יום שבת, י״א אב תשפ״וSaturday, July 25, 2026
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There is a noticeable difference in the purpose and destinies of the Avot and the Imahot. The Avot are more "universal" and the Imahot are more focused specifically on "giving birth" to the Twelve Tribes, to Am Yisrael.
There are different methods of calculating numeric value. One such method is called AL-BAM, in which alef corresponds to lamed, bet to mem, gimel to nun, and so on. AL-BAM gematria is based on taking the first 11 letters of the alef-bet and matching them with the second set of 11 letters. The values that result are: Alef = 30, Bet = 40, Gimel = 50, Dalet = 60... Lamed = 1, Mem = 2, Nun = 3, Samach = 4... and so on.
Often someone hosts a guest out of a feeling of obligation to perform a mitzvah, or out of sympathy when they see someone without food or lodging. Therefore, during the meal the guest cannot be totally certain if their host is hosting them with pure joy or because it is out of a feeling of obligation.
A lack of derech eretz or moral clarity in children is frequently a reflection of what they witness, or fail to witness, in their parents.
All told, Vayeitzei is the third largest sedra (of 12) in Bereishit. Yet it has none of the 613 mitzvot.
Welcomed into Lavan’s household, he worked seven disciplined years in order to marry Rachel. The Torah describes these years as passing quickly because of his deep affection for her.
There were righteous men before Avraham, but Avraham was the first to establish a nation by passing his legacy to his descendants through his children.
We weren’t even out of Egypt yet when G-d made us partners with Him in the matter of kedushat z’man, the sanctity of time.
If HaKadosh Baruch Hu was so extreme in His response to this mockery, then it cannot be such a trivial thing and we need to further explore why such drastic steps were necessary.
Though man shares the responsibility to populate the world with all living beings, his responsibility is more significant because only he creates others in G-d’s image.
My heart raced as I stood before the original handwritten manuscripts of Rambam. The very ink strokes of one of our greatest minds lay before me. To imagine him bending over parchment nearly nine centuries ago, carefully inscribing words that would guide Jewish law and philosophy for generations, was overwhelming.
There are 5,846 pesukim in the Torah, and 54 sedras. The average number of pesukim per sedra is 108. Chayei Sara’s 105 pesukim puts it slightly below average, ranked at 32.
Why Avraham deferred the task of making bread to Sarah? If he was so meticulous and diligent in performing the mitzvah of welcoming guests and prepared the calf tongues in mustard sauce himself, why did he not also prepare the bread?
Yishmael did not turn into the righteous son he had the potential to become. He mocked Yitzchak and this resulted in Avraham, on Sarah’s behest, banishing Hagar and Yishmael from his house.
Chesed is both a way of showing our love for Hashem’s creations and also emulating His creation of the world as an act of chesed.
Before there was Torah Tidbits, there were Torah Tidbits. And one of the very first Torah Tidbits was entitled Angel Arithmetic. (Kind of appropriate for Torah by the Numbers.)
The Akeidah was the moment when Hashem declared the sanctity of human life. It affirmed that every person is His masterpiece – fashioned in His image and charged with elevating both self and society.
Undoubtedly being told to sacrifice Yitzchak was Avraham’s toughest trial and this is the reason we mention it multiple times in our daily tefillot.
The Torah was given by Hashem to Am Yisrael, the Jewish People. Whatever the rest of the world has learned or failed to learn from the Torah, the Torah is ours.
Chazal go even further by asserting that planting takes precedence even over welcoming Mashiach. They taught that a person who hears that Mashiach has arrived while he is planting should finish planting and only then go to greet Mashiach (ADR”N 2:31).
Avraham launched a religious revolution that still echoes through history. He introduced monotheism, shaping the religious imagination for millennia. Countless descendants, both genetic and spiritual, owe their beliefs and way of life to this movement.
There is no doubt, it is not even a question, that Noach was G-d-fearing. Noach was not part of the depravation of the world, he did not commit adultery, he did not steal, he did not worship idols, etc.
But as the days went by and the initial euphoria began to settle, another feeling began to rise within me – a quiet, haunting sadness.
