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CHUMASH
Parshas Shemos - Chamishi with Rashi
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Hashem chose Moshe Rabbeinu to be the one to take the Yidden out of Mitzrayim. Hashem appeared to Moshe through a burning bush, and is giving him the details of his shlichus.
In today’s Chumash, we learn how Hashem tells Moshe to go say to the leaders of the Yidden that Hashem will take them out, and then to go speak to Paraoh. Moshe says that the Yidden won’t believe him, so Hashem gives him signs. Still, Hashem has to convince Moshe to go.
Hashem tells Moshe to gather the 70 Zekeinim (elders) of the Yidden, and tell them that Hashem says, “I didn’t forget about My promise! I will take the Yidden out of Mitzrayim, and bring them to Eretz Yisroel.”
You do not need to be worried, Hashem tells Moshe. “The Zekeinim will listen to you, because the Yidden know that they will hear about the Geulah with the words ‘Pakod Pokadeti’ — “I remembered you!”
Hashem continues to tell Moshe, “Then, go with them to Paraoh and tell him to let the Yidden go to the desert for three days to bring korbanos.”
But, Hashem says, Paraoh won’t listen to you until I use My “strong arm” to punish them and show them my nisim. When he does let you go in the end, you will take gold and silver, and clothes for the way, to fulfill My promise to Avraham that the Yidden will be very rich when they leave Golus!
Moshe was afraid that the Yidden wouldn’t believe that Hashem really talked to him! So Hashem gave Moshe a sign to show the Yidden: Moshe should throw his sapphire stick on the ground, and it will turn into a snake. When he picks it up, it will turn back into a stick.
Hashem also gave him another sign: He should put his hand into his shirt, and when it comes out, it will be covered with Tzoraas. When he puts it back into his shirt, the Tzoraas will go away.
Hashem gave Moshe specifically these two signs to tell him that he shouldn’t speak Lashon Hara about the Yidden and say they won’t believe him! Lashon Hara is like a snake, and Tzoraas is the punishment for Lashon Hara.
Hashem also gave Moshe a THIRD sign if they still didn’t believe him: Take some water from the Nilus and pour it on the ground, and there it will turn into blood.
Still, Moshe didn’t want to go. He didn’t want to take such an important job, since his brother Aharon was older than him, and a Navi too! He thought that Aharon should get the job. Also, he wasn’t able to speak well, and all of the things Hashem was telling him to do were speaking.
Hashem answered him, “Who gave you the ability to speak when you were in front of Paraoh and had to run away? It was I, Hashem! Now also, I will be with you and show you what to say.”
Moshe continued to tell Hashem that he shouldn’t take the job. He knew with Ruach Hakodesh that he wouldn’t bring the Yidden into Eretz Yisroel in the end anyhow. He told Hashem, “Shelach Na Beyad Tishlach!” Send the person who You will send in the end! “Either send Yehoshua who will bring them into Eretz Yisroel, or send Moshiach who will take them out of the final Golus!”
Hashem wasn’t so happy with Moshe, and told him that because he wasn’t listening right away, Aharon would become a Kohen, and Moshe would become only a Levi.
Hashem also told Moshe not to worry about having a more important job than Aharon — Aharon would come meet him when he went to Mitzrayim, and he would be very happy for Moshe. (Rashi says that because of Aharon’s good feeling in his heart for his younger brother, he was zoche to wear the Choshen on his heart as the Kohen Gadol!)
Moshe could tell Aharon what to say, and Aharon would speak clearly so everyone will understand.
“Now,” said Hashem, “Take your stick so you can do the nisim.”
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Today’s kapitelach are Kuf-Ches through Kuf-Yud-Beis.
In kapitel Kuf-Yud, Dovid Hamelech asks Hashem, “Mateh Uz’cha Yishlach Hashem Mitziyon,” “Your stick of strength Hashem should send out from Yerushalayim, “Redei Bekerev Oivecha,” “to rule over your enemies.”
Dovid Hamelech fought many wars, and was asking Hashem to show His strength so that the enemies will not bother the Yidden!
The Medrash says that there was a Mateh, a stick, that was used by great tzadikim throughout the generations.
It was the same stick that Yaakov Avinu used to cross the Yarden.
It was the same stick that Yehuda gave to Tamar.
It was the same stick that Moshe Rabbeinu had, like we are learning in Chumash!
It was the same stick that Aharon used to make some of the Makos.
It was the same stick that Dovid Hamelech used when he went to fight Golias.
It was the same stick that every Jewish king had, until the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed, and then it was hidden.
This same stick will also be given to Moshiach, to control the world!
This is the Mateh of strength, the stick which Dovid Hamelech is speaking about, asking Hashem to send from Tzion.
