Past Parshas

The evil sorcerer, Bilam, tried his utmost to destroy Israel with curses, but Hashem foiled his plans, and so twisted his tongue that his words came out as blessings rather than curses. Seeing that his efforts were fruitless, Bilam resorted to another maneuver. Knowing that Hashem despises debauchery, he arranged that the Midianites seduce the Israelites to commit harlotry. This indeed angered Hashem, and twenty-four thousand Israelites died in a plague. Bilam was a bitter... Read More

In this portion, the Israelites complain that they have no water. Hashem tells Moses to order a rock to give water. Because in a previous episode, Hashem told Moses to hit the rock with his rod, Moses did so again. Hashem told Moses that he forfeited the right to enter Canaan with his people. Rambam says that Moses’ sin was not hitting the rock, but rather that he lost control of his anger and called... Read More

There were two episodes of spies sent to Canaan. Those sent by Moses resulted in a disaster from which we still suffer thousands of years later, whereas those sent by Joshua resulted in triumph. Why the radical difference? Hashem had promised the Israelites the conquest of Canaan, but they lacked the trust and faith in Hashem. They sent the spies to see whether they were indeed capable of conquering the land. Joshua’s spies had no... Read More

Admitted to G-d, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs… The Torah says that if a person develops a skin lesion which may be tzoraas, he must show it to the kohain. The Rebbe of Stolin said, “How different the chassidim of today are from those of the previous generation. Today’s chassidim try to show the Rebbe how pious and observant they are. When I used to go to... Read More

The Torah says, “You shall not do as the Egyptians do, from whose land you left, nor as the Canaanites do, to whose land you are entering.” What can this mean? There are already 365 specific prohibitions. What is the Torah referring to? There are many permissible activities, which a Jew is required to do as part of one’s service to Hashem. Eating because one is hungry and sleeping because one is tired are not... Read More

G-d tells Moses to instruct the Israelites on the mitzvah of redeeming the first-born. Instead of doing so, Moses tells them to always remember the enslavement in Egypt and the Exodus, and only thereafter dictates the mitzvah of redeeming the first-born (Exodus13:1-15). The Jerusalem Talmud says that the amount specified to redeem the first-born (five shekels) is equivalent to the sum for which the brothers sold Joseph into slavery. As important as treatment of a... Read More

One Day at a Time (Ho’ovar ayin, v’hoosid adayin, v’hahoive k’heref ayin: da’ago minayin?) Jacob assembled his sons to give them his blessing before he died. The exact words of the Torah are, “He blessed them on that day” (Genesis 48:20). What is the significance of the fact that he blessed them on that day? We may translate the verse to read, “He blessed them with that day.” Jacob gave them a blessing that they... Read More

 “We Will Not Regret the Past…”  After Joseph revealed himself to his brothers, he said, “Now, do not be angry with yourselves. This was Hashem’s design” These were comforting words, but although it was Hashem’s design, they acted as free agents when they sold him into slavery. Hashem could have done it in other ways. There is no way they could escape their guilt. How could they not be angry at themselves? The answer lies... Read More

The Torah says that Jacob was afraid of Esau, even though Hashem had promised him, “I will be with you and protect you.” That promise was given when he had just left the home of Isaac and Rebecca, and was under their influence. Now, however, he had been with the wicked Laban for twenty years, and Jacob was worried that he might have been influenced by Laban’s sinful ways, and that he no longer merited... Read More