Transcript
Okay, בוקר טוב boker tov. Today is Wednesday the 20th of the month of אב Av, here at Boca Raton Synagogue and I'm excited to get back to our פרשה parsha class. We've taken a very long break. This שבת Shabbos we have the privilege of reading פרשת עקב parshas Eikev and can be found on the ArtScroll Stone חומש Chumash on, beginning of פרשת עקב parshas Eikev can be found on page 980. As is our custom, we'll give a brief overview of the whole פרשה parsha, and then take some פסוקים psukim and analyze them. The purpose of this שיעור shiur, of this, of this class is to go through the פסוקים psukim and analyze them and see how our ראשונים Rishonim from the מקראות גדולות Mikraos Gedolos approach the text, rather than give ווארטלאך vortlach, but rather to try to dissect the text together and anomalies and questions that come up. So a quick overview. Moshe is continuing his soliloquy, his monologue to the Jewish people as they stand on the cusp of entering the holy land. He reminds them, עקב תשמעון Eikev tishme'un, the reward for the for the מצוות mitzvos people who who trample on those things that seem small and insignificant, but really we cannot calculate what is considered significant and insignificant in the eyes of השם Hashem. The Torah promises all kinds of promises. השם Hashem will love us and will multiply and He'll take care of our grains and we'll be blessed from all the nations. לא יהיה בך עקר ועקרה ובבהמתך Lo yiheyeh becha akar v'akarah u'vehemtecha, there'll be no infertility in us and our animals. He'll remove all illness from us and so on and so forth. A tremendous bounty of blessing that will fall upon us if we embrace His values, His ways, lead a lifestyle consistent with that which He has designed for us. That's the promise. Then the Torah continues, כי תאמר ki somar בלבבך רבים הגוים האלה ממני bilvavecha rabbim hagoyim ha'eileh mimeni. You're gonna get fearful, you're gonna worry, how can I cash in on this promise? How do I know? Look how strong and mighty these nations are. So השם Hashem continues, Moshe continues the promise, have no fear. השם Hashem was with you in the past, He'll be with you now. You will be successful and triumphant in your enemies. The next פרק ח perek ches deals with, that's what we're going to analyze this morning together, the lesson of food. The relationship towards food, how food is really a test for man. And and we either grow or we become animalistic through our approach to food. We'll see that shortly, culminates in the מצוה mitzvah of בענטשן benching. ואכלת ושבעת וברכת Ve'achalta v'savata u'veirachta, the ultimate expression of our attitude and relationship towards food. The Torah then goes on, השמר לך פן תשכח את השם אלקיך Hishamer lecha pen tishkach es Hashem Elokecha. Don't forget השם Hashem when you become successful and wealthy. Prosperity breeds arrogance. It's easy to forget the Almighty and His role in arriving at the status that we have arrived, the comfort that we that we enjoy. So don't forget, כחי ועצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה kochi v'otzem yadi asah li es hachayil hazeh. People will be tempted to say in their heart, it's my strength, it's my accomplishment, it's my achievement. It's my skill, my wisdom, my acumen that led to this success. וזכרת את השם אלקיך V'zacharta es Hashem Elokecha. Moshe's, in this פרשה parsha, really in ספר דברים Sefer Devarim, Moshe is this incredible psychological insight into man. Moshe stands like a parent and and tragically, unfortunately, I've been there with people who've died prematurely, prematurely. השם Hashem decides what's the timing, but from our perspective, prematurely, very young. In one case, a woman who died tragically very young and the final nights of her life, my wife sat with her as she tried to write letters to her children that they would have, trying to anticipate their future, look into the challenges they would confront and face, celebrate with them their successes. That's משה Moshe. Moshe is the parent of this group of two to three million children who are about to go on. They're in their adolescence, they're about to mature and experience really the purpose when they get into ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael, when they set up a life, society, community. And he has to anticipate the challenges they will face. And as a parent who won't be there with them to usher them into this next stage of life, he's trying to empower them and give them the tools to succeed. So he anticipates you're going to reach great success and you're going to forget about השם Hashem. So וזכרת את השם אלקיך V'zacharta es Hashem Elokecha. When you feel כחי ועצם ידי kochi v'otzem yadi, when you start to think it's my success, it's my achievement, don't forget who got you there. Then remember יציאת מצרים Yetzias Mitzrayim. שמע ישראל אתה עבר היום את הירדן Shma Yisrael, atah over hayom es haYarden. You're crossing the Jordan River, opposite יריחו Yericho, opposite Jericho. You're going to see great nations. You're going to be fearful. Don't forget, השם Hashem took you out of מצרים Mitzrayim with great miracles. השם Hashem is going to take you into Israel with great miracles. And that's the constant refrain, the constant theme משה Moshe keeps going back to is as you enter normal life, you've lived 40 years of a transcendent existence, 40 years of miracles, 40 years of the undeniability of השם'ס Hashem's presence in your life. And as you go into what will be a normative lifestyle, where השם Hashem is concealed, the natural order of a judicial system, of an agricultural system, of a police system, of an army, don't forget השם Hashem. And indeed, Moshe anticipated well. In 2012, in תשע\"ב taf shin ayin beis, here we are struggling from exactly this malady in Israel and everywhere. We forget, we've reached a certain amount of success and so on. The Torah goes on and tells us about the ארון aron and it holds the, not only the לוחות ראשונות luchos rishonos, we'll see in the דף יומי daf yomi in a couple of days in גמרא ברכות Gemara Brachos, לוחות ושברי לוחות מונח בארון luchos v'shivrei luchos munach b'aron. The broken לוחות luchos are also in the ארון aron. We've spoken about that before, the idea of holding on not only to the successful moments, but holding on to the the broken moments in life and learning from them. Moshe reminds them of אהרן'ס Aaron's death, who the לויים Levi'im are, how they're segregated, they're distinguished, they're on a different level. And remember, reminding the people of the miracles they felt firsthand from השם Hashem. The land of Israel, its amazing virtues. Then we have the second paragraph of שמע Shema, which is consistent with these things. אם שמע תשמעו אל מצותי Im shamoa tishme'u el mitzvosai, if you listen to my מצות mitzvos, I'll shower you with your with blessing. You forget me, you knock me out of the equation, I'm going to withdraw, you're on your own, you're vulnerable and susceptible to the elements. And good luck to you without me, says השם Hashem. So embrace me, invite me in, you're going to be in good shape. Neglect me and push me out, I'll be out and you're susceptible and vulnerable, you're on your own, good luck. That's an overview of the פרשה parsha, which brings us to פרק ח perek ches, פסוק א pasuk aleph. Chapter eight, verse one. If you're following in the Stone חומש Chumash, it's page 982, 983. If you're in the מקראות גדולות Mikraos Gedolos, it's פרק ח פסוק א perek ches pasuk aleph. Yes. How do you translate the words between vehaya and tishmein? In other words, the עקב eikev. The עקב eikev. In the beginning of the פרשה parsha. I'm sorry? In the beginning of the פרשה parsha, you're talking about? