Ha'azinu - 3rd Portion

Join me as we learn Chumash for Tuesday Parshas Azinu, the third Torah reading, chapter 32, verse 13, continuing the poem of Moshe telling the Jewish people the covenant that they have with God to remember the days of the past and look forward to do days of the future, and reminding them of their commitment to Almighty God. Verse 13. Yarkiveyu al bamotze aretz. He made them ride on the highest places on earth. Vayochal tnuvat sadai. In order that they may eat the produce of the fields. Vayenikehu dvash misela. He nurtured them honey with honey from a rock. Veshemen michal mishur, and oil from flint stones. Rashi. Yarkiveyu al bamotze aretz. Kol hamikra, this entire verse is referring to the time which will come, the time of the coming of Mashiach, talking about the importance and the beauty of the land of Israel. Uk'tar Kumei as the Targum explains it. Yarkiveyu. Why will he ride them taking them to high places? Al shem Sha'arei Yisrael givhei mikol ha'aratzot, because since the land of Israel is higher than all the other lands. Vayochal tnuvat sadai. Eilu peirei Eretz Yisrael shekalim lanuv, u'lhavshil mikol peirot ha'aratzot. This is referring to the land the fruits from the land of Israel, which they are quick to sprout, quick to ripen, sooner than all the other fruits in the world. Vayenikehu dvash misela. What is this referring to that he gave them uh honey from a rock? That is because the referring to that uh honey from the fruits of the land of Israel, from the dates, they are the figs, they are the best honey that you can get. Because he brings a story that happened. Ma'aseh b'Rabbi Yochana ben Zakkai, there was a story that somebody told his son Bisichni, in a place called Sichni, that was a land a place in the city in the land of Israel. Bring me some figs, dried ones from the jug. He went and he found honey was coming out of the figs which was floating on the top of the from the figs the honey that was coming out of the figs was floating on the top of the jug. He said zoom. He said you want me to bring this jug? You wanted me to bring figs from this jug? It's full of honey. It's full of honey. He told him stick your hand into it deep inside and you'll find figs inside. What you see over here is that these figs were so juicy that being just a jug that had in it figs already was honey was floating to the top. And that's why he uses the terminology that you get honey from the rocks. These are the olives. They are in the tribe of Asher They are in the tribe of Asher in their lot of land where it says the table they'll be able to dip their feet in oil mean there's so much oil that's going to be there. Means the very high being that land of Israel was higher than all the other lands so therefore he calls it like in a higher place. suddenly my fields it doesn't mean my field that's necessarily sudden means about a field from flintstones Let's talking about the strength and how powerful the stone is why sometimes we find the word and over here he uses sometimes you find the and sometimes it's and over here it's he says when it's connected to the word after it then it's going to be how much when it's on its own word it will be called like it will be on its own. >> [snorts] >> We find this in many other words as well. And when you get the shin the shva will be whenever it's connected to the word afterwards. 14. Cream from the cream of the milk from the herd, milk from the flock. With fat of lambs and rams. of Bashan. And male goats. In of kidneys. With wheat and fattest kidneys. In in kale of kidneys wheat with be as fattest kidneys. And you will drink strong fine strong wine. Which is the blood of the grape. Let's see in Rashi. >> [snorts] >> This that is referring to happened at the time of King Solomon. As it says a sort of bucket of brim for us and bucket of eat that the cattle was so well and fat and juicy. And that they had 10 of those fat and juicy animals of cattle and bucket of eat and may it say in a 100 sheep that it was so much that it was so much milk and butter and the the land was flowing with milk literally. In kale of cotton. This is the fat of the sheep. When did this happen? This was by the 10 tribes that at that time all the 12 tribes that were sitting in their land. Should never pick out from the fattest of the sheep and that's what they would eat. Kale of kidneys. This is it. When did it happen that you had that the wheat was as thick as kidneys? So you must remember you like them so much. This was in the time of King Solomon that it says there that the bread that King Solomon had, he was able to use for 31 days and for and each flower weighed 60 times the amount and the the flower, the grain was so rich. Fidom ain of tishta chomer and the amount of wine which was the blood of the grape, this happened the time that they had so much wine that they would drink it in these big tubes because they didn't just drink it in cups which were so small, they would bring in big pitchers because they had so much wine. Chemas boker, other translations now. Chemas boker which refers to butter who shuman, that's the butter of the milk. Veniklas al me agavi cholov of the fats that you're able to collect off the top of the milk. Vechaliv tzein cholov shel tzein, this is sheep's milk because you dovuk when it's connected to the next word afterward come in the chaliv don't cook in the chaliv when you have with the next word, the vowel changes. Korim, the word korim kvasim, those are sheep. Kemashmai which is rams. Benei Bashan, they come they are grown in the land of Bashan that they had very fat very juicy animals there. Kilyos chita fish chitim shmeinim kacheidos kloyos gasan bechulya that the wheat, the kernels were as fat as kidney as kidneys meaning that they were so big and they were were massive like a kidney. Fidom ain of tiya shoysei yayin tovim yayin chashuvim, you'll be drinking good wine and the wine will taste very good. Che, chomer, what does the word chomer mean? Yayin