Beshalach: Splitting the Sea - Eternal Lessons of Emunah | Rabbi Sam Shor | January 29th 2026

So good morning everybody. We are as you know praise God this coming Shabas as you just heard from Rabbi Ta. We're going to read para bashalak and para bashak of course contains within it that awesome moment in Jewish history that we actually relive and reexperience every single morning as part of shakar that experience where faced the sea in front of them and Hashem made a a miracle and caused the sea to split and the Jewish people walked through the sea and uh then the waters collapsed back on top of the Egyptians behind them. Now we know just a couple of just interesting things before we actually get to the source sheet in front of you. We know that the story of creamsu from para bash is read before the week of para. What do we read about in para? What famous moment in Jew is sinal moment in Jewish history do we recall in parro mad arena standing at Sinai and Kabal Satra. So the the third rebad the explains that it's no coincidence that sequence of the Jewish people going into the sea before the experience at Sinai and he says that this is the proverbial the proverbial immersion in the mikvah before the Jewish people arrive at that awesome moment to receive the Torah. says that before the Jewish people could could go from the experience of Mitsim and everything that Mitsim represents to be able to receive the Torah at Sinai, they first had experience uh proverbial dip in the mikvah and that's what the the Yamsu represents the Jewish people going into the sea. That's the >> but they didn't get wet. >> They didn't get wet. So well well from it's not clear if they got wet or not. We're going to explain that in a moment. The option of a Rebi, which is again one one other source that's not on your sheets. The option of a Rebi asked a very ser very serious question. He says if a bar wanted the Jewish people to be able to traverse the sea without getting wet. So what what could have happened? Hashem can do anything. Hashem could could have picked us all up. What? And just transported us immediately on the other side of the sea. Listen to his words. He says we have to ask the question what's the significance why the experience of the sea splitting when we know that Hashem could very easily have what taken the entire Jewish people and trans you know kind of transported them to the other side of the sea. is that [snorts] was what is the idea that Hashem wanted to demonstrate that all of nature is nothing compared to what Hashem's okay Hashem is beyond any of the limitations and laws of nature and Hashem wanted to demonstrate this in a very powerful way and to demonstrate what that nature can be broken Okay. That Hashem can what? Cause the laws of nature to be broken. And for that reason, for that reason it happened what? That he had them walk specifically into the sea says says the sea had a split. Why? Because Hashem want to demonstrate that he is beyond the laws of nature. Now you could ask the question further. We hasn't this already been sufficiently demonstrated with all the mak that that have fallen in time but it seems to be this is a key point that that Hashem a key point that Hashem wanted to to to reiterate over and over again don't worry about the go want to reiterate over and over again and that is what that Hashem is beyond the laws of nature and before they once again just to review okay the two pieces that we that we did as an instruction that are not on your sheet They were in the words of the third Rebad, the Jewish people had to go into the into the sea before they arrived at the experience of of mata Torah receiving the Torah at Sinai in order that what it should be the proverbial mikvah immersion before the moment of of tahara of purity of receiving the Torah at Sinai and then according to the action of Rebi who asked the question why did Hashem have to split the sea at all if Hashem wanted the Jewish people to get on the on the side of the Amsu. He could have just transported all of them at once. Why? Why the need to split the sea? And as as the Remy says, Hashem wanted to demonstrate what? That he has the capacity to to be beyond and to break the laws of nature. Okay. With that as our introduction, with that as our introduction, we're going to take a a deep dive. No pun intended because we're talking about going into waters, right? We're going to take Yeah, maybe pun intended. We're going to take a deep dive into this experience of creases and most specifically try to understand the what I'll call the eternal messages of amuna that we're meant to learn from the experience of so if you take a look at your sheets of course this we we that we're going to read the shabas And hashem Moshe put out his hand, his staff before the water. And Hashem came and and made the a great wind that blew the entire night and turned the land the the sea to to land and the water split. And it doesn't say the sea split. It says the water split. So the famous rashi text number two on your sheets, what does it mean that the the water split? The water parted call may shabola. All the water in the entire world spit split and parted. Not just the sea. It doesn't say the sea split but all the water in the entire world says Rashi. So what does that mean? What does it mean? All the water split. So we're going to come back to that question in a moment. And then the