This week's parsha begins: “Hashem spoke to Moshe after the death of Aharon's two sons, when they approached before Hashem, and they died” (Vayikra 16:1). In Aharon's merit for accepting the decree without question, G-d introduces the service in the Mishkan on Yom Kippur. “בזאת יבא אהרן” – “With this shall Aharon enter [the holy of holies]” (ibid. 3).
Among the intricate and lengthy details of the Yom Kippur service that the Kohen Gadol must perform, there is a compelling and mysterious aspect: the שעיר המשתלח. The Kohen would set aside two he-goats, one on his left side and the other on his right. The Kohen would then stick both hands into a box and draw lots, one in each hand. On one lot was written “לה׳”. It would be attached to one of the goats (the goat on the same side as the hand that drew this lot), and the goat would be brought as a קרבן חטאת. The other lot read ״לעזאזל״ and was put on the other goat, which would be brought outside the city and pushed off a high cliff.
What is the significance of these lots? Seemingly it would be enough to set aside each one for a purpose, as with any other korban, i.e. one would be designated as a חטאת, and the other goat would be, by default, sent to Azazel. What is the purpose of labeling each goat separately, and specifically through the process of a lottery?
There is a fascinating Gemara in Sanhedrin (43b). After the miraculous destruction of Jericho, G-d placed a complete חרם (ban) on the spoils of war. In the next attempt at conquest, Yehoshua and the nation wage war against the people of Ai, but are soundly beat back, losing thirty-six men in the battle. Yehoshua is at a complete loss to why this tragedy befell the Nation. G-d comes to Yehoshua and tells him that someone in the camp has broken the חרם. Yehoshua asks G-d: “Who is it?” G-d responds “וכי דילטור אני (Am I a gossiper)?! Go, and make a גורל (a lottery).” Yehoshua draw the lot, and it falls on Achan. Confronted with the results, Achan responds: “How can you find me guilty through lots? If I were to put you [Yehoshua] and Elazar Hakohen, two of the greatest of the generation, surely the lots would fall upon one of you as well!” Deeply bothered by this, Yehoshua responds: “Do not cast aspersions upon the lots, through which the land of Israel is destined to be apportioned!” Achan finally relents and admits his sin.
What was Achan’s argument here? And what upset Yehoshua so much?
Achan’s defense was this: “If I were to put you [Yehoshua] and Elazar Hakohen surely it would fall on one of you.” The Maharsha (ibid.) explains that Achan was claiming that there is no Providential authority to the lots; rather they are subject to “chance” – a מקרה בעלמא – just a random statistical occurrence! For even if he were to put two of the most saintly people, leaders of the generation, one of them would be found “guilty”. If they were the only options, then of course, statistically it would have to fall on at least one of them. According to Achan’s reasoning, surely the lots are not a proof that he committed any wrongdoing.
Achan was attacking a basic premise in Judaism: G-d’s intimate and personal relationship with the Jewish people. Our nation exists on a wholly different plane than the rest of the of world. אין מזל לישראל, the Gemara says (Shabbat 156b). We are not governed by “chance” or statistics, rather we are tended with love, guided and cared for directly by the One Above. (While the nature of השגחה פרטית is subject to dispute, this is only regarding the individual, but in reference to the Nation as a whole there is almost a unanimous agreement among the Mefarshim that G-d is personally involved in the collective fate of the Jewish People*.) To claim or suggest that something is just by chance or happenstance, removes the unique connection that G-d has bestowed upon the Jewish people, having set us aside from among the nations of the world. Yehoshua was deeply angered at this wanton disrespect for the lottery; he understood that nothing is by chance, and nothing that happens in this world is without G-d’s personal knowledge and direction.
This is why lots are so integral to the service of Yom Kippur. They stand as symbols to the Jewish people that they are in the Hands of G-d, just as our fate and forgiveness on this holy day is decided by G-d alone. Not by chance or statistics, but rather a clear and guiding Master, and unto Him do we pray for our personal and national salvation. These lots would serve as the reminder that we are not cast into this world without Divine direction or care, and that no matter what the statistics say, there is always a chance that Hashem will do differently.
I once heard a remarkable story: A father of three was unfortunately stricken with a rare disease, an illness that carried with it a low percentage of survival. The family, obviously devastated to receive such news, met with their doctor to discuss a plan of action. The doctor, a non-Jew, led the family through what felt like a dizzying maze of options of experimental medications, risky surgeries and consultations with other doctors–experts in the field. Just as the family was about to leave, the doctor stopped the family: “One last thing I must tell you...you are Orthodox Jews, and you have a very powerful tool; you have prayer. I can't tell you how many times I've seen Jews beat the odds. It's like you people are not subject to percentages! Being an atheist, as hard as it is to admit, I've seen it too many times to ignore. Please don't forget to pray.” The family, strengthened with this “medical advice,” stormed the Heavens with their prayers. Baruch Hashem, their father went on to live for many years in full health, “beating the odds.”
This doctor had a front-row seat to this special nature of Klal Yisrael. No force or כח (power) other than G-d Himself controls our fate, and surely not statistics – a complete absence of power. This is a message we can learn from the גורלות of the Yom Kippur service, which we can carry through all year long.
Shabbat Shalom
*Regarding Achan's guilt, proven by the lotteries: why is this not considered purely a personal השגחה פרטית question, which is subject to dispute as previously mentioned. The answer to this is as follows: the lots were cast in order to discern the reason for why Klal Yisrael lost to Ai, which is ultimately a collective issue. The entire context and purpose of this story in the Gemara in Sanhedrin is that the punishment for Achan’s sin was a carrying-out of collective punishment after crossing the Jordan, the time at which Klal Yisrael became subject to “כל ישראל ערבים זה בזה” – collective responsibility.
