Moshe’s Leadership

Shavua Tov. The very first Pasuk of פרשת דברים, has a double meaning. On the one hand, there is a subtle reference by Moshe Rabbeinu to the various locations where the Jewish people had sinned. He refers to a place called, “די זהב.” There is no such place but it is a reference to the sin of the Golden Calf, where there was די זהב, enough gold. Moshe wants the people to know that despite the fact that they turned away from Hashem, they were not forsaken. They should also feel remorse for such a transgression. But, on the other hand, the Gemara in Berachot said that when Moshe spoke to G-d, he tried to reduce the gravity of the sin, by even sounding a bit disrespectful to HaShem. He says that the nation was not so much to blame, because it was not their idea to ask for gold from the Egyptians. If they didn’t have any gold, they would not have had the means to sin. This shows the kind of leader Moshe was. He motivated the people to go higher, but he also defended them at all times. He had the qualities to emulate in a true leader.