tells us and the Jewish people went in to the land to the sea on dry land. And the water formed walls around them both to its right to their right and to their left. And that by the way is repeated again. And the last that you see here on your sheet and the Jewish people walked on dry land within the sea. So what does this mean? Number one that all the waters ra the rashi tells us all the waters of the world split. Why why is that important and what does it mean and there must be a significance the fact that this pik is repeated twice that there must be some significance we're meant to learn about this idea of walking on dry land within the water. It's repeated twice that they walked on dry land within the sea. Why is that repeated twice? there must be some significance. So, we're going to begin to answer both of these questions. We're going to start with a beautiful teaching. This is number three on our sheets from um Rabbi Schlomma Zaman Harowitz known as the Pakarv. The Pakar Rev was anah Shawah survivor of the Shawah who came to live in the lower east side of Manhattan in the 1940 late 1940s after the Shawah. He has a miraculous um survivor story in of his own that we've we've shared in the past and his safer is called bait aron not to be confused with a more safer of the same name of a more famous safer of the same name which is the safer of of rabi aut of caren the carina rabbi but this safer betram is a collection of the teachings of the pakar the pakarv was a dian in numerous courts in Europe before before um the shawah he is muas he is a descendant in his family all the way back to the benttoesh and it's he was very very um much um recognized as a great sadic and a great by particular when he came to America by Feinstein when he came to live on the lower east side of man of course lived for decades on the lower east side of man and really encouraged this rabbi this rabbi that he should become an admir he's he has all the way back Bhat. He wasn't interested in being an admir. He wasn't interested in like you know giving braos or those kinds of things or holding tish or any of those things but he had a little he had a little on the lower east side um where he used to teach Torah and my illustrious father-in-law Rab Mosha Snow um who grew up in the Lower East Side had a relationship with him and so I know of at least three people in the world that own this safe for Baron. Um, that's my father-in-law, Rabbi Snow, my brother-in-law, Rabbi Shahir Yablonsky, who got the safer as a gift from my father-in-law, and myself, who got the safer as a gift from my father-in-law. So, it's not a safer that's very wellnown, unfortunately, but this but they're beautiful, beautiful teachings. And we're going to learn a little piece from the pakarov text number three right here on this on the rashi, the ibaku, and the and the waters were parted. Rashi calling the says that what does it mean that the waters parted? It's talking about all the waters in the world. And now we ask the question we have to ask why was this miracle necessary to part all the waters in the world. Okay. The Jewish people are collectively standing together. They're about to go into the Yamsuf. So what water needed to be parted? The waters of the sea. What what is the significance of this statement of Rashi quoting the Medish that all the water in the world was parted. Now listen there. He's going to quote the the mid of Kajnit. The first rabbi of Kajnit of Kajnit. Okay. And in the mid of a blessed memory explained what is the intention wrote in all generations whenever the Jewish people would be face a moment of s of what of pain of difficulty of of trauma right God forbid that the se proverbial seas would split before them in the same way for the power that Moshe split the sea. Okay. From that moment that Moshe through Hashem, Hashem allowed Moshe to be the Shalia to help the sea split before them. What do we learn from this? that in all generations whenever the Jewish people face a proverbial onslaught from their enemies. Okay. Hashem just like he performed the miracle in the time of Moshe, Hashem will perform miracles in every generation z the grandson of the bashto. He says this is in accordance with the teaching from the great the grandson of the who said and quote quoted a very interesting the garra tells us in that was going to what to redeem captives and along the way of redeeming captives he comes to a river okay and what happen when he comes to that river and he was able to what? Cause the river of the Ginai River that stood before him to split three different times. Okay. In order that he should be able to redeem captives of Yosephra. What does he say? How great this was. He was even greater than Moshe and the 600,000 people who stood at the sea. Why the because for Moshe and the Jews of his generation the sea split one time. Okay. Okay. And for the water split three times before him. So now now the is gonna ask a question that how could say that was greater than what Mosha or even he was like Moshe Mosha. The Torah tells us what there'll never be another leader as great as Moshe. So how could it be that Yseph and the Gomorrah would say about that what that he was on a higher level than Moshe and and his generation. So he answers the question Moshe. What was his intention when he says he's great mim Moshe like Moshe not he's greater than Moshe but he's great his greatness