You Can’t Begin a War Without Bringing a Korban

How did Hashem choose those who would go out to war?

How did Eliyahu HaNavi speak in defense of Am Yisrael?

What must happen before going out to war?

These are his holy words:

“And Hashem said to Gideon: The people are still too many” (Shoftim, chapter 7). There are simply too many people here. Today (at the time this lesson was delivered) there are in Gaza about 100,000 soldiers.

“Now, please proclaim in the ears of the people, saying…”—that they should go home (anyone who is fearful and trembling of the war). Let each one go home: “Whoever is afraid and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilad.” So 22,000 went home: “And there returned from the people twenty-two thousand.” Ten thousand remained out of the thirty-two thousand that there were.

“And Hashem said to Gideon: The people are still too many. Bring them down to the water and I will refine them for you there. And it shall be: the one of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you’—he shall go with you; and everyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you’—he shall not go” (Shoftim 7:4). “And Hashem said to Gideon: The people are still too many”—it’s too many for Me; you didn’t need so many people for the war.

I will tell you who will go out to war: “And everyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you’—he shall not go.” So he brought the people down to the water—to Nachal Charod, that famous stream, Nachal Charod. And there at Nachal Charod, a small group drank from their hand: they put their hand into the water and brought up a little, bringing it to their mouth with humility, with lowliness—without craving and indulgence.

The rest put their head into the water—they wanted to plunge into the water with their clothes on. So he said: whoever puts his head into the water should stand to one side; whoever laps the water from the palm of his hand should stand on the other side. There were 300 who lapped, and 9,700 who put their head into the water.

“And I will leave in Israel seven thousand—all the knees that did not bow to the Baal” (Melachim I 19:18). These are the 7,000 that Eliyahu HaNavi succeeded in bringing back in teshuvah. He brought everyone to Har HaCarmel and began to hide beneath the altar, because previously they had names of impurity, sorcery—on that day all the sorcery became confused and collapsed.

“And they gashed themselves…” with spears, from morning until midday, until blood flowed. They were all bleeding; blood poured out of them—rivers of blood, streams of blood. Eliyahu said: Cry out louder—perhaps he (the Baal) is asleep, and the idol doesn’t wake up; he’s in a deep, endless sleep. Suddenly, fire comes down.

At first, the two bulls did not want to go. Eliyahu said to the bull for the idolatry: You will go—Hashem will be sanctified through you as well. They slaughtered the one, and the fire did not descend until Eliyahu repaired the ruined altar of Hashem—the altar that Shaul built when he went to fight the Philistines, when he built an altar—because you cannot begin a war without a korban. You must bring a korban—must.

Eliyahu poured water around the altar and said: Master of the World—“And You turned their heart backward.” Because Rachel is face-to-face; but the whole matter is that Rachel should be face-to-face—and then (at the Carmel) Rachel was back-to-back.

Eliyahu said: Master of the World, they are not to blame—they are like captives taken as children. The most righteous are those who were at the Re’im gathering; they are the most righteous there have ever been—such tzaddikim have not existed since the creation of the world, and they are all in Gan Eden. Also the 16 soldiers who were killed (at the time of the lesson)—all of them are in Gan Eden. They were all killed al Kiddush Hashem.

They are the most righteous that ever were, in all generations. They are not to blame. They were taught that there is no G-d—that is what they taught them from the day they were born. Now they see G-d face-to-face—“No eye has seen, O G-d, besides You”—for they merit to see Hashem face-to-face.

All of a person’s avodah is to see Hashem face-to-face: “Face-to-face Hashem spoke with you” (Devarim 5:4). Hashem wants to speak with them face-to-face—they see Hashem face-to-face. When one prays word by word with niggunim, then one sees Hashem face-to-face.