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CHUMASH
Parshas Mishpatim - Shishi with Rashi
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At the time of Matan Torah, the Yidden were able to feel kedusha in an amazing way!
In today’s Chumash, Hashem tells the Yidden that this time of Matan Torah won’t be able to stay. The Cheit Ha’eigel will happen and end this special time. Instead, Hashem will send a malach to go with the Yidden, and they won’t feel Hashem the way they could before.
But Hashem has Eretz Yisroel ready and waiting for them!
If the Yidden do their avodah, things will be good for them! If the Yidden listen to Hashem, Hashem will take all of the goyim out of Eretz Yisroel so the Yidden can go live there.
The Yidden should not worship any of the idols the goyim will leave — instead they should break the idols into pieces! They should daven only to Hashem and not to Avodah Zarah. Then Hashem will give them a special reward, that their food and their water should be good, and that the Yidden will stay healthy!
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Today is the first day of Rosh Chodesh Adar! We say the last five kapitelach of the whole Tehillim!
The first kapitel of today’s Tehillim is very special! It starts with the words “Tehillah LeDovid,” which is the third posuk of Ashrei. It goes in the order of the Alef-Beis — one posuk for each letter except for nun.
Do you know why there is no posuk for the letter nun?
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Chof-Hey
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Based on what we learned until now about the hidden love for Hashem that helps us do all the mitzvos, we can understand what Moshe Rabbeinu told the Yidden before they went into Eretz Yisroel:
In Chumash Devarim, we learn about all the things Moshe Rabbeinu told the Yidden before they went into Eretz Yisroel. One of the mitzvos Moshe gave the Yidden to do was to say Shema two times a day, so that they will be Mekabel Ol Malchus Shomayim and even be ready to have Mesiras Nefesh for Hashem.
Even though Moshe promised the Yidden that they WOULDN’T need to give up their lives, he told them that they should say Shema twice a day and be ready to have Mesiras Nefesh. Why?
Moshe Rabbeinu wanted the Yidden to use their Ahava Mesuteres to serve Hashem! They didn’t need to HAVE Mesiras Nefesh, but they needed to REMEMBER that they would be READY to have Mesiras Nefesh! That would help them stay away from every aveira and stay connected to Hashem always!
This is the end of the explanation that the Alter Rebbe started in Perek Yud-Ches, to teach us how to make serving Hashem with feeling, very doable for everybody, “Karov Eilecha Hadavar Meod.”
That’s because every Yid has the koach of Mesiras Nefesh, and we just need to remind ourselves of it to be ready to do the Ratzon of Hashem no matter how hard it may be!
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Many Chassidim considered the day that they came to Lubavitch as their birthday.
The Rashbatz* came to his Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek, for the first time on Friday, Parshas Mishpatim in Tof-Reish-Ches (5608/1848).
Every year, the Rashbatz would stay up all night on Thursday night of Parshas Mishpatim, his Chassidishe birthday, and put on his Tefillin at the same time he went into Yechidus for the first time!
* The Rashbatz was later the Frierdiker Rebbe’s teacher. Read the exciting story of how he came to Lubavitch in “Links in the Chassidic Legacy” — http://www.sie.org/85430 Like this year, the year the Hayom Yom was written, Lamed Shevat was Friday of Parshas Mishpatim.
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Today’s mitzvah in Sefer Hamitzvos (Mitzvas Asei #244) is the same as yesterday — that someone who borrows something needs to follow the halachos about borrowing.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: וְכִי יִשְׁאַל אִישׁ מֵעִם רֵעֵהוּ
The halachos are explained in Perek Ches of Mesechta Bava Metziah, and Perek Ches of Mesechta Shevuos.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos She'eilah Upikadon
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In today’s Rambam, we learn more halachos about borrowing (“shoel”), and we also learn about a person who watches something without being paid for watching it (“shomer chinam”).
Perek Gimmel teaches us what happens if an animal we borrowed dies. If the animal died during the time it was borrowed, the person has to pay! The Rambam teaches exactly when the borrowing is considered to have started.
Perek Daled is about a Shomer Chinam, who watches something for another person without getting paid for his work.
If you watch something for someone else, you need to be very careful with it — even more careful than if it was yours! The halacha is that if you put something that belongs to someone else in a not safe place, and it got lost or stolen — even if it wasn’t your fault! — you need to pay for it.
So for example if someone asked you to watch their pencil for a few minutes, and you just left it outside in the playground, it is your fault if it gets lost or stolen.
Perek Hey teaches us what happens if something gets robbed from us while we are watching it for another person.
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Today we learn more about when wine is counted as Yayin Nesech. One halacha is that if the container of wine is closed, it is not considered Yayin Nesech even if a non-Jew moves the container.
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It says in the posuk that when Hashem created Adam Harishon, Hashem said, “It is not good for a person to be alone. I will make him an Eizer Kenegdo, a helper.”
The Baal Shem Tov explains, if a person was alone, he could make a mistake and think that he is perfect. So Hashem helps us by giving us another person. When we look at another person, we will see the chisaron he has, and we think how he is not good.
Really, Hashem makes the other person as our helper, to show us what is not good in ourselves! That way, we will know what we need to fix.
See Keser Shem Tov siman 302, Chasidim Ein Mishpacha gilyon vov
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“Boruch She’amar Vehaya Ha’olam…” We are supposed to say it with a nice tune. It is a beautiful bracha that speaks about how Hashem is blessed and praised. We sing it as an introduction to the words of Dovid Hamelech and other words of praise that we will say in Pesukei Dezimra.
The Anshei Kneses Hagedolah, who put together the davening, did not actually write Boruch She’amar. It fell in a letter from Shomayim with these words written inside!
Boruch She’amar has 87 words exactly. This hints to the posuk in Shir Hashirim which describes Hashem as “Rosho Kesem Paz,” “His head is like the finest gold.” The word “Paz” (gold) is the gematria of 87. We make the head (rosh) of Pesukei Dezimra begin with Paz, these 87 words of Boruch She’amar.
We stand when we say Boruch She’amar. (One of the reasons is that since malochim are called “Omdim,” (standing), we stand to show that this song came from Shomayim.)
For reasons of Kabbalah, we hold the two front tzitzis when saying Boruch She’amar. At the end of the bracha, we pass them over our eyes and kiss them.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman nun-alef se’if beis
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There is an old minhag that on every Rosh Chodesh, we learn one posuk with Rashi (and other explanations) from your kapitel Tehillim. If your kapitel has less than 12 pesukim (or less than 13 in a leap year), you can learn the same pesukim over again. If your kapitel is long, learn a few pesukim every Rosh Chodesh.
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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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Nowadays when we do a mitzvah, we need to remember to do it, remember the halachos, overcome our Yetzer Hara, and ignore what the world says about it.
When Moshiach comes, it will be much easier, it will come naturally! Everything in the world will remind us to do the mitzvos right, there will be no Yetzer Hara, and the goyim will help us to serve Hashem!
Migolah L’Geulah p. 223
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