Adonai, EeshBshal274 Greenspan

BSHAL274

TORAH-FAX 5774 BESHALLACH

ADONAI, EESH MILCHAMAH BY RABBI MARK B. GREENSPAN
One of the most signifi ant passages in the !orah is "A# $ashir %oshe," the song of %oses, &hi h 'srael and their leader hanted at the (ed Sea )pon *eing deli+ered from the Eg$ptian Arm$, !his song is re ited on a dail$ *asis in toto as part of the morning lit)rg$, On e a $ear &e also ele*rate the splitting of the (ed Sea *$ reading of this passage on the se+enth da$ of -asso+er, '. the first da$ of -asso+er is asso iated &ith the e/od)s from Eg$pt, the se+enth da$ traditionall$ onne ted &ith the splitting of the (ed Sea, !he Song of the (ed Sea is ne+er far from o)r ons io)sness as 0e&s, 1e ma2e onstant referen e to it thro)gho)t o)r lit)rg$, 1e sing, "%i 2amo2ha *a3elim Adonai" "1ho is li2e 4o), among the might$5" !his is one of those passages man$ of )s 2no& *$ heart, 1hile the !en ommandments are merel$ read in passing in ne/t &ee26s !orah portion, this Sha**at has its o&n spe ial name 33 Sha**at Shirah 33 to mar2 the importan e of this passage, 1h$ is the %oses6 song at the (ed Sea so important5 !he song at the sea represents a moment of tri)mph and redemption for 'srael, "7a$a6amin) *adonai )+imoshe a+odo" At that moment, "!he people of 'srael *elie+ed in the Lord and in %oses, his ser+ant," !he song at the sea mar2ed a transformati+e e+ent in the life of the 0e&ish people, 4et the song at the (ed Sea is not &itho)t its o&n spe ial pro*lems, Ea h time ' re ite this passage ' find m$self d&elling if onl$ for a moment on the &ords &e )se to des ri*e God at the *eginning of the poem, "Adonai eesh mil hamah, Adonai sh6mo" "!he Lord is a man of &ar, Adonai is his name8" 't6s hard not to find this

Adonai, EeshBshal274 Greenspan

image 9arring if not altogether tro)*ling, 1hat does it mean to all God, "a man of &ar5" !he poem ontin)es, "-haraoh6s hariots and his arm$ He ast into the sea,,,,at the *last of His nostrils the &aters pile )p,,,4o) made 4o)r &inds *lo&, the sea o+ered them: the$ san2 li2e lead in $o)r ma9esti &aters," (ashi offers one e/planation of this e/pression, Eesh, he e/plains, does not mean "man" *)t a "master," And "eesh mil hamah" is one &ho has mastered the art of &arfare, B)t this hardl$ sol+es o)r pro*lem, !he images in the song are dramati , +i+id, and +iolent, to sa$ the least, %) h as &e 2no& that this passage is poetr$ and poetr$ is &ritten in the lang)age of metaphors and s$m*ols, it6s hard not to *e tro)*led *$ the image of God fighting h)man *attles and +an;)ishing mortal enemies, let alone a des ription of God as a %A< of &ar, Ea h time ' read this passage '6m reminded of m$ o)nselor at =amp (amah in 1>?@, At the height of the 7ietnam 1ar, &arfare &as on all o)r minds, %$ o)nselor ref)sed to re ite A# 4ashir at o)r dail$ min$anA the image of God as a &arrior &as rep)gnant to him, He &as a pa ifist, he said, and he o)ld not spea2 of God as a soldier, So he hose to lea+e this passage o)t of the traditional ser+i e &hi h he re ited ea h da$, !oda$, in an age of 0ihad and hol$ &ar, &hat are &e to ma2e of this image of God as an eesh mil hamah 33 a &arrior doing *attle5 'n his ommentar$ on the *oo2 of E/od)s, -rofessor <a h)m Sarna e/plains that the image of God as a &arrior is a dire t response to -haraoh6s de ision to ome after 'srael &ith his militar$ strength, ' ;)ote, "Be a)se the Eg$ptians ame after 'srael &ith armed for e, the Lord, to &hom alone +i tor$ is attri*)ted, is metaphori all$ des ri*ed as a &arrior," Be a)se the enemies of 'srael are seen as the enemies of God, the fight for 'srael6s s)r+i+al is seen as the "the *attle of the Lord,"

