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CHUMASH
Parshas Shelach - Revi'i with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash the Torah tells us the punishment for the Meraglim, and the Yidden who didn’t want to go into Eretz Yisroel. We also learn one mitzvah for the generation that WILL go into Eretz Yisroel.
Hashem told Moshe that the Meraglim would have to die right away for what they did — except for Yehoshua bin Nun and Kalev ben Yefuneh.
The rest of the Yidden will die in the desert, because they didn’t want to go into Eretz Yisroel. Only the women and the kids who are less than 20 years old will get to go into Eretz Yisroel. The Yidden had been worried about their children, and that was one of the reasons they said they didn’t want to go — and now those children will be the ONLY ones to go into Eretz Yisroel!
The Yidden will need to make up for the days that the Meraglim traveled in Eretz Yisroel looking for not nice things to say. For every day the Meraglim traveled, the Yidden will need to go for a year in the Midbar. Since it took the Meraglim 40 days, now all of the Yidden will have to stay in the Midbar for 40 years.
The Yidden were very sad when they heard what would happen.
Some Yidden changed their minds and wanted to go to Eretz Yisroel! They said that they did teshuvah, and were going to go into Eretz Yisroel right away.
Hashem was happy that they did teshuvah, but not happy that they didn’t ask Moshe Rabbeinu (who was in charge of the Yidden) before deciding to go travel into Eretz Yisroel. Hashem told Moshe to warn them that Hashem won’t save them from the Goyim if they go by themselves. Still, those Yidden went, and the people of Amalek and Canaan killed them. So that place was called Chormah, which means “destroyed,” because those that went were destroyed there.
Now Hashem told Moshe to teach the Yidden some of the special mitzvos of Eretz Yisroel, so that they know that the Yidden will still be going there.
Today we learn the first mitzvah: When we bring korbanos in Eretz Yisroel, we also have to bring a Korban Mincha (flour and oil) and a Nesech (wine) along with it.
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Today’s Tehillim is the first half of Kapitel Kuf-Yud-Tes.
Today’s Tehillim is very special! We start the LONGEST kapitel in the whole Tehillim, kapitel Kuf-Yud-Tes! This kapitel is so long that we don’t even say the whole thing in one day — it is split up between Yom Chof-Hey and Yom Chof-Vov!
This kapitel has 8 pesukim for each letter of the Alef Beis, in order. The pesukim talk about the Torah and mitzvos, and each posuk has at least one of these 10 words (that mean Torah or mitzvos) in it:
1) Derech
2) Torah
3) Edus
4) Pekudim
5) Mitzvah
6) Amirah
7) Dibur
8) Mishpat
9) Tzedek
10) Chukim
One of the pesukim that starts with Alef is “Az Lo Eivosh Behabiti El Kol Mitzvosecha.” “When I look at all of your mitzvos, I won’t be embarrassed.” (The Rambam uses this as an introduction to the Mishneh Torah, the whole set of the halachos in Rambam!)
This teaches us that if we look carefully at all of the 613 mitzvos of Hashem (the Rambam teaches them all to us), we will always be proud Yidden!
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TANYA
Shaar Hayichud Veha'emunah Perek Zayin
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There is a chayus of Hashem called Memalei Kol Almin, that gives every part of creation its own special life, and Sovev Kol Almin, which just makes everything exist equally.
One of the things we learn in today’s Tanya is about how the chayus from Memalei Kol Almin gives chayus to everything in the world in a limited way, so that everything has a specific size and amount. Even though the chayus itself has no limits (it is Ein Sof), it makes the world in a way of limits.
Hashem took His Ein Sof chayus and put it into the letters of the Asara Maamaros. The letters keep the chayus from Hashem from shining without an end. There are only these 10 things that Hashem said to make. Things that Hashem says clearly in the Maamaros have a stronger chayus, and things that are hinted (like with a Gematria) have a lesser kind of chayus.
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Today’s Hayom Yom teaches us who we should speak to about things that bother us.
Shlomo HaMelech said in his Sefer “Mishlei” that “Daaga BeLev Ish Yashchena” — “if a person is worried about something, ‘Yashchena.’”
What does “Yash’chena” mean? The Gemara tells us two things it could mean.
1) One meaning is to try to forget about it — just try not to think about it so you don’t worry.
2) The second meaning is to talk about it with other people.
The Tzemach Tzedek says that “other people” just means that in Gashmius it’s a different person. But in their feeling, they are really together and one with you, because they feel your pain.
These are the kind of people we should share our problems with, and this is the way we should be when we listen to someone else’s pain.
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Today we learn two mitzvos in Sefer Hamitzvos:
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #294) If someone was forced to do an aveira (onus), we don’t punish him because it wasn’t his fault.
The Gemara in Sanhedrin says, “Oness Rachmana Patrei” — if someone was forced, the Torah makes him patur (exempt).
We learn this mitzvah from Parshas Ki Seitzei: וְלַנַּעֲרָה לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה דָבָר
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #290) The Beis Din is not allowed to punish someone based on what we think happened. Even if we are VERY sure that a person must have done an aveira, the Beis Din is only allowed to punish him if there were at least two people who actually saw him do the aveira.
