The atmosphere in the Old City of Jerusalem and at the Western Wall.

 

Noam HaShabbos

Do You Have Shabbos For Shabbos? | Rabbi Naftali Reich.

 
 

 Shabbos Light Shines Brighter | Rabbi Yoni Levin  

 Preparation Is The Key To Yom Hashvii | Rabbi Mordechai Groner

Matot-Matsei: Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa

 

“Tzelofchad’s daughters—Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa"

 

(Numbers 36:11)

 

Tammuz 25, 5786/July 10, 2026

 

WIth the parasha mechuberet - double Torah portion - of Matot-Masei we conclude the book of Numbers. It has been a turbulent, tumultuous and, at times, troubling forty years in the wilderness. And the drama doesn't stop, even as we approach Israel's final days east of the Jordan river. HaShem commanded Moshe to lead Israel into a war of vengeance against the Midianites who had seduced Israel into brazen acts of idolatry, and a brutal war it was. Israel, by G-d's command, slaughtered every last man and woman save for virgin girls, and along with them, the Torah specifically mentions, the heathen prophet Bilaam, whose last minute advice to Balak, king of Moav, is what led israel into the abyss of idolatry. 

The conclusion of the war is followed by a meticulous accounting of all the booty seized by Israel, and then, unexpectedly, the heads of the tribes of Reuven and Gad approach Moshe   with a request, one very difficult for Moshe to accept. They sought to end their journey east of the Jordan, in the fertile lands Israel has just conquered from the Midianites. Moshe is irate that Reuven and Gad should make such a request: hadn't they learned a thing from the sin of the spies? But when the heads of the two tribes vow to join their fellow tribes in conquering the land of Canaan and acquiring their G-d given land inheritances before returning to the land of Ya'zer and Gilead, Moshe accedes to their request. 

We might assume that this is the last bit of unfinished business before entering into Canaan, but one last contingent of Israelites, these from the tribe of Menashe approach Moshe with a petition. They are concerned that the five daughters of Tzelophchad, having acquired their father's land inheritance, might marry outside of the tribe and therefore enable the tribal land of Menashe to be annexed to a fellow tribe. Moshe hears their concern and states that the five daughters of Tzelophchad, Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa, must marry within their tribe. 

And so they do. After forty years of travel through the wilderness, stopping at forty two locations along the way, (as listed by Moshe at the beginning of parashat Masei), and after endless, and at times, pointless complaining, lashon hara, a catastrophic collapse of national will and faith in  HaShem, rebellion, being swallowed up by the earth, heated confrontations, serpents and promiscuity and idolatry and insolent demands, the Torah's account of Israel's forty years in the wilderness ends, surprisingly, on a positive and  positively happy note:

"Tzelofchad’s daughters did as HaShem had commanded Moshe. Tzelofchad’s daughters — Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa — married their cousins. They married into the families of the sons of Menashe, son of Yosef, and their inheritance remained with the tribe of their father’s family."   (Numbers 36:10-12) One last verse follows this happy news, bringing our journey to an end: 

"These are the commandments and the ordinances that HaShem commanded the children of Israel through Moshe in the plains of Moav, by the Jordan River, opposite Jericho." (ibid 36:13)

Far from being a simple fairy tale ending, there is much more here than meets the eye. First of all, the five daughters of Tzelofchad are mentioned by name on three different occasions in the book of Numbers. And they are mentioned one more time in the book of Joshua (chapter 17). Why does the Torah honor them so? There are other figures who appear in the book of numbers whose names are not mentioned once, let alone three times. The men who came to Moshe wanting to partake in the Passover offering despite being ritually unclean are not named. 

We don't know the names of the seventy elders, nor those who were granted a one time spirit of prophecy, with the exception of Eldad and Medad. And only very rarely are women in the Torah mentioned by name at all! Miriam, the prophet and sister of Moshe and Aharon, who guarded over her baby brother Moshe and saw to his survival is mentioned by name in the Torah a total of nine times only. And five of those mentions were in connection to her speaking ill of Moshe and her subsequent punishment. 

Yet, each of the five daughters of Tzelophchad, Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa, who appeared out of nowhere, late in our story, are mentioned by name three times! Even the post biblical literature, the Talmud, Midrash and the Zohar discuss the virtues of the five sisters at great length. What was so special about Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa?

We know that the sisters displayed great courage approaching Moshe and petitioning him before the entire assembly of Israel, the seventy elders and the Kohen Gadol included. But they also exhibited great wisdom. Their reasoning was spot on. The logic of their argument was unassailable. So much so that when Moshe turned to HaShem for an answer, HaShem responded: "Zelophehad's daughters speak justly." (ibid 27:7) One can sense HaShem's delight in His succinct approval. The sisters received a direct reply from HaShem! He then amends His own laws concerning inheritance in order to accommodate the sisters' request. And scripture doesn't stop here. In the book of Joshua we read of the actual fulfillment of HaShem's ruling:  

"But Tzelofchad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Menashe, had no sons, but daughters; and these are the names of his daughter: Machlah, and Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah. And they came near before Eleazar the kohen, and before Yehoshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying, 'HaShem commanded Moshe to give us an inheritance among our brothers.' According to the commandment of HaShem, he gave them an inheritance among the brothers of their father. And there fell ten portions to Menashe, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which is on the other side of the Jordan. Because the daughters of Menashe had an inheritance among his sons; and the rest of Menashe's sons had the land of Gilead." (Joshua 17:3-6)

The Torah sees to it that we witness the fulfillment of HaShem's reply to the five sisters. Why all the fuss? The sisters' petition wasn't just any old request. They were determined to have a share in the land of Israel. Unlike the leaders of Reuven and Gad, who saw opportunity outside of the promised land and longed for it, Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa wanted a portion in the land G-d has promised their father when he left Egypt with all his contemporaries. 

Tzelophchad, like all his brethren, would not see his inheritance because the males of his generation rejected G-d's promise. But his daughters, like all the other women who left Egypt, were not a part of the sin of the spies. 