The Jewish people’s relationship with Hashem also began with a korban – the Korban Pesach. Though the Jews were passive during the first nine makot, for Makat Bechorot and Yetziat Mitzraim to occur, they needed to sacrifice the Korban Pesach.
Towards the end of Parshat Bereishit, the Torah records the births of Noach’s three sons – Sheim, Cham, and Yefet – when he was 500 years old. That is much older than the parental ages recorded for the births in the first nine generations.
Hashem’s ownership over the land has halachic implications as well. It is how the Torah (Vay. 25:23) explains why the Yovel year keeps us from selling land permanently. The land is Hashem’s; we are merely subletters.
Why should we think that the nations of the world will be convinced when we prove our ownership through reference to the Torah? As it stands, so many people either do not believe in G-d or in His interest in the affairs of human beings. So why should they be compelled by this argument?
The Jewish people have had highs and lows, including moments when our future seemed bleak. Our focus on our children and raising them according to Torah values ensured our continued survival and success.
Though the loss of even one soldier or civilian is a tragedy, we must recognize the miraculous way Hashem has protected the Jewish people over the past two years.
With no rest for the weary, Sukkot begins on the Monday evening following Shabbat Parshat Ha’azinu.
Hashem realizes that the commitment to improve does not always last, but He chooses to accept teshuvah because He cares for His creations and their survival.
Chazal say that for three days after Am Yisrael gathered all the loot from the Egyptians who drowned in the Red Sea, they neglected to study Torah, which set off a series of complaints and rebellions against Moshe and HaKadosh Baruch Hu Therefore, it was instituted that three days cannot pass without the Torah being read.
Hak-hel was (and will be again) a major event meant to unify the people and the Shevatim (tribes) to which they belonged. It also honors the Torah before all of Israel.
Nitzavim has only 40 pesukim – the second shortest sedra, pasuk-wise. Only its sometimes partner Vayeilech has fewer (30).
In order to enable free will, HaKadosh Baruch Hu hides Himself in His Creation. When I say hide, I mean behind a concept, for example The Laws of Nature. By hiding behind this "concept," HaKadosh Baruch Hu enables a person to see Him, or not.
Although idol worship is less common and enticing in contemporary society, the prohibition against avodah zarah remains, at least conceptually, relevant.
If you examine the paragraphs of the curses, both in Bechukotai and in Ki Tavo, you will see that they are preceded by a paragraph of blessings.
Bikkurim is a prime example of hakarat hatov, recognition and acknowledgement of the good that G-d does for us.
The Torah says about Sarah and Rivka that they were lovely (yefat mar'eh) but that Rachel, in addition to being lovely, was also beautiful (yefat toar). So, the only one of the Matriarchs that exactly matches the description of eishet yefat toar is Rachel.
There are 674 parshiyot in the Torah – 295 petuchot and 379 setumot. And Ki Teitzei has more parshiyot than any other sedra.
Even if the judge tells you that what appears to you to be right is left, or that what appears to you to be left is right, you have to obey him. The question is: How literal is this? Is one to really doubt their own sense data and override it, relying on the Sages?
In our fixed calendar of today, there is no doubt as to which day Yom Tov is. Yet the practice of one day in Israel and two days outside still applies.
HaKadosh Baruch Hu does communicate “indirectly” with Am Yisrael, showing His pleasure/displeasure with us, by heaping abundance on us or withholding abundance/rain.
One can live free of restriction and obligation and even own slaves, but actually be a slave because he feels beholden to society’s expectations. Conversely, many are physically enslaved but truly free because they maintain their spiritual independence.
It is not enough to read about it, even see pictures of it – in a book, in a video. Only when you are physically there and see it with your own eyes does it have the required effect.
All of us should express our appreciation of talmud Torah’s importance by enabling those devoted to its study to focus on that important mission.
We will bentch Rosh Chodesh this Shabbat and announce the coming month – Rosh Chodesh Elul yihyeh machar b’yom Rishon uvyom Sheini…
Even a single person’s Torah learning makes the whole world worthwhile!
