Shabbat Parashat Beshalach 5782

Parashat Hashavua: Song of Men, Not Angels

After Bnei Yisrael were saved and the Egyptians were drowned at Yam Suf, the angels wanted to sing before Hashem, but Hashem responded: “The work of My hands are drowning in the sea and you are singing before Me?” (Sanhedrin 39b). On the other hand, Bnei Yisrael were allowed to sing and were praised for doing so at that time.

The famous distinction between the angels and Israel was that since Bnei Yisrael were the beneficiaries of the miracle, they were allowed to sing. But this singing had historically powerful impact, as Shemot Rabba (23:1) says that it set the throne of Hashem in the world. Therefore, it is difficult to view this event and reaction as something that caused any displeasure to Hashem.

There were two opposing and opposite worlds in creation before man was created – the world of spirituality, including the angels, and the world of animalistic physicality, in our world. When Hashem asked for the angels’ opinion about creating man, they objected (see Tehilim 8:5; Sanhedrin 38b). They were troubled by a creation that is a mix between the two worlds.         

It was Hashem’s kindness to grant His creation some of His likeness (see Bereishit 1:26) and enable man to be not only a creation but also a creator (see Sanhedrin 65b). This is possible because of man’s ability to unite within him these two worlds. Man can also give an advantage to one world over the other, as he can be involved in a battle between the world of material and the world of spirit, a battle that can have cosmic implications.

The more the power of spirituality in man increases, the more it is opposed by an opposing force, as Chazal said: “The greater a person is, the greater his evil inclination is” (Sukka 52a). The more he succeeds, the more he is opposed by powers of impurity. However, at the end of the struggle, sanctity can prevail as the victor, as Ovadia describes in the battle between Israel and Edom (Ovadia 1:21).

The angels are unable to conquer the world of material because they have no point of connection with it. Man can, as occurred when Bnei Yisrael stood at the sea and showed belief in Hashem and travelled straight into it (Shemot 14:22). Although the Egyptians followed them into the sea, they did not have the power of self-sacrifice that Israel had. In that way, there was a decisive victory for the power of spirituality in the world. It was for that reason that it was time to sing. It was not a song that applied to angels, but a song of man, who was able to take part in the battle that brought a crucial victory for the side of spirituality that changed the world.

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