Parashas Pinchas

Our Parsha this Shabbos is Parashas Pinchas and the Haftorah seeing that it is within the three weeks of mourning between the 17th of Tammuz and Tisha B'Av , is Yirmeyahu Jeremiah 1:1 - 2:3 , and discusses the prophecy of the Destruction of the Beis Ha Mikdash The Holy Temple , which was destroyed on Tisha B'Av .
In the previous Parsha , we were introduced to Pinchas ben Elazar ben Aharon , who , for HaShem's Sake , dealt with the immoral actions committed by the leader of the Tribe of Simeon , and Cozbi the daughter of Balak ( Tzur , named Tzur because Balak was proud of his strength and thus nicknamed himself 'rock' - ' Tzur ' ) . As soon as Pinchas killed these two , that were insulting HaShem , right in front of Moshe , the Plague stopped and our people were saved . This happened just after the incident of Moav and Midyan sending their females to catch some of the males of our people and working to get them to do actions toward their baal idol , a plan devised by Bilaam , to get HaShem Angry with us.
In the previous Parsha , the two who perpetrated this deed that Pinchas acted upon were not named , but in this Parsha they were named . The Torah Names the perpetrator of Simeon's Tribe as Zimri son of Salu and our Gemorrah tells us that this was none other than Shelumiel ben Tzurishadai ( Numbers 1:6 ) .
As usually happens , HaShem Instructs us to warn a nation and give them an option to concede to us before going to war with them , but in this case , considering what the Midyanim just did and also that they were preparing to go to war with us , HaShem Told us through Moshe , to attack and smite them straight away .
HaShem Instructs that a new census is to be taken for the purposes of dividing the Land of Israel between the Tribes and families , as this was just before the Children of Israel were about to enter the Land of Israel .
Seeing that the count was made to divide the Land , the five daughters of Tzelafchad , being the only surviving children of their Father ( who was probably the Mekosheish , the one who gathered sticks on Shabbos ) from the Tribe of Manasseh , realizing that it is sons who inherit and that they did not want their Father's portion in the Land lost to their family , first approached the Leader of Tens , then the Leader of Fifties , and then the Leader of Hundreds and the Leader of Thousands , but none could give them an answer as to Females being able to inherit , so they were brought before Moshe himself .
Moshe told them that inheritance here must go to sons.
At this time Moshe was busy teaching and reviewing the Laws of Yibum where a man dies childless and his wife is to marry the brother of her late husband and bring up a child in the Father's name . The daughters of Tzelafchad told Moshe that then they or their Mother must marry a brother so that sons can come of it , but Moshe said that once there are daughters , their Mother can't under the Laws of Yibum . So the daughters of Tzelafchad responded that if Yibum cannot take place once there are daughters , thus daughters have the power to stop inheritance going to a brother ,then so is it the same that they can inherit too . Moshe turned to HaShem for an Answer and Hashem Praised the daughters of Tzelafchad and Allowed them to inherit and the Law included Women to inherit if there aren't any sons . How Beautifully Fair Is Beloved HaShem .
When Moshe saw that HaShem Had Made An Allowance For the daughters of Tzelafchad , he hoped the decree on him to not enter the land , might be taken away . But it wasn't .
HaShem Then Told Moshe to go up to the Mountain of Avarim to see the Land that will be given to the Children of Israel , for he won't enter it then . Moshe requested a successor and HaShem chose Yehoshuah Joshua Ben Nun to lead us into Canaan , for HaShem and Moshe Delighted in Joshua . Joshua would every morning after Praying , organize and see that all praying scrolls and articles for praying were neatly put away. Joshua was also a man of humility who wouldn't get angry at the people and was a man with a great love of HaShem . HaShem Asked Moshe to stand Yehoshuah before Elazar the Kohein and the entire people and lean his hand on Yehoshuah . Moshe , being a man of great love of HaShem and only pure feelings toward HaShem's Word , even though it meant calling a successor , didn't only place one had , but both his hands on Yehoshuah . Yehoshuah would not receive the same prophecy clarity as Moshe had , and would inquire before Elazar Ha Kohein of the Urim Ve Tumim for Judgement , but a very holy man was Yehoshuah . Moshe placed some of his majesty on Yehoshuah , but like a candle that can light other candles but still remain as bright and the same , Moshe too was in no way diminshed of his majesty by giving some to Yehoshuah , also a very holy man .
HaShem Then Instructs on the Tamid daily offerings , one in the morning to atone for sins committed during the night and one in the afternoon, for sins committed during the day and also the different Mussaf offerings , for Shabbos , Rosh Chodesh New Moon ( special to women who should try not to have to work on this day as a reward to their faithfulness for not taking part in the Chait Ha Eigel Golden Calf incident and men should try to study more Torah for the Moon as it grows and wanes and is representative of our Jewish people as we shine with Torah and wane by antisemitism through history ) , Pesach , Shavuos , Rosh HaShanah , on which the Shofar is blown ( that silences Soton who accuses ) , Yom Kippur The Day of Atonement , Succos ( on which 70 young bulls are offered throughout the festival to atone for the 70 nations of the World ) and HaShem then wants to ' Atzeres ' ' Detain ' us Jews , his special guest for another day Yom Tov on Shemini Atzeres .
And this is where the Parsha ends .
When Pinchas took action , the Simeomites wanted to kill him , for what he did to their leader , but HaShem Protected him . The people said of him , What right does he have to slay our leader , when he is descended from a woman called Putiel ( which meant ' fattened for an idol ' referring to calves fattened to be offered to idols ) , for she was the daughter of Yisro and was now a Jew . This was the Yisro who was Moshe's Father In Law , and Putiel had married Elazer ben Aharon . Because of Pinchas' actions of Standing up for HaShem and Moshe , HaShem Rewarded Pinchas with an Eternal Priesthood , for many Kohanim descended from his line . He also lived very long and was given full protection from the other Tribes and especially from the Tribe of Simeon . We see this in Pinchas' name , for the word ' Chasui , ' means 'Protected or guarded , ' and so he was , by HaShem against the onslaught of the Tribe of Simeon . Our Rabbis also tell us , that seeing that he brought ' Shalom , ' ' Peace ' between HaShem and HaShem's Chosen People Israel , Pinchas returned as Eliyahu Ha Navi Elijah the Prophet , who in the future , will usher in and anoint Moshiach and an eternal time of ' Shalom ' ' Peace . '
Pinchas also ' Panah , ' turned away from negativity and stood up for what is right in the face of a possible onslaught from the Tribe of Simeon and he also turned away , HaShem's Anger from Israel . Pinchas took on himself , the Right path of HaShem and thus his ' face ' ' Panim ' displayed HaShem's Will . Pinchas was like a ' Panas ' ' Lantern ' in the dark of the immoral actions that some of the people had perpetrated .
Pinchas also brought HaShem to have ' Chas ' ( in Hebrew ) , ' mercy on our people and spare us . It was in Pinchas' actions that we found HaShem's ' Chesed ' - ' Loving Kindness , Graciousness and Favor , ' and also HaShem's ' Chasah , ' ' protection and refuge , ' for Pinchas was a true ' Chasid , ' who did more than what might have been required of him in putting his own life in danger to fulfill HaShem's Law and protection of It with ' Chason ' ' strong and powerful fortitude out of love for HaShem and Moshe . ( Hebrew words only from the New Dictionary - Yisrael Lazar ) .
