Miriam, Aaron & Moshe
In Miriam's merit, G-d provided the Children of Israel with water from a well which accompanied them in their travels for the entire 40-year period of their wanderings through the wilderness. The Jews were also protected by the "clouds of glory" which surrounded them wherever they went, in the merit of Aaron, Moses' brother. This week's Torah portion, Chukat, tells of the passing of Miriam and how the well which G-d had given the Jews in her merit ceased to flow when she died.
The Torah relates that the Children of Israel came to Moses and Aaron and complained about this. G-d then made the well flow once more, this time in the merit of Moses.
If we skip ahead a little bit to the passing of Aaron, we see that a similar hue and cry did not erupt when the clouds of glory were taken away. These clouds, it would seem, were no less necessary to the Jews in the wilderness than the well, for they protected them from the sun and from the harsh desert winds, paved the way before them, killed the poisonous snakes and scorpions, and showed them in which direction they were to travel. Why was this not protested as vociferously as the removal of Miriam's well?
Our Sages say there were, in actuality, two different kinds of clouds which accompanied the Jews. One kind protected them from the dangerous elements, and the other type, the "clouds of glory," were solely for the purpose of "glory" - to demonstrate the honor and esteem in which the Children of Israel were held by G-d. The latter type of clouds were the ones which ceased after Aaron's death, never to return. The clouds which were necessary for the Jews' well-being in the desert were never taken away and continued to protect them as before. The Jews did not protest after Aaron passed away because they did not need those clouds of glory for their physical survival in the desert.
The question remains: If G-d made Miriam's well flow again in the merit of Moses, why did He not restore the clouds of glory which were removed after Aaron passed away? Was Moses not great enough to merit this as well?
G-d provided the well and the clouds of glory because of Miriam's and Aaron's personal merits. When they passed away the miracles they had merited logically also ceased to be. This was not the case, however, with Moses, the shepherd of the Jewish People, who cared for the needs of his flock. When the Children of Israel required something, Moses was there to provide it, not because of his personal merit, which was obviously great, but because it was needed by them.
That is why the well was restored, while the clouds of glory were not. The people needed to drink, but did not actually need the clouds, which were only in their honor. Moses, in his role as leader of the Jewish people, made sure that the Jews would not suffer from lack of water.
We also see from this the greatness of a true leader of Israel, whose concern lies only in providing the spiritual and physical needs of the Jewish people. Moses' devotion was so great, our Sages say, that the Jews continued to eat the manna, which fell in his merit, for 14 years after he himself passed away.
Adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.
