Parashas Devarim - Hashem's Courtyards

Sefer Devarim starts off with rebuke: “These are the words that Moshe addressed to all of Bnei Yisroel, across the Yarden...” Then it lists a few places where the Jews erred/sinned. When it lists the place of 'Chatzeiros', Rashi comments, “You should have learned from what I did to Miriam in Chatzeiros, because of the slander she spoke...”

In the first posuk in Parashas Devarim, Rashi teaches us an important lesson:

Miriam's punishment for (unintentionally) slandering Moshe was leprosy. Unfortunately, her punishment didn't only effect her, but in fact, effected all of Klal Yisroel. We were not able to travel to Eretz Yisroel until she was cured. The Jews then traveled from Chatzeiros (the place where Miriam spoke lashon hara) to the desert of Paran.

When they reached the desert of Paran, the Spies were sent to scout out the land of Israel. Ironically, they reported back saying, “The fruits were huge, the people were huge, and we're nothing but grasshoppers in their eyes, etc.” Their words were not assuring and were ultimately viewed as derogatory in Hashem's eyes. The message insinuated was, 'The land of Israel was not a safe place for us to live in'.

Bnei Yisroel were just punished for derogatory words spoken, yet they didn't learn their lesson. Why?

Mesilas Yeshayim brings a posuk in Mishlei (22:3) which says, “The clever one sees evil, then hides and the fools go ahead and are punished.”

It teaches us that we should look ahead to see whether our actions are correct. Don't go into a situation blindly. Think about the outcome. Should I say this, should I not? Should I do this, should I not? Should I go there, should I not? Making these types of calculations are all part of being a faithful Jew. Fools walk around doing what they want when they want to. They don't think about the consequences. They live in the moment. That type of thinking is dangerous for us. Mesilas Yesharim also says, “Instead, he should turn his feet to the courtyards of Hashem and His dwelling places.” That way you think about Hashem before taking action.

I'd like to conclude, the word “Courtyards” in Hebrew is “Chatzeiros.” Perhaps the next time we feel like speaking lashon hara about someone (or something,) we should think about the two Chatzeiros. Think about what happened to Miriam in the Land of Chatzeiros and think about the “Chatzeiros” - the courtyards of Hashem.

When we're in the presence of someone important, we think about what we say, how we say it, how we move, our actions, our postures, etc. We should strive to picture ourselves in Hashem's courtyards at all times. Perhaps if we thought that way, we will come to think about our actions and be zocheh to actually sit in His courtyards.

Have a wonderful Shabbos,
Nisso