בס”ד Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4-36:43 ) Upon his return to the land of Israel, Jacob sends a peace-making message to his hostile brother, Esau. He begins the message saying, “I lived with Lavan and have lingered here until now.” (1) The Sages elaborate on Jacob’s words, “I lived with Lavan and nevertheless I… Read More »PARSHAT VAYISHLACH 5785 – USING THE YETZER HARA FOR THE GOOD
בס”ד Vayetzei (Genesis 28:10-32:3 ) Bereishit, 28:12: “And he dreamed, and behold, a ladder (sulam) was standing on the ground and its head was reaching to the heavens…”Baal HaTurim, 28:12: Dh: Sulam: “Sulam (ladder) is the numerical value of mammon (money).” The Torah portion opens with Yaakov’s famous dream involving a ladder with its legs on the… Read More »PARSHAT VAYETZEI 5785 – THE BENEFITS AND DANGERS OF MONEY
בס”ד Toldot (Genesis 25:19-28:9 ) Bereishit, 28:8-9: “And Esau saw that the Canaanite daughters [that he had married] were wicked in the eyes of his father Yitzchak. And Esau went to Yishmael and he took Machalat the daughter of Yishmael, the son of Avraham, sister of Nevayot, as well as his wives, for… Read More »PARSHAT TOLDOT 5785 – ESAU’S WIVES
Chayei Sarah (Genesis 23:1-25:18 ) בס”ד Bereishis, 25:5-6: “And Avraham gave everything that he had to Yitzchak. And to the children of the concubine, he gave gifts.”Rashi, 25:6: Dh: Avraham gave gifts: “The Rabbis explained that he gave them the name of impurity.”Rashi, Sanhedrin, 91a: Dh: Shem Tumah: “Sorcery…” At the end of this week’s Torah… Read More »PARSHAT CHAYEI SARAH – ABRAHAM’S IMPURE GIFTS TO HIS CHILDREN
Vayeira (Genesis 18-22 ) בס”ד Bereishis, 22:1-2: “And it was after these matters, and G-d tested Avraham, and he said to him, Avraham, and he said I am here. And He said, please take your son, your only son, who you love, Yitzchak…”Rashi, Bereishis, 22:1, Dh: Achar Hadevarim: …“And some say [it refers to] after… Read More »PARSHAT VAYEIRA – YISHMAEL AND THE BINDING OF ISAAC
Lech Lecha (Genesis 12-17 ) בס”ד Bereishit, 12:5: “And Avram took Sarai his wife, and Lot, his nephew, and all their property that they acquired and the souls (nefesh) that they made in Charan.”Rashi, Bereishit, 12:5, Dh: The souls that Avraham made in Haran: “That they brought them under the wings of the Divine Presence;… Read More »PARSHAT LECH LECH – ITS ALL ABOUT THE EFFORT
Noach (Genesis 6:9-11:32 ) בס”ד Bereishit, 6:9: “These are the offspring of Noach, Noach was an Ish Tzadik (righteous man)…”Bereishit, 9:20: “And Noach, Ish Ha’adamah (the man of the ground) acted profanely, and planted a vineyard.”Bereishis Rabbah, 36:3: “R’Berachia says, Moshe is more beloved than Noach: Noach, [went from] being called Ish tzaddik (a righteous man), [to being] called Ish Adamah (man… Read More »PARSHAT NOAH – ITS ALL ABOUT THE DIRECTION
Bereishit (Genesis 1:1-6:8 ) בס”ד Bereishit, 3:1: “And the snake was more cunning than all the animals of the field that Hashem, G-d made; And he said to the woman, even if G-d said, ‘do not eat from all the trees of the garden?”Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch, Bereishis, 3:1, Dh: Did G-d even say: “And even… Read More »PARSHAT BEREISHIT – THE TWO VOICES IN THE GARDEN
Ha’azinu (Deuteronomy 32 ) Devarim, 32:7: “Remember the days of old; understand the changes of each generation; ask your father and he will tell you; [ask] your elder and he will speak to you.” The verse in Haazinu instructs us to remember history and to understand the changes of each generation. The final… Read More »PARSHAT HA’AZINU – HISTORY THROUGH A TORAH LENS
Nitzavim (Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20 ) Deut., 29:15-16: “For you have known how you lived in the Land of Egypt and how you traversed the nations whose countries you have passed through. You have seen their abominations and their detestable idols (es shikutzeihem v’et giluleihem) of wood and stone, of silver and gold that were… Read More »PARSHAT NITZAVIM – GETTING USED TO TRANSGRESSIONS
