|
Esnoga Bet Emunah 1101 Surrey Trace SE, Tumwater, WA 98501 United
States of America © 2012 E-Mail: gkilli@aol.com |
|
Esnoga Bet El 102
Broken Arrow Dr. Paris
TN 38242 United
States of America © 2012 E-Mail: waltoakley@charter.net |
Triennial Cycle (Triennial Torah Cycle) /
Septennial Cycle (Septennial Torah Cycle)
|
Three and
1/2 year Lectionary Readings |
Fourth Year of the Reading
Cycle |
|
Shebat 25, 5772 – Feb. 17/18, 2012 |
Fourth Year of the Shmita
Cycle |
Candle Lighting and Habdalah Times:
|
Conroe &
Austin, TX, U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 6:03 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:58 PM |
Brisbane,
Australia Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 6:14 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 7:07 PM |
Bucharest,
Romania Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:28 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:31 PM |
|
Chattanooga, & Cleveland, TN, U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 6:07 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 7:04 PM |
Jakarta,
Indonesia Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:58 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:47 PM |
Manila & Cebu, Philippines Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:43 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:33 PM |
|
Miami,
FL, U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:57 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:50 PM |
Olympia,
WA, U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:20 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:26 PM |
Murray,
KY, & Paris, TN. U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:18 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:16 PM |
|
Sheboygan & Manitowoc, WI, US Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:05 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:08 PM |
Singapore,
Singapore Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 7:03 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 7:52 PM |
St.
Louis, MO, U.S. Fri. Feb
17 2012 – Candles at 5:22 PM Sat. Feb
18 2012 – Havdalah 6:21 PM |
For other places see: http://chabad.org/calendar/candlelighting.asp
Roll of Honor:
This
Torah commentary comes to you courtesy of:
His Honor
Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David and beloved wife HH Giberet Batsheva bat Sarah
His Honor
Paqid Adon Mikha ben Hillel
His Honor
Paqid Adon David ben Abraham
Her
Excellency Giberet Sarai bat Sarah & beloved family
His Excellency
Adon Barth Lindemann & beloved family
His Excellency
Adon John Batchelor & beloved wife
His
Excellency Adon Ezra ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Karmela bat Sarah,
His
Excellency Dr. Adon Yeshayahu ben Yosef and beloved wife HE Giberet Tricia
Foster
His
Excellency Adon Yisrael ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Elisheba bat
Sarah
His
Excellency Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Vardit bat
Sarah
Her
Excellency Giberet Laurie Taylor
His Honor
Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat
Sarah
Her
Excellency Prof. Dr. Conny Williams & beloved family
Her
Excellency Giberet Gloria Sutton & beloved family
His
Excellency Adon Albert Carlsson and beloved wife Giberet Lorraine Carlsson
For their regular and sacrificial giving, providing
the best oil for the lamps, we pray that G-d’s richest blessings be upon their
lives and those of their loved ones, together with all Yisrael and her Torah
Scholars, amen ve amen!
Also a
great thank you and great blessings be upon all who send comments to the list
about the contents and commentary of the weekly Torah Seder and allied topics.
If you want to subscribe to our list and ensure that
you never lose any of our commentaries, or would like your friends also to
receive this commentary, please do send me an E-Mail to benhaggai@GMail.com with
your E-Mail or the E-Mail addresses of your friends. Toda Rabba!
This Torah Seder Commentary is dedicated to Her
Excellency Giberet Lorraine Carlsson on occasion of her birthday. We wish her a
Yom Huledet Sameach! – a most wonderful Happy Birthday! May she be granted from
above, long life, very good health, much happiness and the opportunity to
perform many and wonderful deeds of loving-kindness together with all the women
of valour in Yisrael, amen ve amen!
Shabbat Shekalim & Shabbat
Mevar’chin HaChodesh Adar
Sabbath of the Sacred Half Shekels
& Proclamation of the New Moon of Adar
(Wednesday Evening22nd of February – Friday
Evening 24th of February 2012)
|
Shabbat |
Torah
Reading: |
Weekday
Torah Reading: |
|
מַחֲצִית
הַשֶּׁקֶל |
|
|
|
“MaChatsit
HaSheqel” |
Reader
1 – Sh’mot 30:1-5 |
Reader
1 – B’Midbar 7:48-50 |
|
“Half
a Shekel” |
Reader
2 – Sh’mot 30:6-10 |
Reader
2 – B’Midbar 7:51-53 |
|
“Medio
Shequel” |
Reader
3 – Sh’mot 30:11-16 |
Reader
3 – B’Midbar 7:48-53 |
|
Shemot (Exodus) 30:1-38 B’Midbar (Num.) 28:9-15 |
Reader
4 – Sh’mot 30:17-21 |
|
|
Ashlamatah: II Kings 11:17–12:17 |
Reader
5 – Sh’mot 30:22-25 |
|
|
Special: I Samuel 20:18, 42 |
Reader
6 – Sh’mot 30:26-33 |
Reader
1 – B’Midbar 7:48-50 |
|
Psalm 104:1-35 |
Reader
7 – Sh’mot 30:34-38 |
Reader
1 – B’Midbar 7:51-53 |
|
Mishle (Proverbs) Proverbs 7:1-27 |
Maftir – Sh’mot 28:9-15 |
Reader
1 – B’Midbar 7:48-53 |
|
N.C.: Matityahu (Matt.) 17:24-27 |
II Kings 11:17–12:17 I Samuel 20:18, 42 |
|
Blessings Before Torah Study
Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d, King of the universe, Who
has sanctified us through Your commandments, and commanded us to actively study
Torah. Amen!
Please Ha-Shem, our G-d, sweeten the words of Your Torah in
our mouths and in the mouths of all Your people Israel. May we and our
offspring, and our offspring's offspring, and all the offspring of Your people,
the House of Israel, may we all, together, know Your Name and study Your Torah
for the sake of fulfilling Your desire. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Who teaches
Torah to His people Israel. Amen!
Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d, King of the universe, Who
chose us from all the nations, and gave us the Torah. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem,
Giver of the Torah. Amen!
Ha-Shem spoke to Moses, explaining a Commandment.
"Speak to Aaron and his sons, and teach them the following Commandment:
This is how you should bless the Children of Israel. Say to the Children of
Israel:
May Ha-Shem bless you and keep watch over you; - Amen!
May Ha-Shem make His Presence enlighten you, and may He be
kind to you; - Amen!
May Ha-Shem bestow favor on you, and grant you peace. –
Amen!
This way, the priests will link My Name with the Israelites,
and I will bless them."
These are the Laws for which the Torah did not mandate
specific amounts: How much growing produce must be left in the corner of the
field for the poor; how much of the first fruits must be offered at the Holy
Temple; how much one must bring as an offering when one visits the Holy Temple
three times a year; how much one must do when doing acts of kindness; and there
is no maximum amount of Torah that a person must study.
These are the Laws whose benefits a
person can often enjoy even in this world, even though the primary reward is in
the Next World: They are: Honouring one's father and mother; doing acts of
kindness; early attendance at the place of Torah study -- morning and night;
showing hospitality to guests; visiting the sick; providing for the financial
needs of a bride; escorting the dead; being very engrossed in prayer; bringing
peace between two people, and between husband and wife; but the study of Torah
is as great as all of them together. Amen!
Contents of the Torah Seder
·
The Altar of Incense – Ex. 30:1-10
·
The Law of The Shekel – Ex. 30:11-16
·
The Laver – Ex. 30:17-21
·
The Anointing Oil – Ex. 30:22-33
·
The Holy Incense – Ex. 30:34-38
Rashi & Targum Pseudo Jonathan
for: Shemot (Exodus) 30:1-38
|
RASHI |
TARGUM PSEUDO JONATHAN |
|
1 ¶ You will make an altar to burn incense. Make it out
of Acacia wood. |
1 And you will make an altar on which to burn incense
of perfumes: of sitta wood will you make it. |
|
2 It will be one amoh long and one amoh wide, it
will be a square, and two amohs high. Its horn-like elevations will be of one
piece with it. |
2 A cubit its length, and a cubit its breadth;
foursquare will it be: and two cubits its height: and its upright horns will
be of it. |
|
3 You will overlay it with pure gold, on its top, its
walls all around, and its horn-like elevations, and make a gold crown-like
rim all around it. |
3 And you will overlay it with pure gold, its top, and
its wall round about, and its horns; and make for it a border of gold round
about. |
|
4 Make two gold rings for it under its crown-like rim,
on two of its corners. Make them on its two opposite sides. They will house
the poles with which it is carried. |
4 And two golden rings make you for it beneath its
border at the two corners, you will make upon its two sides, to be the place
for the staves by which it may be carried. |
|
5 Make the poles out of acacia wood and overlay them
with gold. |
5 And you will make the staves of sitta wood, and cover
them with gold. |
|
6 Place it in front of the parochet that is by the Ark
of the Testimony, in front of the covering that is on the Testimony where I
will meet with you there. |
6 And you will place it before the veil which is over
the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is upon the testimony,
where I will appoint My Word to be with you. |
|
7 Aharon will burn upon it incense of spices. Every
morning when he cleans the lamps, he will burn it. |
7 And Aharon will burn sweet incense upon it from
morning to morning: when he orders the lamps, be will burn it. |
|
8 And when Aharon lights the lamps in the afternoon, he
will burn it. It is a continual incense-offering before Adonai for you
generations. |
8 And when Aharon kindles the lamps between the
evenings, he will burn sweet incense perpetually before the Lord in your
generations. |
|
9 Do not bring upon it strange [unauthorized] incense; neither
burnt-offerings nor meal-offerings. You will not pour a libation-offering
upon it. |
9 You will not offer thereon the sweet incense of
strange peoples, nor offer upon it burnt offerings, or minchas, nor pour
libations. |
|
10 Aharon will make atonement on its horn-like
elevations once each year. With the blood of the sin-offering of atonement,
he will make atonement on it once each year for your generations. It is Holy
of Holies to Adonai. |
10 And Aharon will expiate upon its horns once in the
year with the blood of the sin offering for an expiation: once in the year
will he make atonement upon it on the day of atonement in your generations:
