Page 26 - HaMizrachi #6 TuBishvat 5779

Rabbi Shalom Rosner

Mutual Responsibility

in the Desert

A s Bnei Yisrael leave Egypt, the were evil people in Israel, and they more fun. But on longer trips, on trips

didn’t want to leave, and they died
without snacks and amenities, without
Torah describes their travels :
1
provisions, that’s a totally different story.
the Egyptians wouldn’t witness their
ְ
ףּוס ם ַי ר ָּ ב ְ ד ִּ מ ַ ה ך ֶ ר ֶ ּ ד ם ָ ע ָ ה ת ֶ א םִּי ִ קלֹ ֱ א בֹס ָי ְ ו during the three days of darkness so that י ִ ל ְּ ב ִ מ ,ה ָ ק ֹוח ְ ר ך ֶ ר ֶ ד ְּ ב ר ָּ ב ְ ד ִּ מ ַּ ב םי ִ כ ְ ל ֹוה ֶ ׁש ְּ כ ם ָ לּוא
ְ
.םִי ָ ר ְ צ ִ מ ץ ֶ ר ֶ א ֵ מ ל ֵ א ָ ר ְ ׂשִי י ֵנ ְ ב ּול ָ ע םי ִ ׁש ֻ מ ֲ ח ַ ו downfall and say that they are being ת ַ ח ַ ק ָ ל ּו ּ צ ַ ר ְ תִי אלֹ ז ָ א ,םי ִ כ ְ ל ֹוה ן ָ א ָ ל ה ָ עי ִ דְי םּו ׁש
afflicted like us.”
They travelled through the desert, and ...ר ָז ד ֶ ל ֶי ם ֶ ה ָּ מ ִ ע
they went up םי ִ ׁש ֻ מ ֲ ח, which is a difficult Four fifths of the nation died. Rav Yosef “But when walking a long way in the
word to translate. M’Salant, in his Be’er Yosef, suggests that desert, with no knowledge of the
only the adults died, but their children
Rashi tells us that םי ִ ׁש ֻ מ ֲ ח means armed lived. They weren’t old enough to be destination, they wouldn’t easily be
and ready to conquer the enemy nations punished. Millions of orphans. Who persuaded to take a strange child with
they would encounter. The Targum of took care of them? Who watched over them”
Yonatan ben Uziel suggests: ם ִ ע ד ַ ח ל ָ כ ְ ו them? The rest of Klal Yisrael. Each took Yet they did. Those were the good deeds.
םי ִ ר ְ צ ִ מ ְ ּ ד א ָ ע ְ ר ַ א ֵ מ י"נב ֹוקי ִ ל ְ ס א ָ ל ְ פ ַ ט א ָ ׁש ְ מ ַ ח, four other sets of children. They considered them as their own
Each family went up with five children. children. And that’s a deeper meaning of
,םיִּי ַ ח ַּ ב ּור ֲ א ְ ׁש ִנ םי ִ ע ָ ׁש ֵ ר ָ ה ה ֶּ ל ֵ א ל ֶ ׁש םי ִ ד ָ לְּי ַ ה ל ָ ב ֲ א ךִי ַ רּוע ְנ ד ֶ ס ֶ ח ך ָ ל י ִּ ת ְ ר ַ כ ָז, “I recall for you the
ְ
ְ
That’s pretty amazing, for every family םי ִּנ ַ ט ְ ק םי ִ ד ָ לְי ל ֶ ׁש םי ִ ק ָ ל ֲ ח ע ַּ ב ְ ר ַ א ּוי ָ ה ,ן ֵּ כ ם ִ א ְ ו.. 3
to be of the same size? יא ַ ּ ד ַ ו ְּ ב כ"א.,םי ִ ר ֹוה י ִ ל ְּ ב ּור ֲ א ְ ׁש ִּנ ֶ ׁש ,ל ֵ א ָ ר ְ ׂשִי ל ַ ל ְּ כ ִ מ kindness of your youth,” the kindness
you did with the םי ִ ר ָ ע ְנ (youth)!
ל ֶ ׁ ש ם ֶ הי ֵ ד ְ ל ַי ,םי ִ ל ָ פ ְּ ט ַ ה ּו ּ ל ֵ א ל ָּ כ םי ִ ל ָ טּומ ּוי ָ ה
The Targum Yerushalmi posits ן ָנְּי ַז ְ מ
ןי ִ קי ִ ר ְּ פ ל ֵ א ָ ר ְ ׂשִי י ֵנ ְּ ב ֹוקי ִ ל ְ ס א ָ ב ָ ט א ָ ד ְ בּוע ְּ ב י ִ ׁ שי ִ מ ֲ ח ַ ה ק ֶ ל ֵ ח ל ַ ע - ּות ֵּ מ ֶ ׁש םי ִ ק ָ ל ֲ ח ַ ה ה ָ ע ָּ ב ְ ר ַ א So we all left Egypt with five families,
with the neighbor’s children. We cared
םִי ַ ר ְ צ ִ מ ְ ּ ד א ָ ע ְ ר ַ א ֵ מ, They were armed with .םִי ַ ר ְ צ ִּ מ ִ מ א ָ צ ָּי ֶ ׁ ש for each other’s children as if they were
םי ִ ב ֹוט םי ִ ׂש ֲ ע ַ מ (good deeds). This also “But the children of those evil ones our own. This is our legacy, this is our
requires elaboration, given that just the remained alive… and if so, there were heritage, and this is our mandate. Next
day before, on the 14th of Nissan, Chazal four parts of small Jewish children who week, we will read ד ָ ח ֶ א ב ֵ ל ְּ ב ד ָ ח ֶ א ׁשי ִ א ְּ כ,
understand that we were naked from were left without parents. If so, it is “as one person with one heart.” We
4
mitzvot, based on the verse in Ezekiel 2 obvious that responsibility for all these cannot let this be a one-time event, but
ה ָי ְ ר ֶ ע ְ ו םֹר ֵ ע ְּ ת ַ א ְ ו, so G-d had to provide subordinates, the children of the four rather a motto to live by. One family,
us with ה ָ לי ִ מ ם ַ ד ְ ו ח ַ ס ֶּ פ ם ַ ּ ד (the blood of parts that died, was on the fifth part who one heart, one nation. We are all G-d’s
Pesach and the blood of circumcision), left Egypt.” children, and together we must care for
and now we are full and laden with all of our children.
mitzvot? Now we understand the pshat (plain
meaning) of the Targum Yonatan ben
Maybe the secret is the Rashi we are Uziel. Not five children per family, 1
familiar with on םי ִ ׁש ֻ מ ֲ ח ַ ו: but each had five sets of children, their 2 Exodus 13:18.

