Transcript
Good morning, בוקר טוב Boker tov. Welcome back to Parsha Perspectives. For today may be a day of בְּשׂוֹרוֹת טוֹבוֹת יְשׁוּעוֹת וְנֶחָמוֹת besoros tovos, yeshuos v'nechamos. Please God, we should finally, finally see the hostages come home and our soldiers return to their families, a sweeping victory in whatever is decided, and whatever is done should be for the good of כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael, עם ישראל Am Yisrael and the world. Our פרשה parsha series is generously sponsored by Beck and Avi Katz and family in memory of David Grossman. Our learning should be לְעִילּוּי נִשְׁמַת l'ilui nishmas דוד בן מנחם מנוש Dovid ben Menachem Manush. This morning's שיעור shiur is also sponsored by Eliana and Jonathan Mendelbaum in memory of of חיה טובה בת ישראל Chaya Tova bas Yisrael whose יארצייט yahrtzeit was 7th of טבת Teves. She is missed daily. And by Judy and Joel Pomeranz for the רפואה שלמה refuah shleimah of רחמה בת עליזה צפורה Rachama bas Aliza Tzipora and אילנה בת חנה בת גילה בריינה Ilana bas Chana bas Gila Braina, and for the peace for כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael and the safe return of all the hostages. Thank you very much to our generous sponsors, we always appreciate it. Before we dive into the second book of the Torah, and we move along from the story of the very first Jewish family into the birth of the Jewish nation and the Jewish people, a reminder that this מוצאי שבת Motzei Shabbos we have the privilege of hosting, this Shabbos we have the privilege of hosting Rav Meir Yedid שליט\"א shlita and Yaakov Shwekey. And this מוצאי שבת Motzei Shabbos, a free, open to the public, amazing מלווה מלכה Melave Malka concert with Yaakov Shwekey, with דברי תורה divrei Torah by Rabbi Yedid. It is first come, first serve. So, be the first to come and you'll be the first to be served. Do your best to come early. Those who live on the circle are eagerly encouraged to walk and leave the parking for those who are coming from off the circle. Hope that you can make it and you can enjoy it. It'll be a very beautiful and exciting מוצאי שבת Motzei Shabbos.וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הַבָּאִים מִצְרָיְמָה V'eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael habaim Mitzraima we're in the Artscroll חומש Chumash, page 292. וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הַבָּאִים מִצְרָיְמָה V'eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael habaim Mitzraima, אֵת יַעֲקֹב אִישׁ וּבֵיתוֹ בָּאוּ es Yaakov ish u'veiso bau. These are the names of the children of the Jewish people who were coming to Egypt, Yaakov, each man in his household, איש וביתו באו ish u'veiso bau. There are so many questions. We've examined this פסוק pasuk so many times and this פרשה parsha is filled, replete, there's so much to talk about. I wish we had all day. But alas, you don't give me all day. You only give me about an hour. So we'll squeeze in as much as we can. And I don't know where to begin. אלה שמות Eileh shmos, these are the names. What do we care about the names? If you're trying to tell us data and facts, if you're trying to set a backdrop and historical context for the story that's about to unfold of our descent, our גלות galus, our harsh exile in Egypt, just say, the Jews migrated, they immigrated, they lived in Egypt. This is what it was like, slavery, backbreaking labor, we got out. אלה שמות Eileh shmos, these are the names. Why the emphasis and focus on the names? הבאים מצרים Habaim Mitzraima? שבאו She'bau, that came. We are reflecting, we're looking back, we're telling history. We should use past tense. These are the names of the Jews, the children of Yaakov who came, not who are coming, as if it's happening and unfolding in real time. And these are the children of Yaakov, איש וביתו ish u'veiso, they and their household. Yeah, okay, we know. They all came. So איש וביתו ish u'veiso, why is it formulated in that fashion? They וביתו u'veiso, and their house and their family, באו bau, they came. Every פסוק pasuk has so many questions. You could listen passively, you could just revisit it, same פרשה parsha you've heard so many times, or you could look, you could ask questions, you could be bothered, and be stimulated to come up with an answer. So let's dive into some of those questions. צריך עיון Tzarich iyun, wonders the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel. למה מרגיש הפסוק שכל ישראל באו למצרים איש וביתו? Lama margish hapasuk she'Klal Yisrael bau l'Mitzrayim ish u'veiso? Why do we emphasize we didn't just come as individuals, we didn't just come as a collection, a total number of people, but we came in units, איש וביתו ish u'veiso, a person and their household. שלכאורה היה מספיק לכתוב Shelichora haya maspik lichtov, כמו שכתוב בפרשת ויגש k'mo she'kasuv b'parshas Vayigash. ויבוא מצרימה יעקב וכל זרעו איתו Vayavo Mitzraima Yaakov v'chol zaro ito. That question is compounded, says Rav Shmuel Berenbaum, the question is compounded by the fact that we have a precedent. The Torah already told us once, Yaakov came to Mitzrayim with כל זרעו kol zaro, all of his offspring. So if it was good enough then in ויגש Vayigash to tell us Yaakov descended, Yaakov immigrated, he came down with his descendants, why couldn't it tell us again? Why now does it formulate איש וביתו ish u'veiso? ויש לומר V'yesh lomar, says the holy תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel, שכיוון שבאו מארץ ישראל לגלות מצרים she'keivan she'bau mei'Eretz Yisrael l'galus Mitzrayim, since Yaakov and his family came from the holy land, the chosen land, the ארץ ישראל Eretz Yisrael to the harsh exile of Mitzrayim, מקום של עובדי עבודה זרה שטופי זימה makom shel ovdei avodah zarah, shtufei zima, a place of moral decadence, moral corruption, moral confusion, ורשע v'risha and evil, היה צריך שיהיה האחדות של כל משפחה ביחד haya tzarich she'yihiye ha'achdus shel kol mishpacha b'yachad. The only way to survive, the only way to navigate the darkness, the harshness, the oppression, the persecution, the torment, is by being together, ביחד b'yachad. Is by being united, is by being a family. כדי שיוכלו לעמוד חזק ולהתקיים במצרים נאמנים להקדוש ברוך הוא Kedei she'yuchlu la'amod chazak v'lehiskayem b'Mitzrayim ne'emanim la'Kadosh Baruch Hu, ולהחזיק בדרך האבות u'lehachzik b'derech ha'avos. The only way to survive is to protect, is to preserve our family unit, our foundation, is to be ביחד b'yachad, is to be באחדות b'achdus, is to be one. The גמרא Gemara in יומא דף ב' Yoma daf beis tells us, ביתו זו אשתו beiso zu ishto. Whenever the Torah uses the term house, home, it doesn't mean the bricks and mortar, it doesn't mean the square footage. It means ביתו זו אשתו beiso zu ishto. The עקרת הבית akeres habayis, the foundation of that home is the wife, is the woman, is the mother who holds it up. The גמרא in שבת ק\"י Shabbos kuf yud says, רבי יוסי לא קרא אשתו אשתי אלא ביתי Rabi Yosi lo kara ishto ishti ela beisi. Rabi Yosi did not call his wife, my wife, he called her my home. She is my home. She is my home. The home is not the square footage. The home is not the materials, the decorations, the decor. The home are the people in it. והיינו שלעקרת הבית יש כח גדול לחזק את כל הבית ברוח של יראת שמים ועבודת השם שיעמדו חזק כנגד הרוחות הרעות של רוח הזמן V'hainu shel'akeres habayis yesh koach gadol l'chazek es kol habayis b'ruach shel yiras Shamayim v'avodas Hashem she'yaamdu chazak k'neged ha'ruchos ha'raos shel ruach hazman. Why is the wife, the woman, the mother, why is she called the עקרת akeres, the foundation of the home? Because the home is not the bricks and mortar, it's the people. And what holds them up, what is their foundation, what inspires and enriches and empowers and informs? It is, notice the Torah's gender bias against men, נבוך nebach, we suffer. Always putting women on a platform, always elevating them, always crediting them. We're about to read about בזכות נשים צדקניות b'zchus nashim tzidkaniyos. It wasn't the men that got us out of Mitzrayim. If it were up to the men, we'd still be there. It's only in the merit of the נשים צדקניות nashim tzidkaniyos. It's only the עקרת הבית akeres habayis, the women. This is not apologetics. When the rabbis said this 2,000 years ago, they were not living in a society they needed to apologize. They weren't defensive. This is an authentic Torah view. We always elevate the women and we knock the men. It's a there's a gender bias the Torah has, but alas, what can we do? It's the Torah, the Torah of Hashem. It has a bias against men, against us. So the עקרת הבית akeres habayis, that wife, that woman, that foundation, who's getting the kids to go learn, who's dropping them off and doing their homework and making sure their lunch is packed and they have everything they need. It doesn't mean men can't and shouldn't be involved in that too. And we're not using, we are using some some stereotypes, but the Torah sees that as a primary role and an energy and a force. דהיינו ההדגשה כאן של איש וביתו שהיה האחדות של איש ואשתו יחד עם ילדיהם Dehainu hadgasha kan shel ish u'veiso she'haya ha'achdus shel ish v'ishto yachad im yaldeihem. Who came down to Mitzrayim? The only way you will survive the relentless assault of the secular, unfamiliar, foreign world, its values, its messages, its messaging on us, now accelerated thanks to the internet and technology, which are mediums for such good, but also so