Tag Archives: Parsha

Miketz – Wise and Perceptive

To understand the Haftarah and what it teaches us about the Parsha, we need to step back a few verses. Earlier in the same chapter, we read about Shlomo’s prophetic dream, where God offers him to bless him with anything he needs. Instead of asking for power or wealth, he requests wisdom to judge his people. God approves of his request and grants it, using this phrasing:

הִנֵּה נָתַתִּי לְךָ לֵב חָכָם וְנָבוֹן אֲשֶׁר כָּמוֹךָ לֹא הָיָה לְפָנֶיךָ וְאַחֲרֶיךָ לֹא יָקוּם כָּמוֹךָ
…I will give you a wise and perceptive heart, the likes of which has never existed before you, and after you, will not occur again. (Melachim I 3:12)

The Haftarah of Miketz begins by describing his waking up from this experience and realizing that it is a dream.

וַיִּקַץ שְׁלֹמֹה וְהִנֵּה חֲלוֹם
Shlomo woke up, and it had been a dream. (Melachim I 3:15)

This is followed immediately by a story that demonstrates the wisdom and perceptiveness that he had been granted, the famous “Mishpat Shlomo” (Solomon’s Judgment). Two women, prostitutes sharing a home, come to the king for justice. The plaintiff claims that the defendant’s baby died in the night, and she switched the babies, claiming the live one as her own. The defendant denies it. Shlomo commands to bring a sword and cleave the baby in half. One of the women pleads to spare the child, and the other says, “Neither one of us will have it!” Shlomo declares the true mother of the child to be the one who was willing to give the baby up to save his life, and “the Judgment of Solomon” becomes a by-word forever after.

We are so familiar with this story that it is hard for us to imagine not knowing how it ends. But let us put ourselves for a moment in the court of the inexperienced young king. Imagine the reaction of the onlookers when he said, “Bring me a sword.” Imagine the shock when he said, in all seriousness, “Cut the child, and give half to one and half to the other,” as if it were a monetary dispute that can be resolved that way. They did not think that he was bluffing. They thought he was going to murder the child and claim that it was justice.

It was the stress of this shock that caused the women to drop their defenses and reveal their true feelings. Shlomo intentionally set up the circumstances for that shock and manipulated them into dropping their guard. This showcased the “wise and perceptive heart” that G-d had promised him in his dream.

The term “wise and perceptive” appears also in Parshat Miketz, as do dreams. Pharaoh dreams of the fat and skinny cows and fat and skinny sheaves, after which we are told:

וַיִּקַץ פַרְעֹה וְהִנֵּה חֲלוֹם
Pharaoh woke up, and it had been a dream (Bereishit 41: 7)

As a result of that dream, Pharaoh meets Yosef, who advises him:

וְעַתָּה יֵרֶא פַרְעֹה אִישׁ נָבוֹן וְחָכָם וִישִׁיתֵהוּ עַל אֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם
Now, let Pharaoh see to finding a man who is perceptive and wise and place him over the Land of Egypt. (Bereishit 41:33)

The dream leads Pharaoh to appoint Yosef to be the “wise and perceptive man” overseeing all of Egypt.

Surprisingly, the Parsha spends very few verses showing how Yosef, in his wisdom, overhauls the economy of Egypt and saves its population from starvation. In contrast, it spends entire chapters describing how Yosef manipulates his brothers, causing them stress and shock. From accusing them of beings spies, to jailing Shimon, from demanding that they return with Binyamin, to replacing their money in their bags, from seating them in age order, to accusing Binyamin of having stolen the goblet, it looks like Yosef is toying with them, and it is not clear why.

One of the solutions offered by the commentaries is that Yosef felt it necessary to make his original dream, the one with all his brothers bowing down to him, come to pass, which could only happen if all eleven of his brothers did so, including Binyamin. Other commentaries question this idea. Even if there is value in making dreams come true, could that justify what appears to be cruelty on Yosef’s part?

We can learn more from looking at Yosef’s reaction to Pharaoh’s dream. When Yosef interpreted Pharaoh’s dream, his first thought was how to ameliorate its ill effects. He did not worry about making it come to pass, he worried about fixing the trouble it foretold. If that was his concern for Pharaoh’s dream, it was probably his concern for his own dream, too. Yosef searched for a way to ameliorate it, to take out the potential ill will, jealousy, and hatred that comes from having to bow down to a member of your own family. When he saw his dream coming to pass in part, he did not think, “Oh, one brother is missing, how do I get him to come?” He thought, “Oh, they will never be able to look me – or each other – in the eye, how do I get us to be a family that can survive living in exile in Egypt?”

This where the “wisdom and perception” comes in. Like Shlomo, Yosef created situations where his brothers’ defenses came down, and their true feelings were revealed.

In that process, they expressed their remorse at what they had done to Yosef:

וַיֹּאמְרוּ אִישׁ אֶל אָחִיו אֲבָל אֲשֵׁמִים אֲנַחְנוּ עַל אָחִינוּ אֲשֶׁר רָאִינוּ צָרַת נַפְשׁוֹ בְּהִתְחַנְנוֹ אֵלֵינוּ וְלֹא שָׁמָעְנוּ עַל כֵּן בָּאָה אֵלֵינוּ הַצָּרָה הַזֹּאת:
They said to each other, “But we are guilty toward our brother, that we saw his anguish when pleading with us, and we did not listen; that is why this trouble has come upon us.” (Bereishit 42:21)

They took responsibility for Binyamin:

אָנֹכִי אֶעֶרְבֶנּוּ מִיָּדִי תְּבַקְשֶׁנּוּ
I will vouch for him; from my hand you will demand him … (Bereishit 43:9)

They were willing to put themselves in danger rather than leave Binyamin alone in Egypt:

הִנֶּנּוּ עֲבָדִים לַאדֹנִי
… we will all be your slaves.. (44:16)

And, finally, they expressed their concern for their father’s reaction to the loss of his favored son:

כִּי אֵיךְ אֶעֱלֶה אֶל אָבִי וְהַנַּעַר אֵינֶנּוּ
“How can I go up to my father, and the boy is missing?!” (34:44)

Did Yosef know, when he first saw them, that they had this in them? Most likely, they themselves did not know. Until it was expressed, through words and actions, their sense of family unity and mutual responsibility had been uncertain. Yosef manipulated them, shocked and stressed them, so that what they revealed would be their innermost truth. It was not easy for any of them, and caused much grief and many tears, but ultimately, they bowed down to Yosef, fulfilling the dream of his youth, without rancor and with hope for reconciliation.

It is this achievement that showed most clearly that Yosef, like Shlomo after him, was a “man who is perceptive and wise.”


Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my parents, Peter & Nella Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ואמי מורתי חנה בת זעליג ז”ל

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Tazria – Catalyst for Change

The Parsha of Tazria spends the bulk of its text on the diagnosis of the Biblical disease, Tzaraat, “leprosy.” In his summation of the Laws of the Impurity of Leprosy (16:10), the Rambam points out that the term “Tzaraat” covers so many unrelated symptoms that it cannot possibly refer to a natural malady, but is rather a supernatural phenomenon whose purpose was to cause people to reevaluate their behavior. The particular behavior that the Rambam singles out as the cause of Tzaraat is Lashon Hara, speaking in a derogatory manner about other people. A person who makes a habit of doing so will first see signs of Tzaraat on the walls of his house. If he stops his behavior, the house can be purified; if not, the house will need to be destroyed and it will affect the furniture, then the clothes, and ultimately his own skin, and he will be isolated so that he is unable to speak with anyone about anything. The purpose of all this is to shock a person into changing his behavior and the dismissive attitude that underlies it.

Whereas the Rambam focuses on Lashon Hara as the behavior that Tzaraat is meant to reverse, the Midrash lists several other behaviors and character traits that cause it. One of them is the subject of the Haftorah of Tazria.

