Va’eschanan – Peninim on the Torah

בך בחר ד' אלקיך להיות לו לעם סגלה מכל העמים

Hashem, your G-d, has chosen you to be for Him a treasured people above all the peoples. (7:6)

We are called the chosen people – an appellation that has, throughout the centuries, caused much Jewish blood to be spilled. Atah B’chartanu mikol ha’amim, “You chose us from among all the nations,” is how we commence our Yom Tov Shemoneh Esrai. We utter these words with utmost pride. Do we really understand their meaning and significance? Horav Shimshon Pincus, zl, approaches this concept practically. Imagine, if six thousand years ago, Hashem would have asked mankind if it was worth creating the world. (This is hypothetical, since if there is no world, there would be no mankind.) Perhaps the responses…

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וקשרתם לאות על ידך והיו לטוטפת בין עיניך

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5784

Bind them as a sign on your arm, and let them ornaments between your eyes. (6:8)

The mitzvah of Tefillin carries profound symbolism for the continuity and eternity of Am Yisrael. Tefillin serve as a physical embodiment of the Bris, Covenant, between Hashem and His People. It is a mitzvah in which we physically bind the words of the Shema, the central declaration of our faith in Hashem, to our bodies. These two leather boxes, which contain within them pesukim of the Torah, are a daily reminder of Jewish identity and heritage hailing back to the exodus from Egypt. Thus, when a person fulfills the mitzvah of Tefillin daily, he not only serves Hashem, but he…

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כבד את אביך ואת אמך

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5784

Honor your father and your mother. (5:16)

The Kuzmirer Rebbe, Shlita, relates that his father (Horav Ephraim, zl), who was the son of the saintly Horav Yechezkel, zl, m’Kuzmir, decided to travel alone, in complete anonymity. He refused to reveal his illustrious pedigree as the Kuzmirer’s son. He entered the shul in a small town and promptly sat down in the rear of the shul together with a few simple men whose relationship with anything spiritual was foreign. (While they might have been spiritually challenged, they all at least made it their business to attend shul.) The Rebbe felt spiritually uplifted sitting where he was, not garnering…

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ששת ימים תעבד ועשית כל מלאכתיך ויום השביעי שבת לד' אלקיך

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5784

Six days shall you labor and accomplish all your work. But the seventh day is Shabbos to Hashem, your G-d. (5:13,14)

The group of friends with whom one surrounds himself speaks volumes about his true character. Such friends often share similar values, interests and beliefs. By observing the dynamics in these relationships, we are able to gain insight into a person’s priorities and attitudes. Furthermore, friends significantly influence a person’s priorities and actions. This impact can be either positive or negative. The litmus test of a person’s true identity may be determined by his circle of friends. With this idea in mind, the Bais Av (Horav Elyakim Schlesinger) explains the verse we recite in the Friday night zemiros, K’challah bein reiosehah…

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אנכי ד' אלקיך אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5784

I, am Hashem, your G-d, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt. (5:6)

So begin the Aseres HaDibros, Ten Commandments. They are divided into two categories: mitzvos bein adam laMakom, mitzvos (that address the laws) between man and G-d; and mitzvos bein adam l’chaveiro, mitzvos (that address relationships) between man and his fellow man. The first five mitzvos are bein adam laMakom, while the second five mitzvos are bein adam l’chaveiro. Horav S. R. Hirsch, zl, comments concerning the sequence of the Dibros. The first five mitzvos begin with a demand that focuses on an intellectual appreciation and acknowledgement of the Creator. The Torah, however, does not suffice with mere spirit. It also…

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כבד את אביך ואת אמך... למען יאריכון ימיך ולמען ייטב לך

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5783

Honor your father and your mother… so that your days will be lengthened and so that it will be good for you. (5:16)

The commandment to honor one’s parents is included in the Aseres HaDibros, Ten Commandments, which in and of itself indicates its significance. Indeed, it carries such weight that, when Klal Yisrael were still in Marah prior to receiving the Torah, they had already been commanded to observe this mitzvah. Furthermore, rarely does a mitzvah publicize its accompanying reward, as the Torah does regarding the mitzvah of kibbud av v’eim. Arichas yamim, longevity, is nothing to disdain. We should all merit such reward. The Tolner Rebbe, Shlita, related that he had heard from an elderly Jew about an incident that had…

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אנכי ד' אלקיך אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים...וזכרת כי עבד היית בארץ מצרים ויוצאיך ד' אלקיך משם

