{"id":47509,"date":"2019-05-23T15:50:14","date_gmt":"2019-05-23T15:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/holidays\/?p=47509"},"modified":"2020-09-08T16:12:38","modified_gmt":"2020-09-08T16:12:38","slug":"the-case-for-receiving-the-torah-moshes-debate-with-the-angels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/holidays\/the-case-for-receiving-the-torah-moshes-debate-with-the-angels\/","title":{"rendered":"The Case for Receiving the Torah:\u00a0Moshe\u2019s Debate with the Angels"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reprinted with permission from Rabbi Bernstein\u2019s new book, <\/em>The Call of Sinai<\/strong><\/p>\n

Following the event of the nation hearing the Aseres HaDibros<\/em>, the Torah relates that Moshe ascended the mountain to receive the rest of the Torah on their behalf. As we will see, he was met in this matter with considerable resistance. The Gemara relates the following:<\/p>\n

When Moshe ascended on high (to receive the Torah), the ministering angels said before the Holy One, Blessed be He, \u201cMaster of the world, what is someone born of a woman doing among us?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hashem said to them: \u201cHe has come to receive the Torah.\u201d<\/p>\n

They said before Him: \u201cThe coveted treasure that was stored away by You for nine hundred and seventy-four generations before the world was created, You intend to give it to flesh and blood?! What is a mortal that You should remember him, or the son of man that You should recall him?[1]<\/a> Hashem our Master, how mighty is Your Name throughout the world, so that You should bestow Your glory upon the heavens!\u201d[2]<\/a><\/p>\n

Said the Holy One, Blessed be He, to Moshe: \u201cGive them an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moshe said before Him: \u201cMaster of the world, I am fearful lest they burn me with the breath in their mouths!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hashem said to him: \u201cGrasp hold of My Throne of Glory and give them an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moshe said before Him: \u201cMaster of the world, the Torah that You are giving me, what is written in it? \u2018I am Hashem your God Who has taken you out of the Land of Egypt.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Moshe said to the angels: \u201cDid you descend to Egypt? Were you enslaved to Pharaoh? Why should the Torah be yours?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat else is written there? \u2018There shall not be unto you the gods of others.\u2019 Do you live among nations who worship idols?<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat else is written there? \u2018Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it.\u2019 Do you engage in labor from which you need to rest?\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Honor your father and mother.\u2019 Do you have a father or mother?<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018You shall not murder; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal.\u2019 Is there envy among you? Is there an evil inclination among you?\u201d<\/p>\n

Immediately, [the angels] conceded to the Holy One, Blessed be He.[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

Although there are many questions which could (and should) be raised regarding the particulars of the above episode, the most important question undoubtedly concerns the exchange itself, for the entire conversation is simply baffling. On the one hand, the angels vehemently protest the Torah being given to man, while at the same time it appears that they had not even taken the trouble to open it and find out what it says! All it took was for Moshe to read out the Ten Commandments for the angels to concede that not even one of them applied to them!<\/p>\n

How are we to understand this debate?<\/p>\n

What Did the Angels Want?<\/strong><\/p>\n

In order to appreciate the position of the angels, we refer to an idea discussed in numeorus sources,[4]<\/a> namely, that the Torah that predated the world existed in the form of an unbroken chain of letters consisting of Names of Hashem. These Names represent the sum total of Divine wisdom \u2014 relating to every sphere and every level of Creation \u2014 that it is possible for created beings to understand. The commentators explain that it was to the Torah in this <\/em>form that the angels were referring, for its esoteric wisdom is something to which they are entirely suited \u2014 and perhaps even more so than man.[5]<\/a><\/p>\n

However, now that we understand the form in which the angels sought to keep the Torah with them, we encounter a different problem, for Moshe was seeking to receive the Torah in the form of practical mitzvos. At this point, Moshe and the angels seem to be talking at cross-purposes. For their part, the angels are seeking to hold on to the prior form of Torah, while Moshe is seeking to receive it as the Divine program of physical mitzvos which applies only to human beings. Seeing as the Torah contains both, how are these two goals in conflict with each other? Can they not keep the Torah as it applies to them<\/em>, while we receive it as it applies to us<\/em>?<\/p>\n

The question thus remains: What was the basis of the angels\u2019 objection to Moshe receiving the Torah in the form of mitzvos?<\/p>\n

The answer is that the angels were not claiming that the Torah in the form of practical mitzvos should exist among them; they were claiming that it should not exist in this form at all.<\/p>\n

Defining Glory<\/strong><\/p>\n

Angels are spiritual beings. As such, they are naturally closer to Hashem, Who is Absolute Spirituality, than man is. From the vantage point of their own existence, the entire physical realm represents one that is distant from Hashem, and hence it is an affront to His Torah that it should exist in that realm. In the verse from Tehillim<\/em> quoted by the Gemara, the angels recognize that the Might of Hashem\u2019s Name<\/em> (\u05d0\u05d3\u05d9\u05e8 \u05e9\u05de\u05da<\/u>) exists throughout the physical world; however, they argue that His Glory<\/em> (\u05d4\u05d5\u05d3\u05da<\/u>) should remain in the spiritual realms!<\/p>\n

What is the answer to this claim?<\/p>\n

What the angels, as spiritual beings, do not appreciate about physical existence is that if the Torah is implanted within it and is able to elevate it above the mundane and the temporal \u2014that is a greater Glory for Hashem! Therefore, although the physical element of man\u2019s makeup is indeed naturally distant from Godliness, it is specifically because of that element<\/em> that he can give glory to Hashem in a way which exceeds even that of the angels.<\/p>\n

This is what the Gemara means by Moshe\u2019s statement that he was fearful that the angels would \u201cburn him with their breath,\u201d i.e., that their spiritual essence would completely negate the worth of his physical existence. In response to this, Hashem told Moshe to \u201cgrasp on to the Throne of Glory and reply to them.\u201d In so doing, Moshe was expressing that, as a human being, he has a special form of attachment to Hashem\u2019s Glory and indeed, can make a unique contribution to that Glory.<\/p>\n

Parting Gifts<\/strong><\/p>\n

The effect of the debate between Moshe and the angels was nothing short of revolutionary. Not only did it serve to establish the unique value of physical existence, it also caused the angels to reappraise their own<\/em> existence. The Gemara proceeds to relate that, upon the angels\u2019 acceptance of Moshe\u2019s argument: \u201cImmediately, each and every one of [the angels] became a friend of [Moshe] and gave him something [as a gift].\u201d[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

What is the meaning behind this sudden friendship and each angel giving Moshe a gift? Is it simply a matter of \u201cno hard feelings\u201d?<\/p>\n

Upon realizing that Moshe, representing human beings, is capable of making a contribution to Hashem\u2019s Glory exceeding even that of the angels, they came to appreciate that part of their role as heavenly beings is to \u201cbefriend\u201d him and even assist him in that endeavor. This was expressed in the gifts which each angel gave to Moshe.<\/p>\n

Shavuos and \u201cYou\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Gemara records an interesting dispute among the Tannaim (Sages of the Mishnah) as to how to reconcile two verses related to the festivals. One verse states that the festivals are \u201cfor Hashem,\u201d[7]<\/a> while the other states that they are \u201cfor you\u201d:[8]<\/a><\/p>\n