comes mim Moshe not he's greater me Moshe not he's yosha but rather he's great why where does his greatness come Moshe okay his greatness comes from Moshe that through the power [cough] that Moshe was endowed with that enabled the sea to split the first time. Okay, that power that spiritual energy that Mosherenu brought down as the channel was the channel for that generation that Mosherenu brought down into the world through his that power remained in the world. Okay. And it's that power that allowed to be able to split the waters three times. And this is what the verse is teaching us when it says that the the waters split, not the sea. all the waters in the world that any water again he's using this this mush of the sea splitting of the water parting any parting of the water in every generation okay that's facilitated by the particular sadic of that generation okay meaning anytime the Jewish people are facing what a crisis Okay. And there's a crisis that's about to happen and that sodic of that generation is able to channel a spiritual salvation for that generation. He says that all this comes from where? From Mosha Rabenu. Who was the first one to what? To bring the energy to split the waters to split the sea. So says the the pakar quoting the mid of kash this is an idea we'll come back to again at the end of this year and that is what that all the waters this idea that all the waters of the world splitting is meant to not only mean all the waters of that generation splitting but that in every single circumstance every single generation of the Jewish people feel feel that there might be what a crisis of waters surrounding them Okay. Of of waters possibly falling in, collapsing on top of them. And every generation there are Nissim. Hashem brings Nissim. Hashem facilitates those Nissim to come into into existence through the power of the sadikim of that particular generation. And that sadikim get that power from the initial time that Moshe brought that spiritual energy into the world. Everyone with me so far? Okay. So we're going to come back to this idea at the end of this year. We're now going to focus on the second question that I raised and that is why does the puss uh why is the the idea of the Jewish people walking on dry land within the sea repeated twice? Why is that emphasized twice? So we're going to learn if you turn your sheet over. We're going to learn a short Ezra together. So text number four says the following. The reason why this idea of the Jewish people walking on dry with on dry land within the sea is is repeated a second time. Oh to teach us what? That Hashem create created what? A miracle within a miracle. Okay. It's repeated twice to say what? There's a duality to this miracle of the sea spplitting. Okay. A miracle within a miracle. What? What was the miracle? That at the same moment that the Jewish people were walking on dry land. The Egyptians who followed them into the sea were what? Were drowning. And they were very close to each other in one sea. It wasn't like the Jewish people had, you know, come out traversed the entire sea and then the Egyptians started following them. No, the Egyptians followed them right into the water and the Jews were walking on dry land and the Egyptians were drowning. The Jewish people were many. He [snorts] says it's true. There were many many Jews and many hund there's 600,000 Jews crossing the sea at once and many of them did arrive on dry land already by the time the Egyptians came to the sea but many of them were still crossing says Nebuchadnezzar and therefore the reason why this idea of the Jewish people walking on dry land within the sea is repeated twice is to teach us the dual nature of the miracle there's the miracle of the sea splitting and the Jewish people walking on dry land and then there's the miracle of what that simultaneous ously the Egyptians were drowning the duality of the miracle. Okay, so it's very interesting the the rabbi of Kas not on your sheets of may his merit be bestowed upon us. He actually says something very interesting about this concept and listen to his words. The waves were upon them. that he says the sea didn't necessarily physically split. The Jewish people had such trust and faith in that what the waves were literally upon them. They were in the water says the but they had such trust and that they walked as if they were on dry land in their minds. What? They had such faith in Hashem that that Hashem was going to make a miracle. In their minds, they were on dry land that their faith in utter am gave them the feeling that what that they were walking on dry land. Now I don't know what happened if we accept his interpretation of the rebu. So you have to ask a question. So what happened when they got on the other side of the sea? Were they were they soaking wet? Were they covered in mud? I don't know. But the the message that the Reb of Kasa sees here is something very powerful. And that is that what that in moments of despair, okay, or potential despair, moments of potential trauma, we have to give ourselves over completely to shalom. And if we're able to do that, then that's what in those moments where we can experience salvation and miracles. That says the rebas. We're now going to learn from two different generations of the of the the Rebes of Slanum, the Slum Rebes. Um, and they're going to take this in a slightly different direction, each of