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, עקב תשמעון eikev tishme'un. Yeah. So we discussed that I think last year, yeah. Okay. No, so that that's that's a question. How do you read it? עקב תשמעון Eikev tishme'un. רש\"י Rashi has the cute play on words. עקב Eikev is a heel, meaning if you step all over these מצות mitzvos, or עקב eikev if you hearken, עקב תשמעון eikev tishme'un seems redundant. The מפרשים meforshim struggle with that with that question. Okay, פרק ח פסוק א perek ches pasuk aleph. Yes. כל המצוה אשר אנכי מצוך היום תשמרון לעשות Kol hamitzvah asher anochi metzavcha hayom tishmerun la'asos. All of the, ה' הידיעה hey hayedia, the, doesn't say כל המצות kol hamitzvos, says כל המצוה kol hamitzvah, all of the מצוה mitzvah that I command you today, another refrain throughout the book of דברים Devarim. I once gave a sermon about this topic. Moshe seems obsessed with this word היום hayom. היום, היום, היום Hayom, hayom, hayom. Pay attention with a keen eye to ספר דברים Sefer Devarim, Moshe over and over and over again. And usually מפרשים meforshim explain Moshe emphasizes היום hayom to ingrain within us that every day it should be as if it's new, that the message is not archaic and arcane, it's not outdated, irrelevant. We haven't graduated from it. היום Hayom means it remains relevant each and every day of our life. So Moshe says, this מצוה mitzvah that I command you היום hayom, be careful to obey. Why? למען תחיון ורביתם ובאתם וירשתם את הארץ אשר נשבע השם לאבתיכם leman tichyun u'revisem u'vasem v'yirashtem es ha'aretz asher nishba Hashem la'avoseichem. Observe it and then you will live and you will increase. ורביתם Revisem. Today's דף יומי daf yomi. Moshe, the promise השם Hashem made to Moshe, ורביתם u'revisem. You see it through the promise of Moshe's own children, and ורביתם u'revisem in the beginning of ספר שמות Sefer Shmos. So you will increase, you'll promulgate, you'll propagate, you'll come and possess the land that השם Hashem swore to your forefathers. What is this מצוה mitzvah? What is this מצוה mitzvah? כל המצוה Kol hamitzvah. So the רמב\"ן Ramban, נחמנידיס Nachmanides writes, טעם כל המצוה Ta'am kol hamitzvah. That's the obvious question. It doesn't say מצות mitzvos generically. Keep מצות mitzvos and you'll get the land and you'll populate it and you'll inherit it, the land, but it says המצוה ha mitzvah. המצוה Ha mitzvah, ה' הידיעה Hey hayedia. So the רמב\"ן Ramban writes, what's the mitzvah, לאמר אף על פי שהזהרתי אתכם במשפטים, גם כל המצות תשמרון לעשות lo amar af al pi she'hizhartichem b'mishpatim, gam kol hamitzvos tishmerun la'asos. כי בעשיית כולן תחיון ורביתם בפרי ותן ופרי בהמה ופרי האדמה ככל הנזכר למעלה Ki be'asiyas kulan tichyun u'revisem be'privatan, u'fri beheima, u'fri ha'adama, kechol haniskar lema'ala. Says the רמב\"ן Ramban, even though it's written in the singular, המצוה ha'mitzvah, the רמב\"ן Ramban interprets it to the plural. Don't only be careful with the משפטים mishpatim, with the ordinances, but be careful with the מצות mitzvos. Observe the מצות mitzvos, the lifestyle, and if you do, then you will merit all of these, all of these blessings. So the רמב\"ן Ramban seems to see, even though it says מצוה mitzvah, really it means all of the מצות mitzvos. רש\"י Rashi. רש\"י Rashi writes, כפשוטו k'pshuto, meant to be understood literally. What does he mean כפשוטו k'pshuto? If you look at the שפתי חכמים Sifsei Chachamim, like the רמב\"ן Ramban, פירוש, ששם מצוה הוא שם המין perish, she'shem mitzvah hu shem hamin. כאילו אמר כל המצות ke'ilu omar kol hamitzvos. So רש\"י'ס Rashi's understanding, the mitzvah does not mean with ה' הידיעה hey hayedia, the mitzvah, but it means all of mitzvos. כל המצוה Kol hamitzvah means the species, the category. We have different categories. We have that which we call חקים chukim, that which we call משפטים mishpatim, that which we call מצות mitzvos. How to define exactly the differences between them is not for right now, but רש\"י Rashi says when it says כל המצוה kol hamitzvah, it means the category of מצות mitzvos. מדרש אגדה Medrash aggadah, רש\"י Rashi quotes a מדרש medrash. אם התחלת במצוה גמור אותה Im hischalta b'mitzvah, gmor osah. If you began a מצוה mitzvah, finish it. We have a big concept in Judaism, כל המתחיל במצוה אומרים לו גמור kol hamaschil b'mitzvah omrim lo gmor. שאין נקראת מצוה אלא על שם הגומרה She'ein nikreis mitzvah ela al shem ha'gomrah. Why? Because the מצוה mitzvah is not defined by the individual who began it, but the מצוה mitzvah is defined by the individual who concludes it, who finishes it, who brings it through fruition. שנאמר She'ne'emar, the verse says in the book of Joshua, ואת עצמות יוסף אשר העלו בני ישראל ממצרים קברו בשכם V'es atzmos Yosef asher he'elu Bnei Yisrael mi'Mitzrayim kavru b'Shchem. It says the bones of Yosef that the Jewish people brought out of Egypt. Yosef, if you remember, if you recall, made his children make a promise that when they will be redeemed from Egypt, ultimately, they will bring his bones. He will find a resting place in Israel, not permanently in מצרים Mitzrayim. And indeed, קבר יוסף Kever Yosef is in שכם Shchem. Tragically, today we don't really have access, though they've restarted under army protection. If you remember during the second Intifada, there was a great rabbi who went to visit. He was murdered by the Arabs, by so-called Palestinians in קבר יוסף Kever Yosef in שכם Shchem. Yosef ultimately was buried in שכם Shchem. So wonders רש\"י Rashi or the מדרש medrash, והלא משה לבדו נתעסק v'halo Moshe levado nis'asek בהן להעלותן ben la'halosam. Moshe himself carried out the bones, fulfilled the promise. Why does the Torah identify this מצוה mitzvah with בני ישראל Bnei Yisrael rather than with משה Moshe? אלא לפי שלא הספיק לגומרה Ela l'fi shelo hispik l'gomrah, because Moshe did not succeed in finishing it. Not because he was lazy, he wasn't allowed entrance to Israel. So it was the Jewish people who picked up where he left off. וגמרוה ישראל נקראת על שמם u'gmaruha Yisrael nikreis al shemam. מדרש תנחומא Medrash Tanchuma says, since it was others who finished it, we identify, associate the מצוה mitzvah with the individual who finished it. כל המתחיל במצוה אומרים לו גמור Kol hamaschil b'mitzvah omrim lo gmor, is quoted by שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch in a number of places. For example, the one who said shortly סליחות Slichos will be upon us. The one who says סליחות Slichos is the one who should lead the דאווענען davening. Why? כל המתחיל במצוה אומרים לו גמור Kol hamaschil b'mitzvah omrim lo gmor. Whoever started the מצוה mitzvah, we tell him, finish it. Why? If you look at the מפרשים meforshim there in the גמרא ברכות Gemara Brachos, in the שולחן ערוך Shulchan Aruch, they say very clearly, because it's so easy to begin a project. It's easy to start something. The whole world right now is learning דף יומי Daf Yomi. It's exciting. They just finished a cycle, began the 13th cycle, everybody. January 2nd, everybody belongs to a gym. Everybody's exercising. Everybody's on a diet. That's not the test. January 2nd, if you're going to the gym, test is the end of December if you're still going to the gym. The test is when you get to מסכת נדה Maseches Niddah at the end of seven and a half years, are you still doing the דף יומי Daf Yomi? To start a project is easy. To finish it, it's not so easy for some people. To finish it, that's much, that's much harder. A מתחיל במצוה אומרים לו גמור maschil b'mitzvah omrim lo gmor. So רש\"י Rashi says the מדרש medrash you see from here, כל המצוה kol hamitzvah, you begin the מצוה mitzvah, don't just begin it, but see it through to fruition, see it through all the way to the end. The כלי יקר Kli Yakar notes another anomaly in our פסוק pasuk. Again, the purpose of our שיעור shiur is not a little ווארטלאך vortlach, but try to dissect and analyze the the פסוקים psukim. So the כלי יקר