Rabbi Yaakov Gloiberman: Not Everything Must Be Understood, But Everything Must Be Accepted

Rabbi Yaakov Gloiberman’s weekly Torah segment discusses Parashat Chukat, which opens with the commandment of the red heifer, a deeply mysterious ritual meant to purify someone who became ritually impure through contact with the dead. According to the text, the heifer’s ashes were mixed with cedar wood, hyssop, and crimson thread to prepare the purification water.

The article cites חז"ל saying that from the giving of this commandment until the destruction of the Second Temple, nine red heifers were prepared, the first by Moses, the second by Ezra the Scribe, and the remaining seven before the Temple’s destruction. In line with tradition, the tenth red heifer is expected to be prepared by the Messiah, who will be revealed soon, “amen, may it be His will.”

The piece explains that the red heifer is called a “chok,” a divine statute whose reason cannot be fully grasped by human logic, yet must still be observed in complete submission to God’s will. From that, Rabbi Gloiberman draws a broader lesson for life: sometimes a person must act boldly and take initiative, but at other times humility, self-nullification, and surrender are required before God, the sages of Israel, the halachic authorities, and the generation’s leaders.

His conclusion is that Parashat Chukat teaches that not everything needs to be understood, but everything must be accepted with faith, humility, and awe of Heaven.