Weekly Torah Lesson
Parasha: Masei “journeys of”
Torah: B’midbar 33:1 – 36:13
“Be mid bar 9:17 And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the cloud stayed, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. 18 At the commandment of Avinu the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of Avinu they pitched: as long as the cloud stayed on the tabernacle they rested in their tents. 19 And when the cloud tarried long on the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of Avinu, and journeyed not. 20 And so it was, when the cloud was a few days on the tabernacle; according to the commandment of Avinu they stayed in their tents, and according to the commandment of Avinu they journeyed. 21 And so it was, when the cloud stayed from even to the morning, and that the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they journeyed: whether it was by day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they journeyed. 22 Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried on the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of Israel stayed in their tents, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed. 23 At the commandment of Avinu they rested in the tents, and at the commandment of Avinu they journeyed: they kept the charge of Avinu, at the commandment of Avinu by the hand of Moses.” (Nu 9:17-23)
In be mid bar 33 we find a long list of the places that Israel visited on their fourty year journey to the Promised Land. Having concluded its account of the Jewish people’s conquests on the east bank of the Jordan River, the Torah reviews all the stops the people made from when they left Egypt until their final camp in the desert across the Jordan opposite Jericho.
Life’s Journeys
The founder of Chasidism, Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, taught that these 42 journeys correspond to the 42 spiritual journeys that we make throughout our lives. We begin from birth, just as the Exodus from Egypt is the Jewish people’s national birth. The final journey is to the spiritual Promised Land, the life that awaits us at the resurrection of the dead.
Although some of the intervening journeys in the Jewish people’s trek through the desert were accompanied by setbacks, all the stations on our spiritual journey through life are meant to be holy and positive. If we choose good over evil, we will indeed live through these phases of life in the way Avinu intends. If, like the Jewish people in the desert, we make some wrong choices, we will experience them as temporary setbacks. Although at every step in the journey of life, we strive to make the right choices, we should also recognize that even setbacks can be transformed into positive, growth experiences. The secret to making the right choices in your journey is to “follow the Cloud” – The Holy Spirit.
“13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking Avinu; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised Avinu, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endures for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of Avinu; 14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of Avinu had filled the house of Avinu.” (2Ch 5:13-14 )
“You shall ascend and come like a storm, you shall be like a cloud to cover the land, you, and all your bands, and many people with you.” (Eze 38:9 )
Everything in life is a step forward; everything has meaning. It’s just that there are two ways to move forward: Walking and leaping. When you walk, you leave one foot in its place as the other moves ahead. You’re secure, you’re stable—and you never leave your comfort zone. So sometimes you need to leap. But to do that, you need to first crouch down. That’s the true meaning of failure: It is the crouch before the jump, the breakaway from the past so that you can leap into the future, an opportunity to do something totally unexpected. Failure lets you go where your footsteps could never take you.
There is only one thing that can put you further ahead than success, and that is surviving failure. When you are successful, you are whole and complete. That is wonderful, but you cannot break out beyond your own universe. When you fail, you are broken. You look at the pieces of yourself lying on the ground and say, “This is worthless.” Now you can escape. The shell is broken, the defining shell of a created being. Now there are no limits to how tall you can grow.
“I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happens to them all.” (Ec 9:11)
“Why seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,” (Heb 12:1)
“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto you are also called, and have professed a good profession before many witnesses.” (1Ti 6:12 )
“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:” (2Ti 4:7 )
Leave a Reply