5 min read

Samael Stopped Eleazar's Mouth for Moses

Moses begged Eleazar to pray him into the land. Samael sealed the priest's lips, while in heaven Moses answered Jacob and Joseph measure for measure.

Curated by Arthur · Told by Maggid ·
Table of Contents
  1. The Prayer That Never Left the Mouth
  2. Admonition Stronger Than Sinai
  3. Jacob Claimed the Angel. Moses Claimed Heaven.
  4. The Serpent of Brass and the Flight of Angels

Moses knew the decree before he climbed the last argument. The land waited on the far side of a river he would not cross. He went to Eleazar, son of Aaron, and did not speak like a general. He spoke like a man calling in a debt of mercy.

Samael Stopped Eleazar's Mouth for Moses Click for full size

"O my son," Moses said, "be mindful of the days when God was angry with thy father on account of the making of the Golden Calf, and I saved him through my prayer. Pray now thou to God for me, and perhaps God will take pity upon me, and let me enter into the land of Israel."

The Prayer That Never Left the Mouth

Eleazar began to pray. Samael appeared and stopped his mouth. "How canst thou think of disregarding God's command?" the angel said. The Accuser did not arrive as a rebel. He arrived as a prosecutor who loved the verdict already written. Eleazar's lips failed. The prayer died in the throat that had been trained to bless Israel.

Eleazar returned to Moses and reported that he could not pray for him. The mountain of the decree did not move. The man who had stood between Aaron and destruction now stood without an intercessor of his own blood. Heaven can close a mouth as tightly as it opens a sea.

Moses heard the report without theater. He had argued with God before, bargained for cities, demanded to see glory. This time the road ended in a nephew's sealed lips. The silence between them held more law than a scroll.

Admonition Stronger Than Sinai

Before the end, Moses still had one weapon left that did not require a petition. He called Israel to account the way Abraham had spoken to Isaac, Isaac to Jacob, Jacob to his sons. He did not leave the world without a reckoning. The speech of admonition, the tokhehah, struck harder than the revelation of the Decalogue at Sinai.

At Sinai Israel had said, "We shall do according as we have heard," and then danced around a calf of gold. Moses' last words restored them to God and to Torah with a force the first thunder had not kept. God said that as a reward for that exhortation, the words would be designated as Moses' own, even though he spoke them only in execution of the divine command. The dying teacher was allowed to own the rebuke that saved his people.

The camp listened differently when the speaker was a man walking toward his own grave. Rebuke from a survivor of forty years of their failures lands like rain on cracked ground. They did not build another calf that day. They built a quieter kind of yes.

Jacob Claimed the Angel. Moses Claimed Heaven.

"I am greater than thou," Jacob said in the heights where the righteous measure one another, "for I wrestled with the angel and conquered him." Moses answered, "Thou didst wrestle with the angel upon thy territory, but I mounted to the angels into their own territory, and still they feared me."

"I am greater than thou," Joseph said, "for my master's wife could not tempt me to sin." Moses replied that Joseph restrained himself from a strange woman, while he abstained even from his own wife for the sake of standing ready before the Presence. The contest was not vanity for its own sake. It was a ranking of costs. Who paid more to stay near the fire?

Each claim stacked a different sacrifice. Jacob's hip. Joseph's locked chamber. Moses' distance from ordinary marriage and ordinary death. The ledger of heaven is not polite.

The Serpent of Brass and the Flight of Angels

Adam died because the serpent seduced him. Moses fashioned a serpent of brass, and all who looked upon it after a snakebite recovered. Noah offered a sacrifice God accepted, yet Noah was not admitted to the divine presence. When Moses offered sacrifice in Israel's name, God promised to dwell with them twice daily. Abraham's fearful question about inheriting the land had opened a road toward bondage. Moses opened the road out.

Jacob conquered an angel and limped forever. Moses entered heaven and the angels fled at the sight of him. The same man who could not pry open Eleazar's sealed mouth still outranked the patriarchs in the ledgers heaven keeps. The land refused him. The angels did not.

Samael won the small war at the edge of prayer. Moses won the long war of stature. Israel kept both memories, the blocked petition and the last rebuke that brought them home to the covenant without him. A people can live on a leader's refusal as much as on his victories.

MosesEleazarSamaelDeathHeaven
← All myths

From the tradition

Sources

3 sources

The texts behind this telling. Some cards carry a translation of the source; others are our own retelling of it, and each card says which. Every card links out to the original.

Legends of the Jews 6:148Legends of the Jews

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg (1909) · Public Domain

He’s led the Israelites through the desert for forty years, faced down Pharaoh, received the Torah at Sinai. And now, this.

What does Moses do? He doesn't rage against God. He doesn't despair. He turns to his nephew, Eleazar, the son of Aaron.

"O my son," Moses says, "be mindful of the days when God was angry with thy father on account of the making of the Golden Calf, and I save him through my prayer. Pray now thou to God for me, and perhaps God will take pity upon me, and let me enter into the land of Israel."

He asks Eleazar to intercede, to plead with God on his behalf. He reminds Eleazar of a time when he, Moses, had pleaded for Aaron himself after the disastrous episode of the Golden Calf. Think about the humility here. Moses, the leader, asking for help.

But here's where the story takes a dark turn. When Eleazar begins to pray, a familiar adversary appears: Samael (the angel of death). We know Samael as the angel of death, the accuser, the embodiment of evil.

And what does Samael do? According to Legends of the Jews, as retold by Ginzberg, he stops Eleazar's mouth, preventing him from praying. He says, "How canst thou think of disregarding God's command?"

Wow.

Samael, the force of opposition, reminding someone to obey God's command! It highlights the idea that even negativity can masquerade as righteousness.

