Do Not Fear!
Punishment is never meted out to take revenge. Punishment is ultimately for the good of society and for the good of the sinner because it helps to rehabilitate and procure atonement for the sinner. METZORA METZORA
For the Nations
The laws of tzara’as (skin lesions also referred to as nega’im) are introduced by the Torah with the words: “If a man has on the skin of his body a blotch, a creamy blotch or a bright spot and it forms a lesion of tzara’as on the skin of his body, he should be brought to Aaron the priest, or to one of his sons, the priests.” The Torah then describes a purification process for the person so afflicted.
The Midrash comments that when the Jewish people heard the section covering nega’im they were afraid. To allay their fears Moses said “These are for the nations of the world, but you should eat, drink and be happy.” And so does it say (Psalms 32:10), “Many are the pains of the wicked, and he who trusts in G- d—kindness surrounds him.”
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(It should be noted that in this Midrashic citation the nations of the world are compared to the wicked because throughout history the overwhelming majority of nations did not adhere to the Seven Noahide Commandments, which were given to all of humanity. Moreover, these nations persistently persecuted and oppressed the Jewish people.
There are, however, always exceptions to the rule. These individuals are appropriately labeled by our Talmudic Sages as “the pious of the nations of the world,” and are promised a share in the World to Come. These righteous gentiles clearly are not identified with the wicked.
This is particularly true in these Messianic times as we approach the time when all nations will become refined and “serve G-d with one consent” as the prophet Zephaniah predicted. Many nations are filled with hatred toward the Jewish people and the Land of Israel and have not yet embraced observance of the Seven Noahide Commandments. Even so, there are a growing number of individuals METZORA who have and can be included in the category of “the pious of the nations of the world.”)
From this Midrashic source it would seem that these skin lesions only occurred to the nations of the world and not to the Jewish people. Yet this is rather strange since the Mishnah clearly states the very opposite. The laws of Nega’im apply only to the Jewish people exclusively!
How can we reconcile these two diametrically opposed views?
One can ask another question, why did the Jews express fear only when they heard the laws of nega’im? Why didn’t they express fear when they heard of other areas of impurity such as the zav or zavah, which are signs of illness? Furthermore, the citation from Psalms implies that they were concerned with the pain associated with tzara’as. However, nowhere is it said that these lesions were painful. And even if they were, it still is hard to understand mention of these lesions would elicit so much fear.
A third question can be raised. Why does Moses tell the Jewish people to eat, drink and METZORA be happy? How does that address their fear? Moses could have simply told them there is no reason to fear.
Sign of Righteousness
One way of answering this question is based on the understanding, discussed in Chassidic literature, that nega’im happens specifically to righteous people. The more righteous and spiritually sensitive a person is, the more likely that the slightest deviation from the highest path of righteousness will cause a blemish to materialize on the skin. It can be likened to a stain that will ruin silk clothing as compared to the effect of the same stain on a coarser material, such as sackcloth.
If so, one may reason, how can we ever indulge in eating and drinking? When we study Torah or perform a Mitzvah we are protected. But when we eat and drink, even the most scrupulous of individuals may be allowing their animal nature to prevail. That can understandably lead to tzara’as. Even if we can keep our intentions and thoughts pure and noble when we eat and drink how METZORA can we ever be happy if even the slightest slip or spill can taint or contaminate us. We will be terrified at the prospect that we are standing at the precipice and are likely to fall at any moment.
Until the Jews learned the laws of tzara’as they imagined that good people have nothing to fear. As long as we follow the commandments, they believed, we are safe. But when the laws of tzara’as were revealed they discovered to their consternation that even the most righteous people can break out into tzara’as. They therefore wondered how anyone could feel comfortable being a righteous Jew.
No Pain: Surrounded with Kindness
To allay the fear brought on by the prospects of tzara’as, Moses tell the Jewish people that they may eat, drink and be happy. As long as they have trust in G-d, the pain associated with tzara’as will not affect them.
Moses did not say they will not be afflicted with tzara’as. Rather he said that they will not feel the pain because they will be METZORA surrounded with G-d’s kindness. The righteous will recognize that their tzara’as was not intended to be painful. Rather when it occurs it is a sign of G-d’s kindness to let them know that they have a slight imperfection, which, when corrected, will bring them to a state of perfection.
