THE GREATNESS OF REVENGE by Rabbi Miller zt”l

The Revenge Of Moshe Rabeinu 

In this week’s parsha Hakodosh Boruch informs Moshe Rabeinu of his impending death: 

[…] – “And Hashem spoke to Moshe saying…You will be gathered into your people” (Mattos 31:3). 

The successful life of Moshe is now drawing to a close and his last days on this earth were his final opportunity to achieve even more success and perfection. And what is the last opportunity that we find Hashem presenting Moshe with? : […] – “Take vengeance for the Bnei Yisroel from the Midianim,

 […]  – and only afterward shall you be gathered into your peoples” (ibid.) The function of taking  revenge from Midian was so eminently necessary that Hashem declared 

Moshe’s career as still incomplete without it. [Hebrew omitted as it doesn’t print correctly]

Now for us, this should be a big question. We have been brought up with the

idea that revenge is a contemptible attribute; it’s an undesirable middah. The

Torah tells us, don’t seek vengeance. לא תקום ולא תיטור– “Don’t try to get even; 

and don’t even bear a grudge against someone” (Vayikra 19:18). 

Children, from the youngest age, are trained to be repelled by the word nekama, 

to see it as a trait of those who lack self-control. And yet, we read here that Moshe 

was commanded to take revenge against his enemies, and that it would be 

his final achievement of perfection in this world! It’s a question! 

How are we to understand this anomaly, that the vengeance that is so 

belittled by the Torah could be the final act of perfection in Moshe’s life? 

[…]

So the gemara asks a kasha. If that was a criteria of greatness then nekama

must also be great, because there’s another possuk that says: א-ל נקמות השם. On

this side you have א-ל, and on the other side is השם, and in the middle you have

the word נקמה, revenge. Is that possible?! Isn’t revenge a contemptible attribute?

How could we say גדולה נקמה, that revenge is great?

So the gemara says אין, Yes! במילתיה, in its place, in the right place, revenge is

very great. How great is it? Revenge is as great as dei’ah! Because revenge 

is a very important form of seeing the Presence of Hashem. It’s right between 

the two names of Hashem because revenge is how you get close to Hashem!

And so we see that it’s not only that Moshe was commanded here to take revenge.

 It’s actually a yesod for our emunah in Hakodosh Boruch Hu. 

And so, it’s something we’re going to have to study.

So we’ll begin like this. The principle of vengeance is essential for man’s

understanding of Hashem. If the wicked remain unpunished, if the criminal act is not avenged, 

so men see injustice in the world and are therefore prone to think that the world is a chaotic 

and accidental place. Subconsciously, the sight of the wicked criminal walking free, 

cements in your mind that this world is a world of injustice.

[…]

But more important than the deterrent is that we’re depressed, we’re

depressed by the injustice. How can we have emunah in Hashem who runs the

world, when the wicked are running roughshod over everything we believe in? It

seems like there’s no shofeit, no one who is imposing righteousness in the world.

And we stand by and feel helpless. We can’t do anything about it.

Here you have Hitler, y’mach sh’mo. A rasha m’rusha if there ever was one. In

history of the world there was no bigger rotzei’ach than him. And then at the end,

when his plans began to fall apart, how did he leave this world? He left on his own

terms. He took a perfumed poison and left this world b’shalom. Is that justice?! Is

that yashrus? And so our neshamos are confused and depressed. .לית דין ולית דיין

There’s no judge and there’s no justice being meted out.

[…]

When you witness with your own two eyes that the wicked are getting 

what they deserve, you are acquiring da’as Hashem. When the Hand of Hashem 

come down on the wicked, that makes the emunah enter into your bones. 

He’s reacting – yes, He’s reacting – to the ma’asim of man.

[…]

Because no matter how much you see of Hashem, if you don’t see Him as the shofet ha’aretz, 

then you don’t see Him as clearly as you should. You need to see the strong hand of Hashem, 

the punishment upon the wicked, in order be a real ma’amin.

[…]

[ME: Use Monkey pox in place of Aids:]

Today, if you look in the newspapers, nothing at all is mentioned about the

very great retribution being visited upon the world. A tremendous plague,

a makkah min hashamayim. Hakodosh Boruch Hu is “rewarding” the homosexuals

by bringing upon them an incurable sickness. In New York City alone, eleven

thousand deaths have been reported from AIDS. Eleven thousand deaths in New

York City alone! And there are many thousands more that weren’t reported;

they’re ashamed. At least six hundred thousand suffering from AIDS in this

country. In a few years it will be a million, at least. The hospitals will be crowded

– even today the hospitals are jammed with beds of AIDS patients. Billions of

dollars – that’s our money, our hard earned money – going just for that.

[…]

Now, in this world of darkness, the שילומת רשעים and their אחריתם is not

something that you will always see so readily. The truth is that if you look, if you

want to see the truth then you will see a lot. But even so, the true settling of

accounts waits for the Next World. The reshaim would be lucky if this world was

the end for them. And so, our discussion of Hashem’s justice wouldn’t be

complete without understanding the acharisom of the reshaim in the Next

World.

[…]

It’s of utmost importance to know that there’s a Gehenim. And not in the

superficial way that most people do. To actually feel in your bones that the

reshaim are suffering in Gehenim right now. And in Gehenim, that’s where 

nobody gets away with anything! There’s no Israeli Supreme Court in Gehenim to

acquit the reshaim.

[…]  

We don’t commiserate with the wicked who are being punished. Not like

some say, that at the Seder we sing to Hashem for his righteousness, but at the

same time we commiserate with the Egyptians who were drowning, gargling, in

the Yam Suf.

[…]

Hakodosh Boruch Hu is bringing revenge upon the wicked and there is no

reason to commiserate with them. Seeing Hashem’s mishpat, to know in one’s

bones that the wicked are getting their recompense is most vital for a person’s

perfection of character. And therefore Moshe Rabeinu couldn’t leave this world

without seeing the punishment upon the Midianim with his own eyes. And so

too, whatever you achieve in the important avodah 

of רק בעיניך תביט ושלומת רשעים תראה is only a מעין עולם הבא ,

 is your preparation for Olam Habah.

[…]

The Rav told us tonight that the Jewish communities in the times of the

Beis Ha’mikdash were communities of kedusha. You said that there were

many tzadikim who counted every word that came out of their mouths.

Were the women of ancient Yerushalayim really better than the women

of today? Did they really speak less than the frum women of today?

You should know that, in general, when men are good, the women are

also good. There’s no such thing as men having shleimus without their wives.

Shleimus is contagious. All good midos are contagious. So you be sure to do

your part in making your home a beis ha’mikdash and be sure to lead yourself

bi’derech ha’torah and bi’derech ha’kedusha and it will be contagious. And

therefore, you must know, that whatever good things chazal tell us about the

men, you can be sure that the women and girls in the Jewish homes shared

in all the good qualities of ancient times.

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[…] = Omission

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