Transcript
Okay, good evening everyone. Thank you so much for your flexibility. ברוך השם Baruch Hashem traveled for a שמחה simcha last night, unable to give the שיעור shiur this morning. But who could pass up the opportunity to learn פרשת בחוקותי Parshas Bechukosai together? So often, almost always, it's combined with פרשת בהר Parshas Bahar. We rarely if ever get to focus just on this parsha, so we, I figured as long as someone would come, and if no one came, I had the camera. The camera stand, it looks a little bit like a person. So at least I'd have one חברותא chavrusa. I want to thank as always our generous Parsha Shiur sponsors, Becky and Avi Katz and family in memory of David Grossman, לילי נשמת דוד בן מנחם מנוס, נשמה שתהיה לה עליה leilui nishmas David ben Menachem Manus, neshama shetihiye lah aliyah. We're very grateful to the Katzes. Also this morning, today's, this evening's shiur is sponsored by Judy and Mitch Taragan in honor of the marriage of their son Yitz to Tariela Merlin and in commemoration of the second יארצייט yahrtzeit of Mitch's father, Jerry Taragan, יהושע דב בן אריאל Yehoshua Dov ben Azriel. מזל טוב Mazal tov, מזל טוב mazal tov on the שמחה simcha and נשמה שתהיה לה עליה neshama shetihiye lah aliyah. Should always sponsor for many more שמחות simchos please God. פרשת בחוקותי Parshas Bechukosai.Page 700 and 8 in the ArtScroll Stone חומש Chumash. אם בחוקותי תלכו ואת מצוותי תשמרו ועשיתם אותם Im bechukosai teileichu v'es mitzvosai tishmeru va'asisem osam. If you follow my decrees, you observe my commandments, if you perform them. And then the Torah goes on to give us a list of promises. ונתתי גשמיכם בעיתם V'nasati gishmeichem b'itam, I'll make the rain fall in its time. We've analyzed and studied this so many times in the past, offering so many interpretations. I say this in the beginning of every parsha class. We read the same parsha every week, so I don't feel so bad. Every year. The parsha doesn't change. And the interpretations, we try to bring new ones each week, but some of the themes overlap and they're important. They need reinforcement just like the parsha itself. So ונתתי גשמיכם בעיתם v'nasati gishmeichem b'itam, and God says I will give you rain in its right time. גשמיכם Gishmeichem is also the root of the word גשמיות gashmiyus. This is a promise of the physical, material reward in its right time. ונתנה הארץ יבולה ועץ השדה יתן פריו V'nasna ha'aretz yevulah v'etz hasadeh yiten piryo. It's a famous question which is, what happened to there's no reward in this world? שכר מצוה בהאי עלמא ליכא Schar mitzvah b'hai alma leika. We don't get rewarded in this world for doing the right thing. The reward is living a most meaningful, purposeful, virtuous, valuable, satisfying, gratifying life. There's no external reward. And here the parsha seems to suggest, if you do the right thing, observe my laws, get it all done, then I'm going to reward you, דוקא dafka with גשמיות gashmiyus. גשמיכם בעיתם Gishmeichem b'itam. So which is it? Is it a reward of גשמיות gashmiyus, רוחניות ruchniyus, this world, the next world? What's going on in the beginning of our parsha? But even before we get to that, even before we get to that.Rashi tells us, אם בחוקותי תלכו im bechukosai teileichu. יאכל זה קיום המצוות Yachol zeh kiyum hamitzvos. So maybe בחוקותי bechukosai, what's the root of בחוקותי bechukosai? חוק Chok. If you תלכו teileichu, if you walk, if you carry yourself following my חוקים chukim, ואת מצוותי תשמרו v'es mitzvosai tishmeru, and תשמרו tishmeru means observe, keep my מצוות mitzvos, and ועשיתם אותם va'asisem osam, and you do them. So three descriptions, תלכו teileichu, תשמרו tishmeru, and עשיתם asisem. And two categories, חוקותי chukosai and מצוותי mitzvosai. We're not the first to pick up on that. Rashi was bothered. יאכל זה קיום המצוות Yachol zeh kiyum hamitzvos, maybe בחוקותי bechukosai means observe my laws. But it can't be. Why? Because the pasuk is about to spell out, מצוותי תשמרו mitzvosai tishmeru. הרי קיום המצוות אמור Harei kiyum hamitzvos amur, so it's already covered. אם כן מה אני מקיים אם בחוקותי תלכו Im kein ma ani mekayem im bechukosai teileichu? So what then is God saying, if תלכו teileichu, if you walk with my חוקים chukim, what is that mission? What is that mandate? And Rashi says the famous words, שתהיו עמלים בתורה shetihiyu ameilim baTorah. This is the Torah obligation to learn and study Torah, not at some surface or superficial level, but to delve into, to immerse ourselves, to toil, to sweat, to work, to work on our learning of Torah. To work on our learning of Torah. Torah is not supposed to just come and be spoon-fed, it's not on a silver platter, shouldn't just be downloaded, transmitted. Takes work. You know, the more work, the more effort you put in, the more you make something your own. Rav Dessler's famous formula that love is the result not of receiving, but of giving. When you give your energy and your toil and your sweat and your tears and your time, when you work really hard in order to be able to understand, in order to be able to appreciate, you acquire it. That's in fact what David Hamelech says at the very beginning of Tehillim, kapitel Alef. He says כי אם בתורת ה' חפצו ובתורתו יהגה יומם ולילה ki im b'Toras Hashem cheftzo u'v'soraso yehegeh yomam valailah. If your desire is the Torah of Hashem, ובתורתו יהגה יומם ולילה u'v'soraso yehegeh yomam valailah. We went from תורת ה' Toras Hashem to תורתו Toraso. We went from the Torah that belongs to God, the divine, to your Torah. What makes it your Torah? You went on ArtScroll, you went on Koren, you went on whatever publishing house, I don't want to get in trouble, and you purchased, you downloaded, you went to the bookstore, the ספראַרן סטאָר sforim store, you came home with some ספרים sforim. That's what makes it your Torah? No. ובתורתו U'v'soraso is a קנין התורה kinyan haTorah. When you acquire, and how do you acquire? When learning Torah is not a passive experience, when learning Torah is not a spectator sport, when learning Torah is not supposed to be with comfort and ease, but you're willing to work on it, break your teeth on it, study it, challenge yourself with it. שתהיו עמלים בתורה Shetihiyu ameilim baTorah, עמלות ameilus. עמלות Ameilus, to toil, to break a sweat. You know, they say, להבדיל lehavdil, in another area where we want to grow and gain and improve ourselves physically, famously it was said, no pain, no gain. So what's true in the physical world is also true in the spiritual world. No pain, no gain. Now, I don't mean to minimize, certainly those of you who are here in person, those watching online, who are listening and learning and what a זכות zechus, what an unbelievable honor for me to learn together with you. And it's valuable and it's wonderful. I hope it is. That's why you keep coming back, and it brings me back. It makes me want to not cancel, even if we have to do it at an awkward time. I have a different relationship with the parsha in weeks that we have the parsha shiur. I do it for myself, not for not for you. But in the end of the day, when you attend a shiur and you sit back, and here in the main sanctuary of Boca Raton Synagogue, we got some really comfortable chairs. Sit back, in the back you got coffee and tea station. Back in the heyday, granola bars, granola bars, whoa, in the morning, a little breakfast, and you sit back and you say, \"Nu?\" \"Inspire me.\" \"Nu?\" \"Give me some good stuff. Give me something for my Shabbos table.\" And there's value. I understand I'm this is, you know, bad, this is bad for the business here for me, what I'm doing right now. You should keep coming to shiur, but don't let that take the place of real Torah learning. And real Torah learning is open a ספר sefer, break your teeth, sit with a dictionary, work hard to understand, grow your skills, work, work to decipher, to understand, to review, to remember. Some of you come to our סמיכה חבר semicha chaver shiur, the great gift to כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael from Rabbi Eliyada Goldwicht. And it includes a בחינה bechinah. People of all ages, we have people take בחינות bechinos who take the test, they challenge themselves on the הלכה halachic material, who haven't taken a test in 60 years. In over 60 years, and then walking around with notes and reviewing and memorizing, and of course challenging the teacher, \"That wasn't clear, that's not a fair question.