This week’s parsha focuses on another rebellion, this time spearheaded by Korach. Moshe attempts to reconcile with Korach, and then with Dasan and Aviram, but these efforts proved fruitless and are met with scorn (see Bamidbar 16:8-14). The Torah then describes Moshe’s reaction: “This distressed Moshe greatly, and he said to Hashem, ‘Do not turn to their offering (מנחתם). I have not taken even a single donkey of theirs, nor have I wronged a single one of them.” (16:15). This

This week’s parsha recounts the tragic episode of the miraglim , the spies who scouted the land of Israel. Their negative report spawned a national crisis and a major rebellion against Moshe and Aharon: “All the children of Israel murmured against Moshe and Aharon, and the entire assembly said to them, ‘If only we had died in the land of Egypt or if only we had died in this Wilderness! Why is Hashem bringing us to this land to die by the sword; our wives and young children wi

The Missing Tile The Torah says (Bamidbar 11:4-5): “The Children of Israel also wept once more, and said, ‘Who will feed us meat?’ We...

The Torah tells us: “A man or woman who commit any of man’s sins, by committing treachery toward Hashem, and that person becomes guilty; They shall confess the sin that they committed; he shall make restitution for his guilt in its principal amount and add its fifth to it and give it to the one to whom he is indebted.” (Bamidbar 5:6-7). The “treachery” that the Torah speaks of here, explains Rashi, includes a case where someone is entrusted with an item for safekeeping and la

In the Book of Ruth, Ruth visits Boaz in the middle of the night. Boaz agrees to attempt to redeem Naomi’s fields and to marry Ruth. At the end of their encounter, Boaz tells Ruth (3:15) “Bring [me] the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” The narrative continues: “He measured out six barley grains and he placed it upon her.” This raises a question: Why was Boaz measuring out barley grains in the middle of the night and why did he give them to Ruth? The Malbim explains tha

You're Not a Kid Anymore The Torah says (Bamidbar 3:15) “Count the sons of Levi… from one month of age and up you shall count them.” Rav...

After the Torah details the laws that Moshe taught the Jewish people while they were encamped at Mount Sinai, the book of Vayikra concludes with parshas Bechukosai . In this final parsha, the book of Vayikra culminates in the Berachos , the blessings that Hashem promises the people if they follow His decrees and ordinances, and the Tochachah , the punishments that Hashem promises to carry out against the Jewish people if they break Hashem’s covenant and do not follow His comm

The Torah tells us (Vayikra 21:16-17): “Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to Aharon, saying: any man of our offspring throughout their generations in whom there will be a blemish shall not come near to offer the food of his G-d”. The Torah then lists such blemishes, including a man “who is blind, lame, one whose nose has no bridge, or one who has one limb longer than the other” and other physical abnormalities (Ibid. 21:18-20). The Talmud derives 140 different blemishes t

We are now counting the Omer – the days between Pesach and Shavuos - and we are also involved in a period of national mourning, where weddings and musical celebrations are prohibited. The counting of the Omer should be a happy time, as we commemorate the joyful Exodus from Egypt and the progress of the Jewish people in the desert as they prepared to receive the Torah on Mount Sinai on Shavuos. If this is in essence a very joyful and happy time, why are we involved in nationa

This week’s parsha focuses on the biblical affliction of tzaraas , a condition that can appear on a person’s skin, scalp, or beard. Although its symptoms are physical, our sages understood tzaraas to be rooted in spiritual and moral failing. Most famously, the Torah connects lashon hara—slanderous speech—with tzaraas , as when Miriam was afflicted after speaking negatively about Moshe (Bamidbar 12). Yet, the Talmud (Arachin 16a) broadens the scope of tzaraas ’s causes to inc