Parashat Shelach

“The Land Is Exceedingly Good” – “טוֹבָה הָאָרֶץ מְאוֹד מְאוֹד”

הָיִינוּ כְּחוֹלְמִים  – Reflections – Between Fear and Faith

 

“עוֹד שָׁנָה חָלְפָה, עוֹד שָׁנָה טְרוּפָה… הַבַּיְתָה, הַבַּיְתָה, בָּאָה הָעֵת לַחֲזֹר מִן הֶהָרִים, מִשָּׂדוֹת זָרִים”
 “Another year has passed, another turbulent year… home, home,

the time has come to return from the mountains, from foreign fields.”

These moving words, written by the late prominent Israeli poet Ehud Manor during the 1982 Lebanon War, still resonate today, especially in the wake of the devastating events of Simchat Torah, October 7, 2023. Though written decades ago, they express a timeless yearning for return, stability, and home. Words of longing had already echoed in the message of Yehoshua and Caleb, two lone voices of faith standing against ten others.

In Parashat Shelach, Moshe sends twelve men of distinction, twelve leaders to scout the Promised Land. Ten returned with message of fear saying: “לֹא נוּכַל לַעֲלוֹת אֶל הָעָם כִּי חָזָק הוּא מִמֶּנּוּ” “We cannot attack those people, for they are stronger than we.” Caleb responds with confidence: “יָכוֹל נוּכַל לָהּ”, “We shall surely overcome it” and alongside Yehoshua, he declares: “The land is exceedingly good.” – “טוֹבָה הָאָרֶץ מְאוֹד מְאוֹד”

Unfortunately, ten voices of fear drowned out two voices of faith. The people chose panic over purpose. They cried through the night and declared: “הֲלוֹא טוֹב לָנוּ שׁוּב מִצְרָיְמה”, “It would be better for us to go back to Egypt!” Unfortunately, this is a pattern we recognize. Despite generations of Jews dreaming of returning home, many to a home they’d never seen, the generation that stood on the threshold of the final stage of their redemption suddenly withdrew. Why, so close to their dream coming true, did they reject voices of courage and faith and embrace voices of fear and doubt?

The renowned Torah scholar and teacher Nechama Leibowitz suggests the following insight. “The scouts feared not just the enemy but the responsibility that freedom demanded. Better to remain in the wilderness, or even in slavery, than face the uncertain burdens of leadership, economy, and nationhood. They sought safety over sovereignty, comfort over calling. Unfortunately, that rejection became a psychological negative legacy for some”.

In the wake of October 7, 2023, many across the globe asked similar questions. How did this happen? What did we fail to see? What did we see but chose to ignore? Politicians and experts have offered many answers, but the questions still ache in our collective heart. And yet, alongside the voices of despair, we can hear, loud and clear, the voices of Caleb and Yehoshua, voices of faith, conviction, and courage. “Let us go up for we shall surely overcome it.” – “עָלֹה נַעֲלֶה כִּי יָכוֹל נוּכַל לָהּ” 

These voices of faith, conviction, and courage, so powerful in these historic days unfolding before our eyes, are not new. They have echoed through our history, even in its darkest hours. In 1943, as the horrors of wartime Budapest raged on, Rabbi Issachar Shlomo Teichtal raised his voice in a powerful and painful response. Reflecting on the events in this week’s parashah, he called on his fellow Jews to reignite their love for the Land of Israel, not just as a place on a map, but as the beating heart of our spiritual identity. He saw what many feared to believe: that our bond with the land is not merely strategic or historical; it is sacred. It is the foundation of who we are.

After realizing their dire mistake, the Israelites tried to go up toward the land anyway. But Moshe warned them and said not to as “הִוא לֹא תִצְלָח”, “this will not succeed.” Rabbi Tzadok HaCohen of Lublin (1823-1900) taught that הִוא – this implies a missed moment. But at another moment in another time, it would succeed, and it has. We are privileged to live in an era where generations’ dreams have come true, a time in which our eyes behold wonders that previous generations could only dream of. The “dry bones” of exile have risen, and ancient hope has become today’s reality.

.”שִׁיר הַמַּעֲלוֹת, בְּשׁוּב ה’ אֶת שִׁיבַת צִיּוֹן, הָיִינוּ כְּחוֹלְמִים”  

“When Hashem restored the captives of Zion, we were like dreamers.”

We are no longer dreaming; despite all the challenges, we live the dream. Yehoshua’s, Caleb’s, and many generations’ dreams.