Jewishtimes – June 21, 2024

People God Praises &Condemns

LEVIATHAN

GOD MADE IT, BUT WHAT IS IT? WHERE IS IT?

RABBI MOSHE BEN-CHAIM

THE JOURNAL ON TORAH THOUGHT

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3 Multiple

LETTERS

Q&As

6 Leviathan

RABBI MOSHE BEN-CHAIM

What is this creation? What clues in medrash answer this?

8 Moshiach

RABBI REUVEN MANN Can we hasten his arrival?

11 Whom God

Praises & Condemns

RABBI MOSHE BEN-CHAIM Torah uses a certain word teaching a trait of merit and blame

13 Mishkan’s

Inauguration

DANI ROTH

The measures of the sacrifices are clues to our purpose (Rashi)

| THE SNAKE’S PUNISHMENT |

God made the snake crawl on its stomach, and also eat dirt (Gen. 3:14). As some interpret the snake to also represent Eve’s instincts, God’s punishment of the snake refers to diminishing its power over Eve, and her o spring. e instincts now “moved slower” (crawling), and found less satisfaction in their desired object of sin (eating dirt).

LETTERS

RABBI MOSHE BEN-CHAIM

The New Month’s Significance

AVI: What is the relationship between Psalm 104 “Borchi Nafshi,” and the new month? As this Psalm is the song of the day on Rosh Chodesh, the New Moon.

RABBI: Why does king David both commence and conclude this Psalm with the words “Borchi Nafshi; My soul blesses God?”

On the Sabbath/New Moon, our Musaf prayer changes to “You formed Your world long ago.” Why is this inappropriate on a regular Sabbath?

This Psalm depicts not physical creation which is what Sabbath commemorates. But Borchi Nafshi depicts how creation operates, natural laws, from the winds, mountains, thunder, the sea’s limit, the sun’s circuit, to the flow of rivers through valleys, animal habitats, vegetation for cattle, and bread and wine for man’s happiness. Like the renewal of the moon, so are all these forces of nature continual laws.

Rosh Chodesh is the renewal of the moon’s cycle. And what repeats, is a law. What does not repeat is accident.

Genesis 1:1 too contains the account of creation, followed by Genesis 2:5 – the account of how nature and man operate:

“When no shrub of the field was yet on Earth and no grasses of the field had yet sprouted, because God had not sent rain upon the earth and there were no human beings to till the soil, but a flow would well up from the ground and water the whole surface of the earth.” Then Genesis discusses rivers.

King Solomon too refers to rivers in Koheles 1, alluding to man’s psyche, his flowing energies (Rabbi Israel Chait). These rivers depict human operation, not human creation. The Sabbath/New Moon prayer changes to “You formed Your world long ago.” The reason is because the two categories of creation coincide on this date. Sabbath celebrates the creation of all entities, and the new moon celebrates the creation of laws. On this day, when these two systems coincide, we now have a full picture of both parts of creation, demanding the change of the prayer text. Now that the new moon repeats its cycle, we have a complete picture of both, created entities and created laws.

King David opens and closes this Psalm with “My soul blesses God” because here he sees tremendous wisdom in “how” natural laws work, and work together as a whole. Witnessing God’s systems, and how they interact is much more impressive than the design of a single object. This touched King David’s soul, for which he blessed God both before and after referencing God’s astonishing natural laws. Blessing God before and after this Psalm is a manner of bracketing the unique theme. Similarly, we bless God both at the beginning, and the conclusion of the Sabbath and holidays with kiddush and havdallah respectively. This earmarks the duration of Sabbath and holidays. Why does the psalm conclude with a wish that sin ends, and evildoers are no longer evil? Here, King David identifies the objective of God's brilliant creation: that man should recognize God. ■

Aaron’s Consolation

MORDY L: Rashi writes:

When Aaron saw the dedication o erings of the princes, he felt distressed because neither he nor his tribe was with them in the dedication. Whereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “By your life! Your

part is of greater importance than theirs, for you will kindle and set in order the lamps” (Num. 8:2).

Aaron was given consolation with the daily Menorah lighting. How does this bring consolation to Aaron and the Levites?

RABBI: We can further ask that this seems petty. Why should Aaron be bothered by others worshiping God? Wouldn't Aaron of all people, the man who ran to make peace amongst all Jews, be delighted by Jews worshiping God?