incredibly destructive, the only way to navigate them, survive them is איש וביתו ish u'veiso, a man and a woman, their home have to be united, have to be aligned, similar values, similar vision, similar boundaries, pursuing similar goals, living similar lifestyle, and without friction and tension and fighting. If they're at each other's throats, if they are hypercritical, if they are condemning, then we'll never survive this גלות galus. We have enough enemies from without, we don't need enemies from within. כמו שאמר רבי עקיבא לתלמידיו הגדולות של השפעתו מאשתו K'mo she'amar Rabi Akiva l'talmidav, ha'g'dulos shel haspa'aso mei'ishto. Rabi Akiva famously said in כתובות ס\"ג Kesubos samech gimmel, when he turned to his students and he said, שלי ושלכם שלה sheli v'shelachem shelah. Anything I am and all that you have from me, it's all to her credit. You look in פרשת ויקהל Parshas Vayakhel, ויבואו האנשים על הנשים vayavo'u ha'anashim al hanashim. פרש רש\"י peirash Rashi, עם הנשים im hanashim. שהתורה מדגשת שהנדיבות הלב למשכן הייתה באופן שאיש ואשתו נתנו ביחד she'haTorah madgeshes she'han'divus lev l'Mishkan haisa b'ofen she'ish v'ishto nasnu b'yachad. When we created the antidote, the repair, the response to the גלות מצרים galus Mitzrayim, the חטא העגל chet ha'egel, when we came out and we built that משכן Mishkan in the מדבר midbar, we built that tabernacle in the desert, and the men and the women came and donated, contributed, you can't expand the campus, you can't become a further source and center of Torah learning and Torah living and transforming and repairing and redeeming the whole world without the generosity. And how do you get the generosity? When a husband and a wife are aligned, that that's why they have what they have and that's what they want to be part of. And that as important as any investment they will make, and the greatest return they will ever get will be the difference they will make. This campus, ישיבות yeshivos, כוללים kollelim, girls schools, obviously Israel and the efforts that are so desperately needed there, but to do it באחדות b'achdus, בבית b'bayis, ברצון אחד b'ratzon echad, נדיבות לב אמיתי n'divus lev amiti. The ultimate generosity is only when ויבואו האנשים על הנשים vayavo'u ha'anashim al hanashim, says Rashi, עם הנשים im hanashim, when men and women together. You know, in fundraising, maybe I shouldn't be sharing this, but they encourage and teach, sometimes you have to strategize. Who's better to meet with? The man, the woman, both? How do you strategize? What will get the most likely outcome? But the Torah says, don't strategize so much. האנשים עם הנשים Ha'anashim im hanashim, because there's nothing like the generosity of a family united and aligned and giving together. That that's a value. That that's an investment with the highest return, that that's an identity of being a giver, a builder, a supporter, transforming the world. So that's what's going on here. ומצינו שבזכות השתדלות הנשים זכו כל ישראל להיגאל בהגלויות U'matzinu she'b'zchus hishtadlus ha'nashim zachu Klal Yisrael l'higa'el ba'galiyos. That's the only thing that's gotten us through these exiles. אף הן היו באותו הנס Af hein hayu b'oso hanes. Women are also obligated despite their being time-bound מצוות mitzvos, there are the exceptions. Women drink the four כוסות kosos, the four cups of wine at the סדר Seder. Why? Because the miracle happened because of them. And similarly, אף הן היו af hein hayu with מגילה Megillah, they too were in the miracle, in the מגילה Megillah. אף הן היו af hein hayu, באותו הנס b'oso hanes. They too were part of that miracle. We see it in several of the מצוות mitzvos. חנוכה Chanukah, אף הן היו באותו הנס af hein hayu b'oso hanes. It's brought down in the חתם סופר Chasam Sofer, women have to eat the holy שלושה שיטות shalosh shidus, because women also have the beneficiaries of the miracle of the מן man that fell from heaven. בזכות נשים צדקניות שהיו באותו דור נגאלו B'zchus nashim tzidkaniyos she'hayu b'oso dor nig'alu. So says Rav Shmuel Berenbaum, why is it formulated, why is the whole story set up against the context and the backdrop איש וביתו באו ish u'veiso bau, that a man and his wife, the home they moved down? Because it's the secret. Before we ever descended, got into Egypt, we already had the formula and the secret for how we're going to get out of Egypt. How will we get out of this exile? The exile of אדום Edom, Jews dispersed around the world. How will we get out of this exile? Only when we are united. And when we talk about איש וביתו ish u'veiso, a man and his home, we're not only talking about within the nuclear home, but we're also talking about the home called עם ישראל Am Yisrael, כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael. It's hard to watch right now as this hostage talks maybe have come to a conclusion. The news as we're beginning the שיעור shiur was that there was a handshake, and we'll begin to see the outcome. I certainly don't think that we outside of Israel have any, are entitled to any degree to weigh in or have an opinion about it. But I don't know, and we can only trust in Hashem. Hopefully there will be a good outcome and it's all part of his master plan. But you know what would be a horrific tragedy? You know what would be certainly a victory we'd give our enemies? If we become divided over it. If we're at each other's throats and we're splintered and we're divided and we're calling each other names and we're criticizing. If we become broken and splintered, even if we may have different opinions about its merit, if it's done, let's channel all of that angst into תפילה tefillah to Hashem that have the outcome we desire, that those hostages come home and people are safe and that Hamas is not able to regroup and so on. But one thing I know, the outcome of the deal I have no idea and I don't feel entitled to know. But one thing I do know, it will be a victory to our enemies if it leaves us broken, splintered, divided, like we were on January 6th over other things. Hamas launched. We had an expert who spoke here this past Shabbos, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist on these issues, who said Hamas launched on October 7th because on October 6th they saw us on the brink of civil war. And they knew if we were divided, now is the time to strike. Now is the time to strike. And they planned and coordinated that there would be an attack on seven fronts simultaneously, and they really thought they could destroy Israel. And the miracles of Hashem, it didn't unfold exactly the way they planned. But one thing that they didn't anticipate, and we didn't know how strong we were, was that on October 8th, we wouldn't become further divided with blame, we became incredibly united. ביחד ננצח B'yachad ninatzeiach. But we've seen over this year and a half that begin to dissolve and we can't let it. And this hostage deal can't, can't accelerate our being divided again. We can't go back to January to October 6th ever again. We have to figure out a way that even when we disagree and even with what concerns we have, we are united. Because, and then we'll get back to the פרשה parsha, thank you for indulging me. But because this Sfas Emes says, I'll give you a Pesach dvar Torah already before Tu B'Shvat. I'll give you a Pesach dvar Torah. We say at the Seder and we say והיא שעמדה לאבותינו ולנו v'hi she'amda l'avoseinu v'lanu. This thing stood for us. Every generation they try to kill us. שבכל דור ודור עומדים עלינו She'b'chol dor v'dor omdim aleinu. שלא אחד בלבד עמד עלינו אלא בכל דור ודור Shelo echad bilvad amad aleinu ela b'chol dor v'dor. שלא אחד Shelo echad, it wasn't just in this one generation that we're starting to read about in our פרשה parsha when we went to Egypt they tried to kill us, in every generation. People we never heard of like the Houthis. Who were the Houthis? You thought they were a rock band, a group. Whoever heard of the Houthis? Whoever heard of the Houthis before a year ago? And now last night again, the whole Israel is running to bomb shelters for these who are the Houthis? בכל דור ודור עומדים עלינו לכלותינו B'chol dor v'dor omdim aleinu l'chaloseinu. Says the Sfas Emes, the issue is not our enemies. You know when the problem starts? You know when we're vulnerable and fragile? You know when it could be the beginning of our end? שלא אחד בלבד Shelo echad bilvad. When we're not אחד echad, that alone, עמד עלינו לכלותינו amad aleinu l'chaloseinu. As I said, this Sfas Emes, the Gerer Rebbe, שלא אחד בלבד shelo echad bilvad, not being united alone, עמד עלינו לכלותינו amad aleinu l'chaloseinu, that will destroy us. When did Haman know to strike? הנה עם מפוזר ומפורד בין העמים Heineh am mefuzar u'meforad bein ha'amim. They're scattered, they're divided, let's go, let's do this. They're killing each other, they won't even notice that we're going to kill them. What's the antidote and the answer? When we're not when they're loving each other, we can't touch them. They're loving each other. They're in love with each other. The אהבת חינם ahavas chinam they're practicing, the end of last week's פרשה parsha, ויחי Vayechi, Yosef, the brothers, reconciliation. When we're killing each other, we're most vulnerable. And when we're ביחד b'yachad, as we were October 8th, we had a purpose and a mission and a fortitude and a tenacity and a unity. We can't let today's news divide us because says Rav Shmuel Berenbaum, איש וביתו באו