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Whenever something 'goes wrong', (instinctively) we tend to blame 'somebody else'. Sefer Yehoshua appears to
arrive at a similar conclusion, for in chapter seven we find that one person - ACHAN - is blamed for Bnei
Yisrael's defeat in their battle against HA'AI!
Could that really be so? Does it make sense that an entire nation should be punished so severely due to the personal
sin of one individual!
7:1 Introductory remarks [setting the stage] [Note that the parshia actually begins in 6:27!]
7:2-3 Yehoshua sends SPIES to HA'AI, and their report
7:4-9 The defeat in the first battle, and Yehoshua's prayer
7:10-15 G-d's response - find the 'sinner' who caused the defeat
7:16-26 Singling out Achan & his punishment
8:1-2 G-d's command to fight HA'AI again (and HOW to fight)
8:3-8 Yehoshua's plan to defeat HA'AI (using the ambush...)
8:9-17 Stage One of the battle - the fake retreat
8:18-24 Stage Two of the battle - the ambush works!
8:25-29 Summary information concerning this victorious battle
'DOUBLE' BLAME
Chapter seven leaves us in doubt concerning who really is to blame for the original defeat. On the one hand, it opens
with a very harsh statement concerning all of Bnei Yisrael: "VA'YIMALU BNEI YISRAEL BA'CHEREM -
And the children of Israel transgressed by taking from the booty..." (7:1); however that very same pasuk
continues with "VA'YIKACH ACHAN - And ACHAN took...", indicating that it was only Achan who sinned.
This quandary continues later in the chapter when G-d explains to Yehoshua WHY Bnei Yisrael have been punished.
First G-d declares: "CHATAH YISRAEL - Israel has sinned!" (7:11); but only two psukim later G-d instructs
Yehoshua to find the lone individual who has taken from the booty.
So who is to blame - all of Bnei Yisrael or only Achan?
THE NEW BATTLE PLAN
If ACHAN's sin was ONLY reason why Bnei Yisrael lost the first battle against HA'AI, then we should expect the
following sequence of events to follow:
1) Achan must be punished for his sin.
2) Bnei Yisrael can then resume their battle against HA'AI
3) To prove that Achan's sin was the ONLY reason for their defeat, the second battle should be fought just like the
first, i.e. a frontal attack by 3000 soldiers (see 7:4!).
However, after Achan's punishment (see 7:20-26), we find quite the opposite. Instead of sending another unit of
3000 men to attack, G-d instructs Yehoshua to launch a totally DIFFERENT style of attack. This time, Bnei
Yisrael take full advantage of their numeric superiority by setting two ambushes (one of 5000 men and another
of 30,000 men) before the remainder of the army engages HA'AI head on. [See 8:1-9 for more complete
details.]
This battle is very different than the original battle where only 3000 soldiers were sent into battle. This time,
Yehoshua employs a much better military strategy. Furthermore, G-d Himself commands Yehoshua to take his
entire army to battle!
At first glance, G-d's battle plan in chapter 8 appears to contradict His primary message in chapter 7! From chapter 7
it appears that Achan's sin is to blame; while from chapter 8 it appears that the first battle was lost due to poor
military planning.
So why does G-d change the battle plan?
'HEADLINES'
Recall that before his battle against Yericho, Yehoshua had also sent spies to assist him in forming his battle plans
(see chapter 2). Let's compare their report to the report of the spies sent to HA'AI.
It is pretty safe to assume that when the spies return to Yehoshua, their detailed report contained more than 'one line'.
As military spies, it is their duty to provide their commander with as much military information as possible. But,
Sefer Yehoshua summarizes the reports of each of these two spy missions with simply 'one line'. Let's compare.
Spies sent to Yericho (see 2:24): "And they said to Yehoshua: for G-D has given the entire land in our hands, and in
fact, all the inhabitants of the land are quaking before us."
Spies sent to the Ai (see 7:3): "And they reported to Yehoshua: It is not necessary to send up ALL of the troops - 2,
maybe 3 thousand should be enough to go up and attack - do not trouble all of the troops for the people are few."
Just like the 'headlines' of a newspaper story, these 'one line' reports reflect the gist of the reports of these two spy
missions. Clearly, the report of the spies of Yericho reflects their perception of the AND OF G-D behind all of
the events that they had observed.
