Parashat Chukat – What’s so bad in hitting a rock?
Moshe Rabenu, a dedicated leader, forty years he’s leading the nation with all his heart and without asking for anything in return. 40 years of dedication and towards the end he looses his temper and hits the rock. As a result he is punished that he will not enter Israel… WHY such a harsh punishment? and what do i need […]
A Morning Person’s Teshuva
“…In the morning, G-d will make known who is His, and who is holy, and He will draw them near to Him…” – Bamidbar 16:5 בֹּקֶר וְיֹדַע ה’ אֶת אֲשֶׁר לוֹ וְאֶת הַקָּדוֹשׁ וְהִקְרִיב אֵלָיו – במדבר טז, ה Korach and his followers contested Moshe’s authority and his appointment of Aharon as the Kohen Gadol, the High Priest. Moshe challenged […]
To Save Those You Love
“…“Speak to the congregation saying, ‘Withdraw from the dwelling of Korach, Dasan and Aviram.’” And Moshe arose and went to Dasan and Aviram and the elders of Israel followed him…” – Bamidbar 16:24-25 דַּבֵּר אֶל הָעֵדָה לֵאמֹר הֵעָלוּ מִסָּבִיב לְמִשְׁכַּן קֹרַח דָּתָן וַאֲבִירָם: וַיָּקָם מֹשֶׁה וַיֵּלֶךְ אֶל דָּתָן וַאֲבִירָם וַיֵּלְכוּ אַחֲרָיו זִקְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל – במדבר טז, כד-כה The fate of […]
Separate is Better than Equal
“…In the morning, G-d will make known who is His, and who is holy, and He will draw [them] near to Him…” – Bamidbar 16:5 בֹּקֶר וְיֹדַע ה’ אֶת אֲשֶׁר לוֹ וְאֶת הַקָּדוֹשׁ וְהִקְרִיב אֵלָיו – במדבר טז, ה Korach fought for equality, which he believed to be the key to Jewish unity. “The entire congregation are all holy” (Bamidbar […]
Same, Same but Different
“…In the morning, G-d will make known who is His…” – Bamidbar 16:5 בֹּקֶר וְיֹדַע ה’ אֶת אֲשֶׁר לוֹ – במדבר טז, ה Korach and his followers took issue with Moshe’s authority over Bnei Yisrael. They acknowledged that G-d communicated the Torah directly to Moshe, and that Moshe was therefore superior to the rest of the nation in his understanding […]
Committed Clothing
“…And it shall be a fringe for you, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of G-d and do them…” – Bamidbar 15:39 וְהָיָה לָכֶם לְצִיצִת וּרְאִיתֶם אֹתוֹ וּזְכַרְתֶּם אֶת כָּל מִצְוֹת ה’ וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם – במדבר טו, לט Rashi explains how the tzitzis fringes remind us of all the mitzvos. The numerical equivalents of the […]
The Theory of Dough
“…The beginning of your dough you shall separate as challah… A gift to G-d…” – Bamidbar 15:20-21 רֵאשִׁית עֲרִסֹתֵכֶם חַלָּה תָּרִימוּ תְרוּמָה . . תִּתְּנוּ לַה’ תְּרוּמָה – במדבר טו, כ-כא The mitzvah of challah obligates us to separate a portion of every (large) batch of dough that we bake and give it as a gift to the kohen. The […]
Where the Angels Failed
“…There we saw the Nephilim, sons of the giant, who descended from the Nephilim…” – Bamidbar 13:33 וְשָׁם רָאִינוּ אֶת הַנְּפִילִים בְּנֵי עֲנָק מִן הַנְּפִלִים – במדבר יג, לג The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni, Beraishis 44) relates that when the early humans took to worshipping idols, two angels named Shamchazai and Azael suggested before G-d that they could replace humanity in […]
Intentions Alone Won’t Do
“…And when Bnei Yisrael were in the desert, they found a man gathering wood on the Shabbos day…” – Bamidbar 15:32 וַיִּהְיוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בַּמִּדְבָּר וַיִּמְצְאוּ אִישׁ מְקֹשֵׁשׁ עֵצִים בְּיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת – במדבר טו, לב The Torah relates that a man gathered wood in violation of the Shabbos, and G-d instructed that he be put to death. According to the […]
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