Weekly Parsha Thoughts

The Gemara brings: Rabban Gamliel, Rabi Eliezer ben Azariah, Rabi Yehoshua and Rabi Akiva were going up to Yerushalayim. When they reached the mountain called Tzufim, or were a certain distance from Yerushalayim from which they could see Yerushalayim, they ripped their... Read More

The passuk says, “ and the Emori’im went out… and chased you (Bnei Yisroel) as bees would do.”  Rashi explains that just as a bee dies when it stings a person, so too the Emorim died when they hit Bnei Yisroel. The... Read More

In Parshas Matos the passuk says: Hashem commanded Moshe that Bnei Yisroel should take revenge against the Midyanim.  The passuk ends “and afterwards you shall be gathered into your people.”  This refers to the death of Moshe.  The next passuk says, “and... Read More

The Avudraham brings from a Pesikta: until the 17th of Tammuz the haftaros leined on Shabbos have similarities to the parshiyos. After the 17th of Tammuz the haftaros are according to the time and what happened then. There are three haftaros of... Read More

The Torah says that Bilam tried to curse Bnei Yisroel. The pesukim and Rabeinu Bechai list a number of nissim and nifla’os that Hashem performed in order to stop Bilam from accomplishing his mission. First, when Bilam took his donkey to travel... Read More

The parsha starts off with “זאת חקת התורה,” “this is the chok of the Torah”, referring to the para aduma.  What is the meaning of a chok?  And what are mishpatim?  A chok is a mitzvah which we don’t understand the reason;... Read More