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HaAzinu 5779

The retractable flame[1]

אם שנותי ברק חרבי ותאחז במפשט ידי וגו’‏
If I’ll whet My flashing[2] blade and My hand will grasp judgement…[3]

This week’s parsha contains Moshe’s parting song to the people. It contains prophetic insights into the Jewish people’s past, present, and future. Verses that seem merely poetic often convey deep concepts. One verse uses the word ברק to describe Hashem’s “blade”. Some2 explain it to connote “flashing”, but it literally means a bolt of lightning. Consequently, the Sages understand[4] the verse homiletically to be teaching us a unique aspect of Hashem’s power. Normally, when a person shoots an arrow, they are unable to retrieve it. Not so the Holy One, blessed is He. When He shoots an arrow, He is able to retrieve it. We see this because the verse describes His arrow as being a bolt of lightning, which is in His grasp. Besides the homiletical teaching, the verse also provides a resolution to a seeming contradiction apparent in one of the Sages’ opinions.

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Ki Seitzei 5778

A mitzvah drags another mitzvah with it[1]

כי יקרא קן-צפור וגו’ והאם רבצת על-האפרחים או על-הביצים לא-תקח האם על-בנים: שלח תשלח את-האם ואת-הבנים תקח-לך למען ייטב לך והארכת ימים: כי תבנה בית חדש ועשית מעקה לגגך ולא-תשים דמים בביתך כי-יפל הנפל ממנו: לא-תזרע כרמך כלאים וגו’ לא-תחרש בשור-ובחמר יחדו: לא תלבש שעטנז צמר ופשתים יחדו‏
When you chance upon a bird’s nest…and the mother bird is crouched on the chicks or on the eggs, don’t take the mother bird [with]2 the children. [Rather][2], send away the mother bird, and take the children for yourself. This is so it will be good for you and it will lengthen your days. When you build a new house, make a fence for your roof. Don’t place blood in your house, since a person will fall from [the roof without one]. Don’t sow your vineyard with mixed crops…don’t plow [your field] with an ox and donkey together. Don’t wear sha’atnez, [which is] wool and linen together[3]

This week’s parsha contains within it more mitzvos than any other, totaling seventy-three. Sometimes it’s easy to understand why the Torah grouped certain mitzvos together, and other times not as much. There are a series of mitzvos that describe forbidden mixtures in this week’s parsha, and they are understandably grouped together. There is a prohibition on sowing mixed crops together in the same vineyard. There is a prohibition against doing field work with two different animals together. There is a prohibition for our garments to be made of a mixture of wool and linen. However, the mitzvos that precede these mixture-mitzvos seemingly have no connection to what follows them. First, the Torah describes how to interact with a mother bird and her children. If the passerby wants the chicks[4], they have to first send away the mother bird. Subsequently, the Torah commands building a fence on our roof when we get a new house. This will prevent any mishaps from occurring. Afterwards is the above-mentioned mixture-mitzvos. What can we learn from this confusing juxtaposition[5]?

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Eikev 5778

Hashem’s exacting judgement[1]

ובאהרן התאנף יקוק מאד להשמידו ואתפלל גם בעד אהרן בעת ההיא
Hashem became very angry with Aharon, to the point of almost destroying him; I even prayed for Aharon at that time[2]

While Moshe was recounting to the people the sin of the Golden Calf[3], he mentioned his brother Aharon’s complicity in the sin. When Moshe was late returning from Mount Sinai, the people thought he had died. They demanded Aharon make them a deity to worship. Aharon complied, and the Golden Calf was created. In this week’s parsha, we learn that Moshe sensed that Hashem was going to “destroy” Aharon. Rashi explains[4] this means that his children would die. Moshe prayed that Hashem have mercy, despite Aharon’s sins. Hashem complied, allowing two out of four of Aharon’s sons to survive. Only his sons Nadav and Avihu perished, during the inauguration of the Mishkan. However, this explanation is inconsistent with a different one Rashi provides[5]. The Torah describes[6] how a vision of Hashem appeared before the dignitaries[7] of the Jews. This included Aharon’s sons. The verse says that they acted without the proper respect; their sin was so great that they should have died instantly. However, Hashem didn’t feel the time was appropriate, and waited until the inauguration of the Mishkan[8]. If so, they died by their own sin[9]; it wasn’t because of their father’s sin with the Golden Calf. How can these two statements be reconciled[10]?

