld perfectly. The king retorted that he had asked the Rabbi to describe a righteous person, and instead that Rabbi painted a portrait of a successful ruler. The Rabbi explained that this was exactly correct. Only when a person has perfect control over his limbs, his heart, and his mind can he be a righteous person. Otherwise, there is pandemonium as each limb fights for its own pleasures to be fulfilled and there can be no unity between them, much the same way that rivaling townships in a kingdom make the entire area uninhabitable.
We find that Avraham Avinu was successful in subjugating all 243 out of 248 of his limbs at first, and afterward Hashem helped him with the other five limbs which are nearly impossible for a human being to control on his own. The R”N explains what it means to be able to have mastery over one’s limbs. He says that only when a person can curb his desires in order to do what is right, can he claim to have full control over his limbs as opposed to his limbs having control over him. Truthfully, this point is self-evident. Only a person whose body parts work in tandem can achieve inner peace. Otherwise, he is constantly being pulled in different directions, and his diverse whims will never allow him to feel tranquility, because they will always be at war with each other. This is what the verse means, “Desire desires diversity”. On the other hand, a person who has one single minded goal – to serve his Creator – makes sure that any foreign craving which he has which is not in line with that service, be quashed immediately, and all his components work together harmoniously to bring about his one true goal, making for a very peaceful existence indeed.
The verse that we quoted above said that the Jewish people are meant to be a nation of royal priests and a holy people. Up until this point, R’ Gedalya has explained what it means to be royalty, namely, to be in complete control of oneself. However, the second half of the verse is referring to perhaps an even loftier level – that of holiness. R’ Gedalya explains that it is one thing to stay away from that which a person knows is against the will of his creator, but holiness refers to the state of not even coming close to anything which could lead a person away from God. This is also the level that the Jews must reach in order to be worthy of the Torah.
The verse which describes holiness instructs us, “And you will be holy, because I am Holy”.In other words, just as Hashem, to the extent that we can comprehend His actions, does only good, and has not even a thought or desire which is evil,we,the Jewish people are commanded to emulate Him in this way.We are meant to get to such a state in which not only do we not do evil, but the thought of performing any action which is not perfectly in line with the will of our Creator is completely foreign to us. Although this may seem like a very lofty level to reach, each and every Jew has the ability to do so by constantly improving our actions and our thoughts,and by meticulous Mitzvah observance.
R’ Gedalya concludes his majestic portrait of what the Jews looked like when they received the Torah, and indeed, the state that we are meant to achieve, by quoting the Mishna in Avos (6). The Mishna says that one of the positive qualities of the Torah is that it “lifts a person above his actions”. He explains this cryptic phrase by saying that the Torah causes a person to reach a stage in which he no longer desires the pleasures of this world, but rather has a sole desire to do the will of his Creator and draw close to Him. We find that the Torah was given with fire and water. He explains that the purpose of the water is to purify one’s thoughts and his actions, like a Mikveh, and the metaphor of fire symbolizes the ability to form new objects. Just as fire can be used to mold and reform very hard objects, so to the Torah can take a person and transform him completely into a state of complete holiness in which he becomes as similar to God as a human being can on this earth.
May we all merit to become a nation of priests and a holy people!