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5783

I am Hashem, your G-d, Who has taken you out of the land of Egypt. (5:6)…And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Hashem, your G-d, has taken you from there. (5:15)

Noticeably, yetzias Mitzrayim, our liberation from Egypt, is mentioned twice in the Aseres HaDibros, Ten Commandments. In his commentary to Sefer Shemos 20:2, which is the first time the Aseres HaDibros appears in the Torah, Rashi writes: “It is worth it that I took you out of Egypt that (now) you will be obliged to serve Me.” Ibn Ezra writes: “The special and unparalleled treatment that Hashem accorded Klal Yisrael gave Him the ‘right’ to impose special responsibilities on them.” In his commentary to Devarim 5:6, Rashi writes: “It is for this reason that He redeemed you, so that you…

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ונס אל אחת מן הערים האל וחי

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5783

Then he shall flee to one of these cities and live. (4:42)

The Rambam (Hilchos Rotzeiach 8:1) writes: “When a Torah scholar is exiled to an ir miklat, city of refuge, his rebbe is exiled together with him. This is derived from the pasuk, Devarim 19:5, ‘He shall flee to one of these cities and he shall live’ (similar to the pasuk above 4:42). Implied, the idea is that everything necessary for his life must be provided for him. Therefore, a scholar must be provided with his teacher, for the life of one who possesses knowledge without Torah study is considered to be death.” The Rambam follows in line with Chazal (Makkos…

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ואתחנן אל ד' בעת ההיא

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5783

I implored Hashem at that time. (3:23)

In a homiletic rendering of the pasuk, Horav Moshe Leib Sassover, zl, explains that Moshe Rabbeinu prayed to Hashem that He should strengthen his bitachon, trust, in Him. He prayed that he should only concern himself with b’eis ha’hee, at that time – at that specific time; he prayed for the present without expressing concern for the future. This is much like the famous quote attributed to Ibn Ezra: Ha’avar ayin; v’ha’asid adayin; v’ha’hoveh k’heref ayin; daagah minayin? “The past no longer exists; the future is not yet a reality; the present is but a fleeting moment. Why, then, should…

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שמע ישראל ד' אלקינו ד' אחד

Sruly Schnair In Va'eschanan, 5782

Hear O’ Yisrael, Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One. (6:4)

When the Romans led Rabbi Akiva to his execution (for teaching Torah), it was his time to recite Krias Shema. They subjected him to inhumane torture by scraping off his skin with metal combs. Meanwhile, he was engaged in Kabbolas Ol Malchus Shomayim, accepting upon himself the yoke of the Heavenly Kingdom. His students watched in horror as their revered, saintly Rebbe calmly focused on the spiritual sphere, while ignoring his physical pain. His students asked, “Must one go so far?” (Is it necessary to suffer so much in showing one’s devotion to Hashem? How far should mesiras nefesh, self-sacrifice…

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בך בחר ד' אלקיך להיות לו לעם סגלה מכל העמים

Hashem, your G-d, has chosen you to be for Him a treasured people above all the peoples. (7:6)

וקשרתם לאות על ידך והיו לטוטפת בין עיניך

Bind them as a sign on your arm, and let them ornaments between your eyes. (6:8)

כבד את אביך ואת אמך

Honor your father and your mother. (5:16)

ששת ימים תעבד ועשית כל מלאכתיך ויום השביעי שבת לד' אלקיך

Six days shall you labor and accomplish all your work. But the seventh day is Shabbos to Hashem, your G-d. (5:13,14)

אנכי ד' אלקיך אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים

I, am Hashem, your G-d, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt. (5:6)

כבד את אביך ואת אמך... למען יאריכון ימיך ולמען ייטב לך

Honor your father and your mother… so that your days will be lengthened and so that it will be good for you. (5:16)

אנכי ד' אלקיך אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים...וזכרת כי עבד היית בארץ מצרים ויוצאיך ד' אלקיך משם

I am Hashem, your G-d, Who has taken you out of the land of Egypt. (5:6)…And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Hashem, your G-d, has taken you from there. (5:15)

ונס אל אחת מן הערים האל וחי

Then he shall flee to one of these cities and live. (4:42)

ואתחנן אל ד' בעת ההיא

I implored Hashem at that time. (3:23)

שמע ישראל ד' אלקינו ד' אחד

Hear O’ Yisrael, Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One. (6:4)

YEARS

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