Torah · Weekly Parasha VideoParashat ShelachRabbi Uri Nahum · June 19, 2017 · Shelach · שלח · 15 Min Parasha RoundupSave⌄ShareParasha class with Rabbi Uri Nahum, from BSD Productions’ 15 Min Parasha Roundup.Transcript0:05Parashat Shelach. This week we have in our parashah 119 pesukim.0:11The parashah is known as the parashah of the meraglim, the parashah of the spies, as the name implies,0:17Shelach, send for yourself, send for yourself the spies.0:20There are five parts in this week's0:23parashah. The first one, being the main part of the parashah, where the Torah tells us about the story of the0:28spies. The second, the Torah gives us the instructions for the minchah and0:35nisuch. These are known as the nesachim, which come together with the korbanot, the animal sacrifices.0:41Next, the third part of the parashah is a mitzvah that many women are familiar with, and that is the mitzvah of separating0:49challah. Number four, Torah tells us the consequences of those who worship avodah zarah, idol worship.0:55And finally, the Torah concludes in discussion of the mitzvah of tzitzit.1:01In this week's parashah, we have three mitzvot,1:04two mitzvot aseh, positive commandments, and one mitzvat lo ta'aseh, negative1:10commandment. In the book Sefer HaChinuch, they number between mitzvah number 385 till 387.1:17And now let's get to the1:19parashah. First part of this week's parashah, Torah tells us about the story of the spies, the original mosad.1:25This is how it started, rabotai, from here.1:28Hashem was taking the Jewish people from Har Sinai, and like we mentioned last week's1:33parashah, He wanted to take them directly into Eretz Yisrael.1:37However, the Jewish people were not confident to just walk into a country which was full of goyim1:45who were going to battle for the land,1:48so they said, one second, let's send spies.1:51We want to send spies to spy out the land.1:54And Hashem tells Moshe, Shelach lecha. It seems like Hashem tells him,1:58okay, go ahead, send spies.2:01And the way to send them is that it should be a fair mission,2:05meaning that everybody should come back with an answer that everybody would think is fair,2:10one leader per tribe.2:12Nasi2:14echad lashevet. And they were selected.2:15Torah tells us in detail who was selected from each tribe, and these were great men.2:19Amongst them were two big tzaddikim.2:22For shevet Yehuda, he had Kalev ben2:25Yefuneh, and for shevet Ephraim, he had Yehoshua bin Nun.2:27However, the Torah tells us that Yehoshua's name was really Hoshea bin Nun,2:32and because of the greatness of this mission and the danger of this mission,2:36Moshe switches the name of Hoshea to Yehoshua.2:41And they were sent out.2:42On the 29th of Sivan, Chaf-Tet Sivan,2:45they were sent out to go from the south2:50and to spy out the whole land, the whole country,2:53and to come back and to report to us exactly what they saw.2:57Next, the meraglim go out to Eretz Yisrael,3:00and the Torah tells us that they went to the length and breadth of the whole land.3:03They were able to go in a short time of 40 days.3:07They were able to walk throughout the whole land.3:10And actually, they did it like in a box form, as you can see over here on the screen.3:14In a box way, they started going from the south of Eretz Yisrael.3:18If you look in the map, Egypt is where they left.3:21It's in the south of Israel,3:22and they went up in the southern border from the eastern side, from the Jordan River,3:28going west all the way throughout the southern border till the ocean,3:33which is the western border of Eretz Yisrael.3:35And then they traveled throughout the western border from the south to the north.3:40Until they reached Hor Hahar, which is the northern border,3:43and then they went throughout the northern border from west to east3:47till the Jordan River, and from the Jordan River they went down,3:50which makes up the eastern side of Eretz Yisrael.3:54And this they did in forty days.3:56They were able to spy the land.3:57What did they see over there?3:59They saw the same thing, but it was interpreted in different ways.4:02Hashem, in order to distract the nations,4:06that they