\" It's fantastic how excited. עמלים בתורה Ameilim baTorah, to get involved, invested. But here's the question. Where'd חז\"ל Chazal get that from, from the words בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu? Where is עמלים בתורה ameilim baTorah? Rashi raises the challenge. It can't be מצוות mitzvos because that we say later in the pasuk. So it's got to be something else. And what's the something else? שתהיו עמלים בתורה Shetihiyu ameilim baTorah. Okay. We understand the lesson of the something else. We understand we have to get to something else. But how did we get from, can't be מצוות mitzvos, has to mean something else to meaning שתהיו עמלים בתורה shetihiyu ameilim baTorah?So we have several answers to share. First the אדמו\"ר מראחמיסטריווקא Admor m'Rachmistrivka quotes the דברי חיים Divrei Chaim of סאנס Sanz. The הקדוש דברי חיים of סאנס Heilige Divrei Chaim of Sanz. כתב על זה מה שפירש רש\"י בחוקותי תלכו שתהיו עמלים בתורה Kasav al zeh ma shepeireish Rashi bechukosai teileichu shetihiyu ameilim baTorah. הנה יש להבין מדוע פירש בחוקותי תלכו על עמלות בתורה וכי היכן משמע עמל בתורה בלשון הכתוב Hinei yesh l'havin madua peireish bechukosai teileichu al ameilus baTorah v'chi heichan mashma amal baTorah bilshon hakasuv? Where do you see that in the words? תלכו Teileichu means to walk and בחוקותי bechukosai means the חוקים chukim. Where do you see from there it means don't just sit back and recline her and passively listen to shiur and maybe try to stay awake till the end, but immerse yourself, be dedicated, be devote. Where do you see that in the words? אכן הענין הוא Ochoin ha'inyan hu, says the דברי חיים Divrei Chaim, כי כאשר האדם מעיין בתורה ויודע ומבין את לימודו כראוי ki ka'asher ha'adam me'ayein baTorah v'yode'a u'meivin es limudo karaui, when a person works hard and toils, when a person gives of themselves, makes the effort, no pain, no gain, אינו אצלו בגדר עמל כלל, אדרבה יגיעתו היא לו לתענוג גדול eino etzlo b'geder amal klal, adraba, yegi'aso hi lo l'taanug gadol. When a person is truly in learning, when a person is truly immersed, when a person is really lost, when a person is really delving, when a person is really debating, it's not a עמלות ameilus at all. It's a great expression. If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. I've never worked a day in my life. If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. And if you love the learning, it'll never feel like an עמלות ameilus. ולא יתכן לקרוא לזה עמלות בתורה, רק עמלות התורה היא כאשר לפעמים אינו מסוגל לקלוט ולהבין ענין התורה V'lo yitachen likro lazeh ameilus baTorah, rak ameilus haTorah hi ka'asher l'famim eino mesugal liklot ulhavin inyan haTorah. You know when it's עמלות ameilus? I'm tired, I don't feel like it, I don't understand, it's not coming easily. I don't have any energy, I can't focus, I don't want to be doing this. That's when it feels like a עמלות ameilus, it's work. וזה יכול להיות מכמה סיבות שונות או מחמת שמוחו אינו צלול לקלוט הדברים V'zeh yachol lihiyos m'kamah sibos shonos o machmas shemocho eino tzalul liklot hadvarim, sometimes your mind is not clear, your focus, you're thinking about other things. מחמת תרדות הפרנסה Machmas tirdos haparnassah, you're worried about a livelihood or some other other source of anxiety, worry. וכיוצא בזה, אך עם כל זה הוא טורח ומתאמץ עד שיוכל לפנות את דעתו מה שהוא רוצה לו כראוי V'keyotzei b'zeh, ach im kol zeh hu torei'ach u'misametz ad sheyuchal lefanos es da'ato mah she'ratzui lo k'ra'ui. And you ask her, she should be with the קשה, על פי כן מתגבר על טבעו ללמוד אף שאינו מסוגל להבין הדברים, זהו עמל בתורה kasheh, al pi chein misgaber al tiv'o lilmod af she'eino mesugal l'havin had'varim, zehu amal baTorah. You know what takes עמלות ameilus? When you run into that wall, when you don't feel like doing it, when you're exhausted, when it's not coming easily, when it doesn't make sense, when you want to be and go somewhere else, and you stick it out anyway. And you show up anyway. You know, in the physical world too, it's not a big deal if you work out an exercise when you're excited about it, when you're into it, when you're on a roll, when it feels good, when you get the feedback, when you're getting energized. What happens when you didn't get the night's sleep you were hoping to get? What happens when you didn't eat right? What happens when there's so much on your mind? What happens when you have every excuse under the sun to cancel? But you show up. That's when it really counts. And all the more so, קל וחומר כמובן kal vachomer kamuv'n, in Torah learning, that's when it really counts. וזהו שאמר הכתוב אם בחוקותי תלכו, כאשר העסק בתורה תהיה אצלכם כחוק בלא טעם V'zehu she'amar hakasuv im bechukosai teileichu, ka'asher ha'eisek baTorah tihiyeh etzchem k'chok b'lo taam. Wow. What's a חוק chok? A חוק chok is I don't understand the reason. I can't comprehend, it doesn't make sense to me. It's not coming easily, it's not coming naturally, it doesn't have a taste. It doesn't have a taste. The opposite of a חוק chok is a מצוה mitzvah that has a טעם taam. טעמי המצוות Taamei hamitzvos. Several commentators explain, and I've shared this before, that we use the same word for taste and reason. How do you say טעם taam? Does it have a good טעם taam? Tastes good. טעם Taam is a taste. Reason is, טע\"ם taam, is a reason. Why do we have the same word? Whenever we use the same word for two different definitions, it means those definitions are intertwined. What do reason and taste have to do with each other? The answer is, the answer is, we eat in order to live. And bland food, bread and water, if it's all that were available, we'd have to eat it because we need it to live. If you're malnourished, if you are, if you don't eat enough, then you can't live. If it tastes good, all the better. If it tastes great, makes it even more pleasurable, more enjoyable. But whether it tastes good or not, you have to eat in order to live. The same is true with Torah learning. You have to learn Torah whether it makes sense, whether you have the reason, whether you comprehend, whether you feel like it. It is the spiritual nourishment for the soul. It's more delicious when it has a טעם taam, when you understand the reason, when it makes sense. Tastes more delicious, it's more exciting. But even if you don't have the reason and even if it doesn't make sense, you still have to you still have to swallow your Torah. You have to take in your daily portion, your your Torah calorie intake, even if it doesn't. So טעם taam is reason and טעם taam is taste because they're similar and they go together. And now says the הקדוש דברי חיים Heilige Divrei Chaim, the סאנזער Sanzer, now we understand, where did חז\"ל Chazal get this from? בחוקותי Bechukosai is when Torah requires עמלות ameilus. When it comes easily and naturally and it's fun and it's seamless and it's smooth and it's without friction, then it's not it's not a עמלות ameilus. When it's a עמלות ameilus, it's a חוק chok. Doesn't make sense, I don't want to do it, I don't want to be here, it's not coming easily. כאשר העסק בתורה תהיה אצלכם כחוק בלא טעם, שלא תהיו מסוגלים להבין וללמוד כראוי, אף על פי כן תלכו Ka'asher ha'eisek baTorah tihiyeh etzchem k'chok b'lo taam, shelo tihiyu mesugalim l'havin v'lilmod k'ra'ui, af al pi chein teileichu, but you show up, you came, you showed up. You're here nonetheless. And then ונתתי גשמיכם בעיתם v'nasati gishmeichem b'itam. When does Hashem give us a reward? Not when it's easy. Not when it's natural. Not when you get the