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Parshat Yitro 5784 (2024) by Rabbi Baruch Taub
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the uh the sheer tonight is being
dedicated by some Anonymous
friends um for a speedy recovery
Rua
for Yak Moshe Ben
Braha uh Dr Yak Dr Ed
fineberg uh one of the most respected
members of the Jewish Community here
in N very very special Jew who is
usually with us at all the shum as well
um the last week or two have been a
roller coaster and a
miraculous
um intervention by
aesu and some very special doctors and a
special wife uh Dr fineberg is resting
bem and recuperating in in K
in and we wish him a the she is being
dedicated for ra for him and our
learning should help bring about that
Ru amen amen okay the um I have two
pieces here the first is from rakov
kineski in the EMS leov U and this is
parro course yro comes on the scene
jro's moshe's father-in-law takes a very
big part in the development of the
Jewish people but Central Motif in the
par is the giving of the Torah the the
10 commandments are in in this week's
paraa and uh just before that moment a
few days before uh on the second day
actually just in preparation of of the
month of civan preparation for this
say please go I want you to go now and
talk to the Jewish people and men women
and children
Bel Rashi that's the Rashi actually says
here in the exact words that I'm gonna
you're going to hear and um in the exact
order that I'm giving you don't deviate
and furthermore
says the Torah
says these are the words I want you to
say to B Isel talking about the Torah
giving the Torah and Rashi there
says not less and not more tremendous
emphasis here on the pre Precision not
leaving anything out not any adding
anything so this is rak's question that
he's posing for us and he's going to
answer explain
we have to explain
understand why was
the what was the what was the how do we
understand this
exactitude the rabbis teach us in
in um this is the famous gor in chabas
and P that discusses the events of the
Revelation and the
the the Jewish people gathered at the
bottom of the
mountain literally means under the
mountain that actually put the mountain
over B is like a like a barrel right he
put them you know they say over a barrel
put them over a barrel put them under a
barel toas in other words he said you
have to you know accept the Torah if not
sham if you don't accept the Torah this
is going to be the end of you so there
were it was four there were Torah was
forced on them right that's what the
medish says who said you have either you
accept it and and yes or no if you don't
you're you're off on other picture so a
Tellus one of the tus in the the
commentary in the gar she asked a
question what's going on
har the Jewish people me have already
said we will do it uh we will do it and
and then we'll we'll learn it that was
love what do you want from
them what was the necessity to a force
maure what was the necessity of forcing
the Jewish people to take the they
already said they're going to take it
they they want they want to take the
Torah
unseen so he points he starts to explain
perhaps there'll be and this is actually
what TOA says the
commentary there might be some people
who will be who will panic and run
away you'll read in theim this is at the
end of the beginning of in the paraa
there was a a tremendous sound and light
experience at midar there was fire and
tremendous fire and perhaps they'll be
afraid and they'll run away what's
what's he what is that all about so so
therefore you got to stay okay
uh let me explain this in a little bit
of a deeper mode I mean you tell a child
there's fire he's going to run away
don't run away you have to stay here
that's not so simple right
so let me explain what's going on
here based
on don't be the Jewish people are are
exhorted in in per in peric not to be
like servants to Theon Ser like a worker
works just to get his paycheck
but you should be doing it because
you're not interested in the paycheck
you then then that's a mighty lesson
tremendous lesson right but that's not
the end of the P the end of the P
curiously
ends and let the fear of Heaven be upon
you so what was that what's what's being
added by that right says first of all he
says you shouldn't be like servants who
serve their m
their their boss for the money they
should you know the fear they should do
it out of love basically right and then
let the fear of God be in front of you
so is pointing he himself discussed this
in his
commentary truth be
told the Jewish
fulfillment the the development of a of
a Jew and a relationship to a
which is our ultimate goal to have a a
meaningful intimate relationship with a
is twofold there's two Dimensions it
requires two
things love we have to relate to him and
have a relationship of
love and a sense of fear a sense of awe
we want to we Embrace him but yet we are
in of him we stand back a little bit
right I've often pointed out that that
that's something that R hutner actually
wrote in said in his his eulogy forit
talking about love and fear that love
when you love someone or you love
something you move towards that person
right that's why all the positive
Mitzvah the headline Mitzvah all the
positive Mitzvah is the Mitzvah of
loving God because love you naturally
move towards a person when you're
fearful like a fire you you rep you're
repelled you move backwards that's the
the headline Mitzvah to fear God of the
