Numbers 30:2-36:13
The story of the tribes of Reuben and Gad in this week’s Torah reading contains a rather subtle message. Following Israel’s defeat of Midian, the Reubenites and Gadites realize that the territories conquered on the far side of the Jordan included some grazing land that would be perfect for their vast holdings of cattle and other livestock. So they approach Moses with a request to allow them to settle there.
Moses interprets this as a request to settle there now and reacts with anger. “You mean you want the rest of the tribes to cross the Jordan and wage war while you settle peacefully on this side of the river? That’s exactly how your own fathers reacted after I sent them to scout out the land of Canaan.” Moses was referring to the men who, having surveyed the Canaanite fortifications and their fearsome inhabitants, declared that the proposed invasion of Canaan was doomed to failure. Their lack of faith then brought down divine punishment upon them (Numbers 13).
Numerous readers, ancient and modern, denounce the request of Reuben and Gad. After all, they say, all the tribes ought to have willingly shared in the nation’s burdens, no matter what their own particular situation. What a selfish thing it was for the people of those two tribes to think that they could just sit on the sidelines while their own countrymen risked death in conquering the land that had been promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob! Moses had to make clear to them that every tribe had to do its part.
But there are a few problems with this understanding of the story. To begin with, if that were the whole point, the narrative should have been a lot shorter: Reuben and Gad could have said what they said, and Moses could have sharply rebuked them. End of story.
Instead, Moses goes into a long comparison with the earlier incident of the spies—a comparison which, when you think about, doesn’t really fit. The sin of the spies was a lack of faith: they reported on what they saw—which was, after all, their mission—but then they went on to conclude that the conquest ordered by God would be impossible. They simply lacked faith in God. By contrast, the present incident has nothing to do with a lack of faith or any belief that the conquest would be impossible. Rather, Moses is accusing the two tribes of following their own narrow interests and, in the process, shirking their duty. Then why does he bring up the false comparison of this incident with that of the spies?
But more to the point: the tribes of Reuben and Gad never asked to be excused from the fighting. What they requested from Moses was that “this land [on this side of the Jordan] be given to us as a permanent holding (an aḥuzzah in Hebrew). They could only be granted such an aḥuzzah after the conquest is complete. Thus, when they say to Moses “do not have us cross over the Jordan” (32:5), they are referring to the final distribution of the conquered lands.
But apparently, Moses does not understand that they were talking about where they wish to settle. He thinks they’re talking about not participating in the combined military effort to conquer the land. So he ends up blaming them for nothing!
If so, then the whole incident seems to have been included as a warning to Moses against jumping to conclusions. This may sound easy enough, but experience has taught that people’s imaginations can sometimes run away with them. This can happen to anyone, even to a divinely chosen leader.