instant feedback and gratification. But when you didn't feel like it and it doesn't make sense and it feels like a חוק chok, why do I have to do this? And you know what? You show up, תלכו teileichu, you came anyway. You showed up anyway. That's when the reciprocal ברכה bracha of ונתתי גשמיכם בעיתם v'nasati gishmeichem b'itam, that's when it comes. So that's how the דברי חיים Divrei Chaim understands, he suggests, that's how חז\"ל Chazal saw in the words, אם בחוקותי תלכו שתהיו עמלים בתורה im bechukosai teileichu shetihiyu ameilim baTorah. שתהיו עמלים בתורה Shetihiyu ameilim baTorah.The חיד\"א Chida in his ספר נחל קדומים sefer Nachal Kedumim explains based on the מדרש Midrash, ואת מצוותי תשמרו ועשיתם אותם v'es mitzvosai tishmeru va'asisem osam. The מצוות mitzvos you observe and you do them. אמרו חכמים רבי חנינא Amru chachamim Rabbi Chanina, אם שמרתם את התורה, מעלה עליכם כאילו אתם עשיתם אותם Im shemartem es haTorah ma'aleh aleichem k'ilu atem asisem osam. אמר חנינא בר פפי אמר להם אם שמרתם את התורה, הרי אני מעלה עליכם כאילו עשיתם את עצמכם Amar Chanina bar Papi amar lahem im shemartem es haTorah, harei ani ma'aleh aleichem k'ilu asisem es atzmechem. לכאורה יש להבין ההבדל ביניהם L'choirah yesh l'havin hahevdel beineihem. Two opinions in the גמרא Gemara. It's is it if you observe the מצוות mitzvos, the Torah, it's as if you've done them, or it's as if you've done, you've created, עשיתם את עצמכם asisem es atzmechem, you've made yourselves, you've made yourselves. So the חיד\"א Chida explains, במה שנתן הקדוש ברוך הוא לישראל תרי\"ג מצוות לכאורה בלתי אפשרי לאחד לקיים את כולם B'mah shenasan Hakadosh Baruch Hu l'Yisrael taryag mitzvos l'choirah bilti efshari l'echad lekayem es kulam. No one person can complete or observe all 613, why? Very simple. You can't be a כהן, לוי, ישראל Kohen, Levi, Yisrael, a man and a woman, live in Israel and outside of Israel, at the time of the בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash and at the time of the בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash. You can't be the combination that is able to personally fulfill and live all of the מצוות mitzvos, impossible, impossible. So how do we do it? How do we do it? פדיון הבן Pidyon HaBen, all the examples, חוץ לארץ chutz la'aretz, ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael. אם כן, צריך להשלים עצמו בכולם Im kein, tzarich l'hashlim atzmo b'chulam. So how do you, how do we have a relationship with all תרי\"ג מצוות taryag mitzvos if by definition we are not qualified to fulfill them all? בקשר לזה כמה עצות, יש כותב שאדם יקבל על עצמו כל המצוות, ויתחבץ בהם ויקיים אותם B'kesher l'zeh kamah eitzos, yesh kosev she'adam yekabel al atzmo kol hamitzvos, v'yischabetz bahem l'kaymam. Some say, you can't technically observe all מצוות mitzvos, but you can long for, hope for, have a relationship with, study, get to the deeper meaning, the פנימיות pnimiyus of the מצוה mitzvah. וימתין ויתאווה לקיים כל המצוות שבאו לידו V'yamtin v'yisaveh l'kayem kol hamitzvos sheba'u l'yado. And then observe each מצוה mitzvah opportunity that presents itself. הנה מאחר שחפצו ורצונו לקיים, אז כל מה ששייך Hinei mei'achar shecheftzo u'retzono l'kayem, as long as you long to and you want to and you yearn to, and you identify with and you associate with and you study and you connect to the deeper meaning of, מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו קיים את כולם ma'aleh alav hakasuv k'ilu kiyeim es kulam. Hashem treats it as if we kept it all, as if we kept it all. And that's what it means, כל העוסק בתורת עולה כאילו הקריב עולה kol ha'osek b'toras olah k'ilu hikriv olah. If you learn the laws of the עולה olah, it's as if you offered an עולה olah, and so on. And now we understand the מדרש Midrash itself, said the חיד\"א Chida. אם בחוקותי תלכו שתהיו עמלים בתורה, יחשב לכם עסק התורה כאילו אתם מצוותי תשמרו, שקריאתם את המצוות Im bechukosai teileichu shetihiyu ameilim baTorah, yenachshev lachem eisek haTorah k'ilu esem mitzvosai tishmeru, shekri'asam es hamitzvos. If you're עמל בתורה amal baTorah, what does that have to do with the מצוות mitzvos? It means the מצוות mitzvos that you can't keep, those are the ones go even deeper on. שתהיו עמלים בתורה Shetihiyu ameilim baTorah. So זבחים, מנחות Zevachim, Menachos, parts of Torah, we don't have a בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash, we're not offering קרבנות korbanos. They're the parts of Torah, they're not the ישיבה'שע מסכתות Yeshivishe masechtos. And the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim said that it's like פדיון שבויים pidyon shevuyim, you have to redeem the captives, the מסכתות masechtos that are being neglected and ignored, to study דוקא dafka those. And how do we show we want the בית המקדש Beis Hamikdash, we want משיח Mashiach? By studying specifically the מסכתות masechtos that are the most neglected. But it means the מצוות mitzvos that we can't do, we're not qualified for, we're not included in, that שתהיו עמלים בתורה shetihiyu ameilim baTorah, those are the מצוות mitzvos we should focus on and learn. ועשיתם אותם, אם שמרתם את התורה מעלה אני לכם כאילו עשיתם את עצמכם Va'asisem osam, im shemartem es haTorah ma'aleh ani lachem k'ilu asisem es atzmechem, that if you learn them, ba'ameilus, if we delve deep into them, then it's as if we, then it's as if we observe them, then it's as if we observe them ourselves. As I, so I said the חיד\"א Chida.Okay, moving over to Rav Druk. Rav Druk also has a couple of interpretations, I don't want to get past the first pasuk, and we got a hard stop today because we got מנחה Mincha. We don't usually say that at the parsha shiur. If we say at the parsha shiur we've got a hard stop because we've got מנחה Mincha, that's a very long parsha shiur. Normally it's at 9:30 in the morning. But today we got a hard stop. So Rav Druk says the following. He quotes the Rashi, שתהיו עמלים בתורה shetihiyu ameilim baTorah, and he quotes the אור החיים הקדוש Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh. ארבעים ושניים פירושים בפסוק זה Arbaim u'shnayim peirushim b'pasuk zeh. The אור החיים הקדוש Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh, רבי חיים אבן עטר Rabbi Chaim ibn Attar, has 42 interpretations on this pasuk. Wow. So his parsha shiur he also didn't get past the first pasuk. 42 separate interpretations, suggestions that the Ohr Hachaim has. The second one is, quote, עוד ירצה על דרך מה שאמרו ז\"ל, פסוק חשבתי דרכי, שהיה דוד חושב לעשות ענייניו ורגליו מובילים אותו מעצמו לבית המדרש לרוב חפץ והרצון ורגילות בדבר Od yirtzeh al derech mah she'amru zal, pasuk chishavti drachai, shehaya David chosheiv la'asos inyanav v'raglav movilin oso mei'atzmo l'veis hamidrash l'rov chefetz v'haratzon v'haregilus badavar. Midrash tells us that David Hamelech had all kinds of plans. He had all kinds of goals, all kinds of aspirations for that day, and yet, he found himself that his feet kept taking him back where? To the בית מדרש beis midrash. אם בחוקותי תלכו, פירש הליכתכם מעצמה תהיה אחריה, כמאמר דוד לרוב החשק והרגילות Im bechukosai teileichu, peirush halichaschem me'atzmah tihiyeh achareha, k'ma'amar David l'rov hacheishek v'haregilus. If we condition ourselves and cultivate ourselves and habituate ourselves and have such a yearning and such a love, then our body itself will carry us. So even if upstairs, even if on our list, on our to-do list, I got to go to Publix and I got to go to Costco and I got to stop at the tailor and I got to hit the dry cleaning, and yet, I keep finding myself in the beis midrash. That's בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu. Something we love so much, we yearn for so much, we can't get enough of, we keep finding ourselves there. נמצא למד מתוך דברים אלה מה שפירש הדבר להיות מורגל עם התורה Nimtza lamed mitoch devarim eileh mah shepeireish hadavar lihiyos murgal im haTorah. מי שרגיל בתורה רגליו מוליכות אותו תמיד לבית מדרש Mi sheragil baTorah raglav molichos oso tamid l'veis hamidrash. A person who's really conditioned