by Rabbi Avi Billet
With over
half a dozen terror attacks in Israel over the last couple of weeks, as we mark
the one-year anniversary of Operation Protective Edge (Tzok Eitan), and as the
BDS movement seems to continue to grow it is normal for our people to
experience any number of reactions ranging from anger, sadness and mourning,
disappointment, remorse, and even, on the opposite spectrum, hope for a
brighter future.
Any student
of modern history knows that since the fall of the Ottoman
Empire after World War I, the people in (first Palestine , now) Israel have had a tenuous
existence. Jews moved there to avoid oppression or to fulfill their Zionist
dream of returning to Zion .
Some were able to live in peace with Arab neighbors, while others had to defend
themselves from aggressive Arabs.
That
economic conditions changed for the better and mortality rates fell in Arab areas
neighbored by Jews was a sure sign of the positive impact the early “chalutzim”
(pioneers) had in their reinvigorating Palestinian soil and previously
uncultivated lands, and of course, the role Israel has had in raising the
average Arab lifespan. I just read that there is an obesity problem in Gaza. So
much for starving and imprisoning Gazans.
This is why
Parshat Balak is so fascinating. Nothing that takes place now is new, and the
Torah shows parallel symptoms to today in events that took place long ago.
The ruler
of a desert people was concerned about the Israelite nation. He did not know
anything about them, other than that they were looking to reach the Promised
Land of Canaan and had wreaked havoc against Sihon and the Emorites (21:21-35),
a people who chose to attack the Jews rather than let them cross peacefully
through their territory without stopping for food or drink (21:22). [It’s not
likely that Sihon chose to fight because Israel would not give the Emorites
business at their tourist traps.]
Out of
concern for what the Israelites “might do” (and this, only if provoked), Balak
decided to hire a mercenary to destroy the nation of Israel from a distance, without
even hinting at an attempt of diplomacy. Simply put, he could not entertain the
notion that this nation had a right to exist. Their history in the land of
Canaan, and their descent to Egypt which resulted in hundreds of years of exile,
was conveniently forgotten.
Only one
person in Parshat Balak understood there was more to the unfolding events than
met the eye. That person was Bilaam.
As much as
he personally agreed with Balak, he knew this was a special nation who had God
on their side. He knew his powers could only extend as far as God would allow
them to extend. As a result, he authored what are arguably the most poetic
statements ever said by an outsider about the Jewish people – many of which
remain true to this day. Here are some snippets:
“[
23:7]How
can I curse, God has not cursed… It is a nation that will dwell in solitude and
not be reckoned by other nations. Who has counted the dust of Jacob… May my
soul die the death of the upright, and may my end be like his… [23:20 ] God has blessed and I shall
not contradict it. He perceived no iniquity in Jacob and saw no perversity in Israel . God is
with him and the friendship of the King is in him… The people will arise like a
lion cub and raise itself like a lion; it will not lie down until it consumes
its prey… [24:5] How goodly are your tents Jacob, your dwelling places, Israel,
stretching out like brooks, like gardens by a river… water shall flow from his
wells and his seed shall be by abundant waters… Those who bless you are blessed
and those who curse you are cursed.”
A Jew can
point at Bilaam’s words with pride. Here is a gentile prophet looking to wreak
havoc with his words, his greatest strength, and he can only come up with
positive things to say.
To take one
example, there are different understandings of what “May my soul die the death
of the upright, and may my end be like his…” means. Sforno suggests “my end”
refers to his children – he wanted his children to be like the Jewish people.
Many suggest he saw prophetically that he would be killed in battle and he
craved to die as the righteous die: in a bed, painless, without suffering. Some
even suggest he craved to die as Aharon did and as Moshe will – with the kiss
of God.
Save for in
the United States and a few random countries around the globe, we are indeed “a
nation that dwells in solitude who is not recognized by other nations.” The United States just passed a law, signed by
the President, that makes an anti-BDS approach necessary for foreign countries
to engage in trade with the United States. This is a breath of fresh air.
Current
Israeli news is not new. May the rest of Bilaam’s words about our People continue
to come true, speedily in our days.
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