them. We're going to learn first of the Birk Abraham, Rabbi Ara Weinberg. Elenu he was a shaw who came on aliyah to Isel after the shah and reestablished there were tens of thousands of who perished in the shawah and he came with just a handful including his illustrious son-in-law who we're going to learn from in a moment and that's the shalom rabbazki who became who re literally rebuilt the son ofidis after succeeding his father-in-law into what it is today. And the slmer the slemer, the na shalom, the sec the the second of the sleebies we're going to learn from this morning. His his farm amongst the most populous farm in the world today. He also organized the the written works of his illustrious father-in-law, the birkas of Ram. And we're going to learn first from the bas and then we're going to learn from the shalom. So this is text number five. of says the following. He says and the Jewish people walked in [snorts] to the sea on dry land. So what is the is what are we meant to learn from this idea? He says in the name of okay is one of the the the ancestors of the slum the rabbies of Sodom. He says the word bet the word within the sea is equal gamatria in numerical value to the name the holy name. What does mean? The word means to distribute. Okay to divide. So the word is one of the mystical names that's attributed to Hashem. Okay? Because Hashem is what? The one who provides who distributes parasa. He says so the word is equal in gamatria to the word which means a reminder to us that Hashem is the one who distributes and is and therefore we can understand from this at that moment when the Jewish people stood at the sea they were surrounded on all sides And they didn't see according to the laws of nature any way out, any exit, any offramp. And through the strength of their amuna, Hashem helped them to see a way out, a path out, a path forward that they could have never comprehended on their own beforehand. And they went into the sea on dry land. So too. So too when it comes to what the circum financial circumstances and challenges we may face throughout our lifetime. In those moments where what we may feel we're drowning in debt, so to speak, and that we don't see any way out according to our own human comprehension and logic, we have to recognize and believe wholeheartedly that Hashem ultimately is orchestrating everything. And Hashem will indeed provide a way out from the depths of our despair. And when we put our tr our faith and trust in Hashem, then we have to will see that Hashem will indeed bring a salvation to us in in a way that we could have never imagined on our own. That's the first message that the that the bases inherent in this represented in this idea of the sea spplitting and that being being emphasized twice. Now here's the second idea. He says we could also see that this is an illusion to what the very real struggles that each of us face sometimes in terms of our spiritual uh and when we say doesn't mean just in terms of our means in general in terms of our our emotional spiritual well-being. Okay. Within the sea we're on dry land. Sometimes a Jew feels what? All dried out. Okay. He feels emotionally spiritually and emotionally spent. He Okay. He feels dried out without any of the fluidity of holiness. And he feels what? That Hashem is maybe hidden from him and his heart is closed. But in those moments, a person has to believe that everything we face in our lives is all part of Hashem's overarching. Even when our hearts, you know, all of us go through periods in our in our our vote in our emotional spiritual lives, what that we feel maybe not as we're not as on fire as we like to be. We're not as as plugged in, as tuned in as we like to be. He says even those moments are all part of Hashem's divine. Okay? And we therefore we have to believe and put our trust in Hashem that he too will what part the proverbial seas before us. What a beautiful beautiful message from the Rebi of Sloan. Okay. >> He live he died in 1981. >> So he went through the show. >> Yeah. As [snorts] did as says >> correct. >> Correct. that when the Jews are in trouble, God will take care of them. >> Go ahead, >> Amuno. So, now we're gonna now we're going to learn from his son-in-law, the the the nival >> we'll take question more questions at the end. Okay, there's no you can't you can't ask that question. You can't ask how does he justify it? You can't none of I would it would be extremebah to suggest that we have an answer for the shawah. [clears throat] We can't ask that qu. It's okay to I mean to struggle with that question but we're never going to get an answer to that question. Okay. So let let's move on the shalom text number six. He's going to quote the ali the great rebel. Okay, the great earlyic master and the rabbi of okay has a beautiful Torah on on our question. What does it mean that the Jewish people walked on dry land within the sea? This is text six on our sheets. We can explain this in accordance with that that which the writes. Okay. On our and the Jewish people walked on dry land within the sea. Now listen to words. There are there are righteous individuals who see the greatness of God and the splendor of Hashem's divinity always with every step they take from the heavens and everything in existence may arts and everything exists here on Earth and everything in existence. There are unique individuals who want who can intuitit Hashem's