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Balak 5778

Personalized rebuke[1]

ותאמר האתון אל-בלעם הלא אנכי אתונך אשר-רכבת עלי מעודך עד-היום הזה ההסכן הסכנתי לעשות לך כה ויאמר לא
The donkey said to Bilaam: “Am I not your donkey which you have ridden upon from when you first started[2] until now? Have I ever been in the habit[3] of doing this to you?” [Bilaam] replied: “No”[4]

As the wicked gentile prophet Bilaam was on his way to curse the Jewish people, an Angel of Hashem blocked his path[5]. He could not sense the Angel, unlike the donkey he was riding on. As the donkey kept trying to change course, Bilaam hit it. A miracle happened, and his donkey spoke to him. She asked him why he would hit it. This donkey had served him faithfully all these years, and surely this change in behavior was for some yet-unknown reason. Bilaam couldn’t deny the donkey’s logic. Chazal note[6] that there are two instances in the Torah were a person was rebuked and became speechless; they had no way to respond. These instances are to teach us to heed the final day of judgement, where Hashem will show us our failings, and we will be unable to respond. The first instance is with Yosef and his brothers[7]. Despite having his brothers sell him to slavery, Yosef became the viceroy in Egypt. When he finally revealed his identity to them, they were speechless. The second is with Bilaam and his donkey. When Chazal teach this lesson, they phrase it in a strange way. They say that when Hashem will rebuke us, He will do so in a manner that is in accordance to each person. What does this phrase mean?

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Chukas 5778

The mystery of the red heifer[1]

וידבר יקוק אל-משה ואל אהרן לאמר: זאת חקת התורה אשר-צוה יקוק לאמר דבר אל-בני ישראל ויחקו אליך פרה אדומה תמימה וגו’‏
Hashem spoke to Moshe and Aharon, saying: “This is the decree of the Torah, that Hashem commanded to say: ‘Tell the Jewish people to take towards you a perfectly[2] red heifer’”[3]

The Torah teaches us[4] about the laws of spiritual impurity caused by contact with the dead. There is a single remedy for a person to purify themselves: the ashes of a perfectly red heifer. The Torah details its preparation, and how and when it is applied to a person. We are taught that this mitzvah is the prototypical chok, or decree, from Hashem. This category of mitzvos are those to which the underlying reasoning alludes us. What is the chok of the red heifer? All those who prepare and apply the ashes of the red heifer become spiritual impure, whereas the person who is treated with them becomes pure[5]. How could these two opposites coexist? This is something only[6] Moshe understood fully[7], until the End of Days when its secrets will be revealed to all[8]. For us now, it is viewed as a chok; something we have to accept and await the day when we will finally understand it[9]. One could ask a basic question on this idea: since the red heifer does in fact have an underlying reason, why is it eluded from us? Why reveal it only to Moshe, especially since it will eventually be explained to everyone[10]?

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Acharei Mos-Kedoshim 5778

Blessings from the Almighty[1]

ובשנה הרביעת יהיה כל-פריו קודש הלולים ליקוק
In the fourth year, all of its fruit will be holy; a praise[2] to Hashem[3]

A Rabbinic enactment which is very comprehensive is that of berachos, or blessings[4]. We are required to make a beracha before and after we eat[5]. There are berachos before performing a mitzvah[6]. There are berachos of praise upon experiencing certain events[7], or witnessing certain sights[8]. There are berachos that are part of the daily prayers[9]. Chazal, when they created this enactment, had a basis for their invention. The gemarra asks[10] what that basis was, and one answer given is a verse in this week’s parsha. The Torah, when describing the mitzvah of orlah, the fruit of a new tree, says that the fruit is off-limits for the first three years of its growth. In the fourth year, the fruit becomes sanctified, and is to be eaten exclusively in Jerusalem[11]. The Torah describes the celebration of eating this fruit as a “praise to Hashem”. Chazal saw in this the concept that before one eats, they should make a beracha, which is a form of praise to Hashem[12]. One can ask, why of all places is this where the Torah hints to the concept of berachos? Why not anywhere else? There are other instances where the Torah describes eating food[13]…

