Ascending Through Wilderness Journeys

תלה הכתוב אלה המסעות ביצ"מ שגם בהם נאמר מוצאיהם שכל המקומות הללו הוצרכו לתשועת ה' כמ"ש ויהי בנסוע הארון כו' קומה ה'

The verse links these journeys to the exodus from Mitzrayim, for regarding the journeys too it says 'their goings forth' (Bamidbar 33:2), since all of these places required the salvation of Hashem, as it is written, 'And it was when the Aron traveled, Moshe said: Arise, Hashem...' (Bamidbar 10:35).

The Torah ties the list of the journeys in the wilderness to the exodus, because each stop demanded Hashem's salvation just as the redemption from Mitzrayim did.

ואלה המלחמות שהי' להם שע"ז נק' צבאות ה' כמ"ש אשר יצאו כו' לצבאותם להיות נלחמים מלחמות ה' ולתקן כל המקומות אלו כדאיתא במדרש שנזכרו בתורה אלו המסעות שעתידין להיות ישוב

And these were the wars that Bnei Yisrael had, on account of which they are called 'the legions of Hashem' (Tzivos Hashem), as it is written, 'who went out... according to their legions' (Shemos 12:41) — to be ones who wage the wars of Hashem and to rectify all of these places, as is brought in the Midrash that these journeys, which are mentioned in the Torah, are destined to become settled habitations.

Bnei Yisrael are called the legions of Hashem because their travels were a campaign to fight Hashem's wars and to rectify and make habitable every place they passed through.

וכ' אנכי ארד עמך כו' אעלך גם עלה

And it is written, 'I will go down with you... and I will surely bring you up again' (Bereishis 46:4).

Hashem's promise to Yaakov to go down to Mitzrayim and bring him up again is the source for this theme of descent and ascent.

לרבות מ"ג מסעות אלו שהיו מיצ"מ עד ארץ ישראל

This comes to include these forty-two journeys that were from Mitzrayim until Eretz Yisrael.

The repeated language of 'bringing up' alludes to the forty-two stages of travel from Mitzrayim all the way to Eretz Yisrael.

גם הוא לשון ריבוי שהיו מקומות מרוחקין ובזכותן של בנ"י זכו לעלות להיות בכלל נחלת ה'

The doubled expression 'bring you up, surely bring you up' (gam aloh) is also a term of inclusion, that there were places far removed, and through the merit of Bnei Yisrael they were privileged to be elevated and to be included in the inheritance of Hashem.

The doubled wording teaches inclusion: even distant, lowly places were lifted up and absorbed into Hashem's inheritance through the merit of Bnei Yisrael.

ונכתבו כל המסעות להודיע לעם ה' כי כל עובד ה' לא יפול לבו עליו מכל הנפילות שיש לו, כי כך הוא המדה להיות עולה ויורד

And all the journeys were recorded in order to make known to the people of Hashem that every one who serves Hashem should not let his heart fall on account of all the fallings that he experiences, for this is the way of things — to be ascending and descending.

The journeys were written down to teach every servant of Hashem not to be discouraged by his setbacks, because rising and falling is simply the nature of avodah.

ומכל מנוחה שהשיגו אחר איזה מלחמה התחיל מלחמה אחרת

And from every rest that they attained after some war, another war began.

Every period of rest gained after one struggle was immediately followed by the onset of a new struggle.

וכן לעולם ויסעו ויחנו ויסעו ויחנו כמ"ש ילכו מחיל אל חיל שאין להם מנוחה לעובדי ה' שע"ז נבראו ללחום מלחמות ה'

And so it is forever: 'and they traveled and they encamped, and they traveled and they encamped,' as it is written, 'they go from strength to strength' (Tehillim 84:8) — for those who serve Hashem have no rest, since it was for this that they were created: to wage the wars of Hashem.

Constant traveling and encamping is the permanent condition of one who serves Hashem; he has no final rest because he was created to wage Hashem's wars and climb ever higher.

ובודאי מלחמות שהיו לכלל ישראל היו דברים הנוגעים לכל הבריאה

And certainly the wars that belonged to Klal Yisrael as a whole were matters that touched upon the entire Creation.

The battles fought by Klal Yisrael as a whole had cosmic significance, affecting the whole of Creation.

ומעין זה נמצא בכל פרט לפי מה שהוא:

And something of this same pattern is found in every individual, each according to what he is:

This same pattern of descent and ascent plays out within each individual, in accordance with his own particular level.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains that the Torah's list of the forty-two journeys is bound up with the exodus from Mitzrayim, because every stop along the way required Hashem's salvation and was part of the wars of Hashem through which Bnei Yisrael, the legions of Hashem, rectified each place and drew it into Hashem's inheritance. Drawing on Hashem's promise to Yaakov of descent and ascent, he shows that even distant, fallen places were elevated through the merit of Bnei Yisrael. The deeper purpose of recording the journeys is to teach every servant of Hashem not to lose heart over his setbacks, for the nature of avodah is a constant cycle of ascending and descending, traveling and encamping, with no final rest. One who serves Hashem was created to wage Hashem's wars and to go from strength to strength. And just as these national battles touched the entire Creation, so too this same pattern of descent and ascent unfolds within each individual according to his own level.