shouldn't realize that there's some people spying amongst them,4:09many people—there was an epidemic and many people were dying,4:12and there was a levayot, people were busy burying people.4:16And at the same time, they saw in the land giants, big people,4:20people who were big in size.4:22And as a proof, they brought back from the fruits of the land,4:26which was obviously blessed with gigantic fruits.4:29It says in the Torah that they brought back a cluster of grapes.4:34A cluster of grapes, you might say, is a handful.4:37The Torah says that it took eight men just to carry one cluster,4:42and they brought back one fig and one pomegranate,4:45and each one had to be carried by one person.4:48And you shouldn't think these people are weak.4:50These were men who were able to carry stones the size of4:55forty se'ah. Forty se'ah is the minimum size of a mikveh.4:56Can you imagine how much they were able to carry?4:59And they still needed eight men for the cluster of5:02grapes. Ten people brought back what we call souvenirs from Eretz Yisrael to show the Jewish people.5:08However, Kalev and Yehoshua realized that the intentions of these other ten spies was not good.5:15They were coming to scare the people,5:16to show them, Look how gigantic these fruits are.5:19These are not normal people. These are giants. We can't defeat them.5:23So therefore, Yehoshua and Kalev refrained from taking any souvenirs from Eretz Yisrael,5:28and they went back.5:29Meanwhile. Calev ben Yefuneh himself was worried that he might be enticed by these5:37meraglim, so therefore he went to5:39Chevron, to Me'arat HaMachpelah, where Abraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov were buried,5:42and he prayed over there that Hashem should save him,5:44that he shouldn't be pulled after them.5:47Next, the Jewish people come back,5:50and now all the Jewish people come, and they come to hear the spies.5:55What was it?5:56What did they see in Eretz Yisrael?5:59And there was a national hysteria.6:02The spies, ten of them at least, reported horrible reports.6:07True, the land is beautiful, it's great, fantastic, look how beautiful it6:10is, but you know what?6:10Look at the fruits that we brought back.6:12These are giants. We can't conquer them.6:15We're never going to be able to go.6:16If we're going to go, we're all going to be wiped out.6:18It's impossible for us to get into Eretz Yisrael.6:21The other two, Calev and Yehoshua, were arguing.6:24They said, No, we could go.6:26We could go in.6:26Hashem promised us. Look how much Hashem did for us through Moshe Rabbeinu.6:30Of course we could conquer the land.6:32However, the Jewish people did not listen to Yehoshua and6:37Calev, and it created a national hysteria,6:38and everybody started crying that night.6:40And they all said, You know, if we're going to die,6:43we might as well go back to Egypt and let us be slaves over there6:46instead of dying over here in Eretz Yisrael.6:49And why?6:49They started complaining, Why did You take us out of Egypt to kill us?6:52What's going to be with our children?6:54Meanwhile, Calev and Yehoshua, when they heard all of this,6:57they ripped their clothing because they knew this whole thing was a lie.7:00People are taking it completely out of control,7:03and it wasn't just the regular people.7:05It was even the Sanhedrin, the leaders of the Jewish people.7:08And Moshe and Aharon, who knew also that there was no doubt7:11that they would walk into Eretz Yisrael without even a casualty.7:15They saw that they couldn't do anything,7:17and they fell down all the way on the floor,7:19like in a bowing down position,7:22and they didn't know what to do.7:24Suddenly, Hashem appears,7:26which is, that means the cloud, the anan that represented Hashem7:29appears, which is a call that Hashem wants to speak to Moshe7:35and Aharon. And Hashem was not happy,7:36and Hashem said, You know, this is it.7:40Ten times already Bnei Yisrael have sinned,7:43and they have tested my, their faith in me.7:46They don't trust me.7:47How much could I do for them already?7:49Therefore, Hashem said, I'm wiping out the whole nation,7:52and in order to keep my promise of