Towards the end of Parshas Chukas, Am Yisroel complains again against Hashem and against Moshe. “Lamah h’elisanu m’Mitzrayim- why did you bring us out of Mitzyraim, to die in the Midbar?” They continue, “we have no food and no water.” And then the Torah writes (Bamidbar 21,6) “Vayeshalach Hashem ba’am es hanichashim hanisraphim, vayinashchu es ha’am- and Hashem sent the poisonous snakes against the nation, and they bit the people (and they died).”

It is striking that the Hebrew word used is not Vayishlach, the simple (kal) form, but rather Vayeshalach, in the pe’al form. What exactly is the difference and what is the significance of this difference? Rav Hirsch explains that Vayishlach in the ordinary kal form means “to send or to put something into motion towards a goal,” like when you throw a ball towards a goal.  Vayeshalach in the pe’al form Rav Hirsch writes, “commonly has the meaning of letting go, to leave it to its natural way and not to hold it back.” For example, after the mabul when Noach sent the yonah and the oraiv, the Torah writes Vayeshalach, meaning he opened his hands and sent the birds. He did not throw the birds; rather he released the bird to let them fly on their own.

Rav Hirsch explains how this language applies here as well. Hashem did not, in a sense, ‘send’ the serpents; rather He allowed them go on their own. In other words, these snakes are always in the wilderness, the desert is a dangerous place. Until now the snakes “had been kept back” by Hashem’s careful protecting power. However, at this point, Hashem withdraws this protecting power and allowed the snakes to follow their ‘natural traits to which the people succumbed.’[i]

This is a very deep idea. Hashem is saying that He is going to remove His special hashgacha, and then the snakes will attack. Thus, the punishment of the poisonous snakes is midah kineged midah. Bnei Yisroel complained about Hashem’s hashgacha, “why did You take us here? Where are we going to get food and water?” Hashem had been protecting and providing for them all along. Yet they complained about Hashem’s hashgacha. So, midah kineged midah, Hashem says, in a sense, ‘Let Me show you what will happen if I remove My special hashgacha.’ Rav Hirsch points out that Chazal refer to Am Yisroel as kafuy tovah, as ingrates. Therefore, they lost the special hashgacha.

This is major yesod. We have to constantly recognize Hashem’s hashgacha in our lives and constantly thank Hashem for what He does for us. Even when a person (rachmana litzlan) has difficulties, he has to remember to thank Hashem for all the good and to daven that Hashem will further help him in the area of difficulty. We have to avoid being kafuy tovah. This is one of the lessons from the episode of the poisonous snakes in the midbar.

[i] Often, when things run ‘normally’, people forget to focus on Hashem. All of nature is one Nes Nistar, a hidden miracle, from Hashem. We have to consistently thank Hashem for the world functioning ‘normally.’