“And Hashem spoke to Moshe saying: avenge the revenge of Bnei Yisroel against the Midyanites then you will ‘gather to your nation and die. (31:1-2) Hashem made it clear to Moshe that this would be the final commandment before his death. Yet Moshe, with unfaltering zealousness, immediately implemented it.
Moshe spoke to the militia, saying, “Let troops be picked out from among you for a campaign, and let them fall upon Midyan to wreak Hashem’s vengeance on Midyan”.
We note here in the verse an interesting difficulty: Hashem commanded Moshe to avenge the revenge of Klal Yisrael. Yet Moshe changed the command to avenging the revenge of Hashem!
The answer may be based on the Gemara berachos 6a which cites: Rabbi Avin bar Rav Adda said: where is it derived that the Holy One, Blessed be He, wears Tefilin? As it is stated: “The Lord has sworn by His right hand, and by the arm of His strength” (Yeshaya 62:8). Since it is customary to swear upon holy objects, it is understood that His right hand and the arm of His strength are the Tefilin upon which G-d swore.
Asks the Gemara: What is written in the Tefilin of Hashem? Rav Chiya bar Avin replied: It is written: “Who is like Your people, Yisrael, one nation in the land?” (I Divrei Hayamim 17:21). Hashem’s Tefilin connect Him to the essence of which is Klal Yisrael. Asks the Gemara: Is the Holy One, Blessed be He, glorified through the glory of Israel? Answers the Gemara: Yes, as indicated by the juxtaposition of two verses; as it is stated: “You have affirmed, this day, that the Lord is your G-d, and that you will walk in His ways and keep His laws and commandments, and listen to His voice.” And the subsequent verse states: “ And Hashem has affirmed, this day, that you are His treasure, as He spoke to you, to keep His commandments” (Devarim 26:17–18). From these two verses it is derived that the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Israel: You have made Me a single entity in the world, as you singled Me out as separate and unique. And because of this, I will make you a single entity in the world, and you will be a treasured nation, chosen by G-d.
According to this, we can note a difference in the commandments. The first Posuk which discusses: avenge the revenge of Bnei Yisroel, Hashem was speaking to Moshe, and in His admiration for Klal Yisrael, says to Moshe to revenge Midyan, in honor of His beloved children. Yet, when the command was to honor Hashem’s vengeance on Midyan, here Moshe was commanding Klal Yisrael that they should avenge the honor of Hashem that the love. Hence no contradiction in the Pesukim. Hashem also has in his Tefilin: “Happy are you, Yisrael, who is like you? (Yehuda Z. Klitnick)
