Blessed – Peninim on the Torah

ברוך ד' אלוקי אדוני אברהם אשר לא עזב חסדו ואמתו מעם אדוני

Blessed is Hashem, the G-d of my master, Avraham, who did not abandon His kindness and truth with my master. (24:27)

Eliezer’s declaration of gratitude concerning the chesed, kindness, he received is understandable. He arrived in Aram Naharaim for the purpose of finding a wife for Yitzchak Avinu, and he immediately met Rivkah, the perfect candidate. Where does emes, truth, enter into the equation? Horav Chaim Mordechai Katz, zl, explains that, indeed, the concept of chesed is complex. It is possible that a person who offers assistance possesses a kind and generous heart. It is also possible, however, that this person, despite all his kindness, does not. For example, a person may demonstrate kindness which actually stems from egotism. This type…

Home -> 5784 -> Ki Savo

ברוך אתה בבאיך וברוך אתה בצאתך

Sruly Schnair In Ki Savo, 5784

Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out. (28:6)

Chazal (Devarim Rabbah 7:5) explain that one should leave this world as free of sin as when he entered the world at birth. Rabbi Berachyah says, “Shlomo Hamelech says in Koheles (3:2), Eis laledes v’eis lamus, ‘There is a time to be born and a time to die.’ Do we not know this? Everyone is born and we will all one day leave this world. (What is Shlomo Hamelech teaching us?) Fortunate is he whose moment of death is like his moment of birth – innocent, pure of sin.” Is the sole purpose of man to leave this world as…

Home -> 5784 -> Ki Savo

ברוך אתה בבואך וברוך אתה בצאתך

Sruly Schnair In Ki Savo, 5784

Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out. (28:6)

Chazal (Devarim Rabbah 7:5) interpret this pasuk as a guide to Jewish living. One should strive to leave this world (after 120) as pure and free of sin as when he entered this world as an infant. It is seemingly a tall order. Life is filled with challenges which can be viewed as impenetrable obstacles or as speedbumps which only slow us down. In any event, if one works at it, he can maintain the spiritual integrity of his life, thereby giving it meaning. The Ksav Sofer explains that this pasuk is based upon a well-known debate among the Tannaim,…

Home -> 5783 -> Yisro

ויספר משה לחתנו את כל אשר עשה ד' ... ויאמר יתרו ברוך ד' אשר הציל אתכם

Sruly Schnair In Yisro, 5783

Moshe told his father-in-law everything that Hashem had done… Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem Who has rescued you.” (18:8,10)

The power that a story has to impact a person cannot be overstated. Horav Nachman Breslover, zl, teaches, “There is nothing that revives the spirit, purifies the heart, deepens the thought, or draws us close to our Father in Heaven more than telling a story (obviously, there is an art to telling a story). Indeed, prior to giving us the mitzvos of the Torah, Hashem preceded it with the story of Creation.” Moshe Rabbeinu employed the effectiveness of a story to inspire Yisro and draw his heart close to Hashem, “Moshe related to his father-in-law all that Hashem had done.”…

Home -> 5781 -> Noach

ויאמר ברוך ד' אלקי שם

Sruly Schnair In Noach, 5781

And he said, “Blessed is Hashem, the G-d of Shem. (9:26)

Noach did not directly bless Shem; rather, he said that the G-d/Hashem of Shem be blessed and glorified. By saying this, Noach intimated the mission of Shem/ his descendants, of whom the standard bearer is Klal Yisrael. Their primary goal is to serve Hashem and glorify His Name in the world. Thus, when people bless Hashem, we, His children, are – by extension – blessed. Horav S.R. Hirsch, zl, points out that Hashem is the universal G-d. He is everyone’s G-d. (Indeed, when the accursed Nazi held his gun to the head of the Telzer Rav and asked, “Jew, where…

Home -> 5758 -> Yisro

Moshe Marcovich In Yisro, 5758

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh.” (18:10)

