Emulation and Contrast: Both Ways to Learn from Others

In Parshat Pinchas we read about the daughters of Tzelafchad. These righteous women approach Moshe asking for the inheritance of land in Israel that was due to their father. They make it clear that their father Tzelafchad did not die as part of the Korach rebellion, Rather,

“He died of his own sin.”

            Tzelafchad was a man who died due to sin. And yet he had remarkable daughters. The Medrash lists them among the 23 most righteous women in Jewish history. These women merited to have a law in the Torah linked to their names. Rashi makes the point to call them “Chachmaniyot”, they were bright, and they knew Torah. How is it that Tzelafchad’s daughters turned out so well, better than what would have been expected? 

            The Rabbis in Masechet Shabbat dispute what exactly Tzelafchad’s sin was. Rabbi Akiva says that he was the “M’koshesh Eitzim” the person who gathered wood on Shabbat and was stoned for this transgression. Rabbi Shimon holds that Tzelafchad was a member of the Ma’apilim- the group described in Parshat Shelach, who, in response to the Sin of the Spies decide to continue to Eretz Yisrael against the decree of Hashem, with fatal results.

            Whatever the precise sin was, we see that Tzelafchad’s daughters were able to “redeem their father” ie learn/ teach a positive lesson from their father’s action. If Tzelafchad was a member of the Ma’apilim, those who tried to enter Israel too soon, then we see his daughters taking after their father. They too demonstrate a Chibat Tzion, a love and zeal for Eretz Yisrael that they inherited from their father– only this time it was channeled in an appropriate fashion.

            And if Tzelafchad was the Mekoshesh Eitzim, the wood-gatherer, here, too, we can find a positive aspect that his daughters emulated. According to some opinions, the wood-gatherer desecrated Shabbat “L’shem Shamayim”. He martyred himself as an example so that people would take the Torah, Mitzvot, and punishments seriously. Although his intentions may have been noble, his actions were nonetheless sinful and therefore punished with death. However, this desire to serve as a model and demonstrate to Bnei Yisrael  the validity of the Torah was harnessed by Tzelafchad’s daughters and utilized appropriately, so much so that the Halacha of Yerushah is associated with their names for all time.

            The daughters of Tzelafchad were able to redeem their father’s place in history, in spite of his sin. They are an example of the power of bi-directional influences. Tzelafchad influenced his daughters who ultimately were able to positively influence their father’s legacy. This is a fulfillment of the words of the prophet Malachi:

“He shall restore the heart of fathers to children and the heart of children to their fathers.”

            There’s another lesson to glean from this episode. There are two ways that we learn from other’s examples: emulation and contrast. The typical way we think of learning from others is by emulating their positive traits and good deeds. However, just as important is to learn from others through contrast. We can learn from people what NOT to do. We can also learn from people how to do things in ways that are different, better, more effective, more impactful. This is what the daughters of Tzelafchad do so effectively: Emulating aspects of their father, while contrasting in other ways.