Spiritual implications for our Divine service.

In this week's Torah portion, Matos, we read about the request made by the tribes of Gad and Reuven to settle on the eastern side of the river Jordan. As these two tribes owned "a multitude of cattle," they wanted that particular strip of land, which is described as "a land for cattle."

Moshe Rabbeinu's initial reaction was a resounding no. "Shall your brothers go to war, and you shall sit here?" He even compared them to the Spies, who refused to enter the Land of Israel and remained in the desert. It was only later, after the tribes of Gad and Reuven promised to participate with the rest of their brethren in conquering the Land that Moshe gave in to their request: "And Moshe gave to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuven and to half the tribe of Menashe, the son of Yosef, the kingdom of Sichon, etc." (Bamidbar 32:33).

A closer examination of the text, however, reveals something surprising. The request to settle on the eastern shore of the Jordan was made by the tribes of Gad and Reuven. Yet when it came to the actual apportionment, we find that half the tribe of Menashe was also given land. This raises a simple question: If the tribe of Menashe is not listed among those asking for land in this region, why is it listed among those receiving it?

The Ramban answers by explaining that the territories of Sichon and Og were simply too big for only two tribes to live there. Moshe Rabbeinu therefore needed another group of people who were willing to settle in the same area, and half the tribe of Menashe agreed. But this explanation by itself is insufficient. If the apportionment of these lands to Gad and Reuven was only bedieved, not entirely wholeheartedly and only after the fact (for we see that in the beginning Moshe rejected their request), why did he suddenly change his mind and even go so far as to urge the tribe of Menashe to take up the offer?

It is even more surprising in light of the several other commentators who maintain that Menashe didn't really want to settle there, and were only induced to do so by Moshe Rabbeinu. This approach is supported by Tractate Bikkurim of the Jerusalem Talmud, which explains that there was a difference in the way the tribes of Gad and Reuven inherited the land, and that of Menashe: Whereas Gad and Reuven took possession of these lands "on their own," they were given to the tribe of Menashe solely on Moshe Rabbeinu's initiative. In fact, the Yerushalmi seems to imply that Menashe did not wish to live there at all.

Thus we need to answer a basic question: Why did Moshe Rabbeinu want the tribe of Menashe to settle on the eastern shore of the Jordan, outside the borders of Eretz Yisroel?

The Role of Moshe Rabbeinu

The Rebbe provides a wonderful explanation in Volume 28 of Likutei Sichos, on the portions of Matos and Masei, the essence of which is as follows: 

There are many fundamental aspects of the Jewish people that relate to Moshe Rabbeinu, and must be carried out only by him. For example, the most integral component of Yiddishkeit, the Torah itself, was given through Moshe Rabbeinu in its entirety, so much so that "Everything a veteran scholar will innovate in the future was given to Moshe at Sinai." Even the "new aspect of Torah" that Melech Hamoshiach will reveal has already been given through Moshe; although at present it is in a concealed state, Moshiach will reveal it from the Torah already in our possession. In truth, it is impossible for there to be any aspect of Torah that is not somehow associated with Moshe.

The same holds true for the Final Redemption, which can only come about through Moshe Rabbeinu. In the same way that Moshe led the Jewish people to their first redemption from Egypt, so too will he lead them to the Final Redemption, as our Sages said, "Moshe Rabbeinu was the first redeemer and will be the final redeemer." Chasidus expands upon this idea and explains that although the Final Redemption will be infinitely superior to the Egyptian exodus, the source and potential for the future Redemption are derived from the very first redemption by Moshe.

Another centrally important concept in Judaism is Eretz Yisroel. Although Moshe Rabbeinu did not, in actuality, lead the Jewish people into Israel, Moshe and the conquest of the Land are deeply and profoundly connected to each other. This is the inner meaning of the Torah's narrative (Devarim 34:1) which relates that G-d showed the entirety of the Land to Moshe before his passing. This was done not only to afford Moshe a glimpse of the Land he would not enter; rather, Moshe Rabbeinu's gaze caused holiness to be drawn down into Eretz Yisroel.  (See Bava Basra 56a: "Everything that the Holy One, Blessed Be He, showed Moshe requires tithing.") The very concept of the Land of Israel is thus connected to Moshe Rabbeinu.

