The ancient rabbis wrestled with this very idea, and their insights, preserved in texts like Devarim Rabbah, can still resonate deeply today.
Our story begins with Moses, nearing the end of his life. God tells him, "Behold [hen], your time to die is approaching" (Deuteronomy 31:14). Now, Rabbi Aivu picks up on something profound here. Moses, the man who had lauded God before sixty myriad – that's six hundred thousand! – Israelites, using the very word "behold [hen]", as in "Behold [hen] the heavens and the heavens of the heavens belong to the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 10:14), is now being told that his time is up with that very same word.
Imagine the weight of that. Moses cries out, essentially saying, "Master of the Universe, is this how it ends? After all I’ve done, after all that praise, You decree my death with the same word I used to exalt You?" It feels disproportionate, doesn’t it? "An evil measure for a good measure," as Rabbi Aivu puts it, "a lacking measure for a full measure, a restricted measure for an ample measure." It’s like getting a tiny trickle in return for a massive outpouring.
But here’s where the story takes a surprising turn. God responds to Moses, saying, "This, too, is a good measure." What?! How can death be a good measure? God explains that just as Moses used "behold [hen]" to exalt Him, God, too, uses "behold [hen]" with great purpose. He cites examples like "Behold [hineh], I am sending an angel" (Exodus 23:20) and "Behold [hineh], I am sending Elijah the prophet to you" (Malachi 3:23).
The Midrash is making a point: "Behold" isn’t just about endings; it's about beginnings, about divine promise and action. And the promise to Moses wasn't over.
The Holy One, blessed be He, says to Moses that just as he exalted God over six hundred thousand, so will God exalt Moses in the future, in the midst of fifty-five myriad – five hundred and fifty thousand – righteous souls. And here’s a clever twist: the rabbis point out that the numerical value of the Hebrew word hen – הֵן – is 55. Heh (ה) is five, and nun (נ) is fifty.
So, what does all this mean? It’s not simply about mathematical equations or linguistic tricks. It's about understanding that even in moments of apparent loss or injustice, there’s a deeper, divine pattern at play. As The Zohar often reminds us, everything is interconnected. What seems like a negative decree might be part of a larger, ultimately benevolent plan.
The rabbis, masters of Midrash, are teaching us that even death, the ultimate "restricted measure," can be a gateway to something greater. It’s a reminder that God’s measures, though sometimes perplexing, are always infused with meaning, with promise, with the potential for future exaltation. Perhaps, just perhaps, the end is not truly the end. Maybe it's just another "behold," a transition to something beyond our current understanding. A new beginning.