Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
One of the many topics presented in our parasha is the passing of Miriam:

The entire congregation of the children of Israel arrived at the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people settled in Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried there. The congregation had no water; so they assembled against Moses and Aaron. (Sefer Bamidbar 20:1-2, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, underlining my own)
 
The juxtaposition of the phrases “Miriam died there and was buried there,” and “the congregation had no water …,” is intriguing. Talmud Bavli, Ta’anit 9a suggests the following rationale for this linkage:

R. Jose the son of R. Judah says: “Three good leaders had arisen for Israel, namely. Moshe, Aharon and Miriam, and for their sake three good things were conferred [upon Israel], namely, the Well, the Pillar of Cloud and the Manna; the Well, for the merit of Miriam; the Pillar of Cloud for the merit of Aharon; the Manna for the merit of Moshe. When Miriam died the well disappeared, as it is said, And Miriam died there, and immediately follows [the verse], And there was no water for the congregation; and it returned for the merit of the [latter] two [that is, Moshes and Aharon].” (This, and all Talmud translations, The Soncino Talmud, underlining my own)

According to the Gemara, the well that accompanied the Jewish people throughout their 40 years of wandering in the dessert was b’zechut Miriam (in the merit of Miriam). Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself on this idea, therefore explains: “had no water: From here [we learn that] all forty years they had the well in Miriam’s merit.”
 
Two other major sources, however, unequivocally state that the well was not b’zechut Miriam but rather, b’zechut Avraham. The first dissenting view, also from Talmud Bavli, discusses three of Avraham’s actions that he performed for the wayfarers (that is, the angels) in the beginning of Parashat Vayera:
 
… the School of Ishmael taught likewise: As a reward for three things [done by Avraham] they [his descendants] obtained three things. Thus: As a reward for, “[and he took] butter and milk,” they received the manna; as a reward for, “And he stood by them, they received the pillar of cloud;” as a reward for, “let a little water, I pray you, be fetched,” they were granted Miriam’s well. (Talmud Bavli, Baba Metzia 86b)

The contradiction between this passage and Talmud Bavli Ta’a’nit 9a, was addressed by the Maharsha (Rabbeinu Shmuel Eliezer Ben-Yehudah Halevi Edels,1555-1631) in his interpretation of our passage:

One needs to be exact in their analysis: In the first chapter of Ta’a’nit our Sages said that the manna was in the merit of Moshe, the Well was in the merit of Miriam, and the Pillar of Cloud was in the merit of Aharon. From that source we have a fundamental contradiction: “Why was the Well called the Well of Miriam?” [if it was in Avraham’s merit?] One can answer this in the following manner: Based upon the merit of Avraham the Jewish people would have deserved all of these gifts for but a short period of time. Once, however, [Hashem added] the merits of Moshe, Aharon, and Miriam [to these wonders and miracles,] the manna, the Pillar of Cloud, and the Well lasted for a very long time, namely, the 40 years [the Jewish people wandered in the desert]. Therefore, when Aharon passed away the Pillar of Cloud ceased, when Miriam died the Well departed, and when Moshe expired the manna was no more. (Translation and brackets my own)
 
According to the Maharsha, even though the well came into existence because of Avraham’s numerous acts of kindness toward the angels, it is forever known as the Well of Miriam, since it was on account of her merit that it remained with our people during their desert wanderings.
 
The second source in opposition to Talmud Bavli Ta’a’nit 9a is that of Midrash Bereishit Rabbah ‘48:10. Once again, the Well is viewed as having been created in Avraham’s merit:

“Please take now a small amount of water”: Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Simai: “The Holy One blessed be He said to Avraham: ‘You have said: “Please take now a small amount of water,’” I hereby swear to you that I will repay your children in the desert, in their habitation, and in the Messianic future [for your act of kindness]. Thus, the Torah states [in reference to the Well]: “Then Israel sang this song: Ascend, O’ well sing to it!” This was the case in the desert… (Translation and brackets my own)
 
The difference that obtains between this Midrashic source and our Talmudic passage in Talmud Bavli Ta’a’nit 9a is directly addressed by the Shem Mishmuel (Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain (1855–1926). He notes that the link between the well and Avraham Avinu was explicitly noted by Dovid HaMelech: “He opened a rock and water flowed; in the desert ran rivers. For He remembered His holy word with Avraham His servant.” (Sefer Tehillim 105:41-42)  Why, then, is the well linked to the merits of Miriam, rather than Avraham? The Shem Mishmuel suggests the following:

…the physical aspect and hardness of the rock [that traveled with our people in the desert] becoming softened and transformed into sponge-like matter, and like a pool of water, was a result of Avraham’s merit when he declared to the wayfarers to “Please take now a small amount of water and wash your feet” in order to purify them from the filth of idol worship … The rock, however, becoming a source that acted as a spring replete with flowing waters — this was b’zechut Miriam, since in her very nature she longed to connect to her Father in Heaven, from the earth to the celestial heights, just as a spring flows [from the depths of the earth to the surface] … (Translation and brackets my own)
 
According to the Shem Mishmuel, Miriam emerges as a spiritual giant with an indomitable will, wholly dedicated to serving the Master of the Universe. Hence, while Avraham’s zechut was the source of the rock’s physical transformation, Miriam’s zechut was responsible for its continuous flow of water throughout the 40 years of our people’s desert journey. It is, therefore, known until today as the Well of Miriam.
 
My rebbi and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (1903-1993, known as “the Rav” by his students and followers) further expands upon the greatness of Miriam:

Miriam is responsible for the emergence of Moses as a leader and redeemer of his people. If not for her, he would never have been imbued with great passionate love for his poor brethren. She suggested to the princess that a Hebrew wet-nurse be employed for the infant, preventing Moses from disappearing in anonymity and ignorance. (Family Redeemed: Essays on Family Relationships, page 118)
 
For the Rav, Miriam was ultimately responsible for Moshe becoming Moshe Rabbeinu and the leader and redeemer of our people. As such, the Exodus did begin with Moshe, but rather, was a process that began before him: “The consummation, the full realization [of Yetziat Mitzrayim] happened through Moshe, but the Jewish consciousness, the Jewish emunah, the faith in the promise of Hakadosh Baruch Hu [regarding the redemption], was not just incidental.” (Unpublished public lecture on Parashat Shemot; December 30, 1980, this, and the following transcription my own)  It was Miriam who safeguarded the emunah of our people in her role as their leader prior to Moshe’s return from Midian. As the Rav states:

If not for her, perhaps, Yetziat Mitzrayim would not have taken place… So basically, after the people left Mitzrayim, the leader of the people was Moshe. Before they left from Mitzrayim, when Moshe was yet in Midian, during his long sojourn in Midian, the leader of the people was Miriam HaNaviah [Miriam the Prophetess].
 