it will be most holy before the Lord. |
|
|
|
|
11 ¶ Adonai spoke to Moshe, saying, |
11 And the Lord spoke unto Mosheh, saying, |
|
12 "When you take the count of the B'ne
Yisrael to determine their numbers, each man will give an atonement pledge
for his soul to Adonai, when you count them. Thus there will be no plague
among them when you count them. |
12 When you take the sum of the sons of Israel
according to their number, they will give every man the ransom of their souls
before the Lord when you number them; that there may not be among them the
calamity of death when you dost number them. [JERUSALEM. When you take the
head of the number of the sums of the sons of Israel.] |
|
13 Everyone passing by to be counted must give
this--- half a shekel based on the shekel of the Holy [Sanctuary,] where a
shekel is twenty gerah. Half of such a shekel must be given as a
terumah-offering to Adonai. |
13 This valuation was shown to Mosheh in the
mountain as with a denarius of fire, and thus spoke He to him: So will every
one who passes to the numbering give a half shekel of the coin of the
sanctuary: (a half shekel is twenty manin:) the half shekel is to be the
separation before the Lord. |
|
14 Everyone passing by to be counted, from [age] twenty
years and older, must give a terumah-offering to Adonai. |
14 Every one who passes to the numbering, from a son of
twenty years and upwards, will give the separation before the Lord. |
|
15 The rich will not give more, and the poor will not
give less than half a shekel, when giving this terumah-offering to Adonai to
atone for your souls. |
15 He who is rich will not add to, and he who is poor
will diminish from, the half shekel in giving the separation before the Lord,
to atone for your souls. |
|
16 Take this atonement money from the B'ne Yisrael and
donate it for the work of the Tent of Meeting. It will be a remembrance for
the B'ne Yisrael before Adonai to atone for your souls." |
16 And you will take the silver of the ransom from the
sons of Israel, and apply it to the work of the tabernacle of ordinance; that
it may be for the sons of Israel for a good memorial before the Lord, as a
ransom for your souls. |
|
|
|
|
17 ¶ Adonai spoke to Moshe, saying: |
17 And the Lord spoke to Mosheh, saying, |
|
18 "Make a copper wash basin and its copper base
for washing; and place it between the Tent of Meeting and the Altar, and put
water in it. |
18 And you will make a laver of brass, and its
foundation of brass, for purification; and will set it between the tabernacle
of ordinance and the altar, and put water therein. |
|
19 Aharon and his sons will wash from it their hands
and their feet. |
19 And they will take from it for a cleansing ablution.
And Aharon and his sons will sanctify their hands and their feet with its
water; |
|
20 Before entering the Tent of Meeting they must wash
with water and they will not die, or whenever they approach the Altar for
Divine service, or to burn a fire-offering to Adonai. |
20 at the time of their entering into the tabernacle of
ordinance they will sanctify with water, |
|
21 They must wash their hands and their feet and they
will not die. This is a perpetual statute for them, for him [Aharon] and his
descendants for all their generations." |
21 that they die not by the fiery flame: and it will be
to them an everlasting statute, to him and to his sons in their generations. |
|
|
|
|
22 ¶ Adonai spoke to Moshe saying. |
22 And the Lord spoke to Mosheh, saying, |
|
23 "You will take the finest spices, five hundred
[shekels] of pure myrrh, half portions of fragrant cinnamon, [consisting of]
two hundred and fifty shekels each, and two hundred and fifty [shekels] of
calamus spices. |
23 And you also take to you the first aromatics, choice
myrrh, in weight five hundred minas, and sweet cinnamon of half the weight,
two hundred and fifty minas, and sweet calamus in weight two hundred and
fifty minas |
|
24 [Also take] five hundred [shekels] of cassia based
on the shekel value of the Holy [Sanctuary], and a hin of olive oil. |
24 and cassia in weight five hundred minas of shekels,
in the shekel of the sanctuary, and olive oil a vase full, in weight twelve
logs, a log for each tribe of the twelve tribes. [JERUSALEM. And you take to
you the chief goodly spices, choice myrrh, in weight five hundred minas of
shekels.] |
|
25 Make it into sacred anointing oil, a blend made by a
[perfume] blender. It will be a sacred anointing oil. |
25 And you will make of it a holy anointing oil,
perfumed with perfume, the work of the perfumer, of compounded perfumes: a
holy anointing oil will it be. |
|
26 Anoint with it the Tent of Meeting, and the Ark of
the Testimony, |
26 And with it anoint you the tabernacle of ordinance,
and the ark of the testimony, |
|
27 And the Table and all its vessels, and the Menorah
and its vessels, and the Incense Altar, |
27 and the table and all its vessels, and the
candelabrum and its vessels, and the altar of sweet incense, |
|
28 And the Burnt-offering Altar and all its vessels,
and the wash basin and its base. |
28 and the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels,
and the laver and its foundation, |
|
29 Sanctify them and they will become holy of holies.
Anything that touches them will become holy. |
29 and consecrate them, and they will be most holy.
Every one of the priests who approaches to them will be sanctified; but of
the rest of the tribes, (whoever touches them) will be consumed by the fiery
flame from before the Lord. |
|
30 You will also anoint Aharon and his sons, and
sanctify them to serve Me as kohanim." |
30 But Aharon and his sons anoint you, and consecrate
them to minister before Me. |
|
31 Speak to the B'ne Yisrael, saying: "This will
be sacred anointing oil to Me for all your generations. |
31 And speak you to the sons of Israel, saying, This
will be a holy anointing oil before Me unto your generations. |
|
32 It must not be poured on the flesh of any man, and
its formula must not be duplicated. It is sacred. It must be sacred to you. |
32 Upon the flesh of man it may not be poured, and the
like of it you will not make to resemble it; unto you it will be most sacred.
|
|
33 If a person compounds a similar formula, or if he
places from it upon an unauthorized person, he will be cut off [spiritually]
from his people. |
33 The man who compounds the like of it, or putts it
upon the unconsecrated who are not of the sons of Aharon, will be destroyed
from his people. |
|
|
|
|
34 ¶ Adonai said to Moshe, Take for yourself spices,
stacte, onycha and galbanum, spices and pure frankincense. They will be of
equal weight. |
34 And the Lord said to Mosheh, Take to you spices,
balsam, and onycha, and galbanum, choice spices, and pure frankincense,
weight for weight will it be. [JERUSALEM. Balsam, spikenard‑myrrh, and galbanum.] |
|
35 Make it into incense, a blend blended by a blender,
thoroughly blended, pure and holy. |
35 And confect therewith a fragrant incense, the work
of the compounder, a pure and sacred mixture. [JERUSALEM. Commixed.] |
|
36 Pulverize some of it very finely and place it before
the [Ark of] Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It
will be holy of holies to you. |
36 And beat, and make it small, and of it some will you
put before the testimony in the tabernacle of ordinance, where I will appoint
My Word to be with you. Most sacred will it be to you. |
|
37 The incense you are making, its formula must not be
duplicated for you[r use]. It will be sacred to you for Adonai. |
37 And of the sweet incense you will make, the like
will not be made among you; it will be sacred to you before the Lord: |
|
38 A person who duplicates this formula to enjoy its
fragrance, will be cut off [spiritually] from his people." |
38 the man who makes the like of it to smell thereto
will be destroyed from his people. |
|
|
|
Welcome
to the World of P’shat Exegesis
In order to understand
the finished work of the P’shat mode of interpretation of the Torah, one needs
to take into account that the P’shat is intended to produce a catechetical
output, whereby a question/s is/are raised and an answer/a is/are given using
the seven Hermeneutic Laws of R. Hillel and as well as the laws of Hebrew
Grammar and Hebrew expression.
The Seven Hermeneutic
Laws of R. Hillel are as follows
[cf. http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=472&letter=R]:
1. Ḳal va-ḥomer: "Argumentum a
minori ad majus" or "a majori ad minus"; corresponding to the
scholastic proof a fortiori.
2. Gezerah shavah: Argument from
analogy. Biblical passages containing synonyms or homonyms are subject, however
much they differ in other respects, to identical definitions and applications.
3. Binyan ab mi-katub
eḥad:
Application of a provision found in one passage only to passages which are
related to the first in content but do not contain the provision in question.
4. Binyan ab mi-shene
ketubim:
The same as the preceding, except that the provision is generalized from two
Biblical passages.
5. Kelal u-Peraṭ
and Peraṭ u-kelal:
Definition of the general by the particular, and of the particular by the
general.
6. Ka-yoẓe bo
mi-maḳom aḥer:
Similarity in content to another Scriptural passage.
7. Dabar ha-lamed
me-'inyano:
Interpretation deduced from the context.
Rashi
Commentary for: Shemot (Exodus) 30:1-38
1 for
bringing incense up in smoke Heb. מִקְטַר
קְטֽרֶת , to raise smoke up on it, namely the smoke of incense.
3 its top This one
[altar] had a top. The altar for burnt offerings [i.e., the copper altar],
however, did not have a top, but the hollow space within it was filled with
earth whenever they camped.
a golden
crown This symbolized the crown of the kehunah.
4 its…
corners Heb. צַלְעֽתָיו . Here it is a term meaning corners, as the Targum
[Onkelos] renders, [unlike in Exod. 25:12, 26:20, 26, 27, where צֶלַע means a side,] because it says [further in the verse]: “on its
two sides,” [meaning] on its two corners that are on its two sides.
it should
serve Heb. וְהָיָה , lit., and it shall be [in the singular,
referring to] the making of these rings.
as
holders for the poles The ring [itself] shall be a holder for a pole.
6 in
front of the dividing curtain Perhaps you will say [that the altar should be]
removed or at a distance opposite the ark, either to the north or to the south.