We notice that the name of Pinchas in this Parsha in verse 11 of Bamidbar Numbers 25 is written with a small Hebrew Letter ' Yud . ' The letter ' Yud , ' can also indicate The First Letter Of Some Of HaShem's Names , or the First Letter of His Name in the Tetragrammaton ' Yud Kei Vav Kei ' so the fact that HaShem Put the letter that starts out one of HaShem's Names Within Pinchas ' name , shows that HaShem , was so taken by Pinchas selfless act of love for HaShem , that HaShem Humbled Himself for Pinchas's sake as a Sign of Appreciation and Respect for Pinchas and Pinchas' action of faithfulness in HaShem . Also , it may signify HaShem's Love for Pinchas , where HaShem Chooses To Reside a Part of His Light , within Pinchas , Giving Pinchas An Extra Part of that Light That Also Gave Pinchas Longevity , for the selfless action of Pinchas putting his own life on the line as a Kiddush HaShem , to Sanctify HaShem's Name .
Pinchas stood up against all those around him , to do the right thing , and follow HaShem's Holy Ways . Noach too , stood against a whole World , with courage , to do what was right and stand against all those not keeping HaShem's Laws , for Noach chose , as did Pinchas , to stand against the many , with courage and bravery , to stand up and defend HaShem and Keep His Laws against many who were not doing that .
So there is a part of Noach , in Pinchas , and if we look closely enough at Pinchas' name here , we notice that the same letters that spell Noach - the Hebrew ' Nun and Ches , ' appear also in Pinchas' name , for Noach's spelling is also within the word Pinchas , so this teaches how they both stood up for the Right and Moral Path of HaShem , against the many who were doing wrong , no matter what it might cost them , and thus both performed a Great Kiddush HaShem .
This is how HaShem Wants us all to be . To stand up for what is right , no matter what the consequences , HaShem Wants us to stand by Him and by His Laws , and Stand against anyone , who will dare try to break them or speak against Them , Chas Ve Shalom .
There is a part of Noach in all of us , for we are all descended from Noach . And if we look deep enough , we can , at a moment's notice , stand up and fight the wrong , and take lesson from Pinchas and Noach on how to be a true faithful follower of HaShem .
The very fact that Adam was Created , is an indication , that the World was Created even just for one person . That one person , as a descendant of Adam , like you , and like me and like all of us , can stand up and say , ' The World was Created just for each one of us as a singular , ' and so , if it was also Created for each one of us as a singular , then each one of us is responsible on our own to keep up Creation and protect It and keep it as HaShem Wants .
We are each the centre of our own immediate World and thus are responsible for that World . If we see an insult to HaShem Chas Ve Shalom , or a wrong being perpetrated , we are obligated to protect that World around us , and stand up and right the wrong for the love of HaShem , just as Pinchas did and just as Noach spoke out and did . We are to do the same for HaShem's Creation .
We are , just as Pinchas did when he made a place for HaShem To Dwell within him - shown by the ' Yud ' within his name ( Written as a different size to the other letters around It ) , to make a place too for HaShem To Dwell Within us , by protecting and keeping always , HaShem and His Commandments and Creation . As HaShem Said , ' Make me a Sanctuary ( Temple ) / Mishkan That I May Dwell Among them " ( therein ) Shemos Exodus 25:8 , refers also to ourselves as a temple , wherein HaShem Can Dwell and Wants To Dwell .
Throughout our lives , this very test comes often , to stand up and do the right thing , even against negative pressures . In fact every moment we live , we are faced with this choice to do good or not . Thus every moment , we can grow Spiritually and also Grow closer to HaShem , if we just do the right thing By HaShem .
We are each a Created being from HaShem . We are each responsible for Creation . We are each to stand up for HaShem and Carry Creation for HaShem ,by Keeping His Torah , with learning and action . We are HaShem's loving angels on Earth , here to do His Will Only .
May we all be as Noach and as Pinchas and stand up always for HaShem and His Creation and be the angels we can be and carry Creation back to HaShem with love .
With Eternal Love , I wish HaShem with Eternal Love , a Most Special and Beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with Deepest Love , and to all my fellow Jews , a most special and beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with love .

Parashas Balak

The Parsha this Shabbos is Parashas Balak . In the previous Parsha , HaShem Had Just Helped the Children Of Israel conquer the Giants Og and Sichon who were Moav's protection and now , Moav saw Israel approaching its borders and began to worry that if Israel could conquer their Giant protectors , what would Israel do to them .
In order to try overcome this immediate problem , the Moabites decided to appoint Balak , their King . He wasn't even a Moabite but part Midyanite . Moav and Midyan were not allies , but these two nations decided to work together to help each other handle the oncoming threat of our larger nation at the time.
Balak himself was a warrior and also delved into the negative Tum'a arts of magic and he knew where to curse a person from .
Balak in this Parsha is named " Balak ben Tzippor , " his Father , where his Father too was also into negative magic . Balak had the title ben Tzippor ( where a tzippor is a bird , as Balak used to catch live birds, skin them , and put their tongues into a made up copy of a bird , say certain incantations and after a few days , the birds would speak and tell of future events . On a certain occasion , this made up bird flew away and returned to Balak one day with a sudden burst of fire that came at it out of the sky and singed its tail . Balak knew he had to get help as the problems that was put to him about Israel being on the way , showed , that defeat was inevitable for the Moabites .
Balak sent emissaries to Midyan , remembering that he had heard that our leader Moshe had grown up there and Balak hoped to find out his weakness . The emissaries returned and told him that our power is in our mouths of prayer to HaShem , Who Saves us when we call out to Him , so Balak decided that the answer was to hurt us by mouth and thus came to the conclusion that we needed cursing by mouth to defeat us.
Balak remembered a man called Bilaam , who had once prophesied that Balak would become King and that Bilaam was known as a man for hire to curse enemies and that the curses would come true.
Bilaam , was the grandson of Lavan , where Lavan was the brother of Rivka and Father of Rachel , Leah , Bilhah and Zilpah , our For-Mothers and so Lavan put the hatred he had for Yaakov , their husband , into his children and it came down to his grandson and also fellow evil magician Bilaam .
Bilaam had a deep hatred for the Jewish people . Bilaam was one of Pharaoh's advisers in Egypt as one of the three advisers ,with Iyov Job and Yisro Jethro . It was Bilaam as one of the three , that had wanted and advised Pharaoh to kill little Moshe , when Moshe had sat on Pharaoh's throne as a game , in Egypt as a child , when Moshe was tested with the hot coal . It was Bilaam who had advised Pharoah to throw our Jewish boys into the Nile . It was Bilaam , who had advised Pharaoh to bathe in the blood of the Jewish children , when Pharaoh had gotten leprous sores . This was the same Bilaam who the nations were given as a prophet , so that the nations could never say about us that had they ever gotten a prophet like Moshe they too would have become high and holier . Thus Bilaam was the negative Tum'a prophet to Moshe's Holy Kedusha Prophet , each choosing their path to travel spiritually .
