Beha'aloscha - 1st Portion

Join me as we learn kumish foras of parasala. The first Torah reading for Sunday chapter 8 verse 1. Last week's Torah reading we read about how each one of the leaders of the tribes brought sacrifices to dedicate the tabernacle and the altar on its time when it was built. first on the first of Nissan and for the next 11 days each one of the tribes brought the different sacrifices. This week's Torah reading continues that discussion and the obligation of telling Aaron that he will light the candalabra in the holy tabernacle. God spoke to Moses saying speak to Aaron loving you will say to him when you kindle the lamps the seven lamps the seven lamps should shine towards the central staff the central pole and light of the candalabra and as we see the word when you kindle what that actually means as Rashi will explain that they should be lighting on their The first question however that Rashi addresses here is what does the kindling of the manora have to do with the leader sacrifices towards the dedication of the temple. Why is the Torah reading of lighting and kindling the manora next to the Torah reading of the leaders? Because when Aaron who was the leader of the tribe of Ley sawim that the leaders of each tribe was dedicating the tabernacle, he felt embarrassed. He felt ashamed and disappointed that he was not able to participate with dedicating and bringing sacrifices towards the dedication of the tabernacle. Not him and not his tribe. So God said to him, I guarantee you what you will be doing will be greater than them. That you're going to be kindling and cleaning out the candalabra and the candles on the lamps on the candalabra. That that's going to be for eternity. This is only done once when you kindle. Over here the word rashi addresses the fact that generally in Hebrew when you want to say to kindle you would light. You would say like we know for the blessings over here the word means to uplift because in this case when he kindles the manura the flame goes upwards. Therefore uses the terminology to kindle another explanation as well as the sages explain. You have to light it to the extent that you shouldn't have to continuously give it light that the light that the fire should be able to continue to shine on its own and not that you have to continue assisting it. Another explanation that the rabbis give in this case From here we learn as well that there was a step in front of the manora that there would come would go up. So therefore a word is when you go up to kindle the should be kindling and they should be facing the center candle that all of the um what's the face of the monora? Meaning all of them are candles and it should be facing the center shaft of the manura which is the center body of the manura. The other seven candles should be kindled. You have the six that are on the other uh poles. You have three to the east should face towards the center. So too you have the ones on the east and the west that their wicks should be facing towards the center. This way it should be kindled toward the center. Why? What's the purpose of why does it have to be kindled in such a manner that the wick should be facing towards the center pole in the center shaft of the manura and this is like being that we shouldn't say oh the reason why there's a manor in the holy temple is because God needs light. God doesn't need the light and therefore would face towards the center showing that it's not here to spread out towards the entirety of the tabernacle hall. It was facing towards the manura because God commanded that the manora should be kindled. The Reb learns from this verse as well a very important lesson when it comes to educating and giving a person the ability to learn about Judaism. When you kindle somebody's soul, it shouldn't be one that you have to continuously assist. You have to make that the individual should have the ability to go light and kindle another light. Whenever we do a kind deed, educating a child or educating a person, whatever it may be, in any shape or form, it should be one that you have to give him enough energy that they should be able to go and kindle and light another candle with it and be self-sustained. Verse three, did so towards the face towards the shaft of the actual candalabra. He kindled the candles. like God commanded Moshe. Why does the Torah have to tell us that Aaron did so? To tell us the praise of Aaron that he did not change from what God told him to do. For this was also the candalabra. This was how it was made of was hammered out of gold from the base to its flower. It was hammered out as one solid piece just as the vision that God showed according to the way that God has shown that God showed Moshe. That's the way the manora the candalabra was constructed. What is this telling us from here? Why does it use the word viz in this? This was because Moshe had difficulty in knowing how to exactly make the manora. Therefore, it says that God showed him an image of how the manura should look. Mikah, the word which means hammered out hammered once against each other. It was made out of one solid piece of gold. It was banged with a hammer and it was used then with a chisel to be able to chisel out the proper and hammer out the proper uh shape of the actual manura. It was not made different parts and then the parts connected with one another. It was made as one solid piece chiseled and hammered out as one. is the base. The actual box on the bottom which was sitting on the little legs on the bottom was empty. This base was a box on the bottom that was sitting on legs was empty. It sat the poles and thank the candalabbras that are there in front of ministers and and so on from its base until its flower meaning the entirety of the manora the entirety of the candalabra from the bottom to the top was all made out of one thing meaning it's a terminology whether it's the base that the which was a massive part of the monuro or the flower which was a small detail in the mono Torah was all hammered out of one piece. The word usually can mean until but in this case where uses the word ad means including its entirety trying to show how from the smallest to the greatest and this is found in other terminologies as well in the book of judges where he wants to talk about from the uh every single part of the polish uh entity that Samson destroyed it uses also the word ad. So Rashi is showing us how this word is used when I want to show the entirety of something like the exact image that God showed him on the mountain. God says in the book of Exodus you will see how I show it to you and this is the way you should mold it and this is the way you should make it. So too the