to love Torah, can't get enough of Torah. You know those people, they can't stop checking the stock market every day. Even Memorial Day when the market's closed, they're still checking it. Just to make sure that what they saw Friday is they still remember and add up what they have. Some people can't get enough, the box score. Rangers, Panthers, overtime, who won, who had the winning score, whether there were more Rangers fans, Panther fans there, what happened. Some people can't get enough. And even if they're not intending it, and even if they're meant to be thinking about something else, their mind is back there. להבדיל, להבדיל, להבדיל Lehavdil, lehavdil, lehavdil, a person who's so drawn to and connected with and lives off of and is nourished by Torah, אוהב כסף לא יסבע כסף, אוהב תורה לא יסבע תורה ohev kesef lo yisba kesef, ohev Torah lo yisba Torah. You can't get enough of it. Wherever you go, that's what you're thinking, that's what you're reading, that's what you're learning. That's the little thing you have in your pocket. Today you can have almost כל התורה כולה kol haTorah kulah on your phone. You never have an excuse, you're never in a place that you can't make the best use of your time to be learning Torah. That's הרגל hergel. Our habits reveal what we love, what we care about. What's our habit? You know, some people when they're sitting at their computer, they're just checking the same without thinking about it, their finger on the mouse brings them back to the same websites. So what, what in a mindless, thoughtless way are you being brought back to? What are you checking out? Is it Times of Israel, because you can't stop thinking about what's going on in Israel? Is it some social media site? Is it the stock market? Is it Amazon to order another package? Where is it that without thinking, mindlessly, that's where your fingers and your computer bring you back? That's where you go. When you open your phone because you're bored and you're sitting and you're waiting without even thinking, that's where you are. So להבדיל, להבדיל lehavdil, lehavdil, David Hamelech described, the Midrash tells us, that he says חשבתי דרכי chishavti d'rachai, I thought about my ways. That's בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu. מדברים אלה יש ללמוד את נוסח התפילה שאנו מבקשים כל בוקר Midvarim eileh yesh lilmod es nusach hatefilah she'anu mevakshim kol boker. And now we understand, says Rav Druk, that's what we say every morning. You ready? There's a little bonus siddur snippet before Mincha. ויהי רצון מלפניך ה' אלוקינו ואלוקי אבותינו שתרגילנו בתורתך ודבקנו במצוותיך V'yehi ratzon milfanecha Hashem Elokeinu v'Elokei Avoseinu shetargileinu b'sorasecha v'dabkeinu b'mitzvoisecha. Every morning, ברכת השחר Birchos Hashachar, we say the words, \"May it be your will Hashem שתרגילנו shetargileinu, give us the habit of your Torah, and let us stick to and cling to your mitzvos.\" וצריך להבין, מה זה אומר שתרגילנו בתורתך V'tzarich l'havin, mah zeh omer shetargileinu b'sorasecha? Say it every morning. And I don't even remember if we said this in siddur snippets. It was so many years and snippets ago when we learned this in ברכת השחר Birchos Hashachar. What do those words mean, שתרגילנו בתורתך shetargileinu b'sorasecha? וכעת אנו מבינים לאור פירושו של האור החיים הקדוש V'atah anu mevinim l'or peirusho shel Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh. Now we understand based on the Ohr Hachaim, based on the Midrash of David Hamelech, based on the interpretation of בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu. Hashem, שתרגילנו בתורתך targileinu b'sorasecha, let my רגילות regilus, let my habit, let my momentum, let my inertia, let the default of my mindlessness be, it leads me back to your Torah. That when I get in the car, I don't put on some podcast, I don't put on some music, I don't put on some comedy, the default, instinctively, mindlessly, I press Torah. תרגילנו בתורתך Targileinu b'sorasecha. I have a few minutes in the car. I have a few minutes I'm walking, I have a few minutes I'm shopping, I have a few minutes I'm cooking. תרגילנו בתורתך Targileinu b'sorasecha. Let my רגילות regilus be Torah. Let that be my habit. Let that be my default. Let that be where I automatically go. That's Rav Druk number one. Rav Druk number two. ממשמעות לשון דרשת חז\"ל שמתבסס אם בחוקותי תלכו דרש עמלות בתורה M'mashma'us lashon drashas Chazal shemisbases im bechukosai teileichu darash ameilus baTorah. הליכה Halicha. Now the pasuk says, ואם לא תשמעו לי ולא תעשו את כל המצוות האלה v'im lo sishme'u li v'lo sa'asu es kol hamitzvos ha'eileh. If you don't listen and you don't do these mitzvos. And Rashi there says, אם לא תשמעו לי להיות עמלים בתורה im lo sishme'u li lihiyos ameilim baTorah. If you fail to delve into and to immerse yourselves in the depths of Torah. So יאכל זה קיום המצוות כשאומר ולא תעשו הרי קיום המצוות אמור yachol l'kayem hamitzvos kshe'omer v'lo sa'asu harei kiyum hamitzvos amur. מה אני מקיים אם לא תשמעו לי להיות עמלים בתורה Mah ani mekayem im lo sishme'u li lihiyos ameilim baTorah. So how does it work, Rav Druk is wondering. אם לא תשמעו Im lo sishme'u means that you weren't עמל amal, so then it should have been that if you listen, that's the עמלות ameilus, not בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu. How does this make sense? So says Rav Druk the following, על כן נראה לבאר כי דקדוק חז\"ל כאן דרשו זאת מפסוק אם בחוקותי תלכו, אינו ממשמעות תיבת תלכו, אלא ממשמעות תיבת בחוקותי, שעמל התורה הוא חוק Al kein nir'eh l'va'er ki dikduk Chazal kan darshu zos m'pasuk im bechukosai teileichu, eino m'mashma'us teivas teileichu, ela m'mashma'us teivas bechukosai, she'amal haTorah hu chok. בדרך הטבע כדי לדעת דין התורה וצריך לקיים המצוות לא צריך לעסוק בתורה יומם ולילה, הכל תלוי בכישרונו של אדם B'derech hateva kedei lada'as din haTorah v'tzarich l'kayem hamitzvos lo tzarich la'asok baTorah yomam v'lailah, hakol talui b'kishrono shel adam. Why does it take delving? Why does it take toiling? Why does it take work? Should be that if you're bright, you're able to download all of Torah and access it and have it, like all other חכמות chachmos. אשר אדם כישרוני יותר לומד מהר יותר את רזי המקצוע Asher adam kishroni yoser lomed maher yoser es razei hamiktzoa. Whatever the subject, the smarter, the brighter a person is, the quicker they pick it up. ופחות כישרוני לומד לאט יותר V'pachos kishroni lomed le'at yoser. And if you're slower, you have a poorer memory, you have bad analytical skills, it takes you longer. It's not totally on the עמלות ameilus. And yet Torah, Torah is this unusual, unusual, unusual subject that it requires עמלות ameilus for all. זה מה שמצינו בתורה שבכתב שלזכות בתורה צריך אדם להיות עמל Zeh mah shematzinu baTorah shebichsav shelizkos baTorah tzarich adam lihiyos amal. That's a חוק בלא סיבה chok b'lo sibah. The way Hashem orchestrated his Torah is that it requires עמלות ameilus from the smartest and the brightest to the slowest or the one who struggles the most. There's no one who can say, \"Yeah, it's easy, I just read it like a novel and I'm done.\" In order to become someone and something in Torah, no matter where you start, and I'm blessed to have access and a relationship with some true גדולי ישראל Gedolei Yisrael, brilliant, brilliant minds, brilliant minds. And we're tempted to dismiss and say, \"Yeah, it's easy for them. It comes naturally for them.