The Haftorah for this Parsha is in Micha 5:6-6:8 , that also mentions Bilaam and Balak .
Bilaam , had a certain ability , and that was to know the exact time to curse someone , relying on HaShem's Anger for a person at that moment . This moment was usually just after midday when the Sun was high in the sky. The reason HaShem Would Get Angry at that time , was , when the Sun was high in the Sky , it was then that people used to worship it as a deity , thus making HaShem Angry at Idol Worship at that moment . Bilaam would know the time to curse and putting that together with Balak know from where to curse , the two of them would be a formidable enemy . Bilaam had originally put a curse and border holding spell around Egypt so that the Jews would be prevented from ever leaving and now , it was apparent , that this spell was broken . Bilaam knew of HaShem and accounted HaShem as G-D . So when Balak sent emissaries to Bilaam , Bilaam first asked the elders sent , to spend the night there to see what HaShem Would Respond , in the meantime , Bilaam , being a man who was completely impure , hoped to have his way with these men , as he would have with his poor donkey . HaShem Appeared to Bilaam , not in the clear way HaShem Appears to Moshe and warned Bilaam not to go and curse Israel , for by HaShem , we are Blessed . So Bilaam sent the officers back to Balak , who kept sending more emissaries of higher ranks with silver and gold to persuade Bilaam to change his mind , saying back that even if Balak gave his houseful of riches ( thus hinting that Balak should offer more than just his household full of riches ) . Again Bilaam has them stay there the night also hoping to have his way with them and hoping to still be able to go and curse us , but again HaShem warns him and says he may only go , if and only if he speaks as HaShem Commands . The next morning , Bilaam saddled his own she- donkey ( unusual as he usually had his servants do that ) , showing his eagerness to go and curse us , yet our Fore-Father Avraham also saddled his donkey himself when he was on the way to the Akeidah with his son and so , Avraham's Actions , HaShem Allowed , to cover us for this incident . In Bilaam's heart , he still hoped to curse the Jews and so , HaShem's Anger flared up because he was going for that reason . So HaShem Sent an Angel to impede him . This Angel of HaShem was none other then Satan , who is not what people think , but an Angel who comes to sometimes impede and put an opposition in our paths , to make sure we deserve the Good HaShem Lavishes on us and thus comes to test us . If we look in the Hebrew here , the name here given as the word for impede , is Satan . The she - donkey saw the Angel of HaShem with a sword drawn , even though Bilaam did not and she turned away from the road and went into the field . Bilaam hit his she-donkey to turn it back to the road . Again the Angel of HaShem stood in the path . The she - donkey saw the Angel of HaShem and pressed against a wall , thus pressing and injuring Bilaam's leg against the wall . This wall place was actually a reminder to Bilaam for it was the very mound that his grandfather Lavan and our Forefather Yaakov had set up , so as never to go against each other , and here was Lavan's descendant Bilaam going against that agreement . Bilaam ignored the place and again hit his she donkey . The Angel of HaShem went again further up , and stood in a narrow place where no movement could take place either right or left and now the she-donkey lay down and didn't move . Bilaam again hit her .
HaShem Performed a Miracle , one that was Created at the beginning of Creation , this talking she donkey ( as Pirkei Avos teaches us ) and the she-donkey spoke up against Bilaam in front of and to the embarrassment of Bilaam's servants and all that were around him . No matter how Bilaam tried to talk her down , she showed wisdom beyond his attempted lies . The she-donkey acknowledged how Bilaam would use her for other purposes , to the embarrassment of Bilaam and showed how close they were , for the she-donkey was forced to submit to such a vile man doing such vile things . It was Bilaam who was the first in history , to open up gambling houses and places of paid prostitution . HaShem Then Uncovered Bilaam's eyes and he saw the Angel of HaShem . The Angel spoke to Bilaam and even referred to the fact that he had to kill the she-donkey or else it would have become an object to be worshiped sadly . Again the Angel instructs Bilaam to go and say only as HaShem Commands .
When Bilaam finally met Balak , Balak had set up a fake city scene to show lots of people , to try and get sympathy from Bilaam of how many people would suffer if we Israel would attack . Bilaam expected a bigger welcome , but Balak sent him only a measly portion to eat and kept the best for himself so Bilaam decided that he would have Balak set up repeated altars with lots of offerings , so Balak would have to use what Balak didn't want to spare on Bilaam for a welcome meal . Bilaam again reiterated that only what HaShem Says , can he say and cannot transgress HaShem's Wish . We notice that each time they went to a separate place , Bilaam has Balak set up seven altars with seven bulls and seven rams three times . Bilaam chose this number specifically , for he wanted to try bribe HaShem by offering seven false intentioned gifts , to try counteract seven holy men from our people - Moshe Aharon , Avraham , Yitzchak , Yaakov , Yosef and Adam . HaShem Is All Wise , and so , Bilaam's attempts were turned on his own head . We notice how it says that HaShem " Happened on Bilaam ," - " Vayikar ," where HaShem Did Not Actually Want to Communicate with Bilaam , but Did it by necessity , unlike with Moshe , which has the same word " Vayikra , " but with an Alef at the end , in the book of Vayikra , showing how HaShem Wants to Communicate with the righteous Moshe Rabbeinu .
Bilaam , instead of cursing us blesses us . By his words in each of the four times he speaks , one can see what he really wanted to say as a negative wish , but HaShem Turned everything he wanted to say to a Positive Blessing . Bilaam ends us blessing us and angering Balak . Balak decides to go to another place to find a vantage point to hopefully find iniquity in us , but again , HaShem Turns it into a Blessing and Bilaam speaks his second words of blessing to us . Bilaam realized our Tznius and family purity and how not a single tent's opening or window of ours faced a neighboring husband and wife's tent , for pure modesty , so no evil eye could be put on us . Bilaam hoped to catch HaShem's Moment of Anger , but for our sake , HaShem Chose Not To Sit in Judgement that day .
By the end of the second words of Bilaam , Balak was so angry with Bilaam , that he hit Bilaam in the eye, making him lose an eye and that is why Bilaam then refers to himself as the one with the open ' eye ' ( singular ) . The third time Bilaam speaks , he talks of future prophecies of what we will do to different enemies in the future , like Amalek and the Kittim . Bilaam even speaks of the End Of Days and Mashiach in his prophecies and reminds the World that HaShem Is Not A Man ( Numbers 23:19 ) . Again Balak gets angry and hits him . Bilaam reminds Balak that he cannot go against HaShem's Wish . Automatically , Bilaam suddenly goes into his fourth prophecy and tells Balak what we will do to his people at the End of Days , thus reminding him that we Israel have no intention at that time to attack Moav in that day and generation , but only in the future long in years after that . Bilaam then leaves but not before he decides to help set up a trap for Israel that may bring on HaShem's Wrath with us on purpose , seeing that it won't happen otherwise . At times in our history , Bilaam's intended negativity against us has carried and hit us at times , like the 42 aggressive youths killed in Elisha the Prophet's time , when they came out at Elisha , for Bilaam offered in this Sedra 42 animals as offerings . We need to thus ensure that we remain close to HaShem's Laws and keep family purity and modesty and always be of a holy pure Physical and Spiritual character for Tznius purity keeps negativity away .
