Triennial Cycle (Triennial Torah Cycle) / Septennial Cycle (Septennial Torah Cycle)

 

 

Candle Lighting and Habdalah Times: https://www.chabad.org/calendar/candlelighting.htm

Roll of Honor:

 

This Commentary comes out weekly and on the festivals thanks to the great generosity of:

His Eminence Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David and beloved wife HH Giberet Batsheva bat Sarah

His Eminence Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah

His Honor Paqid Adon David ben Abraham

His Honor Paqid Adon Ezra ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet Karmela bat Sarah,

His Honor Paqid Adon Tzuriel ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet Gibora bat Sarah

Her Excellency Giberet Sarai bat Sarah & beloved family

His Excellency Adon Barth Lindemann & beloved family

His Excellency Adon John Batchelor & beloved wife

His Excellency Adon Yehoshua ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Rut bat Sarah

His Excellency Adon Michael ben Yosef and beloved wife HE Giberet Sheba bat Sarah

Her Excellency Giberet Prof. Dr. Emunah bat Sarah & beloved family

His Excellency Adon Robert Dick & beloved wife HE Giberet Cobena Dick

His Excellency Adon Ovadya ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Mirit bat Sarah

His Excellency Adon Shlomoh ben Abraham

His Excellency Adon Ya’aqob ben David

His Excellency Adon Bill Haynes and beloved wife HE Giberet Diane Haynes

Her Excellency Giberet Krysta Wallrauch & beloved family

 

For their regular and sacrificial giving, providing the best oil for the lamps, we pray that GOD’s richest blessings be upon their lives and those of their loved ones, together with all Yisrael and her Torah Scholars, amen ve amen!

Also, a great thank you and great blessings be upon all who send comments to the list about the contents and commentary of the weekly Torah Seder and allied topics.

 

 

Blessings Before Torah Study

 

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our GOD, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us through Your commandments, and commanded us to actively study Torah. Amen!

 

Please Ha-Shem, our GOD, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of all Your people Israel. May we and our offspring, and our offspring's offspring, and all the offspring of Your people, the House of Israel, may we all, together, know Your Name and study Your Torah for the sake of fulfilling Your delight. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. Amen!

 

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our GOD, King of the universe, Who chose us from all the nations, and gave us the Torah. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!

 

Ha-Shem spoke to Moses, explaining a Commandment. "Speak to Aaron and his sons, and teach them the following Commandment: This is how you should bless the Children of Israel. Say to the Children of Israel:

 

May Ha-Shem bless you and keep watch over you; - Amen!

May Ha-Shem make His Presence enlighten you, and may He be kind to you; - Amen!

May Ha-Shem bestow favor on you and grant you peace. – Amen!

 

This way, the priests will link My Name with the Israelites, and I will bless them."

 

These are the Laws for which the Torah did not mandate specific amounts: How much growing produce must be left in the corner of the field for the poor; how much of the first fruits must be offered at the Holy Temple; how much one must bring as an offering when one visits the Holy Temple three times a year; how much one must do when performing acts of kindness; and there is no maximum amount of Torah that a person must study.

 

These are the Laws whose benefits a person can often enjoy even in this world, even though the primary reward is in the Next World: They are: Honoring one's father and mother; doing acts of kindness; early attendance at the place of Torah study -- morning and night; showing hospitality to guests; visiting the sick; providing for the financial needs of a bride; escorting the dead; being very engrossed in prayer; bringing peace between two people, and between husband and wife; but the study of Torah is as great as all of them together. Amen!

 

A Prayer for Israel

 

Our Father in Heaven, Rock, and Redeemer of Israel, bless the State of Israel, the first manifestation of the approach of our redemption. Shield it with Your lovingkindness, envelop it in Your peace, and bestow Your light and truth upon its leaders, ministers, and advisors, and grace them with Your good counsel. Strengthen the hands of those who defend our holy land, grant them deliverance, and adorn them in a mantle of victory. Ordain peace in the land and grant its inhabitants eternal happiness.

 

Lead them, swiftly and upright, to Your city Zion and to Jerusalem, the abode of Your Name, as is written in the Torah of Your servant Moses: “Even if your outcasts are at the ends of the world, from there the Lord your God will gather you, from there He will fetch you. And the Lord your God will bring you to the land that your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it, and He will make you more prosperous and more numerous than your fathers.” Draw our hearts together to revere and venerate Your name and to observe all the precepts of Your Torah, and send us quickly the Messiah son of David, agent of Your vindication, to redeem those who await Your deliverance.

 

A Prayer for our Beloved Hakhamim

 

We would like to ask for prayers on behalf of our Hakhamim, Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David, and Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham for their health, as well as for this work, that it may prosper, be of great benefit to all, and that it may be well supported, and we all say, Amen ve Amen!

 

Shabbbat “Shuv El-Erets”- “Return unto the land”

&

Shabbat Mevarchim

Proclamation of the New Moon of Kislev

(Tuesday Evening, November 10 – Wednesday Evening November 11, 2026)

 

 

Contents of the Torah Seder

 

· The Flight of Jacob – Genesis 31:3-21

· Laban’s Pursuit – Genesis 31:22-54

· Mahanaim (God’s camp) – Genesis 32:1-3

Reading Assignment:

 

 

 

Hakham’s Note: 

As you read the Torah, note how often Yaakov’s exodus from Laban is mirrored in the exodus of the Bne Israel from Egypt.

 

The Prophet Micah contains a scary thought that bears directly on what we are about to learn. Rabbi Yose said, “It is written: As in the days of your coming out of the land of Egypt, I will show him wonders”.[1] This refers to the future redemption through Mashiach.[2] The Mechilta[3] at the end of Chapter11 comments: He did wonders for the fathers and in the future, will do so for the children, as it says “As in the days of your coming out of the land of Egypt, I will show him wondrous deeds”.[4] I will show him what I did not show the fathers. Perhaps the last 2100 years of exile are nearing an end and we are about to be led back into the wilderness.

 

What do Chazal and the Meforshem teach of the connections between Micah 7:15 and in the age leading to the messianic days?

 

In classical Rabbinic literature,[5] Micah 7:15—"As in the days of your departure from the land of Egypt, I will show him wonders", serves as one of the ultimate textual keystones defining the exact relationship between the Exodus from Egypt and the Final Redemption.

 

Chazal analyze this verse across four fundamental themes to explain what will transpire in the period immediately preceding and during the Messianic era.

 

The Universal Rule: "As was the First Redeemer, so is the Final Redeemer".

 

The Midrash[6] establishes the primary axiom of Jewish eschatology directly from Micah 7:15: the First Redemption is the structural blueprint for the Final Redemption.

 

Just as Moshe Rabbeinu appeared, was concealed for a time, by escaping to Midian, and then returned to redeem Israel, the Mashiach will similarly be revealed, concealed, and revealed again before the final fulfillment.[7]

 

Just as Israel was taken into the wilderness after leaving Egypt to be refined before entering the Land, Ramban[8] and the Radak[9] explain that in the days leading to Mashiach, a segment of the nation will undergo a period of spiritual refinement in the "wilderness of the nations" before the final gathering of exiles.

 

The Meforshim[10] carefully parse the phrasing of the verse. The verse does not say "I will show him the same wonders," but rather "I will show him wonders" like the days of Egypt.

 

The Maharal[11] explains that the miracles of the Final Redemption will far surpass those of Egypt. In Egypt, the miracles were localized to one nation and one land; in the Messianic era, the "wonders" will transform the spiritual and physical consciousness of the entire world, establishing universal recognition of HaShem.[12]

 

According to the Zohar,[13] while the plagues in Egypt broke nature temporarily to punish the oppressors, the wonders of the end of days will permanently heal and elevate nature itself into a state of perfected harmony.

 

In the Talmud,[14] Chazal connect the conditions of Egypt prior to redemption with the severe trials, the "Birth Pangs of Mashiach", preceding the Messianic era: Just as the servitude in Egypt reached its most bitter peak right before Moshe appeared, the era leading to Mashiach will experience intense spiritual confusion, societal breakdown, and geopolitical upheaval.

 

The Abarbanel[15] notes that just as the actual departure from Egypt happened in an instant, the final transition from global crisis to Messianic clarity will unfold with suddenness once the divine hour arrives.

 

Radak and Metzudat David on Micah 7:15 explain that the verse specifically speaks to the physical return of the Jewish people from all corners of the earth: In Egypt, the nation was gathered from a single geographic location. In the era leading to and during Mashiach, the "wonders" will involve extracting lost sparks and exiled Jews from every country across the globe, overcoming impossible political and geographical barriers to bring them back to Eretz Yisrael.

 

For Chazal and the Meforshim, Micah 7:15 is the definitive promise that history is not cyclical, but linear and accelerating. The Exodus from Egypt was not merely a historical event, but the initial seed; the Messianic era is the full bloom of that same divine light, magnified to global proportions.

 

In classical Rabbinic literature,[16] the relationship between Yaakov’s exodus from Laban and Micah 7:15 ("As in the days of your departure from the land of Egypt, I will show him wonders") is rooted in a foundational principle of Torah commentary: "The actions of the Fathers are a sign for the children", Ma'aseh Avot Siman LaBanim.

 

Chazal view Yaakov's flight from Laban not merely as an earlier historical event, but as the primary spiritual root of both the Egyptian Exodus and the Final Messianic Redemption. The Sages directly connect Yaakov’s departure from Laban to Egypt every year in the Passover Haggadah, citing Deuteronomy 26:5: "An Aramean [Laban] sought to destroy my father, and he went down into Egypt..." The Ramban[17] and the Midrash[18] explain that Yaakov’s twenty-year exile under Laban in Aram served as the micro-archetype for the entire national exile in Egypt.

 

Laban’s deception and changing of wages tenfold prefigured Pharaoh’s harsh decree and enslavement.

 

Therefore, when Micah 7:15 establishes Egypt as the blueprint for the final redemption, it inherently incorporates Yaakov’s exodus from Aram as the original prototype that initiated the entire process.

 

In the Zohar[19] and the Arizal,[20] Yaakov's breeding of the sheep using the peeled rods, working through the kabbalistic stages of Akodim (bound lights), Nekudim (shattered/isolated dots), and Berudim (harmonized patterns), is the exact spiritual mechanism behind Micah 7:15: Yaakov rectified the lower fallen sparks hidden within Laban's flock, elevating them into the realm of holiness (Berudim).

