Parshas Netzavim-Vayeilech and Rosh Hashanah: Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת נצבים

&

ראש השנה

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About...

1. At the end of parshas Nitzavim, Hashem tells us: הַחַיִּים וְהַמָּוֶת נָתַתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ, הַבְּרָכָה וְהַקְּלָלָה; וּבָחַרְתָּ בַּחַיִּים--לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה, אַתָּה וְזַרְעֶךָ - “I have placed life and death before you, blessing and curse; and you shall choose life....”

A few questions should immediately come to mind:

a. Chazal teach us that a “nesinah” (a “giving”) is shaveh perutah (value of a perutah coin). In order for there to be two equal things that Hashem is giving before us, it must therefore be that they are both “valuable” (at least in our eyes). Last time I checked, though, Death's & Cursing's popularity was quite down. How could we understand that it is a “nesinah”?

b. Also, if this is our big choice of bechirah, isn't it a bit unfair to word the choice as a choice between life and blessing versus death and curse? It seems pretty obvious which one to choose. Shouldn't a real bechirah be between two equal options?

c. Being that the choice seems so obvious and clear, why is Hashem telling us which one to choose, as He says, “and you shall choose life”? And if it is not so obvious, why is He 'cheating' – so to speak?

2. Rashi (30:19) writes that “Hashem tells us to look at the sun, which obeys Hashem command perfectly – it rises and sets every day at the right time, even though it will not receive any reward for doing so. Therefore, certainly we who will get reward for listening to Hashem should do so...” How cold we understand this Rashi? There is a very simple pircha with this kal v'chomer that the sun is an inanimate object with no ability to think or decide, nor does it have any nesyonos to stop it. So how could it be so obvious that we should be expected to obey Hashem as well as the sun?

3. We know that a person's parnasah is fixed on Rosh Hashanah. Which three expenses are not included in this equation?

3. Why is it that two days of Rosh Hashanah are kept even in Eretz Yisroel, whereas other yomim tovim are celebrated there for only one day?
   
4. At the end of every slichos in the Tefillah of Mi She'anah we say, “Mi she'anah l'avraham avinu b'har ha'moriyah hu ya'a'nei'nu” - "He Who answered Avraham our father on Har HaMoriyah, may He answer us.” What, though, was Avraham's tefillah on Har HaMoriah?

3. Why are we allowed to eat honey? Usually, if an animal/creature is not kosher, then its products are not either kosher. A bee is not kosher, so why is its' honey?

פרשת וילך

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

3. “Vayeilech Moshe...” Where did Moshe go?

3. The S'forno (31:1) and others explain that Moshe said to B'nei Yisroel, “ I am old and no longer able to go and come back...and even if I was able to, still Hashem said to me that I anyway cannot enter into Eretz Yisroel.” What was the point of the first half of Moshe's statement? Let him just say that Hashem said he cannot enter Eretz Yisroel?

3. What is significant about dying on the same day one is born?

3. There are many differences between what Hashem told Yeshoshua and what Moshe told Yehoshua. What are these differences? And why the differences?

3. Rashi (31:12) says that the men come to hakhel to learn, the women to hear, and the children to give reward to those who brought them. What does this mean?

3. Rashi (31:29), in an answer to a question of his, writes that a rebbe considers his talmid like himself. If so, how did Rashi answer his question? If Yehoshua was considered to Moshe like Moshe himself, then it should follow that Yehoshua's talmid was viewed by Yehoshua as Yehoshua himself. The “chain rule” should then say that Moshe would consider even his talmid's talmid's talmid's talmid..... as himself. If so, how did Rashi answer his question?

3. [For those who didn't read the d'var Torah:] The Gemara Sanhedrin brings a proof from our parsha for techiyas hamaysim. What is it?

3. In the Haftorah for Shabbos Shuva we read, “Shuva Yisroel ad Hashem elo'kecha” (Repent, Yisroel, until Hashem your G-d). The choice of word to say “ad Hashem” instead of “l'Hashem” (to Hashem) seems a bit strange. What is hinted to in the passuk by writing it this way?

3. The passuk (31:14) says “hein karvo yame'cha lamus”. The simple way to understand the passuk is “Behold, your days are drawing near to die...” However, as a remez, the word “hein” – represented by the letters hey and nun – could also actually refer to Moshe rabbeinu. How is this?

Parshas Ki Savo - Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת כי תבא

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. Why is it that upon the time of bringing bikkurim is the proper time to say the whole tefillah of history starting from Lavan and Yaakov? What is the connection to bikkurim? And why must it be said to the kohen as opposed to one saying it to himself in the field?