A market got set up on the border near the Israelite camp , with wares to sell and inside each tent was a young lady set to trap the young men of our people . Even Bilaam's daughter was set up to try and entice Moshe and with her , Balak's daughter too , also to try catch Moshe , yet she ( Balak's daughter ) ended up with Zimri , leader of the Tribe of Simeon .
The place they chose for this was Shittim , a place known at the time for an air of immorality . HaShem Already had , prior to this , Taken into account the sin that would be committed there And Had Already Prepared something that would help us atone for this sin , and that was the wood used in the construction of the holy place in the Wilderness , wood from Shittim .
Once the Israelite men would be browsing in the market , they would be tricked into going and looking inside the tents of the markets , where the young girls ( a mixture of Moabites and Midianites ) were waiting to ply them with drink and apparent friendliness ( at that time , the prohibition of drinking foreign wine was not yet in force ) . The result was that these women got some of them to drink and eat with them and then end up paying homage to the idol by relieving themselves in front of it , which was the way they worshiped their idol . HaShem's Anger Flared and Instructed Moshe to kill them , those who had done this . Moshe asked HaShem how to know who was guilty , and HaShem Revealed the guilty ones , By Removing from above them the Clouds Of Glory , and so the sun shone brightly on the guilty ones ( thus does HaShem Instruct that they be hung against the sun ) .
The leader of the Tribe of Simeon Zimri ben Salu , managed to persuade Cozbi ( daughter of Balak ) who was meant to entice Moshe , to come with Zimri , into his tent , in direct view of Moshe . Moshe was so stunned that he couldn't even respond . Siting near him was Aharon's relative Pinchas , who could not take this affront to HaShem and his Rebbe Moshe and asked Moshe what he should do , for a child of Israel who cohabits with a gentile woman , the punishment is that he will be killed by zealots . Moshe responded that ' what he states , may he go and fulfill it . ' Pinchas , picked up Moshe's spear and followed Zimri to the tent and pierced them both , causing to halt , the plague HaShem Had Sent . 24 000 people fell that day , the same amount of our people that died as Rabbi Akiva's students later on in history . Pinchas was now covered and protected by HaShem for his action in saving the Honor of HaShem and of his Rebbe Moshe . It is here that the Parsha ends .
In this Parsha , one evil man calls another to come and put an ' Ayin Horah ' - ' An Evil Eye , ' on an innocent nation Israel . Instead of Bilaam cursing us , HaShem Sees to it that we get Blessed instead .
We notice that in referring to the ' Ayin Horah , ' - ' Evil Eye , ' we note that only one eye is mentioned . Don't people usually have two eyes . So why only mention a single eye as an Evil Eye ?
The answer to this is that those who curse and wish harm on others , are only looking at part of the picture and that makes them jealous . They are not looking clearly , as if with both their eyes open . They are thus viewing a distorted view of reality , seeing only the things they want and not the full picture about the person whom they covet , that may also have their problems too as we all have . This is why Bilaam ended up with one eye , as punishment for his distorted view of his own jealous reality , which isn't a reality at all . Only HaShem Sees All , Viewing All Facets of a situation , as if with many eyes , and thus can never do Negative or Evil Things , for HaShem Never Just Looks With one covetous eye , for all things Belong to HaShem and He Doesn't Need to Covet what is already His By Being The Creator Of All .
We say that one eye looks to the Physical , while the other looks higher , to the Spiritual . Thus to look with one eye , is to only see the Physical and the wants and desires of the flesh . This is the error of the ones who curse others for bad , due to their negativity within them . To see the full picture , we need to open up both our eyes , the physical and the Spiritual , that is within us and look On High . Look always toward G-D . Look beyond what we think we see . We see so little with our limited human capabilities . Only G-D Can See All . Only G-D Can Truly Judge . Only G-D Sees Creation as it truly is . All those of the nations who see the Jews in the antisemitic ugly ways they choose to , are only looking with a ' Single - Eye , view . ' They are not able to see the depths and Spiritual reaches of the Jew . They are not able to see beyond their own physicalities and so , they call for our harm and destruction , as did Bilaam and in a similar way Haman , as well as all the others through History who wanted so badly , our extermination . But it will never happen , as they can't see with anything more than a single limited view , the view of the one that looks with only the one open eye , like Bilaam . At the End of Days , the nations will open both their eyes , and realize how wrong they were all along , and that false beliefs and deified men and false physical deities that they see with only the one open physical eye, were actually never of any use . The only True Path , Is The Path Of HaShem , the only Path with Open View Wide Deep and Holy Truth . So what HaShem Did , Was To Open Both Bilaam's Eyes to Show the True Truth , and so , did Bilaam utter The True Prophecy from HaShem . The now open eye , Bilaam referred to , was the one he never made an effort to open , so he could see a fuller picture . HaShem Thus Opened his view , and so he was able to see the Truth and Speak it . After these prophecies , Bilaam never again prophesied and his life thereafter got the result he had wanted for us , for he ended up being slain by the sword , just like Haman got the death he had wanted for Mordechai , and so will be the case with all our enemies .
As we start now , at this time from 17th of Tammuz till Tisha B'Av , the Three Weeks of Mourning, may we all open up both our eyes , the one outside and the one that sees far ranging Spiritually within , and work toward fixing ourselves from within , to see beyond our own limited physicality , opening both eyes , so that we can work away our Aveirahs and give HaShem Most Of All and others , the benefit of the doubt , for we see so little of the total picture And Only HaShem Sees All and Truly Serve HaShem in Spiritual and Total Love Always And Forever . I Love You HaShem .
I wish HaShem With Love , A Very Sweet and Beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with Love and to all my fellow Yidden , a very special and beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with love and a Meaningful Fast .

Parashas Chukas

Our Parsha this Shabbos is Parashas Chukas . Continuing with the Laws of the Kohanim as was at the end of the previous Parsha, Moshe inquired ofHaShem how to cleanse one of the Tum'a Impurity of a dead body . This request was made in the morning and HaShem didn't answer Moshe straight away , but waited till he was with Aharon and HaShem Spoke to them both instructing on the Laws of the Parah Aduma , the Red Heifer . This Law is termed a Chok , one of the Chukkim . Directly in Torah , the word Chok appears with four cases . This one of the Parah Aduma , where a Red Heifer , prepared as HaShem Instructs , purifies one who has the strictest Tum's level , Av HaTum'a , yet make Tamei Impure , one who prepares it according to its Laws .
Another Law that in Torah is termed Chok, is the Law of Shaatnez , which is the Law of not mixing wool and linen together in the same garment , yet it is fine to put them together in a Garment of Tzitzis.
Another Law where the Hebrew word ' Chok ,' appears in Torah is to do with the Law of Yibum , where if a man dies childless, his surviving widow can be taken and married to the surviving brother , so long as there were no children , and so , children can be brought up in the deceased brother's merit . The fourth example of the word 'Chok ' appearing in Torah , is to do with the S'air La' Azazel the goat sent to Azazel , which purifies the Camp , yet make impure the one who handles it .There are of course other Chukkim , like Shabbos and sending away the Mother Bird , but these are not directly stated in Torah as Chukkim .
So what is a Chok ?
