Ha'azinu - 5th Portion

Join me as we learn Humash for Thursday, the fifth Torah reading of Parshat Ha'azinu, chapter 32, verse 29. We continue with the poem as Moshe tells the Jewish people about the covenant they made with God, the promises, the good and for the bad of what happens when they follow or don't follow God's rules. Verse 29. For if they were wise, they would understand this. They would understand their end. Rashi. The nations of the world will understand and recognize what the level of the Jewish people are at first. And they would understand why the punishment happened to the Jewish people. Verse 30. They should understand and ask, "How could it be possible that one of us should pursue a thousand of them and two of us cause 10,000 to flee?" Is it not Were it not that God, their rock, sold them and that God delivered them into our hands? The enemies don't think to themselves and say, "How's it possible that we were able to conquer so many of them?" That we should have one person should say chase a thousand of the Jews. That God sold them, gave them over into our hands. As Rashi uses the French word deliver as we use in English as well. Verse 31. >> of the even plainly. Their rock is not like our rock, yet our enemies judge us. Rashi, "K'lo k'tzurenu tzuram." K'chol zeh hayulam l'havin. All this the enemy should have thought and understand and recognize that all their luck or their their success in hurting the Jewish people is only because sh'Hashem hiskil up, because God punished the Jewish people. Lo lahem v'lo l'elokeihem, it's not them or their gods on netzach and that they're victorious. Sh'ya ad hein lo b'kitzuf until now lo yachlu l'kayem k'minyan tzurenu. Because until now they had no ability to be able to go against the and hurt the Jewish people. And this is because they don't understand, they don't recognize or realize that our rock is not like theirs, our God's not theirs. K'lo k'tzalenu tzalem, k'chol tzur sh'mim k'chol sh'n'tzela. Meaning that the strength of the of God is not like the strength of their idolatry. And now the reason why he uses tzur which is rock refers to anytime he wants to talk about the rock or strength that the verse uses, it will use the terminology sela which is a rock, which is this is a uh a slang if you want to call it towards the terminology of calling God strong or the strength of God. V'veinu p'lili. V'achshav v'veinu shof'tim asanu sh'arei tzurenu m'charadon lanu. And now the word p'lili comes to the word judging. They're making like a case against us. They think that because we sinned and now the enemies have control over us. So therefore they think that they're in direct control, but really they don't realize that their judgment is inaccurate. K'gefen k'min gefen s'dom v'amorah. Moshe continues in showing and this is like uh using God's voice. He says, "Since their vine is the vine of Sodom." Umishadmei s'dom v'amorah from the field of Amora. Anavim b'inve rash, their grapes are the grapes of bitterness. Ashkilos meroros lamo, their clusters. Their they squeeze wine to drink are likewise bitter as well. Rashi Kimiy gefen same gafnam musaf lamaylo this is going back to what we said before where God says amarti belibi afaim ashbisaim zichram that I said that I will get rid of put them to the corners and I'll get rid of their and abandon their memory lifiy shema say because since the actions of the Jewish people are compared to my systems like the actions of Sodom and Gomorrah moist they shadmays the word shadmays means state through a field we can make a shadmays lay cycle like the fields that not bring any produce with shadmays kidras in the fields of kidrin in veraysh aitz of marr it's bitter ashkalos marr like kamashki marr because they have a bitter drink that they're giving to drink meaning that the verse explains it to mean lifiy marr same put on this because since what they're doing is bitter and therefore their punishment makes them bitter the chintargum unklus as the the unklus explains with shushlama also they committed to saying that their bad deeds are paid back with bitter actions. Verse 33 chamas taninim yaynam veraysh pesonim achsar Their wine is like the venom of dragons and their wine is like cruel poisonous poison poisonous venomous of snakes. Rashi chamas taninim yaynam The targum explains this here the unklus kimoris taninim the koish put on us yinek kimiridas nachashim koish mishti put on us like it's a bitter uh like the bitterness of a like the cruel poisonous bitterness snake is what they're drinking meaning instead of wine they're drinking the poisonous venom of snake. veraysh pesonim that means the drink the bitter drink koish that's in their cup shua achsar l'nachash which is the uh venom of a dragon which would be which is anxious and which [snorts] is mean to be able to bite and to be able to sting in the venom of it. You'll have a mean terrible enemy who will come on the Jewish people and punish them. Verse 34. Is it not that they all stored away with me? Is it not sealed in my memory storehouses? Meaning do they think they can hide their actions from me? Like Rashi like the Targum says, they think they think I forgot the way they acting their bad ways. The Jewish people think so. I got everything still there. I have it stored away and I and they get paid and they get punished in the right time. Hallelujah pre government Muslim communist money. Meaning from what he said before, the mention that he before the way they were helping the way that he was talking about their behaviors, their fruit of their vine and their fields is hidden with me meaning the the Torah is with God's referring that he says that I I still remember it and I'll know what it is and therefore they get punished for it as well. Verse 35. I have the way to avenge and repay them with their foot when their foot falters. He caught of him a dumb for their day of their calamity is near. Meaning Hashem can make it come very quick. The Assyrians love me and their destiny will come upon them quickly. Rashi lean no come with you lame. You mean no come with me it's ready for punishment. I have that readiness to be able to take the revenge on them. They shall only pay back to them the way they're behaving. I know come with you lame with then when he talks about the revenge is referring to pay them back for what they've done wrong. Some explain that the word and pay them back like their payment not that they will not an action word that they will pay. Can you make his wrath that deeper in the hem come in that the war they must say I shall live with him that we find in Jeremiah for example we use as a terminology of a deep war