Kli Yakar of לונטשיץ Luntschitz notices another anomaly. Says the says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar, התחיל בלשון יחיד, וסיים בלשון רבים hischil b'lashon yachid, v'siyem b'lashon rabim. The פסוק pasuk begins in the singular, addressing the individual. כל המצוה אשר אנכי מצוך היום Kol hamitzvah asher anochi metzavcha hayom, I command you, תשמרון לעשות tishmerun la'asos. Begins in the singular and it ends in the רבים rabim. תשמרון לעשות למען תחיון ורביתם Tishmerun la'asos l'man tichyun u'revisem. ורביתם U'revisem is in the plural. Why does it start with the singular and then shift to the plural? Says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar, לפי שצדיק יסוד עולם l'fi she'tzaddik yesod olam. A righteous person is the foundation, is a pillar of the world. ואפילו יחיד שעשה מצוה אחת, אשרי לו שהכריע את עצמו ואת כל העולם לכף זכות V'afilu yachid she'asah mitzvah achas, ashrei lo she'hichria atzmo v'es kol ha'olam l'chaf zechus. The reason the פסוק pasuk shifts is to tell us, in the beginning you were an individual who did a מצוה mitzvah. It's consistent with the opening of the פרשה parsha. It seems insignificant, big deal. You did a little מצוה'לה mitzvala. You helped an old woman across the street, you studied a little Torah, you put on תפילין tefillin, you lit candle, you took חלה challah. You did a מצוה mitzvah, no one was there. You don't think it has cosmic impact or cosmic influence. You did something seemingly insignificant, a little מצוה mitzvah. But the end of the פסוק pasuk is, the ברכה bracha is to the רבים rabim, למען תחיון ורביתם l'man tichyun u'revisem. It is the community, it is the plural, multiple people who benefit, because when a person, an individual, does a מצוה mitzvah, it has a cosmic impact. וכן יחיד שעשה תשובה מוחלין לו ולכל העולם כולו V'chen yachid she'asah teshuvah, mochlin lo v'l'kol ha'olam kulo. An individual who does תשובה teshuvah, who redefines, who reshapes himself, everybody is forgiven. לכך אמר אשר אנכי מצוך ליחיד, תשמרון לעשות למען תחיון L'chach amar asher anochi metzavcha l'yachid, tishmerun la'asos l'man tichyun. It starts out in the singular, the מצוה mitzvah, you did a little מצוה mitzvah, it is the many, it is the masses who benefit. כי שמירת היחיד דומה כאילו רבים שמרו המצוה ויגיע הטובה לכולם Ki shmiras ha'yachid domeh k'ilu rabim shamru hamitzvah v'yagia hatovah l'kulam. Because when an individual does a מצוה mitzvah, it benefits everybody. It benefits everybody in the revealed way, because the more individuals do a מצוה mitzvah, it shifts the culture. It changes the culture. The more private individuals who do מצות mitzvos, the more it influences by osmosis the community. But it also has a cosmic impact in a spiritual sense. Even if it doesn't influence anybody through osmosis, our merits are all collected in one place and there has a big impact. The רמב\"ם Rambam writes in הלכות תשובה Hilchos Teshuvah that we should view ourselves as if the scales of the world are exactly in balance. They're even. And the next act we do will shift the scales to influence the very determination of the world, the very destiny of the world. We do a good deed, the scales shift in the favor of the world. We make a wrong choice, the scales shift unfavorably for the world. So therefore the verse says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar begins לשון יחיד lashon yachid in the singular and ends לשון רבים lashon rabim. For those who dropped walked in, we're on page 982 in the Stone חומש Chumash, the beginning of chapter eight. We read the first verse. We continue. פסוק ב' Pasuk beis. וזכרת את כל הדרך אשר הוליכך השם אלקיך V'zacharta es kol haderech asher holichacha Hashem Elokecha, remember the entire path that God took us on. זה ארבעים שנה במדבר zeh arba'im shanah bamidbar. God took us for 40 years in the desert. למען ענותך L'maan anoscha, and what was the purpose? Why did we go on this 40-year journey? And why in this desert climate? And why did we confront the elements that we confronted? What was it all about? Says Moshe, I'll tell you now, at the end of the 40 years. You know why you just went through this whole period? למען ענותך לנסותך לדעת את אשר בלבבך התשמר מצותיו אם לא L'maan anoscha, l'nasoscha, lada'as es asher bilvavcha, hatishmor mitzvosav im lo. God caused us to struggle in order to test us, to know, to reveal what's in our hearts. Are we committed to His מצות mitzvos or not? You know what this 40 years was about? An incubator period in the desert. 40 years in our adolescence as we were forming as a nation, purging the slave mentality, becoming a sacred people, a covenantal community as the rav put it. And why? In order to test us. Because when all is well, it's not much of a test. It's when you confront hardship. It's when you're squeezed. It's when the oyster is agitated that it produces the pearl. So הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu put us through in order to reveal what's in our hearts, what it's really all about. How was it a test? Let's see. Here all the commentaries come in. Says רש\"י Rashi, says רש\"י Rashi, התשמר מצותיו hatishmor mitzvosav? שלא תנסהו ולא תהרהר אחריו Shelo senasehu v'lo seharher acharav. Interesting. רש\"י Rashi translates the verse entirely differently than I would have. Between me and רש\"י Rashi, I'd go with רש\"י Rashi by the way, but entirely different than what I would describe as the פשט pshat, the simple meaning of the text. The easy understanding is, He put us through this incubator in the desert 40 years, למען ענותך l'maan anoscha, to challenge us, לנסותך l'nasoscha. Who is testing whom? The easy understanding is God is testing us. רש\"י Rashi doesn't say that. שלא תנסהו Shelo senasehu, God put us through this to see if we would test Him. ו לא תהרהר אחריו V'lo seharher acharav. שפתי חכמים Sifsei Chachamim notes this. Look at the שפתי חכמים Sifsei Chachamim, the super commentary on רש\"י Rashi, דפירוש לכך פירשו d'perish l'chach pirsho. שלכך עינה אותו לדעת התשמור מצותיו, כלומר שלא תנסהו D'l'chach einu oso lada'as hashmor mitzvosav, klomar shelo senasehu. כאילו אמר לדעת אם תסור אחריו אחר שעינה אותך לשמור מצותיו K'ilu omar lada'as im sasar acharav achar she'anu oscha l'shamer mitzvosav, מה לי ולמצותיו mah li v'l'mitzvosav. God was testing us, that we would go through this experience in the desert to see whether we turned to God and say, what's the point of all of these מצות mitzvos? זו תורה וזו שכרה Zu Torah v'zu schorah? You gave us these מצות mitzvos and still we struggle? I thought the purpose of מצות mitzvos is to live an enlightened, enriched, wonderful life. I'm struggling, I'm suffering. What's the point of these מצות mitzvos? That was the test. Would you only embrace מצות mitzvos in a time of ease, of plenty, of blessing, of abundance, of bounty? Or would מצות mitzvos be meaningful even when the elements confront us and we struggle? So רש\"י Rashi understands, התשמר מצותיו אם לא Hatishmor mitzvosav im lo, will you retain fidelity to the מצות mitzvos, will you be loyal to the מצות mitzvos, even when the times are hard? So רש\"י Rashi, off the bat, gives a very different interpretation than I would have given. From the verse, it seems to me that God is saying, I tested you. רש\"י Rashi reinterprets it to say, no, the פסוק pasuk is saying, will you test God? What are these tests? So if you look at the אבן עזרא Ibn Ezra, ויענך v'ya'ancha, where's the challenge? בדרך baderech. Walk in 40 years in the desert, carrying everything you own on your back, the sun beating down on you. I was in Israel this summer for two weeks. That Middle East sun, it sucks the very life out of you. It is tough. And we had air conditioning. This is their 40-year desert in the Middle East, בדרך baderech. What's, למען ענותך l'maan anoscha, that is