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CHUMASH
Parshas Pinchas - Shlishi with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash we learn about how Eretz Yisroel is divided. The Leviim are counted, and the daughters of Tzelofchad ask for a part of Eretz Yisroel.
Eretz Yisroel is divided: First we learn how Hashem tells Moshe how to divide up Eretz Yisroel:
Each of the people that Moshe and Elazar just counted will get a part of the land.
The land will be divided fairly so each family that goes into the land will have the same amount of place to grow things.
Then Eretz Yisroel will be divided into 12 parts, each with the right amount of sections for the number of people that are in the Shevet.
The names of the Shevatim will be written down on pieces of parchment, and the names of these 12 parts of Eretz Yisroel will also be written down on different pieces of parchment. They will all be mixed together in a box.
Elazar will put on the special clothing of a Kohen Gadol, so he can get Ruach Hakodesh. Each of the Nesiim, the leaders of the Shevatim, will come up, one by one. First, Elazar will say with Ruach Hakodesh which part of Eretz Yisroel will go to this Shevet, and then the Nasi will pick out two pieces of parchment. It will be a Neis — the Nasi will pick out the parchment with the name of THEIR Shevet, and ALSO the one with the part of Eretz Yisroel that Elazar just said! And even more, the parchment will TALK, and say that this part of Eretz Yisroel goes to this Shevet!
All of these nisim will help the Yidden to know that Hashem is deciding where each person’s piece of Eretz Yisroel really is.
The Leviim are counted: Moshe and Elazar will count the Leviim. All of the Leviim should be counted, starting from babies just one month old! (With the other Shevatim, only men older than 20 years old were counted, because only men over age 20 would get a part of Eretz Yisroel, and the main reason for this counting was to divide up Eretz Yisroel fairly. But the Leviim weren’t counted for the same reason. Shevet Levi didn’t get a piece of Eretz Yisroel for each person. That’s why Hashem told Moshe and Elazar to count ALL of them!)
If we look at the numbers, we see that the amounts of the other Shevatim were less than the ones who came out of Mitzrayim. But there are more Leviim now than there were before! That’s because almost everyone who came out of Mitzrayim passed away in the Midbar, except for the Leviim, Kalev and Yehoshua, and the women.
The daughters of Tzelofchad: After learning how Eretz Yisroel will be divided, Tzelofchad’s five daughters (Machla, Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah) came to Moshe, very upset. They loved Eretz Yisroel and wanted a part too, but since their father didn’t have any boys, no one from their family would be getting a piece of Eretz Yisroel.
Tzelofchad passed away because of a different aveira, not because he didn’t want to go into Eretz Yisroel. So it’s not fair, they said, that his family shouldn’t get any part of it! His daughters asked that they should get a piece of Eretz Yisroel to share.
Moshe had forgotten the halacha, and had to ask Hashem.
IY”H tomorrow we will learn what Hashem says should be done!
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Today’s kapitelach are Tzadik-Zayin to Kuf-Gimmel.
At the end of today’s first kapitel (which we also say in Kabolas Shabbos, and in the Machzor before Kol Nidrei), the posuk says “Ohr Zarua LaTzadik” — “Light is planted for the tzadik.”
The Medrash teaches that when Hashem made the world, there was a very strong light, but it was too hard for the world to live in it! So Hashem hid it for the Tzadikim when Moshiach comes.
That’s what the posuk is telling us — Hashem “planted” this light of Moshiach for the Tzadikim! When you plant something, it grows — and this light will grow too. The Navi says that when Moshiach comes, even the light of the sun will be 7 times as strong as it was during Sheishes Yemei Bereishis!
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TANYA
Igeres Hateshuvah Perek Daled
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To understand how a Yid can do teshuvah, we need to learn more about what a Yid is! Today we are learning the nimshal of yesterday’s mashal — that the difference between Yidden and malochim is like the difference between talking and blowing.
When Hashem made Adam HaRishon, Hashem blew a neshama inside of him, like the posuk says, “Vayipach Be’apav Nishmas Chayim.”
But when Hashem made malachim, it says that He made them using His breath, like what comes out when we talk — like the posuk says, “Uv’ruach Piv Kol Tzeva’am.”
(Of course, we aren’t saying that Hashem has a mouth like us! Saying things like this about Hashem is like a mashal that the Torah gives to us for us to understand Hashem better with things we know about. Since Hashem made the Gashmius of people to match how Hashem is in Ruchnius, they can be a mashal.)