Nor had they partaken in the sin of the golden calf. In fact, going back to Pharaoh's attempt to annihilate the Hebrew slaves, we witnessed the women, the midwives, Puah and Shifrah, and the efforts of Yocheved, Moshe's mother, and Miriam, Moshe's sister, and the righteous women who donated their copper mirrors for the building of the Tabernacle laver, all of whom played a major role in Israel's redemption, and, if not for their love and trust in HaShem, Israel's story would have ended back in Egypt before it even started. Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa are the proud carriers of the same fire and faith that inspired the women who preceded them. They fought for their share of the land of Israel and will forever be praised.

Midrash tells us that the five sisters excelled in wisdom, and points out that their names are listed one time as "Machlah, Noa, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah," (Numbers 27:1) and another time, in a different order, as "Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa," to teach us that they were equal both in wisdom and in righteousness. 

So it is only fitting that the book of Numbers should conclude on the happy note of their marriage: "Tzelofchad’s daughters did as HaShem had commanded Moshe. Tzelofchad’s daughters — Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa — married their cousins." "As HaShem had commanded." 

They were not only righteous in demanding their fair share of HaShem's gift of the land, they were also righteous in fulfilling HaShem's commandment to marry within their tribe. Again, tradition tells us that the sisters did not rush into marriage. Despite the limitations on whom they might marry, they each waited patiently for just the right man. 

And despite their advanced ages beneath the chuppah, they all, due to their righteousness, were blessed with many children. Machlah, Tirtzah, Choglah, Milkah, and Noa — may their names and their righteous deeds forever be a blessing!

 

Reb Neuberger: Matos - Masei

 BS"D

HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO TREAT EACH OTHER?

 

I was riding the Light Rail in Yerushalayim. The train passes through the Arab community of Shuafat, which looks like Damascus or Baghdad. Basically, everyone who boards the train in Shuafat is an Arab.
 
At one of the stations in Shuafat, a huge man boarded the train. He sat down next to me; he was so big that he squashed me against the window. Then he turned and apologized (because he knew he was squashing me). The last thing I expected was an apology! But the surprises were not over. As my station approached, he looked at me again and put his finger to his lips. Then he whispered in my ear, “My mother is a Jew! My father is an Arab and that is why I speak Arabic. But in my heart I am a Jew!” 
 
Can you imagine this! I gave him blessings and told him, “Moshiach is coming soon.” Then I wished him well and left the train. My heart was pounding. 
 
My friends, do you understand this? I want to say that the imminence of the Geulah Shelemah is palpable in the world. There are two parallel phenomena: on one hand, the forces of evil are attacking kedusha. The Jewish People, as Hashem’s representatives, are being harassed on every level. 
 
Yet, at the same time, more and more people are seeking Hashem. Recently, a prominent American rabbi told my friend that he had never before seen so many non-Jews seeking to convert! And, on a train, an “Arab” approaches a complete stranger and tells him that he is a Jew! 
 
At this time of ferment, as we approach Tisha b’Av – the day when sinas chinom caused the destruction of Bayis Shaini– I would like to examine a matter of derech eretz, namely how we are supposed to relate to each other. Let’s cite some sources. 
 
“Who is destined for a share in the World to Come? One who is modest and humble, who enters bowing and leaves bowing, who learns Torah constantly but doesn’t take credit for himself.” (Sanhedrin 88b) This is how we are to behave! This is an entire lifestyle! The nations of the world say, “I am Number One,” but that is the opposite of the Torah way. We are – lehavdil -- to go out of our way to excel in humility and gentleness. 
 
What words do we say every night before we go to sleep? “Ribono shel Olam … Master of the Universe, I hereby forgive anyone who angered or antagonized me or who sinned against me,” followed by a long list of every situation in which this can occur. Hashem wants each day to conclude with total peace among all His Children! 
 
At the end of every Shemoneh Esreh we say, “To those who curse me, let my soul be silent, and let my soul be like dust to everyone.” We are called upon to nullify our egos in order to create harmony. This is not optional! This is halacha!
 
But, according to the Ari Hakodesh, we are not even allowed to begin Shemoneh Esreh without accepting upon ourselves the mitzvah to love every Jew as we love ourselves! In other words, we cannot ask for anything from Hashem before we elevate ourselves to the level where we feel totally united with our brothers and sisters!
 
The Chofetz Chaim zt”l quotes Tanna D’vei Eliyahu: “So said Hashem to the Jewish People: My Beloved Children … What is it that I ask of you? Only that you love each other and honor one another and respect one another!” (Shmiras ha Loshon)
 
My friends, I really wonder how any thinking Jew can fight with another Jew, or imagine that another Jew is – chas v’Shalom – on a lower madreiga than he is! I understand that we are all human, but we have to know that this catastrophic attitude is the root of all our troubles! We went into Egyptian slavery because the brothers fought with Yosef! Bayis Shaini was destroyed because of sinas chinom!
 
Enough! When will we wake up? I have to train myself to love my fellow Yid. So it is difficult! So it goes against the grain! What are we doing in this world if we fail to remake ourselves in the image which Hashem desires? 
 
We have already dwelt too long in the “Valley of weeping!” (Lecha Dodi) We can save ourselves! “Uri, Uri Shir Dabairi … Wake up! Wake Up! It is time to sing a new song!”
 
Let the Great Shabbos dawn upon us! It is within our power to bring this about! 

 
 


The Jerusalem Light Rail
 

 

GLOSSARY
Bayis Shaini: the Second Temple
Geulah Shelemah: The Final Redemption
Derech Eretz: proper behavior
Kedusha: sanctity
Lehavdil: to distinguish between two opposite things
Madreiga: spiritual level 
Shemoneh Esreh: the central prayer of each prayer service
Sinas Chinom: unwarranted hatred among the Jewish People 
Tisha B’Av: Ninth day of the month of Av, the day on which both Temples were destroyed

Everything Is READY To Build the THIRD TEMPLE

 

Do we finally know the location of the Ark of the Covenant? Across Israel, preparations for rebuilding the Third Temple are nearing completion. In this powerful interview, Rabbi Josh Wander and Aron Sokol discuss the latest archaeological discoveries including the reported testing of material believed by some to be connected to the Temple incense (ketores) along with the ongoing efforts to restore the Temple service. https://open.substack.com/pub/geulamo... ‪@IsraelTorah‬

[When I begin gathering info re Mashiach, temple, Geula et al, the “algos” go bizarre.]

