This week I would like to share a different approach to Moshe hitting the stone. This insight is from a tape I heard (I think it was by Rav Yissochar Frand). On Shimini Atzeres, we say a special prayer for rain (Tefillas Geshem). In the fourth of the six paragraphs that starts with the word Zechor, it states “he struck the rock and out came water” (page 708 in the Art Scroll siddur). We know that in the Torah, Moshe strikes rocks in two places to bring forth water – once is in Parshas Beshalach after the Jews leave Egypt (Shemos 17:5-6) and the other is in this week’s parsha, Chukas, after Miriam dies (Bamidbar 20:11). According to many commentators the rock striking we are talking about in Tefillas Geshem is the one in Parshas Beshalach, but there are others that hold the rock we mention is the one in this week’s parsha. According to these others that hold it is mentioning this week’s parsha, an obvious question comes to mind: Moshe is told that he is not allowed to enter Eretz Yisroel because of the events at this rock. When we say Tefillas Geshem, we are asking for a blessing of rain. Why are we asking Hashem to remember this sad event at a time when we want a blessing.

The answer is that the hitting of the rock in this week’s parsha was not a sad event. When Moshe struck the rock, it showed how great and how modest he was. Let’s explain.

We mentioned that Moshe struck a rock in Parshas Beshalach just as Hashem commanded him to do. In Parshas Beshalach, whose merit made the water come out of the rock? We know that the reason we had water in the desert for forty years was because of Miriam. Therefore, it was Miriam’s merit that made water come from the rock when it was hit.

In this week’s parsha, whose merit made the water appear from the rock? Miriam passes away right before this event, so it could not have been her again. This time, it was Moshe’s merit that made the water appear. Hashem gave a different command to Moshe this time though. In this week’s parsha, Moshe was supposed to talk to the rock and make water appear. Think about this – what is a greater miracle: having water flow from a rock hit with a staff or water coming from a rock that is spoken to? Moshe concluded that it is water from a rock that is spoken to. When Moshe thought about this, he became saddened. If Moshe speaks to the rock and water flows out of it, B’nei Yisroel (the children of Israel) will conclude that Moshe must be greater than Miriam. For water to come for Miriam, the rock needed to be hit, but for Moshe, it only needed to be spoken to. This is why Moshe hit the rock. He did not want to embarrass his older sister.

According to this opinion (others hold other ways and they are true also) Moshe hit the rock in this week’s parsha knowing exactly what he was doing. Moshe struck the rock because he could not bear thinking that he was so much greater than his sister. He could not bear to think people would say Onas Devorim (bad words) about his sister. Moshe hit the rock because he cared for a fellow human being. It was because of Moshe’s greatness that he hit the rock.

So why was he punished? This question will have to be answered a different time because I’m running out of room. But it certainly was not because he hit the rock. This was a great act and that’s why we mention it in Tefillas Geshem.

Good Shabbos!

-yes

By Rabbi Yaacov Seltzer
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(305) 652-0186