 

In Egypt, Israel elevated the 288 fallen sparks out of the depravity of Egypt.

 

In the Messianic Era, the "wonders" promised in Micah 7:15 represent the final, complete integration, the Tikkun, of all remaining scattered sparks across the world into a state of perfected global harmony.

 

To Chazal and the Meforshim, Yaakov's departure from Aram is the first link in a three-stage chain of redemption:

 

1.      Yaakov leaving Laban was the individual prototype.

2.      The Exodus from Egypt was the national application.

3.      Micah 7:15 is the universal culmination, expanding the original victories of Yaakov and Egypt to encompass the entire world.

 

JPS & Targum Pseudo Jonathan for: Bereshit (Genesis) ‎‎‎‎‎31:3 – 32:3‎‎‎

 

 

Rashi’s Commentary for: ‎ Bereshit (Genesis) ‎31:3 – 32:3‎‎‎

 

3 Return to the land of your forefathers And there I will be with you, but as long as you are still attached to the unclean one, it is impossible to cause My presence to rest upon you. - [from Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer, ch. 36]

 

4 and called Rachel and Leah First Rachel and then Leah, because she (Rachel) was the mainstay of the household, because, on her account, Jacob had joined Laban. Even Leah’s children acknowledged this matter, for Boaz and his tribunal of the tribe of Judah say, “like Rachel and like Leah, both of whom built, etc.” (Ruth 4:11). They place Rachel before Leah.-[from Tanchuma Buber, Vayetze 15]

 

7 ten times ten times Heb. עֲשֶׂרֶתמֽנִים . מֽנִים is not less than ten.

 

ten times Heb. מֽנִים , a term denoting the base number, which is ten. We learn that he (Laban) changed his stipulation a hundred times.

 

10 and behold, the he-goats Although Laban had separated them all, so that the animals would not conceive their likeness, the angels were bringing them from the flock that had been given over into the hands of Laban’s sons to the flock that was in Jacob’s hands.-[from Gen. Rabbah 73:10]

 

and striped Heb. וּבְרֻדִָּים [To be explained] as the Targum renders: וּפְצִיחִין and open, faissie in Old French, striped. A white thread encircles his body all around, and its stripes are open and penetrating from one to the other, but I have no evidence from Scripture.

 

13 I am the God of Beth-el Heb. הָאֵל בֵּית-אֵל , like אֵל בֵּית-אֵל . The “hey” is superfluous, and it is the way of the Scriptures to speak this way, like “For you are coming to the land of (הָאָרֶץ) Canaan” (Num. 34:2).

 

where you anointed This is an expression of grandeur and greatness, just as one is anointed king. So [is the meaning of] “and he poured oil on top of it” (above, 28:18), to be anointed as an altar.-[following Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel]

 

where you pronounced to Me a vow And you must pay it up, for you said, “it shall be the house of God” (Gen. 28:22), that you would offer up sacrifices there.-[from Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer, ch. 35]

 

14 Do we still have Why should we stop you from returning? Do we still hope to inherit anything of our father’s property among the males?

 

15 Are we not considered by him as strangers Even at a time when people usually give a dowry to their daughters, viz. at the time of marriage, he behaved toward us as [one behaves toward] strangers, for he sold us to you (for you served him fourteen years for us, and he gave us to you only) as wages for labor.

 

our money For he kept the wages for your labor.

 

16 But all the wealth Heb. כִּי . This כִּי here means “but.” That is, we have nothing of our father’s, but what the Holy One, blessed be He, separated from our father is ours.

 

separated Heb. הִצִיל, a term meaning that he separated, and so every expression of הַצָלָה in Scripture means separation, that one separates another from harm or from the enemy.

 

17 his sons and his wives He put the males before the females, but Esau put the females before the males, as it is said (below, 36:6): “And Esau took his wives and his sons, etc.”-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:5].

 

18 the purchase of his acquisition What he had purchased from [the sale of] his animals, viz. manservants, maidservants, camels, and donkeys. - [from Gen. Rabbah 74:5]

 

19 to shear his sheep that he had given into the hands of his sons, a journey of three days between him and Jacob.

 

and [meanwhile] Rachel stole her father’s teraphim She intended to separate her father from idolatry.-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:5]

 

22 On the third day For there was a three-day journey between them.

 

23 his kinsmen Heb. אֶחָיו , lit., his brothers, his kinsmen.

 

seven-days’ journey All those three days [during the time] the reporter went to tell Laban, Jacob went on his way. We find that Jacob was six days distant from Laban, and on the seventh day, Laban overtook him. We find that the entire distance that Jacob had traversed in seven days, Laban traversed in one day (as it is said: “and he pursued him seven-days’ journey,” but it does not say: “and he pursued him seven days.”) -[from Gen. Rabbah 74:6]

 

24 either good or evil All the good of the wicked is considered evil to the righteous/generous. - [from Yev. 103]

 

26 like prisoners of war lit., like captives of a sword. Every army that goes to war is called חָרֶב , sword.

 

27 and concealed from me [lit., you stole me, meaning] you concealed from me.

 

29 I have the power There is strength and power in my hand to inflict harm upon you. Also, every אל that refers to the Deity means that He is mighty and has much strength.

 

30 you longed You wished. There are many words in Scripture (Ps. 84: 3): “My soul yearns, yea, yea, it pines”; (Job:14:15) “You desire the work of Your hands.”

 

31 Because I was afraid, etc.-He answered him the first [question] first, that he said to him (verse 26), “and you led away my daughters, etc.”- [from Avoth d’Rabbi Nathan, 37:11-13]

 

32 shall not live And from that curse, Rachel died on the way (Gen. Rabbah 74:4).

 

what is with me of yours.-[from Targum Jonathan]

 

33 Jacob’s tent That is, Rachel’s tent, for Jacob was usually with her, and so Scripture states: (below, 46:19): “The sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife.” In reference to all of them, however, it does not say, “Jacob’s wife.”-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:9]

 

and entered Rachel’s tent-when he came out of Leah’s tent, he went back into Rachel’s tent before he searched the tent[s] of the handmaids. Why [did he bother to do] all this? Because he was aware that she was one who touches everything.-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:9]

 

34 into the camel saddle Heb. בְּכַר, an expression of pillows (כָּרִים) and cushions וּכְסָתוֹת, as the Targum renders: בַָּעֲבִיטָא דְגַמְלָא , which is a saddle, made like a pillow, and in Eruvin 15b, 16a) we learned: “If they encircled it with pillows (עֲבִיטִין).” These are the pack-saddles of the camels, bastel in French, pack-saddle.

 

36 that you have pursued Heb. דָלַקְתָּ , you pursued, like (Lam. 4:19): “they chased us (דָּלָקֻנוּ) on the mountains,” and like (I Sam. 17: 53): “from pursuing (מִדְּלוֹק) the Philistines.”-[from Targum Onkelos]

 

37 and let them decide Let them clarify who is right, aprover in Old French, prove, clarify.-[from Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel]

 

38 have not aborted They have not aborted their fetuses, like: (Hos. 9:14): “a miscarrying (מַשְׁכִּיל) womb” (Job 21:10): “his cow bears young and does not abort (תְּשַׁכֵּל) .”

 

the rams of your flocks From here they deduced that even a one-day-old ram is called a ram. Otherwise, what is his boast? He did not eat rams, but he ate lambs. If so, he is a thief.-[from B.K. 65b]

 

39. anything torn By a lion or a wolf.-[from Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel]

 

I would suffer its loss Heb. אֲחַטֶּנָה, an expression similar to (Jud. 20:16): “and not miss (יַחֲטִיא) ”; (I Kings 1:21): “My son Solomon and I will be lacking (חַטָּאִים).” I would suffer the loss; if it was missing, it was missing to me, for you would demand it from my hand.

 

I would suffer its loss The Targum renders: דַּהֲוַת שַׁגְיָא מִמִנְיָנָא, what was missing (נִפְקֶדֶת) and lacking from the count, like (Num. 31:49): “and no man was missing (נִפְקַד) from us,” which the Targum renders: לָא שְׁגָא.

 

what was stolen by day and what was stolen at night - גְנֻבְתִי יוֹם וּגְנֻבְתִי לַיְלָה , [similar to] גְנוּבַת יוֹם אוֹ גְנוּבַת לַיְלָה , what was stolen by day and what was stolen at night, I paid all.

 

what was stolen Heb. גְּנֻבְתִי Similar to (Lam. 1:1): “great (רַבָָּתִי) among the nations, a princess (שָָׂרָתִי) among the provinces”; (Isa. 1:21): “full (מְלֵאֲתִי) of justice”; (Hos. 10:11): “that loves (אוֹהַבְתִּי) to thresh.”

 

40 the heat consumed me An expression of (Deut. 4:24): “a consuming (אֽכְלָה) fire.”

 

and the frost Heb. וְקֶרַח , like (Ps. 147:17): “He hurls His ice (קַרְחוֹ) .” The Targum renders: גְלִידא , ice, or frost.

 

my sleep Heb. שְׁנָתִי . An expression of שֵׁנָה , sleep.

 

41 and you changed my wages You would change the stipulation between us from speckled to spotted and from ringed to striped.

 

42 and the Fear of Isaac He did not wish to say, “the God of Isaac,” because the Holy One, blessed be He, does not associate His name with the righteous/generous while they are alive. Although He said to him upon his departure from Beer-sheba (above, 28:13): “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac,” since his eyes had become dim and a blind man is like a dead man, Jacob was afraid to say, “the God of,” and said, “and the Fear of.”

 

and He reproved [you] last night Heb. וַיוֹכַח, an expression of reproof, but it is not an expression of clarification.

 

43 Now, what would I do there? How could I entertain the thought of harming them?

 

44 may He be a witness [I.e.] the Holy One, blessed be He [will be a witness].

 

46 to his kinsmen [lit., to his brothers.] They are his sons, who were to him like brothers, drawing near him for trouble or for war (Gen. Rabbah 74:13).

