Beha'aloscha - 7th Portion

Join me as we learn Kumish for Shabas, the seventh Torah reading of Paras Balosa, chapter [clears throat] 11, verse 30. Yesterday's Torah reading, we read about the complaints that the Jewish people had against Moshe and God for the very fact that they wanted a change in the menu. They were asking for meat and some other complaints. And the very fact that Moshe and Moshe complained to God saying that it's too much for him to tolerate them, too much for him to handle of the many different complaints. Is he responsible to take care of all their different difficult needs? And therefore, God tells him that he's going to give him 70 elders who going to assist them in prophecy as well as that the Jewish people are going to get their request of meat. This week's story reading continues to tell us about that episode as the Jewish people eat their meat and the punishment that comes with it as well as the repercussions of the prophecy that Eldad and Maid who are now told as yesterday we spoke about that the Gersham came to say about the prophecy that Elder Maid were saying chapter 11:30 and Moshe gathered together with the elders of the Israel withdrew from the entrance of the tent of meeting and they went to the camp each person to his private tent [snorts] meaning what does it mean he gathered. So therefore, Rashi explains they left from the entrance of the tent of meeting and each which was in the Levite and they went to their tent to their respective places where Moshe went to the tent to the Levite campa to the camp meaning that the elders not only did Moshe go back to his place but also the elders they all went to their tents. [snorts] Now Rashi goes back to the word ve because the word ve generally means to gather as we find that the people of Ley gathered to him. So over here the meaning seems like they departed they gathered into their home and that's what Rashi explains here meaning that they went into their home. We find this also as well in book of Deuteronomy when it tells about when you find a lost item, you will gather it into your home until your brother comes to ask you for it. When we find it in one place, we use it as a source for all other places as well. And thereby there's also other places where we find for example in a person gathers all time of harvest but he doesn't know who is going to be to want to actually bring it into the home teaches us over here why does the Torah have to tell us that they all went into their homes that being that we're soon going to learn about the punishment that was given to the evil people that were complaining that God waited for each one of these holy and righteous ious people to enter their home until he brought upon the punishment on the others. Verse 31, and a wind went from God. This is the following morning being that was the 20th of year. We're now talking about the 21st of year when God told them that they're going to get meat. What happened that the meat came? A wind went forth from God [snorts] and it swept up quail from the sea and it spread it all over the camp. It was about a day's journey this way and about a day's journey that way and it was all around the camp and about two cubits above the ground meaning that they came very low. So they're way this way the people were able to catch them. Let's see. What does the word mean? That he made the wind blow. We find similar in that the person's life goes fleeting by so to where it talks about the prophecy as well. The word means in this case and it spread over the camp. So Rashi tells us this comes from the word that it spread over as it says in the book of Samuel that they were spread out over the land that I spread you out in the desert. It was about two cubits above the ground. It was flying the height which is right by the heart or chest of the human being. like God made it that they shouldn't have to bother, shouldn't have to strain themselves, not to bend down to pick it up or not to climb high to try to get them. [snorts] Verse 32. And the people got up, the people arose and gathered that day. The all that night, the following day was and they gathered the quail. The person who gathered the most the minimal amount, the least gathered 10, [snorts] which is about 85 cubic feet. And they once they slaughter them, they spread them out in layers around the camp. What does it mean? The guy that collected the least out of all them. For example, the lazy people or the people who are limping that are not able to walk well. Collected 10 piles. 10 piles as we mentioned was a distance. It was about 85 cubic feet. [snorts] What is it? Because they got so much and they were worried that it might get ruined and smell. So therefore and they made them into big piles in it in its width. So this way the sun should um come on them and should dry them out quickly and this way it should not become spoiled. Verse 33, the meat was still between their teeth. before they even finished biting it. And the anger of Hashem bec and God became angry at them and God made gave them a mighty blow in killing many people. like the says they still didn't even finish chewing the meat. Another explanation, he didn't even have a chance to bite into it with his teeth until he was already killed. When they called the name of that place, the graves of the craving because there they were buried the people who were craving. 