וָאֹמַר אֲלֵכֶם בָּעֵת הַהִוא לֵאמֹר לֹא אוּכַל לְבַדִּי שְׂאֵת אֶתְכֶם: יְדֹוָד אֱלֹקיכֶם הִרְבָּה אֶתְכֶם וְהִנְּכֶם הַיּוֹם כְּכוֹכְבֵי הַשָּׁמַיִם לָרֹב: יְדֹוָד אֱלֹקי אֲבוֹתֵכֶם יֹסֵף עֲלֵיכֶם כָּכֶם אֶלֶף פְּעָמִים וִיבָרֵךְ אֶתְכֶם כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר לָכֶם: אֵיכָה אֶשָּׂא לְבַדִּי טָרְחֲכֶם וּמַשַּׂאֲכֶם וְרִיבְכֶם:
(דברים א/ט-יב)
“And I (Moshe) said to you at that time, saying, ‘I cannot carry you alone. Hashem, your Lord, has multiplied you, and behold, you are today as the stars of the heavens in abundance. May Hashem the Lord of your forefathers add to you a thousand fold as many as you are, and may He bless you, as He spoke concerning you. How can I bear your trouble, your burden, and your strife all by myself?” (Devorim 1/9-12)
On the pasuk (Devorim 1/11), “Hashem your Lord has multiplied you…”,the Midrash comments, “This pasuk can be explained in light of the pasuk (Tehillim 5/8) ‘…I will bow down towards Your Holy Sanctuary in awe of You’.”
Zera Shimshon asks, firstly what was bothering the Midrash in their understanding of these pesukim that was resolved with the pasuk ‘…I will bow down towards Your Holy Sanctuary in awe of You’? Secondly, how does this pasuk, which seems to be completely unrelated to the pesukim in our parsha, resolve this problem?
Zera Shimshon explains this Midrash by first asking and then answering a different question on these pesukim.
The Mekubalim teach an important concept: when a place exhibits abundance, it signifies the existence of kedusha. Conversely, in instances of scarcity, then “other forces” referred to as klippos, hold sway.
According to this premise, statesZera Shimshon, it is difficult to understand the above pesukim. In the first pasuk, Moshe reprimands Bnei Yisroel. “…I cannot carry you alone.” And in the fourth pasuk, he continues to reprimand them. “How can I bear your trouble, your burden, and your strife all by myself?” These pesukim suggest that Bnei Yisroel were not at a significantly elevated spiritual level.
Between these two pesukim of reprimand, there lies a mention by Moshe that Hashem has bestowed upon Bnei Yisroel numerous children. Moreover, Moshe blesses them that Hashem should continue to invoke the blessing for an increase in their offspring.
Considering the concept previously discussed, which associates abundance with kedusha and scarcity with the opposing forces, the klippos, Zera Shimshon asks, how can pesukim of reprimand, indicative of the reign of klippos, surround verses of blessing, which indicates the control of kedusha?
Drawing upon the Midrash (Bereishis Rabba 22:5) regarding the pasuk, “Avraham said to Eliezer before they ascended Har HaMoriah, ‘And we will prostrate ourselves and we will return,’” Zera Shimshon provides an explanation. The Midrash expounds the profound potency inherent in the act of prostrating oneself before Hashem, as it signifies the complete surrender of one’s being to Hashem.
The Midrash explains that Avraham and Yitzchak returning unscathed from the Akeidah was solely attributed to their act of prostrating before Hashem. Similarly, the redemption of Bnei Yisroel from Egypt, the giving of the Torah, and the future gathering of the exiles are all contingent upon the merit of bowing before Hashem. The rebuilding of the Bais Hamikdash and the resurrection of the dead, t’chias hamaisim, are likewise connected to this act of surrender.
When individuals bow before Hashem, offering their complete submission, it generates immense holiness throughout the entire universe, from the loftiest realms to the lowest ones, nullifying all opposing forces. This infusion of holiness leads to abundance and plenty in the world. As we learn from the Mekubalim, when a place exhibits abundance, it signifies the existence of kedusha.
Thus, following Avraham’s act of binding Yitzchak and his subsequent prostration before Hashem,(as he told Eliezer prior to ascending the mountain), Hashem blessed him, affirming that he would become the father of a great and populous nation.
Likewise, Chazal teach us that Har Sinai is referred to as Midbar Paran, which shares a linguistic root with the command to “be fruitful and multiply— p’ru u’vu.” This connection arises from the profound bowing before Hashem that occurred at Sinai, resulting in a remarkable increase in the number of births among the women. By bowing before Hashem, individuals become conduits for divine blessings, impacting both their own lives and the destiny of the Jewish people as a whole.
Zera Shimshon concludes, based on the aforementioned insights, that the Midrash was troubled by the question: How could Moshe mention the multiplication of the Children of Israel a thousand fold amidst his reprimand. Multiplication is a sign of the presence of kedusha, and misdeeds, which result in reprimand, strengthens the rule of the klippos? How can they be mentioned together?
The Midrash responds with the pasuk, “…I will bow down towards Your Holy Sanctuary in awe of You,” implying that the abundance and blessing mentioned by Moshe were bestowed as a result of the tremendous kedusha engendered by the act of prostrating before Hashem at Har Sinai. Therefore, despite the transgressions of Bnei Yisroel, their deserved reprimand was conquered and subdued by the immense kedusha and blessings emanating from their prostration and surrendering themselves to Hashem’s will at Har Sinai, and they were blessed to have a great and big nation.
HaRav Shimshon Nachmani, author of Zera Shimshon, lived in Italy about 300 years ago in the time of the Or HaChaim HaKodesh.
The Chida writes that he was a great Mekubal and wrote many sefarim including sefarim about “practical kabbolo” and asked that all of his sefarim be buried after he passes away except for Zera Shimshon and Niflaos Shimshon on Avos.
HaRav Shimshon Nachmani had one child who died in his lifetime (hence the name “Zera Shimshon”) and in the preface he promises for people who learn his sefarim after he dies “… And your eyes will see children and grandchildren like the offshoots of an olive tree around your tables, wise and understanding with houses filled with all manner of good things… and wealth and honor…”
