Shnayim Yomi - Matot - Masei - Chamishi - #5 - Rabbi Dovid Kimche - Guarding Against Bad Influence

Masei Hamishi is an interesting parsha. And what happens here is that in quite fine detail, the Torah gives us the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael, exactly what's the northern, southern, eastern, western border of Eretz Yisrael. We don't know exactly exactly um what the Torah is describing over here. We don't know exactly the biblical uh locations, but the Torah spends a good 10 15 pesukim over here describing the exact boundary boundaries of Eretz Yisrael. Before it does that, it gives us a warning. And it says, you know, Hashem says to Am Yisrael, "Look, you're about to go into Eretz Yisrael. What you need to do is that you need to root out entirely entirely the uh the the avodah zarah which is there, the non-Jews who are there, um get rid of them, and get rid of their influences. Because if you don't, then there's this famous and scary pasuk over here. Im lo sorishu es yoshvei ha'aretz mipneihem if you do not drive them out, vehayah kasher asher tasiru mehem those which are left, lesikim be'eineichem ulitzninim betzideichem, they'll be thorns in your eyes, they'll be poking your eyes out and scratching your sides, literally. Vetzaru eschem and they will they will oppress you. Al ha'aretz asher atem yoshvim ba in the land. And the Akedas Yitzchak says, you know, this is a dire warning from Hakadosh Baruch Hu, but unfortunately it became true. Unfortunately it it was realized. If you read Sefer Yehoshua, Shoftim, etc. even after Dovid Hamelech and Hamelech, and this is true. It's true, Klal Yisrael failed to root out entirely all the non-Jewish influences and all the influences of avodah zarah, and slowly slowly Klal Yisrael were affected. The same way like a like a cancer. To get rid of a cancer, you need to really get rid of it entirely, because if even if you leave a tiny little bit of it that can metastasize, and that can impact, and that that be devastating for you. So, even though this is might not be so inspirational, but it's real and it's true. And the message is there for us. Eretz Yisrael is not a land that can tolerate any too much any any avera. And says Hakadosh Baruch Hu to Am Yisrael, if you really want to make it on the land and really be the Am Hashem in the land, you need to make sure that you stamp out to stamp out all shem mitzvah of avodah zarah and all taya hara which exists in Eretz Yisrael.