Pinchas Sword of Tefillah

השיב את חמתי מעל בני ישראל

"He has turned away My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael" (Bamidbar 25:11).

The pasuk states that Pinchas turned Hashem's anger away from Bnei Yisrael. This is the verse the whole piece will unpack.

פרשנו כי ע"י נקמתו הפך החימה מעל בנ"י על ראש המדינים דכתיב אח"כ צרור את המדינים כו'

We have explained that through Pinchas's act of vengeance, he turned the wrath away from upon Bnei Yisrael and onto the heads of the Midianites, as it is written afterward, "Distress the Midianites..." (Bamidbar 25:17).

By avenging Hashem's honor, Pinchas redirected the wrath that hung over Bnei Yisrael onto the Midianites, who are immediately afterward marked for distress.

דכ' וירא פינחס כו' ויקם כו' ויקח רמח בידו

For it is written, "And Pinchas saw... and he arose... and he took a spear in his hand" (Bamidbar 25:7).

The Torah describes Pinchas seeing, rising, and taking a spear into his hand, three deliberate stages that the Sfas Emes will examine.

כי באמת כל המלחמות שעומדין על בנ"י הכל לטובתם להיות הזמן גרמא לנקום מהם כדכ' עת אשר שלט האדם באדם לרע לו

For in truth, all the wars that arise against Bnei Yisrael are entirely for their good, in order that the moment should occasion taking vengeance from the enemies, as it is written, "a time when man rules over man to his own detriment" (Koheles 8:9).

Every war launched against Bnei Yisrael is ultimately for their benefit, providing the right moment to take vengeance from the enemy, who is the one harmed in the end.

וכ' חרב פתחו רשעים כו'

And it is written, "The wicked have drawn the sword..." (Tehillim 37:14).

Tehillim teaches that when the wicked draw their sword, it rebounds upon themselves, reinforcing that enemy aggression serves Bnei Yisrael's good.

וזהו שראה והבין פינחס כי עתה העת להנקם מהם

And this is what Pinchas saw and understood, that now was the time to take vengeance from them.

What Pinchas truly saw was that this was the destined moment to bring vengeance upon the wicked.

ומאחר שכ' בתורה וירא היינו שראה האמת

And since the Torah writes "and he saw," this means that he perceived the truth.

The Torah's word "and he saw" signals that Pinchas grasped the deeper truth of the situation, not merely the surface events.

וזה עצמו השלימות שניתן לפינחס במדה שמדד שבירר שכל המחלוקות ומריבות שיש לעובדי השי"ת הכל למען השלום ולטובתן של בנ"י

And this itself was the perfection that was granted to Pinchas, measure for measure as he had measured, that he clarified that all the controversies and disputes that the servants of Hashem Yisbarach encounter are entirely for the sake of peace and for the good of Bnei Yisrael.

The reward Pinchas received corresponded to his own insight: he had perceived that all the strife righteous people face is really directed toward peace and the good of Bnei Yisrael.

ובכח אמונה זו יכולין להלחם עמהם

And by the power of this emunah, one is able to wage war against them.

Armed with this faith, that strife ultimately serves the good, one gains the strength to fight the enemy.

ובתהלים כתיב ויעמוד פינחס ויפלל ובתורה כ' ויקח רמח

And in Tehillim it is written, "And Pinchas stood up and prayed" (Tehillim 106:30), while in the Torah it is written, "and he took a spear" (Bamidbar 25:7).

Tehillim emphasizes Pinchas praying, while the Torah emphasizes him taking a spear, two sides of the same act.

והוא כדכ' רוממות אל בגרונם וחרב פיפיות בידם

And this is in accordance with what is written, "The exaltations of Hashem are in their throat, and a double-edged sword is in their hand" (Tehillim 149:6).

The pasuk in Tehillim pairs praise of Hashem in the throat with a double-edged sword in the hand, joining spiritual exaltation to physical battle.

שזה החרב שזוכין ע"י התרוממות בתורה ותפלה הוא מוצלחת כמ"ש חז"ל שם שכל מלחמתן של בנ"י היה בכח הפה כדכ' ובעת החלו ברנה כו' מארבים כו'

For this sword, which one merits through exaltation in Torah and tefillah, is successful, as Chazal said there, that all the warfare of Bnei Yisrael was through the power of the mouth, as it is written, "And at the time they began with song... ambushes..." (Divrei HaYamim II 20:22).

A sword earned through Torah and tefillah succeeds, since Chazal teach that Bnei Yisrael's victories came through the power of the mouth, as when Yehoshafat's army sang and the enemy was ambushed.

פיפית הוא בכח ברית הלשון וברית המעור

"Double-edged" (pifios) refers to the power of the bris of the tongue and the bris of the membrum.

