Truth and Faith in Leadership

בענין שירת הבאר שלא נזכר שמו של מרע"ה כו'

Regarding the Shiras HaBe'er (the Song of the Well), in which the name of Moshe Rabbeinu is not mentioned, etc.

The Sfas Emes opens by noting a puzzle: the Song of the Well is the one song in the Torah where Moshe Rabbeinu's name is conspicuously absent. He will explain that this absence is itself the key to the piece.

כי בחי' מרע"ה הוא אספקלריא המאירה בחי' תורה שבכתב וזה הי' שירת הים הכנה לקבלת התורה

For the level of Moshe Rabbeinu is that of the aspaklaria ha-me'irah (the clear, illuminating lens), the aspect of Torah she-bichsav (the Written Torah), and this is why the Shiras HaYam (the Song at the Sea) served as a preparation for receiving the Torah.

Moshe Rabbeinu corresponds to the clear, unclouded prophetic vision and to the Written Torah, which is why the Song at the Sea, sung by Moshe, prepared Bnei Yisrael to receive the Torah at Sinai.

ועתה הי' שירה זו הכנה לתורה שבע"פ והוא הבאר שצריכין בנ"י לעורר בכח הפה כמ"ש עלי באר ענו כו'

And now this song served as a preparation for Torah she-be'al peh (the Oral Torah), and this is the well, which Bnei Yisrael must arouse through the power of the mouth, as it is written, "Rise up, O well, sing out to it" (Bamidbar 21:17).

The Song of the Well, by contrast, prepares for the Oral Torah, which Bnei Yisrael themselves must draw forth from within through the power of their own mouths, just as they had to sing the well up.

והם ב' בחי' אמת ואמונה כמ"ש במ"א

And these are two aspects: emes (truth) and emunah (faith), as we have explained elsewhere.

These two songs reflect two distinct spiritual modes: emes, the fixed clarity of truth, and emunah, the active faith that draws forth what is hidden.

לכן כתיב יען לא האמנתם כו'

Therefore it is written, "Because you did not believe (had faith) in Me, etc." (Bamidbar 20:12).

This distinction explains the wording of Moshe's failure at the rock, which the Torah frames as a matter of belief, "you did not believe in Me."

וחלילה חלילה שהיו מרע"ה ואהרן ח"ו מחוסרי אמנה

And Heaven forfend, Heaven forfend, to think that Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon were, chas ve-shalom, lacking in emunah.

The Sfas Emes immediately guards against any misreading: it is unthinkable to suppose that Moshe and Aharon actually lacked faith.

אבל הענין כי זה הי' עדות שאינם מוכנים להנהגת דור החדש שהיו מוכנים לכנוס לא"י שעיקר הנהגתם בבחי' אמונה

Rather, the matter is that this was a testimony that they were not suited to lead the new generation, which was prepared to enter Eretz Yisrael, whose essential mode of conduct was through the aspect of emunah.

Rather, their disqualification from entering the land was a sign that they were not the fitting leaders for the generation that would live in Eretz Yisrael through the mode of emunah.

ומדריגת מרע"ה אמת ולא היה יכול להוריד עצמו לבחי' אחרת

And the level of Moshe Rabbeinu was emes, and he was unable to lower himself to a different aspect.

Moshe's own level was emes, the higher and clearer mode, and he could not descend to operate in the lower mode of emunah that the new generation required.

הגם כי נחשב לחטא מסתמא יש אופן להיות מנהיג דור זה הגם שהי' בבחי' עליונה מזה

Although it is reckoned as a sin, there is surely some way for him to have been the leader of this generation, even though he stood on a higher level than that.

Even though the Torah calls it a sin, that very fact shows there must have been a way for him to lead even this generation, since his deficiency was actually a matter of standing on too lofty a level.

ומה לנו לחשוב בחטא שלמעלה מהשגתינו

And what business have we to reflect upon a sin that is above our comprehension?

He cautions that we should not presume to probe the inner nature of a sin of such a giant, which lies far beyond our grasp.

אבל עכ"פ הפי' לא האמנתם שהי' נוהג בבחי' אמת למעלה מבחי' אמונה

But in any event, the meaning of "you did not believe" is that he conducted himself in the aspect of emes, which is above the aspect of emunah.

The practical upshot remains: "you did not believe" does not mean Moshe was deficient, but that he functioned through emes, a rung above the emunah this moment called for.

ובשירה זו נזכר כל המדריגות מהתחלה עד סוף

And in this song, all the levels are mentioned, from beginning to end.

He now turns to read the Song of the Well as charting a full descent through every spiritual level, from the highest to the lowest.

חפרוה שרים אח"כ כרוה נדיבי עם גם הפחותים ממעלה הראשונה

"The princes dug the well" (Bamidbar 21:18) — afterward, "the nobles of the people hollowed it out," meaning even those of a lower rank than the first level,

The "princes" who dug represent the highest rung; the "nobles of the people" who hollowed it out represent a step lower than that first level.

רק בכח הנדיבות והרצון הגם שא"י לתקן במעשה ממש

only through the power of their generosity and will, even though they could not actually accomplish it through deed,

These lower participants could not fully effect the work through actual deed, but contributed through the power of their generosity and their will alone.

אח"כ במחוקק שהיא רק רשימה

and afterward through the mechokek (the lawgiver, or the engraver), which is only an imprint,

The next, still lower rung is the mechokek, the engraver or lawgiver, who leaves only an imprint or trace rather than a finished act.