See Yalkut Shimoni, Tehillim
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Yud-Beis
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In today’s Tanya, we learn about how important davening is in the avodah of a beinoni, helping us stay in control of our behavior during the day. We learn how Moach Shalit Al Halev should be used both for things that are Bein Adam LaMakom, and Bein Adam LaChaveiro.
We learned that during davening, we feel more Ruchnius’dik and more aidel. This makes our Nefesh Habehamis become sleepy — but it wakes up after davening.
Even though that Ruchnius’dike feeling and aidelkeit doesn’t stay all day, the Alter Rebbe tells us that it does leave a mark! We still remember how we felt and how we decided to act while we were davening. This helps us stay in control of what we do and what we choose to think about, that they should only be the way Hashem wants, all day!
Being this way isn’t only in mitzvos between us and Hashem, Bein Adam LaMakom. We also need to act this way when it comes to how we think about and act with other people.
As we learned, acting the way Hashem wants us to isn’t only in the things we do, but the things we think. For example, when a taavah comes into our minds, an idea of something that we want but shouldn’t have, we shouldn’t think about it. We should use our koach of Moach Shalit Al Halev to push away the idea!
This is also true in the way we think about other people, Bein Adam LaChaveiro. It is not enough to be in control of the things we do or say to them, we also need to be in control of the feelings that come into our mind.
If someone does something that upsets us or makes us angry, we shouldn’t think about it! We push away the not good thoughts that we have, and remind ourselves that everything comes from Hashem, not from what that other person did! Then we can treat the other person nicely, no matter what he did.
This is just like Yosef HaTzaddik, that even though his brothers sold him, he understood that it was from Hashem, and was nice to them in Mitzrayim!
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Today’s Hayom Yom teaches us that when we notice problems in Yiddishkeit around us, it’s not enough to complain about them — we need to try to fix them!
The beginning of today’s Hayom Yom is a correction in the Torah Ohr of Parshas Shemos, in a posuk, “Mi Sam Peh L’Adam.” This maamar explains according to very deep Kabbalah why Moshe didn’t want to take the Shlichus and how Hashem answered him.
A krechtz (groan) by itself will not help us!
Our krechtz is only a beginning. It is supposed to make us realize that something needs to be changed! After that, though, we need to think about how we can help fix the problem. Every person can figure out a way how they can be part of this — to teach more Torah and help more Yidden to do mitzvos. One person can do this through writing, another person by giving speeches, and a different person by giving money for strengthening Yiddishkeit.
What can YOU do? What special kochos do you have to be able to strengthen Yiddishkeit?
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Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #236) is the same as yesterday’s: that if a person makes someone else get hurt, or damages their things, he needs to pay him to make up for what he did.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: וְכִי יְרִיבֻן אֲנָשִׁים וְהִכָּה אִישׁ אֶת רֵעֵהוּ
The details of this mitzvah are explained in Perek Ches of Mesechta Bava Kama.
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In today’s Rambam, we learn two perakim about the halachos of someone who hurt another person, and we start learning the halachos about someone who damaged someone else’s possessions.
Perek Daled talks about kinds of people that have different halachos if they got hurt — like a mother who had a baby inside, or if someone hurts their parents, or if a servant was hurt. The halachos of what needs to be paid can be different for each kind of person.
Perek Hey teaches us that it is asur to even pick up your hand against another Yid. Someone who does is called a rasha, even if he didn’t hurt him! But even though it is such a serious aveira to hurt another person, a person who was hurt should be mochel the person who hurt him if he asks for forgiveness.
Perek Vov starts the halachos about damaging someone else’s THINGS (not about hurting the person, like we were learning before).
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Today we learn when a woman doesn’t have to drink the sotah water, even if she was acting like a sotah. For example, her husband has to be able to hear and speak, otherwise she doesn’t have to drink it. The Rambam shows us how we learn this from certain pesukim.
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The Rebbe teaches us that the avodah of shlichus, bringing people closer to Yiddishkeit, is what makes us into a Chabad chossid!
Once when the Mitteler Rebbe was a child, he had a dream that bothered him. He came to his father, the Alter Rebbe, and told him the dream. (http://www.sie.org/2787712 — see section 15 and on)
One part of the dream was that there were three men walking, one of whom was the Alter Rebbe. They came to two rivers: one was smooth, without any waves, and was flowing along and growing. The second river was colorful, and full of choppy waves. There was a board on each of the rivers. A man told the Alter Rebbe to cross the second river, and he did without a problem.
The Mitteler Rebbe was very upset by this dream.
The Alter Rebbe explained that the other men in the dream were the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid. The two rivers were a mashal for the avodah of tzadikim, with is smooth and strong, and the avodah of Baalei Teshuvah, which is challenging, like choppy waves.
The reason that the Alter Rebbe was able to cross this raging river was because he used the Torah he learned from the Maggid to help bring Yidden closer to Yiddishkeit — to make Baalei Teshuvah.
