Ki Seitzei - 1st Portion

Join me as we learn Chumash for Sunday of Parshas Ki Seitzei. Last week's Torah reading, Parshas Shoftim, we concluded with the laws pertaining to war, that when the Jewish people go out to war to annex another city or another place, they were not allowed to cut down any trees of fruit-bearing trees. In between, we learned about the laws pertaining a person who was found killed in between two cities. Today, the Moshe continues to tell the Jewish people about laws pertaining going out to war. It is interesting to note that Parshas Ki Seitzei, that we're about to start to learn, is the one Torah reading in the Torah that has the most mitzvahs mentioned enumerated in it. There are 74 mitzvahs that we're going to be learning in this Torah reading. In contrast to last week's Torah reading, had much less, in the 30s. Although, in the Book of Deuteronomy, just in the Torah readings of Re'eh, and Shoftim, and Ki Seitzei, have many mitzvahs. In general, the Book of Deuteronomy carries most of the mitzvahs of the Torah, but Parshas Ki Seitzei singles out to be 74 mitzvahs in the Torah reading. Chapter 21, verse 10. Ki Seitzei LaMilchama Al Oyvecha. If you go out to wage war on your enemies. Now, this is not a war which you're obligatory, this is an optional war. The Torah tells us as follows. When the Sonei Hashem Elokecha BiYadecha, and God will deliver the enemy into your hands, u'Shavisa Shivyo, and you'll be able to take the enemy's own captives. Rashi, Ki Seitzei LaMilchama, Milchemes Reshus. This is not talking about an obligatory war where they had to wipe out the nations of the land of Israel. This is talking about a war where a person is only to conquer and to annex other lands around the land of Israel. How close of Madaba? Should we will Muhammad search Israel because when it comes to the wars pertaining the land of Israel which those were considered ones that they have to conquer from the seven nations of the world. In the Marva should have you say Shiviya, one cannot say you will take a captive. Should I find emerald is a high corner chamber because the Torah already told us that you cannot allow anyone to stay alive. We should have you say Shiviya and you will take a captive. The Rabbi second on him should have you say this includes if there are Canaanite there meaning I will be ashamed of you my even though that they are from the seven nations which you're not supposed to allow to live. However, being that they're now outside the land of Israel, they now become part of the land or the nation that they're living amongst. So if you are then going to conquer and take a captive from those people and there happens to be a Canaanite amongst them, then you're allowed to take them as a captive. Uh interestingly as well as Hasidic explains this doesn't only apply to a physical war. This is also the spiritual war with the conquest over the body and the Torah is telling us that when you go out to war that the objective is to bring back the captive. The objective is to overcome the enemy, not necessarily destroy and eradicate, but to take the enemy and transform it into something holy. Just like the Torah tells us when you go out to war to your enemy and God will give you the ability that you will be successful. Meaning that God is telling every single one of us, yes, there's a challenge in the world that we have to deal with the material and the physical, but the God gives us the ability, the strength and the wherewithal to be able to overcome the materialism, not only to subdue it and be detested by it, but actually to convert it and make it into a vehicle of spirituality. Verse 11. The issue of a Shiviya and you will see in captivity Asia you fast here, a beautiful woman. The Shaka Tava and you will desire her. then you will take to her and you will take her for a wife. Rashi, "Then you will take to her how are you going to take for a wife?" If the Torah though how can the Torah allow this person to take this woman who is in captivity as a wife? The deeper taylor look connected to her. The Torah here is referring to the and it's talking to the evil inclination. That the evil inclination will cause the person to be seduced by this woman and then cause the person to sin. She aimed at her because if God does not permit this individual to marry the woman, you say and I be certain he'll marry her in a prohibition. I will by the very fact that the Torah now allowed this person to be permitted in the saw if he marries her safely and then in the end the end result will end up hating her. Remember as it says afterwards verse 15 we continue because the end of leash when a person will have a woman that he likes and a woman that he dislikes. The safe of the women have been saved in the matter and the end result is that the child will be born from such a relationship is only going to be a rebellious child. Therefore these Torah readings were juxtaposed one with each other because it's telling us that if a person does fall for the seduction of this woman ultimately marries her though it's permitted, he will end up being detest detesting her and ultimately the child born from this relationship will not be a pleasant one. Aishas a field of aishas ish what does it mean this woman? That even if this woman was previously married to a non-Jew of course where they he is still not allowed to marry this woman in marriage. However, there are conditions before he goes about marrying this woman. And the Torah tells us as follows verse 