in the speech of doesn't mean on the actual speaking but what was spoken. So to over here the payment and where their fear I will put on them. Their punishment will come upon them. When their foot falters when it ends the meaning their foot when it ends the merit of their forefathers since move him a love which that's what they're depending on and that's what keeps them going. Keep quiet of you made them I can bring upon them their day of um the day of their destiny I can bring upon them very quickly. I'm able to do it very quickly about many different messengers that I have the ability to do it. And this their calamity is near and their destiny will come upon them quickly and my very well I see this lamb quickly will come upon them that means it will not be held back as mentioned previous. The word harsh comes from the word come in your mayor your hisha something that will happen quickly. Rashi explains and points out that from the beginning of this song of this poem Up until now motion was rebuking the Jewish people about their misbehaviors and the terrible punishments that can come to them. That this poem should be for them as a remembrance and remember how they have to behave. So that when punishment and calamities do do come upon them Yea, do they know that I warned them in advance. However, from now on in the song, it changes tones. starts to testify and speak to them words of consolation. That when the Jewish people repent and the punishments do end and all the calamity stop. Like whatever Moses said with the blessings previously of will come upon you the blessings and the curses and God will make you return able to repent and come back to the holy land and this now begins the consolation part of the poem. Verse 36. After God will have chastised his people, he will relent towards his servants. When he sees that the strength of their enemies is growing and that no one amongst is being saved is being saved by a ruler or by one who has strength who has who strengthens them. 36 Rashi He will judge them with these terrible punishments that will come upon them that will come upon them. He will judge them key in this case because he's giving an explanation that he's saying before starting a new statement. Key, so when when you will come to the land all the structures may come upon them God will have mercy and comfort his servants to go return from that wrath and to have mercy upon them. The word consolation over here the word doesn't mean that he's going to comfort or console but yes, Naha means he's going to change his thoughts. He's going to return, meaning go back to what I'm what he what he initially wanted to do. La hate if a lot of whether to good or to do bad. Change of mind comes change of thought is yes, Naha. That the enemy is being too powerful and strong against them. And they're punishing and hurting the Jews too much. The effort is by him. And there's almost no Jews. There also of the also of that have the ability to be helped from them. Also, the word also means to hold back. To um to hold them back. One who is [snorts] being helped through a ruler or Jewish ruler so you have to be able to be able to stop these enemies from hurting the Jewish people. Also, they are lost. They are um There's nobody there to There's nobody there who has the ability to strength. That means there is no Jewish leader who is able to give strength to the Jewish people to help them and get out of the terrible predicament that they may be in. they shouldn't go in all different ways when they go out to fight against the enemy. Also, when the same time also a nation of master emotion, the word also it means to hold. It means a person a leader. A um somebody among them who is has the ability to to uh to nation of master emotion, one who has the ability to be helped by the government or by a ruler to be able to direct them what they should do. Also, also of Mahuzak and somebody who has strength hold up the wall the Jerusalem until the wall in the time of Nehemiah when they were trying to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem so says they were able to fortify it until the wall. Also of here to heal or Jeremiah uses the about the king of Damascus talking about his failures and therefore he says there is no strong city that can be praised. So the word over here Ozer and Ozer talk about either a leader that is able to strengthen the people to be able to fight against the enemy or one that has the strength to be able to stand up against the enemy. Verse 37. Vayomer He will say Elehemu tzur chasu tzur chasu boi We are your false deities the rock in whom you trusted for protection. Elehemu yesh where are those idolatries that you were serving? Tzur chasu asher is cast away. Where is that rock that you were using for protection up until now? Bnei Tzion from the sun and from the from the heat and the cold. Kol emar sheyibu tuchim by login at all. You were trusting in all those idolatries that they were going to protect you. Where are they now? 38 Asher chelev zivchemu yochelu That who ate the fat of your sacrifices Yishtu yayin nesichem Drank the wine of your libations. Yokumu veyazruchem Let them come up and help you. Yehi aleichem sisra Let that be Let that be your protection. Rashi Asher chelev zivchemu yochlu sheyimu kriven lifneihem sheyishtu yayin nesichem Those sacrifice Those gods that you brought sacrifices to They brought wine libations to. Yehi aleichem sisra isratzur That rock that protection master Let it protect you in your shield for you in your time of troubles. Re'u ata See now Ki ani ani hu That I That it is I I Ve'ein Elohim imadi And there is no deity on par with me. Ani ameis v'achaye I'm the one that I kill and I bring life. Machatzti v'erpa I strike and I heal. Ve'ein miyadi matzil And there's no and and and I can There's no one that can deliver from my hand. Rashi Ruata see now Havinu realize punish of his leg and for the punishment that you're now going through from the calamities that you're now suffering with. The Elokim Shem there's nobody that's going to save you. V'chima t'shua she even we could be out of here. And from the salvation that I'm going to help you, nobody can stop me from helping you. Ani Ani Hu He uses a double terminology. The one that puts a person down Ani Adam and the same I uplifts that individual. There's no deity, there's no God, there's no idolatry that can stop me. Imodu or that's with me assisting me. Something that's similar to me or anything that's like me. There's nobody that can save the you those who rebelled against me from their punishment that they will get. This concludes the fifth Torah reading of Parshas Azinu.