manura was made. If you look, it doesn't say who made the minora. It doesn't say who made it explains that it was actually made by God. That God told him because it was a very complex piece of construct to be able to make. So therefore, God told Moses, just take the gold, throw it into the fire, and out came this beautiful manura. Verse five. And God said to Moshe, saying, "At this point now, we're going to go to where are the Levites were installed to do the work in the holy temple. Take the Levites from amongst the Jewish people and purify them." What does it mean you should take? You're going to persuade them with words by telling them, "Lucky are you that you can be God's servants. Seven, this is what you're going to do to them to purify them. Number one, you're going to sprinkle on them the purification water and then you're going to have them shave all their skin with a razor. They will then wash their clothes. They're going to have to wash their garments varu and they will be purified. Rashi Which kind of sprinkling water are they going to have to use? They're going to have to use the blood of the red heer, the ashes of the red heer, which is called the holy water because they were uh they may have come in contact with the dead body. Therefore, they needed to be purified and that was done through the ash and the purification of the u of the red heer. Virus, what does it mean? Meaning that they should shave mats. They have to shave their entire body. we I found discussed in the words of the reason of why the Levites had because they were chosen to serve instead as an atonement as we're soon going to read later instead of the firstborn. The firstborn served idolatry by the sin of the golden calf which initially they were supposed to be the ones to serve in the holy temple. Serving idolatry is called serving the dead. And a person who is in that has the disease is also called a person of dead. Therefore they had to come clean. Meaning as if a new entity replacing and an atonement for those who have done something which has to do with the dead. Therefore in the same way in mitsra a person who has to get rid of his saras has to shave off that leion. So too they had to take they had to be shaved as well. Verse eight. Then they're going to take a young bull and its meal offering, its grain offering made up of refined flour mixed with oil. Then they will take a second young bull for a sin offering. This would be for a scent offering because as it says afterwards, they'll take the first one and bring it as a scent offering. And the ascent offering was for an atonement for the sin of a desire of idolatry. Why does the verse have to tell me a second one? If it says already, take one. Now, if he's taking a second one, I know it's a second one to tell you just like the ascent offering goes completely consumed on the altar and is not eaten. So too this sin offering is different than all other sin offerings will not be eaten as this is for a sin offering but for a communal sin offering and a communal sin offering is not eaten. We have a reliance from another verse in the book of Leviticus that helps us understand this. And Rashi says that I say this is not generally to um this is not a proof that this is a sin for idolatry necessarily but this was a specific time related uh law which was something which was specific for that time that the sin offering will not be eaten. They really should have brought a goat together with the sin offering for with the bull for the ascent offering as over here they were told to bring another bull offering and that was going to be for a sin offering and not going to be consumed. This was only for this time period that they were going to do it. Verse N. You will bring the Levites in front of the tent of meeting. And you will gather the entire congregation of the Israelites. Why are you going to gather them? What's the purpose of you're installing the Levites? Why did the Israelites have to be there? Because the Levites are the ones bringing the sin offering instead of them. And therefore the Jewish people when you bring a sacrifice instead of somebody else that person has to stand there put their hands on the animal and thereby you give over that obligation to the individual that's doing it for you. Over here the Levites are doing it for the Israelites and therefore the Israelites had to give it over to the Levites. Verse 10. You're going to bring the Levites before God and then the Israelites will then place their hands upon the Levites. similar to way a person puts it on an offering as for an atonement. So too, they're giving the Levites that they will be in theirstead. Verse 11. Then Aaron will then lift up the Levite family and make them as a wave offering in front of God from the Jewish people that they are now dedicated because you're presenting something in yourstead just like you would do with a sacrifice and they will be to serve the service of God. Rashi explains why does Aaron have to lift him as a wave offering just like when you bring an offering for you have to wave it while it's still alive. You'll find that it says three times waving in this week's Torah reading number one wave. Number two that they will wave it before God. Number three that it was waved. What is this talking about? Not that they waved all the Levites three times but each one was a different family. The first time it talks about waving that Arab will have to lift them. It's talking about the family of therefore it says by them that they will serve the holy work because they were the ones responsible to carry the holiest items which were the ark, the table, the altar and so on. The second time is for the family of Gersian. And therefore it says because also the Mari the Gersham family had a holy work that they would carry. They would carry the curtains as well as the things that were seen on the inside of the holy temple. The third time where it just uses the terminology annual wave without even saying God's name. That's the Marari family because they were the ones that were just carrying the pillars and anything on the external on the outside of the holy temple. Verse 12, how the Levites will place their hands on the heads of the bulls. One will be made a sin offering and the second and the other one will be done as an ascent offering to God to atone for the Levites. 13. And then you will present the Levites in front of in front of his children. And you will wave them as a wave offering before God. Verse 14. And you will separate, you will segregate the you will set them apart from amongst the rest of the Jewish people and the Levites will become mine. This concludes the first Torah reading from Paras Bahalosa.