Transcript

Maybe we'll begin with the Ramban here in Perek Lamed Aleph, פסוקים י"ז י"ח. The beginning here just in the Chumash, pasuk tet zayin, ל"א ט"ז in the Chumash:

ויאמר ה' אל משה הנך שכב עם אבתיך וקם העם הזה וזנה אחרי אלהי נכר הארץ אשר הוא בא בקרבו ועזבני והפר את בריתי אשר כרתי אתו.

So after your petirah, Moshe Rabbeinu, Klal Yisrael is going to engage in avodah zarah. Pasuk yud zayin, and what will the reaction to that be?

וחרה אפי בו ביום ההוא ועזבתים והסתרתי פני מהם והיה לאכל ומצאהו רעות רבות וצרות ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי אין אלהי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה.

So there will be a hester panim. During that time of hester panim, Klal Yisrael will suffer ra'ot rabbot vetzarot. And the reaction to that will be: על כי אין אלהי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה. The Torah continues, Hashem says:

ואנכי הסתר אסתיר פני ביום ההוא על כל הרעה אשר עשה כי פנה אל אלהים אחרים.

There will be a second hester panim. So let's see the Ramban here. וטעם ואמר ביום ההוא. You have the Ramban over there? Yeah.

וטעם ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי אין אלהי בקרבי איננו וידוי גמור כענין והתודו את עונם אבל הוא הרהור וחרטה שיתחרטו על מעלם ויכירו כי אשמם הם.

So the Ramban is clearly addressing a glaring difficulty, seemingly glaring difficulty in the pesukim. The

ואמר ביום ההוא הלא על אין אלהי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה,

isn't that, aren't they being mitvadeh? And if they're being mitvadeh, so why is the reaction to that another hester panim? So the Ramban says you have something analogous towards the end of the tochachah in Parshat Bechukotai. If you take a look here in

ויקרא כ"ו מ', ויקרא כ"ו מ': והתודו את עונם ואת עון אבתם במעלם אשר מעלו בי ואף אשר הלכו עמי בקרי.

So we're now expecting the reaction to be, okay, so now the tochachah is going to end because they're doing teshuvah, and yet the next pasuk is: אף אני אלך עמם בקרי והבאתי אתם בארץ איביהם. So that's what our Ramban, the comparison that he's providing, that the same difficulty which we have here in our psukim and you find there in Bechukotai as well. So what does the Ramban suggest? Because in each of these two cases, it's not a viduy gamur but it's only hirhur ucharatah. So let's hold off for a minute and try to understand what it is and what it isn't, and read a little bit more here in the Ramban.

וטעם ואנכי הסתר אסתיר פני פעם אחרת כי בעבור שהרהרו ישראל בלבם כי חטאו לאלהיהם ועל כי אין אלהיהם בקרבם מצאום הרעות האלה היה ראוי לרוב חסדי ה' שיעזרם. שכבר כפרו בעבודה זרה וכעניין שאמר הנני נשפט אותך על אמרך לא חטאתי. ולכך אמר כי על כל הרעה הגדולה שעשו לבטוח בעבודה זרה יסתיר עוד פניו מהם.

The Ramban says that the emes is this hirhur v’charata which falls short of being a vidui gamur in any other context would have sufficed to trigger a middas harachamim from HaKadosh Baruch Hu. And the Torah’s explaining that because they were being punished for avodah zarah, so davka in that context this hirhur v’charata doesn’t induce the Chasdei Hashem. However, it makes some impression. יסתיר עוד פניו מהם, however

לא כהסתר פנים הראשון שהסתיר פני רחמיו ומצאום רעות רבות וצרות. רק שיהיו בהסתר פני הגאולה ויעמדו בהבטחת פני רחמיו ואף גם זאת בהיותם בארץ אויביהם לא מאסתים ולא געלתים וגו' עד שיוסיפו על החרטה הנזכרת וידוי גמור ותשובה שלמה כמו שנזכר למעלה ושבת עד השם אלוהיך.

