Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
Parshat Balak ends with the devastating effects of Bnei Yisroel's having succumbed to the scheme Midyan and Moav had devised. They would lure the Israelite men into depraved liaisons and idolatry, Midyanite women joining with the Moavite women in this ruse. Pinchas rose up, avenged Hashem's honor, killed the leading Moavite and Israeli ringleaders, and thus stopped the plague that Hashem had inflicted on the nation.
Parshat Pinchas now begins with Hashem's rewarding Pinchas by gifting him with an eternal covenant of peace and of priesthood. Then Hashem gives further instructions: "צרור/Harass the Midyanites and smite them; for they harassed you through their conspiracy and they conspired against you על דבר פעור/in the matter of Peor..." Rashi explains that we have two imperatives here. First, Hashem is instructing Bnei Yisroel through Moshe to first enter an immediate and continuous state of mind to abhor/harass the Midyanites specifically for the דבר/matter/word of Peor, and then to actually enter into battle with them. The battle itself takes place in the next parshah, and Pinchas is to lead the battle, carrying the holy vessels and the trumpets.
Several questions arise from this episode. First, why are we commanded to hate and harass the Midyanites, not just destroy them as we must destroy Amalek, for example, notes the Ner Uziel? Why not include the war with Midyan immediately after the command instead of in the next parshah? Why was it crucial for Pinchas to lead the battle? Finally, why does the Torah use the puzzling phrase - דבר/matter/word - to describe the incident?
Rabbi Uziel Milevsky zt”l provides an answer to our fist question. Our other enemies, including Amalek, challenged us with open enmity. In contrast, Midyan attacked us under the guise of friendship, hoping to destroy us by our own misdeeds. Therefore, we are commanded to hate them, to be disgusted with everything about them, to distance ourselves from them in every way.
In Sifsei Daas, he quotes the Sefat Emet takes a different approach to our question. He notes that all our previous salvations and victories were completely executed from Above, without any active participation on the part of Bnei Yisroel. But now, Bnei Yisroel were soon to enter their own land where it would be necessary for them to take on responsibility and being actively involved in their existence and their daily lives. Only when Bnei Yisroel becomes angry at Midyan and at similar enemies will Hashem's anger be aroused, and He will join the Nation and fight for them.
But what is it that we need to hate, and what is it that Midyan represents? After all, while both Midyan and Moav were responsible for the downfall of Bnei Yisroel, we are told to hate only Midyan, not Moav. Rabbi Sternbach explains the difference between the motivating factors of Midyan and Moav. While Moav was understandably afraid of attack and was acting in its own interest, Midyan had no reason to attack Bnei Yisroel. Midyan characterized the embodiment of evil, the desire to cause harm and destroy for no reason other than the love of destruction.
In his Shabbat Shiurim, Rabbi Miller zt”l adds another dimension to the evil that is Midyan. First, while other enemies tried to destroy us physically, Midyan attacked us spiritually, in the pure soul that connects us to Hashem. Further, Rabbi Miller, citing Rabbi Leib Chasman zt”l, reminds us that one who leads another to sin is much worse than the sinner himself, worse than murderer. We are all human, and, as such anyone may succumb to the lures of the evil inclination. When he has fallen, he can do teshuvah and return to his original, pure state. But he who causes others to sin has not succumbed to any temptation. He simply desires to create evil in the world and revolt against God. He personally gains nothing from the sin; he is corruption personified. And this is the evil that Midyan represented.
Contrast Midyan's motivation and actions to those of Pinchas, continues Rabbi Miller. Pinchas, with nothing to gain, [in fact, he put himself in mortal danger, CKS], acted completely for the sanctity of Hashem's name. As such, he is the perfect foil to Midyan's aggression, and the right person to lead the charge against Midyan.
Rabbi Beyfus, Citing Rabbi Salant zt”l, expands our definition of מחטיא to include not only one who actively promotes sinning behavior, but also to anyone who has the ability but does not step up to stop this behavior. This definition applies to all members of society, from family and friends to the community at large. [It is this communal responsibility that is at the heart of the law of עגלה ערופה, communal responsibility for finding a dead body in no man's land between two cities.] It is our problem to attempt to rectify sin and improper behavior with projects and outreach.
There is yet another lesson for all of us. We tend to think that working on perfecting character, on uprooting negative traits and strengthening positive traits, is limited to the righteous of Bnei Yisroel. In Chochmat Hamatzpun, Rabbi Egbi, citing Rabbi Yechezkel Levenstein zt”l, points us that this work is for everyone. As we see, even Midyan is being held accountable for the evil embedded in their character. If they are being held responsible, certainly we will be held responsible for our own character.
And what was the underlying characteristic that drove Midyan to join with Moav in entrapping Bnei Yisroel? R. Levenstein attributes the source of Midyanite evil to jealousy, as explained by the Ramchal zt”l. A jealous person gains nothing, yet unconsciously seeks to deprive another of his good fortune, feeling he himself should have what the other has. The way to counter jealousy is to develop an ayin tovah/a good, benevolent eye to appreciate his own blessings and be happy for the good fortune of others.
