Devarim: Doing the Impossible

Devarim: Doing the Impossible

The parsha begins and ends with the conquest of Sichon and Og.  These were powerful kings that seemed insurmountable.  When all the other surrounding territory had been vanquished by the Edomites and Amonites and Moabites, these dynasties remained.  They were too strong to take on; winning a battle against  them was impossible. 

The parsha transitions from the decline of the Hebrews who were liberated from the most advanced society in the world  = Egypt;  to the ascent of the tribes of Israel who defeat the most powerful kings in the world. The descent comes from the perception of the enormity of the task.  Moshe  says, as the journey to the Promised Land begins:  לֹא־אוּכַ֥ל לְבַדִּ֖י שְׂאֵ֥ת אֶתְכֶֽם, I cannot bear the burden of you by myself .  Here, in the beginning of Dvarim he  is quoting what he said in  Bamidbar in  reaction to the people's request for meat in the wilderness.  Moshe, in Behothechah, said that is an impossible request. 

 וַיֹּאמֶר֮ מֹשֶׁה֒ שֵׁשׁ־מֵא֥וֹת אֶ֙לֶף֙ רַגְלִ֔י הָעָ֕ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אָנֹכִ֖י בְּקִרְבּ֑וֹ וְאַתָּ֣ה אָמַ֗רְתָּ בָּשָׂר֙ אֶתֵּ֣ן לָהֶ֔ם וְאָכְל֖וּ חֹ֥דֶשׁ יָמִֽים׃

But Moses said, “The people who are with me number six hundred thousand men; yet You say, ‘I will give them enough meat to eat for a whole month.’

הֲצֹ֧אן וּבָקָ֛ר יִשָּׁחֵ֥ט לָהֶ֖ם וּמָצָ֣א לָהֶ֑ם אִ֣ם אֶֽת־כָּל־דְּגֵ֥י הַיָּ֛ם יֵאָסֵ֥ף לָהֶ֖ם וּמָצָ֥א לָהֶֽם׃ (פ)

Could enough flocks and herds be slaughtered to suffice them? Or could all the fish of the sea be gathered for them to suffice them?”

The resources do not suffice for the task.  It is impossible!  But we know that  the quail come and, through a combination of volume and the health consequences of eating this toxic meat, the request is fulfilled. 

Despite witnessing all of these miracles  in Egypt and the desert, the scouts [part of Moshe's experiment with democracy], who return with a report on the Holy Land, convince the people that  conquest of that territory is beyond their capability.  This is an error in perception.  The people's capability has never been the force that makes things happen.  They did not bring the plagues or split the sea. The relationship between human effort and outcomes is not direct. There is an attribution matrix, an array of inputs that generate an array of outputs through their interactions. The outcome is ordained, the human effort is only a necessary component.  Yet all things are possible ( because all things are ordained, the world is ergodic) .  The dance between human will, effort , the unknown and the unknowable generates an infinity. [Mathemeticians before the 17th century consider infinity impossible]

I do the impossible every day. I bicycle up hills that are too steep for me.  I see patients who were not expected to live so long, people who have families despite sterilizing chemotherapy.  My existence stems from the impossible survival of my parents through the holocaust. I measure my life by the miracles. 

The parsha closes after the conquest of  Sichon and Og.   Sichon of Cheshbon. Sefaria renders the translation of cheshbon:  חֶשְׁבּוֹן account, reasoning, reckoning.  Sichon made a reckoning with the world; perhaps he collected tribute from all. Og of  בְּעַשְׁתָּרֹ֖ת בְּאֶדְרֶֽעִי,  : Ashtoreth = "star"  -  who reached the stars   (star wars) The  battle  was so daunting it took 38  years to build the courage to do it.  But it was done. 

Napoleon said: “Impossible est un mot que l’on peut seulement trouver dans le dictionnaire des imbéciles.”

“Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools.” . 

Eliminating the impossible  opens opportunities - sometimes too many.