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Home -> 5762 -> Shelach

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Shelach, 5762

“And how is the land – is it fertile or is it lean? Are there trees in it or not?” (13:20)

Rashi comments that Moshe’s reference to a tree is an allusion to a tzaddik, righteous person. He was teaching the meraglim, spies,  that if a righteous person was living in the land, he would protect its inhabitants from attack through his merit. In his Sefer Simchas HaTorah, Horav Simcha HaKohen Sheps, z.l., supplements Rashi with another reason for comparing an adam kasher to a tree. In addition to the shade which a tree provides and the fruit which it produces, a tree has a cleansing effect on the ecology. A tree purifies the air by its very existence. It balances the…

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Home -> 5762 -> Beha'alosecha

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Beha'alosecha, 5762

“He named that place Kivros-Hataavah (the graves of lust) because there they buried the people who had been craving.” (11:34)

Immediately after the people were punished for their needless complaining, they started right up again with a new set of complaints and  accusations.  This  time  they  slandered  the  manna,  which  they received daily from Hashem. They claimed they wanted meat – although there was no shortage of meat. They talked about how wonderful Egypt was – in comparison to their misery in the desert. After all was said and done, it amounted to nothing more than an uncontrolled craving. They were overpowered by their yetzer hara, evil inclination. The middah of taavah, craving/lusting for something, can overwhelm a person, so that he…

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Home -> 5762 -> Beha'alosecha

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Beha'alosecha, 5762

“Why have You done evil to Your servant… that You place the burden of this entire people upon me? Did I conceive this entire people… that You say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom.’” (11:11-12)

Moshe Rabbeinu despairs of the responsibility of leadership imposed upon him. Sforno explains Moshe’s complaint in the following manner: Parents often have children with whom  they are in dispute. Yet, despite the existing conflict, a basic feeling of trust exists deep within the children, asserting that their parents truly love them and will do them no harm. This nation, however, had not demonstrated such trust in Moshe, and they were constantly testing to see how he would react to them. Moshe’s grievance still needs to be understood. Imagine if a great rav or rosh yeshiva would lament, “Why do I not…

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Home -> 5762 -> Beha'alosecha

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Beha'alosecha, 5762

“Moshe heard the people weeping in their family groups, each one at the entrance of his tent.” (11:10)

Entire families vented their resentment publicly by gathering outside of their tents and weeping. Chazal say that the word “families” underscores the reason for their animus – frustration regarding the family laws that had been imposed upon them. To some of the people, the Torah’s restrictions regarding marriage were an unbearable burden. It seems strange that they would complain now. The laws were given at Sinai. Why did they not weep then? Why did they wait until now to express their acrimony? Horav Zalmen Sorotzkin, z.l., derives from here the incredible impact that a holy place can have on a person….

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Home -> 5762 -> Beha'alosecha

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Beha'alosecha, 5762

“The people would spread out/stroll and gather it (the manna).” (11:8)

Pursuit of a livelihood is often an endeavor that consumes a person. One dedicates his energies to chasing that pot of gold which is nothing more than a dream turned nightmare for many. While one should be mishtadel, endeavor, and take the necessary steps to see to it that his material needs are provided for, he must realize and believe unequivocally that Hashem is the Provider Who will supply him with whatever he really needs. We derive this concept from the manna of which the Torah in Sefer Shemos 16:17-18 writes, “Bnei Yisrael gathered (the manna), those who took more and…

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Home -> 5762 -> Beha'alosecha

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Beha'alosecha, 5762

“We are journeying to the place about which Hashem had said, ‘I shall give it to you.’ Go with us, and we shall treat you well.” (10:29)

As Klal Yisrael “packed up” in preparation for their long journey through the wilderness, a journey that was to last forty years, Moshe Rabbeinu had a conversation with his father-in-law, Yisro: “Please join us on our journey,” Moshe implored Yisro. The wise father-in- law responded in the negative: “I am going home to my land and the place of my birth.” But Moshe did not give up, “Please do not forsake us, inasmuch as you know our encampment in the wilderness, and you have been as eyes for us. We need your assistance, your perspective, your advice.” The Yalkut Shimoni interprets…

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Home -> 5762 -> Naso

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Naso, 5762

“On the second day Nesanel ben Tzuar, the prince of Yissachar, offered.” (7:18)

Although each Nasi, prince, brought the same sacrifice, the Torah seeks to emphasize the importance of the independent declaration of each individual Nasi. Horav Yechezkel Levenstein, z.l., infers from here the uniqueness of every individual and our responsibility to respect each and every Jew – regardless of his background or position. He cites the Rambam, who posits that to include all of the Nesiim under one blanket grouping would be to diminish the individual honor each one deserved. The Torah is very careful to show respect to every one of Hashem’s creations – even inanimate ones. Regrettably, we think that respect…

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Home -> 5762 -> Naso

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Naso, 5762

“Let them place My Name upon Bnei Yisrael and I shall bless them.” (6:27)

Why does the Torah add this last phrase? Every blessing begins with Hashem: “Hashem should bless you”; “Hashem should make His face shine upon you”; “Hashem should turn His face unto you,” etc. We already know that Hashem is granting the blessing. Horav Simchah HaKohen Sheps, z.l., in his Sefer, Simchas HaTorah, explains that this last phrase is an added blessing. Even after one receives a blessing from Hashem, he must internalize the fact that the blessing comes only from Hashem. Nothing that one receives has any source other than Hashem. This, in itself, is a profound perception. For while many…

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Home -> 5762 -> Naso

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Naso, 5762

“The Kohen shall inscribe these curses on a scroll and erase it into the bitter waters.” (5:23)

Although it is forbidden to erase Hashem’s Sacred Name, and one who does so is punished with malkos, lashes, Hashem  commanded that His Name be erased in order to engender peace and harmony between man and his wife. Domestic tranquility is the anchor  of the Jewish family unit, so that one must go to all lengths to enhance the unity of the marriage bond. Throughout history, we find that this was a priority of many of our gedolim, Torah leaders. Most recently, an individual of the calibre of Horav Moshe Aharon Stern, z.l., invested endless time and energy to assure that…

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Home -> 5762 -> Naso

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Naso, 5762

“Any man whose wife deviates from the right path.” (5:12)

The sotah, wayward wife, has deviated from the prescribed moral path of a Jew by acting inappropriately and cavorting with another man  after  being  admonished  by  her  husband  to  desist from this relationship. The word sotah may also be derived from shoteh, which denotes a fool/an individual who has deviated from the normal psychological profile. The shoteh has no emotional control. The sotah has acted in a manner that bespeaks a breakdown of her mental faculties. Indeed, Chazal say that one does not sin unless he has first had a mental lapse. To deviate morally is not simply a shortcoming in…

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