ish u'veiso bau. The only way to survive and the only way to navigate a גלות galus is איש וביתו באו ish u'veiso bau.Rav Druck in his לבוש איש Lavush Ish quotes Rashi. אלה שמות בני ישראל Eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael. We all know this Rashi. אף על פי שמנאם בחייהם בשמותם Af al pi she'menam b'chayeihem b'shmosam. Even though Hashem already counted them and called them in their name in their lifetime. Who? ראובן שמעון לוי יהודה יששכר זבולון בנימין דן נפתלי גד ואשר Reuven, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda, Yissachar, Zevulun, Binyamin, Dan, Naftali, Gad v'Asher, the beginning of our פרשה parsha we just took up precious real estate, a whole two פסוקים psukim mentioning the names of people we already know. And they're no longer here. They're the last generation. They're gone. These are their offspring who are descending to Mitzrayim. So why are we invoking their names again? wonders Rashi. Been there, done that. We listed them, we know their names, they've been counted. Why are we counting them again? חזר ומנאן אחר מיתתן Chazar u'menan achar misasan. להודיע חיבתן שנמשלו לכוכבים l'hodi'a chibasan she'nimshlu l'kochavim. Because Hashem loves them. Loves them. And why does He love them? He likens them to the stars in the sky. שמוציאן ומכניסן במספר ובשמותם she'motzian u'machnisan b'mispar u'v'shmosam. Because the stars come and go by their number and by their name. שנאמר הפסוק בישעיהו המוציא במספר צבאם לכולם בשם יקרא She'ne'emar ha'pasuk b'Yeshayahu, ha'motzi v'mispar tzeva'am, l'chulam b'shem yikra. Each star has a number. I don't know if that's true, go to NASA's website. Every star has a number and then there's some website trying to convince you to buy a name for some star somewhere that no one will ever use but they will make a lot of money. Every star has a number and a name. And Hashem also, Jewish people He promised Avraham will be like the stars. And if every star has a name and a number, Klal Yisrael has to have a name and a number. He counted them by the name, now by the number. אלה שמות Eileh shmos, these are the names. Rashi. Okay. Why, what, now? So we've seen before and it's been quoted in many people's names and Rav Druck adds his name to the group, that why is Hashem talking about a name and a number? And I'll summarize it for you on the outside because there's so much I want to get to. Says Rav Druck, what is a number? A number, a number he says is only meaningful in a context. If I say 23, what does it mean to you? Michael Jordan. But what else does it mean to you, 23? Well, it comes after 22 and before 24. It's 23. 23 alone isolated means nothing. 23 coming after 1 through 22 and leading up to 24 and beyond means something. So to say someone is a number means that they have a role among a greater group, among a unit, among a people. To give someone a name, a name is a description. A name is personal, a name is individual, a name is unique. Hashem wants us to know and wants us to live. We spent a Shabbos Shuva unpacking this at length when it comes to Elul and Tishrei and Rosh Hashana, over in the front of כבני מרון Kivnei Maron, and the Gemara in Rosh Hashana has three understandings of what בני מרון Bnei Maron are. On Rosh Hashana we pass before God like בני מרון Bnei Maron. What does that mean like בני מרון Bnei Maron? בני מרון Bnei Maron might have been a cliff that people have to walk single file. Does it mean Hashem looks at us as individuals? בני מרון Bnei Maron was a battalion in the army. Hashem looks at us what's our role in the larger group in the unit, in the battalion? Three opinions there the Maharal, we spoke about it elsewhere. But says Rav Druck, a name and a number. A number is part of the greater. A name is your individual. Every one of us have to look at ourselves as having that dual role, as having that dual role. On the one hand, we're unique and distinct. On the one hand, בשבילי נברא העולם bishvili nivra ha'olam. Hashem created the entire world for me, for me, אדם נברא יחידי adam nivra yechidi. A person was created alone to communicate that the whole world and everything in it is worth it just for you. The mission you have to play, the difference you're meant to make, who you are, your infinite inestimable value, the whole world is here and worth it just for you. But also, you're a גארנישט gornisht. But also, before you think you're all that, you're a nothing. And all you're here is to serve and be part of something much bigger than yourself. And the moment you think it's all about you, you're a nothing. And when you think I am part of something much bigger, then your life can be something. And to have both thoughts and live both lives simultaneously is to be a name and a number, to be a name and a number.And I think about that particularly yesterday, the last two days, five more soldiers are now next to the כסא הכבוד Kisei Hakavod, קדושים kedoshim, holy soldiers who left their families and leave behind their families who went to fight to protect us, whose souls are now ascended on the high, no matter how they lived in this world, they are right next to the heavenly throne forever. These קדושים kedoshim, and the ten injured who are fighting for their lives and to recover. And these holy soldiers of our IDF, over this year and a half that hopefully please God now will be able to leave and go home. Hopefully, leaving behind safety. They wear a dog tag and what has what does it have on it? A number. A number, they're a number. They're in a unit and they're in a battalion and they're in a division and they're part of something bigger than themselves. And their number reflects their role in a mission that's bigger than themselves. And if any of them think it's about themselves and they're not willing to be part of something bigger than themselves, then the whole army is at risk. They are a number. But particularly as we learn about them and memorialize them, but also those who are heroes and come home healthy, they are a name. They're someone's son or daughter, or mother or father, brother or sister, husband or wife, they're a name. They're a number, they're part of something bigger, and they're also a name, and they're also a name. And that's what Hashem is saying. אלה שמות בני ישראל Eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael. These are the names. We're about to learn a story about 70 souls that came down. When you go, if you've been to Poland, some of you we went together on our trip, you go to Majdanek, you go to Auschwitz, you go to the barracks where they have countless shoes. One of the things that we do is say, don't just look at the thousands of shoes. Don't just think about the number six million. Find a shoe and imagine its story. Look at the shoe, did it belong to a little girl? Did it belong to an old man? When did they buy it and where did they wear it and what footsteps did they take in it? They're a name, not just a number. Six million is a number we can't even comprehend. We can't even comprehend. Over 800 soldiers have given their lives since October 7th. It's a large number, over 800. Those are that's a number. But in that number, every one of them has a name. And we have to say their name and learn their name and remember their name and learn and daven לעילוי נשמת l'ilui nishmas their name. And that name and that number, that's the אלה שמות eileh shmos and the number, that is the two truths that the Torah is communicating here in the beginning of our פרשה parsha in this אלה שמות eileh shmos. Why הבאים habaim? and then I promise to get past the opening פסוק pasuk. Why הבאים habaim? The last question we asked just on the we could spend three hours on just the first פסוק pasuk. But then you won't come back next week. and it's great to see everyone. ברוך השם Baruch Hashem, it's amazing to be so many together and new faces and I know some of you are visiting. Welcome for the 3,000 Yeshiva weeks there now are. We don't have Yeshiva week, it used to be Yeshiva week, now we have Yeshiva month and Yeshiva months. The Yeshiva week I observe, the one I would never observe, the one my kids have, the one my kids school would never go be part of. So whatever reason, thank you for being here. It's great to have you. So why הבאים habaim? Says Rav Soloveitchik, we've got a bunch of Rav Soloveitchiks today. The Torah more properly have used the past tense אשר באו asher bau, who came to Egypt, not הבאים habaim, which more literally would be translated as who are coming. The children of Yaakov were long gone. This phrase refers to events that transpired 210 years before the שמות Shemos narrative. They came down 210 years earlier. They've been in servitude, they've been suffering already now for over two centuries, 210 years. A very long time. So why are we describing still coming? אשר באים Asher baim, הבאים מצרימה habaim Mitzraima. The Midrash noticed this anomaly and interpreted the intent of the phrase הבאים habaim, כאילו באו היום ke'ilu bau hayom. Says the Midrash, as if Bnei Yisrael had come that very day. The term הבאים habaim suggests that the people of Egypt did not consider the Israelite nation as part of their state, society and culture. They looked upon them as if they had just entered Egypt. How long must one remain in a country to be considered a citizen? The words of Pharaoh to his advisers suggest he considered Bnei Yisrael as having just arrived. Indeed, the