May Miriam’s Torah leadership and bravery serve as beacons of truth to help bring the geulah shlaimah (the Final Redemption) soon and in our days. Then, as in the time of Miriam, the stirring words of Yeshayahu will be fulfilled: “And you shall draw water with joy from the fountains of the salvation.” (12:3) V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 








Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The namesake of our parasha is Korach. It is not surprising, therefore, that most meforshim focus the majority of their exegetical efforts on this rabble rouser and his sycophants, Datan, Aviram and On ben Pelet. In contrast, these same commentators are nearly silent regarding the identity of the additional “two hundred and fifty men m’bnai Yisrael, chieftains of the congregation, representatives of the assembly, men of repute” who joined Korach’s rebellion. (Sefer Bamidbar 16:2, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  While in a passing gloss, Rashi (1040-1105) suggests these were the 250 heads of the Sanhedrot, the majority of whom were from the tribe of Reuven (16:1), and Rabbeinu Chananel ben Chushiel (965-1050) asserts they were all Levi’im from Korach’s tribe (16:2), very little other identifying information is available in standard sources. Moreover, the true nature (mahut) of these individuals remains equally obscure. Talmud Bavli, Sanhedrin 110a teaches us that they were men of universal renown who knew when and how to add an extra month to the calendar and establish Rosh Chodesh in its proper time. Why, then, would such accomplished and respected individuals have joined Korach’s insurrection?
 
The Netziv (Rav Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin, 1816-1893) answers this question in his Torah commentary, Ha’amek Davar, on our pasukim:

One must know that the 250 men were gedolei Yisrael in every way, including their awe of Hashem. Their exclusion from the Kahunah — which, itself, brings cleaving to and love of Hashem — burned like a fire within them. This was not borne of a desire for power and honor, but rather the thorough-going longing to become holy and to approach this level [of spiritual heights reached by the Kohanim] through performance of the Avodah (service in the Mishkan). Moreover, they knew that what Hashem had spoken through Moshe was absolutely true, and they did not, G-d forbid, question the veracity of his [Moshe’s] words. The only matter which they doubted was their comprehension of the proper way to understand Hashem’s authentic will. Therefore, they engaged in these deeds of manifest martyrdom [that is, the rebellion and the prohibited act of bringing the incense] because of the unlimited amount of love they had for Hashem…and because of this, they felt forced to undertake the rebellion against Moshe and Aharon and break the bonds of acceptable behavior (lifrotz geder) … (This and the following translations and brackets my own)
 
Rav Herschel Schechter shlita has said that the Netziv was so creative, and his commentary so incisive, that he rivaled the Rishonim (Rabbinic masters of the 11th-15th centuries) in his analyses. This is surely the case in this trenchant presentation. In relatively few words, the Netziv has rescued the two hundred and fifty men m’bnai Yisrael from virtual obscurity and has revealed their true nature to us. In his view, these were spiritual giants who recognized the authenticity of Moshe’s prophecy, loved and honored Hashem and held Him in awe. As such, they sought to draw closer to Him through the incense service, even if it meant their imminent demise. Given the purity of their intentions, the Netziv maintains that, rather than being swallowed in the earthquake that engulfed Korach and his ilk, these gedolei Yisrael were punished by fire that went forth from the inner sanctum of the Kodesh Kedoshim (Holy of Holies). Though they were misguided in their approach, these 250 great men had, nonetheless, acted l’shame shamayim (in order to serve the Almighty).
 
If, as the Netziv notes, the two hundred and fifty men m’bnai Yisrael were the chasidei hador (the righteous ones of the generation), how could they have so easily been duped by the likes of Datan and Aviram, and the Machiavellian machinations of Korach? He suggests the following answer:
​
Regarding these men the text states: “A man who strays from the way of understanding will rest in the congregation of Gehenom.” (Sefer Mishle 21:16) …And the verse comes to teach us that even one who honestly holds Hashem in awe, yet errs and departs from all manner of logical thinking, will ultimately “rest in the congregation of Gehenom,” become an apikores and reject the Sages…and this is what happened to these 250 men, they erred and left the path of logic (she’ta’u m’derech hasechel) and were drawn into the breaches [of rebellion] of Datan and Aviram and thereby embarrassed and repudiated Moshe and Aharon.
 
According to this deep analysis, these righteous individuals failed because they permitted their desire to attain the spiritual heights reserved for Kohanim to overtake their logical understanding and commitment to Hashem’s mitzvot. Here, the Netziv teaches us a profound lesson: Even talmidei chachamim who are counted among the chasidei hador, who love and respect the Torah and hold Hashem in awe, may fall short in their service to the Almighty, if she’ta’u m’derech hasechel.
 
May the lessons and insights of our parasha help us to ensure our avodat Hashem is a product of both our hearts, and our minds. In this way, may we ever strive to serve Him in purity, and in truth. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Our parasha begins with Moshe sending the tribal leaders of our people to Eretz Yisrael in order to discover the beauty and bounty of the land. He did this with great anticipation, coupled with the conviction that he would soon be leading our nation to the Promised Land. Had this happened, he would have been the Mashiach, the builder of the eternal Beit HaMikdash, and the entire world would have recognized the truth of monotheism, the greatness of the Almighty, and our special role as the am hanivchar.
 
What, then, took place, that nearly brought Hashem’s plans for our people to a screeching halt? The answer is starkly clear: We failed to live up to His expectations, and the goals He established for us. Rashi (1040-1105) teaches us that Moshe, with Hashem’s acceptance, sent forth the leaders of each tribe to undertake a thorough reconnaissance of the Land:

Send for yourself: According to your own understanding. I am not commanding you, but if you wish, you may send. Since the Israelites had come [to Moshe] and said, “Let us send men ahead of us,” as it says, “All of you approached me…” (Sefer Devarim 1:22, this and all Bible and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
These were mighty and prestigious men who seemed determined to carry out the task set before them. After all, the Torah calls the tribal princes “anashim” (“men”), a label Rashi suggests was an honorific appellation that bespoke their righteousness. These men were unquestionably the greatest leaders of the Dor Hamidbar (the Generation of the Desert). Their duty was defined as exploring, searching, examining, and discovering. This is borne out by pasukim 13:2, 13: 21, and 13:25, wherein we find the terms “v’yaturu,” “vayaturu,” and “meture” — all expressions of exploration and discovery.
 
Something, however, went terribly wrong. Inexplicably, with the exception of Yehoshua and Kalev, these great leaders ceased to be anashim and morphed into something else entirely, namely, meraglim (spies). This transformation is clearly portrayed in the first chapter of Sefer Devarim 22-24:

And all of you approached me and said, “Let us send men ahead of us so that they will search out the land for us and bring us back word by which route we shall go up, and to which cities we shall come.” And the matter pleased me; so I took twelve men from you, one man for each tribe. And they turned and went up to the mountain, and they came to the valley of Eshkol and spied it out (va’yi’raglu otah).
 