2. The Mishna in Bikkurim (1:4) states that a ger (convert) brings bikkurim but cannot be korei (read) the paragraph which is recited because he is not able to say “l'a'voseinu” since his ancestors were not Jewish. If so, why is it that a ger could say “elokeinu v'elokei avoseinu” in shemoneh esreh?

3. There is a passuk in this week's parsha with a remez to the five seforim of the Torah. Which passuk is it? What are the remazim? And how do they hint to their respective sefer they are hinting to?

4. In the passuk of “baruch ata b'vo'echa...” Rashi explains that just as one enters the world pure and without sins, so too will one leave the world with no sin. However, following this explanation, it should be that the meaning of the passuk in the to'che'cha of “arur ata b'vo'echa...” should mean that just as you were cursed coming into the world, so too will you be when you leave. How could this be true, though? Certainly everyone comes into the world pure?

5. The Gemara in Ta'anis (2a) says that there are three keys that Hashem has which he doesn't give to a shli'ach. One is hinted to in this week's parsha...
   …Which is the one hinted to in this week's parsha? What are the other two? How could we resolve the fact that there are stories in tanach and gemara about individuals who seem to have had control over one (or more) of these keys?

Parshas Chukas - Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת חקת

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. The Torah states that the Parah Adumah had to be perfectly red. The Meforshim explain that even two black or white hairs would disqualify it from being a valid Parah Adumah. Why is it that two hairs disqualify it? If it needs to be perfect, shouldn't even one hair disqualify?

2. Who does the Parah Adumah? In our Parsha – Elazar the S'gan Kohen (Aharon's son) performed the avodah, but it seems that that was only because Aharon couldn't since he was involved in the eigel hazahav. So whose job is it l'doros (I.e- from that point on)? Was it always the job of the S'gan Kohen or was it the job of the Kohen Gadol himself?

3. Why did Hashem ask Moshe to take his stick if he wasn't supposed to hit the rock?

4. Aharon got reprimanded along with Moshe during the episode of the hitting the rock – what did Aharon do wrong?

Parshas Korach - Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת קרח

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. The medrash describes that Korach approached Moshe and Aharon with two arguments:

- “Does a talis made completely of techeiles require a string of techeiles?”

- “Does a room full of sifrei Torah require a mezuza on its doorpost?”

a. What are the answers to these questions? Why?

b. What exactly was Korach getting at with this debate?

c. How do these “attacks” on Moshe and Aharon fit with Korach's motto of “ki kol ha'eidah kulam kedoshim u'vesocham Hashem” ?

d. How is the story of Korach similar to the episode of the meraglim and their statement of “va'nehi v'eineinu ka'chagavim” ?

2. The Torah tells us that after Korach came to Moshe rabbeinu, Moshe fell on his face. There are three different types of “falling on the face” thorughout Tanach. What are they? Extra Credit: When do they occur?

Parshas Shelach - Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת שלח

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. Rashi (13:2) writes that the story of the Meraglim was placed in the Torah immediately following the episode of Miriam because they did not learn from Miriam about how one should speak. Miriam spoke lashon harah about her brother, Moshe Rabbeinu, while the Meraglim spoke about Eretz Yisroel – an inanimate object, not a person. There is nothing wrong with doing so. So what did the Meraglim do wrong that they should have learned from the story of Miriam?

2. Calev and Yehoshua each had the help of a tefillah to stay away from the plot of the meraglim. Why was this necessary? Why not just stay away?

3. After the report of the Meraglim, the B'nei Yisroel cried out, “Why is Hashem bringing us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and young will be taken captive! Is it not better that we return to Egypt?” What were the B'nei Yisroel thinking? How exactly were they thinking they would be treated if they went back to Mitzrayim? Wouldn't this be what would happen regardless?

4. The Gemara in Berachos says that Hashem wanted to wipe out B'nei Yisroel in the desert and start fresh with only the descendants of Moshe. Moshe responded, “If a chair with three legs (Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov) cannot stand, then certainly a chair with one leg (just Moshe) cannot stand.” What was this argument?

5. Hashem told Moshe (Bamidbar 14:22) that since the B'nei Yisroel left Mitzrayim, they tested Hashem 10 times. What were these 10 times?

