We Will Do and We Will Understand

The end of this week’s Torah portion contains the Jewish people’s famous statement of allegiance to the Torah: "Everything that God has said, we will do and we will listen – naaseh venishma" (Shemos 24:7). In response to this statement, God compared the Jewish people to angels, asking, “Who revealed to My children this secret expression used only by heavenly angels?” (Shabbos 88a)

When God offered the Torah to the non-Jewish nations, their response was quite different. The Midrash (Sifri, Devarim 343) says:

When God wanted to give the Torah to Israel, He revealed Himself not only to the Jewish people but to all the other nations of the world as well.

First God went to the children of Eisav. He asked them, “Will you accept My Torah?” They said, “What is written in it?” He answered, “You shall not murder.” They replied, “Master of the universe, this goes against our very nature. Our father, whose hands are the hands of Eisav (Bereishis 27:22), led us to rely only on the sword, because his father told him, ‘By your sword you shall live’ (Bereishis 27:40). Therefore, we cannot accept the Torah.”

Then God went to the children of Ammon and Moav and asked them, “Will you accept My Torah?” They said, “What is written in it?” He responded, “You shall not commit adultery.” They replied, “Master of the universe, our very origin is from adultery, as it is written, Thus, Lot’s two daughters conceived from their father (Bereishis 19:36). Therefore, we cannot accept the Torah.”

Then God went to the children of Yishmael. He asked them, “Will you accept My Torah?” They said, “What is written in it?” He said, “You shall not steal.” They replied, “Master of the universe, it is our very nature to live off only what is stolen and acquired through violence, as it is written regarding Yishmael, And he shall be a wild-ass of a man: his hand shall be against everyone, and everyone’s hand against him (Bereishis 16:12). We cannot possibly accept the Torah.”

There was no nation that God did not approach, knocking on their door, as it were, and asking them whether they would be willing to accept the Torah. Finally, after being turned down by every nation, God came to the nation of Israel, who said, “Naaseh venishma – we will do and we will listen” (Shemos 24:7).

Was there something wrong with asking, “What’s written in it?” After all, how can you commit to keeping the entire Torah, forever, without knowing what’s written in it? Clarifying its contents before accepting it seems like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. But for some reason, asking this question led the non-Jewish nations to reject the Torah.

Furthermore, why did the Almighty present each nation with the most difficult mitzvah of the entire Torah for them to keep? He could have presented them with mitzvot that would not be particularly challenging for them to keep, such as Shabbos, love your neighbor, and various Jewish holidays, and then eventually tell them about the more difficult mitzvot. That would have given them a far more objective picture of what the Torah contains. Instead, God specifically picked the one mitzvah that would unquestionably cause them to reject the Torah. What kind of offer is that?

Does It Fit into My Lifestyle?

By asking, "What's written in it?" the non-Jewish nations were in effect saying to God that if the Torah fits into their lifestyle, they would accept it. They each had their own set of ethics and principles that they were comfortable with, and they therefore wanted to see if the Torah fits into their chosen lifestyle. That approach undermines the idea that Torah is from an infinite and perfect Source, and can only enhance, not hamper, our life.

The non-Jewish nations viewed God’s offer with great suspicion and doubt, thinking that some of the mitzvot of the Torah would impede their pleasure in life. But the Jewish people understood that the Torah is only for our good, and that it is ultimately the only avenue for fulfilling our goals and deepest aspirations.

In addition, the Torah is the blueprint of creation. It is eternal and unchangeable, and its reality is not contingent on our liking it. The nations of the world already rejected the Torah by asking, “What’s written in it?" and attempting to evaluate the Torah’s worthiness based on their preconceived beliefs.

God presented each of the nations with the one mitzvah that they were most loath to accept simply in order to help fulfill their desire to reject the Torah. Their very question was the rejection of the Torah; the rest was just formality and process.

The Jewish people understood that there is only way that the Torah can be accepted: "We will do and we will listen." The reality of Torah does not need our stamp of approval. The Jewish people embraced the Truth embodied in the Torah, and were prepared to forgo everything else, knowing that anything that is contrary to the Torah must be false and empty.

A Leap of Faith?

But isn’t naaseh venishma, accepting the Torah sight unseen, a blind leap of faith, the type of belief that we previously condemned as spurious (see Parashas Yisro)?

Not at all.

Blind faith is based on an emotional desire for something to be true. It is completely irrational. The Sages call the generation of Jews who stood at Sinai and trekked through the desert the Dor Deiah, the generation of knowledge, because they experienced national revelation, which gave them the greatest clarity possible about Hashem's existence. They heard God speak! They were all prophets; there can be no greater knowledge of Hashem than that.

Once you know it is Hashem Himself Who is giving the Torah, then the only rational response is to accept it unconditionally, sight unseen. Hashem is perfect, and everything He does stems from His immense love for us. When a parent gives his child medication, the child does not ask, "Hold it right there! Before I take this I must know exactly what’s in it and how it works." Because the child knows that his parents love him dearly, he trusts them and realizes that they are only doing what is best for him.

Naaseh venishma – we will do and we will listen – is eminently rational, if – and only if – one knows that the Torah is coming from Hashem, a perfect Being who loves us. Naaseh venishma is stating that we recognize God’s perfection and love, and therefore trust Him completely. We have no need to read the fine print.

Yet we can’t forget the second part of the phrase: “venishma – and we will listen (i.e., understand).” Obeying Hashem's command is not predicated on our understanding the Torah. That would be presumptuous, and would constitute a misunderstanding of Hashem and ultimately a rejection of the entire basis of Torah, similar to the other nations’ rejection of it. But we still do need to strive to understand the Torah. As the Rambam explains: “It is appropriate for a person to meditate on the judgments of the holy Torah and know their ultimate purpose according to his capacity” (Hilchos Me’ilah 8:8). We are not meant to be mere robots performing mitzvot by rote. God wants us to delve into Torah, comprehend as much as we can, and absorb His Toras Chaim, His instructions for living, into our daily lives. By doing so we will develop a greater appreciation of the power of Torah and increase our motivation to fulfill the mitzvot to the best of our ability.