"G‑d's angel appeared in the heart of a fire in the midst of a thorn-bush. He [Moses] looked and saw that the bush was on fire but the bush was not being consumed. He said, 'I must turn [from here to there] and see why…'." (Ex. 3:2-3)

"In the midst of a thorn-bush": G‑d revealed himself in a thorn-bush to teach Moses that G‑d is everywhere, even in a thorn-bush. The harmful and annoying thorns of the thorn-bush symbolize evil. G‑d thus taught Moses that He is present in everything, even evil. This belief is essential in the struggle to overcome evil.

"…The bush was not being consumed": Allegorically, the lowly thorn bush signifies simple sincere folk, while learned accomplished people are like prodigious fruit trees. Although the simple folk are inferior in their accomplishments, their fiery yearning for G‑d is never consummated; in this sense, they are spiritually superior to those who can be justifiably satisfied with their accomplishments but therefore prone to complacency.

...he would have to recognize the intrinsic value of the simple folk….

By appearing to Moses in a thorn bush, G‑d indicated to him that in order to be a true leader and redeem his people, he would have to recognize the intrinsic value of the simple folk. In order to receive the Torah, which binds finite man to the infinite G‑d, Moses would have to appreciate and teach others to appreciate the unrequited yearning for G‑d that only simple folk demonstrate so eloquently. Because G‑d is infinite, no matter how spiritually accomplished we may be, there will always be uncharted realms for us to traverse in our journey to Him. True appreciation for the infinite nature of G‑d and His Torah is therefore reflected in our appreciation of and desire to emulate the unquenchable thirst for G‑d evinced by the unlettered.

Moses understood this hint and applied it immediately to himself. Not satisfied with all his prior spiritual accomplishments, he was willing to abandon all his preconceived notions of reality in order to understand the anomaly of the burning bush. He said, "Let me turn away from where I am in order to approach there." In response, "when G‑d saw that he had turned aside to look, He called to him from the midst of the bush".

"Let me turn away from where I am in order to approach there": The aspiration implicit in Moses' words is the foundation of any relationship with G‑d. It is what makes us human, i.e. beings that aspire to ascend and transcend in both intellectual depth and spiritual self-refinement. It enables us to access our innate and infinite potentials.

By showing Moses the burning bush, G‑d also revealed another aspect of the limitless nature of the Torah to him….

By showing Moses the burning bush, G‑d also revealed another aspect of the limitless nature of the Torah to him.

Moses knew that, spiritually, leaving the shackles of Egypt would mean transcending limited reality and connecting to the infinity of G‑d. But he assumed that if someone would experience the infinite fire of G‑dly yearning he would be consumed by it, for an experience of such magnitude should logically be more than a finite being can bear. On the other hand, he also assumed that those who succumb to the fire of passion and lust for earthly indulgences should also be consumed by it. Establishing an unbounded relationship with G‑d would therefore seem to lead to absurd consequences: the righteous would leave the world and the wicked would be locked in their wickedness.

G‑d therefore showed Moses the burning bush that was not consumed. The Torah he would receive and transmit to his people would enable the righteous to balance their ecstasy with devotion to G‑d's purpose here on earth, and thus enable them to withstand the inertia driving them out of the body. It would also reveal the infinite holy potential within even the most wicked of people, enabling them to refocus their lives at any time and transform their worldly fire into holy, divine fire.

[Adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky from on Sefer HaMaamarim 5704 p. 112, 148; Or HaTorah, p. 66; Keter Shem Tov, addendum 14; Sefer HaSichot 5702, pp. 46-47; Likutei Diburim I, p. 193
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