5775

אלה תותדות אהרן ומשה

These are the offspring of Moshe and Aharon. (3:1)

The pasuk opens by stating that the following are the offspring of both Moshe and Aharon, but fails to mention Moshe’s children. Indeed, the Talmud Sanhedrin 19b wonders why the sons of Aharon HaKohen are considered to be the sons of Moshe Rabbeinu as well. This teaches, explain Chazal, that one who teaches his friend’s children Torah is considered as if he had begotten them. Since Moshe taught Torah to Aharon’s sons, he is considered to have been their spiritual father. The text of the Talmud is: Kol ha’melamed es ben chaveiro Torah, maaleh alav ha’kasuv k’ilu yoldo – “As…

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איש על דגלו באתת לבית אבתם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Bamidbar

Each man by his banner according to the insignias of his father’s household. (2:2)

Each of the three-tribe formations was distinguished by a distinctively-colored banner which included the tribal colors of each of its three tribes. Horav Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky, zl, explains this pasuk homiletically. While it is undoubtedly important that a person follow in the footsteps of his forebears (concerning: nusach ha’tefillah, version of one’s prayer service; specific customs and traditions, and perspective on Jewish life), one should never be satisfied with just “following”; rather, he should be “a man” in his own right: forging his own path, developing his own perspective; innovating his own customs. It is our function to augment the…

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אך את מטה לוי לא תפקוד ואת ראשם לא תשא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Bamidbar

But you shall not count the tribe of Levi, and you shall not take a census of them. (1:49)

Shevet Levi, the tribe of Levi, had proven their fidelity to Hashem during– and after– the sin of the Golden Calf. This earned them the appellation ligyono shel Melech, the legion of the King/Hashem, which was an elevated status. This new status warranted them being counted separately and differently from the rest of the nation. While the rest of the nation was counted from the age of twenty-years old, Shevet Levi was counted as infants, thirty days and older. In commenting on Rashi’s statement: “It is appropriate that the King’s legion be counted alone,” Sifsei Chachamim writes that this is…

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לבני יוסף לבני אפרים תולדתם למשפחתם לבית אבתם במספר שמת

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Bamidbar

For the sons of Yosef: For the sons of Ephraim, their offspring according to their families, according to their fathers’ households, by number of the names. (1:32)

Interestingly, in the previous mention of Yosef’s sons/tribes, the Torah (ibid 1:10) writes, “To the sons of Yosef… to Ephraim… to Menashe.” In this pasuk, however, the Torah adds the word l’vnei, “To the sons of Ephraim.” It seems as if the Torah does not record Ephraim’s sons as part of Yosef’s genealogy. By adding, “to the sons of,” there appears to be a break, indicating that Ephraim has his own distinction. The Baal HaTurim explains that Yosef did not participate in carrying the coffin of his father, Yaakov Avinu, because he was a melech, king. Out of respect for…

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ויתילדו על משפחתם לבית אבתם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Bamidbar

And they established their genealogy according to their families, according to their father’s household. (1:18)

The census was performed according to tribe. Thus, the people had to establish, either by written proof or valid testimony, that they belonged to a given tribe. Sforno explains that this strict requirement of family purity was based upon the need for the merit of their forefathers, which would protect them later on during their sojourn in the wilderness. Chazal teach that, when the nations of the world heard that Hashem had given His precious Torah to Klal Yisrael, they became envious. Why the Jews – and not them? Why were the Jews more worthy of receiving the Torah than…

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איש ראש לבית אבתיו הוא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5775, Bamidbar

A man who is a leader of his father’s household. (1:4)

The census was taken with the participation of the leader of each tribe, an individual who was acutely aware of the lineage of each of the members of his tribe. In a homiletic rendering of this pasuk, the commentators say that the ish, man, who became the tribe’s rosh, leader, should have achieved this position on his own personal accomplishments. It should not be the result of his avosav, ancestors. One must be deserving by virtue of his own merit. Pedigree is a wonderful quality; illustrious lineage is meritorious, but only if it augments an already distinguished individual who has…

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YEARS

אלה תותדות אהרן ומשה

These are the offspring of Moshe and Aharon. (3:1)

איש על דגלו באתת לבית אבתם

Each man by his banner according to the insignias of his father’s household. (2:2)

אך את מטה לוי לא תפקוד ואת ראשם לא תשא

But you shall not count the tribe of Levi, and you shall not take a census of them. (1:49)

לבני יוסף לבני אפרים תולדתם למשפחתם לבית אבתם במספר שמת

For the sons of Yosef: For the sons of Ephraim, their offspring according to their families, according to their fathers’ households, by number of the names. (1:32)

ויתילדו על משפחתם לבית אבתם

And they established their genealogy according to their families, according to their father’s household. (1:18)

איש ראש לבית אבתיו הוא

A man who is a leader of his father’s household. (1:4)

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