negative Mitzvah don't do this and don't
do that right but you need you need both
elements to be a a a Jew who's committed
to Jewish life with
right you need you need service of love
and service of
fear
sometimes sometimes love's not enough
right sometimes love's Not Enough
and sometimes the the fear is is kind of
weak you need
both
therefore I mean you can to put it maybe
in different terms in a relationship in
marriage right there's a need for love
there's a need for respect there to call
year respect for a minute to stand back
to respect the other person is a sense
of sense of awe and and respect for that
person right put it in those in those
simple human terms right that's what
we're talking about here right so
therefore not withstanding the fact that
the Jewish people accepted the Torah out
of love they said nma we'll do it and
then we'll learn we accept it s
onene that being
said they were not tested in
fear and that that is the hint of the
fire that you'll see in the in the the
Torah describes the great fire
that in you have actual that talks about
it you'll hear the voice of God coming
from Heaven to warn you
that and the great fire of that was
at the Torah is
explaining we should be have a little
bit of fear for for punishment there
there there should be such a
sense let's sayov says if God would have
gone we know the medish says he went to
all of the nations of the world and they
asked what's written in it they weren't
interested but if God would have they so
no one they came to B Israel right so um
ble if if he say he's suggesting you
know IL B is if let's say he went with
to as into
is by with the the barrel you know Force
maure they would have accepted the Torah
you know do or die you don't accept
you're gonna die right
here the gamor actually says this Plum
and that that was the Tiner of the
nations of the world right Plum
ALU you never tested us with the with
the barrel you never put the mountain
over us and it forc us to accept we
would have accepted
it yeah we would have accepted it we
would have accepted it that way out of
fear that would have been a relationship
out of fear not out of love that's not a
true relationship with God right one
doesn't serve God merely because he's
afraid of punishment one doesn't relate
to parents because they're afraid of
punishment that that that's all the
relationship is about right
but the Jewish
people first they accepted out of love
there was an Embrace
of the forcing of the mountain upon
them that was to tell them that they
they had to test them they had to accept
it out of fear it wouldn't be enough
love is not enough right love is not
enough it's not enough there has to be a
sense of Ura as we said in example in a
marriage relationship love and respect
same idea love is not enough not going
to sustain a meaningful relationship
with there has to be this sense of the
sense of a
right if the Jewish people would not
accept it not have said we do it out of
love he wouldn't have given us the Torah
wouldn't have just he wouldn't have just
come with the barrel and for that it
would have been meaningless
what comes out
here it's because of
this now he's gonna answer his
question why said when he told MOS to
tell them you're going to get a Torah
and you got to do this Torah and not one
word less not one word more precisely
Precision there was a suspicion
mosha was afraid that maybe you know God
was afraid that maybe the people are
going to accept the Torah from Moshe for
some external reason
right because of the power of
m not because of the inner depth of what
Torah is and he has a footnote here
which he refers to something we spoke
about a few weeks
ago we spoke about why mosha stuttered
why he had a speech impediment how
strange that was the only way to
communicate the Torah was through speech
right from from parent to child from
from rebi to tman right so how do you
how do you impair his speech so the run
in his chuvas has a fascinating answer
he says that one of the reasons why we
might expect this to that God did this
is because if Mosher rabena would have
been this great charismatic speaker so
the next generation of children would
say ah listen you you just accepted it
because he was so so charismatic and
such an engaging uh leader and speaker
so that's why you accepted it so that's
why duffka he he stuttered according to
the run a very interesting approach we
of course presented another approach a
few weeks we're not going to go into it
but maybe the Jewish people will accept
it you know for for some other reason
right I don't want
that I want them to accept it because
this this is the Torah the whole Torah
nothing the truth the whole truth
nothing but the truth
right and M was also
tested his faithfulness
to that he's gonna give over the Torah
Faithfully
clearly
mosu right clearly
he wanted the Jewish people to accept
the Torah he wanted them to accept it
right
so if not for his faithfulness to
the it would make sense we could
understand he'll throw in a few other
things you know he'll throw in some
candies he'll throw in some sweets he'll
throw in something extra to encourage us
right but if M would have done
that then he was not the man to give the
Torah over to all
Israel how many times do the rabbi speak
about you cannot add one letter to the
Torah if Moshe would have changed just a
little bit in
this is a tremendous test for mosha he
had a tremendous love for the Jewish