מכאן א”ר יהודה הלוי ב”ר שלום על י”א דברים הצרעת באה על קללת השם ועל גילוי עריות ועל שפיכות דמים ועל האומר על חבירו דבר שאינו בו ועל גסות הרוח ועל הנכנס בתחום שאינו שלו ועל לשון שקר ועל הגניבות ועל שבועת שקר ועל המחלל שם שמים ועל עבודת כוכבים … ועל גסות הרוח זה נעמן שנאמר (מלכים ב ה) (ונעמן) [שר צבא מלך ארם] היה איש גדול מהו גדול שהיתה רוחו גסה מפני שהיה גבור חיל ועל ידי כך נצטרע

R’ Yehuda HaLevi bar Shalom said: Tzaraat comes for 11 things: cursing Hashem, sexual immorality, murder, speaking lies against a friend, haughtiness, entering an area that is not for you, lying, stealing, swearing falsely, desecrating the Name of Heaven, and idolatry…. “Haughtiness:” that’s Naaman, as it says: “Naaman was a great man.” What is “great?” He was haughty and full of himself because he was a strong warrior, and for that he got Tzaraat (Midrash Bamidbar Rabbba 7:5)

The Haftorah introduces Na’aman thus:

וְנַעֲמָן שַׂר צְבָא מֶלֶךְ אֲרָם הָיָה אִישׁ גָּדוֹל לִפְנֵי אֲדֹנָיו וּנְשֻׂא פָנִים כִּי בוֹ נָתַן ה’ תְּשׁוּעָה לַאֲרָם וְהָאִישׁ הָיָה גִּבּוֹר חַיִל מְצֹרָע:
Na’aman, the general of the king of Aram, was a great man at court, and highly esteemed, for through him, Hashem had given victory to Aram. The man was a great warrior, a leper.
(Melachim II 5:1)

The Haftorah then describes how this great, famous, highly esteemed general of the Aramean court visits the prophet Elisha because he had been told that Elisha can cure him of his leprosy. He appears, as befitting a person of his rank and wealth, with an entourage of carriages and servants, in front of the hovel where Elisha lives in great poverty. Yet Elisha does not show him the slightest deference. Not only does he not fawn upon Na’aman, he does not even bother to come out to greet him. He simply sends a servant with instructions to immerse seven times in the Jordan River. The Haftorah records Naaman’s reaction to this treatment:

וַיִּקְצֹף נַעֲמָן וַיֵּלַךְ וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה אָמַרְתִּי אֵלַי יֵצֵא יָצוֹא וְעָמַד וְקָרָא בְּשֵׁם ה’ אֱ-לֹהָיו וְהֵנִיף יָדוֹ אֶל הַמָּקוֹם וְאָסַף הַמְּצֹרָע: הֲלֹא טוֹב אֲמָנָה וּפַרְפַּר נַהֲרוֹת דַּמֶּשֶׂק מִכֹּל מֵימֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הֲלֹא אֶרְחַץ בָּהֶם וְטָהָרְתִּי וַיִּפֶן וַיֵּלֶךְ בְּחֵמָה:
Na’aman got angry and stormed off. He said, “I had said to myself, he’s going to come out, and stand, and call in the name of Hashem his God, wave his hand over the place and the leprosy would go away. Aren’t Amana and Pharpor, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Yisrael? Can’t I bathe in them and be pure?” He turned and walked off in fury.
(Melachim II 5:11-12)

Na’aman feels that he knows what the treatment for his leprosy should be like, and what will and will not work. As a “great and highly esteemed” personage, he is sure that he knows everything there is to know, and deserves every attention and consideration, and if someone who is so clearly beneath him violates his expectations, he loses his temper and storms off.
Fortunately for Na’aman, his servants convince him that he has nothing to lose in following the prophet’s prescription, and he does immerse in the Jordan River. This concession to the possibility that there is a Greater Power is enough for his Tzaraat to be cured. Na’aman goes back to Elisha to thank him and offers him a generous honorarium. Elisha categorically refuses to accept a penny from Na’aman. One might have thought that Na’aman would be insulted by this refusal and that it would be further provocation to anger, but instead we see a remarkable shift in Na’aman’s attitude:

וַיֹּאמֶר נַעֲמָן וָלֹא יֻתַּן נָא לְעַבְדְּךָ מַשָּׂא צֶמֶד פְּרָדִים אֲדָמָה כִּי לוֹא יַעֲשֶׂה עוֹד עַבְדְּךָ עֹלָה וָזֶבַח לֵאלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים כִּי אִם לַה’
Na’aman said, “If not, then let your servant be given some earth that a pair of mules could carry. For your servant will no longer make sacrifices to other gods, except to Hashem. (Melachim II 5:18)

Na’aman, who was introduced as a “great man at court, highly respected,” who sneered at the suggestion that the Jordan River would effect a cure when the rivers of his own country would not, ends up begging for some dirt from Eretz Yisrael.
The Haftorah shows us that Tzaraat is meant to serve as a catalyst for change. If someone as proud and prejudiced as Na’aman had been can learn to see past his ego, then so can we. When we look down at other people, or seek to raise ourselves in the eyes of our friends by taking down those around us, we are guilty of haughtiness as Na’aman had been. We might not even be aware that we are being led astray by our egos. Tzaraat is a supernatural wake-up call to examine ourselves, to alter our behavior and revise our attitude before things get even worse. Tzaraat is reversible, and so are our character flaws.

Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

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Shmini – Hazard, Beware!

Parshat Shmini and the Haftarah of Shmini both contain stories of tragic deaths. Parshat Shmini describes how, just at the culmination of the dedication of the Mishkan, Nadav and Avihu lit a fire for the incense, and were killed by the Divine Fire that appeared. The Haftarah of Shmini describes how, while bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Yerushalayim, Uzah, one of the people leading the procession, reached out to keep the Ark from falling, and was struck down by G-d. What did they do that was so terrible that caused them to lose their lives?

To understand Uzah’s story, we need some context. Several decades before the events described in this Haftarah, the Ark had been captured in a battle with the Plishtim. Its presence caused plagues to break out in the Plishti towns, and ultimately, the Ark was placed in the care of Avinadav from Kiryat Yearim, where it stayed without incident for many years. After David HaMelech made Yerushalayim his capital city, he arranged for the Ark to be brought there. The descendants of Avinadav placed it upon a cart and walked before it. Then the following happened:

…. וַיִּשְׁלַח עֻזָּא אֶל אֲרוֹן הָאֱ-לֹהִים וַיֹּאחֶז בּוֹ כִּי שָׁמְטוּ הַבָּקָר: וַיִּחַר אַף ה’ בְּעֻזָּה וַיַּכֵּהוּ שָׁם הָאֱ-לֹהִים עַל הַשַּׁל וַיָּמָת שָׁם עִם אֲרוֹן הָאֱ-לֹהִים:
…Uzah reached for the Ark of G-d and grabbed it, because the oxen had slipped. Hashem’s anger was kindled at Uzah, G-d struck him down due to the error. He died there, with the Ark of G-d. (Shmuel I 6:6-7)

Uzah reached out to keep the Ark from falling off the cart, and lost his life. The Midrash explains what his error was:

אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא הארון נושאיו נשא, עצמו לא כל שכן
G-d said to him, the Ark carries those who carry it — to carry itself, how much more so! (Bamidbar Rabbah 4:20)

The Midrash refers to the crossing of the Jordan River, when the Jewish People entered Eretz Yisrael. As soon as the Cohanim who were carrying it stepped into the water, the river stopped flowing, allowing the Jewish People to cross safely. Then:

וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר תַּם כָּל הָעָם לַעֲבוֹר וַיַּעֲבֹר אֲרוֹן ה’ וְהַכֹּהֲנִים לִפְנֵי הָעָם
When all the people finished passing, the Ark of Hashem, and the Cohanim, crossed before the people. (Yehoshua 4:11)

It does not say “the Cohanim with the Ark of Hashem crossed;” it says “the Ark of Hashem crossed.” The Ark made it possible for the Cohanim to cross the river, not the other way around.