the, the challenge. Says the, says the רשב\"ם Rashbam, למען ענותך, זה עינוי שאין פת בסלך l'maan anoscha, zeh inui she'ein pas b'salcha. וחייך תלויים למרום בכל יום v'chayecha tluyim l'marom b'chol yom. You know what the challenge was? The challenge was that you didn't have פת בסלך pas b'salcha. We all have a bank account. And if you're lucky, you have a few שקל shekel in the bank account. You have a few, you have a few dollars in the bank account. So, okay, you're not worried about where tonight's meal is going to come from. Maybe you're worried about next month, maybe you're worried about next year, maybe you're worried about your retirement. But today, tomorrow morning your breakfast, there's a little cereal in the cupboard, a little oatmeal. You know where your breakfast's going to come from. In the desert, they didn't know where the next meal was going to come from. Says the רשב\"ם Rashbam, ר' שמואל בן מאיר R'Shmuel ben Meir, רש\"י'ס Rashi's grandson, that's לענותך l'aanoscha. That's the test. When you don't know where the next meal's going to come from, that's a test. Then you're being squeezed. And through it, says the ספורנו Sforno, לנסותך l'nasoscha, you will be tested. אם תעשה רצונו בהשיגך לחם בשמחה שלא בצער im ta'aseh r'tzono b'hasigcha lechem b'simcha shelo b'tzaar. So you see the ספורנו Sforno, the רשב\"ם Rashbam understand different than רש\"י Rashi. רש\"י Rashi understood the quest was, will we test God? The other מפרשים meforshim understand the question is, how will we withstand the test from God? And what's the point of it? לדעת את אשר בלבבך l'daas es asher bilvavcha, to know what's in our heart. Says the ספורנו Sforno, שיהיה מה שבלבבך יוצא לפועל sheyehei mah sheb'libecha yotzei l'poal. So that what's in your heart will come out. כדי שידע כל מקום שבדין תהיה מכריע ליותר ממלאכי השרת k'dei sheyada kol makom sheb'din tihiye machria l'yoser m'alachai hashareis, לפי שהידיעה שהיא הפועל הטוב ראוי להימצא בפועל l'pi shehayedia shehi ha'poel hatov karoi l'nimtza b'poal. The the ספורנו Sforno is saying something that the רמב\"ן Ramban said earlier. What's a test? A test brings it מן הכח אל הפועל min hakoach el hapoal. It brings it from the potential to the real. We've spoken about in the past. Only when we're put in a place of hardship do we ever identify, discover the potential that we really have. A little 110-pound skinny mother who can't struggles to lift the gallon milk and put it in her cart in the supermarket, if a car is pinning her son to the ground, she finds the ability through the adrenaline to lift that car to get her son out. She could never find that כח koach, that strength, if not put in that hard situation. Sometimes we're placed in a moment of hardship. We discussed this when we talked about השם Hashem והאלקים נסה את אברהם v'haElokim nisa es Avraham. A נסיון nisayon is a test. God tested Abraham. A test is מן הכח min hakoach, the רמב\"ן Ramban writes there, מן הכח אל הפועל min hakoach el hapoal. It's what the ספורנו Sforno writes here. So collectively as a community, we were tested. And why was it? Because God wanted us to suffer? No. A test is not a test. The רמב\"ן Ramban redefines, the ספורנו Sforno redefines. The word לנסותך l'nasoscha is not test, it means opportunity. Through the challenge we face, we discover opportunity, we discover power, we discover latent potential that we didn't know that we had, and we bring it out into the reality. Turn back to the second half of the כלי יקר Kli Yakar. That's what the כלי יקר Kli Yakar writes so eloquently. The כלי יקר Kli Yakar on פסוק א' pasuk aleph, in the second half, says exactly this. ומה שנאמר למען ענותך לנסותך לדעת את אשר בלבבך U'ma she'ne'emar l'maan anoscha, l'nasoscha, l'daas es asher bilvavcha. Now which we said that God challenges us to test us, הוא לשון הרמת נס hu lashon haramas nes. See the word לנסותך l'nasoscha, נ\"ס nun samech, can have multiple meanings. והאלקים נסה את אברהם V'haElokim nisa es Avraham, it means God tested Abraham. On the one hand, the שורש נ\"ס shoresh nun samech means a test. On the other hand, in our דאווענען davening, what do we say? תקע בשופר גדול לחירותנו Kabbeitz shofar gadol l'cheiruseinu, gather the exiles, bring us together. ושא נס v'sa nes. And raise a banner, a flag. A נס nes is also a banner, a flag. It seems to me that the word test and banner flag really are synonymous. When we endure a test and we discover something about ourselves, we can post a flag, we can raise the banner. It is a major day in our lives that we learned something new about ourselves. So says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar the same thing here. When it says לנסותך l'nasoscha, I tested you לדעת את אשר בלבבך l'daas asher bilvavcha, to know what's in your heart, הוא לשון הרמת נס hu lashon haramas nes. It means to raise the flag. כאילו הושם לבך על נס גבוה k'ilu husam libcha al nes gavoa. We, God says, I put your heart on the flag and I raised it והושיבה בפתח עיניים שכל צופות בו v'hushiva b'pesach einayim shekol tzufos bo. I I took your heart and I put what's in your heart on the flag, and I raised your flag for everyone to see. כך רצה לדעת אשר בלבבך לכל גויי הארץ Kach ratza l'daas asher bilvavcha l'chol goyei ha'aretz, כי לדעת מלשון למען דעת כל עמי הארץ ki l'daas milashon l'maan daas kol amei ha'aretz. God wasn't concerned, says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar, for him knowing what's in your heart. God knows what's in everyone's heart. Whom did God want to see what was in our hearts? Us, but כל גויי הארץ kol goyei ha'aretz. We're about to enter the land. He wants all the inhabitants of the land to know this people that just came out of Egypt 40 years ago, this little young nation, this young democracy in Israel today only founded in 1948, you're going to go up against them, you're going to send rockets and missiles into them, you're going to send suicide bombers, you're going to try to drive them into the sea. God says, let me prove what's in their heart and put it on a flag and let the world see the courage and the conviction, the resolve and the tenacity, the faith that they live with. ורצה להודיעם אם תשמרו מצותיו או לא V'ratza l'hodiam im tishmeru mitzvosav o lo. כי ממה נפשך, אם תשמרו מצותיו יתן השם לך הצלחה Ki m'man nafshach, im tishmeru mitzvosav yiten Hashem l'cha hatzlacha ביתר שאת על כל העמים b'yeser se'eis al kol ha'amim. ויהיה להם מקום לומר, למה לא עשה כן לכל גוי ומשפטיו v'yihyeh lahem makom lomar, lama lo asah kein l'chol goy u'mishpatav, ועשה יוצא ירך אברהם v'asah yotzei yareich Avraham. The other nations will see, Jewish people came out of the Holocaust, the other nations saw a people with a will, with a tenacity, with a survival instinct, with the ability to rebuild, with the ability to restore the dignity of the past. And that means something. And says השם Hashem, that's why למען ענותך l'maan anoscha, I caused you to challenges, לנסותך l'nasoscha, which we until now interpreted as a test, the כלי יקר Kli Yakar interprets it as to raise a flag, to raise a banner for the world to see what's in your heart, for the world to see what's in your soul, for the world to see what you have in you. Beautiful. So we saw the רש\"י Rashi understands, God is worried that man will test him. Everyone else understands, no, God is testing man. How will we react through 40 years in the desert? כלי יקר Kli Yakar says, God is not testing at all. God is bringing out what is inside of us so he could raise it on a banner, on a flag for all others to see. פסוק ג Pasuk gimmel. Much more to talk about with all of this, but there's a lot I want to get to. פסוק ג Pasuk gimmel. ויענך וירעבך ויאכילך את המן אשר לא ידעת Vay'ancha vayarbecha vayachilcha es haman asher lo yadata, ולא ידעו אבותיך v'lo yad'u avosecha. So again, ויענך v'ya'ancha means I