29 Jul DEVARIM: CHILDREN ARE A GIFT

“May G-d, the Lord
of your fathers, add a
thousandfold more
like you and bless you,
as He spoke to you.”
(Devarim 1:11)
The Jewish people,
Rashi informs us, were
not very happy with the blessing Moshe gave
them. “May G-d, the Lord of your fathers,” he
had said, “add a thousandfold more like you
and bless you as He spoke to you.”
“Only that and no more?” the people
responded. “Is that the full extent of your
blessing? Hashem blessed us (Bereishis 32:13)
to be ‘like the dust of the earth that is too
numerous to count.’”
“You will surely get the blessing Hashem
gave you,” Moshe replied. “This is just my
own personal blessing to you.”
What exactly was Moshe’s reply? What
additional benefit would the Jewish people
derive from his blessing of a thousandfold
increase if they were already receiving
Hashem’s blessing of virtually limitless
increase?
The Chasam Sofer explains that Moshe was
testing them. Why did they want children?

Was it because children were useful, because
they help carry the household burden, provide
companionship and are a source of security in
old age? Or is it because each child is a spark
of the Divine, a priceless gift from Heaven, a
piece of the World to Come?
So Moshe gave the Jewish people a test. He
blessed them with a “thousandfold” increase
in their population. If they had wanted children
for their usefulness alone, they would have
said, “Thank you, but that’s enough already! A
thousandfold will suit our purposes just fine.
We have no use for any more right now.” But
that was not what they said. They wanted more
children. They wanted children “too numerous
to count.” Obviously, they were not thinking
about their own material and emotional needs,
but about the transcendent blessing that each
child represents, and so, they proved
themselves worthy of Hashem’s blessing.
Hundreds of years earlier, these two
conflicting attitudes toward children had
already become an issue. Yaakov and Eisav
had made a division. Eisav was to take this
world, and Yaakov was to take the World to
Come. When Yaakov came back from Aram,
Eisav welcomed him at the head of an army
four hundred men strong. In the tense early
minutes of the confrontation, Eisav noticed
Yaakov’s many children.

“Who are these children?” Eisav asked.
“These are the children,” Yaakov replied,
“that Hashem graciously gave to your servant.”
The Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer expands the
dialogue between Yaakov and Eisav and
reveals the underlying argument.
“What are you doing with all these children?”
Eisav asked. “I thought we made a division,
that I would take this world and you would
take the World to Come. So why do you have
so many children? What do children have to
do with the World to Come? Children are a
boon in this world!”
“Not so,” Yaakov responded. “Children are
sparks of the Divine. The opportunity to raise
a child, to develop a Divine soul to the point
where it can enter the World to Come, is a
privilege of the highest spiritual worth. That is
why I have children.”
Yaakov wants children for their own sake,
but Eisav views them as an asset in this world.
Children are an extra pair of hands on the
farm. They can milk the cows and help with
many other chores that need to be done in
agrarian societies.
Modern man has progressed beyond agrarian
life. He has moved off the farm and does not
have such a need for children anymore. In fact,

he has made a startling discovery. Children are
a tremendous burden. They are expensive,
time consuming and exasperating. Who needs
children?
But what about companionship? Loneliness?
No problem. Modern man can get a dog. Dogs
are wonderful. Instead of coming home to a
house full of clamoring, demanding,
frustrating children, he can come home to an
adoring, tail-wagging dog who will run to
bring him his slippers and newspaper. So why
does he need children? This is the attitude of
Eisav adapted to modern times.
Yaakov, on the other hand, understands that
the purpose of children is not for enjoying this
world or for making our lives easier. Each
child represents a spiritual mission, a spark of
the Divine entrusted to our care and our
guidance, an opportunity to fulfill Hashem’s
desire to have this soul brought to the World to
Come.