The Meraglim failed to maintain the proper spiritual perspective, which caused them to squander one of the greatest opportunities ever given to humankind. Instead of fulfilling their spiritual mission to discover the essence of Eretz Yisrael, they acted like mere spies on a “black-ops” military mission. Looking at everything through the lens of the laws of Nature, they seemed to forget that, as Hashem’s am hanivchar, our entire existence is solely dependent upon His hashgacha (Divine Providence). This resulted in their viewing their role solely in military terms, instead of as an opportunity to be mekadash shame shamayim (sanctify Hashem’s name) by wholeheartedly fulfilling Moshe’s mandate. Little wonder then, that the Meraglim returned to the people and issued a report that focused on “the facts on the ground,” rather than the potential of what might be. In short, their myopic vision prevented them from seeing a glorious, Hashem-suffused future.
 
Sadly, the people’s response to the Meraglim’s report changed the course of history:
The entire community raised their voices and shouted, and the people wept on that night. All the children of Israel complained against Moshe and Aharon, and the entire congregation said, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this desert. Why does the L-rd bring us to this land to fall by the sword; our wives and children will be as spoils. Is it not better for us to return to Egypt?” They said to each other, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt!” (Sefer Bamidbar 14:1-4)
 
Our forebears’ capitulation was met by swift and angry words from the Almighty:

The L-rd said to Moshe, “How long will this people provoke Me? How much longer will they not believe in Me after all the signs I have performed in their midst? I will strike them with a plague and annihilate them; then I will make you into a nation, greater and stronger than they.” (14:11-12)
 
Fortunately, just as he had done at the time of the Golden Calf debacle, Moshe interceded on our behalf and saved our nation from extermination:
​
Now, please, let the strength of the L-rd be increased, as You spoke, saying. “The L-rd is slow to anger and abundantly kind, forgiving iniquity and transgression...Please forgive the iniquity of this nation in accordance with your abounding kindness, as You have borne this people from Egypt until now.” And the L-rd said, “I have forgiven them in accordance with your word.” (14:17-20)
 
Mishnah Ta’anit 4:6, and the subsequent discussion in the Babylonian Talmud, teach us that the Meraglim returned from their journey to Eretz Yisrael on the night of Tisha b’Av. Although the people were saved through Moshe’s pleading, their reaction to the Meraglim’s report led directly to the divine decree that forbade the Dor Hamidbar (Generation of the Desert) from entering the Promised Land: “b’Tisha b’Av nigzar al avotainu she’lo yichnasu l’aretz.” In pathos-packed prose, our Sages note that lail Tisha b’Av was set aside for destruction ever since that moment. Indeed, both batei mikdash (Holy Temples) were destroyed on this day (586 BCE and 70 CE respectively). Then, too, the Spanish Expulsion (1492), as well as World War I (1914-1919), which arguably laid the foundations for World War II and the Holocaust, began on this most ill-fated of days. Amidst uncountable tears and immeasurable rivers of blood, the monumental failure of the Meraglim, and the faithless behavior of our ancestors, continue to reverberate until our own day.
 
May the time come soon and in our days when we are finally free of the Meraglim, and the stirring words of Dovid HaMelech will be fulfilled: “Yisrael ba’tach b’Hashem ezram u’maginam Hu” (“The Jewish people trust in Hashem; He is their help and their shield, Sefer Tehillim 115:9)  V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff

 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
This week’s haftorah begins with Zechariah’s famous words, “rani v’simchi bat Tzion” (“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Tzion”), and continues with the following pasukim:

…for, behold! I will come and dwell in your midst, says the L-rd. And many nations shall join the L-rd on that day, and they shall be My people; and I will dwell in your midst, and you shall know that the L-rd of Hosts sent me to you. And the L-rd shall inherit Yehudah as His share on the Holy Land, and He shall again choose Yerushalayim. (2:14-16, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
According to the Radak (Rabbi David Kimchi, 1160-1235), our pasuk is referring to the messianic era, when “v’nilvu goyim rabim el Hashem ba’yom hahu v’hayhu li l’am (“And many nations shall join the L-rd on that day, and they shall be My people.”)  This position is also maintained by the Abarbanel (1437-1508), who uses this interpretation as a springboard to differentiate between the temporary and incomplete redemption symbolized by the rebuilding of the Second Beit HaMikdash, and the geulah he’atida (complete future redemption) for which we all long:

Do not think that the geulah he’atida will be like the period of the Second Beit HaMikdash — this will not be the case. For the geulah he’atida will not be contingent upon the whims of people, such as Koresh or Darius the King of Persia; instead, I, Hashem, will come to you [and help you to create the Third Beit HaMikdash]. Moreover, during the Second Beit HaMikdash, My Shechinah (Divine Presence) did not come down [from Heaven,] nor was there any prophecy. In the geulah he’atida, however, I will come and be present therein as in times past. (Commentary on Zechariah 2:14, translation and brackets my own)

These incisive words of the Abarbanel focus upon two essential ideas: the origins of the Second and Third Batai Mikdash, and the differences that will obtain between them. His view was influenced, no doubt, by the court intrigues he witnessed during his years as financial advisor to King Alfonso V of Portugal and King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. In his interpretation, the Second Beit HaMikdash was the result of ancient Persian political caprice, rather than the direct outcome of the manifest involvement (hashgacha) of Hashem our people’s affairs. This, he asserts, will not be the case with the Third Beit HaMikdash, for, then, our entire nation will recognize Hashem’s palpable hashgacha in its very creation, and declare as Dovid HaMelech did so long ago, “me’ate Hashem hayitah zot he niphlat b’ayneinu” (“This was from the L-rd; it is wondrous in our eyes,” Sefer Tehillim 118:23).  Moreover, once Hashem is the causal agent in the building of the Third Beit HaMikdash, His Shechinah will be present therein and prophecy will blossom anew.
 
