Living Torah: Don’t Be Too Sure of Yourself

Why did Caleb go to Hebron to pray for Divine assistance? He knew right from wrong.

By Rabbi Ari Enkin, Rabbinic Director, United with Israel

This week’s Torah portion is “Shlach” (Numbers 13:1-15:41), and it contains the infamous story of the spies who were sent to scout out the land in preparation for [what was to be!] the Jewish people’s immediate entry. Let’s look at one of the verses in this section.

The verse says, “They went up through the south (Vaya’alu banegev) and he came to Hebron (vayavo ad Hevron)…” [13:22]. There is a grammatical inconsistency here. The verse begins in the plural – they went up – but concludes in the singular – he came to Hebron.

Our sages explain the reason. As the Talmud states, this teaches that Caleb separated himself from the evil spies and went to the Machpela Cave, the grave of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs, to pray for Divine assistance, especially in terms of not being lured after the evil spies. But not all the spies stopped to pray at Machpela, only Caleb. The other spies just continued on their way. Caleb was alone in Chevron.

Normally, when one is unsure what to do, or unsure what is right and what is wrong, THEN he or she will take to prayer and ask God for some assistance. So, why did Caleb go to pray for Divine assistance? He knew right from wrong. Why did he need Divine assistance in this instance? What, then, was the purpose of this side trip to Hebron to pray at the Cave of Machpela?

One answer given is that a person can never be completely sure of himself. The evil inclination has all kinds of tricks to get us to stray from the correct path. Caleb went to pray to ensure that he doesn’t get caught up with the evil spies and their dreams of fame and leadership. Even the most righteous can fall.

This is a lesson for life. When there is a need to choose a path, and one has nothing but his own good intentions, one might not make the right decision. We all tell ourselves in situations like these that we are certain we would do no wrong, we’re sure we’ll make the right decision. Unfortunately, when it comes down to the crunch, there is no shortage of examples of well-intentioned people who made the wrong decision. Just open up a newspaper and you’ll likely see what I mean. It is natural, and sometimes understandable, that people make the wrong decision when faced with different pressures. Even the strictest dieter will lose it at an all-you-can-eat buffet.

The message: No one is immune from the evil inclination. Always pray for assistance in life, no matter how certain you are of yourself.

For more insights by Rabbi Enkin on this week’s Torah portion, click on the links below:

https://unitedwithisrael.org/living-torah-can-you-see-the-big-picture/

https://unitedwithisrael.org/living-torah-overcoming-ego-emulate-pinchas-and-kaleb/
https://unitedwithisrael.org/living-torah-the-land-of-israel-belongs-to-the-jews/