12 First you must bring her into your home the girl you must shave her head the scissors for nails let her nails grow in a way that she should look repulsive as Rashi explains. The osisa supernao the godlim she has to let them grow that they should disnavel that she looks disgusting. The bal deturim explains that one of the reasons why these two things specifically because the way that they would seduce the Jewish men was by with her hair uh and with her head and with trying to seduce them that way and as well with their nails that she with her fingers that she pointed to the individual and trying to seduce them into marriage. And to distract him the purpose of the seduction was to distract him in the war that this way they should be distracted and they should be able to not be victorious over the enemy. Verse 13. Then probably at the time as we mentioned the women who were dressed in a way to be able to seduce these men so therefore the next thing that she has to do is she has to remove the seductive garment may Allah from her which she was wearing in captivity. And she would sit in your home. You must remain in your home. And she will cry and and weep for her father and mother that she misses. For a full month and only afterwards can you have relations with her. And intimate relations with her and she will be with you for you become to you for a wife. For you see that similar shivya because when she was wearing the clothes of captivity they were nice. Because the nations of the world will make that the woman would be wear seductive clothing to distract the men while they're in the army and therefore they will be able to seduce them and this will distract them from what they were doing in their objective in the war. In the home that you are using that means in the same home that you will be The purpose is that she should be in the home that the person is in, that the individual sees this woman who is crying and he becomes then disgusted by her and he has no interest in her any longer. Why does she Why the reason of crying? That this way there should be a contrast between the Jewish woman who is in his home and the non-Jewish woman who have the captivity that he brought into his home. The Jewish woman is the one going to be smiling while this one will be crying. The Jewish woman will be dressed appropriately while this one will be wearing disgusting clothing and getting having long nails and shaved head. Verse 14. But how you make a fuss about what happens if he does not desire her? Then she locked all the natural You must then send her away on her own. But about custom, however, you're not allowed to sell her for money as like a slave. At least she's honorable. You may not have At least she's honorable. You're not allowed to change her. Uh you may not keep her because she is because you have afflicted her. So you're not allowed to keep her as a slave. You have to take her either as a wife or send her home. Rashi by I am like a fat slob. Listen ASA. The Torah is actually telling you what's the only result going to be that you can end up hating her. So therefore, you shouldn't even bother taking her. At least she's honorable. Let me just damage her. Do not use her as a maid servant. The word tis amir balashon parsi koidum avdus shimus imrah. In the Persian they use the they use the word for service and as a servant the word imrah Miyus say they shall adopt and I know this from the language of the book of Ramisha Darshan. He explains that the word Tisa Emer comes from the word using. Verse 15. Ki see an ally ish day nation, if a person were to have two wives, a ahas uva, one that is beloved, the ahas nuva, one that is despised. V'yolde li vanim, and they both have children, sons, how uva va'as nuva, the one that he loves and the one that he despises. V'haya ben hab'her l'asnuva, but the firstborn will be born to the one that he despises. 16. V'haya b'yom hanhilu vanav, on the day that he will have to bequeath his estates, es asher yehi lo to the sons that he has, lo yuhal l'vaker es ben ha'uva, he will not be able to give the son of the beloved wife precedence al pnei ben ha'asnuva hap'her, on instead of the despised son who or the son that comes from the despised wife, and he would have to give the firstborn to him because he is the firstborn. Verse 17. Ki sa'apher ben asnuva yakir lo, rather he must acknowledge the firstborn of the son that he despises, of the wife that he despises, lasos lo pi shnayim to give him the double portion. B'hol asher yimase lo, in all that he possesses, ki hu reishis ono, because he is his first product, his first strength. Lo yishpat ap'her and therefore the birthright entitlement is given to him. Rashi, pi shnayim, what does it mean? Double portion. Ki aneg ish neyahim, the firstborn takes whatever everybody else, if you were to split everything else into equal portions, he will take double the amount because so if there were um if there were seven brothers, for example, they would split everything into eight, and he will take two eighths of it. B'hol asher yimase lo mikan, from here the Rabbis have explained, what does this mean? Everything that he has, everything that he possesses, she'ein ap'her noitel pi shnayim k'ro l've lo acher misas av k'musa. >> That the firstborn does not take double from the from the from from the any of the items that are going to cap come to them after the father dies. Like he says that it belongs to him. He only takes only of the things that right now the father has