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Vayikra 5778

In the merit of the children[1]

ויקרא אל-משה וידבר יקוק אליו מאהל מועד לאמר

[Hashem] called to out to Moshe; Hashem spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying[2]

The first verse in the book of Leviticus tells us that Hashem called out to Moshe from the Tent of meeting. He was going to teach him the laws of the Temple offerings. Hashem’s voice emanated from between the Keruvim, the Angel-like statues on top of the Aron HaKodesh, the Holy Ark[3]. Only Moshe could hear the voice of Hashem, and only until the entrance of the Tent of Meeting[4]. The verse which introduces this idea is written unusually: the א of ויקרא is written small, making it look like the word ויקר. This implies Hashem happened upon Moshe; it indicates a lack of intent. There are many suggestions given as to why the Torah wrote this word this way[5]. The following is a unique approach.

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Vayakhel – Pekudei 5778

The power of scoffing[1]

אלה פקודי המשכן משכן העדת אשר פקד על-פי משה וגו’‏
These are the accountings of the Mishkan, the Mishkan of testimony, which was commanded by Moshe…[2]

The Midrash asks[3]: why was there a need for Moshe to make an accounting of the materials of the Mishkan? Moshe is described by Hashem[4] as “trustworthy in my entire house”. Surely there couldn’t be any suspicion that he had taken anything for himself. Unfortunately, there was. Moshe overheard some scoffers speaking badly about him[5]. One was saying: “look how fat his neck is”[6]. His friend responded: “what else do you expect from the one who was in charge of the Mishkan?” They were suspicious of Moshe’s wealth, and inferred he had stolen from the donations to the Mishkan. When Moshe heard this, he immediately made an accounting of the materials, to show that nothing was missing.

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Mishpatim / Shekalim 5778

Seeking refuge[1]

ואשר לא צדה והאלקים אנה לידו ושמתי לך מקום אשר ינוס שמה
If he didn’t plan to kill [his victim], but G-d caused it to happen, then I will provide for you a place for [the killer] to find refuge[2]

There is a law in the Torah[3] that someone who unintentionally kills another Jew, must be exiled to one of the six cities of refuge in the land of Israel. This serves two purposes: to protect the killer from the vengeance of the deceased’s family[4], who will find it difficult to not take the law into their own hands, and to provide a spiritual atonement for this accidental sin[5]. However, this exile isn’t necessarily forever. It’s until the death of the Kohen Gadol. Once he dies, the inadvertent killer goes free[6]. These cities of refuge only protect the killer when all six cities are established[7]. Moshe, towards the end of his life, established the three cities on the other side of the Jordan River[8]. He knew he wouldn’t merit to enter the land of Israel proper to finish the job; nevertheless, he didn’t refrain from starting the mitzvah[9]. Yehoshua, his successor, after fourteen years of conquest and dividing the land of Israel, established the final three[10]. It comes out from this that for those fourteen years, someone who accidentally killed another, had no safe haven. They were vulnerable that whole time. Why didn’t the Torah provide them refuge as well[11]?

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Beshalach 5778

Armed with good deeds[1]

…וחמשים עלו בני-ישראל מארץ מצרים
…and the Jews left from the land of Egypt “chamushim”[2]

Shortly after the Jews had begun their Exodus from Egypt, the Torah uses an unusual word to describe them. It says the Jews left חמושים, “chamushim“. The commentators[3] explain that the simple meaning of this word means “armed”. They were going to encounter many battles in the future, and they had to bring the proper provisions. However, the Targum Yerushalmi[4] explains the word “armed” metaphorically. It says that they were armed with “good deeds”. In a completely different manner, Targum “Yonasan”[5] explains that the verse is telling us that each the 600,000 Jewish men between twenty and sixty[6] had with them five children[7]. This is based on the fact that the root of the word חמושים is חמש (five). However, both of these explanations have many difficulties.

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