The Midrash points out that Uzah should have known that the Ark was not an ordinary object that follows the laws of nature; it did not need him to keep it from falling.

Nadav and Avihu made a similar mistake for similar reasons.

וַיָּבֹא מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן אֶל אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וַיֵּצְאוּ וַיְבָרֲכוּ אֶת הָעָם וַיֵּרָא כְבוֹד ה’ אֶל כָּל הָעָם: וַתֵּצֵא אֵשׁ מִלִּפְנֵי ה’ וַתֹּאכַל עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ אֶת הָעֹלָה וְאֶת הַחֲלָבִים וַיַּרְא כָּל הָעָם וַיָּרֹנּוּ וַיִּפְּלוּ עַל פְּנֵיהֶם: וַיִּקְחוּ בְנֵי אַהֲרֹן נָדָב וַאֲבִיהוּא אִישׁ מַחְתָּתוֹ וַיִּתְּנוּ בָהֵן אֵשׁ וַיָּשִׂימוּ עָלֶיהָ קְטֹרֶת וַיַּקְרִיבוּ לִפְנֵי ה’ אֵשׁ זָרָה אֲשֶׁר לֹא צִוָּה אֹתָם:וַתֵּצֵא אֵשׁ מִלִּפְנֵי ה’ וַתֹּאכַל אוֹתָם וַיָּמֻתוּ לִפְנֵי ה’:

Moshe and Aharon came to the Tent of Assembly. They went out, and blessed the nation. The Glory of Hashem manifested itself to the entire nation. Fire went forth from before Hashem and ate what was on the Altar, the offerings and the fats; the entire nation saw; they sang out, they fell to the ground in worship. The sons of Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, each took a fire pan; they put in them fire, and on that they placed incense; they brought before Hashem an external fire that He had not commanded them. Fire went forth from before Hashem and ate them. They died before Hashem. (VaYikra 9:23-24, 10:1-2)

According to Rashbam, the “fire that went forth” in both verses is the same fire. The order of events then is as follows:

Everything had been laid out the final stage of the dedication of the Mishkan, and all that was missing for the fulfillment of its purpose of “I shall dwell among you” was the manifestation of the Presence of G-d. While waiting for it to appear, Moshe and Aharon left the Mishkan and went out to bless the nation. After their blessing, G-d’s Presence manifested itself, in two ways: the Cloud of Glory appeared on the Mishkan, and Divine Fire came down and consumed the offering.

The verses then shift to Nadav and Avihu, who had remained inside the Mishkan, and were waiting for G-d’s Presence to appear. For whatever reason – perhaps impatience, perhaps arrogance, perhaps a misplaced sense of devotion – instead of continuing to wait like they were supposed to, they decided to take matters into their own hands, and make their own fire. But the Divine Fire did come down, without their help. It started at the internal incense Altar, where they were standing, and went out to the external Altar where the sacrifices had been laid out. Nadav and Avihu, who were not supposed to be there, were caught in its path.

Nadav and Avihu must have thought that they were operating in the physical world, where fire is lit by human beings. But just as G-d did not need Uzah to keep the Ark from falling, He did not need Nadav and Avihu to make fire in the Mishkan.

Disobeying the laws of the Torah regarding objects that do not quite obey the laws of physics can be hazardous to one’s health.

Copyright © Kira Sirote

In memory of my parents, Peter & Nella Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ואמי מורתי חנה בת זעליג ז”ל

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Bereishit – Bearing Witness

In his very first comment on the Torah’s very first verse, Rashi raises a key question about the essence of the Torah. If the Torah is a book of commandments, and its purpose is to teach us how to serve G-d, what does it achieve by telling us about the creation of the world? The answer that Rashi gives is famous for its defense of the Jewish claim to Eretz Yisrael , but it is not the only answer to that question. The Haftarah of Bereishit provides us with a different one:

אַתֶּם עֵדַי נְאֻם ה’ וְעַבְדִּי אֲשֶׁר בָּחָרְתִּי לְמַעַן תֵּדְעוּ וְתַאֲמִינוּ לִי וְתָבִינוּ כִּי אֲנִי הוּא לְפָנַי לֹא נוֹצַר אֵל וְאַחֲרַי לֹא יִהְיֶה.
You are My witnesses, says Hashem, My servant that I have chosen, so that you may know and believe in Me, and understand that I am He; no power was formed before Me, and after Me, none can exist (Yeshayahu 43:10)

The Haftarah is telling us that the Jewish People have been tasked with testifying to all of humanity that G-d is the only Creator, and consequently, the only source of power in the universe. In its description of the creation of the world, the Torah emphasizes one point over everything else: everything that came into being is there only because G-d wanted it there. There was no unrelated action that a god was doing at the time that accidentally caused the world to be created. There was no committee of gods each of which was responsible for a different aspect of reality. G-d created the world deliberately and intentionally, each and every aspect of it, from the stars in the sky to the fish in the sea. If there are powerful creatures in the world, it is because He created them; if the sun rules the heavens, it is because He put it there. There is no other being besides Him that has any power over any part of the universe.

Each alternate creation story that pagan cultures have adopted has moral ramifications. A world that was created by accident has no purpose. In that case, following whatever biological imperatives drive us is sufficiently “moral.” If the world was created by a conglomerate of forces with varying motivations, then we need to please them all: the god of destruction needs to be appeased with acts of terror, the god of war needs to be appeased with victims and captives. If the stars determine our fate, there is no point in helping the poor, who were destined for their station.

But if there is one G-d Who created the world and called it “good,” then we are responsible only to Him. He, and only He, dictates what is good and what is evil. That is the message of the Torah’s account of Creation.
However, if mankind is not aware of this message, they cannot embrace G-d’s morality and His definitions of good and evil. The task of making them aware falls upon the Jewish People. As the Haftarah says, we bear witness to Creation. The Midrash explains:

ואתם עדי נאם ה’ ואני אל – כל מי ששומר את השבת מעלין עליו כאלו מעיד לפני מי שאמר והיה העולם שברא עולמו לששה ונח בשביעי, שנאמר וינח ביום השביעי.
“You are My witnesses, says Hashem, and I am G-d”: Whoever keeps Shabbat, it is as if he testifies before Him Who spoke and the world came into being, Who He created His world in six days, and rested on the seventh, and it says, “He rested on the seventh day.” (Midrash Yalkut Shimoni Yeshayahu 452)

This Midrash is explaining that keeping Shabbat has a dimension beyond our commitment to Torah and its commandments. By keeping Shabbat, which signaled the completion of the process of Creation, we testify that G-d is the One who created the world.

This concept, that Shabbat is a testimony, is expressed in our Halachic observance. The Shulchan Aruch says that when we say “Vayechulu”, whether in Ma’ariv or during Kiddush, we stand. The Mishna Berura explains why:

ואומר ויכלו מעומד – שהוא עדות על בריאת שמים וארץ ועדות בעינן מעומד.
VaYechulu is said standing — since it is testimony about the Creation of the Heavens and the Earth, and testimony is given standing. (Mishna Berura 271:45)

So, when we stand up to make Kiddush on Friday night, we are not simply standing out of respect for the Kiddush. We stand because by stating the verses that describe how Creation was concluded on Shabbat, we are giving testimony and bearing witness.

Without the Jewish People, there would be no Shabbat, and without Shabbat, the world would not know that there is One Creator, One Source of all that exists, One Arbiter of morality. It would still be shrouded in the darkness of a pagan world, where there is a struggle between the forces of good and the forces of evil, and both need to be appeased.

It is for this reason that the Haftarah outlines the mission of the Jewish People in these terms:

אֲנִי ה’ קְרָאתִיךָ בְצֶדֶק וְאַחְזֵק בְּיָדֶךָ וְאֶצָּרְךָ וְאֶתֶּנְךָ לִבְרִית עָם לְאוֹר גּוֹיִם.
I, Hashem, have called you in righteousness; I took you by the hand. I formed you, and I made you a covenantal people, a light for the nations. (Yeshayahu 42:6)

The “light for the nations” is the righteousness, the morality, that comes from G-d, which is the essence of the Torah, and the purpose of the Jewish People.

