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Wednesday, June 3, 2020

. PARSHAT BEHAALOTECHA AND SHAVUOUS - PART 2

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PARSHAT BEHAALOTECHA, NUMBERS 8:1-12:16  AND SHAVUOUS - PART 2


The festival of Shavuot began Thursday night, the 28th of May.  Shavuot marks the giving of the Torah.  In referring to Shavuot, we say: “Z’man Matan Torateinu”, זמן מתן תורתנו.

Looking at the word מתן (giving), you can see in it the word for “gift”, מתנה

In our weekly Talmud class where are studying Tractate Bava Basra, we participated in a discussion at 65a:  A person owns a house that has two apartments, an inner one and a surrounding outer one.  If the apartments are sold, the buyer of the inner apartment does not acquire the right to walk through the surrounding outer apartment. 

However if at the time of the sale of the outer apartment, the owner of the house simultaneously makes a gift of the inner apartment the situation changes.  There is a presumption that when a gift is given, it is given with generosity.  Therefore the recipient of the gift acquires the right to walk through the outer apartment and thereby to enjoy his gift.

In much the same fashion, when Hashem gave us the gift of the Torah, He gave it to us with generosity. It is as if along with the Torah we acquired the wherewithal to enjoy our gift.  What that wherewithal is I leave it up to you.  There are a multitude of possibilities.  I like to think it is the ability to have Torah and dwell in the Land of Israel in peace and harmony is a gift from Hashem.

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Consider Three Passages from Parshat Behaalotecha:

11:1

The people were looking to complain, and it was evil in the ears of the Lord. The Lord heard and His anger flared, and a fire from the Lord burned among them, consuming the extremes of the camp.

11:33-34

The meat was still between their teeth; it was not yet finished, and the anger of the Lord flared against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very mighty blow. He named that place Kivroth Hata'avah [Graves of Craving], for there they buried the people who craved.

12:8-10

… So why were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses ?  The wrath of the Lord flared against them and He left… behold, Miriam was leprous, as white as snow;

What is the message here?  Is it a lesson in anger management or something else?

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Both the Parashah and the Haftarah discuss the seven branched Menorah. The Haftarah portion is from Zechariah: The lights of the Menorah symbolize God's eyes, keeping watch on the earth. At 4:10 –

“These seven, are the eyes of the LORD, that roam throughout the entire earth.”

שִׁבְעָה-אֵלֶּה; עֵינֵי יְהוָה, הֵמָּה מְשׁוֹטְטִים בְּכָל-הָאָרֶץ

 

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MAX’S PARSHAT BEHAALOSCHA QUIZ QUESTIONS

My friend Max from Nahariya has come up with a quiz that relates to Parshat Behaaloscha.  Attached are his questions.  Do your best.  The answers may be found at the end of this post.

1-WHAT SEGULAH WAS THERE IN LIGHTING MENORAH IN THE MISHKAN?

2-WHO ENJOYED EATING MANN 500 YEARS AFTER THE MIDBAR?

3-WHY THE INVERTED NUN IN THIS PARSHA?

4-HOW FAST DID AHARON ELEVATED EACH LEVI DURING INAUGURATION?

5-HOW OFTEN SHOFAROS & TRUMPETS BLOWN IN THE TEMPLE?

6-IN WHICH PASUK DOES THE TORAH MENTION JEWS FIVE TIMES?

7-WHICH TZADIKIM RAN AWAY FROM GLORY, BUT AT THE END RECEIVED?

8-WHY WAS MIRIAM PUNISHED WITH TZARAAS?

9-WHICH 5-THNGS WERE MISSING IN THE SECOND TEMPLE?

10-HOW HASHEM MAKE AHARON FEEL MORE IMPORTANT THAN NESIIM?

11-WHO USED SILVER TRUMPETS LIKE MOSHE RABBEINU?

12-WHAT WAS SPECIAL ABOUT THE CLOUD THAT TRAVELLED WITH JEWS?

13-HOW DID HILLEL KNOW TO SLAUGHTER KORBAN PESACH ON SHABBAT

14-HOW LONG WAS THE JEWISH NATION ENCAMPED NEAR HAR SINAI?

15-WHY WAS TZIPORAH UPSET WITH THE CHOSEN 70 ELDERS?

16-HOW HIGH WAS THE MENORAH IN THE MISHKAN?

17-WHY MOSHE'S TRUMPETS WERE MADE OF SILVER AND NOT OF GOLD?

18-HOW DO WE KNOW THAT FISH DO NOT REQUIRE SHECHITAH?

19-WHAT DID MOSHE RABBEINU WISH FOR FOR THE JEWS?

20-WHAT DID ELDAD AND MEIDAD PROLHESIZE ABOUT GOG & MAGOG?

21-WHY DID THE JEWS WAITED 7-DAYS FOR MIRIAM BEFORE TRAVELING?

22-WHAT GEM DID THE MANN LOOK LIKE?

23-WHICH PESACH ARE YOU PERMITTED TO HAVE CHOMETZ?

24-HOW WERE THE NEVIIM ELDAD & MEIDAD RELATED TO MOSHE?

25-HOW DID THE CLOUD PROTECT BNEI YISROEL DURING THEIR TRAVEL?

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In this week's Parshat we have the mystery of the inverted letter nun, ׆.

This phenomenon appears as brackets at 10:35, before and after the familiar verse that is read on Shabbat when the Ark is opened and the Torah is taken out:

 וַיְהִי בִּנְסֹעַ הָאָרֹןוַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה:  קוּמָה יְהוָהוְיָפֻצוּ אֹיְבֶיךָוְיָנֻסוּ מְשַׂנְאֶי מִפָּנֶיךָ

"It was when the Ark traveled, Moses said, Rise up Hashem, Your enemies they be scattered and they who hated You, flee from You".