35 Sativa from the place called Kra Sativa, which is now the next day. [snorts] Uh they continue then to travel. They traveled to and they were and they stayed in for a full week as we will now recount in the next uh chapter. Chapter 12 verse one. And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moshe regarding the Kushite woman that Moshe took. because he married a Kushit woman. What is Kushit? What are we referring to? As Rashi is going to explain. Just a little preface. If you recall, we mentioned previously that Gersum came and told and said and told Moshe that Elder Deeda prophesizing that Yeshua is going to die and that Moshe is going to die and Yeshua is going to be a successor. This has to do with what Miriam was talking about. Let's see. and she spoke. Why does this use the terminology instead of as it also means to say whenever we find a terminology of means more harshed kind of words we find is that Judah tells his father that Joseph spoke to them harshly when we find the word that's more of a peacement or mercy more of a more subtle way of talking as it says the same portion over there in Genesis where he says my brothers were actually from Lot asking the people of Sodom please don't harm the angels that came to visit or he says please listen to my words it's always words of pleading every time it says the word which is a terminology of plead and Marin spoke why does it say Miriam before Aaron because he is the one that began speaking Therefore, the Torah says her name first. And how do we know? How did Miriam know that Moshe separated from his wife? says Miriamatip. What happened was and this is the story because we mentioned over here that Miriam spoke about the wife that Moshe had his Kushit wife that he's now separated from her. What was it and how did Miriam know that Sapora was separated from Moshe? And he says that Miriam was standing at the side of Sapor the wife of Moshe when it was told by Gam that Eld and Maid were prophesizing in the camp. When Sapor heard these words, she said, "Woe is to the wives of these individuals if they are going to prophesize. because they're going to separate from their wives the same way my husband separated from me once he became a prophet and from there Miriam found out about it and she went to tell Aaron because of it if Miriam Narashi goes on to say if Miriam who did not intend to gossip about Zapora or Moshe but was looking for the benefit of both of them and she is still punished. How much more so to somebody who intends to gossip and slander his friend? How much more so the punishment is to them? What does it mean the wife? It doesn't mean necessarily that she was coming. Generally the word kushit is translated as the word black. It wasn't saying that talking about her specifically about her color. But actually what this is talking about It's it's telling us over here. Uh and the reason why we can't say that she was black anyway is because the people that were black were from the family of those came from the land of Kush. She was the daughter of Yro who was the from Midian the Midionites who was from the children of Cura who were from the wife of Ara. So they were so they came from Av technically. But what is this telling us? It's telling us that everybody agreed how beautiful she was. The same way everybody will agree black is black. So too they all agree that she everybody would say and that Tapora was good was beautiful. The word Kushis the letters Kushis is gimatria is in the same numeric value as very beautiful looking which is 736. What does it mean about the woman? Meaning about the fact that Moshe divorced his wife. Why does the Torah have to repeat and say about the woman he took? And then it says that he took a woman. What is the Torah telling us that again? That he took up a woman. You can have a woman who's beautiful in the way she looks, but she's not so beautiful in the way she behaves. And then you can have one You can have one that behaves beautifully, but she doesn't she's not good-looking. She was good-looking. She was beautiful in her complexion and the way she looked. And she was beautiful in her action and in her deeds. Rashi then continues meaning uh a person is called by who they are. Meaning because she was beautiful, she was called Kushit. like a person who calls his son beautiful. That's a terminology. It's like a nickname that you would give to a person. Now, why did she call him cushy black if he was beautiful? This was using a different kind of term like a nickname or an exaggeration or a slang to be able to avoid a bad eye. He married this woman and she is so beautiful in the way she behaves and the way she looks. And what did he do now? He divorced her. And that's what they were discussing when they said this uh they said is hasm only spoken to Moshe God also spoke to us and God heard what they said only with him did God speak and just because God spoke to us we didn't stop living with our spouses. The Torah now tells us that Moshe was the most humble of all people that were on the face of the earth. Anov, what does the word of mean? Shuffle. He was humble and tolerant. Meaning that he would say that if