Aroer: King David's Warrior City by the Arnon River….. A Timely Message

 This is a very timely message to us.  David HaMelach and the Ten Tribes!

Join us as we explore the ancient site of Aroer, situated on the edge of the Arnon Valley, known today as Wadi El Mujib. This location holds significant biblical history, serving as a boundary for the tribes of Israel on the eastern side of the Jordan River. By examining texts from the Books of Joshua, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, we investigate the historical questions surrounding the settlement of the tribes of Reuben and Gad in this region and how shifts in control may have occurred over time. Beyond its biblical narrative, Aroer functioned as a strategic center due to its proximity to the ancient King’s Highway and its position overlooking the Arnon River. The archaeological evidence at the site, which includes a triple-wall fortification system, suggests a long history of human activity spanning from the 3rd millennium BCE through the Nabataean and Roman periods. We look at the site’s turbulent history, including its time under the kingdoms of Israel and Moab as well as the important role it served as a supplier of worriers to King David. For more information in English - https://historicalsitesinisrael.com/e... For more information in Hebrew - https://historicalsitesinisrael.com/%... Yehuda Holtzman

King Jeroboam and Tzredah: The 3,000-Year-Old Story of Israel's Split How did the United Kingdom of David and Solomon collapse after just 73 years of unity? In this episode, we journey deep into the mountains of Samaria to Horvat Bint Bar, widely identified by researchers as the biblical site of Ha-Tzredah (The Tzredah)—the fortified birthplace of Jeroboam ben Nebat, the first king of the divided Northern Kingdom of Israel. Opening the first book of Kings (chapters 11–12), we uncover the explosive political, economic, and spiritual crisis that tore the nation apart. While King Solomon is remembered for his wisdom and wealth, the Bible reveals a darker reality: a regime of forced labor and heavy taxation that bordered on slavery. Standing on a breathtaking cliff 312 meters above sea level, we explore the archaeological evidence on-site. We trace the Iron Age guard fortresses protecting the mountain pass, examine ancient water cisterns, and view the remains of typical Israeli "Four-Room Houses" buried beneath historic olive terraces. Finally, we analyze the dramatic political standoff between Solomon's heir, Rehoboam, and the people. By rejecting the wise counsel of the tribal elders and threatening harsher punishments, Rehoboam triggered a historic rebellion. We examine how a passive Jeroboam was elevated to the throne, and his subsequent controversial moves to secure his borders—including shifting the date of Sukkot and establishing the golden calves at Bethel and Tel Dan. Don't miss our trivia question at the end: After Tirtzah, which city became the most significant capital of the Kingdom of Israel? Watch to find out! For more information in English visit: https://historicalsitesinisrael.com/e... For more information in Hebrew visit: https://historicalsitesinisrael.com/%... Yehuda Holtzman

Trump beware. Turkey is the enemy

 IVE been saying this for years, Turkey is a big danger to Israel!

“I Warned Trump…” Netanyahu Sends Urgent Message To Erdogan & Turkey

 Listen here:  https://youtu.be/cB7sTP-_dTQ?si=0l4nFw_b-CnG3qsF

Turkey =  Sakana

[there may be a hidden msg here. Iran is planning to kill the President. Turkey is full of those extremists]

Rabbi Weissman: What Is the Heter to Serve in the IDF?

What Is the Heter to Serve in the IDF?

 In this week’s Torah class we learned two more chapters from Yirmiya, focusing on a powerful Abarbanel about the real purpose of the Babylonian exile, the real purpose of the second Beis Hamikdash, why Hashem didn’t fully restore everything from the first Beis Hamikdash, the clearly stated formula for redemption, how false prophets helped torpedo the redemption, and how this has everything to do with the modern State of Israel.

Naturally, I learned nothing of this in yeshiva and neither did you, even though it’s right in the open and so fundamental. The class is embedded above and on Rumble here.

---

There’s so much hate-bait these days over IDF service (from a lashon of servitude). Manpower shortage! Sharing the burden! Contributing to society! Making sacrifices! National obligations! Caring about your fellow Jews! Milchemes Mitzvah!

Jews are conveniently being baited to hate each other over IDF service so they won’t hate the ones pulling their strings and causing them all the suffering in the first place. Why hate the people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down, for example, when you can hate yeshiva students who refuse draft orders from the same people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down? 

Works like a charm every time.

Lost in all the brouhaha, finger-pointing, melodramatic language, and talking points (dutifully prepackaged by establishment influencers) is a simple question no one seems to be asking.

Everyone is so busy fighting over the presumed default obligation for everyone to “serve”, unless they are such an exemplary Torah scholar that they merit an exemption (if even then), or whether exemptions for yeshiva students should be liberally granted, or how severely “draft dodgers” should be punished, and how much we may and should hate them, that they have forgotten to answer the most basic of questions.

The new battleground over mixed gender units — because we’ve become desensitized enough to the atrocity of women fighting in an army that dares refer to itself as Jewish, even if they aren’t sleeping in tanks with men — has made it even easier for Religious Zionists, those most willing of sacrificial lambs, to further pretend the most essential question isn’t even a question at all.

What heter is there for anyone to “serve” in the IDF? Before you rail about it being a mitzvah, let alone the greatest of all mitzvos, how is it even permitted?

I’m not talking about women “serving” in the IDF — halacha strictly forbids it, even though fake-religious loudmouths cherry-pick a single line from Chazal about a bride leaving the wedding canopy during a milchemes mitzvah, take it literally in a way exactly zero classical poskim understood it, practically apply it in a way exactly zero Jewish armies historically ever applied it, and then pretend the halacha is obviously on their side, as if the Rambam would send his own wife and daughter to the IDF. 

To borrow a line from Chazal, whoever taught them how to read didn’t teach them how to learn.