This story was told over from Rebbe to Rebbe, and each one added something. When the Rebbe Rashab told the story to the Frierdiker Rebbe, he added that the Alter Rebbe gave this koach to make Baalei Teshuvah to whoever he gave it to... and now it is given to every chossid.
The Frierdiker Rebbe told this story to chassidim on Yud-Tes Kislev, and the Rebbe told this story to chassidim also at a Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengen, in Tof-Shin-Chof-Ches. The Rebbe added that not only is this koach GIVEN to every chossid, but that only by working to make Baalei Teshuvah do we BECOME chassidim!
This koach is even more strong by a person who wasn’t born a chossid and became a chossid through his own avodah (a “gevorene”), but is there too for someone who was born a chossid (“geborene”).
We see from this that the avodah of shlichus and bringing Yidden closer to Yiddishkeit is the essence of being a chossid, as it was established by the Alter Rebbe.
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The section “Le’olam Yehei Adam” and the first Shema were made a part of davening close to the end of the time of the Amora’im. At that time, there was a gezeira from the king that the Yidden could not say Shema. Since it was dangerous to say Shema together in shul, the Chachomim told the Yidden to say Shema secretly in their homes before coming to daven. The paragraphs before and after are like the brachos before and after Shema.
“Le’olam Yehei Adam Yerei Shomayim Baseser” — A person should always have Yiras Shomayim, even if he has to do it Baseser, in a hidden way.
One of the paragraphs ends, “Baruch Mekadesh Shemo Borabim” — the best way is to be able to make a Kiddush Hashem in public. But even when we can’t, we at least make a Kiddush Hashem in private, by doing the mitzvos secretly.
At the time when this was added to davening, this was very important! The Yidden needed to think about this when they said Shema secretly, remembering how important it is to do mitzvos even in such a time.
But nowadays we are NOT in a time of Shmad, Boruch Hashem! We ARE able to do mitzvos in public, and the goyim are not trying to stop us! So why was this kept as a part of davening for always?
One reason is because we ALWAYS need to remember the way the Yidden act in a time of Shmad!
Our Yiras Shomayim needs to also be in private. It is not enough to do mitzvos only when other people are looking. Deep inside, where only Hashem can see, we ALSO need to have Yiras Shomayim.
This Tefillah reminds us that our Avodas Hashem should be in a way of Pnimius and Emes, even when others can’t see.
See Beis Yosef siman Mem-Vov se’if Ches, Tana Devei Eliyahu perek Chof-Alef
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One of the melachos we are not allowed to do on Shabbos is borer, which means separating or choosing. Of course, it would be very hard to not choose anything at all on Shabbos! Imagine not being able to pick which fruit to eat, or to pick out a candy from a bowl. The Chachomim explain that borer is only asur if we’re separating in a way of a melacha, but it’s not a problem to separate things as part of eating. There are three conditions to know if we are doing something in a way of eating. Today we will learn more about the first one.
The first condition that shows that we are choosing as part of eating is called Miyad, right away.
Picking out what we want right before we eat it is the normal way of eating. We choose a piece of chicken and then eat it.
Does that mean we can only choose things on Shabbos RIGHT before we use them? What if we want to make a salad for the seudah, and need to pick out the good peppers to put inside? What if we want to set up a dessert tray and need to choose which cookies to put on it?
The halacha is that “right away” means “close to the meal we’re eating it in.” So as long as it’s not too long before the seudah is starting, we can pick out the fresh peppers and cut them up for the salad. It doesn’t matter that we won’t be eating the salad right away when the meal starts, as long as it’s part of the same seudah.
How long before the meal is counted as “close to when the meal starts?” IY”H we will learn more about this in the next shiur.
See Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch siman Shin-Yud-Tes, se’if alef to gimmel; Shabbos Kehalacha perek Yud-Beis; Hilchos Shabbos by Pansa’im
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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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One of Moshiach’s main inyonim is to bring Shleimus in Torah and mitzvos. That’s why he needs to bring back the melucha of Dovid Hamelech, rebuild the Beis Hamikdash, and take the Yidden back to Eretz Yisroel!
The Rambam tells us that Moshiach’s role according to halacha is to bring back the Torah and mitzvos to their complete state.
That helps us understand the halacha where the Rambam says that Moshiach will bring back Malchus Beis Dovid to the way it is supposed to be. We understand why it’s so important, because many mitzvos are dependent on having a Jewish king!
That’s also why it’s Moshiach’s job to build the Beis Hamikdash: So we can keep all of the mitzvos that have to do with the korbanos and the Avodah.
Moshiach will also need to bring back all of the Yidden to Eretz Yisroel, because only when all Yidden live there can we keep the mitzvos of Shemitah and Yovel.
See Rambam Hilchos Melachim Perek Yud-Alef, Likutei Sichos Chelek Yud-Ches p. 276
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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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