What’s in It for Me?
When one receives pleasure or derives a benefit from the one mitzvah, and no benefit from another, the latter mitzvah takes precedence. The rationale for this is that one of the functions of the mitzvah is to refine us. The more a mitzvah “imposes” itself on us and demands of us to “bend” (Iskafia in the terminology of the Zohar), the greater is its effect on ourselves. BESHALLACH BESHALLACH
The Wise Hearted take Mitzvos
When the Jewish nation left Egypt, the Torah relates how Moses took the coffin containing Joseph’s body with him. Our sages commented on this: “”Come and see how dear Mitzvos were to Moses. While all of Israel was engaged in the collection of Egyptian spoils, he was engaged in the performance of Mitzvos, as it is written: ‘The wise hearted takes Mitzvos.’”
Commentators are puzzled with this statement. Why were the Jewish nation not considered to be engaged in the performance of a mitzvah? After all, did not G-d request of them to ask the Egyptians for their silver and gold?
Moreover, according to our sages’ comment on this, G-d “pleaded” with Moses to convince the Jews to take Egyptian wealth with them. The reason for this was so that Abraham will not say that G-d kept only the first half of His promise to enslave the Jews, but did not keep the second part that BESHALLACH they will leave with great wealth? If G-d had to plead with the Jews to take the wealth with them, why was it not considered a Mitzvah?
Conflicts
A simple answer that has been provided for this matter will serve as a lesson in the way we assign priorities to conflicting Mitzvos.
Invariably, we are called upon to assume responsibilities in our lives that will conflict with one another. For example, a person may be involved in teaching Torah to a group of students, when called upon to assist a person in need.
Alternatively, one might be performing a service for one individual and they are requested to perform a service for the community. Jewish law provides us with general guidelines as to what we should do when we already commenced the performance of one mitzvah. The general rule is that “one who is engaged in one mitzvah is exempted from other Mitzvos.”
Another rule that governs a conflict between learning Torah and the performance of a Mitzvah is that if there is someone else who can perform the Mitzvah one should not interrupt one’s Torah studies. However, where there is no BESHALLACH one else, one must interrupt Torah study for the performance of the Mitzvah.
What about a situation where the two Mitzvos coincide?
Bending Our Will
There is a third rule that applies: When one receives pleasure or derives a benefit from the one mitzvah, and no benefit from another, the latter mitzvah takes precedence. The rationale for this is that one of the functions of the mitzvah is to refine us. The more a mitzvah “imposes” itself on us and demands of us to “bend” (Iskafia in the terminology of the Zohar), the greater is its effect on ourselves.
Moreover, the Zohar states, that: “When one suppresses the “other side” (I.e. one’s evil impulse) one generates the glory of G-d in all of the worlds.” The Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe (whose anniversary of his passing — coinciding, simultaneously, with the anniversary of the Rebbe’s assumption of leadership — we observed on the Tenth of Shevat) explains (in his classic discourse that was issued for study on the day of Yud Shevat), that when one bends his/her will for G-d, thereby doing something to alter his/her nature, s/he generates a G-dly surge of energy that is likewise, of an altered, transcendent nature.
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This surge of divine energy creates an “imbalance” of goodness and holiness in the world that leads inexorably to its total transformation. Whereas, initially, it appears as if G-d has withdrawn His presence from the world, by suppressing our desires and “bending” our will, we reintroduce Him into the world. Then, G-d is pleased to dwell in our world. Indeed, to effect this change is the very purpose for which the entire universe was created and which will be fully realized with the coming of Moshiach.
Moses’ choice of Mitzvah Preferred
This explains why Moses’ choice of a mitzvah was preferred to the choice of the rest of the Jewish people. True, collecting the wealth of Egypt was a Mitzvah, but it cannot compare to a mitzvah that Moses took, to watch the remains of Joseph.
Moses’ Mitzvah did not offer him any physical pleasure or any material gain as did the mitzvah the Jews did to collect the spoils of Egypt. It was thus a mitzvah that possessed the desired quality of refining oneself and the world around, the very purpose of Mitzvos in the first place, and the first step in making the transformation the world needed so desperately.
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The Future
To set the tone for all future efforts at changing the world, Moses demonstrated the power of doing a mitzvah divorced from all forms of self-interest.
Our Sages tell us that even in the Messianic Age we will still remember the Exodus from Egypt.
Although the Redemption will dwarf the miracle of the Exodus we will still remember the Exodus.
One of the explanations given in Chassidic thought is that the Exodus from Egypt represents the idea of suppressing evil.
In the Messianic Age evil will cease to exist. But, since there is an advantage to suppression of evil over transformation, we will be given an opportunity to experience that challenge as well.
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From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Beshalach by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