name for the Israelite, עברי Ivri, means completely separated, being on the bank of the river while everyone else is on the other side. Even though Bnei Yisrael came many years earlier, Egypt still viewed them as strangers. This belief in the otherness of the Jew repeats itself throughout history. Jews lived in Germany even before the Dark Ages. During the Middle Ages, the Jews supported Germany from within. They were an integral part of society. Yet, many centuries after they arrived, these Jews were wiped out in the Holocaust. They were charged with being strangers, not counted among society. When we took that trip to Poland, the very first stop we made when we came off the plane was in Warsaw, there's a Jewish Museum. I remember we just got off the plane, everyone was exhausted. I have a great collage of every member of that trip falling asleep somewhere in that museum. We had just gotten off the plane. It was totally incongruous. I couldn't make sense. The whole museum is not dedicated to the Holocaust. That you have the rest of all of Poland for. You could go see the camps and walk them and see the communities that were destroyed. That museum is dedicated to the rich golden age of Jewish life in Poland before the war, of which there was. There was. And you just couldn't make sense of it. How could we have anything good or nice to say about our time there before? How could it be? And yet there was a rich history, contributing, participating, being among the leadership. And it didn't matter. Just like in Germany, just like in Poland, and throughout our history, no matter how much we participate, contribute and become part of, they always treat us as outsiders and as strangers. The essence of anti-semitic doctrine throughout history has depicted the Jew as a stranger. They charge us that we are strangers, עברים Ivrim. We never assimilate ourselves into any community, we are outsiders. This is another implication to the use of the present tense. That's why הבאים habaim, because the Egyptians looked at us as, you just got here, you don't belong here, you're not one of What do you mean? We came over on the Mayflower. Christopher Columbus was a Yid. He put on tefillin in the Mayflower. And his tummy there was a Chabad guy in the Mayflower putting tefillin on Christopher Columbus. So what are you what are you talking about? What are you talking about? הבאים Habaim we just got here. The anti-Semite in Times Square holding up a placard says you're an outsider, you're a foreigner, you have dual loyalty, you don't belong here, you're not one of us, you're not one of us. There's another implication says Rav Soloveitchik. Chazal say before four qualities Bnei Yisrael were redeemed from Egypt. They didn't change their names, they didn't change their language, they didn't change their clothing, they didn't change their God. We distinguished ourselves, מצוינים שם metzuyanim sham we say in the Haggadah. Number one the Medrash stated beautifully, Reuven descended to Egypt, Reuven came up from Egypt. The Jew was conscious of his identity. When the Jews left, they spoke לשון הקודש Lashon Hakodesh as fluently as when they had when they came to Egypt. We maintained our language, our dress, our names, and our lifestyle, our belief in Hashem, our faith. We refused to assimilate entirely. We stubbornly clung to our difference, to our distinction. And that's what הבאים מצרימה habaim Mitzraima. We never fully unpacked. We never assimilated. We never integrated entirely. There are certain ideals to which a Jew is committed that can never be forfeited. There's a special relationship between God and the Jew, a relationship between God and mankind. Certain areas of human endeavor, healing and helping, the Jew is part of the relationship between God and mankind. We participate in our part of society. But whenever society try tries to terminate our individual identity, to tell us how to live and to be like the rest of society, we are very stubborn. Pharaoh charged that the Jew was uninterested in the welfare of the land. He was wrong. הבאים מצרימה Habaim Mitzraima has two meanings. We have a special eternal identity, but nevertheless we participate in society. When he said Jews must abandon their identity and join the society whose ideals differ from those that Yaakov brought with him to Egypt, the Jews removed themselves from society, removing themselves from society. So הבאים מצרימה habaim Mitzraima is a funny term but for a very meaningful reason, says Rav Soloveitchik. Both, that's how the anti-Semite treats us, you're an outsider, you're a stranger, you're not one of us, you're different. You can be cruel to the stranger. It's much harder to be cruel to the one you're familiar with. Can be cruel to someone you don't know, who's an outsider. It's harder to be cruel to the one you have a kinship and connection to. So the anti-Semite has always positioned us, הבאים habaim, you're coming, you're an outsider, you're a stranger. But moreover, says the Rav, we need to see ourselves as first coming down. We just got here. Where do I live? ירושלים Yerushalayim. I'm just temporary on שליחות shlichus in Boca Raton. Don't unpack. Don't unpack literally, physically, don't unpack. And don't unpack our identity. Participate, contribute, take the best of, but don't assimilate and integrate. Maintain that attitude of הבאים habaim.Okay, moving on right along. פסוק ו Pasuk vov. וימת יוסף Vayamas Yosef, Yosef died, וכל אחיו v'chol echav and all his brothers, וכל הדור ההוא v'chol hador hahu, and all of that generation. They had all passed away. The אור החיים הקדוש Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh, Rav Chaim Ben Attar, the אור החיים Ohr Hachaim on this pasuk says, בא הכתוב לומר שכל זמן שאחד מהאחים קיים היו המצרים מכבדים את בני ישראל Ba hakasuv lomar she'kol zman she'echad me'ha'achim kayam, hayu ha'Mitzrim mechabdim es Bnei Yisrael. Until the last brother was gone, the Egyptians honored, respected the Jew. והיו ישראל חשובים בעיניהם ולא היה להם פנים להשתעבד בהם V'hayu Yisrael chashuvim b'eineihem v'lo haya lahem panim l'hishtabed bahem. They wouldn't dare, they wouldn't dare subjugate the Jewish people when one of the brothers was alive, one of the godfathers, one of the brothers, one of the originals, one of the OG were alive, they wouldn't subjugate, they wouldn't put the Jewish people in slavery. ובמיתת יוסף ירדו בני ישראל מגדלותם Uv'misas Yosef yardu Bnei Yisrael m'gadlusam. שמתחילה היו מעולים מיוסף למצרים ומיתתו נעשה שווה להם She'mitechila hayu me'ulim mi'Yosef l'Mitzrayim, u'misaso na'aseh shaveh lahem. When Yosef was alive and Egyptians, every Egyptian learned in school. who had saved them from the brink of extinction. It was Yosef. Sort of founding father of modern day Egypt. They all learned about him, honored him, revered him. It made the Jew, all of Yosef and his brothers and their children and their grandchildren, were sort of elevated above the Egyptians. But when Yosef died, they quickly moved on. The Jew is no longer better or greater or we give credit to. וּבְמִיתַת הָאַחִים יָרְדוּ לְמַטָּה מִמַּדְרֵגָתָם uv'misas ha'achim yardu l'mata m'madregasam. And then, when after Yosef died, the brothers died, then the Jews were kicked down another notch. שֶׁהָיוּ בְּעֵינֵיהֶם נִבְזִים shehayu b'eineihem nivzim. Now they're able to look degraded and despicable. אֲבָל עֲדַיִן לֹא הָיוּ מִשְׁתַּעְבְּדִים בָּהֶם aval adayin lo hayu mishtabdim bahem. But still, while they no longer honored or revealed or saw the Jew as elevated, and they weren't afraid, they didn't love, they didn't fear, they didn't respect. אֲבָל עֲדַיִן לֹא הָיוּ מִשְׁתַּעְבְּדִים בָּהֶם aval adayin lo hayu mishtabdim bahem, but they would never dare, they would never dare enslave them. וְרַק לְאַחַר שֶׁמֵּת כָּל הַדּוֹר הִתְחִילוּ לְהִשְׁתַּעְבֵּד בָּהֶם v'rak l'achar shemes kol hador hischilu l'hishtabed bahem. Says the אוֹר הַחַיִּים Ohr HaChaim, that's why the פָּסוּק pasuk is reintroducing, how did we get into this problem that we became slaves? Because וַיָּמָת יוֹסֵף va'yamas Yosef, went down a notch. וְכָל אֶחָיו v'chol echav, went down another notch. וְכֹל הַדּוֹר הַהוּא v'chol hador hahu, that whole generation that they revered and were afraid of and respected and loved, went down another notch. And we were so low, now they could put us in slavery. That's how it went down, that's how it happened. Says רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz. Says רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz in his שִׂיחוֹת מוּסָר sichos mussar. שֶׁלֹּא מֵרֹאשׁ הַמִּצְרִים הָיוּ שׂוֹנְאִים מֵאָז וּמֵעוֹלָם shelo me'rosh haMitzrim hayu son'im me'az u'me'olam, אִם הָיוּ יְכוֹלִים לְהִשְׁתַּעְבֵּד בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל קֹדֶם im hayu yecholim l'hishtabed b'Yisrael kodem. בְּכָל זֹאת b'chol zos, now, the Egyptians hated the Jew from long before and had no respect, and would have, if they could have, subjugated, enslaved the Jew long earlier. Why didn't they? כָּל עוֹד בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָיוּ נִכְבָּדִים בְּעֵינֵי עַצְמָם לֹא יָכְלוּ לָהֶם kol od bnei Yisrael hayu nichbadim b'einei atzmam lo yochlu lahem. As long as the Jew carried himself, carried herself with honor, with dignity, with distinction, then the Egyptian kept a distance. Only when the Jew, that next generation, shed their Jewish royalty, shed their Jewish עַם הַנִּבְחָר am ha'nivchar, אֲשֶׁר בָּחַר בָּנוּ asher bachar banu, when they no longer saw themselves as on a mission for the world, now the Egyptian. דָּבָר זֶה נוֹבֵעַ מִצַּד הַמְשַׁעְבֵּד שֶׁאֵינוֹ יָכוֹל אָדָם שֶׁנִּכְבָּד וְחָשׁוּב בְּעֵינֵי עַצְמוֹ, וְהֵן מִצַּד הַמְשֻׁעְבָּד davar zeh nove'a mitzad ha'meshabed she'eino yachol adam she'nichbad v'chashuv b'einei atzmo, v'hen mitzad ha'meshubad. So this, this phenomenon, says רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, is true both for the one who enslaves and the enslaved. The one who enslaves can't do it until the other party's vulnerable. The other party becomes vulnerable when they stop seeing themselves as חָשׁוּב וְנִכְבָּד בְּעֵינֵי עַצְמוֹ chashuv v'nichbad b'einei atzmo. How important, says רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, learning from our history. How we view ourselves, how we see ourselves. יְדִיעָה זוֹ נִכְבָּדָה מְאֹד לָאָדָם כְּדֵי לְהָבִין אֶת תַּחְסִיסֵי הַיֵּצֶר הָרָע בְּמִלְחֶמֶת אָדָם yediah zu nechbadah me'od l'adam kedei l'havin es tachsisei ha'yetzer hara b'milchemes adam. We need to know it with our external enemy, and we need to know it, says רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz, with our internal enemy. Even the יֵצֶר הָרָע yetzer hara comes and says, \"Watch that, say that, go there, do this, wear that.