 

47 Yegar Sahadutha The Aramaic translation of Gal-ed.

 

48 Therefore, he called it Gal-ed The pile is a witness.

 

49 And Mizpah, because he said, etc. And Mizpah, which is on Mount Gilead, as it is written (Jud. 11:29): “and he passed over Mizpeh of Gilead.” Now, why was it named Mizpah? Because each one said to the other, “May the Lord look (יִצֶף) between me and you if you transgress the covenant.”

 

when we are hidden And we do not see each other.

 

50 ...my daughters...my daughters Twice. Bilhah and Zilpah were also his daughters from a concubine.-[from Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer, ch. 36]

 

If you afflict my daughters By depriving them of their conjugal rights (Yoma 77).

 

51 which I have cast Heb. יָרִיתִי, similar to (Exod. 15:4): “He cast (יָרָה) into the sea,” like one who shoots an arrow.-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:15]

 

52 that I Heb. אִם . Here אִם is used as an expression of אֲשֶׁר , that, like (above 24:33): “until (אִם) I have spoken my words.”

 

[to [do] harm To do harm you may not pass, but you may pass to do business.-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:15]

 

53 the God of Abraham This is holy. [I.e., it refers to the Deity.]-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:16]

 

and the god of Nahor Profane. [I.e., it refers to pagan deities.]-[from Gen. Rabbah 74:16]

 

the god of their father Profane. [I.e., it refers to pagan deities.]

 

54 And Jacob slaughtered a slaughtering He slaughtered animals for a feast.

 

his friends [Heb. לְאֶחָיו , lit., to his brothers.] To his friends who were with Laban.

 

to eat a meal Heb. לָחֶם . Any kind of foodstuff is called לֶחֶם [not only bread], like (Dan. 5:1): “made a great feast (לֶחֶם) ”; (Jer. 11:19): “Let us destroy his food (בְּלַחְמוֹ) with wood.”

 

Chapter 32

 

2 and angels of God met him Angels of Israel came to greet him to escort him to the land.

 

3 Mahanaim Two camps, [one of the angels] outside the land, who came with him up to here, and [one of the angels] of Israel, who came to greet him. - [from Tanchuma Vayishlach 3]

 

Tehillim (Psalms) ‎‎‎27:1-14

 

 

 

Hakham’s note: Psalms 27 is the additional Psalm recited at the end of Shacharit and Ma’ariv during Month of Elul and through Hoshana Rabba. The primary liturgical custom is reciting Psalm 27 twice daily throughout the entire season of repentance. Rabbinic tradition (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 21:4) interprets the opening verse through the holiday calendar:

• “The Lord is my light”  Rosh Hashanah.
• “and my salvation”  Yom Kippur.
• “for He will hide me in His succah” (v. 5)  Succot.

 

Rashi’s Commentary on Tehillim (Psalms) ‎‎‎‎27:1-14

 

3 in this I trust In what is stated above: “The Lord is the stronghold of my life.”

 

4 and to visit His Temple every morning To appear there every morning. Dunash (Teshuvoth Dunash, p. 53) explained in this manner. Menachem (Machbereth Menachem, p. 47) however associated it with (Lev. 27:33), “He shall not inquire (יבקר) ,” but Dunash interpreted it as an expression of “morning” (בקר) .

 

5 That He will hide me in His tabernacle I am confident that He will hide me in His Temple, and we learned in Seder Olam (ch. 18) that this verse was stated concerning Joash the son of Ahaziah, who was hidden by his sister, Jehosheba, in the attic of the Holy of Holies, as the matter is stated (in II Kings 11:3): “And he was hiding with her in the house of the Lord for six years.”

 

He will lift me up on a rock He stood my feet on a rock.

 

6 sacrifices with joyous song Sacrifices over which a song is recited.

 

8 On Your behalf, my heart says, “Seek My presence.” On Your behalf, as Your agent, my heart says to me, “All of you Israelites, seek My presence.” And I obey it. “Your presence, O Lord, I will seek.” [The word] לך is like (Job 33:6): “Behold I am like your mouth to God (לא־ל) ,” [that is,] in His stead; (ibid. 13:8), “Will you contend for God (לא־ל) ?” [that is,] in His stead. Here, too, “On Your behalf, my heart says,” in Your stead, my heart comes to me to say this.

 

9 do not turn...away Heb. תט , do not bend over, as (above 18:10): “And He bent (ויט) the heavens.”

 

10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me At the time of coitus, they intended their own pleasure. As soon as their pleasure is over, this one turns his face this way and that one turns her face the other way.

 

but the Lord gathers me in The Holy One, blessed be He, guards the droplet and forms the fetus.

 

12 to the desires of my adversaries To the desire of my enemies, to have their desire fulfilled through me. and speakers of evil Heb. ויפח חמס , speakers of evil. Another explanation: An expression of a trap (פח) .

 

13 Had I not believed in seeing, etc. If I had not believed in the Holy One, blessed be He, those false witnesses would have already risen against me and destroyed me. [The word] לולא is punctuated for the homily which our Sages expounded (Ber. 4a): I know that You give reward to the righteous/generous in the world to come, but I do not know whether I have a share with them or not.

 

14 Hope for the Lord and if your prayer is not accepted, reinforce your hope.

 

Meditation from the Psalms

Tehillim (Psalms) ‎‎27:1-14

Hakham Dr. Hillel ben David

 

With this psalm, Jews all over the world usher in the spirit of the ימים נוראים, 'The Days of Awe.' It is recited at the conclusion of services throughout the month of Elul and during the Ten Days of Repentance. Many continue to recite it throughout the Festival of Succoth.

 

At first glance it would seem that Psalm 51 would be more appropriate for creating a mood of repentance. It is that psalm which records, with unsurpassed eloquence, David's broken-hearted confession of sin and his profound remorse over his guilt.

 

This psalm says nothing of repentance. Nevertheless, it combats sin by teaching how to prevent it at its source.

 

David declares that the mind which is fully engrossed in single-minded dedication to HaShem's service, has no room for sin, and he exhorts us not to be distracted from concentration on this one goal. 'One thing I asked of HaShem, that shall I seek: That I dwell in the house of HaShem'.[21]

 

As a Torah giant once had this to say about the phenomenal Gaon of Rogatchov: 'I testify that he never so much as had one impure thought in all his life. He is so totally engrossed in his study of Torah and service of God that he has no time to spare for anything else!'^[22]

 

The superscription of this psalm ascribes its authorship to David. According to Talmudic tradition, the Book of Psalms was written by King David[23] and King David devoted most of his life to war. In this psalm, he requests that HaShem grant him physical and spiritual refuge from his warfare. None of the major commentators speak of the specific events in King David’s life which resulted in the writing of this psalm. From the verbal tally we can see that ‘Father’[24] or ‘Land’ triggered David with regard to our Torah portion. Yaaqob returned to the land of his father, while David tells HaShem that he was restored when he saw the goodness of HaShem in the land of the living.

 

Chazal remark, with regard to the verse, ‘Seek HaShem when He is at hand’,[25] that this refers to the days between Rosh HaShana and Yom HaKippurim. It is possible to connect the Isaiah passage just cited to another, said on the verse (uttered by King David in Psalm 27), ‘HaShem is my Light and my Salvation, Whom shall I fear?’[26] that ‘my Light’ refers to Rosh HaShana and ‘my Salvation’ refers to Yom HaKippurim.

 

Midrash Rabbah - Vayikra (Leviticus) XXI:4 Our Rabbis expounded the text in reference to New Year and the Day of Atonement. He is ’my light’^[27] on New Year, and ’my salvation’^[28] on the Day of Atonement. ’Whom shall I fear?’, since The Lord is my strength and song (Ex. XV, 2). ’When evil-doers came upon me’ alludes to the Princes^[29] of the nations of the world. ’To eat up my flesh,’ for the Princes of the nations of the world come and bring charges against Israel before the Holy One, blessed be He, saying to Him: ' Sovereign of the Universe! These^[30] are idol worshippers and those^[31] are idol-worshippers; these commit sexual immorality and those commit sexual immorality; these are shedders of blood and those are shedders of blood. For what reason do those descend into Gehenna and these do not descend into Gehenna? ' ’Mine adversaries and my foes are mine.’ There are three hundred and sixty-five days in the solar year. The numerical value of haSatan (Satan)^[32] is three hundred and sixty-four.^[33] This alludes to the fact that during all the days of the year Satan brings accusations,^[34] but he does not bring any accusations on the Day of Atonement. So Israel say to the Holy One, blessed be He: ’Though a host’ of Samael,^[35] ’Should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear,’ because Thou hast promised me, WITH THIS^[36] SHALL AARON COME INTO THE HOLY PLACE (XVI, 3)^[37]

 

And this is the connection: On Rosh HaShana, illumination comes to the heart from the great theme that HaShem is King of the Universe… Through that recognition, one comes ‘close’ to HaShem, in a sense, and now is able to seek Him while He is at hand.

 

And now we can also understand what David means by ‘Whom shall I fear?’ For with the recognition of HaShem as Absolute King, there is no longer anyone (except HaShem Himself) to fear. On the contrary, from this recognition, there is also born within the individual great ‘joy’, as it says, ‘The lantern of the righteous shall burn brightly and the lantern of the wicked shall be extinguished’.[38]

 

For through the revelation of the illumination of the Kingdom of HaShem on Rosh HaShana, that ‘point of truth’ appears in the souls of Israel; and this is the meaning of ‘Your light and your Truth, they will lead me.’ Because by the illumination of this point of Truth that appears on Rosh HaShana, HaShem leads the souls of Israel through the Ten Days of Repentance, so that ‘He is near to those who call upon Him’ until the climax of the Revelation of Salvation on Yom HaKippurim.[39]

 

The Yamim Noraim (the Awesome Days) are the days of teshuva (returning or repenting). These ten days are also known as "Ten Days of Repentance”. These are the ten days, of repentance, between Yom Teruah (Rosh HaShana – Feast of Trumpets) and Yom HaKippurim (Yom Kippur – Day of Atonement). These are days of introspection, and hopefully, growth and change. These days are also known as bein keseh L'asor, between concealments [Yom Teruah] and the tenth [Yom HaKippurim]. These names serve to remind us that we are suspended between two days of judgement: Yom Teruah, when our verdict is inscribed, and Yom HaKippurim when our judgement is sealed.

