In Parashat Matot, we read about two tribes – Reuven and Gad – who came to Moshe Rabbenu with a request. They wanted to permanently settle in the area east of the Jordan River that Beneh Yisrael had just captured, instead of proceeding into the Land of Israel along with the rest of the nation. They explained to Moshe that they had large flocks of cattle, and the fertile region they had conquered was very suitable for them.
Moshe replied very angrily. He gave Reuven and Gad a lengthy speech, accusing them of repeating the sin of the spies, who, years earlier, had gone into the land and then came back with a frightening report, convincing the people that they were not capable of capturing the land. Moshe said that Reuven and Gad were doing the same thing – discouraging the people from proceeding into the Land of Israel. After the sin of the spies, Hashem decreed that Beneh Yisrael would spend forty years in the desert until that generation died, and their children would go into the land. Moshe warned Reuven and Gad that Hashem might do the same thing again because of what they were doing.
Reuven and Gad then explained to Moshe that their men would join Beneh Yisrael in battle across the river, and then, after the land was conquered, they would return to their families on the other side.
Why did Moshe react so angrily? Why did he give Reuven and Gad a long speech, warning them not to repeat the sin of the spies?
The answer might be that Moshe knew something that we all now very well from our experience, especially with social media, and that is – how easy it is to send people into hysteria.
Moshe realized that if Beneh Yisrael heard that Reuven and Gad had said, “We don’t want to go into the Land of Israel,” this could cause hysteria. This line would be spread around, and people’s imaginations would start going wild – “Why don’t they want to go? They must know something about the land that we don’t! They must have inside information!” And a whole bunch of different theories would start to fly around about the dangers that lurk in the land. Before you know it, hysteria would break out.
This is what happened when the spies came back from surveying the land, and Moshe feared that this would happen once again, when the people heard that Reuven and Gad decided not to go across the river.
It was only once these tribes promised to join the war in Eretz Yisrael that Moshe felt assured that the people would not react with hysteria.
There is a very important distinction between concern and hysteria. When we get hysterical, we lose our sense of reason. We do not think clearly. We panic and rush to make drastic, irrational decisions. Concern means that we understand the seriousness of the situation, and we are going to think clearly and rationally to get the facts so we can decide what to do.
One of the keys to remaining concerned without falling into hysteria is to slow down… When we find ourselves in some difficult or frightening situation, even – or especially – when our instinct is to act quickly, we need to pause and slow ourselves down. This is so important in order to ensure that we act rationally and find the best course of action.
And, we learn from this story of Reuven and Gad how important it is not to cause hysteria by the way we talk. If we are not careful when we send out a message to a chat group or post a message on social media, it can be misconstrued and cause people to unnecessarily panic. Our words can come across the wrong way and lead people to become hysterical. We must be very careful to stay calm ourselves and to also help others stay calm by being very careful with the way we speak and post, so that we all make the right decisions whenever we face any sort of difficult or complex situation.