Weekly Reading Insights

Overview of the Weekly Reading

To be read on Shabbat Va'era, 26 Tevet 5772/Jan. 21
Shabbat Mevarchim

Torah: Exodus 6:2-9:35; Maftir: Numbers 28:9-15
Haftorah: Ezekiel 28:25-29:21 (mentions the ultimate punishment of Pharoh)

Va'era is the 2nd Reading out of 11 in Exodus and it contains 6701 letters, in 1748 words, in 121 verses

Va'era opens with G-d instructing Moshe to tell the Jews His promise to free them, but the Jews were not receptive due to their disappointment and harsh slavery. Listed next is the lineage of some Jewish families, mostly that of Moshe and Aharon. G-d told Moshe to perform a sign before Pharaoh: Aharon threw down Moshe's staff which turned into a serpent. When Pharaoh's magicians turned their staffs into snakes, Moshe's staff swallowed their staffs. The first plague: all water in Egypt turned to blood. Pharaoh's magicians also turned water to blood, and Pharaoh hardened his heart. The water remained blood for seven days. Next was the plague of frogs. This too the magicians duplicated. Pharaoh agreed to let the Jews go worship, but once the plague ended, Pharaoh rescinded. The magicians could not, however, duplicate the third plague of lice. They were awed by G-d's power, but Pharaoh was obstinate. Afterwards were the plagues of wild beasts, an epidemic on livestock, boils, and hail. The plagues didn't harm the Jews. Each time Pharaoh made conditions and concessions, but with the plague's conclusion, the promises evaporated.

There are seven different names of G-d that are found in the Torah which are considered holy and cannot be erased once written. Each emphasizes a different divine characteristic. There are a number of places where G-d's names are mentioned in this week's Torah portion (see chapter 6, verses 3, 6 and 7). Of all of the names, there are two main names: G-d's name of 4 letters (yud and hai and vav and hai), and the name (of 5 letters pronounced in prayer as El-o-him, but otherwise written and pronounced) Elokim.

Why do we find only G-d's name Elokim with a possessive form, e.g. Elokainu/our G-d (like in the blessings we make over food or when doing a commandment), while the spelling of G-d's name of 4 letters is never changed?

The answer is connected to which aspects of G-d each of these Names reveals to us. G-d's main name of 4 letters is connected to His aspect of infiniteness and transcendence, beyond all space and time. The 4 letters are similar to the Hebrew words haya, hoveh and yiheyeh, which mean- was, is and will be; He transcends the past, present and future. Something infinite and transcendental cannot be possessed.

On the other hand the name Elokim is connected with G-d's aspect of contraction and judgment. Only when G-d's infiniteness is contracted and confined can it be called "ours." This is the reason Elokim and only Elokim is found with a possessive form.

When will we be able to connect to G-d's name of 4 letters the way we can connect to Elohim?

On one level the entire reason for the exile to Egypt and the enslavement was because G-d wanted to reveal the name Yud-Hai-Vav-Hai to the Jewish people at the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai (as the verse says (Deut 5), Face to face Yud-Hai-Vav-Hai spoke with you). It is only through the physical enslavement that the desire was born in the Jewish people to leave the darkness and enter the light. Only in that mode were they capable of receiving the full light of the Torah.

The Talmud (Brochos 5b) alludes to this when it says there are three things that can only be received with suffering: the land of Israel, Mashiach and Torah. Moshe had asked at the end of last week's portion, why did you make it worse for the people? G-d's response, "By My name of Yud-Hai-Vav-Hai I was not known to the forefathers" (6:3, which opens this week's portion), as if to say, now I want to give them the Torah and so they need to relate to me by the name Yud-Hai-Vav-Hai a relationship that even Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov did not share with Me. But to receive this gift, they have to go through a period of slavery and suffering.
The second and complete level of understanding G-d's name of 4 letters will only happen in the days of the Mashiach, when the full power of G-d's Torah will be revealed. May it happen immediately!
(adapted from Mima'ayanei Hachasidut)

Shabbat Shalom, Shaul

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For last year's essay by Rabbi Leiter on this week's Reading, see the archive.

FROM THE CHASSIDIC REBBES

"But they did not hearken to Moses for anguish of spirit and for cruel bondage... And G-d spoke to Moses and Aaron, and gave them a charge unto the Children of Israel." (6:9-13)

The nature of G-d's message is such that even when a Jew finds it difficult to accept, due to the hardships of the exile, one must nevertheless continue to repeat it. For in the end, G-d's words of truth will have their desired effect, if not immediately, then certainly later. Words of Torah are never uttered in vain; their holiness always enters the heart of those who hear them. This is why G-d commanded Moses and Aaron to continue their mission, even though the Jews "did not hearken for anguish of spirit."