In contrast, the report of the spies of HA'AI does not mention G-d at all! Instead, their report reflects their
overconfidence in their own military might.
WHAT LED THEM TO THIS OVERCONFIDENCE?
One could suggest that the victory over Yericho, even though it was won with the help of G-d's miracle, left the
army with a sense of overconfidence in their own military capabilities. After all, even though G-d helped them
make a 'breach in the wall', the remainder of the battle they fought on their own (see 6:20-21).
However, this is the precise reason WHY G-d found it necessary to perform a miracle in the FIRST battle in the
conquest of Eretz Canaan - IN ORDER that the people realize that even though they are fighting, they must
relate that victory to G-d's assistance. For this very reason, it was forbidden to take from the booty of Yericho –
so that the people could show their recognition that G-d was fighting for them.
Therefore, by not taking from the CHEREM of Yericho, Bnei Yisrael show their recognition that G-d has fought for
them. Consequently, when ACHAN takes from the CHEREM, it reflects his own understanding that he truly
deserved this booty. In other words, ACHAN totally misunderstood the purpose of the G-d's miracle at Yericho.
THE WORST OF THE BUNCH
Even though Achan was the only person who actually took from the CHEREM, there were probably many more who
didn't view this as anything so terrible. Achan may have been the worst of the bunch, but his actions may have
reflected an overall feeling within the army that they deserve credit as well for the victory at Yericho. This
attitude is seen once again in the spies' report to Yehoshua, and in the military's own decision to accept that
report and its subsequent poor battle strategy.
Therefore, ACHAN's personal sin AND the misguided report of the spies - both stem from the same problem of
overconfidence caused by a under appreciation of G-d's assistance in the battle of Yericho. Obviously, Achan's
sin's was much more severe; and hence his punishment was harsher. However, Bnei Yisrael themselves are also
at fault - but to a much lesser degree; hence they too are punished by losing in their first battle against HA'AI.
This background enables to explain all of our original questions:
WHO IS TO BLAME?
BOTH Achan AND Bnei Yisrael; and hence the chapter intentionally connects Achan's personal sin to a more
general sin in the nation's attitude (see again 7:2 & 7:11). As explained above, even though Achan's sin is more
severe, both sins are thematically related. One could suggest that the national mood of overconfidence provided
the setting that allowed Achan to take this attitude to the extreme of actually taking from the CHEREM. From
this perspective, it is easy to understand why the entire nation carries collective responsibility for Achan's sin.
WHY IS THE BATTLE PLAN CHANGED?
Once again, based on the above, the change in battle plan also makes perfect sense, since the original battle plan
itself was a result of this basic sin of national overconfidence. G-d's battle plan for the defeat of HA'AI (see 8:1-
5) reflects a more conservative military approach, based on the true relative strengths of the armies involved. Not
only must G-d teach Yehoshua how to plan his battles, He must also remind the people not to be so
overconfident in their military ability. [This explains why this Sefer has such detail to this new battle plan.]
KOL YISRAEL AREYVIM ZEH LA'ZEH
Based on the above shiur, we can arrive at a very important conclusion concerning Chazal's principle of "kol
Yisrael areyvim zeh la'zeh". Collective responsibility for the sin of an individual becomes logical when that
individual's sin stems from the nation's sin (even though that sin may be at a much lower level). Individual
behavior is highly influenced by the public mood and national standards; and hence the public becomes
responsible for the behavior of the individual within that society.
KNOWYOUR נ"ך
SEFER YEHOSHUA (Shiur #5)
CHAPTER 8:30-35 THE MIZBAYACH ON HAR EIVAL
Re-living Har Sinai? That appears to be what the last five psukim of chapter 8 are all about. But why
does Yehoshua fulfill the Biblical commandment to build a MIZBAYACH on Har Eival specifically
now, after his victory against HA'AI?
INTRODUCTION
In our previous shiurim on Sefer Yehoshua, we have noted the numerous parallels between the events
of "Yetziat Mitzraim" and "knisah la'aretz" [entering the land]. The reason for these parallels is rather
simple. According to G-d's original plan, the same generation that left Egypt was supposed to enter the
Promised land. It was G-d's hope that the extraordinary events of Yetziat Mitzraim would impress Bnei
Yisrael in such a manner that would facilitate their ability to properly establish G-d's special nation in
Eretz Canaan. But due to their sins, that generation never made it to the land. Instead, they died in the
desert, and now, a new generation must prepare to fulfill that same destiny. Therefore, in Sefer Yehoshua
we find how G-d creates similar situations that will leave a comparable impression on the new
generation.
