Shoftim: The Violence That Saved Klal Yisroel

Hi, this is David Alansky with the Parsha in 5, where in 5 minutes we try to give you a little insight into the Parsha. And this week is Parsha Shoftim. And I want to read you something that's close to my heart, what with being a Kohen and all. So, we Kohanim, we don't get land in Israel. Uh but we get certain gifts that the Jewish people give us. We get Trumah Gedolah, we get Trumas Ma'aser. Yeah, we get Reishis HaGez, the first of the wool. Uh we get certain things that that we get the Pidyon HaBen. Yeah, we get the Bechor of the cows and the sheeps and the goats. So, we uh we we get certain gifts, but there's one gift that's in this week's Parsha. I'm reading Perek Ches, Pasuk Gimmel. V'zeh yihiyeh mishpat hakohanim me'eis ha'am. This is what the Kohanim get from the people. Me'ei zovchei hazevach, when they shecht an animal, im shor im seh, whether it's a sheep or a goat, including in sheep really means bovines and ovines, so it includes the goats. Nosen lakohain hazroa v'halchayaim v'hakeiva. You will give to them the forearm, the cheeks, and the stomach. Says Rashi, "Hazroa, min haperesh shel ha'akov ad kaf hayad." The bottom part of the leg. "Halchayaim, the cheeks, im halashon." They also get the tongue. And they get the keiva, the stomach. Now says Rashi, "Durchei shmuos hayu omerim." Yeah, the people who tell us, give us explanations, write writes the following reason why the Kohanim get this. Z'riah tachas yad vayikach ramach ramach b'yado. All of this is because of what Pinchas did against the Zimri. He picked up the spear with his hand. That's why for all generations the Kohen gets the hand of the cow. L'chayim, he gets the cheeks and the tongue. Tachas fila shenemar vayomer Pinchas vayifallel. Pinchas davened. V'akevas ha'isha el kavosah. And they get the keva because when he stuck the spear in between Zimri and Kozbi, he stuck it right through over there uh that part of the body. It's an amazing thing. We look at what Pinchas did. Remember when Pinchas did it, he wasn't even a Kohen. He saw that there was a plague that was devastating Klal Yisrael. And he saw the reason. And he saw nobody was doing anything. And Zimri, who according to one view in the Gemara was actually Shaul ben ha'Kena'anis, 250 years old. And a princess of Midian. Pinchas, who was considered a relatively young person at the time, and like I say, he was not a Kohen even though his father was a Kohen, but there was no grandfather clause. It was just the children who would be born afterwards. Took the spear, risked his life, davened that he should be successful and that the plague should stop, and he stopped the plague. And in reward for that, he became a Kohen. Now, normally you don't become a Kohen when you do an act of violence. You become a cohain when you do acts of of loving kindness. You can become a levy by doing an act of violence. They they killed the people who served the ego. But that's not how you become a cohain. But it was only on the surface that it looked like an act of violence. He didn't do it as din to judge these people. He did it to save the Jewish people from destruction. And so that we should remember that Pinhas saved us because this this magefa that there was no limit to it. Would have destroyed the Jewish people. He stood up and he took his hand and he davened and he stuck in the stomach. And they said, "I want the Jewish people to always remember this and give these gifts to the Kohanim." Because the Kohanim sacrificed and worked to be able to save you. And that's always their job. So Aaron was an ish shalom. And it says Pinhas ben Elazar ben Aaron ha cohain, just like Aaron was ohav shalom, rodef shalom, loved peace and pursued peace, made peace between everybody. Pinhas did that too by stopping the plague. And so that we should remember that to all times, we give these things to the Kohanim. Because we should always appreciate that there are people who love us and are willing to take risks to preserve the Jewish people. Good Shabbos.