The Choseness of the Land of Israel

You should rid the Land (of its inhabitants and then) you should settle in it, for I have given you the Land to occupy it.

What does verse 53 teach us?

Rashi: "You shall rid the Land"—you should rid it of its inhabitants, and then: "You should settle in it"—only then will you be able to survive there. But if not, you will not be able to survive there.

Ramban: In my opinion, this verse conveys a positive command of the Torah... that G‑d commanded the Jewish people to settle in the Land of Israel... Thus we find that our Sages greatly praised the mitzvah of living in the Land of Israel and the prohibition of leaving it. It is in this verse that the mitzvah is conveyed.

Megilas Esther: Rambam clearly did not agree with Ramban that it is a mitzvah from the Torah to live in the Land of Israel, as he omitted this precept from his Sefer Hamitzvos. Presumably, Rambam maintained that verse 53 was a command to Moshe and Yehoshua, which was only in force until the Jewish people were exiled from the Land, but not to all future generations until Mashiach will come (commentary on Ramban's "omissions" from Sefer Hamitzvos, positive 4).

Rambam: [9] One should not emigrate from the Land of Israel, except for the purposes of studying Torah or in order to get married... so, too, one may leave for the purposes of business. However, one may not leave on a permanent basis... [10] The Sages would kiss the ground of the Land of Israel, and kiss its rocks and roll on its earth... [11] Our Sages said that any person who lives in the Land of Israel will be forgiven for his sins... even if he walks four cubits there, he will merit life in the World to Come. So, too if a person is buried there, he is atoned for... [12] A person should always live in the Land of Israel, even in a town which is mainly inhabited by non-Jews, rather than live in the Diaspora in a town which is predominantly Jewish. If a person leaves [the Land of Israel] to go to the Diaspora, it is as if he worshiped idols, as the verse states, "For they have driven me this day from abiding with the inheritance of G‑d, saying, go serve other G‑ds" (Sam. I 26:19). Just as one may not emigrate from the Land to the Diaspora, so too one may not emigrate from Babylon in order to live in another country, as the verse states (Jer. 27:22), "They will be carried to Babylon, and there they will be" (Laws of Kings, 5:9-12).

The Rebbe's Teachings

"You Should Settle in It" (v. 53)

Even though Rambam (and Rashi) disagree with the view of Ramban, and maintain that it is not a biblical command to live in the Land of Israel—as Megilas Esther writes—Rambam nevertheless devotes a significant part of his Laws of Kings to praise of living in the Land.

Rambam's words prompt a number of questions:

1. Rambam does not cite any verse from the Torah to prove that there is an obligation to live in the Land or that there is a prohibition to leave. Nevertheless, he does write that according to Torah a Jew should live in the Land of Israel and should not leave. What, then, is the basis of this requirement?
2. The sequence of laws here is difficult to understand. First, in law 9, Rambam writes, "One should not emigrate from the Land of Israel, etc." Then, in laws 10 and 11, he describes the great qualities of the Land and how it was cherished by the Sages. And only afterwards, in law 12, does he write, "A person should always live in the Land of Israel, etc." But surely it would be more logical to place this last statement ("A person should always live in the Land of Israel") at the beginning, and then go on to describe how one should not leave and how the Land is great?
3. Why does Rambam write, "Just as one may not emigrate from the Land to the Diaspora," instead of, "one may not emigrate from the Land of Israel to the Diaspora"? Surely, he is not merely trying to be brief, as he has written "the Land of Israel" in full so many other times?
4. One of the reasons for the prohibition of leaving Babylon is "because there are many Yeshivos (Talmudic academies) found there which are constantly strengthening the institution of Torah" (Rashi, end of Kesubos). Presumably, this would mean that after the Yeshivos in Babylon closed down, the prohibition of leaving ceased. However, Rambam does not mention this point at all. His sole proof is from the verse, "They will be carried to Babylon," which suggests that the prohibition of leaving Babylon continued after its Yeshivos closed. What, then, is the basis of Rambam's position?