This can explain why it says “they are surrounded with kindness.” The term “surrounded” implies that it is on the periphery, for indeed tzara’as is only skin deep. The reason it is on the skin exclusively and not deeper is because the righteous individual cannot internalize even the slightest trace of evil and impurity. Whatever impurity there is it shows up only on the surface.
Many Pains: Many Levels of Punishment
We still have to explain why Moses said that tzara’as is reserved for the nations of the world. As stated, that is clearly contradicted by the law that it only applies to the Jewish people.
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We may answer this question by referring to the concept of punishment in general. While the laws of nega’im apply to the Jewish people exclusively, punishment as a source of fear is indeed reserved for the wicked among the nations of the world.
This may be the deeper meaning of the worlds of the Psalm, “Many are the pains of the wicked.” The term “many” in this verse may refer not only to the various forms of pain, but also to the many reasons the wicked are afflicted with pain:
They may be suffering because G-d wants to deter them and others from sinning. The pain might be intended for rehabilitation of the sinner. A third benefit that the suffering of the wicked achieves is that it brings atonement that cleanses their transgression. Alternatively, punishment is intended to make it impossible for the sinner to continue to sin. And, in the most of extreme cases of evil, its purpose might be to rid the world of these wicked individuals and prevent them from giving off their spiritually noxious fumes.
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Now in truth, all forms of punishment which derive from a benevolent G-d are, in essence, extensions of G-d’s kindness because they get rid of evil. Overtly, however, there is only the pain. The kindness is concealed.
It is these manifold forms of pain and punishment (“Many are the pains of the wicked”) which elicit fear.
Kind Pain
Nega’im, however, cannot be lumped together with the other forms of punishment. As stated above, the skin lesion was actually a sign of the person’s inner perfection. It pointed to that individual’s extreme level of sensitivity to even the slightest hint of imperfection. That is why the two people we read in the Torah as having been afflicted with tzara’as were Moses and Miriam, two of the most righteous people to have ever lived. Their tzara’as was a sign that they were super sensitive to even the most superficial and external negative influences. When these righteous individuals were afflicted with tzara’as it was demonstrably clear that they METZORA were surrounded by G-d’s kindness. They were informed that all they had to do to reach perfection was to get rid of the most peripheral form of impurity. Instead of instilling them with fear Moses and Miriam realized that they were only one small step away from spiritual perfection. This realization actually generated feelings of ecstasy rather than fear.
The Talmud describes Moshiach as another one who is afflicted with tzara’as. The Rebbe (Likkutei Sichos Volume 37) explains this as a reflection of the status of the Jewish people at the time Moshiach comes to redeem them. Over the course of our long exile we have, as a collective entity, refined all that needs to be refined. Only the most external and superficial aspects of our identity need to be “polished.” Moshiach’s task, the very last accomplishment necessary for the final Redemption, is to complete the refinement process dealing with these most external manifestations of impurity.
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“Do Not Fear: The Time of Your Redemption has Arrived”
We can now see a parallel between the Midrash’s suggestion that we need not fear tzara’as (unlike the wicked of the nations) with another Midrash concerning Moshiach’s announcement to the Jewish people (in light of the fear they experienced in the face of tumultuous world events leading up to the Messianic Age): “Humble Ones, do not fear, the time of your Redemption has arrived.”
This troubling fear may result from the erroneous perception that we still have far to go to be worthy of the Redemption and we therefore must endure even more travail, G-d forbid. To allay this fear, Moshiach echoes Moses’ words of comfort, and declares, “the time of your Redemptio0n has arrived.” This can be said to parallel the statement that we need not fear from tzara’as. The reason is that tzara’as indicates that we have essentially “clinched the deal” and what is left is for Moshiach to make the finishing touches to get us over the doorstep into Geulah. We can therefore eat, drink and be happy, confident in the knowledge that we are about to dance METZORA into the Geulah Shleimah-Complete Redemption with Moshiach at our head!
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From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Tazria-Metzora by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