So this is a lesser type of hester panim. Not a hester panim that allows for ra’os rabos v’tzaros, but a hester panim that still holds the geulah in abeyance, but it’s a lesser form of hester panim. So what is this hirhur v’charata and what’s missing for in order for it to constitute a vidui gamur and a teshuvah sheleimah? Yitachen that the clue here in the Ramban is that twice the Ramban says initially he says אבל הוא הרהור וחרטה and then two lines later he says

טעם אנוכי הסתר אסתיר פני פעם אחרת כי בעבור שהרהרו ישראל בלבם כי חטאו לאלוהיהם.

The Ramban describes it as a hirhur halev. Now the Torah says

ויאמר ביום ההוא הלא על כי אין אלוהי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה,

the Ramban twice describes it as a hirhur halev. Yitachen, it seems that the Ramban here, the Ramban back in Parshas Bereishis points out that vayomer which we generally translate as connoting speech, so the Ramban says he actually gives two possibilities but the second of the two is the one that’s relevant to us commenting on ויאמר אלוהים יהי אור, what does it mean? או הוא כגון מחשבה that amirah sometimes connotes thought. The Rambam says like that also, the Rambam quotes one of the Rambam's prooftexts is amarti ani belibi from Sefer Kohelet. Amarti ani belibi, so amirah doesn’t always mean speech, but it means thought sometimes, it's one of the meanings. And lichora that what our Ramban Seems to be teitshing, excuse me, ve'amar bayom hahu is hirheru yisrael belibam. He's teitshing amira here not as speech but as thought. Why is that so so significant? So likhora as as follows. Let's say משל למה הדבר דומה. Let's say you have a husband, a father who because of a certain pattern of his behavior, so the so the the marriage falls apart and his wife and children leave him. And on some level he recognizes that that he's that he's at fault. But it's it's possible to have a sort of situation or a stage where internally, inwardly, there's this gnawing awareness, but whether it's akshanus, whether it's ga'avah, whether it's an akshanus goover than ga'avah, but whatever it is, the fact that that inwardly there's an awareness, but he's not willing to admit it to them. He's not willing to, on the one hand there's an awareness of look look what my behavior has brought about and and look at all the the damage it's done. But the fact that that there is again internally this awareness, there's still some some obstruction. He doesn't translate that into an outer directed acknowledgment and admission. And itachen of what the Ramban is saying here the hirhur ve'charata means again that that on some level there is an awareness that al again

ואמר וחשב ביום ההוא הלא כי על כי אין אלקי בקרבי מצאוני הרעות האלה,

but that certainly falls short of being a viduy gamur where where the person sort of takes responsibility for that of which he's aware and in the mashal we gave and makes amends bein adam lachaveiro, in the nimshal and is misvadeh to Hakadosh Baruch Hu and and is shav bitshuvah gemurah bitshuvah shleimah. What what is it that sort of in the mashal we gave ben hamishpacha so it's easier to understand how human nature is functioning in not translating that hirhur vachrata into a viduy gamur and teshuva. It's it's not nearly as embarrassing or humiliating to admit something to oneself as it is as it is to admit it to others. So it's one thing for him to recognize, it's another thing for him to to own up to it to his wife, to his children. And what about when it's bein adam lamakom? So there are probably different factors or forces that can be at play. I think sometimes the way the way we act is the way the way we act is the more the hirhur vachrata, the more we allow it to surface, and if we allow it to surface to the point of actually saying a full-fledged viduy, so then that already commits commits us to making change. And sometimes you can have, I don't know, take a different mashal. Let's say you have someone who has a certain addiction, whatever, rachmana litzlan, whatever the type of addiction is. So on the one hand he recognizes that again depending upon what the addiction is, whatever physical ailments or financial difficulties he has or or whatever that it really traces back to the addiction, but mideich gissa he's not ready to make the sacrifice to to give up that addiction. So what does the person do? He sort of keeps that awareness suppressed, keeps it in the realm of thought. Once if a person would translate it fully It's it's it's more of a mechayev. It's more of a mechayev. And that's why you see from the Ramban that kol zman is just hirhur v’charata that it's not only the viduy that's missing, it's missing mitzad the teshuva as well. As long as the person sort of suppresses that awareness. Sometimes we know we're doing the wrong thing and and we just don't muster the strength to change course. And when that happens, we're more likely, yeah, we have this gnawing awareness, we have this hirhur v’charata, but we're more likely not to verbalize it in that type of situation. There's a certain degree of reality that something has when a person not only thinks it but says it. There's a heightened degree of recognition and acknowledgment. And that heightened degree of awareness and acknowledgment is mechayev. And sometimes even though we recognize what the source of our difficulty is, but we just are not willing to do what's necessary to change, so then we sort of it remains in the realm of hirhur v’charata. And that's what the Ramban says is is it falls short of being viduy gamur and teshuva sheleimah. There's something to build on, there's something to work with, but but if a person doesn't build on it, a person doesn't work with it, it falls short. Earlier, the Torah says the mitzvah of Hakhel in Perek Lamed Alef,