In his work, Chomat Anach on our pasukim, the Chida zatzal (Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1806) notes that the first letter of each word in our phrase, “rani v’simchi bat Tzion,” when read in reverse, spells “tzibur” (tzadi-bet-vav-raysh, community). In general, this word connotes the idea of people united in pursuit of similar values and goals. This analysis leads the Chida to suggest another key difference that will obtain between the Second and Third Beit HaMikdash:

And it is possible to suggest that the geulah [he’atida] is contingent on when the Jewish people will [finally] be unified (b’achdut)…for, as we know, the destruction of the Second Beit HaMikdash took place as a result of sinat chinam (baseless hatred); and how is it possible, therefore, for there to be the geulah [he’atida] during the time of sinat chinam? As such, the words, “rani v’simchi,” are stated in the singular — representative of the time when the entire nation will be in achdut. (Translation and brackets my own)  
 
For the Chida, achdut is the antithesis of sinat chinam and a crucial component in achieving the geulah he’atida. Fortunately, there is a strong countermeasure to the pernicious sin of sinat chinam. Rabbi Yitzhak Avraham Kook zatzal (1865-1935), the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Palestine under the British Mandate, offers us a valuable insight. He proposes ahavat Yisrael (unconditional love for the Jewish people) as the antidote for sinat chinam, and conceptualizes it in the following poetic manner:

Listen to me, my people! I speak to you from my soul, from within my innermost soul. I call out to you from the living connection by which I am bound to all of you, and by which all of you are bound to me. I feel this more deeply than any other feeling: That only you, all of you, all of your souls, throughout all of your generations, you alone are the meaning of my life. In you I live. In the aggregation of all of you, my life has that content that is called life. (Shemonah Kevatzim 1:163, translation, Chanan Morrison)
 
Little wonder, then, that for Rav Kook, the opposite of sinat chinam was not ahavat chinam, baseless love. In his worldview, such a concept simply did not exist. Rather, this great and holy soul considered every Jew, by definition, to be worthy of love and respect. As such, he is famous for the following powerful statement (Malachim Kivnei Adam, pages 483-485): “There is no such thing as ahavat chinam (groundless love). Why groundless? He is a Jew, and I am obligated to love and respect him. There is only sinat chinam, but ahavat chinam? Never!” (Adapted by Chanan Morrison from Rav Kook’s work, Malachim Kivnei Adam, pages 483-485)
 
May the time come soon and, in our days, when the groundswell of ahavat Yisrael will nullify the sinat chinam of our age. Then, as we experience the achdut that will enable the geulah he’atida to be realized, may we sing as one: “rani v’simchi bat Tzion!” V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.
 ​

Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, Shayndel bat Mordechai Yehudah, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
Birkat Kohanim is one of the most dramatic moments of the Yom Tov experience. When we hear the words of the kohanim uttered in profound devotion, our thoughts are transported to a higher spiritual plane, and we yearn to draw closer to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. What is the role of the kohanim in this entire wondrous process? Do they bless us as active parties, or are they spiritual aqueducts through whom Hashem’s blessing mystically flows? In his interpretation of Bamidbar 6:27, Rashi zatzal (1040-1105) suggests that the kohanim actually bestow their bracha upon us: V’ani avarachem: “l’yisrael — v’askim im hakohanim” (“I will bless them — the Jewish people — and I will agree with the kohanim”). The Siftei Chachamim (Rabbi Shabbetai Bass, 1641-1718), in his clarification of Rashi’s interpretation, states: “One should not explain that Hashem will bless them on His own; if that were to be true, what value would the Priestly blessing have, since Hashem would [subsequently] bless them?” In other words, it seems that Rashi is asserting that the kohanim give the bracha directly to us, or at the very least, are partners with Hashem in this holy act.
 
The Rambam zatzal (Maimonides, 1135-1204) takes the polar opposite approach regarding the role of the kohanim in birkat kohanim:

Do not wonder: “What good will come from the blessing of this simple person?” for the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the kohanim, but on the Holy One, blessed be He, as [the text] states: “And they shall set My name upon the children of Israel, and I shall bless them.” The kohanim perform the mitzvah with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires. (Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Tefilah and Birkat Kohanim, 15:7, translation, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger)
 
For the Rambam, the bracha originates from Hashem and not from the kohanim: “for the reception of the blessings is not dependent on the priests, but on the Holy One, blessed be He.” In addition, the kohanim, at Hashem’s command, are merely the viaducts for Hashem’s bracha: “[as it is He who,] in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires.”
 
Approximately 700 years later, Rabbeinu Shimshon Raphael Hirsch zatzal (1808-1888) echoed the Rambam’s words in his commentary on birkat kohanim:

According to this, our priests in pronouncing the blessing, are a completely passive instrument. Only in reply to the summons of the congregation and only in the blessing dictated to them by the representative of the congregation do they pronounce it. So that, in truth, it is the congregation which has the blessing prescribed by G-d pronounced over itself through their mouths. (Isaac Levy translation, second edition, London, 1964, page 100)
 
In Rav Hirsch’s view, the entire purpose of the kohanim during birkat kohanim is to serve as the conduits through which the congregation receives its blessing. As such, the function of the kohanim, as commanded and defined by the Torah, is to give voice to the spiritual hopes and desires of the congregation.
 
Closer to our own time, my rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the Rav by his students and followers, provides us with a deep insight into the very nature of birkat kohanim:

Birkas Kohanim is unique because it requires heartfelt love for its fulfillment. The blessing requires that the love of the kohen for the whole of Israel should flow spontaneously. The kohen’s blessing is a reflection of the divine love that the Almighty has for His own creatures, as the Shechinah [Divine Presence] dwells between the kohen’s fingertips. Maimonides (Hilchot Tefilah u’Nesiat Kapayim 14:3) indicates that the kohanim hold their fingers closed until beginning the blessing, and then open them…During the priestly blessing, these fingers of the hand are spread apart, the open fingers serving as a conduit for blessing. (Teshuva Lecture, 1970, cited in, Chumash Mesoras HaRav, Sefer Bamidbar, page 47)
 
The Rav builds upon the Rambam’s idea that “the kohanim perform the mitzvah with which they were commanded, and G-d, in His mercies, will bless Israel as He desires,” noting that “the Shechinah [Divine Presence] dwells between the kohen’s fingertips…the open fingers serving as a conduit for blessing.” Moreover, the Rav emphasizes that, even though Hashem is, indeed, the mevorach (He who blesses), the act of birkat kohanim “requires that the love of the kohen for the whole of Israel should flow spontaneously,” since his blessing “is a reflection of the divine love that the Almighty has for His own creatures.” This enables us to better comprehend why, prior to beginning birkat kohanim, the kohanim recite, “Blessed are You Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with the holiness of Aharon, and has commanded us to bless His people with love.” (Translation, The Complete ArtScroll Siddur)
 
“May the L-rd bless you and watch over you. May the L-rd cause His countenance to shine to you and favor you. May the L-rd raise His countenance toward you and grant you peace.” May these words ever resonate in our hearts and souls, and may they remind us of the love He has for our people. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.
​

​ Rabbi David Etengoff
  
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The first mishnah in Pirkei Avot cites a statement from the Anshei Kenesset HaGadolah, a group of sixth century BCE jurists that constitute one of the crucial links in shalshelet hakabbalah (the great chain of Jewish being and tradition). Even though nearly all its members remain anonymous, it is universally recognized as one of the singular institutions in the storied history of our nation. One of their greatest accomplishments was the formalization of the liturgy so that all members of our people, regardless of their level of education, would have an equal opportunity to stand before the Almighty and pour out their hearts in soulful prayer.
 
