He does not look at evil in Jacob, and has seen no perversity in Israel; the Lord, his God, is with him, and he has the King's friendship. (Numbers 23:21)
לֹֽא־הִבִּ֥יט אָ֨וֶן֙ בְּיַֽעֲקֹ֔ב וְלֹֽא־רָאָ֥ה עָמָ֖ל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל יְהֹוָ֤ה אֱלֹהָיו֙ עִמּ֔וֹ וּתְרוּעַ֥ת מֶ֖לֶךְ בּֽוֹ (במדבר כג כא)
A very strange thing for God to say right after the Jews fell into the disgusting sin of worshiping Ba'al Pe'or en mass, and with such gusto among some of them!
The Nesivos Shalom notes this peculiarity, and even sharpens the point by quoting the Talmud:
Rabbi Ḥanina says: Anyone who states that the Holy One, Blessed be He, is forgiving [vateran] of transgressions, his life will be relinquished [yivatru], as it is stated: “The Rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are justice” (Deuteronomy 32:4).
אמר ר' חנינא כל האומר הקב"ה ותרן הוא יותרו חייו שנאמר (דברים לב, ד) הצור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט
According to the Sefaria website, "In other words, God does not waive heavenly justice."
It certainly seems that God is waiving some serious heavenly justice right about now.
The Nesivos Shalom explains how God could have, can, and does look away from, grotesque behavior:
Even though an individual's evil inclination may overpower him and render him incapable of resisting, his heart is nevertheless broken within him and fills him with remorse. [This happens] because he knows that this transgression will push him away from God. Even while in the midst of committing the transgression, Hashem, his God, is with him and his heart is ripped to pieces. This is the type of sin from which The Holy, Blessed Be He looks away, for He knows all secrets; He knows that his heart is broken and defeated.
שגם זה שיצרא בישא מתגבר עליו ואינו יכול לעמוד בפניו במעשה, הרי גם אז לבו שבור בקרבו ומלא יסורי מצפון שיודע כי ע״י עבירה זו מתרחק מהקב״ה, וגם בעת המעשה העבירה ה׳ אלוקיו עמו ולבו נקרע לגזרים על זה, ועל חטא כזה לא הביט השי״ת, שיודע תעלומות יודע לבבו הנשבר הנדכא.
Even though many Jews (24,000) succumbed to the heinous sin of worshiping Ba'al Pe'or and all that it entailed, God still included the verse "He does not look at evil in Jacob, and has seen no perversity in Israel" in the Torah. Were it not for this explanation it would be hard to understand how this verse could possibly have been included here.
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