Yisro offers praise to Hashem for Klal Yisrael’s good fortune in being rescued from near destruction. The Mechilta views this statement as a critique of Klal Yisrael, saying that Yisro was the first to praise Hashem with the words, “Baruch Hashem.” We must endeavor to understand what was inappropriate about Klal Yisrael’s previous expressions of praise. Did the Shirah that they sang at the Yam Suf constitute a less appropriate praise to Hashem than the words, “Baruch Hashem”? Shirah is communal praise, employed when the congregation assembles to express gratitude to the Almighty in unison. Baruch Hashem is a personal…

Home -> 5758 -> Shemini

Moshe Marcovich In Shemini, 5758

And Aharon fell silent. (10:3)

The Ramban notes that Aharon maintained his silence only after first breaking into sobs. The Abarbanel disagrees, asserting that Aharon did not react to the tragic death of his sons. In an attempt to defend the Ramban’s position, the Chasam Sofer explains that while Aharon did weep, he cried in response to his sins which he felt precipitated the tragedy that befell his sons. Aharon’s silence was a sign of acceptance, of inner peace, of profound faith in the Almighty. Aharon’s silence reflected his serenity at accepting the Divine decree issued against his sons. How did he gather the fortitude…

Home -> 5771 -> Yisro

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Yisro, 5771

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem, Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt.” (18:10)

The Talmud Sanhedrin 94 notes that it was embarrassing for Moshe Rabbeinu and 600,000 Jews that Yisro was the first one to bless Hashem for saving them. This reality comprises a powerful critique of the Jewish People and their leadership. Imagine, no one had been moved to bless Hashem for all the incredible miracles which He had wrought for them until Yisro expressed his feelings of gratitude and praise. It almost does not make sense. But what about the Shirah, “the Song by the Sea” – a Song of Praise and gratitude, which Moshe and Klal Yisrael sang immediately after…

Home -> 5774 -> Ki Savo

ברוך אתה בעיר וברוך אתה בשדה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Ki Savo, 5774

Blessed shall you be in the city and blessed shall you be in the field. (28:3)

A Jew shall remain blessed whether he is in the city together with his chaburah, social group, or if he is alone in the field, away from everyone. Horav Yaakov Galinsky, zl, recalls his years as a student in the Novaradok Yeshivah, an institution which imbued its students with a sense of commitment to Torah and mitzvos that transcend time and place and even social support. Wherever a Novaradoker student found himself, he was somehow able to transcend the vicissitudes of life and the challenges they presented. For example, Rav Galinsky and a group of students were banished to a…

Home -> 5775 -> Yisro

ויאמר יתרו ברוך ד' אשר הציל אתכם מיד מצרים ומיד פרעה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Yisro, 5775

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem, Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh.” (18:10)

Yisro maintains that the Jewish nation owes a special sense of gratitude to Hashem for His “personal” involvement in their liberation from Egyptian bondage. Rather than have Pharaoh release them of his own accord, Hashem forced his hand to make him send them out of the country. Indeed, if Pharaoh would have willingly participated in the redemption, we might have reason to believe that he too should be recognized and appreciated. Now we acknowledge that it is only to Hashem to whom we have an obligation of gratitude. The Chasam Sofer interprets this idea in his explanation of the Avadim…

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ברוך ד' אלוקי אדוני אברהם אשר לא עזב חסדו ואמתו מעם אדוני

Blessed is Hashem, the G-d of my master, Avraham, who did not abandon His kindness and truth with my master. (24:27)

ברוך אתה בבאיך וברוך אתה בצאתך

Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out. (28:6)

ברוך אתה בבואך וברוך אתה בצאתך

Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out. (28:6)

ויספר משה לחתנו את כל אשר עשה ד' ... ויאמר יתרו ברוך ד' אשר הציל אתכם

Moshe told his father-in-law everything that Hashem had done… Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem Who has rescued you.” (18:8,10)

ויאמר ברוך ד' אלקי שם

And he said, “Blessed is Hashem, the G-d of Shem. (9:26)

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh.” (18:10)

And Aharon fell silent. (10:3)

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem, Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt.” (18:10)

ברוך אתה בעיר וברוך אתה בשדה

Blessed shall you be in the city and blessed shall you be in the field. (28:3)

ויאמר יתרו ברוך ד' אשר הציל אתכם מיד מצרים ומיד פרעה

Yisro said, “Blessed is Hashem, Who has rescued you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh.” (18:10)

YEARS

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