Why Does the Torah Contain Harsh Rebukes? Part III

Avi asks: ​"Shalom. I see all that Hashem has given us and I believe with all my heart that He is merciful and compassionate. Yet when I read the Torah, I encounter frightening verses such as ‘and He will destroy you,’ severe curses, and the like. I find this difficult to understand."

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The Torah spoke to each generation according to its spiritual strength. Even in the generation of the wilderness, it addressed men and women differently, as it says: “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel” (Shemot 19:3). Rashi explains: “The house of Jacob — these are the women. Speak to them gently. To the children of Israel — these are the men. Tell them the punishments and details, things as hard as sinews.”

How Can a Moral People Be Born in an Immoral World?

In earlier articles we spoke about Hashem’s love as revealed in the Torah, and about the purpose of admonitions: to protect us from harm, like a father who warns his son against danger.

I believe there is also a historical and necessary purpose for the Torah’s harsh language of rebuke. Its severity stirred the hearts of those who heard it, creating strong emotions that strengthened their commitment to observe the Torah faithfully for generations.

Our generation is known to be highly sensitive. We struggle to hear rebuke, and prefer that everything be said softly and gently. This is why many young people today find the curses in the Torah intimidating and even alienating. But it’s important to explain that without these passages, we would not have the Torah today.

Let’s consider the setting of Matan Torah (the Giving of the Torah). Before leaving Egypt, the Israelites had sunk into the forty-ninth level of impurity and were on the verge of falling into the fiftieth. The sages tell us that when the people were commanded about forbidden sexual relationships, they wept and resisted bitterly (Shabbat 130a).

Is it logical to think that an entire nation, steeped in such corrupt practices, could have been uplifted and sanctified only through sweet words and gentle persuasion?

Desires so deeply ingrained could not have been uprooted from the soul without forceful, uncompromising language. Indeed, even after hearing the sternest rebukes, the people still sinned with Baal Peor (Bamidbar 25). All the more so, had the warnings been soft and delicate, the people would have fallen into far worse sins and corruption.

It is clear that only through strong rebuke and the threat of severe punishment could a nation be forged with eternal moral laws, cleansing their hearts of Egyptian depravity and Canaanite temptation. This was the only way to form, out of a newly freed people, the holiest nation on earth — one that would survive for over 3,300 years.

Through this process, we became a light unto the nations, so that all the peoples of the world would learn morality from us: “Observe them faithfully, for that will be proof of your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who upon hearing all these laws will say, Surely that great nation is a wise and discerning people” (Devarim 4:6).

The World Before Torah

We take for granted that the world around us talks about morality and justice, and we forget that it was the Torah that introduced these values to humanity. Both Christianity and Islam are built upon our Torah. Without us, the world would never have learned the severity of immorality, nor the duty of caring for the poor and oppressed.

Before the Torah, human life had little value. The moral logic of the nations was simple: the strong rule the weak. Women, slaves, and the poor had no protection, and conquerors had no obligation to treat the conquered with dignity. Ancient cultures were steeped in sexual immorality, bloodshed, theft, and corruption — even the supposedly “advanced” Greeks and Romans.

It was dangerous to travel in those days. Avraham said, “I thought surely there is no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife” (Bereishit 20:11). Regarding Sodom: “The men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter. And they called to Lot, and said to him: Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us…” (Bereishit 19:4).

To a person in that world, the concepts of “Do not murder” or “Do not steal” were not self-evident. Only political convenience prevented rulers from allowing murder within their own tribes.

The Torah was revolutionary as it introduced binding, eternal laws of morality. It demanded concern for the weak and the stranger: “You shall love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Devarim 10:19).

Thus, the frightening curses and punishments were necessary. Only such powerful language could engrave upon the hearts of our ancestors an unshakable moral code, strong enough to withstand the depravity of Egypt, Canaan, Greece, and Rome, and to transmit to humanity the very concept of justice.

Not Because of Your Righteousness

The Torah says: “It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that Hashem your God drives them out before you, and in order to confirm the oath that Hashem swore to your fathers, to Avraham, to Yitzchak, and to Yaakov” (Devarim 9:5).

At first glance, this verse seems to belittle Israel, as though we were unworthy of the land, receiving it only by default. But read in context, it was absolutely necessary.

Israel had just witnessed staggering miracles — ten plagues in Egypt, the splitting of the sea, manna from heaven, water from a rock, and direct revelation at Sinai. They might easily have succumbed to unbearable pride, imagining themselves inherently superior. Indeed, Korach and his followers protested against Moshe with the words: “For all the congregation are holy, and Hashem is among them. Why do you raise yourselves above the congregation of Hashem?” (Bamidbar 16:3).

This arrogance was a real danger. Therefore, the Torah repeatedly admonished them, reminding them of their sins in the wilderness, so they would remain humble and faithful.

In fact, the Torah constantly balanced encouragement with warning — “the left hand pushes away, and the right hand draws close” (Sanhedrin 107b). On one hand, Israel is described as chosen and beloved; on the other, they are warned not to grow proud, but to remember their slavery in Egypt and their dependence on God’s mercy.

The severe rebukes of the Torah were not expressions of cruelty, but the most effective educational tool for that generation, and for us as well. They were necessary to shape a nation into God’s holy people, capable of transmitting divine morality to the world.

When we encounter frightening verses, we must remember: they were given in love, designed to protect us, and essential in forging Israel into a nation of eternal light.