Chesed – Page 31 – Peninim on the Torah

ויהי ביום השמיני קרא משה לאהרן ולבניו ולזקני ישראל

It was on the eighth day, Moshe summoned Aharon and his sons and the elders of Yisrael. (9:1)

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….

Home -> 5775 -> Shelach

ואמרו אל יושב הארץ הזאת שמעו כי אתה ד' בקרב העם הזה. ועננך עמד עליהם ובעמוד ענן אתה הלך לפניהם יומם ובעמוד אש לילה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Shelach, 5775

And they will say about the inhabitants of the Land, “They have heard that You, Hashem are in the midst of this people… and that Your cloud stands over them, and that in a pillar of cloud You go before them by day, and in a pillar of fire at night.” (14:14)

The above pasuk underscores Hashem’s overwhelming love for the Jewish People, as perceived by the gentile nations. While it is unquestionably true, their perception of His love is interestingly based on a vision of chesed, kindness, which, albeit impressive, requires elucidation. “You, Hashem, are in the midst of this people”: The nations are impacted by Hashem’s close relationship with us. How do they see this closeness? What unique manifestation of love impacts them most? “That Your cloud stands over them, and that in a pillar of cloud You go before them”: The Ananei HaKavod, Clouds of Glory, protected the Jews…

Home -> 5775 -> Naso

ואיש את קדשיו לו יהיו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Naso, 5775

A man’s holies shall be his. (5:10)

The Chafetz Chaim, zl, was wont to say that the above pasuk teaches us that an object or endeavor which a person dedicates/consecrates for sacred use is what actually belongs to him, and this is what ultimately accompanies him to the eternal world of Olam Habba, the World to Come. This means that the only objects/endeavors that we may call “ours” are those which are linked to a spiritual goal. Otherwise, we cannot consider it to belong to us. Moreover, we should not rely on others to carry out our responsibilities. True, many wonderful and generous people are around who…

Home -> 5775 -> Lech Lecha

ואעשך לגוי גדול ואברכך ואגדלה שמך והיה ברכה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Lech Lecha, 5775

And I will make of you a great nation; and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. (12:2)

In an alternative explanation, Rashi says, “‘And I will make you a great nation” is a reference to the words Elokei Avraham, G-d of Avraham, which is recited in the beginning of Shemoneh Esrai. Vaavarchecha, ‘and I will bless you,’ refers to Elokei Yitzchak; and Vaagadlah shemecha refers to Elokei Yaakov. While I might think that they conclude the blessing of the Avos, Patriarchs, with all three of them, the pasuk states Ve’heyei b’rachah, ‘And you will be a blessing,’ Becha chosmin, v’lo bahem, ‘With you, Avraham, they conclude the blessing, and not with them.’” A well-known exposition is attributed…

Home -> 5775 -> Korach

ויקח קרח

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Korach, 5775

And Korach took. (16:1)

Was Korach a fool? Absolutely not. Did he lack yiraas Shomayim, fear of Heaven? No. indeed, Chazal teach that Korach was a chacham gadol, very wise man, a pikeach, clever and astute person. He was among those Leviim who carried the Aron HaKodesh, Holy Ark. What happened to all of this chochmah, pikchus and yiraas Shomayim? His eye deceived him. He saw a great and distinguished lineage descending from him. Shmuel HaNavi, the great prophet, was one of his descendants. Such lineage can turn anyone’s head. First of all, Korach was correct in what he saw. He was the progenitor…

Home -> 5775 -> Ki Seitzei

השב תשיבם לאחיך... לא תוכל להתעלם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Ki Seitzei, 5775

You shall surely return them to your brother… you shall not hide yourself. (22:1,3)

We wonder why certain mitzvos are included in the Torah. Any decent person knows that if he finds an object belonging to someone else, he should proceed to return it to the rightful owner. People, however, are lazy and greedy. We are not often inclined to go out of our way to search for the owner. This is especially true when we find an object of great value, whose owner is not readily identifiable. Thus, between the time involved and the value of the item, the finder rationalizes that he does not have to return the item. A mitzvah is…

Home -> 5775 -> Chayei Sarah

עבד אברהם אנכי

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5775

I am the servant of Avraham. (24:34)

