The Divine gift of manna was essentially the last of the great miracles which surrounded the Egyptian Exodus. These wonders were designed to illuminate our path and guide us in our belief in Hashem. Indeed, Chazal view the manna as the ultimate miracle which nurtured our emunah and stimulated our bitachon in Hashem. Hashem brought us through the desert in a long, circuitous way. He nourished us with manna from Heaven and water from the Well in order to imbue Torah into our bodies and souls. Relying upon Hashem to provide “parnasah,” livelihood, and believing in His “ability” to sustain…
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וישג לבן את יעקב
Imagine how Yaakov Avinu must have felt when Lavan caught up with him. He made an attempt to escape. He knew that if Lavan overtook him, he had little chance to remain alive. No one could best Lavan. So Yaakov kept on running, while Lavan continued his pursuit. The Midrash teaches us that, while Yaakov was running from Lavan, unbeknownst to him, another enemy, his brother Eisav, was also in pursuit. Armed to the teeth with four hundred trusted soldiers, Eisav was finally free to rid himself of Yaakov. His brother would pay a hefty price for appropriating the blessings….
ויתפלל אברהם אל האלקים וירפא אלקים את אבימלך... וד' פקד את שרה
Rashi notes the juxtaposition of Sarah Imeinu’s conception and giving birth to Yitzchak Avinu upon Avraham Avinu’s prayer on behalf of Avimelech. He explains that the Torah put this passage (Sarah’s conception and giving birth) next to the incident of Avimelech to teach that whoever seeks mercy by praying for his friend, while he himself (the individual praying) needs that same thing (for which he is praying on behalf of his friend), he (the one praying), is answered first. Avimelech was in need – Avraham prayed for him; thus, he was answered by Hashem – before Avimelech. Imagine two people…
ועתה שני בניך הנולדים לך בארץ מצרים עד באי אליך מצרימה לי הם
Horav Moshe Feinstein, zl, derives from this pasuk that the symbol of the pertinacity of a Torah education; its staying power, and ability to overcome challenge, is whether it is still perceived in later generations. An education that endures generations is a good education. This idea is gleaned from Yaakov Avinu’s statement concerning Yosef’s children who were born prior to the arrival of the Patriarch in Egypt. Li heim, “They are mine!” has meaning only if they had been born and raised in the moral filth of Egyptian society without Yaakov Avinu to serve as a positive influence, as the…
ושננתם לבניך ודברת בם
Rashi teaches that banecha, your sons, eilu ha’talmidim, applies equally to one’s talmidim, students. In Nitzotzos, Rav Yitzchak Herskowitz, Shlita, relates a story he heard from a Rosh Yeshivah, who is one of today’s more successful marbitzei Torah, disseminators of Torah, in Eretz Yisrael. Apparently, Torah was not always this individual’s primary interest. As a young, teenage student attending Yeshivas Ohr Yisrael in Petach Tikvah, he was involved in a lot of things, most of which were not Torah-related. Running with a group of like-minded students, he presented a constant challenge for the patience of the yeshivah’s Mashgiach, ethical supervisor….
ויתרוצצו הבנים בקרבה
Rashi cites Chazal who explain that the word Vayisrotzetzu, “And they (the children) agitated” is derived from the word rotz, to run. When Rivkah Imeinu passed the Yeshivah of Shem and Eivar, Yaakov “ran” and struggled to go forth; and when she passed a house of idol worship, Eisav “ran” to go out. Each child had a certain proclivity representative of the cosmic forces within Creation – forces that are not connected to normal personality development, but transcend it. Yaakov Avinu gravitated towards the bais hamedrash, while Eisav was more comfortable in the house of idol worship. As they grew…
ותראהו את הילד והנה נער בוכה... ותאמר מילדי העברים זה
Pharaoh’s daughter looked at the infant in the basket and noticed something unusual about the manner in which the infant wept. This made her assume that it was a Jewish infant. What about the infant’s weeping spurred her to think that it was Jewish? The Slonimer Rebbe, zl, explains that, indeed, a marked difference exits between the cry of a Jew and the cry of one who is not. Rather than go right to the distinction, I would like to approach it from the vantage point of Tishah B’Av, our national day of mourning. Every Festival has its cheftzah d’mitzvah,…
ויאמר משה אל אהרן הוא אשר דבר ד' לאמר בקרבי אקדש ועל פני כל העם אכבד וידם אהרן
Horav Shlomo Levinstein, Shlita, relates that he heard from Rav Eliezer Yehudah Finkel, son of Horav Eliyahu Baruch Finkel, zl, that the Rosh Yeshivah told him the following thought two weeks prior to his petirah, untimely passing. The thought is a powerful insight into Aharon HaKohen’s reaction – or better, non reaction, to the tragic death of two of his sons, Nadav and Avihu. Rashi observes that following the tragedy, Moshe Rabbeinu rendered a powerful eulogy for his nephews. Moshe said to Aharon, “My brother, I knew that Hashem would sanctify His Sanctuary with His beloved close ones. I figured…
ויהי ביום השמיני קרא משה לאהרן ולבניו ולזקני ישראל
Thrice daily, we recite the prayer, Al ha’tzaddikim v’al ha’chassidim v’al ziknei amcha Bais Yisrael v’al pleitas bais sofreihem, “(May Your mercies be aroused) upon the righteous, upon the pious, upon the elders of Your People, the House of Yisrael, upon the remnant of their sages.” We must recite this prayer with consummate kavanah, intention/devotion. Chazal understood the value to the Jewish People of these varied leaders, without whom we would not exist as a people. We rely on them, and we are unable to function without them. Therefore, it is our obligation to pray for their continued good health….
ויקרא משה להושע בן נון יהושע
Rashi explains that Moshe Rabbeinu added the letter yud to Hoshea’s name, thereby transforming it to Yehoshua, so that his name would begin with Yud-Kay, the letters of G-d’s Name. The Hebrew name, Yehoshua, means, “G-d will save.” Moshe was praying that Hashem would spare his primary student, Yehoshua, from falling under the mutinous influence of the spies. Chazal give a number of reasons that Moshe singled out Yehoshua over Calev. Surely, it was not favoritism. Moshe was concerned that Yehoshua’s extreme humility would get the better of him and not permit him to stand up to the meraglim. Alternatively,…
