Beit Midrash

  • Torah Portion and Tanach
  • Bamidbar
קטגוריה משנית
To dedicate this lesson
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Our Parsha begins this fourth book of the written Torah by stating that the Lord spoke to Moshe in the desert of Sinai. In fact, this entire book takes its identity from the fact that it was spoken to Moshe and written by him while in the desert of Sinai. A question naturally arises about the significance that all of this was taught and expounded upon in the desert of Sinai. What difference does it really make where it happened? Since there is nothing haphazard or extraneous in the Torah, it must follow that there is a lesson, a message, and insight in this detail.

This is a most foreboding venue in which to give over lessons and ideas. The Torah itself describes its harshness and difficult atmosphere – a place of serpents and scorpions, shifting sands, and the absence of water. Is that the proper classroom in which to teach the Jewish people the eternal laws and values on the Torah? Would it not be more fitting to have a more congenial and comfortable setting, so that the listeners and students could more easily concentrate on the message and lesson being delivered? Yet, the Torah seemingly goes out of its way to emphasize that this was revealed and taught to Israel while they were wanderers in the inhospitable environment of the desert and wasteland of Sinai.

One of the lessons of teaching Torah in this difficult place is that this demonstrates that Torah is not to be limited by any specific locality or geography. If the Torah had been given in the land of Israel, then there would be a tendency to say that it only applies there, and that outside the land of Israel it is not incumbent upon the Jewish people to observe the Torah. The human mind attaches teachings to the environment and geographic location in which they are learned.

If it were had been given in the land of Egypt in its entirety, before the Jewish people were free from bondage, there would be room to say that it was given only to that generation of freed slaves, but that later generations that have never experienced the lashes of the Egyptian taskmasters would not be bound to keep it. Human beings are influenced not only by lessons taught in the classroom, but also by the location of the classroom itself. By teaching the Torah in the middle of nowhere, the words, so to speak, show the features and eternity of Torah in a ‘classroom’ that is not limited by any sovereignty or appealing geographic location.

As such, the lessons remain as pristine as possible, unaffected by other outside environmental influences. It is the nothingness of the desert that is the proper backdrop, and it is the greatness and eternity of the words of the Torah that continually instruct and guide our lives and values.

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Lessons
  • Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
    Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
  • Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu Zt"l
    Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu Zt"l
  • Rabbi Avraham Shapira Zt"l
    Rabbi Avraham Shapira Zt"l
  • Rabbi Yehoshua Shapira
    Rabbi Yehoshua Shapira
  • Rabbi Ya'akov Shapira
    Rabbi Ya'akov Shapira
  • Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
  • Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau
    Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau
  • Rabbi Eliyahu Brin
    Rabbi Eliyahu Brin
  • Rabbi Chanan Porat Z"l
    Rabbi Chanan Porat Z"l
  • Rabbi Shabbtai Sabbato
    Rabbi Shabbtai Sabbato
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    Beha'alotcha

    The Consolation of Lighting the Menora - Rav Kook at the Third Shabbat Meal

    15 Sivan 5784
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    Beha'alotcha

    Why Was Miriam Punished?

    Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Rimon | 5777
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    Prayer

    ?How we should dress for Prayer

    Chapter five-part two

    Chapter five-part two

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | 5775
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    Prayer

    Who Can Be Counted in a Minyan?

    Chapter Two-part three

    Can every ten men be a Minyan or are there other conditions?

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
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    P'ninat Mishpat

    Historical View of Rav Mordechai Yaakov Breish (Chelkat Yaakov)

    Various Rabbis | 5775
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    Happy Occasions

    Fasting and Feasting on a Yahrzeit

    “My father’s yahrzeit falls during the week of sheva brachos for my grandson. May I attend the sheva brachos?” "My yahrzeit falls on Shabbos this year. Do I fast on Friday or Sunday instead?" "I usually fast on my father’s yahrzeit, but someone is honoring me with sandaka’us on that day. Do I fast, and do I need to be matir neder in the event that it is permitted to eat?"

    Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff
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    Revivim

    Halakha on Abortion of Fetuses with Severe Abormalities

    A fetus is considered a living entity in regards to certain laws, but there is no penalty of death for taking its life. What do the rabbinical decisors say?

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
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    The Haggadah

    Shir Hashirim

    Deeper meaning of Shir Hashirim, The Song Of Songs.

    Various Rabbis | 5770
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    The Giving of the Torah

    The Day of the Rains and the Giving of the Torah

    According to our Sages, The Day of the Rain is as great as, or even greater than the day of the Giving of the Torah. The basis for this comparison is discussed in depth, as well as additional aspects of the connection between the rains and the Torah.

    Rabbi Uzi Kalchaim zt"l | 5770
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    The Torah Perspective

    Secular Zionism in the Eyes of Rav Kook.

    How can we understand the rebellion against religion over the past century? What does the world gain spiritually from this rebellion which was foreseen in the mishna 1,800 years ago as part of the period preceding the mashiach? Only after we understand the rebellion can we glean the benefit and relate to our brothers properly.

    Rabbi Ari Shvat | 5769
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    Redemption - Geula

    When Moshiach Comes

    A summary of the different Brachot we will bless when the Moshiach will walk through the door.

    Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff | Iyar 5768
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    Marriage and Relationships

    The Role of Parents in Marriage

    Today, parents can fulfill the commandment of marrying off their children by providing them with a good education at prestigious schools, supporting them so that they be able to learn a profession, and clothing them in attractive attire.

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | 5764
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