The Torah reading of Devarim is always read on the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av, and it contains many allusions to the themes of Tisha B'Av. One of them is Moshe's rebuke to the Jewish people, in which he recalls the sin of the spies. The night on which the Israelites wept in response to the spies' report was Tisha B'Av, and because of that, it became a day of weeping for generations.
When Moshe recalls this sin, he says: "You murmured in your tents and said, 'because the L-rd hates us, He took us out of the land of Egypt ...'" (Devarim 1:27) In other words, the Israelites claimed that G-d hated them. As a result of this accusation of hatred, we must recite on that night the Book of Lamentations (Eichah), which opens with the words: "O how has the city remained lonely..." In the transliteration of the Hebrew the verse reads: Eichah yashvah vadad ha'ir. The first letters of each word spell the Hebrew word eyvah, meaning "hatred".
Hidden Complaints
Here Moshe reveals something that does not appear in the original account of the sin of the spies in the Book of Bamidbar. There, it is related that the people wept by their families and complained that the L-rd is bringing us to this land to fall by the sword—a complaint rooted in a lack of faith in G-d's ability.
Here, however, Moshe adds another dimension: the Israelites claimed that G-d hated them. He also says, "you murmured in your tents." In other words, beyond the open complaints recorded in Bamidbar, the Israelites gathered privately in their tents and spoke resentfully about G-d.
Rashi, quoting the Midrash, explains what they were saying: they complained that G-d had taken them out of Egypt—a land watered by the Nile River—and was bringing them instead to the Land of Israel, which depends on rainfall.
Baseless Claims
Both accusations—that G-d hated Israel and that Egypt was superior to the Land of Israel—were, of course, completely false.
It was obvious that G-d loved the Jewish people, as demonstrated by the great miracles He performed for them in Egypt, at the Sea of Reeds, and throughout their journey in the wilderness.
Likewise, the blessing of rainfall is far greater than the blessing of the Nile. The Nile's waters must be channeled into the fields, and if the field is higher than the river, the water has to be lifted manually. By contrast, G-d says that the Land of Israel is "not like the land of Egypt... which you watered by foot... But the land, to which you pass to possess, is a land of mountains and valleys and absorbs water from the rains of heaven." Clearly, rain is a greater blessing than water drawn from a river.
G-d's Love
This explains why these accusations are not mentioned in the Book of Bamidbar. Such false claims could not have been voiced openly. Hence, in Devarim, Moshe reveals what was said privately—"you murmured in your tents"—where the Israelites spoke negatively about both G-d and the Land of Israel.
The truth, however, is that G-d loves the Jewish people even when they complain and murmur against Him. As Rashi emphasizes, "He loves you." (Devarim 1:27)
This message of G-d's enduring love is highlighted specifically on the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av, to strengthen and comfort the Jewish people during these days and to inspire hope for the true and complete Redemption.
(the Rebbe, Likkutei Sichot, Vol. 34)