We must define the di erence between Temple inauguration, and Temple service of lighting the Menorah. Aaron’s dismay was that Temple’s inauguration was a momentous occasion; he wished he and his tribe played a role, as such events are remembered and instill lessons in future generations. Also, not taking part in the inauguration might tarnish the Levites’ reputation; every tribe but theirs participated. However, God responded: one-time events are not as impacting as daily events, like candle lighting. By definition, that which God commands daily repetition must be more significant than a single inauguration. Thus, our weekly Sabbath is of greater importance than yearly holidays. Additionally, candle lighting illuminates us towards fundamental ideas: “Aaron and his sons shall set them up in the Tent of Meeting, outside the Parochess curtain which is over [the Ark of] the covenant, [to burn] from evening to morning before God” (Exod. 27:21). The Menorah illuminates the dividing curtain over the Holy of Holies, the room of the Ark containing the Torah. In other words, the 7-branched Menorah depicting 7 days of creation, sheds light on the Ark, Torah. For through recognition of creation, one recognizes the Creator, and Torah commencing with creation is validated. ■

Emotions and Aging

ALEX KAHGAN: You wrote: “At life’s start, man is still following his emotions until he studies Torah, accepts its ideals and follows them. This transition from emotions to intellect can be a struggle.” Are you suggesting man eliminates his emotions as he gets older? He is not to be motivated by his emotions? Rambam writes that our behavior is motivated by emotions. Do you mean "following emotions not dictated by the Torah”?

RABBI: We can’t eliminate our emotions, nor does God deem them superfluous in older age. As we grow in Torah, our emotions shift from seeking physical pleasures, to seeking pleasures of wisdom. When younger, it's di cult to withdraw our energies from physical satisfaction and engage in thought instead. But with continued exposure to wise teachers and their wisdom, and our toil in Torah, the emotions start removing their grip on physical pleasures, and we start seeking wisdom instead. Our emotions become attached to wisdom. ■

LEVIATHAN

GOD MADE IT, BUT WHAT IS IT? WHERE IS IT?

God created the great sea monsters, and all the living creatures of every kind that creep, which the waters brought forth in swarms, and all the winged birds of every kind. And God saw that this was good (Gen. 1:21).

Rashi comments:

According to the statement of the Agada (Bava Batra 74b) it means here the Leviathan and its mate which He created male and female. He, however, killed the female and preserved it in salt for the benefit of the righteous in the time to come (afterlife). For had they been permitted to be fruitful and to multiply, the world could not have endured because of them.

King David said “God created he Leviathan to sport with” (Psalms 104:26). What is “sport” in relation to God? Sport refers to a mode of interaction. But as God created everything perfectly, His interaction with creation is unnecessary. All creations perfectly follow natural law without deviation…all but one: man. Man has free will and many times his deviation from God’s intended life of

RABBI MOSHE BEN-CHAIM

Torah requires God to “step in” and assist him, protect him, save him, or redirect him.

If we understand the Leviathan as a truly physical beast, it makes no sense that the mate can exist in the world to come, which is not physical. Furthermore, why is it only the righteous who will enjoy the Leviathan? Evidently there is a direct relationship between righteousness and the Leviathan: one who is righteous will eventually “enjoy a meal of the Leviathan.” But as the Leviathan is not physical, what exactly are the righteous souls enjoying?

This is a metaphor. It teaches that those who are righteous, who conquer their great powerful instincts (their “Leviathan”), will in the afterlife enjoy the benefits of conquering their instincts. Enjoying the Leviathan’s mate in the afterlife means they will enjoy the “counterpart” of their good actions: their ultimate reward. This is why it is only the righteous who enjoy that counterpart.

The midrash also says that God prevented the “Leviathans’ reproduction,” which would have lead to ultimate destruction of the world. But this means that God initially created the instincts with great power. However, knowing their potential damage, what do we derive from God first making instinctual drives so powerful, and only subsequently diminishing their strength?

