Commitment – Page 7 – Peninim on the Torah

ובצלאל בן אורי בן חור למטה יהודה עשה את כל אשר צוה ד' את משה

Betzalel ben Uri ben Chur of the tribe of Yehudah, did everything as Hashem commanded Moshe. (38:22)

In a well-known exposition, Sforno comments that, in addition to Betzalel, all the men who occupied themselves with the construction of the Mishkan were men of stature, sincerity and piety. This is in contrast to the workmen who built the First and Second Batei Mikdash; those work forces included people from various strata of society. Basically, they did not possess the appropriate spiritual and moral characteristics that would have imbued the project with eternal values. Furthermore, the First Bais Hamikdash built under the leadership of Shlomo Hamelech, was not the same as the Mishkan, built by Moshe Rabbeinu. They were…

Home -> Vayakhel -> 5784

ויאמר משה אל בני ישראל ראו קרא ד' בשם בצלאל בן אורי... וימלא אותו רוח אלקים בחכמה בתבונה ובדעת... ולחשוב מחשבות... ולהורות נתן בלבו

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayakhel

Moshe said to Bnei Yisrael, “See, Hashem has proclaimed by name, Betzalel son of Uri… He filled him with G-dly spirit, with wisdom, insight and knowledge… To weave designs… He gave him the ability to teach.” (35:30,31,32,33,34)

Betzalel was filled with a G-dly spirit, with various forms of wisdom and understanding. The Torah goes on to state v’lachashov machashavos, which is translated as the ability to put his extraordinary wisdom to practical use. Furthermore, he was granted the ability to teach. Is it not all part of the “wisdom package”? If one is Heavenly endowed with uncanny wisdom and ability, what is added by his ability to weave designs and mentor others? Targum Onkelos defines v’lachashov machshavos as u’lalfa u’manin, to train others in how to carry out the tasks of working with the gold and silver….

Home -> 5784 -> Tetzaveh

ויקחו אליך שמן זית זך כתית

Sruly Schnair In Tetzaveh, 5784

And they shall take for you pure, pressed olive oil. (27:20)

Chazal (Midrash Rabbah, Shemos 36:1) quote the pasuk in Yirmiyahu (11:16), Zayis raanan yefei pri to’ar kara Hashem shemecha, “Hashem named you verdant olive tree, fair, with choice fruit” to indicate the comparison of Klal Yisrael to olive oil. Chazal state three characteristics of the Jewish People which mimic the characteristics of olive oil. First, the olive does not give forth its oil until it has been smashed and pressed. Likewise, (some of) the Jewish People return to Hashem through teshuvah, repentance, once they have suffered at the hands of anti-Semites of all creeds, who have persecuted them with all…

Home -> 5784 -> Terumah

ועצי שיטים

Sruly Schnair In Terumah, 5784

And shittim (acacia) wood. (25:5)

Rashi quotes Midrash Tanchuma that Yaakov Avinu’s foresight (through Ruach HaKodesh, Divine Inspiration) was the reason that Klal Yisrael had shittim wood available for the Mishkan. Yaakov knew that his descendants would one day erect a Sanctuary in the wilderness. This edifice would require wood. Therefore, he planted trees when he arrived in Egypt, using seeds that he had brought with him from Eretz Yisrael. He commanded his sons (who obviously commanded it to their sons) that, when they would finally leave Egypt, they should cut down the trees and take them along. Horav Eliyahu Meir Bloch, zl, derives a…

Home -> 5784 -> Beshalach

כי יד על כס קה מלחמה לד' עם בעמלק מדר דר

Sruly Schnair In Beshalach, 5784

For a hand is raised on the Throne of Hashem an eternal battle of G-d with Amalek from generation to generation. (17:16)

The last pasuk in this parshah underscores the eternal battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil. Hashem will not rest until Amalek is eradicated along with its physical and spiritual successors. Wherein lay the evil that Amalek wrought against us? Indeed, in the end of Parashas Ki Seitzei (Devarim 25:18), the Torah exhorts us to remember what Amalek did to us. The immediate question that glares at us upon reading this pasuk is: What did Amalek really do to us? He attacked us and was wiped out by Yehoshua and the Jewish army. For all intents…

Home -> 5784 -> Bo

והיה לך לאות על ידך

Sruly Schnair In Bo, 5784

And it should be for you a sign on your arm. (13:9)

Horav Aryeh Levin, zl, the Tzaddik of Yerushalayim, reached out to Jews of all backgrounds and religious persuasions. He made it a point to visit the prisons run by the British and also visit those with contagious diseases, such as leprosy. Indeed, he was one of the few who did this. Certainly, no one of his exalted stature carried out such exalted acts of chesed. During the British Mandate, political prisoners – such as the young, Jewish freedom fighters – were sentenced to the gallows by the British courts. The shadow of death was hardly ever overruled by a pardon….