Eikev gives us the source of the mitzvah to daven. Once again, Rabbinic law has given us the how many times a day, at what times, and what to say. It should, however, never escape us that the Torah’s command to “Serve G-d with all our heart” is the core of our davening.
By not revealing the reward for (most of) the positive mitzvot, HaKadosh Baruch Hu prevented a situation where we would excessively observe only some mitzvot at the expense of others.
According to our Tradition, not only was it decreed that the adult male population of the generation of the Midbar should wander for 40 years and die out without entering the Holy Land (except for Yehoshua and Kalev), but they actually died on Tisha B’Av – about 15,000 each year.
This is why Rebbe Yossi ben Kisma rejected a substantial monetary offer to move to a city lacking a strong Torah presence. He explained that he prioritized Torah learning and good deeds over money because we take only the former with us to the next world (Avot 6:10).
The Churban “All the Roman commanders who saw the internal conflict among the Jews viewed it as a gift from heaven and urged an immediate attack. But Vespasian wisely counseled patience: ‘If we wait, we will find our enemy fewer in number, after they have worn themselves out through their internal struggle. It […]
The whole Book of Devarim takes place in one location – Arvot Moav – over just 37 days.
Each time a phenomenon appears in units of forty in the Torah text, a new reality is about to be born.
The first notable number is 42. That’s the number of places in which Bnei Yisrael encamped, from the time they left Egypt until they stood poised at the threshold of Eretz Yisrael. If you count the places, you will need to include the place they left Egypt from (Ra-m’seis) among the 42 places.
The fact that there are 42 journeys is not incidental, it corresponds to the name of HaKadosh Baruch Hu that has 42 letters.
As opposed to the word “peace,” which is related to the word “appeasement,” the Hebrew word “shalom” means whole or complete.
When someone makes shalom between rival parties, what does that mean?
We daven together in synagogues that feel familiar whether we’re in Toronto or Tel Aviv. We mourn together when tragedy strikes and we celebrate together when a lost hostage comes home or an aliyah flight lands in Ben-Gurion Airport.
If Parshat Bamidbar showed why the Book of Bamidbar is called the Book of Numbers, then Parshat Pinchas confirms that name.
Working six days and resting on the seventh reminds us that Hashem did the same when He created the world. Shabbat is a weekly reminder of how the world came to be. It was created by Hashem, and is not just here on its own.
Balak precedes the Fast of the Fourth Month (that’s what the navi calls Shiv’a Asar b’Tammuz) almost 80% of the time. That includes, in Chutz LaAretz, the years when Shavuot is Friday-Shabbat and the sedra right before the fast is Chukat-Balak.
Balak was evil – he did not want to elevate himself to the level of Am Yisrael, he wanted to reduce Am Yisrael down to his level, or even lower.
It is impossible to reach an agreement with Amalek, because the only thing that will satisfy them is our obliteration and…G-d's name in the world can never be complete until Amalek is obliterated.
Unlike the two previous sedras of Shelach and Korach, each of which were two-thirds story and a third juxtapositional mitzvot, Chukat’s three mitzvot are part of the same mitzvah topic – namely, para aduma (the red heifer), with the bulk of the sedra being a string of episodes in the Midbar-wandering period.
Perhaps the fullest picture of what is truly unfolding emerges only when we consider most, if not all, of these perspectives together.
In place of conventional warfare, terrorist organizations have emerged that have taken terrorist activities to a new level.
We can learn from people with good character. And we can even learn from people with bad character how not to live our lives. We can extract true lessons when we hear how an enemy criticizes us. We can learn from children and those in all strata of society.
Man’s fate is in his own hands – he decides for himself and for the world. Hashem did not create us as finished products, but with the need and responsibility to develop ourselves properly.
The rise in rank for words and letters is due to Korach being above average in words and letters per pasuk. Korach is a short sedra (in a sefer with many long sedras) with fairly long pesukim (in a sefer with lots of short-pasuk sedras).
[Democracy] is contingent on both sides respecting each other and not crossing red lines. When that breaks down, democracy ceases to function and it degenerates into illegitimate anarchy.