Which takes more koach, breathing or blowing? Blowing, of course! The Torah tells us that a Yid’s neshama comes from a deeper koach in Elokus, like BLOWING!
The malachim also have chayus from Hashem, but only like the amount of koach it takes for a person to talk.
That is why malachim are only called with the name Elokim, but neshamos are called with the name Yud-Kay-Vov-Kay! The name Elokim hides the chayus so it is not so strong, but the main chayus is from Yud-Kay-Vov-Kay.
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Today the Rebbe shows us how to feel close to Hashem through hisbonenus.
Every Yid has a neshama which is a part of Hashem. Because of that, sometimes a person can feel very close to Hashem without even needing to try!
But other times, we need Avodah so we can feel close to Hashem.
What is Avodah?
Davening while thinking about Chassidus. This is called hisbonenus, and it takes three steps so we can feel Hashem inside us:
1) After we learn something in Chassidus, we should think about it until we are SURE it makes sense in our mind! This is called Hisbonenus Limudis.
2) Before davening, think about this same Chassidus again. This is a special time and it will help us have chayus in what we learned before, not just to get it in our minds. This is called Hisbonenus Shekodem HaTefillah.
3) While you are davening, we should think about this Chassidus a third time. When we daven, we are very close to Hashem, and when we think about the Chassidus then, we will feel Elokus in the inyan that we learned. This is called Hisbonenus ShebeTefillah.
These are the three steps needed to feel and have a derher in the Elokus which is in the Chassidus that we learn.
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In Sefer Hamitzvos, we again learn the mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #153) that the Beis Din needs to decide the right time for each month to start and calculate when there should be a leap year, a Shana Me’uberes.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Bo: הַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים
The details are explained in Mesechta Sanhedrin perek Alef, Mesechta Rosh Hashana and Brachos.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Kiddush Hachodesh
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The Rebbe would very often speak about Lebn Mit Di Tzeit, learning horaos (lessons) from the type of year we are in and the parsha of the week. These both depend on the kevius — the type of year it is. Today’s Rambam teaches us about how our calendar is set up, which is how each year has its kevius!
Perek Vov: In this perek, the Rambam teaches us how we can figure out when the molad will be in any month of any year! The molad is when the new moon can be seen in Yerushalayim, which shows us when Rosh Chodesh should be.
We also learn about the Machzor of years, a cycle of nineteen years when the solar year (a year based on the sun) and the lunar year (a year based on the moon) catch up to each other again. In the Machzor, there is a pattern of which years are Peshutah (regular years) and which years are Me’uberes (leap years, with a second Adar added). Here are the years that are Me’uberes in each Machzor: Years #3, #6, #8, #11, #14, #17, and #19.
Perek Zayin: We learn about deciding when the first day of Rosh Hashana will be, which is different in each kind of year. There are certain days of the week that can NEVER be the first day of Rosh Hashana. We remember these days with an expression: “Lo Ad”u Rosh” — the first day of Rosh Hashana can not be on any of the days with the Roshei Teivos “Adu”, meaning Sunday (Yom Alef), Wednesday (Yom Daled), or Friday (Yom Vov).
Perek Ches: In this perek, we learn about the types of months. Some months are malei (full), with 30 days, and other months are chaseir (missing) with only 29 days. During the year the months go in a pattern, one month malei, and then one month chaseir.
But there are two months that don’t always follow the pattern — Cheshvan and Kislev. Sometimes both are malei, sometimes both are chaseir, and sometimes they follow the regular pattern, with Cheshvan being chaseir and Kislev being malei. This kind of year is called “Kesidran,” “in order,” because then all of the months follow the pattern!
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This perek explains the halachos of when someone does or doesn’t need to pay the “knas” — double (like if he didn’t tell the truth that he stole) or five times as much (like if he stole an animal and killed it).
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Did you know that the Three Weeks are actually a special time?
The Rebbe gives us a mashal to show us how:
Imagine a person who has many, many precious stones. He has piles of shining sapphires, smooth pearls and glittering diamonds. He gathers them together and puts them in a big strong box to keep them safe. He closes the lid tightly and carefully locks the box.
One day, he decides to give his friend a big gift. He has his servants carry the big box to his friend’s house!
