Pinchas – Page 4 – Peninim on the Torah

פינחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את את חמתי מעל בני ישראל... לכן אמור הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום

Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael… Therefore, say: “Behold! I give him My covenant of peace.” (25:11,12)

Concerning Pinchas’ right to reward, Chazal express themselves strongly: B’din hu she’yitol s’charo; “It is by right (halachically axiomatic) that he (Pinchas) should take his reward.” Such an act of zealousness on behalf of Hashem warrants an exemplary reward. Far from belittling Pinchas’ right to reward, it seems inconsistent with the halachic maxim, S’char mitzvah b’hai alma leka, “The reward for mitzvah performance is not rendered in this world.” Simply, this is a physical world, a world of the mundane; mitzvos are spiritual in nature, given to us by Hashem for the purpose of our spiritual advancement and as a…

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יפקד ד' אלקי הרוחות לכל בשר איש על העדה. אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5775

“May Hashem, G-d of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the assembly, who shall go out before them and come in before them.” (27:16,17)

Moshe Rabbeinu asked Hashem to appoint his successor, hoping that his own son would be the one to succeed him as the nation’s leader. Hashem had other plans: “Yehoshua, who has never departed from the (your) tent, deserves to be granted leadership over the nation.” As Shlomo Ha’melech says (Mishlei 27:18) Notzer t’einah yochal piryah, “He who watches over the fig tree should eat its fruit.” Rashi, who cites the above Chazal, indicates that Yehoshua was selected as a result of his devotion to the ohalah shel Torah, incredible diligence in not leaving the tent of Torah. Lo yamush mitoch…

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אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם ואשר יוציאם ואשר יביאם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5775

“Who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall take them out and bring them in.” (27:17)

Moshe Rabbeinu presents what appears, at first glance, to be redundant qualifications for his successor – Klal Yisrael’s next leader. The proposed leader “shall go out before them and come in before them.” He should lead them in battle, remaining at the forefront every time the nation went to war. Is this not the way that Moshe led the nation? Then Moshe asks that the leader take them out and bring them in. Is this any different from his first criteria which states that the leader shall go out before them? Horav Yechiel Yaakov Weinberg, zl, explains that these requests…

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פנחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את חמתי מעל בני ישראל בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5774

Pinchas ben Elazar, ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael, when he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

In a number of places in Rabbinic literature, Chazal teach that Pinchas and Eliyahu HaNavi were one and the same. This is quite possibly because both earned the title of kanai, zealot. Their courage and decisive action under extreme pressure turned the tide in the nation’s spiritual leadership. Thus, they glorified Hashem’s Name at a time when it was being dragged through the muck. Horav Yaakov Galinsky, zl, quotes the Brisker Rav, zl, who points out another area in which their commonality is apparent. Shortly before his death, Yannai Hamelech told his wife, “Do not be afraid of the Perushim…

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בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5774

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

Kanaus, for the most part, is a frightening word. It refers either to someone who is a great tzaddik, whose love for Hashem is so intense that it impels him to act in a manner which some individuals consider extreme; or an extremist, who is always on the lookout for a good fight. There is a fine line which separates the two. This is why it is frightening. Some think that kanaus is a rite of passage, a segway for achieving gadlus baTorah, distinction in the field of Torah. They feel that, unless they have taken down a few misguided…

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בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5774

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

Obviously, it was “among them.” Pinchas did not go into a backroom to negotiate a settlement between the sinners. He acted decisively within sight of the entire nation. Horav Yehudah Tzedakah, zl, explains that the Torah places emphasis on the b’socham, among them, to teach us that Pinchas did not fear repercussion. His sincerity and love were apparent as he placed Hashem and His Glory above his personal life and welfare. He epitomizes the true kanai, zealot. Indeed, in his commentary to Bereishis 18:26, “If I find fifty righteous (persons) within (b’soch) the city,” Ibn Ezra writes, “Those who fear…

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בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5773

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

Kanaus, zealousness, is not a trait that one should exhibit indiscriminately. As the paradigm of the kanai, zealot, Pinchas exemplifies the true zealot. He acts definitively for the sake of the community, placing the needs of the klal, congregation, above his own safety and reputation. The kanai is not lauded; dinners are not rendered in his honor, nor does he have a large collection of friends. People are actually afraid of him, never knowing where and when he will strike; what will anger him; what he will see that is wrong. The kanai lives in a select circle, revered by…

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בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5773

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

Pinchas was acting according to halachah: Boel aramis kanaim pogin bo, “One who cohabits with a gentile, zealous ones may strike him.” If so, why is he referred to as a kanai, zealot? He was just doing what any other observant Jew would/should have done. Indeed, Chazal imply that Hashem chastised Moshe Rabbeinu for remaining passive during the moral outrage that took place. As a result, Moshe’s gravesite remains unknown to us. Chazal derive from here that one must be “bold as a leopard, as nimble as an eagle, as swift as a deer, and as mighty as a lion…

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אך בגורל יחלק את הארץ לשמות מטות אבתם ינחלו. על פי הגורל תחלק נחלתו בין רב למעט

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5773

Only by lot shall the land be divided; according to the names of the tribes of the father shall they receive it as a possession. According to lot, shall their inheritance be apportioned to them, with due regard for whether they are many or few. (26:55,56)

The land was divided by a system which clearly treats the land as an estate left by the preceding generation, the yotzei Mitzrayim, Jews who participated in the Egyptian exodus. Each of the fathers of those who left Egypt was designated to receive a portion in the Holy Land equivalent to the number of grandsons twenty years of age and older who would eventually enter Eretz Yisrael. This estate could be inherited only by those of the sons who were more than twenty years old when they left Egypt. These sons, in turn, could bequeath the land to those of…

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ויסמך ידו עליו ויצוהו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Pinchas, 5773

He leaned his hands upon him and commanded him. (27:23)

Yehoshua merited becoming Moshe Rabbeinu’s successor – a designation that eluded the most astute and most brilliant of the nation’s leadership. Apparently, Yehoshua possessed qualities which gave him precedence over the others. What about Yehoshua distinguished him so? Indeed, Moshe was great from day one. His birth illuminated the entire house. There is no question that, from the time of his entry into this world, Moshe was heads above everyone. The commentators do not seem to feel this way concerning Yehoshua. Indeed, some even feel that he was not worthy of the appellation, ben Torah. His relationship vis-à-vis his Rebbe,…

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פינחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את את חמתי מעל בני ישראל... לכן אמור הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום

Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael… Therefore, say: “Behold! I give him My covenant of peace.” (25:11,12)

יפקד ד' אלקי הרוחות לכל בשר איש על העדה. אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם

“May Hashem, G-d of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the assembly, who shall go out before them and come in before them.” (27:16,17)

אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם ואשר יוציאם ואשר יביאם

“Who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall take them out and bring them in.” (27:17)

פנחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את חמתי מעל בני ישראל בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

Pinchas ben Elazar, ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael, when he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

בקנאו את קנאתי בתוכם

When he zealously avenged Me among them. (25:11)

אך בגורל יחלק את הארץ לשמות מטות אבתם ינחלו. על פי הגורל תחלק נחלתו בין רב למעט

Only by lot shall the land be divided; according to the names of the tribes of the father shall they receive it as a possession. According to lot, shall their inheritance be apportioned to them, with due regard for whether they are many or few. (26:55,56)

ויסמך ידו עליו ויצוהו

He leaned his hands upon him and commanded him. (27:23)

YEARS

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