Rabbi Simon A. Dolgin


"And God spoke unto Moses and said unto him: I am the Lord." (Shmot 6.2)

"Regarding this it is written (Kohelet 2.12), "And I turned to viewing wisdom with madness and folly - for what can a man who comes after the king do?" This verse speaks of Solomon and of Moses." (Shmot Rabbah 6.1)

Moses, also known as the most humble of all men, and Solomon, who s described as the wisest of all men, were two of the great leaders in the chronicles of Jewish history. Still, the Midrash accuses them of some inappropriate judgment and behavior, to the extent that Solomon himself laments, "And I turned to viewing wisdom with madness and folly."

During his lifetime, Solomon shunned certain commandments concerning royal behavior, such as the instruction that a king in Israel not have many wives or extreme wealth. According to the Midrash, Solomon felt that such commandments were meant for royalty who could not resist temptation, and whose better judgment would be swayed by earthly pleasures.

Solomon saw only later in his life how he had overestimated himself. Says the Midrash: "And Solomon said: "When I acted wiser than the words of the Torah, and when I told myself that I understood the Torah's true intention, that wisdom and understanding were nothing but madness and folly." Why? Because the Torah was given equally, word for word and commandment for commandment, for all Jews to keep regardless of position or status. Hence Solomon's mistake in assuming that he was exempt from the laws governing royal behavior, and that these were meant only as guidelines for the weak at heart.

Moses, the father of the prophets, achieved as did no one else, a degree of intimacy and trust with the Almighty, to the point that God says of Moses, "In all my house, he is the most loyal." And now God appoints him to the task of leading his people from Egyptian bondage. When Moses sees that, as a result of God's mission the condition of the Israelites deteriorates further, and that Pharaoh only becomes more harsh and intransigent, he criticizes God: "And ever since I approached Pharaoh in Your name, this nations' plight has worsened!"

To this the Midrash responds, "On this it said that Moses' wisdom and understanding were of madness and folly. 'For what can a man who comes after the king do?' How could Moses question the King of King's plan..., especially since he had been forewarned that He would harden Pharaoh's heart in order to punish him even more severely for enslaving them?"'

We do not second-guess the Almighty. Our survival for 2000 years of exile was made possible by our belief that just as God delivered the Jews from Egyptian slavery, so will He redeem them again when He sees fit. It is not ours to question the duration or conditions of the exile. We must be guided by the belief that the Messiah will come according to God's plan and time-table. By the same token, we dare not second-guess the Torah's commandments, as if to pick and choose which ones seem convenient or appropriate for us. We may not dismiss anything in the Torah as irrelevant or outdated. We must not make alterations to fit the Torah to our lifestyles, as if to appear liberal or enlightened. The Creator handed down the Torah in its entirety for all to follow equally, king and peasant alike. We must fulfill this commitment in its entirety so that we, too, will merit speedy redemption.