Parshat Pinchas opens with extolling the virtuous action taken by Pinchas at the conclusion of Parshat Balak.
In the previous Parsha, many members of Bnei Yisrael had succumbed to the seduction of the Midyanite women and subsequently enticed to worship the Midyanite god Ba’al Pe’or. Incensed by this betrayal, God instructs Moshe to initiate legal proceedings against the perpetrators in order to quell His anger. Yet, while Moshe is conveying to the assembled judges the judicial protocol for the capital punishment to be visited upon the violators, Zimri ben Salu, a prince of the tribe of Shimon, brazenly and defiantly consorts with Kazbi bat Tzur, a princess of Midyan. The exasperated leaders witnessing this abhorrent act are reduced to helplessly weeping. This seditious conduct and the inaction by the leadership only serves to further incite the raging plague that is sweeping through Bnei Yisrael. With unflinching resolve, Pinchas swiftly takes action and kills the two culprits in one fell swoop, invoking the principle that he had learnt from Moshe Rabbeinu, that one who consorts with an Aramean (heathen), religious zealots may attack him (בו פוגעין קנאין ארמית הבועל).
Pinchas’s alacrity in the face of inaction by the other leaders stems the tide of an intensifying insurrection and provides the much needed relief from the plague affecting the people. As a reward for his loyalty and zeal in avenging God’s honor, God awards Pinchas with His covenant of everlasting peace (וֹם לָשׁ י ת רְבּ) and priesthood (ם עוֹל ת נּ הְכּ ית רְבּ) as recompense for sparing Bnei Yisrael annihilation from God’s anger.
Through this endorsement of Pinchas’s behavior, the Torah seems to impart a clear message that God condones and rewards religious zealotry. Taken literally, this could suggest a dangerous precedent which would inevitably lead to an untenable situation whereby individuals could take extralegal action under the guise of defending God’s honor. It would inspire vigilantism in God’s name to right all the perceived wrongs and wreak havoc on society as the ends would always justify the means. In light of this danger, how is one to perceive the Torah’s apparent sponsorship of Pinchas’s conduct in this week’s Parsha?
One possible approach would be to view Pinchas as an exceptional individual whose unique righteousness afforded him special consideration and license when it came to religious matters and zealousness on behalf of God. If so, it would narrow the scope of this dispensation as this episode would be viewed as a rare exception rather than a general precedent, limiting its applicability. Though, it still would leave a dangerous and troubling opening for people who consider themselves similar to Pinchas to act extra-legally in the name of God. Alternatively, Pinchas’s conduct may represent a unique and singular moment in history not meant to be emulated or extrapolated. To gain a better perspective on how this event should be perceived, it is worthwhile to examine other instances where Pinchas appears in Tanach.
Pinchas in Sefer Yehoshua
There are two instances in Tanach where Pinchas appears as a leader in national incidents. The first of which is found in Sefer Yehoshua.
After the conquest and division on the Land of Israel, Yehoshua bids farewell to the tribes of Reuven, Gad and half of Menashe. He praises their faithful adherence to the pact they had entered into with Moshe Rabbeinu, upholding their commitment to join their brethren in the conquest of the Land of Israel before settling in their chosen inheritance on the eastern side of the Jordan River. Upon completion of their obligation, Yehoshua blesses them and releases them to return to their homes. However, on their journey home, these tribes stop by the Jordan River and construct a large and conspicuous altar. When word reaches Bnei Yisrael, a national crisis erupts. The people gather in Shilo to raise an army to attack those engaged in this traitorous endeavor of erecting an unauthorized center of worship. The leader of this assemblage is none other than Pinchas. A delegation, comprised of Pinchas and ten princes, one representative from each tribe, is dispatched to warn the people of Reuven, Gad and Menashe of the consequences of their actions. Without first investigating their motives, when they reach the Jordan River, Pinchas and his fellow emissaries immediately challenge the two and a half tribes and level harsh accusations against them. How could you be so callous to engage in this treachery against God and so brazenly betray God, erecting a foreign altar outside of Mishkan Shilo? Was it not enough the plague that was visited upon us when we worshipped Pe’or in a similar fashion? Today, you will abandon God and tomorrow he will bring his wrath upon the remainder of Bnei Yisrael. It is clear that they are invoking the memory of Ba’al Pe’or in order to indicate to Reuven, Gad and Menashe the severity of their infraction. Though, implicit in this rebuke is also a warning that just as the plague back then was halted through the zealous killing of the perpetrators, so too we are prepared to visit that same fate upon you. They launch into this diatribe before ever ascertaining the motives of the two and half tribes. Pinchas, true to his form, is leading a repeat performance of his zealous salvation of the nation found in this week’s Parsha. Only this time, in his rush to uphold God’s honor, he incorrectly assesses or misreads the situation. A disaster is narrowly avoided when the two and half tribes are given a moment to explain their intentions. Reuven, Gad and Menashe clarify that they were afraid that in future generations the people on the western bank of the Jordan River would see the natural boundary as a dividing line between those who were a part of God’s nation and those who were outsiders. The altar was not built for sacrificial worship or as an act of sedition to break away from God, but rather as a symbolic structure. It was to serve as a sign of national unity, a witness across generations, bridging between those on the eastern and western sides of the Jordan. Reassured, the delegation accepts their explanation and returns to Shilo to disband the gathered army, narrowly averting a civil war.