at his passing. But things that may come later on, for example, if there's a grandfather that dies and therefore it also goes to the grandchildren because since their father's no longer alive, that will he will not get a double portion. He only gets the double portion of what's entitled or what the father owns currently. We now go into the next uh section of learning about the wayward son. If a man has a son who is wayward and rebellious, a man who shall be a color of a man, he doesn't listen to his father or mother. They used to I say, they will warn him. The issue is my name and he doesn't listen to them. He does not he doesn't obey them. So they warn him, they tell him what he's doing wrong, but he doesn't listen to them. What does this mean? What does it mean a what what does it mean a wayward and rebellious son? Rashi explains as follows. So you did the word say that means so I mean I had that he went off the path. I'm way that means sort of a deity of a he refuses to listen to his father coming from the word lotion memory but like motion told the Jewish people you refuse to listen to what God had to say. The issue I say they'll have to warn him. His father and mother have to warn him we are my master needs to finish later. They have to warn him in front of three people that he should chastise him and tell him you should go back to what you're doing and then can stop your bad ways. I say they can even give him lashes. Being say that I made it in a higher than Rashi continues the in order to make a wayward and rebellious son liable of the capital punishment as we'll soon see, he will only be considered liable actually if he has to be able to steal money of his father the Yoko tart armor basa and you will have to eat at least 200 grams which is about 7 oz of meat the Yish the hot tea look and drink a half a look of wine which is about 5.8 oz of wine every Shana Marisa says they'll of a say that he is eating a lot and he's considered somebody who consumes a lot. The Neman alticus of a Yamma basa love me do not be like those who drink lots of wine and and fresh and taken indulge in lots of meat. These are all spoken about a person who's rebellious. Now we're talking about as well. He has to eat it in a certain amount of time frame as well. Being said to remain in any same say say and the son of a rebellious the the son of a who's considered wayward rebellious son. He's called meaning at what not of the things that of what he does at the end meaning not because these are so bad that they deserve capital punishment but actually because of what will happen to something in the future meaning he get a title of say that they the Torah sees what's going to happen eventually to this child. Save some of them and of it. If he's starting this way the end result is going to be he's going to end up using all his father's money. The vaca muda. He's going to find ways to be able to continue these bad behaviors these bad habits. They you know might say he's not going to find any more money. So what's he going to do? I mean precious to him. He's going to stand in the fork of the road when the last time it's going to be stealing as a breeze from people. I'm going to tell you therefore the Torah says you almost like I let him die now when he is not as bad of a Yamma sky even let him not die later when he found liable by the Sanhedrin. Interestingly enough this is one of the only times in the Torah where the Torah says you're going to put somebody to death not because of something they've done but what we are afraid they're are eventually going to do. Generally, we only say we don't know what to give him always a person to do to show him up but because his bad ways are so indulgent and so terrible even after all the warnings, we see what the future is going to hold of this individual and therefore we stop it in its tracks and we allow him to die so to speak in a more innocent mode than in a way that he should be found liable by the rabbinic court. And these are one of the mitzvahs that there are so many to it and such a actual case has never yet happened according to many commentaries. Verse 20. The Amora Ziknei Yisrael. Now, when if the court determines that this child is still in his early stages, so what do they have to do? They have to come to the They have to come to the elders of the city and say Bnei Noach Zaken our child over here Sorer u'Moreh is wayward and rebellious. Einenu Shome'a B'Koleinu, he's not listening to what we have to tell him. Zolel v'Saveh, he's a glutton and a gozzler. Rashi Oh, there's no Rashi. Verse 21. Now, once the court determines that this child is of age and he is considered that he passes all the tests of what what determines him to be a Sorer u'Moreh, then U'Regamu Oto Kol Amchei Yisrael, all the men of the city must pelt him to death b'Avanim with stones v'Ameis, and he dies. U'Vi'arta Ra Mi'Kirbecha, you will eliminate the evil from amongst you. V'Chol Yisrael Yishme'u V'Yira'u, and all the Jewish people will hear and be afraid of what such an event. Rashi V'Chol Yisrael Yishme'u V'Yira'u, Mi'Kan She'Tzarich L'Hachrizu B'Veis Din. From here we see that anytime a person is liable of capital punishment, the Beis Din is a rabbinic court has to announce and say Ploni Nisqal She'Hu Ben Sorer u'Moreh, this person was stoned to death because of the actions that he has done and what his crime has been and because of that he was liable of capital punishment. This concludes the first Torah reading of Parshas Ki Seitzei.