No, anyone who celebrates women in the IDF is a spiritually diseased person, a total disgrace to the Jewish people. I’m not talking about the heter for that. It’s a non-starter.

I’m talking about “charedi” yeshiva students who aren’t really sitting and learning as much as they claim, or who clearly won’t amount to much in terms of Torah scholars. 

I’m talking about Religious Zionists who believe serving in the IDF is the most essential Jewish act, to the point that those who don’t serve aren’t really part of the Jewish people, and are less Jewish than gentiles who do serve in the IDF.

I’m even talking about secular Jews.

What heter is there for any of them to “serve” in the IDF? 

Before you go wax melodramatic about what a mitzvah it is, you need to establish that it is even permissible. The Dati Leumi world skipped this essential step. 

What heter is there to join an army that calls itself Jewish, yet tramples all over the Torah, and whose leadership is decidedly secular, even anti-religious?

What heter is there to join an army whose ideology is kefira and has made no secret of its intention to indoctrinate its subjects with kefira?

What heter is there to join an army that conscripts people against their will (a form of kidnapping and trafficking) and forces them to fight a war they do not necessarily support?

What heter is there to join an army that shows wanton disregard for the physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing of its soldiers, and has a long history of treating them with various forms of abuse?

What heter is there to join an army that sends soldiers into death traps under false pretenses, with dubious objectives, fighting endless wars over the same buildings and tunnels, with no intention of achieving a decisive victory?

What heter is there to join an army that did everything wrong in just the perfect way to allow October 7 to happen (surely not on purpose…), then ordered soldiers to stand down, then prosecuted those who went in on their own to rescue Jews from slaughter?

Honestly, how could one’s love and devotion for such an army remain completely unchanged by this?

What heter is there to join an army that, if they didn’t do this on purpose, is incompetent beyond comparison?

What heter is there to join an army that gets 20,000 soldiers maimed and killed in little Gaza in less than two years, without achieving anything remotely worth the staggering cost, then has the chutzpah to rail about a manpower shortage . . . of roughly the same number of soldiers they got maimed and killed, and, instead of holding accountable those responsible, demands yeshivas serve up fresh meat for the grinder, or else?

What heter is there to join an army that is rampant with Shabbos desecration and immorality — which drives away Hashem’s protection and directly endangers everyone — even if accommodations are made for religious people who are willing to insist on it, fight the system, and go to jail over it if necessary?

What heter is there to join an army that facilitates the transfer of money, weapons, and critical resources to the very people they send you to fight?

How does all this add up to a milchemes mitzvah? 

Why doesn’t this even bother you much at all?

I’ve never heard a Religious Zionist even grapple with these questions, let alone thoughtfully answer them. This cannot be excused.

If you claim to be a religious person — not a secular nationalist — you must provide a serious, thoughtful answer to these questions based on firm Torah ground. A throwaway line doesn’t cut it. An emotional argument doesn’t cut it. 

Furthermore, you cannot claim that the heter — nay, the mitzvah — to join the IDF is so clear and so obvious that anyone who disagrees is ignorant or disingenuous. The Torah-based argument in favor of your position is flimsy at best. Conversely, the Torah-based argument against your position is easy to make. It requires no mental gymnastics, no cherry-picking and massaging of sources, no primitive emotional appeals (gaslighting), no straw men, no games, no shtick. 

Indeed, the overwhelming position of our greatest Torah scholars from the beginning of the Zionist movement until today were against participation in the Zionist’s army in principle, even if some of them felt compelled to give a bit of ground under exceptional circumstances. If one has the temerity to disagree with them, he had best be humble, respectful, and check himself a thousand times before speaking. At best he is a lightweight, and he should know that.

The fact one decides to join the IDF in spite of the serious reasons against it doesn’t give him the right to blaspheme all those who draw different, entirely reasonable conclusions. They don’t have to suffer more and die more just because you made a yoizel out of the state and the IDF.

So before you say another word against your fellow Jew who doesn’t “serve” in the IDF, or before you spend another moment celebrating those who do, please calmly and respectfully explain, in substantive Torah terms, why it’s even allowed. Your entire ideology depends on it.

* 

As I noted in my open letter to the Dati Leumi community, I was not indoctrinated with my current views about the Erev Rav state and the IDF. On the contrary, most of the educational institutions I attended were very pro-state and pro-IDF. I even spent a year in Gush, a premier hesder yeshiva. I admired Rav Aharon Lichtenstein zt”l and had great respect for those who were joining the army. I heard their best sales pitch, saw the best of what they have to offer, and appreciated their idealism.

At the same time, I always stood apart and retained the right to think for myself. I recognized the flaws in their ideology, the readiness to compromise so much for the sake of serving the state, the laxity with so much of halacha even when serving the state couldn’t be offered as an excuse, the cold intellectualism that lacked authenticity and spiritual connection, the severe lack of reverence for Chazal (often reaching the level of a superiority complex and blatant kefira), the knee-jerk impulse to be the opposite of whatever the Charedim were, the hypocrisy, the pressure to mindlessly conform (ironically one of the main things they bashed Charedim for), the way so many of my peers in yeshiva became so secular so quickly, and more.

I said Hallel on Yom Ha’atzmaut (without a bracha), but I never got into the day, didn’t care for the festivities, and hated so much about what the State of Israel did. I admired those who were willing to fight for our land and our people (or at least believed that’s what they were doing), but there was no way I was joining the IDF. I wasn’t prepared to just follow orders, and I wasn’t willing to die for Israeli leaders and their agenda, under false pretenses of sacrificing for something so much greater. 

That was when I was much younger and knew far less than I know now. I could circulate comfortably in Dati Leumi communities, but I never really fit in, because, as I now fully understand, Religious Zionism is an un-Jewish cult in which demonstrating unconditional love for a secular state and serving in the IDF are the highest religious principles, and dying in the IDF is the most sacred religious act.

As Rav Elchonon Wasserman put it best even before the state was founded, Zionism is avoda zara and Religious Zionism is avoda zara b’shituf — serving idolatry together with (ostensibly) serving Hashem as well.