Therefore, the Torah says: “in front of the ark cover,” meaning directly
opposite the ark on the outside [of the Holy of Holies]. -[from Baraitha
Melecheth HaMishkan, ch. 4,]
7 when he
sets… in order Heb. בְּהֵיטִיבוֹ , a word referring to the cleaning of the cups of
the menorah from the ashes of the wicks that burned at night. He would clean
them every morning.
the lamps Heb. הַנֵּרֽת . luzes, lozes, luses, luces in Old French,
[i.e.,] lamps. This is true of all נֵרוֹת mentioned in the context of the menorah, except
where הַעֲלָאָה , which is an expression of kindling, is
mentioned.
8 And
when… kindles Heb. וּבְהַעֲלֽת , lit., and when… causes to ascend. When he will
kindle them to cause their flame to ascend.
he shall
make it go up in smoke Every day, one pras in the morning and [one] pras in
the afternoon. -[from Ker. 6b]
9 You
shall offer up on it On this [golden] altar.
alien
incense Any donated incense; they are all alien except for
this one. -[from Men. 50a, b]
burnt
offering, or meal offering Neither burnt offerings nor meal offerings. A burnt
offering is one of an animal or fowl. A meal offering is one of bread.
10 But
Aaron shall make atonement [This refers to] applications of blood [on the horns
of the altar].
once a
year On Yom Kippur. This is what is stated in [parshath] “Acharei Moth”:
“And he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement
upon it” (Lev. 16:18).
the sin
offering of the atonements They are the bull and the kid of Yom Kippur, which
atone for ritual contamination regarding the sanctuary and its holy things.
-[from Shevuoth 2b]
a holy of
holies Heb. קֽדֶשׁ-קָדָשִׁים . The altar is sanctified for these things only,
and for no other service.
12 When
you take Heb. כִּי
תִשָׂא . [This is] an expression of taking, as the Targum [Onkelos]
renders. [I.e.,] when you wish to take the sum [total] of their numbers to know
how many they are, do not count them by the head, but each one shall give a
half- shekel, and you shall count the shekels. [Thereby] you will know their
number.
then
there will be no plague among them for the evil eye has power over numbered things, and
pestilence comes upon them, as we find in David’s time (II Sam. 24).
13 This
they shall give He [God] showed him [Moses] a sort of coin of fire
weighing half a shekel, and He said to him, “Like this one they shall give.”
-[from Tanchuma 9; Tanchuma Buber, Naso p. 35; Pesikta d’Rav Kahana 19a;
Midrash Psalms 91:1; Yerushalmi, Shekalim 1:4]
who goes
through the counting Heb. הָעֽבֵר
עַל-הַפְקֻדִים . It is customary for those who count to pass the
ones who have been counted one following another, and so [too the word יַעֲבֽר in] “each one that passes under the rod” (Lev. 27:32), and so
[the word תַּעֲבֽרְנָה in] “flocks will again pass under the hands of one
who counts them” (Jer. 33:13).
half a
shekel according to the holy shekel By the weight of the shekel that I fixed for you
[against which] to weigh the holy shekels, such as the shekels mentioned in the
section dealing with personal evaluations (Lev. 27:1-8) and [in the section
concerning] inherited fields (Lev. 27:16-21).
Twenty
gerahs equal one shekel Now He explains to you how much it is. gerahs Heb.
גֵרָה , a word meaning a ma’ah [a small coin]. Likewise, “will come
to prostrate himself before him for a silver piece (אֲגוֹרַתכֶּסֶף) and a morsel of bread” (I Sam. 2:36).
Twenty
gerahs equal one shekel for a whole shekel equals four zuzim, and the zuz was
originally five ma’oth, but they came and added a sixth to it and raised it to
six ma’oth of silver, and half of this shekel [of] which I have spoken to you
[here in this verse], they shall give as an offering to the Lord.
14 from
the age of twenty and upward [The Torah] teaches you here that no one under twenty
years old goes out [to serve] in the army or is counted among men.
15 to
atone for your souls That they should not be struck by a plague because of
the counting. Another explanation:
to atone
for your souls [This was written] because [God] hinted to them [the
Israelites] here [about] three offerings, because “an offering to the Lord” is
written here three times. The first [represents] the offering [of silver] for
the sockets [of the Mishkan], for he [Moses] counted them when they commenced
with the donations for the Mishkan. Everyone gave a half-shekel, amounting to
one hundred talents, as it is said: “And the silver of the community census was
one hundred talents” (Exod. 38:25). The sockets were made from this, as it is
said: “One hundred talents of the silver was [used to cast the sockets of the
Mishkan and the sockets of the dividing curtain]” (Exod. 38:27). The second
[offering mentioned here] was also [collected] through counting, for he [Moses]
counted them after the Mishkan was erected. This is the counting mentioned in
the beginning of the Book of Numbers: “on the first of the second month in the
second year” (Num. 1:1). [For this offering] everyone gave a half-shekel, [the
total of] which was [earmarked] for the purchase of communal sacrifices for
every year. The rich and poor were equal in them [i.e., they gave equally in
these two offerings]. Concerning that [second] offering, it is said: “to atone
for your souls,” because the sacrifices are brought for the purpose of
atonement. The third one [offering] is the offering for the Mishkan, as it is
said: “Whoever set aside an offering of silver or copper” (Exod. 35:24). In
this [offering] not everyone gave the same amount, but each one [gave]
according to what his heart inspired him to give. -[from Shekalim 2b]
16 and
use it for the work of the Tent of Meeting [From this] you learn that
they were commanded to count them at the beginning of the donation for the
Mishkan after the incident of the calf. [They were commanded then] because a
plague had befallen them, as it is said: “And the Lord plagued the people”
(Exod. 32:35). This can be compared to a flock of sheep, treasured by its
owner, which was stricken with pestilence. When it [the pestilence] was over,
he [the owner] said to the shepherd, “Please count my sheep to know how many
are left,” in order to make it known that he treasured it [the flock]
(Tanchuma, Ki Thissa 9). It is, however, impossible to say that this counting
[mentioned here] was the [same] one mentioned in the Book of Numbers, for in
that one [counting] it says: “on the first of the second month” (Num. 1:1), and
the Mishkan was erected on the first [day] of the first month, as it is said:
On the day of the first month, on the first of the month, you shall erect, etc.
(Exod. 40:2). The sockets were made from shekels realized from that counting,
as it is said: “One hundred talents of the silver were used to cast, etc.”
(Exod. 38:27). Thus you learn that they [the countings] were two—one at the
beginning of their donation [to the Mishkan] after Yom Kippur in the first year
[after the Exodus], and one in the second year in Iyar after the Mishkan had
been erected. Now if you ask, how is it possible that in both of these
countings the Israelites equaled six hundred three thousand, five hundred
fifty? In the case of the silver of the community census, it says this number,
and also in the Book of Numbers it says the same: “And all the counted ones
were six hundred three thousand, five hundred fifty” (Num. 1:46). Were they
[the countings] not in two [separate] years? It is impossible that in the first
census there were none who were nineteen years old and consequently not
counted, and by the second counting became twenty years old [and were counted].
The answer to this matter is that in the context of the ages of people, they
were counted in the same year, but in the context of the Exodus they [the two
dates] were two [separate] years, since [to figure the time] from the Exodus,
we count from [the month of] Nissan, as we learned in [tractate] Rosh Hashanah
(2b). In this context, the Mishkan was built in the first year [after the
Exodus] and erected in the second year, for the new year started on the first
of Nissan. People’s ages, however, are counted according to the number of years
of the world, beginning with [the month of] Tishri. Thus, the two countings
were [taken] in the same year. The first counting was in Tishri after Yom
Kippur, when the Omnipresent was placated toward Israel to forgive them, and
they were commanded concerning [building] the Mishkan. The second one
[counting] was on the first of Iyar. -[from Num. Rabbah 1:10]
for the
work of the Tent of Meeting These are the sockets made from it [i.e., from the
silver of the atonements].
18 a
washstand Like a sort of large caldron, which has faucets
allowing water to pour out through their openings.
and its
base Heb. וְכַנּוֹ , as the Targum [Onkelos] renders: וּבְסִיסֵיהּ , a seat prepared for the washstand.
for
washing This refers back to the washstand.
between…
the altar [This refers to] the altar for burnt offerings, about
which it is written that it was in front of the entrance of the Mishkan of the
Tent of Meeting. The washstand was drawn away slightly [from the entrance] and
stood opposite the space between the altar and the Mishkan, but it did not
intervene at all [between them], because it is said: “And he placed the altar
for burnt offerings at the entrance of the Mishkan of the Tent of Meeting”
(Exod. 40:29), implying that the altar was in front of the Tent of Meeting, but
the washstand was not in front of the Tent of Meeting. How is that so? It [the
washstand] was drawn away slightly to the south. So it is taught in Zev. (59a).
19 their
hands and feet He [the kohen] would wash his hands and feet
simultaneously. So we learned in Zev. (19b): How was the washing of the hands
and the feet [performed]? [The kohen] would lay his right hand on his right
foot and his left hand on his left foot and wash [in this manner].
20 When
they enter the Tent of Meeting to bring the incense up in smoke in the morning and
in the afternoon, or to sprinkle some of the blood of the bull of the anointed
Kohen [Gadol, who erred in his halachic decision and practiced according to
that erroneous decision,] (Lev. 4:3-12) and the blood of the kids for [sin
offerings for having engaged in] idolatry (Num. 15:22-26).
so that
they will not die This implies that if they do not wash, they will die.
For in the Torah [there] are stated implications, and from the negative
implication you [can] understand the positive.
the altar [I.e.,]
the outer [altar], in which no entry to the Tent of Meeting is involved, only
[entry] into the courtyard.
21 so
that they will not die [This verse is written] to impose death upon one who
serves on the altar when his hands and feet are not washed, for from the first
death penalty (verse 20) we understand only [that death is imposed] upon one
who enters the Temple.
