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Home -> 5776 -> Korach

ויקח קרח

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Korach, 5776

Korach took/separated himself. (16:1)

Korach did not wake up one morning and decide that “today” he was going to dispute Moshe’s leadership, thinking: “Today, I will mutiny against Hashem; today, I will demand that Aharon’s position as Kohen Gadol be transferred to me”. It certainly did not happen that way. Korach’s dissent had been festering for some time. He was biding his time, waiting for the most propitious opportunity in which he would have the greatest success. What was there about “now” that provided Korach with the fortuity for fomenting a successful revolt against our nation’s leadership? Horav Bentzion Firer, zl, suggests that it…

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Home -> Ki Sisa -> 5776

ויאמר ד' אל משה ראיתי את העם הזה והנה עם קשה ערף הוא. ועתה הניחה לי...ואכלם.

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5776, Ki Sisa

Hashem said to Moshe, “I have seen this people, and behold! It is a stiff-necked people. And desist from me…and I shall annihilate them. (32:9,10)

The severity of the chet ha’eigel, sin of the Golden Calf, is beyond description. It represents an egregious rebellion against Hashem, a sin for which we still are paying for to this very day. One would think that, after Hashem related to Moshe Rabbeinu the sequence of events leading up to the sin, He would have addressed the iniquitous sin which the people so flagrantly committed. Idol worship immediately after receiving the Torah was an unpardonable sin. Yet, all Hashem says is that Klal Yisrael is an am kshei oref, stiff-necked people. This is why Hashem is prepared to annihilate…

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Home -> Ki Sisa -> 5776

לחשב מחשבות לעשות בזהב בכסף ובנחשת

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5776, Ki Sisa

To weave designs, to work with gold, silver and copper. (31:4)

The Jewish mind has throughout time proven itself to be extraordinary. While we have a reputation for being gifted with an inordinate level of acumen in proportion with the size of our own nation, it is specifically in the area of commerce, i.e. making money, that our worldly reputation seems to soar and take on a life all of its own. While the Jewish mind shines in all areas of human endeavor — from our primary vocation, Torah study, to the various disciplines of science, mathematics, medicine, law, social services, etc.– one thing all Jews have in common is the…

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Home -> Ki Sisa -> 5776

העשיר לא ירבה והדל לא ימעיט ממחצית השקל

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5776, Ki Sisa

The wealthy shall not increase and the destitute shall not decrease from half a shekel. (30:15)

It is not uncommon for someone who has struck it rich, who has received the blessing of wealth from Hashem, to think that the world belongs to him. While this is certainly not the Torah way, human nature often prevails. It goes so far that one begins to believe that, if he were not deserving of all of this good fortune, he would not be its recipient. Apparently, he is a “good guy,” who is worthy of this blessing. As a result, a baal mamon, one who has been blessed with wealth, becomes a baal gaavah, arrogant and pompous, often…

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Home -> Ki Sisa -> 5776

כי תשא את ראש בני ישראל לפקודיהם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5776, Ki Sisa

When you take a census of Bnei Yisrael according to their numbers. (30:12)

How does one count the Jewish People? We are taught that at the Bris Bein HaBesarim, Covenant of the Parts, Hashem promised Avraham Avinu, “Gaze now, toward the Heavens, and count the stars if you are able to count them…so shall your offspring be!” (Bereishis 15:5) We are not countable – just like the stars. Likewise, it says that the number of Jews will be like the sand of the sea – which also cannot be counted. The Talmud Yoma 22b, distinguishes between a time in which the Jewish People carry out the will of Hashem and a time in…

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Home -> Ki Seitzei -> Uncategorized

זכור את אשר עשה לך עמלק

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Uncategorized, Ki Seitzei, 5776

Remember what Amalek did to you. (25:17)

It is a positive command to blot out the memory of Amalek mitachas ha’Shomayim, from beneath the Heavens. On a purely cursory level, one would be hard-pressed to explain what it was about the war with Amalek that earned him and his descendants the ignominious title of archenemy of the Jews. It is not as if Amalek drowned Jewish babies (as did the Egyptians), bathed in their blood, and subjected our entire nation to captivity and persecution for over two centuries. He attacked us as we commenced our journey to Eretz Yisrael. Definitely not a good thing, but does it…

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Home -> 5776 -> Ki Seitzei

זכור את אשר עשה ד' אלקיך למרים בדרך בצאתכם ממצרים

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Ki Seitzei, 5776

Remember what Hashem, your G-d, did to Miriam on the way, when you were leaving Egypt. (24:9)

Rashi comments: Remember what was done to Miriam who spoke against her brother, Moshe (Rabbeinu) and (as a result) was stricken with tzaraas (spiritual leprosy). Targum Yonasan ben Uziel comments: Take care not to be suspicious of your friend (not to suspect him of wrongdoing). Remember what Hashem, your G-d, did to Miriam because she suspected Moshe of something which was unfounded: she was stricken with tzaraas. Rashi attributes Miriam HaNeviyah’s illness/punishment to speaking ill of Moshe Rabbeinu. Targum Yonasan seems to feel that her shortcoming was in incorrectly suspecting Moshe of a wrongdoing. Horav Kalmen Pinsky, zl, observes (from…

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Home -> 5776 -> Ki Seitzei

ורגמוהו כל אנשי עירו באבנים ומת

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Ki Seitzei, 5776

All the men of his city shall pelt him with stones and he shall die. (21:21)

The ben sorer u’moreh receives the ultimate punishment: execution by stoning. He is put to death while he is still innocent, having not yet committed a sin which carries the penalty of capital punishment. It is better that he should die now as a rebellious glutton, rather than allowing him to be driven by his base desires to plunder and even murder in pursuit of filling his obsessive appetite. The punishment of stoning seems excessive, since, even if our fears for his future evil would be realized – and he would murder – the punishment would still be hereg/sayif, beheading…

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Home -> 5776 -> Ki Seitzei

כי יהיה לאיש בן סורר ומורה... ואמרו אל זקני עירו בננו זה סורר ומורה איננו שמע בקלנו זולל וסובא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Ki Seitzei, 5776

If a man will have a wayward and rebellious son… they shall say to the elders of the city, “This son of ours is wayward and rebellious; he does not listen to our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.” (21:18,20)

The ben sorer u’moreh, wayward and rebellious son, has to be one of Jewish society’s greatest tragedies. A child so evil that his parents bring him to bais din, rabbinical court, where, upon confirmation of his nefarious acts of gluttony and derogation of his parents, he will be executed, is unusual and tragic. His actions indicate a complete lack of restraint necessary to lead an observant and holy life. While this concept is quite difficult for anyone not steeped in Torah to understand, let alone accept, it is primarily due to their not being steeped in Torah that grasping the…

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Home -> 5776 -> Ki Savo

והיו חייך תלואים לך מנגד ופחדת לילה ויומם ולא תאמין בחייך

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Ki Savo, 5776

Your life will hang in the balance, and you will be frightened night and day, and you will not be sure of your livelihood. (28:66)

Blessing and curse are a matter of perspective. Two people can view the same situation through different prisms, allowing them to derive separate conclusions. The Torah writes that, as a result of the nation’s break with Hashem, they will be subject to various curses: “Your life will hang in the balance… you will not be sure of your livelihood.” Rashi explains that Jews will not be sure of their safety. Concerning their livelihoods, they will be forced to subsist on what they can purchase daily. They will never be sure that the markets will not be shut down – in…

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