Re'ei - 7th Portion

Join me as we learn Chumash for Shabbos Parshas Re'eh, the seventh Torah reading, which is chapter 15, verse 19. Yesterday we learned about the laws pertaining a Jewish slave, and the laws pertaining charity. Today we're going to continue learning about the laws pertaining the firstborn animal, as well as the three major festivals that Moshe tells the Jewish people of how to observe. Verse 19. All and every firstborn male that is born to you of your herd or flock, you have to dedicate to God, your God. You're not allowed to use the firstborn as working with it, and you should not of your flock. Rashi, Whoever in another place says one should not make it holy. Only the one that becomes the firstborn becomes automatically holy. How is it possible that in one place it says don't make it holy, and over here it says make it holy? So it explains, you cannot make it holy for another sacrifice. Over here it teaches us it's a mitzvah to say on the firstborn that you are dedicated and sanctified to be the firstborn. Another explanation of what the difference is, There's no purpose of you saying that means this is opinion that differs with the first opinion. There's no purpose of you saying it's sanctified. It never really acts as don't make it sanctified. And you can't say don't sanctify because it already says it's sanctified. So which one is it? Okay, so you make it sanctified of something which is of a higher level. That means, if a person wants to add to the holiness of it. A person can then say whatever pleasure, whatever this is worth, I'm going to give to holiness. I'm going to give to holiness. I'm going to give to some make it sanctified. And therefore the person then takes the higher level, the worth of it and dedicates it to the temple. That means if you're going to exchange it, you cannot use it and you cannot work with it. Also, that you're not allowed to share it, you're not allowed to work with it. Also, the Torah is talking about actual situation because the way it was usually used and what it was usually done with and therefore the Torah uses that terminology even though it could be exchanged for something else. Verse 20 Verse 20. Before God, you must eat it before God, your God. Year within uh year by year. Year with year within the first year of having it. In the place that God will choose, you and your family. Rashi, He's telling this to the coin because since you're giving the firstborn to the coin, that's what it's referring to. Because we already know that the firstborn is part of the gifts that we have to give to the coin. Whether the firstborn is complete without any blemish or whether it has a blemish. As it says it says the the meat, the flesh will be to the coin. Year by year. What does it mean every year? We can we learn we shall see then. It has to be within the first year of the firstborn. I would think that the very fact that it's over a year, that will also it's going to be already invalid for a sacrifice once a year passed. But we already know that this is not so because it was compared to tithing. In [snorts] the previous verse we learned that when Moshe tells the Jewish people that you're going to bring your tithe of your wine, of your grapes, and your firstborn. So, maaser sheni nifsal just like maaser sheni if you haven't brought it within the year. It does not become invalid. Af bechor in an nifsal unless a mitzvah takes shnaso. It doesn't become invalid, but when is the mitzvah to bring it within the year? That if he slaughtered it at the last day of him being a year old and one day of the following year as well. From here we know that firstborn, you have 2 days and 1 night to consume it. Like every other piece offering. 21. But if it has a blemish, or it's lame. Or either or blind, any bad blemish, do not bring it as a sacrifice to Hashem your God, your God. Mum, that's the general rule. General rule of blemish. Which is a detailed blemish. Or is again a general. Just like you see the detail that tells you clearly what kind of blemish. Meaning it's a blemish. This is a type of blemish that if it's limping or if it's blind, it's not going to be healed. So, too, when we talk about any blemish that can't be brought as a sacrifice is a blemish which will never be healed. So, therefore, you cannot be brought as a sacrifice. Verse 22. You will eat this meat. You may eat it in your cities. It can be eaten together with the gazelle and the deer. Rashi, verse 23. blood may not be consumed. You must spill it onto the ground like water. I would think well, being that I'm permissible to have it, so therefore, I should consume everything of it. Therefore, the Torah tells us that even the blood one should not have shaday cuz generally kodesh nishchat b'chutz play period in the venekha. This is a holy item which is being slaughtered outside the holy temple without being redeemed and it's being eaten. Yakhol yafta mutar. So, I would convince myself and say, "Oh, if everything is allowed to be had, maybe I'm allowed to have the blood, too." Then I'm allowed