וַיֹּאמֶר ה' אֶל מֹשֶׁה אַל תִּירָא אוֹתוֹ. זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: אַשְׁרֵי אָדָם מְפַחֵד תָּמִיד, וּמַקְשֶׁה לִבּוֹ יִפֹּל בְּרָעָה (משלי כח, יד). כָּךְ הִיא מִדַּת הַחֲסִידִים, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מַבְטִיחָן, אֵינָן פּוֹרְקִין יִרְאָה. וְכֵן בְּיַעֲקֹב כְּתִיב: וַיִּירָא יַעֲקֹב מְאֹד (בראשית לב, ח). לָמָּה נִתְיָרֵא. אָמַר, שֶׁמָּא נִתְקַלְקַלְתִּי אֵצֶל לָבָן בִּכְלוּם. וּכְתִיב: וְלֹא יִרְאֶה בְךָ עֶרְוַת דָּבָר וְשָׁב מֵאַחֲרֶיךָ (דברים כג, טו), וְהִנִּיחַנִי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא. וְאַף מֹשֶׁה תָּפַשׂ אֶת הַיִּרְאָה בְּדֶרֶךְ אָבִיו. וְלָמָּה נִתְיָרֵא. אָמַר, שֶׁמָּא מָעֲלוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּמִלְחֶמֶת סִיחוֹן, אוֹ נִתְקַלְקְלוּ בַּעֲבֵרָה. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, אַל תִּירָא, כֻּלָּן הִשְׁלִימוּ בְּצֶדֶק. אַל תִּירָא אוֹתוֹ, שֶׁלֹּא עָמַד גִּבּוֹר בָּעוֹלָם קָשֶׁה הֵימֶנּוּ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: כִּי רַק עוֹג מֶלֶךְ הַבָּשָׁן נִשְׁאַר מִיֶּתֶר הָרְפָאִים (דברים ג, יא). וְהוּא נִשְׁאַר מֵאוֹתָן הַגִּבּוֹרִים שֶׁהָרְגוּ אַמְרָפֶל וַחֲבֵרָיו, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיַּכּוּ אֶת רְפָאִים בְּעַשְׁתְּרוֹת קַרְנַיִם (בראשית יד, ה). וְזֶה פְּסֹלֶת שֶׁלָּהֶם כִּפְרִיצֵי זֵיתִים הַפְּלִיטִים מִתּוֹךְ הַגֶּפֶת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיָּבֹא הַפָּלִיט וַיַּגֵּד לְאַבְרָם וְגוֹ' (שם פסוק יג), זֶה עוֹג. וְכָאן עָשָׂה אוֹתוֹ שִׁירַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: הוּא נִשְׁאַר מִיֶּתֶר הָרְפָאִים (יהושע יג, יב). וְכַוָּנָתוֹ הָיְתָה שֶׁיֵּצֵא אַבְרָהָם וְיֵהָרֵג. נָתַן לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שְׂכַר רַגְלָיו וְחָיָה כָּל אוֹתָן שָׁנִים, וְגָבָה מִמֶּנּוּ עַד שֶׁנָּפַל בְּיַד בָּנָיו. כְּשֶׁבָּא מֹשֶׁה לַעֲשׂוֹת מִלְחָמָה עִמּוֹ, נִתְיָרֵא מִמֶּנּוּ. אָמַר, אֲנִי בֶּן מֵאָה וְעֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה, וְזֶה מִיֶּתֶר חָמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת. אִלּוּלֵי שֶׁהָיָה לוֹ זְכוּת, לֹא חָיָה כָּל הַשָּׁנִים הָאֵלּוּ. אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְמֹשֶׁה, אַל תִּירָא אוֹתוֹ כִּי בְיָדְךָ נָתַתִּי אוֹתוֹ, אַתָּה בְּיָדְךָ תַּהַרְגֵהוּ, וְעָשִׂיתָ לוֹ כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתָ לְסִיחוֹן. וַנַּחֲרֵם אוֹתוֹ כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂינוּ לְסִיחוֹן וְגוֹ' (דברים ג, ו). וַהֲלֹא כְּתִיב שָׁם, וְכָל הַבְּהֵמָה וּשְׁלַל הֶעָרִים בַּזּוֹנוּ לָנוּ (שם פסוק ז). אֶלָּא גּוּפָן הֶחְרִימוּ, שֶׁלֹּא לֵהָנוֹת מֵהֶן כְּלוּם. וַיַּכּוּ אוֹתוֹ וְאֶת בָּנָיו, בְּנוֹ כְּתִיב, שֶׁהָיָה לוֹ בֵּן קָשֶׁה מִמֶּנּוּ. אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, אַתֶּם מְכַלִּין אֶת הָאֻמּוֹת קִמְעָא קִמְעָא, וְלֶעָתִיד לָבֹא, אֲנִי מְבָעֲרָן מִן הָעוֹלָם בְּבַת אַחַת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וְהָיוּ עַמִּים מִשְׂרְפוֹת סִיד קוֹצִים כְּסוּחִים בָּאֵשׁ יֻצָּתוּ (ישעיה לג, יב). אָמֵן כֵּן יְהִי רָצוֹן. (Numb. 21:34:) “But the Lord God said unto Moses, ‘Do not fear him.’” This text is related (to Prov. 28:14), “Fortunate is the one who is always afraid […].” Such