23 spices
of the finest sort Heb. בְּשָׂמִים
רֽאשׁ , of high quality.
fragrant
cinnamon Since cinnamon is the bark of a tree, and there is
one good type [of cinnamon] that has a fragrant bouquet and a good taste, and
there is another that is merely like wood, it was necessary to state “fragrant
cinnamon,” [meaning that the incense was to be made] of the good species.
half of
it two hundred and fifty [shekel weights] Half of the amount to be
brought shall be two hundred and fifty; thus altogether it is five hundred
[shekel weights], like the amount of pure myrrh. If so, why was it stated in halves?
This is a Scriptural decree to bring it in halves to add to it two overweights,
because we do not weigh [the spices] exactly. So it was taught in Kereithoth
(5a).
fragrant
cane Heb. וּקְנֵה-בֽשֶׂם , cane of spice. Since there are canes that are not
of spice, it is necessary to specify: בֽשֶׂם
two
hundred and fifty [shekel weights] [This is] its total sum.
24 and of
cassia Heb. וְקִדָּה , the name of the root of an herb, and in the
language of the Sages: קְצִיעָה , cassia. -[from Ker. 6a]
hin [The
equivalent of] twelve logs. The Sages of Israel differ concerning it [i.e., how
the oil was made]. Rabbi Meir says: They [whoever made the anointing oil]
boiled the roots in it [the oil of the anointment]. Rabbi Judah said to him:
But is it not so that it [the anointment oil] did not even suffice to anoint
the roots [and thus they certainly couldn’t boil the spices in the oil]?
Rather, they soaked them [the spices] in water so that they would not absorb
the oil, and then poured the oil on them until they were impregnated with the
scent, and [then] they wiped the oil off the roots. -[from Ker. 5a]
25 a
perfumed compound Heb. רֽקַח
מִרְקַחַת . רֽקַח is a noun, and the accent, which is on the first
syllable, proves that. It is like רֶקַע רֶגַע , but it is not like “Who wrinkles (רֽגַע) the sea” (Isa. 51:15), or like “Who spread out (רֽקַע) the earth” (Isa. 42:5) [which are both verbs], because [in
those instances] the accent is at the end of the word. Any substance mixed with
another substance until one becomes impregnated from the other with either
scent or taste is called מִרְקַחַת .
a
perfumed compound Heb. רֽקַח
מִרְקַחַת , a compound made through the skill of mixing.
according
to the art of a perfumer Heb. רֽקֵחַ , the name of the craftsman in this field.
26 And
you shall anoint with it All anointments were in the shape of the Greek
[letter] “chaff,” except those of the kings, which were like a sort of crown.
-[from Ker. 5b]
29 And
you shall sanctify them This anointment sanctifies them to be a holy of
holies. And what is their sanctity? Whatever touches them shall become holy.
[I.e.,] whatever is fit for [placement in] a service vessel, when it enters
them [the vessels], it becomes intrinsically holy so that it becomes unfit [to
be an offering] if it goes out [of its designated boundaries], if it stays
[out] overnight, or if [it comes in contact with] a person who has immersed
himself [from uncleanness] on that day, and it may not be redeemed to become ordinary
[unsanctified] food. Something unfit for them [i.e., for the service vessels],
however, they [the vessels] do not sanctify (Zev. 87a). This was taught as an
explicit Mishnah concerning the altar [i.e., a Baraitha, Zev. 83b]: Since it is
stated: “Whatever touches the altar will be holy” (Exod. 29:37), I understand
it to mean whether it is fit or unfit. Therefore, [to clarify this,] the Torah
states [that] lambs [are to be sacrificed upon the altar]. Because just as
lambs are fit, so is anything else that is fit [sanctified if it comes in
contact with the altar]. Every anointment of the Mishkan, the kohanim, and the
kings is translated [by Onkelos] as an expression of greatness because there is
no need to anoint them except in order to proclaim their greatness. So did the
King [God] decree, that this [the anointment] is their initiation into
greatness. Other anointments, however, such as anointed wafers, “and with the
first oils they anoint themselves” (Amos 6:6), their Aramaic [translation] is
the same as the Hebrew.
31 for
your generations From here our Rabbis deduced that it [the anointing
oil made by Moses] will all remain in existence in the future. -[from Horioth
11b]
This Heb. זֶה . In
gematria, this equals twelve logs. [ 7= ז , 5= ה , totaling 12.] -[from Horioth 11b]
32 It
shall not be poured Heb. לֹא
יִיסָךְ . [This is spelled] with two “yud”s. It is an expression [in
the form] of לֹא
יִפְעַל , it shall not do, like, “and in order that it be good (יִיטַב) for you” (Deut. 5:16).
It shall
not be poured upon human flesh from this very oil.
and
according to its formula you shall not make anything like it With the
amount of its ingredients you shall not make another like it, but if one
decreased or increased the ingredients according to the measure of a hin of
oil, it is permitted. Also, the [oil] made according to the formula of this
[oil]—the one who anoints himself [with it] is not liable, only the one who
mixes it. -[from Ker. 5a]
according
to its formula Heb. וּבְמַתְכֻּנְתּוֹ , a word meaning a number, like “the number of (מַתְכּֽנֶת) bricks” (Exod. 5:8), and so, בְּמַתְכֻּנְתָּה , mentioned in reference to the incense (below,
verse 37).
33 or
puts any of it Of that [oil] of [i.e., made by] Moses. [However,
anyone who anoints himself with oil that was made copying the original
anointing oil is not liable.] -[from Ker. 5a]
on an
alien [I.e.,] which is not needed for the kehunah or the kingship.
34 balsam
sap Heb. נָטָף . This is balm (צֳרִי) , but since it is only the sap that drips (נוֹטֵף) from the balsam trees, it is called נָטָף (Ker. 6a), and in French, gomme, gum resin. The
balm itself, however, is called triaca [in Old Provencal], theriac.
onycha Heb. וּשְׁחֵלֶת , a root of a spice, smooth and shiny as
fingernails, and in the language of the Mishnah (Ker. 6a) it is called צִפּֽרֶן . This is what Onkelos renders as וְטוּפְרָא . [Both צִפּֽרֶן and טוּפְרָא mean “fingernail.”]
and
galbanum A spice with a vile odor, called galbane [in Old
French], galbanum. The Scripture counted it among the ingredients of the
incense [in order] to teach us that we should not look askance at including
Jewish transgressors with us when we assemble for fasting or prayer. [The Torah
instructs us] that they should be counted with us. -[from Ker. 6b]
aromatics
Heb. סַמִּים . Other [aromatics]. -[from Ker. 6b]
and pure
frankincense From here our Rabbis learned that eleven ingredients
were told to Moses [when he was] at Sinai: the minimum of aromatics—two [since סַמִּים is written in the plural form]; balsam sap, onycha, and
galbanum—three, equaling five; aromatics [written a second time]—to include
again the number of these, equaling ten; and frankincense, totaling eleven.
They are as follows: (1) balsam sap, (2) onycha, (3) galbanum, (4)
frankincense, (5) myrrh, (6) cassia, (7) spikenard (שִׁבּֽלֶת
נֵרְדְּ) , and (8) saffron, totaling eight, because שִׁבּֽלֶת and נֵרְדְּ are one, for spikenard נֵרְדְּ is like an ear [of grain] שִׁבּֽלֶת . [To continue:] (9) costus, (10) aromatic bark,
and (11) cinnamon, thus totaling eleven. Borith carshina [mentioned further in
the Baraitha, is not counted because it] does not go up in smoke, but they rub
the onycha with it to whiten it so that it should be beautiful. -[from Ker. 6a]
they
shall be of equal weight Heb. בַּד
בְּבַד
יִהְיֶה . These four [ingredients] mentioned here [explicitly] shall be
equal, a weight for a weight. Like the weight of one, so shall be the weight of
the other. So we learned (Ker. 6a): The balsam, the onycha, the galbanum, and
the frankincense the weight of each was seventy manehs. The word בַּד appears to me to mean a unit; each one [i.e., the weight] shall
be this one like that one.
35 well
blended Heb. מְמֻלָח , as the Targum [Onkelos] renders: מְעָרֵב , mixed. He should mix their [the spices’] powder thoroughly,
one with the other. Accordingly, I say that [the following] are similar to
this: “And the sailors (הַמַּלָּחִים) were frightened” (Jonah 1:5); “your sailors (מַלָחַיִךְ) and your mariners” (Ezek. 27:27). [Sailors are
given this appellation] because they turn over the water with oars when they
propel the ship, like a person who turns over beaten eggs with a spoon to blend
them with water. And anything that a person wishes to blend thoroughly, he
turns over with his finger or with a spoon.
well
blended, pure, holy It shall be well blended; it shall be pure, and it
shall be holy.
36 and
you shall set some of it This is the daily incense, which is on the inner
altar, which is in the Tent of Meeting.
where I
will arrange meetings with you All appointments to speak that I will set up for you,
I will set up for that place.
37
according to its formula According to the number of its ingredients.
it shall
be holy to you for the Lord That you shall not make it except for My Name.
