Rabbi Levin's Blog

“Neither a borrower nor a lender be...” So wrote a world famous antisemitic writer, whom many consider a voice for morality.  His reasoning is that this way you will not lose friendships.   Contrast that with what is written in this week’s Parsha, Mishpatim.  “Im kesef talveh et ami.”  The words “kesef talve” mean “you will lend money.”  What about the first word, “Im?”  Generally the word “im” is translated as “if.”  Using that translation, the words would mean “if you lend money to my people.”  But the Talmud tells us, and Rashi quotes this, that in a few places in the Torah the word “im” means “when,” and this is one of them.  As Rashi says: “Rabbi Yishmael says: Every instance of “im” written in the Torah regarding a commandment means “if” and signifies that the commandment is optional, except for three cases where “im” means “when,” as the commandment is obligatory, and this is one of them.  (The others are: “When you bring an ...

  It was the moment all of Creation was waiting for. For 2448 years the universe was incomplete. The purpose of Creation was in the balance. Would the people accept the Torah?  Would they take in the challenge to transform the world from a purely physical place to a home for Hashem?  Would they accept the role of “priests” to teach the world and spread Hashem’s light to all the nations? Hashem gave the Jews the choice, as he did to all the nations, and the Jews said yes. “We will do and we will learn.”  First we committed to do whatever Hashem commanded, without limit and without question. Then we committed to learn and understand as much as we could about these Mitzvot, in order to bring understanding and excitement to our actions.  The “Sinai Experience” that culminated in the giving of the Ten Commandments began six days earlier. “In the third month after the Israelites had left Egypt, on this day they came to the Sinai desert.” (Shemot 16:1.) Which day exact...

  What do you do when you are between a rock and a wet place?  The Jews had excitedly left Egypt after 210 years of exile and over 80 years of vicious slavery.  They were counting the days to the great anticipated event of receiving the Torah and formally becoming Hashem’s people.  Then disaster struck.  The Egyptians, who had been so happy to see them go, were back with a vengeance.  Pharaoh was talking about dividing the spoils among his people, and was there right behind them with a mighty army.  The Jews had nowhere to go.  In front of them was the Sea of Reeds.  What now?  The Torah tells us that they complained bitterly to Moshe.  Aren’t there enough graves in  Egypt...?  Moshe responded to them (Shemot 14:13,15):  “Have no fear. Stand firm and witness the deliverance that G-d will perform for you today, for the Egyptians whom you have seen today you will never see again. G-d will do battle for you; you are to r...

This week we read the Torah’s account of the Exodus from Egypt.  After Pharaoh’s refusal to “let My people go,” he finally succumbs and begs Moshe and Aharon to get them out as soon as possible.  The Jews were now free.  What does “free” mean? Free from slavery, yes.  Free from Egyptian captivity, yes. Free to do whatever they wanted?  Not exactly.  Everyone knows the phrase “let My people go,” but how many of us know the conclusion of that verse, “and they shall serve Me?” As a matter of fact, one way to put it could be that Hashem switched one kind of servitude for another.  From the very beginning of the Exodus process, when Hashem appeared to Moshe in the Burning Bush on what would later be the site of the Giving of the Torah, Hashem said:  When you take the nation out of Egypt you will serve Me on this mountain (Sinai).   There are a few words in Hebrew for “Free.”  “Chofshi” is generally translated as free from anything, witho...

  Hashem struck the Egyptians with ten plagues.  I think we are all familiar with them, especially since this is a primary feature of the Seder. Why did Hashem, who is omnipotent,  have to bring plagues on the Egyptians?  Why not just get the Jews out and not let the Egyptians stop them?  Chassidus explains that the ten plagues were intended to break ten levels of impurity.   Let me explain,  The world is made up of ten parts, described in Kabbalah as “Sefirot.”  The human soul and body mirror these Sefirot, with ten faculties that express our spiritual and physical makeup.  (To explain what they all are is beyond the scope of this essay.)  Each of the ten plagues broke down one of the evil attributes of Egypt. Hashem did not want to just subdue the Egyptians and force them to let the Jews go.  He wanted to remove the “hard shell” of the evil that Pharaoh and his people represented.  Because when the evil transforms itself...

At the end of Parshat Shemot, we learn about Moshe’s complaint to Hashem. After all the excitement of the Burning Bush and the miracles that Moshe had performed for the Jewish people and Pharaoh, instead of the promised liberation, Pharaoh ratcheted up the hard labor. In addition to making bricks for the buildings, the Jews now had to find their own straw, and produce the same quota of bricks. They were beaten and whipped and it was a dire situation.  “Moses returned to God and said, “God, why have You mistreated this people? Why have You sent me? For ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has made things worse for this people, and still You have not delivered Your people!” (Shemot 5:22,23)  Hashem answered him (23:1): “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: that because of a strong hand he will send them forth, and indeed, with a strong hand he will drive them out of his land.” Rashi comments on the double term “with a strong hand”: The first “with a stro...