HaShem Gave us Laws and Ordinances and with them , explanation on understanding some of the meaning of the why's , but with a Chok , the reasons are hidden . Even though , to all Torah Laws , there are hidden facets to all HaShem Commands , with the Chukkim , The rationale behind them , is totally hidden , beyond logic . Thus doing them , is purely for the love and trust in HaShem , a possible reason for them , for , to obey HaShem without even the reward of knowing why , is in itself a good enough reason for a Law , for it shows from us , the pure love we have for HaShem to follow Him Wholehearted ly and trust Him totally faithfully , a belief that proves we have total faith that HaShem Is the Creator of Creation - just my idea .
Only Moshe was given much of the deep reasons for the Chukkim , but no one else .
Shlomo Ha Melech , who was the wisest of men , who was able to fathom the deep reasons for all the other Chukkim , had to admit , in Mishlei , that this Law of the Parah Aduma eludes him .Now this was Shlomo Ha Melech , who knowledge of Astronomy surpassed even that of Avraham , his knowledge of Science , surpassed that of Scientists of even our time , knowledge of the character and understanding of Animals , even beyond Adam's knowledge who named them according to their characteristics. His knowledge of Torah , to the great depths , able to state 3000 parables to explain each Torah Law and over 1005 depths to each Mishpat . His Wisdom was even a total understanding of people and what they thought , not because he was telepathic , but because his knowledge of anatomy and health ( having written a book on herbal healing ) and psychology was unsurpassed .
His Judgements were beyond physical knowledge as we know with the case of the two women and the child . In another case , three merchants came before him , telling him how they had stopped together for Shabbos in a place and each one had buried his money . After Shabbos the money was stolen , and so they came before Shlomo Ha Melech for Judgement . He heard their case , and told them he wanted to pose to them a different question . He related a story of a woman who had betrothed herself to a man who had then given her a dowry when she was a very young girl , and the two of them had since moved apart . When she grew up , she subsequently met someone else and so she decided to return to the man who she had agreed with when she was young to return the dowry . That man agreed to free her for the sake of her happiness . On her way back , she was set upon by a robber , who wanted to take the dowry and have his way with her . She pleaded that he not do that and make her impure and told him he would be forever punished and she would not want that , so the robber agreed to let her go . King Solomon asked the three merchants , who in this other story was the real hero, the woman , the man who agreed to let her marry the other man , or the robber ?
The first merchant said the woman ,the second merchant said the man who gave her freedom to marry the other man , but the third one said ,' The robber , who not only let her go and didn't defile her , but returned the money too . ' Shlomo Ha Melech ordered the third merchant accused and he straight away confessed , for King Solomon said that he didn't even have the compassion to worry about the feelings of the man who gave up marrying his intended bride and the woman who was threatened , but only worried about the money . So great was the wisdom of Shlomo Ha Melech , yet he still said , this Chok of the Parah Aduma is beyond him . The Red Heifer , as Instructed here by HaShem , had to be a completely Red Heifer , without even two hairs of another colour . It had to be completely pure , without ever having a yoke put upon it , given to Elazar the Kohein , who had to take it outside the camp for Shechting .Some of its blood had to be sprinkled with his forefinger seven times toward the Tent of Meeting . It had to be burnt . The Kohein was to take cedarwood , hyssop and a crimson thread( coloured with the blood of a worm ) and thrown into the burning of the Heifer .The Kohein had to then immerse himself and his clothing and only then enter the camp , remaining contaminated till evening . The ones who burnt it and who gathered the ash , the same . A pure man was to gather the ash of it and put it in a place outside the camp in a pure place as safekeeping , for water of sprinkling , for purification . Torah Explains the process carried out then for one who cane in contact with a corpse . And some of the Laws of Tum'a are then mentioned and levels of Tum'a .
Our Sages have offered explanations for the possible reasons of this Chok and have linked it to the Chait Ha Eigel , the Sin of the Golden Calf . As a completely Red Heifer is taken , it is like the Blood of those who deserved death for that sin and go it . As this purifies from death , so did the Golden Calf bring death back to the generation .It gad to be a pure Heifer , as the Sin of the Golden Calf , brought back Sin to the entire Camp . As the Heifer ,had to have never had a yoke put on it , sadly the people sinning at the Chait Ha ' Eigel had tried to throw off the Yoke of HaShem .
As the Parah Aduma had to be burnt and its ash used , so did the sinners at the Golden Calf have to drink the very dust they had supported before it was burnt in the Sin of the Golden Calf , which was also like a Heifer . As Cedarwood and Hyssop had to be tied with a crimson thread , so was the cedar wood a sign of affluent arrogance , while the lowly Hyssop was a sign of humbling oneself , where the crimson thread was a sign of the blood of death and sin that was the result . Thus it was like saying that the very calf idea that was the part to the sin , needed a heifer calf to purify . Like but opposite , cures .
To date , there have been nine Red Heifers and we await the tenth one in Mashiach's time . The first one was prepared in Moshe's time , on the Second of Nissan .
I believe the idea of the Red Heifer purifying the contaminated , yet making impure , the ones who prepare it , has to do with , that without the negativity of temptation of Sin , we cannot rise above it , and choose the good , and thus become holier . We need tests to become holy , as it is in the overcoming of and rising above them , that we grow into holiness , thus we need the negativity and the temptation of Sin in this World , in order to Avoid it , not be robots that just live a positive life with no growing . It is in the very choice of either , that helps us grow to holiness . Just my idea . The word " Chok , " in Hebrew can also be part of the root word ' Rachok , ' which means ' Far from ,' showing us that these Chukkim , are far from our own level of wisdom and sit on high with HaShem Only .
Just after these Laws of the Parah Aduma , tragedy comes , in the form of the passing of Miriam , Moshe and Aharon's sister . With her passing , also went the waters from the Well of Miriam . Miriam merited this Well of Water as she had helped Jewish babies get born in Egypt , against the decree of Pharaoh .This Well , was actually a rock , from which water spewed out , in Miriam's merit , and this water would , from HaShem , provide water in the Wilderness , that would flow to all the Tribes , for the leader of each tribe would come with their staff and draw a line in the sand from the Rock , and the water would follow toward each Tribe . With the passing of Miriam , the Water stopped flowing and the people cane to the mourning Moshe and Aharon , wanting water . This took place near the end of the journey in the Wilderness . The remnants of the Eirav Rav wanted to bait Moshe , into getting water from a different rock . This is why Moshe called them rebels and referred to 'this rock ,' which was not the Rock Well of Miriam , for Moshe wanted to insist that only from the Rock of HaShem , that was the Well of Miriam , should the water come . HaShem Instructed Moshe to take Aharon and speak to the Rock which also meant teach Torah in front of the Rock , that they realize the true source is HaShem for all Living Water which is a reference to Torah . HaShem Only asked Moshe to bring the Assembly , but Moshe , meaning well , wanted to publicize the Miracle of HaShem , and thus called the entire Congregation . One must listen to HaShem , Who Knows best . It was then that Moshe disobeyed HaShem in anger and struck the Rock Well of Miriam twice , once when only a trickle of water came out and then again when it came out Gushing . To HaShem , our anger as an emotion is wrong , for in those moments of anger , we lose sense of HaShem and in Gemorah it is akin to Avodah Zorah Idol Worship Chas Ve Shalom . HaShem Then Decreed that Moshe and Aharon would not enter the Holy Land . Again , beyond our understanding . Our Rabbis say that in Moshiach's time Moshe will come and lead those who never got in during the travel in the Wilderness, into Eretz Yisroel , may that day come soon in our days Bekarov . There was an opportunity to Sanctify HaShem's Name here at the Rock , by showing that through Torah , comes aid to life , not anger . The Well of Miriam Rock had healing powers by HaShem if one had faith in HaShem and today , sits in the Sea of Tiberius .
