Parshas Matos
In Parshas Matos we find the request of Bnei Gad and Bnei Reuven to remain b’eiver hayarden, on the east side of the Jordan River. One striking element of this episode is the role of the chatzi Shevet Menashe. Apparently, they were not part of the original request, and yet the Torah records (32,33) that Moshe gave Bnei Gad, Bnei Reuven and chatzi Shevet Menashe parts of eiver hayarden. It seems like part of Shevet Menashe pop in out of the blue. The meforshim deal with this question.
The Netziv here in Matos refers to his perush in Devarim (3,16). The way the Netziv explains is as follows. The Netziv noticed that if one look at the portions of eiver hayarden given over to Reuven, Gad, and chatzi Shevet Menashe, one notices that chatzi Shevet Menashe received a larger portion than Gad and Reuven. The Netziv writes that Moshe Rabeinu encouraged chatzi Shevet Menashe to stay b’eiver hayarden. Why? Because Moshe understood that the koach of Torah b’eiver hayarden was weaker than in Eretz Yisrael itself, and Moshe wanted to plant, b’eiver hayarden, as many Gedolei Torah as possible to help light up spiritually the eiver hayarden. The Netziv quotes from Chazal that Shevet Menashe always had a large number of talmidei chachamim; therefore, in order to encourage them to stay b’eiver hayarden, Moshe offered them a portion that was disproportionate to the size of their shevet. The Netziv there writes that mistama (one can assume) Moshe did this ‘al pi Hashem’.
The Netziv concludes that we can learn from this a very important lesson for generations. A person should try to live in a makom Torah- a place with yeshivas and talmidei chachamim- because that is what the successful life of Am Yisrael depends on. This is exactly what Moshe Rabeinu was trying to teach future generations. Just like in his own time he tried to ensure that there would be strong Torah on the east side of the yarden as well, so too, all of us should try to ensure that we live in a makom Torah. This is the Netziv’s approach to the role of the chatzi Shevet Menashe in this week’s parsha, a very important lesson for all of us.
Good Shabbos,
B. Ginsburg