Eikev - 4th Portion

Join me as we learn Humash for Wednesday Parshat Eikev the fourth Torah reading chapter 10 verse 1. Yesterday Moshe reminds the Jewish people of the events that happened of the sin of the golden calf and then we prayed for God prayed to God for the Jewish people numerous times 40 days and 40 nights not eating or drinking on behalf of the Jewish people to save them from the wrath of God. Today we continue as Moshe has the talks about what happened and we carved out a second set of tablets and the events that followed as well. Verse chapter 10 verse 1. What is he at that time? God said to me for yourself another two tablets of stone cut it shiny like the first one valley alive and come up to me on the mountain for season are in eight and make for yourself a wooden ark. What is he? What does it mean at that time? Rashi explains will save our boy me him after the 40 days of prayer and he stressed the God listen to me for only and he said so the heart coffee yourself out a second set of tablets. Only afterwards he said was he to the heart and make another covenant. The only however I switched the order. I see see I first made the the the ark. Because I thought where am I going to put the car the the tablets when I come and put them in? Rashi continues. This is not referring to the ark of the covenant that that the tower made that was in the holy of holies. Surely Mishkan by the putting because the commandment of making the tabernacle and all its vessels only happened after Moses came down the mountain after Yom Kippur. Because only coming down from the mountain after Yom Kippur that that told them about the commandment of building the Tabernacle. Betzalel first made the Tabernacle and only afterwards made the vessels. As we recall the debate that he had with Moshe, that Moshe said first make the vessels and Betzalel said, "Are you making vessels, my furniture, when you don't have a building to put it in?" Therefore, it must be this was a different ark. This was the ark that actually went out with them to war. When the Jewish people would travel in the desert and the ark would go before them and go out to war. Betzalel, the one that Betzalel made, the that one that Betzalel made, which was the ark of the covenant, which was supposed to stay in the holy of holies, never went out to war. The only time it went out to war was in the time of Eli and because of that the Jewish people were punished and that was actually captured by the Philistines. Verse two. I inscribed on the new tablets the same exact words that were on the first set of tablets that I broke. God told me and you should write the same thing, the ones that you broke, which is something that I should place them into a wooden ark. Verse three. I first as Moshe as Rashi mentioned that Moshe reversed what God said. He first made the ark and only afterwards the tablets. And I made an ark out of acacia wood and I and I two stones of tablets like the first ones. I went up to the mountain and I ascended the mountain and those two tablets were in my hand. Verse four. I wrote the inscription. And I inscribed the inscription. And God inscribed on the tablets according to the original text. As I said, it said the word of those 10 commandments that God spoke to you on the mountain from the fire beginning with call when everybody was gathered there at the mountain. By eating and then God gave them to me. Verse verse five. I turned and I came down the mountain for us and then I placed those tablets into the ark I should have seen that I made by you and they were there God commanded me. That means until we made the golden ark which then we moved the the tablets into that ark as well. Verse six. And the Jewish people and the Jewish people then traveled from the wells of to Masera. Sham there Aaron died covers was buried there and after his son became the coin God of the high priest instead of him. Verse seven from there we traveled to from there a land with streams of water. Rashi explains these two verses as follows. Why all of a sudden does he mention about the Jewish people traveling from the areas to to Masera? What's going on over here? And then from there to Masera. Did they the question number two is is that really the actual travels? Did they travel from the wells of to Masera and then from there but if you look at the actual event was the opposite. They traveled from they came to as it says in verse numbers chapter 33 by they traveled from and they went to come. Question number three. Sham is Aaron why is it say there Aaron died? Aaron died by Har. hermits. died by the place of her her. Save the the deep to my face from later on. And if you look at the numbers in the back in the book of numbers at the end of Massey, you'll notice there were eight different encampments from my say there's until her where Aaron actually died. So why did he say over there Aaron died? Ella after this that motion mentions it in this way is part of the rebuke that motion is telling them. He tells them as follows. He's telling them about what happened and how they had to go back towards Egypt to be able to make it part of the different travels that the Jewish people did. And he says as follows. The and how much more did you do? Because when Aaron passed by her heart at the end of 40 years and then the clouds of glory went away and therefore these clouds of glory were protecting the Jewish people. You guys were afraid from the war with the king of Arad. As it says there that the Canaanites the king of Arad heard that the Jewish people now not protected. When it stopped in the same way you decided we're not protected, let's go back to Egypt. The and you went backwards eight travels. Eight encampments until you were going backwards. I mean technically yes, the Jewish people traveled from my say there's to be in the ark and but over here because the Jewish people were afraid of the