\" When we look at the יֵצֶר הָרָע yetzer hara and say, \"Do you know who you're talking to? Do you know who you're trying to convince to do that?\" איך בין א, I'm a prince, I'm a princess, I'm a child of הַשֵּׁם Hashem. I have a mission, I have a purpose. I'm here for a reason. What are you trying to do? You've got no shot with me. But if we say, \"I'm nothing, I'm a no-one, I'm vulnerable, I'm fragile,\" okay, I'll try that. I'll indulge in that. The way we're armed to fight the enemy from without and from within is to hold ourselves in high esteem, is to believe in ourselves, to have self-worth and self-confidence, to feel a sense of mission and a sense of purpose. How important that is. And I would argue רַב חַיִּים שְׁמוּאֵלֶבִיץ Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz was prescient, and how important his words are in our time too. After all, this is called פַּרְשָׁה parsha perspectives for today. One of, if not the most important answer to anti-Semites, all the billboards and all the squares that you could put on your social media, and I don't mean to knock it, I'm not making fun of it, certainly, and I'm grateful for everyone who's fighting it. But with all that's being done to fight anti-Semitism, until we hold our head high, proud, practicing, unapologetic Jews, no one will respect us if we don't respect ourselves. If we don't have self-respect, if Jewish people don't have self-respect, demand more, act with dignity and purpose and mission. If we don't have self-esteem, self-respect, if we're not proud and practicing, then no one's going to respect us if we can't respect ourselves. And too many Jews are cowering and apologizing and taking off their יאַרמלקע yarmulke and their מָגֵן דָּוִד Magen David and hiding their מְזוּזָה mezuzah. And if we don't respect ourselves, no one will respect us. That will be the beginning of the end, just like it was, וַיָּמָת יוֹסֵף וְכָל אֶחָיו וְכָל הַדּוֹר הַהוּא va'yamas Yosef v'chol echav v'chol hador hahu. The answer and the antidote is not less, but more. More self-respect, more proud, practicing, displaying our יִידִּישְׁקַייט Yiddishkeit, our Judaism, with confidence, with clarity for the world to see.פֶּרֶק א פָּסוּק טו Perek Aleph Pasuk Tes Vav. Turn the page. Ooh, turn the page. We're flying now. We have the פַּרְעֹה Pharaoh is threatened, he sees the population explosion among the Jews. He says they're going to band together, they're going to lead a rebellion, it will be over. The only way to subjugate them is give them back-breaking labor. Make them work so hard that they are both physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually exhausted. They have nothing left to be able to coordinate a rebellion. וַיְמָרְרוּ אֶת חַיֵּיהֶם בַּעֲבֹדָה קָשָׁה בְּחֹמֶר וּבִלְבֵנִים va'yemareru es chayeihem b'avodah kashah b'chomer u'v'l'veinim. They made our lives bitter with hard work and with bricks. וְכָל עֲבֹדָה בַּשָּׂדֶה u'v'chol avodah ba'sadeh. Back-breaking, horrific, oppressive labor. And then the מֶלֶךְ מִצְרַיִם melech Mitzrayim said to the מְיַלְּדוֹת הָעִבְרִיּוֹת meyaldos ha'ivriyos, he tells these Hebrew, Hebrew midwives, אֲשֶׁר שֵׁם הָאַחַת שִׁפְרָה וְשֵׁם הַשֵּׁנִית פּוּעָה asher shem ha'achas Shifra v'shem ha'shenis Puah. One named שִׁפְרָה Shifra, one named פּוּעָה Puah. רַשִׁ\"י Rashi already tells us, those weren't their real names. They were? They were יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved and מִרְיָם Miriam. They were יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved and מִרְיָם Miriam. We've seen previously, we won't mention it now, it's shocking. It's possible that these מְיַלְּדוֹת הָעִבְרִיּוֹת meyaldos ha'ivriyos are not, רַשִׁ\"י Rashi is going with the tradition it's יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved and מִרְיָם Miriam. But there's another tradition they might not have even been Jewish women. This could have been someone else all together. We've spoken about it in the past. But anyway, רַשִׁ\"י Rashi quotes פּוּעָה Puah, why are they called שִׁפְרָה Shifra and פּוּעָה Puah? מָכוֹן פּוּעָה Machon Puah is an amazing center in יְרוּשָׁלַיִם Yerushalayim, רַב מְנַחֵם בּוּרְשְׁטֵיין Rav Menachem Burshtein, the founder, that we've worked with for a long time, have been an amazing resource to us. They're actually coming again to do a rabbinic training later this year. מָכוֹן פּוּעָה Machon Puah, fertility expertise, fertility and הֲלָכָה halacha, טָהֳרַת הַמִּשְׁפָּחָה taharas hamishpacha and הֲלָכָה halacha. Why did they call it a מָכוֹן פּוּעָה Machon Puah? Because, פּוּעָה Puah. שִׁפְרָה Shifra and פּוּעָה Puah. Says רַשִׁ\"י Rashi, פּוּעָה Puah, שֶׁהָיְתָה פּוֹעָה וּמְדַבֶּרֶת וְהוֹגָה לַוָּלָד כְּדֶרֶךְ נָשִׁים הַמְפַיְסוֹת תִּינוֹק הַבּוֹכֶה she'hayta po'ah u'medaberes v'hogah l'vlad k'derech nashim ha'mefaisos tinok ha'bocheh. פּוּעָה Puah is almost like an onomatopoeia. פּוּעָה Puah is to hold and cuddle and caress and calm the baby that's crying. פּוּעָה Puah, this pu-pu-pu is to to calm, to caress, to cuddle that baby and to make them stop crying, to make them stop crying. Hopefully when they're sitting next to me on the plane, to make them stop crying. The Gemara in Sotah says and why שִׁפְרָה Shifra? שִׁפְרָה Shifra זוֹ יוֹכֶבֶד zu Yocheved שֶׁנִּקְרָא שְׁמָהּ שִׁפְרָה she'nikra shma Shifra, שֶׁמְּשַׁפֶּרֶת אֶת הַוָּלָד she'meshaperes es ha'vlad. פּוּעָה Puah זוֹ מִרְיָם zu Miriam, שֶׁפּוֹעָה לַוָּלָד she'po'ah... l'vlad. Wonders רַב יְרוּחָם לֵבוֹבִיץ Rav Yerucham Levovitz, the holy רַב יְרוּחָם Rav Yerucham, the משגיח Mashgiach of the Mir. Why were יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved and מִרְיָם Miriam זוֹכָה zocha to a כִּנּוּי מְיֻחָד kinui meyuchad? Why do they get a nickname? Their real names are not mentioned at all. If they had a nickname and a real name, I'd understand. But we only know them and we're only introduced to them by their nickname, not by their real name. Why? And so what's the big deal? They knew how to cuddle and coo and calm a baby? Yeah, that's their job. They were trained and hired to be midwives. One of my daughters is a nurse and she's studying to be a a uh, nurse practitioner, midwife. So in school, she's learning midwifery. And I only told you that so I could use the word midwifery because it's one of my favorite words. Such a good word. Midwifery. So yeah, you went to school and you learned about midwifery, how to calm and coo and cuddle and whatever else you learn in in school. So the fact that Miriam and פּוּעָה Puah did it, מִרְיָם Miriam and יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved did it, שִׁפְרָה Shifra and פּוּעָה Puah, yeah, they just did their job. That's their nickname, was that they did their job? Wonders רַב יְרוּחָם Rav Yerucham. And here's what he answers. Listen to this. תָּלוּי מִמַּה נוֹבַעַת הַנַּחַת בַּתִּינוֹק talui m'mah noveas ha'nachas ba'tinok. אִם הַמְיַלֶּדֶת מְשַׁעֲשַׁעַת אֶת הַתִּינוֹק מִפְּנֵי שֶׁזּוֹ פַּרְנָסָתָהּ וּבָזֶה מַרְוִיחָה אֶת לַחְמָהּ im ha'meyaledes mesha'ashe'as es ha'tinok machmas she'zu parnasasa u'v'zeh marvicha es lachma. אִם כֵּן זוֹ בֶּאֱמֶת מְלֶאכֶת חוֹלִין כִּשְׁאַר מְלָאכוֹת im ken zu b'emes meleches chulin k'shaar melachos. אֲבָל עַל יוֹכֶבֶד וּמִרְיָם מֵעִידָה הַתּוֹרָה וַתְּחַיֶּינָה אֶת הַיְלָדִים aval al Yocheved u'Miriam me'ida haTorah va'techayena es ha'yeladim. A nurse, a nurse can calm a baby because that's their job. That's how they get their paycheck. That's how they get calm and quiet and peace. And so they're calming the baby because that's their job. But מִרְיָם Miriam and יוֹכֶבֶד Yocheved didn't calm the baby because that was their job and now they collect their paycheck. Why did they do it? וַתְּחַיֶּינָה אֶת הַיְלָדִים va'techayena es ha'yeladim. They loved. It wasn't a job. It wasn't, it was a difference between a vocation and an avocation, between a job and a calling. וַתְּחַיֶּינָה va'techayena, they were trying to give life and a continuity to this people and to this family. שֶׁמְּגַמָּתָן וּמַטְרָתָן הָיָה לְהַחֲיוֹת אֶת הַיְלָדִים וּלְסַפֵּק לָהֶם