people he had a tremendous deep
understanding of what AES wants and what
this Torah is going to be and the test
was would he would he give in right and
would he add something or subtract
something take out a mitz maybe
right because of this
idea now can
understand let me add a PS he says so
that's why that's why we see Rashi tells
us twice
right in this order in this this
language don't change a word
right not less and not more now he says
let me give you an example now we
understand why mosha that the what mosha
sin was at the at the at the by hitting
the Rock
why was he punished so severely he
couldn't enter a Israel
right because he a little bit deviated
from who's commandment now there are
many many explanations of what he did
wrong right he was told to speak to the
Rock he hit the rock but he felt in the
past had asked him to use that that Mata
that staff so the
all the are very busy trying to
understand what moshe's misstep
was according to what we've written
here that this sin was unique to
M he was the one and only receiver of
the Torah
from the one to give over the tradition
to the Jewish
people every word that came out of his
mouth had had a the perimeter of God's
words God
speaking the Torah says
later they'll believe in you forever in
therefore said it the whole trust in
mosenu was based
that he would give over the words of hem
with
Precision the way he was told to
him without changing
anything the rabbis tell
us spoke and mosha wrote he was the
Secretary of he
dictated here
if he would add something or subtract
something he would demonstrate he's not
it's a little bit of moshe's Torah
Right add just a little bit from himself
it would have been total
Destruction that was the sin the misstep
of
mosenu at the Maya with the hitting the
hitting of the Rock right
he put the entire revelation of Torah in
Jeopardy at that moment right just over
the page the end of
it because now the the the the
trustworthiness of Mosher Renu was put
into
question therefore to punish him in such
a severe way that he could not be
participate with us in the end game of
our journey
into everyone
knew everyone knew this knew what
happened and every other part of the Tor
never did such a thing so that's how he
that's his PS to this idea okay now
number two is really the puking for
number three which goes over to the to
the third page and this is a classic
presentation from r hutner on one of
theer that are in the par the MIT shabas
one of the Ten Commandments and it is a
classic understanding of shabas I think
there are things in here that are going
to be very much news to us and will will
be something that we'll we'll be able to
to cherish in our own observance and
under have a deeper understanding
the Mitzvah the great mitz Shas so
here's theuk in number
two how's the mitzah is
presented six days you will
work you'll do all you'll do all your
work
right shabas the seventh day is
shabas no you don't do any
work children
everybody so really the question that
he's going to deal with is just get to
the point
right what's this introduction of six
days and then shabas right
next for six days he did Heaven and
Earth he
made the and everything in
it but on the seventh day he rested
so therefore he blessed he he blessed
the day of shabas and he made it holy
okay so you see in a certain sense where
he might be going let's see what he says
now this is a much longer piece you see
from the chapters that I've taken out I
have z b but we're missing a lot of
things but I think I I took out enough
that we're going to really appreciate
what his his thesis is VAB
there are two things that the the
existence of chabas represents two
Dimensions the the physical creation the
the action the create action of the
creation of the
world shabas was the last thing created
right in terms of the creation the
physical creation of the world shabas
was the last
right but as we say
in right the end of the the physical
creation is what you person is building
a a a house he's building something
special right so what what his first
his the last thing he does the last nail
he puts into that house that was really
his Mak from the very at the beginning
so you
have was at the beginning what he really
wanted to accomplish was that house
right it was the last thing that came
when you put that last nail in so the
thing that was done last in is really
the first in and that's what we say
in
right in terms of
the the the purpose the design
of God's created
world it was the beginning it was number
one he created this world for Shabbat it
was the last it was the house that was
completed the last nail hammered in
right it was really before everything
else but it was the last thing
created necessarily because it was
number
one in in thought in in theme in essence
he
he it necessarily was the last thing
that was physically
created like everything that a person
does everything that is first in the
order in terms of the the creation the
finished product you know you know my
mother used to tell
me you love the bone of your rip steak
so much why do you save it till the end
when it's going to be cold right it's
really it's the one thing you really
want right but you want to save it till
the end that's what it's all about right
you get to that point
okay now listen to this this is at the
the heart of the two counts of shabas in
the
week the first is Shabbat
chabas came first and then for us we
were created on right on the sixth day
