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CHUMASH
Parshas Emor - Revi'i with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash, we learn about some of the Yomim Tovim!
First Hashem reminds us to keep Shabbos. Rashi tells us that the reason why Hashem tells us about Shabbos right before telling us about the Yomim Tovim is to show us that we have to be just as careful to keep Yom Tov as we are to keep Shabbos. Even though Shabbos is holy automatically the way Hashem set it up, and the Yomim Tovim only become holy when the Beis Din decides when Rosh Chodesh should be, they still need to be kept just as carefully.
Now we start to go through the Yomim Tovim, starting with Pesach:
Pesach — Erev Pesach, we bring a Korban Pesach. Then on Tes-Vov Nissan, Pesach starts! It is called Chag Hamatzos, and we only eat matzah (not chometz) all 7 days. The first day and the seventh day are Yom Tov, and we can’t do melacha. Every day of Pesach there is a special korban.
For places outside of Eretz Yisroel, Pesach is eight days. Do you know why?
Korban Haomer — Before we can eat the grain (like wheat or barley) that grows in a field, we need to first bring the Korban Ha’omer. On the second day of Pesach, we bring an Omer (a certain amount) of the new grain to the kohen. The kohen waves the Omer like a Lulav, as a present for Hashem. Along with the Omer of grain, we also bring a sheep as a korban. Then we are allowed to eat from the new grain.
This is called “Chodosh.” There is a machlokes among Chachomim whether this needs to be kept outside of Eretz Yisroel or not.
Sefiras Haomer — Starting from the day we bring the Korban Ha’omer, we need to count 7 weeks (49 days).
Shavuos — On the fiftieth day of our counting is the Yom Tov of Shavuos. We need to bring another special korban: Two loaves of bread (Shtei Halechem), 7 lambs, one bull, and 2 rams! We also need to bring a Yom Tov korban — a goat and two lambs. The kohen has to wave the bread and the two lambs before bringing the korban. On Shavuos we can’t do melacha.
The Torah reminds us again about the Matnos Aniyim, the parts of our fields that belong to the poor: When we pick what grows in our fields, we need to leave one of the corners (Pe’ah) and whatever falls down (Leket) or was forgotten (Shichecha) for the poor people to take!
Rashi tells us that the Torah reminds us about these mitzvos right here, when we learn about the Yom Tov korbanos, to teach us that if someone is careful with these mitzvos it is like they built the Beis Hamikdash and brought korbanos in it!
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At a farbrengen on Yud-Beis Tammuz Tof-Shin-Zayin (printed in Likutei Diburim), the Frierdiker Rebbe shared how the Rebbe Rashab explains the kapitel beginning with the words Lamnatzeiach Binginos, Kapitel Samach-Zayin, which is in today’s Tehillim. Yud-Beis-Tammuz of that year was the Frierdiker Rebbe’s 67th Yom Huledes. So that year, the Frierdiker Rebbe’s kapitel had been Kapitel Samach-Zayin!
At that farbrengen, the Frierdiker Rebbe spoke about how he learned the Pirush Hamilos of tefillah, the meaning of the words of davening, together with his father, including this kapitel, which we say every day before Boruch She’amar:
“My father (the Rebbe Rashab) learned Pirush Hamilos with me twice. I learned the meaning of the weekday davening, Shabbos and Yom Tov, the Haggadah Shel Pesach, and some of the tefillos of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
“The first time was when I was a child, and the second time was starting from my Bar Mitzvah, on Yud-Beis Tammuz Tof-Reish-Nun-Gimmel.
“When my father started to learn Pirush Hamilos with me the first time, he said: ‘To daven and not know what you are davening is Nit Kein Zach — not right.’ He then started to teach me the basic meaning of davening.
“The second time my father learned with me, he taught me the Chassidishe meaning of davening...
“Starting from Modeh Ani, my father explained every posuk according to Chassidus, with a lesson that can be taken from it. Together with each inyan, he would tell a story, mostly they were “Torahs” that the Alter Rebbe heard from the Chassidus of the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid. Sometimes it would also be an explanation of the Alter Rebbe himself or one of the later Rebbeim.”
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Mem-Vov
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We are learning now how a Yid can come to love Hashem by thinking about the love that Hashem has for us! Hashem took us out of Mitzrayim, and brought us close to Him by giving us the Torah and the mitzvos.
