Parshiot Matot-Masei: Are We There Yet?

Some people enjoy taking long car rides just for fun. I’m not sure if this is still a thing, or if it used to be a thing — poskim discuss if this is appropriate during the Nine-Days. (Or maybe it’s for when you need the baby to fall asleep!) Most of our travels come with a goal: to reach the final destination safely. If, for some reason, there is an unexpected delay or detour right by the finish line, that is very upsetting.

Right now, many people have the feeling that we almost made it, but that we got turned away.

There was a major levayah in Iran, as many from around the world came to pay respect to the hundreds of thousands murdered over the years by the Ayatollahs. Oops, that was a slip. They are paying respect to the beloved leader of Iran, cruelly murdered by the evil Americans and Israelis. (V’chein yirbu!)

Last summer there was the 12-Day War, and we experienced massive miracles, with tons of deadly missiles being shot at Eretz Yisrael, and overall, very few injuries and even fewer casualties. Iran was weakened, the U.S. B-2’d the nuclear sites, and then President Trump declared a ceasefire.

Then half a year passed, and on Parshat Zachor, Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran, killing Khamenei! Timche et zecher Amalek! Such success and many more miracles, stretching through Pesach. Then… ceasefire again. They want a deal… attack! Stop, they’re dying for a deal… attack, sirens… Stop, deal…

I’m not going through all the current events, but this is everywhere. Israel elected the most right-wing and religious government that there ever was here, and people were hoping for major positive changes. Now we are heading to elections again, with a government that was blocked at practically every turn, culminating with bnei Torah being attacked like no other group in Israel has ever been attacked before.

There are people who feel like we almost made it, but we are being turned away. They are feeling yiush — desperation, like giving up. How bad can things get? How much more can we bear? How much longer can we wait for Mashiach to arrive?

Let us try to find some encouragement from our parshiot.

Parshat Masei lists the journeys of bnei Yisrael throughout the forty years. Many of those places we came across in Sefer Shemot and Sefer Bamidbar. However, the order listed does not always match up, especially in comparison to the list in Parshat Chukat, which was at the end of the forty years.

In Parshat Pinchas, Rashi brings a Yerushalmi which says: After Aharon died, the Clouds of Glory disappeared, and the Canaanim/Amaleikim attacked. Although klal Yisrael defeated them, in panic they traveled backwards seven journeys. There was even a civil war between the shevatim, as shevet Levi tried to prevent that retreat. Several families from the various shevatim were killed out — entire families from Levi, Binyamin, and Gad. In Parshat Masei, the exact order of travels is listed differently, only listing the places going forward.

Other explanations are given as to why they traveled backwards, including that Hashem commanded them to. Whatever the reason was to turn back, it was very confusing for bnei Yisrael.

In the second part of Sefer Shemirat HaLashon, the Chofetz Chaim has chiddushim on the parshiot. In Parshat Chukat he says: After burying Aharon and leaving Hor HaHar, klal Yisrael traveled backwards, away from Eretz Yisrael. This was when they were all befitting and ready to enter Eretz Yisrael. Why were they being turned away? “We’re so close, and now this detour? Who knows how long it’ll take?” They became nervous, “Maybe our journey isn’t ending?!” They complained, having kotzer ruach — a shortness of spirit, despairing over reaching Eretz Yisrael. They were punished for it with the poisonous snakes.

This is all hinting to what will happen at acharit hayamim — the End of Days, the end of our golut. People will speak in that same manner, and that is a grave error. We must be very careful to stay away from that and not to complain. Keep trusting in Hashem, and that is when the geulah will come!

We would like to explain that the Chofetz Chaim has a deeper meaning. The end of golut includes this kotzer ruach.

We find this kotzer ruach earlier on, at the end of golut Mitzrayim. By the end of Parshat Shemot, Paroh decreed the gezeirat hakash — to no longer provide straw for the brick-making, while demanding the same quota. That was an insanely harsh decree. Everyone was desperately trying to find straw, not completing their quotas, getting beaten or worse. Bnei Yisrael were so confused. Moshe had just told them that they were getting out, and now the slavery just got much worse! They had kotzer ruach. They thought they were at the end, and then the hardest part began.

We find this as well right before the Bayit Sheini period. King Koresh of Persia allowed the rebuilding of the Beit Hamikdash. It began with great excitement, the ending of the Seventy-Year golut. Then Achashveirosh came to power, and he stopped the whole thing. That was followed by Haman’s gezeirah. They almost had the geulah, and then it was stopped, turned back?

The end of golut means that there will be a situation of kotzer ruach first.

The Gemara in Sanhedrin (97a) brings a long list of what will happen, and what needs to happen, before Mashiach’s arrival. (Many have happened or are happening as we speak.) It also says there that the geulah will not come until we have yiush from his coming.

At the same time, it is essential for us to be anticipating the geulah. If we do not, then it prevents him from coming. We need to want, even when we do not understand what is happening.

Bitachon in Hashem saves us from yiush. Even when we have no idea why things are happening, we trust in Hashem that He is working everything out exactly according to plan. The situation seems to be stopping, not being completed, moving backwards? Yes, that is how it seems. But by working on our bitachon, we can remain b’simchah, knowing that Hashem is running the show in the best way.

The t’filah of Aleinu is a great way to work on ingraining this. Ein od milvado — there is no power other than Hashem!

May we merit to reach the finish line very soon, with the coming of Mashiach, and may this Tisha B’Av be transformed into a Yom Tov!

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R’ Dovi Chaitovsky and his family have the zechut to live in Eretz Yisrael, where he dedicates himself to learning and teaching Torah. His divrei Torah often draw from the shiurim of R’ Yisrael Altusky shlit”a of Yeshiva Torah Ore, available on KolHalashon.com. In his column, Connecting The Dots: Torah Thoughts For Modern Times, R’ Dovi offers thoughtful insights that bridge timeless Torah wisdom with the challenges of contemporary life, using stories, parables, Torah sources, and reflections on current events to highlight practical lessons from Jewish tradition and encourage readers to apply them in their daily lives.