\" But you know how hard they work? You think Rav Schechter and Rav Ovadia Weiss and the Gedolei Roshei Yeshiva and many others, you think it doesn't take עמלות ameilus? Doesn't take עמלות ameilus? I have a poster that we hang in our sukkah. It's an amazing poster. It's a collage of pictures of Rav Schechter learning all over. It was made by one of his children. You have to have access to all these pictures. Every family vacation, on a line, sitting on the ground, sitting on the end, waiting at the airport, just pictures of him. And when Rav Schechter is learning from a little, wherever he is and whatever he, he just wants another few minutes to learn. And when he's doing that, there's no one and nothing else in the world. He is, it doesn't matter where he is and what's happening around him. That's, that's what's going on. He was once staying at my house and he was catching that earliest flight of the day out, the 6 a.m. that you get picked up at the airport at 4:30, 4:15 a.m. to get to the airport. And he wasn't sure, as brilliant a mind he is, he's not in this world, how to work the alarm clock exactly. So I woke up to check to make sure that he was awake, that Rebbe was going to get out on time. Not only was he awake, when I came out, I'll never forget this, he was sitting at my dining room table and there was a נודע ביהודה Noda B'Yehuda open in front of him. He was looking up a תשובה teshuvah in the נודע ביהודה Noda B'Yehuda at 4:00 in the morning. Whatever time of day your mind is brightest, save the נודע ביהודה Noda B'Yehuda for that moment. Because that's what you need in order to go through a תשובה teshuvah of the נודע ביהודה Noda B'Yehuda. But he was sitting, it was 4:00 a.m. It wasn't time yet, the car wasn't there to pick him up. נודע ביהודה Noda B'Yehuda. That's הרגל hergel. That's the תרגילנו בתורתך targileinu b'sorasecha. That's the עמלות ameilus, that no matter where you start with what IQ and what memory, you still have to be עמל amal. You still have to be drawn to and love learning wherever you are. And that aspect of Torah, different than every single other area of study is what makes it a חוק chok, says Rav Druk. And that's why בחוקותי תלכו bechukosai teileichu. You have to know that this subject called Torah, it's a חוק chok, it's a חוק chok. It requires עמלות ameilus, no matter where you start out, no matter how bright or gifted you are. למה לא נזכרה התורה זכירה התורה פסוק זה אדם כי ימות באהל בפרשת פרה אדומה? בפסוק זה אין בו כדי לתרץ כי משמע על מי שממית עצמו על התורה שייך לכתוב פסוק זה בסוף פרשת פרה אדומה Lama lo nizkarah haTorah, zechirah haTorah pasuk zeh adam ki yamus b'ohel b'Parshas Parah Adumah? B'pasuk zeh ein bo kedei letareitz ki mashma al mi shemeimis atzmo al haTorah shayach lichtov pasuk zeh b'sof Parshas Parah Adumah. So where do we learn אדם כי ימות באהל, מי שממית את עצמו על התורה adam ki yamus b'ohel, mi shemeimis es atzmo al haTorah? You have to be willing to kill yourself over Torah. Kill yourself. Not sit back in a recliner and have it spoon-fed. You've got to שוויץ shvitz over Torah. You got to kill yourself to learn, to remember, to be literate. You have to kill yourself, you have to work. Where do we learn that? Where's the pasuk אדם כי ימות באהל adam ki yamus b'ohel? That מי שממית על ה *mi shemeimis alah*? It's in what context? פרה אדומה Parah Adumah. Because that aspect of Torah that it demands that level of עמלות ameilus is a חוק chok. So it appears within the quintessential חוק chok, namely the פרה אדומה Parah Adumah. It's all part of a longer essay he has here, but I want to move on past the opening pasuk, past the opening pasuk.He has one more, I was going to look, yeah, one more quick, quick, quick, quick. On the words ואת מצוותי תשמרו *v'es mitzvosai tishmeru*. תישמרו *Tishmeru*. ואת מצוותי תשמרו *V'es mitzvosai tishmeru*. So follow my decrees, תלכו *teileichu*, walk with them, condition yourself, that's where you go automatically. מצוותי תשמרו *Mitzvosai tishmeru*, and my commandments תשמרו *tishmeru*. What does the word תשמרו *tishmeru* mean? It can't really mean observe, because that's what ועשיתם אותם *va'asisem osam* means, right? If ועשיתם אותם *va'asisem osam* means to do them, what is the, then what does תשמרו *tishmeru* mean? So listen to what he says. Listen to what he says. הביטו אנא בכינוי אדם השומר מצוות, אדם המקיים כל מצוות השם עליו, הוא שומר מצוות *Habitu na b'chinui adam hashomer mitzvos, adam hamkayem kol mitzvos Hashem alav, hu shomer mitzvos*. מדוע הוא נקרא שומר מצוות ולא מקיים מצוות *Madua hu nikra shomer mitzvos v'lo mekayem mitzvos*? What do we call somebody who's observant? Are you a שומר תורה ומצוות *shomer Torah u'mitzvos*? שומר תורה ומצוות *Shomer Torah u'mitzvos*. Is it a person who's observant? Are they a שומר שבת *shomer Shabbos*? שומר תורה ומצוות *Shomer Torah u'mitzvos*. Why do we call them a שומר *shomer*? We should call them a מקיים *mekayem*. Do you observe, do you fulfill? Colloquially, why do we refer to someone who observes Torah as שומר תורה *shomer Torah*, שומר שבת *shomer Shabbos*, שומר כשרות *shomer kashrus*, שומר נגיעה *shomer negiah*? Why do we refer to it as a שומר *shomer*? So listen to what he answers. לבאר את העניין הזה, אשר יש לומר כי ישנם שני סוגי אנשים המקיימים מצוות ועובדי השם *L'va'er es ha'inyan hazeh, asher yesh lomar ki yeshnam shnei sugei anashim hamkaymim mitzvos v'ovdei Hashem*. There are two types of people that have a relationship with mitzvos. יראי שמים ודאי מקיים כל המצוות שהשם צוה עליהם בסדר ודיוק והידור *Yirei Shamayim vadai mekayem kol hamitzvos sheHashem tzivah aleihem b'seder v'dikduk v'hidur*. There's a person who's scrupulous and vigilant and careful and gets it right. They're careful about Shabbos and kashrus, טהרת המשפחה *taharas hamishpacha*, בין אדם לחברו *bein adam l'chaveiro*, צדקה *tzedakah*, חסד *chesed*. אבל יש אדם אחר לא רק שמקיים הוא את כל המצוות אלא יושב תמיד ומצפה לכך *Aval yesh adam acher lo rak shemekayem hu es kol hamitzvos ela yosheiv tamid umtzapeh l'kach*. But there's an altogether another relationship you could have with mitzvos. There's another level. Listen to this. You're listening? There's another level. You could observe mitzvos as a check. Check. Went to Shacharis, check. Daf Yomi, check. Put some money in the pushka, check. Check, paid that shiva call, check. Okay, Pesach done, check. Shavuos is coming up, did I count the omer last night, check, check, check, check, check. Just means it's a burden, it's a responsibility, it's an obligation, and I've got to do it all, and I do it all vigilantly and carefully and scrupulously. על חומרות *Al chumros*. But there's another level. The other level of relationship with mitzvos is not just a checkmark. It's not simply to fulfill it and say you're done, but rather, it is to look forward to. It is to count down. It is to be excited. It is to be enthused. רצונו וחפצו בקיום המצוות אינו נותן לו מנוח *Retzono v'cheftzo b'kiyum hamitzvos eino nosen lo manoach*. Your excitement and your joy, you have no rest. You have no peace. You just can't wait for the next mitzvah. When's the next davening? When's the next mitzvah? When's the next Yom Tov? When's the next opportunity? תמיד ירדוף אחרי עוד מצוות ומעשים טובים ויחכה ויצפה להם בכליון עיניים *Tamid yirdof acharei od mitzvos u'ma'asim tovim v'yichakeh v'yitapeh lahem b'kilyon einayim*. You're looking, you're longing, you're waiting, where's the opportunity? What What's the next חסד chesed I could do? Who's the next person I can lift their spirits? Where's the next שיעור shiur I can go to or listen to? נו Nu? What's the next קדיש Kadish I can answer? What's the next ברכה bracha I can say אמן amen to? It's an excitement and a looking and a longing. It's an altogether different way of living life. Both fulfill תורה Torah and מצוות mitzvos, but the first does so responsibly. The first does so as a reaction. Check, done. The other does so looking and longing and waiting. זה פירוש בלשון שמירה Zeh peirush b'lashon shmira. So that's what the word שמירה shmira means. פסוק Pasuk says back in בראשית Breishis, ואביו שמר את הדבר v'aviv shamar es hadavar. And רש\"י Rashi there says on that פסוק pasuk, שמר את הדבר היה ממתין ומצפה מתי יבוא Shamar es hadavar hayah mamtin u'metzapeh masai yavo. אביו שמר את הדבר Aviv shamar es hadavar. על מי נאמר Al mi ne'emar? Who is it talking about? יעקב Yaakov about יוסף Yosef. What's he waiting for? When will it come? When will he arrive, the dream be fulfilled? What does שמר את הדבר shamar es hadavar mean in this context? אביו שמר את הדבר Aviv shamar es hadavar