This means it is preferable that man's instinctual drives are unlimited in power. For if man could direct them towards performing only the good, his good would also be unlimit-

ed. But Adam and Eve sinned, demanding God alter their psyches’ design to save them from further sin and destruction. “Separating the two Leviathans” means God diminished the strength of the instincts. This is alluded to when God made the snake crawl on its stomach, and also eat dirt (Gen. 3:14). As some interpret the snake to also represent Eve’s instincts (the snake never addressed Adam: Maimonides) God’s punishment of the snake refers to diminishing its power over Eve, and her o spring. The instincts now “moved slower” (crawling), and found less satisfaction in their desired object of sin (eating dirt). Separating the two Leviathans and punishing the snake are two di erent allegories, explaining the same phenomena of God diminishing human instinctual strength. God making sport with the Leviathan refers to God interacting with man in his battle with his instincts. Many times God stepped into history to save man from destruction, save Jews and the Jewish nation. This interaction is called “sporting with the Leviathan”, or interacting with man’s great instinctual drives that lead him astray. We also appreciate the Agadic lesson derived from God’s creation of man’s instincts placed in Gen. 1:21, not addressing God’s creation of man, as instincts are not part of man’s essence, his soul. For in man’s ultimate state in the afterlife, the instincts no longer form part of him. The name Leviathan in Hebrew means to “accompany.” That is, the instincts accompany man, but are not essential to man’s true nature, his soul. ■

CanWe Hasten Moshiach?

The luxury of looking at things with hindsight often distorts one’s understanding. This undoubtedly applies to our study of the “murmurings in the Wilderness” that were expressed by disgruntled Jews, as recorded in this week’s Parsha, BeHaalotecha.

They complained about the Manna, a miraculous food prepared expressly for their needs by the Creator. While we have no right to judge or criticize previous generations–who were subjected to di culties that we never experienced–we may nevertheless respectfully seek to learn from their failures.

In the Wilderness, the Jews were excused from engaging in any labor to provide for their general needs. They had plenty of animals that they could slaughter to obtain meat. Additionally, the manna descended from Heaven every morning (except Shabbat, in anticipation of which they gathered a double-portion on Friday) and was collected with little exertion. The “Clouds of Glory” which accompanied them, kept their bodies in a healthy condition and their clothing in a state of freshness. In many ways, it appeared to be an idyllic situation. But suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, there was an outbreak of grumbling about ostensibly trivial things. The very severe discontent with the manna–in complete disregard of all its positive qualities–is di cult to comprehend. Was that truly the problem? And how, indeed, could they look back longingly to the situation in Egypt and lament; “We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt for nothing; the gourds, the melons, the leeks, the onions and the garlic?” (BaMidbar 11:5).

From the vantage point we occupy, these words seem outrageous. How could they have nostalgia

RABBI REUVEN MANN

for a country that a icted them with backbreaking labor; and refused to supply them with the straw needed for bricks? Can it be that the Egyptians mercilessly oppressed Klall Yisrael (the People of Israel), drowned and crushed their babies, and yet provided them with delectable cuisine? The entire thing is almost impossible to comprehend.

Had the joy of liberation followed by the miraculous rescue by the Reed Sea already worn o and faded from consciousness? Are these gripers the same people who stood at Mt. Sinai and witnessed their Creator Proclaiming the Aseret HaDibrot (Decalogue); and who subsequently built the Mishkan (Tabernacle) so that Hashem’s presence could constantly be among them? How can we make sense of their seemingly incomprehensible backsliding, over the perceived inferiority of their desert meal plan?

A word from Rashi provides an insight into this dilemma. Commenting on the claim that they consumed fish in Egypt “for nothing” he says;

If you say that [the Complainers] meant that the Egyptians gave them fish for nothing (i.e., without payment), [then I ask] doesn't [the Torah] state: “[And, now, go and work, (and also)] straw will not be given to you…? (Shemot 5:18)” Now, if they did not [even] give them straw for nothing!–What then did they mean by Chinam (gratuitously)? [It means:] free from Mitzvot (Commandments).

According to this interpretation, the discontent of the Jews was not caused by the food they were provided in the Wilderness. Rather, they were disturbed by the need to perform the Commandments. It is even possible that they were not aware of the true cause of their unhappiness. They would probably have been utterly ashamed to admit that they were miserable because of their responsibility to observe the Torah and the Mitzvot. But they could not contain their extreme discontent and had to give vent to it. So instead of acknowledging their malcontent and addressing its root-cause, they transferred (displaced) their resentment to the “problem” of the food they were given to consume and were tragically ungrateful for Hashem’s Loving-Kindness.

