Parshat Shoftim 5771

It is written in our Parshah Shoftim :  Devarim 17:8

If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgement, between blood and blood, between law and law, and between plague and plague, matters of controversy within thy gates; then shalt thou arise, and get thee up unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose.

This verse seems too long and repetitive for what it seems to say.

The Midrash explains that this verse is a prophecy of what will happen in the time of the destruction of the Temple. The angels will ask God why He was so cruel on His children.

The first question of the angels was "between blood and blood". In the Torah it says that the blood of an animal must be covered after it has been ritually killed. In the time of the destruction of the Temple the Jews blood was spilt like water without being covered.

The second question that the angels asked was "between law and law" . In the Torah it says that an animal and its child can not be slaughtered on the same day. In the time of the destruction of the Temple Hannah and her seven sons where all slaughtered on the same day.

The third question was "between plague and plague". The Torah says that a house with a plague in it must be inspected by a Cohen who will decide if it becomes impure.

After this the house and everything it it becomes impure and cannot be used for at least seven days. The Torah tells us that the house must be emptied before the Cohen comes so that what ever is in the house can be saved.

During the destruction of the Temple the Temple and everything in it went up in fire.

From the Midrash we can now understand the seeming repetitions but we are left with the big question of how God could have been so cruel and not Himself kept what is written in the holy Torah.

The holy Arizal from Tsfat explains that God's answer is written in the rest of the verse. "Matters of controversy within thy gates". When there are fights between Jews there is an extreme divine punishment that goes far beyond what a normal punishment.

We thus see from this explication that causeless hate which was responsible for the destruction of the Temple and our long exile is also responsible for all the evils that have come upon the Jews during the last 2000 years.

If hate was the cause of the destruction of the Temple and our exile, redemption is achieved by virtue of the unconditional love towards his neighbour, which will bring us the Moshiach and the third and final Beit Hamikdash.