Commitment – Page 54 – Peninim on the Torah

ולא שמעו אל משה מקוצר רוח ומעבודה קשה

They did not heed Moshe, because of shortness of breath and hard work. (6:9)

Shortness of breath, lack of spirit, and backbreaking work devastates a person, so that he does not respond favorably to assurances that he will achieve salvation. When a person is wasted, it is difficult to get him to listen – regardless of the positive nature of the message. The lack of spirit and hard work seem out of sequence relative to one another. One loses spirit as a result of overwork – not the other way around. Why does the Torah precede hard work with a lack of spirit? Perhaps spirit refers to spirituality. When a person is connected to…

Home -> 5777 -> Vaeira

ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Vaeira, 5777

And I will take you to Myself as a people. (6:7)

The destiny and concomitant exclusivity of Klal Yisrael are described in these few words. Hashem took us to Him as a nation via the medium of the Torah, which we accepted. Horav S. R. Hirsch, zl, observes that people have thoughtlessly grouped the Jewish religion together with the religions of the other nations of the world, when, in fact, our religion encompasses many elements beyond those commonly regarded to be integral to religion. The above verse – Li l’am, “To Myself as a People,” clearly delineates that Judaism as established by Hashem is, indeed, not a religion at all; rather,…

Home -> 5777 -> Terumah

ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Terumah, 5777

They shall make a Sanctuary for Me so that I may dwell among them. (25:8)

The Alshich HaKadosh, zl, notes the use of the word, b’socham, in them, rather than b’socho, in it. This teaches that every Jew must serve as a veritable Mishkan, Sanctuary, for Hashem. Every Jew is a mikdash me’at, miniature sanctuary. This should be our self-view, and likewise, the way we look at others. While one can accept this idea concerning gedolei Yisrael, individuals who truly represent Kavod Shomayim, the glory of Heaven, what about the ordinary person? Is the ordinary person also a mikdash me’at? First, the term “ordinary” is too general a term. I refer rather to someone who…

Home -> Shemos -> 5777

ותיראן המילדת את האלקים ולא עשו כאשר דבר אליהן מלך מצרים ותחיין את הילדים

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5777, Shemos

But the midwives feared G-d and they did not do as the king of Egypt spoke to them, and they caused the boys to live. (1:17)

Pharaoh had to stem the tide of the Jewish population explosion. Infanticide was his proposal. He could not prevent conception, but he could see to it that the infants never saw the light of day. The two Jewish midwives feared Hashem and rejected Pharaoh’s orders, claiming that, by the time they arrived, the children had already been born. These midwives were, like so many of the other Jewish women, nashim tzidkaniyos, righteous women, who placed their commitment to Hashem above everything. Their faith in the Almighty motivated their actions, despite the pressing question: To what kind of world and to…

Home -> 5777 -> Lech Lecha

ויאמר ד' אל אברם לך לך מארצך וממולדתך ומבית אביך

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Lech Lecha, 5777

Hashem said to Avram, “Go for yourself from your land, from your relatives, and from your father’s home. (12:1)

Although the Torah relates the birth of Avraham Avinu at the end of Parashas Noach, we are introduced to the Patriarch in Parashas Lech Lecha. In Derech Hashem, the Maharal explains that originally the plan of Creation was that all human beings would share equally in fulfilling the Divine mission and that the Torah would be given to all mankind. Twenty generations of failure from Adam to Noach to Avraham precluded this reality from occurring. Thus, the title of Hashem’s Chosen People was given to the nation that earned it: Avraham, followed by his progeny. They would receive the Torah;…

Home -> Ha'azinu -> 5777

שימו לבבכם לכל הדברים אשר אנכי מעיד בכם היום

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In 5777, Ha'azinu

Apply your hearts to all the words that I testify against you today. (32:46)

Are Klal Yisrael to apply themselves solely to that which Moshe Rabbeinu commanded them that day? What about all of the other days? Are they to be disregarded? Horav Nachman, zl, m’Breslov teaches that one’s avodas haKodesh, service to the Almighty, should focus on hayom, today. Yesterday is gone, over, finished. Tomorrow is the future. Who knows if there will even be a tomorrow? Our concern is for today. Rav Yitzchak makes the following statement (in the Talmud Kiddushin 30b): B’chol yom – “A person’s yetzer hora, evil inclination, renews itself against him (every Jew) every day.” Rabbi Shimon ben…

