וא לֵאמֹר וכו' אֶעְבְּרָ ה נָא
הַוָאֶתְחַנַן אֶל ה' בָּעֵת הַיַרְ דֵ ן וכו'
ֶר בְּעֵבֶר הׁבָה אֲשֹטוַאָרֶ ץ הָוְאֶרְ אֶה אֶת ה (דברים ג, כג-כה)
I implored Hashem at that time, saying... “Let me now cross and see the good Land that is on the other side of the Yarden...”
The Midrash (ילקו"ש אות תתי"ב) addresses the reason for Moshe’s profuse desire to enter the Land as follows.
ואתחנן אל ה'. למה, כדי שיכנס לארץ. – ‘I implored Hashem’. Why did Moshe implore Hashem? In order to be allowed to enter Eretz Yisroel.
This Midrash is puzzling. The Passuk explicitly goes on to say that Moshe implored Hashem to enter the Land, I implored Hashem at that time, saying... “Let me now cross and see the good Land that is on the other side of the Yarden...’, so we need to understand what message the Midrash is trying to convey.
The Gemara in Sotah (יד ע"א) discusses why Moshe yearned to enter the Land of Eretz Yisroel.
דרש רבי שמלאי, מפני מה נתאוה משה רבינו ליכנס לא''י, וכי לאכול מפריה הוא צריך או לשבוע מטובה הוא צריך. אלא כך אמר משה, הרבה מצות נצטוו ישראל ואין מתקיימין אלא בא''י, אכנס אני לארץ כדי שיתקיימו כולן על ידי. אמר לו הקב''ה, כלום אתה מבקש אלא לקבל שכר, מעלה אני עליך כאילו עשיתם.
- R' Simlai expounded: Why did Moshe desire to enter Eretz Yisroel? Did he need to eat its fruit, or did he need to satiate himself with its bounty? Certainly not! Rather this is what Moshe said to himself, “There are many Mitzvos that the Jewish People have been commanded that cannot be fulfilled except in Eretz Yisroel. I will enter the Land so that I can fulfill all those Mitzvos”. Hashem said to him, “Is it that you seek to gain reward for those Mitzvos? Although you won’t enter Eretz Yisroel and thus won’t be able to fulfill those commandments, nevertheless I will reckon it for you as if you had performed all those Mitzvos”.
This is hard to understand; how can it be that Moshe Rabainu, who was on the most elevated spiritual level, would serve Hashem only for the sake of receiving award? Is it not wrong even for the simplest Jew to serve Hashem solely for the sake of reward?
The Megaleh Amukos therefore gives an alternative explanation as to why indeed Moshe longed to go to Eretz Yisroel. His words are based on the Gemara in Arachin (לב ע"ב) that says as follows. It is written in regard to those Jews who returned with Ezra from the Babylonian exile, ‘The entire congregation that had returned from the captivity made Sukkahs and dwelt in the Sukkahs; for the Jewish People had not done so since the days of Yoshua bin Nun... and there was great joy’. This Passuk seems to mean that the people had not observed the Mitzvah of Sukkah from the days of Yehoshua bin Nun until the days of Ezra. Now, can it be that when King David came, they did not make a Sukkah?! [i.e. Obviously not, therefore the latter part of the Passuk cannot be referring back to the Mitzvah of Sukkah]. Rather, Ezra prayed and abolished the Evil Inclination for idolatry, and his merit protected the people like a Sukkah. It is understandable that Moshe did not pray to have the Evil Inclination for idolatry abolished because he did not have the merit of Eretz Yisroel; but Yehoshua, who did have the merit of Eretz Yisroel, why did he not pray for this?!
Hence, the Sukkah that the Passuk mentions is not a reference to the Mitzvah of Sukkah, but rather an allusion to the Sukkah-like protection that Ezra provided to the Jewish People by abolishing the Evil Inclination for idolatry. Thus, when the Passuk says, ‘In the time of Ezra the entire congregation made and dwelt in the Sukkahs; for the Jewish People had not done so since the days of Yehoshua bin Nun’, it is a reference to the fact that Ezra prayed and abolished the Evil Inclination of idolatry, whereas Yehoshua did not pray for that abolishment.
Accordingly, the Megaleh Amukos explains that the reason why Moshe yearned to enter the Land of Eretz Yisroel, was so that he should have the merit of Eretz Yisroel in order to be able to abolish the Evil Inclination of idolatry.
In view of this we can understand the puzzling words of the Midrash – ‘I implored Hashem’. Why did Moshe implore Hashem? In order to be allowed to enter Eretz Yisroel.
We can explain that the Midrash is alluding to the very idea presented by the Megaleh Amukos. Moshe Rabbeinu indeed had no desire to dwell in Eretz Yisroel, for he only served Hashem as a loyal servant, and therefore if Hashem did not wish for him to enter the Land, Moshe was happy to accept His Holy will. All Moshe yearned for was to enter Eretz Yisroel for a few brief moments so that he may be able to abolish the Evil Inclination through the merit of Eretz Yisroel. This is the idea that the Midrash is conveying. Why did Moshe implore Hashem? In order to be allowed to enter Eretz Yisroel. All he wanted was to enter the Land; but he had no desire to settle there for any reason, being that Hashem did not want that of him.
(זרע שמשון פרשת ואתחנן אות ג)