38 to smell
it[s fragrance] But you may make it according to its formula of your
own [ingredients] in order to deliver it to the community. -[from Ker. 5a]
Rashi
& Targum Pseudo Jonathan
for:
B’Midbar (Num.) 28:9-15
|
RASHI |
TARGUM PSEUDO JONATHAN |
|
9. On the Shabbat day
[the offering will be] two yearling lambs without blemish, and two tenths [of
an ephah] of fine flour as a meal-offering, mixed with [olive] oil, and its
libation. |
9. but on the
day of Shabbat two lambs of the year without blemish, and two‑tenths of
flour mixed with olive oil for the mincha and its libation. |
|
10. This is the burnt-offering
on its Shabbat, in addition to the constant (daily) burnt-offering and its
libation. |
10. On the Sabbath you will
make a Sabbath burnt sacrifice in addition to the perpetual burnt sacrifice
and its libation. |
|
11. At the beginning of your
months you will bring a burnt-offering to Adonai, two young bulls, one ram,
seven yearling lambs, [all] without blemish. |
11. And at the beginning of
your months you will offer a burnt sacrifice before the LORD; two young
bullocks, without mixture, one ram, lambs of the year seven, unblemished; |
|
12. And three tenths [of an
ephah] of fine flour as a meal-offering mixed with the [olive] oil for each
bull, two tenths [of an ephah] of fine flour as a meal-offering, mixed with
the [olive] oil for the one ram, |
12. and three tenths of flour
mingled with oil for the mincha for one bullock; two tenths of flour with
olive oil for the mincha of the one ram; |
|
13. And one tenth [of an ephah]
of fine flour as a meal-offering mixed with the [olive] oil for each lamb. A
burnt-offering of pleasing aroma, a fire-offering to Adonai. |
13. and one tenth of flour with
olive oil for the mincha for each lamb of the burnt offering, an oblation to
be received with favour before the LORD. |
|
14. Their libations [will be],
one half of a hin for (a) bull, one third of a hin for the ram, and one
fourth of a hin for (the) lamb, of wine. This is the burnt-offering of each
[Rosh] Chodesh, at its renewal throughout the months of the year. |
14. And for their libation to
be offered with them, the half of a hin for a bullock, the third of a hin for
the ram, and the fourth of a hin for a lamb, of the wine of grapes. This
burnt sacrifice will be offered at the beginning of every month in the time
of the removal of the beginning of every month in the year; |
|
15. And [You will also bring]
one he-goat for a sin offering to Adonai, in addition to the constant (daily)
burnt-offering it will be done, and its libation. |
15. and one kid of the goats,
for a sin offering before the LORD at the disappearing (failure) of the moon,
with the perpetual burnt sacrifice will you perform with its libation. |
|
. |
|
Ketubim: Psalm 104:1-35
|
RASHI |
TARGUM |
|
1.
My soul, bless the LORD. My God, You are very
great, You are attired with majesty and beauty. |
1. Bless, O my soul, the name
of the LORD. O LORD my God, You are greatly exalted; You have put on praise
and splendour. |
|
2. [You] enwrap Yourself with light like a garment; [You]
extend the heavens like a curtain. |
2. Who wraps Himself in light
like a sheet, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain. |
|
3. Who roofs His upper chambers with water; Who makes
clouds His chariot, which goes on the wings of the wind. |
3. Who covers His chambers with
water like a building with beams; Who placed His chariot, as it were, upon
swift clouds; Who goes on the wings of an eagle. |
|
4. He makes winds His messengers, burning fire His
ministers. |
4. Who made His messengers as
swift as wind; His servants, as strong as burning fire. |
|
5. He founded the earth on its foundations that it not
falter to eternity. |
5. Who lays the foundation of
the earth upon its base, so that it will not shake for ages upon ages. |
|
6. You covered the deep as [with] a garment; the waters
stand on the mountains. |
6. You have covered over the
abyss as with a garment; and the waters split on the mountains, and endure. |
|
7. From Your rebuke they fled; from the sound of Your
thunder they hastened away. |
7. At Your rebuke, they will
flee, flowing down; at the sound of Your shout, they will be frightened,
pouring themselves out. |
|
8. They ascended mountains, they descended into valleys to
this place, which You had founded for them. |
8. They will go up from the
abyss to the mountains, and descend to the valleys, to this place that You
founded for them. |
|
9. You set a boundary that they should not cross, that they
should not return to cover the earth. |
9. You have placed a boundary
for the waves of the sea that they will not cross, lest they return to cover
the earth. |
|
10. He sends the springs into the streams; they go between
the mountains. |
10. Who releases springs into
rivers; they flow between the mountains. |
|
11. They water every beast of the field; the wild donkeys
quench their thirst. |
11. They water all the wild
animals; the asses will break their thirst. |
|
12. Beside them the fowl of the heavens dwell; from between
the branches they let out their voices. |
12. The birds of heaven will
settle on them; they will give out a sound of singing from among the
branches. |
|
13. He waters the mountains from His upper chambers; from
the fruit of Your works the earth is sated. |
13. Who waters the mountains
from His upper treasury; the earth will be satisfied with the fruit of Your
deeds. |
|
14. He causes grass to sprout for the animals and
vegetation for the work of man, to bring forth bread from the earth. |
14. Who makes grass grow for
beasts, and herbs for the cultivation of the son of man, that bread may come
forth from the earth; |
|
15. And wine, which cheers man's heart, to make the face
shine from oil, and bread, which sustains man's heart. |
15. And wine that gladdens the
heart of the son of man, to make the face shine by oil; and bread will
support the heart of the son of man. |
|
16. The LORD's trees are sated, the cedars of Lebanon,
which He planted. |
16. The trees that the LORD
created are satisfied, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted: |
|
17. Where birds nest; as for the stork-the high junipers
are its home. |
17. Where the birds make nests;
the stork’s dwelling is in the cypresses. |
|
18. The lofty mountains for the ibexes; the rocks a shelter
for the hyraxes. |
18. The high mountains are for
the wild goats; the rocks are security for the conies. |
|
19. He made the moon for the appointed seasons; the sun
knows its setting. |
19. He made the moon to
calculate times by; the sun knows the time of his setting. |
|
20. You make darkness and it is night, in which every beast
of the forest moves about. |
20. You will make darkness and
it will be night; in it all the beasts of the forest creep about. |
|
21. The young lions roar for prey and to beg their food
from God. |
21. The offspring of lions roar
to find food, and to seek their sustenance from God. |
|
22. When the sun rises they gather in and couch in their
dens. |
22. The sun will shine, they
gather together; and they lay down in their dwelling place. |
|
23. Man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening. |
23. A son of man will go forth
to his work and to his cultivation, until the sunset of evening. |
|
24. How great are Your works, O LORD! You have made
them all with wisdom; the earth is full of Your possessions! |
24. How many are Your works, O
LORD! You have made all of them in wisdom; the earth is full of
Your possessions. |
|
25. This sea-great and wide; there are creeping things and
innumerable beasts, both small and large. |
25. This sea is great and broad
in extent; creeping things are there without number, both tiny creatures and
large. |
|
26. There the ships go; You formed this leviathan with
which to sport. |
26. There the ships go about,
[and] this Leviathan You created for the sport of the righteous/ generous at
the supper of His dwelling place. |
|
27. They all look to You with hope, to give their food in
its time. |
27. All of them rely on You to
give their food in its time. |
|
28. You give them that they may gather; You open Your hand
that they may be sated with goodness. |
28. You will give it to them,
and they gather it; You will open Your hand, and they are satisfied with
goodness. |
|
29. You hide Your countenance and they are frightened; You
gather in their spirit and they perish and return to their dust. |
29. You will remove Your
presence, they are dazed; You will gather their spirit and they expire, and
return to their dust. |
|
30. You will send forth Your spirit and they will be
created, and You will renew the surface of the ground. |
30. You will send out Your
spirit of holiness and they are created; and You will make new the surface of
the earth. |
|
31. The Glory of the LORD will be forever; the LORD will
rejoice with His works. |
31. May the Glory of the LORD
be eternal; the LORD will rejoice in His works. |
|
32. He Who looks at the earth and it quakes; He touches the
mountains and they emit smoke. |
32. Who looks at the earth, and
it shakes; He draws near to the mountains, and they emit smoke. |
|
33. I will sing to the LORD while I am alive; I will sing
praises to my God as long as I exist. |
33. I will sing praise in the
presence of the LORD during my life; I will make music to my God while I
exist. |
|
34. May my speech be pleasing to Him; I will rejoice with
the LORD. |
34. May my talk be pleasing in
His presence; I will rejoice in the Word of the LORD. |
|
35. Sinners will be destroyed from the earth and the
wicked/Lawless will be no more; my soul, bless the LORD. Hallelujah. |
35. The sinners will be
destroyed from the earth, and wicked/Lawless exist no longer. Bless, O my
soul, the name of the LORD. Hallelujah! |
|
|
|
Rashi’s Commentary on Psalm 104:1-35
2 [You]
enwrap Yourself with light in the sky like a garment.
4 He
makes winds His messengers lit. He makes His messengers winds. He makes the wind
His messengers.
6 You
covered the deep as [with] a garment This is similar to what is said elsewhere (Job 38:9):
“When I made the cloud its raiment, etc.”
the deep That is
the sea.
the
waters stand on the mountains The waters of the ocean are higher than the whole
world. They stand on the mountains, and so Scripture states (Amos 5:8, 9:6):
“He who calls the water of the sea and pours it upon the face of the earth.”
Pouring denotes only [pouring] from above downward.
7 From
Your rebuke they fled When You said (Gen. 1:9): “Let the waters gather.” And
from that voice they hastened away and gathered in the place that You founded
for them.
9 You set
a boundary for them, viz. the sand that is around its shore.
12 Beside
them the fowl of the heavens dwell Beside the springs.
from
between the branches Heb. עפאים , the branches of the trees, and so (Dan. 4:11):
“its branches were (עפיה) beautiful.”
15 And
wine which cheers man’s heart, that too He brings forth from the earth, and
oil to cause the face to radiate.
and bread which
sustains man’s heart.
16 The
Lord’s trees in the Garden of Eden.
17 birds
nest Israel will dwell there. יְקַנֵנוּ is an expression of a bird’s nest (קן צפור) .
18 The
lofty mountains He created for the ibexes.
shelter Every
expression of מַחְסֶה is an expression of a shadow and a hiding place,
where a person covers himself from flood and rain.
19 He
made the moon for the appointed seasons To count with it the times
and the festivals.
the sun
knows its setting But the moon does not know its setting, because
sometimes it comes through a long way and sometimes it comes through a short
way.
20 You
make darkness and it is night Every day You darken and block out the sun and it
becomes night, when all the beasts of the forest move about.