6. Rashi (14:33) explains that the generation of the meraglim all died in the desert by age 60. This is why the B'nei Yisroel had to remain there for 40 years – in order that the youngest (counted) ones among them, who were 20, would reach the age of 60. The Mefarshim explain that the reason for this was because they were not guilty of meesa b'dei shamayim (death from heaven), which occurs at 60. If so, what was Hashem's original thought to wipe them out immediately? And why didn't Moshe respond with this argument?

7. When Moshe davened on behalf of B'nei Yisroel in this week's parsha, he used only about half of the 13 middos. Why?

8. There are 3 ways that the mission of the meraglim was described: 1. Hashem in our parsha calls it “v'yasuru” 2. B'nei Yisroel call it “V'yachp'ru” (Devarim 1:22) and 3. The meraglim said “v'yarg'lu. What is the difference between these three expressions and perspectives?

9. How do you know Kohanim could become invisible? (No cheating – don't ask a Kohen)

Parshas Bamidbar

פרשת במדבר

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. Rashi (1:2) writes that the way Moshe counted B'nei Yisroel was through collecting a half-shekel per person. Why did he have count them like this?

2. The passuk tells us that the people had to establish their genealogy according to their families. Rashi explains that they each brought documents of lineage and witnesses of their birth in order to precisely trace each one's ancestry. Why was this necessary? Why not just believe them in the first place?

3. What is the significance of a flag?

4. Rashi (3:1) notes that the passuk refers to Elazar and Isamar as the children of Aharon and Moshe – Aharon because he was their biological father, and Moshe because he was their rebbe. However, in the following passuk (3:2) it repeats and only calls them the sons of Aharon.

• Why should being someone's rebbe make one considered his father?
• Why is the passuk switching in the next passuk to just call them the sons of Aharon?

5. When it came to counting shevet Levi, Rashi (2:16) comments that Moshe did not know what to do. He said, “How can I enter the tents to know the number of their nursing infants?” Hashem replied, “You go outside the tent and I will let you know the number of who is in which tent.”

• If Hashem was going to tell him through a bas-kol how many were in each tent, why did Moshe have to go up to the tents to begin with?
• Why did this only first become an issue when it came to counting shevet Levi?

6. When it came to counting B'nei Yisroel, the Torah tells us that only those that were at least 20 years old were counted whereas at the end of the parsha when it came to counting shevet Kehas, they were counted starting at 30. Rashi in each place comments based on the words the Torah uses to describe the specific ages that we learn from here that the age of going out to war is 20, and the age of strength is 30. What is the significance of this and why were they counted based on these two different scales?

7. Why do we eat dairy on Shavuos?

Parshas Acharei Mos-Kedoshim - Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

פרשת אחרי-מות

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

1. The passuk (17:10) when describing prohibition of eating blood says that anyone who eats blood 
   
   
   
   
   – Hashem will direct his face upon them and cut them off from their people. Rashi explains 
   
   
   
   
   further that Hashem will turn aside, so to speak, from all his other concerns to deal with this
   
   
   
   
   
   
    person. What is so bad about eating blood that the Torah takes so seriously? (Extra Credit: 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   Where else in the Torah does the Torah use the same expression and Rashi explain the same 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   way? What is the connection?)
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

פרשת קדושים

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

2. What does it mean to be kedoshim? The Gemara in kiddushin describes that the rabbanan 
   
   
   
   
   termed the hebrew word for engagement as “Kiddushin” because essentially by marrying a wi
   
   
   
   
   fe you are making her “assur to everyone else just like hekdesh”. What is the root of what it 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   means to be a kadosh?
3. Parshas Kedoshim contains many mitzvos – within these the eseres hadibros are present. Some 
   
   
   
   
   of them are straight out and some of them are alluded to. Where?
   
   
   
   
4. The passuk (19:17) says tjhat there is a mitzva to give others mussar...'and you should not bear a 
   
   
   
   
   sin because of him'. What does this mean?
   
   
   
   
5. Why is 'v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha' a 'zeh k'lal gadol ba'Torah?
   
   
6. The passuk (20:3), when describing prohibition of giving children over to molech (avcodah
   
   
   zarrah), says that anyone who eats blood – Hashem will direct his face upon them and cut them 
   
   
   
   
   off from their people. Rashi explains further that Hashem will turn aside, so to speak, from all 
   
   
   
   
   his other concerns to deal with this person. Why does the Torah use this expression here more 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   than other times in chumash? (Extra Credit: Where else in the Torah does the Torah use the 
   
   
   
   
   same expression and Rashi explains the same way? What is the connection?)