I will drive out nations from your path and enlarge your territory; no one will covet your land when you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times a year.
Shemot 34:24
The Sifrei (Devarim Ekev Ch. 52) explains this verse as a promise to the nation of Israel that their homes and possessions will be protected. The Sifrei offers an explanation for this that is entirely natural – the possibility of leaving one’s house open and unlocked is a dream that can be attained either when there is a strong, secure government that successfully polices and protects its citizens, or else when the general population is wealthy enough not to be enticed by their neighbor’s property.
The Mekhilta has a different approach, which suggests that the protection offered by the verse is the promise of a miracle that goes against the forces of nature. The point of this promise is to guard against the evil inclination that tries to entice people to remain at home rather than to fulfill the commandment. God serves as a guarantor for the people of Israel that even when then come en masse to the Temple on the pilgrimage holidays, the house that they left behind will remain safe and secure and no one will trespass in it.
“No one will covet your land.”
The Torah is speaking against the inclination.
So that the Israelites should not say “How can we leave our land, our houses, our fields and our vineyards to go on the pilgrimage?
Lest others come and take our place here.”
For this reason the Holy One Blessed be He guarantees: “No one will covet your land when you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times a year.”
Mekhilta d’Rashbi 34:24
This midrash suggests that we look beyond the promises and between the lines of these verses. This biblical promise is unusual and requires direct Divine intervention in a difficult situation that can be anticipated. The Mekhilta recognizes that it is difficult for any person to abandon his home mid-year and leave on a lengthy pilgrimage that forces him to leave behind his responsibilities. It may not even be the fear of attack or invasion so much as concern with the losses that he will inevitably incur.
Moreover, none of the usual destructive forces will have permission to attack you.
It happened once that someone left his pillows and upon his return he found lions guarding them.
And once it happened that someone left his chicken coop and upon his return he found cats torn apart before them.
To fulfill the verse “No one will covet your land.”
Mekhilta d’Rashbi 34:24
In the stories that are told here, not only were houses and possessions protected from human attack, even the instincts of the natural world changed in order to play a role in defending the property. Lions surrounded the house to protect its contents, and cats were found dead at the feet of chickens. This story also appears in the Yerushalmi, where a lengthier version appears together with a story about two brothers who lived in Ashkelon. Their non-Jewish neighbors were waiting for the brothers to leave for their pilgrimage to Jerusalem, having planned to rob their home during their absence. To the chagrin of the neighbors, God replaced the brothers with angel-doubles who looked just like them. Upon their return home, the brothers understood the miracle that had been performed on their behalf and blessed God for not abandoning them (Yerusahalmi Pe’ah Ch. 3).
When heavenly angels are needed to serve as guards for Jewish homes, it becomes clear that under natural circumstances the Torah’s promise of protection cannot be fulfilled. It does not require much of an imagination to understand the dangers faced by a nation whose entire population gathers in one spot. Neither wealth, strong government or security apparatus, can help in that type of situation – only angels from heaven can.
We find a slightly different idea in the Yalkut Shimoni. The promise to guard real estate is intertwined with the obligation to fulfill the commandment of pilgrimage. Only someone who performs the commandment to travel to the Temple can be assured that his land will remain in his name.
Navot HaYizraeli had a beautiful voice, and he would travel to Jerusalem
And all Israel would gather to hear his voice.
Once he did not come, and scoundrels came upon him and he was murdered.
What led to this?
Because he did not go up to Jerusalem to fulfill the pilgrimage commandment and honor the Holy One Blessed be He with the God-given talent that he had received.
Why? Because the Torah has taught: “No one will covet your land.”
When? “When you go up to appear before the LORD your God.”
(Ki Tisa, No. 404)
The midrash makes use of the story of Navot, whose vineyard was stolen by King Ahav, arguing that Navot avoided the pilgrimage and paid the ultimate price. In addition, his land was taken. Regular pilgrimage to Jerusalem is part of the ongoing maintenance that protects land and property – throughout the year, not only during the time of the pilgrimage
According to this midrash, what does the pilgrimage represent? We find clarification of the idea in Avot d‘Rabbi Natan (Ver. I, Ch. 12) –
He used to say: If you come to My house, I will come to your house.
To the place which my heart loves, that is where my legs carry me.
If you come to My house, I will come to your house. How so?
This refers to people who rise up early and stay late in the synagogues and study halls who are blessed by the Holy One Blessed be He in the next world, as it says: “In every place where I cause My name to be mentioned I will come to you and bless you” (Shemot 20:21).
To the place which my heart loves, that is where my legs carry me. How so?
This refers to people who leave behind their silver and gold and go up on a pilgrimage to welcome the Divine presence in the Temple, and the Holy One Blessed be He guards them in their camps, as it says: “No one will covet your land when you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times a year.”
Avot d‘Rabbi Natan discovers in these verses a motif from Shir HaShirim. The description is one an interrelationship between God and the people of Israel whose foundation is love and longing. The people of Israel are drawn to the synagogues and study halls, which serve as God’s houses. On His part, God desires to come and to bless the people of Israel. At the very time when the people of Israel are coming to visit God as part of their pilgrimage, God is visiting their homes and neighborhoods in order to keep them safe. The longing of the lover for the home of his beloved creates a magical circle of love and warmth, while our own longing awakens those above us.