Moshe coming to the border of Israel , sent emissaries asking Edom to let us pass through the land , not for war , but in peace , and that we would not touch a thing , but Edom threatened and did not allow us to go through . Moshe asked a second time but Edom came out with a massive army and so we journey away. And around , to the area of Hor Hahar , Mount Hor . It was here that HaShem Told Moshe to tell his brother Aharon , that Aharon was to pass on and Elazar would succeed him . Aharon went up with Moshe and Elazar on the 1st of Av and it was this day that Aharon , dressed in Heavenly Garments passed away with a Divine Kiss of HaShem . With the passing of Aharon , so did the Clouds of Glory in Aharon's merit also remove itself for that time , thus leaving K'lal Yisroel exposed . When Moshe came down with Elazar , the people protested and blamed Moshe for the passing of Aharon , saying he must have pronounced some judgement upon him . Aharon was very well likes by the people , knowing for making Sholom Bayis between couples and also between people involved in Machlokes ( friction and strife ) , where he would inform each one that the other is sorry and wants to make peace , for he very deep down knew , that very deep down , the Yiddishe Neshoma wants to be at peace with their fellow Jew , even if the body doesn't know or realize it yet . Moshe prayed that HaShem Show them a sign of his death and so , HaShem displayed his resting place in the air . Because of the complaints and attacks on Moshe , HaShem sent Amalek against us . HaShem Gave us victory against them . They are specified as Caananites , for they were disguised as such , but were really Amalekites , who thought they could trick us , for our power is in our prayer , and they thought we would pray for help against the Canaanites , but they would be Amalek in disguise . How wrong they were , for we spotted their different features and thus prayed to HaShem to generally help us with this present enemy , and how silly they were , for HaShem Knows who they are .
The people came and complained to Moshe about the Manna ( Mann) and thus Loshoned HaShem . It was in honor of Moshe that the Manna fell for us . So HaShem sent fiery serpents ( like the animal ((serpent)) into which Samael came when he tempted Adam Ve Chava ) , for HaShem wanted to show them the result of Loshon Horah , with the first creature that Loshoned HaShem . The people begged Moshe to ask HaShem to remove the fiery serpents . HaShem Instructed Moshe to make a fiery serpent ' Nachash ' ( made of copper , which in Hebrew is also ' Nechoshes ' ) to miraculously throw it on the pole and when the people would look up at it , they would be healed . It wasn't the looking up at the serpent that did the healing . It was the direction of upward at and toward Heaven that the people would be healed when they looked up toward HaShem . This serpent on a pole was kept for many generations and became a subject of idol worship which was called ' Nechushtan ' as the people misunderstood the healing powers didn't come from it , but from HaShem . Thus in King Chizkiyahu's time ( spoken of in the Books of the Kings , he destroyed it .
The people continued to journey and near Arnon , HaShem performed for us a Miracle , the inhabitants there had planned to stand on either side of the narrow pass , on opposite mountains , and wanted to throw large boulders down on us , which we were not even aware of until the river ran red afterwards , but HaShem brought the sharp jutting mountains together and squashed our enemy , without us even knowing it at that moment HaShem Did it .
This is what the words in Torah are about in this Sedra . How Often Does HaShem Protect our road ahead , without us even ever knowing it , of what HaShem Removed from out pathways, so that in His Love , we escape unknowingly , without any harm . Something to consider and think about , how great His Love for us is .
HaShem then instructs Moshe to wage war with Sichon king of the Amorites and Og , King of Bashan . These two giants , were the offspring originally of the Fallen Angel Shemchazai and a human woman . They were both brothers and Moshe personally killed them both himself and our people , with HaShem's Help , destroyed them . This was the same Og , who had lived in Avraham's time , who was the messenger who had come to tell Avraham that his nephew Lot had been taken captive . Og came to warn Avraham about Lot , not for the good of Lot , but to try get Avraham to join the battle and get killed Chas Ve Shalom , so Og could get Sara for himself but HaShem is All Knowing and Saved Avraham . This is why our Hafotrah for this portion is from the book of Judges 11 1-33 where the people of Ammon want to wage war against us , for it was the Ammonites who had lost their land to Sichon , and now that we had in Moshe's time defeated Sichon and Og , and thus captured that land part of Moav,that their fellow brothers the Ammonites wanted it back . After the defeat of these two giants , the Children of Israel journeyed and encamped in the plains of Moav near the Jordan River , near Yericho and this is where this Parsha ends .
With the two giant protectors of the nations in K' na'an ,killed , the people there were terror stricken and so , decided that there last hope lay in the evil Bilaam , ( which appears in the next Sedra ) , who had previously come and helped Sichon and Og defeat the Moabites by cursing them , for that section that was taken in our war with them , was originally Moabite territory , for Bilaam was known to curse a people, person or nation and it would come true . Little did he or they know , that it wasn't Bilaam's curse , but HaShem manoeuvering things for our Jewish people so as to ensure we attain that area . HaShem Continues His involvement with His Creation even though we are not aware of it .
HaShem gave us Chukkim , Out Of Pure Love. All HaShem Does , Is Done Out Of Pure Love . We may not and actually don't understand His Holy Ways . We are not and never can be on His Lofty Level , even though we are to try emulate His Ways and Strive for Him all the time in all we do and wherever we are . Yet Most is left to Emunah and Bitachon , Faith and Trust in Him . The very fact that HaShem Created Creation , and all that is still to come , shows that we know nothing and He Knows all . Thus all Creation is like a " Chok , " an unexplained Mystery of His Wonders and Reasons .
We might try through the Centuries to surmise and conclude reasons , but at the end of the day , we are too small to really know the depths of it all . Though HaShem Tells us , in the Prophet Isaiah , " That All He Created , was purely for His Glory That He Created It , " we really don't understand HaShem's True Meaning of that . All we can do is trust Him . He Does Know All . The idea of a " Chok " is a perfect opportunity , as I mentioned earlier , and we need to take this opportunity to show HaShem how much we love Him , by doing all He Asks of us , following Torah explicitly and Knowing with contentment , that His Laws are our Guide to Life here and in the hereafter . His Torah is our Lighthouse on the stormy sea of this World , and thus listening to Him , will always bring us home . Creation , is a Mystery , but HaShem's Love is always within us . All we need to do is to follow That Path of His Love , and the future is guaranteed . For HaShem is All and can always be relied upon to bring us to Heaven . All we need to do , is trust in His " Chukkim " and take His Hand and let HaShem With His Immense Love , Lead us to Him . If we compare what we know , to what HaShem Knows ,it is as if we know Nothing . But let us remember that at the beginning of Creation , HaShem First Created the Nothingness and out of that , Creation Came from HaShem . The Creation was there all the time within HaShem 's Thought , Waiting To Be Revealed . By following HaShem's Laws in Torah , The Light within that Nothingness Will Be Revealed in its time . Not knowing the reasons , and doing the Laws either way , is revealing the Light Hidden within all things and to reveal The Light , is to reveal HaShem's Shechinah . We will never know everything , but we can be content that all things can be safely left in HaShem's Capable Hands and all we need to do , is to follow wholeheartedly where HaShem Knows we need to go . We do this with loving trust in The Creator of All Things , of Tomorrow and of the Future - in the loving trust of HaShem Ha Kadosh Baruch Hu , The One And Only G-D . May His Closeness Be Revealed Soon in our days , for True Heaven , is only within The Loving Arms of HaShem HaKadosh Baruch Hu .