Adonai, EeshBshal274 Greenspan

Still, the image of God as a &arrior remains dissonant and dist)r*ing, Of o)rse, this image is +er$ different from that of 0ihad or =r)sade &hi h is a*o)t the propagation of one6s faith in the name of God, !his &as ne+er an a epta*le 0e&ish attit)de, !he tri)mph of 9)sti e, ho&e+er, &as, !he image of God as fighting a *attle for those &ho are oppressed &as at the +er$ heart of the 0e&ish )nderstanding of God, God &as seen as a &arrior defending the oppressed and the &ea2, 7i tor$ &as a*o)t the tri)mph of the good, 4et &ho de ides &hat the good is5 !hro)gh o)t the long histor$ of h)man2ind people on *oth sides of the isle ha+e laimed the s)pport of God in their )nderta2ings, '6m reminded of a s ene in the mo+ie, 6!he G)ns of <a+arone,6 !he night *efore the great *attle, &e see the &ar room, first of the <a#is, and then of the allies, 'n ea h &ar room the generals feel ass)red of +i tor$ *e a)se the$ are ertain that "God is on their side," Sermons o)ght to s)ggest a sol)tion 33 this morning ' an onl$ offer ;)estions for $o) to onsider, 1hat are &e to do &ith images in the Bi*le &hi h tro)*le )s li2e this one5 1as m$ o)nselor6s de ision to lea+e the passage o)t orre t5 Or do &e ontin)e to re ite s) h passages and &restle &ith their meaning5 !here are man$ passages in the Bi*le and o)r lit)rg$ &hi h tro)*le )s, Sho)ld tradition &in o)t o+er reason 33 one an6t +er$ &ell hange the Bi*le 33 or sho)ld the passages &e re ite *e shaped *$ o)r hanging )nderstanding of the &orld5 Adonai eesh mil hama 33 %ost interesting is the fa t that the name of God )sed in this passage, 4)d ha$ +a+ ha$ 33 or Adonai as &e prono)n e it, is al&a$s asso iated &ith God6s attri*)te of ompassion, So &hi h is it5 's God a God of &ar or is the Hol$ One a God of ompassion5 Sometime the most ompassionate stand that &e an ta2e is to defend the need$ 33 to rise )p in defense of &hat is right and those &ho are oppressed e+en if it means )sing for e,

Adonai, EeshBshal274 Greenspan

Another reading of this passage is that it6s not a*o)t God at all 33 it is reall$ a*o)t the +indi ation of 'srael, 't is not God &ho is a God of 1ar *)t 'srael &ho sees God that &a$, .or the first time in the Bi*le, h)man *eings sing God6s praise, !his &as a moment of tr)e poetr$ 33 &hen all the strands of histor$ seem to ome together for the hildren of 'srael and the people sa& their pla e in the larger s heme of the )ni+erse 33 their faith &as *orn *e a)se 'srael had *een redeemed from sla+er$, God &as a hampion of 9)sti e 33 and this is &hat the$ &o)ld no& stri+e for, !ho)sands of $ears later, the fo)nding fathers of the Cnited States &o)ld onsider adopting this image as part of o)r national em*lem, 't &as Ben9amin .ran2lin &ho s)ggested )sing a pi t)re of the 'sraelites &al2ing thro)gh the (ed Sea en ir led &ith the &ords, "(e*ellion against t$rann$ is o*edien e to God," as the motto of the Cnited States, Apparentl$ this &as too religio)s for o)r fo)nding fathers 33 the$ re9e ted it8 't &as not pea e *)t 9)sti e &hi h *e ame the fo)nding prin iple of Ameri a, Sometimes &e &o)ld find it ne essar$ to pra$ to Adonai eesh mil hamah 33 not al&a$s *)t sometimes, ' &o)ld hope, ho&e+er, that &e Ameri an &o)ld sense the same sense of dissonan e in +ie&ing the )se of for e as means to 9)sti e that &e 0e&s sho)ld ha+e in reading this e/pression, 1e ma$ des ri*e God as a %an of &ar *)t &e also on l)de all o)r pra$ers &ith a pra$er for pea e, 1e li+e in a &orld of *oth harmon$ and hostilit$, Both are part of the realit$ of o)r li+es, 1e an onl$ pra$ as the psalmist saidA Adonai O# liamo $iten: adonai $i+are2h et amo *ashalom, 3 %a$ God grant his people might 33 *)t ma$ he also *less them &ith pea e, Sha**at Shalom