22 When
the sun rises they gather in into the secret places and hide there from the sons
of men; then every man goes forth to his work.
24 Your
possessions Heb. קנינך , the acquisition that you have acquired, like
(Gen. 14:19): “Owner (קנה) of heaven and earth.” All is acquired by You.
25 and
wide Heb. ורחב ידים . Wide of place, large in French, broad.
26 with
which to sport three hours during the day. So did our Sages say in
tractate Avodah Zarah (3b), and so it is written explicitly in the Book of Job
(40:29): “Will you play with him like a bird?”
29 You
gather in their spirit Heb. תסף , an expression of destruction, as (above 73:19):
“They were completely consumed (ספו) .”
30 You
will send forth Your spirit with the resurrection of the dead.
32 He
touches the mountains and they emit smoke as is depicted of Sinai
(Exod. 19:18): “And Mount Sinai was all in smoke.”
33 as
long as I exist Heb. בעדי , like (Deut. 31:27): “When I am still (בעודני) alive.”
35
Sinners will be destroyed Heb. חטאים , sinners [rather than sins, but see Tal. Ber.
10a].
Ketubim Mishle (Proverbs) 7:1-27
7:1 My son, keep my
words, store up my commands with you.
7:2 Obey my commands,
and live; guard my teaching like the pupil of your eye.
7:3 Bind them on your
fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.
7:4 Say to wisdom,
"You are my sister"; call understanding your kinswoman;
7:5 so that they can
keep you from unknown women, from loose women with their seductive talk.
7:6 For I was at the
window of my house, glancing out through the lattice,
7:7 when I saw among
the young men there, among those who don't think for themselves, a young fellow
devoid of all sense.
7:8 He crosses the
street near her corner and continues on toward her house.
7:9 Dusk turns into
evening, and finally night, dark and black.
7:10 Then a woman
approaches him, dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.
7:11 She's the coarse,
impulsive type, whose feet don't stay at home;
7:12 rather, she
stalks the streets and squares, lurking at every streetcorner.
7:13 She grabs him,
gives him a kiss, and, brazen-faced, she says to him,
7:14 "I had to
offer peace sacrifices, and I fulfilled my vows today.
7:15 This is why I
came out to meet you, to look for you; now I've found you.
7:16 I've spread
quilts on my couch made of coloured Egyptian linen.
7:17 I've perfumed my
bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
7:18 Come on, let's
make love till morning; we'll enjoy making love.
7:19 My husband
isn't at home, he's gone on a long trip;
7:20 he took a
bag of money with him and won't be back till the new moon."
7:21 With all her
sweet talk she convinces him, enticing him with her seductive words.
7:22 At once he
follows her like an ox on its way to be slaughtered; like a fool to be punished
in the stocks;
7:23 or like a bird
rushing into a trap, not knowing its life is at stake till an arrow pierces its
liver.
7:24 So now, children,
listen to me; pay attention to what I am saying.
7:25 Don't let your
heart turn to her ways; don't stray onto her paths.
7:26 For many are
those she has struck down dead, numerous those she has killed.
7:27 Her house is the
way to Sh'ol; it leads down to the halls of death.
Rashi’s Commentary for: Proverbs 7:1-27
2 like the
apple of your eyes The pupil of the eye, which is like darkness, like the
darkness of night.
4 “You are my
sister” (Draw her near to you.)
a kinsman Heb. מֹדָע, a kinsman, as in (Ruth 3:2):
“Boaz our kinsman (מֹדַעְתָּנוּ),” our
close relative; i.e., draw her near to you always.
7 I discerned
Heb. אָבִינָה, I
discerned and I saw.
8 next to her
corner The corner of the harlot and of the pagan house of worship.
10 And behold
a woman As its apparent meaning. Another explanation: One of the enticers.
the nakedness of a harlot Heb. שִׁית, as in (II Sam. 10:4): “their
buttocks (שְׁתוֹתֵיהֶם) ,” i.e.,
the nakedness of a harlot.
with her heart besieged Heb. וּנְצֻרַת
לֵב. As a besieged city is surrounded by bulwarks, so is
this one’s heart surrounded by lewdness and foolishness.
11 and
rebellious Heb. וְסֹרָרֶת, turning
away from the road.
14 I had to
bring peace offerings I prepared a great feast, for today I sacrificed my
vows and my peace offering.
15 and I have
found you In order that I find you.
16 covers
Heb. מַרְבַדִּים Garments of
freedom and beauty; a similar term is found at the end of the book (31:22):
“She made covers for herself.”
I have bedecked my couch Heb. רָבַדְתִּי, I have
adorned.
with superior braided work of
Egypt Heb. חֲטֻבוֹת,
אֵטוּן
מִצְרָיִם,
praiseworthy, high quality linen garments coming from Egypt, where linen is
common, as it is written in the Book of Isaiah (19:9): “And those who work at
flax ... will be ashamed.”
braided work Heb. אֵטוּן.
17 I fanned
Heb. נַפְתִּי. I fanned
the scent as one fans with a scarf in a perfumery to bring the scent from above
down below. Dunash (Teshuvoth Dunash p. 22) defines it as an expression of
smoking, which he states has no comparison.
19 For the man
is not at home You have seen that the Holy One, blessed be He, has removed
His Shechinah and has given all good to the pagans.
20 the bag of
money He has slain the righteous/generous among them.
on the appointed day Heb. לְיוֹם
הַכֵּסֶא. At the fixed appointed time,
and similarly (Ps. 81:4), “At the appointed time for the day of our festival.”
21 She swayed
him the one devoid of sense, to her.
with all her talk with which she is accustomed to familiarize men.
she entices him from the way
22 and as a
viper Heb. וּכְעֶכֶס. This is
the venom of a snake.
to the chastisement of a fool Like a snake that runs quickly as an agent of the
Holy One, blessed be He, to chastise the fool who is condemned by the
Omnipresent, blessed be He, so does this one run after her until he stumbles on
her, and her arrow splits his liver.
23 as a bird
hastens to run to a snare, and it does not know that the snare was spread
out there for the life of the bird.
Ashlamatah: II Kings 11:17 -
12:17
17. And Jehoiada made
a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be
the LORD'S people; between the king also and the people.
18. And all the people
of the land went to the house of Baal, and broke it down; his altars and his
images broke they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal
before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the
LORD.
19. And he took the
captains over hundreds, and the Carites, and the guard, and all the people of
the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the LORD, and came
by the way of the gate of the guard unto the king's house. And he sat on the
throne of the kings.
20. So all the people
of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet; and they slew Athaliah with the
sword at the king's house. {S}
1. Jehoash was seven
years old when he began to reign. {P}
2. In the seventh year
of Jehu began Jehoash to reign; and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem; and
his mother's name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba.
3. And Jehoash did
that which was right in the eyes of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the
priest instructed him.
4. Howbeit the high
places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high
places.
5. And Jehoash said to
the priests: “All the money of the hallowed things that is brought into the
house of the LORD, in current money, the money of the persons for whom each
man is rated, all the money that comes into any man's heart to bring into
the house of the LORD,
6. let the priests
take it to them, every man from him that bestows it upon him; and they will
repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach will be found.” {P}
7. But it was so, that
in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired
the breaches of the house.
8. Then king Jehoash
called for Jehoiada the priest, and for the other priests, and said unto them:
'Why repair you not the breaches of the house? Now therefore take no longer
money from them that bestow it upon you, but deliver it for the breaches of the
house.'
9. And the priests
consented that they should take no longer money from the people, neither repair
the breaches of the house.
10. And Jehoiada the
priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the
altar, on the right side as one comes into the house of the LORD; and the
priests that kept the threshold put therein all the money that was brought into
the house of the LORD.
11. And it was so,
when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe
and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags and counted the money that
was found in the house of the LORD.
12. And they gave the
money that was weighed out into the hands of them that did the work, that had
the oversight of the house of the LORD; and they paid it out to the carpenters
and the builders, that wrought upon the house of the LORD,
13. and to the masons
and the hewers of stone, and for buying timber and hewn stone to repair the
breaches of the house of the LORD, and for all that was laid out for the house
to repair it.
14. But there were not
made for the house of the LORD cups of silver, snuffers, basins, trumpets, any
vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the
house of the LORD;
15. for they gave that
to them that did the work, and repaired therewith the house of the LORD.
16. Moreover they
reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to give to
them that did the work; for they dealt faithfully.
17. The forfeit money,
and the sin money, was not brought into the house of the LORD; it was the
priests. {P}
Special Ashlamatah:
I Samuel 20:18, 42
18. And Jonathan said to him, Tomorrow is the new moon,
and you will be expected, for your seat will be empty.
42. And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, because we
have sworn, the two of us, in the name of Ha-Shem, saying, Ha-Shem will be
between you and me, and between my seed and your seed forever. And he rose up
and went. And Jonathan went into the city.
Correlations
By H.H. Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David
& Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah
Shemot (Exodus)
30:1-38
B’Midbar (Num.)