I still love my Religious Zionist relatives, friends, and fellow Jews, and pray for their welfare, but it is my duty to speak the truth and urge them to do teshuva. 

You’ve sacrificed enough for this cult. You’ve lost enough bodies and souls, for so little in return. You’ve compromised enough on the rest of the Torah for the sake of a fantasy. You’ve repeated the same experiment over and over again, with consistently disappointing results.

When will you finally say “Enough!”?

Rav Yitzchak Breitowitz: Deep Dive into the Cities of Refuge

 

Living With The Parsha" series by Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz: Deep Dive into the Citie of Refuge (Parshat Matos-Masei) View Entire Playlist    • Rabbi Yitzchak Breitowitz at Yiboneh "Livi...   This class was dedicated to the Refuah Sheleima for לאה שושנה בת ירשאלה סורה and HaRav Dov ben Shoshana. Aliyot Neshama for Yehudah Chaim ben Binyamin and for Rabbi יצחק מאיר ומרת חיה רחל גולדבלט And in honor of Bernie Samet’s grandsons bris today named אלחי Elchai. And a special dedication by Gary Schiff (Jewish Family Forever )

AMERICA 250 - The Ingredients That Allowed Judaism To Flourish in America

 

Journey to Jerusalem: Sanhedria Cemetary - Kever of Rebbetzin Esther Feiga Kahane & R' Meir Bar-Ilan

 

Gateway To Tefilla: Tehilos L'Keil Elyon - The Practice That Reverberates Throughout the Universe

Rabbi Winston: Parashas Mattos-Massey

 RASHI COMMENTS ON the Torah’s pointing out that Bilaam was killed by the sword: 

He came against the Jewish People and exchanged his craft for theirs. They (Jewish People) are victorious only with their mouths, through prayer and supplication, and he (Bilaam) came and adopted their craft to curse them with his mouth. So they too came against him by exchanging their craft for the craft of the nations who come with the sword, as it says, “And you shall live by your sword” (Bereishis 27:40). (Rashi 31:8)

Rashi is not saying that we should leave our swords at home and attack our enemies with siddurim. When we get to that level, there won’t be any enemies left in the world to fight, as it says, “and they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift the sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” (Yeshayahu 2:4).

What Rashi is saying is that if and when we have to go to war, the only way our swords, or guns, will do their job to rid the world of evil is if we pray to G–D first for success. The rules of engagement are different for the Jewish People, and even though G–D directs the bullets of Jew and gentile alike, He wants it to be more obvious to the Jew, something to do with living on a higher level of spiritual consciousness.

That is, you will recall, Moshe was punished for hitting the rock to bring water, instead of just speaking to it. And not just punished, but banished from Eretz Yisroel. The moment physical movement is involved in accomplishment, a person operates on a lower level of consciousness, and that is not how a person is meant to survive in Eretz Yisroel. 

But go and tell that to the Attorney General of Israel and the highly secular Supreme Court that is trying to empty out the yeshivos and make soldiers out of the future Ba’alei Mesorah of Torah. Not that this is surprising from people who do not believe Torah is from G–D and that learning it protects the Jewish People more than armies. That’s all through Tanach and in the Gemora. It’s just alarming.

The truth is, it has been hanging over heads for decades now. Though there are many ba’alei teshuvah today, thank G–D, and many secular Israelis are at least somewhat traditional, the country, overall, has become increasingly secular. It had been happening since 1948, but it really sped up at the end of the 80s with the collapse of the USSR and resulting influx of millions of Russians, some not being Jews. 

That’s when it first became legally permissible to import treif meat, for the non-Jewish immigrants. Right. And no one expected Jews with a desire for all things Europian not to jump on the treif bandwagon and open up treif restaurants, especially in highly secular Tel Aviv and Haifa?

One could wonder, does everything still apply today? So late in the final exile right in advance of the final generation, the world and the Jewish People are at a big low. Hester panim is intense, which means G–D makes it even harder to see Him in everyday life. Even those who learn Torah and live by the mitzvos have been heavily influenced, relatively speaking, by the outside world. Maybe G–D says, “Now that there is not much difference between you and the rest of the nations of the world, you might as well live and die like them!”

Life, however, seems to say otherwise. The many stories of miracles happening for people, especially just after they prayed or did something similar, show that G–D’s still listening and still helping. It’s just not an automatic national thing yet, where the miracles happen for everyone, even those unworthy.

One thing is for certain. If you don’t rely on prayer to get the job done, even if you have to physically do something, you definitely cut G–D out of the picture and put yourself into that other world of everyone else. 

I’m not going to spend time proving it now, but I will end by saying, yes, the rules of engagement of the Jewish People have never changed and still apply. The only variable in the equation is whether or not we’re prepared to accept and believe that, and go with it while the rest of the world screams that we’re out of our minds. Given Jewish history, the burden of proof is on them, not the ba’alei emunah, something the Three Weeks testify to.

*   *   *

I am very pleased to announce that Volume 3 of Sha’ar Hagilgulim has now been published through Amazon. This completes the comprehensive re-edit and re-publication, b”H.

On the same topic, Series Two of the “Sha’ar HaGilgulim Course” continues this week, b”H. For more information or to register, go to: https://www.shaarnunproductions.org/Sha-ar-HaGilgulim-Course.html.

Have a great Shabbos,

Pinchas Winston

Eliezer Meir Saidel: Matot-Masei

 

Vessel as a Parable – Matot-Masei

וַיֹּאמֶר אֶלְעָזָר הַכֹּהֵן אֶל אַנְשֵׁי הַצָּבָא הַבָּאִים לַמִּלְחָמָה זֹאת חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת מֹשֶׁה. אַךְ אֶת הַזָּהָב וְאֶת הַכָּסֶף אֶת הַנְּחֹשֶׁת אֶת הַבַּרְזֶל אֶת הַבְּדִיל וְאֶת הָעֹפָרֶת. כׇּל דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר יָבֹא בָאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בָאֵשׁ וְטָהֵר אַךְ בְּמֵי נִדָּה יִתְחַטָּא וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָבֹא בָּאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בַמָּיִם. (במדבר כה, יב)

 

A few psukkim before, we read about HKB"H commanding Moshe to exact vengeance on Midyan for their part in causing Am Yisrael to sin at Ba'al Peor. This is to be Moshe's last task as a leader before his death. You would think that Moshe would drag his heels as long as possible to prolong his life. But no, Moshe diligently and hurriedly set about fulfilling HKB"H's command.