is, he was looking forward. He was anticipating. He was excited. He was counting down. The word שמר shamar, ש-מ-ר shin-mem-resh, means excitement, anticipation, looking forward. Looking forward. That's what the אוהב ישראל Ohev Yisroel, the אפטער רבי Apter Rebbe says, the אפטער רב Apter Rav, רב אברהם יהושע העשיל Rav Avraham Yehoshua Heschel, says that's the פשט pshat in what it means to be a שומר שבת shomer Shabbos. שומר שבת Shomer Shabbos is what you do from Sunday to Friday. שבת Shabbos, you observe שבת Shabbos. When are you a שומר שבת shomer Shabbos? Are you excited? Are you looking forward? Are you turning Friday into ערב שבת Erev Shabbos? Are you learning? Are you preparing? Are you counting down? Are you excited? Are you anticipating? Are you planning? שמר Shamar means to look forward. So now you can understand, says רב דרוק Rav Druk, what does the פסוק pasuk mean, ואת מצוותי תשמרו v'es mitzvosai tishmoru? If ועשיתם אותם v'asisem osam means to observe and to keep, what does תשמרו tishmoru mean? It means not just the fulfillment and observance, it means the attitude, the relationship with. ואביו שמר את הדבר v'aviv shamar es hadavar, מצוותי תשמרו mitzvosai tishmoru, what's the relationship? And that's why, what do we call somebody who keeps מצוות mitzvos? The greatest praise that we can say is, they're a שומר תורה ומצוות shomer Torah u'mitzvos. The truth is, not everybody is. Some are just a מקיים תורה ומצוות mekayem Torah u'mitzvos. Some just happen to fulfill תורה Torah and מצוות mitzvos, but they're not שומר תורה ומצוות shomer Torah u'mitzvos. To be שומר תורה ומצוות shomer Torah u'mitzvos is a different relationship than to simply be מקיים תורה ומצוות mekayem Torah u'mitzvos. And that's the meaning of the words, says רב דרוק Rav Druk.Okay. Moving on. פרק כ\"ו פסוק ו' Perek kaf vav, pasuk vav. Still in the ברכות brachos. We haven't gotten to the תוכחה tochacha yet. ונתתי שלום בארצכם V'nasati shalom b'artzechem. השם Hashem says I'm going to give you peace in your land. ושכבתם ואין מחריד והשבתי חיה רעה מן הארץ וחרב לא תעבור בארצכם Ush'chavtem v'ein macharid, v'hishbati chaya ra'ah min ha'aretz v'cherev lo sa'avor b'artzechem. A sword won't pass on your land. ורדפתם את אויביכם u'rdaftem es oyveichem you'll pursue and chase your enemy, ונפלו לפניכם לחרב v'naflu lifneichem l'charev. And what will happen? They will fall before you by the sword. So to summarize these two פסוקים psukim, let's go to the beginning of the first פסוק pasuk and the end of this next פסוק pasuk. ונתתי שלום בארץ V'nasati shalom ba'aretz. God says, I'll give you peace in your land, ונפלו לפניכם לחרב v'naflu lifneichem l'charev and your enemies are going to fall before you. Ask רב מרדכי הכהן Rav Mordechai haKohen, who is רב מרדכי הכהן Rav Mordechai haKohen? The שפתי כהן Sifsei Kohen. 16th century צפת Tzfas. Asks the שפתי כהן Sifsei Kohen, רב מרדכי הכהן Rav Mordechai haKohen, לכאורה סדר הכתובים מהופך L'chora seder ha'ksuvim mehubach. The פסוקים psukim are backwards. היה צריך להקדים ונפלו אויביכם לפניכם לפני ונתתי שלום Hayah tzarich l'hakdim v'naflu oyveichem lifneichem lifnei v'nasati shalom. It's out of order. What happens first? You have peace in your land, and then your enemies fall? No. You destroy and you eliminate Hamas. You get rid of Hezbollah. You kill the head of the snake, Iran. You take care of the Houthis, you take care of all your enemies, and then ונתתי שלום בארצכם v'nasati shalom ba'artzechem. Now you'll have peace in the land. The פסוק pasuk, asks רב מרדכי הכהן Rav Mordechai haKohen, the שפתי כהן Sifsei Kohen, the פסוק pasuk's got it backwards. You have peace in your land, then your enemies fall? Your enemies fall and then you'll have peace in your land. Listen to the answer he gives, and I had the זכות zechus to say this under a חופה chuppah last night, but I didn't get to read it inside. Because they always say, Rabbi, would you speak? Very briefly. So anyway, אלא כך הדבר אמורים Ela kach hadavar amurim. And they didn't say that in this case. But you got to be brief if you're going to speak under a חופה chuppah. כך הדבר אמורים Kach hadavar amurim. ונתתי שלום בארץ, מתי V'nasati shalom ba'aretz, masai? When should you have peace in the land? כשישימו שלום בארץ ביניכם לבין עצמכם וריב לא יפריד בין האחים ומדנים לא יפליגו מחנות K'sheyasimu shalom ba'aretz beineichem l'vein atzmechem v'riv lo yafrid bein ha'achim u'medanim lo yafligu machanos. אז ונפלו אויביכם לפניכם Az, v'naflu oyveichem lifneichem. This פשט pshat is unbelievable. When you make peace among yourselves, when you have harmony and unity, when you're unified, then השם Hashem will take care that the enemies will fall before you. When you're divided, when you're on the brink of civil war, when you're blaming, when you're pointing fingers, when you're rallying, when you're protesting, when you're coming out against, then your enemies aren't going to fall. The peace, the peace the פסוק pasuk is talking about is not the absence of the enemies. That's a peace that comes after ונפלו אויביכם לפניכם v'naflu oyveichem lifneichem. What's the peace that precedes it, ונתתי שלום בארץ v'nasati shalom ba'aretz? When you make peace between each other. When you have peace. This is still a time that we need such אחדות achdus. There are so many forces working so hard to divide us and splinter us and break us apart, and we can't let them. We can't let them, because we're so desperately longing for ונפלו אויביכם לפניכם v'naflu oyveichem lifneichem. So desperately longing for our enemies to simply fall before us, to collapse and to fall before us. But what must precede it is שלום בארץ shalom ba'aretz. There has to be peace. In his words, ביניכם לבין עצמכם beinchem l'vein atzmechem. Not with your enemies. There has to be peace within ourselves. We have to have unity and community and peopled. And when we'll have peace, שלום בארץ shalom ba'aretz, then ונפלו אויביכם לפניכם v'naflu oyveichem lifneichem. And מירצה השם mirtzeh Hashem, במהרה בימינו bimeheira v'yameinu, it should come quickly. פרק כ\"ו פסוק י\"ב Perek kaf vav, pasuk yud beis. והתהלכתי בתוככם והייתי לכם לאלקים ואתם תהיו לי לעם V'hishalachti b'sochechem v'hayisi lachem l'Elokim v'atem tihyu li l'am. God says I'll walk among you, and I will walk among you, I will be God unto you, and you will be a people unto me. Throw back to the אש תמיד Aish Tamid, רב דרוק Rav Druk's past ספר sefer on the פרשה parsha. We didn't get to this in the previous years. רש\"י Rashi says והתהלכתי בתוככם אטייל עמכם בגן עדן כאחד מכם V'hishalachti b'sochechem atayel imchem b'Gan Eden k'echad mikem. I'll walk with you in גן עדן Gan Eden like I'm one of you. ולא תהיו מזדעזעים ממני v'lo siyu mizdaze'im mimeni. And you won't be scared, you won't be frightened, you won't recoil from me. יכול לא תיראו ממני? תלמוד לומר והייתי לכם לאלקים Yachol lo siru mimeni? Talmud lomar v'hayisi lachem l'Elokim. So maybe you'll be so casual and comfortable that you'll have no awe or reverence of me? No. Don't worry. והייתי לכם לאלקים v'hayisi lachem l'Elokim. I'll still be your God. You'll still know who's boss. You'll still know what's what. Wonders רב דרוק Rav Druk in his last, in his אש תמיד Aish Tamid, פלא הוא זה, איך תכן שמתהלך הקדוש ברוך הוא בגן עדן ולא נזדעזעה Peleh hu zeh, keitzad yitachen shemis'halech haKadosh Baruch Hu b'Gan Eden v'lo nizdaze'ah? You're going to walk side by side with God, you're going to go on a טיול tiyul in גן עדן Gan Eden with God, and you're not going to tremble? You're not going to recoil with fear? How could it be? הלוא מכירבה כה גדולה לבורא עולם צריך הלב להסמל בפחד נורא Halo m'kirvah koh gedolah l'borei olam tzarich halev l'hismaleh b'fachad nora. Your heart should be overwhelmed with an awesome fear. How will that happen? Says רב דרוק Rav Druk, you know what you see from here? יסוד עצום Yesod atzum. כמה גדול כוחו של הרגל Kamah gadol kocho shel hergel. You see the danger of habit. The more used to something you are, the more something becomes a habit, the more casual