Ha’azinu – Page 4 – Peninim on the Torah

האזינו השמים ואדברה ותשמע הארץ אמרי פי. וערףכמטר לקחי תיזל כטל אמרתי כשעירים עלי דשא וכרבבים עלי עשב

Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; And may the earth hear the words of my mouth. May my teaching drop like the rain, may my utterance flow like the dew; like storm winds upon vegetation and like raindrops upon blades of grass. (32:1,2)

Horav Yaakov Moshe Charlop, zl, observes the reality of two students of the same ability and similar qualities entering a yeshivah program; they remain in the yeshivah the same length of time, both studying diligently. Yet, one emerges as a gadol b’Yisrael, Torah giant, while the other one leaves as a learned Jew, fully proficient in Torah erudition, but does not achieve gadlus, greatness, in Torah. What is the difference between them? The rav explains that it is all dependent upon one’s ability to attend. The more attention one pays to a subject, the more he throws himself into a…

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הצור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Ha'azinu

The Rock! His works are flawless, for all His ways are just. (32:4)

People go through life living a dream – a dream that allows them to believe that they can get away with what they wish. They are granted free will, so that they may choose whatever lifestyle suits their fancy. They even begin to think that Hashem does not frown upon what they do. Proof positive is that nothing happens to them. No bolt of lightning strikes them when they bite into a succulent portion of non-kosher food. They blatantly desecrate the holy Shabbos – seemingly with impunity. If Hashem really cares, why does He not do something about it? Apparently,…

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קל אמונה ואין עול צדיק וישר הוא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Ha'azinu

A G-d of faithfulness without injustices; He is righteous and upright. (32:4)

Our inability to see beyond the parameters of our eyesight is the reason that people have questions concerning the manner in which Hashem guides the world. As human beings we have limited eyesight, and, our ability to understand His ways is, likewise, stunted. We understand neither why bad things happen to good people, nor who really is good and who is not. For that matter, can we really define good things? The following story regarding the birth of Rav Aharon Karliner, zl, founder of the Karlin-Stolin dynasty, should engender a good feeling within us, especially on this, the first Shabbos…

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זכור ימות עולם בינו שנות דור ודור...כי חלק ד' עמו יעקב חבל נחלתו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Ha'azinu

Remember the world history, study the generational epochs…Because (of) Hashem’s His People, Yaakov the cable of his heritage. (32:7,9)

One would conjecture that the notion that the Jewish People have a unique relationship with Hashem, that Yaakov and his descendants represent chevel nachalaso, the cable of His heritage, is a matter of emunah, faith. As Jews, we believe from our very entrance into cogency that Hashem has chosen us and that we are different as a result of this Divine selection. Horav Yeruchem Levovitz, zl, posits that the pasuk is teaching us otherwise. Our extraordinary relationship with Hashem is not a matter of faith; rather it is a matter of history. If we peruse the annals of history, we…

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כי לא דבר רק היא מכם כי הוא חייכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Ha'azinu

For it is not an empty thing for you; for it is your life. (32:47)

When the Torah writes that the Torah is the life source of the Jew, it is not meant to be a cliché. It means exactly what it says. A parent may often tell a child, “You are my life,” but, despite the enormous amount of affection the parent seeks to convey with this statement, the parent’s life and existence is not contingent upon the child. Not so the Torah, which is perfectly exacting in everything it says. If the pasuk says that Torah is our life – then it is the entire source of our existence. Without Torah, we are…

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האזינו השמים ואדברה... זכור ימות עולם... כי ידין ד' עמו ועל עבדיו יתנחם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5774, Ha'azinu

Give ears, O’ Heavens, and I will speak… Remember the days of yore… when Hashem will have judged His People, He shall relent regarding His servants. (32:1,7,36)

Two themes seem to stand out throughout Shiras Ha’azinu, The Song of Ha’azinu. First, Chazal refer to this sketch of history as a song. Horav Gedalyah Schorr, zl, explains the concept of song with regard to Jewish history. A song implies the concept of harmony. This means that all elements of an orchestra, a musical score with its high and low notes, all the voices of a choir work together in total harmony, creating a perfect and pleasant sound. Likewise, we recognize that all of the elements of the universe fuse together in carrying out G-d’s Will. From a historical…