 

In this war the Torah describes how Am Yisrael killed all the males of Midyan, including the Midyanite kings, one of whom was Balak (he is named Tzur in the passuk תרגום יונתן, במדבר לא, ח). Hang on, wasn't Balak the king of Moav?

 

Two parshiyot ago the passuk says וּבָלָק בֶּן צִפּוֹר מֶלֶךְ לְמוֹאָב בָּעֵת הַהִוא (במדבר כב, ד), on which Rashi (ibid.) asks "What does it mean בָּעֵת הַהִוא?" and answers that Balak was actually a Midyanite and not from Moav. However, after Am Yisrael defeated and killed Sichon, Moav decided to elect Balak their king because his powers of magic were great, second only to Sichon.

 

In this battle Bilam also perished. The Targum Yonatan (במדבר לא, ח) says that Bilam used his magical powers to fly up into the sky to escape the wrath of Pinchas, who intended to kill him. When Pinchas saw this, he uttered the Shem HaMeforash and flew up into the sky after Bilam. 

Pinchas grabbed Bilam by the hair and dragged him back down to earth and drew his sword to kill him. Bilam implored Pinchas to spare his life, promising to never again curse Am Yisrael. Pinchas replied "You Bilam are in fact (a gilgul of) Lavan Ha'Arami who tried to kill Yaakov Avinu. You then went down to Egypt to try wipe out his descendants. 

When Am Yisrael left Egypt, you provoked Amalek into attacking Am Yisrael. And now you were hired to curse and destroy Am Yisrael. After you saw that you failed and that HKB"H did not accept your evil utterances, you advised Balak to take his Midyanite women and cause Am Yisrael to sin, resulting in 24,000 deaths. You cannot be allowed to live". 

Pinchas drew his sword and killed Bilam.

 

In this war with Midyan, Am Yisrael captured and returned with many spoils – women, children, livestock and possessions. Moshe and Elazar HaKohen (who was now the Kohen Gadol after his father Aharon died) went out to greet the army of Am Yisrael returning from the war. When Moshe saw that they had spared the women he was angry. "How could you let the women live? It was they who made Am Yisrael sin at Ba'al Peor, causing the plague that wiped out so many in Am Yisrael".

 

Moshe commanded them to kill all the male children and also all women who had not had sexual relations, leaving only the virgin female children.

 

It is easy to understand why Moshe wanted to kill all the Midyanite women who caused so many deaths in Am Yisrael, but why kill all the male children?

 

We don't fully grasp the catastrophe of Ba'al Peor. In addition to the 24,000 in Am Yisrael who died in the plague, Rashi (במדבר כה, ה) says that the 88,000 judges in Am Yisrael (שָׂרֵי אֲלָפִים, שָׂרֵי מֵאוֹת, שָׂרֵי חֲמִשִּׁים וְשָׂרֵי עֲשָׂרֹת) each executed two offenders in Am Yisrael, making a total of 176,000. Add to that the 24,000 who died in the plague, makes a grand total of 200,000 men who died at Ba'al Peor. That is a third of the population of Am Yisrael!

 

The infiltration of this sin in Am Yisrael was so deep, that even after they waged war with Midyan, they didn't kill the women, until Moshe commanded them to. Moshe wanted to exonerate Am Yisrael so that they would be clean from this terrible sin without any suspicion at all. 

The Kli Yakar (במדבר לא, יז) says that the fact that they left the women alive could cast doubt on Am Yisrael that they kept them alive because they had either previously sinned with them, or intended to in the future. They might have even had children with them from these forbidden relationships. 

Therefore, Moshe commanded them to kill both the women who had sexual relations and the male children and leave only the female children who had not had any relations. They determined this by parading the females in front of the צִיץ הַקֹּדֶשׁ of the Kohen Gadol. Those who had relations, their face went pale and those who didn't their face went red (Targum Yonatan, ibid.)

 

The reason for killing the male children but leaving the female children alive is to ensure that Midyan would not ever reconstitute their army in the future, the male children growing up and taking revenge for their parents. The female children converted and became part of Am Yisrael.

 

The Sulam's perush on the Zohar HaKadosh (אות רכג) says an amazing thing. Balak, who was from Midyan, was מִבְּנֵי בָּנָיו שֶׁל יִתְרוֹ, a grandson of Yitro. After Matan Torah, Yitro joins up with Am Yisrael in the Midbar and converts and then returns to Midyan to try convert his people as well. We see from this that his mission was unsuccessful and the people of Midyan clung to their avodah zarah.

 

It is interesting to contrast Pinchas, also a grandson of Yitro, born from one of Yitro's daughters who decided to cling to Am Yisrael, with Balak, another grandson of Yitro who went in the opposite direction.  In this week's parsha we have the intersection between these two progeny of Yitro.

 

This was not a simple military campaign - it was a war of vengeance and was intended as a deterrent against anyone who wanted to cause harm to Am Yisrael. Apparently Am Yisrael never managed to completely wipe out Midyan in this war. They were a nomadic people and during the war, some must have been travelling in distant places. The fact is that almost 200 years later, Midyan managed to multiply and again pose a threat to Am Yisrael in the time of the Shoftim.

 

All of the above is a background to the topic of our shiur.

 

After Moshe tells them to kill all the women etc. above, he tells the soldiers how to purify themselves after coming into contact with dead bodies during the war.

 

We then find a very "strange" passuk.

 

וַיֹּאמֶר אֶלְעָזָר הַכֹּהֵן אֶל אַנְשֵׁי הַצָּבָא הַבָּאִים לַמִּלְחָמָה זֹאת חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת מֹשֶׁה (במדבר לא, כא)

 

Elazar HaKohen then proceeds to tell the soldiers of Am Yisrael how to kasher all the vessels that they captured as spoils of war.