caused you challenges. God tested us. וירעיבך V'yarivecha means we were hungry. ויאכילך את המן V'yachilcha es haman, so what did he do to satisfy our hunger? He gave us the manna. But this manna, this food stuff was something אשר לא ידעת asher lo yadata, we didn't know from it. ולא ידעו אבותיך v'lo yad'u avosecha. Not only did we have not know from it, our forefathers didn't know from it. למען הודיעך כי לא על הלחם לבדו יחיה האדם L'maan hodiacha ki lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha'adam. Why did God give it to us? Why did we first have to feel the pangs of hunger only to be satisfied by the manna, this mysterious food we had no prior experience with? Because it was again a message. למען הודיעך L'maan hodiacha, to teach us. כי לא על הלחם לבדו יחיה האדם Ki lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha'adam, that man does not exist from bread alone, כי על כל מוצא פי השם יחיה האדם ki al kol motza pi Hashem yichyeh ha'adam. We survive and we live on that which comes from השם Hashem, on that which comes from השם Hashem. See the רמב\"ן Ramban, רמב\"ן Ramban says, what does it mean that we didn't know from this bread and our forefathers didn't know from? Who cares if our forefathers ever had the manna? Bottom line was, we were hungry and the bottom line was God gave us food. Whether we knew of that food beforehand or didn't, who cares? Whether our forefathers had an experience with that food beforehand, what's the relevance? Who cares? Says the רמב\"ן Ramban, נחמנידיס Nachmanides, no, we care. כי לא ידעת במן שתאכלו לחיות בו ימים רבים ki lo yadata b'man she'tuchlu l'chiyos bo yamim rabim. We didn't know from this food whether it would sustain us or not. לא הגיע אליכם כן בקבלה מאבותיכם lo higia aleichem kein b'kabbalah me'avoseichem. We didn't have a tradition from our forefathers whether this food could sustain us. So it is significant. It means we were hungry and God deposited this food upon us from heaven, but we didn't know whether it would sustain us to the next day. And nevertheless, we were satisfied. That was part of the test. או יאמר, כי עשה עמך חסד גדול אשר אבותיך הקדושים לא הגיעו אליו O yomar, ki asah imcha chesed gadol asher avosecha hakdoshim lo higiu eilav. So the רמב\"ן Ramban offers two interpretations. The first is that we were eating this food that we didn't know from, our forefathers didn't know from, and therefore we couldn't have any sense of confidence it would sustain us. The second פשט pshat is, God must have loved you. Moshe's talking to this generation. He gave you the manna and he didn't give it to your forefathers. They didn't know from it. אף על פי שחכרו אחריו ככל שטיבעו עולם... לך לך מארצך ומבית אביך Af al pi she'chachru acharav kakol she'tiv'o olam... lech lecha me'artzecha u'mibeis avicha. אברהם יצחק ויעקב Avraham, Yitzchak v'Yaakov, all the twelve שבטים shvatim followed God's charge. לא הגיע מעלתם שיתפרנסו מדגן השמים כאשר עשה לך lo higia ma'alasam she'yisparnesu mi'dgan hashamaim ka'asher asah l'cha. They didn't attain the level of being worthy of being sustained from the Almighty himself through the manna, and you did. Moshe's pumping up the people. You've attained a level that they didn't. וכן אמר מדרש שמות רבה v'chen omar Medrash Shemos Rabbah, בזכות משה b'zchus Moshe, ישם אוכלים המן yesam ochlim haman, מה שלא ראו אבותיהם mah shelo rau avosehem. In the merit of Moshe, you have access to a food that no one else before and no one else after had, to try to remind them of their distinct status during this time. Okay, so that's the relevance of your forefathers didn't have it. פסוק ד' Pasuk dalet. שמלתך לא בלתה מעליך Simlascha lo valsa me'alecha. By the way, what's, what's כי לא על הלחם לבדו יחיה האדם ki lo al halechem levado yichyeh ha'adam, that, well, you know what, let's keep going. Let's keep going. פסוק ד' Pasuk dalet. Is it very hot in here? Just me? I'm drinking a coffee right before the class. Okay, פסוק ד' pasuk dalet. שמלתך לא בלתה מעליך ורגלך לא בצקה זה ארבעים שנה Simlatcha lo balta me'alecha v'raglecha lo vatzeka zeh arba'im shana. Moshe continues to tell them, remember, the manna fell for you, and you also had other miracles. Namely, your clothing did not wear out and your feet did not become בצקה batzeka. What's בצקה batzeka? How do they translate it here? Swollen. How do you know בצקה batzeka is swollen? What's the word בצק batzek? Dough. Look at Rashi. לא נפחה כבצק Lo nifcha k'batzek, כדי דרך הולכי יחף שרגליהם נפוחות k'derech holchei yachef she'ragleihem nefuchos. What happens when you walk for a very, very long time? You're in Israel, you're walking everywhere you go, you go on a hike, you take your feet out of your, you take your shoes off. When you try to put your shoes back on, what happens? Your feet have swollen in the interim. Says Moshe, what a miracle. You didn't just go on a hike for an hour, you've been walking for forty years. And nevertheless, your feet have not swollen. Forty years, the same clothing, it hasn't worn out. It hasn't worn out. What a miracle. Recognize the miracle. Says Rashi, what do you mean your clothing hasn't worn out? ענני כבוד היו שפים ומכבסים ומגהצים אותם כמין כלים מגוהצים Ananei kavod hayu shafim u'mechabsim u'megahatzim otam k'min kelim meguhotzim. And not only that, but בגדי קטניהם כמו שהיו גדלים, היו גדלים לבושיהם עמהם, כלבוש הזה של חומט שגדל עמו bigdei k'taneihem k'mo she'hayu g'deilim, hayu g'deilim l'vusheihem imam, k'l'vush hazeh shel chomet she'gadel imo. Two miracles. The ענני כבוד ananei kavod were a great dry cleaner in the sky. Your clothing was ironed, was fresh, was starched, was clean, never wore out. And number two, children. Someone who came out of Mitzrayim as ten years old was going into Israel at fifty years old. The clothing they had when they were ten years old should not fit them at fifty, correct? Well, there was no Lord & Taylor, Marshalls, Neiman Marcus, wherever you shop, Nordstrom's, Sims, עליו השלום alav hashalom. There was no Sims in the מדבר midbar. So where'd they get the new clothing? So Rashi quotes the Midrash, they didn't need it. Miraculously, their clothing grew with them.Look at the כלי יקר Kli Yakar. שמלתך לא בלתה מעליך Simlatcha lo balta me'alecha. Your clothing didn't wear out from on you. לא נאמר אלא מעליך Lo ne'emar ela me'alecha. The Kli Yakar is very careful, he's looking, he's reading. It doesn't say your clothing didn't wear out, עליך alecha, on you. It says מעליך me'alecha, from upon you. יש אומרים שכיוון על הזיעה המצוי בהולכי דרכים Yesh omrim she'kiven al ha'ze'ah ha'matzui b'holchei d'rachim. It's talking about the sweat. Maybe that's why I'm passing out over here. ברוך השם Baruch Hashem. The sweat didn't, the sweat, the perspiration from upon you. וזה מבלה את הבגדים V'zeh mevaleh et ha'begadim. So what happens? The more you perspire, the more it wears out the clothing that's absorbing the perspiration. לכך נאמר מעליך, מן הדבר אשר עליך L'chach ne'emar me'alecha, min ha'davar asher alecha. Again, I'm trying to show you the sensitivity to the wording. We should have noticed that מם mem. It should say שמלתך לא בלתה עליך simlatcha lo balta alecha, your clothing didn't wear out upon you. But it doesn't say that. It says מעליך me'alecha, from upon you. How do you understand that? The כלי יקר Kli Yakar understands it, מעליך me'alecha, it didn't wear out from that which is upon you, namely, your sweat and perspiration. ועל כן סמך לו ורגלך לא בצקה כי דרך סיבה לשניהם V'al kein samach lo v'raglecha lo vatzeka ki derech sibah l'shneihem. And that's why he continued, your feet did not swell. The reason for one's feet swelling and clothing wearing out are one and the same, namely, walking forty years in the desert. And then the Kli Yakar ends and references the דף יומי Daf Yomi from yesterday. The Gemara says in