Pinchas in the Episode of Pilegesh B’Giva
The next time Pinchas appears in a national context is in the tragic episode of Pilegesh B’Giva.
The story is set in the territory of Binyamin and begins with a horrific incident in which low-lives from the Giva attack a visitor who is lodging overnight in their city.
Ironically, he had traveled further to reach the safety of the Jewish city in Binyamin rather than risk the danger of lodging in the Yevusi city of Yerushalayim. The local men surround the house where the visitor is staying and pound on the door, demanding that the host hand him over to them. Fearing for his life, in order to placate the gathered mob, the visitor sends his concubine out to them. They repeatedly rape her and she collapses on the doorstep of the house where the visitor is lodging. When the visitor awakens in the morning, he discovers his dead mistress. Shocked and enraged over what had transpired, he sends messages to the other tribes retelling the trauma he and his concubine had undergone at the hands of these people from Binyamin and he demands that they immediately address this debauchery. Disgusted by the immorality, the other tribes gather to demand that the tribe of Binyamin turn over the perpetrators of this heinous crime. The people of Binyamin refuse and a civil war ensues with innumerable casualties on both sides. In their rush to defend their honor and punish this immorality, the remainder of the nation nearly annihilates the entire tribe of Binyamin. To make matters worse, they also collectively vowed not to give their daughters in marriage to anyone from the tribe of Binyamin, threatening the tribe’s very survival. There is much soul searching throughout the disastrous civil war, but it is unfortunately misguided and too little too late. In the end, they regret their behavior prompting efforts to restore some semblance of the tribe of Binyamin. The only leader explicitly mentioned in the entire incident is Pinchas. Throughout the civil war, Bnei Yisrael repeatedly seek God’s counsel, with Pinchas acting as the conduit, through the Urim V’tumim. There is no attempt on his part to arrest the moral or religious fervor or defuse the crisis. While there is no direct implication of Pinchas, the circumstances of him once again presiding over extralegal action taken by the tribes against Binyamin is a tacit indictment of him. His complicity in the whole affair implies a certain responsibility for the disastrous outcome of the civil war.
In both these stories, Pinchas emerges as a central figure in the people’s zealous prosecution of perceived wrongdoing. He attempts to replicate the same methods that were so successful for him during the episode at Ba’al Pe’or, but the outcomes differ dramatically. In the first case, in Yehoshua, a potential civil war is narrowly avoided, while in the second instance, Pilegesh B’Giva, a civil war ensues, culminating in a tragic and an unmitigated disaster. It is interesting to note that Pinchas is associated with Sefer Shoftim, which is a book marked by moral, religious and societal anarchy ( ךְ לֶמ ין אֵהָה ים מָיּ בּ ה שֲׂע י יו ינ עְבּ ר שָׁיּ ה ישׁ אִ ל אֵאָרְשׂ יְבּ) whereas his father Elazar is identified with the Sefer Yehoshua, a book of order, unity and compliance.
Chazal’s Discomfort with Zealotry
Even though Pinchas was within the Halachik parameters when he killed Zimri and Kazbi ( הבועל בו פוגעין קנאין ארמית), both the Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi express discomfort with his actions. The Bavli does it in a more circumspect manner.
It first declares that if a zealot seeks legal counsel from a Halachik authority (לימלך הבא) as to the proper course of action to be taken if he comes across someone consorting with an Aramean (ארמית בועל), they should instruct this avenger of God to desist from any action (כן מורין אין). As Rashi notes, a true zealot is defined by passionate spontaneity, not someone who seeks official sanctioning of his behavior.
The Gemara then slowly and systematically closes the window on extrapolating this precedent by narrowing the scope of its chances for success. It first stipulates that the zealot’s intervention and attack on the perpetrators is only permitted if it is done when they are in the midst of the sinful act. Had Pinchas acted a moment later, once the sin had already been committed (פנחס והרגו זמרי פירש אם), he would have been subject to a death penalty for murdering a fellow Jew.
In addition, had Zimri turned to protect himself from Pinchas’s attack (לפנחס והרגו זמרי נהפך), it would have been classified as self-defense, and if he had killed Pinchas, it would have been deemed a justifiable homicide.