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Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

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Ha’azinu – Being ‘Tamim’

In Parshat Ha’azinu, Moshe uses a poetic form to describe how G-d runs the world, in particular, how He deals with the Jewish People. He starts off by saying:

הַצּוּר תָּמִים פָּעֳלוֹ כִּי כָל דְּרָכָיו מִשְׁפָּט אֵל אֱמוּנָה וְאֵין עָוֶל צַדִּיק וְיָשָׁר הוּא:
The Rock, His work is ‘tamim’, for all His ways are just; a G-d of faithfulness, no evil, righteous and straight is He. (Devarim 32:4)

‘Tamim’ is usually translated as “perfect” or “unblemished.” The reason for that translation is the numerous times this word is used to refer to sacrificial animals, which are required to be “tamim,” free of blemish. The word for “blemish” is “moom”, and it is used to contrast the behavior of the Jewish People with that of G-d:

שִׁחֵת לוֹ לֹא בָּנָיו מוּמָם דּוֹר עִקֵּשׁ וּפְתַלְתֹּל
They have corrupted, His non-children, with their blemish; a generation that is perverse and cunning. (Devarim 32:5)

The Parsha is not talking about animals, which might have a torn ear or a broken leg. What, then, is the blemish of the Jewish People, and conversely, what is the quality of ‘unblemished’ that is ascribed to G-d?

There is a commandment in the Torah,

תָּמִים תִּהְיֶה עִם ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ:
Be ‘tamim’ with Hashem, your G-d. (Devarim 18:13)

If the quality of ‘tamim’ belonged only to G-d, we could have translated this term as “perfect” and “unblemished.” But what does the Torah mean when using it in reference to human beings? How can we be commanded to be perfect and unblemished?

In the Haftarah, King David lists the different ways in which he has done G-d’s will. On that list we find:

וָאֶהְיֶה תָמִים לוֹ
I have been ‘tamim’ to Him. (Shmuel II, 22:24)

So whatever this quality might be, David has been successful in achieving it.
Like Parshat Ha’azinu, the Haftarah describes how G-d runs the world, in particular, how He deals with the Jewish People. This is how King David puts it:

עִם חָסִיד תִּתְחַסָּד עִם גִּבּוֹר תָּמִים תִּתַּמָּם: עִם נָבָר תִּתָּבָר וְעִם עִקֵּשׁ תִּתַּפָּל:
To a loyal person, You are loyal; to an ‘tamim’ man, You are ‘tamim’
To a clean person, You are clean, and to a perverse person, You are cunning
(Shmuel II, 22:25-26)

According to the Haftarah, if a person is ‘tamim’, then G-d is ‘tamim’ to him back, and if a person is perverse, than G-d is cunning to him back – just like the terms used in Ha’azinu. But here, the opposite of ‘tamim’ is not “blemished,” it is “perverse” and “cunning”.

“Perfect” is not a fitting antonym of “perverse” and “cunning.” What, then, is this quality of ‘tamim’, that is one of the ways we describe G-d, and is also one of the ways that we are expected to behave?

The commandment, ‘Tamim be with Hashem Your G-d’ appears in the context of fortune telling. We are forbidden to engage in any form of spiritualism, necromancy, or divination. Instead, we are asked to be ‘tamim’. The Torah is telling us not to play games with G-d, not to try to outguess Him, not to try to get insider information that we are not meant to have. The blemish that we need to avoid is guile.

The Haftarah says that when a person acts toward G-d without guile, without attempting to manipulate Him or trick Him, then G-d, too, acts toward him without guile, and rewards him according to his actions, pure and straightforward. King David points out that the converse is also true – when a person attempts to be perversely crooked, and thinks that G-d will not notice and will just go along with his plans, in fact, the opposite happens. G-d continues to reward him according to his actions, but being that his actions are crooked, the outcome is anything but straightforward.

In the ancient world, there were theologies and pantheons whose gods were cunning and manipulative, toward each other, and toward their worshippers. They would destroy or reward based on their transitory whims and fleeting desires.

When Moshe Rabbeinu and David HaMelech teach us how G-d runs the world, the most important point they make is that our G-d is not like that. He is a “rock,” He does not act on whims; He is ‘tamim’, guileless. He has a plan for the Jewish People and a plan for the world, and He acts to further that plan. Moreover, our own actions dictate how He acts towards us. When we are “perverse and crooked” and figure that we know better how the world should be run, and try to force G-d to our will, then that is a blemish that G-d does not tolerate in us. When we let Him run the show and follow His ways, then He protects us from all obstacles so that we can fulfil His plan.

We do not always see this happening. To our human eyes, it sometimes seems that the world goes in every which way but straight. As prophets, Moshe Rabbeinu and David HaMelech were able to see G-d’ ways as ‘tamim’. We are not prophets, but we are the descendants of prophets. Maybe if we do our part, if we are ‘tamim’, guileless, with G-d, and don’t try to manipulate or outguess Him, then we shall see it, too.

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Shabbat Shuva – The Illogic of Teshuva

The Shabbat between Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur is called Shabbat Shuva, based on the Haftarah that is read that begins with the words “Shuva Yisrael.”

שׁוּבָה יִשְׂרָאֵל עַד ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ כִּי כָשַׁלְתָּ בַּעֲוֹנֶךָ: קְחוּ עִמָּכֶם דְּבָרִים וְשׁוּבוּ אֶל ה’ … אֶרְפָּא מְשׁוּבָתָם אֹהֲבֵם נְדָבָה כִּי שָׁב אַפִּי מִמֶּנּוּ: אֶהְיֶה כַטַּל לְיִשְׂרָאֵל יִפְרַח כַּשּׁוֹשַׁנָּה
Return, Israel, to Hashem your G-d! For you have stumbled in your sin.
Take with you words, and turn back to Hashem. …
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely; for My anger has turned from him. I will be like dew to Israel, he will blossom like the lily (Hoshea 14:2-6)

In this Haftarah, G-d urges the Jewish People to return, and promises to accept and love them. The prophet Hoshea uses the metaphor of dew; unlike rain, which is withheld if we don’t deserve it, dew appears year-round no matter what. By comparing Himself to dew, G-d states that His relationship with us is eternal and constant, and His love for us is unconditional.

Parshat VaYelech, which is usually read on Shabbat Shuva, tells us of one of the very last things that G-d says to Moshe, which appears to be in stark contrast to the above message:

וַיֹּאמֶר ה’ אֶל מֹשֶׁה הִנְּךָ שֹׁכֵב עִם אֲבֹתֶיךָ וְקָם הָעָם הַזֶּה וְזָנָה אַחֲרֵי אֱלֹהֵי נֵכַר הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר הוּא בָא שָׁמָּה בְּקִרְבּוֹ וַעֲזָבַנִי וְהֵפֵר אֶת בְּרִיתִי אֲשֶׁר כָּרַתִּי אִתּוֹ…
וְאָנֹכִי הַסְתֵּר אַסְתִּיר פָּנַי בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא עַל כָּל הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה כִּי פָנָה אֶל אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים…
Hashem said to Moshe: you are about to rest with your forefathers, and this nation will get up and whore after the foreign gods of the land that it is going to, and leave Me, and break My covenant that I made with it….
And I will definitely conceal My face on that day, because of all the evil that it does, for it turned to other gods… (Devarim 31:17-18)

G-d says to the Jewish People: I know you are going to fail. I know that you are not capable of doing what you have committed to do. And I want you to know that I know.

From a perspective of rational logic, this does not add up. Why does G-d even bother choosing the Jewish People if He knows that failure is inevitable? If there is no hope of the Jewish People actually keeping their commitment to G-d, what is the purpose of the entire enterprise? And besides, what is the point of telling us this? “Bye, Moshe, you’ve done a great job, but you should know, the moment you die, these people will turn their backs on everything you’ve taught them. Just saying.”

