KALEV’S SECRET WEAPON

Twelve men are sent out on a mission.

The brief? Spy-out the land of Israel and report back. Ten men become overwhelmed at the challenges that lie ahead. They decide that they could not support the entry to Israel. Two men, Joshua and Kalev, oppose them.

We understand how Joshua was able to stand up to the others. Moses had prayed on his behalf, in advance. He changed his name from Hoshea to Joshua, adding the letter Yud, one of the letters of G-d’s Name. The Targum Yonatan explains that Moses was concerned that Joshua’s admirable quality of humility might lead to weakness, when confronted with the views of the other spies.

But what about Kalev? How was he able to take on the opposition?

The answer is a fascinating one and is provided by the text itself. G-d says He is going to punish the spies for giving a bad report and He adds:

“My servant, Kalev, had with him a ruach acheret – ‘different spirit’ and he followed Me wholeheartedly, so I shall bring him to the land to which he is headed, and his descendants shall inherit it.” [Bamidbar 14:24]

What is this ruach acheret or ‘different spirit’ that Kalev possesses?

Rav Elie Munk (in his commentary, The Call of the Torah) explains that we know that Kalev was married to Miriam, the sister of Moses. She was a woman with the gift of prophecy and, as a young girl in Egypt, had shown extraordinary courage. From tradition, we also know her as one of the midwives who resisted Pharaoh’s command to kill the Hebrew baby boys. She was the one who had watched over her baby brother Moses floating on the Nile. She was the one who stepped forward to offer to find a Hebrew nurse when Pharaoh’s daughter was prepared to rescue Moses.

Now we can understand. The ‘different spirit’ that Kalev enjoyed came from his wife who inspired him to be strong under all circumstances. His marriage to Miriam had drawn out these qualities in his own personality and enabled him to stand firm when the challenge arose.

Kalev and Miriam challenge us. May we each be the one to draw out the best qualities in those around us, so that we all become the best version of ourselves.