Why Worry About Bilam/2

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Why Worry About Bilam?

Exegetical Approaches

Overview

Inherently Harmful

Hashem prevented Bilam from cursing the Children of Israel because his curse had the potential to cause them significant damage.

Are there "כוחות הטומאה"?
  • Most of these commentators suggest that some humans have the ability to manipulate or access impure powers so as to bring harm to others. They suggest two variations in understanding Bilam's specific capabilities:
    • Magic – Iggeret HaKodesh, Ramban, and Ralbag assert that through Bilam's knowledge of magic, he was able to manipulate the celestial spheres and negatively affect individuals or nations.
    • Evil eye – Netziv suggests that Bilam made use of the "evil eye" to bring harm on the nation.2
  • According to Bavli Berakhot and Seforno, Bilam did not make use of black magic but was rather privy to the one daily instant of God's anger and was able to take advantage of it.
Are magical acts independent of Hashem?
  • Ralbag asserts that though one can learn the art of manipulating the stars, one cannot use this knowledge to harm someone who is under Hashem's providence.3
  • According to Netziv, the powers of the evil eye are built into nature, and as long as Bilam was in sight of the nation,4 he could have brought them harm. Hashem, though, has power over nature, and can intervene to remove the evil eye.5
Parallel cases
Bilam's reputation – "אֲשֶׁר תָּאֹר יוּאָר" – According to this approach, Bilam's reputation was well earned since his curses were effective.6
"וּקְסָמִים בְּיָדָם"
  • According to Seforno, the officers brought Bilam charms ("קְסָמִים"), the tools of his trade, so he could utilize them when cursing the nation.7
  • Netziv, in contrast, suggest that the Midianites used these for themselves to foretell whether Bilam would be successful. Seeing that he was to fail, they decided to leave, and are thus not heard of in the continuation of the story.
"וָאַצִּל אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדוֹ" – This verse is understood literally to mean that Hashem saved the nation from the potential harmful effects of Bilam's words.
Did Bilam have free will?
Message of the donkey episode
  • Humbling experience – Y. Kaufmann8 suggests that one of the problems with the art of magic is that the successful practitioner begins to think of himself as on par with God. Thus, Hashem sent the angel and donkey to dispel such thoughts from Bilam by teaching him that his powers of "sight" were not as good as he thought.
  • Hashem controls all – Tanchuma implies that the point was to teach Bilam that everything is really in the control of God – even black magic.9
Understanding the plague at Baal Peor
  • Ralbag asserts that the nation's status as idolaters (as evidenced by their sin at Baal Peor) was the very reason that God's providence alone was not enough to protect them from Bilam's curse. If, though, the nation deserved punishment and Hashem was about to bring upon them a plague regardless, why did Hashem not just let the punishment come via Bilam?
  • Others --
Were the Israelites aware of Balak's plans? – According to this approach, whether or not the nation was aware of Balak's plan is irrelevant, as the danger was very real and present regardless.

Placebo Effect

Although Bilam's curse had no power, since both the Children of Israel and the other nations believed in its efficacy, Bilam's words had the potential to negatively affect the nation.