When we do a mitzvah, we are very close to Hashem — but we don’t always feel it.
In Tehillim, Asaf says: “Va’ani Vaar Velo Eida, Beheimos Hayisi Imach, Va’ani Tomid Imach.” — “I am foolish, I don’t feel You, Hashem. I am like an animal in front of You — but I am always with You.”
Asaf was saying these words for all of the Yidden who live after the time of the Churban Beis Hamikdash, when we don’t feel Hashem. Even though a mitzvah should make us feel Ahavas Hashem and Yiras Hashem because of how special it is, during Golus we don’t feel it.
We are like a fool or an animal, who doesn’t understand what is happening.
Still, “Va’ani Tomid Imach” — “I am always with You, Hashem!” Even though the BODY doesn’t always understand how close it is to Hashem when it does a mitzvah, the neshama does feel it!
This closeness to Hashem is the same by EVERY kind of Yid, from the biggest tzadik to the simplest person. Any time a Yid does an aveira, he is breaking this tremendous closeness to Hashem, which is the same for everyone. That is why every Yid gets the same punishment if he chas veshalom does an aveira.
When we think about how Hashem makes us so close to Him when we do a mitzvah, we will love Hashem and want to do His mitzvos!
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Today is twenty-seven days of the Omer!
In today’s Hayom Yom, the Rebbe tells us more words to make sure we read right when we daven. There are different nuschaos for these words, and the Rebbe shows us the way to read them in the Chabad nusach. In our siddurim, they are already printed this way.
In yesterday’s Hayom Yom, we learned the ones from the first part of davening, until Shemoneh Esrei. Today we learn the rest of Shacharis, and also Maariv.
- (In Tachanun) Menu Ma’amor (with a komatz), Keyom ...Ne’emar (with a patach)
- (In Va’anachnu Lo Neda) Zochur (Ki Afar Anachnu) with a melupam (like a shuruk)
- (In Uva Letzion) Unetaltani with the nekudos patach, sheva, patach
- (In the paragraph before Shema in Maariv) Ve’ahavas’cha Lo Sasur — not “Al Tasir” like some other people have a minhag to say
This week we are working on the midah of Netzach, which is doing the right thing even when we’re not in the mood. One example of how to use our Netzach is in today’s Hayom Yom! Even if we’re not in the mood of davening, we should still be careful to say each word properly.
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In today’s Sefer Hamitzvos, we learn one very important mitzvah: We need to teach Torah to our children or our talmidim, and also learn ourselves! We need to make sure we know it well enough so that even if they ask questions, we can answer them right away.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Vaeschanan: וְשִׁנַּנְתָּם לְבָנֶיךָ
The details are explained in many places in Gemara.
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Perek Beis: The very first halacha in today’s Rambam is that if a city doesn’t have teachers for small children to learn Torah, the city deserves to be destroyed! That’s because the Torah of small children is what makes the world exist! Children don’t stop learning Torah, even to help build the Beis Hamikdash — that’s how important their Torah learning is! (If we don’t stop even to build the Beis Hamikdash, of course we should not stop when we have vacation!)
We also learn rules for teachers: They can’t do other work while they’re teaching, because it distracts them from teaching. A teacher also need to make sure that his class isn’t too big.
Perek Gimmel: The Rambam tells us how important and special learning Torah is. Every single Yid who puts in the proper effort is able to have the crown of Torah!
We also learn when someone should stop learning Torah: When there is a mitzvah that needs to be done, and nobody else can do it.
In Perek Daled, we learn a very important halacha for talmidim — if we don’t understand something, we need to keep asking until we do understand! A teacher isn’t allowed to get upset at his students if they didn’t understand something.
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In today’s Rambam, the Rambam tells us the list of mitzvos again, but shows us where we’ll learn them in the 14 books of the Rambam. These 14 seforim include 83 sections that teach us different sets of halachos.
Today we will learn the mitzvos of the next 5 seforim:
5) Kedusha — “holy.” Hashem gave us certain mitzvos that show us how a Yid is different than other nations. In this sefer, we learn about who we can’t get married to, and what we can’t eat. For a Yid, getting married is holy, and we can only marry who the Torah says we can. A goy can eat any food that he wants, but a Yid can only eat kosher.
6) Hafla’ah — “separation.” This sefer has the mitzvos about when a person separates HIMSELF from something, by making a promise that he won’t use it.
