He Has Seen No Perversity in Israel

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.

Public Sins

Background

I have taken this passage from the book Touching Heaven Touching Earth; Hassidic Humor and Wit published by Sadan Publishing House Ltd. in 1976. This amazing book is a compilation of chassidish stories compiled by Rabbi Shmuel Avidor HaCohen.

One of the short stories is called "Public Sins" and says the following:

"R. Mendel of Kotzk used to say: 'I have not succeeded in teaching my disciples never to sin, and only to perform good deeds. However, I have managed to make them different from other people. Most perform their good deeds in public and their transgressions in private, but my Hassidim perform their transgressions in public and their good deeds in private.'" [My emphasis added.]

Synposis

R. Mendel of Kotzk (also known by the appellation The Kotzker Rebbe, or The Kotzker) starts by admitting what he acknowledges to be a fault: "I have not succeeded in teaching my disciples never to sin..." The Kotzker, who was a righteous man, would have ideally liked if his Hassidim never sinned.

However, he quickly turns to an aspect of their imperfection, which, in a strange and unintentional way, demonstrates their elevated avoda:

• Most [people] perform their goods deeds in public - most people seek to outwardly demonstrate their righteousness. The purpose of this is to tell themselves and others that they are worthy of admiration.
• ...and their transgressions in private - yet behind closed doors they behave according to their true desires, an expression of their true self.
• ...but my Hassidim perform their transgressions in public - true, they are not free of transgressions.
• ... and their good deeds in private - yet behind closed doors they too behave according to their true desires, an expression of their true self. Because they receive no social recognition for their hidden behavior it is an expression of their innermost desires and is beloved by God.

Isaiah 29:15 says, "Woe to those who think deeply to hide counsel from the Lord, and their deeds are in the dark. And they said, 'Who sees us and who knows us?'"

During Shachris we say the following:

.לְעולָם יְהֵא אָדָם יְרֵא שָׁמַיִם בְּסֵּתֶר וּמודֶה עַל הָאֱמֶת וְדובֵר אֱמֶת בִּלְבָבו

May Man always fear Heaven in private and public and speak the truth in his heart.