Balak – Page 5 – Peninim on the Torah

וישלח מלאכים אל בלעם בן בעור פתורה

He sent messengers to Bilaam ben Beor to Pesor. (22:5)

The Mishnah in Pirkei Avos (5:22) distinguishes between the talmidim, disciples, of Bilaam ha’rasha, and those of Avraham Avinu. The three character traits which are the hallmarks of Avraham’s students are: ayin tovah, a good eye, ruach nemuchah, lowly, humble spirit; and nefesh shefalah, a meek soul. Ayin tovah is listed first – and rightfully so – because it plays a leading role in defining one’s character. Rabbeinu Yonah explains ayin tovah as generosity of spirit, a middah of the kindhearted person who goes out of his way to perform good deeds, to shower his benevolence on others. He cites…

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כי מראש צרים אראנו ומגבעות אשורנו הן עם לבדד ישכן ובגוים לא יתחשב

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5774

“For from its origins, I see it rocklike, and from hills do I view it. Behold! It is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations.” (23:9)

Rashi explains Bilaam’s description of Klal Yisrael as a nation whose origins are firmly entrenched and established as rocks and hills – the rocks allude to the Patriarchs and the hills to the Matriarchs. The nation’s loyalty to their illustrious forebears protects them, allowing them to remain firm and resolute in their commitment to Hashem. In his Simchas HaTorah, Horav Simchah Shepps, zl, observes that here Bilaam is revealing the secret of Klal Yisrael’s invincibility, their ability to withstand the tremendous external pressures and challenges that have beset them from their earliest moments as a nation. Their roots herald back…

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ויאמר אלקים אל בלעם לא תלך עמהם לא תאר את העם כי ברוך הוא

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5774

G-d said to Bilaam, “You shall not go with them! You shall not curse the people, for it is blessed.” (22:12)

Bilaam really wanted to do his job, to carry out his mission to curse the Jews. Hashem told him that he should not go. Bilaam offered to send a curse via long distance from his home. Hashem reiterated His position: no cursing the Jews. Bilaam then offered (out of the kindness of his heart) to bless the Jews. Hashem replied, “They do not require your blessing. They are a blessed people.” Rashi analogizes this to a bee whose honey is very tasty and beneficial, but, accompanying procuring the honey, is the chance that one might get stung. We tell it…

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אם יתן לי בלק מלא ביתו כסף וזהב לא אוכל לעבר את פי ד'

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5774

“If Balak were to give me his houseful of silver and gold, I cannot transgress the word of Hashem.” (22:18)

Rashi notes that by speaking of silver and gold, Bilaam revealed his true character: a greed-filled desire for money and the power that accompanies it. The Mishnah in Pirkei Avos 6:9, relates that the Tanna Rabbi Yose ben Kisma once met a Jew from another community who offered the sage the opportunity to move to his city where he would set him up with whatever material needs he would require. Rabbi Yose replied, “If you were to give me all the silver, gold and precious stones in the world, I would only make my home in a city of Torah.”…

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וירא בלק... את כל אשר עשה ישראל לאמרי... וירא פינחס... ויקם מתוך העדה...

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5773

Balak saw… all that Yisrael had done to the Emori (22:2). Pinchas saw… and he stood up from amid the assembly. (25:7)

Our parsha begins with one re’iyah, observation, and closes with another re’iyah. Balak opens the parsha with Va’yaar Balak ben Tzippor, “And Balak ben Tzippor saw.” Pinchas, heir to the Priestly throne of his grandfather Aharon HaKohen, concludes the parsha with his re’iyah, Vayaar Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen va’yakom mitoch ha’eidah, va’yikach romach b’yado, “And Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen saw, and he stood up from amid the assembly and took a spear in his hand” (25:7).We understand that, whenever the Torah states that someone “saw,” it is important to explain what in particular caught his attention….