 

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 55:6 Seek HaShem when He is to be found, call out to Him when He is near.

 

Our Sages have commented:

 

Rosh HaShana 18a When can an individual [find God]? — Rabbah b. Abbuha said: These are the ten days between Rosh HaShana and the Day of Atonement.

 

The awesome days have as their goal: arriving at rest on Succoth (Feast of Tabernacles). What distinguishes the Days of Awe from all other festivals is that here, and only here, do HaShem's people kneel. They do not kneel to confess a fault or to pray for forgiveness of sins, acts to which this festival is primarily dedicated. They kneel only in beholding the immediate nearness of HaShem, hence on an occasion which transcends the earthly needs of today. The congregation now rises to the feeling of HaShem's nearness as it sees in memory the Temple service of old, and visualizes especially the moment when the High Priest, on Yom HaKippurim (the Day of the Atonements) this once in all the year, pronounced the ineffable Name of HaShem, and the assembled people fell on their knees.

 

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 45:22-25 "Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am HaShem, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, 'In HaShem alone are righteousness and strength.'" All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But in HaShem all the descendants of Israel will be found righteous and will exult.

 

The Talmud tells us about the significance of these days:

 

Rosh HaShana 16b R. Kruspedai said in the name of R. Johanan: Three books are opened [in heaven] on New Year, one for the thoroughly wicked,[40] one for the thoroughly righteous, and one for the intermediate. The thoroughly righteous are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of life; the thoroughly wicked are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of death;[41] the doom of the intermediate is suspended from New Year till the Day of Atonement; if they deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of life; if they do not deserve well, they are inscribed in the book of death. Said R. Abin, What text tells us this? — Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.[42] ‘Let them be blotted out from the book — this refers to the book of the wicked. ‘Of life — this is the book of the righteous. ‘And not be written with the righteous’ — this is the book of the intermediate. R. Nahman b. Isaac derives it from here: And if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written,[43] ‘Blot me, I pray thee’ — this is the book of the wicked. ‘Out of thy book’ — this is the book of the righteous. ‘Which thou has written’ — this is the book of the intermediate.

 

Those who have not accustomed themselves to practice righteousness have ten days to do teshuva, to repent. It is also the custom to give tzedaka, charity, during this time so that our mitzvot, good deeds, may increase. The Rambam writes:

 

"We must be more careful in regards to tzedaka, more than all other positive commandments. For tzedaka is [the] sign of righteous progeny of Avraham our Forefather... And the "chair of Israel" is established and the true belief is based only on tzedaka. And Israel will be only be redeemed via tzedaka.[44]

 

During the ten days between Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur, we must separate ourselves from evil, but doing good is also necessary; not because it affects the scale (only Teshuva, repentance, can do that), but because tzedaka is connected with the new redeemed personality. The penitent has left his evil actions behind, and the void in his personality is now filled with good deeds. The Gemara provides us with some insights:

 

Berachoth 12b Raba b. Hinena the elder also said in the name of Rab: Throughout the year one says in the Tefillah (prayer), ‘The holy God’, and ‘King who lovest righteousness and judgment’,[45] except during the ten days between New Year and the Day of Atonement, when he says, ‘The holy King’ and ‘The King of judgment’. R. Eleazar says: Even during these days, if he said, ‘The holy God’, he has performed his obligation, since it says, But the Lord of Hosts is exalted through justice, and the holy God is sanctified through righteousness:[46] When is the Lord of Hosts exalted through justice? In these ten days from New Year to the Day of Atonement; and none-the-less it says, ‘the holy God’. What do we decide?[47] — R. Joseph said: ‘The holy God’ and ‘The King who loves righteousness and judgment’; Rabbah said: ‘The holy King’ and ‘The King of judgment’. The law is as laid down by Rabbah.

 

Rosh HaShana 8b AND FOR JUBILEE YEARS. [is the New Year for] Jubilees on the first of Tishri? Surely [the New Year for] Jubilees is on the tenth of Tishri, as it is written, on the day of atonement shall ye make proclamation with the horn?[48] — What authority is here followed? R. Ishmael the son of R. Johanan b. Beroka, as it has been taught: And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year.[49] What is the point of these words? [It is this]. Since it says, On the day of atonement [ye shall make proclamation ], I might think that the year is sanctified only from the Day of Atonement onwards. Therefore it says, And ye shall sanctify the fiftieth year. This teaches that it is sanctified from its inception. On this ground R. Ishmael the son of R. Johanan b. Beroka laid down that from New Year to the Day of Atonement slaves were neither dismissed to their homes nor subjected to their masters, but they ate and drank and made merry, wearing garlands on their heads.[50] When the Day of Atonement came, the Beth din sounded the horn; slaves were dismissed to their homes and fields returned to their original owners. And the Rabbis [ — what do they make of this verse]? — [They say it teaches that] you are to sanctify years but not months.[51]

 

Rosh HaShana 18a R. Shmuel (Samuel) b. Inia said in the name of Rab: Whence do we know that the final sentence on a community is never sealed? — Never sealed , [you say]? Is it not written, Thine iniquity is marked before me?[52] What he should say is, [How do we know that] although it is sealed it can yet be rescinded? Because it says, as the Lord our God is whenever we call upon him.[53] But it is written, Seek ye the Lord while he may be found?[54] — This verse speaks of an individual, the other of community. When can an individual [find God]? — Rabbah b. Abbuha said: These are the ten days between New Year and the Day of Atonement.

 

It has been expounded (in the Talmud): The ten days are the ten days of Teshuva during which the judgement of Nabal[55] was withheld by heaven, with the hope that he might do Teshuva:

 

Rosh HaShana 18a And it came to pass after the ten days that the Lord smote Nabal.[56] How come these ten days here? — Rab Judah said in the name of Rab: They correspond to the ten dishes which Nabal gave to the servants of David.[57] R. Nahman said in the name of Rabbah b. Abbuha: These are the ten days between New Year and the Day of Atonement.

 

Anytime we see the number of ten we know that it is related to every other ‘ten’ in the scriptures, including these ten days of returning. The following table compares the ten plagues to these ten days:

 

 

Notice that the plagues are in reverse order vis-à-vis the Yamim Noraim. This suggests that the plagues are a tikkun, a correction, for what ails the world during these ten days. The plagues are designed to return the world to its state at creation.

 

During the awesome days we recite Selichot, penitential prayers, before dawn. We are also are especially careful in fulfilling mitzvot. It is fitting for a person to decrease his involvement with worldly occupations and increase his study of Torah during these days. The pious and God-fearing take care of their debts and obligations before Yom HaKippurim. Scrupulous people who are eager to perform mitzvot, make a point of buying an especially beautiful etrog during these days.

 

The wording of Kaddish is changed during these days, in order to accept Divine Sovereignty. The Amidah is also changed to reflect the remembrance for life and His Kingship. We recite Avinu Malkenu during shacharit and mincha. Psalm 27 is recited after Shacharit and Mincha.

 

In the Talmud we have this custom recorded:

 

Shabbat 1a R. Chiya ha-Gadole instructed Rav: If you can eat all year in a state of ritual purity, do so; and if not, then at least eat [in a state of purity] for seven days during the year.

 

These seven days are the days between Yom Teruah and Yom HaKippurim.

 

On Tishri 3, we celebrate the fast of Gedaliah. This minor fast begins at dawn and ends at dusk. What is the meaning of this fast, and why does it occur during the awesome days?

 

THE STORY OF GEDALIAH[58]

 

After the destruction of the First Temple 2500 years ago, the majority of the Jewish People were exiled to Babylon. The conqueror, Nebuchadnezzar, eventually eased some of his harsh restrictions and allowed some Jews to remain in the Land of Israel. He even appointed a righteous Jew named Gedaliah to administrate the territory. Gradually, more Jews who'd escaped from the horrors of the war into neighboring countries began to return to their homes in Israel.

 

Gedaliah was realistic about the limitations of Jewish sovereignty. He understood that for their own self-preservation, the Jews in Israel needed to fully cooperate with the nation who'd conquered their Land. But this political subservience was intolerable to some of the Jews. A man named Yishmael ben Netaniah, spurred on by jealousy and foreign influence, arose and ignored the King of Babylon. On the 3rd of Tishrei, Yishmael treacherously killed Gedaliah as well as many other Jews and Babylonians.

 

In the aftermath of Gedaliah's murder, the Jews dreaded reprisal from the King of Babylon. They thought to flee to Egypt to save themselves. But since Egypt was a morally corrupt society, the Jews were in a quandary, weighing the physical threat against the spiritual danger. So they turned to the Prophet Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah), who was secluded in mourning, to ask for advice.

 

For an entire week, Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) pleaded with HaShem for an answer. Finally, on Yom Kippur, the Jewish People were answered. Yirmiyahu called the Jews and told them to stay in Israel and everything would be alright. HaShem was planning to make the Babylonians act mercifully toward the Jews, and before long, all the exiled Jews would be permitted to return to their own soil. But, Yirmiyahu told them, if the Jews decided to go to Egypt, the sword from which they were running would kill them there.

 

Unfortunately, the prophet's words did not penetrate and the people refused to believe. All the Jews remaining in Israel packed their bags and went down to Egypt. They even kidnapped Yirmiyahu and took him with them! Now the destruction was complete; the Land of Israel was completely barren. You can guess what happened next. A few years later, Babylon conquered Egypt and tens of thousands of Jewish exiles were completely wiped out. The lone survivor of this massacre was Yirmiyahu. His prophecy had become painfully true.

 

The initial event, the murder of Gedaliah, has been likened to the destruction of the Holy Temple, because it cost Jewish lives and brought the end of Jewish settlement in Israel for many years. The prophets therefore declared that the anniversary of the tragedy should be a day of fasting. This day is the third of Tishri, the day immediately after Yom Teruah.

 

The Sabbath between Yom Teruah and Yom HaKippurim is called Shabbat Shuvah, the Sabbath of Return. This name is derived from this Sabbath's special haftarah reading which begins with the words Shuvah Israel, Return O Israel. It is also called Shabbat Shuvah because it falls during the ten days of teshuva, repentance.

 

It is customary to expound on teshuva, and the severity of our sins, during this Sabbath.

