God: The Prosecutor or the Defense Attorney?

Was God being merciful or strict in meting out punishment to Miriam? Why is it that the roles seem to be reversed here, as opposed to so many other biblical narratives?

God is typically the taciturn judge, whose mercy has to be piqued. As Avraham pours his heart out praying for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, God gives pithy brusque answers. When Moshe prays to enter the land, at some point God says, "You've prayed enough," denying his request. 

The biblical model more than anything seems to be fire and brimstone, the existential imperative being for man to beseech God to no more and no less than get down from the tree, temper His anger, and cool His "flared nostrils," so that man can be worthy of God's blessing. 

Why is it then, that in the case of Miriam God seems to become the defense attorney? Moshe seems to expect the worst - the death penalty. Leprosy has literally in Aharon's words, consumed her whole body. Moshe implores God, “O God, please heal her!”

And then, God puts on the hat of mercy, and Himself seeks clemency. "For her sake," He says, "having been demeaned by her father, would she not need a week's time to recuperate. Can we settle on seven days outside of the encampment?" Perhaps, I gave myself a little poetic license, but in fact our sages seem to learn from Miriam a vital principle, when meting out judgment, seek the most minimalistic, and least far-reaching application of judgment, so as to be lenient: Dayo lavo min hadin! When learning something a fortiori, go for the "Law of Parsimony." The logical mind is meant to help, and not hinder, to ease and assuage, and not pain. 

Any why is it that from Miriam we learn this vital principle? Because she herself exercised it in her dealings. She was the one who said to her father, "You went to far!" 

"You," she told her father, Amram, "have separated from our mother, declaring death not only on the unborn boys, but also the unborn girls," and for that, from her - and only from her, can we learn the compassionate love inherent in using the logical mind, our logos, to better the world, logos and pathos dovetailing, becoming one. 

Shabbat shalom,

Yoav

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