Parshas Shoftim 5785 - Preparing for Battle

When the Torah describes the laws of going out to war, it lists several exemptions for soldiers: One who has built a new house and not dedicated it, planted a new vineyard, or became engaged to be married. Yet, the Torah adds one unusual exemption:

And the officers shall speak further to the people, and they shall say, ‘What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest his brethren’s heart melt like his heart.’” (Devarim 20:8).

The Talmud (Sotah 44a) records two opinions on what the Torah means by “fearful and fainthearted”. Rabbi Akiva explains it literally, a soldier terrified by the sight of an enemy and his sword. However, Rabbi Yosi HaGelili understands that “fearful and fainthearted” refers to a soldier who fears he lacks Divine protection in battle because of his sins.

This raises a practical question. How would such an exemption be applied? Could a soldier simply declare, “I sinned,” and walk away from the battlefield? The Talmud Yerushalmi states that every exemption requires proof. The Ramban notes that just as soldiers must bring witnesses to confirm that they have built a new house, dedicated a vineyard or became engaged, similarly one claiming the “fearful” exemption would need proof of his sin. Otherwise, any soldier could falsely declare himself a sinner to escape the battle.

This seems puzzling. There appears nothing dishonorable about bringing witnesses to prove that one has built a new house or vineyard or is newly engaged. Everyone aspires to be able to build a new house or become engaged. But what about committing a sin? Proving publicly that one has committed a sin would be a very embarrassing and degrading process, especially if one needs to bring witnesses. Would anyone truly endure such embarrassment and humiliation in front of his fellow soldiers or a military tribunal?

It appears that the Torah assumes that the soldiers understand the tremendous gravity of committing a sin. A soldier who genuinely fears that his sins have stripped him of Divine protection will accept even the shame of public exposure if it means avoiding what he believes to be certain death in battle. In other words, his recognition of sin’s gravity outweighs his fear of humiliation.

We too are engaged in a lifelong battle with the yetzer hora. During most of the year, we do not often appreciate or focus on the severity of committing a sin against Hashem. But as Rosh Hashanah approaches, we are called to recognize our failings and find a way to do Teshuvah (repentance) and return to Hashem. The Rambam teaches that the first step in the process of Teshuvah is acknowledging one’s sin and to stop committing it. (Hilchos Teshuvah 2:2).

Like the soldiers, whose recognition of the severity of their sins propelled them to suffer the embarrassment of offering proof of their sins, similarly the more we appreciate the severity of what we have done wrong, the more readily we will engage in the teshuvah process.

Fortunately, Hashem’s approach to us during Elul is not one of harshness, but of love. The acronym of Elul אלול be found in the verse אני לדודי ודודי לי  (I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me). As Rabbi Osher Weiss points out, this verse comes from Shir HaShirim (6:3), a book of love between Hashem and the Jewish people, and not from the harsher books of the Prophets, where the prophets chastise the Jewish people for their sins. This emphasizes that Hashem invites us to do Teshuvah out of His great love for us, and not from fear.

We can take advantage of Hashem’s love for us during this month of Elul. Through serious introspection of our wrongdoings in the past year, both against Hashem and against other people, we should engage in Teshuva and self-improvement. In that merit we should all be worthy of a כתיבה וחתימה טובה, to be written and sealed for a good year.