מַיִם וּמָזוֹן she'magmasan u'matrasan haya l'hachyos es ha'yeladim u'l'sapek lahem mayim u'mazon. What they were trying to do was to give life, to give energy, to give hope, to give a future to this family. So the reason they deserved a nickname that would describe what they were doing, ah, what do you mean? They're supposed to do that. That's what they're paid for. No, they weren't doing it going through the motions because that's what they're paid for. They were doing it because וַתְּחַיֶּינָה va'techayena, וַתְּחַיֶּינָה va'techayena, they were breathing life. They were bringing life. And says רַב יְרוּחָם Rav Yerucham, בַּעַל הַמַּכֹּלֶת baal ha'makolet, the owner of the מַכֹּלֶת makolet, the grocery store owner, he could say, נֶבֶּך nebach, I got to be there early, I got to close late, I got to restock the shelves. What can I do, this is how I make a living. I own a grocery. I own a grocery. I wish I was doing something more. I own a grocery. It's a living. It's a living. Or the owner of the grocery could say, I nourish people. You need to eat to live and I provide them with those provisions. I'm like the Yosef of our time. I have a grocery and I stock it and I help and I lend on credit and I do, whatever job we're in can just be a job or it can be something so much more. And we elevate ourselves and the experience from what רַב יְרוּחָם Rav Yerucham calls מְלֶאכֶת חוֹלִין meleches chulin, a mundane, profane, secular work and activity to, whatever it is. A lawyer, I defend people, I make deals, I help, I help advance the world. A doctor, I heal people. Whatever work one does, one can see it in a framework of it's a paycheck, it's a living, or it's a calling, and it's a life. וַתְּחַיֶּינָה va'techayena. And that is such an important difference to how we'll wake up in the morning and what attitude we'll bring and the success that we'll have and the feeling of what we'll have when we look back on our life and the way we did it. I thought that was a very powerful, beautiful insight. פֶּרֶק א פָּסוּק יז Perek Aleph Pasuk Yud Zayin. The next פָּסוּק pasuk. וַיֹּאמֶר, בְּיַלֶּדְכֶן אֶת הָעִבְרִיּוֹת וּרְאִיתֶן עַל הָאָבְנָיִם, אִם בֵּן הוּא וַהֲמִתֶּן אֹתוֹ וְאִם בַּת הִיא וָחָיָה Va'yomer, b'yaledchen es ha'ivriyos u're'isen al ha'ovnayim, im ben hu va'hamiten oso v'im bas hi vachaya. What is it that the king of Egypt told these women? When you deliver the Hebrew women, you see them on the birth stool, if it's a son, kill him. If it's a daughter, she shall live. The boys die. The girls you could allow to live. Says רַב סוֹלוֹבֵיְצִ'יק Rav Soloveitchik, why did Pharaoh relegate the task of killing the male infants to the Jewish midwives? Why do you not order his own people to kill the Jewish males? Midwives deliver babies. Your execution committee should come in now and execute. You got to delegate better, Pharaoh. What's going on over here? Midwives, midwifery. Executioners, execute. Why did he specifically ask the midwives to execute? Says the Rav, a tactical employee by our enemies to oppress the Jews throughout the generations has been to discredit them, to argue that this nation does not deserve the world's sympathy. During the Holocaust, the Nazis forcibly took Jews to an elegant hotel in Warsaw, had them dress in festive clothing, loaded the tables with delicacies, hired an orchestra and forced the Jews to dance. All the while, a Nazi photographer took photos. Afterward, they were immediately sent to the death camps. After the war, it was discovered the Nazis had planned to disseminate these pictures to demonstrate how Jews callously ignored the suffering of their brethren, even celebrating while their co-religionists were being slaughtered. This method was originated by Pharaoh. Pharaoh wanted to show the world that Jews were not worthy of sympathy. See how their own midwives, whose job was to bring children into the world, alleviate pain, instead killed the children. He wanted to show that the world would be better off without such people. Discredit. Pharaoh, we can trace, all that anti-Semites have done is simply following in the footsteps of the original anti-Semites, OG anti-Semites like Pharaoh. This method of discrediting, specifically having the midwife slaughter would say, look at their own people. Look at their own people. Their own people are killing their own people. Their own people are killing their own people. That was part of the strategy. פֶּרֶק א פָּסוּק כ Perek Aleph Pasuk Kaf. וַיֵּיטֶב אֱלֹהִים לַמְיַלְּדֹת וַיִּרֶב הָעָם וַיַּעַצְמוּ מְאֹד v'yeitev Elokim la'meyaldos v'yerev ha'am v'ya'atzmu me'od. And God, what happens? The midwives, we know, were righteous, were incredible. Miriam and Yocheved. So they didn't listen. They didn't listen. And then they claimed, why can't we listen? Jewish women give birth so quickly, you wouldn't believe it. I have more than one member of my own extended family who gave birth in the back of a car. I have a couple sisters-in-law who gave birth in the back of a car. Not because they waited too long and wanted a story to tell, but it went quickly for them. It happened very quickly. So that's exactly the argument they made. The Hebrew women are unlike the Egyptian women. They're experts. Before the midwife comes, they've given birth. What can we do? בְּטֶרֶם תָּבוֹא אֲלֵיהֶן הַמְיַלֶּדֶת וְיָלָדוּ b'terem tavo aleihem ha'meyaledes v'yaladu. Before we could get in the room, say the midwives, we couldn't fulfill your order because they're giving birth in the back of the Hatzalah and we can't we can't get there in time. They're giving birth. They're giving birth so quickly. And how does God respond? וַיֵּיטֶב אֱלֹהִים v'yeitev Elokim. So God says, okay, it's good. וַיֵּיטֶב v'yeitev, he gives טוֹב tov. He benefits them. He does something good for them. וַיִּרֶב הָעָם v'yerev ha'am, and the people increased. וַיַּעַצְמוּ v'ya'atzmu and they became very strong. וַיְהִי כִּי יָרְאוּ הַמְיַלְּדֹת אֶת הָאֱלֹהִים vayehi ki yaru ha'meyaldos es ha'Elokim. And when the midwives, because they feared God, וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim, God made them houses. And Rashi says, what kind of houses? Again, not bricks and mortar, coming full circle to the way we began. אִישׁ וּבֵיתוֹ בָּאוּ ish u'veiso bau. When we use the word בַּיִת bayis, when we use the word בַּיִת bayis, this is the secret of סוּכּוֹת Sukkos. I already gave you a פֶּסַח וואָרט תּוֹרָה Pesach vort Torah, might as well throw in one for סוּכּוֹת Sukkos. Why do we leave the house to go outside and sit in the סוּכָּה sukkah? Because for one week a year, we remember our home is not the indoors. Our home is who comes with us into the סוּכָּה sukkah. The flimsy walls and the perforated ceiling, it doesn't matter for one week. A home is not the square footage and not the decorations and not the decor, or how many cars are in the driveway. A home is who comes with us. The house may be all those things, but the home, the home, in the immortal words of a great Jewish poet, you're my home. You're my home. I don't know if any of you know who I'm talking about. A great Jewish poet. Phenomenal song, You're My Home. So, you're my home. אִישׁ וּבֵיתוֹ בָּאוּ ish u'veiso bau. אִשְׁתּוֹ זוֹ בֵּיתוֹ ishto zu beiso. So here too, וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim, it doesn't mean that down in Mitzrayim, you know, Yocheved and Miriam, he found them houses on the circle when there were no more. No, וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim means בָּתֵּי לְוִיָּה וּבָתֵּי כְהוּנָה batei Levi'ah u'vatei kehunah. They became the progenitors of incredible Jewish lineages. That's a home. Doesn't say he gave them houses, he gave them homes. What does it mean to have a home is to be the progenitor of a great Jewish lineage. But רַב שְׁמוּאֵל בִּירְנְבַּאוּם Rav Shmuel Berenbaum wonders something else. יֵשׁ כָּאן לְדַקְדֵּק yesh kan l'dakdek. After it says וַיֵּיטֶב אֱלֹהִים v'yeitev Elokim that God was good to them, וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim, it should have been right away. וַיֵּיטֶב אֱלֹהִים לַמְיַלְּדֹת v'yeitev Elokim la'meyaldos, God was good to them, וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim, and he gave them homes. Why do we interrupt to say God was good to them, the people proliferated, there was a population explosion, they became very strong, then God gave them homes. Why do we interrupt in between? It's a great question, I never would have asked it. But if you read carefully, you're bothered by it, which is how you get to great explanations. וְיֵשׁ לוֹמַר v'yesh lomar, says the תפארת שמואל Tiferes Shmuel, כְּשֶׁאָדָם עוֹשֶׂה מִצְוָה, יֵשׁ לוֹ שְׂכַר עַל הַמִּצְוָה שֶׁעָשָׂה k'she'oseh adam mitzvah, yesh lo schar al ha'mitzvah she'asah. When a person does a mitzvah, they are rewarded for the mitzvah they did. אֲבָל בַּמִּצְוָה עוֹשָׂה פֵּרוֹת, מִמֵּילָא שְׂכָרָהּ הַרְבֵּה יוֹתֵר aval b'mitzvah osah peiros, m'meila schara harbeh yoser. If the mitzvah that you did wasn't only a moment of time, but the mitzvah that you did yielded fruit, it had offspring, the mitzvah was a catalyst that began a process, then you get much more reward, because you didn't just do a momentary mitzvah, you set in motion something that has a return you continue to get. You make a שִׁדּוּךְ shidduch, you make a שִׁדּוּךְ shidduch, you're you're responsible. You get credit. Children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, please God, please God. You made a you made a שִׁדּוּךְ shidduch in business, you introduced two people. The livelihood they drew, the צְדָקָה tzedakah they can give. There are mitzvahs that's that moment in time, which are also an inestimable value. You make a שֶׁהַכֹּל shehakol on a cup of water, that's a great mitzvah. But a mitzvah that you did something that had a return, results that's ongoing, then the reward is even greater. וְזֶה מְבֹאָר מַה שֶׁכָּתוּב וַיִּרֶב הָעָם u'zeh muvan mah she'kasuv v'yerev ha'am, שֶׁמַּעֲשֵׂיהֶן שֶׁל מְיַלְּדוֹת הוֹצִיא פֵּרוֹת, שֶׁנִּתְגַּדֵּל הָעָם she'ma'aseihen shel meyaldos hotzi peiros, she'nisgadel ha'am. וְאִם כֵּן, הַמִּצְוָה עַצְמָהּ הוֹסִיפָה וּגְדוֹלָה בְּיוֹתֵר v'im ken, ha'mitzvah atzma hosifa u'gedulah b'yoser. So these מְיַלְּדוֹת meyaldos didn't just make a bracha, they didn't just make a שֶׁהַכֹּל shehakol on the Starbucks in Cairo. They they saved these children and set in motion Jewish population growth and Jewish continuity. And that's deserving of a great reward. I.e. וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim. וַיַּעַשׂ לָהֶם בָּתִּים v'yaas lahem batim. So therefore, the reward is commensurate with the impact of the mitzvah one does. And that's how you explain the break in that in that פָּסוּק pasuk.