Tzvi Moshe On Pinchas

The story of Pinchas is interesting in that it spans two Parshios. Let’s see what we can make of this.


Last week, Parshas Balak ended as follows: The women of Moav were enticing the Jewish people into sin. Hashem, disgusted by the situation wrought plague upon the Jews. The situation progressed until two people, one a Jew, one a Moabite woman were engaged in a serious sin of promiscuity in public! So one man; Pinchas, took a spear in his hand, charged the situation with a burst of holy zealousness, and killed the two of them on the spot for their public desecration of God’s name. Hashem saw this and ended the plague – Cut scene and end Parsha.

We are not told what happened with Pinchas. We weren’t even told who he killed. We only find out this week in Parshas Pinchas that the man he killed was Zimri, a Jewish prince and the woman was Kuzbi. We find out that Hashem blessed Pinchas with the title of a Kohen, a spiritual ambassador between the Jewish people and God.

We know the Torah is built logically. Things are placed where they are purposefully. So why did Hashem split up the story of Pinchas? Just put the whole thing together at the end of Balak, or the whole thing in the start of Parshas Pinchas!

We can pose the question more analytically. Assuming that the above is true and the Torah places things with purpose we can ask the following: What about the story of Pinchas necessitates that it needs to be split it up? And how does the answer to this question tie together the other themes discussed in this week’s Parsha?

To answer this we need to get a quick run down of the other topics discussed in this week’s Parsha: There is a final counting and census of the Jews. Hashem commands Moshe to begin splitting up the territories of Eretz Yisrael. We are taught theHalachos of Yerusha, the laws of inheritance. Hashem commands Moshe to inform Yehoshua Bin Nun that he will succeed him as leader of the Jews. The Parsha ends with an extensive list of all of the Korbanos all of the sacrifices carried out in the Beis HaMikdash.

To make things more complicated: Why is the receiving of priesthood a fit2ting blessing for Pinchas?

And lastly, we know that Chazal tell us that when Pinchas stood up to kill Kuzbi and Zimri he was infused with the soul of Eliyahu HaNavi so that he would be empowered to follow through. Chazal go on to tell us that this will come into it’s greatest fruition when Eliyahu who is the same soul in a different of body, known as the Gilgul of Pinchas.

How does this fact fit into all of this?

With all of this in mind: What about the story of Pinchas causes it to be split in two, and how does that tie together all of the aforementioned themes?

The Sfas Emes answers one of our questions, but we will extend his answer to hopefully answer all of our questions. Jewish thought comes to tell us that when there is an exception to a rule it comes to bring out a lesson regarding the general principle. This was the case with Pinchas. When Kozbi and Zimri were together everyone wanted to stand up and protest, everyone wanted to do something. The potential was there. But L’Maaseh, practically speaking Pinchas was the only one to get up and do something. Pinchas was the coming to fruition of the potential that was already present in all of Am Yisrael.

He goes on to explain that this is why Hashem blessed him with Kehuna. Every Jew wants to be close to Hashem. Every Neshama want’s to get involved with Avodas Hashem, but not everyone can light the Menorah. Not everyone is allowed to get up on the alter and bring a Korban, a sacrifice. A Kohen can. And when he does so he is doing so on behalf of the entire Jewish nation. He is merely revealing the potential of all Jews through his actions.

Thus this is very fitting with the actions of Pinchas! Pinchas revealed the poteltial – he brought the Koach (potential) into Poal (actuality) and thus he was blessed withKehuna, where Koach to Poal is the very nature of the job.

Let’s extend this to every other question we had.

In regards to the counting of the Jewish people: Where is the fulfillment of potential here? We can connect another Sfas Emes to see the answer. There is an interesting use of language by this census that we don’t see by any other. “Chanoch MiMishpachas HaChanochi, Palu MiMishpachas HaPalu’i” ‘The Chanoch family, the descendants of Chanoch. The Palu family, descendants of Palu.’

This is seemingly odd. Just say ‘the descendants of’ or ‘the family of’! why say both? The answer is, says the holy Sfas Emes, because by listing the families in such a full and holistic way the Torah is coming to show us that everyone in the family had come into their potential.
How about the division of Eretz Yisrael? Up until now we have been in the desert, which Chazal compare to the womb. Where all the potenial of a fetus is built. We’ve been traveling towards Eretz Yisrael, we’ve been developing towards a national identity. This is the first practical step to actualizing potential of the desert by taking over Israel.

And how do the laws of inheritance fit into the picture? Yerusha is all about taking what is in theory mine and making it actually mine. That which I inherit was mine in potential all along, but circustances have now caused that potential to become actualized.

Also we mentioned that Yehoshua was officially designated to take over. This fits in with our understanding in that Yehoshua was receiving the teachings of Moshe throughout the journey in the desert. Moshe invested his main focus into this disciple. All of that focused energy is coming into manifest by Yehoshua becoming designated as the next leader of the people! The student becomes the master.

(We will get back to the issues of Korbanos at the very end)

This now explains why that which we weren’t told at the end of Balak was only informed to us now in this weeks Parsha. Chazal tell us that Hashem originally wanted to cover up the story of Pinchas Kuzbi and Zimri, but all that information, who he killed and what he got was there all along, even if it was not revealed to us. But now we are in Parshas Pinchas, the Parsha of Koach becoming Poal! Would it not make perfect sense to say that the information that was previously hidden is now coming out into revelation at the precisely perfect moment?

This concept also gives us deeper into the nature of the soul of Pinchas becoming Eliyahu HaNavi later on in history. At the moment of his inspiration, Chazal tell us that Pinchas was empowered with Eliyahu-like spiritual capabilities so that he could follow through. His actions caused a plague upon the Jewish people to end. This microcosmic event comes into its fullest when, B’Ezras Hashem soon the Gilgul of Pinchas comes in his most complete form as Eliyahu HaNavi to end the biggest plague of all, the long and painful exile in which we find ourselves.
This brings us to the last piece of the puzzle. Our Parsha ends with an extensive list of the Korbanos. And this, the Jews, with a Beis HaMikdash serving Hashem withKorbanos - the deepest of connection between man and the Divine – this the coming into fruition of the entire world as we know it. The translation of all of our efforts, all of the potential energy exerted in Avodas Hashem is moving towards that goal: The Jews, in Eretz Yisrael, serving HaKadosh Baruch Hu with love and closeness in the Beis HaMikdash.

A Jew needs to know that there such a thing as Koach and such a thing as Poal. Within me there is fantastic potential. To drop devastatingly or rise to highest of heights. A Jewish soul is empowered beyond any other creation to impact the very nature of how this world runs. We, in potential can do so much. But this is not the world of potential – this is the world of doing I once heard a very wise saying. “We are not human beings – We are human becomings.
B’Ezras Hashem we should all be Zoche to see the potential for greatness in all of us. We should really try to actualize the storehouse, the wellspring of spiritual power that lays waiting inside. If we can tap into our inner potential there is no doubt that we will live lives of happiness, fulfillment and meaning, moving closer to the creator and ultimately the redemption!