In the future Eretz Yisroel will expand and be augmented by three additional lands, in addition to the "land of the seven nations," as delineated in this week's Torah portion, Masei. In accordance with the above principle, that all of the fundamental aspects of the Jewish people must be accomplished through Moshe Rabbeinu, the future acquisition of these three lands must also be connected to Moshe. This is analogous to the "new aspect of Torah" that Moshiach will teach us, which was already given at Sinai through Moshe Rabbeinu, albeit in a concealed manner.

All of which leads us back to our original question: Why did Moshe give the tribe of Menashe an inheritance on the other side of the Jordan, even though they hadn't asked for it?

The answer is that their settlement of these lands, outside the present borders of Eretz Yisroel, was a preparation for the future expansion of Israel in the Messianic era. Like everything else which must be accomplished through Moshe Rabbeinu, it was necessary for him to be the one to apportion the land in this area, thereby establishing his connection to its future annexation.

Expansion as a Preparation for the Redemption

Although in total there were three tribes that received land on the eastern side of the Jordan, we can divide them into two separate groups. On the one hand were Gad and Reuven, who valued their property and wished to settle in a "land for cattle," and received their inheritance because they asked for it. Their request, therefore, has a certain negative connotation to it. On the other hand, the tribe of Menashe received its inheritance out of the free will and initiative of Moshe Rabbeinu, in an entirely positive manner. As will be explained, this is similar to the way Eretz Yisroel will be inherited in the future.

This distinction between the two groups becomes even more pronounced when we consider the implications. By receiving a portion on the eastern side of the Jordan, Gad and Reuven, in effect, gave up their claim to Eretz Yisroel proper. That is to say, their inheritance implies a certain aspect of loss. By contrast, the settlement of the tribe of Menashe on the eastern shores of the Jordan was not instead of a portion in the Land. In fact, Menashe did receive an inheritance within Eretz Yisroel; the land on the other side of the Jordan was an added bonus, as it were.

It is for this reason that the inheritance of Menashe is remarkably similar to the manner in which Eretz Yisroel will be inherited in the future. At that time, the addition of the lands of the "Keni, Kenizi and Kadmoni" will in no way diminish the present borders of the Land of Israel, but only serve to augment them.

This explanation also sheds light on another potential question raised in this week's portion:

The Torah enumerates the various cities that were given to the tribe of Levi in which to settle. These included the six arei miklat, the Cities of Refuge, and an additional 42 cities. Toward the end of the portion we learn that three of these Cities of Refuge were on the eastern side of the river Jordan.

At first glance, this seems to be problematic. If receiving a portion on the other side of the Jordan has a negative connotation, even if it was necessary to establish Cities of Refuge there, why would G-d want the Leviim to settle in them? This is even more surprising when we consider that the tribe of Levi didn't participate in the sin of the Spies, and was in fact the only tribe that wholeheartedly wished to enter Eretz Yisroel (see Rashi on Devarim 1:20). Nonetheless, it is precisely the tribe of Levi that G-d demands must settle outside the borders of Israel.

The above explanation, however, resolves this apparent contradiction. It is precisely because the tribe of Levi loved Eretz Yisroel so much that they merited to settle it in a similar manner to the future Messianic-era inheritance. It is for this reason that the tribe of Levi was given three cities on the other side of the Jordan, outside the boundaries of Canaan.

This is also the reason why the tribe of Menashe merited this same special "Messianic-style inheritance," as its members also demonstrated an extraordinary love for Eretz Yisroel. In the Torah portion of Pinchas the Torah relates the intense desire of the daughters of Tzlofchad, who was a member of the tribe of Menashe, to receive a portion of the Land, as Rashi comments (Bamidbar 27:1): "Yosef cherished the Land...and his daughters cherished the Land." In other words, the fact that the daughters of Tzlofchad were "of the families of Menashe, the son of Yosef" underscores their exceptionally powerful love for the Land of Israel. 

Ten Lands

In effect, therefore, preparations for the future expansion of the Land have been underway since the time of Moshe Rabbeinu. Let us now examine how this will actually come about.

At the Bris Bein Hebesarim, the Covenant of the Pieces, G-d promised Avrohom ten lands, of which the Jewish people received only seven. As we read in Bereishis 15:18: "In the same day the L-rd made a covenant with Avram, saying, To your seed I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Peras: the Keni, and the Kenizi, and the Kadmoni, and the Hitti, and Perizi, and the Refaim, and the Emori, and the Canaani, and the Girgashi and the Yevusi." The latter seven lands were conquered in the days of Yehoshua, but the lands of the "Keni, Kenizi and Kadmoni" will be acquired by the Jewish people only in the Messianic era.