to have it because the pasuk tells me rak es damo lo sisekhu, do not eat its blood. Do not consume its blood. We now go to chapter 16. We're going to learn about the three major festivals starting with the festival of Pesach. Shamur es chodesh ha'aviv. Safeguard the month of the spring. V'asisa Pesach l'Hashem Elokecha, and you will make that the Passover for God your God. Because it was in the month of spring that God to the month of ripening, more aviv means to ripen, etzi'akha Hashem Elokecha mimitzrayim layla, that God took you out of Egypt in the middle of the night. On the night of the 15th. Shamur es chodesh ha'aviv mikayden boi. Before, meaning before the spring comes, which is the month of Nisan, the time or before the wheat begins to fully ripen. Shamur sh'mor es chodesh ha'aviv, you should have to keep it that it should be worthy to ripen, meaning hakravat mincha omer to bring the omer offering. Im lav, aviv es hashana, if you see that it's not yet ready to be ripened, meaning that it's not spring yet, that's when we put in a leap year and that's why the leap year is in Adar because you need an extension for it to be that the Pesach should never be in the winter, it should be in the spring. Mitzrayim layla. Why does it say went out at night from Egypt? V'halo b'yom they went out in the middle of the day. Sh'nemar mimacharas haPesach yetzei'u Bnei Yisrael, that it was the day after, meaning the day after the 14th and the 15th in the middle of the day that they go and get out of Egypt. Al pi sh'v'layla because already on the night of the 15th, no tzel on pa'dayu lotzei, Pharaoh already gave them permission to leave even though they only technically left the next day. Sh'nemar it says for you could call my Sharon Layla cuz my cold motion Aaron at night and told him to leave. Verse two. You will bring a Passover sacrifice to God your God. Cattle, flock, and cattle. The place that God chooses to put his place there. How do I know for here this is not talking about the Pascal offering? Because the Pascal offering was only a sheep. But as it says from the flock and from the sheep. You have to bring it from the flock and from the sheep. So what is he referring to here? Bucker. >> [clears throat] >> Bucker we're talking about that a person brought a sacrifice for the holiday which was the carbon hagiga. If a person is part of a communal Pascal offering and everybody had to eat from the Pascal offering enough that they should be satiated, then they brought another sacrifice which was for the holiday. Because the mitzvah was that a person had to eat the Pascal offering and be satiated. Therefore you have to have other meat with it as well. And the rabbis have learned many many laws just from this verse. Verse three. You must not eat the Pascal offering with any leavened bread. For seven days you will eat matzos, lechem oni. Poor man's bread. Bread of affliction. You went out of Egypt hastily. So that you remember your exodus, the day that you left Egypt for all the days of your life. Rashi. Lechem oni, lechem matzos oni, bread of affliction, bread that reminds you of the terrible pain and suffering on you from the Egyptians put upon you. And you did not have enough time to write. Say you look at all the cotton this will help you remember about that. Event keep positive the word keep positive haste. That was not yours. Because you were not afraid that you were trying to. Of the Egyptians attacking you. It was the Egyptians haste. That the Egyptians were pushing you out they wanted to get you out so it wasn't that you were afraid that you might get stuck there or you were afraid that you wouldn't get out. It was the Egyptians that were pushing you out when you eat this you will remember about the day of going out of Egypt. Verse 4. And no leavening agent should be seen throughout your boundaries. For 7 days. You should also none of the meat from the Passover offering. That you slaughtered on the 14th should not remain overnight. That you slaughtered in the evening the first day of the baker should not stay over until the next day in the morning. Rashi should not stay over until the next day in the morning. What is this referring to as hard this is a warning this is a law that a person. The Jewish people are going to do the Passover offering in the future generations. Because when they came to when they did the Passover offering in Egypt the first time they did it came to the nation they only had one day. This is not the 14th of Nissan. It says over here on the first day you get rid of the yeast the dough and that's talking about the 14th and Rashi continues to explain what's going on here. Being that we're learning about the laws of the Passover offering Rashi gives us some more details. Because the Torah stopped talking about the laws of the Passover offering and started talking about the laws of the 7 days and the different and the rest of the personal paschal Pesach Passover laws. Going, for example, Shivas of matzah for seven days you should eat matzah. Therefore, they had to go back and tell