מסכת ברכות Masechet Brachot, הני מאני דרבנן דבלו מחופריא דידהו hani manei d'rabbanan d'balu m'chufriya did'hu. The שדים sheidim, the מזיקין mazikin, the spirits. Normally it says, you know why our clothing wears out? Because there are spirits all around us. מזיקין Mazikin, שדים sheidim. And the spirits rub up against our clothing. The Gemara in yesterday's דף יומי Daf Yomi, Brachot דף ו' Daf Vav, said there are a thousand to our left and ten thousand to our right. Spirits everywhere we turn, how if we were able to see them, we would be paralyzed and gripped with fear. But the rubbing against all those spirits wears out our clothing, and that's why we need to replace it. The Gemara says, that's why even תלמידי חכמים talmidei chachamim, all they're doing is sitting and learning, why are their clothing wearing out? Because the שדים sheidim attack them. So in the מדבר midbar, says the כלי יקר Kli Yakar, these שדים sheidim didn't exist. In the מדבר midbar, these spirits were not there. And therefore, they didn't pose a problem. Rav Ahron Soloveitchik, זצ\"ל zatzal, ראש ישיבה Rosh Yeshiva of Brisk in Chicago, gave a shiur in Yeshiva University as well, the brother of the Rav, in his book, Logic of the Heart, Logic of the Mind, he has an essay, he writes, he understands שדים sheidim not to be taken literally as spirits. He understands שדים sheidim because the רמב\"ם Rambam rejects the whole concept of beings of spirits that attack us. So he reinterprets based on the רמב\"ם Rambam that שדים sheidim means bacteria, viruses. If one could see, and that's how he understands the Gemara. If you could see the bacteria in the air, you'd be gripped with fear. A thousand to our left, ten thousand to our right. Bacteria, the elements of the earth, that's what makes our clothing wear out. They're exposed to the elements of the world. That what's what, so that's what they were protected from in the מדבר midbar, they didn't face those struggles. ווייטער Vayter. So, so does the word clothing include footwear of any kind? Yeah. Yeah. פסוק ה' Pasuk Hey. וידעת עם לבבך V'yadata im l'vavecha, verse five. וידעת V'yadata, know, Hashem, in your heart, כי כאשר ייסר איש את בנו, ה' אלוקיך מיסרך ki ka'asher y'yaser ish et b'no, Hashem Elokecha m'yasreka. The same way a parent challenges or tests a child, rebukes the child, so too Hashem does the same thing to us. The challenges that we faced, don't resent Hashem for it. Accept it, embrace it, understand it as an expression of love from Hashem. Hashem was trying to bring out the best from us. Just like a parent rebukes a child, is trying to have the child learn a lesson, Hashem was trying to have us learn a lesson.Okay. If I pass out, you'll, someone pick up from Pasuk Hey. כי יסר איש את בנו Ki yaser ish et b'no. I'm sorry, yeah, Pasuk Hey. Look at the Ramban. What does it mean the same way a parent chastises, rebukes a child? שיתן לו לטובתו כל מוסר She'yitein lo l'tovato kol musar. For his good gives him rebuke. כי כן נאמר יסר בנך כי יש תקוה ואל המיתו Ki kein ne'emar yaser bincha ki yesh tikvah v'el hamito. כי ה' אלוקיך מיסרך תחילה בעינוי המדבר וניסיון המן Ki Hashem Elokecha m'yasreka t'chilah b'inui ha'midbar v'nisayon ha'man, שתערב לנפשך טובת הארץ ופרי עצה she'te'erav l'nafshecha tovat ha'aretz u'pri eitzah. What's the rebuke? Says the Ramban, at first he made it hard for us living through the Midbar. When we get into ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael, yeah, that would be great, please. When we get into ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael, when we get into Eretz Yisrael and we see the beauty of the land, we will grow from it. First we've struggled through the Midbar, and when we get into Israel and we see the bounty, we will have grown through that experience. And we'll know Hashem. וידעת עם לבבך V'yadata im l'vavecha. Know in your heart. Know in your heart that there's Hashem. It's a beautiful אור החיים Or HaChaim on this. We don't have time. Let's keep going. פסוק ו' Pasuk Vav. ושמרת את מצות ה' אלוקיך ללכת בדרכיו וליראה אותו V'shamarta et mitzvot Hashem Elokecha lalechet b'drachav u'l'yir'ah oto. Observe Hashem's ways. Know that he's there, keep his mitzvos to go on his path וליראה אותו u'l'yir'ah oto, and to fear him. כי ה' אלוקיך מביאך אל ארץ טובה Ki Hashem Elokecha m'viacha el eretz tovah. Hashem, your God, will bring you to the good land. ארץ נחלי מים, עינות ותהומות יוצאים בבקעה ובהר Eretz nachalei mayim, ayanot u't'homot yotz'im ba'bik'ah u'vahar. A world, a land which is flowing with water, of springs and underground water coming forth in valleys and mountains. He'll bring you to this land of goodness. Namely, which land is that? Eretz Yisrael. ארץ חטה ושעורה וגפן ותאנה ורימון, ארץ זית שמן ודבש Eretz chitah u'se'orah v'gefen u't'einah v'rimon, eretz zeit shemen u'd'vash. It's a land of wheat and barley, it's a land of grapes, ותאנה ורימון u't'einah v'rimon, of figs and pomegranates, ארץ זית שמן ודבש eretz zeit shemen u'd'vash. It's a land of olives that produce oil and honey. These are the seven species of the land of Israel. This is the origin. The seven species through which the land is praised. So Hashem is going to bring us into this land, that's the ultimate destination.Look at the בעל הטורים Baal HaTurim. ללכת בדרכיו Lalechet b'drachav, we should walk in the way with Hashem. Says the בעל הטורים Baal HaTurim, Rav Yaakov ben Asher, בגימטריא ללמוד תורה b'gematria lilmod Torah. To walk in Hashem's ways means to learn his Torah, to never stop learning his Torah. If we learn his Torah, occupy ourselves with his Torah, then we merit this blessing in the land. ארץ חטה ושעורה Eretz chitah u'se'orah, פסוק ח' Pasuk Chet. How many words in verse eight? Count them. How many words in verse eight? Ten. Ten words. Says the בעל הטורים Baal HaTurim, י' תיבות בפסוק yud teivot ba'pasuk, thank you so much. Ten words in the verse, לכך צריך ליתן י' אצבעות בפת בשעת ברכה l'chach tzarich litein yud etzba'ot ba'pat b'sha'at bracha. The Gemara in ברכות Brachot on דף מ\"ח Daf Mem Chet says that when a person makes המוציא HaMotzi, they should have all ten fingers on the bread. That's the מנהג minhag when we make המוציא HaMotzi, all seven days of the week. But on Shabbos, we hold the two loaves. All ten fingers are on contact. You've just washed your hands, so don't worry, okay, they're clean. All ten fingers are in contact with the bread when you make the bracha of המוציא לחם מן הארץ HaMotzi lechem min ha'aretz. Why? To remember the ten words in this pasuk. י' תיבות בפסוק, לכך צריך ליתן י' אצבעות בפת בשעת ברכה Yud teivot ba'pasuk, l'chach tzarich litein yud etzba'ot ba'pat b'sha'at bracha. ועוד כנגד י' מצוות שנעשו בפת V'od k'neged yud mitzvot she'na'asu ba'pat. The other reason we hold all the bread with all ten fingers is to remember and recall the ten mitzvos that are connected with the making of bread. Namely, לא תחרוש lo tacharosh, you're not allowed to plow, לא תחרוש בשור בדישו lo tacharosh b'shor b'disho. לא תזרע כלאים Lo tizra kilayim. לקט, שכחה, פאה Leket, shich'chah, pe'ah. לא תחסום שור בדישו Lo tachsom shor b'disho, and so on and so forth. You have all of these mitzvos connected with the development of ultimately getting bread. There are ten mitzvos to arrive at bread, so you have ten fingers on the bread when you make the, when you make the bracha.Right. Okay, so Pasuk Chet, again. So the the Baal HaTurim said the reason we grip the bread with ten fingers, to remind us of ten words in this pasuk, the ten mitzvos that develop bread, and as Moshe said, thank you, also the ten words in the bracha of המוציא לחם מן הארץ HaMotzi lechem min ha'aretz. Pasuk Tet. ארץ אשר לא במסכנות תאכל בה לחם, לא תחסר כל בה. ארץ אשר אבניה ברזל ומהרריה תחצוב נחשת Eretz asher lo v'miskenut tochal bah lechem, lo techsar kol