Shalom Friends;
This week, our Parshat HaShavua — Parshat Vayechi is being sponsored by Yitzchak and Leyla Gross of Wynnewood, PA to commemorate the Yahrtzeit of Yitzchak’s Mother: Chaya Yita Sarah Bat Aharon and dedicated for the safety of the Chayalim and the liberation of the remaining deceased hostage and his return home for Jewish ritual burial, as well as for the good health and security of kol Am Yisrael. . To Mishpochat Gross, many thanks for your sponsorship, your kindnesses through the years in helping to facilitate Sefer Torah recycling and for your continued kindnesses.
You can celebrate a Simcha — a birth, a Bar/Bat Mitzvah, a Chassuna or other Simcha event in your life, or commemorate a Yahrtzeit of a loved one, or for whatever other reason by sponsoring a Parshat HaShavua.
Please forward to your relatives and friends and encourage them to sponsor a Parshat HaShavua. And please be in contact with me with any questions, or for further details.
Best Regards,
Moshe Burt
olehchadash@yahoo.com
Subscribe to the Israel and the Sin of Expulsion blog, to ask questions or to sponsor a Parsha Vort at: olehchadash@yahoo.com
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Understanding both Yaakov’s Brachot to Shimon and Levi, and the loyalty of the two brothers to their siblings resulting in their actions regarding the Shechemites, can provide a perspective, on a national level, of events today.
Torah records:
“Shimon and Levi are comrades, their weaponry is a stolen craft. Into their conspiracy, may my soul not enter! With their congregation, do not join, O my honor. For in their rage they murdered people… Accursed is their rage for it is intense, and their wrath for it is harsh: I will separate them within Yaakov, and I will disperse them in Israel.” (Sefer Breish’t. Perek 49, posukim 5 – 7 rendered to English in the Artscroll Stone Edition Chumash)
The Artscroll Stone Edition Chumash provides commentary on Sefer Breish’t. Perek 49, posukim 5 – 7 (ibid, page 277) :
Posuk 5: “Their weaponry is a stolen craft.” Shimon and Levi’s preoccupation with the weaponry of violence is a trait they have stolen from Eisev. [This seems to refer back to Perek 27, posuk 40: “So Yitzchak his father answered, and said to him {meaning Eisev}: “By your sword shall you live….'”
Posuk 6: “Into their conspiracy, may my soul not enter!” According to Ramban, Yaakov disavowed any part in their conspiracy to attack Shechem when its men were ill after their circumcision. According to Rashi, Yaakov made reference to two future rebellions in the Wilderness, after [Yetziyot Mitzrayim]. Elements of the tribe of Shimon followed… their leader, Zimri, in leading people into sin [Artscroll Stone Chumash referring to Sefer Bamidbar, Perek 25, posuk 14] Korach, a Levi, also led a rebellion. [Artscroll Stone Chumash referring to Sefer Bamidbar, Perek 16, posuk 1] Yaakov prayed that his name not be mentioned in connection with either conspiracy.
Posuk 7: “Accursed is their rage.” Even when Yaakov was chastising his sons, he did not curse them, but their rage. [Artscroll Stone Chumash citing Rashi] Haamek Davar explains the difference between rage and wrath, in the context of this verse. Rage was the fury that caused them to lash out when they lost their tempers, but even when the initial rage was spent, they remained wrathful enough to continue their destructiveness, as in the case of the livestock of Shechem.
Regarding “the case of the livestock of Shechem” cited above, we refer back to Parshat Vayishlach, Perek 34, posukim 27 – 29 rendered to English in The Artscroll Stone Edition Chumash, as well as commentary on posuk 27 (page 185) :
“The sons of Yaakov came upon the slain, and they plundered the city which had defiled their sister. Their flocks, their cattle, their donkeys, whatever was in the town and whatever was in the field, they took. All their wealth, all their children and their wives they took captive and they plundered, as well as everything in the house.”
Posuk 27: “And they plundered the city.” Although the posuk does not make clear whether the plunderers were only Shimon and Levi or all of the brothers, Or HaChaim maintains that they all participated in taking property. Since the entire city shared responsibility for the attack on Dina, all the people were responsible to compensate the family for its humiliation.
Rabbi Goldin, in his Sefer “Unlocking the Torah Text” on Parshat Vayishlach cites Ramban and other unnamed commentators in forming a deeper understanding of Shimon and Levi’s actions (pages 195 – 197) :
The Ramban suggests… that Yaakov understood that his sons’ plan was, that if by some chance, the Shechemites did agree to circumcise themselves, Yaakov’s sons intended to enter the city of Shechem on the third day, take advantage of the weakness of the inhabitants and free their sister without further violence. Yaakov, therefore, agreed to this proposal, seeing it as a way to rescue Dina without bloodshed.
Shimon and Levi, however, took matters into their own hands, violently avenged their sister’s honor and incurred their father’s reprimand. [Rabbi Goldin citing Ramban on Sefer Breish’t, Perek 34, posuk 13)
Other [commentators], building on a Midrashic source [Rabbi Goldin citing Pesikta Zutrata on Sefer Breish’t, Perek 34, posukim 22 – 23], point to the words of Chamor as he convinces his subjects to undergo circumcision: “Their [Yaakov and his family’s] livestock, their possessions, and all of their animals; will they not be ours?” [Rabbi Goldin citing Sefer Breish’t, Perek 34, posuk 23]
Clearly, these scholars maintain, the Shechemites were only going along with the agreement for personal gain at the expense of Yaakov and his family. At the first possible opportunity, Chamor and his subjects would have turned against Yaakov. Shimon and Levi acted to forestall such an eventuality. [Rabbi Goldin citing Sforno, Sefer Breish’t, Perek 34, posuk 25]
Rabbi Goldin comments in his Sefer “Unlocking the Torah Text” (page 199) :
Violence is neither totally condoned nor totally condemned; some acts are neither totally right nor totally wrong. Issues of good and evil are presented with all of their complexity in the Torah text. We are reminded that moral truth often lies beneath layers and layers of complicated contextual concerns.