This is the Parsha that we read between Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur, the days of repentance and introspection? Is it not utterly fatalistic and defeating, the opposite of the Haftarah of Shuva with its unconditional love?

Perhaps not. Perhaps the only way for us to understand the power of Teshuva, of the ability to return, is by understanding the message of Parshat VaYelech.

G-d does not have to be “rational.” He chooses to bind Himself to the Jewish People even though He knows that we will fail. He tells us that we will fail so that we do not for a moment consider that our disappointing Him can nullify our relationship. He tells us that He will “conceal His face” from us, so that we do not for a moment think that He has left us.

Teshuva is not “rational,” either. Using the verses of the Haftarah, the Midrash analyzes all the different ways that Teshuva breaks the rules of logic:

אמר ריש לקיש: גדולה תשובה, שזדונות נעשות לו כשגגות, שנאמר +הושע יד+ שובה ישראל עד ה’ אלהיך כי כשלת בעונך. הא עון מזיד הוא, וקא קרי ליה מכשול.
Reish Lakish said: great is Teshuva, for it turns deliberate sins into accidental misdeeds, as it says, ” Return, Israel, to Hashem your G-d! For you have stumbled in your sin”. Sin is deliberate, and it calls it stumbling.
בא וראה שלא כמדת הקדוש ברוך הוא מדת בשר ודם. מדת בשר ודם, מקניט את חבירו בדברים – ספק מתפייס הימנו ספק אין מתפייס הימנו, ואם תאמר מתפייס הימנו – ספק מתפייס בדברים ספק אין מתפייס בדברים. אבל הקדוש ברוך הוא, אדם עובר עבירה בסתר – מתפייס ממנו בדברים, שנאמר +הושע יד+ קחו עמכם דברים ושובו אל ה’, ולא עוד אלא שמחזיק לו טובה, שנאמר וקח טוב
Look how different the ways of G-d are from the ways of a human being. A human being, if his friend humiliates him, maybe he would make up with him, maybe he wouldn’t make up with him. And even if he would make up with him, maybe he would be swayed by words, or maybe he wouldn’t be swayed by words. But G-d, if a person sins in secret, makes up with him and is swayed by words, as it says, “take with you words, and turn back to Hashem” (Hoshea 14). Not only that, but He even considers it goodness, as it says, ” and take only the goodness.” (Talmud Yoma 86b)

G-d is not human. He can turn back the clock and He can reverse cause and effect. He can allow us to retroactively turn our actions from malicious crimes into accidental mistakes. He can allow us to “take words to turn back to Him” – to change our narrative and then turn that new narrative into reality. He can know that we will fail, and still keep us as His People, forever, unconditionally.

He can conceal His face from us, and still be with us. There is nothing that we can do to make Him leave us. Even when we fail, even when it feels that we are far from Him, He is with us anyway. The path back to Him is much shorter than the path away. It may not be rational or logical in our eyes, but that is how G-d has chosen to run His world, and that is what He has communicated to us through His prophets, Moshe and Hoshea.

And in the words of R’ Nachman, popularized in this song: Afilu Be’Hastara


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Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

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Terumah – A House for G-d

Parshat Terumah contains the instructions for building the portable sanctuary which we call the Mishkan. The purpose of this sanctuary is stated at the beginning of the Parsha:

וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם
They will make Me a sanctuary, and I will dwell among them. (Shemot 25:3)

Even though the word Mishkan means “place of dwelling,” G-d makes it clear that His intention is not to have a place to live, but rather to allow His Presence to be felt by the Jewish People. He will not dwelling in “it,” He will be dwelling “among them.”

The same phrase is used in the Haftarah, which describes the construction of the first permanent sanctuary, the Beit HaMikdash, built by Shlomo in Yerushalayim. After the description of the massive effort and architectural marvels, the Haftarah tells us that G-d has a message for Shlomo:

הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה בֹנֶה אִם תֵּלֵךְ בְּחֻקֹּתַי וְאֶת מִשְׁפָּטַי תַּעֲשֶׂה וְשָׁמַרְתָּ אֶת כָּל מִצְוֹתַי לָלֶכֶת בָּהֶם וַהֲקִמֹתִי אֶת דְּבָרִי אִתָּךְ אֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתִּי אֶל דָּוִד אָבִיךָ: וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא אֶעֱזֹב אֶת עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל:
About this House that you are building: if you follow My statutes and carry out My laws, and keep all My commandments, to walk in their ways, then I shall keep My word to you as I spoke to your father, David. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and I will not forsake My people, Israel. (Melachim I 6:12-13)

Here too, G-d stresses that the purpose of this building is for Him to dwell among the Jewish People, and refers to an earlier conversation that He had with Shlomo’s father, David. In order for us to understand the full import of what G-d was telling Shlomo, we need to go back to the context of that earlier conversation.

Soon after David established his kingdom and built his own palace in Yerushalayim, he decided that he felt uncomfortable living in such grandeur, while the Sanctuary that contained the Ark of the Covenant, also in Yerushalayim, was housed in a simple goatskin tent. He mentioned to his court prophet, Natan, that the right thing to do would be to build a permanent structure for the Sanctuary. At first, Natan was enthusiastic about the idea and told him to go right ahead and implement this plan. However, that very night, G-d appeared to Natan with the following message for David HaMelech:

בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר הִתְהַלַּכְתִּי בְּכָל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הֲדָבָר דִּבַּרְתִּי אֶת אַחַד שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר צִוִּיתִי לִרְעוֹת אֶת עַמִּי אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר לָמָּה לֹא בְנִיתֶם לִי בֵּית אֲרָזִים .. וְהִגִּיד לְךָ ה’ כִּי בַיִת יַעֲשֶׂה לְּךָ ה’
For all that I walked with all of children of Israel, did I ever say to one of the tribes of Israel, that I had appointed to herd My people Israel, saying, why haven’t you built Me a house of cedar? … Hashem said to you that Hashem will make you a house (Shmuel II 7:7)

In a prime example of prophetic sarcasm, G-d points out that in the four hundred years since the Exodus, He had never once asked them to build Him a house. He assures David that if He had had a problem with the tent where the Sanctuary was placed, He would have let them know. The house that David needs to worry about is his own “house”, his dynasty, that G-d is building for him. Only after this dynasty is firmly established, would his son be permitted to build a permanent structure for the Sanctuary.

After hearing this message, David put aside his dream of building a House for G-d, and focused on building his kingdom and raising Shlomo to be the first ever hereditary ruler of the Jewish People.

In the Haftarah, we are at the point where Shlomo has fulfilled David’s dream. And now that Shlomo has built this architectural wonder of a Beit Hashem, a House for G-d, G-d reminds him that He doesn’t particularly need or want it.

What, then, does He want? On this point, G-d is very clear, both in the Parsha and in the Haftarah. The purpose of the beautiful impressive House is the same as the purpose of the simple goatskin tent: “to dwell among the Jewish People.”

This phrase, “dwelling among us” refers to the prophetic experience of G-d by the entire nation. Part of the purpose of the Revelation at Sinai was the profound sense of the “Glory of Hashem” which was manifest by a “cloud” that “dwelled” on the mountain:

וַיִּשְׁכֹּן כְּבוֹד ה’ עַל הַר סִינַי וַיְכַסֵּהוּ הֶעָנָן שֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים וַיִּקְרָא אֶל מֹשֶׁה בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי מִתּוֹךְ הֶעָנָן
The Glory of Hashem dwelled on Har Sinai; the cloud covered it for six days; He called to Moshe on the seventh day from the cloud. (Shmot 24:17)

When the Mishkan that is first described in Parshat Terumah was finally completed, its dedication was accompanied by a similar description:

וַיְכַס הֶעָנָן אֶת אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וּכְבוֹד ה’ מָלֵא אֶת הַמִּשְׁכָּן
The cloud covered the Tent of Assembly, and the Glory of Hashem filled the Mishkan. (Shemot 40:34)

The Mishkan provided ongoing access to the experience of G-d’s Presence that they had known at Har Sinai. This is the meaning of “and I will dwell among them.”