ויצו משה אותם לאמר מקץ שבע שנים במועד שנת השמטה בחג הסכות בבוא כל ישראל לראות את פני השם אלקיך במקום אשר יבחר תקרא את התורה הזאת נגד כל ישראל באזניהם הקהל את העם האנשים והנשים והטף וגרך אשר בשעריך למען ישמעו ולמען ילמדו ויראו את השם אלקיכם ושמרו לעשות את כל דברי התורה הזאת ובניהם אשר לא ידעו ישמעו ולמדו ליראה את השם אלקיכם כל הימים אשר אתם חיים על האדמה אשר אתם עברים את הירדן שמה לרשתה.

So everyone has to be present for Hakhel when the when the Melech. But the Torah doesn't really say who reads, right? Question of what the makor is and whether it would melech actually be me'akev for mitzvas Hakhel. So I think the Minchas Chinuch and other acharonim discuss that question. But be that as it may, by mitzvas Hakhel everyone comes, anashim nashim vetaf, for the purposes of the למען ישמעו ולמען ילמדו. What does Ramban say here? Pasuk yud beis: למען ישמעו ולמען ילמדו ha'anashim vehanashim כי גם הן שומעות ולומדות לירא את השם. The contrast will be to the Chazal that the Ramban is going to quote in a little bit further on. The Ramban's pshat is an alternative to what Chazal say. Ve'anashim vehanashim, meaning the למען ישמעו ולמען ילמדו is by hearing they'll learn and what they learn is liyeras Hashem. Right, in order to learn if we're being taught, the first thing we need to do in order to learn is we need to hear what's being said. We need to hear the divrei Torah. A person hears divrei Torah, he can learn divrei Torah and then the desired result of yiras Hashem can be achieved. That's how the Ramban pshites the pasuk. What does it mean Pasuk yud gimel, ובניהם אשר לא ידעו ישמעו ולמדו? Hem hataf,

כי ישמעו וישאלו והאבות ירגילום ויחנכום אותם. כי אין הטף הזה יונקי שדיים.

We're not talking about nursing infants, אבל הם קטני השנים הקרובים להתחנך. No, we're talking about higi'a lechinuch.

וזה טעם ולמדו ליראה בעתיד, כי למעלה אמר ולמדו ויראו.

Right in Pasuk yud gimel the Ramban is medayek, in Pasuk yud beis the Torah says למען ישמעו ולמען ילמדו ויראו. And in Pasuk yud gimel it's not yishme'u velamedu veyaru, it's leyira. So what that difference signifies is that the anashim venashim who are already gedolim the result of yiras Hashem can be achieved immediately. They can walk away from the Hakhel with an intensified and enhanced sense of yiras shamayim. By the children who are higi'a lechinuch you're looking to plant seeds that in the future will result in leyira. So one element of chinuch is the parent teach the children something which the child can already appreciate and understand. And sometimes the child hears the words, on one level understands the words, but it doesn't really click. The child's not old enough for what the parent is giving for it to click. But the ground has been prepared for the child to come to appreciate it in the future. And that's a part of chinuch, a part of chinuch is sometimes saying things, teaching things, instructing things that there's gonna be some kind of delayed reaction in terms of appreciation and in terms of implementation.

