Parsha Ve'eschanan 5786 - Good Times and Bad Times

In this week’s parsha, the Torah warns us:

“You shall not test Hashem, your G-d, as you tested Him at Massah.” (Devarim 6:16)

What does it mean that the Jewish people “tested” Hashem at Massah?

Soon after the Exodus from Egypt and the splitting of the Red Sea, the Jewish people arrived at Refidim:

“They encamped in Refidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. The people contended with Moshe and they said, ‘Give us water that we may drink!’ Moshe said to them, ‘Why do you contend with me? Why do you test Hashem?’” (Shemos 17:1–2)

At first glance, the people's demand seems entirely reasonable. They were traveling through a desert, and there was no water available at their encampment. Providing water for millions of men, women, and children was literally a matter of life and death. Why was their request considered a test of Hashem?

The Netziv answers that the people were not yet actually thirsty. Although there was no water available at Refidim, they still had sufficient water remaining in their personal flasks. Their demand was therefore not motivated by an immediate danger to their lives. Rather, they wanted to test whether Hashem would perform a miracle and provide them with water in the desert. That is why Moshe named the location Massah U'Merivah—“Test and Contention”—to remind the Jewish people of what had occurred there (Shemos 17:7).

The Ramban explains that the deeper problem was that the people had made their faith conditional. If Hashem would continue to perform miracles for them, they would believe in Him and follow His commandments. But if the miracles stopped, they would begin to doubt Him.

This is the meaning of the prohibition against testing Hashem. Our relationship with Him cannot be conditional upon receiving the results we want.

We cannot treat our relationship with Hashem like a financial investment, remaining loyal only as long as we see the returns we expect. If our portfolio rises, we do not suddenly decide that Hashem exists; and if it falls, we do not “sell our investment” by abandoning our faith. The miracles of the Exodus and the revelation at Sinai established the truth of the Torah. Our faith cannot be dependent upon whether our personal lives always unfold in the way we desire.

The challenge of Massah is therefore not limited to the wilderness. It confronts every person who must continue believing and serving Hashem even when life does not unfold as expected.

It is human nature to have doubts and to question our faith when things go badly. Sadly, most people, especially if they live long enough, will experience sorrow, loss, and suffering. Yet these experiences should not, chas v'shalom, cause us to abandon our faith in Hashem. Our relationship with Him is deeper than our circumstances.

Hashem wants us to pray to Him and connect with Him both in times of blessing and in times of difficulty.

We have just commemorated Tisha B'Av, the day on which we mourn the destruction of the Batei HaMikdash and the many tragedies that have befallen the Jewish people throughout history. Yet Tisha B'Av does not leave us paralyzed by the tragedies of the past. We remember, mourn, and learn from those events so that we can improve ourselves and help create a better future.

Our generation has also witnessed a remarkable historical transformation. Today nearly half of the world's Jewish people live in the Land of Israel, making Israel home to the largest Jewish population in the world—an extraordinary transformation after nearly two thousand years of exile. At the same time, however, we continue to face antisemitism, war, and suffering.

These seemingly contradictory realities teach us an important lesson. We must never take Hashem's blessings for granted, but neither should suffering cause us to despair. We must recognize the blessings, confront the challenges, improve ourselves, strengthen our relationships with our fellow Jews, and deepen our connection with Hashem.

In that merit, may we soon witness the ultimate redemption of the Jewish people and the fulfillment of the words of the prophet:

“And Hashem shall be King over the entire earth; on that day Hashem shall be One and His Name One.” (Zechariah 14:9)