you feel about it. You lose the awe, you lose the reverence, you lose the respect. It can grow old and it can grow stale. That which was so exciting, that which was so special, that which was so awe-inducing, everything can grow stale, even going on a טיול tiyul side by side with השם Hashem in גן עדן Gan Eden. In גן עדן Gan Eden. כבר ידענו שכמה פעמים כן קרה שאדם עומד לפני הקדוש ברוך הוא, בוכה מכל לב, איך לא יחוש ביראת פחד Kvar yadanu shekamah pe'amim ken karah she'adam omed lifnei haKadosh Baruch Hu, bocheh mikol lev, eich lo yachush b'yiras pachad? אין זאת אלא שנכנס תחת מכבש הכוח של הרגל אשר מצליח לאקות כל הרגש לגרום לחזות ביותר Ein zos ela shenichnas tachas mikbash hakoach shel hahergel asher matzliach l'akhot kol haregesh ligrom l'chazos b'yoser. לכן אף בזה שמתהלך הקדוש ברוך הוא בגן עדן, יש מקום לומר שכבר לא תהיה יראה Lachen af b'zeh shemis'halech haKadosh Baruch Hu b'Gan Eden, yesh makom lomar shekvar lo tihiyeh yirah. תלמוד לומר והייתי לכם לאלקים Talmud lomar v'hayisi lachem l'Elokim. You'll be so comfortable and casual, you might think that you'll lose your awe and reverence. השם Hashem has to ensure and guarantee, don't worry, it will still be there. You see the danger of הרגל hergel. A person has to always be on alert. Switch up, use a new סידור siddur with a new layout, mix things up, break out of the habit, break out of the casual relationship, mix things up and light things up and get things going, because even the holiest activity, even that which was so uplifting and exciting at first, can grow stale, even going on a טיול tiyul with השם Hashem in גן עדן Gan Eden.פרק כ\"ו פסוק ל\"ד Perek kaf vav pasuk lamed daled. כ\"ו ל\"ד Kaf vav lamed daled. Page 714. ל\"ד Lamed daled. אז תרצה הארץ את שבתותיה כל ימי השמה Az tirtzeh ha'aretz es shabsoseha kol yemei hashamah. You know what, actually we're going to save this one for שבת Shabbos. Maybe ערב שבת Erev Shabbos, maybe turn Friday into ערב שבת Erev Shabbos. So a lesson about שבת Shabbos. We'll save it because we're already running out of time. פרק כ\"ו פסוק מ' Perek kaf vav pasuk mem. כ\"ו מ' Kaf vav mem. Found on page 714. והתוודו את עונם ואת עון אבותם במעלם אשר מעלו בי ואף אשר הלכו עמי בקרי V'hisvadu es avonam v'es avon avosam b'ma'alam asher ma'alu vi v'af asher halchu imi b'keri. Now we're in the תוכחה tochacha. The harsh, harsh graphic rebuke our people unfortunately have seen come true, come true. The קלויזנבורגער רבי Klausenberger Rebbe famously after the war was in שול shul פרשת בחוקותי Parshas Bechukosai. The תוכחה tochacha was being read. The בעל קורא baal korei was doing as the מנהג ישראל minhag Yisrael, which is to read it quietly under his breath, because we don't want to say these things out loud because, you know, when you're a Jew, if you say something, it could happen. So certain words we don't say, we whisper. So the תוכחה tochacha we whisper. And the קלויזנבורגער רבי Klausenberger Rebbe said, Louder. הֶכֶר Hecher, louder. Louder. Everyone was stunned and the בעל קורא baal korei looked around, and he said, we lived it, and we survived it. You don't have to whisper it. If you're reading the great book, I've been promoting. Actually, the author sent me an email. I guess it got back to them that we've been encouraging. I don't get any royalty, but it's an amazing. Artscroll came out with a new biography of the קלויזנבורגער רבי Klausenberger Rebbe. You want to attach yourself to a person of אמונה emunah. You want to connect to a hotspot of אמונה emunah. If you have a slow connection and you want high speed אמונה emunah, use the hotspot of the קלויזנבורגער רבי Klausenberger Rebbe, this incredible book. הֶכֶר Hecher, louder, louder. But we read it quietly. And here in this פסוק pasuk it describes, they will confess their sin, the sin of their fathers, for the treachery with which they betrayed me and for having behaved towards me בקרי b'keri. קרי Keri is מקרא mikra, happenstance, chance. השם Hashem didn't give me this job, השם Hashem didn't give me this שידוך shidduch, השם Hashem didn't give me this baby, השם Hashem didn't give me this parking spot. השם Hashem didn't give me this. It's happenstance, it's chance, it's random. When we walk with God with randomness, he responds, he reciprocates, he walks with us with randomness as well. So this פסוק pasuk uses a very funny language, because the פסוק pasuk says, והתוודו את עונם v'hisvadu es avonam. We're confessing. I don't understand, isn't confessing a good thing? Confessing is a good thing. So why is this part of the תוכחה tochacha? Why is this part of the rebuke that God's going to respond to? Why is this part of the קרי keri, the happenstance? Listen to the חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim. כאן מלמדת אותנו התורה שוידוי בלי תשובה וחרטה וקבלה לעתיד אין לו ערך Kan melamedes osanu haTorah shevidui b'li teshuva v'charata v'kabala l'asid ein lo erech. A וידוי vidui, if you confess, but you haven't expressed regret about the past and you haven't come up with a plan and a commitment for the future, your confession is empty. It's meaningless. It's meaningless. It reminds me sometimes of the child, sometimes a wife or the husband. Often the husband, he knows at some point that day he's going to have to apologize. So at some point he says sorry. So she says, why? Now the hard work begins. He's got to figure out what he did wrong, what he's saying sorry for. And even if he knows what he did wrong and he said he's sorry, but he doesn't really regret having done it. And she and he both know he's going to do it again. So his, it's true, I did, I told you I was going there, but I was playing golf with my friends. It's true, I said I was on my way home, I hadn't even left the office. It's true, I this, that, or the other thing, it's all true. It's all true. He says, it's true, I confess, I apologize. But she says that's empty and it's meaningless, because if it's not filled with regret for the past and it doesn't contain a commitment for the future, it's גארנישט gornisht, it's nothing. חפץ חיים Chofetz Chaim says the same is true with השם Hashem. והתוודו V'hisvadu. It's even worse. You're confessing, you can identify, you know what you did wrong, but there's no serious regret and no serious attempt to fix it going forward, it's worthless. It's meaningless. It means nothing. That's why it's part of the תוכחה tochacha and that's why it garners this harsh, harsh response.Soloveitchik has a different interpretation. Soloveitchik points out and notices something. The רמב\"ן Ramban raises the question, the order of the פסוקים pasukim seem to be inverted. First we read Jews will confess their sins, but the consequence of that confession will be exile. The opposite should be true. Once the people realize their error and confess, השם Hashem should react favorably. The answer lies in the form of the confession what the Jews employ. Notice in the פסוק pasuk, והתוודו V'hisvadu, they confess, ואת עון אבותם v'es avon avosam. They're confessing their own sins and the sins of their fathers. The פסוק pasuk indicates the Jews will admit their sins and their fathers'. Implicit in this confession is the contention that the sins are not entirely their fault. They will claim their fathers introduced them to the sinful lifestyle, mode of living, and thus they're not totally to blame. The Jew will claim that their sins are not their fault, could not be avoided. There were dynamic forces that prevented them from doing the right thing. They'll confess, but then they'll blame others, and that is not a real confession. The moment your confession is, והתוודו V'hisvadu, you got me, I was wrong, made a mistake. But, do you know why it happened? Have you met my parents? Do you know where I come from, the DNA? You're right, I always run late. My parents late, my grandparents were always late, my great-grandparents were always late. Or do you mean my teacher or my boss, or do you know my children? The person who admits that they made a