belashon Arami chomer in in Aramaic the word yayin means chomer like we know in Jewish law chomer medina the drink of the country and so on. So the word yayin wine in Aramaic is chomer. In zeh deasham dover, this is not a noun for all general wines el lashon shuvach betam but it's specifically for a very special well tasting wine. Another explanation we can give. You can explain both of these verses 13 and 14 according to the translation of the meaning that all these eating and drinking are referring to not necessarily literally food of wine and cattle and juice milk whatever it may be. But it's referring to how easily the Jewish people will consume and be able to get rid of their enemies. Verse 15. But instead of appreciating all the blessings that you have instead Yeshurun which is a referring to the Jewish people became fat. And they kicked rebelliously. You became fat of visa thick Kasisah and uncovered fat. And you forsook you forsook God made it and scorned the rock of its salvation. Rashi of visa which slave it comes from thick Kasisah who can make Kasisah like you the summer and the sin change are in transferable and therefore interchangeable. So that his face was covered in fast Adam and so on and so forth like a person who is really fat and he's fat on the inside but on the outside you see it hanging over him. You see it in the as it's brought down in that the meat that the person had became that he was had like flaps of meat on the outside. Kasisah is like a cover like we mentioned before the sin and the summer are interchangeable. There's one way of translating it meaning that it's like a verb that you covered. And then there's another way because of doggish you would have that that there's and there's if it would have been with a and then with with a would have been with a then it would sound like he covered others of that he covered his face he covered the other person's face but he's talking about them that they covered they did not listen to what God had to say. >> [snorts] >> And they were covered and they themselves were covered with fat. You know they embarrassed and they mocked that they turned their backs on God there is no greater disgusting way of desecrating God's name by turning your back so to speak turning their back when they served it idolatry they did it in a way of disrespecting to the divine presence that they would serve their idolatry and put their backs to God. Verse 16. They provoked him to jealousy with strange idols. And they angered him with abominable acts. Rashi 16. They got him angry and provoked his jealousy through going through idol worship with abominable acts they by doing things which the Torah calls an abomination whether it's being together with the same gender or using magic and idolatries which are used and are given the terminology of abomination. Verse 17. They sacrificed the demons of no utility. A deity whom whom they had not known. Chadashim mikoriv bo, new deities they came upon just recently. Which they did well they saw Odom movisaycho that your fathers have never feared or defiled defiled them. Rashi. Loy aliya, the leshbon tzirch kardugme like the like the translation explains. Like the Targum says, what does it mean not a god? The leshbon the leshbon tzirch, there was no purpose of them. Ilu hayu bahem tzirch, if there was a purpose in them let's say like the demons. Loy hayisa kina, kefula there wasn't this double jealousy. Kimu ya'ashiv, that means God seeing that you're going to something with there's no purpose. May may if you had something had some type of purpose that came from it and you saw some benefit, okay, one can maybe justify the materialistic desire. But there's nothing coming from it and therefore it upset God even more. Chadashim mikoriv bo, afilu umetzlihu riglu bem. That even the nation that so new that even this type of idolatry the nations of the world didn't serve. sh'yireh omer zeh tzelem Yehudi, in fact a non-Jew that would see a Jew serving to this idol would say, that's a Jewish idol because a non-Jew doesn't even do it. Loy so Odom movisaycho loyoru bem, your they were not your forefathers did not fear them. Loyom disadas mipneihem, they did not get scared before them. They were not they they were not defied by them. Loy as I said Odom lamid machmas yirah uses the terminology when a person gets scared his hair stands up metaphorically. So therefore he uses that terminology. Kachni dishasifri, yesh la farish he could also use the term so'adim lashon tziyunim acherim, talking about the the um the punishment that comes because of the of that happened on the Babylonian exile it talks about because of the desolate that there was nothing there there was just a bunch of goats that were hanging out there and or it's earim, not necessarily goats, but the earim can also refer to shadeem demons. And therefore, meaning like that they would not bring sacrifices to the demons we find in the book of Leviticus. And therefore, here as well, he also said earim your your forefathers never gave any credit to these demons, to these ideas, to these idols as well. Rashi 18, I'm sorry, verse 18. Tzur yeladcha tashi vatishkach Kel mecholelecha. You have forgotten God, the rock who gave you birth. You have forgotten God who brought you forth. Tashi tishkach means he forgotten. Rabbi Senu Darshu keshebo leheitiv lachem atem machisim lifneihem. When God comes to do good for you, you got him upset with all these transgressions. Umatishim koach leheitiv lachem and you cause him to be weak that he should not want to go do good to you. Kel mecholelecha the God who gave birth to you mitziyachem etchem took you out of the womb. Lashon yecholela yalid like it says in Tehillim. Kol Hashem yecholela yalid the God who brought you birth, who gave you shikul kelayim strong bringing you like a woman who shakes and when she gives birth. And that is because of the pain that happens when the woman gives birth. This concludes the third Torah reading of Parshas Haazinu.