Home -> 5777 -> Bo

והגדת לבנך ביום ההוא לאמר בעבור זה עשה ד' לי בצאתי ממצרים

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Bo, 5777

And you shall tell your son on that day, saying,” It is because of this that Hashem acted on my behalf when I left Egypt.” (13:8)

In the Haggadah, this is the father’s response to his errant son, the ben rasha, wicked son. He makes a derisive statement, and his father responds with a litany underscoring his historical connection with yetzias Mitzrayim, the Egyptian exodus. Does the response really clarify anything in the wicked son’s mind? For that matter, is the wicked son really seeking an answer? When someone reaches the point of derision, nothing anyone says really matters to him. He is interested only in “hit and run,” ridiculing and skewering the subject of his derision and leaving, supposedly satisfied that he has shot his…

Home -> 5777 -> Beshalach

ויאמר ד' אל משה מה תצעק אלי דבר אל בני ישראל ויסעו

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Beshalach, 5777

Hashem said to Moshe, “Why do you cry out to me? Speak to Bnei Yisrael and let them journey forth.” (14:15)

The Talmud Sotah 36 quotes Rabbi Meir who relates that when the tribes stood at the banks of the Red Sea, a debate arose among them concerning who would enter the waters first. Each one vied for the honor of being the rosh, head, leader, who would set the example for the rest of the nation to follow. Rabbi Yehudah disputed this interpretation, asserting that being first was the last thing on their minds. On the contrary, they each eschewed being first, leaving the “honors” for the other tribe. They both agree that it was Nachshon ben Aminadav of the…

Home -> 5760 -> Bereishis

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Bereishis, 5760

“In the beginning G-d created.” (1:1)

Horav Tzvi Hirsh Meisels, z.l., the Veitzener Rav, cites the Midrash Hane’elam that suggests that the letters of Bereishis, “Bais, Reish, Aleph, Shin, Yud, Saf,” are an acronym for two words; bris eish, a convenant of fire. He explains the concept of a covenant forged in fire based upon the following story: Horav Meisels was the rav in the dreaded concentration camp Auschwitz. On Simchas Torah night a group of fifty young Gerer chassidim were brought to the gas chambers. Their sin was rebelling against the German government. Their act of mutiny – observing the laws of the Torah. These…

Home -> 5761 -> Chayei Sarah

Rabbi L. Scheinbaum In Chayei Sarah, 5761

“Sarah died in Kiryat Arba…And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to bewail her.” (23:2)

In his commentary to Pirkei Avos, Rabbeinu Yona records the Asarah Nisyonos, ten trials, which Avraham Avinu endured and from which he emerged triumphant. He lists the Akeidas Yitzchak as the ninth trial and the burial of Sarah Imeinu as the tenth and most difficult challenge to overcome. Avraham was left alone after having spent the major part of his life with his beloved eishes chayil. His test arose when, upon Sarah’s sudden death, he had a difficult time procuring a burial site for her. Interestingly, in the Talmud Bava Basra 15b, Chazal cite Satan’s “endorsement” of Avraham Avinu’s faith based…

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ולא שמעו אל משה מקוצר רוח ומעבודה קשה

They did not heed Moshe, because of shortness of breath and hard work. (6:9)

ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם

And I will take you to Myself as a people. (6:7)

ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם

They shall make a Sanctuary for Me so that I may dwell among them. (25:8)

ותיראן המילדת את האלקים ולא עשו כאשר דבר אליהן מלך מצרים ותחיין את הילדים

But the midwives feared G-d and they did not do as the king of Egypt spoke to them, and they caused the boys to live. (1:17)

ויאמר ד' אל אברם לך לך מארצך וממולדתך ומבית אביך

Hashem said to Avram, “Go for yourself from your land, from your relatives, and from your father’s home. (12:1)

שימו לבבכם לכל הדברים אשר אנכי מעיד בכם היום

Apply your hearts to all the words that I testify against you today. (32:46)

והגדת לבנך ביום ההוא לאמר בעבור זה עשה ד' לי בצאתי ממצרים

And you shall tell your son on that day, saying,” It is because of this that Hashem acted on my behalf when I left Egypt.” (13:8)

ויאמר ד' אל משה מה תצעק אלי דבר אל בני ישראל ויסעו

Hashem said to Moshe, “Why do you cry out to me? Speak to Bnei Yisrael and let them journey forth.” (14:15)

“In the beginning G-d created.” (1:1)

“Sarah died in Kiryat Arba…And Avraham came to eulogize Sarah and to bewail her.” (23:2)

YEARS

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