presence. The can the presence of the one who is constantly renewing the process of creating the world. Listen to the the words of the Okay. These unique individuals in every generation, they have the capacity what to see and intuit Hashan's presence in the same way that every single Jew experience that great revelation at the moment when the sea split. Okay. Okay. This idea is represented by our okay that the Jewish people walked on dry land within the sea. Listen to the words of the quotes. Hashem at that moment they were so overcome, okay, by the revelation they experienced, okay, that even once the miracle had ceased and they were now on Yabasha on the other side of the waters, the miracle stayed with them, they were so impacted by the the experience of that great revelation that once the miracle had already ceased and they were already it was as if what they There's still the miracle stay with him. The experience stayed with him. Listen to the the beautiful words of the now as he's going to explain what the what the says here. Okay. That is that even once they had already traversed the Yam. Okay. And they were now on dry land, they were so impacted by that miracle that the greatness and the wonders of God stayed with them. Okay? As if they were still what? Within the miracle. our now we can understand the verse inash that the yam the the water was turned to yashaasha that which was experienced in the sea was turned upside down and what and reexperienced once again yabasha shagamba that from the moment of that wondrous experience of the sea partying. What stayed with them? That revelation stayed with them. They were so impacted by the miracle that once they were once again on dry land. It was they continue to see and experience Hashan's presence in the same way as if they were what? Still in the midst of the sea. This was the great level spiritual level of the experience of for every single Jewash that even once they had already trans traversed the sea and they're once again on dry land they their amuna was so impacted that it stay the experience stayed with them and they were on that same spiritual level that same level of heightened spiritual consciousness as if the what the miracle was had stayed with them as if the miracle was ongoing for them. Yes, Aviva. >> So maybe you can ask first if you'd like. >> No, it's okay. Go ahead. >> Maybe we have the same questions. that I have. So what I'm wondering if that's true then why when they also were surrounded with miracle after miracle or bathed in miracles in the desert did they complain and slave we want the foods of Egypt and >> it's a fair question >> and then also in receding [clears throat] the loopholes the the ten commandments they created a golden calf >> so both fair question I'll tell you I'll tell you an answer to that question. Okay, I know it's thy answer, but Anna answered that question. So, um you know that there's a there's a kazal in terms of hashem picked specifically hari to to to that theor at Sai that um that um and and and the imagery of how does Hashem re reveal that Sai is going to be the place? How does Hashem reveal to himself to Moshe at that he's going to be the goel that he's going to be the Shalia? The story of the burning bush, right? The burning bush takes place at that's the same place where the Torah is going to be given. It's it's okay. And that little the little thorn bush that sned it's completely engulfed in flames, right? And says this is impossible what I'm saying. How is this happening? So, so the uh the no sorry the we just learned from the asks a question why does Hashem decide at that moment where he's revealing himself to Mosenu he's giving mosh raenu this sacred assignment that he's going to entrust him with to be the go why does he decide to reveal himself in that particular with that particular imagery the idea of of a bush that's surrounded by flames so says the says Malik. This is an This is meant to remind every single one of us of the idea of the Yates. No matter what we experience in our lives, no matter what miraculous visions we experience our lives, okay? Like a bush that's being surrounded by flames. That's a miracle. It's not being consumed. So says the imagery represents what the idea of the eight sahara. Okay. A Jew is the is a proverbial thorn bush. We are constantly surrounded by what? By the flame of the Sahara. That doesn't go away. But despite the fact that we have the Sahara, what the Sahara at times may trip us up, but ultimately what we will persevere. So the answer that based on this that I would suggest to your question which makes sense based on this limit of the is exactly this idea. We're human. We're imperfect. We're going to make mistakes. We're we're frail. We're we're we're flawed. But um and the but the and even when we experience great greatness and see wonders, the Yates never goes away. Even even if we're transformed on a certain level, the atahara is still there and we can still trip us up along the way. Okay. So I just want to close with one last I promised you we were going to come back to this idea that we talked about in the introduction when the when um um when the [cough and clears throat] pakar quoted the rebi of kajnitz right the idea that what is parting of the water all the water in the universe means not only all the water of that generation but in every generation circumstance whatever the Jewish