“Lord God, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your mighty hand, for what god is in the heavens or on the earth who can act in accordance with Your actions and according to Your mighty deeds” (Deuteronomy 3:24). “Lord God, You have begun” – what is “Lord God”? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa said: In two places, Moses likened himself to Abraham, but it was to no avail for him. How so?
The Holy One blessed be He called to Abraham, and he said: “I am here,” as it is stated: “And said to him: Abraham; and he said: I am here” (Genesis 22:1). What is “I am here”? I am here for priesthood, I am here for kingship; and he merited priesthood and kingship. From where is it derived that he merited priesthood?
As it is stated: “The Lord has taken an oath, and He will not renounce it; you are priest forever by My decree, like Malkitzedek” (Psalms 110:4).10Malkitzedek was a priest (see Genesis 14:18). He merited kingship, as it is stated: “To the valley of Shaveh, which is the valley of the king” (Genesis 14:17).11The midrash understands this as an allusion to the fact that the kings of the region elected Abraham as their king (see Bereshit Rabba 42:5).
Moses, too, sought to do so, as it is stated: “He said: Moses, Moses; and he said: I am here” (Exodus 3:4). I am here for priesthood; I am here for kingship. The Holy One blessed be He said to him: “Do not glorify yourself before a king, and do not stand in the place of the great” (Proverbs 25:6). “Do not approach [tikrav] here [halom]” (Exodus 3:5).
You have no involvement with the priesthood, as it is stated: “The stranger who approaches [hakarev] shall be put to death” (Numbers 3:10). You have no involvement with the kingship, as it is stated: “That You have brought me here [halom]” (II Samuel 7:18).12David used the term halom in reference to the kingship. Abraham said: “Lord God, what will You give to me?” (Genesis 15:2). Rabbi Levi said: He said before Him: ‘Master of the universe, if through justice13The name “God” represents the attribute of justice.
I deserve to have children, give them to me; if not, give them to me through mercy.14The name “the Lord” represents the attribute of mercy. The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘As you live, you deserve them’: “And, behold, the word of the Lord was to him…[one who will emerge from your loins, he will be your heir]” (Genesis 15:4). Moses, too, said so: “Lord God, You have begun” – if through justice I deserve to enter the Land of Israel, let me enter; if not, let me enter through mercy.
The Holy One blessed be He said to him: “Do not glorify yourself before a king…” “As you will not cross this Jordan” (Deuteronomy 3:27) – when Moses saw how resolute the matters were, he began speaking harsh words.15He began praying in a more forceful manner, as the midrash will detail in the next section.