us which one of the sacrifices are we talking about. If we were to just said about the meat that you slaughter in the evening for the morning, I used to hear that I would think that for the peace offerings that one was able to bring in this in the holy temple for seven days. And all of them you only you're not allowed to leave anything over the night after it. And you're only allowed to eat them for one day and one night. Therefore, the Torah says but what are we talking about? We're not talking about the peace offerings that one brought throughout the Passover holiday. Specifically, the paschal offering is not allowed to remain over till the next day. Another thing. It's actually talking about not necessarily the paschal offering but even about the holiday offering that was brought on the 14th. And it's telling us you can eat it for two days. Why is that and how do I see that? The first one the Torah says the first day I'm working It's talking about the first day of the holiday. The next day. That the peace offering or the holiday offering that you slaughtered the night before don't allow it to stay all the way until the next night. Finish it that day. You can eat it the 14th and the 15th as well. That's actually the law as discussed in the tractate of Pesachim. Verse five, you're not able to bring the paschal offering in one of your gates. It means in your homes that I shall listen to what gives you. You must go to the place that you to the place that God chooses to rest his place there his name there. Some this that's the place that you're going to bring the passover offering but out of the evening as the sun comes down. The exact time that you left Egypt. Rashi Over here the Torah gives us three separate times. Number one but out of in the evening. That mean Wednesday evening as the after midday. From the 6th hour onwards you can bring it as a sacrifice. And as it sunset you have to eat it. What was the time that you actually left Egypt? That's when you have to burn it. What do we see from here? From that time it becomes leftovers meaning that you're not allowed to eat it any longer. It has to be burnt. Verse seven. And you will cook it and you will eat it the place that God chose and then you will go the next morning. You'll go back home the following morning which is the 16th of Nissan. Even though that we talk about cooking. One is not allowed to cook the passover offering in water. However this case the cooking of here refers to roasting. That's also considered cooking. That means the second day of the holiday that's when you're allowed to go back. That a person has to stay. One who comes to Jerusalem for the holiday has to stay there even the Saturday night. Even the Yom Kippur night so that means he was there the 14th and night bringing the passover offering stays there the 15th day stays the 15th at night and goes back the 16th in the morning. Verse eight. For six days It's for six days eat matzah. It will be a time of withholding of work. You will not do any work. When we talk about six days, it's the following six days. So, it's a total of seven days. As Rashi points out, over here it's a six days to eat matzah. In another place it's a seven days. Which one is it? Seven from the old, meaning from the old wheat. Being that this Omer offering, as we're soon going to see, was brought on the second day of Pesach. So, you have six days of the new wheat or seven days of the old wheat. It teaches about the laws and the obligation of eating matzah. That the seventh day is not an obligation to eat matzah. That all the six days is just like the seventh day. That means for six for six days you're not allowed to eat chametz, but there's no obligation to eat matzah. The obligation to eat matzah was only on the first day. Because the seventh was part of it. And then it was taken out of the exception. To allow me to teach me to tell me that it's not an obligation to eat matzah on the seventh day, only if you'd like to. It's not only telling me about the seventh day. This is again one of the 13 principles when we talk about general rules and details as the Torah enumerates it. It's telling me on the whole entire six days, which is just like on the seventh day you're not obligated to eat matzah, but if you'd like to, you can. To the other six days, only if you'd like to, you can as well, besides the first day, besides the first night that the Torah says on the first night when you bring the Pascal offering you have an obligation to eat matzah. In the evening you should eat matzah. What does the word mean? Hold yourself back from working. Another explanation means to gather, means like to gather, to make a gathering with and drink lush and that's the Israel. Let's gather together here as well. Verse 9. Shiva shall voice this for luck seven weeks you must count. May have a whole Hermes become out when you begin. The first time you put the sickle. May be put to the standing crop. Talk at least by Shiva shall voice you should start counting seven weeks. What does this mean my whole Hermes got me