Home -> Vayechi -> 5784

ויחי יעקב בארץ מצרים שבע עשרה שנה

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayechi

Yaakov lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. (47:28)

After (what seemed to be) a life of difficulty, Yaakov Avinu arrived in Egypt to spend the last seventeen years of his mortal existence. The tranquility, joy and harmony that he enjoyed in some way ameliorated what he had endured in the past. While there can be no tradeoff for the pain and sorrow that our Patriarch experienced, we do know that the last seventeen years of his life were reasonably calm and filled with nachas. Chazal (Talmud Yerushalmi, Kesubos 65b, Bereishis Rabbah 96:5) teach that Yaakov Avinu and Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi were intrinsically joined. This matter was not unknown…

Home -> Vayigash -> 5784

ויסע ישראל וכל אשר לו ויבא בארה שבע

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayigash

So Yisrael set out with all that he had and he came to Beer Sheva. (46:1)

Chazal (Bereishis Rabbah 94:4) explain that Yaakov Avinu went to Beer Sheva to cut down cedar trees which his grandfather, Avraham Avinu, had planted there. Apparently, Avraham knew that the karshei haMishkan, bars that comprised the walls of the Mishkan, would be made of wood. He planted in preparation for that auspicious day. Knowing that he would die in Egypt and that his descendants would build a Sanctuary in the wilderness, Yaakov, therefore, went to cut these trees (and transplanted them in Egypt), so that, when his descendants would leave, they would take the trees along with them. This is…

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ואת יהודה שלח לפניו... להורות לפניו גשנה

Sruly Schnair In 5784, Vayigash

He sent Yehudah ahead of him… to prepare ahead of him in Goshen. (46:28)

Yaakov Avinu sent Yehudah l’horos lefanav Goshnah, which Chazal (Bereishis Rabbah 95:3) interpret to be Yehudah’s mission to set the foundation for a makom Torah, a yeshivah where everyone could study. From the very beginning, our Patriarch set forth his priorities for his children to know and incorporate into their lives. Torah is our number one priority. While not every Jewish community has a yeshivah gedolah, they all have a shul set aside for prayer and study. Without Torah, we are unable to serve Hashem and live properly as observant Jews. Judaism is a religion – not a culture –…

Home -> 5784 -> Toldos

שני גוים בבטנך ושני לאמים ממעיך יפרדו... ורב יעבד צעיר

Sruly Schnair In Toldos, 5784

Two people are in your womb, and two nations from your womb shall separate… and the elder shall serve the younger. (25:23)

The story of Yaakov and Eisav involves complex dynamics between two brothers – two very different brothers who had totally incongruous ways of life, goals and objectives. This was basically the nevuah, prophesy, that Rivkah Imeinu received when she went to the yeshivah of Shem and Ever to seek an explanation for her difficult pregnancy. Much can be derived from the narrative which serves as a lesson concerning family relationships, personal choices and the consequences one must bear as a result of his decisions. Obviously, the entire scenario is cloaked in profound layers of esoteric nature, leaving little for us…

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ובצלאל בן אורי בן חור למטה יהודה עשה את כל אשר צוה ד' את משה

Betzalel ben Uri ben Chur of the tribe of Yehudah, did everything as Hashem commanded Moshe. (38:22)

ויאמר משה אל בני ישראל ראו קרא ד' בשם בצלאל בן אורי... וימלא אותו רוח אלקים בחכמה בתבונה ובדעת... ולחשוב מחשבות... ולהורות נתן בלבו

Moshe said to Bnei Yisrael, “See, Hashem has proclaimed by name, Betzalel son of Uri… He filled him with G-dly spirit, with wisdom, insight and knowledge… To weave designs… He gave him the ability to teach.” (35:30,31,32,33,34)

ויקחו אליך שמן זית זך כתית

And they shall take for you pure, pressed olive oil. (27:20)

ועצי שיטים

And shittim (acacia) wood. (25:5)

כי יד על כס קה מלחמה לד' עם בעמלק מדר דר

For a hand is raised on the Throne of Hashem an eternal battle of G-d with Amalek from generation to generation. (17:16)

והיה לך לאות על ידך

And it should be for you a sign on your arm. (13:9)

ויחי יעקב בארץ מצרים שבע עשרה שנה

Yaakov lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. (47:28)

ויסע ישראל וכל אשר לו ויבא בארה שבע

So Yisrael set out with all that he had and he came to Beer Sheva. (46:1)

ואת יהודה שלח לפניו... להורות לפניו גשנה

He sent Yehudah ahead of him… to prepare ahead of him in Goshen. (46:28)

שני גוים בבטנך ושני לאמים ממעיך יפרדו... ורב יעבד צעיר

Two people are in your womb, and two nations from your womb shall separate… and the elder shall serve the younger. (25:23)

YEARS

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