The last (but most significant) parallel of this type is recorded at the end of chapter eight (after Bnei
Yisrael's victory over HA'AI) when Yehoshua gathers the entire nation at HAR Eival.
At both events, we find that Bnei Yisrael build a MIZBAYACH, offer OLOT & SHLAMIM, and are
taught G-d's laws = the TORAH!
Based on our introductory remarks, the reason for this parallel event is rather obvious. Had Bnei
Yisrael not sinned (at chet ha'egel), this gathering at Har Sinai would have been their last assembly before
they were to embark on their journey to conquer Eretz Canaan. During that gathering, Bnei Yisrael
studied all of the laws that they would need to keep as they conquered the land and established their
communities. Now, some forty years later, the new generation stands in a similar situation, and therefore,
Yehoshua gathers them together on Har Eival for a similar type of ceremony.
BEFORE OR LATER
With this background, we can examine our second question, regarding WHEN this ceremony took
place.
(A)From the simple reading Sefer Devarim 27:1-8, it seems that Yehoshua should have performed this
mitzvah on the SAME DAY that they crossed the Jordan River. And indeed - Rashi, Radak, and Ralbag
(based on Sota 36a [R' Shimon] & Tosefta chapter 7) all agree that the events described in Yehoshua
8:30-34 actually took place earlier, i.e. on the day they crossed the Jordan! [However, they do not explain
why this event isn't recorded until after the battle of HA'AI in chapter 8.]
(B)The Yerushalmi (Sota 7:3) offers an additional opinion [R' Yishmael], that this event on Har Eival
actually took place at a LATER date, i.e. some fourteen years later - AFTER the conquest of Eretz
Canaan had been completed! [There as well, we don't find an explanation why the events are not recorded
in chronological order.]
(C)The third possibility (and simple pshat) is that these events took place specifically NOW, as
recorded, i.e. after the battle against HA'AI. However, if so, we must explain why Yehoshua fulfills this
mitzvah specifically at this time.
On the other hand, if these events took place either earlier or later, then we must explain why they are
recorded here, even though the took place at a different time.
Now, we must tackle the real question. That is, why did this event take place specifically NOW
(according to B), or why is RECORDED specifically now (according to A or C). Or, in other words, what
does Ma'amad Har Eival have to do with the battle against HA'AI.
MAASE AVOT SIMAN LA'BANIM
Recall Avraham Avinu's FIRST 'aliyah' to the land of Israel. His first stop is Shechem, where he builds
a MIZBAYACH and then travels on to BET-EL, or more precisely: between Bet-el and HA'AI! There
again, he builds a MIZBAYACH and calls out in G-d's Name. [See Breishit 12:1-8, note how Yaakov
follows a similar path when he returns to Eretz Canaan in Breishit 33:18-20, 35:9.]
This points to a 'thematic' connection between Shchem and HA'AI, which can explain why this event at
Har Eival (a mountain overlooking Shchem) is either recorded [A & C], or takes place [B], immediately
after the victory over HA'AI (which is next to Bet-el /note opening sentence in Yehoshua 7:2).
Even though this thematic connection is quite weak, we can strengthen it by considering once again
our parallel between Yetziat Mitzraim and "knisa la'aretz".
Recall our earlier discussion of the parallel between the miracle of crossing the Jordan River and
"kriyat Yam Suf". As the following table illustrates, we can show how this parallel between Yehoshua &
Sefer Shmot continues:
Again, these parallels are not totally 'convincing', but they do point a certain progression of events in
Sefer Yehoshua that is similar to the events of Yetziat Mitzraim. In any case, they can help us better
appreciate why Yehoshua decides to fulfill the mitzvah of Har Eival at this time; or alternately - why
these events are recorded specifically here, even though they may have taken place at an earlier or later
time.
Acknowledgements: THE TANACH STUDY CENTER [http://tanach.org] Sefer haDoros; The Little Midrash Says; The
Sequence of Events in the Old Testament