somebody else would have this position, they would do a better job. And he would also tolerate the people that say poke things at him as we're going to see later on in so on. And God said suddenly to Moshe to come out all three of you to the tent of meeting all three went out. What does the word mean? He revealed to them subtly without any preparation and they could have been impure because of their intimate relations. They were saying that we need water to immerse ourselves before we go talk to God. Why did God come specifically at this time? Because to let them know that this was the correct thing that Moshe did that he separated from his wife. seeing at this time that they would have to go quickly and immerse themselves in the mikvah because they had to immerse themselves after the intimate relations that they were with their spouses. Therefore, God showing them, look, you know why Moshe had to separate himself? Because he also has to be always ready at any time for God to come and appear himself to him. And there was no set time that God would come to him, teaching us that all three of them were called at once. This is something which is impossible that every every person should hear a message at the exact same time but nobody else heard it the other one knew it. That was unique quality and miracle of this statement. Verse five. And God descended in the pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting and he called and they both went out. He went alone meaning without any escorts of angels. Not like the person of flesh and blood. A man, a king of flesh and blood, when he goes out to war, goes out with a bunch of assistants and a whole escort to make sure that he's victorious and making sure to protect him. When he goes out for peace, goes out with less of an entourage because he's not concerned. God, however, he goes out to war alone. As it says, man, God is a man of war. when he goes out for peaceful talks and he goes with angels. It says that God when reveals he comes with thousands of angels and he calls he called them that they should be removed from Mosha and be able go towards where God was calling them. And the two of them went pull them away and separate them from because as we mentioned previously in the book of Genesis by Noah the Torah mentions this as well that when you talk about a person's praise you only say partially of his praise before him and all of his praise behind not in front of him we find as the Torah says it says that [snorts] he was righteous and but in front of him God only calls him as a righteous person. Another reason why God separated them from Moshe that Moshe should not hear how Aaron and Miriam are being um reprimanded. Verse six, and God said to them, "Please listen to my words. If there was ever a prophet amongst you love I Hashem make myself known to him in a vision in a vision I will speak with him in a dream means please God saying listen to what I have to say and don't get so confused if you're going to have prophets later on in generations you should know I do not appear to them in a clear literally means a magnifying glass meaning a very clear lens that they're able to see what's going on. Only through a vision and a dream. However, Moshe is different. Moshe is not the same because with Moshe, he is faithful throughout my household. Verse eight. When I speak to him, I speak to him mouthto mouth. Meaning is in a vision and not and without riddles and ambiguously without any riddles. And behold the image of God he can see. Why did you were not why were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moshe? this that you're talking about him. I don't speak to him through an angel. I told him clearly. I'm the one that told him to separate from his wife. You may ask where did God actually tell him? But because it says by Mount Si tells everybody else, "Go and return back to your tents and go be come back with your wives." However, God tells Moshe, "You stand here with me." When we talk about vision, this talks about an ambigu unambiguously meaning that you're able to see it in the words that he's saying. He understands and articulates. He knows what to say. I explain to my words by the very fact that is so clear that there's no way that you can translate other ways and I don't um block it with different riddles or par parables. Like it says the prophecy is told him as a riddle. I would think that maybe this is talking about the vision of the divine presence. It can't be referring to the divine presence because previously when in the Torah reading of in the book of Exodus where Moshe says I want to see God's face, God says you can't see God's face. So what is he talking about a vision here? The vision here is that the words that God tells him are so clear that's that they're unambiguous. What does it mean? The vision of God that he sees. This is the back. As we learned again in the back of in the book of Exodus that he was able to see the back of God but not the front. It doesn't say my servant Moshe but it says my servant in Moshe meaning in my servant even though he's not Moshe in Mosha even if he's not my servant meaning the greatness that he has this was a person who I chose him to be my servant even though you may not may say he may not be as righteous but