ְ
ל ֵ א ָ ר ְ ׂשִי ְּ ב ּוי ָ ה ֶ ׁש ,ך ֶ ׁשֹח ם ֶ הי ֵ ל ֲ ע אי ִ ב ֵ ה ה ָּ מ ָ ל ְ ו own plus four more. That is also the 3 Ezekiel 16:7.
Jeremiah 2:2.
,תא ֵ צ ָ ל םי ִ צ ֹור ּוי ָ ה אלֹ ְ ו ,םי ִ ע ָ ׁש ְ ר ר ֹו ּ ד ַ ה ֹות ֹוא ְּ ב pshat of the Targum Yerushalmi – laden 4 Rashi, Exodus 19:2.
ּוא ְ רִי אֹ ּ ל ֶ ׁש י ֵ ד ְּ כ ה ָ ל ֵ פ ֲ א י ֵ מְי ת ֶ ׁשלֹ ְ ׁש ִּ ב ּות ֵ מּו with םי ִ ב ֹוט םי ִ ׂש ֲ ע ַ מ. Let us appreciate
.ּונ ֹומ ָּ כ ןי ִ ק ֹול ן ֵ ה ף ַ א ּור ְ מאֹי ְ ו ם ָ ת ָ ל ָּ פ ַ מ ְּ ב םִי ַ ר ְ צ ִ מ what they did, says the Be’er Yosef. It
is somewhat common to take other Rabbi Shalom Rosner is a Rebbe at
“And why did He bring darkness upon people’s children on short trips, or Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh and Rabbi of
them, because in that generation there for a play date. It often even makes it the Nofei HaShemesh community

Want to receive HaMizrachi by email before every holiday?

Sign up at www.mizrachi.org/hamizrachi