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Jewish World Review 3 Tamuz (2488)
The day the sun stood still
By Rabbi Yonason Goldson
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
When the Jewish people followed Joshua into the Land of Israel, 40 years
after their exodus from Egypt, their lives changed unimaginably. For an
entire generation, the manna that fell from the heavens every morning had
sustained them, the pillar of fire had guided them through the wilderness,
and the clouds of glory had protected them from every danger and enemy.
Upon entering the land, however, all of these miracles instantaneously
stopped. Indeed, it had been the Jews' fear of losing the open miracles
that testified to the Almighty's presence in their midst that led to the sin
of the spies, resulting G-d's decree that they wander in the desert for two
score years before He allowed them another chance to enter the land. The
transition from a life of divinity revealed through open miracles to a life
of divinity concealed by natural law proved too frightening for the
generation of the exodus to accept.
Only the next generation attained the level of trust where they willingly
gave up the daily revelation of open miracles. To soften the shock of
transition, G-d did not withdraw His presence all at once, but concealed
Himself gradually, thereby easing the Jews' passage into the new reality
that would guide their daily lives.
And so, as the Jewish people entered the land, the Jordan River split for
them, just as the Sea had split to save them from the pursuit of Pharaoh's
chariots. In their first battle against the inhabitants of the land, the
walls of Jericho sank into the earth, depriving the city's inhabitants of
their defenses and striking terror into their hearts. And finally, on the
third day of the month of Tammuz, less than three months after the Jews
crossed into the land, the sun and the moon stood still in their courses,
extending the battle of Givon so that Joshua's army could defeat the
alliance of five Amorite kings before nightfall.(1)
AN UNNECESSARY MIRACLE?
From a simple strategic point, the battle was not truly won until all the
retreating enemy forces had been captured or killed. To allow them to
escape and regroup would risk Jewish lives in another battle at the time and
place of their enemies' choosing. The lengthening of the day enabled the
Jews to pursue and overtake the Amorite soldiers without the increased
danger of having to chase them into the night.(2)
Furthermore, the Amorites attacked on a Friday. By extending the day, G-d
allowed the Jews to complete their military operation without violating the
laws of the Sabbath.(3) And although the need for personal and national
security would have superseded the restrictions of the Sabbath, G-d
demonstrated to the Jewish people that He rewards those who trust in Him and
observe His law by granting them success in all their efforts.
Perhaps most profoundly, the abrupt cessation of the celestial sphere
demonstrated the Almighty's dominion over every aspect of the natural world,
that ultimately He and He alone is responsible for our successes and our
victories.(4) This lesson was for the benefit of the inhabitants of Canaan,
to further break their spirit and convince them of the futility of
resistance. But even more so was it for the Jews themselves, demonstrating
further that the laws of nature, which would henceforth guide their
existence, are merely agents of the Almighty that perform His will.
If this were not enough, the fleeing Amorites found themselves besieged by
supernaturally large hailstones, which wreaked even greater casualties upon
them than the Jews had in battle. Like the fiery hail that inflicted not
only damage but also confusion and terror upon the Egyptians, so too did the
miraculous hail drive every last shred of defiance out of the hearts of the
Amorites. In the battle of Givon, the warring and fractious Amorite kings
had laid aside their petty differences and united against the threat of the
advancing Jews. The miracle of the sun stopping in its course convinced
them that the power of the Jewish G-d extended to the very workings of
nature itself.
Needless to say, it was not the sun that stopped circling the earth but the
earth that stopped in its course about the sun. Either way, the lesson is
the same. To the Jewish way of thinking, there are no coincidences, there
is no happenstance. Just as the earth performs G-d's bidding in its
rotation upon its axis and its revolution around the sun, similarly does
every aspect of creation perform in accordance with the Divine will. No
breeze blows, no flower blossoms, no insect creeps upon the face of the
earth in any way other than in accordance with G-d's master plan.
This is perhaps the most deeply mysterious facet of G-d's universe.
Everything is designed, guided, and orchestrated by the hand of the
Almighty, yet human free will is preserved.(5) The world in which man finds
himself is beyond his control, yet each of us remains master over his own
actions. Whether or not man succeeds in his machinations is not for man to
decide, and G-d measures success in control over oneself, not over the
world. To win a battle against one's enemies requires divine consent, but
the greatest battle is to conquer our human impulse, drives, and desires.
One who proves victorious in that battle is truly greater than the sun in
the sky or the stars in the heavens.
SOURCES: 1. Seder Olam Rabbah 11
In contrast to other miracles, however, the miracle at Givon appears to have
been unnecessary. The splitting of the Jordan gave the Jews renewed
confidence that, despite the withdrawal of the divine presence, G-d remained
in their midst; and the collapse of the walls of Jericho showed the Jews
that G-d would never allow their enemies to stand before them. But why did
the Jews require the miraculous lengthening of the day when the Amorites had
already scattered before Joshua and his army? 
2. Metzudas Dovid; Rav Don Yitzchok Abarbanel
3. Babylonian Talmud, Avodah Zara 25a
4. Rav Moshe Alshich
5. Pirkei Avos 3:19