Eliezer was entrusted with a mission of the most crucial importance: finding the next Matriarch, the woman who, together with Yitzchak Avinu, would be charged with forming and maintaining the next link in Klal Yisrael. It was no easy task, and, clearly, without Divine manipulation, the success of this mission would not have been realized. Obviously, the selection of Eliezer to execute this mission is indicative of his virtue and sanctity. Avraham Avinu was acutely aware that nothing is achieved without Divine interplay, and Hashem would not interact with a person of base character. Chazal, however, teach us that there…

Home -> 5775 -> Chayei Sarah

ויהי כאשר ושני כלו הגמלים לשתות ויקח האיש נזם זהב בקע משקלו ושני צמידים על ידיה עשרה זהב משקלם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5775

And it was, when the camels finished drinking, that the man took a nose ring whose weight was a beka, and two bracelets for her hands, whose weight was ten measures. (24:22)

The Torah goes to great lengths in describing Eliezer’s journey to Aram Naharayim in search of a suitable wife for Yitzchak Avinu. When Eliezer saw the outstanding display of chesed, loving kindness, manifested by Rivkah Imeinu, he realized that she had the refined character traits that were necessary for the next Matriarch of the Jewish Nation. Eliezer gave her gifts, a nose ring and two bracelets. The Torah underscores the weight of these pieces of jewelry, due to their allusion to the half-shekel collected from the people for the building of the Mishkan, and the ten measures, which allude to…

Home -> 5775 -> Chayei Sarah

וירץ העבד לקראתה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5775

The servant ran towards her. (24:17)

Rashi explains that Eliezer ran towards Rivkah Imeinu when he saw the water rising towards her. Clearly, this was an outstanding display of the supernatural. Rivkah must have been an impressive young woman to have merited such “reverence.” If this is the case, why did Eliezer feel the need to test her to see how she would react when he asked for water for his camels? What greater indication of her suitability for Yitzchak Avinu did he need than seeing nature altered for her? The well-known explanation, attributed to Horav Yechezkel, zl, m’Kozmir, is that a person is judged according…

Home -> 5775 -> Balak

ועתה לכה נא ארה לי את העם הזה

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Balak, 5775

So now – please come and curse this people for me. (22:6)

Humility is much more than a positive character trait. It is a characteristic which is absolutely vital to one’s success in life. It is an indicator of adherence to the truth. One who is arrogant is simply not a truthful person. Indeed, life is one long lesson in humility, without which life would be a sham, with the greatest fool being the one who lords himself over others. At the end of the day, he knows that he is only fooling himself. Having said this, we turn to the Haftorah in Parashas Balak, which recalls Balak’s attempt to curse the…

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ויהי ביום השמיני קרא משה לאהרן ולבניו ולזקני ישראל

It was on the eighth day, Moshe summoned Aharon and his sons and the elders of Yisrael. (9:1)

ואמרו אל יושב הארץ הזאת שמעו כי אתה ד' בקרב העם הזה. ועננך עמד עליהם ובעמוד ענן אתה הלך לפניהם יומם ובעמוד אש לילה

And they will say about the inhabitants of the Land, “They have heard that You, Hashem are in the midst of this people… and that Your cloud stands over them, and that in a pillar of cloud You go before them by day, and in a pillar of fire at night.” (14:14)

ואיש את קדשיו לו יהיו

A man’s holies shall be his. (5:10)

ואעשך לגוי גדול ואברכך ואגדלה שמך והיה ברכה

And I will make of you a great nation; and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. (12:2)

ויקח קרח

And Korach took. (16:1)

השב תשיבם לאחיך... לא תוכל להתעלם

You shall surely return them to your brother… you shall not hide yourself. (22:1,3)

עבד אברהם אנכי

I am the servant of Avraham. (24:34)

ויהי כאשר ושני כלו הגמלים לשתות ויקח האיש נזם זהב בקע משקלו ושני צמידים על ידיה עשרה זהב משקלם

And it was, when the camels finished drinking, that the man took a nose ring whose weight was a beka, and two bracelets for her hands, whose weight was ten measures. (24:22)

וירץ העבד לקראתה

The servant ran towards her. (24:17)

ועתה לכה נא ארה לי את העם הזה

So now – please come and curse this people for me. (22:6)

YEARS

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