Sunday, July 06, 2008

Chukas: sitting in the getaway car

Parshat Chukas

Hashem tells Moshe and Aharon to speak to the rock, and it will give forth water. Moshe hits the rock. Hashem punishes them by not allowing them to enter Eretz Yisrael.

What did Aharon do wrong? He stood there while Moshe hit the rock. He did not do anything. So why did he get punished at all, or at least why the same as Moshe?

We see from here that being an accomplice to a crime is just as bad as having committed the actual crime.

Aharon was the guy in the getaway car. If someone goes in to rob a bank, and his partner sits outside waiting for him in the getaway car, they are both equally responsible for robbing the bank.

So Aharon was like that guy in the getaway car. He was Moshe's accomplice. He stood by Moshe's side while Moshe hit the rock. So sure he did not actually hit the rock himself, but he is equally as guilty.

We have to be very careful with whom and with what we associate ourselves. Just being associated with bad, makes us equally as guilty, even if we did nto actually do anythign wrong.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rafi, you have a great point we need to be careful who we hang out with. what i get from Numbers 20:1-13 is that Moses and Aaron both went to the tent of meeting,"then the glory of the Lord appeared to them." there are two sins that God is dealing with.
1. moses and Aaron being disobedient,"God told Him speak to the rock." He hit it! 2 times!
2. Moses and Aarons disbelief.
Now i know that moses hit the rock, but in vs. 8 God sais "take the rod and your brother Aaron".
Aaron was just as responsible to obey and belive. after lets look at the past when moses said that he was not a good speaker and could not do what God was asking God grabbed Aaron and said he will speak for you! so my point being Aaron had not a word to speak during this whole time.
("that we know of anyway") and another sin has slipped in anger!
Moses called them "rebels" and raised his hands in anger, God did not ask him to be angry, just to speak to a rock.

Thank you for your insight Rafi.
Shalom Bobby

Rafi G. said...

nice insight. thanks