But this is not something that happens automatically. In the pagan world. people believed that “if you build it, they will come.” If the deity gets a temple, the deity can be found in the temple. This is not the case for the Jewish People. The purpose of the Revelation at Har Sinai was to receive the Torah. The prerequisite for a direct relationship with G-d has always been fulfilling the commandments that the Jewish People committed to at Sinai. It is impossible to conceive of G-d allowing them access to His Presence while they ignore His laws.

Therefore, when Shlomo builds a House of G-d to rival any temple in the known world, G-d makes a point to tell him that building it is not enough. If the Jewish People keep the Torah, He is present among them, and He is happy to use this House as the focal point for His Presence, cloud and all, as indeed happened at its dedication:

וַיְהִי בְּצֵאת הַכֹּהֲנִים מִן הַקֹּדֶשׁ וְהֶעָנָן מָלֵא אֶת בֵּית ה’
As the Cohanim left the Sanctuary, the cloud filled the House of Hashem
(Melachim II 8)

But if not? If the Jewish People renege on their commitment at Sinai, then it’s just wood and stone. G-d dwells among the Jewish People, not in some grandiose building.


Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

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Shabbat Shekalim – Parshat HaKessef

This Shabbat is Shabbat Shekalim, the first of four special Shabbatot that precede the Passover season. For the Maftir at the end of the Torah reading, we read verses that describe the commandment to give a half-shekel for the census. The money would be used for the communal sacrifices for the entire year. Since these funds were collected at the beginning of the national year in Nissan, the reminder of the commandment would be read one month earlier, at the beginning of Adar.
Besides the Maftir, we also read a special Haftarah for Shabbat Shekalim. It tells us how King Yoash attempted different ways of raising money in order to repair the Temple. The word, “כסף”, silver/money, is repeated fourteen times in about as many verses.

Shabbat Shekalim usually comes out on Parshat Mishpatim. It is the first set of commandments that Moshe was given at Har Sinai. “Mishpatim” means “civil laws” and the Parsha contains dozens of commandments about money.
Shabbat Shekalim also marks Rosh Chodesh Adar, the month of the Purim holiday. Money shows up there, too: at the crucial moment when Haman gets Achashverosh drunk and convinces him to kill all the Jews, we read:

ט) אִם עַל הַמֶּלֶךְ טוֹב יִכָּתֵב לְאַבְּדָם וַעֲשֶׂרֶת אֲלָפִים כִּכַּר כֶּסֶף אֶשְׁקוֹל עַל יְדֵי עֹשֵׂי הַמְּלָאכָה
לְהָבִיא אֶל גִּנְזֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ:
9) If it pleases the king, let it be written to destroy them, and ten thousand measures of silver, I will weigh out into the hands of the contractors to bring to the king’s treasury. (Esther 3:9)

That money must have been very important, because when Mordechai tells Esther about the meeting between Achashverosh and Haman, he says:

וַיַּגֶּד לוֹ מָרְדֳּכַי אֵת כָּל אֲשֶׁר קָרָהוּ וְאֵת פָּרָשַׁת הַכֶּסֶף אֲשֶׁר אָמַר הָמָן לִשְׁקוֹל עַל גִּנְזֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ בַּיְּהוּדִים לְאַבְּדָם:
7) Mordechai told [Esther’s proxy] about all that had happened to him, and about the matter of the money, that Haman had said to weigh out to the king’s treasury to destroy the Jews (Esther 7:7)

Thus, Parshat Mishpatim, Parshat Shekalim, the Haftarah of Shekalim, and the Megilla can all be called Parshat HaKessef – a matter of money.

There are religions and philosophies that see money as a necessary evil at best; they believe a person of intellect and standing should not concern himself with something so trivial. Then there are societies where money is the ultimate way of keeping score, where entire industries exist for its growth, where it achieves an overriding importance in people’s lives.
There are those that worship its power, and those that attempt to negate it altogether.

How does the Torah view money?

שנא’ (דברים ו) ואהבת את ה’ אלהיך בכל לבבך ובכל נפשך ובכל מאדך … ובכל מאדך בכל ממונך
… as it says, “You shall love Hashem your G-d with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.” … With all your might: with all your money (Mishna Berachot 9:5)

The Mishna equates “might” with “money”. Money gives you the power to build, or rebuild. As we see in the Haftarah, even the House of G-d cannot be repaired if there isn’t money to pay the contractors.

The Haftarah goes out of its way to tell us of the failures of King Yoash’s attempts at incentive-based fundraising. Ultimately, the money did not come from his complicated schemes, but rather through crowd-funding: a tzedaka box placed in the Beit HaMikdash itself, to which people donated as they saw fit. Small contributions from many people added up to more than enough to fund the project.

The commandment of Shekalim carries the same message: everyone gives a small amount, half a shekel, and it adds up to enough money to fund all the daily sacrifices for the entire year.

Money, thus, is not just a source of power for individuals; it is a way for a society to pool its resources to accomplish something that no individual could possibly do alone.

In truth, money only exists because society makes it so. Silver did not become a medium of exchange because of its inherent value, but only because people agreed that it should be one. In our society, money is not even based on silver or gold, but that doesn’t matter. Money is whatever the society agrees to use. It is not true value, but rather a representation of value.

The word that the Torah uses for the concept of a representation of value is “כופר” , usually translated as “atonement.”
In Parshat Mishpatim, we find the following commandment:

וְאִם שׁוֹר נַגָּח הוּא מִתְּמֹל שִׁלְשֹׁם וְהוּעַד בִּבְעָלָיו וְלֹא יִשְׁמְרֶנּוּ וְהֵמִית אִישׁ אוֹ אִשָּׁה הַשּׁוֹר יִסָּקֵל וְגַם בְּעָלָיו יוּמָת:אִם כֹּפֶר יוּשַׁת עָלָיו וְנָתַן פִּדְיֹן נַפְשׁוֹ כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר יוּשַׁת עָלָיו:
But if the ox has gored in the past, and the owner has been warned and did not guard it, and it killed a man or a woman: the ox shall be stoned, and the owner also will die.
If an atonement is placed upon him, he may give a ransom for his soul,
according to what is placed upon him. (Shemot 21:29-30)

The commentaries explain that despite the statement that “the owner also will die,” in actuality, the law is that the owner pays a monetary fine. The reason it is stated in this harsh manner is to point out that it was due to his criminal negligence that this life was lost. However, because he was only an indirect cause, in this particular case the Torah allows a “כופר,” an atonement, to take his place. Money, which is itself is a representation of value, can be used to represent the value of life.

The commandment of Shekalim is stated in similar terms:

הֶעָשִׁיר לֹא יַרְבֶּה וְהַדַּל לֹא יַמְעִיט מִמַּחֲצִית הַשָּׁקֶל לָתֵת אֶת תְּרוּמַת ה’ לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם:
The rich will not give more and the poor will not give less than the half a shekel, to give the donation to Hashem, to atone for your lives. (Shemot 30:15-16)

The donation of half a shekel is meant to represent the value of each individual in the Jewish People. This money was used for sacrifices, which themselves are a representation of G-d’s ownership of our very lives. Through this half a shekel, we “purchase” our lives from G-d.

But why did G-d decide on half a shekel as the symbolic price of a Jewish life? One of the many interpretations is that the half shekel highlights the fact that the amount is incomplete. In order to achieve anything with half a shekel, you need someone else to contribute the other half. This is not about the monetary power of the individual, but rather the combined power of the entire Jewish community. The sacrifices that this money paid for were not individual sacrifices, but rather communal ones that represented all of the Jewish People.

The Midrash points out that the sum total of all the half-shekel donations of the entire nation added up to ten thousand measures of silver. This brings us to Haman, who handed over ten thousand measures of silver to Achashverosh. Haman thought that he was purchasing the lives of all the Jewish People from Achashverosh. Perhaps he would have been successful, if not for the fact that Achashverosh was not the owner.