When we study the tefilah of Shavuot, we notice that the Anshei Kenesset HaGadolah labelled it z’man matan Torateinu (the time of the giving of our Torah). In considering this phrase, our focus is immediately drawn to the first set of the Luchot HaBrit (Tablets of the Covenant): “Now the tablets were G-d’s work, and the inscription was G-d’s inscription, engraved on the tablets (charut al haluchot).” (Sefer Shemot 31:16, this and all Bible translations translation, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, underlining my own)
 
The original Hebrew words in Tanach are written without vowels; therefore, they can be pronounced in a variety of ways that differ significantly from the Masoretic vocalized versions found in our standard texts. Chazal often utilize one of these alternative readings in order to underscore a fundamental concept or idea. The reinterpretation of our pasuk’s words, “charut al haluchot,” is a well-known example of this approach that appears in many diverse sources: “Do not read the word ‘charut’ (‘engraved’) as ‘charut,’ instead, read it as ‘cheirut’ (‘freedom’).” Rather than “engraved on the tablets,” the reading, therefore, becomes “freedom on the tablets.”
 
Rabbinic literature views the Torah’s concept of freedom as being comprised of two aspects: negative (freedom from) and positive (freedom to). The Midrash Rabbah on Sefer Shemot (32:1 and 41:7) and Sefer Vayikra (18:3) focus upon the freedom from element of the Torah, in the sense that we will ultimately be free from exile (Rabbi Yehudah), the Angel of Death (Rabbi Nechemiah), the hegemony of other nations (Rabbi Nachman) and the trials and tribulations we face on an ongoing basis (the Rabbis). In contrast, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s statement in Pirkei Avot 6:2 underscores the positive freedom that is a hallmark of the Torah:

It says in Sefer Shemot 32:16: “And the tablets were the work of G-d, and the writing was the writing of G-d (charut) engraved upon the tablets.” Do not read the [non-vocalized] word as charut (engraved); instead read it as cheirut (freedom). [This is so] since there is no one who is truly free except for one who engages in Torah study.
 
In Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi’s view, engaging in talmud Torah is the paradigm of freedom, since it enables us to understand and fulfill Hashem’s Torah. He therefore concludes with the celebrated words, “there is no one who is truly free except for one who engages in Torah study.”
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, expands upon Chazal’s many statements regarding freedom in his analysis of the Exodus and the Haggadah. He notes that the Haggadah states, “vayotzi’einu Hashem E-lokeinu mi-sham” (and Hashem, our G-d, took us out from there), rather than “vayotzi’einu Hashem mi-sham” alone. For the Rav, the significance of adding the word, “E-lokeinu,” cannot be overestimated:

If the Haggadah had said simply Vayotzi’einu Hashem mi-sham, it would have referred only to the fact that God has mercy on us, that He does not tolerate injustice and iniquity, that when we pray to Him, He hearkens to our voice…God intervenes in the process of nature, in history and society, saving the persecuted and protecting them against their persecutors. But we understand freedom at a different level than others. When we say that God has taken us out of the house of bondage and granted us freedom, we add that freedom consists in serving God, abiding by His will and conforming to His mitzvot… (This and the following quote, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Festival of Freedom: Essays on Pesah and the Haggadah, pages 50-51)
 
This passage contains an implicit reference to a recurrent idea in the Rav’s thought, that the purpose of yetziat mitzrayim (Pesach) was to receive the Torah and its mitzvot at Mount Sinai (Shavuot), for only then could we be free:
​
If we had been taken out of Egypt without E-lokeinu, without accepting His code, without surrendering to His authority, without reaching a covenant with Him, without obligating ourselves to surrender freedom in order to gain a higher form of freedom — then we would have been in bondage again. Instead of bondage to Pharoah, it would have been bondage to our own fears, to our own phobias, to nature, to society, to slogans.
 
With the Hashem’s help and our fervent desire, may this Shavuot be the time when we, as individuals and as a people, rededicate ourselves to renewing our covenant with the Almighty and to fulfilling His mitzvot, for then, we will be truly free. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 

 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The second verse of Parashat Behar contains the well-known words, “When you come to the Land that I [Hashem] am giving you,” that serve as a prologue to the mitzvah of smittah (the Sabbatical year). Many brachot found in Parashat Bechuchotai also have a pronounced Eretz Yisrael-centered focus:

If you follow My statutes and observe My commandments and perform them, I will give your rains in their time, the Land will yield its produce, and the tree of the field will give forth its fruit. Your threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage will last until the sowing; you will eat your food to satiety, and you will live in security in your land. And I will grant peace in the Land, and you will lie down with no one to frighten [you]; I will remove wild beasts from the Land, and no army will pass through your land. (Sefer Vayikra 26:4-6, all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
These pasukim, like so many others throughout Tanach, teach us that Eretz Yisrael is the place of and for, the Jewish people. Yet, while almost seven million Jews live in Israel today, the remainder of the world’s nearly 15 million Jews live outside of Israel. It seems that although many of us are familiar with Rabbi Yehudah Halevi’s (1075-1141) famous words, “Libi b’mizrach v’anochi b’sof ma’a’rav” (“My heart is in the East, and I am in the uttermost West”), we have not yet heeded their message.
 
What is necessary for kibbutz galyuot (ingathering of the exiles) and permanent resettlement in our land? Perhaps Rabbi Yehudah Halevi said it best in his classic work, HaKuzari:

When people become aroused to love this holy place and to press for the anticipated event this, too, generates great reward. Therefore, it says, “You shall arise and have mercy upon Zion, for it is time to be gracious to it, for the appointed time has arrived. For your servants have desired its stones, and they favor its dust.” (Sefer Tehillim 102:14-15) This means that Jerusalem will be rebuilt when the Jewish people yearn for it to the ultimate degree. (Chapter 5:28, translation, Rabbi Daniel Korobkin)
 
These words are congruent with the celebrated statement in Midrash Bereishit Rabbah: “It is better to live in the deserts of Eretz Yisrael than to live in palaces in the diaspora (Parashat Lech Lecha, 39:8)  Based upon these sources, it appears that kibbutz galyuot will take place when the Jewish people sincerely yearn for the very dust and stones of Eretz Yisrael, for then, our love for the land will be truly manifest.
 
One of the essential sources wherein Chazal present the Land’s central theological significance is Tosefta Avodah Zarah 4:5:

Dovid HaMelech suggested a homiletic interpretation and said: “Anyone who abandons the Land at a time of peace, and travels to the diaspora is as if he is worshipping idols, as the text states: ‘And I will rejoice over them to do good to them, and I will plant them in this land truly with all My heart and with all My soul.’ (Sefer Yirmiyahu 32:41).  [That is,] during the entire time they are upon it [the Land,] it is as if they are planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul, but, if they are not [living] on it, it is as if they are not planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul.’” (Translation my own)
 
A stirring analysis of this passage was authored by Rabbi Yisachar Shlomo Teichtal zatzal (1885-1945), in his celebrated work on Religious Zionism entitled, “Eim HaBanim Semeicha:”

“…but, if they are not [living] on it, it is as if they are not planted thereupon before Me in truth, with all My heart and with My entire soul.” This is an amazing statement, for the Holy One blessed be He is saying to us that when the Jewish people are not in Eretz Yisrael, they are not cleaving to His heart and soul. As such, what is being done to us at this time [1943], and the diminished level of hashgacha (Divine Providence) that is upon us, should not be surprising in our eyes, precisely since we are not cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul, as we are in the land of the nations of the world [that is galut]. (From the Second Introduction, this and the following translations my own).
 
