—Numbers 19:2
In a small town with more cows than people, three locals
came down with a mysterious illness. Same symptoms, same doctor, same treatment
plan. But the outcomes? As different as a matzah ball and a bowling ball.
1.
Patient A was an uneducated
man who trusted his doctor completely. He followed the instructions to the
letter. Didn’t ask why, didn’t question the logic. Just did what he was
told—and he recovered.
2.
Patient B had experience;
he had worked as a paramedic. He knew enough to be dangerous. He read the
prescription, nodded thoughtfully, and then edited the plan. Took what made
sense, skipped what didn’t. He died. Nice guy, but not his finest decision.
3.
Patient C, also a
paramedic, took a different route. He knew a bit, sure, but he also knew the
doctor knew more. So, even when the treatment seemed baffling, he followed the
instructions fully. He trusted the doctor, and he recovered.
King Solomon Hits a Wall
Some people approach mitzvot with a simple, unwavering
faith. They don’t ask why, they just do. They follow the commandments as
they are, trusting that they are good, even if the reasons are hidden. This
kind of faith is like that of Patient A: straightforward, uncritical, and
wholehearted.
Others are wired differently. They question, analyze, seek
logic. They want to understand the “why” behind the “what.” That kind of
curiosity is valuable, but it can also trip you up. Like Patient B, they may
end up rejecting what they can’t make sense of—and that doesn’t end well.
King Solomon, wisest of all men, believed his vast
intellect could unlock every secret in the Torah. And for most mitzvot, it did.
But when he reached the Parah Adumah, the purification ritual involving
the ashes of a red heifer, he was stumped.
“I thought I could fathom it, but it eludes me” (Ecc.
7:23), he admitted. Precisely because of his wisdom, Solomon struggled to
accept what he could not explain.
But that was the point. In that moment, Solomon learned
something deeper: The wisdom of the Torah, like the One who gave it, is
ultimately beyond human grasp.
Like Patient C, who trusted the doctor’s expertise even
when the treatments seemed baffling, Solomon came to a humbling conclusion:
Sometimes, the wisest course is simply to rely on the wisdom of the Creator,
whose ways are higher than our own.