Are there "כוחות הטומאה"? Both Ibn Kaspi and Abarbanel assert that Bilam's curse would not have been able to bring damage to the Children of Israel, but for different reasons.
  • Curses are nonsense – Ibn Kaspi dismisses as nonsense the notion of an effective curse, saying "אין בו ממש".‎10
  • No power against Israelite merits – Abarbanel implies that the inefficacy of the curse was related to the merits of Israel and not the emptiness of magical practices. He himself does not deny the existence of magic,11 but rather asserts that Bilam really was a magician,12 an astrologer who could read the stars.13
Astrology versus Divine providence – Abarbanel asserts that the movements of the stars regulate the events that happen on earth, but if these clash with Hashem's will, Hashem's leadership of the world holds sway, and He can change the heavenly schedule to match His desires.
Placebo for whom?
  • The Children of Israel – Ibn Kaspi asserts that many amongst the nation would have been anxious about Bilam's curse, believing (erroneously) that it could harm them. Though Hashem recognized that their concern was unfounded, He, nonetheless, did not want them to be nervous or frightened and so prevented Bilam from cursing.
  • Other nations – According to Abarbanel, since foreign nations held Bilam's curses in high regard, they would trust in his words to attack the now cursed Israelites. To prevent such attacks, Hashem not only barred Bilam from cursing, but had him bless the nation.14
Parallel cases
  • Blood on doorposts – Ibn Kaspi points to the command to spread blood on the doorposts during the Plague of Firstborns, as another case where Hashem acts to calm an erroneous belief of the masses.15
  • Struggle over Yaakov's blessing – To highlight the weight that ancient society attached to blessings, Ibn Kaspi points to the fight of Yaakov and Esav over their father's blessing.
Bilam's reputation – "אֲשֶׁר תָּאֹר יוּאָר" – Ibn Kaspi suggests that this was a mistaken reputation while Abarbanel claims that Bilam's knowledge of the stars gave him the the ability to foretell people's futures and thus curse those who were to have misfortune and bless those who were to have good fortune.
"וּקְסָמִים בְּיָדָם" – According to Abarbanel, Balak viewed Bilam as a magician, and thus brought him magical charms.
"וָאַצִּל אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדוֹ" – Ibn Kaspi asserts that these words of Yehoshua reflect the perspective of the nation (but not reality) who truly believed that they could have been destroyed due to Bilam's curse. According to Abarbanel the statement is true by all accounts, since aborting the curse really did protect the nation as it prevented others from gaining the confidence to fight against them.
Did Bilam have free will? – Abarbanel asserts that Hashem took away Bilam's ability to say what he wanted, forcing his tongue to speak, just as he had forced the tongue of the donkey.
Message of the donkey episode
  • Ibn Kaspi maintains that this was a prophetic dream that was meant to teach Bilam that God had the power to stop Bilam from going all together, or to allow him to go but to control what emerged from his mouth.16
  • According to Abarbanel, the incident had two purposes:
    • Hashem trumps astrology – Bilam, having spent most of his life as an astrologer and only recently begun to prophesy, was unclear about the relationship between Hashem's providence and the system of stars and constellations. When the two were not in sync, did Hashem or astrology win out? To teach Bilam that Hashem's will is supreme, Hashem set up an analogy of the donkey (representing the astrological system) being stopped by the angel (representing God's providence).
    • Removal of free will – The miraculous speech of the donkey
Understanding the plague at Baal Peor
Were the Israelites aware of Balak's plans? – This approach only works under the assumption that Bilam's curse would have been known to the world at large. It is not clear, though, that the Israelites would necessarily have been privy to the fact that they were cursed.

No Power to Harm

Bilam's curse had no intrinsic powers and would never have come to fruition, but Hashem thwarted it nonetheless so as to prevent a desecration of His name and to show His love for Israel.

Are there "כוחות הטומאה"? – Ibn Ezra asserts that there is no truth in magical practices,17 and it is for this reason that they are prohibited.
What form of desecration?
  • According to Ibn Ezra, R. Bachya, and Ralbag, Hashem wanted to ensure that no one attributed the plague at Baal Peor to Bilam's curse rather than recognizing it as a punishment for sin.18
  • Shadal asserts that the potential problem related to the prohibition against attacking Moav. Had Bilam cursed the Israelites, people would assume that his words, and not Hashem's command, is what led them to shy away from war.
  • Hoil Moshe, in contrast, claims that a false prophet's utterance of a curse in the name of God upon His chosen nation, is in itself a desecration.
Parallel cases
Bilam's reputation – "אֲשֶׁר תָּאֹר יוּאָר" – Ibn Ezra and Ralbag assert that Bilam had astrological knowledge that enabled him to recognize when misfortune/fortune was to befall, allowing him to curse or bless those whom he knew were to receive such a fate.19
"וּקְסָמִים בְּיָדָם"
"וָאַצִּל אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדוֹ"
Message of the donkey episode
Understanding the plague at Ba'al Peor
Were the Children of Israel aware?