This week the Torah resumes the narrative after Pinchas’ take down of the rebellion against Moshe.
Implementing the suggestion of Bilaam, the Midianites seduced Jewish men into worshipping Pe’or and a plague broke out killing 24,000 Jews.
Meanwhile the Prince of the Tribe of Shimon brought a Midianite woman (who happened to be a Princess) before Moshe and had his way with her, challenging Moshe’s authority.
Pinchas executed both the Prince and the woman, freezing the rebellion and the plague in their tracks.
G-d now commands Moshe (31:2) to raise an army to inflict payback on the Midianites.
But why were the Midianites singled out for punishment when it was Moav who involved Bilaam in the first place? Surely Moav needed a lesson?
Rashi explains that the Moavites became involved because they were terrified of the advancing Israelites who had taken out the giants Sichon and Og and absorbed their kingdoms. Sichon and Og were paid to defend Moav from invaders like the Israelites. So it was understandable that Moav would be afraid.
But the Midianites were enraged over a dispute which was not theirs. They were not on the radar and yet staged an attack that compromised the sanctity of the Jewish people leading to thousands of deaths.
The parallels to the contemporary world are hard to ignore.
The Jewish state, far from threatening others, contributes massively to world society. Its people wish to live quietly. The Government tries every which way to find a way to a peaceful coexistence. They even dismiss warning signs of an impending mass terror attack because they simply wish that such plans would not be true.
And yet countries near and far attack physically, economically and culturally at any opportunity while having the chutzpah is claim that as instigators who almost always fail, they are the victims.
Unfortunately, just like at the time of Moshe, there is only one solution.