וזה הטעם ולמדו לירא בעתיד. אבל אבותינו אמרו האנשים ללמוד והנשים לשמוע והטף למה בא לתת שכר למביאיהם.

According to Chazal, the pshat in pasuk yud beis of למען ישמעו למען ילמדו is that למען ישמעו למען ילמדו, I don't know why the order is reversed, aligns with הקהל את העם האנשים והנשים. That the lema'an yilmedu is the to'eles for the anashim and the lema'an yishme'u is the to'eles for the nashim. Why the order is flipped I don't know. And Chazal understand that taf is even shelo higia lechinuch. How do you read the pasuk according to Chazal

ובניהם אשר לא ידעו ישמעו ולמדו ליראה את ה' אלוקיכם?

So isn't the peshuto shel mikra mochiach like the Ramban that we're obviously talking about the taf hu hakarov lehischanekh who can understand? If it's, if we're talking about yonkei shadayim, so how can it be that the Torah depicts it as

ובניהם אשר לא ידעו ישמעו ולמדו ליראה את ה' אלוקיכם?

So isn't there a Yerushalmi, famous Yerushalmi about how the mother of one of the Amoraim used to bring his bassinet into the beis medrash? He didn't cry and disturb everyone in the beis medrash. And it's clear from that hanhaga, from the way the Yerushalmi records that hanhaga, that there is some, obviously that's on a level of segula, not on a level of nigleh, but on a level of segula that exposing the child to that atmosphere even if nothing is niklat consciously and on a natural level, but something is niklat in the neshama in a metaphysical way. And yitachen according to Chazal that Chazal's understanding of this pasuk by Hakhel is the source for that type of hanhaga. Pasuk yud daled,

ויאמר ה' אל משה הן קרבו ימיך למות קרא את יהושע ויתייצבו באוהל מועד ואצונו וילך משה ויהושע ויתייצבו באוהל מועד.

So Moshe Rabbeinu is told to bring Yehoshua ve'atzavenhu. Rashi says azarzenu, quite famously in the beginning of parshas Tzav back in Sefer Vayikra, צו את אהרן ואת בניו לאמר, so Rashi says... So Rashi says that tzav is sometimes a lashon ziruz, it's an exhortation. And that's how Rashi understands it here as well, V'atzaveinu V'azarzeinu lashon Rashi. ואין צורך כי דבר השם says the Ramban חזק ואמץ כי אתה תביא mitzvah hi,

ואילו היה מצווה ולא יעשה כן היה חייב מיתה. ויתכן שיהיה פירש ואצונו שאמנה אותו נגד ומצווה על ישראל כמו שפירשתי בפסוק וציווית אותו לעיניהם.

So the Ramban says that tzivuy sometimes means minuy. Sometimes the lashon V'atzaveinu means I will appoint him. How does tzav mean that again? So the basic meaning of tzav is to command, but when you any appointment to a position, let's say when you when when any any political office, right? So the president, the governor, they take the oath of office, right? So I, he he swears to uphold the constitution of whatever the United States, the state of the state of New York, or whatever it is. So every appointment is also when a person is appointed, he's also receiving a tzivuy, a charge in terms of the responsibility that that appointment places upon him. And in that sense, the word letzavos by extension comes to mean to appoint. You find it the Sforno, so the Ramban himself cross-references that that's how he had interpreted the pasuk in Parshas Pinchas. Moshe Rabbeinu asks Hakadosh Baruch Hu יפקד ה' אלהי הרוחות לכל בשר איש על העדה. Hakadosh Baruch Hu should appoint a successor, should appoint my successor.