he also chose him to be Moshe that he should be mine even if he wasn't my servant or even if he wasn't Moshe. But the very fact that I chose him, you should have been careful not to speak about him. And the very fact now that even more, how much more so that he is my servant and that he is the king, the servant of the king of kings. You should have and the you should realize that the king loves him. The king doesn't love him for no reason. If you may say, well, I don't know why and so and therefore you and therefore I'm telling you meaning that the very fact that you made yourselves God. That you are the one that eyes and ears to see what the person should do and you could think that God doesn't see what's going on. That's even worse. Who are you to judge of why he's doing things? Verse 9. And God became angry with them and left. Once he let them know what they did wrong, he condemned them. And because of that, he left them and wasn't going to be in their presence. This is even more so when it comes to a person. When people are upset at one another, don't just be upset a person or get angry at somebody without telling them what they did wrong. Tell them what they did wrong. Express why you're upset at them. And only then you can then decide how you want to act accordingly. Verse 10, the cloud and departed from above the tent. And Miriam was then afflicted with Saras that she became white like snow and Aaron turned to Miriam and he saw behold behold she was a saras. Only after God's divine presence left, only then should did she become afflicted by the Toras. It's like a king who tells his educator, "Punish my son, please don't punish him until I go away because I don't want to see him being punished and then I'll have mercy on him and he won't get punished." And Aaron says to Moshe, "Please my master, do not hold us accountable for our sin that we have acted foolishly and that we have sinned." What does the word mean? Rashi explains like a person who's not that smart, meaning acting foolishly. Verse 12. Let her not remain like a dead person. For since she has also come out of our mother's womb, she's related. She's our her own flesh. She's our sister and half of our flesh is consumed. That leaving her in this state that she is now as if she is now afflicted. We're all afflicted because she's our flesh. As Rashi explains, meaning our sister like a person who's dead and the reason is because of considered as if they're dead just like a person who's dead will then makes anything impure that it goes anything that comes into its contact or even its tent will make it impure. So too anything that it comes in contact with wherever it will be will make it impure. That's why it has to go outside the camp. So it sure make everything pure meaning she is our sister that we were born from the same womb. He could have said our our mother the Torah changed it and made it in a way that not to include Miriam in it says his flesh not our flesh. He could have said that the Torah avoided from saying it that way. So therefore, it should not be able to or put them all in the same category. But that's what Ara meant to say that being that she came being that she came out of her mother's womb. So therefore, if she's suffering as if we're all suffering, this is similar that it says before in the book of Genesis that why should we pray for him? Because since he is brother and our flesh, this also seems like how you can read from the simple interpretation of the verse. It's not appropriate that a brother should allow his sister to be like like a dead person which is a person is considers as dead because this one came out of we came out of the same womb. meaning we are related and this brother has the ability to help and heal her and he doesn't help her and this is as if your half a flesh is eaten because this your brother is part of your flesh and therefore if a brother has the ability to help somebody else and help him get out of the predicament that they're in that brother should make sure to pray for them and get them out of that predicament. So over here we see um the two ways of looking at it. Either because pray for her because we're related and therefore you have you should help her or talking about in general that brothers coming out of a of shared family have a shared responsibility to take care of one another. Another explanation she should not be like a dead person. Meaning do not allow her to stay in the level of impurity. If you're not going to heal her with your prayer, who is going to be the one to condemn her and who's going to be the one to purify her? Meaning of as we learned in the book of Leviticus, the Taras for seven days has to go into quarantine and only and after that they can be in that moment where they get purification from a cohen. Who's going to be the one to do it? Ana, I'm not able to do it. He says as a I'm related to her and according to Jewish law because a relative has a biasness he can't be the one to determine if a person if his own relative has another there is no other coin that's not related to her because the only coam that existed was Aaron and his two sons and they were all related to her and therefore he says therefore he says because we are related nobody's going to be able to heal her so