Q&A: Question
Question
Question
It is written in the Torah portion, chapter 20 verse 12: “And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron: Because you did not believe in Me
to sanctify Me before the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this congregation…”
And we learned (Avot 5:18 and Yoma 87a): “Whoever brings merit to the many, no sin comes about through
him; and whoever causes the many to sin… Moses attained merit and brought merit to the many; the merit of the many
depends on him…”
And this requires clarification: since Moses our rabbi brought merit to the many, he should be included in the promise that “no sin comes
about through him” — so how did the sin of the Waters of Merivah come about through him?
Answer
R. V. A. U. wrote about this that we hold that one who recites havdalah over a cup of wine will have male children. So did the Chazon Ish not recite havdalah over a cup? Rather, there are additional considerations besides that which can offset the initial promise. For example, because of the sin of vows, children die. So what would happen to someone who recited havdalah over a cup but was not careful regarding vows? Would they give him children and then they would die? Presumably they would not give him any at all (something like the lien of Rabbi Nathan).
I discussed this at length in my article on the ukimtot. It is very worthwhile to read it there.