people f found themselves in difficult moments in difficult situations Hashem will continue to part the proverbial waters for us. So we're going to learn from one last Reb, one last modern master who's not on your sheets and that is the oh the Rebatan who we learned from many times together in this course. Rabbi Hassiatan of course is a is himself an Anita Shawah who got out of Poland in 1938 just ahead of the the Nazi onslaught and came to live the last 19 years of his life in Tel Aviv and in his beautiful he often gives us not only beautiful religious messages and and but if you think about those 19 years of Jewish history what he's lived through what he's experienced it's the years of the Shawah it's the years of a battle both in terms of um on literally in warfare as well as diplomatically for the establishment of the state of Israel and it's the early formative years of the state of Israel which were not smooth years they were difficult times so of course we know the story of occurred [snorts] on the seventh day of Pak right so of of tough shin so [clears throat] we're in tough Where are we up to now? Tshin pay tin. Sorry. We're up to tshin v. Right. So 86 years ago. This is 86 years ago. He says this. Okay. Or 85 and a half years ago. He says this. Um and I'm just going to read a short snippet from words that he said um in the early before the establishment of the state of Israel in the early years of trying to build the state of Israel. And he says he quotes the same Torah from the kajnit that the pakar quoted earlier. The mid of blessed memory taught taught us that at the moment of the sea splitting all the waters in the world split. For what purpose does it did all the waters split? What does that mean? This was a remeint for the Jewish people for all generations to the Jew being willing to what? To risk everything. Okay. To give his life to be that through our perseverance. And in this case, we talk about the famous story of being willing to what? going to the sea up to his nose and then the sea split before him that we learn from this moment of being willing to risk his life to walk into the sea up to his nose. What? And then the sea parts that this sets the tone for all future generations. Okay. that the Jewish people have their not only amuna but what are willing to be most nephesh for our beliefs are willing to risk our lives for our beliefs then what can happen then the all the waters in every generation that all the waters of trepidation that we face every generation will part before us now listen to the reby's words and this this idea can also be understood as follows to the merit of the faith of the Jewish people and their willingness to risk their lives to sanctify the name of heaven. That what will part before them? any waters of harm and any impediment and obstacles [snorts] on their on their on their path on their journey to what to eternity which the Jewish people are we're the eternal people all those obstacles can be will indeed be pushed aside when the Jewish people are willing to give their lives for everything for kish hashem for am israel for the tarakadosha we demonstrate our demonstrate our our unbreakable faith and trust in hashem then in all circumstances we can see the miraculous even this past week okay think about the events this past week okay how many of us when when when when so many of our brothers and sisters were taken hostage including many many bodies that that that were were hidden how many of us really believe, let's be honest, if we were to look ourselves in the mirror, really believe that we'd be able to recover every single one of those those b those kufot to be able to be buried here in our how many of us would have believed it. What >> I Yeah, I was fright uncertainty >> but the Jewish people, okay, and and our in our great country, okay, said what? We will never leave >> a single soul behind. And through that Ms. How many how many of our own perished in these missions, rescue missions? And and but through that miracle that every single one of those who lost their even those who lost their lives were able to come home and have and we can't ignore that miracle. I saw you know I saw never mind that that president you know prime minister Netanyahu recited sheanu in in in in Knesset over this acknowledging this is a nace I saw in numerous yeshivas yeshiva there who lost talidium who lost many many talum in these in in these battles okay and in these wars and these efforts to bring to bring every single member of the uh every single hostage every one of the to bring them home I saw in many of The yeshivas, they were singing and dancing this week. They were singing and dancing. Acknowledging what? That this was nothing short of a miracle. And it's a miracle that came about because what? Because our ready to be moesh to bring every single one of them home. And this is this idea of being most nephesh of having putting our full faith in that if we're willing to risk everything and put our trust in Hashem that we indeed can see the proverbial parting of the sea. We indeed can experience miracles in our days. My friends, we've just experienced this in just the past few days. May we be za to continue to experience miracles and see all the waters continue waters of harm continue to part before us because we put our full faith in the reban of Shaolam in all circumstances. Have a great week. Good chabas.