פֶּרֶק ב Perek Beis. פֶּרֶק ב Perek Beis is the birth of מֹשֶׁה Moshe and the astrologers of Egypt had predicted to Pharaoh that the savior of the Jews was born today. He didn't know, Egyptian or Jewish, so he got rid of them all. מֹשֶׁה Moshe is saved by being in the basket. הִנֵּה נַעַר בֹּכֶה hinei naar bocheh. We've spoken about in the past, who is this נַעַר naar crying? If it was מֹשֶׁה Moshe crying, why is he called a נַעַר naar? Rashi says, because he already was mature. He already had the voice of an adult. But the Baal HaTurim says, because that נַעַר naar was not מֹשֶׁה Moshe. Who was crying? אַהֲרֹן Aharon was hiding behind the tree, the bush, watching. Because a Jew doesn't turn away. הָגָר Hagar, when יִשְׁמָעֵאל Yishmael was expelled from the house, she couldn't bear to look. But when a Jew is in pain, other Jews don't say, I can't bear to look. They say, I can't turn away. I can't stop watching and hoping and davening and believing. We're all waiting. Hospitals in Israel have been told, prepare beds for the hostages that are going to come home. Who doesn't want to see who isn't waiting to watch that image? Please God, of healthy, living hostages coming home. We can't stop watching. אַהֲרֹן Aharon couldn't bear not to watch. So הַנַּעַר בֹּכֶה ha'naar bocheh, he was watching from behind the bush. Was it רַשִׁ\"י Rashi, was it מֹשֶׁה Moshe, was it אַהֲרֹן Aharon? Again, there's so much to say, it's so hard to skip פֶּרֶק ב Perek Beis, but I'm trying. Moshe identifies with his brothers, וַיֵּצֵא אֶל אֶחָיו וַיַּרְא בְּסִבְלֹתָם v'yeitzei el echav v'yar b'sivlosam, he leaves to go see them. And he then gets involved in an in in a altercation, and he's forced to flee, and he becomes a shepherd, and he marries, and so much going on in פֶּרֶק ב Perek Beis. But Hashem has decided, determined, וַיָּמָת מֶלֶךְ מִצְרַיִם וַיֵּאָנְחוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מִן הָעֲבֹדָה וַיִּזְעָקוּ v'yamas melech Mitzrayim va'y'anchu bnei Yisrael min ha'avodah va'yiz'aku. The king of Egypt died, the Jewish people were moaning and groaning, krechtsing in pain, they cried out to God. You see, what brought them out of that exile? When they didn't have their own merits, when they were unworthy themselves, what brought them out? וַיִּזְעָקוּ va'yiz'aku. We have to learn, we have to learn זְעָקָה za'akah. We have to learn, זַיִן עַיִן קוּף zayin ayin kuf, זְעָקָה za'akah, how to cry. Not just to mumble Tehillim on the way out of shul. Not just to say the words of the siddur, but to from our heart. They didn't have a siddur, they didn't have a Tehillim. Even though there's an allusion at the beginning of the parsha, they said all of safe Tehillim. Believe that Chassidishe vort aside, they didn't have a Tehillim, they didn't have a siddur. They were talking to God from their heart. They were laying that brick, they were building those pyramids, they were broken, and they said, \"Genug, enough, Hashem. We can't. Where are you? How could you? We need you.\" When does Hashem turn things around? The pasuk says, וַיִּזְעָקוּ va'yiz'aku. זְעָקָה za'akah. וַתַּעַל שַׁוְעָתָם אֶל הָאֱלֹהִים מִן הָעֲבֹדָה v'ta'al shavasam el ha'Elokim min ha'avodah. וַיִּשְׁמַע אֱלֹהִים אֶת נַאֲקָתָם v'yishma Elokim es na'akasam. And God heard, he heard not their words, he heard the krechts. Words you could say even when you don't mean them. But a krechts, a moan and a groan, an actor can do, but a real krechts, it can only come from the heart. It's sincere, it's genuine. וַיִּזְכֹּר אֱלֹהִים אֶת בְּרִיתוֹ v'yizkor Elokim es briso. And God said, \"Genug, it's enough time.\" Forget 400 years, 210's enough. He remembers the promise, the covenant, the Avos. It's time to take them out.מֹשֶׁה Moshe is a shepherd, he's watching his father-in-law יִתְרוֹ Yisro's sheep, and he comes וַיָּבֹא אֶל הַר הָאֱלֹהִים חֹרֵבָה v'yavo el har ha'Elokim Choreva. פֶּרֶק ג פָּסוּק א Perek Gimmel Pasuk Aleph. Moshe is in Midyan. He knows what's going on in Egypt. He's following. His heart is broken. But he's out in the wilderness, a shepherd, practicing his Hisbodedus, in conversation with Hashem and himself. And he, all of a sudden walks up to this mountain. And what's the mountain? הַר הָאֱלֹהִים חֹרֵבָה har ha'Elokim Choreva. That mountain of God, חֹרֵבָה Choreva. What does the word חֹרֵבָה Choreva mean? Which mountain was this? Sinai. The Gemara in Shabbos Pey Tes says, לָמָּה נִקְרָא הַר חוֹרֵב lamah nikra Har Chorev? Why is הַר סִינַי Har Sinai called הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev? שֶׁעָלָיו יָרְדָה חֻרְבָּה לָעַכּוּ״ם שֶׁלֹּא רָצוּ לְקַבֵּל הַתּוֹרָה she'alav yarda churvah l'akum she'lo ratzu l'kabel haTorah. Because from there descended a חֻרְבָּה churvah to the world when they refused to receive the Torah. The world without Torah is living in darkness. The world without Torah, trying to figure it out and make it up on their own, is ending up in a lot of trouble. So, says רַב חַיִּים ולוֹזִ'ינֶר Rav Chaim Volozhiner in רוּחַ חַיִּים Ruach Chaim, פֶּרֶק ו מִשְׁנָה ב Perek Vav Mishna Beis in his רוּחַ חַיִּים Ruach Chaim on פִּרְקֵי אָבוֹת Pirkei Avos. The Mishna says in Avos, בְּכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם בַּת קוֹל יוֹצֵאת מֵהַר חוֹרֵב b'chol yom v'yom bas kol yotzes me'har Chorev, every day the heavenly voice leaves הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev, הַר סִינַי Har Sinai, וּמַכְרֶזֶת וְאוֹמֶרֶת אוֹי לָהֶם לַבְּרִיּוֹת מֵעֶלְבּוֹנָהּ שֶׁל תּוֹרָה u'machrezes v'omeres oy lahem la'briyos me'elbona shel Torah. Woe unto the people who are not living a life guided by, informed by Torah. Wonders רַב חַיִּים ולוֹזִ'ינֶר Rav Chaim Volozhiner in his רוּחַ חַיִּים Ruach Chaim, why there does the Mishna say that the heavenly voice leaves every day from הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev? Why not say it leaves from הַר סִינַי Har Sinai? It's proper name. Why use the name הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev? Says רַב חַיִּים ולוֹזִ'ינֶר Rav Chaim Volozhiner, why? Because when you live a life without Torah, life is a חֻרְבָּן churban. It's a חֻרְבָּן churban. הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev. And here we see the first reference, וַיָּבֹא אֶל הַר הָאֱלֹהִים חֹרֵבָה v'yavo el har ha'Elokim Choreva. This mountain was going to be the place that Moshe would receive the Torah on and from, and from there he would help us build, not destroy. Trying to live life, throwing off the yoke of Torah, think you could do it alone, doesn't mean that if you live Torah you don't also have challenges. We've spoken about this many times. Living a life of Torah one still has many challenges. One still can have many challenges. But Torah gives us the strength, the tools. Torah helps us illuminate the world from its darkness to figure out how to navigate through those challenges. Without Torah it's a חֻרְבָּן churban. It's a חֻרְבָּן churban. And with Torah we can build. And that's why it's called הַר חוֹרֵב Har Chorev.