The friend looks at the box and wonders why his friend gave it to him. It is very big and will take up a lot of space in his home. The box is very plain, and doesn’t look so nice. The top is rough and wouldn’t make a comfortable seat or be good for a table. The box is very heavy and hard to move around. What kind of present is this?
But if the friend takes the key and opens the box, he will feel very differently! He will be very excited about the box, because it is holding a priceless treasure!
Every year, Hashem gives us a priceless treasure — the Three Weeks.
We can look at this time and wonder why Hashem gave it to us. These days may look heavy, sad, or even ugly! We don’t like this present very much.
But if we look inside this time, we will see that the Three Weeks are a very special time! Hashem hides many kochos and brachos inside these days.
How do we do this?
We use the key! The key is to work extra-hard on our shlichus of making the world a comfortable place for Hashem. We do this by using every part of our lives — our sleeping, our eating, our money — to serve Hashem.
We sleep like a chossid, saying Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah and putting Negel Vasser by our bed. We eat with a bracha, and with the kavana to have koach to do serve Hashem. We give extra tzedakah to bring the Geulah closer. We learn Hilchos Beis Habechirah, the halachos of the Beis Hamikdash, with Emunah that Hashem will rebuild it very soon.
When we do this, we will get the hidden treasure of brachos hiding inside of the Three Weeks!
See farbrengen Parshas Pinchas Tof-Shin-Mem-Ches
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The Rebbe Rashab’s older brother, the Raza, was very careful with dikduk, especially in davening. He was careful to pronounce the nekudos perfectly, and to say each word properly.
Once, when the Rebbe Rashab was about 9 years old, the Raza was teasing him by asking dikduk questions about davening. He asked him, “Why is there a dot after the word ‘bechemlah’ in Modeh Ani?”
The Rashab answered, “That’s the whole reason for davening! When we daven, we take that dot, that pintele that is inside of us, and spread it.”
The Raza asked next, “Why do we daven every day?”
The Rashab answered, “Because we want the pintele to be spread out inside of us every single day.”
Then he added that the word “bechemlah” is in two places in davening, in Modeh Ani and in Ahavas Olam (before Shema). There is no pintele after the “bechemlah” in Ahavas Olam, because the davening spread it out already!
Years later, the Rebbe Rashab explained that the pintele is the “Nekudas Halev,” the Pintele Yid. When we daven, this little spark of the neshama spreads out into our whole body.
See Sicha Yud Shevat 5723
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When we wake up, before we wash Negel Vasser, we say Modeh Ani.
How soon do we have to say Modeh Ani after we wake up?
In Shulchan Aruch, the Alter Rebbe tells us that we need to say Modeh Ani “miyad,” right away! We shouldn’t wait at all. Right away when we wake up, we say Modeh Ani.
In other places in halacha, we use a different word, “teikef.” If we do something “teikef,” we can’t wait very long either! But “teikef” is still an amount of time, even though it is a short amount of time. “Miyad” means right away, without waiting at all!
See Shulchan Menachem vol. 1, p. 2
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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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In this week’s parsha, Parshas Pinchas, we learn how the Yidden were counted. Hashem says that Eretz Yisroel should be split up for the Yidden that were counted now!
In one of his nevuos, the Navi Yechezkel tells us that when Moshiach comes, Hashem will split up Eretz Yisroel among the Yidden again!
זֹאת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר־תַּפִּילוּ מִנַּחֲלָה לְשִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאֵלֶּה מַחְלְקוֹתָם נְאֻם ה׳ אֶלוֹקִים
Zos Ha’aretz — This is the land
Asher Tapilu — which you should give out
Minachala Leshivtei Yisroel — as the nachalah of the Shevatim
Ve’eieleh Machlekosam — and this is how you should split them up
Ne’um Hashem Elokim — says Hashem.
The Gemara explains that this time, when they divide up Eretz Yisroel, they should do it differently than the way it was done in the Midbar. This time, Hashem Himself will give each chelek their part, and Shevet Levi will also get a part of Eretz Yisroel, not just cities!
In Tof-Shin-Lamed-Ches the Rebbe said a maamar explaining how Eretz Yisroel will be divided, according to Gemara and Chassidus! In the maamar, the Rebbe also tells us the Avodah we need to do to get ready for this.
See Yechezkel perek Mem-Ches posuk Chof-Tes, Maamar Le’eileh Techaleik
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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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