For Rav Teichtal, who was murdered on a transport train by the Nazis (yemach sheman v’zichram) during the closing days of WWII, the unspeakable horrors of the Shoah and the palpable lack of Hashem’s hashgacha at that time were direct results of our living in galut, rather than in Eretz Yisrael. These are dour words, indeed, that seem to leave little room for anyone to live in the diaspora. Nonetheless, his following words offer a ray of hope for those of us who have not yet made the commitment to begin the aliyah process:
​
But as soon as we try to return to it [the Land], then we will immediately be cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul…that is to say that one whose eyes and heart yearn to go up to Eretz Yisrael is considered as if he is already in Eretz Yisrael. As such, it is clear that if we focus our thoughts on the idea of returning to our holy land, then we will immediately be cleaving to Him within His entire heart and soul, and His hashgacha will rest upon us with the totality of His soul, may He be blessed, so that He [once again] will protect us with an open eye that will never close. [Moreover,] He will never cease to save us from our enemies, and He will enable us to be successful in everything that we will do, for then, we will go up to Tzion in joy, and the Jewish people will go out with an upraised hand from their physical and spiritual exile...that will reach completion with the fulfillment of the Torah and the mitzvot…
 
May the time come soon, and in our days, when our entire people will be dedicated to implementing kibbutz galyuot, when we will leave our physical and spiritual exile behind, return to Eretz Yisrael in joy, and fulfill the Torah and mitzvot in their entirety. With Hashem’s help and our heartfelt desire, may this be so. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 

​Rabbi David Etengoff
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
One of the well-known halachot found in our parasha is the law of retributive justice (lex talionis), known popularly as “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth (ayin tachat ayin):"

And a man who inflicts an injury upon his fellow man just as he did, so shall be done to him [namely], fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Just as he inflicted an injury upon a person, so shall it be inflicted upon him." (Sefer Vayikra 24:19-20, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
This is the second time we have encountered this halacha, as it initially appears in Parashat Mishpatim: “But if there is a fatality, you shall give a life for a life, ayin tachat ayin, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot, a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, a bruise for a bruise.” (Sefer Shemot 21:23-25)  It seems that our four verses suggest that if the mazik (one who physically injures another) is to receive his just consequences, his punishment must consist of receiving the exact same injury he inflicted on the nizak (harmed individual), a practice known as “mirror punishment.” In fact, such an approach was followed in the ancient Mesopotamian Code of Hammurabi (approximately 1750 BCE).
 
A very different interpretation, however, is found within the Rabbinic tradition. One of the earliest of these texts to analyze our pasukim is the second century work, Mechilta d’Rabbi Yishmael, the halachic midrash on Sefer Shemot:

“Ayin tachat ayin”: Monetary compensation (mammon). You say it is mammon, yet perhaps the phrase is to be taken in a literal fashion! Rabbi Yisrael always explained this phrase in the following manner… [Based upon the analysis of various Torah passages, we learn that] just like injuries against an animal are redressed by monetary compensation (tashlumin), so, too, are damages against a person remedied by monetary compensation.” (Mesechta d’Nezikin, Parasha VIII, translation and brackets my own)
 
In sum, Rabbi Yishmael categorically rejects the concept of mirror punishment and asserts that the Torah champions monetary payment in its stead. Moreover, both he and Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai are quoted as maintaining this position in Talmud Bavli, Baba Kama 84a. This is the accepted p’sak din (halachic conclusion), as we find in the Rambam’s (1135-1204) Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Chovel u’Mazik I:1-6:

What is meant by “damages?” If a person cuts off the hand or the foot of a colleague, we theoretically consider the injured colleague as a servant being sold in the marketplace and evaluate his value before the injury and his value afterwards. The person who caused the injury must pay the depreciation in value. This is alluded to in the Torah’s phrase, “ayin tachat ayin.” The oral tradition interprets “tachat,” translated as “for,” as an indication that the verse requires financial recompense (l’shalame mammon). (1, all Mishneh Torah translations, Rabbi Eliyahu Touger)
 
The Rambam expands upon his understanding of ayin tachat ayin in the following fashion:
How do we know that the intent of the Torah’s statement regarding the loss of a limb, “ayin tachat ayin,” is financial restitution? That same verse continues, “a wound tachat a wound.” And regarding the penalty for a giving a colleague a wound, it is explicitly stated: “When a man strikes his colleague with a stone or a fist… he should pay for his being idled and for his medical expenses.” (Sefer Shemot 21:18-19) Thus, we learn that the word tachat mentioned regarding a wound indicates the necessity for financial restitution, and so one can conclude that the meaning of the same word regarding an eye or another limb is also financial restitution. (5)
 
In addition, the Rambam utilizes ayin tachat ayin as a platform for expounding upon the inextricable link that obtains between the Written Law (Torah She’Bichtav) and the Oral Law (Torah She’Ba’al Peh):

Although these interpretations are obvious from the study of the Written Law, and they are explicitly mentioned in the Oral Tradition transmitted by Moshe from Mount Sinai, they are all regarded as halachot from Moshe. This is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah, and in every single Jewish court that has functioned from the days of Moshe our teacher until the present age. (6)
 
The Rambam’s first sentence is more or less what we would expect in reference to the connection between Torah She’Bichtav and Torah She’Ba’al Peh. What, however, does the phrase, “this is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah…,” add to this analysis? My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, addresses this unusual formulation in his 1964 Yahrzeit drasha for his father, Rav Moshe Soloveitchik zatzal. The Rav calls this act of bearing witness, massoret ha’ra’iyah, a unique aspect of Torah She’Ba’al Peh that is acquired through having seen actual court cases and the decisions that were rendered. In our particular instance this refers to the countless piskei din (halachic decisions) that conclude that ayin tachat ayin must be understood as mammon.
 