אח"כ במשענותם היא אמונה

and afterward through "their staffs" (mish'anosam), which is emunah (the leaning of faith).

Lower yet is "their staffs," which the Sfas Emes identifies with emunah, the posture of one who leans and depends in faith.

ומבמות הגיא דרשו חז"ל כשמתנשא ומתגאה הקב"ה משפילו

And concerning "and from Bamos to the valley (ha-gai)" (Bamidbar 21:20), Chazal expounded that when one raises himself up and grows haughty, the Ribono shel Olam brings him low.

Citing Chazal, he reads "from Bamos to the valley" as the principle that whoever exalts himself is brought low by the Ribono shel Olam.

נראה שגם על זה אמרו שירה כי הוא חסד עליון ששומר הצדיקים שלא יבואו לידי גסות

It appears that song was uttered over this too, for it is a supernal kindness that He guards the tzaddikim so that they should not come to coarseness (gassus, arrogance).

The very fact that song is sung over this teaches that being humbled is a supernal kindness, by which Hashem protects tzaddikim from falling into arrogance.

גם יתכן לפרש שבאמת צריך להיות מבמות הגיא

It is also possible to explain that in truth it must be "from Bamos to the valley" —

He offers a second, deeper reading: that the descent "to the valley" is not a punishment but a necessary and proper movement.

שכפי מה שהקב"ה מרומם ומנשא להצדיק

that according to the measure by which the Ribono shel Olam elevates and exalts the tzaddik,

The principle is that the more the Ribono shel Olam raises and exalts a tzaddik,

צריך ביותר להכניע עצמו

all the more must he humble himself,

the more that tzaddik is obligated to humble himself in response.

וזה עדות על עבודת אמת כשמביא לידי הכנעה

and this is a testimony to avodas emes (the service of truth), when it brings one to submission (hachna'ah).

This self-lowering in the face of elevation is itself the testimony of genuine avodas emes, which always brings a person to submission.

ומרע"ה יוכיח שהי' עניו מכל אדם ע"י שהי' מקורב ביותר אל הבורא ית' ממילא חל עליו ענוה ביותר וזה ומבמות הגיא

And Moshe Rabbeinu proves this, for he was the most humble of all men by virtue of being the closest of all to the Borei Yisbarach; consequently humility settled upon him all the more, and this is "and from Bamos to the valley."

Moshe Rabbeinu is the proof: precisely because he was nearest of all to the Borei Yisbarach, the deepest humility rested upon him, embodying "from Bamos to the valley."

וזה הרמז בעץ ארז ואזוב שב' אלו הם כאחד שכפי מה שמתרומם ביותר צריך להיות מוכנע להש"י כמ"ש במ"א שתכלית הדעת לבוא להכנעה כמ"ש ערומים בדעת כאדם ואז משימין עצמן כבהמה לכן סוף השבח מבמות הגיא

And this is the hint in the cedar wood and the hyssop (eitz erez ve-eizov), that these two are as one: that according to the measure by which one is more exalted, he must be more humbled before Hashem Yisbarach, as we have explained elsewhere, that the purpose of da'as (knowledge) is to arrive at submission, as it is written, "prudent in knowledge" (Mishlei) — like Adam — and then they make themselves like an animal; therefore the conclusion of the praise is "from Bamos to the valley,"

The cedar and the hyssop of the parah adumah hint at the same truth fused into one: the loftier a person rises, the lower he must bow before Hashem; the goal of da'as is to reach submission, modeling oneself like an animal in self-effacement, so the song's climax is davka the descent to the valley.

שזוכין לשעלות של אמת

that they merit to descents that are of emes (true descents/lowerings),

Such humbling is not a fall but a merit: one attains "descents" that are themselves rooted in emes, true lowerings that flow from closeness to Hashem.

וזה ג"כ מותר אדם מן הבהמה אין

and this too is "the superiority of man over the animal is naught" (Koheles 3:19),

This reframes the verse "the superiority of man over the animal is naught," reading the animal-like self-nullification as the very crown of man.

שע"י הדעת יודעין לבטל עצמו אליו ית' כראוי:

that through da'as one knows how to nullify oneself before Him, Yisbarach, as is fitting.

The closing point: it is precisely through da'as that a person knows how to nullify himself completely before Hashem Yisbarach, as is truly fitting.

Summary: The Sfas Emes builds this piece around the striking fact that Moshe Rabbeinu's name does not appear in the Song of the Well. He explains that Moshe embodies emes and the Written Torah, the clear illuminating lens, while the Song of the Well belongs to the realm of emunah and the Oral Torah that Bnei Yisrael must draw forth from within. This is why Moshe, whose level was the higher mode of emes, could not lead the generation that would live in Eretz Yisrael through emunah, and why his failure at the rock is framed as "you did not believe" without any chas ve-shalom implication that he truly lacked faith. Reading the song as a descent through every spiritual rung, the Sfas Emes arrives at "from Bamos to the valley" as the great principle that the more Hashem exalts a tzaddik, the more he must humble himself, with Moshe, the humblest of men precisely because he was closest to the Borei Yisbarach, as the proof. The cedar-and-hyssop of the parah adumah seal this lesson: the purpose of da'as is to bring a person to total bittul before Hashem, so that the animal-like self-nullification is in truth the crown and superiority of man.