 

The Ten Days of Repentance are concluded on the tenth of Tishri, Yom HaKippurim. The Viddui (Confession of Sins) begins with an immersion (mikveh - baptism) of repentance, and is recited ten times on the Day of the Atonements to coincide with the tradition that the High Priest pronounced the name of HaShem ten times when he invoked divine pardon on Yom HaKippurim. Yeshua validated the immersion of repentance in another Yom HaKippurim event:

 

Luqas (Luke) 3:21-23a When all the people were being baptized, Yeshua was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened And the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." Now Yeshua himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.

 

Yom HaKippurim is the only day that the scriptures call for a fast. Fasting was one of the ways to deny yourself.

 

Vayikra (Leviticus) 16:29 "This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work--whether native-born or an alien living among you.

 

The "Great" shofar is blown to mark the end of Yom HaKippurim. It is customary to begin your succah (booth or tabernacle) right after Yom HaKippurim. The succah is a reminder of the temporary endurance of material buildings as opposed to the permanent and abiding strength of our G-d and the heavenly shelter He promises. In another sense, unless HaShem be for us, no dwelling can save us! If HaShem is for us, any dwelling can save us!

 

When we celebrate the Yamim Noraim (Awesome Days), let us begin, and complete, our teshuva.[59] Let’s use these ten days of repentance between Yom Teruah and Yom HaKippurim to draw near to HaShem. Let’s have as our goal, to be ready to rest on Succoth (Feast of Booths).

 

Now we can begin to understand why Psalms chapter 27 is designated for The Awesome Days.

 

Ashlamatah: Yirmiyahu (‎‎‎Jeremiah) 30:10-18 + 22‎

 

 

Rashi’s Commentary for: Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10-18 + 22‎‎‎

 

5 A sound of quaking we have heard Some interpret this as alluding to the tidings of Babylon, from which those exiled there quaked. But the Midrash Aggadah explains it as an allusion to the war of Gog and Magog.

 

6 whether a male gives birth Whether it is customary for males to give birth, so that labor pains should seize them like a woman in confinement.

 

his loins like מָתְנָיו .

 

7 that day The day of the assassination of Belshazzar and the downfall of Babylon. Another explanation: the day of the downfall of Gog.

 

8 I will break his yoke The yoke of the heathens will be removed from Israel.

 

10 And you, fear not Because of all the evils that you will see befalling Babylon in whose midst you are.

 

and at ease like וְֽשָקֵט .

 

11 but I will chasten you in measure according to the law of the Torah.

 

and I will not completely destroy you an expression of a sweeping destruction.

 

12 Your injury is painful, your wound grievous (Enfers in Old French).

 

13 to be healed cure. No one thinks that you will have salvation.

 

healing a cure, an expression of availing.

 

14 cruel chastisement chastisements of cruelty. The chastisement is cruel.

 

16 Therefore This is an expression denoting an oath.

 

those who plunder you an expression of spoil, and so did Jonathan render it: וִיהוֹן עָדַיִךְ לַעֲדִי .

 

17 healing Heb. ארכה .

 

18 and the palace The Temple.

 

19 and I will increase them I will make them a numerous nation.

 

and they shall not become few in number like יִמְעָטוּ .

 

21 their prince lit., His mighty one.

 

pledged his heart an expression of a pledge (fermaille, aatine in French).

 

to approach Me to war, to stop Me.

 

23 settling storm camping and dwelling an expression of “the land of the sojournings of (מְגוּרֵי) ” (Gen. 37:1), and a similar case is “and a whirling (מִתְחוֹלֵל) storm ” (supra 23:19) stated in the other verse is the same as this for both of them are expressions of camping.

 

on the head[s] of the wicked On the heads of the heathens.

 

Chapter 31

 

1 found favor The generation of the wilderness found favor in My eyes.

 

who had escaped the sword of the Egyptians the Amalekites and the Canaanites.

 

He [therefore] went to give Israel their resting place When He led them to take possession of the land of their rest.

 

2 From long ago In the merit of the Patriarchs.

 

appeared to me I, the prophet, and told me to say to the congregation of Israel, “With everlasting love have I loved you.”

 

3 Yet again will I rebuild you, then you shall be built You had two buildings made by men. Therefore, they were destroyed. Yet again will I rebuild you, I by Myself, a third building, and you shall be built forever.

 

shall you be adorned Heb. תַּעְדִּי .

 

4 and redeem [them] in the fourth year, they shall profane their produce by redeeming it with money.

 

5 the watchers shall call The lookouts at the tops of the lofty towers to announce with a voice heard a distance away. Another explanation: נֽצְרִים is like “He keeps (נֽצֵר) loving-kindness” (Exod. 34:7), an expression of keeping. That is to say: There is a day when they will call those who kept the Torah and say, “Rise...” And so did Jonathan render: There are many days and much goodness that is destined to come to the righteous/generous who kept My Torah from days of old.

 

Commentary on the Ashlamatah of Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10-18 & 22

By: H.Ex. Adon Shlomoh Ben Abraham

 

It is thought by scholars that this chapter at one time may have been the ending of the book of Jeremiah. The tradition of the Rabbis was to begin a book with rebuke and to end with consolation. Was Jeremiah following a tradition found in some prophetic books (as Amos, Ezekiel), and continued in rabbinic tradition, that books should begin with rebuke and end with consolation? Regardless, this chapter speaks of the deliverance from exile and the return to the land.^[60] Chapters 30 to 33 are prophecies of consolation and differ greatly from the earlier prophecies of Jeremiah, which are of doom and judgment. The emphasis is on healing, restoring, and the return of Israel, Jacob, and Rachel to Jerusalem and Zion.

 

In (v.2) of our chapter, Jeremiah is told to write these words in a book, סֵפֶר sēp̱er, a scroll. “For the days are surely coming”. The thought seems to be that at some point in the future I will restore my people Israel and Judah… I will bring them back to the land... I gave to their ancestors. (v.3)[61] Jeremiah was not told to tell the people of his day, just to record it in a book for a later generation.[62] Many opinions have been put forth as to when “that day is”; some say at the fall of Babylon. Others associate it with the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BCE, and still others think it is the time of tribulation just before Israel's final restoration.

 

The prophet Amos in 5:18-20 and Zephaniah in 1:14-18 spoke of “this day” as a day with two aspects, one of judgment and the other of restoration. The question then becomes: who receives the restoration, and for whom is the judgment? In verse 4, we are told the message is concerning Israel and concerning Judah. However, later in (v.10-11) the judgment comes, and Jacob and Israel are told to have no fear and be not dismayed. I will bring annihilation upon all the nations among whom I have dispersed you, but upon you I will not bring annihilation: I will chastise you with justice, but I will never eliminate you completely. The ESV translates this as: I will chastise you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished.

 

The sages in Sanhedrin 110b discuss the ultimate fate of sinners within Israel. The discussion centers around the fate of Korach and his congregation and the fate of the Generation of the Wilderness (Dor HaMidbar). Maharal discusses Dor HaMidbar (the Generation of the Wilderness) and the relationship between Israel's covenantal status and ultimate redemption. The discussion is important because it preserves some of the strongest rabbinic debates regarding divine judgment, repentance, covenant, and ultimate redemption.[63] Rabbi Akiva is said to maintain that they will not return, although the ten tribes that have already returned will be included in the redemption. If you remember Jeremiah 3:12ff, HaShem sent Jeremiah to the northern countries, and he was able to influence some to return to Eretz Israel. The Talmud in Megillah 14b relates that he succeeded in bringing some back, and they settled in the area of Judah during the reign of King Josiah.[64] R’ Eliezer disagrees with Rabbi Akiva and maintains that the Messiah will restore all the ten tribes along with the nation of Judah.

 

Ramban, in his Sefer HaGeulah, presents many proofs from Scripture that the ten Tribes will be restored, and even Ezekiel 48 states that the land will again be divided among the twelve tribes of Israel. This leaves the question of how Rabbi Akiva could have expressed the opinion that the Ten tribes would not return? It seems to me that Rabbi Akiva is looking at the present situation in his day, from the past wilderness experience to the present, and he concluded that the Ten tribes are not returning, only those current returnees. Sanhedrin 110b records a dispute over whether the “generation of the wilderness” has a share in the World-to-Come,[65] with Rabbi Akiva ruling they do not, based upon Numbers 14:35, "In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die." Rabbi Eliezer's ruling was that they [the generation of the wilderness] do have a share in the World-to-come.

 

But when taking the long view, looking at that day spoken of by Jeremiah in the future, he acknowledged that in the messianic age those who had blended into the nation will assume their tribal identities.[66] Maharal explains that Rabbi Akiva sees the Exodus generation's sin as unique because it followed direct revelation. Their unbelief represented not ignorance but rejection of known truth.[67] Consequently, Rabbi Akiva reads the divine decree in its strongest possible sense. The commentators understand the punishment as measure-for-measure.

