At the beginning of the parsha there seems to be repetitive words that need explanation. שלח לך אנשים and in the same passuk למטה אבותיו תשלחו . This same passuk has another repeat of איש אחד איש אחד . In passuk 3 the Torah writes וישלח אותם משה על פי ה' as if Hashem commanded so. Yet Rashi says שלח לך אנשים that the extra word לך relates that Hashem was displeased with the idea of sending spies which can easily lead to disaster for Am Yisrael. How then can the Torah write על פי ה' which sounds like a לכתחילה (see Rashi) as we find in the passuk זאת התורה אשר שם משה לפני בנ"י על פי ה' . The passuk says כולם אנשים ראשי בני ישראל המה. What does the phrase כולם אנשים mean? Rashi learns it means that they were חשובים very outstanding individuals. Why does Rashi explain אנשים here but before שלח לך אנשים he says nothing? Secondly, the spies' significant status we already know from before כל נשיא בהם and also from the words right after אנשים that of ראשי בני ישראל המה? What does this title ראשי בני ישראל add on to their already known status of אנשים and נשיא בהם?
Furthermore, there is an argument in the Yerushalmi (Sotah 7,5) between Rabbe Akivah and Rabbe Yishmael. Rabbe Akivah opines that there were 24 Meraglim and he learns it out from the double lashon of איש אחד . Rabbe Yishmael holds that there were only twelve. There are many questions on Rabbe Akiva's interpretation. The Torah only lists twelve names? The Yerushalmi learns from the gezairah shava of עדה that a minyan requires ten people from the 10 Meraglim who spoke bad about Eretz Yisrael who were called an עדה . What does Rabbe Akivah do with this limud if there were 24 Meraglim?
To answer these questions and more to come we will present a fascination explanation from the Ari Hakadosh on the subject of the Meraglim. The Ari writes that the twelve Meraglim were really 24 Meraglim because each one possessed an Ibur Neshamah of the original Shevatim that accompanied them on their spying mission. An Ibbur neshama experience means that a neshamah that either needs tikkun or desires to help one overcome nisyonos attaches to an individual and thereby a tikkun takes place. An Ibbur neshamah can leave any time which is in contrast to a gilgul neshama. The Ari explains reason that the Shevatim had an Ibbur Neshama in the Meraglim for both purposes, in order to correct the aveirah of the Shevatim for selling Yosef to Mitzrayim and to help the present Meraglim fulfill their mission. A support for this interpretation of the Ari is hinted to by the Baal Haturim (Shmos 28,12) where the passuk concerning the Aifod and its two shoulder stonesונשא אהרן את שמותם לפני ה' whereupon the B"H brings a mesorah to connect another passuk to this one (Bamidbar 13,40) ואלה שמותם these are the names of the Meraglim. Even though the B"H interprets this mesorah in his own fashion, the Meloh Haomer writes that the connection between the two pessukim is like the Ari that the Shevatim themselves took part in the Meraglim's mission.
As an Ibbur Neshama, the ten Meraglim were now given an opportunity to correct their past shortcoming with Yosef. As spies they left the Galus and entered Eretz Yisrael which was the opposite of what they did to Yosef to send him from Eretz Yisrael into Galus Mitzrayim. The brothers plotted against Yosef which was deemed ודיבה רעה פה (see Pnei Menachem Emor תשנד). This was the intention of Yosef when he accused his brothers by calling them Meraglim when they descended to Mitzrayim to bring back home food and provisions. Yosef was admonishing them at least subliminally that they still did not fix their lashon hara about him between themselves as if they were constantly spying and conversing about him. The gematriah of מרגלים is הפה והדיבור both which blemish the Tzuras Haadam.
The Pardes Yosef brings that he heard in the name of the Pnei Menachem that Yaakov said to his children (Bereishis 43 12)וכסף משנה קחו בידכם take with you double the previous amount of money that was placed in your sacks for perhaps the prices have increased and return the money that was given… Yaakov heard that they were accused to be Meraglim. In this passuk Yaakov was admonishing them that they must strive to correct this shortcoming of Lashon Harah (if you are accused of something even though you think it doesn't apply to you it needs self-introspection. הרואה סוטה בקלקולה יזיר עצמו מן היין) The gemarah in (Megillah 18) says "A word is worth a selah coin however silence is worth two". Yaakov when he mentioned כסף משנה was referring to this gemarah that states the art of being silent is worth double coins.
The Ari writes that when Yosef called them Meraglim he was also hinting to them that if they do not fix their chatter Lashon Harah which is tantamount to spying and feeding people with information about others, then they will have to return again with an Ibbur Neshama in the bodies of the Meraglim.
