Not By Means of an Angel

In this week’s parsha, Ki Tavo,we are approaching the very end of Moshe’s valedictory address to the Nation of Israel, before his final prophecy and blessing and before he ascends the mountain from which he will not return. In recent weeks, we explored how to build a just and moral society, how to wage war ethically, and how to deal with unsolved crimes and situations of cruelty in our midst. The title of our parsha, translated to English, is “When you enter,” referring to the Land of Israel. But Moshe here is not only imparting laws that are particular to the Land or that must be performed upon entering it, most of which had already been taught previously in the wilderness. Rather, the focus of our parsha is the moral responsibility that is conferred upon every individual, for good or otherwise, when they come to inhabit their home and to establish a permanent dwelling place.

Coming to the Land of Israel is not only good for us spiritually and aesthetically (although it is these things as well). It is a call to action – a call to govern ourselves and to create a society which is not only moral but also noble, and which can preserve that morality and nobility for future generations. For this reason, much of the parsha is given over to “blessings and curses,” including both the formula that we are commanded to recite from the “Mountain of the Blessing” and the “Mountain of the Curse” that frame the ancient city of Shechem, as well as the lengthy account of all the rewards and punishments that are in store for us depending on our behavior once we are truly free.

The parsha begins and derives its name from the ritual of the bikkurim, the first fruits that are brought to the Beit HaMikdash every year. At first this topic seems to fall into the category of blessing and reward, and that is certainly a key element of the ritual. However, another part of the ritual – when the fruits are actually delivered to the kohen beside the mizbe’ach – is a recapitulation of the forbidden things we didn’t do with our fruits and with our lives which would have prevented us from celebrating this milestone.

The bikkurim ritual is so central to Jewish spirituality, and the Sages were so concerned about it losing its flavor in exile, that they wrote it into the liturgy of the Pesach Seder. The text of the Haggadah expands upon the formula of the Bikkurim: “Hashem took us out [of Mitzrayim] with a mighty Hand and an outstretched Arm, with great visions and with signs and wonders” (Devarim 26:8). The Haggadah then adds, “Not by means of an angel, not by means of a flaming entity, and not by means of any emissary, rather the Holy One Himself…” The Ben Ish Chai, in his commentary on the Haggadah (Orach Chaim), references three other miracles that took place on Pesach and in which Hashem did employ messengers to execute His will. When Sancherib beset Yerushalayim under King Chizkiyahu, we learn that his forces were obliterated by anangel, whom the Sages identified as Gavriel. When the armies of Sisera were assailed by stars from heaven, they were struck by “burningentities” and consumed by fire. When Avraham Avinu defeated the four kings in battle, he did so as Hashem’semissary, restoring justice and balance to human civilization.

However, the destruction of the firstborn of Mitzrayim was so widespread and thorough, yet at the same time so detailed and nuanced in identifying every firstborn, that it was clear to anyone who experienced it that only Hashem Himself could have achieved this. The Ben Ish Chai also invokes principles from Jewish mysticism to explain the immense might, power, and mercy that Hashem brought to bear in defeating Mitzrayim and freeing Israel. Each of the emissaries whom He couldhave used but chose not to corresponds to one of the lower “universes” of Creation from the tradition described in the Zohar and the writings of the Arizal. By implication, every other redemption that Hashem has performed and that is alluded to in the sources (such as the examples above) was accomplished by refracting the Divine Light of Creation through various vessels and channels suited to bringing about the desired outcome. With the final defeat of Mitzrayim and the end of our enslavement, Hashem saw fit to bring that light directly from the point closest to its Infinite Source – not because this was necessary to defeat Mitzrayim but because He wished to redeem Israel in this fashion.

May it be His will that His infinite light be revealed in our world so that our enemies will despair, and we will be free to govern ourselves ethically, morally, and responsibly.