 

Until now it was Moshe doing all the talking, suddenly we switch to Elazar HaKohen, and this is not some victory "speech" to the soldiers, Elazar is paskening halacha to them, he is giving them a shiur on the halachot of kashering keilim. In fact, all our halachot in the Shulchan Aruch regarding kashering of treif keilim are derived from these psukkim that Elazar HaKohen taught to Am Yisrael.

 

We have a halacha meforeshet - כָּל הַמּוֹרֶה הֲלָכָה בִּפְנֵי רַבּוֹ חַיָּב מִיתָה, a talmid is forbidden to pasken a halacha in the presence of his rav. How is it possible that Elazar, who was a talmid of Moshe Rabbeinu suddenly starts paskening halacha in front of Moshe … and nothing happens to him!

 

The Sifri (ibid.) gives two reasons.

 

The first is that we read above that Moshe was angry with the soldiers returning from the war, that they let the Midyanite women live. As a result of him becoming angry, Moshe forgot the halacha and Elazar had to convey it to the soldiers. This is the third time mentioned in the Torah that Moshe became angry and forgot the halacha. 

The first is when Moshe became angry with Elazar and Itamar, the sons of Aharon for not eating the korban חַטָּאת inside the Mishkan (ויקרא י, יז). The second is when Moshe became angry with Am Yisrael at Mei Meriva (במדבר כ, י) and here in our parsha is the third. The Sifri says that as a result of Moshe becoming angry, he forgot the halacha and therefore Elazar had to relay it.

 

The second reason given by the Sifri is that Moshe gave permission to Elazar HaKohen to teach the halacha of kashering keilim, because he knew that he would soon die and Elazar would continue to serve as the Kohen Gadol together with Yehoshua. Moshe wanted to prevent Am Yisrael from later challenging Elazar HaKohen "When Moshe was alive you never spoke a word and now suddenly you have something to say?"

 

Regardless of whether the reason is the first or the second, the Sifri ends by saying that Elazar quoted the halacha in Moshe's name זֹאת חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת מֹשֶׁה. When we teach something that is not our own, that we heard/learned from someone else, we are obliged to credit the source (מגילה טו ע"א). The Gemara brings the example of Esther quoting in the name of Mordechai (אסתר ב, כב).

 

Another question is the following. Just before Elazar relays the halacha of kashering keilim instead of Moshe, we read about Moshe paskening halacha about who to kill from the spoils of Midyan and how the soldiers need to purify themselves. If Moshe's becoming angry made him forget the halacha, why was it only the halacha of kashering keilim that he forgot and not the halacha of what to do with the women/children of Midyan and the halacha of purifying the soldiers? Those halachot he did not forget when he became angry?

 

Let us briefly dive into some of the halachot of kashering keilim and obtain some insight to enable us to answer some of the above questions.

 

As stated above, all the halachot of kashering keilim are derived from our parsha and the keilim which were spoils from the war with Midyan. However, this is not the first time Am Yisrael waged war in the desert and accumulated "spoils". Before the war with Midyan, Am Yisrael fought two more wars, with Sichon and Og. 

The passuk tells us that from those battles רַק הַבְּהֵמָה בָּזַזְנוּ לָנוּ וּשְׁלַל הֶעָרִים אֲשֶׁר לָכָדְנוּ (דברים ב, לה). It appears from this passuk that in those wars they only took spoils from the animals, not the keilim. However, the Ramban (במדבר לא, כג), says no, they took spoils of keilim as well!  וּשְׁלַל הֶעָרִים includes keilim. So why do we not learn הִלְכוֹת הֶכְשֵׁר כֵּלִים from the spoils of Sichon and Og?

 

The Ramban says that there is a fundamental difference in these wars. In the wars of Sichon and Og, Am Yisrael conquered land that was part of the inheritance of Eretz Yisrael, therefore Am Yisrael inherited everything from the previous inhabitants, וּבָתִּים מְלֵאִים כָּל טוּב אֲשֶׁר לֹא מִלֵּאתָ (דברים ו, יא), they got everything ready-made – houses, fields, cities keilim etc. 

Therefore, the keilim conquered from Sichon and Og were not "spoils of war", they essentially belonged to Am Yisrael already, both the keilim and the isurim that were absorbed in them, which then automatically and magically became מוּתָּר and they didn't have to be kashered, אִשְׁתָּרִי לְהוּ (חולין יז, ע"א). However, in the war with Midyan, Am Yisrael did not inherit the land of Midyan, so the keilim were not essentially theirs, they belonged to the goyim, including all the forbidden isurim absorbed in them, therefore they had to be kashered.

 

The Tosfot (הדר זקנים שם לא, כג) does not agree with the Ramban and raises pertinent questions on the Ramban's shita (which are reconciled by the Minchat Chinuch תקכז, ו, 'עוד'), but we won't get into that resolution here.

 

The passuk in our parsha above lists six types of metal keilim – זָּהָב, כֶּסֶף, נְּחֹשֶׁת, בַּרְזֶל, בְּדִיל וְעֹפָרֶת, gold, silver, copper, iron, tin and lead. One type of kli is glaringly absent, the most common of them all – clay/porcelain? 

One possible answer that this is not included in the list is because you cannot kasher a כְּלִי חֶרֶס (according to most opinions). I heard another, more practical reason from HaRav Binyamin Zimmerman שליט"א, that the soldiers didn't bring back כְּלֵי חֶרֶס, only the more valuable vessels made out of metal. כְּלֵי חֶרֶס in ancient times was the closest you could get to כֵּלִים חַד פַּעֲמַיִם - they had no real value and were not regarded as spoils.

 

The passuk teaches us the two primary methods of kashering keilim, כׇּל דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר יָבֹא בָאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בָאֵשׁ anything that can withstand the heat of intense fire, must be subjected to fire. וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָבֹא בָּאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בַמָּיִם any keilim that cannot withstand intense fire must be kashered using water. These are the sources for לִיבּוּן and הַגְעָלָה.