7) Zera’im — “plants.” In this sefer we learn the mitzvos that have to do with planting, like Shemitah and Yovel, and the terumah and maaser we have to give from things that grow.
8) Avodah — “work.” In this sefer of the Rambam, we learn about the work we do for Hashem in the Beis Hamikdash. We learn the mitzvos of building the Beis Hamikdash, and the korbanos that ALL of the Yidden bring to Hashem, like the Korban Tomid that we bring every day!
9) Korbanos — “sacrifices.” This sefer has the mitzvos about the korbanos Yidden have to bring by themselves, like the Korban Pesach that every Yid has to be part of, and the korbanos a person brings if he does an aveira.
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In this week’s parsha, Parshas Emor, we learn mitzvos that are special for kohanim.
In the beginning of the parsha, Hashem says, “Emor El Hakohanim,” You should speak to the kohanim, “Ve’amarta Aleihem,” and you should say to them.
Rashi brings a reason why it needs to say (twice) “Emor” AND “Ve’amarta.” The Chachomim teach that it is “Lehazhir Hagedolim Al Haketanim,” that the kohanim need to warn their children to be careful to follow the mitzvos of the kohanim, just like the adults.
The word the Chachomim use is “Lehazhir,” to warn. Why don’t they use a word like “to teach” or “to tell”? The word “Lehazhir” can also mean light (like Zohar). It teaches us that if the adults will teach their children properly, it won’t only help their children — it will bring light to the adults too!
This is a lesson in chinuch for everyone, not just kohanim. When we are busy with chinuch, it lights us up too!
See Likutei Sichos chelek Zayin p. 151
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In Korbanos in the morning, we say the pesukim that talk about the Korban Tomid and the Ketores, and the halachos about how the Ketores is made. When we do this, Hashem counts it as if we are actually bringing the Korban Tomid and the Ketores!
After finishing (and saying the pesukim that Kabbalah teaches we should say after the Ketores), we say a posuk from Malachi: “Ve’arva LaHashem Minchas Yehuda Viyerushalayim, Kimei Olam Ucheshanim Kadmoniyos.” “The korbanos of the Yidden should be sweet to Hashem, like days of old and previous times.”
This posuk is part of a Nevuah about the Geulah! The Navi says that Hashem will give us the Beis Hamikdash and accept our korbanos with all of the nisim we had during the first Beis Hamikdash.
We are asking Hashem that not only should it be counted as we are bringing the Tomid and the Ketores, but that we should actually be able to bring them for Hashem in the Beis Hamikdash Hashlishi!
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There are some times when something that isn’t usually muktza WILL be muktza on Shabbos.
How?
If when Shabbos started, something had muktza on top of it, that thing can become muktza, just like whatever was on top of it. This is called a Bosis Ledavar Ha’asur, “a base for something asur.”
For example, let’s say you have a table (which is not muktza), with a computer on top of it. That table becomes muktza, just like the computer, and you can’t move it on Shabbos! The same thing is true if you have a stool (not muktza) with a menorah burning on it. That stool becomes muktza just like the menorah!
But just having something muktza on top of it doesn’t mean that it HAS to become a bosis. IY”H we’ll learn more about when something becomes a bosis, and how to keep something from becoming a bosis.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Shin-Tes se’if daled
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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 the beginning of Sefer Yeshayahu, the Navi tells his generation a nevuah about the Geulah!
וְאָשִׁיבָה שֹׁפְטַיִךְ כְּבָרִאשֹׁנָה וְיֹעֲצַיִךְ כְּבַתְּחִלָּה אַחֲרֵי כֵן יִקָּרֵא לָךְ עִיר הַצֶּדֶק קִרְיָה נֶאֱמָּנָה
Ve’ashiva Shoftayich Kevarishona — Hashem will again give us shoftim, judges, who are tzadikim — the Sanhedrin!
Veyo’atzayich Kevatechilah — And advisors who are tzadikim, like we used to have.
Acharei Chein Yikarei Lach — Afterwards, Yerushalayim will be called:
Ir Hatzedek Kiryah Ne’emanah — A city of tzedek, righteousness, a city that is faithful to Hashem!
The Anshei Kneses Hagedolah gave us a bracha to say every day in Shemoneh Esrei, the bracha of Hashiva Shofteinu, asking Hashem to fulfill this nevuah!
See Yeshayahu perek Alef posuk Chof-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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