ויאמר ה' אל משה קח לך את יהושע בן נון איש אשר רוח בו וסמכת את ידך עליו והעמדת אותו לפני אלעזר הכהן ולפני כל העדה וצויתה אתו לעיניהם.

V'tzivisa. So here too, the Ramban, that's what he's cross-referencing, says

לפי דעתי בפשט הכתוב טעם וצויתה אתו לעיניהם הוא המינוי שימנה אותם במעמדם.

You find that the Sforno also operates with this understanding that letzavos sometimes means le'manos. So for instance, in the beginning of Parshas Va'eira at the Sneh, so the Torah has a pasuk where

וידבר ה' אל משה ואל אהרן ויצום אל בני ישראל ואל פרעה מלך מצרים להוציא את בני ישראל מארץ מצרים.

So Rashi, who assumes that tzivuy means to command, so then it's missing from the Chumash what the what the the content of the demand was. So Rashi says

ויצום אל בני ישראל ציום עליהם להנהיגם בנחת ואל פרעה מלך מצרים ציום עליו לחלק לו כבוד בדבריהם.

But if you take a look in the Sforno, so the Sforno says Vayitzavem means that Hakadosh Baruch Hu mina osam lesarim כמו ויסמוך את ידיו עליו ויצווהו. That Hakadosh Baruch Hu appointed Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon as ministers, as rulers, both over Bnei Yisrael and and Paroh melech Mitzrayim. It's this understanding of tzivuy as minuy, so the Rav points out that that the Rambam also learns pshat like this in the Hakdama to Mishneh Torah.

אף על פי שלא נכתבה תורה שבעל פה למדה משה רבנו כולה ובית דינו לשבעים זקנים.

And then listen to these next couple lines rabosai. I'm reading here from the hakdamah to Mishneh Torah if you want to take a look.

ואלעזר ופינחס ויהושע שלשתן קיבלו ממשה. וליהושע שהוא תלמידו של משה רבנו מסר תורה שבעל פה וציווהו עליה.

So Elazar, Pinchas and Yehoshua were all equal in having been mekabel from Moshe. Right? The three of them were equal in terms of what they were mekabel from Moshe. And yet Yehoshua stands out in that:

ליהושע שהוא תלמידו של משה רבנו מסר תורה שבעל פה וציווהו עליה.

So there's kabbalah, but there's also mesirah, and the mesirah was accompanied by v'tzivahu aleha. So it's clear that the v'tzivahu aleha is the Rambam is referring to this same pasuk in Parshas Pinchas that the Ramban cross-referenced.

והעמדת אותו לפני אלעזר הכהן ולפני כל העדה וצויתה אותו לעיניהם.

But whereas for the Ramban the minuy is a minuy in general. Maybe it's a minuy that Yehoshua's gonna be melech after Moshe Rabbeinu. Moshe Rabbeinu had a din melech, so too did Yehoshua. Yehoshua bin Nun also had a din melech. But for the Rambam, the Rav quotes a Yalkut Shimoni as which he says is the Rambam's makor. The minuy is with regard to divrei Torah.

מקור דברי הרמב"ם הוא ילקוט שמעוני פנחס וצויתה אותו לעיניהם אין צוואה בכל מקום אלא דברי תורה.

Which means that even though Elazar, Pinchas and Yehoshua all, I don't know, they all got 100s on the bechinos I guess. I guess that's what it means that kulam kiblu miMoshe. But Moshe Rabbeinu appointed Yehoshua in that he was appointed to transmit the masorah to the next generation. He would be the head of the סנהדרין של שבעים ואחד. He was appointed to be moseir Torah to the next generation, as in Avos: משה קיבל תורה מסיני ומסרה ליהושע יהושע לזקנים. So again this is it's working off the same havana in tzivui as the Rambam has, but what's the chidush here is that it relates the tzivui to divrei Torah and understands that what the pasuk in Parshas Pinchas means is that Moshe Rabbeinu, HaKadosh Baruch Hu tells him, appoints Yehoshua as the guardian of the masorah. Okay, we'll stop there.