How is this massoret ha’ra’iyah to be differentiated from other parts of Torah She’Ba’al Peh? The Rav notes that in almost all areas of Torah exegesis, it is acceptable to explain a verse according to its peshat, rather than according to the drashot found in Oral Law. In the case of massoret ha’ra’iyah, however, it is forbidden to follow such an approach:

But in reference to the interpretations of these verses that were accepted and bequeathed throughout the generations, when generation after generation saw the actions of the previous generation and the manner in which they comported themselves, for example regarding ayin tachat ayin, etrog and matters of a similar nature, in these cases they declared that the actual peshat of the text is in accord with the massoret [ha’ra’iyah]. As such, anyone who would interpret these verses in a different manner [regarding their halachic outcome] would be in the category of “megaleh panim b’Torah shelo k’halacha,” one who reveals a heretical interpretation of the Torah that violates the Law, since the accepted peshat within the massorah (Tradition) in this matter is, in itself, Torah She’Ba’al Peh. (Rabbi Herschel Schachter shlita, Divrei HaRav, page 101, translation, underlining and brackets my own)
 
The Rav’s examination of the Rambam’s words, “this is what our ancestors saw in the court of Yehoshua and in the court of Shmuel of Ramah…,” is a conceptual tour de force, for, in so doing, he reveals to us a new aspect of Torah She’Ba’al Peh that brings us to a deeper level of understanding. While the phrase might seem to be a simple narrative assertion by the Rambam, the Rav teaches us that massoret ha’ra’iyah is emblematic of an entire class of statements within Torah She’Ba’al Peh, and serves as a crucial conceptual and halachic link between Torah She’Bichtav and Torah She’Ba’al Peh.
 
May our deeper appreciation of the multiple aspects of Torah She’Ba’al Peh and its unbreakable connection to Torah She’Bichtav bring us ever closer to the Almighty. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 















​Rabbi David Etengoff
 
 
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The first of our two parshiot begins with the well-known verse that references the death of Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu: “And the L-rd spoke to Moshe after the death of Aharon’s two sons, when they drew near before the L-rd, and they died.” (Sefer Vayikra 16:1, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  The Torah teaches us that Nadav and Avihu followed in their father’s footsteps in their complete dedication to Hashem. As a result, they were vouchsafed a vision of His Divine Presence:

And to Moshe He [G-d] said, “Come up to the L-rd, you and Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and prostrate yourselves from afar.” … And Moshe and Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel ascended, and they perceived the G-d of Israel, and beneath His feet was like the forming of a sapphire brick and like the appearance of the heavens for clarity. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand, and they perceived G-d, and they ate and drank. (Sefer Shemot 24:1)
 
In light of the incredible spiritual heights that Nadav and Avihu achieved, the following two verses in Parashat Shemini are particularly difficult to comprehend:

And Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, each took his pan, put fire in them, and placed incense upon it, and they brought before the L-rd foreign fire (aish zarah) which He had not commanded them. And fire went forth from before the L-rd and consumed them, and they died before the L-rd. (Sefer Vayikra 10:1-2)
 
There are several essential elements in this brief, but overwhelmingly powerful, narrative:
​

1. Nadav and Avihu each took their own incense pans, put fire (coals) in them, and then placed incense on top of the coals.
2. This incense offering lacked G-d’s command and received the appellation of aish zarah.
3. The punishment for bringing aish zarah was swift and irrevocable: “And fire went forth from before the L-rd and consumed them, and they died before the L-rd.”

 
Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin zatzal (known as “the Netziv,” 1817-1893) notes in his Torah commentary, Ha’amek Davar, that Nadav and Avihu acted with a deep and abiding sense of ahavat Hashem (love of G-d) when they entered the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting) to offer their incense: “They entered [the Ohel Moed] with the fire of the love of Hashem burning deeply and profoundly within them.” (Sefer Vayikra 10:1)  If this is the case, why, asks the Netziv, did they have to pay for this manifestation of their love of G-d with their very deaths?
 
The Netziv’s clear and direct answer to this question enables us to understand some of the more salient aspects of ahavat Hashem:

The Torah teaches us [through the deaths of Nadav and Avihu] that, although ahavat Hashem is precious in the eyes of G-d, it was not viewed as such when pursued in this manner, that is, without G-d having commanded [the offering of this incense].
 
To further underscore his approach, the Netziv contrasts the forbidden aish zarah of Nadav and Avihu with the preceding words of Moshe and actions of Aharon:

And Moshe said, “This is the thing the L-rd has commanded; do [it], and the glory of the L-rd will appear to you.” And Moshe said to Aharon, “Approach the altar and perform your sin offering and your burnt offering, atoning for yourself and for the people, and perform the people's sacrifice, atoning for them, as the L-rd has commanded.” So, Aharon approached the altar and slaughtered his sin offering calf. (Sefer Vayikra 9:6-8)
 
The Netziv explains this passage according to the interpretation of the Sifra, the halachic Midrash to Sefer Vayikra. He notes that Moshe was well-aware of the tendency among certain G-d-intoxicated groups and individuals to demonstrate their love of Hashem in a prohibited manner. Such breaches of the law, while performed with the ostensible intent to serve Hashem, are, in reality, self-serving. Since these behaviors entail unauthorized actions, their origin must be found in the illicit urgings of the yetzer hara. Therefore, Moshe declared: “This is the thing the L-rd has commanded; do [it], and the glory of the L-rd will appear to you.”
 
My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as “the Rav” by his students and followers, implicitly agrees with the Netziv, suggesting that the key phrase in understanding the story of the tragic death of Nadav and Avihu is, indeed, “they brought before the L-rd foreign fire, which He had not commanded them.” He interprets these words in the following manner:

On the day of their installation, wearing their priestly vestments, they were overcome by ecstasy and by the need to express their emotions. The incense that they burned was identical to that which their father, Aharon, had offered. But there is one significant difference. Aharon was obeying G-d’s will, while Nadav and Avihu performed an action that G-d had not commanded. (This, and the following quotations are from Darosh Darash Yosef: Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah, Rabbi Avishai C. David editor, pages 223-226)
 
The Rav utilizes this explanation as the foundation of his analysis of the proper means to serve Hashem. In his view, the authentic Jewish way “requires us to fashion our lives according to God’s discipline, as illustrated by the word ve-tzivanu (and He has commanded us)… [Hence,] “the reason we perform the mitzvah is our absolute surrender to God’s will.” Unfortunately, rather than acting in this manner and demonstrating their obeisance to the Almighty, Nadav and Avihu chose their own misguided path to serve Him:
​
Therefore, the transgression of Nadav and Avihu, whom the Torah describes as sanctified, was that “they offered a strange fire concerning which they had not been commanded.” The divine command and our discipline in obeying that command are the only healthy routes to religious inspiration. Any deviation, especially by tzaddikim is unacceptable and ultimately doomed to failure. (Underlining my own)
 
In sum, the Netziv and the Rav teach us that, while ahavat Hashem is a legitimate and powerful impetus for authentic spiritual expression, it must ever be governed by the mitzvot, as commanded by the Almighty. With Hashem’s benevolent guidance and our fervent desire, may we demonstrate our ahavat Hashem through the fulfillment of His holy commandments, and may these bring us ever closer to Him. May this time come soon, and in our days. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
  
Dedicated to the sacred memories of my mother, Miriam Tovah bat Aharon Hakohen, father-in-law, Levi ben Yitzhak, sister, Shulamit bat Menachem, sister-in-law, Ruchama Rivka Sondra bat Yechiel, Chana bat Shmuel, Yehonatan Binyamin ben Mordechai Meir Halevi, Shoshana Elka bat Avraham, Tikvah bat Rivka Perel, Peretz ben Chaim, Chaya Sarah bat Reb Yechezkel Shraga, Shmuel Yosef ben Reuven, the Kedoshim of Har Nof, Pittsburgh, and Jersey City, and the refuah shlaimah of Mordechai HaLevi ben Miriam Tovah, Moshe ben Itta Golda, Yocheved Dafneh bat Dinah Zehavah, Reuven Shmuel ben Leah, and the health and safety of our brothers and sisters in Israel and around the world.
 