Canaanites war, they were returning back to Egypt. They went eight encampments backwards. The sham and over there in the you had the war with the people of the her going to come and they killed many of the people who were looking to go back to Egypt. The mayhem and you guys killed some of the people of as well. The direct until finally we got you back to travel back normal back to go back to the regular route and go back to good go either which that's which is mentioned in the in the last section of Massey which it tells us about where the people traveled. "From Mina to Gudgod and from Gudgod to Yotvasa, from Gudgod to Yotvasa, but Massei does say it's evil. In Massei, that you made a terri- you you made a big great eulogy and mourning Covenant of Massei social iron on the death of Aaron to go up on the hill and say it that caused you this whole episode of going back to Egypt because the clouds of glory they went away and because of this whole idea, this all happened in Massei." "And it need be that Aaron came to Massei and it was as if Aaron passed there because that's where you were mourning Aaron's passing even though Aaron passed by Har Hahar, but the very fact that you were mourning by Massei because Massei is when the Jewish people tried going back. Many Jewish people died and the whole event that happened was only because Aaron died. So, that's where you were actually eulogizing Aaron and that's where you felt Aaron's death the most." Moshe puts this rebuke next to the one about the breaking of the tablets to tell us to tell us that it is difficult by God the day that the righteous die like Aaron the great leader. By God, as if the time when the tablets were broken. And also to let you know as well as the severity of the very fact that the Jewish people asked to go back to Egypt is just as severe and was just as difficult as the day that Jewish people made the golden calf. Telling us the severity of the crime, the things that happened and therefore Moshe juxtaposes these events together. Verse 8, "But at that time God separated the tribe of Levi, segregated the tribe of Levi that they should be the ones to be the ones to carry the ark of the covenant of God, to stand before God, to serve him, to bless with his name until this very day." He's going back to what happened before. when he interrupted about the travels, meaning by saying that actually continues by saying that the channel of the second verse in time to your first year when you came out of Egypt to eat some bagel and because you sinned with the golden calf. The Benei Levi they told about the tribe of Levi did not make that the mistake. Because of that, if you do the same thing again, God segregated amongst them from the desert. The after they told Benei Levi that they were not something when he also puts this next to the story of the second to tell us that the same thing also happened later on that when these people wanted to return to Egypt, the only ones who did not join part with them with the tribe of Levi. So therefore he shows twice where Levi stood faithful to God's commitment. Moses is hired to carry the ark. The Levites were the ones to be carrying the ark. Who are the ones to stand before God and serve and bless in his name? Those are the Kohanim. What is that? The blessing his is given to bless the Jewish people. So here we have two things that he mentions, the Levites, the Levites themselves, the tribe of Levi that carry the vessels in the holy temple as well as the special group amongst the Levites which is the Kohanim, the ones to serve in the holy temple and to bless the Jewish people. Verse 9. Therefore therefore the tribe of Levi does not have a a part together or portion in the land together with everybody else with all their brothers. God is their inheritance. Like God has spoke to them. God is their inheritance. I'm sorry, Rashi. The finish of the Levites because they were segregated to work in the holy temple and to work with the altar. because they don't have time to plow and to seed or to vineyards and so on. Hashem God is their inheritance. They take a ready-made food from the house of the king, meaning that they don't have to work hard on it. And you, the Jewish people, are obligated to give them the tithe and the donations to keep them going. >> [snorts] >> Verse 10. I am I was standing on the mountain like the first days 40 days and 40 nights. This is now the third time that Mosha is on the mountain. This is the last and final time when he brings down the second set of tablets on Yom Kippur. God heard me this time and God did not seek to destroy you. I was up there now to get the second set of tablets fortunately because he didn't say previously how long he was on the mountain for the third time. So therefore now he says it again and he says I was there for 40 days. Like the first days of the first set of tablets. And over here Rashi explains again and tells us just like the first set of tablets God gave willingly and happily. So too I feel so too the second set of tablets were given willingly and happily. I will I'm sorry but those middle 40 days from those 40 days where I had to pray and ask God and beseech on behalf of the Jewish people that God should not destroy them. That was not that happily. Yet God was still upset at the Jewish people because he has not yet forgiven the Jewish people completely. Verse 11. God said to me Get up and go and lead the Jewish people on to their journey. They should come and they should conquer the land that I would give to them. Even though that you went astray and you were serving and you made the mistake of serving the golden calf. Omar God told me to go to the go and lead the Jewish people and take them to the land of Israel and after the 40 days God was willingly and happily giving you the Torah and forgiving you on all your sins. This concludes the fourth Torah reading of partial sake