Had the Meraglim not sinned by speaking Lashon Harah against Eretz Yisrael and Hashem (13,31 Rashi) they would have brought the bones of Yosef back to Eretz Yisrael and make a tikkun for Mechiras Yosef. Unfortunately only two of the Twelve Meraglim did not speak Lashon Harah Kalev and Yehoshuah. These two are hinted in the words משנה כסף as we mentioned above the two coins that symbolize the power to be silent when necessary. יהושע returned and did not speak at all anything negative about Hashem or Eretz Yisrael. In fact his name יהושע with his letters is gematria משנה (two) with the word. Kalev also had the power of silence for the passuk says concerning when Yisrael were becoming complaintive and rowdy after the Meraglim stirred up the people to rebel, the passuk says ויהס כלב את העם he silenced them all to listen to his positive description of Eretz Yisrael.
Hashem describes them both as (Bamidbar 32,12) כי מלאו אחרי ה' they followed Hashem wholeheartedly. The word מלא means to be full. Yet we can say that the letters of מלא spell אלם which means mute. Chazal say (Chullin 89) what type of craft should a person make for himself in this world? To be a mute. For by doing so he will attain shelaimus. This way he doesn't complain, and refrains from speaking Lashon Harah. Kalev and Yehoshuah were set apart from the rest of Klal Yisrael was they were an אלם during this episode, and personified משנה כסף with the message that Yaakov Avinu lectured to his children.
Now let us return and answer the questions we had in the opening pessukim. The passuk says (13,3) וישלח אתם משה ממדבר פארן על פי ה' כלם אנשים ראשי בני ישראל .המה This that the passuk says על פי ה'"according to Hashem" needs explanation as we mentioned above. The answer is based on the Ari's interpretation. Even though Moshe is sending these twelve אנשים , Hashem is also sending the בני ישראל the actual children of Yaakov the original Shevatim to accompany these Meraglim. This that Rabbe Akivah learns that there were 24 Meraglim he means 12 of which were with a physical body and 24 is the count of neshamos which included the original sons of Yisrael (Yaakov).
The pessukim are therefore addressing and describing two sets of Meraglim that are being sent simultaneously one within the other. It is with this understanding that these pessukim should be interpreted. איש אחד איש אחד the two phrases are referring to the two sets of spies. The first "one man" is talking about a physical person and the second one is referring to an Ibur Neshamah of the Shevet as alluded to in the gematriah of איש which equals שבט. The Torah is telling us that Moshe himself is sending these physical spies איש לבית אבותיו תשלחו כל נשיא בהם, however Hashem is sending along בהםin all of them, נשיא, the words of Yaakov who reprimanded his children to watch over their dibbur and mouths. For the word נשיא is the acronym נשמה של יעקב אבינו .
וישלח אותם משה, על פי ה'. "Moshe sent them" referring to the physical bodies, but על פי ה' is referring to the Ibur Neshamos of the Shevatim whom Hashem sent not only for the sons of Yaakov to have a tikkun for Mechiras Yaakov but also to accompany them to help these new Meraglim fulfill their mission by influencing them with the request of that their father gave to them when they were accused of being Meraglim by Yosef. כולם אנשים is the term referring to the new present Meraglim, on contrast to ראשי בני ישראל המה the heads of the present Meraglim who were the children of Yaakov who is called ישראל who journeyed with them in the form of Ibbur Neshamah.
When the Meraglim returned to the Camp וישובו , the passuk says (Bamidbar 13,26) וילכו ויבואו they went and they came. The word וילכו is superfluous (see Rashi). According to the Ari and Rabbe Akivah that there were 24 Meraglim the word וילכו is referring to the Ibbur Neshamos of Yaakov's children who left the bodies of the Meraglim and went away. The word ויבואו is referring to the bodies of the Meraglim who were now alone from any attachment of another neshamah. When the Ibbur Neshamos sensed that that these Meraglim were planning to make an uproar when they returned to the Camp and foil the plan to go to Eretz Yisrael they left the Meraglim's bodies because of the tumah that was brewing inside. It is similar to the Zohar Hakadosh that says that when a person gets angry his neshama departs from him since his body becomes a place of avodah zarah and the neshama is repulsed from it.
With the interpretation of the Ari we can say an added pshat to the passuk we brought above that praises Yehoshuah and Kalev כי מלאו אחרי ה'. These two who were silent and did not follow all of Yisrael and complain about Hashem, still possessed inside of themselves the Ibbur Neshama of Yaakov's two children. Therefore they are described as מלא full of another neshamah of Yaakov Avinu's two Shevatim giving them a special shelaimus. Hashem always desires a tikkun in Man. When this avenue of tikkun fell apart because of their Lashon Harah another tikkun came about through the .עשרה הרוגי מלכות Hashem does not give up on us. We should also not give up on ourselves. Let us work together to stop the Lashon Harah and bring the Final Geulah in our days אכי"ר.