Abraham, Yitzchak, and7:54Yaakov, that their children will come7:56there and say, I'll start from you.7:57I'll start from you, Moshe.7:59Moshe, please.8:02And begs and says, Hashem, please, you know, it's not going to look good for you.8:04Because the goyim will say that although Hashem was able to take them out of Mitzrayim8:09and to defeat Melech8:12Paro, still He couldn't defeat the nations of Eretz8:15Canaan, because over there there were 31 kings,8:17and God, chas v'shalom, כביכול, didn't have the power to overcome those nations,8:23and that's why He wiped them out8:25in the Midbar. So Hashem says, You know what? It's going to be chilul Hashem. I won't do it.8:28But, חי אני, Hashem makes להם a promise that they will get their punishment,8:35and exactly what they were worried about is going to happen the opposite way.8:39They were worried that their own children will not be able to enter Eretz Yisrael.8:42They will see that they will travel now in the desert for 40 years8:48until they themselves will be wiped out, will die,8:52while they, their own children, would go into Eretz Yisrael,8:57and the same children they worried about,8:59they're going to walk in while they die out over here.9:01And the Chachamim tell us that every Tisha9:04B'Av, around 15,000 men who reached the age of 609:08died out in the desert, as Hashem decreed.9:12Moshe reports the news back to the Jewish people,9:15and, you know, they were shocked,9:18and there were different reactions.9:20But the next morning, the Jewish people woke up and they9:23said—there were a group of people at least—they said,9:25you know, we've done teshuvah, we're sincere.9:27Okay, we'll go into Eretz Yisrael now.9:29Moshe says, You know, too late. The decree is already done.9:31You can't walk in. Hashem is not with you anymore.9:33You missed the opportunity last night.9:36Bnei Yisrael, these group of people, refused to listen to Moshe, and they go anyway.9:40The Torah tells us because Moshe and the9:43Aron, which represented God's providence, was not with them,9:46they were wiped out right at the entrances of Eretz Yisrael by Amalek.9:49Meanwhile, the Meraglim themselves died in a horrible death.9:55Their tongues rolled out, worms came into their stomachs from their mouth.9:59It was a horrible, ugly death,10:01and some say that they started suffering from that night, Tisha10:04B'Av, until Yud-Zayin B'Elul, when they actually died.10:07Then we move on to the rest of the parashah.10:11The second part of this week's parashah,10:12the Torah tells us the instructions for the nesachim10:17that come with the animal sacrifices.10:18Now, the nesachim, every korban that was10:22brought—I don't want to say every korban, let's clarify, let's make it10:25better—there were specific korbanot in the categories of olah and shelamim,10:30of animals and not birds,10:32that when their olah and shelamim were brought, it doesn't make a difference,10:36it was brought on behalf of an individual or the nation,10:39they had to be brought with nesachim.10:43What are these nesachim?10:44These were basically three things:10:49fine flour, oil, and wine.10:54That means besides the animal, they had to bring fine flour, oil, and wine.10:57What they would do is they would mix the measurement,11:00which is prescribed in this week's parashah, we're going to see soon,11:02the measurement of oil together with the flour,11:04and it would be completely burnt on the mizbeach,11:07while the wine would be poured on the southwestern corner of the mizbeach on top,11:15and this is called the nesachim.11:17The Torah over here tells us what type of animal a person brings,11:21that's the type of nesachim that he will bring.11:24And there's a difference, the Torah makes a difference between11:26if a person is bringing sheep and goats,11:29where the flour will be a issaron, about 3.68 pounds,11:35mixed with a quarter of a hin, 1.03 liters,11:40and a quarter of a hin of wine to be poured,11:43which is also 1.03 liters on top of the mizbeach.11:46If a person is bringing ram,11:49so the issaron will11:51be—excuse me—the flour will be11:54two issaronim mixed with a third hin of oil11:56and a third hin of wine to