is the nature of the righteous. Although the Holy One, blessed be He, assures them, they do not cast off fear. And so it is written about Jacob (in Gen. 32:8]), “And Jacob was [greatly] afraid.” Why was he afraid? He said, “Perhaps I was tainted by something at Laban's,” since it is written (in Deut. 23:15), “so [the Lord] is not to see anything indecent among you and turn away from you.” Thus the Holy One, blessed be He, may have forsaken me. Moses also acquired fear in the manner of his ancestor. Why was he afraid? He said, “Perhaps Israel sinned in the war with Sihon or became tainted by a transgression.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Numb. 34:21), “’Do not fear,’ as they all fulfilled [their actions] with justice. ‘Do not fear him,’ [even though] a warrior more formidable than himself has never arisen in the world [since his time].” Thus it is stated (in Deut. 3:11), “For only Og King of Bashan was left over from the remaining Rephaim.”155According to Deut. 2:11, 20-21, together with Numb. 13:33, the Rephaim were a race of giants. Now he had been left from the warriors whom Amraphel and his colleagues (Gen. 14:1, 9) had slain, as stated (in Gen. 14:5), “and they smote the Rephaim […].” But this [man] was their refuse, like olive pits that come out as survivors from the bottom of the oil press. It is so stated (in Gen. 14:13), “Then the survivor came and told Abram (about Lot's capture).” This was Og. And here [Scripture] made him into leftovers, as stated (in Josh. 13:12), “he was left over from the remaining Rephaim.” It was his intention that Abraham would go out [to war] and be killed. The Holy One, blessed be He, gave him a reward for [what] his feet had earned [for the good that ended up resulting]; in that he lived all those years until he fell at the hand of [Abraham's] children. When Moses came to wage war with him, he was afraid of him. He said, “I am a hundred and twenty years old, while he is five hundred years old.” If he did not have merit, he would not have lived all these years. The Holy One, blessed be He, said (in Numb. 21:34 = Deut. 3:2:) “Do not fear him, for I have given him into your hand,’ you with your hand shall kill him, (Numb. 21:34 = Deut. 3:2, cont.) ‘and you shall do to him as you did to Sihon….’” (Deut. 3:6:) “And we shall utterly destroy it […].” But is it not written (in Deut. 3:7), “But all the cattle and the booty of the towns we took as booty for ourselves?” It is simply that they utterly destroyed their bodies, so as not to benefit from any of them at all. (Numb. 21:35:) “So they smote him, his sons [and all his people].” The written text (ketiv) [reads] “his son,”156Cf. a similar verse about Sihon, Deut. 2:33, where HIS SON is the undoubted reading. because he had a son more formidable than himself. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, “In this world you destroy the nations little by little, but in the world to come, I will remove them from the world at a single stroke. It is so stated (in Is. 33:12), “And the people shall become burnings of lime, thorns cut down that are burned in the fire.” Amen, may it be His will!