It would thus appear that the Jews had a conflicted attitude toward the Torah, or what we would call an ambivalent approach to Judaism. They did not embrace the Torah life wholeheartedly, and without reservation. This attitude haunted them in the Wilderness and in their failure to complete the conquest of the entire Land of Canaan. It ultimately was responsible for the Sin of the Spies and the death of that generation in the Midbar (Desert).

Have the Jews ever elevated themselves to the point where their embrace of Judaism is absolute and joyous? While the Jews have been characterized as Maaminim Bnei Maaminim (believers, children of believers) their behavior sometimes appears similar to ones who “believe and don’t believe”. Our mission is to be the Nation of Hashem; who represent His Teachings and Commandments to the entire world.

We cannot fulfill our role as an Ohr LaGoyim (Light unto the Nations) as long as collectively, we are uncertain of the Torah’s truthfulness; and are unsure if we genuinely yearn to live according to its commandments, values and ideals. A people that is itself in doubt about its own identity, cannot lead the way to the redemption of mankind. It is a fundamental doctrine of Judaism that Mashiach will come and perfect the world. But when will this happen? The Prophet says, “I Hashem, Will hasten it, in its time” (Yishayahu 60:22). Rashi explains, that this means if the Jews are worthy, Hashem will hasten the Redemption, but if the Jews are not deserving, it will come, but only “in its time.”

The di erence is monumental. Come what may, there will be a Mashiach who will transform and perfect the world. Will the Jews play a role in hastening his arrival?

That depends on us. If we fulfill our historical mission to represent the Torah with great wisdom and love, Hashem will assist us and speed up the progression of events that will culminate in the Messianic era. If we do not, we are guaranteed that Mashiach will arrive, but it will occur through a longer and more painful process.

May Hashem grant us the wisdom, insight and courage to embrace our Torah of truth with wholehearted devotion and great love.

Shabbat Shalom. ■

THOSE WHOM GOD PRAISES &CONDEMNS

MOSHE BEN-CHAIM

W hat is so significant about a steadfast character that Talmud discusses it at length? In fact, Talmud derives the lesson from Torah verses containing the clue word “hu.”

This is—“hu”—Achashverosh (Esther 1:1). The term hu—“he is”—comes to teach that he remained as he was in his wickedness from beginning to end. Similarly, wherever “he is” appears in this manner, the verse indicates that the individual under discussion remained the same from beginning to end, for example: “This is [hu] Esav” (Genesis 36:43); Esav remained in his wickedness from beginning to end. “This is [hu] Dathan and Aviram” (Numbers 26:9); they remained in their wickedness from beginning to end. “This is [hu] the king Achaz” (II Chronicles 28:22); he remained in his wickedness from beginning to end.

The word hu is also used to recognize sustained righteousness. “Abram, this is [hu] Abraham” (I Chronicles 1:27); this indicates that Abraham didn’t change, as he remained in his righteousness from beginning to end. Similarly, “This is [hu] Aaron and Moses” (Exodus 6:26); they remained in their righteousness from the beginning of their life to the end of their lives. Similarly, with respect to David: “And David, this was [hu] the youngest” (I  Samuel 17:14), indicates that he remained in his humility from beginning to end. Just as in his youth, when he was still an ordinary individual, he humbled himself before anyone who was greater than him in Torah, so too, in his kingship, he humbled himself before anyone who was greater than him in wisdom (Talmud Megilla 11a).

What is this progression? And if the sinner ultimately denies God, why does he have to go through six previous stages? Just skip the six previous stages and deny God immediately!

RABBI

What is the state of mind of a sinner? What causes sin?

It is one's preference to follow his emotions, upon which Torah imposes restraints, which is uncomfortable at first. We start life with only emotions, with no intelligent capacity to appreciate what is good. So many refuse to learn Torah, and thereby, fail to practice. Why does such a sinner then despise practicing Jews? They have not harmed the sinner. Why do they become the sinner’s target? This is because a person operates with a self image. As Rabbi Israel Chait taught, there is a phenomena called the “Reality Principle,” which means that a person cannot knowingly harm himself. Even when a crook robs, he must justify it: “My family is hungry.” He cannot perpetrate an act knowing it is truly wrong. Man distorts wrongdoing to make it acceptable. The sinner too must justify his failure to uphold Torah. But there is a phenomena that makes it impossible for this justification: he sees others upholding Torah. Now, the sinner’s self image is threatened: “Torah can be followed by others, and I am failing” he thinks to himself.