28:9-15
Ashlamatah: II Kings
11:17–12:17
Special: I Samuel
20:18, 42
Psalm 104:1-35
Mishle (Proverbs)
Proverbs 7:1-27
N.C.: Matityahu
(Matt.) 17:24-27
Hebrew:
|
Hebrew |
English |
Torah Seder Exo
30:1-38 |
Num 28:9-15 |
Psalms 104:1-35 |
Ashlamatah 2 Ki
11:17-12:17 |
Ashlamatah 1 Sam 20:18, 42 |
Proverbs 7:1-27 |
|
אָדָם |
man, anyone |
Exod. 30:32 |
Ps. 104:14 |
||||
|
אֶחָד |
once, one |
Exod. 30:10 |
Num. 28:11 |
||||
|
אִישׁ |
man, husband |
Exod. 30:12 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
Prov. 7:19 |
|||
|
אָמַר |
say, saying, said |
Exod. 30:11 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
1 Sam. 20:18 |
Prov. 7:4 |
||
|
אֲרוֹן |
ark, chest |
Exod. 30:6 |
2 Ki. 12:9 |
||||
|
אֶרֶץ |
land, earth |
Ps. 104:5 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
||||
|
אִשֶּׁה |
fire |
Exod. 30:20 |
Num. 28:13 |
||||
|
אֲשֶׁר |
where, in as much |
Exod. 30:6 |
Ps. 104:16 |
2 Ki. 12:2 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
||
|
בּוֹא |
went, come, enter |
Exod. 30:20 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
Prov. 7:20 |
||
|
בַּיִן |
between |
Exod. 30:18 |
Ps. 104:10 |
2 Ki. 11:17 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
||
|
בַּיִת |
house, home, holders |
Exod. 30:4 |
Ps. 104:17 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
Prov. 7:6 |
||
|
בֵּן |
sons |
Exod. 30:12 |
Num. 28:9 |
2 Ki. 11:21 |
Prov. 7:1 |
||
|
בֹּקֶר |
morning |
Exod. 30:7 |
Prov. 7:18 |
||||
|
גָּדוֹל |
great, high |
Ps. 104:25 |
2 Ki. 12:10 |
||||
|
דֶּרֶךְ |
way |
2 Ki. 11:19 |
Prov. 7:8 |
||||
|
הָיָה |
becomes, came |
Ps. 104:20 |
2 Ki. 12:6 |
||||
|
הִין |
hin |
Exod. 30:24 |
Num. 28:14 |
||||
|
הָלַךְ |
walks, go, come |
Ps. 104:3 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
Prov. 7:18 |
|||
|
הָרַג |
slain, killed |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
Prov. 7:26 |
||||
|
זֶה |
this, which |
Exod. 30:13 |
Num. 28:14 |
Ps. 104:8 |
|||
|
זֶרַע |
descendants |
Exod. 30:21 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
||||
|
חֹדֶשׁ |
months |
Num. 28:11 |
1 Sam. 20:18 |
||||
|
חָזַק |
seize, repain |
2 Ki. 12:5 |
Prov. 7:13 |
||||
|
חָכְמָה |
wisdom |
Ps. 104:24 |
Prov. 7:4 |
||||
|
יָד |
hands |
Exod. 30:19 |
Ps. 104:28 |
2 Ki. 12:11 |
|||
|
יָדַע |
know |
Ps. 104:19 |
Prov. 7:23 |
||||
|
יהוה |
LORD |
Exod. 30:8 |
Num. 28:11 |
Ps. 104:1 |
2 Ki. 11:17 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
|
|
יוֹם |
day |
Num. 28:9 |
2 Ki. 12:2 |
Prov. 7:9 |
|||
|
יָטַב |
trims, throughly |
Exod. 30:7 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
||||
|
יַיִן |
wine |
Num. 28:14 |
Ps. 104:15 |
||||
|
יָצָא |
paid, bring forth, come |
Ps. 104:14 |
2 Ki. 12:11 |
Prov. 7:15 |
|||
|
יָרַד |
sank down, descending |
Ps. 104:8 |
2 Ki. 11:19 |
Prov. 7:27 |
|||
|
כִּי |
when, because |
Exod. 30:12 |
1 Sam. 20:18 |
||||
|
כֹּל |
everyone, all |
Exod. 30:13 |
Ps. 104:11 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
Prov. 7:12 |
||
|
כֶּסֶף |
money |
Exod. 30:16 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
Prov. 7:20 |
|||
|
כָּרַת |
made, cut off |
Exod. 30:33 |
2 Ki. 11:17 |
||||
|
לֵב |
heart |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
Prov. 7:3 |
||||
|
לַיְלָה |
night |
Ps. 104:20 |
Prov. 7:9 |
||||
|
לָקַח |
take, took, taken |
Exod. 30:16 |
2 Ki. 11:19 |
Prov. 7:20 |
|||
|
מֵאָה |
hundred |
Exod. 30:23 |
2 Ki. 11:19 |
||||
|
מוֹעֵד |
meeting, season |
Exod. 30:16 |
Ps. 104:19 |
||||
|
מוּת |
die, death |
Exod. 30:20 |
2 Ki. 11:20 |
||||
|
מִזְבֵּחַ |
altars |
Exod. 30:1 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
||||
|
מַיִם |
water |
Exod. 30:18 |
Ps. 104:3 |
||||
|
מִנִּי |
than, among |
Exod. 30:15 |
Ps. 104:12 |
||||
|
מִנְחָה |
offering |
Exod. 30:9 |
Num. 28:9 |
||||
|
מָצָא |
found |
2 Ki. 12:5 |
Prov. 7:15 |
||||
|
מֹר |
myhrr |
Exod. 30:23 |
Prov. 7:17 |
||||
|
נָגַע |
touches |
Exod. 30:29 |
Ps. 104:32 |
||||
|
נָטָה |
stretching, enticing |
Ps. 104:2 |
Prov. 7:21 |
||||
|
נֶפֶשׁ |
soul, life |
Exod. 30:12 |
Ps. 104:1 |
Prov. 7:23 |
|||
|
נָתַן |
put, pay, lift |
Exod. 30:6 |
Ps. 104:12 |
2 Ki. 12:7 |
|||
|
עֲבֹדָה |
service, labor |
Exod. 30:16 |
Ps. 104:14 |
||||
|
עַד |
until, forever |
Ps. 104:23 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
Prov. 7:18 |
|||
|
עוֹד |
still, while |
Ps. 104:33 |
2 Ki. 12:3 |
||||
|
עוֹלָם |
perpetual, forever |
Exod. 30:21 |
Ps. 104:5 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
|||
|
עַיִן |
sight, eye |
2 Ki. 12:2 |
Prov. 7:2 |
||||
|
עַל |
over, above, near |
Exod. 30:6 |
Num. 28:10 |
Ps. 104:6 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
Prov. 7:14 |
|
|
עָלָה |
trims, prompts, rose |
Exod. 30:8 |
Ps. 104:8 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
|||
|
עֵץ |
carpenters, trees |
Exod. 30:1 |
Ps. 104:16 |
2 Ki. 12:11 |
|||
|
עֶרֶב |
twilight, evening |
Exod. 30:8 |
Ps. 104:23 |
Prov. 7:9 |
|||
|
עֶשְׂרִים |
twenty |
Exod. 30:13 |
2 Ki. 12:6 |
||||
|
עַתָּה |
now |
2 Ki. 12:7 |
Prov. 7:24 |
||||
|
פָּנֶה |
front, before, face,
presence |
Exod. 30:6 |
Ps. 104:15 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
Prov. 7:13 |
||
|
פָּקַד |
number, oversight |
Exod. 30:12 |
2 Ki. 12:11 |
1 Sam. 20:18 |
|||
|
צִפּוֹר |
bird |
Ps. 104:17 |
Prov. 7:23 |
||||
|
קֹדֶשׁ |
holy |
Exod. 30:10 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
||||
|
rj;q' |
burn incense |
Exod. 30:7 |
2 Ki. 12:3 |
||||
|
קִנָּמוֹן |
cinnamon |
Exod. 30:23 |
Prov. 7:17 |
||||
|
ar'q' |
called |
2 Ki. 12:7 |
Prov. 7:4 |
||||
|
רָאָה |
saw |
2 Ki. 12:10 |
Prov. 7:7 |
||||
|
רֹאשׁ |
beginning, census |
Exod. 30:12 |
Num. 28:11 |
||||
|
רֶגֶל |
feet |
Exod. 30:19 |
Prov. 7:11 |
||||
|
שֶׁבַע |
seven |
Num. 28:11 |
2 Ki. 11:21 |
||||
|
שָׁבַר |
broke, quench |
Ps. 104:11 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
||||
|
שׂוּם |
appointed, makes |
Ps. 104:3 |
2 Ki. 11:18 |
||||
|
שָׁכַן |
dwell |
Ps. 104:12 |
Prov. 7:11 |
||||
|
שָׁלֹשׁ |
three, third |
Num. 28:12 |
2 Ki. 12:6 |
||||
|
שָׁם |
where, whenever |
Exod. 30:6 |
Ps. 104:17 |
2 Ki. 12:5 |
|||
|
שֵׁם |
name |
2 Ki. 12:1 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
||||
|
שָׂמַח |
glad, rejoice |
Ps. 104:15 |
2 Ki. 11:20 |
||||
|
שֶׁמֶן |
oil |
Exod. 30:24 |
Num. 28:9 |
Ps. 104:15 |
|||
|
שָׁמַר |
keep, guard |
2 Ki. 12:9 |
Prov. 7:1 |
||||
|
שָׁנָה |
year |
Exod. 30:10 |
Num. 28:9 |
2 Ki. 11:21 |
|||
|
שְׁנַיִם |
two, each, other |
Exod. 30:4 |
Num. 28:9 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
|||
|
שָׁרַת |
ministers |
Exod. 30:20 |
Ps. 104:4 |
||||
|
תָּמִיד |
perpetual, continual |
Exod. 30:8 |
Num. 28:10 |
||||
|
rWz |
strange, adultress |
Exod. 30:9 |
Prov. 7:5 |
||||
|
taJ'x; |
sin offering |
Exod. 30:10 |
Num. 28:15 |
2 Ki. 12:16 |
|||
|
%s,n< |
drink offering |
Exod. 30:9 |
Num. 28:9 |
||||
|
rb;[' |
pass, over, current |
Ps. 104:9 |
2 Ki. 12:4 |
Prov. 7:8 |
|||
|
ry[i |
city |
2 Ki. 11:20 |
1 Sam. 20:42 |
||||
|
hl'[o |
burnt offering |
Exod. 30:9 |
Num. 28:10 |
||||
|
hf'[' |
make |
Exod. 30:1 |
Num. 28:15 |
Ps. 104:4 |
2 Ki. 12:2 |
||
|
lc,ae |
near, beside |
2 Ki. 12:9 |
Prov. 7:8 |
||||
|
br' |
many, much |
2 Ki. 12:10 |
Prov. 7:26 |
Greek:
|
Greek |
English |
Torah Seder Exo 30:1-38 |
Extra Seder Nu 28:9-15 |
Psalms 104:1-35 |
Ashlamatah 2 Ki
11:17-12:17 |
Ashlamatah 1 Sam 20:18, 42 |
Proverbs Pro 7:1-27 |
NC Mat 17:24-27 |
|
ἀλλότριος |
strangers, strange |
Pro 7:5 |
Mat 17:25 |
|||||
|
ἀνοίγω |
opens, opened |
104:28 |
Mat 17:27 |
|||||
|
βασιλεύς |
kings |
2Ki 11:17 |
Mat 17:25 |
|||||
|
γῆ |
land, earth |
104:5 |
2Ki 11:18 |
Mat 17:25 |
||||
|
δίδραχμον |
drachmas |
Exo 30:13 |
Mat 17:24 |
|||||
|
δίδωμι |
give, appoint |
Exo 30:13 |
104:12 |
2Ki 12:7 |
Mat 17:27 |
|||
|
εἰσέρχομαι |
entered |
2Ki 11:18 |
1Sa 20:42 |
Mat 17:25 |
||||
|
ἔπω |
said |
Exo 30:34 |
2Ki 12:4 |
1Sa 20:18 |
Pro 7:4 |
Mat 17:24 |
||
|
ἔρχομαι |
come |
Pro 7:18 |
Mat 17:24 |
|||||
|
θάλασσα |
sea |
104:25 |
Mat 17:27 |
|||||
|
λαμβάνω |
receiving, take |
Exo 30:12 |
2Ki 11:19 |
Pro 7:20 |
Mat 17:24 |
|||
|
λέγω |
saying, says |
Exo 25:1 |
1Sa 20:42 |
Mat 17:25 |
||||
|
πορεύομαι |
gone |
1Sa 20:42 |
Pro 7:19 |
Mat 17:27 |
||||
|
υἱός |
sons |
Exo 30:12 |
2Ki 11:21 |
Pro 7:1 |
Mat 17:25 |
Midrash of Matityahu (Matthew) 17:24-27
On the Sidra“MaChatsit HaSheqel”
- Shemot (Exodus) 30:1-38
Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu’s Rendition
24 ¶ When they arrived
in K’far Nakhum, the collectors of the half shekel (the Temple tax) came up to
Tsefet and said, does your Rabbi (Hakham) not pay the half shekel (Temple tax)?