 

לִיבּוּן is heating the vessel with intense heat (like a blow torch) which practically obliterates any isur absorbed in the kli. הַגְעָלָה is boiling the kli (in a huge pot of water – like those used to kasher keilim for Pesach), which extracts the isur absorbed in the kli.

 

The intricacies related to the halachot of הֶכְשֵׁר כֵּלִים are numerous and detailed and beyond the scope of this shiur. Essentially, the process involves two distinct stages, סוּר מֵרַע and עֲשֵׂה טוֹב. You first have to kasher/remove the isur from the kli (סוּר מֵרַע), but that is insufficient. The passuk adds אַךְ בְּמֵי נִדָּה יִתְחַטָּא, it is not enough to remove the isur, we also have to "tovel" the kli in the mikva. 

You also have to elevate the kli to a status of קְדוּשָּׁה before a Jew may use it (עֲשֵׂה טוֹב). This applies both to treif kelim acquired from a goy and also brand-new keilim made by a goy – they both need טְבִילַת כֵּלִים in the mikva to give them קְדוּשָּׁה. HKB"H wants Am Yisrael to use keilim that have a status of holiness – both in the Mikdash and also in the home. A person's table is equivalent to a Mizbeach! (מנחות צז, ע"א).

 

Now that we understand the underlying principle of הֶכְשֵׁר כֵּלִים, we gain an insight into our episode above - the division of relaying the halachot between Moshe and Elazar.

 

If we say that Moshe's anger precluded him from relaying the halacha, then it should have been for all the halachot – which Midyanim survivors to kill, which to leave alive, how the soldiers should purify themselves and how to kasher the keilim. However, we see that Moshe did not "forget" all the halachot. Moshe did teach the soldiers all the above halachot excepting for those related to the keilim.

 

Becoming angry did not make Moshe forget the halachot of national importance – exacting vengeance on the Midyanite women, killing the male children so that they would not grow up and reconstitute the Midyanite army, leaving the female children alive – to convert them and make them part of Am Yisrael (women cannot reconstitute the army, only men – we learn this בִּמְפֹרָשׁ from our parsha – the IDF would well heed this, regarding the integration of women in combat), purifying the soldiers from טֻמְאַת מֵת.

 

If we closely examine the three times (above) that Moshe got angry and forgot the halacha, we will notice that all three are related to food/water. The first is related to eating the korban חַטָּאת, the second is related to giving Am Yisrael water to drink after the Well of Miriam dried up after Miriam died and finally, here in our parsha, regarding vessels for preparing food.

 

Our parsha is teaching us an enormous musar haskel. Anger and food do not mix! Keep anger out of the kitchen and away from the table.

 

If we examine the three incidences that Moshe got angry, they were also connected to kohanim. The first in ויקרא directly involved Elazar (and Itamar). The second in Mei Meriva involved Aharon, and the third here in our parsha again involved Elazar.

 

When it comes to the Jewish kitchen and the Jewish table, we need someone of the caliber of a kohen to relay the halachot – because kohanim are אוֹהֵב שָׁלוֹם וְרוֹדֵף שָׁלוֹם. If you have anger in the kitchen and at the table, you can cause irreversible damage.

 

This is not to say that the husband should be absent and uninvolved in the goings on in the kitchen, he definitely should be involved. We learn this from Adam HaRishon/Chava and Avraham/Sarah (מאיר פנים, פרק טו, עמ' קסז).

 

Adam decided to leave the entire running of his "kitchen" to Chava and was not involved at all. When Chava presented him with the fruit of the עֵץ הַדַּעַת, Adam just ate it without asking questions – "What is this new food? What hechsher does it have? What bracha do you make on it? etc." Instead, he simply ate it and later got angry at Chava for duping him. We are still living the repercussions of that.

 

Avraham was not involved in cooking in the kitchen, he left the cooking (and baking) up to Sarah, but Avraham was involved with what went on in the kitchen. He did revision of the halachot of matzot with Sarah when they were visited by the angels. He was involved in the selection of the calves, supervising the shechita etc. before they became calf tongues in mustard sauce made by Sarah. Avraham was not the cook, but he was involved in the kitchen. 

Unlike Adam and Chava, the interaction was not one of absence and anger. The mida of Avraham is chessed. Avraham's entire interaction with Sara was בְּדַרְכֵי נֹעַם, without anger. In fact, we never read anywhere about Avraham becoming angry (we do read about Sarah becoming angry with Avraham חֲמָסִי עָלֶיךָ, but that was not food related).

 

To preserve shalom in the home and especially in the kitchen, the husband should behave with the mida of אוֹהֵב שָׁלוֹם וְרוֹדֵף שָׁלוֹם. Regarding kashrut, regarding how the food tastes (one is allowed to tell white lies to preserve שָׁלוֹם), there has to be a total absence of any anger.

 

Similarly, at the table. It is important to maintain decorum and halacha at the table, but it has to be achieved בְּדַרְכֵי נֹעַם. The bitter aftertaste of food that is slightly burnt is כְּאַיִן וּכְאֶפֶס compared to the bitter aftertaste of anger at the table. The former quickly dissipates, the latter causes trauma, sometimes for generations. When there is stress at the table it can also result in digestive disorders (מאיר פנים, פרק יד, עמ' קנט).

 

כׇּל דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר יָבֹא בָאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בָאֵשׁ וְטָהֵר אַךְ בְּמֵי נִדָּה יִתְחַטָּא וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָבֹא בָּאֵשׁ תַּעֲבִירוּ בַמָּיִם. The kashering, whether it is preceded by fire or boiling - it always ends with the cooling effect of water. Perhaps the reason Aharon was also punished at Mei Meriva, is because he did not have this cooling effect on Moshe's fire of anger.

 

This is a huge musar haskel from our parsha, keep the fire and boiling disposition away from the kitchen and table and always sooth them with the cooling effect of water. Find the correct balance between סוּר מֵרַע and עֲשֵׂה טוֹב.

 

 

Shabbat Shalom

Eliezer Meir Saidel

Machon Lechem Hapanim

www.machonlechemhapanim.org 

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