Sruly Schnair – Page 4 – Peninim on the Torah

וסמכת את ידך עליו

And lean your hand upon him. (27:18)

Part of the transference of leadership from Moshe Rabbeinu to Yehoshua was semichas yadayim, whereby Moshe placed his hands on Yehoshua. Clearly, much more than simple symbolism is involved here. Horav Moshe Feinstein, zl, suggests that it was meant to symbolize that Yehoshua should be attached — and subordinate to — Moshe throughout his life, so that he should direct his mind and focus on the truth that Moshe received from Hashem Himself. Throughout the generations, Rebbe to talmid has conferred semichah, which we translate as ordination, but has a deeper significance. A chain of Torah transmission of the Mesorah…

Home -> -> Balak

תמות נפשי מות ישרים ותהי אחריתי כמוהו

Sruly Schnair In Balak

May my soul die the death of the upright, and my end be like his. (23:10)

How hypocritical can one be? Bilaam, who represents the nadir of depravity, sought to die the death of the upright. He wanted to be like the Avos HaKedoshim, while living a life counterintuitive to everything they represented. On the other hand, Bilaam was no ordinary pagan. He was their greatest prophet, a man who peered in the loftiest spiritual realms, who could articulate blessings of extraordinary depth; yet, he lived a life driven by base desire, ego and moral turpitude. He wanted to die like a tzadik, but he refused to live as one. A tzadik is not defined by…

Home -> 5786 -> Balak

הן עם לבדד ישכן

Sruly Schnair In Balak, 5786

They are a nation unto themselves. (23:9)

The Jews who sinned in Shittim did not have the option to return. Their sin demanded an immediate Heavenly response. Bilaam was well aware of this. He knew that Hashem had forgiven (to an extent) the sin of the Golden Calf. The punishment for the sin of the meraglim, spies, was meted out over the remainder of their journey – albeit they were no longer worthy of entering Eretz Yisrael. What about Shittim claimed their lives? Horav Shimshon Pincus, zl, explains that, as long as the sin/discord remains within the “family,” behind closed doors, no room exists for negotiation. Once…

Home -> 5786 -> Chukas

ותמת שם מרים ותקבר שם

Sruly Schnair In Chukas, 5786

And Miriam died there, and she was buried there. (Bamidbar 20:1)

Miriam HaNeviah is a study in contrasts, a striking paradox of leadership without fanfare. While she is known for her far-from-passive leadership and for her merit in sustaining the nation with water for forty years, she did not seek recognition. Indeed, it is under such tension – true leadership and devotion to truth – that her greatness emerged. Her most outstanding merit, which she manifested time and again, was her unyielding emunah, faith in Hashem. She did not wait for a miracle to buttress her faith. She anticipated it as if it were already a reality. Let us peruse a…

Home -> 5786 -> Korach

ויקח קרח ... ויקהלו על משה ועל אהרן

Sruly Schnair In Korach, 5786

Korach…separated himself…They gathered together against Moshe and against Aharon. (16:1,3)

The controversy Korach initiated against Moshe Rabbeinu serves as the paradigm of a machlokes shelo l’shem Shomayim – a dispute that is not for the sake of Heaven. Korach rebelled against Moshe Rabbeinu and, by extension, against Hashem and His Torah. Chazal teach that such a dispute is destined not to endure, for it is rooted, not in truth, but in ego and self-interest. What is a machlokes? The word is rooted in chelek – a portion, a division. A baal machlokes is one who separates himself from others, creating fragmentation where there should be unity. He does not merely…

Home -> 5786 -> Korach

ויקח קרח

Sruly Schnair In Korach, 5786

Korach separated himself. (16:1)