should mix the rain up from once you cut? That means you put the sickle to the standing crop for relation to the culture now begins the harvest season. Verse 10. The sister hack shall voice the sham of the cake. You must observe the festival of shall voice in honor of God your God me sauce need was the other. To the extent of your generosity of your hand of generosity. Of your hand I shall teach them that you're going to contribute. Cashier you have a sham of the cake of what are you going to contribute as much as a sham has blessed you with? Me sauce need was the other. They need was the other. Meaning the amount that you're going to give the donation. That whatever God gives you the amount that God blesses you with that's what you're going to bring as sacrifices and that's what you're going to sanctify the time and the place to eat and enjoy with God. Verse 11. So much of the sham of the cake you will rejoice before God after you have been hung your son of a your daughter of the hung your slave of a master hung your maid servant of a levy and the levy of sham of the cake that's in your in your gateway. In your in your that's amongst you. I gave you something of a man of the comfort and the and the orphan and the widow I shall become a man that are in your midst by mocking machine for sham of the cake in the place that God has chosen the shock is my son to put his name there. Rashi are both surely these four they sit at my table. They belong to me can I get a bushel car? That you have four that belong to you and I have four that belong to me. Been called the take out of the master car your son your daughter your slave and your maid servant. You might as well make a surely if going to rejoice, make sure that mine are taken care of, and I'll make sure I'll make sure you are taken care of. God says, you make sure they're taken care of, I'll make sure you're taken care of. Verse 12. You should remember that you were slave in Egypt. You should safeguard all these laws. This is the reason why I took you out of exile. You should watch, you should safeguard, and keep all these statutes. Verse 13. We now come to the third of them, three major festivals, which is the festival of Sukkot. The festival of Sukkot you should make for you for 7 days, but when it's time to gather the produce from your threshing floor and your wine press. This is now now in the time of gathering. You're gathering all the wheat and all the fruit, and you're bringing it into the home that was dried out all summer. Another explanation when you gather from your threshing floor and from your from your uh from your wine press. He's telling us one of the laws of how does one make a Sukkot has to make means from a natural means from things of the threshing floor and the wine press. And you will rejoice in the holiday. And your son and your daughter and your servant and your maid servant and the Levite and the Levite and the Levite and the convert and the convert and the orphan and the orphan and the widow that live with you that are in your city. 15. For 7 days you should celebrate with God in the place that God chose will choose. That God will bless you with all your grain and all that you have produced and all your grain and all that you have produced and all your produce and the whole master and in all the work of your hands so I you saw ah may I can you will only be happy. I use some yak and the lotion TV. This is this is not a commandment. Hello lotion of talk this is a guarantee. That means if you were to do what God says then you will be happy and the feet out of the under according to the rabbis we learned this as well the rabbis this comes to include that the last day of the holiday which is at us that you also have to be joyful that the joy only is for Sukkot but including is the next holiday that is about to mention which is one has to be joyful as well. Though we hear he doesn't mention clearly but refers to it as well. Verse 16 shall we come in the three times a year. Must every male must every male appear before God as appear before before I shall before God your God but not you for in the place that you will choose the festival of the festival of the festival of Sukkot. That means there's an obligation to go up to the holy temple three times a year for as we come and do not appear before God empty-handed rashid make sure to bring the sacrifices for the festivals for the festival and the sacrifices and the peace offerings for the holiday. Each every man according to what he can afford according to the blessing that God has given you I shall not God has given you each and somebody who has a lot of people eating by him and then he doesn't have to worry about having leftover meat the he has a lot of property it should be a lot of a lot of sent offerings shalomem, roomem, peace offerings that means whatever God gives bring as much as you can to be able to bring and to celebrate these special times. May we merit to celebrate and go up to the holy base hamigdash very, very soon. This concludes the Torah reading of parshas Re'eh.