Page 44 - HaMizrachi #26 Tu Bishvat USA 2021

TU BISHVAT READING

Rabbi Shalom Rosner

MITZVOT HAT’LUYOT BA’ARETZ BIKKURIM

Giving the Best

he mitzvah of bikkurim requires place, we welcome you in peace. The This is the message of bikkurim: to
one to bring his first םיִני ִּ מ ַ ה ת ַ ע ְ ב ִ ׁש flute would play before them until they give the most precious and beloved to
Tfruit to the Mikdash, recite a reached the Temple Mount. When they G-d. At the moment that naturally we
short review of Jewish history, and then reached the Temple Mount even King would be focused on our own needs
to present those fruits to the kohen. Agrippas would take the basket and and desires, we instead funnel our
The midrash tells us לי ִ ב ְ ׁש ִּ ב – תי ׁ ִ שא ֵ ר ְּ ב place it on his shoulder and walk as assets to G-d.
תי ִ ׁשא ֵ ר ּוא ְ ר ְ קִּנ ֶ ׁש םי ִ רּו ּ כ ִּ ב: one of the pur- far as the Temple Court. When he got This also helps us understand the
poses of Creation was to give Jews the to the Temple Court, the Levites would root difference between the korban
opportunity to bring bikkurim. What sing the song: ‘I will extol You, O L-rd, of Kayin and of Hevel. Kayin, after
is so special about this mitzvah? How all, had the idea first, so why was his
does this mitzvah capture the essence for You have raised me up, and You korban “rejected”? The answer is in
of our avodah? The question is com- have not let my enemies rejoice over the text itself. Kayin brought from the
pounded by the pomp and circumstance me.’” (Tehillim 30:2) fruit of the land, while Hevel brought
described by the Mishnayot in Masechet Why all the excitement? Why all the from the choicest of his flock. Kayin
Bikkurim (Chapter 3) which accompa- fuss? Why do all the local farmers did not bring his most precious, and
nied those fulfilling the mitzvah. need to stop what they are doing to that reflected a moral failure in his

“An ox would go in front of them, his give them a yashar koach? outlook in his service of G-d. 1
horns bedecked with gold and with The Noam Elimelech teaches us the This is one of the purposes of Cre-
an olive-crown on its head. The flute ation: to give our most precious, our
would play before them until they secret. How do I know which fruit to best, to His service. Be it time, be it
would draw close to Jerusalem. When give as bikkurim? When the first little effort, be it money, be it resources.
they drew close to Jerusalem they blossom of the first fruit appears, the There are so many areas in which we
would send messengers in advance, owner ties a ribbon on it to remember can give of ourselves for spiritual and
and they would adorn their bikkurim. which one was first. Imagine after all national pursuits. So many of our
The governors and chiefs and trea- the blood, sweat and tears of months youth here in Israel give of their most
surers [of the Temple] would go out to of plowing, watering, praying for rain, precious years to learning, serving in
greet them, and according to the rank worrying about growth, the farmer the army, and dedicating their time
of the entrants, they would go forth. All finally merits to see the fruits to National Service, sherut leumi. We
the skilled artisans of Jerusalem would of his labor. And what does he must learn from their sacrifice and
stand up before them and greet them do? He gives it away to G-d and commitment to our nation to live a life
saying, “Our brothers, men of such His servants. with the bikkurim value! Let us make
and such a sure that this Tu BiShvat, we rededi-
cate ourselves to this end, and focus
our attention to giving our very best to
the One Above.

1 See the Rambam’s beautiful formulation at
the end of Hilchot Issurei Mizbeach.

Rabbi Shalom Rosner is a Rebbe at
Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh and Rabbi of the
Nofei HaShemesh community.

44 |