Rabbi Dovid Feinstein provides a slightly different rendering to English of Perek 49, posuk 5 and provides commentary in his Sefer, “Kol Dodi” (page 89) :
“Shimon and Levi are brothers, their weaponry is a stolen craft.”
Why does Yaakov state the obvious fact that Shimon and Levi are brothers? Furthermore, all of his children were brothers; why does he single out these two to emphasize their relationship?
Of all of Yaakov’s children, Shimon and Levi had the greatest sense of family attachment. To avenge the honor of their sister Dina, they killed an entire city. This by itself shows how strong their loyalty to their siblings was.
To this author, the question being posed by the nature of Yaakov’s Bracha to Shimon and Levi is whether possibly circumstantial suspicions held by Shimon and Levi, or by Yaakov’s entire family, of wrongdoings, ulterior motivations and evil intentions by Shechem, Chamor and the Shechemites justified Shimon and Levi’s actions.
Conversely (adverb: in a contrary or opposite way; on the other hand), where there is straight-up proof of wrongdoing, nefarious (adjective: extremely wicked or villainous) evil intentions by Hamas, their other terror partners, including so-called “civilians” such as was repeatedly noted and reported by IDF border guards, but disregarded by IDF command echelons out of false and faulty ideology, political indoctrination, or total lack of any sense of Jewish spirituality, this author would have seen Israel as Totally justified to have been fully IDF-activated and prepared for war, to have struck preemptively to repulse and “nip in the bud” the invasion and resultant mass-murder of Jews and hostage-taking which took place on 7 October — the beginning of the War of Simchat Torah. Further, this author sees Israel as totally justify had, at the very least, all supplies, utilities, water and cellular phone access been severed and completely cut-off from Gaza, come what may, to the Gazan “innocent
May our government and military bring about the total and complete, Final and Decisive victory over Hamas, their 7 October so-called “civilians(sic)” collaborators and the entire terror cabal, B’Yad Hashem, and become Totally self-sufficient as to manufacture of military equipment and aircraft, weaponry, munitions — heavy munitions, as well as showing independence of actions responding to any threat, regardless of so-called “super powers.”
May we see, from here on, that border guard personnel at all points of possible danger are listened to and treated with respect and dignity. May we see our Chayalim totally eradicate Hamas, Islamic Jihad, those so-called “civilians(sic)” who collaborated on 7 October, as well as Hezbollah, the Houthies, the Mullahs of Iran and all their terror accomplices while liberating the remains of all deceased hostages and their return home for Jewish ritual burials, B’Yad Hashem and mandated by a government secure in it’s foremost service of, and emunah in HaKadosh Borchu, B’Ezrat Hashem! And may we see the restoration of true unity within Am Yisrael. May these words come to fruition B’Esrat Hashem.
May we, the B’nei Yisrael be zocha that our brethren — the refugee families from Gush Katif be permanently re-settled in Gush Katif, once the IDF, by the Yad Hashem, destructs and eradicates the wild beasts of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, all other terror entities, and if necessary Iran, and that our brethren be made totally whole — be totally restituted for all that was stolen from them, that the thrice expelled families of Amona be restored to their rebuilt homes and the oft-destroyed Yeshiva buildings in Homesh be rebuilt, as well as the buildings of Yishuv Elchanan, all at total government expense. May our Chayalim return from battle unharmed — physically, mentally and spiritually and may all of the remaining hostages brutally taken by the wild beasts of Hamas be liberated and brought home to their families. Baruch Hashem that our dear brother Jonathan Pollard is now in his sixth year at home in Eretz Yisrael and continues in a new chapter in his life. May Esther Yocheved bat Yechiel Avraham have an aliyah in Shemayim and may her spirit and memory continue to lift Jonathan to at least 120 years. May the MIAs be liberated alive and returned to us in ways befitting Al Kiddush Hashem — as with the return in April, 2019, via Russia, of the remains of Zachariah Baumel, the recent recovery of the remains of Tzvi Feldman as well as the recoveries of the remains of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin from the Gaza War of ten years ago. May we have the courage and strength to stand up and physically prevent the possibility of Chas V’Challila any future eviction of Jews from their homes and prevent Chas V’Challila the handing of Jewish land over to anyone, let alone to enemies sworn to Israel’s and Judaism’s destruction and eradication. May we fulfill Hashem’s blueprint of B’nei Yisrael as a Unique people — an Am Segula, not to be reckoned with as with “the nations” and may we be zocha to see the Moshiach, the Ge’ula Shlaima, as Dov Shurin sings; “Ki Karov Yom Hashem Al’Kol HaGoyim”, the Ultimate Redemption, bimhayrah b’yamainu — speedily, in our time”, — Achshav, Chik Chuk, Miyad, Etmol!!!
Good Shabbos!
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Moshe Burt, an Oleh, is a commentator on news and events in Israel and Founder and Director of The Sefer Torah Recycling Network. He lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh.
Moshe is available for editing of English language documents, articles, manuscripts and more. Please be in contact with him at olehchadash@yahoo.com for your English language needs.
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