Rabbi Zweig
“The people took to seeking complaints;it was evil in the eyes of Hashem…”(11:1)
In this week’s parsha we are introduced to a segment of Bnei Yisroel who are described as “misonenim” – “complainers”. The Torah records that they voiced three major complaints. Although Hashem, in His great kindness, miraculously allowed Bnei Yisroel to complete a three-day journey in one day in order to hasten their arrival in Eretz Yisroel, the misonenim complained about the arduous journey that they were being forced to undertake.1 They also voiced their dissatisfaction with the manna, the Heavenly food supplied to them daily. Although the manna supplied them with all their nutritional needs and accommodated any flavor that their palates desired, they still had the gall to express their preference for the diet they had in Egypt as slaves.2 Finally, they cried about the relationships that became prohibited to them when they accepted the Torah.3 What motivates a person to be an incessant complainer? Why would a person attempt to turn all the positive that has been done for him into negative?
The Torah records how Hashem, angered by the misonenim sent a fire to consume them.4 Rashi cites an opinion that those who were killed were amongst the leaders of the generation. They had sinned at the Sinaitic revelation when “they gazed at Hashem”. However, Hashem refrained from executing them at that time in order not to mar the celebration of receiving the Torah. It was now that the deferred punishments were meted out.5 These complaints took place seven months after the Sinaitic revelation. Why was it at this juncture that the leaders were punished?
In order for a person to avoid feeling indebtedness and responsibility for the good which has been done for him, he seeks a negative perspective towards all he has. Such a person makes himself miserable so that he will not have to acknowledge that what he has is good. Rashi comments that the misonenim were looking for an excuse to separate themselves from Hashem.6 By denying the good which He had done for them, they would not feel any responsibility to reciprocate, and were comfortable with severing the relationship. It is at this juncture that those who “gazed at Hashem” were punished. Their original error could have been written off as an outgrowth of wanting to be closer to Hashem as Chazal say, “ha’ahavah mekalkeles es hashurah” – “love distorts the boundaries of propriety”.7 However, through the complaints of the misonenim, it became self-evident that they did not desire a closer relationship with Hashem. It was then that they were taken to task for their inappropriate behavior at the Sinaitic revelation.
1.11:1 See Sifri 82 2.11:4-6 3.11:10 4.11:1 5.Rashi ibid. See Rashi Shemos 24:10 See also Tanchuma Behaloscha 16 6.Rashi 11:1 7.Sanhedrin 105b See Rashi Beraishis 22:3
