Menachem Mirski
Thoughts on Parashat Bamidbar
We perform mitzvot and do many things to achieve certain goals. We do them because they are meaningful, because they improve our life and the life of others; we expect the desirable outcomes to happen; among positive outcomes of our actions there are things we perceive as ‘rewards’, ‘changes we want to happen’ etc. Some of those expected outcomes can be considered miracles, depending on their likelihood within the state of matters at the moment we wish something to happen, something to become real.
The beginning of Bamidbar – The Book of Numbers – contains, not surprisingly, a lot of numbers, including a very detailed census of the tribes of Israel. This matter troubled the rabbis, who asked many questions, including why the census the Torah presents is so detailed? The answer given by Rashbam, a medieval Bible commentator, boils down to the following idea: this census was of a military nature in order to determine the forces at Moses’ disposal and organize them for battle. This answer posed another question, of a strictly theological nature: why didn’t God simply expel other nations in a miraculous way and did not create an empty space in the Promised Land for the Israelites to simply get in there peacefully? One of the answers to this question is given by Nachmanides and tells us that we must not rely on miracles and always properly prepare for meeting the enemy (or encountering a challenging situation of another kind).
At this point we can rightly ask another question: what does it mean ‘not to rely on miracles’? Does it mean that we should never expect any divine action performed for us? What kind of expectations are we allowed to have?
The phrase ‘not to rely on miracles’ is typically understood as “to take matters in our own hands”. Even though we are allowed to believe that God can make unlikely but desired things happen we are still required to make our own effort – God wants us to make the effort. Not because He needs it, but because we need it, because our actions create a change, both within us and around us.
There is a story In the Talmud, where a scoffer tells Rabbi Akiva: “You shouldn’t be helping poor people, because it was God who made them poor, and by helping them you’re going against God’s plan!”. Rabbi Akiva answered: “God made poor people precisely in order that we should help them. Helping others is what God wants us to do.” There is also a well-known story about a man who lived by a river. A policeman warned him to evacuate because of a flood warning. The man rejected the offer, saying, “I have perfect trust that the Almighty will save me.” As the water rises, a rescue boat offers to take him to safety. The man reaffirms his trust in God and refuses the ride. Finally, the man is sitting on his roof and a helicopter comes to rescue him. Again the man proclaims his trust and refuses the rescue. The water rises and the man drowns. As he is brought in judgment before the Eternal, the man says, “God, I had perfect trust in you – how could you let me down?” The Eternal replies then, “Listen, my son, I sent you a policeman, a boat and a helicopter!”
While this story is amusing, it contains some deep truth. The phrase ‘not to rely on miracles’ means not only “to take matters in our own hands”; it also means things that go beyond that – it means to be vigilant and to see the world and the unfolding events as meaningful, purposeful and as parts of a divine plan. Only then will we be able to distinguish between things we may expect to happen and those we shouldn’t (because they are, for example, incoherent with what we see as the Divine plan). Only then will we be able to fully live, act and thrive in partnership with the Eternal who prefers to remain somewhat hidden, in order to preserve our quest to find Him.
Shabbat shalom!
Menachem Mirski
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