 

Korach sought to overturn Heaven's hierarchy. His punishment repeatedly demonstrates that the hierarchy remains intact. Rabbi Akiva makes a hermeneutical move. The plain sense of Numbers concerns physical death in the wilderness. Rabbi Akiva extends it to eschatological exclusion. His argument depends on reading: "there they shall die" as referring to a future, eternal judgment. This is not the literal peshat of Numbers but a rabbinic midrashic interpretation. Rashi agrees this "This refers to the Generation of the Wilderness, who established the covenant of the Omnipresent through sacrifices and peace offerings.[68]

 

The Sages taught in a baraita (Tosefta 13:12): The ten tribes have no share in the World-to-Come, as it is stated: “And the Lord rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation; and He cast them into another land, as it is this day” (Deuteronomy 29:27). “And the Lord rooted them out of their land” indicates in this world; “and cast them into another land” indicates for the World-to-Come; this is the statement of Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Shimon ben Yehuda of the village of Akko says in the name of Rabbi Shimon: If their actions continue to be “as it is this day” and they continue to sin, they do not return to Eretz Yisrael. And if not, and they repent, they return to Eretz Yisrael.[69]

 

One thing we are told will happen on that day: On that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will break the yoke from off his [your] neck, and I will burst his [your] bonds, and strangers shall no more make a servant of him. (v.8)^[70] Malbim understands the yoke of slavery as taxes of foreign domination. Abarbanel and Radak add that the conqueror of the Jewish people will no longer torment them with the yoke of enslavement. But they shall serve HaShem their God and David their King whom I will establish over them. (v.9) The prophet Eziekiel writes, I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. I, HaShem, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am HaShem; I have spoken. (34:23-24ff and 37:24ff)

 

Hosea in 3:5 expresses this same ideal, and quoting from Isaiah 59:20f, Paul in Romans 11:25-32 is teaching the Gentiles that while living in this intermediate time[71] between the sin and the punishment, while the measure for measure is being adjudicated, be careful of your attitude towards God's elect, and in the near future it will be revealed. Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! (Rom.11:33) One can hear an echo in Saul's words from Jeremiah 30:24: The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intents of his mind. In the latter days you will understand this.^[72]

 

HaShem declares his full intentions in verse (11): "For I am with you to save you," declares the Lord. This is the restoration-and-return part of the teaching of this chapter. I will make a full end of all the nations among whom I scattered you. Here is the judgment part of the end-time message Jeremiah was told to write in a sephar (book), but of you I will not make a full end. I will discipline you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished.^[73] As said earlier, Rabbi Akiva focuses on Israel's sin and failures. While Rabbi Eliezer focuses on the eternal covenant HaShem made with Israel. For Rabbi Eliezer, Sinai is still determinative. The generation sinned, but they are still part of the eternal covenant. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa shifts the discussion from the national covenant to the individual Israelites' righteousness. The issue is no longer: Did Sinai guarantee redemption? But He who demonstrated covenantal fidelity unto death? The sugya[74] ultimately revolves around two competing theological principles:

 

 

Although Rachel is not named in this chapter, she is in (Jer.31:15ff). It is understood that Rachel's children are Joseph and Benjamin; both are connected to the northern ten tribes referred to as Israel. This begs the question: are Rachel's children a group or subgroup distinct from their brothers, and do they return with greater Israel and Judah, or are they slated for leaving exile early or first in prophetic order? I'm reminded of the story of some of Ephraim who left Egypt early before Moses went to Egypt.[75] The theme of our passage is the restoration and reunification of Israel and Judah and returning them to the land of Israel. There is “measured judgment” for Israel and Judah for their sin, and a judgment that is “measure for measure” for those enemies who wage war and protest against Israel. (v.11,16)

 

The portrayal of men suffering in pain as if they were women giving birth illustrates the cataclysmic nature of the nation’s distress. (v.6) and in verse 7, we are told this time of trouble for Jacob will be “awesome, none like it, but he will be delivered from it.” Who are the men suffering in pain as if they are women giving birth? And what of Jacob’s trouble which he is to be saved from it? It is my perception that just as in Moses' day when the children of Israel left Egypt, so will it be at the end as God regathers his children. This fear that overtakes men is proportional to who the individual is and how the events of the day affect their physical and spiritual personalities. As it was at the Red Sea, Israel was being rescued; Egyptians were being slaughtered and drowned by the water, and others were shaking with fear, but with a constant trepidation they would be delivered.

 

The sages teach the world will undergo horrific trials in the end of days, when God transitions its citizens to the Messianic era, which will be a new kind of existence. The dominance of the nations will end, and the Jewish nation will reign supreme. This time is referred to as the birth pains of the Messiah, a term derived from our chapter and others in Sanhedrin 98b. Rabbi Yochanan said the time will be so fearsome that he did not wish to experience it firsthand.[76] “Abarbanel[77] conjectures that this war will pit Christian nations against Arab nations, that it will take place in Eretz Yisrael and that Jews will not be the target of the battle, but will be caught in the crossfire.” That “sound of terror’ is coming from the nations who are witnesses to the fearsome war of God and Magog at the time of Messiah, according to Radak. Malbim associates this battle with the destruction of Babylon.[78] Malbim gives us another illustration: just as a man is the cause of the labor pains of a woman, he does not share in that pain. So, too will the Jewish nation be the cause of that destruction of its enemies, but not suffer the pain of battle that brings about their destruction.[79]

 

The text informs us of “that day” (v.8).[80] Based on our present reality, this could be understood as referring to the last couple of millennia since the second Temple was destroyed and the Nation of Israel and Judah have been completely exiled; it should also be understood and considered to be a specific “day” time in our present or near future. Some project this to tribulation in the end time before Israel’s final restoration (Amos 5:18–20; Isa 2:12–21; Zeph 1:14–18). These past events are a foreshadowing of future events; the full prophecy is still being fulfilled. In the last century, we have seen the return of Judah to the land in numbers not experienced for 1,900 years. Though the expression can refer to any of those times, it is understood that it contains two aspects— one of judgment and one of restoration, and we have not, as of yet, experienced either one completely.

 

We live in an age of instant gratification, yet it would seem this discipline and restoration measure is a many-year process. With Israel and Judah, I’m inclined to view it as a “measured judgment.” But with the nations, it seems there is a point in time when it will become more like an abrupt end; judgment is a one-day event, “measure for measure”. Another way to express this idea: the restoration is a process, and when the restoration to the land is complete, the Nations receive judgment. Malbim says HaShem preserves the nation of Israel on a constant, measured basis in order to atone for their sins and prod them to repent. This is in contrast to other nations; when their sins have filled them up, they are utterly destroyed. Therefore, great nations of yesteryear who have filled this planet with splendor and noise are no more, while the meek and chastised Jew is immortal. [81] Although, in a small, measured way, we also see this happening simultaneously, running through world history, with both the restoration and judgment being executed at the same time. He (Jacob) shall be saved or delivered from it. (v.7) There is an individual and a collective to the children of HaShem, the God of Israel. (30:2)

 

The people of Israel have been driven from their land, expelled from other lands, and driven deeper into exile. They have been poverty-stricken, brutally beaten and murdered, reviled by their host countries and abandoned by their friends, and struggling spiritually; the nation absorbs cruel and murderous blows. (v.14) As an atonement for her sins (v.15) and as a purification that will prepare her for the ultimate redemption (v.17). The tribulations toward Israel are so great that the nations of the world assume that God has abandoned his people, the Jews (v.14), and chosen others instead. God swears he will take vengeance against the oppressors (v.16) and heal his nation. (v.17) Abarbanel points out that the vicissitudes of the exile are a punishment for Israel's sins; nevertheless, this does not excuse the abominable behavior of the nations toward them. Although the nations claim to be acting as agents of God to bring atonement upon the Jews, they will nevertheless be annihilated for acting with impunity (v.17).[82]

 

But this is not the end of the story. In (v.18-22) we see statements of judgment, and then the statements turn to an expression of future redemption. The sound of thanksgiving and merrymakers will emanate from Jerusalem, the debate will be over, and all who study torah will agree. I will multiply them, and they will not be diminished. Abarbanel says, HaShem will multiply them (Israel) in a miraculous fashion at the time of the redemption. (v.19) Israel will be recognized as the ‘Children of God’ per Hosea 2:1, and respect for the nation of Israel, which has long been disdained, will be restored. It will be a time of prestige and prosperity that has not been enjoyed since the days of King David and Solomon. The Lord will not allow anyone to oppress them; those who do will be dealt with and punished. (v.20)

 

Looking back to verse 18, we have an interesting connection: Behold, I am returning the captivity of the tents of Jacob and will have mercy on his abodes, and the City will be built upon its hill. Jacob is spelled with an extra ‘vav’ (יַעֲקֹב) added, just as in three other places. (Jeremiah 33:26, 46:27, 51:19)[83] The other biblical character who has had five ‘vav’ removed from his name is Elijah [84] and both Jacob and Elijah are intimately involved in the end-time restoration of all the children of Israel. Metaphorically, Jacob took the ‘vav’ from Elijah as collateral until such time that he returned with the Messiah.[85] The world does not realize the importance of Jacob to their redemption. The rise of Jewish hatred ebbs and flows, and it is currently increasing around the world. Many would discount Israel as nothing but a sore spot on humanity, and they need to just go away. Yet what they do not realize is that Israel holds the key to their survival, and if mankind is to survive the coming years, it will only be because of Israel and the covenants God made with them.

 

Have you not observed how these people say, “The two families that the Lord chose have been rejected by him,” and how they hold my people in such contempt that they no longer regard them as a nation? Thus says the Lord: Only if I had not established my covenant with day and night and the ordinances of heaven and earth, would I reject the offspring of Jacob and of my servant David and not choose any of his descendants as rulers over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy upon them. (Jeremiah 46:27)

 

But as for you, have no fear, my servant Jacob, and do not be dismayed, O Israel; for I am going to save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease, and no one shall make him afraid. As for you, have no fear, my servant Jacob, says the Lord, for I am with you. I will make an end of all the nations among which I have banished you, but I will not make an end of you! I will chastise you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished. (Jeremiah 51: 18-19) [86]

 

The single unifying theme of Jeremiah 33:26, 46:27, and 51:19 is: God has not abandoned Israel. God's covenant relationship with Israel remains intact, even during judgment. And despite judgment, exile, and the apparent collapse of the nation, the LORD [HaShem] remains Israel's covenant God and will ultimately restore His people because they belong to Him. Each passage appears in a different setting, yet all three push back against the same fear and question: Has God rejected Jacob/Israel? Has the covenant failed? Are the exile and destruction permanent? In Jeremiah 46, the oracle is against the nations, and the exile of Israel is corrective and not terminal. In chapter 33, HaShem is reassuring the nation of Israel while under threat or siege from Babylon. In chapter 51, a prophecy against Babylon, the foreign gentile world system with her godless ways and worthless idol worship. They are worthless, a work of delusion; at the time of their punishment, they shall perish. Not like these is the portion of Jacob, for he is the one who formed all things, and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance; the Lord of hosts is his name. (v.18) Jeremiah's answer is consistently No! What is difficult to figure out is whether the comments are all coming as reassurance to Israel while in exile or comments against known accusations from the nations to justify why they hate and treat Israel and the Jewish nations as they do?

