Torah Down Under

The passuk says in this week’s sedrah (14:20 - 23) וַיֹּאמֶר ה' סָלַחְתִּי כִּדְבָרֶךָ. וְאוּלָם חַי אָנִי וְיִמָּלֵא כְבוֹד ה' אֶת כָּל הָאָרֶץ. כִּי כָל הָאֲנָשִׁים הָרֹאִים אֶת כְּבֹדִי וְאֶת אֹתֹתַי אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי בְמִצְרַיִם וּבַמִּדְבָּר וַיְנַסּוּ אֹתִי זֶה עֶשֶׂר פְּעָמִים וְלֹא שָׁמְעוּ בְּקוֹלִי. אִם יִרְאוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי לַאֲבֹתָם וְכָל מְנַאֲצַי לֹא יִרְאוּהָ. And Hashem said, “I have forgiven according to your words. However as I am alive and the glory of Hashem will fill the whole world. That all the men who saw My glory and My signs which I performed in Mitzrayim and in the desert and they have tested Me these ten times and they did not listen to My voice. If they will see the land that I swore to their forefathers and all those who provoke Me will not see it.” The words וְלֹא שָׁמְעוּ בְּקוֹלִי are in the past tense. Following the same construction, it would seem that the passuk should have said כי כל האנשים שראו את כבודי – ...

The passuk says in parshas shelech lechah (13:3): וַיִּשְׁלַח אֹתָם מֹשֶׁה מִמִּדְבַּר פָּארָן עַל פִּי ה' כֻּלָּם אֲנָשִׁים רָאשֵׁי בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הֵמָּה Moshe sent them from Midbar Paran according to the instruction of Hashem, they were all men – they were the leaders of the benei yisrael . Rashi explains: "כלם אנשים" - כל אנשים שבמקרא לשון חשיבות ואותה שעה כשרים היו They were all men – Wherever it says the term ‘ anashim ’ in the passuk it is an expression of importance; this is used here because at that time they were tzadikim . The passuk later on in the parsha (13:26) says: וַיֵּלְכוּ וַיָּבֹאוּ אֶל מֹשֶׁה וְאֶל אַהֲרֹן וְאֶל כָּל עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל מִדְבַּר פָּארָן קָדֵשָׁה וַיָּשִׁיבוּ אוֹתָם דָּבָר... They went and they came to Moshe and to Aharon and to all of the people to Midbar Paran to Kadesh and they returned a report to them... Rashi explains: "וילכו ויבואו" - (סוטה לד) מהו וילכו להקיש הליכתן לביאתן מה ביאתן בעצה ...

The gemara says in Pesachim (32a) that if you seperate terumah from chametz on Pesach then it does not become terumah ; ...מפריש תרומת חמץ דברי הכל אינה קדושה “Everyone agrees that if you separate terumah from chametz on Pesach it does not become terumah .” The gemara in daf 33 explains that this is becuase the passuk says that you have to give terumah to a cohen for him to eat, here the cohen can only use the chametz for making a fire (that is, even according to the ma'an de'amar that chametz on Pesach is mutar behana'ah the maximum benefit the cohen could have is to use the chametz as fire-wood); ...מנא הני מילי? אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר קרא (דברים יח, ד) תתן לו ולא לאורו “How do we know this? Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak said, because the passuk says “ תתן לו ולא לאורו ” – “You should give to the cohen (to eat) - and not to his fire.”   The asks from a beraisah that says that chametz can become terumah; the gemara explains - " … התם היתה לו שעת הכושר ...

The possuk in this week’s sedrah says: וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר. דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם בְּבֹאֲכֶם אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי מֵבִיא אֶתְכֶם שָׁמָּה. וְהָיָה בַּאֲכָלְכֶם מִלֶּחֶם הָאָרֶץ תָּרִימוּ תְרוּמָה לַה'. רֵאשִׁית עֲרִסֹתֵכֶם חַלָּה תָּרִימוּ תְרוּמָה כִּתְרוּמַת גֹּרֶן כֵּן תָּרִימוּ אֹתָהּ. Hashem spoke to Moshe saying – Speak to the benei yisroel and say to them; “When you come to the land which I will bring you to. And it will be when you eat from the bread of the land you should take a tithe (this is challah). The first of your dough you should tithe to Hashem, as the Teruma taken from the granary so you should tithe it.” The possuk says that the chiyuv to separate challah only applies in eretz yisroel – אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי מֵבִיא אֶתְכֶם שָׁמָּה. The Rambam ( הל׳ תרומות פרק א׳ הל׳ כ״ב) learns from this passuk that if grain from eretz yisroel is taken out of eretz yisroel then it is not chayav in challah: פירות א"י שיצאו חוצה...