I wish HaShem With Love Beyond Love , a Very Special and Beloved Shabbos Kodesh with Love , and to all my fellow Yidden , a very special and beloved Shabbos Kodesh with love .

Parashas Korach

Our Parsha this Shabbos is Parashas Korach . As with other Parshas, this Parsha also begins with a " Va " - " And , " showing that there is a link between this Parsha and the previous Parsha . That link is Tzitzis , spoken of in the previous Parsha . It was about Tzitzis , that became Korach's final straw .
Korach was a cousin of Moshe and Aharon , and thus a Levite too . But he wanted to be Kohein Gadol and thus challenged Aharon's position as Kohein Gadol accusing Moshe of Nepotism, making out he was favouring his closest family , over others . But who was this Korach ? As I mentioned , he was also a Levite , and thus already held a position of very holy dignity, to do with Avodah near the Ark , but that wasn't enough as he wanted a more outward to the people showing position .Avodah for the Ark is such a holy thing , but his soul was not on a level to appreciate that .
In Mitzrayim , he had personally engraced himself to Pharaoh and thus was Pharaoh's treasurer . Korach had managed to find the hidden valuables that Yosef had saved , and thus was Korach , one of the wealthiest men who ever lived . His wife to , like him , was a social climber , both looking to climb higher physically in status .
She was constantly at him that he should get more status and both constantly down talked Moshe , that Korach should be given a higher position . Korach also foresaw that his descendants would hold high positions and he even did permutations with his and his Father's name , to make words that showed they would come to higher state . Korach , in fore-seeing his progeny would be in a high position , was constantly feeling that he deserved more than the work he did. He wasn't wrong about his progeny , as his sons did not agree with what their Father had done and chose to go the way of the Right Law ( even writing a few Psalms ) , for when Moshe visited , they would stand in his honor . Also , the great holy prophet Shmuel Samuel descended from him . This is one of the main reasons that an excerpt from the Prophet Shmuel is read as the Haftorah for this Shabbos Sedra ( 1 Samuel 11:14 - 12:22 ) . Also it is chosen as Samuel was upset that the people wanted a physical king like other nations , for we Jews are different , as HaShem Is our Only King - similar to the Sedra of Korach , where Korach should have realized that leading the Jewish people , needs to be a Spiritual position , not a Physical climb to power .
Korach and his wife were very angry on the day Korach had come home after the Inauguration after being waved by Aharon and Korach having his head shorn . Both Korach abd his wife looked to status and both wanted higher prestige , accusing Moshe of choosing Aharon , only because Aharon was Moshe's brother. How untrue , as It Was HaShem Who Chose Aharon as Kohein Gadol .
When Moshe ( the link to the previous Parsha ) taught about HaShem's Commandment of Tzitzis , that was for Korach the last straw , for Korach accused Moshe of making up the Laws himself, a complete blasphemy of HaShem . In fact , when Korach came with his 250 followers , all leaders and high position people in the community , many from the tribe of Reuvein , including Dasan and Aviram ,' Korach made sure to mock the Laws of Tzitzis , by them all coming in coloured Tztitzis garments and fringes and mocking Moshe asking him if a garment has been coloured like the strings , does it still need Techeilis.
Korach had gone around to the Tribes to get support , and managed to get 250 men of renown behind him , yet , as we learn in Pirkei Avos , even Korach and his company didn't agree among themselves .
Korach was a man of strife and Machlokes . We see this even in his name , for the name " Korach " has the root ' Kerach ,' which refers to hair on his head being bald in the middle and separated on the sides , so even his hair was with strife .
Seeing that he was near the tribe of Reuvein , he got most of his supporters from their , playing on their feelings of having the firstborn right taken away in the time of Yaakov . With them joined Dasan and Aviram ( brother in laws to each other - Dasan and Aviram , where Dasan was the one Moshe had saved from the taskmaster in Egypt and these two being the two who Moshe had told the next day in Egypt to stop arguing) .
Another man called " On " is also mentioned , but he was the only one who didn't perish when HaShem Punished this bad company . " On " had planned to join Korach's company , but on the day they were to present the Ketores in front of Moshe , " On's "wife and daughter , seeing his error , gave him something in his drink to sleep and both sat at the entrance to their tent with their hair uncovered , so when Korach's followers came to call " On , " and saw his wife and daughter with their hair uncovered , for Tznius reasons , the followers of Korach were forced to return to Korach without " On " , and so " On's " life was saved . For " On " didn't want to listen to his wife when she told him not to go , yet realized afterwards how right she was.When the Earth opened up to swallow Korach , " On , " lying on his bed , was also pulled towards it , yet she held on to the edge of his bed and prayed to HaShem that her husband did not then join in with the company of Korach at the end and his life was saved . He regretted and mourned his wrong decision to join in , in the first place and thus did he have the name " On , " which is like an ' Onein , ' - ' a Mourner . ' His wife told him to go and apologize to Moshe but he was too embarrassed and humble Moshe came to him and asked HaShem To Forgive On . Such is the difference of a Holy Good Wife like " On's " wife , who saved her husband and an unholy bad wife like Korach's wife , who pushed him further to destruction .
So Korach and Dasan and Aviram and the 250 men came wearing coloured Tzitzis with strings all of the same colour as the Techeilis were supposed to be and challenged Moshe and Aharon . Moshe defended his brother , whose position , Korach sought . Korach dared to accuse Moshe of choosing his own brother , thus Korach spurned HaShem and HaShem's Choice and Truth . Korach also accused Moshe of making up his own laws , thus spurning HaShem's Laws and Truth .Korach asl accused Aharon of arrogantly taking the position of Kohein Gadol and Moshe defended his brother, reminding Korach and his company and the entire congregation who had followed to listen , that Aharon had stepped back , not wanting at all the position , not feeling himself worthy and also that Aharon had lost his two sons in this , and thus did not choose himself to take anything . Korach continued and Moshe warned him to stop . Korach told Moshe that he wanted to appoint firstbornes in all the twelve tribes , who would , once a month from now on do the avodah and that they would go their own way and not take orders from Moshe . Moshe responded by telling then that the following day , if they did not trust HaShem and him , that they must each bring their fire-pan and offer Ketores and if they are right , would survive , but if not , would die . Korach never thought he wouldn't be chosen and so they all went along with him and agreed . Korach also disputed the position of the Levites and wanted to reinstate the firstborns .Dasan and Aviram continued to mock Moshe and left in a huff . Moshe sent for them but they refused to come . Moshe , though he was the leader , still humbled himself and went himself to their tent to try change their mind , knowing what would happen, but they never even came out to talk to him , but mocked him and chased him away .Oh Humble beloved Moshe .
