Bnei Yisrael's governance above nature

במדרש והי' מספר בני ישראל כחול כו' הבט כו' השמימה הגביהו הקב"ה למעלה מכיפת הרקיע כו'.

In the Midrash on "And the number of Bnei Yisrael shall be like the sand…" (Hoshea 2:1): "Look… toward the heavens" (Bereishis 15:5) — Hashem raised him (Avraham) above the dome of the firmament, etc.

When Hashem showed Avraham the stars, He lifted him above the firmament itself, elevating him beyond the natural order — and this elevation is the inheritance promised to his descendants.

וזכה אברהם לברכה ככוכבי השמים ויצחק ברכת החול ויעקב כעפר הארץ ע"ש.

And Avraham merited the blessing "like the stars of the heavens," Yitzchak the blessing of the sand, and Yaakov "like the dust of the earth"; see there.

The three Avos correspond to three realms of blessing — stars (heaven), sand (sea/shore), and dust (earth) — together encompassing all of creation.

כי הנה בנ"י נבראו לתקן כל הבריאה.

For behold, Bnei Yisrael were created to rectify the entire creation.

The mission of Bnei Yisrael spans all of existence — they exist to bring tikkun to every part of the created world.

ונחלק לאלה הג' השמים והארץ והים. כמ"ש עשה ה' את השמים כו' הארץ כו' הים כו'.

And it is divided into these three: the heavens, the earth, and the sea, as it is written, "Hashem made the heavens… the earth… the sea…" (cf. Shemos 20:11).

Creation falls into three domains — heaven, earth, and sea — paralleling the three blessings of the Avos, so that the Avos provide the power to rectify each domain.

וכמו שהגביה את אברהם אבינו למעלה מכיפת הרקיע כן נתקיים בבנ"י כמ"ש שם במד' כה יהי' זרעך שיזכו להיות כמוהו.

And just as He raised Avraham Avinu above the dome of the firmament, so it was fulfilled in Bnei Yisrael, as the Midrash says there: "So shall be your seed" (Bereishis 15:5) — that they should merit to be like him.

The elevation above nature granted to Avraham is inherited by his children; "so shall be your seed" means Bnei Yisrael too rise above the firmament, above the rule of nature.

וז"ש לבית אבותם שנמשכו אחר מדריגות האבות להיות להם כח דביקות בשורש העליון.

And this is the meaning of "according to their fathers' house (l'beis avosam)" (Bamidbar 1:2) — that they were drawn after the levels of the Avos, to have the power of attachment (deveikus) to the supernal root.

Counting Bnei Yisrael "by their fathers' house" indicates that each Jew draws his strength from the Avos, inheriting their power of deveikus to cling to the highest root above nature.

וזכו לזה במדבר שנמשכו אחר השי"ת כענין שכ' באברהם לך לך כו'.

And they merited this in the wilderness, where they were drawn after Hashem Yisbarach, in the manner of what is written regarding Avraham, "Go for yourself (lech lecha)…" (Bereishis 12:1).

By following Hashem into the trackless midbar, Bnei Yisrael reenacted Avraham's lech lecha — leaving the natural and familiar to cling to Hashem — and so inherited his above-nature elevation.

וז"ש במד' שנתאוו בני ישראל להיות להם דגלים כמו למלאכים.

And this is what the Midrash says, that Bnei Yisrael yearned to have degalim (banners) like the angels.

The arrangement of the camp by degalim fulfilled a deep desire of Bnei Yisrael to resemble the angels — a wish the Sefas Emes now explains.

יש לבאר הענין כי המלאכים הם מנהיגים את הברואים בבחי' הטבע כענין שאמרו אין לך עשב שאין לו מזל ברקיע כו'.

The matter may be explained: the angels govern the creatures in the aspect of nature, in the sense of what they said, "there is no blade of grass below that does not have a constellation (mazal) above it that strikes it and says, grow."

Angels are the appointed administrators of the natural order; every created thing has its angelic/astral overseer that drives it according to fixed law.

אכן כ' רבות עשית כו' נפלאותיך ומחשבותיך אלינו.

However, it is written, "Many are the things You have done… Your wonders (niflaosecha) and Your thoughts are toward us" (Tehillim 40:6).

Beyond the realm of nature governed by angels, there is the realm of "wonders" — Hashem's direct providence — and these are oriented specifically "toward us," toward Bnei Yisrael.

פי' כי סדר המעשים בטבע הוא בחי' הגדולה כמ"ש בגמ' גדולה זו מעשה בראשית.

The explanation: the order of natural events is the aspect of "greatness (gedulah)," as the Gemara says, "'the greatness' — this is the work of creation (maaseh bereishis)."

The fixed system of nature is the dimension called "gedulah," the orderly governance of maaseh bereishis administered through the angels.

אבל סדר הנפלאות הנהגה זו מסורה לבנ"י.

But the order of wonders — this mode of governance is entrusted to Bnei Yisrael.

The higher governance of "wonders," which transcends nature, is given over to Bnei Yisrael rather than to the angels.

והנה ביצ"מ נעשה לבנ"י נסים לפי שעה כמ"ש בחפזון יצאת.

And behold, at the Exodus from Mitzrayim, miracles were done for Bnei Yisrael temporarily, as it is written, "in haste you went out" (Devarim 16:3).

The miracles of Yetzias Mitzrayim were momentary, a "rushed" suspension of nature, not yet a permanent order of supernatural governance.

אבל בנ"י נתאוו להיות להם הסדר מיוחד בנפלאות להמשיך כל המעשים אחר זה הסדר העליון וזה ענין הדגלים. ודו"ק:

But Bnei Yisrael yearned to have for themselves a fixed order in wonders, to draw all events after this supernal order — and this is the matter of the degalim. Contemplate this well.

Bnei Yisrael longed not for fleeting miracles but for a permanent "order of wonders," a standing supernatural governance that draws all of nature after it — like the angels' fixed system but on the higher plane of niflaos — and this is what the banners of the camp represent.

Summary: The blessings of the three Avos — stars, sand, and dust — correspond to heaven, sea, and earth, the three domains Bnei Yisrael were created to rectify. Just as Hashem lifted Avraham above the firmament, his children inherit the power of deveikus that raises them above nature, a power they actualized by following Hashem into the midbar like Avraham's lech lecha. While the angels govern the fixed order of nature ("gedulah," maaseh bereishis), the higher governance of "wonders" is entrusted to Bnei Yisrael; their longing for degalim like the angels expressed the desire for a permanent supernatural order that draws all of creation after the supernal root.