 It is interesting to note that these three lands are mentioned first. The Ohr Hachaim explains that the reason for this is that they constitute the main inheritance of the Land of Israel.

And who are the "Keni, Kenizi and Kadmoni"? Our Sages offered several possibilities. "Rabbi Yehuda says: Aravia, Shalmai and Nabatiya. Rabbi Shimon says: Asia, Aspamya and Damesek. Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov says: Asia, Cartagena and Turkey; Rebbe says: Edom, Moav and most of Amon" (Jerusalem Talmud, Shivi'is). 

[In general, "Aravia, Shalmai and Nabatiya" correspond to the lands south of Israel; "Asia, Aspamya and Damesek" are to the north; "Asia, Cartagena and Turkey" are quite a distance from Israel; and "Edom, Moav and most of Amon" are on the other side of the Jordan; i.e., the lands of Sichon and Og, and the land of Edom.]

The consensus among the commentators is that the three lands are "Edom, Moav and most of Amon," citing Yeshayahu's prophecy about the ingathering of the exiles as proof: "They shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moav, and the children of Amon shall obey them" (Yeshayahu 11:14).

Conditional Inheritance

A basic question is asked: Why weren't all ten lands inherited at the same time? Why do we have to wait until the Messianic era to receive our full inheritance?

The answer is found in the Torah portion of Shoftim. "And if the L-rd your G-d enlarge your border, as He has sworn to your fathers, and give you all the land He promised to give to your fathers, if you will keep all these commandment to do them, which I command you this day, to love the L-rd your G-d and to walk always in His ways" (Devarim 19:8). In other words, the inheritance of the final three lands is contingent on the Jewish people's worthiness. This will happen only in the Days of Moshiach, when all Jews will attain a superior spiritual level. 

According to Chasidus, the three lands have spiritual significance in a Jew's Divine service. Seen in this light, we can understand why they will not be conquered in the literal sense until the Messianic era:

Every individual is given certain intellectual and emotional powers; the objective in life to refine them, that is, to make sure they are used only for good. For example, the attribute of gevurah (severity) can be misused to hurt other people, or the attribute of chochmah (wisdom) can be misdirected into "foreign disciplines" that are antithetical to holiness. The Jew's function is to purify these soul-powers by utilizing them for only positive purposes, thereby connecting his heart and mind to the Creator.

In truth, the spiritual source of the "unclean powers" and "foreign disciplines" is very lofty, originating in the world of Tohu, where the revelation of G-dliness is extremely intense. However, with the "shattering of the vessels" they fell into the realm of evil; it is our job to separate and refine them, and thus restore the original illumination of Tohu.

The Highest Intellectual Powers

In this regard, a distinction must be made between the present time and the era of the Redemption:

At present, man's primary service is focused on perfecting the emotional realm, which is divided into seven middos, or attributes; most his energies are spent fighting his animalistic lusts and desires. True, a Jew is obligated to work on his intellect as well, but only as a means of controlling the emotions. Although it states, "Know the G-d of your fathers," i.e., that one must strive to understand G-d to the best of his ability, this knowledge is not an end in itself but only a tool to be used in the perfection of one's middos: "And serve Him with a complete heart."

The seven lands currently in our possession are symbolic of the seven middos; it is our job to refine them and separate the evil from the good. The three lands we will acquire in the future are symbolic of the intellectual realm, which is divided into three aspects: chochmah (wisdom), binah (understanding) and daas (knowledge). They are not yet in our possession, as a primarily intellectual Divine service is not what is required of us at present.

When Moshiach comes, our service in the emotional realm will be completed. At that time all seven character attributes will be perfected, and their original source in the world of Tohu will be revealed. From that point on a new era will commence, with the emphasis on Divine service in the intellectual realm, as symbolized by the acquisition of the three lands.

In the Messianic era the knowledge of G-d will be an objective in its own right, and the derivation of the intellect from the world of Tohu will be revealed as even higher than the emotive powers, in the same way that in microcosm, man's intellect is on a higher level than his emotions. All ten powers of the soul will be perfected, as paralleled on the physical plane by the inheritance of all ten lands.

Interestingly, in recent years the Rebbe explained that as we now stand on the threshold of Redemption, the time has come to also engage in intellectual service, as preparation for the Messianic era. May we merit to see this fulfilled very soon.

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