In this week’s parsha, Moshe is told to prepare himself for death: “Go up to the mountain of Avarim and see the land that I have given to the Children of Yisrael. You shall see it and you shall be brought to your people...” (Bamidbar 27:12-13)
Hearing this news, Moshe realized that the time had come to pick a successor. He asked Hashem: יפקד ה' אלקי הרוחות לכל בשר איש על העדה - “May, Hashem, G-d of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the assembly...” (Bamidbar 27:16)
R’ Frand relates the following: I have a friend in the rabbinate in the NY area. His name is Rabbi Yaakov Luban. Before he entered the rabbinate, he went to the Spinka Rebbe and asked for advice upon entering the rabbinate. Rabbi Luban asked, “What is the most important thing a Rav should know?”
The Spinka Rebbe took out a Chumash and read him this parsha: “May, Hashem G-d of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the assembly...” Rashi notes that this pasuk uses a peculiar expression found virtually nowhere else in Torah. Where else do we ever find Hashem referred to as “G-d of the spirits of all flesh”? What is the connotation of this expression?
Rashi explains: Moshe said before Him, “Master of the World! The personality of each individual is revealed before You; they do not resemble one another. Appoint a leader...
