Matot- Masei

Parashat Matot-Massei 5783

The disparaging remarks of the Midrash in relation to Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven
The Midrash in Parashat Matot brings the passuk from Mishlei: “The heart of the wise man is to his right and the heart of the fool is to his left.” The Midrash makes the following contrast: “The heart of the wise man is to his right – alludes to Moshe, The heart of the fool is to his left –alludes to the Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven who made the primary, insignificant and the insignificant, primary. They cherished their property more than their families for they told Moshe (in this order ‘We will build pens for our sheep and towns for our young ones.’ Moshe told them ‘Unacceptable. Relate to the primary as primary. First build towns for your young ones and only afterwards pens for your sheep. So we find:  The heart of the wise man is to his right – alludes to Moshe, The heart of the fool is to his left –alludes to the Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven.
We must try to understand the words of the Midrash. Why do we berate the Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven; after Moshe pointed out their mistake they accepted the criticism totally and said they will do as Moshe said, and they did!

How Hashem related to the request of Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven?
The Midrash continues to say that Hashem also chastised Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven for giving priority to the sheep; Hashem said to them: “You cherished your sheep more than your families, I vow that you shall not find blessing in them.” Regarding them (Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven) it is written “An inheritance may be acquired hastily in the beginning, but its end will not be blessed.” Similarly it is written, “Do not weary yourself to grow rich; cease from your own understanding.” Who is the true wealthy man? He who is satisfied with his lot as it is written “If you eat the toil of your hands, you are praiseworthy, and it is good for you.” 
The words of the Midrash are difficult to understand. Why did Hashem tell them that they will not find blessing in their sheep since they prioritized them? They regretted this act after Moshe pointed it out to them, accepted their mistake and reversed it.
Baal HaTurim adds: Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven are mentioned eight times in this passage. This is alluded to in the passuk “An inheritance may be acquired hastily in the beginning, but its end will not be blessed.” The word used for “hastily” is “mevuhelet”. In this passuk the letter Heh in the word mevuhelet is substituted by the letter Chet (whose numerical value is eight), to allude to the eight times they are mentioned in regarding them taking their inheritance in advance; “but its end will not be blessed” corresponding to the fact that they were exiled eight years before the rest of the nation.

A deeper understanding of the dialogue

We can give a different explanation in the dialogue between Moshe and Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven. Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven told Moshe that they had been blessed from Hashem with huge flocks of livestock. They are standing on the threshold of Eretz Yisrael poised to enter. As we know, at the time of Creation “Sparks of Holiness” were scattered throughout the world. From that point forward it is our duty to “collect” these sparks, to find these sparks within the physical world and “return them” to their place. This can be done by utilizing the object in the world for their true lofty purpose; for the service of Hashem.
Rav Dessler applies this idea to this episode. Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven were claiming that if Hashem had given them such a great abundance of livestock, clearly they were also given a “great abundance” of tools in order to find the “sparks” within them. It seemed to them that the greatest way for them to “collect the sparks” would be to become the suppliers of all the animals needed for korbanot in the Beit Hamikdash. Such a large number of animals were needed for all the communal offerings and all the private offerings. Korban Pesach alone required many hundreds of thousands of sheep. Where were Bnei Yisrael supposed to find all these animals?
Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven said that they were willing to undertake the responsibility to supply all the animals for the korbanot. However, in order for them to do so, they would have to live outside the borders of Eretz Yisrael, for the Chachamim forbade raising sheep in Eretz Yisrael. Sheep are apt to graze on private property which amounts to theft that the owner is liable for. Surely, when talking about a “great abundance” of sheep it would be virtually impossible to raise them in Eretz Yisrael. How was one to control such a massive flock and prevent them from theft? Their dream to become the suppliers of the animals for the Beit Hamikdash required them to live outside the borders of Eretz Yisrael.

It was implicit in Moshe’s response that he objected to this reasoning, being that the land of Sichon and Og was so distant from Yerushalayim where the Beit Hamikdash would stand. Yerushalayim was the spiritual  center of Am Yisrael; the home of the Sanhedrin, of the Beit Hamikdash, the gathering place for the festivals. The centers of Torah and Halacha was Yerushalayim, it was the source from which the Torah emanated. The other side of the Yarden was distant from Yerushalayim; Moshe did not see living there as a proper way to actualize the dream of becoming the suppliers of animals for the korbanot, and tried to convince them to change their mind. In addition, he suspected that it was a ruse to avoid joining forces with the rest of Bnei Yisrael in the coming wars of conquest of Eretz Yisrael. He therefore chastised them and compared them to the Meraglim – the spies, who sinned due to a lack of love for Eretz Yisrael.

The mistake of Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven was similar to that of the Meraglim
On deeper analysis, we find a parallel between the mistake of the Meraglim and that of Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven. The Meraglim were swayed by a thought that in essence it is better for them to serve Hashem in the desert than it will be in Eretz Yisrael. In the desert, all their physical needs were cared for miraculously. They received the   most wondrous food and water , their clothing was kept clean and perfect, their health was guaranteed. They were convinced that in this situation where they had no need to worry about their physical needs nor to expend time and energy attaining them they could better serve Hashem. 
Moshe told the Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven that they were acting like the Meraglim. Hashem was displeased with their request. He revealed to them that the essence of reasoning of the Meraglim was flawed; it stemmed from an opinion that they themselves should decide what is best for their spiritual growth. It is imperative to understand that whichever situation Hashem put them in is truly what is best for their progress. The mistake of the Meraglim had a tragic outcome which led to their death and that of the entire generation. Moshe wanted them to realize that they too were following a similar path. They were trying to self-determine what situation they need for their spiritual growth instead of relying on Hashem’s determination. 

If so, even after they rectified the prominence of the families over the sheep, they still were mistaken as to their mission in life. They still believed that they were responsible for providing animals to the Beit Hamikdash; to which Moshe replied that this does not justify distancing themselves from the epicenter of the holiness of Klal Yisrael – Yerushalaim. This decision could have grave consequences on the future growth and education of their children. 
This mistake they never rectified. They didn’t realize the depths of having made the primary, insignificant and the insignificant, primary. Therefore, they were still likened to the hasty mevuhelet, and were exiled before the rest of the nation. 

 May we always merit cleaving to the Torah, and to realize our true mission, never to confuse the primary with the insignificant. 

Shabbat Shalom .

Rabbi Gad Bouskila