In the Talmud Bavli, Shabbat 115b-116a there is a discussion on the implication of the inverted nun brackets.  There are two opposing views: Rabbi Judah the Prince says that the brackets show the passage to be a separate book of the Torah.  Rabbi Shimon Ben Gamliel says that the brackets are there to show that the passage has been dislocated and belongs in another place.

Go figure.

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MAX’S PARSHAT BEHAALOSCHA QUIZ

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Max has come up with a quiz that relates to this week's Parshah,  . Attached are his questions and answers.  How did you do?  Maybe you have to study more; I do.

 

> [_WHAT SEGULAH WAS THERE IN LIGHTING MENORAH IN THE MISHKAN

IF YOU ARE CAREFUL TO LIGHT MY MENORAH, I WILL GUARD YOUR SOUL

> 2-WHO ENJOYED EATING MANN 500 YEARS AFTER THE MIDBAR?

YONA THE NAVI, WAS GIVEN MANN TO EAT INSIDE THE BIG FISH

> 3-WHY THE INVERTED NUN IN THIS PARSHA?

DESIGN TO SEPARATE THE HAPPY TIME FROM THE BAD TIME

> 4-HOW FAST DID AHARON ELEVATED EACH LEVI DURING INAUGURATION?

THERE WERE 22,000 LEVIIM,AND 43,200 SECONDS, 2 SECONDS PER LEVI

> 5-HOW OFTEN SHOFAROS & TRUMPETS BLOWN IN THE TEMPLE?

MINIMUM OF 21 SOUNDS PER REGULAR DAY, AND MAX OF 48 HOLIDAYS

> 6-IN WHICH PASUK DOES THE TORAH MENTION JEWS FIVE TIMES?

IN PASUK 8:19 HASHEM MENTION BNEI YISROEL FIVE TIMES, HIS LOVE

> 7-WHICH TZADIKIM RAN AWAY FROM GLORY, BUT AT THE END RECEIVED?

ELDAD AND MEIDAD WERE OUTSTANDING TALMIDEI CHACHOMIM

> 8-WHY WAS MIRIAM PUNISHED WITH TZARAAS?

SHE SPOKE ILL OF HER BABY BROTHER MOSHE, WITH GOOD INTENTION

> 9-WHICH 5-THNGS WERE MISSING IN THE SECOND TEMPLE?

DAILY FIRE, ARON KODESH, SHECHINAH, RUACH HAKODESH, URIM TURIM

> 10-HOW HASHEM MAKE AHARON FEEL MORE IMPORTANT THAN NESIIM?

HASHEM ASSURED AHARON THAT LIGHTING MENORAH TRANSCEND TIME

> 11-WHO USED SILVER TRUMPETS LIKE MOSHE RABBEINU?

ONLY KING DAVID MERITED THE STATUS TO USE SILVER TRUMPETS

> 12-WHAT WAS SPECIAL ABOUT THE CLOUD THAT TRAVELLED WITH JEWS?

IT IS THE SAME CLOUD HASHEM USED AT HAR SINAI

> 13-HOW DID HILLEL KNOW TO SLAUGHTER KORBAN PESACH ON SHABBAT

HE DEDUCED  BECAUSE KORBAN TAMID IS DONE SHABBAT, SO PESACH

> 14-HOW LONG WAS THE JEWISH NATION ENCAMPED NEAR HAR SINAI?

THEY RESIDED AT HAR SINAI FOR 344 DAYS

> 15-WHY WAS TZIPORAH UPSET WITH THE CHOSEN 70 ELDERS?

SHE FELT THAT THEY WILL ALSO HAVE ABSTINENCE FROM THEIR WIVES

> 16-HOW HIGH WAS THE MENORAH IN THE MISHKAN?

MENORAH STOOD 18-TEPACHIM (ABOUT SIX FEET)

> 17-WHY MOSHE'S TRUMPETS WERE MADE OF SILVER AND NOT OF GOLD?

GOLD WAS NOT USED SO AS NOT TO RECALL EIGEL OF GOLD

> 18-HOW DO WE KNOW THAT FISH DO NOT REQUIRE SHECHITAH?

MOSHE RABEINU DID NOT MENTION SLAUGHTER WHEN IT CAME TO FISH

> 19-WHAT DID MOSHE RABBEINU WISH FOR FOR THE JEWS?

MOSHE WISHED THAT ALL JEWS SHOULD BE PROPHETS

> 20-WHAT DID ELDAD AND MEIDAD PROLHESIZE ABOUT GOG & MAGOG?

THEY PREDICTED THE DOWNFALL OF GOG AND MAGOG, SOON WE HOPE

> 21-WHY DID THE JEWS WAITED 7-DAYS FOR MIRIAM BEFORE TRAVELING?

MIRIAM WAITED PATIENTLY TO WATCH FOR BABY BROTHER SAFETY

> 22-WHAT GEM DID THE MANN LOOK LIKE?

MANN LOOKED LIKE JEWEL CRYSTAL (HEAVENLY MARSHMALLOW)

> 23-WHICH PESACH ARE YOU PERMITTED TO HAVE CHOMETZ?

ONLY PESACH SHENI YOU ALLOWED TO HAVE CHOMETZ IN HOUSE

> 24-HOW WERE THE NEVIIM  ELDAD & MEIDAD RELATED TO MOSHE?

THEY WERE MOSHE RABBEINU HALF-BROTHERS

> 25-HOW DID THE CLOUD PROTECT BNEI YISROEL DURING THEIR TRAVEL?

CONSISTED OF 7-PARTS, 4-DIRECTIONS, UP &DOWN , AND ONE LEADING

 


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