It’s a question that’s captivated mystics and storytellers for centuries, and one particularly vivid legend tells us how Moses himself experienced just that.
The story goes that God, in His infinite wisdom, desired to bring Moses up to His Throne of Glory, to show him the very angels of heaven. A breathtaking invitation, to say the least! But there was a slight problem.
God called upon Metatron, the Prince of the Presence – a powerful angel in his own right – and commanded him to bring Moses into heaven. Now, Metatron, whose name some believe means "one who occupies the throne next to God," raised a crucial point. “Master of the Universe,” he said, “Moses cannot ascend to heaven because the angels are made of fire, and he is only flesh and blood!” It’s a pretty valid concern, right?
So, what was God's solution? A divine upgrade, of course!
God instructed Metatron to transform Moses into fire. Imagine that for a moment.
Metatron then approached Moses, who, understandably, trembled with fear at the sight of this powerful angelic being. “Who are you?” Moses asked, his voice probably shaking.
Metatron replied, “I am Enoch, son of Jared. God has sent me to bring you to His Throne of Glory.” Now, that's quite the introduction! Enoch, of course, is a figure who, according to tradition, also underwent a profound transformation, becoming the angel Metatron himself.
But Moses, ever humble, protested, “I am only flesh and blood and cannot look upon the angels!”
And here's where the really wild part happens. Metatron then transformed Moses. He changed Moses' tongue into a fiery tongue, made his eyes like the wheels of the Merkavah (Divine Chariot), and gave him the powers of the angels. Only then was Moses able to ascend into heaven.
You can find this incredible tale in Gedulat Moshe, preserved in Beit ha-Midrash.
What does it all mean? Well, as Howard Schwartz points out in Tree of Souls, this myth is likely connected to views held by some Jews (and Samaritans) who saw Moses as a messianic figure. By transforming Moses into fire, just as Enoch was transformed into Metatron, the story elevates Moses to an almost unparalleled status. It's an “enthronement myth,” placing Moses in a position of immense power and closeness to the Divine, much like similar myths surrounding figures like Adam, Enoch, Jacob, and King David.
Think about the implications. The very human Moses, the leader who guided his people out of slavery, is transformed into something beyond human, capable of standing in the presence of God. It's a powerful image of spiritual ascension and the potential for transformation that lies within us all. Could this be a metaphor for the journey we all take as we strive to get closer to the Divine? A reminder that even the most ordinary among us can be transformed into something extraordinary?