The Explanation

When we speak of the uniqueness of the Land of Israel, we always speak of its holiness. We call it the Holy Land, and we understand that holiness is the key distinguishing quality which sets it apart from all other lands. However, there is a further uniqueness of the Land of Israel: that it is a land that was chosen by G‑d: "The Land of Israel is cherished, as it was chosen by G‑d" (Midrash Tanchuma, Re'eh 8). This is totally distinct from the concept of holiness. We find this also true of the Jewish people, that the Jewish people also possess the two independent qualities of holiness and chosenness.

Rambam does not state explicitly which of these two qualities is the basis of the laws cited above. But we will attempt to fathom which is the key halachic factor behind each of the above laws, and in this way we will be able to answer all of the above questions.

Let us turn first to the final law, "Just as one may not emigrate from the Land to the Diaspora, so too one may not emigrate from Babylon, etc."

It would seem that this law arises due to the chosenness of the Land, for a number of reasons:

1. Babylon is not a holy land. Therefore, Rambam's comparison between the Land of Israel and Babylon cannot be based on the former's holiness: "Just as one may not emigrate from the Land to the Diaspora, so, too, one may not emigrate from Babylon, etc." Therefore, we must be speaking here of the chosenness of the Land. G‑d chose Babylon as the place where the Jewish people would reside during exile, and so Rambam argues that "just as" G‑d chose the Land of Israel as the ideal place for the Jewish people to live in good times, "so too" He chose Babylon as their home during exile times.
2. To support this assertion, Rambam cites the verse, "They will be carried to Babylon, and there they will be," which indicates that G‑d chose Babylon as an Exile-home for the Jewish people.
3. To stress the point further, Rambam refers not to the "Holy Land," or even "the Land of Israel," but simply, "the Land." In this way, he indicates that we are speaking here of a quality possessed by the Land independent of its holiness, namely, its chosenness.
4. Since the distinctiveness of Babylon was that it was chosen by G‑d, it follows that even after the Yeshivos of Babylon closed, the prohibition of leaving during exile remained (unlike Rashi's view, mentioned above).

From all of this we can conclude that here, in law 12, Rambam is speaking of the chosenness of the Land of Israel, and not its holiness.

Now, let us turn to the beginning of this section of Rambam. In laws 10-11, Rambam describes how the Sages cherished the Land and how it can atone for sin, which can only be a result of the Land's holiness. Therefore, it follows that when he opens the section with the words, "One should not emigrate from the Land of Israel, etc." (law 9), he is speaking of a prohibition that arises from the holiness of the land (not its chosenness).

We have now established that laws 9-11 speak of the holiness of the Land of Israel, and that the concluding part of law 12 (the prohibition of leaving Babylon) is speaking of chosenness. However, the opening passage of law 12 gives evidence in both directions.

Rambam begins, "A person should always live in the Land of Israel... If a person leaves [the Land of Israel] to go to the Diaspora, it is as if he worshiped idols." This suggests that by leaving the Land, one is turning away from the Divine Presence (Shechinah) which rests there, i.e., one is rejecting the holiness of the Land. However, the fact that Rambam quotes the verse, "for they have driven me this day from abiding with the inheritance of G‑d," suggests that we are speaking here of chosenness.

Thus, it appears that Rambam perceives both elements here, and rules that a Jew should live in the Land of Israel for both reasons: because it is holy and because it is chosen.

To stress this point further, he places this law ("A person should always live in the Land of Israel") not at the beginning of the entire discussion, where it would seem to belong, but in between the discussion of the holiness of the Land (laws 9-11) and the chosenness of Babylon (end of law 12) to show that the Land of Israel possesses both aspects.

Nevertheless, in the final analysis, the fact that Rambam includes the recommendation to live in Eretz Yisra'el in law 12 (which speaks of chosenness) would suggest that, ultimately, he perceives that the main reason that a Jew should live in Eretz Yisra'el is because it is chosen.

(Based on Likutei Sichos vol. 18, p. 399ff.)