Eleazar, defeated, reports back to Moses that he couldn't pray for him. The disappointment, the feeling of helplessness?

The story, brief as it is, leaves us with so much to ponder. Is it about the limits of even the most powerful prayers? Is it about the unyielding nature of divine decrees? Or perhaps it's a reminder that even in our most desperate moments, forces beyond our control are at play, shaping our destiny in ways we can't always understand.

Full source
Legends of the Jews 7:93Legends of the Jews

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg (1909) · Public Domain

The rabbis certainly debated it, comparing and contrasting the merits of our most revered patriarchs and prophets. And wouldn't you know it, the discussions could get a little… spicy.

Take this exchange, for instance, recounted in Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg. Jacob, he of wrestling-an-angel fame, boasts to Moses, “I am greater than thou, for I wrestled with the angel and conquered him.”

Moses, never one to back down from a challenge, retorted, “Thou didst wrestle with the angel upon thy territory, but I mounted to the angels into their own territory, and still they feared me." Ouch.

The comparisons didn't stop there. Joseph, famed for his righteousness in the face of Potiphar's wife's advances, chimed in: "I am greater than thou, for my master's wife could not tempt me to sin."

Moses, ever the diplomat, responded: "Still am I superior to thee, for thou didst restrain thyself from a strange woman, whereas I abstained from intercourse with my own wife."

Now, what’s going on here? Are they really trying to one-up each other? It's important to remember that these aren't literal historical accounts, but midrashim (rabbinic interpretive commentary) – interpretations and expansions of the biblical text designed to teach us valuable lessons. What can we learn from this particular debate?

The rabbis use these comparisons to highlight Moses' unparalleled stature. Ginzberg, drawing on various sources, continues by illustrating how Moses' achievements surpassed even those of the most righteous figures.

Consider Adam. He succumbed to the serpent's temptation, leading to mortality. But Moses? He fashioned a bronze serpent (Nehushtan), which, when looked upon, healed those bitten by snakes (Numbers 21:4-9). A remedy for the very thing that felled humanity's first man.

Or take Noah. He offered a sacrifice that was accepted by God, but he wasn’t invited into God’s presence. Moses, however, when offering sacrifices on behalf of Israel, received the divine promise: “Know that twice daily I shall dwell with ye.” A direct, constant connection.

Even Abraham, the patriarch whose covenant with God is foundational to Judaism, isn’t spared. Abraham's question, "'Whereby shall I know that I shall inherit 'the land?'" (Genesis 15:8) was, according to the rabbis, the cause for Israel's bondage in Egypt, a punishment for his lack of complete faith. Moses, on the other hand, delivered Israel from that very bondage.

And what about Jacob's famous wrestling match? Yes, he prevailed, but the angel’s blow dislocated his thigh. Moses, by contrast, inspired such awe in the angels that they fled at his very presence.

So, is Moses definitively "greater"? Well, that's not really the point, is it? The rabbis aren't interested in creating a hierarchy. Instead, they're using these comparisons to illuminate different aspects of greatness, to highlight the unique contributions of each figure, and ultimately, to underscore the immense respect and reverence they held for Moses, our teacher, our leader, the one who spoke to God face to face.

Perhaps the real takeaway is that greatness isn't a competition. Each of these figures, from Adam to Moses, played a vital role in the unfolding story of the Jewish people. And each of them, in their own way, continues to inspire us today.

Full source
Legends of the Jews 5:112Legends of the Jews

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg (1909) · Public Domain

In Jewish tradition, the concept of final instructions, of ethical wills, is incredibly powerful. It’s about more than just passing on possessions; it’s about passing on values, a legacy of faith and action.

Think about Abraham, nearing his end, speaking to Isaac. Or Isaac, in turn, imparting wisdom to Jacob. And Jacob, gathering his sons around him for those crucial final words. Each generation passing the torch, guiding their descendants in the ways of Adonai, the Lord.

His final address to the Israelites, before his ascent to Mount Nebo and ultimate passing, wasn't just a farewell speech. It was a reckoning. A calling to account. A powerful reminder of their responsibilities.

Moses didn't just deliver a sermon. He challenged them. He held them accountable for their missteps. He reminded them of the covenant they had made with God. the verse says "Legends of the Jews", edited by Louis Ginzberg, Moses's speech of admonition (or tokhehah) had a profound impact.

The text suggests that this final admonition had a greater effect than even the revelation of the Aseret haDibrot, the Ten Commandments, at Mount Sinai! Remember the Golden Calf? The Israelites, fresh from their encounter with the Divine, almost immediately stumbled. They proclaimed, "We shall do according as we have heard," and then promptly disobeyed.

But Moses's words, spoken with the full weight of his experience, his love, and his prophetic authority, sunk deep. They resonated within the hearts of the people, bringing them back to God, back to the Torah.

Why was this moment so transformative? Perhaps it was the context. The Israelites knew Moses was leaving them. His words weren't just pronouncements; they were a parting gift, a final act of leadership, a demonstration of ahavat Yisrael, love for the people Israel.

And God, recognizing the power of Moses's words, declared, "As a reward to thee because thy words of exhortation have brought Israel to follow Me, I shall designate these words as thine, even though thou didst speak them only in execution of My command."

God recognized the unique power and impact of Moses's heartfelt message. It wasn't just obedience to a command; it was evidence of his profound connection with the people and his unwavering commitment to God's will.

So, what can we learn from this? Maybe that our final words, our final actions, hold immense power. They can shape the future, guide the next generation, and leave a lasting impact on the world. Maybe it's a reminder to live each day as if it were our last, to speak our truth with love and conviction, and to strive to leave a legacy worthy of remembrance.

Full source