be poured.12:00If a person is bringing a korban which consists of a cow or a calf,12:04then he would bring fine flour,12:07three esronim of fine flour,12:09a half of a12:11hin, and a half of wine to be poured on top of the mizbeach.12:16And then the Torah moves on. We go on to the mitzvah of12:18challah, separating12:19challah. Ladies know, we make dough, we separate12:22challah. This is what the Torah tells us.12:23Torah tells us in this week's12:25parashah, asrit ha'efa, solet. If a person makes dough,12:28the tenth of the size of an12:30eifah, then he separates from it12:32challah. How much is a tenth of an12:36eifah? So Chachamim tell us12:37it's the size of 43 and a fifth eggs,12:4143 eggs and a fifth.12:43How much is that?12:44So we're going to go with the Sefardi opinion,12:47and this is really the opinion of12:49Rav Chaim Naeh. If a person is using flour,12:513.68 pounds of flour,12:56and afterwards you mix it with water,12:58then you could separate challah with13:01a berachah. This is according to the old13:02Lezion. Chacham Ovadia has a small measurement,13:04but if you do 3.68 pounds,13:06you're for sure covered even13:08according to13:10Chacham Ovadia. The next part, the Torah tells us,13:11if a person worships13:13avodah zarah, what are the consequences?13:15Well, there's three parts over here.13:16If the nation by mistake13:19worships13:19avodah zarah, the Beit Din decides that13:21this act is not considered13:23avodah zarah. Later on they realize they made a mistake,13:25then the Torah says13:26you bring a13:27korban. What kind of13:28korban? A cow for13:30a korban olah and a male goat for13:33chatat. If a person individually worships avodah zarah by mistake,13:38then he brings a female goat for13:41korban chatat. And if a person worships avodah zarah intentionally,13:45then his13:47punishment—there is no korban for13:48kaparah—his punishment is karet,13:50where he's completely cut off;13:51his neshama is cut off.13:53And finally,13:53we get on to the last part of this week's13:56parashah. Torah tells us about tzitzit.13:59Before tzitzit,14:00the Torah tells us there was a person14:01who was caught14:03mechalel Shabbat.14:04Even though he was warned,14:04he was mechalel Shabbat,14:06and then14:07Torah tells us that he was warned14:09and he was punished;14:10he was executed.14:11And then14:12Torah tells us about tzitzit,14:13and14:16the Chachamim explain tzitzit is to be a reminder,14:18as it says in pasuk,14:22U're'item oto u'zchartem et kol mitzvot Hashem. You should see it14:22and remember the mitzvot Hashem.14:24Therefore,14:24tzitzit serves as a reminder for a14:26Jew to keep the14:29mitzvot. The Chachamim explain that14:30Hashem felt that this person was mechalel Shabbat,14:33he didn't have that reminder.14:34Since throughout the whole week14:36a person is wearing tefillin,14:37he has something to help him14:39overcome the yetzer hara and remind him of the14:41mitzvot. On Shabbat14:41he doesn't wear tefillin,14:43so therefore14:43Hashem puts the parashah of tzitzit14:45right after Shabbat14:47to teach us this important lesson,14:50that tzitzit is to remind us.14:51But we have a deeper lesson to14:53understand from the mitzvah of tzitzit,14:55which connects to the14:56Meraglim, and that will be today's lesson.14:59What does tzitzit teach us15:02in order to overcome15:04the mistake of the15:06Meraglim? The mistake of the Meraglim was15:07they only looked at things superficially,15:09on the outside.15:10The tzitzit teaches us15:11that a person should look deeper beyond things.15:14Look at the shape of tzitzit.15:15It goes on the corner of15:16a garment. Right when you have an edge,15:18strings pull out15:20and they extend to teach us15:21that there's more to the world15:23than what you see.15:25And that is how we15:26as Jews have to look at the world.15:28We shouldn't be15:29impressed just by the external physical world.15:31We have to understand15:31there's something deeper.15:33There's spirituality.15:34There's something on a higher level15:36and a deeper level,15:37and this is where the Meraglim made a mistake.15:39They only looked superficially, externally.15:59Shabbat shalom.