5783 – Page 4 – Peninim on the Torah

אלה הדברים אשר דבר משה

These are the words that Moshe spoke. (1:1)

Rashi explains that devarim, words, is a reference to the words of rebuke that Moshe Rabbeinu conveyed to the Jewish people. He did not mince words, nor did he conceal the people’s infractions. He did, however, refer to their sins by allusion in order not to embarrass or offend them. When admonishing someone, it is vital that the rebuker use chochmah, wisdom, and seichel, common sense, or he will only succeed in turning off the subject of his reprimand. Rebuke is, or should be, motivated by love. Hashem reproves us as a father rebukes his errant son. The father cares…

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אלה הדברים אשר דבר משה

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Devarim

These are the words that Moshe spoke. (1:1)

There is a telling (Midrash Rabbah 1:1) commentary at the beginning of this parsha. “Before Moshe received the Torah he said, Lo ish devarim anochi, ‘I am not a man of words’ (Shemos 4:10). Once he had received the Torah, however, his tongue was healed, and he started to speak: ‘These are the words that Moshe spoke.’” Torah heals; words of Torah transform the speaker. The power of speech distinguishes man from his animal counterpart. Hashem gave man life by blowing into him nefesh chayah, a living soul, which Targum Onkelos translates as ruach mimalelah, a speaking spirit. When a…

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ותקרבון אלי כלכם ותאמרו נשלחה אנשים לפנינו ויחפרו לנו את הארץ

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Devarim

You drew near to me, all of you, and said, “Let us send men ahead of us and they shall spy out the Land for us.” (1:22)

The episode of the meraglim, spies, was the tragic game-changer for the nascent nation, as their reaction to the spies’ reports catalyzed the decree that they would not enter the Land. That night was Tishah B’Av, the calendar date which was to become our national day of mourning. In as much as the reports which the meraglim brought back were true, injecting their own personal opinions concerning the nation’s ability to overcome the challenges they would confront was their downfall. They conveniently forgot the Hashem factor. The Almighty had taken them out of Egypt, triumphed over Amalek, sustained them miraculously;…

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לא יחל דברו ככל היוצא מפיו יעשה

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Matos

He shall not profane his word; according to whatever comes from his mouth, shall he do. (30:3)

Rashi defines Lo yacheil d’varo, “He shall not profane his word.” While he does not necessarily profane his word, the mere fact that he does not use his G-d-given speech/word for a purpose imbued with sanctity is considered profanity. When a person uses his G-d-given speech, it should be elevating, sanctifying, complimentary, obligating himself in higher, more consecrating endeavors. Even a mundane conversation which wastes time that could have been used to improve and enlighten is, by omission, a form of profaning. If we want Hashem to listen to our words, we must see to it that they have value…

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נקם נקמת בני ישראל מאת המדינים אחר תאסף אל עמיך

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Matos

Take vengeance for Bnei Yisrael against the Midyanim; afterward, you will be gathered to your people. (31:2)

Chazal (Bamidbar Rabbah 22:2) teach that, had Moshe Rabbeinu wanted to remain in this world for an extended period, he could have just taken his time in carrying out Hashem’s instructions that he take revenge against the Midyanim. Hashem had stressed that (only) after Moshe had dealt with the Midyanim would he leave this world. Moshe Rabbeinu responded immediately, however, appointing an army and its leadership to go forth to battle. Chazal (22:6) draw a distinction between Moshe and Yehoshua. When Yehoshua, Moshe’s successor, fought against the thirty-one kings, the war took a long time, as Yehoshua took his time…

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אלה מסעי בני ישראל אשר יצאו מארץ מצרים

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Masei

These are the sojourns of Bnei Yisrael who went forth from the land of Egypt. (33:1)

Parashas Masei concludes Klal Yisrael’s forty-year sojourn in the wilderness. Many of the individuals in the nation who now stood before Moshe Rabbeinu, poised to enter into the Promised Land, were but children when they left Egypt, while others of them had been born after the liberation. Their parents, who had slaved for Pharaoh and had been redeemed from Egypt, were no longer alive. They paid a heavy price for their insubordination. They had been raised in a culture that was morally deviant and spiritually bankrupt, yet, they merited being liberated from that country. Apparently, they did not have the…

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ומצרים מקברים... ובאלהיהם עשה ד' שפטים

