Chevron: A lesson in faith from Rashi
"FROM THE VALE OF HEBRON — But was not Hebron situated on a hill, as it is said (Numbers 13:22) “And they went up into the South and they came unto Hebron” why then does it state that Jacob sent him from the עמק, (the vale, the deep part) of Hebron? But the meaning is that Jacob sent him in consequence of the necessity of bringing into operation the profound (עמוקה) thought of the righteous man who was buried in Hebron (Midrash Tanchuma, Vayera 22) — in order that there might be fulfilled that which was spoken to Abraham when the Covenant was made ‘between the parts” (cf. 15:13), “thy seed shall be a stranger etc.”"
From here we know that Rashi was not entirely knowledgeable about the geography of the Land of Israel (can't blame him; he lived in France), being that Chevron is both in a valley and in a mountain - at the center of the Chevron Mountain, there's a valley. Within that valley is situated Chevron.
What's fascinating is that there are many people in the world who would see an apparent contradiction in scripture and would have concluded that the Torah or the Tanach as a whole is simply wrong, and therefore an errant man-made text that should not be considered authoritative in divine terms. Rashi, however, does not go down this route at all: He stops, looks at what appears to be a contradiction to him (based on his knowledge), and tries to see what the Torah is trying to tell him. That's an incredible level of faith. May we merit to have Rashi's faith and at least a pinch of his wisdom.
Have a great week!
I'm sure Rashi would appreciate the compliment, but it's not his own original interpretation - he got it from Bereishis Rabbah 84:13 (and Tanchuma Buber, Vayeishev 13).
ReplyDeleteNow, granted that by the time these Midrashim were composed most of Jewish life in Eretz Yisrael was centered in the Galil, but surely they must at least have had some opportunity to visit Chevron and note the topography, no? Which then might indicate that they're not bothered so much by whether there exists a valley there, but why here (and only here) does the Torah bother to note it.
First of all, thank you for informing me that this is a midrash. I was not aware.
DeleteThe first point is a good point, but I prefer to think of it like this: Rashi, aware of the question - whether he thought of it himself and only then saw the midrash, or from the start saw it in the midrash, fully accepted the midrashic explanation.
On the second point, it's a very good question: Why would this question be asked in a midrash in the first place? Were they not aware of the topography of Israel?