Skeptics' Parshat Hashavua: Parshat Chukat

Bamidbar (Numbers) Chapter 21
יג  מִשָּׁם, נָסָעוּ, וַיַּחֲנוּ מֵעֵבֶר אַרְנוֹן אֲשֶׁר בַּמִּדְבָּר, הַיֹּצֵא מִגְּבֻל הָאֱמֹרִי:  כִּי אַרְנוֹן גְּבוּל מוֹאָב, בֵּין מוֹאָב וּבֵין הָאֱמֹרִי.	13 From thence they journeyed, and pitched on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness, that cometh out of the border of the Amorites.--For Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites;
יד  עַל-כֵּן, יֵאָמַר, בְּסֵפֶר, מִלְחֲמֹת יְהוָה:  אֶת-וָהֵב בְּסוּפָה, וְאֶת-הַנְּחָלִים אַרְנוֹן.	14 wherefore it is said in the book of the Wars of the LORD: Vaheb in Suphah, and the valleys of Arnon,
טו  וְאֶשֶׁד, הַנְּחָלִים, אֲשֶׁר נָטָה, לְשֶׁבֶת עָר; וְנִשְׁעַן, לִגְבוּל מוֹאָב.	15 And the slope of the valleys that inclineth toward the seat of Ar, and leaneth upon the border of Moab.--

This is one of the more puzzling passages in this week's parsha.  Many commentators try to deal with is what exactly is this "Book of the Wars of the Lord" and more importantly what is the BOTWOTL trying to tell us?

There are many explanations for this in the commentaries but the simple meaning of these verses is that the Torah just made a statement that Arnon is the border between the Amorites and Moab. The Torah then cites evidence for this from a passage from another book called "BOTWOTL". (This is basically how the Ramban understands it) This is AFAIK the only place in the entire Pentateuch where another work is explicitly cited.

Now this brings us to a bit of a theological issue. The problem is that this citing of another book is rather un-Godly behavior. Orthodoxy believes that God pretty much wrote the whole Torah. Why is an omniscient God bringing proof to his assertion that Arnon is the border of Moav from an external source? Can't we trust the omniscient God that he knows where the border of the Amorites and Moav lies. Does the textual evidence from the BOTWOL  add anything to God's infallible word? This is roughly equivalent to a 40 year old senior proffesor citing a passage from a high school essay for support.  Even if the BOTWOL is also a book written by God still the question remains why does the omniscient God need to cite any sort of support for anything he says?

I'm sorry to say but this whole passage seems very human to me.

Now for something completely different:

I really enjoyed reading all the comments to my post How I Became Skeptical Part II: My Pandora's Box. If anyone is interested in contributing a sort of "guest post" along the same lines then send it to me a shiltonhasechel@gmail.com. I would be interested to know:

1. What did you used to believe?

2. What do you believe now?

3. What was the exact catalyst that got you to start questioning your former world view.

4. How did that moment make you feel? How did you react? How did thing unfold after that?


It could even be from Chareidism to Modern Orthodox. I just find the concepts of "the one moment that changed everything" or the "sudden lifting of the veil" fascinating. (Apparently the Greeks did too when they made the Pandora's Box story)



  


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