R' Moshe Shilat - Shabbat Bi-shabbato
The giving of Eretz Yisrael to the nation is described in this week's Torah portion by three processes:
(1) A portion according to logical need – "The land shall be divided to these people... To the many give a large heritage, and to the few give a reduced heritage" [Bamidbar 26:53]. (2) By lots – "However, the land shall be divided by lots" [26:55]. (3) A heritage – specifically, the inheritance by the daughters of Tzlofchad. The inheritance of the entire nation appears in another Torah portion, "And I will give it to you as a heritage, I am G-d" [Shemot 6:8]. (The Talmud derives the idea from this verse, as follows: "It will be an inheritance for you from your forefathers" [Bava Batra 119].)
The giving of Eretz Yisrael to the nation of Yisrael is a revelation of the link between the nation of Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He, as is written in the Midrash: "Let Yisrael who came to my portion inherit the land which came to Me as My portion" [Tanchuma Re'eih]. We therefore find all three of the above processes in the relationship between the nation of Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He, as we say in the prayers of every morning: "We are blessed, how good is our portion, how pleasant is our lot, how beautiful is our heritage."
Portion, Lot, Heritage
According to the Chassidic approach, the division into "portions" is linked to a logical action, such as when land is sold by a seller to a buyer. The buyer pays for the property, and therefore the seller gives it to him. This is an allegory of the "logical" link between Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He, which depends on the actions of the people. Observation of the mitzvot transforms the Holy One, Blessed be He, into our "portion." Lots, on the other hand, represent a link that is not logical and for which it is impossible to follow a chain of cause and effect. Lots are gifts from above which do not depend on the qualities of the one who receives them. At this level, an internal link is revealed that depends solely on the will of G-d, who has chosen us.
In spite of the difference in essence between the two levels, they are similar in that in both cases the Holy One, Blessed be He, appears as an external element, separate from us. In the first case He shows His influence as a result of our actions, and in the second case He influences events without any reference to our status. But in both cases we are separate entities, and we relate to G-d as something outside of ourselves.
The "heritage" is an expression of a third type of relationship between Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He. An heir receives an inheritance without any need for the giver to actually present it to him. The heir comes into the realm of the giver automatically, without any choice. This is because he is not a foreign entity but rather flesh and blood of the giver, and therefore the property of the giver rightfully belongs to him. And that is why it is written in the Mishna, "a newborn baby, one day old, has the power to inherit and to pass on an inheritance" [Arachin 7a]. When we say that the Holy One, Blessed be He, is "our heritage," we are revealing the mystic secret that "Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He, are one" in the literal sense! In fact, in the Midrash there are also the same three levels in the relationship between the Torah and Yisrael. "I sold them My Torah" (where a sale has the elements of a logical transaction), "The Holy One, Blessed be He, gave three good gifts... Torah" (where a gift is similar to lots, in that the award has no logical basis), and an inheritance: "Moshe commanded us the Torah, a heritage..." [Devarim 33:4].
Three Different Eras
The three levels of contact are also revealed in three different eras.
Before the giving of the Torah, the nation of Yisrael had not yet been picked as the Chosen People, and they were therefore judged mainly in terms of their behavior and their deeds. It is true that we were already the sons of the Holy One, Blessed be He ("Yisrael is My son, My firstborn " [Shemot 4:22]), but we were mainly treated according to our actions.
When we received the Torah we were given a gift. The Holy One, Blessed be He, was revealed to us and "He gave us His Torah." He gave us part of Himself. The Holy One, Blessed be He, chose us from among all the other nations so that we would be able to join together with Him, and He no longer judged us only in terms of our observance of the mitzvot but also, mainly, in relation to the special unique traits that we have.
In the distant future it will be revealed that Yisrael and the Holy One, Blessed be He, are not separate from each other but rather a single unified entity. This is the goal of perfection that is expressed by the matter of the heritage. As is written at the end of the six sections of the Mishna: "In the future the Holy One, Blessed be He, will bequeath to each and every righteous person... 'to bequeath to all My lovers' [Mishlei 8:21]." We will inherit "yesh," which means the most real of all existences – the very essence of the Holy One, Blessed be He, (He is the "yesh" – the ultimate existence) will be unified with our own, like an inheritance is bequeathed to the heir. The continued link between them will be independent of all influences, and it will not depend on actions, choice, or giving.