the only way she can get healed is if you pray for Verse and Moshe cried out to God saying, "Please God, heal her." The Torah over here is telling us that the proper way a person should pray that when somebody asks for something, he shouldn't quickly ask. the first thing asked. When a person asks for something, it's not appropriate to go right away and ask. First say some nice things and afterwards you say um you ask your request. That's why he starts off with the words kale which is God's name of kindness. No, please. And then he says you can heal her. What does it mean so to say? Who is he saying it to? This is the way God said to God. This is what Moshe said to God. Answer me, are you going to heal her or not? Until God answered that we find the next few verses where it says that her father were to spit in her face, would she not be humiliated? This was what God answered to Moshe. says in four places we find that Moshe asked God will you respond or not and he was waiting for a response in our case where he asks are you going to heal Miriam God spoke to Mo front of God saying Moshe spoke in front of God saying this was in front of Pharaoh where he says how is Pharaoh going to listen how how are the Jews going to listen if the how is Pharaoh going to listen if the Jews themselves didn't listen and in that case what does it mean so to speak tell me are you going to take the Jewish people out of Egypt or not that's when God responded now you'll see the great miracles that will happen another case we find which is in the book of Deuteronomy God spoke to Moshe spoke to God where Moshe [snorts] asks of God that somebody should be appointed as a successor for the Jewish people and that's what God responds him Yeshua and he be the one to be the successor. We find in another case as well says I pray to God if I'm going to go into the land of Israel and what does God respond? No, you're not going to go in and stop asking please heal her. This seems like a very quick prayer. Why didn't Moshe say a longer prayer and asking of God? This was because he was worried that the Jewish people shouldn't say his sister over here is suffering and he's taking his time and praying another explanation people wouldn't shouldn't say because of his sister he's extending his time in praying because that's his sister but for us he doesn't extend himself and pray for a long time. Verse 14. God responded to Moshe. If her father were to be upset with her and spit in her face, would she not be humiliated for seven days? Therefore, in this case as well, she should be confined for seven days outside the campf. And afterward, she can be rejoin. And that's when they will continue to travel. >> [snorts] >> Rashi had her if her father were to be upset then spit in her face. What does this mean? Doesn't mean literally that he would spit in her face if her father would show her that he's upset with her. Would he not be humiliated by her? Would he not be upset or be embarrassed for seven days? It's more so for the divine presence that at least technically should be 14 days, but it's worthy enough that the one that we're learning it from should be like to who we're judging it for being that I take it. If she were to embarrass her father, she would be embarrass and she would be put aside for seven days. So too being that technically it should be for 14 days. But being that I'm comparing it to her father, so therefore it's only going to be for seven days. Then she will rejoin meaning afterwards she'll then be healed from her and then she can join. I say anytime we say joining or recalling when it comes to a person with The reason why you have to recall them is because they went outside the camp and now when they're healed they rejoin in the camp. So therefore it's called gathering that they come back and they enjoy in everybody else. Verse 15 was therefore was confined to outside the camp for seven days as God said and the people did not travel until Miriam returned and reunited with them in the camp. Um, the Jewish people did not travel. This was respect that all the people gave her that everybody waited for her. Because if you recall, Miriam was the one that stood on the side of the Nile River when Moshe was in a small basket waiting uh when his mother put him in a basket of Nile River until the princess of Egypt came to get fetcher. who was the one that was fetchim and who was the one standing on the side watching him was Miriam and because of that the Jewish people waited for her as well seven days when she waited for Moshe while he was thrown into the Nile River as it says in the book of Exodus that the sister stood on the side to see what were happened for him and because of that she was rewarded that everybody waited for her as well as well. As we see over here, Miriam was not punished that severely that she would have to have the 14 days. And that is because technically speaking, it wasn't that she was speaking ill against Moshe. God felt that it was ill against Moshe because she was uh mingling into their private affairs. However, she meant for the good and therefore she got not as a severe punishment. Afterwards, the Jewish people traveled from Pon and they settled and they camped in the Poron desert. This concludes the Torah reading of Bahalosa.