This Is Not Only a Test
It is axiomatic that G-d’s knows everything about us. Why then does he test us? He already knows the results. The test is help us actualize our latent qualities.
Moses Demotion
Moses was on the mountain when he heard the dreadful information that the Jewish people had made a Golden Calf. Even before G-d tells Moses what they did, He commands him to “descend.” The Talmud—cited by Rashi— comments that Moses was demoted by G-d. “Did I not bestow greatness upon you for the sake of Israel. Now that they have sinned, why do I need you?” was G-d’s statement to Moses.
After G-d tells Moses what they had done—that they made a Golden Calf, worshipped it etc.— G-d then says to Moses that He wanted to destroy the Jews and then make Moses the father of a new, great nation.
Isn’t it strange that just moments earlier G-d had told him that without the Jewish nation, He had “no need for him,” and now G-d was telling him that He would make him a father of a great nation?
Moses put to the Test
In truth, commentators explain, the entire dialogue between G-d and Moses was part of a test of Moses’ true leadership capabilities.
That Moses was dedicated to the Jewish people is evident from the way he shepherded them from the time he was sent by G-d to speak to Pharaoh. Moses displayed incredible tolerance and patience for his oppressed brethren. But all that was before they had received the Torah, when they were chosen by G-d, uplifted and. converted into a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”
Now that the newly Chosen People had descended to the nadir of evil — to construct a golden calf and worship it, just forty days after hearing G-d’s direct commandment to them not to worship other gods — G-d “wanted to see” if Moses would still have patience and tolerance for them. Would Moses still be able to find their redeeming value and be willing to risk his position vis-a-cis G-d for them?
For Whom was the Test?
To be sure, G-d obviously already knew what Moses’ capabilities were. This test, as is true about every test that G-d administers, was not for G-d’s sake. Rather it was intended to help Moses realize his latent potential.
Another reason for a test is for the benefit of others who witness the way the one tested fares. By Moses passing his test, he served as an inspiration to others to follow Moses’ example.
The Plot Thickens
To further complicate the test, Moses was told that not only did they sin so egregiously, but that they actually caused Moses to be affected by their sin. Moses was told that he too had been degraded by their action. Can a leader plead innocence when his people display such contempt for G-d and His will? When Moses heard that he was to personally suffer because of the Jews’ errant ways, could he still care for the Jewish people?
If this was not enough, G-d made the test for Moses even more difficult. G-d tells Moses that He was prepared to restore his position of greatness, after destroying the cause of his decline—the Jewish nation. The test was now complete:
(a) The Jews commit the worst possible transgression
(b) Moses is profoundly impacted by their sin to the extent that he is personally told by G- d that his whole existence has become delegitimized.
(c) Moses is “enticed” by the prospects of “rehabilitating” himself by allowing himself to become a father and leader of a new nation.
Moses Resists
What does Moses do?
Moses passed the test with flying colors. Moses does not even consider abandoning them for one instant and pleads for their forgiveness. Moreover, he puts his own life on the line for them. Moses declares to G-d: “If you do not forgive them, please, erase me from Your book,” referring — as commentators state — to the “Book of Life.”
To be sure, the entire episode with the Golden Calf, demonstrates the degree to which a leader must go to care for his flock. Only those leaders who were willing to sacrifice their own fame, wealth and even their own lives, were worthy of the title leader.
The lesson for our Times
But there is also a lesson for all of us, who according to our Sages (See Tanya Chapter 42) possess a spark of Moses. The degree to which one must show tolerance, love and even selfsacrifice for another determines whether the spark of Moses within us remains a spark, or is fanned into a robust flame.
Our Sages declare that “Moses was the first redeemer and he will be the last redeemer.” Commentators demonstrate that this statement was not meant literally. Moses, as a Levite cannot possibly be the Moshiach, who must be a descendent from the tribe of Judah. Rather the intent of this passage is to indicate that Moshiach must possess the qualities, if ot the soul, of Moses.
Of all the qualities with which Moses was endowed, the most dramatic one is arguably where he is willing to lay down his life and everything that is precious to him for his people. It would follow that Moshiach too must demonstrate his unconditional love and acceptance of each and every one and his total self-sacrifice for them. And while Moses did not shirk from his responsibility to not compromise on his values and principles—indeed, he even reprimanded and punished the guilty parties— it did not detract from his uncompromising dedication to his people.
Another important lesson to derive from the above is that by emulating Moses and Moshiach, we reveal the spark of Moses and Moshiach within us. This, in turn, helps us to hasten the process of the future Redemption.
From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Ki Sisa by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
