At the end of the parsha, immediately after the Ten Commandments, the Torah states: “And if [אם] you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones.” (Shemos 20:22). At first glance, this verse is puzzling. The construction of an altar is a clear commandment, not an optional act (see Devarim 27:6). Yet the Torah uses the word אם , which ordinarily means “if” — implying choice rather than obligation. Why would the Torah phrase a mandatory mitzvah in conditi

At the end of the parsha, the Torah tells us: “And Amalek came and fought with Israel in Refidim.” (Shemos 17:8) Why does the Torah emphasize that the Jewish people were in Refidim when Amalek attacked? We already know that the Jews arrived in Refidim earlier (17:1), and we are later told that they departed from Refidim on their way to Har Sinai (19:2). What additional lesson does this repetition teach? Rashi explains that the Torah deliberately links these events. At Refid

After the tenth and final plague, Pharaoh sent the Jews out of Egypt. The Torah describes how they prepared for their journey into the wilderness: “And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough that they had taken out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, since they had been driven out of Egypt and could not delay; nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves. ” (Shemos 12:39). The Torah explains that we eat matzah on Pesach because the Jews were driven out of Egypt so qui

After listing the descendants of the tribe of Levi, the Torah returns to Moshe and Aharon and states: “This was the Aharon and Moshe to whom Hashem said: ‘Take the Children of Israel out of Egypt according to their legions.’ They were the ones who spoke to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to take the Children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; this was the Moshe and Aharon .” (Shemos 6:26). Both verses clearly refer to Moshe and Aharon. Yet the Torah does something unusual: in vers

When Moshe first appears before Pharaoh, not only does Pharaoh refuse to allow the Jewish slaves to leave Egypt, but he intensifies their suffering. He orders them to gather their own straw for bricks while maintaining the same production quota (Shemos 5:18). When the Jewish foremen blame Moshe for worsening their plight (5:21), Moshe turns to Hashem in anguish: “My Lord, why have You done evil to this people, why have You sent me? From the time I came to Pharaoh to speak i

At the beginning of this week’s parsha, Yaakov is nearing the end of his life. He calls Yosef to his bedside and asks him to promise that he will not be buried in Egypt, but rather in the Land of Israel: “Please if I have found favor in your eyes, please place your hand under my thigh and do kindness and truth with me – please do not bury me in Egypt. For I will lie down with my fathers and you shall transport me out of Egypt and bury me in their tomb. He [Yosef] said, ‘I per

In this week’s parsha, we reach the conclusion of the dramatic story of Yosef and his brothers. Yosef finally reveals his identity and brings his entire family down to Egypt, where he is able to sustain them during the years of famine. The Torah describes Yosef’s care for his family as follows: “ Yosef sustained his father and his brothers and all of his father’s household with food, according to the children. ” (Bereishis 47:12) The verse seems repetitive. We are already tol

The Torah tells us that there was a great famine in Egypt and the surrounding countries. As the famine intensified and his family’s food supply dwindled, Yaakov urged his children to act: “Yaakov perceived that there were provisions in Egypt; so Yaakov said to his sons, ‘ lama tisrau (Why do you look upon one another)?’ And he said, ‘Behold, I have heard that there are provisions in Egypt; go down there and purchase for us from there, that we may live and not die.’” (Berais

The Torah begins the parsha by telling us that Yosef was a uniquely gifted person. The Torah says that: “These are the generations of Yaakov. Yosef at the age of seventeen was tending the sheep with his brothers by the flock, but he was a youth with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives; and Yosef would bring evil reports about them to their father. Yisrael loved Yosef more than all his children, because he was ben zikunav , and he made him a fine wool

The Torah (Beraishis 32:8) tells us that Yaakov was greatly frightened by his pending encounter with Esav. In preparing for his reunion, the Torah tells us that he moved his entire family across the Yabok River: “He took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven sons.” (Beraishis 32:23) Rashi notices that he Torah lists Yaakov’s eleven sons but makes no mention of his daughter, Dinah. Rashi, citing the Midrash, explains: “He placed her in a chest and locked her