Blessing Israel Even When It Falls Short

1“Speak to Aharon and to his sons, saying: So shall you bless Bnei Yisrael; say to them.”¹ Rashi explains: “Amor lahem, ‘say to them’: amor is like zachor and shamor; in the vernacular, disant. ‘Say to them,’ so that all of them will hear. Amor is written in full: do not bless them in haste and hurriedly, but with kavanah, concentration, and with a whole heart.”²

2It seems we can find a hint here, once we note the questions raised on Rashi's words, which the Mizrachi discusses.³ Why does Rashi bring support for his explanation from zachor, of all words, a word said of Shabbos? His words “so that all of them will hear” also state the obvious. And on his words “do not bless them in haste” we must ask: why would we have thought that a Kohen would bless in haste, so that a special teaching is needed against it?

3We must also explain what the Baal HaTurim writes on the blessing of peace: shalom has the same numerical value as Esav,⁴ to hint at “Be the first to greet every person with peace,” even a gentile.⁵ What does this have to do with the Priestly Blessing?

4We can explain this as follows. In the Kohen Gadol's prayer on Yom Kippur we ask, “… and may Your people, the House of Israel, not need one another, nor another nation.” The Kedushas Levi, R' Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, explains that we pray that Bnei Yisrael should not need another nation:⁶ their righteousness should not be visible only in comparison with the gentiles. Rather, we should receive all the abundance in the merit of Israel's righteousness, which can be seen on its own, without being measured against another nation. In other words, when Israel is not conducting itself properly, the way to win it a favorable judgment is to set it beside another nation and weigh it against that nation. Then it becomes clear that Israel is, at any rate, better than the nations of the world. This is how the Noam Elimelech explains a teaching of Chazal: “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Hoshea, ‘Your children have sinned …’ Hoshea said before Him, ‘Master of the world, the whole world is Yours; exchange them for another nation.’”⁷ It is very puzzling that the prophet Hoshea would say such a thing. Rather, the meaning is that he argued before Hashem: go out and see how the other nations conduct themselves, and You will see that compared with them, Bnei Yisrael are tzaddikim.

5We may say that this is also the idea behind the Priestly Blessing. At times Bnei Yisrael stand on a great level, and then the abundance is fitting for them on their own account. But at times they do not conduct themselves as they should, and then one must plead on their behalf and weigh them against another nation. This is the meaning of the verse “say to them,” which Rashi explains as “like zachor and shamor.” There are times when Bnei Yisrael stand on so great a level that the blessing is said to them on their own account. That is “say to them,” like zachor and shamor, the words said of holy Shabbos. On the verse “Between Me and Bnei Yisrael,”⁸ Chazal said of Shabbos: “It is like a king who wished to be alone with the queen: whoever comes and thrusts himself between them is liable to death. So too, this Shabbos is between Israel and the Holy One, blessed be He, as it says, ‘Between Me and Bnei Yisrael.’ Therefore any gentile who comes and thrusts himself between them is liable to death.”⁹ This points to a time when Israel stands on a great level and there is no need to compare it with the nations of the world: by virtue of its own standing alone it receives the great holiness of Shabbos and an abundance of blessing. That is what Rashi meant by “like zachor and shamor.”

6But the Priestly Blessing must take effect on everyone, for the obligation is to bless all Israel, even the people out in the fields,¹⁰ and among them there are surely some who are not on such a level. That is why Rashi went on to write, “so that all of them will hear.” For the same reason he also wrote, “do not bless them in haste.” It would actually have been fitting to bless them in haste, so that the accuser would have no time to accuse and keep the blessings from flowing. That is why the warning was needed: “do not bless them in haste.” But how, [if the blessing is said without haste,] can Israel really be blessed at a time when, Heaven forbid, it is not walking properly in the way of the Torah? The remedy is to measure Israel's standing against the other nations. The Baal HaTurim hints at this remedy when he says that shalom has the numerical value of Esav. If we first look at how the gentiles appear, Israel's greatness will surely be revealed and evident to all, for beside Esav, Israel will certainly be found righteous. This is how the Baal HaTurim's words connect to the Priestly Blessing.

7May the Holy One, blessed be He, help us always to be a vessel that receives an abundance of blessing, until the coming of the righteous Redeemer. Amen, may it be His will.