It all starts with a verse from the Song of Songs (3:11): "Go out and gaze, daughters of Zion, at King Solomon, at the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding, and on the day of the rejoicing of his heart."
But what does this have to do with seeing the Divine? The Rabbis interpret this verse as referring to the moment the Divine Presence, the Shekhinah, rested upon the Tabernacle, the portable sanctuary the Israelites built in the desert. It's like they're saying: "Go out and see the Divine Presence, just like the people did when they "saw, shouted, and fell on their faces" (Leviticus 9:24)."
The text then makes a fascinating link between being able to see the Divine and circumcision. "The daughters of Zion," it says, alludes to "those who are marked for Him with circumcision." Without it, they wouldn't be able to look at the Divine Presence. They would have fallen, just like Abraham did before his circumcision, as we see in Genesis 17:3: "Abram fell on his face, and God spoke with him." Even Bilaam, the non-Israelite prophet, "falls with uncovered eyes" (Numbers 24:4, 16) when receiving his prophecy.
Why this emphasis on circumcision? Well, the text links it to a moment of readiness, of purification. Just as a storekeeper must remove impurity from his house before inviting a priest, so too must we remove any "blemish" before we can truly be in God's presence. The passage drives this point home with a powerful analogy. God desired to appear to Abraham, but a foreskin still remained on him. Only once he circumcised himself "on that very day" (Genesis 17:26), did "The Lord appear to him" (Genesis 18:1).
But the passage doesn't stop there. It goes on to offer multiple interpretations of "King Solomon" (Shelomo in Hebrew). It's not just about the historical king, but about a deeper concept of completeness, of shelemim. Solomon represents the King who desires faultless people, as God commanded Abraham: "Walk before Me and be faultless" (Genesis 17:1).
The text continues: Solomon is the King who created His creations complete. Bar Kappara even suggests that Adam and Eve were created as twenty-year-olds – in their full stature! It's a vision of a world brought into being in a state of wholeness and perfection.
And it gets even more profound. Solomon is also the King who makes peace – shalom – between his creations. We find this idea beautifully illustrated with the imagery of fire and water, seemingly opposing forces existing in harmony. He made peace between fire and Abraham, the sword and Isaac, and angels and Jacob. The heavenly beasts are of fire, and the firmament is of snow, yet "neither does this one extinguish that one, nor does that one consume this one." Even within a single angel, with its multiple faces described in Daniel 10:6, peace reigns.
This theme of peace extends even to the plagues in Egypt! Remember the hail and fire? Exodus 9:24 tells us, "There was hail and fire igniting [mitlakaḥat] within the hail." Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Nehemya offer different explanations, but the core idea is the same: even in devastation, there's a miraculous harmony, a divine purpose at work. Rav Ada compares it to two powerful legions who, despite their differences, unite to fight for their king.
The passage concludes with an exploration of the "crown" mentioned in the verse. Rabbi Yitzḥak points out that the Bible doesn't say Bathsheba made a crown for Solomon. Instead, the "crown" is interpreted as the Tent of Meeting, adorned with precious materials. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai even relates a story of a king who loved his daughter so much he called her both his sister and his mother, drawing a parallel to God's love for Israel.
Ultimately, this passage from Bamidbar Rabbah invites us to contemplate what it means to truly see the Divine. It's not just about physical sight, but about a deeper readiness, a state of wholeness, and an embrace of peace. It's about recognizing the Divine Presence in the world around us, even in the midst of seeming contradictions and chaos. It's a powerful reminder that to truly connect with the Divine, we must strive for completeness, for harmony, and for peace within ourselves and in the world. So, what does it mean for you to "go out and gaze?"