right shabas came first and afterwards
the six days of
creation
met right this is really the way God
wanted the world to be created that
chabas was number one so Adam and when
Adam came into this world chabus was he
was presented with the with the finished
house he was finished with shabas and
then the six days
afterwards okay now here's the thing
next paragraph
you so what you have in God's world this
this is the problem because in our world
shabas comes first in God's world when
he created the world there was the six
days of and then shabas came at the end
right okay M more or less but there's
two Dimensions here there's God 's
creation which was six days and then
chabas and then there's our chabas which
is chabas and then the six days so
mik from all of this so
far let me explain let me bring
something out here from the raan
something very special he says he the
saysat remember the shabas day and the
is thean says you have to remember
shabas every single day
explains there's a reason why there's no
special names for the days of the week
right the names that we have are are
borrowed from our our culture that we've
lived in right Sunday Monday Tuesday Etc
but really the classical names for the
days of the week are
right so why is
that
Etc why is that this is established so
that we should remember
shabas listen
carefully every day we
count how many days are left until
Shabbat
right he says that's only half the
picture continues that's not only what
the account there's a two count per
thing
here is not completely fulfilling the
the challenge of the
counting there has to be a double
intention
here you count one two three
when you
say it's also not only to the coming
Shabbat but
it's of the first day that's beginning
so we say Y for the shabas that passed
Right shabas started it and now it's for
the new week that's coming
it's for the new week that's coming the
first week that's coming before shabas
and it's
also Shabbat and it's also the first day
following Shabbat so you have a week
before shabas right that's that's man's
chabas so to speak and then God's chabas
was the the the week following chabas
right so it says that's the second one
we just passed
shabas because shabas has two
Dimensions God shabas our shabas
right the shabas of the shabas of
creation
right right first the the the the days
the six days of creation preceded shabas
which is m so this is the the counting
of right of
creation and the other
Isa right that shabas comes before the
six days that's how Adam was created
that's how we were created right that
the
the the purpose was given to us before
the days of
creation these two ideas says in yish
you have to you have to hear this very
well when you
say every morning when you
say it has two
Dimensions right
it's that from we that we just had and Y
for the week that's coming
ahead that is how you fulfill the
Mitzvah of
to remember shabas to make it holy is a
double dimension of
remembrance it's the first day of the sh
that's
coming and it's the first
day it's also the first day of the
shabas that passed okay beautiful no
let's see get get
better shabas over the page page three
Chu when we keep shabas when we rest on
shabas
so we we we have to we have to imitate
God God kept shabas we keep shabas
that's part of the
Mitzvah the Torah tells us six days you
work God for six days he created the
world he why why why six days of the
week we work and on the seventh day we
that's what God did so our shabas really
is a mirror of God shabas it's part of
the midst of chabas because God kept
shabas God kept shabas after six days of
work after he created the world so our
shabas has to have that Dimension right
we we have a problem Houston we have a
problem how is that
possible God's shabas came after he
worked six days
the shabas
ofish of mankind of
humanity it came
before the six days his six days of
[Applause]
work from the perspective
of
of they rested shabas came immediately
shabas immediately
and then they count in six
days so we're losing out on one of the
one of the most powerful deep dimensions
of
chabas chabas comes before that the the
purpose the end game comes before the
creation what's hidden here this is
hidden in this idea and it's we we do
have it right but hidden in this idea is
the chabas
preparation a of chabas no some we look
at a of shabas preparation and next week
in our we're going to talk about the
Mitzvah it's a Mitzvah shabas is part of
chabas it's very it's a it's a very
particular it's it's not a simple matter
of going shopping and buying your kala
and buying what you want to you know
what you want to make and cook and so on
right om the depth of what shabas is for
us since we have a problem Houston we
don't have those six days we have to
imitate God we have to create a sense of
six days before our shabas even though
chabas came first for him
right
shabas preparing for chabas the midst of
preparing for chabas
here's the
explanation we have to put into one day
into one day
Friday
right men should it's y it's the day of
man right Friday is is man's day that's
when we were created on the sixth day we
have to put into that
day that's the day we're created
we have to put as
many acts of creation into that one day
to create six days of creation in order
to come to our shabas the whole idea of
H shabas of of making preparations for
chabas is to make a full weekday of
extra activity coming into chabas the
the the the power of you know I heard
