Adapted from a shiur given by the Tolner Rebbe shlita, Chukas 5777
לע"נ האשה החשובה מרת אסתר בת הרה"ח ר' זאב ע"ה נלב"ע י"ד סיון תשפ"ה נתרם ע"י בנה ידידינו הנגיד הנכבד רבי זאב מאשקאוויטש שליט"א
Text:
(ה) וַיְדַבֵּר הָעָם בֵּאלֹהִים וּבְמשֶׁה לָמָה הֶׁעֱלִיתֻנוּ מִמִצְרַיִם לָמוּת בַמִדְ בָר כִי אֵּין לֶׁחֶׁם וְאֵּין מַיִם וְ נַפְשֵּנוּ קָצָה בַלֶׁחֶׁם הַקְלֹקֵּל. וַיְשַלַח ה' בָעָם אֵּת הַנְ חָשִים הַ שְ רָפִים וַיְנַשְכוּ אֶׁת הָעָם וַיָמָת עַם רָב מִיִשְרָאֵּל...
אֹתוֹ וָחָי האֶׁל משֶׁה עֲשֵּה לְךָ שָרָף וְשִים אֹתוֹ עַל נֵּס וְהָיָה כָל הַנָשוּךְ וְרָאָ 'הוַיֹאמֶׁר -- The people spoke against God and Mosheh: “Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this wilderness? For there is no food and there is no water, and our soul is at its limit with the insubstantial food. God sent the snakes, the burning ones, against the people and they bit the people and a large multitude of Israel died ... Hashem said to Mosheh, “Make yourself a burning one and place it on a pole, and it will be that anyone who has been bitten will look at it and live.
Rashi comments: Against God and Mosheh – They equated a slave with his owner. With the insubstantial food – Since the Mahn was absorbed inside the parts of the body, they called it “insubstantial.” They said, “This Mahn is destined to blow up in our innards! Can there be one born of woman who ingests but does not excrete?” In the next possuk, Rashi comments: And they bit the people – Let the snake, who was stricken over bringing forth evil talk, come and take his due from those who bring forth evil talk. Let the snake, to whom all varieties taste alike, come and take his due from ingrates, for whom a single thing transforms itself to many flavors. In the final possuk of our selection, Rashi comments: Anyone who was bitten – Even if a dog or a donkey would bite him, he would suffer harm and gradually deteriorate, but the bite of the snake would cause death quickly.
After Thirty-Eight Years They Worry the Mahn Will Blow Up?
At this point they had been eating the Mahn for some thirty-eight years, and they were fine. After all those years, why did they all of a sudden wake up and say that the Mahn was destined to blow up in their innards?
Q1
Also, we know that they were able to taste the most exquisite tastes in the Mahn – any food that they wanted. Yet they said that it was insubstantial. Does that make sense?
Q2
Why Were They Punished Here for Their Improper Speech?
The implication from Rashi on the first possuk is that their main infraction was that “they equated a slave with his owner.” So what connection is there between the punishment of snakes – which came because of bringing forth evil speech – and equating a slave with its owner?
Q3