 

In summary, all this compressed into one sentence, it would be: Because the LORD, the Creator and covenant God of Jacob, has chosen Israel, neither exile, foreign oppression, nor divine judgment can ultimately nullify His purpose to restore His people. This is one of Jeremiah's dominant themes. Judgment is real, severe, and deserved, but it is not God's final word for Jacob. After judgment comes restoration because the covenant God [HaShem] remains faithful to His people even when they have been unfaithful to Him, and HaShem declares, you shall be my people, and I will be your God. ^[87]

                               

Verbal Tallies

Hakham Dr. Hillel ben David

Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 – 32:3,

 

Looking at the Hebrew of Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 and Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10, what is the verbal / lexical tally that connects these two passages?

 

The lexical tally that explicitly bridges Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 and Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10 is the Hebrew verb root שׁוּב (Shuv, Strong's #H7725), meaning "to return."

 

In addition to this verbal link, both verses are linked in Rabbinic tradition by the ancestral reference to Ya'akov / Jacob (יַעֲקֹב, Strong's #H3290).

 

1. Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 (JPS)

"And the LORD said unto Jacob [יַעֲקֹב / Strong's #H3290]: Return [שׁוּב / Strong's #H7725] unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee."

 

Hebrew Tally Word: שׁוּב (Shuv – imperative form שׁוּב)

 

Strong's Number: #H7725

 

2. Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10 (JPS)

"Therefore fear thou not, O My servant Jacob [יַעֲקֹב / Strong's #H3290], saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return [וְשָׁב / Strong's #H7725], and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid."

 

Hebrew Tally Word: וְשָׁב (Ve-shav – perfect form with vav-consecutive)

 

Strong's Number: #H7725

 

In the Triennial lectionary cycle, Yirmiyahu 30:10 serves as the prophetic Haftarah/Ashlamata match for Bereshit 31:3. The command for the individual patriarch Ya'akov to return (#H7725) to his homeland from his exile under Laban mirrors the prophetic promise that the collective nation of Ya'akov will return (#H7725) from the end-time exile to find ultimate peace.

 

* * *

 

What is/are the thematic connection(s) between Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 – 32:3, and Tehillim (Psalms) 27:1-14?

 

The triennial Seder of Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3–32:3 and Tehillim (Psalms) 27:1–14 share five explicit thematic connections centered on divine protection during flight from hostiles:

 

1. Fleeing an Encampment of Hostile Enemies

Genesis 31:22–24: Laban pursues Ya'akov with a army of kinsmen, intent on harming or destroying him before God intervenes in a night dream.

 

Psalm 27:2–3: "When evildoers came upon me... though a host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear."

 

2. Divine Defense Against Violent Oppression

Genesis 31:29, 42: Ya'akov confronts Laban, stating, "It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt; but the God of your father spoke unto me last night..." and "Except the God of my father... had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty."

 

Psalm 27:1, 12: "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?" and "Deliver me not over unto the will of mine adversaries; for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out violence."

 

3. Hiding in the Divine Shelter / Secret Place

Genesis 31:49–53: Ya'akov and Laban set up Mitzpah (the watchtower) and a boundary heap (Galeed), establishing a protected sanctuary line guarded by the God of Avraham and the Fear of Yitzchak.

 

Psalm 27:5: "For He concealeth me in His pavilion in the day of evil; He hideth me in the covert of His tent; He setteth me up upon a rock."

 

4. Separation from Household and Relatives

Genesis 31:14–15, 30: Rachel and Leah acknowledge their father has severed ties with them ("Are we not counted of him strangers?"), and Ya'akov physically departs his father-in-law's household.

 

Psalm 27:10: "For though my father and my mother have forsaken me, the LORD will take me up."

 

5. Encounters with Angelic Camps (Machanaim)

Genesis 32:2–3: Upon escaping Laban, Ya'akov encounters angels of God and declares, "This is God's camp [מַחֲנֵה]," naming the place Machanaim (Two Camps).

 

Psalm 27:3: "Though a camp [מַחֲנֶה] should encamp against me..." — David's fear of the human camp is transformed into confidence by the divine angelic camp protecting Ya'akov.

 

* * *

 

The connection between the Torah seder and the Ashlamata, though seemingly strictly verbal, is in addition eschatological. The messianic kingdom, rather than the related contents of the Torah lesson, is the dominant theme of the Ashlamata.

 

What is the eschatological message of Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 30:10-18, 22?

 

In Jewish eschatology, Yirmiyahu 30:10–18, 22 conveys a core message: the transition from national exile to ultimate messianic redemption, characterized by divine justice, physical ingathering, and the total restoration of the covenantal relationship.

 

Drawing from classical Jewish commentators (Rashi, Radak, Malbim, and the Talmud), the text outlines five primary eschatological themes:

 

1. Ingathering and Physical Security of the Diaspora (Verses 10–11)

Rashi and Radak explain that "saving thy seed from the land of their captivity" refers not merely to the Babylonian exile, but to the final, universal exile. While God brings full destruction upon the oppressing nations who consumed Israel throughout history, Israel itself is disciplined with measure but never eradicated.

 

2. Divine Healing of the "Incurable" Wound (Verses 12–17)

Israel’s national suffering during exile is described as a severe fracture that no human allies (lovers/allies) could heal (Malbim). HaShem personally steps in to cure the nation's spiritual and physical ailments. As Radak notes on verse 17, God will turn the nations' mockery, "This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after", into the exact catalyst for her miraculous restoration.

 

3. Rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Messianic Kingdom (Verse 18)

The city of Jerusalem will be rebuilt "upon her own mound" (Tel), and the Royal Palace (Armon) will sit in its rightful place. The Talmud (Sanhedrin 98b) and Rashi identify the leader who emerges from within Israel's own ranks ("their noble shall be of themselves", v. 21) as Mashiach, who approaches God directly in the Holy of Holies as a priest-king without an intermediary.

 

4. Reciprocal Judgment on the Oppressing Nations (Verse 16)

According to the Ramban (Nachmanides), those who plundered and devoured Israel across the generations will themselves become plunder. The exact judgment decreed in the Brit Bein HaBetarim (Genesis 15:14) comes to its final completion here.

 

5. Eternal Renewal of the Covenant (Verse 22)

The passage concludes with the quintessential covenantal formula: "And ye shall be My people, and I will be your God". Malbim underscores that in the eschatological era, the sin that caused the original rupture in the wilderness and First/Second Temple periods will be erased, establishing an immutable, permanent union between Hashem and Israel.

 

Nazarean Talmud

Sidra Of Bereshit (Genesis) 31:3 – 32:3

Hakham Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham

 

School of Hakham Tsefet Peshat

(Yehudah 4-5)

 

For certain men^[88] have subtly entered^[89] in among you secretly^[90] who were from antiquity inscribed ^[91] for this judgment as evil ungodly persons, changing the loving-kindness of our G-d into licentiousness^[92] and the only Lord G-d and denying our only master Yeshua HaMashiach. But I will remind you that you have full knowledge (Da’at through the Mesorah – Oral Torah) Once, given to the Jewish Tsadiqim (saints), that the Lord delivered a people out of the land of Mitzrayim (Egypt), and afterward destroyed those who were unfaithful.

 

School of Hakham Shaul Tosefta

(Luke Lk 6:27-42)

 

"But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who mistreat you. If any man strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and if someone takes your coat, do not hold back from giving him your shirt as well. Give to everyone who begs you, and if anyone takes away your things, do not ask for them back. And do for others just as you would have them do for you.”

 

"And if you love those who love you, what kind of loving-kindness is that for you? For even sinners love those who love them! And if you do good to those who do good to you, what kind of loving-kindness is that to you? Even the sinners do the same! And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive back, what kind of loving-kindness is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, so that they may get back an equal amount! But love your enemies, and do good, and lend expecting no interest, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate!

 

"And do not judge, and you will not be judged negatively. And do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and it will be given to you, a good measure pressed down, shaken, overflowing will they pour out into your bosom. For midda kneged midda (measure for measure), it will be measured out to you in return."

 

And he gave them an analogy: "Aman v’amen a blind person cannot lead the blind, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit? A Talmid (disciple) is not superior to his Hakham, but everyone, when he is fully trained, will be like his Hakham. And why do you look for the sliver of wood that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the beam of wood that is in your own eye? How are you able to say to your brother, "Brother, allow me to remove the sliver of wood that is in your eye," while you yourself do not see the beam of wood in your own eye? You painted ones (hypocrites)! First remove the beam of wood from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the sliver that is in your brother's eye!

 

Commentary to Hakham Tsefet’s School of Peshat

 

We have already stated that Yehudah is the amanuensis of Hakham Tsefet. Therefore, our reference to Hakham Tsefet or Yehudah should be understood as a joint effort between these two men in authoring this treatise. Yehudah is an integral part of this process. Therefore, we remind our readers that we may refer to Yehudah as the “author of this document. However, we intend that Yehudah was the amanuensis of Hakham Tsefet. We also refer to Yehudah as Hakham Yehudah because he was a Hakham serving as a Paqid to the Bench, as noted in our previous pericope.

 

Catechistic Questions presented by Hakham Yehudah/Hakham Tsefet

 

• How does changing the Chesed of G-d into licentiousness relate to those who do not have a part in the Olam HaBa?
• Why does Hakham Yehudah find it heterodox for his audience not to believe Yeshua is the Messiah?
• How does the pericope of Hakham Yehudah relate to the Festival calendar?
• How does denial of the Mesorah/Oral Torah deem one as heterodox?
• How does the lie of “changing the loving-kindness of our G-d into licentiousness” make a seedbed for modern religion, which focuses on sexuality?

 

The amazing genius of Hakham Tsefet.

 

For certain men have subtly entered in among you secretly^[93] who were from antiquity inscribed for this judgment as evil, ungodly persons!

 

The amazing Hakham Tsefet never fails to astound us with his genius. The cited words demonstrate the vital place of the lectionary as a conductor for the Triennial Torah reading cycle symphony. The words “inscribed from antiquity” teach us that G-d is Omniscient. The judgment of evil persons, changing the loving-kindness of our G-d into licentiousness, has been judged in antiquity. Consequently, those who commit these sins are already inscribed in the book of Judgment as evil and ungodly. Amazingly, the judgment is upon those who have infiltrated the ranks of the Nazarean Community. The judgment is not against Nazarean Jews themselves.

 

Note Kelly’s comments, “recorded in the heavenly books in which, according to Jewish conceptions, God enters each individual’s destiny for good or ill.”^[94]

 

While Shabbat Shuba is about return prior to Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), Yehudah’s adjudication is about those who have committed crimes of heterodoxy.