אמר רבי שמעון בן לקיש גלוי וידוע לפני הקב”ה שעתיד המן הרשע לשקול שקלים על ישראל לפיכך הקדים שקליהם לשקליו:
R’ Shimon ben Lakish said: Hashem knew that Haman the Rasha would weigh Shekalim against Israel, therefore, He pre-empted his Shekels with their Shekels.
(Midrash Yalkut Shimoni Ki-Tisa 386)

The commandment of Shekalim made it impossible for Haman to purchase the Jewish People. We were already “paid for”, and no longer for sale.

Moreover, Haman had described the Jewish People as “dispersed and scattered among the nations.” They were vulnerable because in their exile, they saw themselves as no longer a nation, but rather as scattered individuals. The commandment of Shekalim is the antidote to this self-image. All the little half-shekels put together represent the value of an entire nation.
Shabbat Shekalim heralds the season of the Passover Holidays, the new year that begins in Nissan. Just as Elul is a time of preparation for the New Year of Tishrei, Adar is a time of preparation for the time of national renewal and redemption. Money allows society to abstract the concept of value, and makes it possible to achieve things that would be out of reach for scattered individuals. Parshat Mishpatim, the Megilla, Parshat Shekalim, and the Haftarah all teach us how money can be used to serve G-d, “with all your might.”


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Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my father, Peter Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ז”ל

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VaYechi – Unfinished Business

Parshat VaYechi describes the last will and testament of Yaakov to his sons. He blesses each of them, according to their specific talents and the future that he foresees for them.

וַיִּקְרְבוּ יְמֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לָמוּת
The time of Yisrael’s death drew near… (Breishit 47:29)

The Haftarah of VaYechi describes the last will and testament of King David to his son, the newly crowned King Shlomo. David does not bless Shlomo; instead, he asks Shlomo to dispense justice to people whom he had been unable to punish in his lifetime.

וַיִּקְרְבוּ יְמֵי דָוִד לָמוּת
The time of David’s death drew near… (Melachim I 2:1)

It appears that Yaakov leaves his sons with closure while David leaves Shlomo with all his unfinished business. However, the comparison of the two bequests show us that what both fathers had in common at their death, that they each bequeathed to their children, was the gift of perspective.

The first, and most difficult realization that David shares with Shlomo is his realization that Yoav had been guilty of murder. Yoav was David’s kinsman and his closest companion throughout his life; he was also the general of the armies of Israel and David’s right hand man. Years ago, soon after Shaul’s death but before David was crowned as the king of Israel, Shaul’s former general Avner had come to make a treaty with David. Yoav asked to speak with him in private, and stabbed him in the gut. Yoav defended his action by saying that he was protecting David and the nascent kingdom, that he was sure that Avner would betray David. At the time, David believed him, and disciplined him only for making it look like David assassinates his enemies, but he did not judge it as a murder.

More recently, however, after the civil war started by Avshalom, in a gesture to reunite the nation, David had offered Avshalom’s general, Amasa, to serve as his own general, displacing Yoav. When Yoav heard this, he met up with Amasa, and under the guise of greeting him, stabbed him in the gut.
At that time, David was too vulnerable politically and militarily to lose Yoav. He was also still grieving for his son Avshalom, who had been killed in the civil war; the thought of losing Yoav must have been intolerable. He was not in a position to execute him, or even to judge him with a clear mind.

But now, “the time of David’s death drew near, ” and he sees clearly that Yoav must pay for his crimes. David is also worried about his son’s future as the King of Israel. He now believes that Yoav’s loyalty to the crown takes second place to his own agenda, and he cannot leave Shlomo with a wild card in his cabinet. His goal is to bequeath to Shlomo a strong uncontested monarchy, and that means that he has to tell him to beware of Yoav.

Yaakov, too, uses the time of saying goodbye to his sons to take care of unfinished business. Some of the blessings that he gives his children bring up issues that had long been buried:

רְאוּבֵן בְּכֹרִי אַתָּה כֹּחִי וְרֵאשִׁית אוֹנִי יֶתֶר שְׂאֵת וְיֶתֶר עָז: פַּחַז כַּמַּיִם אַל תּוֹתַר כִּי עָלִיתָ מִשְׁכְּבֵי אָבִיךָ אָז חִלַּלְתָּ יְצוּעִי עָלָה:
Reuven, you are my first-born, my strength, and the first of my might. Ahead in dignity, ahead in power. Unstable as water, you shall not have extra. For you went up on your father’s bed, thus you profaned, having gone up on my couch. (Breishit 49:3,4)

In his blessing to Reuven, Yaakov accuses him of having “gone up on his father’s bed”. This is a reference to a story that happened back in VaYishlach:

וַיְהִי בִּשְׁכֹּן יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּאָרֶץ הַהִוא וַיֵּלֶךְ רְאוּבֵן וַיִּשְׁכַּב אֶת בִּלְהָה פִּילֶגֶשׁ אָבִיו וַיִּשְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל פ
וַיִּהְיוּ בְנֵי יַעֲקֹב שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר:
When Yisrael was living in that land, Reuven went and slept with Bilha, his father’s concubine. Yisrael heard….. The sons of Yaakov were twelve.
(Breishit 35:22)

Soon after Rachel’s death, Reuven is recorded as sleeping with Rachel’s maid, his father’s concubine. The verse says that Yaakov heard, but does not record any reaction. It then points out that Yaakov had twelve sons. The implication is that Yaakov did nothing. He did not punish Reuven and he certainly did not exile him from the family. Perhaps, as the verse implies, he did not even say anything to Reuven.

But now, “the time of Yisrael’s death drew near…”, and Yaakov is ready to have this conversation. The Midrash explains why Yaakov had waited until right before his death.

מפני ארבעה דברים אין מוכיחין את האדם אלא סמוך למיתה, כדי שלא יהא מוכיחו וחוזר ומוכיחו ושלא יהא חברו רואהו ומתבייש ממנו, ושלא יהא בלבו עליו, ושלא יהיו המוכיחין מתוכחין, שהתוכחה מביאה לידי שלום, …וכן אתה מוצא ביעקב ויקרא יעקב אל בניו ראובן אומר לך מפני מה לא הוכחתיך כל השנים הללו כדי שלא תניחני ותדבק בעשו אחי
There are four reasons why one doesn’t rebuke a person until one is near death: so that he will not repeat his rebuke again and again; so that his friend will not be ashamed when he sees him; so that he will not carry a grudge against him; and so that the rebuke does not degenerate into an argument, as the rebuke is meant to bring peace… So we see with Yaakov, Yaakov called his sons, and said, Reuven, do you know why I did not rebuke you all these years? So that you wouldn’t leave me and go to my brother, Esav. (Midrash Yalkut Shimoni Yehoshua 34)

The reason that Yaakov did not react immediately when Reuven sinned was that he was afraid of alienating him. Reuven knew that he had done wrong, he did not need his father to explain that to him or to prevent him from doing it again. But if Yaakov were to have words with Reuven then, he would have been so ashamed that he could not look him in the eye. Eventually, Reuven might have found it easier to just leave the family. Perhaps he would even have started seeing himself as a sinner, and feel more comfortable with Esav, who had lower expectations, at least in this area of morality.

But now that Yaakov is about to die, he is not afraid of his son being ashamed to look him in the eye, or of leaving the family. Enough time has passed to give them all some perspective. Yaakov can now tell him that his actions did not go unnoticed, and that they have consequences, and that those consequences are in proportion to the ultimate effect of the deed. Reuven may have made a mistake, but it did not turn him into a sinner. He may not get the double portion of the first-born nor the leadership of the nation, but neither is he excluded from the Jewish People.