פֶּרֶק ג פָּסוּק ב Perek Gimmel Pasuk Beis. So Moshe approaches this mountain and he sees a bush, it's on fire, it's not being consumed. הַסְּנֶה בֹּעֵר בָּאֵשׁ וְהַסְּנֶה אֵינֶנּוּ אֻכָּל ha'sneh bo'er ba'eish v'ha'sneh einenu ukal. Famous vort. Where do you see the idea of grandchildren, אייניקל ainikel from the Torah? In these words. הַסְּנֶה ha'sneh, the bush, אֵינֶנּוּ אֻכָּל einenu ukal. אֻכָּל ukal, אֵינֶנּוּ einenu, אֵינִיקֶל ainikel. אֵינֶנּוּ אֻכָּל einenu ukal, אייניקל ainikel, a grandchild. Why? The bush continues to burn when one has an אייניקל ainikel, there's a continuity and a future, the fire continues to burn, it never burns out. Some say why did Moshe see this image? What image did he see? What kind of bush was this? Did Hashem appear in a bed of roses? Did Hashem appear in a bed of violets? Did Hashem appear in bougainvillea? I've just exhausted the list of landscaping that I know, flowers and fauna. I don't know any others. No, how did Hashem appear to Moshe? In a lowly thorn bush. Why does he appear to Moshe in a lowly thorn bush? Says Rashi, עִמּוֹ אָנֹכִי בְצָרָה imo anochi b'tzarah. People are suffering, I'm not living high on the hog. While the people are suffering, I'm appearing in a lowly thorn bush, and that is a very powerful Jewish value. It's a very powerful Jewish value. There are people throughout this world, in this world, I know גְּדוֹלֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל gedolei Yisrael. I know one גָּדוֹל gadol who, again, you'll say what's the point, and does this really make a difference, and does it have an impact, who has not slept on a proper bed, a mattress and pillows since October 7, since the beginning of the war. עִמּוֹ אָנֹכִי בְצָרָה imo anochi b'tzarah. Another who has not allowed himself to have ice cream since the beginning of the war. Is that really going to win the war? Is that really going to bring the hostages home? Yeah. עִמּוֹ אָנֹכִי בְצָרָה imo anochi b'tzarah. When we are united and when we are together and when we care enough to feel each other's pain and lift the pain of another. And where do we learn that from is not only our fellow man, Hashem Himself, עִמּוֹ אָנֹכִי בְצָרָה imo anochi b'tzarah, appears in the lonely thorn bush. And he says to Moshe, you see this bush, it's on fire and it doesn't go out, it's not consumed, to be a leader, you can't ever burn out. You have to avoid and protect and never allow yourself to burn out. You can't ever burn out.פָּסוּק ג Pasuk Gimmel. הִנֵּה הַסְּנֶה בֹּעֵר בָּאֵשׁ וְהַסְּנֶה אֵינֶנּוּ אֻכָּל hinei ha'sneh bo'er ba'eish v'ha'sneh einenu ukal. The the fire is burning, but it is not being consumed. What do we want to look at? Rabbi Soloveitchik. Sorry, next pasuk. וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה אֶת הַמַּרְאֶה הַגָּדֹל הַזֶּה מַדּוּעַ לֹא יִבְעַר הַסְּנֶה Vayomer Moshe, asurah na v'er'eh es ha'mareh ha'gadol ha'zeh, madua lo yiv'ar ha'sneh. Moshe says, \"Ooh, let me take a look. Let me turn and see, and why is this bush is burning? There's something unusual. There's a phenomenon happening that makes no sense, that seems not natural. What's going on over here?\" Rashi comments on these two words, I'll step aside from here to come closer to look. Let me turn and look. אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh. What did Rashi add? Look at Rashi. אָסוּרָה נָּא asurah na. אָסוּרָה מִכָּאן לְהִתְקָרֵב לְשָׁם asurah mikan l'hiskarev l'sham. Let me go from here and get closer over there. What does אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh? Let me turn from here to look over there. Yeah, when you turn to look, that's what's happening. What's Rashi adding? Wonders the Rav. Rashi explains Moshe was not referring to moving his physical location. He was stepping aside from a world view and embracing a new philosophy of life, into a different frame of reference. Let me step aside from certain categories in which I used to think and adopt other categories, other concepts, other ideas. At the Akeida Avraham told Eliezer and Yishmael, stay here with the חֲמוֹר chamor, וַאֲנִי וְהַנַּעַר נֵלְכָה עַד כֹּה v'ani v'ha'naar neilcha ad koh. Avraham was not referring to geographical distance, he was referring to a differing worldview. You remain with your philosophy, the philosophy of the donkey, materialism, practicality, mercantilism, pragmatism, everyday logic. But there's another worldview, the covenantal logic. This is what Moshe said, אָסוּרָה נָּא asurah na. Let me get away from the pragmatic logic of Yisro's estate manager, let me adopt another set of rules, another philosophy, another worldview. Let me examine this great sight. He instinctively felt that something unusual was transpiring in front of him. Hashem tested Moshe to see how he would respond to the sight. Most people would not have responded. Great events have happened in our time. The Second World War, the Holocaust, the state of Israel, and the drama has not yet come to a close. Yet, we don't respond appropriately. We are not impressed, we lack sensitivity. Says Rabbi Soloveitchik, Boston 1974. אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh. We're measured by how do we turn to look? Not physically, but do the life events, do the historic events of our time cause us to turn, to shift, to pivot our worldview? I can't be October 8th who I was October 6th. We have to be different types of Jews in how we live and how we practice and how we see others and what we believe and what we're working on and what are our שְׁאִיפוֹת she'ifos, our goals, our ambitions, our yearnings, our drives. אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh. Moshe became a leader because he said, I'm right now making a radical shift and a radical change and I'm pivoting my life. I got to make a pivot in my life. And we've seen that. There are some amazing people who've taken on amazing identities. They're looking at the world very differently. Sadly, too many are not. They're going about business as usual. That's the opposite. Going about business as usual is the opposite of אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh. Let me look, let me check, let me pivot. Let me pivot not only physically to see, let me pivot in my perception and my worldview. What am I ready to change about myself? The things that I've been blocking me, that I don't dress like that, I don't daven like that, I don't go to the daf, I don't give that kind of tzedakah, I don't visit Israel that often. No, no, no. Got to pivot, got to change. We can't be stuck by those previous profiles that we had of ourselves. אָסוּרָה נָּא וְאֶרְאֶה asurah na v'er'eh. When something significant happens in our life and in our world, אָסוּרָה נָּא asurah na, we have to pivot, וְאֶרְאֶה v'er'eh, and we have to see, we have to see the world differently than the way we had been seeing it. Okay, we have time only for one more, even though we have a lot more. Okay, גִּמֶּל יוּד Gimmel Yud. וְעַתָּה לְכָה וְאֶשְׁלָחֲךָ אֶל פַּרְעֹה v'atah l'cha v'eshlachacha el Pharaoh. Hashem says to Moshe, there's this whole give and take. Hashem tries to recruit Moshe. Moshe to be the leader. Moshe says, what are you doing? I got a speech impediment. I'm not good. I'm not an orator. I'm not the man for this. I'm not given the benediction at the inauguration. I can't go meet Paro. I'm not the man. No. And Hashem says, sorry to tell you, but yes. ועתה לכה ואשלחך אל פרעה Ve'ata lecha ve'eshlachacha el Paro, and now go and I will send you to Paro. והוצא את עמי בני ישראל ממצרים Vehotzei et ami Bnei Yisrael miMitzrayim. And wonders, we'll end with this beautiful, powerful, incredible, amazing insight. Wonders, wonders the אור החיים הקדוש Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh, it's out of order. Not go and I'll send you, I'm sending you and go. It should have said אשלחך ותלך eshlachacha veteilech. I'm sending you, now go. What do you mean go and I'll send you? It's out of order. It's out of order. It's out of order. אזוי פרעגט Azoy fregt the אור החיים הקדוש Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh. That is the question of the אור החיים הקדוש Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh. How is that שייך shayach? Until you're sent, you don't know where to go. What do you mean go and I'll send you? Let me send you, I'll tell you where to go, and then you'll go. No, and then you'll go. And the אור החיים הקדוש Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh gives an answer. Reb Zaydel Epstein, the מנהל mennahel of תורה אור Torah Ohr, Reb Zaydel Epstein in his ספר sefer, ספרים sfarim, מאורות Me'oros. I always quoted it, it's quoted in this other ספר sefer, the שמחה עליון Simcha Elyon, but once at the פרשה שיעור parsha shiur, unbeknownst to me, Reb Zaydel Epstein's grandson was here and he gifted me a set of מאורות Me'oros, the ספרים sfarim themselves of the זיידע zeide. So Reb Zaydel Epstein says the following. Listen to what he says. I'll tell it to you outside because we don't have time.We think that if Hashem gives us the wisdom, the talents, the tools, the weapons, then we can go accomplish the mission. If he gives me everything I need, if he positions me with the energy, with the resources, with the smarts, with the courage, then I can go execute. But it's the opposite. If we're ready to take on the responsibility, if we take that first step to go fulfill the mission, Hashem will give us what we need.So it's לכה ואשלחך lecha ve'eshlachacha. It's first go, get moving. לכה Lecha, get going. You have a mission, you have a purpose, there's something you're meant to do. לכה Lecha, get going, ואשלחך ve'eshlachacha, and Hashem says, don't worry. I'll give you what you need. I've seen that in my life. We've taken on projects, we've taken on things, we had no business, we had no idea how it would happen. But לכה lecha, you have to do it responsibly, but לכה lecha, when you believe this is what Hashem wants, the רצון השם ratzon Hashem, get going, ואשלחך ve'eshlachacha, and then he'll give you what you need. Don't wait to get what you need and then you're going to go. Understand, if you believe that you're meant to do this, get going, and then ואשלחך ve'eshlachacha, then Hashem will give us what we need. Should be טאקע takeh a day of בשורות טובות besoros tovos, a day of גאולה geulah. Please remain as always to complete all of ספר תהלים Sefer Tehillim. It's a lot still to דאַווען daven for, and בעזרת השם b'ezras Hashem we should hear בשורות besoros.