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הצור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט קל אמונה ואין עול צדיק וישר הוא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5774, Ha'azinu

The Rock! – Perfect is His work, for all His paths are justice; A G-d of faith without iniquity, righteous and fair is He. (32:4)

The term tamim, perfect, is a reference to the totality of Hashem’s work – the big picture. Individual life is part of a large puzzle with countless pieces of all shapes and sizes, representing good fortune, failure, joy and sadness, tragedy and celebration. When these are all factored together by Hashem, everything fits in perfectly. Human cognition is limited; thus, we are able to grasp very little. If it makes sense to the human mind, it is good. If it does not make sense, it is not good. This is the human way of understanding a situation. It sees the…

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וישמן ישרון ויבעט

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5774, Ha'azinu

Yeshurun waxed fat, and rebelled. (32:15)

The pasuk implies that wealth is the source of Klal Yisrael’s rebellion, indicating that prosperity may not contribute to a strong spiritual balance. It is almost as if wealth is a curse, not a blessing. Yet, two pesukim earlier the Torah tells us that we will be blessed with material abundance: Yarkiveihu al bamesei aretz, va’yochal tenuvos sadai, “He shall cause them to ride the high places of the Land and eat the produce of its fields” (ibid. 32:13). Klal Yisrael will enter the land and be greeted with incredible prosperity. Apparently, here prosperity comes across as a blessing. On…

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כי דור תהפכת המה בנים לא אמן בם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5774, Ha'azinu

For they are a generation of reversals, children whose upbringing is not in them. (32:20)

It hurts much more when the troublemaker is “ours.” We read about someone who has committed an act of dishonesty; we are angered. “What kind of person is that? Who could act in such a reprehensible manner?” When the culprit is someone young, we wonder what kind of parents he had; what kind of home he came from; what type of upbringing he had. When the culprit is one of our own – when it is one’s own child, there is anger, hurt, humiliation, and then all of the questions that we would have asked of others we ask ourselves:…

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Sruly Schnair In 5754, Ha'azinu

“Give ear O Heavens and I shall speak, and may the earth hear the words of my mouth.” (32:1)

These words, which begin Shiras Ha’azinu, present the essence of the song of Ha’azinu — as well as the entire Torah, which is compared to a song. What is a song? Horav Gedaliah Shorr z.l. explains that a song suggests something which is completely synchronized, as a song must be the essence of harmony. He notes that in a song, all of the notes of the score of the song, all of the instruments of the orchestra, and all of the voices in the choir join together to create a perfect harmonious blend. Likewise, so do all of the elements…

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האזינו השמים ואדברה ותשמע הארץ אמרי פי. וערףכמטר לקחי תיזל כטל אמרתי כשעירים עלי דשא וכרבבים עלי עשב

Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; And may the earth hear the words of my mouth. May my teaching drop like the rain, may my utterance flow like the dew; like storm winds upon vegetation and like raindrops upon blades of grass. (32:1,2)

הצור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט

The Rock! His works are flawless, for all His ways are just. (32:4)

קל אמונה ואין עול צדיק וישר הוא

A G-d of faithfulness without injustices; He is righteous and upright. (32:4)

זכור ימות עולם בינו שנות דור ודור...כי חלק ד' עמו יעקב חבל נחלתו

Remember the world history, study the generational epochs…Because (of) Hashem’s His People, Yaakov the cable of his heritage. (32:7,9)

כי לא דבר רק היא מכם כי הוא חייכם

For it is not an empty thing for you; for it is your life. (32:47)

האזינו השמים ואדברה... זכור ימות עולם... כי ידין ד' עמו ועל עבדיו יתנחם

Give ears, O’ Heavens, and I will speak… Remember the days of yore… when Hashem will have judged His People, He shall relent regarding His servants. (32:1,7,36)

הצור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט קל אמונה ואין עול צדיק וישר הוא

The Rock! – Perfect is His work, for all His paths are justice; A G-d of faith without iniquity, righteous and fair is He. (32:4)

וישמן ישרון ויבעט

Yeshurun waxed fat, and rebelled. (32:15)

כי דור תהפכת המה בנים לא אמן בם

For they are a generation of reversals, children whose upbringing is not in them. (32:20)

“Give ear O Heavens and I shall speak, and may the earth hear the words of my mouth.” (32:1)

YEARS

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