The "double-edged" quality of the sword corresponds to the two britos, guarding the tongue and guarding sanctity, both edges of a single power.

וב' אלו הי' בפינחס

And these two were both present in Pinchas.

Pinchas possessed both of these guardings, which is why he merited this weapon of the mouth.

וי"ל ע"ד הרמז במ"ש ויקח רמח בידו

And one may say, by way of remez, regarding what is written, "and he took a spear in his hand" (Bamidbar 25:7).

The Sfas Emes now offers a hint contained in the words "a spear in his hand."

דמאי קמ"ל בידו

For what is the verse teaching us by saying "in his hand"?

He asks what is added by specifying "in his hand," since it seems self-evident.

ודאי אדם נוטל ביד

Surely a person takes hold of something with his hand.

Obviously a person grasps a spear with his hand, so the phrase appears redundant.

רק לרמוז כי לא הי' כל לקיחת פינחס על צד הרציחה להרוג נפש

Rather, it comes to hint that Pinchas's entire act of taking was not from the angle of killing, to slay a soul.

The redundancy hints that Pinchas's action was not essentially an act of killing or bloodshed.

רק בידו לקח הרמח אבל עיקר כוונתו ומחשבתו הי' בתפלה ועבודת ה' כדכתיב ויעמוד כו' ויפלל

Rather, with his hand he took the spear, but the essence of his intention and his thought was in tefillah and the avodah of Hashem, as it is written, "and he stood up... and he prayed" (Tehillim 106:30).

Only outwardly did his hand grasp the spear, but inwardly his true focus was tefillah and avodas Hashem, as Tehillim describes him standing and praying.

[וחז"ל דרשו עשה פלילות עם קונו

[And Chazal expounded that he rendered judgment (pelilos) with his Maker.

Chazal further read "and he prayed" as Pinchas entering into judgment, or pleading, with his Maker.

ויתפרש לפי מ"ש לעיל שפי' ובירר מעשי השי"ת שכל מה שנמצא מלחמות וכחות סט"א הלוחמים עם בנ"י הכל לטובה כנ"ל

And this may be explained according to what was said above, that he clarified and discerned the deeds of Hashem Yisbarach, that all the wars and forces of the sitra achra that wage war against Bnei Yisrael are entirely for the good, as above.

This fits the earlier theme: Pinchas discerned in Hashem's ways that all the hostile forces of the sitra achra against Bnei Yisrael are ultimately for the good.

כי פלילות היא לשון בירור ועדות]. ובמד' צרור את המדינים כו' שגדול המחטיאו יותר מההורגו ואמרו בא להרגך השכם להרגו

For pelilos is an expression of clarification and testimony.] And in the Midrash, "Distress the Midianites..." teaches that one who causes a person to sin is worse than one who kills him, and they said, "If one comes to slay you, rise early to slay him first."

The word pelilos denotes clarification and testimony, so his "judgment" was really his clear perception of this truth. The Midrash on "Distress the Midianites" teaches that one who leads a person to sin is worse than one who kills him, hence the rule to preempt one who comes to slay you.

והוא כנ"ל שכל שבא ללחום עם בנ"י הכל כדי להיות השכם להורגו כדכ' ולאום מלאום יאמץ

And this is as above, that whoever comes to wage war against Bnei Yisrael, it is all so that one should rise early to slay him first, as it is written, "and one people shall be stronger than the other people" (Bereishis 25:23).

This too reflects the earlier idea: every enemy who comes against Bnei Yisrael exists so that Bnei Yisrael should rise first and prevail, as the destiny that one nation will overpower the other.

וז"ש וירא פינחס כו' ויקם

And this is the meaning of "And Pinchas saw... and he arose" (Bamidbar 25:7),

This is the meaning of the Torah saying Pinchas saw and then arose,

שהיה לו עוד קימה מזה:

that he had an additional rising-up from this.

indicating that this perception granted him a further, elevated rising-up.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains how Pinchas turned Hashem's wrath away from Bnei Yisrael by redirecting it onto the Midianites, and that this stemmed from his deep perception of the truth: every war waged against Bnei Yisrael is ultimately for their good, and all the strife that the servants of Hashem face is really directed toward peace and their benefit. Armed with this emunah, Pinchas was able to wage battle, wielding a sword that draws its strength from Torah and tefillah, the power of the mouth, rooted in the two britos of the tongue and of sanctity, both of which he embodied. The hint in "a spear in his hand" teaches that although his hand grasped the spear, his essential intent was tefillah and avodas Hashem, which Chazal read as his pleading and clarifying judgment before his Maker. Through this clarity, that even the forces of the sitra achra serve a good purpose, Pinchas merited an added elevation, a further rising-up reflected in the Torah's words "and he saw... and he arose."