Yaakov’s words to Shimon and Levi are much harsher:

שִׁמְעוֹן וְלֵוִי אַחִים כְּלֵי חָמָס מְכֵרֹתֵיהֶם: בְּסֹדָם אַל תָּבֹא נַפְשִׁי בִּקְהָלָם אַל תֵּחַד כְּבֹדִי כִּי בְאַפָּם הָרְגוּ אִישׁ וּבִרְצֹנָם עִקְּרוּ שׁוֹר: אָרוּר אַפָּם כִּי עָז וְעֶבְרָתָם כִּי קָשָׁתָה אֲחַלְּקֵם בְּיַעֲקֹב וַאֲפִיצֵם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל:
Shimon and Levi are brothers; instruments of crime are their swords. Let my soul not enter their conspiracies, let my honor not be included in their gang. For in their anger, they killed a man, by their will, they uprooted an ox. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; their fury, for it is cruel. I will disperse them in Yaakov, scatter them in Yisrael. (Breishit 49:5-7)

In this “blessing”, Yaakov denounces Shimon and Levi’s actions in Shechem. When they went to rescue Dina, who had been abducted and raped, they did not limit themselves to getting her out, not even to killing only those who had actually hurt her. They went and killed all the men in the entire town. At the time, Yaakov did protest, but he accepted their reason that they were protecting the honor of their sister and of the family.

Also in this “blessing”, Yaakov makes veiled references to their role in the sale of Yosef (“the ox” is the symbol of Yosef). Perhaps it is only now, after years in Egypt, that Yaakov puts together what may have happened to Yosef, and that it was not a coincidence that the first thing that Yosef did when he saw his brothers again was to separate Shimon from Levi. Now that the nature of their character is clear to Yaakov, he distances himself from their potential for fierce, destructive, anger. They must not be allowed to gang up, or they would destroy the entire nation.

The approach of death had given Yaakov, as well as David, the ability to see things with a sharper, clearer perspective. From this vantage point, they could see the long-term consequences of earlier events, and they could also see what the future would need. Ultimately, taking care of their unfinished business brought closure, as well as blessing, to the sons of Yaakov and to the son of David.


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Copyright © Kira Sirote
In memory of my parents, Peter & Nella Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ואמי מורתי חנה בת זעליג ז”ל

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VaYeitzei – Man of Truth

In the Haftarah of VaYeitzei, the prophet Hoshea accuses the northern Kingdom of Israel of being steeped in fraudulence and dishonesty. They defend themselves by claiming that they had learned deceit from their forefather Yaakov, and that therefore it is a virtue. They point to the story of Yaakov dissembling in order to receive his father’s blessing instead of Esav, and to the story of his dealings with Lavan in Aram. Their claim is that if it was moral for Yaakov to lie and cheat, it must be moral for them to do the same.

The prophet tells them that G-d is not impressed with their line of reasoning. The last verse of the Haftarah, the bottom line, states:

מִי חָכָם וְיָבֵן אֵלֶּה נָבוֹן וְיֵדָעֵם כִּי יְשָׁרִים דַּרְכֵי ה’ וְצַדִּקִים יֵלְכוּ בָם וּפֹשְׁעִים יִכָּשְׁלוּ בָם
Whoever is wise, understand these, whoever is discerning, know them:
the ways of Hashem are straight; and the righteous walk on them,
but the crooked stumble upon them (Hoshea 14:10)

Those who are themselves crooked will find crookedness everywhere. Hashem’s ways, however, are “straight”, and that is what He values.

But if Hashem’s ways are “straight”, were Yaakov’s deceptions were in line with His ways? We learn from the prophet Michah, Hoshea’s contemporary, that Yaakov is associated with the trait of “Truth.” Yet, the Torah tells us that Yaakov manipulated his brother into selling him his birthright, that he pretended to be Esav to mislead his father, that he negotiated a profit-sharing arrangement where he walked away with all the money, and that he snuck away from his employer in the middle of the night.

How is this a Man of Truth?

The Midrash that describes the Creation of Man questions the impact that mankind will have on the world:

א”ר סימון בשעה שבא הקדוש ברוך הוא לבראת את אדם הראשון, נעשו מלאכי השרת כיתים כיתים, וחבורות חבורות, מהם אומרים אל יברא, ומהם אומרים יברא, הה”ד (תהלים פה) חסד ואמת נפגשו צדק ושלום נשקו, חסד אומר יברא שהוא גומל חסדים, ואמת אומר אל יברא שכולו שקרים, צדק אומר יברא שהוא עושה צדקות, שלום אומר אל יברא דכוליה קטטה, מה עשה הקדוש ברוך הוא נטל אמת והשליכו לארץ הה”ד (דניאל ח) ותשלך אמת ארצה, אמרו מלאכי השרת לפני הקדוש ברוך הוא רבון העולמים מה אתה מבזה תכסיס אלטיכסייה שלך, תעלה אמת מן הארץ, הדא הוא דכתיב (תהלים פה) אמת מארץ תצמח

R’ Simon said: When G-d was ready to create Man, the angels split into factions; some said, “Create him”, and other said, “Do not create him” – as the verse says, “Kindness and Truth struggled….” (Tehillim 85:11) Kindness said, “Create him, because he will be kind,” and Truth said, “Do not create him, because he is full of lies.” … What did G-d do? He took Truth and threw it to the ground… The angels cried out, “Master of the Universe! Why are you mistreating Your methods? Raise it from the ground!” .. as the verse says, “Truth will sprout from the earth.”(Tehillim 85:12) – (Bereishit Rabba 8:5)

According to this Midrash, mankind’s existence is in conflict with Truth. G-d’s solution, having created Man despite the objections of the angels, is to take Truth from up in the Heavens, and throw it down to the Earth. In order to reach back to the Heavens, it needs to grow out of the Earth.

The Midrash asserts that Heavenly Truth cannot coexist with Mankind. We can only handle an Earthly truth, one that is mixed up with the dirt and mud of our material existence. This Truth must be raised and nurtured, like a plant, in order to see the light of day. Until then, it is hidden, like a seed in the ground that is waiting for the proper time and the right conditions to sprout.

If Truth is hidden and complicated, then what is clear and visible may very well be false. Thus, a person who says what he thinks and “calls it as he sees it”, is not necessarily a Man of Truth. The Man of Truth would be the one who deals with the complexity, sees beyond it to the hidden core, and exposes it for the world to see.

Yaakov was a Man of Truth. He did not deal with the world as it was, he dealt with the world as it was meant to be. The truth was that Esav was not suited to the service of G-d that being the firstborn entailed. The truth was that Esav should not have received that blessing. The truth was that Lavan owed Yaakov his salary, and the truth was that Yaakov could no longer stay at Lavan’s house and needed to go back to the Land of Israel. Yaakov saw that truth and acted upon it.

When the Kingdom of Israel says, in the Haftarah, “We may be liars and cheats, but we are just like Yaakov Avinu,” they demonstrate how it is possible to take the paths of G-d and twist them to justify any action. Those who are looking out for their wallets and their egos will see what they want to see. They will say that they, too, are dealing with the world as it was meant to be, but the path they think is straight is actually warped and crooked. The ability to see the hidden Truth is predicated on humility and a lack of self-interest.

At the beginning of Parshat VaYeitzei, after the vision of the ladder, Yaakov asks G-d:

וַיִּדַּר יַעֲקֹב נֶדֶר לֵאמֹר אִם יִהְיֶה אֱ-לֹהִים עִמָּדִי וּשְׁמָרַנִי בַּדֶּרֶךְ הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי הוֹלֵךְ וְנָתַן לִי לֶחֶם לֶאֱכֹל וּבֶגֶד לִלְבֹּשׁ:
Yaakov made a promise, swearing: If G-d will be with me, and will guard me on the path that I tread, and will give me bread to eat and clothes to wear. (Breishit 28:20)

Yaakov does not ask to be blessed with great wealth; he asked for the minimum to live on. This humility proves that all his subsequent actions were not undertaken for his own aggrandizement, but for the sake of the path that he was treading, the path of G-d, which is straight and clear, a path of Truth.


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Copyright © Kira Sirote

In memory of my parents, Peter & Nella Rozenberg, z”l
לעילוי נשמת אבי מורי פנחס בן נתן נטע ואמי מורתי חנה בת זעליג ז”ל

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