(Sefat Emet) (from L'Chaim #1002)

For more than a decade of "From the Chasidic Rebbes" on this Weekly Reading, see our archives

MOSHIACH THIS WEEK
"Vega'alti (I shall redeem) you." (Ex. 6:6)

a) The basic and universal term for Israel's redemption from the galut (exile) is ge'ulah.
A closer look at this word leads to a remarkable observation: the term ge'ulah has the same letter as golah (galut), with the addition of the letter aleph. Thus, our service of G-d in the galut is to insert (i.e. to manifest the inherent presence of) the "Aleph (the "Master of the Universe") in galut. This will then transform golah (galut) to ge'ulah (redemption)!

b) The fact that the term ge'ulah contains and retains the term golah teaches us the meaning of ge'ulah. The Messianic redemption does not imply a negation or annulment of the natural order, of the present reality of galut. On the contrary: ge'ulah means an elevation and sublimation of golah by redeeming all aspects of the galut and transforming it itself into ge'ulah.

(from Living with Moshiach by Rabbi J. Immanuel Shochet)

For nearly a decade of "Moshiach This Week " on this Weekly Reading, see our archives

From the Kabbalah Commentaries on the Chumash ("5 Books of Moses")

13th century - "RambaN" - Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman

14th century - "Bachya" - Rabbi Bachya ben Asher

16th century - "Alsheich" - Rabbi Moshe Alshech of Tsfat

18th century - "Ohr HaChayim" - Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar

a sample for this week:

Rabbeinu Bachya

"….all my plagues.." [9:14]

A kabbalistic approach: The word kol, "all", in the expression et kol magafotay, "all My plagues," may by understood as similar to the word "all" in velo yair kol chamato "and did not give vent to all His fury" (Psalms 78:38). The meaning of the word in that context is the attribute called kol. This attribute describes G-d's anger. Here too the Torah describes that this plague will be the result of G-d's anger at Pharaoh having failed to respond to earlier methods to discipline him. Henceforth this attribute would be employed in order to humble him. This is why Moses needed to raise his hands (verse 29) when he prayed for the removal of this plague when the time came. He had not had to do this when he prayed for the removal of any of the preceding plagues. People had actually been dying from fear when they merely heard the sound of the hail. Seeing this plague was the result of the combined efforts of G-d and His celestial court it was more severe than the plagues preceding it. This fact is alluded to in the Torah especially mentioning the world kolot as part of the actual plague in verse 23: "and G-d sent thunder and hail." Seeing this had been so, Moses had to make an increased effort in his prayer to stop the plague by using also his outstretched hands in prayer. He needed to sanctify all his ten fingers. The symbolism contained in raising one's hands heavenwards in prayer is that it is an expression of one's awareness of the source of the disaster which one wants to prevent by one's prayer and by invoking G-d's attribute of Mercy towards what transpires on earth. The plague's effect on Pharaoh was that for the fist time he publicly acknowledged that he and his people had sinned, that G-d was righteous (verse 27). As soon as Moses engaged in this kind of prayer the hail, etc., ceased (not on the next day as in previous plagues).

Selected from the seven-volume English edition of The Torah Commentary of Rebbeinu Bachya, as translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk. Rabbi Bachya ben Asher [1255-1340] of Saragosa, Spain, was the outstanding pupil of Rabbi Shlomo ben Aderet (the "Rashba"), a main disciple of Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (the "Ramban"). Several books have been written about the Kabballah-based portions of R. Bachya's commentary.

For the rest of "The Masters of Kabbala and Chumash" on this Weekly Reading; and on all the other Readings.

A MYSTICAL CHASSIDIC DISCOURSE

Specifically, for an overview of the recommended articles in the columns:
Holy Zohar, Holy Ari, Mystic Classics, Chasidic Masters, Contemporary Kabbalists, and more,
click to Va'era

From the teachings of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai
translation & commentary by Moshe Miller

"When Pharaoh speaks to you and he says, 'Give me a miraculous sign,' you shall say to Aaron, 'Take your staff and cast it down before Pharaoh. It will become a serpent.'"

The staff of Aaron swallowed the other staffs after turning back into wood, thus demonstrating that occult powers were not involved. Instead G-d's ability to override the laws of nature and the physical world became revealed.

For another taste of recommended Kabbalah articles on a variety of subjects,
click to the our weekly Kabbalah magazine

This Sunday is the yahrzeit of the Rambam (Maimonides - see 1st article)
and Thursday is that of the Baal Tanya (see last 3 articles).
Articles #2 and #3 relate to meditations on Divine Names.

The patriarchs were not aware of the unique simultaneous effectiveness of both of
G-d's attributes.

Weekly Reading Insights: Va'era 5772

a sample for this week:

Rabbeinu Bachya

Weekly Reading Insights:
Va'era 5772