This Shabbos we read Sefer Koheles, which is attributed to Shlomo HaMelech (King Solomon). A key verse in the book is cited in a Mishnah in Kiddushin (1:10): Anyone that is engaged in Scripture, Mishnah and Derech Eretz will not easily sin, as it says: “A rope with three threads is not easily broken.” (Koheles 4:12). What is the connection between the first statement, that anyone who is engaged in Scripture, Mishnah and Derech Eretz will not easily sin, and the verse from K

The Torah tells us (Devarim 32:46–47): “…Instruct your children to be careful to perform all the words of this Torah, for it is not an empty thing for you; it is your life, and through this matter you shall prolong your days on the Land.” Rashi explains that Moshe here is teaching that no verse in the Torah is “empty.” Even when a passage appears insignificant, if one studies it deeply, its hidden meaning will reveal great wisdom and reward. As an example, Rashi cites the ve

On Yom Kippur afternoon, we read the Book of Yonah. Hashem commands the prophet: “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and proclaim against it, for their evil has come before Me.” (Yonah 1:2) Yet instead of obeying, Yonah fled in the opposite direction, boarding a ship bound for Tarshish. A raging storm threatened the vessel, and at Yonah’s own request he was cast into the sea. There, through Hashem’s miraculous intervention, a great fish swallowed him whole. Remarkably, Yonah rema

This week’s parsha introduces the 613 th , final mitzvah of the Torah: Hakhel (some count it as the 612th): “ Moshe commanded them, saying: ‘At the end of seven years, at the conclusion of the Sabbatical year, during the festival of Succos, when all Israel comes to appear before Hashem your God in the place that He will choose, you shall read this Torah before all Israel in their ears. Gather together the people—the men, the women, and the small children, and the stranger i

As we approach Rosh Hashanah, the Torah speaks to us about teshuvah , the process of returning to Hashem: “It will be that when all...

This week’s parsha describes a dramatic ceremony the Jewish people were to perform upon entering the Land of Israel. Six tribes would ascend Har Gerizim, and six would ascend Har Eival. From the valley below, the Kohanim and Levi’im would proclaim a series of blessings and curses. Each time they faced Har Gerizim, they declared a blessing, and the people responded “Amen.” Then they turned to Har Eival and proclaimed the corresponding curse, and again the people answered “Amen

In this week’s parsha, the Torah commands: “Take heed in the plague of tzara῾at, that thou observe diligently, and do according to all that the priests the Levites shall teach you: as I commanded them, so you shall observe to do. Remember what Hashem your G-d did to Miriam by the way, after you had come out of Egypt.” (Devarim 24:7-8). It is significant that these two verses are written in the Torah as one complete paragraph, set apart from the surrounding text. What is

When the Torah describes the laws of going out to war, it lists several exemptions for soldiers: One who has built a new house and not dedicated it, planted a new vineyard, or became engaged to be married. Yet, the Torah adds one unusual exemption: And the officers shall speak further to the people, and they shall say, ‘What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest his brethren’s heart melt like his heart.’” (Devarim 20:8).

This week’s parsha opens with a stark choice: “Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; a blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day: and a curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which you have not known.” (Devarim 11:26-28). At first glance, the choice seems obvious. Who would ever choose a curse over

In this week’s parsha, Moshe addresses the nation on the brink of entering the Land of Israel: “Hear, O Israel, today you cross the Jordan, to come and drive out nations that are greater and mightier than you, cities that are great and fortified up to the heavens… But you know that today that Hashem your G-d – He crosses before you, a consuming fire: He will destroy them and He will subjugate them before you. (Devarim 9:1-3). Moshe tells the people that despite the might of