“And Novach went and occupied (the city of) Kenat and her suburbs and he called her ‘Novach’ after his name (vayikra la ‘Novach’ bishmo),” (Bamidbar 32:42).
Following the great military victory over the Midianites, Moshe conditionally agrees to the request of Reuven, Gad and half the tribe of Menashe to dwell on the east side of the Jordan. The last verses of this week’s parsha detail the division of this territory between these tribes—concluding with Novach, from the tribe of Menashe, occupying the city of Kenat and her suburbs, and changing its name to “Novach” after his own name, “vayikra la ‘Novach’ bishmo.”
There is a grammatical anomaly in the phrase, “vayikra la ‘Novach’ bishmo.” Usually the pronoun “la” (lamed heh) is spelt with a mappik (dot for emphasis) in the “heh,” known as a “mappik heh.” Good lainers will know to pronounce words differently, depending on whether they conclude with an emphasized “mappik heh” or weak “heh rafah.” In our verse, however, we find an exception to the normal grammatical rules, with “la” missing a dot in the “heh.”
Rashi explains: “‘La’ does not have a ‘mappik heh’ and I saw in (the book) ‘Yesodo Shel Moshe HaDarshan’ that this is because this name was not maintained (i.e., “Novach” did not last as the name of the city). Therefore it is a weak ‘heh rafah,’ such that its midrashic meaning is like ‘lo’ (no),” (Rashi, Bamidbar 32:42).
Rashi quotes Rabbi Moshe HaDarshan, explaining that because Novach did not last as the name of the city, the word “la” is read weakly, as if to mean “lo Novach”—not Novach—reflecting Novach’s failed attempt to change the city of Kenat’s name to his own. Indeed, we know that his name did not last from Divrei Hayamim I (2:23), where the city is referred to by its original name, Kenat. Some scholars suggest that this is the modern day region of Al Qanawat in Southern Syria. If this is true, then not only did Novach fail to change the name of Kenat to his own, but the original name has survived until this very day.
What is the significance of Novach’s failed attempt? After all, the Torah is not a history or geography textbook, but a guide as to how we should live our lives. Why do we hint at Novach’s failure in the way we read this verse? Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch suggested: “Does this, perhaps, express a slight reprehension of such procedure to found a memorial in bricks and stone to immortalize oneself, an earthly immortalization which the true Jew should seek and find solely through the great deeds of spiritual and moral faithfulness to duty and through the whole content of noble life?”
Novach wanted to immortalize himself and thought that the best way to do so would be to name a city after his own name. From Novach’s failure, we learn that the true way to eternalize ourselves is “solely through the great deeds of spiritual and moral faithfulness to duty and through the whole content of noble life”—ensuring these great qualities are passed on to generations to come.
Rabbi Danny Mirvis is Deputy CEO of World Mizrachi, and Rabbi of Ohel Moshe Synagogue in Herzliya Pituach.