Throughout the day, a typical person strives to maintain a pristine self image. Our egos can go unchecked, and we can blindly follow only that which paints a perfect picture of ourselves. Pity the person who cuts us o in tra c, or says a slightly o -color word to us. Of course, a righteous person does not follow the ego at all. But a person who has not worked on his perfection, is led by his ego. Now, when a sinner sees others upholding Torah and he is threatened by the self image of failure, what are his choices? He can either repent, perfect himself and follow Torah…or he despises Torah followers to remove the threat to the sinner. It's his way of saying, “They are

wrong and I am right; they are the despicable ones.” While still ignorant of Torah, Rabbi Akiva would say, “Give me a talmud chocham (wise Torah student), and I'll bite him like a donkey” (Pesachim 49b).

At each stage of the sinner’s corruption, he is confronted with a new reality, and he responds emotionally. As his reality changes, so must his response change. At first, his reality is to follow emotions, so he doesn’t learn Torah, and sins. He then despises Torah followers to maintain his ego. Next, why does despising Torah followers spiral down to hating the sages? This is because he realizes that Torah followers are merely “followers;” there are yet leaders directing the common Jews’ Torah adherence. The sages’ personalities then threaten the sinner. The sinner only confronts Torah followers in his day-to-day life, explaining why he doesn’t hate the sages at the outset; he doesn’t cross paths with them as he is not in their circles. Furthermore, Torah followers don’t make the laws, the sages do. They are an authority that must be dealt with. So the sinner hates them as well. Hating the Torah follower alone insu ciently “shoots only the messenger.”

This is all well and good to resolve conflict in the sinner’s mind. But then he still witnesses Torah followers performing commands in actuality. His fantasy of them being despicable can’t obliterate real actions of mitzvah he witnesses. He is then driven to stop their performance. But he can’t, there are too many good Jews doing to many mitzvahs. Since he can't prevent their mitzvahs, he must deny their mitzvahs as inauthentic, and not divine in origin. But this causes a new conflict: he knows God exists and gave the mitzvahs. He finally must deny God’s existence to maintain an acceptable self image. This is the progression. ■

Inauguration of the

Mishkan

Parshas Nasso discusses the inauguration of the Mishkan. As part of the inauguration ceremony, a head of every Shevet had to bring a specific Korban. The Korban contained, one silver bowl weighing 130 shekels and one silver basin of 70 shekels by the sanctuary weight, both filled with choice flour with oil mixed in, for a meal o ering; one gold ladle of 10 shekels, filled with incense; one bull of the herd, one ram, and one lamb in its first year, for a burnt o ering; one goat for a sin o ering; and for his sacrifice of well-being: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five yearling lambs.

Rashi on 7:19 quotes Rav Moshe HaDarshon explaining the significance of each of these values: Adam's lifespan was 930, he was 130 when he had his first child, Noach was 520 when he had his first child, and 70 represents the nations that descended from his children. Other values correspond to 1 Torah, 10 commandments, and 613 Mitzvos. Other values correspond to the patriarchs, a bull corresponding to Avraham, a ram corresponding to Yitzchak, a sheep corresponding to Yaakov, a he-goat corresponding to Yosef's sale, and 2 cattle, corresponding to Moshe and Aaron.

What do these allusions have to do with the inauguration of the Mishkan?

To answer this question, we first need to understand the purpose of the Mishkan. The Mishkan reminds man of proper ideas regarding God. The Menorah reminds us that God is the Creator who rested on the 7th day. The Table reminds us that God didn’t leave earth after creation, but rather sustained his nation with food. The Korbanos remind us that God is aware of man's actions.

The sacrifices of the inauguration of the Mishkan were unique. They designated the Mishkan’s purpose. The specific format of the inaugural sacrifices remind man of three fundamentals: Man's existence (Adam’s lifespan of 930 and his and Noach’s ages at having children), Torah (613), and Torah leaders. Man exists to learn Torah, and Torah learning is facilitated through the leaders. ■

DANI ROTH

CLUES IN THE TEXT REVEAL MYSTERIES

All books depict history, facts, theories, fiction or poetry. No book is coded with hidden messages beyond the words or patterns revealing marvels. But the Bible (Torah) was written by God, and is “coded.” The order of verses, use of certain phrases, apparent contradictions and other Biblical patterns are pur poseful clues to God’s wisdom.

This book unveils those patterns and shares the hidden messages.