Moshe Beyond the Firmament

What is written above the passage? "And Aaron shall make atonement upon its horns once a year" (Exodus 30:10). What is written after it? "When you take the sum of the head of the children of Israel" — "when you lend" (ki tisheh) is written [the consonants read as a loan], as you say, "When you lend anything to your neighbor" (Deuteronomy 24:10). Moses said before the Holy One, blessed be He: "Master of the worlds, at a time when Israel have merit, let them be; and at a time when Israel have no merit, then, as it were, lend it to them once a year, so that the Day of Atonement may come and atone, for 'on this day He shall make atonement for you,' etc. (Leviticus 16:30)." "The head" (et rosh): Rabbi Yose bar Hanina said: He hinted to him that he [a tribe] was destined to be brought near as the first of the tribes; and which is this? This is Reuben: "Let Reuben live" (Deuteronomy 33:6). "The children of Israel": Rabbi Yudan in the name of Rabbi Shmuel bar Nahman gave a parable of a king who had a fine garment, and he would charge his servant and say to him: "Shake it out, fold it, give it your attention." He said to him: "My lord the king, of all the garments that you have, you charge me only concerning this one?" He said to him: "Because it clings to my flesh." So too Moses said before the Holy One, blessed be He: "Master of the worlds, of the seventy sovereign nations that You have in Your world, You charge me only concerning Israel: 'And to the children of Israel you shall say' (Leviticus 20:2), 'And to the children of Israel you shall speak' (Exodus 30:31), 'Say to the children of Israel' (ibid. 33:5), 'Speak to the children of Israel' (ibid. 31:13), 'Command the children of Israel' (Leviticus 24:2), 'And you shall command the children of Israel' (Exodus 27:20), 'When you take the sum of the head of the children of Israel' (ibid. 30:12)." The Holy One said to him: "Because they cleave to Me, as it is written, 'For as the girdle cleaves to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave to Me the whole house of Israel,' etc. (Jeremiah 13:11)." Rabbi Avin gave a parable of a king who had a purple robe, and he would charge his servant and say to him: "Shake it out, fold it, give it your attention." He said to him: "My lord the king, of all the purple robes that you have, you charge me only concerning this one?" He said to him: "Because I wore that one at the hour when I first became king." So too Moses said before the Holy One, blessed be He: "Master of the worlds, of the seventy sovereign nations of the world that You have in Your world, You charge me only concerning Israel," as it is written: "And to the children of Israel you shall say, and to the children of Israel you shall speak, say to the children of Israel, speak to the children of Israel, command the children of Israel, and you shall command the children of Israel, when you take the sum of the head of the children of Israel." He said to him: "Because they made Me king at the sea and said, 'The LORD shall reign forever and ever' (Exodus 15:18)." Rabbi Berekhiah gave a parable of an elder who had a cloak, and he would charge his attendant and say to him: "Shake it out, fold it, give it your attention." He said to him: "My lord the elder, of all the cloaks that you have, you charge me only concerning this one?" He said to him: "Because I wrapped myself in it at the hour when I was first appointed an elder." So too Moses said before the Holy One, blessed be He: "Master of the worlds, of the seventy sovereign nations that there are in Your world, You charge me only concerning Israel: 'And to the children of Israel you shall say, and to the children of Israel you shall speak, say to the children of Israel, speak to the children of Israel, command the children of Israel, and you shall command the children of Israel, when you take the sum of the head of the children of Israel.'" He said to him: "Because they accepted upon themselves the yoke of My kingship at Sinai and said, 'All that the LORD has spoken we will do and we will hear' (Exodus 24:7)." Rabbi Yudan said: Come and see how greatly the Holy One, blessed be He, loved Israel, that He mentions them five times in a single verse. This is what is written: "And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the Tent of Meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel, that there be no plague among the children of Israel when the children of Israel come near to the sanctuary" (Numbers 8:19). Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai taught a parable of a king who handed over his son to his tutor and would charge him and say to him: "My son has eaten, my son has drunk, my son has gone to the schoolhouse, my son has come back from the schoolhouse." So too the Holy One, blessed be He, desires to mention Israel at every hour. Rabbi Yehudah bar Simon gave a parable of one who was sitting and making a crown for the king. Someone passed by and saw him and said to him: "What are you sitting and making?" He said to him: "A crown for the king." He said to him: "Whatever you are able to set in it of emeralds, set; of precious stones and pearls, set; for it is destined to be placed upon the head of the king." So too the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: "Moses, whatever you are able to praise in Israel before Me, praise; to glorify, glorify; for I am destined to be glorified through them, as it says, 'And He said to me, You are My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified' (Isaiah 49:3)."