Korach and his company brought their 250 fire-pans , put fire and incense and came arrogantly to the Tent of Meeting , and HaShem Appeared to the Assembly , and told Moshe and Aharon to remove themselves from this assembly and He Would Destroy them in an instant. Moshe and Aharon pleaded with HaShem that the entire assembly should not be punished for the actions of a few and HaShem Told that all should get away from the tents of Korach , Dasan and Aviram .
Moshe needed to save the entire people so that this never happens again , so he asked HaShem that they not die a natural death , as an example to the people so that they not again disobey HaShem in such a way and face destruction as a nation Chas Ve Shalom .Moshe asked that the Earth open and swallow them and what is theirs . As soon as Moshe finished speaking , the Earth opened its mouth and swallowed Korach and all that was his , except his sons , who did not go along with what their Father had done , and even would rise for Moshe out of honour and respect , when Moshe would come there . Korach went to the Seventh depth of Gehinnom ( for there are seven levels of Gehinnom just as there are seven levels of Shamaim ) and every thirty days comes up near the opening to cry out in burning pain , that HaShem Is True and so are the words of Moshe . All Korach's wealth went down with him . A Flame came from HaShem and consumed the 250 followers of Korach . A Rabbi was once walking in modern times and met an arab bedouin who was actually in disguise , who was really Eliyahu Ha Navi , and the man told the Rabbi to come and he would show him where Korach is held . He took him to an opening in the ground nearby , where the rocks even on the surface were burning hot and smoldering and told him to look into the hole . Smoke bellowed out and the voice of Korach screamed from within saying , ' HaShem Is True and Moshe's words are just . '
The next day , the entire people complained to Moshe and Aharon about the deaths of Korach and his company , saying that Moshe knew what would happen if they brought Ketores and Moshe reminded them that he had warned Korach and his company but they would not listen . HaShem Appeared and wanted to again destroy them in an instant and sent the Malach Angel Ketsef to bring a plague . When Moshe was up on Har Mount Sinai and had persuaded the Angels to allow him to bring the Torah down to us , saying it is for humans who can keep Laws and have to fight their Yetzer Horahs , they , in reward for him showing them this fact , each taught him a gift of knowledge . The Malach Ha Maves the Angel of Death taught him that when the Angel is sent out , a way to stop him is to burn Ketores . Thus Moshe here , asked Aharon to quickly go and get the fire-pan , put fire on it from the Mizbayach Altar and put Ketores Incense and run between the living and the dead . Aharon was afraid to take Ketores away from the Mizbayach , putting his life at risk , but even after he remembered the death of his two sons when they brought a foreign fire to burn, still did it and ran between the living and the dying , grabbing hold of the Angel Ketzef and bringing him before Moshe . The smoke of the Ketores and the presence of Moshe , halted the plague .
The people still wanted proof that it was still Levi that was chosen for the Kehunah Priesthood.
HaShem For All Time Showed the people that it was Levi and Aharon who was chosen for the Kehunah and as Kohein Gadol , by having Moshe cut twelve staffs of equal length and instructed the Tribes to each carve their Tribal name and leader on each staff and for Levi, to carve Aharon's name on the Tribe of Levi's staff and to put them together in the Tent of Meeting before the Testimony , and HaShem Would Show Who is Chosen .
They all did this , placing Aharon's staff in the middle so that no one could say that his staff was nearest the Shechinah . The next day , only Aharon's Staff blossomed , budded and almonds ripened on it , so this staff was kept before the Testimony to show for all time that Levi and Aharon was the chosen Tribe and position for Kohein Gadol and his family and Kohanim Gedolim from Levi.
Almonds in Hebrew are " Sh'keidim , " and within this word is the root ' Shaked ' which means 'hurry or quickly ,' and refers to the fact that Almonds ripen very quickly . This was in reference to the tribe of Levi who don't wait to serve HaShem but do so when called quickly as they did when they never followed the Chait Ha Eigel golden calf and were quick to punish the perpetrators . This also refers to Aharon , who is quick to serve HaShem as the Levites do by doing the Avodah , for the other Tribes and our people and Most Importantly for HaShem . The people still worried they might perish , and so Aharon's and the Kohanim's duty as well as the Levites duty was again put forward and guards were placed around the Testimony to prevent any non Kohanim from coming there.
Twenty four guards were placed in the Temple times around the Temple and within ( three being within ) . HaShem Also Taught of the 24 gifts of the Kohanim , the Tithes and other things they would get in their work as Kohanim , portions and Terumah and Maaser among others and so the people realized they would gain atonement and this helped with their worry . The Kohanim were given these , so they could without need for working , concentrate fully on the Avodah work around the Sanctuary . So ends the Parsha .
There is so much we can learn from this Parsha , but one point stares us in the face . This is the matter of , as Shlomo Ha Melech , taught us , to be happy with our lot .
HaShem Loves us all and each of us has our own specific task to complete . HaShem Tells us not to covet what others have . They have their own path to travel . Whatever task we are called upon to do by HaShem , is of worthy value . Creation needs us all and we are each a valuable part of it , whether we do a fancy looking job or not . We each are of value to HaShem . We each need each other and we all need to work together to complete Creation . HaShem Puts us in different places to do different things.
One person cannot do the task in Creation given to another . We each have our own special place in HaShem's Creation .
We are each and all needed to complete Creation . It is like pieces of a puzzle all being needed to complete the puzzle . Each piece is necessary and cannot be replaced by another piece . Each piece of the puzzle works toward the completed puzzle , just like each one of us is important and works toward the completion of Creation . We are all of value to our Beloved HaShem .
Each one of us is special to HaShem and each one of us is a part of the make up of Creation . We are all a valuable part of Creation as each puzzle piece is a valuable part of the completion of the puzzle . No puzzle piece can replace another and no puzzle can be without each and every piece of the puzzle . Each piece is of value to complete the puzzle and each one of us as a part of Creation , is needed to complete Creation . We are all of value to HaShem .
We are each to do our part in Creation that is set for us to do and work together with the rest of Creation to complete It . We all have value and HaShem Created us all as a part of Creation to make up Creation in total and , though each puzzle piece can't see the finished puzzle , each and every part of Creation , each one of us , can't see the result . But we can trust The All Knowing HaShem and His Creation that where He Puts us , is exactly what His Creation needs for Completion . So we all need to be content with who we are and what task is given to us that can only be specially done by us and us alone , for HaShem entrusted no one but us ourselves to do our task as that valuable part of Creation that is us and so , we must live for HaShem and all work together to bring Creation to completion.
We must remember that HaShem Chose no one else but us to be us and no one else to do what we must do . We don't see the full puzzle , just as each puzzle piece can't see the end picture or full picture . But we are all a valuable and special part of HaShem's Creation and so , are of eternal value to HaShem . May we all fulfill our part of Creation , and bring happiness and eternal love to HaShem .
I wish HaShem with Love , a Most Sweet and Beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with Love , and to all my fellow Yidden , a most special and beautiful Shabbos Kodesh with love .