Sruly Schnair In 5783, Masei

And the Egyptians were burying (those among them whom Hashem had struck)… and on their gods Hashem had inflicted punishment. (33:4)

The Torah begins by informing us that the Jewish people left Egypt “with an upraised hand to the eyes of the Egyptians.” It then apprises us of the Egyptians burying their dead and continues to let us know that, not only did the firstborn perish, but Hashem also destroyed their idols. Can we derive a message from the juxtaposition of these two punishments? To explain the connection between the two punishments, we cite Rabbeinu Bachya who writes (commentary to Shemos 12:12) that, while Hashem, indeed, destroyed the Egyptian idols at night (the same time that He smote the firstborn), the…

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וירא פנחס... ויקם מתוך העדה...פנחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את חמת

Sruly Schnair In Pinchas, 5783

Pinchas… and rose up from the midst of the people, and took a spear. (25:7)…Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen turned back my wrath. (25:11)

It appears that Pinchas’ rising up from among the people contributed to his ultimate success. Indeed, we recite in the Selichos, Mi she’anah l’Pinchas b’kumo mitoch ha’eidah; “May He – Who answered Pinchas when he rose up from the midst of the people.” Why should his rising up from the midst of the people carry such weight? Horav Tzvi Kushelevsky, Shlita, explains that “rising up from the midst of the people” is reference to Pinchas’ acting independently, with no support or assistance. No one rallied him on. He had only detractors. Indeed, if Zimri and Kosbi would have stopped their…

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

Sruly Schnair In Pinchas, 5783

Pinchas ben Elazar, ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael, when he zealously avenged Me among them, so I did not consume Bnei Yisrael in My vengeance. (25:11)

All of Klal Yisrael stood by staring in shock and revulsion, as Zimri blatantly debased himself with a Midyanite woman. They were revolted by this public defamation of our moral code; nonetheless, they did nothing. They stood there almost in passive acquiescence. This, explains Sforno, was the reason they required atonement. To witness such a despicable act and not protest taints the onlooker to the point that he, on some level, is considered an accomplice in the sin. While this is true, one wonders how they could have taken it upon themselves to protest when the gadol hador, the preeminent…

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אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם

Sruly Schnair In Pinchas, 5783

Who shall go out before them and come in before them. (27:17)

Moshe Rabbeinu asked Hashem to appoint his successor – one who would seamlessly move into the position of leadership, both in the practical sense in his ability to address the spiritual needs of the Jewish nation. Among the criteria which Moshe suggested was that the leader be one who would lead from the front – leading the men into battle and successfully leading them home. It is understandable that a leader be at the fore front in the battlefield to encourage his men, letting them know that he, too, is fighting alongside together. Why is it necessary for the leader…

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אלה הדברים אשר דבר משה

These are the words that Moshe spoke. (1:1)

אלה הדברים אשר דבר משה

These are the words that Moshe spoke. (1:1)

ותקרבון אלי כלכם ותאמרו נשלחה אנשים לפנינו ויחפרו לנו את הארץ

You drew near to me, all of you, and said, “Let us send men ahead of us and they shall spy out the Land for us.” (1:22)

לא יחל דברו ככל היוצא מפיו יעשה

He shall not profane his word; according to whatever comes from his mouth, shall he do. (30:3)

נקם נקמת בני ישראל מאת המדינים אחר תאסף אל עמיך

Take vengeance for Bnei Yisrael against the Midyanim; afterward, you will be gathered to your people. (31:2)

אלה מסעי בני ישראל אשר יצאו מארץ מצרים

These are the sojourns of Bnei Yisrael who went forth from the land of Egypt. (33:1)

ומצרים מקברים... ובאלהיהם עשה ד' שפטים

And the Egyptians were burying (those among them whom Hashem had struck)… and on their gods Hashem had inflicted punishment. (33:4)

וירא פנחס... ויקם מתוך העדה...פנחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן השיב את חמת

Pinchas… and rose up from the midst of the people, and took a spear. (25:7)…Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon HaKohen turned back my wrath. (25:11)

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

Pinchas ben Elazar, ben Aharon HaKohen, turned back My wrath from upon Bnei Yisrael, when he zealously avenged Me among them, so I did not consume Bnei Yisrael in My vengeance. (25:11)

אשר יצא לפניהם ואשר יבא לפניהם

Who shall go out before them and come in before them. (27:17)

YEARS

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