5753

“And Moshe stood in the gate of the camp and he said (called out) whoever is with Hashem (should come) to me!” (32:26)

As a young man, Horav S. Schwab, z.l., had the occasion to spend a Shabbos with the Chofetz Chaim, z.l., On Friday morning, the Chofetz Chaim questioned him regarding his lineage, whether he was a Kohen or a Levi. Horav Schwab responded in the negative. The Chofetz Chaim remarked, “What a pity! Moshiach is coming, and the Bais Hamikdash will be rebuilt. If you are not a Kohen, you will be unable to perform the Avodah, priestly service.” The Chofetz Chaim continued, “Do you know why? Because 3,000 years ago, during the incident of the Golden Calf, when Moshe called…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5753, Ki Sisa

“And it came to pass when he came near to the camp, that he saw the calf and (the) dancing that Moshe’s anger arose, and he threw from his hands the Luchos and he broke them.” (32:19)

We must endeavor to understand what transpired when Moshe approached the camp that precipitated his angry reaction. Did he not already know the extent of Bnei Yisrael‘s transgression? The Abarbanel questions Moshe’s intentions in bringing the Luchos down only in order to break them. He responds that Moshe desired to accentuate Bnei Yisrael’s travesty and its consequences. Therefore, he broke the Luchos blatantly in front of them. The text, however, seems to imply that it was only after Moshe “came near” the camp and actually saw their conspicuous transgression that he reacted in such an intense manner. We may also…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5753, Ki Sisa

“And Hashem spoke to Moshe… go descend, for your people have become corrupt… they made for themselves a Golden Calf… and Hashem said to Moshe: I have seen these people and behold they are a stubborn people… and now leave Me be and let Me vent My anger and annihilate them.” (32:7,8,9,10)

The Torah lists the sins transgressed by Bnei Yisrael. They corrupted themselves, and they made a Golden Calf. They replaced service to a Divine G-d with the worship of a molten image. Hashem did not choose to destroy them, however, for these sins. Only after they are described as an obstinate people does Hashem seek to decimate them. Horav Meir Chadash, z.l., notes that stubbornness is an evil which must be totally eradicated. Obstinacy, by its very nature, is the antithesis of free will. One who doggedly refuses to accept guidance and reproach, who continues upon his chosen path of…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5753, Ki Sisa

“And they arose early on the morrow, and they offered burnt offerings, and they brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they rose up to (play) make merry.” (32:6)

The Golden Calf incident was Am Yisrael‘s first deviation from the Torah path. This was the first time that Bnei Yisrael supported ideals antithetical to Torah values. The relationship between the ideology of these historical sinners and their actions is typical of those who have espoused distorted thinking throughout the generations. The visions and their behavioral consquences are the same today. It is only the names and places which have changed. Horav Y. Galinsky, Shlita, notes the progressive deterioration of Bnei Yisrael’s values from the sequence of events portrayed by the pasuk. First it states, “They offered burnt offerings.”…

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YEARS

“And Moshe stood in the gate of the camp and he said (called out) whoever is with Hashem (should come) to me!” (32:26)

“And it came to pass when he came near to the camp, that he saw the calf and (the) dancing that Moshe’s anger arose, and he threw from his hands the Luchos and he broke them.” (32:19)

“And Hashem spoke to Moshe… go descend, for your people have become corrupt… they made for themselves a Golden Calf… and Hashem said to Moshe: I have seen these people and behold they are a stubborn people… and now leave Me be and let Me vent My anger and annihilate them.” (32:7,8,9,10)

“And they arose early on the morrow, and they offered burnt offerings, and they brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they rose up to (play) make merry.” (32:6)

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