The primary focus of our parshiot is the illness known as tzara’at. The unique nature of this class of disease is emphasized by the Rashbam (Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir, 1080-1158) in his introduction to our topic:
 
All of the sections dealing with the negayim (afflictions) affecting people, garments, houses and the manner in which they appear, as well as the number of days requiring sequestering, and the white, black, and golden identifying hairs, may not in any way be understood by following the simple and direct meaning of the text. Neither may we rely upon standard human knowledge and expertise [that is, current medical information]. Instead, we must follow the analysis (midrash) of the Sages, their decrees, and the inherited body of knowledge that they received from the earliest Sages. This is the essence [of this matter]. (Commentary on the Torah, Sefer Vayikra 13:2, translation and brackets my own)
 
In sum, according to the Rashbam, tzara’at can only be understood from the Torah’s standpoint, rather than from a physiological or medical perspective. This is because its etiology does not follow the normative laws of biology. Instead, it is a spiritually based ailment that manifests in a physical fashion.
 
As the Rashbam notes, one of the forms of tzara’at directly affects a house:

When you come to the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I will place a lesion of tzara’at upon a house in the land of your possession, and the one to whom the house belongs comes and tells the kohen, saying, “Something like a lesion (k’nega) has appeared to me in the house.” (Sefer Vayikra 14:34-35, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)

The pasuk, “When you come to the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I will place a lesion of tzara’at upon a house in the land of your possession,” appears to be quite negative, especially in light of the Torah’s command to “demolish the house, its stones, its wood, and all the [mortar] dust of the house” (14:45) if the tzara’at cannot be removed in any other way. Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself upon the Talmud and two midrashim, however, notes that the destruction of the house actually results in a very fortunate outcome:

“I will place (v’na’tati) a lesion of tzara’at upon a house” — This was an announcement to them that these plagues would come upon them (Midrash Sifra, Metzora, 14:75, Talmud Bavli, Horayot 10a), because the Amorites concealed treasures of gold in the walls of their houses during the whole 40 years the Israelites were in the wilderness in order that these might not possess them when they conquered Palestine, and in consequence of the plague [tzara’at] they would pull down the house and discover them. (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 17:6, translation, Pentateuch with Rashi’s Translation, M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silberman)
 
At first glance, it is difficult to understand why Chazal and Rashi interpret, “V’na’tati a lesion of tzara’at upon a house,” in this manner.  Rabbi Baruch Halevi Epstein (1860-1941) addresses this problem and suggests a cogent textually based solution:

The reason for this analysis stems from the word, “v’na’tati,” since, in our instance the Torah does not state: “when a lesion of tzara’at will be found in a house in the Land,” as is the case regarding lesions that affect people and clothing. Moreover, in general, [any form of] the expression, “netina,” [giving, such as the word v’na’tati] that is from the Holy One blessed be He, leads to something good. [Thus, we find,] “v’na’tati your rains in their time” (Sefer Vayikra 26:4), “v’na’tati peace in the Land” (Sefer Vayikra 26:6) and “v’na’tati salvation in Zion, to Israel, My glory” (Sefer Yeshayahu 46:13). Therefore, they interpreted this use of our term, v’na’tati, as having a positive valence. (Torah Temimah, Parashat Metzora, note 111, translation my own)
 
In sum, according to Rav Epstein, our Sages’ understanding of v’na’tati” is congruent with Rabbi Akiva’s famous aphorism: “Everything that the Holy One blessed be He does is for the best.” (Talmud Bavli, Berachot 60b)  
 
The next pasuk contains a fascinating nuance: “Something like a lesion (k’nega) has appeared to me in the house.” Why do homeowners need to speak in such an indeterminate fashion, especially if they are well-versed in the laws of negayim and know that their home is afflicted with tzara’at? Why can they not straightforwardly declare to the kohen who comes to inspect their premises: “A lesion (nega) has appeared to me in the house?”
 
Rashi (14:35) draws our attention to this issue when he cites the statement from Mishnah Negayim 12:5 which rules, like our pasuk, that k’nega, rather than nega, is the halachically mandated statement — even for talmidei chachamim. As we would expect, there are many different approaches as to why this is the case. One of the most fascinating is offered by Rabbi Eliyahu Mizrachi (1455-1525), one of Rashi’s best-known supercommentators:
​
But I have heard from my teachers, that this verse is not being precise in its nomenclature in regard to stating something is absolutely [nega] or doubtfully [k’nega] a ritually pure (tahor) or impure lesion (tamei), rather it is addressing a matter of derech eretz (ethical behavior). That is, a person [should never declare a lesion to be tamei,] even if the matter is crystal clear in their eyes (vadai), instead, they must always state that the lesion is only perhaps (safek) tamei [and leave the determination to the kohen]. This is in congruence with Chazal’s dictum: “One should always teach his tongue to say: ‘I don’t know.’” (Talmid Bavli, Berachot 4a, Sefer Ha-Mizrachi, Sefer Vayikra 14:35, translations my own)
 
The Mizrachi’s explanation is particularly beautiful. In a few short words, he has universalized the Mishnah’s ruling and placed it squarely in the category of derech eretz, an area of our spiritual lives whose import cannot be overestimated. As Rav Yishmael bar Rav Nachman famously said: “Derech eretz preceded the [giving of] the Torah by 26 generations.” (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 9:3) The underlying meaning of this concept was given voice in Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah’s far earlier aphorism: “If there is no Torah, there is no derech eretz; if there is no derech eretz, there is no Torah.” (Pirkei Avot 3:17)  In other words, even though we are blessed with the Torah, it is in addition to, and does not supplant, the fundamental obligation to live lives based upon ethically-suffused actions, for the Torah, itself, depends upon derech eretz.
 
May the Almighty ever guide us on the path of righteousness and justice, and may the derech eretz reflected by our actions enable us to become His authentic servants. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, and may Hashem in His infinite mercy remove the pandemic from klal Yisrael and all the nations of the world.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:rdbe718@gmail.com.
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.