I had a rebbe in yeshivah who would emphasize to me (more often than I care to admit) that a person who is wearing blue-colored lenses will always see blue. This was his way of telling me that I was looking at things through a distorted, self-serving perspective. The most compelling tragedy of Korach (among the many tragedies of Korach) was not merely the argument that he promoted, but the manner in which he misused the greatness with which he had been endowed. Hashem grants a person gifts: talent, perception, emotional depth, even flashes of Ruach HaKodesh, Divine Inspiration. These…

Home -> 5786 -> Korach

ויקח קרח

Sruly Schnair In Korach, 5786

Korach…separated himself. (16:1)

Machlokes, discord, controversy, is one of the most destructive forces in a person’s life. It does not merely create disagreement – it consumes perspective, distorts judgment, and unravels long-time relationships to the point that it can erode one’s entire quality of life. At the root of the problem is that, in the heat of discord, a person loses himself. It suddenly becomes only about “me.” The need to be right, to win, to prove my point, takes center stage over the truth. It is no longer about clarity, but validation. The individual denigrates the actions of his antagonist, because after…

Home -> 5786 -> Shelach

שלח לך אנשים ויתרו את ארץ כנען

Sruly Schnair In Shelach, 5786

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the Land of Canaan. (13:2)

The Torah introduces the meraglim stating, kulam anashim, “All were men.” Chazal explain anashim as a term reserved for men who are honorable, upright, men of stature. This explanation only intensifies the question that is on everyone’s mind: How did such distinguished personalities err so egregiously? Their reaction and the manner in which they later riled up the nation led to the people’s ultimate exclusion from entering Eretz Yisrael, transforming that night – the Ninth of Av – into our national day of mourning. If these men were such kesheirim, men of integrity, how did they fall so catastrophically? I…

Home -> 5786 -> Shelach

שלח לך אנשים ויתרו את ארץ כנען

Sruly Schnair In Shelach, 5786

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the Land of Canaan. (13:2)

Rashi notes the juxtaposition of the meraglim debacle upon the story with Miriam in which she spoke against Moshe Rabbeinu. She spoke negatively of her brother, underscoring his departure from his wife’s tent. He did not know when Hashem would summon him; thus, he must always be prepared. Miriam looked askance at this behavior, feeling it was not fair to Tziporah, Moshe’s wife. Her words were considered slanderous and, as a result, Hashem punished her with tzaraas, spiritual leprosy, which confined her to seclusion for seven days. Due to her extraordinary distinction, Hashem had the entire nation remain encamped until…

Home -> 5786 -> Shelach

היש בה עץ אם אין

Sruly Schnair In Shelach, 5786

Are there trees in it or not? (13:20)

Rashi explains that Moshe Rabbeinu’s mention of a tree is an allusion to a tzadik. He wanted the spies to find out if a righteous person was living in the land, in whose merit the people would be sheltered from attack. This refers to Iyov, who was a saintly and virtuous man – but who died right before the spies reached the land. With this in mind, we infer that Moshe did not require the services of the meraglim to ascertain the Jews ability to conquer the land. Hashem would provide for their triumph. If a righteous man lived in…

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וסמכת את ידך עליו

And lean your hand upon him. (27:18)

תמות נפשי מות ישרים ותהי אחריתי כמוהו

May my soul die the death of the upright, and my end be like his. (23:10)

הן עם לבדד ישכן

They are a nation unto themselves. (23:9)

ותמת שם מרים ותקבר שם

And Miriam died there, and she was buried there. (Bamidbar 20:1)

ויקח קרח ... ויקהלו על משה ועל אהרן

Korach…separated himself…They gathered together against Moshe and against Aharon. (16:1,3)

ויקח קרח

Korach separated himself. (16:1)

ויקח קרח

Korach…separated himself. (16:1)

שלח לך אנשים ויתרו את ארץ כנען

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the Land of Canaan. (13:2)

שלח לך אנשים ויתרו את ארץ כנען

Send forth men, if you please, and let them spy out the Land of Canaan. (13:2)

היש בה עץ אם אין

Are there trees in it or not? (13:20)

YEARS

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