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A Nation Under Attack
Klal Yisrael (The Jewish nation) is a nation that excels in high moral standards and a deep commitment to holiness. Yet the evil Midianites did whatever they could to infiltrate us, breaking through the strong barriers that we were so particular to set in place. They shamelessly exploited the daughters of their great leaders in order to entice the Jews to sin. Consequently, thousands of Jews were led astray and were incited to commit such grave sins, resulting in a devastating plague in which 24,000 people perished.
To seek revenge against the evil Midianites for the tremendous harm they caused, Hashem (God) instructed Moshe (Moses) to wage war against them (Bamidbar 31:2).
Why Didn’t Moshe Lead the Battle?
Interestingly, Pinchas (Phinehas) led the Jews in battle, not Moshe, even though Hashem had explicitly commanded Moshe to go out to war. Why, then, did Moshe not lead the battle himself?
Moshe’s Remarkable Sense of Gratitude
The Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah 22:4) explains that Moshe did not want to personally lead the Jews in battle against Midian because he felt gratitude toward Midian for hosting him when he fled from Egypt over sixty years earlier.
This is truly astonishing! Midian hated the Jews so intensely and attempted to destroy us. After repeatedly trying to curse us, they incited the Jews to engage in idol worship and forbidden relationships, causing thousands to perish. Yet Moshe still felt an obligation of gratitude toward them and therefore could not personally lead the Jews in battle.
After all, many years earlier, Midian had provided him with a safe haven when he escaped from Egypt.
Did Moshe Fulfill Hashem’s Command?
However, this still seems puzzling. Hashem had directly commanded Moshe to wage war against Midian. How could he not fulfill this command, even though his sense of gratitude indicated otherwise?
Just as we have various methods of interpreting the Torah, such as a kal vachomer (“If this applies to x, how much more so can we apply that to y…”) or a gezeirah shavah (similar verdicts based off identical verbiage in different verses), so too Moshe used his profound understanding to determine what the true fulfillment of Hashem’s command required.
A Lesson in Lasting Gratitude
We learn from Moshe a profound lesson about the extent of our obligation of gratitude. No matter how much someone harms us, it does not erase the gratitude we owe for the good that they once did for us.
(Rabbi Chaim Shmuelevitz, Sichot Mussar, Beha’alotecha)
By Rabbi Daniel Shasha, author of “Living Appreciation”
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