Too Much of Sinai?
Thirty six days before his passing, on the first day of the Hebrew month of Shvat, Moses began his final series of talks to his beloved people. He spoke words of rebuke, inspiration and hope. Moses related the story of their leaving Mount Sinai after being there for almost a year. At that point, before the sin of the spies, they were heading straight for the land of Israel.
Moses stated:
The Lord our God spoke to us in Horeb (Sinai), saying, 'You have dwelt long enough at this mountain. Turn and journey, and come to the mountain of the Amorites and to all its neighboring places, in the plain, on the mountain, and in the lowland, and in the south and by the seashore, the land of the Canaanites, and the Lebanon, until the great river, the Euphrates River.[1]
G-d said “You have dwelt long enough at this mountain”, G-d said to the Jewish people “enough already”, you have had too much of Sinai. This seems quite strange. Wasn't the revelation at Sinai the most important event in our history, the foundation of our religion and the basis of all of the Torah? How can one have “too much” of Sinai? What can be better or more spiritually uplifting than camping at the foot of Sinai?
Herein lies the first lesson of this verse:
Sinai was a great place to be. The revelation at Sinai was the most formative experience of our people. Having said that, there came a moment when dwelling at Sinai became a distraction. The moment came when G-d told the Jewish people that it was time to take the Sinaic inspiration and bring it to day-to-day life in the land of Israel. You have been there too long, says the verse, it is time to face the real world.
Rashi, the primary commentary of the Torah, offers a homiletic interpretation of the verse:
Aggadic explanation: I have given you much greatness and reward for your having dwelt at this mountain: you made the Mishkan, the Menorah, and the [other] furnishings; you received the Torah; you appointed a Sanhedrin for yourselves, and captains over thousands and captains over hundreds.[2]
Rashi interprets the verse to mean, not that you have spent too much time at Sinai, but rather, you have achieved much at Sinai. What have you achieved at Sinai? Rashi enumerates the achievements: you made a Mishkan, a dwelling place for G-d, and a Menorah, you received the Torah, and you appointed a Sanhedrin (supreme court) and a system of Justice. What about the most important achievement? What about experiencing the divine revelation? Moses himself spends a good chunk of next week's portion describing the revelation at Sinai:
For ask now regarding the early days that were before you, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and from one end of the heavens to the other end of the heavens, whether there was anything like this great thing, or was the likes of it heard? Did ever a people hear God's voice speaking out of the midst of the fire as you have heard, and live?[3]
When Moses told the Jewish people to pack their bags and depart the camp at the foot of Mount Sinai, the people were surely unhappy. They certainly preferred to remain in spiritual paradise, they must have feared the possibility of losing inspiration, vision and spiritual resolve. Moses reassured them. He told them not to worry. He told them that after all the time spent at Sinai they certainly had the tools to continue their journey to the promised land. Therefore, when Moses enumerated the achievements at Sinai he mentioned, not the revelation itself, but rather he spoke of the Menorah, the study of Torah and the court system. These were symbols, not of an earth-shattering, awe-inspiring experience, but rather these were symbols of a divine wisdom being implemented into daily life. Moses understood that Sinai was spiritual bliss, but to fulfill the purpose of creation, to connect heaven and earth, the Jewish people needed to follow specific steps, they needed to introduce measured, consistent, spirituality into their lives.
Moses taught an important lesson. Yes, the occasional spiritually intense moment is critical. Yes, once a year we need to experience a Yom Kippur, a day in which we are like angels in heaven. But that it is not enough. The question we ask ourselves is, not how often do we feel as spiritual as we do on Yom Kippur, but rather, the question is, what specific action will we take today to ensure that our life is imbued with the light of the Torah's teachings?[4]
[1] Deuteronomy 1:6-7.
[2] Rashi on Deuteronomy 1:6.
[3] Deuteronomy 4:32-33.
[4] Bases on the teachings of the Rebbe, Likutey Sichos Volume 24, Devarim Sicha 2.