This incremental contraction of the applicability of the law invoked by Pinchas ( הבועל בו פוגעין קנאין ארמית) until it is nearly impossible to meet the necessary conditions for it to be relevant demonstrates Chazal’s deep unease with endorsing the precedent and the Oral Law’s clear limitation on its pertinence.
The Yerushalmi minces no words in expressing its disapproval of Pinchas’s zealotry. It states that the authorities of the time were displeased with the deadly action Pinchas had taken ( ברצון שלא חכמים) and they considered excommunicating him for what they considered to be aberrant behavior (לנדותו ביקשו).
It is evident that they feared that this could set a dangerous precedent. The Torah Temima explains that the Chachamim’s disapproval stemmed from a fundamental concern that a religious zealot must act completely altruistically when avenging God’s honor.
Such a threshold is extremely difficult for any person to meet since by nature human beings are mortal and fallible. They are almost always overtly or subconsciously influenced and driven by personal interest.
In this case, the stakes are even higher and the concern magnified since the zealot intends to take another person’s life through extralegal action. In the end, the leaders were stymied by God’s explicit endorsement of Pinchas. By awarding him His covenant, God effectively validated that Pinchas had acted in a completely selfless and righteous manner on behalf of God. The Gemara Yerushalmi is unequivocal that, absent God’s approval, religious zealotry would be shunned, condemned and punished rather than championed or celebrated.
Tosafot summarizes it best when he says that when a person engages in religious zealotry, he is so impassioned and self-righteous that he will inevitably take it too far.
Going back to the story of Pilegesh B’Giva, the Gemara teaches that the reason God punished the parties so harshly is because of their hypocrisy.
Simultaneous with the horrific story of Pilegesh B’Giva, a little further to the north in the mountains of Ephrayim, there was unfettered idol worship taking place ( פסל מיכה).
Chazal relate that, due to its proximity, the smoke that arose from the idol worship of Pesel Micha mingled with the smoke from the sacrifices of Mishkan Shilo. God is enraged by the zealousness of the tribes to protect their honor and punish the tribe of Binyamin in an extralegal fashion. Yet, they turned a blind eye to the blatant violation of God’s honor, completely ignoring the conspicuous idol worship taking place right under their noses. The Ramban adds that when it came to an infraction that offended their sensibilities, the tribes felt morally compelled to go beyond the letter of law to right the injustice perpetrated by the tribe of Binyamin, but they could not even bring themselves to administer the basic letter of law when it came to a heretical abrogation of a primary fundamental of our faith that aggrieved God.
The Torah’s Deeper Message
We are enjoined to emulate God in our constructive engagement with others – just as God is merciful, so too must we be merciful; just as He takes care of others so should we care for others.
We must strive to be Godly in the goodness we bestow on others, in the favorableness of the prism through which we view them and in the joy we experience in their successes. While complete and true altruism may elude us in our positive interactions, nevertheless, falling short in this realm still generally yields positive, virtuous outcomes. However, when it comes to avenging God’s honor, the stakes are drastically higher. In essence, to act on behalf of God through extralegal zealotry is in some sense to assume the role of God. Therefore, anything short of divine perfection, an impossible standard for human beings, is not just a slight deviation from a righteous act, but a profound failure. One slight misstep by Pinchas would have construed his behavior as murder rather than a commendable and unimpeachable act. It is an all-or-nothing proposition that has only one very rare successful outcome and therefore it almost always inevitably ends in failure.
Vigilantism, especially in the religious realm, leads to unnecessary overzealousness that causes the impassioned individual to become a sinner rather than a righteous defender or justice seeker. That’s why Chazal, with great wisdom, placed strict limitations on zealotry. The Oral Law foresaw the dangers of this behavior since those people who feel justified in taking extralegal action soon extrapolate that “permission” to be above the law in other areas. Their personal motives and goals cloud their judgment and soon there are no longer any laws or guidelines that bind their actions. The other stories about Pinchas in Tanach reinforce this lesson. Even for someone as great as Pinchas, whose bold and decisive action won accolades from God, this was a one-time non-extrapolable, non-replicable event. Therefore, Chazal wisely put their foot down and rightly advised that the ends do not justify the means. They remind us of the limits of the applicability of this singular historical event, at least with regards to destructive or extralegal pursuits. If one feels impassioned or zealous, whether personally or in the name of God, it needs to be manifest in positive and constructive action. Perhaps, that might be the Torah’s deeper message when God awards Pinchas his covenant of peace for his alacrity in defending God’s honor. It is an everlasting reminder that we need to channel those negative emotions towards a positive outcome.
Shabbat Shalom
לעילוי נשמת הנרצחים בארץ ישראל, לרפואה שלימה לפצועים, לשבוים לנעדרים, לגאולה קרובה, להצלחה ושמירה, ובשורות טובות וישועות ונחמות לכלל ישראל ובמיוחד לחיילי צה"ל העומדים על משמר ערי ארצנו ואלקינו.
