Leading up to Parshat Shelach, the Torah recounts many miracles that the Jewish people have witnessed and experienced. During their travels, they have the ananei hakavod, the clouds of God’s glory which rest over the Mishkan, keeping the people safe when they camp, and protecting them as they move through the desert. Not long before the Jewish people left Egyptian slavery with innumerable miracles from God, the sea was split and the people crossed the Yam Suf, the Sea of Reeds. After crossing the Yam Suf, the people sang in Shirat Hayam, “Zeh Keli v’anveihu”—“This is my God”—God revealed Himself to them in His glory, and they were able to point to Him (Rashi Shemot 15:2). God revealed Himself to them again at Mount Sinai. The manna came every day, which was an open miracle. The quail came down from the heavens right after the people asked for meat. With so many open miracles and revelations of the presence of God, the Jewish Nation should have reached the highest level of faith in God.
Yet, in Parshat Shelach they didn’t have faith. How could that be?
At the behest of God, Moshe sends twelve spies, a leader from each tribe, to investigate Eretz Yisrael. Ten of the spies deliver a scary and negative report, highlighting powerful nations, giants and fortified cities. Only two of the spies, Yehoshua and Kalev, express a positive report about Eretz Yisrael and confidence that God will ensure that they conquer the land easily. The people then panic, cry, and say they would rather return to Egypt. This reaction shows a breakdown of faith in God’s promise. As a result, God decrees that the adult generation will die in the wilderness and only their children (along with Yehoshua and Kalev) will enter Eretz Yisrael.
How could these same people who witnessed and lived by the essence of miracles every day break down and experience a major absence of faith?
The answer, the parsha shows us, is that the people need to work at having faith—it must be cultivated and recharged constantly.
After the terrible incident of the spies, God immediately gives the Jewish people four commandments intended to restore faith in God and God’s ability to do anything, natural or supernatural, to save or help the Jewish people. These four mitzvot were specifically designed to prevent future sins that arise from lack of faith, forgetting God, or feeling disconnected from the mission of entering Eretz Yisrael.
The first mitzvah given after the spies is that of libations, nesachim (Numbers 15:3-16). “When you come into the land” and you bring any korban to God, the people are also commanded to bring a meal offering and a wine offering along with the animal. Rashi explains that the nation had just cried out in desperation because they had learned that they would not be going to Eretz Yisrael. He teaches that this mitzvah reassured the people that they (or their children) would enter Eretz Yisrael (Rashi on 15:2). By giving a mitzvah that only applies in Eretz Yisrael, God restored the Jewish people’s faith in their future as a nation in Eretz Yisrael.
The second mitzvah given is challah. This is another mitzvah that only applies in Eretz Yisrael, restoring faith to the people that not all the Jewish people will die in the desert, but the next generation will indeed live in Eretz Yisrael and bake bread there (Numbers 15:17-21). The mitzvah of challah is that for any bread baked in Israel, a portion must be given to the Cohen, which is viewed as giving it to God. Challah links routine daily life (making bread) to constant remembrance of God. It prevents sin by reminding every household, every time they bake, that God provides sustenance.
The third mitzvah mentioned after the spies’ sin is the law of bringing a public Olah offering to atone for the sin of accidental idolatry (Ramban on Numbers 15:22-31). The root of the spies’ failure—rejecting God’s power—was a form of accidental idolatry. Ramban teaches that even in the case of idolatry, God forgives those who commit this sin in error and provides a way of atonement. The mitzvah of the Olah offering teaches that even unintentionally drifting away from God requires atonement. The Olah offering reminds the nation that forgetting God or distancing oneself from His ways is dangerous, even when done unintentionally. It is a strong reminder not to let one’s faith gradually fade away (Ramban on Numbers 15:22-31).
Finally, the mitzvah of tzitzit is given, which provides visible reminders of God to the wearer at all times (Numbers 15:37-41). This is the clearest and most direct of the four mitzvot designed to prevent future sins stemming from lack of faith. “And you shall see it (tzitzit) and remember all the commandments of God, and you shall not stray after your heart and your eyes…” (Numbers 15:39). Tzitzit were given after the spies’ sin because the spies’ mistakes came from fear in their heart and the false perceptions of their eyes. Tzitzit is one of the Torah’s physical systems of constant remembrance and reinforcement of faith in God. It corrects the very mechanism by which the spies sinned (Ramban on Numbers 15:39).
Is having faith something we are born with? Perhaps. Is faith something that must be cultivated, nurtured and protected? Most definitely. We see that we cannot take our own faith for granted. We must protect our faith both through our thoughts and our actions. We see in this parsha that it’s not so easy or simple to have faith in God. But if we do the mitzvot, and certain mitzvot in particular, the acts of observance will serve as a reminder and a constant reigniting of the flame on our torch of faith.