Once a Beis Din starts punishing someone who is PROBABLY guilty, then they will end up punishing someone who MIGHT be guilty! The Torah doesn’t want us to start guessing when a person should be punished. It is better that a thousand people should not be punished for their aveiros by Beis Din, than for one person to be punished when he doesn’t deserve it.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: וְנָקִי וְצַדִּיק אַל תַּהֲרֹג
This means, “a person who is innocent and a tzadik should not be put to death.” From here we see how careful we need to be to make sure that an innocent person is not punished.
(We don’t have to worry about a person not being punished. Even if the Beis Din doesn’t give the punishment, Hashem has many other ways to make sure that there is justice in the world!)
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In today’s Rambam we learn how the Beis Din carries out Misas Beis Din.
In Perek Yud-Gimmel, the Rambam tells us how careful we are not to punish someone with misa (death) unless we are absolutely sure he deserves it! On his way to be killed, if he comes up with a good reason why he is innocent, we take him back to the Beis Din again and again, to see if his reason changes the psak.
Perek Yud-Daled has more halachos about a person who is chayav misa deserves to be killed. One halacha tells us that we need to be very patient, and not try to pasken quickly if someone deserves misa! If a Beis Din kills one person every seven years, we say that they are a bloodthirsty court.
When the Beis Hamikdash was built, the Sanhedrin would gather in the Lishkas Hagazis, a part of the Beis Hamikdash. (This room did not have the same level of kedushah as other parts of the Beis Hamikdash, so the Sanhedrin was allowed to sit down there.)
When the Yidden stopped behaving properly, the Sanhedrin went into Golus. They traveled from place to place, to 10 different parts of Eretz Yisroel. The last place they stopped was in Teveriah.
Since then, the Sanhedrin has never gotten together. The Rambam says that we have a kabbalah (tradition) that when Moshiach comes, the Sanhedrin will first gather in Teveriah, and go from there to the Beis Hamikdash.
In Perek Tes-Vov, the Rambam lists all of the aveiros that can make a person deserve Misas Beis Din. There are 36 of these aveiros.
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In Perek Daled, we learn about Kavod Hameis, showing kavod for a person who passed away.
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The Rebbe helps us make our emunah strong, and to use all of our kochos to bring the Geulah!
In the maamar “Ve’ata Tetzaveh”, the last maamar we were zoche to receive from the Rebbe, the Rebbe teaches us about the avodah of Yidden in our time.
Just like an olive needs to be squeezed for the oil to come out, the etzem of our neshama only comes out when we are “squeezed” by something bothering us.
When Yidden lived in places like Russia, where they weren’t allowed to keep Yiddishkeit, that was very hard for the Yidden! But that hard time made the etzem of their neshamos come out, which gave them the koach to do the mitzvos anyway!
Nowadays, we don’t have those kind of problems, Boruch Hashem. But the emunah which comes from our Etzem Haneshama still needs to shine!
There is a Moshe Rabbeinu in every generation, who makes the emunah of the Yidden in his time strong and helps them act the way Hashem wants with all of their kochos.
How? The Rebbe helps us feel the pain that Moshiach isn’t here yet. The Rebbe shows us how we should be bothered that we can’t see the light of Hashem, that the Beis Hamikdash is not yet built, and that the Geulah isn’t in the world. This “squeezes” us and makes the etzem of our neshama start to shine!
This will help us use ALL of our kochos for Hashem, and do everything we can to bring the Geulah.
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At night, before we go to sleep, we say Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah.
There are three main reasons why we say this Shema:
1) Shemirah (guarding): Nighttime is a time when the kelipah of the world is stronger. Saying Kriyas Shema helps protect us from the koach of kelipah.
2) Beyadcha Afkid Ruchi (I give my neshama into Your hands): At night, our neshama goes up to Hashem to receive new koach for the next day. Before returning our neshama, we ask Hashem to forgive us for our aveiros and make our day complete.
3) Hachana (preparation): The way we go to sleep changes the way we wake up the next day! By saying Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah properly, we prepare to be able to connect to Hashem the next day in davening, and behaving the whole day the way we should.
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Because of the special things that Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah does, it is written in seforim that women should be careful to say AT LEAST the first paragraph, the line of Beyodcha, and Hamapil.
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In answer to someone who said that he missed saying Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah, the Rebbe told him to be careful not to miss it again, and to know the practical halachos about Kriyas Shema.
See Shulchan Menachem Vol. 1 p. 378, and Piskei Teshuvos vol. 2 p. 990
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
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The Navi Yeshaya told us about the Geulah, that “Vehalchu Goyim Le’orech” — the goyim will follow in the light of the Yidden.
The light we are talking about here is the light of Hashem which shines in the Torah!
Even though Hashem’s light is usually hidden in the world, because otherwise the world won’t be able to exist, in the Alter Rebbe tells us that when Moshiach comes, we won’t need tzimtzum anymore! The koach of Torah will help us to be able to handle Hashem’s light in the world!
Through the Yidden, the goyim will also be able to feel some of the Elokus in the world — Vehalchu Goyim Le’orech.
We also had this at the time of Matan Torah, when the whole world was changed because of Hashem being revealed to the Yidden. This is the way it will be in the time of the Geulah, for always, and for the entire world!
See Navi Yeshaya perek Samach, posuk Gimmel; Tanya perek Lamed-Vov
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
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