 

The charges brought by Yehudah are…

 

1. Changing G-d’s Chesed (loving-kindness) to licentiousness
2. Denial of the Master
3. Denial of the Mesorah/Oral Torah

 

Yehudah does not seem to suggest that there is a call of repentance for these lawbreakers. Therefore, we see no call to Teshuba; Yehudah only mentions “judgment.” As a matter of fact, his analogy leans more towards condemnation without the possibility of repentance. This is described in terms of his proclaimed adjudication.

 

Pronounced Judgment by analogy…

 

The Lord delivered a people out of the land of Mitzrayim (Egypt), and afterwards destroyed those who were unfaithful

 

These heterodox were delivered to destruction. They came out of Mitzrayim only to be Inscribed for judgment.

 

Herein we find a halakhic principle…

 

The “evil” and “lawlessness” have been placed in the world by Divine decree not necessarily to harm the Tsadiqim, but to keep the Tsadiqim focused on the task before them and not become distracted by things or deeds that lead only to trouble. Evil, pain, and Lawlessness are there to keep the Tsadiqim concentration on the goal before them and to waste no time in trivial pursuits that make no significant contribution towards this goal. These “certain men” therefore are sent by G-d to the congregations to test their vigilance and whether or not the collegiate ministry of the ten men of the Esnoga is functioning properly or not.

 

A Defense for Nazarean Jewish Orthodoxy

 

Woe to those who do not desire to know or understand the words of the Torah! For in the Torah are written the words of Life. To the heterodox, the words of the Torah seem hollow and useless, since they lack intelligence.

 

The three indictments listed above find special place in the Tractate of Sanhedrin^[95] as mentioned.

 

1. Changing G-d’s Chesed (loving-kindness) to licentiousness

 

b. Suk 49b R. Eleazar further stated, He who executes charity and justice is regarded as though he had filled all the world with kindness, for it is said, He loves charity and justice, the earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord.^[96] But lest you say that whoever wishes to do good succeeds without difficulty, Scripture expressly says, How precious is Your Loving-Kindness, O God, etc.^[97] As one might say that this applies also to a man who fears God, Scripture expressly says, But the loving-kindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear Him.^[98]

 

The act of loving-kindness describes the Tsadiqim. These acts are difficult to master at the beginning. However, the more we train the soul to function in that manner, the greater our acts of loving-kindness will be. The heterodox have exploited these blessings in a number of ways. The mindset of sin now and repent later is not Jewish! The contemptible lie has been the foundation of some religions. However, it is not the Jewish norm nor has it ever been. Teshuba – repentance is based on the genuine desire to return to G-d with the intent not to commit sin again.^[99]

 

The great exchange is Chesed for apostasy. Lest we fail to understand, we note the heterodox are apostate. We cannot accept the notion that once we have experienced the Chesed (loving-kindness/grace) of G-d that we can shed ourselves of the Torah, written Oral or otherwise. This damnable lie permeates the heterodox world. Furthermore, our common share of life in the Olam HaBa means that the whole community is responsible for the actions of that congregation. As such, when we trade the Chesed of G-d for licentiousness we bring destruction to the community.

 

2. Denial of the Master

 

As we have stated…

 

Therefore, we would see how those aspects, such as the denial of Yeshua’s resurrection, could also be interpreted as a denial of resurrection and the final Judgment “in toto.”

 

b. San 91a A sectarian [min] said to Gebiha b. Pesisa, Woe to you, you wicked, who maintain that the dead will revive; if even the living die, shall the dead live! He replied, Woe to you, you wicked, who maintain that the dead will not revive: if what was not,[now] lives, surely what has lived, will live again!

 

The denial of the Master is equated with the exchange of the lie of Chesed for licentiousness. We can deduce from the Rambam’s statements of Orthodoxy in אני מאמין (Ani Ma’amin) from his Commentary on the Mishnah (tractate Sanhedrin 10:1), that the belief in Messiah and the Resurrection are integrally related.

 

6. I believe with complete faithful obedience that all the words of the Prophets are true.
7. I believe with complete faithful obedience that the prophecy of Moshe our teacher, peace unto him, was true; and that he was the father of the prophets, both of those who preceded and of those who followed him.
8. I believe with complete faithful obedience that the whole Torah, which we now possess was given to Moshe, our teacher, peace unto him.
9. I believe with complete faithful obedience that this Torah will not be changed, and that there will be no other Torah given by the Creator, blessed be His name.
10. I believe with complete faithful obedience that the Creator, blessed be His name, knows all the deeds and thoughts of human beings, as it is said, "It is He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who perceives all their actions." (Psalms 33:15).
11. I believe with complete faithful obedience that the Creator, blessed be His name, rewards those who observe His commandments, and punishes those who transgress His commandments.
12. I believe with complete faithful obedience in the coming of Mashiach, and although he may tarry, nevertheless, I wait every day for him to come.
13. I believe with complete faithful obedience that there will be resurrection of the dead at the time when it will be the will of the Creator, blessed be His name and exalted be His remembrance forever and ever.

 

When one looks for this list in the Mishnah or Talmud, if he is remiss, he will be unable to find it. This is because the list does not exist in this exact structure in the Oral Torah. The Rambam states these words in the positive, whereas they exist in the negative in the Mishnah, specifically Sanhedrin 10:1 and following. The discussion of those verses relates to those who have no part in the world to come. The אני מאמין (Ani Ma’amin) speaks of those who have their “common share of life in the Olam HaBa.”

 

These statements of orthodoxy should be studied and memorized by every Nazarean.

 

3. Denial of the Mesorah/Oral Torah

 

The final adjudication is against those who hold the Mesorah/Oral Torah in contempt.

 

Abot 6:2 Every day a Heavenly voice issues forth from Mount Horeb (Sinai) to proclaiming: "Woe to humankind for their contempt of the Torah" and whoever is not occupied with the Torah is rebuked, as it is said – “As a golden rings in a swine’s snout, so is a beautiful woman who deviates from discretion” (Mishley 11:22) And it is said – And the Tablets are the work of God and the writing is God’s writing engraved upon Tablets” (Shemot 32:16) Read not engraved [charuth] but freedom [cheruth], for there is no one free save one who is occupied with Torah study. And anyone who is occupied with Torah study will become exalted, as it said – “From God’s gift [Mattana] to God’s heritage [Nachaliel] and from God’s heritage [Nachaiel] to the high places [Bamoth]” (B’midbar 21:19).

 

In Yehudah’s mind and in his adjudication, denial of the Mesorah/Oral Torah is tantamount to heterodoxy. Why is the Mesorah/Oral Torah so vehemently opposed by so many supposed scholars? Midrash Rabbah answers this clearly.

 

D’varim – Deut. 32:46 and He said to them: "Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you will command your children to be careful to observe, all the words of this Torah.

 

Midrash Rabbah B’resheet I:14 For it (the Torah/Oral Torah) is no empty word מכם (mi-kem), for you (Deut. 32:47), and if it is empty, it is מכם (mi-kem) from you,^[100] because you are unable to interpret it correctly.

 

The voice of Hakham Yehudah speaks so loudly we may not understand what he is saying. As the brother of the Master and Ya’aqob, Yehudah feels no need to advertise or abuse his position. He humbles himself to Hakham Tsefet as his amanuensis and serves the bench. The wisest Talmid is the Talmid who is willing to sit at the feet of the Hakhamim and drink in their words. Because submission to authority is true order, nomos – Torah; those who refuse it are unable to interpret Torah correctly. Their babble fills empty heads with empty words.

 

Mattiyahu 8:8-10 The centurion answered and said, "master, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. "For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, “Go,” and he goes; and to another, “Come,” and he comes; and to my servant, “Do this,” and he does it." When Yeshua heard this, he marveled, and said to those who followed, “Amen ve amen, I say to you, I have not found such great faithful obedience in all Yisrael!”

 

The truth, simply stated, is that those who will not submit to the Mesorah/Oral Torah as taught by the Hakhamim are given over to the control of the Yester HaRa. They malign the structure of the whole universe and are unable to enter Eden. Their Torah observance is static at best, contributing nothing to the reparation of the cosmos. These scoffers fail to understand that they can never diminish Torah’s glory and honor.

 

Peroration

 

Because our common share of life in the Olam HaBa is communal rather than individual, certain men have subtly entered in among you secretly. In this fashion, contempt is brought on the whole congregation. The actions of Rachel in the present Torah Seder are reminiscent of Achan as found in the Book of Yehoshua.

 

Yehoshua (Joshua) 7:1 But the B’ne Yisrael committed a trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Yehudah, took of the accursed things; so the anger of the Lord burned against the B’ne Yisrael.

 

Note that only Achan trespassed. Yet G-d sees the trespass of Achan as the trespass of the B’ne Yisrael.

 

Halakhic Implications

 

Communal trespass means communal punishment. Communal salvation means communal accountability!

 

Some Questions to Ponder:

 

1.      From all the readings for this week, which particular verse or passage caught your attention and fired your heart and imagination?

 

Blessing After Torah Study

 

Barúch Atáh Adonai, Elohénu Meléch HaOlám,

Ashér Natán Lánu Torát Emét, V'Chayéi Olám Natá B'Tochénu.

Barúch Atáh Adonái, Notén HaToráh. Amen!

Blessed is Ha-Shem our GOD, King of the universe,

Who has given us a teaching of truth, implanting within us eternal life.

Blessed is Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!

“Now unto Him who is able to preserve you faultless, and spotless, and to establish you without a blemish,

 

Next Shabbat: “VaYishlach”- “And sent”

 

 

Contents of the Torah Seder

 

· The Fear of Esau – Gen. 32:4-21

· Jacob Becomes Israel – Gen. 32:23-33

· The Meeting of Jacob and Esau – Gen. 33:1-17‎‎

 

Reading Assignment:

 

 

 

 

Hakham Dr. Hillel ben David

Hakham Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham

 

 

Edited by Paqid Adon Ezra ben Abraham

A special thank you to HH Giberet Giborah bat Sarah, Giberet Sarai bat Sarah, and HH Giberet Batsheva bat Sarah for their diligence in proof-reading this week