mistake, but immediately shifts into blame mode, and part of their והתוודו v'hisvadu, part of the confession is עון אבותם avon avosam, to blame their parents, that's not confession. That's not a confession. That is not a confession, and that's why it's part of the תוכחה tochacha, and that's why it garners that harsh rebuke, so said רב סולובייצ'יק Rav Soloveitchik. פרק כ\"ו פסוק מ\"ב Perek kaf vav pasuk mem beis. כ\"ו מ\"ב Kaf vav mem beis, top of page 716. השם Hashem says now, וזכרתי את בריתי יעקב V'zacharti es brisi Yaakov. Please leave the door closed, just go out the other way. Gersch, can you lock that back door? וזכרתי את בריתי יעקב ואף את בריתי יצחק ואף את בריתי אברהם אזכור V'zacharti es brisi Yaakov v'af es brisi Yitzchak v'af es brisi Avraham ezkor, והארץ אזכור v'ha'aretz ezkor. I'll remember my ברית bris with יעקב Yaakov and my ברית bris with יצחק Yitzchak and my ברית bris with אברהם Avraham, and I'll also remember והארץ אזכור v'ha'aretz ezkor, I'll also remember the land. What's going on over here? What do you notice about this פסוק pasuk? It's in reverse. יעקב Yaakov, יצחק Yitzchak, אברהם Avraham. And by the way, in addition to the אבות Avos, you know what other merit, what other זכות zchus I'm going to invoke? And also והארץ v'ha'aretz. So we've got an inanimate object, that's what we culminate with, that's what we conclude with. We are in need of all the merit we can earn. We need השם Hashem showering us with all the love that we can get. So we're invoking the אבות Avos and also the land. The אבות Avos are out of order. And then what does the land add to vibrant, dynamic, actual, actual animate people? So we'll start with the out of order. The של\"ה הקדוש Shlah haKadosh. של\"ה הקדוש Shlah haKadosh says, it's a פסוק pasuk of נחמה nechama. אבל עדיין לא נגמרו הקללות Aval adayin lo nigmeru ha'klalos. The קללות klalos are not yet over. So why are we invoking? קיבלתי כי הפסוק הוא תוכחת מוסר שכן אין דומה רשע בן רשע לרשע בן צדיק כי רשע בן צדיק עונשו מרובה שראה אביו מתנהג בחסידות ואין מנהג אבות בידו Kibalti ki ha'pasuk hu tochachas musar sheken ein domeh rasha ben rasha l'rasha ben tzaddik, ki rasha ben tzaddik onsho merubeh she'ra'ah aviv misnaheg bachasidus v'ein minhag avos b'yado. אין דומה מי שדר במקום מכוער למי שדר במקום תורה Ein domeh mi she'dar b'makom mecho'ar l'mi she'dar b'makom Torah. על זה אומר אני אזכור, להזכיר אלו הדברים לכף חובה Al zeh omer Ani ezkor, l'hazkir elu had'varim l'chaf chovah. So an unbelievable של\"ה Shlah. The תוכחה tochacha is not over, and we're invoking, השם Hashem says, I'm going to remember יעקב Yaakov, יצחק Yitzchak, and אברהם Avraham and the land. And that's part of the תוכחה tochacha, the rebuke? How is that part of the rebuke? Listen to the של\"ה Shlah. השם Hashem says, you know, you don't come from nowhere. You had the greatest, the greatest teachers, the greatest mentors, the greatest role models, and because of that, you should have known better. Others have an excuse. How was I meant to know? Who taught me? Did you see how I was raised? No wonder I couldn't do better. But you, you could have done better. Look where you come from. Look who you are. I was once at a sentencing of someone who was really a wonderful person, got mixed up in a bad thing and had a lot of people argue on his behalf. The judge said, I never received so many letters before. Rabbis, community leaders, my whole life I never received so many letters in any other case, and I read every one. That's a commitment I made I would always do. He said, but I must tell you, and here it backfired. He said, when I read all these letters, all I could think to myself was, there are people who appear before me, they had no way of knowing any better. They had no role models and no mentors and nobody who taught them. And for everyone who wrote a letter saying how wonderful you are, it leaves me more wondering how you could have gone wrong because you had so many powerful role models in your life. Wow. I was stunned in that moment. It backfired. The judge put it all the other way. And that's this פסוק pasuk. That's the judge upstairs. He says, וזכרתי את בריתי יעקב ואת בריתי יצחק ואת בריתי אברהם אזכור v'zacharti es brisi Yaakov, es brisi Yitzchak v'es brisi Avraham ezkor. I know where you come from. I know what opportunities, I know what teachers, I know what role models, I know who you had. I remember it. And therefore you could have and you should have done better. And that's why this פסוק pasuk, which seems to be invoking merit, is really, is still included in what? The תוכחה tochacha, the קללות klalos itself. It's still in there. What does והארץ אזכור v'ha'aretz ezkor? What is this land? Soloveitchik says, the very fact that Israel is isolated internationally, the vast majority of כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael is sympathetic towards her and ready to suffer all manner of charges against her by Jew haters. The fact that we identify with the state and see all who oppose it as Jew haters is due to the sanctity of our אבות Avos. Take away ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael and the Jews of the Diaspora will be engulfed by a tremendous wave of estrangement and assimilation. All the dramatic, tragic experience of the sanctity of the אבות Avos, the existential difference of Jewish history would far be it, be wiped out. When you reach the stage of you will become lost among the nations, when you'll be in turmoil, dumbfounded, afraid, when you'll no longer want to be recognized as Jewish, hiding like יונה Yonah in the bowels of the ship, when you'll be frightened by the lot of אברהם העברי Avraham ha'Ivri of the patriarchal covenant, it will not avail you in spite of all to forget the ancient covenant. I will bring about something new that will always remind you of your Jewishness, that will exemplify the fact that you are different. I השם Hashem will remember the covenant. You'll be forced to remember it. The covenant of אברהם Avraham will boom forth from the radio. All the newspapers will point out the Jews' particular problems, stubbornness as well as its cast-iron determination. The shadow of אברהם Avraham our father will pursue you. Do you know how? By ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael, and I will remember the land. This is the most prophetic, prescient thing I maybe I ever read in my whole life. Look what's going on right now. At the very college campuses where Jews were assimilated and losing their Jewishness, anti-Semites are putting up their homeless shelters, their tents, and they're screaming their anti-Semitic, vile hate. And all why? The assimilating Jews who are trying to forget their Jewish, anti-Semites are yelling at them about אברהם Avraham, יצחק Yitzchak, and יעקב Yaakov, your covenant, your Jewishness. Why? והארץ אזכור V'ha'aretz ezkor. Because Israel will be the catalyst. That little tiny state, smaller than New Jersey, that could fit many times in the state of Florida, that little sliver of land, the only one in its area that doesn't even produce oil, that little place is going to be the cause when you forget that others remember אברהם Avraham, יצחק Yitzchak, and יעקב Yaakov. How many Jews across this country and the world who have forgotten the ברית bris, the covenant, forgotten they descend from אברהם Avraham, יצחק Yitzchak, and יעקב Yaakov, and they're being caused to remind by anti-Semites in their face. And what's the reason? והארץ אזכור V'ha'aretz ezkor. The land of Israel is bringing the anti-Semitism that's reminding the Jew who tries to forget that they're a child of אברהם Avraham, יצחק Yitzchak, and יעקב Yaakov. I have to read that again. I read it too fast because we got to go to מנחה Mincha. It's unbelievable. As always, a lot more, we didn't even get to ערכין erchin, the end of the פרשה parsha, a value. We leave our abbreviated פרשה שיעור parsha shiur here, but at least we got it in. Should be a good day and a good night and a good week.