from two great gum I heard from R salic
and I heard heard from
ra and they both said in a certain each
one in a certain they wrote in a certain
place that what what we Jews today are
lacking is what Arab sh shabas we have
shabas we have shabas what we're missing
is Arab shabas you have to know what
Arab shabas was for in for our parents
our grandparents our grand in Europe
what Arab shabas was the the excitement
of
that the the the the
MIT is a is a a makeup it is a creation
of the Six Days Of Mice doing everything
possible all the malas that we're
allowed to do before shabas we can do
all those things we can do all those
Creations create this make this bake
this purchase this clean this do that
all the M of shabas is like almost like
a a miniature six
days coming
in other
words that one day of shabas is like the
entire six days of creation we're
creating the purpose which
is so that our shabas will have both
dimensions it'll be not only not only
the shabas before for the next six days
but it'll be the shabas following the
first six days we'll make those six days
in one
day shabas preparation for chabas on
Friday is making it into God's day of
shabas through
this so our shabas will be like the
Heavenly shabas of the Ron where his six
days came
first greater this idea of working hard
on you got to get moving it's not simply
you
know as we would say in Hebrew
superficially the idea of Z just got to
be pun you gotta be quick gotta be fast
you gotta move chabas
right it's you have to bring what it's
about the the
right to teach us this there's that
something
about it's very
holy H like the ham the man was not was
given twice on on shab's already started
in a certain sense on Friday because two
portions were given
right this is an amazing thing do you
ever wonder how do what do you start
saying by Kish y
what is that all
about the sixth day and God rested on
the seventh day what what is that all
about
says
therefore therefore you
start
before right so
he you
know what is it doesn't make sense
to put in the of
sh that's what we're talking about we
want
to to
include we're including the six days of
creation into shabas to the extent by
the way I want to tell you we're going
to discuss this next week but on on
Wednesday I used to feel guilty there's
a
certain that I like to get I get in in
kid sons and they don't have a lot of
that particular th so yeah I have to get
there early so I go to an early minion
and I go there and I get you know but
sometimes I have to go to the late
minion if I go to a later minion that's
7:30 I'm going to miss the Kal so a few
times I I had a lot of guilt about it I
used to go get my Kal first before I
went to Davin not supposed to do any
business before you and say k then I saw
an amazing thing
the the Mish they all bring
fromon that you are even allowed to shop
for shabas before ding before you
sayma right so was a sigh of relief for
me but it makes sense you have to get
everything in all six days have to get
into that one day okay beautiful idea
now two more final
paragraphs now let's talk about
right what's
the right the ra
says
right you sanctify chabas when you bring
it in that's kiddish and you sanctify
chabas when you when you escort it out
right so listen to what he says this
this is kind this is
difficult this doesn't make sense he
have doar the obligation
you have to remember shabas when it
comes in and when it goes
out when it comes
in
right what does that mean how
does you sanctify something you're
sanctifying something that is coming I
now am sanctifying being madesh
something I'm sanctifying something and
making it all it come it's before it
happens right
Tes for example K the ISA marriage right
the marriage C is called K you're
entering into marriage so to be mades is
is an introduction into something holy
right what does it mean I'm making
finish when I exit shabas when I send
shabas out Al
it doesn't make sense why are we making
kidish is we going to the weekday ah but
based on what we've said this is final
paragraph let's answer this
question but I'll show it to you if you
look at the words
of you know the main
we all
know now it'll give us the secret of
what on the cup
is what do we
say begin for
us the day the week days that are
coming the days that are
coming for peace we're we are being mes
something we're being enage those six
days that come before the next
Shas the introduction is to the week
that is coming the week that is coming
the six days and
the ofas from the six days of
creation during you could do it during
Kish of
we do it we do it before as we come in
from chabas from the weekdays to the
chabas and as we go from chabas to the
weekday to emphasize the two Dimensions
the double Dimensions the two shabas
that we keep right the shabas before the
day the days of creation which is man's
and the shabas of God which we have to
imitate so we have both okay lot to upon
lot to think about I think this is just
a masterful masterful presentation of
shabas and a lot of new things for all
of us okay thank you for your patience
Wednesday night is haa we're going to be
talking about can you change a person's
name say for or for other reasons can a
name be changed and that's what we're
going to talk about uh welcome everybody
I see um I see the Reese family is back
for a long after a long
I assume you were out of the country so
welcome
back okay everybody thank you for coming
and have a wonderful