Shelach by the numbers: Total pesukim: 119, ranks 21st (of 54 sedras) Total words: Ranks 27th Mitzvot: 3, ranks 27th
This generation is truly remarkable. They do not flee from hardship. They strive for the elite units, the most dangerous positions, not because of ego or pride, but because they yearn to be protectors.
The last piece addressed our relationships with peers – including spouses, friends, and family. In addition to those relationships, we should also have meaningful relationships with the generations that precede and follow our own.
By Rafi Hecht
While a few, such as certain Amoraim and Natronoi Gaon, retained access, it became almost exclusive to non-Jewish royalty. The last known Jewish mention came from the Ramban in the 13th century, who noted that the Melech Goyim – possibly James I of Aragon – still wore it in his day.
Think about this for a moment. They were just about to enter Eretz Yisrael and Eldad and Meidad's prophecy revealed that Moshe would die and Yehoshua would lead Bnei Yisrael into the land flowing with milk and honey. Did this phase Moshe? Not in the least.
We cannot totally control our sustenance – not the food we eat, nor the money we earn.
In our time, back in 1982, the costliest battle of the war in Lebanon claimed the lives of about 30 IDF soldiers on this date. Thus, the 20th of Sivan is indeed a tragic day. You can find Selichot written for the day in some siddurim.
We have been here before. We have seen how quickly the world turns. How Jewish suffering is minimized. How our tears are measured against the political utility of those who hate us.
The sedra has 2,264 words and 8,632 letters. Even though Naso’s pesukim are well below average in length (in number of words or letters), it still ranks #1 in all categories.
Parshat Naso, as you know, is the longest single parsha in the Torah. In most years, Naso follows Shavuot, which is appropriate – once we receive the Torah, the next thing is to dive straight in and begin reading the longest parsha in the Torah. There are 176 pesukim in Parshat Naso. An interesting […]
Just as Hashem spoke the world into being, perhaps He wrote His will into our very cells.
To deserve the name Numbers, this week’s sedra contains numbers galore – starting with a count of the adult male population of each of the 12 tribes, with a total of 603,550 men age 20 and up.
Shouldn’t Shavuot’s commemoration of Matan Torah mandate a spiritual celebration?
The total weight of the shulchan with the lechem hapanim was over 551 pounds.
In a city torn by conflict, we remember: Yerushalayim is meant to unite us – with each other, and with Hashem.
With the third double sedra in four weeks, it’s a good time to take a closer look at the double sedra story.
Detach yourself from the illusions of this world and focus on the true realities of the world and Who determines them…. Today you do not take care of yourselves, I take care of you.
One who truly loves Hashem, loves everything He creates. By loving and showing respect to His creations, we, in essence, show respect to Hashem Himself.
In Pirkei Avot, we find the statement, Schar mitzvah, mitzvah – the reward for doing a mitzvah is the mitzvah itself. Or perhaps it means that the reward for doing a mitzvah is another mitzvah to do.
One might say that the menorah and the ketoret were temidin, while the lechem hapanim was only switched once a week, on Shabbat. However, although it was only switched once a week, the lechem hapanim was on the shulchan every day, a korban in itself, a repeating miracle that occurred each day anew.
When we are tired and hungry, we are anxious to revive and sustain ourselves. This anxiety can cause us to lose sight of our life’s bigger picture and purpose, and eat like animals rather than human beings.
The Ramban says that the word se'ir (goat) is also reminiscent of Eisav, who Yaakov describes as sa'ir (hairy).
While our primary obligation is to ourselves, Hillel reminds us of our obligation to the broader community and the world.
G-d does not immediately punish us or strike us down with a bolt of lightning if we speak lashon hara. He warns us in stages.
Of course, Hashem wants us to fight for ourselves and blesses us with the physical strength and heavenly assistance we need. We see this at the end of Parshat Beshalach in the wake of Amalek’s attack.
According to one opinion, the second keruv on the parochet was not a lion but had the face of an eagle! This eagle was present in both the first and second Batei Mikdash, until they were destroyed.
July 24, 2026 