bah. Eretz asher avaneha barzel u'me'harareha tachtzov n'choshet. This land is a very special land. Hashem's taking us to a place that will eat bread without poverty. לא במסכנות Lo v'miskenut. We won't be with סכנה sakanah, we won't be in danger, we won't be in poverty when we eat the bread. It's a land where we won't lack for anything. לא תחסר כל בה Lo techsar kol bah, nothing will be missing. ארץ אשר אבניה ברזל Eretz asher avaneha barzel, it's a land where the stones are made from iron. ומהרריה תחצוב נחשת U'me'harareha tachtzov n'choshet, and the hills, the mountains will mine with copper. So what's going on here in this pasuk? What's the connection between all of this? So, first of all לא במסכנות lo v'miskenut, what does it mean that we're going to eat bread without danger? We're going to eat bread without, without hunger? So the רשב\"ם Rashbam writes in Pasuk Tet, כלומר לא תאכל פת חריבה כדרך עני ומסוכן klomar lo tochal pat chareiva k'derech ani u'mesukan. We don't have to eat stale bread. There'll be such abundance when we get into the land of Israel, we won't eat stale bread. שהרי מלבד חטה ושעורה שהוא לחם, יהיה לך גפן ותאנה ורימון She'harei milvad chitah v'se'orah she'hu lechem, yihiyeh lecha gefen v't'einah v'rimon. In addition to the wheat and barley, which is the ingredients for bread, there's also going to be גפן ותאנה ורימון gefen, t'einah, v'rimon, these other ingredients, so the bread won't be stale. ודבש תמרים שהם מתוקים U'd'vash t'marim she'hem m'tukim, there's sweetness. We're going to get dips, all kinds of salads. The land is going to provide a tremendous appetizers, buffet. It's not going to be a land just of stale bread. That's the kind of wealth and prosperity we're going to experience in this land.The כלי יקר Kli Yakar has a creative interpretation here based on the Gemara in Taanit. ארץ אשר אבניה ברזל Eretz asher avaneha barzel, a land whose stones are iron. אל תקרי אבניה אלא בוניה Al tikrei avaneha ela boneha. Don't read it sons, but read it בוניה boneha, those who build it. אלו תלמידי חכמים שעוסקים בבנינו של עולם, והם מחדדים זה את זה כברזל Eilu talmidei chachamim she'oskim b'vinyano shel olam, v'hem m'chad'dim zeh et zeh k'varzel. These are תלמידי חכמים talmidei chachamim, Torah scholars, who are occupying themselves with the foundation of the world. בנינו של עולם Binyano shel olam, the building the very world like iron. Just like iron is the foundation of a building, אלו תלמידי חכמים eilu talmidei chachamim. Asks the Kli Yakar, מה ראה הכתוב לדרוש פסוק זה על לומדי תורה ממקום שיש לדחוק את הפסוק כפשוטו mah ra'ah ha'katuv lidrosh pasuk zeh al lomdei Torah mi'makom she'yesh lidchok et ha'pasuk k'pshuto. Why did the Gemara derive this lesson about תלמידי חכמים talmidei chachamim? Just read it the way the verse sounds. ונראה שקשה להם כי פסוק זה מסך עניין אכילת לחם V'nir'eh she'kasha lahem ki pasuk zeh masach b'inyan achilat lechem. The verse begins by talking about bread. ואחר כך אמר ואכלת ושבעת V'acharei kach amar v'achalta v'savata, you eat and you're satisfied. מה נתן רמז מן הברזל והנחשת Mah natan remez min ha'barzel v'ha'nchoshet? What is iron and copper have to do between the eating the bread and being satisfied from the bread? Right? So again, the Kli Yakar is bothered by if you read the p'sukim, Hashem, Moshe describes the ingredients of the land, the seven species of this land. Then he says, this is a land that you're not going to ever go hungry, the bread is fantastic. Oh, and by the way, there's iron and copper. And when you'll eat, you'll be satisfied, you'll make a bracha. Why interrupt the bread and eating and being satisfied with the concept of this iron and copper? So he says, אלא ודאי שהכל מדבר מהנהגת לומדי תורה ela vadai she'hakol medaber m'hanhagat lomdei Torah. All of this is metaphorical. All of these verses are not talking literally about bread and ingredients and eating and iron, but rather it's talking about learning. כי כך דרכה של תורה, פת במלח תאכל Ki kach darkah shel Torah, pat ba'melach tochal. The Mishna in Avot says, that's the way Torah is learned. People are, they just eat bread dipped in salt. והביע הכתוב שארץ זו בא בעבור מסכנות ודלות תאכל בו לחם כמו שהוא V'hibia ha'katuv she'eretz zu ba avur miskenut v'dalut tochal bo lechem k'mo she'hu, שלא תחסר כל בה she'lo techsar kol bah. אלא לפי שהיא ארץ אשר אבניה הם בוניה ברזל מחדדים זה לזה בהלכה Ela l'fi she'hi eretz asher avaneha hem boneha barzel m'chad'dim zeh l'zeh ba'halacha, ובכל כך יהיה להם חשק בתורה עד שלא ידרשו איזו בקבוקן של יין שחרית וערבית u'v'chol kach yehiyeh lahem cheishek ba'Torah ad she'lo yidr'shu eizeh bakbukan shel yayin shacharit v'aravit, אלא יסתפקו בלחם לבד ela yistapku b'lechem l'vad. They will be so satisfied from the learning that they'll be doing, they'll be establishing, supporting, upholding the world through the Torah that's being studied, they'll be satisfied with bread alone to nourish them, because they won't need delicacies. ואל תאמר שעל ידי כך יתאש כוחם V'al tomar she'al y'dei kach yitash kocham. Don't say these yeshiva students are going to become weak. All they're doing is sitting and learning, they're not eating real food, they're going to be weak. אלא על כל פנים יתחזקו כברזל כי התורה תתן עוז ותעצומות להם Ela al kol panim yitchazku k'varzel ki ha'Torah titein oz v'ta'atzumot lahem. Torah will give them strength. They will be strong like iron. ומה שדורשו אבניה בוניה אין צורך לזה U'mah she'darshu avaneha boneha ein tzorech l'zeh. And the Kli Yakar goes on with this theme. But what I wanted to share with you is that the Kli Yakar reinterprets these p'sukim not to be talking literally about the ingredients of the land, but a metaphor for those who learn Torah. Torah is often likened to bread, and so on and so forth. What does it mean that you're not going to go hungry? What does it mean that you'll always be satisfied? Is it possible? In Eretz Yisrael today, are there not hungry people? There's a tremendous population living below the poverty line. How could Hashem promise that when you go into Israel לא במסכנות lo v'miskenut, you're never going to go hungry, you're never going to want? So we say at the end of benching, נער הייתי גם זקנתי ולא ראיתי צדיק נעזב וזרעו מבקש לחם Na'ar hayiti gam zakanti v'lo ra'iti tzadik ne'ezav v'zar'o m'vakesh lachem. We end our benching with a pasuk from Tehillim. David HaMelech says, \"Once I was young and now I am old, but I've never seen a righteous person or his children longing for bread.\" I don't understand that. You never saw a tzaddik? You don't see righteous people, talmidei chachamim, Torah scholars suffering in poverty, longing for bread? We see good, today's Daf Yomi, צדיק ורע לו, רשע וטוב לו Tzaddik v'ra lo, rasha v'tov lo. Moshe said to Hashem, הודיעני נא את דרכך hodi'eni na et d'rachecha. So what do you mean? You don't see righteous people who are hungry? So in the Rabbi Jonathan Sacks' siddur, put out by Koren, he quotes in his commentary on benching from Rabbi Soloveitchik. And he writes, Rabbi Soloveitchik argued the word לא ראיתי lo ra'iti, I have never seen, should be understood in the same sense in which it appears in the book of Esther. When Esther pleads on behalf of the Jewry, she says, איככה אוכל וראיתי ברעה אשר ימצא את עמי eichacha uchal v'ra'iti ba'ra'ah asher yimtza et ami. Something like that. What's the pasuk? We read it with the tune of Eicha. איככה אוכל וראיתי Eichacha uchal v'ra'iti, \"How can I see the harm that's come on my people?