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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeitzei

ויאהב גם את רחל מלאה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeitzei, 5777

He loved Rachel even more than Leah. (29:30)

Obviously, the interpretation of this pasuk contains more than meets the eye. This is not a romantic tale. This pasuk is laden with profound meaning. First and foremost, when the Torah writes that Yaakov Avinu’s love for Rachel Imeinu was greater than the love he had for Leah Imeinu, it certainly is not referring to an emotional attraction. I came across an interpretation by Horav Moshe Leib Sassover, zl, which I find especially meaningful. He quotes the well-known and often-used pasuk, Tachas asher lo avadita es Hashem Elokecha b’simchah u’b’tuv lev, “Because you did not serve Hashem, your G-d, amid…

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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeitzei

ויירא ויאמר מה נורא המקום הזה אין זה כי אם בית אלקים וזה שער השמים

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeitzei, 5777

And he became frightened and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the Abode of G-d, and this is the gate of the Heaven!” (28:17)

It was the 28th day of Sivan 1930; the crowd gathered to partake in the chanukas ha’bayis, dedication, of Yeshivas Chachmei Lublin. While it was not the first yeshivah in Poland, it was the most innovative. This was truly an auspicious occasion. The Gerrer Rebbe, zl, the Imrei Emes, was given the honor of addressing the assemblage. He quoted the above pasuk, asking why a redundancy of the word zeh, this, occurs: zeh Bais Elokim v’zeh Shaar ha’Shomayim; “This is the Abode of G-d; this is the gate of the Heavens.” He cited the Baal Shem Tov, zl, who explained…

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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeitzei

ויפגע במקום וילן שם כי בא השמש

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeitzei, 5777

He encountered the place and spent the night there because the sun had set. (28:11)

Rashi explains that this “place” was none other than Har HaMoriah, the site where Avraham Avinu had bound Yitzchak Avinu on the Altar of the Akeidah. This was also the future site of the Bais Hamikdash. Chazal interpret this “encounter” to mean “he prayed.” Yaakov Avinu’s encounter was not with a geographical location, but rather, with Hashem. Why did the pasuk not simply state that he prayed? What is the significance of the word, encounter, and what is its relationship to prayer? Various terms express tefillah, prayer; pegia, encountering, is one. I think that pegia refers to a prayer in…

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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeitzei

ויצא יעקב מבאר שבע וילך חרנה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeitzei, 5777

And Yaakov went out from Be’er Sheva and went to Charan. (28:10)

In a well-known statement, Rashi teaches that the departure of a tzaddik from a community leaves a void. When the righteous person is in town, he comprises its glory, beauty and glow. When he leaves, its glory, beauty and glow leave with him. This is derived from the word, Vayeitzei (Yaakov), and “he (Yaakov) went out (from Be’er Sheva).” It is not necessary to write his point of departure. That is obvious, since he had been there until this point. All that is required for the reader to know is his destination – unless his departure creates a void. The…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5777

ולא שמע אליה לשכב אצלה להיות עמה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5777, Vayeishev

If he would not listen to her to lie beside her, to be with her. (39:10)

Yosef HaTzaddik suffered greatly from the attempt of Potifar’s wife to seduce him. Chazal (Yuma 35b) describe her machinations in order to take Yosef down: “Every day, she would attempt to seduce him with words. The clothes she wore for him in the morning, she would not wear for him in the evening. The clothes she wore for him in the evening, she would not wear for him in the morning. After varying her wardrobe in order to arouse him, she said, ‘Surrender yourself to me.’ He responded, ‘No!’ She threatened to have him put in jail.  He responded, ‘Hashem…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5777

לאיש אשר אלה לו אנכי הרה ותאמר הכר נא למי החתמת והפתילים והמטה האלה.

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5777, Vayeishev

“By the man to whom these belong I am with child.” And she said, “Identify, if you please, whose are this signet, this wrap and this staff.” (38:25)

What is the definition of yiraas Shomayim, fear of Heaven? A G-d-fearing Jew is one who is acutely aware of Hashem’s Presence, who understands that he stands before G-d at all times and that all of his actions and designs are under Heavenly scrutiny. A G-d-fearing person never loses his perspective of Hashem. This may sound like a given, almost a simple understatement, but, if one thinks about it, most of us act as if we do not think Hashem is “looking.” If one were to ask the average person how to develop recognition, a profound realization of Hashem, the…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5777

כי ראתה כי גדל שלה והיא לא נתנה לו לאשה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5777, Vayeishev

For she saw that Sheilah had grown, and she had not been given to him as a wife. (38:14)

Tamar waited – and waited. Tamar was determined to have children from Yehudah. When she noticed that Sheilah had not been given to her, she decided to take undignified steps to realize her dream. If her children could not emanate from Yehudah’s sons, they would emanate from Yehudah himself. She was going to be the progenitress of the Davidic /Messianic dynasty. The Baal HaTurim adds to the above (Rashi’s) p’shat, explanation. When Tamar saw that she was not being given to Sheilah, she became anxious, filled with pain at the thought that she would not play a role in carrying…

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Home -> Vayeishev -> 5777

וישראל אהב את יוסף מכל בניו...ויראו אחיו כי אתו אהב אביהם מכל אחיו וישנאו אתו ...ויקנאו בו אחיו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In 5777, Vayeishev

Now Yisrael loved Yosef more than all of his sons…His brothers saw that it was he whom their father loved most of all his brothers so they hated him…So his brothers were jealous of him. (37:3,4,11)

Clearly the story of Yosef and his brothers is one of the most difficult passages in the Torah to understand. One must view everything which occurs in the Torah and the Torah’s description of these events through a spiritual lens, understanding full well that the actions of our ancestors are beyond our understanding, and completely inexplicable from a simplistic, secular perspective. Do we even have an idea concerning the spiritual persona of Yosef HaTzaddik – or his brothers, the Shivtei Kah? In a passage of the Midrash (Midrash Eileh Ezkerah), Chazal say the following: “Rabbi Yishmael said, ‘When I returned…

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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeira

וירא את המקום מרחוק

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeira, 5777

And (he) perceived the place from afar. (22:4)

In Perek Aleph of Mesillas Yesharim, the Ramchal writes: “From this we learn that the primary purpose of man’s existence in this world is solely to do mitzvos, to serve Hashem, and to overcome tribulations.” I have always felt that when we add the verse, Zachreinu l’Chaim, during the Aseres Y’mei Teshuvah, the word l’maancha, for Your sake, is its most defining point. We pray for life. For what reason should we live? Hashem owes us nothing. It is almost insolent to ask for life unless one has a lofty purpose in living. L’maancha is that lofty purpose. We live…

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Home -> 5777 -> Vayeira

וה' אמר המכסה אני מאברהם אשר אני עושה ואברהם היו יהיה לגוי גדול ועצום

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum
In Vayeira, 5777

Shall I conceal from Avraham what I am about to do, and Avraham will surely become a great and mighty nation? (17:18)

Hashem’s apparent deliberation concerning whether or not to share His plans about the destruction of Sodom with Avraham Avinu begs elucidation. The very statement implies that He had a legitimate reason to conceal this information from Avraham. Nonetheless, Hashem decided to share the information with Avraham (regardless). The Patriarch was destined to be the progenitor of a great nation. Thus, he should be made aware of the impending destruction. Obviously, something is happening of which the reader is not aware. Rashi explains that this is a rhetorical question, which should be read in astonishment. Nonetheless, it still does not clarify…

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