The model of this behavior is Moshe Rabbenu. Moshe had hoped his sons would inherit the leadership of Bnei Yisroel after his death. Yet, when Hashem told him to anoint Yehoshua in his stead and place his hand on Yehoshua as a sign of passing the mantle, Moshe went beyond Hashem's command and placed both his hands on Yehoshua, signaling his wholehearted acceptance and joy at Hashem's choice. The only way to acquire this benevolent eye is through a firm belief in Hashem, that Hashem has given each of us, including me, everything I need to fulfill my life's mission. Therefore, if I am jealous of another, I must include that person's entire "package," including all his challenges, not just his gifts.
The best example of the evil eyed person is Haman. As Megillat Esther quotes him, Haman admits he has great wealth, a large family, tremendous honor -- in short, he has many blessings. Yet, for him it is not enough. Haman declares, "וכל זה איננו שווה לי/all this is all meaningless to me" as long as Mordechai doesn't bow to me. If we look at the final letters of this declaration, we notice the four lettered name of Hashem, found in the end letters backwards. This symbolizes the month of Tammuz which is filled with judgment.
Further, continues Mesillot Bilvovom, each month is designated to work on anther character trait. The month of Tamuz [which is our current month] is designated as a time to work on our sight and vision, a time to see the positive and refrain from seeing that which is inappropriate. This is a challenge we face daily in our society, especially during the summer.
The verse in Proverbs 22:9 states, "One with a good eye will be blessed." Rabbi Matisyahu Salomon zt”l explains that man is the conduit for blessings. If he allows the blessings to flow freely, both he and others will be blessed. If he puts a stopper in the pipeline, hoping to divert the flow to himself, the entire pipeline is clogged and no blessings flow down. The one with a generous eye will keep the pipeline open so that there is a continuous flow of blessings both to himself and to others.
This positive mindset needs to be present even when we give tzedakah, both before we help the other with an open heart and open hand, and after having extended ourselves to him. Chazal make this point as the reason the second Beit Hamikdosh was destroyed: Although the generation was full of Torah study and gemillat chesed/acts of kindness, the Temple was destroyed due to baseless hatred. This statement seems to contradict itself. Rabbi Salomon explains that while the people went through the pious motions, the feelings of love and camaraderie with their fellow Jews the actions were meant to generate were missing.
Just as odious as their evil eye, Midyan also represented complete moral depravity and impurity. The Netivot Shalom explains that when Bnei Yisroel is totally connected to Hashem, they cannot be destroyed. Bilaam understood that the only way to be victorious over Bnei Yisroel was to create a wedge between Bnei Yisroel and Hakodosh Boruch Hu. Since Hashem abhors promiscuity, Bilaam's plan was to defile Bnei Yisroel by immersing them in promiscuity and idol worship, thus creating a breakdown in the sanctity of the nation and in their connection to Hashem.
The Tosher Rebbe zt”l, notes that is found with the role of Pinchas, the harbinger of peace and moral purity as he is present at every circumcision in his incarnation as Eliyahu Hanavi. His presence infuses the infant with the sense of sanctity and connection to Hashem.
While the war with Midyan will be recorded in the next parshah, the core of the sin is presented here. Here we are given the basis for destroying everything related to Midyan, even their fruit bearing trees, for we can have no connection to the evil and the immorality that Midyan represents, we need to train ourselves, as the Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh zt”l teaches, to hate everything about them and to know that nothing good can come from them.
And Pinchas was the perfect vehicle to teach Bnei Yisroel the attitude of hatred toward the Midyanites. Rav Dovid Hofstedter notes that Pinchas was a descendant of Yosef whom the Midyanites sold to Egypt as a slave, to mock him and destroy the greatness they saw in him. On the other hand, he was also descended from a daughter of Yisro, the Midyanite priest. Being able to overcome a natural inclination to connect with his Midyanite ancestry to avenge Yosef would provide a perfect model for Bnei Yisroel to abhor all that Midyan represented.
This also explains why the laws of koshering and immersing utensils in a mikvah appears here, so that we understand that we are to remove all semblance of impurity from anything that may have come from an impure source among the nations.
In order for us to be effective in destroying a nation and its influence on us, writes Be'er Chaim, we must fight it with its opposite. We must first hate the corruption they are trying to foist upon us, and then uproot its influence from within us completely. For example, Pharaoh questioned, "Who is Hashem...?" He was trying to destroy our faith. Our response appears after the splitting of the Sea, "...And [Bnei Yisroel] believed in Hashem and in Moshe His servant."
The effect of being in the midst of impurity is so subtle that it often goes undetected. After the victory over Midyan, the tzadikim brought a sin offering, for they realized that even though they had not actually sinned, impure thoughts had invaded their minds. We are in danger, and we must pray to leave this exile of a world steeped in depravity and return to our holy land. Test yourself. If you are impatient to leave Shabbat, your connection to Hakodosh Boruch Hu is already weakened.
Rabbi Schorr reminds us of the importance of words. Our speech can be uplifting or corrupt and depraved. Therefore the Torah warns us to hate דבר פעור, even the words associated with Peor.
The Midyanites introduced into our psyche the feelings of discontent and disharmony, writes Rabbi Miller. We stopped seeing our proper place in this world and in the next. It is this sense of malcontent that keeps a man from appreciating the profession he has chosen, that blurs his vision to what Hashem has given him, and makes him long for that which God has not seen as fit for him. This is what Midyan introduced, and this is what we must hate and uproot from our hearts and minds. Only through distance from the impure can we maintain our sanctity as God's nation of priests to the world.