\" So there the word, the verb there means, וראיתי v'ra'iti, not to watch, but to stand as passive witness to. Taken in the sense, the pasuk here in Tehillim should be understood as, when the righteous was forsaken or his children forced to search for bread, I never merely stood and watched. Understood thus, it is a warning against being a mere bystander while other people suffer. It brings the grace to a symmetrical close. It began by speaking of God's goodness in feeding the hungry, and it ends with an injunction for us to do likewise. This too is part of walking in God's ways. So Sacks quotes this beautiful interpretation from the Rav. We end benching, ולא ראיתי צדיק נעזב וזרעו מבקש לחם v'lo ra'iti tzadik ne'ezav v'zar'o m'vakesh lachem, not ולא ראיתי v'lo ra'iti, I have never seen, but I've never been a bystander. I've never been passive to someone else's poverty or suffering. I was reminded of that vort from the from the pasuk here. So this ends, ואכלת ושבעת וברכת v'achalta v'savata u'veirachta, we will eat and we will be satisfied and we will bench, את ה' אלקיך על הארץ הטובה אשר נתן לך et Hashem Elokecha al ha'aretz ha'tovah asher natan lach. This is the origin of the biblical obligation to bench. When we eat bread, when we eat a meal and we're satisfied, we have to thank Hashem, we have to offer him benching. מידי דאורייתא Mid'oraita, we only have to bench when we've eaten to satisfaction. If you had a meal where you're less than fully satisfied, then you're not obligated biblically to bench, we're only obligated rabbinically. In fact, the Gemara says, Hashem says, \"Look at my people, my children, they try to bribe me, they have won me over, because I told them they only have to bench when they eat to their satisfaction, but they've taken upon themselves to even bench when they've eaten only a כזית k'zayit, even when they've eaten a smaller amount, only the amount of an olive or an egg, a כביצה k'beitzah, nevertheless they bench.\" So Rav Soloveitchik in the ספר דרוש דרש ויוסף Sefer Darosh Darash V'Yosef by Rabbi Avishai David, who has דיבורי תורה divrei Torah of the Rav on the parsha, he quotes, the Rav expounded the Gemara in Brachos, Jewish people are meticulous with themselves with regarding the amount of food item, size of an olive or an egg for which they're required to praise. So the Rav presented Eretz Yisrael as a land of plenty, contains streams, produces seven principal species. Many Rishonim held the Torah obligation of Birkat Hamazon applies only when one is satisfied. But said the Rav, the ידא כוח yada koach, the strength of the Jew is to praise God even when we are not obligated to do so. We praise God even when we have no temple, when we have no Yerushalayim, when it's not in our possession. Even if we eat an amount the size of an egg or the size of an olive and are not satisfied, we're still ready to give thanks to our Hashem. We find the strength to praise God even amidst the suffering. And this was the Rav's interpretation that Hashem shows us favor. We take great care to bless Hashem even when it's less than our satisfaction, even when we're suffering, even in our hardship. And that's what found favor in Hashem. He only obligated us to bless him, to acknowledge him when all is well. But even when we are not fully satisfied, we volunteer benching, and that volunteering wins and finds favor in the eyes of Hashem. This notion of benching, we spent time on it last Shabbos, that the first three brachos of benching were instituted, the first of הזן Hazan was instituted by Yehoshua when they came into the land, the Gemara in Brachos says. The second of, of, of, I'm sorry, the first bracha of הזן Hazan was instituted by Moshe when the manna fell. The second was instituted על הארץ ועל המזון al ha'aretz v'al ha'mazon by Yehoshua when they came in the land. The third by David and Shlomo, when they built the Beis HaMikdash. That was בונה ירושלים Boneh Yerushalayim. And those are the first three are מידי דאורייתא mid'oraita. In fact, to show, to signify that the first three are biblical, and the fourth blessing we have of הטוב והמטיב, האל אבינו מלכנו ha'tov v'ha'meitiv, ha'El avinu malkeinu and so on, is rabbinic, we answer the third bracha with our own אמן amen. בונה ברחמיו ירושלים, אמן Boneh v'rachamav Yerushalayim, amen. We answer our own bracha with אמן amen in order to show that the fourth bracha is different than the first three, it's rabbinic in origin. We also begin it with ברוך אתה ה' Baruch Atah Hashem. It's not a ברכה הסמוכה לחברתה bracha ha'smucha l'chaverta. We begin it with the word ברוך Baruch, which we don't do with נודה, על הכל, רחם, ובונה ירושלים Nodeh, al hakol, Rachem, Boneh Yerushalayim in order to show that it is rabbinic. Why was this fourth bracha instituted? To commemorate, 52 years, 53 years after the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash, the city of ביתר Beitar, which was the headquarters of Bar Kochba's rebellion, was destroyed. 800,000 Jews were murdered. Their blood ran two and a half miles into the sea. It irrigated the vineyards of Hadrian, who led the Roman army, the legions that destroyed the city of ביתר Beitar. So many corpses, 800,000 were killed, they were not given for burial. It took years till the next Roman general allowed the Jews to bury the corpses. But God created a miracle, the corpses did not did not decompose or smell. And there was a miracle that finally we were able to bury them. הטוב שלא הסריחו והמטיב שניתנו לקבורה Ha'tov she'lo hisrichu v'ha'meitiv she'nitnu l'kvurah. We acknowledge that in the bracha הטוב והמטיב ha'tov v'ha'meitiv. The obvious question is, we're calling God great. We're blessing and acknowledging God, הטוב והמטיב ha'tov v'ha'meitiv, the wonderful, awesome, amazing God because the corpses didn't disintegrate or decompose? That's goodness? 800,000 people were killed, the city was wiped out, destruction, devastation. The last stronghold of Judea, no longer sovereignty over the land, exiled. And we're grateful because the bodies didn't decompose? So the משך חכמה Meshech Chochma of Meir Simcha of Dvinsk on our parsha asks this question and develops a very beautiful thought shared by the צל\"ח Tzlach, the בן יהוידע Ben Yehoyada, and others. We discussed this all last week. And why was it commemorated in benching? Beitar fell, we were given to allow them to be buried. Why benching specifically do we commemorate it? Says the Meshech Chochma, when you say בונה ירושלים Boneh Yerushalayim, you remember the building of Yerushalayim, the Beis HaMikdash, you feel how is this relevant to me? I'm an exile Jew. I don't have a Beis HaMikdash. נודה לך על הארץ Nodeh lecha al ha'aretz, for the land, I don't have the land of Israel in its redeemed status, in its holiest status. How is this benching relevant to me? So therefore, the bracha הטוב והמטיב ha'tov v'ha'meitiv comes along and says that just like just like the corpse, we were killed, but we retained the little dignity that ultimately we found burial and we didn't decompose. So too the Jew in exile retains a sense of dignity, a sense of longing, a sense of hope that we will come back. Says the Meshech Chochma, לכך תקנו הטוב והמטיב על קיום האומה l'chach tiknu ha'tov v'ha'meitiv al kiyum ha'umah. That the Romans are gone. Hadrian is no longer remembered. But here we are, the Jewish people. הטוב והמטיב Ha'tov v'ha'meitiv, God's goodness is the Jewish continuity, that even though it is in exile that we exist, nevertheless, we continue, we have survived, and we long and hope for the return. And therefore during benching, benching is right after we've eaten, we've nourished ourselves. We bench after we've eaten to say to Hashem, I nourish myself, I am committed to continuity, I am committed to keep going, I am committed to nourish myself, to find the strength to take one more step towards the redemption. So it's in benching, which follows our meal, that we acknowledge Hashem and that we're thankful for the continuity of our people, and that we express the faith that we will find our glory once again and our dignity once again and return to a period of u'v'nei.