25 He answered,
Yes. And when he came home, Yeshua
anticipated him with a question [about it], saying, What do you think, Shimon
[HaTsefet]? From whom do kings of [the] earth collect taxes, from their own
citizens or from foreigners [not of their own citizens]?
26 And when Tsefet
said, from foreigners [not of their own citizens], Yeshua said to him, then the
sons (citizens) are men of nobility? [Alluding to Purim and Pesach]
27 But, in order not
to give offense, go down to the Kinneret and throw in a hook. Take the first
(or, chief) fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find there
a [whole] shekel. Take it and give it to them to pay the Temple tax for me and
for yourself.
Hakham’s Comments:
For the Midrash
specialist, Hakham Matityahu (Matthew), the
occasion for the collection of the Holy Half
Shekel brings the perfect time to explain the metaphorical meaning of this
solemn Torah requirement. According
to our Sages, the meaning of the Half Shekel is
to teach us that personal Judaism is a lie,
since Judaism is by essence communal, and
therefore the Shekel is not complete until two Jews agree together to observe the Mitzvoth
(commandments) and create a Jewish community.
The Master adds here a
further and most profound insight. For our
Master, a Jew has the unescapable vocation to become a Torah teacher. And therefore, he either earns money
to pay yearly the half Shekel or he finds
Torah Disciples from amongst the Gentiles who will
pay the half Shekel for him. The waters here are a
picture of the Gentiles and the fish is a symbol
of a Gentile who has a calling to become a Torah Disciple.
There is in this
narrative an expectation that the Gentiles who come to learn Torah will have in their mouth what is required
to economically support his Torah teacher. If this
is not the case, then it is obvious that the
Gentile who is learning Torah is by his non-payment not
partaking of the “sap” of the good olive tree. The Gentiles owe an
immense debt to the Jewish people,
firstly because it is through the Jewish people that
the salvation of the Gentiles is achieved, second,
it is through the Jewish people that the Gentiles can know the revealed will of G-d as is in the Bible.
Thirdly, even to this very day, without Jewish Hermeneutics and Jewish Codes of Law, and Jewish
Masters to teach it , it is impossible to fully
perceive and understand the depth and great hidden
riches of the writings of the Nazarean Codicil. For
these three chief reasons, the Gentiles who come to
adhere to the Master of Nazareth (the King of
the JEWS) owe it to the Master to support
Jewish Torah Scholars.
Therefore, in the
grand picture of the Governance (Kingdom) of G-d, the commandment
of the Half Shekel teaches us that
Jews are to teach the Torah to the Gentiles, and
conversely the Gentiles who are taught in the Torah are to support the Torah Scholar teaching to
them as a outward sign of an inner work: - i.e.
that he/she has been grafted into the Jewish Olive Tree and brought near to the Commonwealth of Israel.
Hakham Shaul,
therefore rules (Rom. 15:22-33):
א And therefore,
my coming (to you) was impeded. But now having no place in these regions and
because I have been wishing to come your way for many years, (I expect to do
so) when I go to Sefarad (Spain/Iberia). For I hope that (while passing through
your region on my) journey, to see you and from you to be sent on, first having
enjoyed you for a short while.
ב Presently I am
traveling to Yerushalayim to willingly serve[1] the Tsadiqim there. Those
at Macedonia and Achaia, having a sense of community, thought it good to do
something for the righteous/generous (Tsadiqim) Eb’yónim[2] at Yerushalayim. For they
(those at Macedonia and Achaia) were happy to reach out to them. They are actually their debtors,
for if the Gentiles shared from their spiritual resources, the Gentiles also
should share of their natural resources as wilful service to them (the
righteous/generous (Tsadiqim) Eb’yónim).
ג Therefore, after I fulfil this (obligation) and certify to them
the delivery of the gift from the Gentiles(of Macedonia and Achaia), I will set
out to Sefarad (Spain/Iberia) by way of your (region). I know when I come to
you it will be with the full blessing of Messiah. So I appeal to you through
our Master Yeshua HaMashiach, and by the love for his Mesorah (Oral Breathing
of the Torah), join me in prayers on my behalf to God, that I might be guarded
from the non-believing Tz’dukim
(Sadducees) in Judaea, and that my wilful service in Yerushalayim might be
acceptable to the Tsadiqim, and that I may come to you joyfully by God's will,
and might be refreshed in your (fellowship).
May the God of Shalom be with all of
you. Amen.
And also:
Gal
6:6 But let the one being taught in the Torah share with the one
teaching, in all good things.
But of course, this
kind of discipline requires that the Gentile disciples walk in and according to
Emunah – i.e., faithful obedience to
the Torah. If there is no Emunah, then this and other Mitsvoth (commandments)
of the Torah will very unlikely be kept and he life lived by such a person will be
highly defective..
Questions for Reflection:
1.
After diligently
reading and studying the different readings for this Shabbat what reading
especially touched your heart and fired your imagination?
2.
How is Shemot 30:1 related to Shemot 30:37-38?
3.
There are various subjects being treated in this
Torah Seder. How is the
subject of the Half Shekel related to the other subjects being treated in this
Seder?
4.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:3?
5.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:7?
6.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:10?
7.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:12?
8.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:13?
9.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:14?
10.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:15?
11.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:16?
12.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:18?
13.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:19?
14.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:20?
15.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:21?
16.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:23?
17.
What
questions were asked of Rashi regarding Exodus 30:34?
- What
word/words/phrase/concept of the Torah fired the imagination of our Psalmist
this week?
- How is our
Ashlamatah of II Kings 11:17–12:17 related to our
Torah Seder?
- How is Matityahu (Matt.)
17:24-27 related to our
Torah Seder, Psalm and Ashlamatah?
- In your opinion what are the
basic teachings of Matityahu (Matt.) 17:24-27?
- In your opinion,
and taking altogether our Torah Seder, Psalm, Ashlamatah and the Pericope of
Matthew for this Shabbat, what do you think is the prophetic
statement for the coming week?
Next Sabbath:
“HaAzinu HaShamayim”
(“Give ear you heavens”)
|
Shabbat |
Torah Reading: |
Weekday Torah Reading: |
|
הַאֲזִינוּ
הַשָּׁמַיִם |
|
|
|
“HaAzinu
HaShamayim” |
Reader
1 – D’barim
32:1-6 |
Reader 1 – Shemot
33:1-3 |
|
“Give ear you heavens” |
Reader
2 – D’barim
32:7-12 |
Reader 2 – Shemot
33:4-6 |
|
“Escuchad,
cielos” |
Reader
3 – D’barim
32:13-18 |
Reader 3 – Shemot
33:1-6 |
|
Reader
4 – D’barim
32:19-28 |
|
|
|
D’barim
(Deut.) 32:1-52 |
Reader
5 – D’barim
32:29-39 |
|
|
Ashlamatah:
Is. 1:2-9, 16-27 |
Reader
6 – D’barim
32:40-43 |
Reader 1 – Shemot
33:1-3 |
|
Psalm 145 |
Reader
7 – D’barim
32:44-52 |
Reader 2 – Shemot
33:4-6 |
|
|
Maftir: D’barim 32:48-52 |
Reader 3 – Shemot
33:1-6 |
|
Isaiah. 1:2-9, 16-27 |
|
|
|
N.C.: Mark
16:17-18 |
|
|
Shalom Shabbat!
Hakham Dr. Yosef ben Haggai
HH Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben
David
HH Paqid
Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham