The midrash makes a startling claim about the Israelites who witnessed the splitting of the Red Sea:
"Come and see how great were those who crossed the Sea! Moses pleaded and beseeched before God that he should merit seeing God's Divine Image, 'Please, show me Your glory!' Yet God told him, "You cannot see My face." Yet every Jew who descended into the Sea pointed with his finger and said, "This is my God and I will glorify Him." [Shmot Rabba, 23]
How could it be that those who crossed the Red Sea saw more than Moses, about whom the Torah says, "No other prophet like Moses has arisen in Israel"? Furthermore, Moses was also there, crossing the Sea - he certainly saw what everyone else experienced.
This midrash cannot be referring to the level of prophecy. It is a fundamental article of faith that Moses' prophecy was unequaled. Rather, the midrash must be referring to some aspect of prophetic vision that was only viewed by those who experienced the miraculous splitting of the Sea.
What was so special about the splitting of the Red Sea?
God performed other miracles for Israel, but those miracles did not entail the complete abrogation of the laws of nature. Nature as a whole continued on its usual path; God only temporarily changed one aspect for Israel's benefit. But with the miraculous splitting of the Sea, God suspended the overall system of natural law. The Sages wrote that this miracle did not occur solely in the Red Sea. On that night, bodies of water all over the world were split. According to the Maharal (Rabbi Yehuda Loew) of Prague, water symbolizes the physical world. This miracle extended to the entire physical realm of creation. [Gevurot Hashem, ch. 42] The entire rule of nature was breached.
The universe is governed by the structure of cause and effect. When the underlying rule of nature was suspended during the Splitting of the Sea, the entire system of causality was arrested. During that time, the universe lost its cloak of natural law, and revealed itself as a pure expression of Divine Will.
What is the essence of prophecy? This unique gift is the ability to look at God's actions, and through them recognize His greatness. As long as nature's causal structure is functioning, a prophet may attain sublime and even esoteric knowledge, but he will never achieve immediate awareness of God's directing Hand. First the prophet will be aware, through his physical senses and powers of reason, of the natural system of cause and effect. Only afterwards will he arrive at the recognition that this entire system is created and directed by an ultimate Cause.
God told Moses, "You will only see My 'Back'". Maimonides explained that God's 'Back' refers to the system of natural laws that God created to administer the universe. God granted Moses knowledge of the inner connectivity within creation, and Moses gained an understanding of God's true nature beyond that of any other prophet.
When God split the Sea, all laws of nature were temporarily suspended, and God's Hand took direct control of the universe. Those witnessing this miracle were able to perceive God, each according to his spiritual level. Certainly none reached the prophetic level of Moses. Yet, whatever enlightenment they attained, it was perceived immediately. They did not need to first examine the natural system of causality, and from this, recognize the prime Cause of creation.
Therefore those experiencing the miracle of the Sea called out, "This is my God." Their comprehension was not enveloped and muffled by the logical system of cause and effect. They witnessed the revealed rule of God's Will outright, without the cloak of causality.
[Based on Midbar Shur, pp. 353-357]
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Chanan Morrison, of Mitzpeh Yericho, runs a website (RavKook.n3.net) dedicated to presenting the Torah commentary of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, first Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael, to the English-speaking community. This week?s commentary can be seen at BSHALA63.htm.
"Come and see how great were those who crossed the Sea! Moses pleaded and beseeched before God that he should merit seeing God's Divine Image, 'Please, show me Your glory!' Yet God told him, "You cannot see My face." Yet every Jew who descended into the Sea pointed with his finger and said, "This is my God and I will glorify Him." [Shmot Rabba, 23]
How could it be that those who crossed the Red Sea saw more than Moses, about whom the Torah says, "No other prophet like Moses has arisen in Israel"? Furthermore, Moses was also there, crossing the Sea - he certainly saw what everyone else experienced.
This midrash cannot be referring to the level of prophecy. It is a fundamental article of faith that Moses' prophecy was unequaled. Rather, the midrash must be referring to some aspect of prophetic vision that was only viewed by those who experienced the miraculous splitting of the Sea.
What was so special about the splitting of the Red Sea?
God performed other miracles for Israel, but those miracles did not entail the complete abrogation of the laws of nature. Nature as a whole continued on its usual path; God only temporarily changed one aspect for Israel's benefit. But with the miraculous splitting of the Sea, God suspended the overall system of natural law. The Sages wrote that this miracle did not occur solely in the Red Sea. On that night, bodies of water all over the world were split. According to the Maharal (Rabbi Yehuda Loew) of Prague, water symbolizes the physical world. This miracle extended to the entire physical realm of creation. [Gevurot Hashem, ch. 42] The entire rule of nature was breached.
The universe is governed by the structure of cause and effect. When the underlying rule of nature was suspended during the Splitting of the Sea, the entire system of causality was arrested. During that time, the universe lost its cloak of natural law, and revealed itself as a pure expression of Divine Will.
What is the essence of prophecy? This unique gift is the ability to look at God's actions, and through them recognize His greatness. As long as nature's causal structure is functioning, a prophet may attain sublime and even esoteric knowledge, but he will never achieve immediate awareness of God's directing Hand. First the prophet will be aware, through his physical senses and powers of reason, of the natural system of cause and effect. Only afterwards will he arrive at the recognition that this entire system is created and directed by an ultimate Cause.
God told Moses, "You will only see My 'Back'". Maimonides explained that God's 'Back' refers to the system of natural laws that God created to administer the universe. God granted Moses knowledge of the inner connectivity within creation, and Moses gained an understanding of God's true nature beyond that of any other prophet.
When God split the Sea, all laws of nature were temporarily suspended, and God's Hand took direct control of the universe. Those witnessing this miracle were able to perceive God, each according to his spiritual level. Certainly none reached the prophetic level of Moses. Yet, whatever enlightenment they attained, it was perceived immediately. They did not need to first examine the natural system of causality, and from this, recognize the prime Cause of creation.
Therefore those experiencing the miracle of the Sea called out, "This is my God." Their comprehension was not enveloped and muffled by the logical system of cause and effect. They witnessed the revealed rule of God's Will outright, without the cloak of causality.
[Based on Midbar Shur, pp. 353-357]
--------------------------------------------------------
Chanan Morrison, of Mitzpeh Yericho, runs a website (RavKook.n3.net) dedicated to presenting the Torah commentary of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, first Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael, to the English-speaking community. This week?s commentary can be seen at BSHALA63.htm.