Towards the end of the Parsha we read how Sichon King of Emori did not permit Bnei Yisrael to pass through his territory. The king led his people in war against the Jews, and they were defeated in a battle in which Israel conquered all his cities including Sichon’s capital of Cheshbon. The Talmud in Gittin (38a) teaches that עַמּוֹן וּמוֹאָב טָהֲרוּ בְּסִיחוֹן. land of Ammon and Moab became purified through the conquest of Sihon. Hashem did not permit Bnai Yisrael to conquer lands controlled by their distant cousins, Ammon and Moav: Only once their lands were conquered by Sihon did they become “purified” (ie permitted) to be conquered by Bnai Yisrael. The Torah then gives some background to the Sichon’s victory in a cryptic fashion (21:27): עַל־כֵּ֛ן יֹֽאמְר֥וּ הַמּֽשְׁלִ֖ים בֹּ֣אוּ חֶשְׁבּ֑וֹן תִּבָּנֶ֥ה וְתִכּוֹנֵ֖ן עִ֥יר סִיחֽוֹן: “Concerning this, those who speak in parables say, "Come to Heshbon, may it be built and established as the city of Sihon.” Rashi explains that when Sichon was having difficulties conquering these lands, he hired two prophets, Bilaam and his father Be’or, to curse the Moabites thereby allowing for Sichon’s conquest. “Moshlim” is a reference to the evil father-son prophet team that assured Sichon of the efficacy of their curses by encouraging Sichon to “come to Cheshbon” and conquer it from Moav. The Talmud in Baba Batra (78b) suggests a non-literal reading of the pasuk: “Hamoshlim”; these are the people who rule over [hamoshlim] their evil inclination. They will say: “Come to Heshbon,” meaning: Come and let us calculate the account of [ḥeshbon] the world, i.e., the financial loss incurred by the fulfillment of a mitzva in contrast to its reward, and the reward for committing a transgression, i.e., the pleasure and gain received, in contrast to the loss it entails. “Let it be built and established” means that if you make this calculation, you will be built in this world and you will be established in the World-to-Come.” Literally Moshlim are poets or prophets, but the Talmud understands it to refer to those who “rule” over their impulses and base desires. The way to rule over our base instincts is to make a Cheshbon, an accounting, and to carefully consider the costs and benefits of our actions- both short term and long term. Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski noted that western society places a high premium on acting in ways that prioritize the pleasure of the moment. He suggests that this explains why credit card debt is so rampant in America, with the average household carrying $8,000 in this type of debt. If people would calculate the actual and ultimate cost of purchases they make on credit cards that carry exorbitant interest rates, their spending habits would most likely change. People would stay more within their means and delay big purchases until they could really afford them. An economy built on credit cards enables peoples to be blinded by their desires and not to calculate the true costs. This is not only a spending issue. People are often compelled to say or do something that feels good or right in the moment but turns out to be unhelpful or even detrimental in the bigger picture or in the longer term. This is how the Talmud’s homiletic interpretation overlaps with the literal reading. Had King Sichon taken a step back and looked at the bigger picture he could have realized that one potential outcome of his conquest of Cheshbon was that it would enable Bnei Yisrael to take it from him without violating the Divine edict not to battle with Moav. Sichon’s inability to “take an accounting” of all of the possible outcomes of his military action led to his defeat. Cheshbon Hanefesh, a personal accounting, is an important reflection tool, reviewing our past actions to learn lessons for the future. This pasuk in Chukat highlights the importance of Cheshbon Hanefesh as also a planning tool: a helpful way for us to consider all of the potential outcomes and to then act accordingly.