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תמות נפשי מות ישרים ותהי אחריתי כמהו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5773

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

It is the old story. The wicked want to live a life of abandon, yet, they want to die as the righteous and upright. The Chafetz Chaim, zl, explains that Bilaam did not want to live like a Jew. After all, Torah Judaism makes “difficult” demands on a person. Morality, ethicality, spiritual integrity: these are not simple qualities to which someone like Bilaam is able to adhere. He wants to have his cake and eat it. For a Jew, on the other hand, it is much simpler to deal with death than life. The Jew views death as a bridge…

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לא הביט און ביעקב ולא ראה עמל בישראל ד' אלקיו עמו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5773

“He perceived no iniquity in Yaakov, and saw no perversity in Yisrael. Hashem, his G-d is with him.” (23:21)

Bilaam tried hard to find something iniquitous about the Jewish People – to no avail. This pasuk is the Scriptural exhortation to look for the positive in every person. While it is clearly the right thing to do, it is often difficult to ferret out the positive when there is so much negativity staring us in the face. The Admor m’Mishkoltz, Shlita, interprets this pasuk in a novel manner. (If) he perceives no iniquity – if he looks for a justifiable rationale for a behavior which appears nefarious, then he will ultimately discover that “his G-d is with him.” Every…

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וירא פינחס... ויקם מתוך העדה ויקח רומח בידו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5773

Pinchas saw… and he stood up from amid the assembly, and took a spear in his hand. (25:7,8)

Pinchas saw Zimri acting in a morally aberrational manner. He immediately grabbed a spear and put an end to the mutinous repugnancy that was taking place. Everyone else stood around wondering what to do. Pinchas saw and acted. Why does the Torah emphasize that Pinchas went to secure a spear and then used it to slay the two sinners? Could it not simply have said that Pinchas saw what was occurring, and he responded accordingly? Why did the Torah underscore that he took a spear? The Tolna Rebbe, Shlita, offers a practical, but powerful, response. The Torah is teaching us…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5772

“And Moav was disgusted in the face of the Bnei Yisrael.” (22:3)

The parsha details how Balak and Bilaam sought every opportunity to curse Klal Yisrael. They tried everything to do away with the Jewish People. In the end, when they saw that all their efforts had failed, they brought out their young women and relied on the yetzer hara, evil-inclination, to perform the function in which he excels. Regrettably, this approach met with success, as many Jews fell prey to the yetzer hara’s blandishments. We wonder why Bilaam waited so long to attempt this proven method of destroying Klal Yisrael’s spiritual stature. Why did he try the methods that were at…

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Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5772

“If the men came to summon you, arise and go with them…G-d’s wrath flared because he was going.” (22: 20,22)

The question is apparent: Hashem instructed Bilaam to go with them. Bilaam listened and joined Balak’s emissaries. Why then was Hashem so angry with Bilaam for following His orders? In his sefer Be’er Moshe, the Ozrover Rebbe, z.l., explains that when Hashem commands a person to do something, it is different than when a human asks another person to do something for him. When one person asks another to perform a function for him, his primary concern is that the activity be done, that his request be carried out. He does not really care if the person acts willingly or…

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וישלח מלאכים אל בלעם בן בעור פתורה

He sent messengers to Bilaam ben Beor to Pesor. (22:5)

כי מראש צרים אראנו ומגבעות אשורנו הן עם לבדד ישכן ובגוים לא יתחשב

“For from its origins, I see it rocklike, and from hills do I view it. Behold! It is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations.” (23:9)

ויאמר אלקים אל בלעם לא תלך עמהם לא תאר את העם כי ברוך הוא

G-d said to Bilaam, “You shall not go with them! You shall not curse the people, for it is blessed.” (22:12)

אם יתן לי בלק מלא ביתו כסף וזהב לא אוכל לעבר את פי ד'

“If Balak were to give me his houseful of silver and gold, I cannot transgress the word of Hashem.” (22:18)

וירא בלק... את כל אשר עשה ישראל לאמרי... וירא פינחס... ויקם מתוך העדה...

Balak saw… all that Yisrael had done to the Emori (22:2). Pinchas saw… and he stood up from amid the assembly. (25:7)

תמות נפשי מות ישרים ותהי אחריתי כמהו

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

לא הביט און ביעקב ולא ראה עמל בישראל ד' אלקיו עמו

“He perceived no iniquity in Yaakov, and saw no perversity in Yisrael. Hashem, his G-d is with him.” (23:21)

וירא פינחס... ויקם מתוך העדה ויקח רומח בידו

Pinchas saw… and he stood up from amid the assembly, and took a spear in his hand. (25:7,8)

“And Moav was disgusted in the face of the Bnei Yisrael.” (22:3)

“If the men came to summon you, arise and go with them…G-d’s wrath flared because he was going.” (22: 20,22)

YEARS

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