Shabbos Parashas Ki Sisa - 5774
Shabbos Parashas Ki Sisa - 5774
Rabbi Hal Miller
But if not, erase me now from Your book that You have written. [Shemos 32:32]
What is this book that G-d has written? The most common answer people think of
is what the Rashbam tells us, "The Book of Life which You have written." This
is what we pray about during the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services. But is
this what Moshe meant? There are other opinions.
Rashi says Moshe meant "from the entire Torah". We know from other sources
that when a righteous person makes a statement, the world reacts. In other
words, Moshe said "erase me" so something had to get erased. In Parshas
Tetzaveh [Shemos 27:20 - 30:10], all references to Moshe are with the word
"you", none are by name. This was the only point in the four books (after
Bereishis) in which 'Moshe' does not appear, even though he was present at
the events.
Ramban disagrees. He notes that in [32:33] it is written, "Whoever has sinned
against Me, I shall erase him from My book." Many people who sinned are still
named in the Torah, thus that cannot be the 'book' referred to here. Ramban
concurs with the "book of life" definition, as does Abarbanel.
In the opinion of Ibn Ezra, the book is the "constellations of the heavens
upon which all the decress affecting lowly creatures depend."
We see 'book' in many other places. Pirkei Avos [2:1] says "all your deeds
are written in a book". In Malachi [3:16], "Then those who fear G-d speak
together, one to the other, and it is recorded in the Book of Remembrance
before Him, for those who fear Him and think of His name."
Sforno sees the book as an accounting, presumably stemming from the pasuk
in Pirkei Avos. He says, "Regardless if You will forgive their sins or not
forgive them, wipe out any merits I have accumulated in Your Book and
transfer them to the credit balance of this people." Some interpret this as
an effort by Moshe to save the people who would have otherwise been destroyed
but others think that it means Moshe, in his humbleness, wanted to grant any
good he had to his people, even if they were already considered righteous.
In Daniel [12:1] we find, "and at that time your people will escape--all who
are found written in the book." Rav Dessler asks our question directly:
"What is this book? And what are the books referred to in our literature?"
He cites the Gemara in Rosh Hashanah [16b], "the books of the living and
the books of the dead are opened", and further from the Machzor, "the
signature of every person is in it and it reads itself." He asks some very
obvious questions: "What are they made of? What kind of writing material is
used? And how can a book read itself?" Rav Dessler brings a wonderful answer
in the name of Rabbi Yosef Yaavetz, "The book G-d writes in is the human
soul, in which all deeds and all thoughts are recorded."
Rav Dessler ties in the reference in Malachi to the Book of Remembrance.
"This refers to people who discuss together the problems of maintaining a
G-d-fearing attitude in an environment which denies the value of serving G-d
and keeping His mitzvot. The Book of Remembrance is the record of spiritual
work carried out by souls who are united in words of reverence and faith.
This is is explained by the gemara in Berachot [6a]: 'Whenever we find two
people sitting together and discussing Torah the Shechina rests between them.'
Since they are discussing this together, the words are more deeply engraved on
their imagination. This confirms what we have cited above, that whatever is
engraved on the imagination is recorded on one's soul. This is the Book of
Remembrance."
If the book that G-d is writing in is actually us, then it falls to us to
ensure the quality of the pages upon which He will write, and to ensure that
He has good things to say there! If it were just a history, then who would
read it? It must be a combination of things: history, accounting, and even
partly a list of what we need still to do to complete our role in this world.
It is we who must read it, not just on Yom Kippur, but all year.