Kahane Codes - Part Two

\"And when they came into the nations, they desecrated My holy Name.\" The very fact of Exile, the very reality of the Jews being driven from their land and forced to dwell as beaten strangers in foreign lands — THIS ITSELF IS HILLUL HASHEM, DESECRATION OF THE NAME OF G-D! The simple and elementary presence of exiled Jews, forced to wander among the nations, causes the gentile to point with a humiliating finger and mockingly declare: \"These are the people of the L-rd and they are gone out of their land!\" What he is really saying is: \"There is no L-rd, there is no G-d of Israel, and if there is, He is an impotent and helpless god. For if he truly existed as the Omnipotent and all-powerful Sovereign of the Universe, His people would not be in exile, they could not be at my mercy, they could not be beaten and shamed and humiliated by me.\" THIS is the desecration of G-d's Name. Every pogrom is a desecration of the Name. Every Auschwitz and expulsion and murder and rape of a Jew is the humiliation of G-d. Every time a Jew is beaten by a gentile this is the essence of Hillul Hashem! “For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all the lands, and I will bring you to your own land. “ An end to Exile — that is Kiddush Hashem. An end to the shame and the beatings and the monuments to our murdered and martyred. An end to Kaddish and prayers for the dead. An end to humiliations at the hands of the gentile. An end to the gentile fist upon a Jewish face. The return from Egypt. A shaking off of the dust of the Exile and its shame, and a return to a Jewish state of our own created with the fire and the spitting of Jewish guns. A Jewish fist in the face of an astonished gentile world that had not seen it for two millennia. This is Kiddush Hashem. Jewish dominion over the Christian holy places while the Church that sucked our blood vomits its rage and frustration. This is Kiddush Hashern. A Jewish air force that is better than any other and that forces a Lebanese airliner down so that we can imprison murderers of Jews rather than having to repeat the centuries-old pattern of begging the gentile to do it for us. This is Kiddush Hashem. Listening to Yakov Malik sputtering with fury at the Jewish \"fascists\" rather than having liberal requiem masses created for our martyrdom. That is Kiddush Hashem. Reading angry editorials about Jewish \"aggression\" and \"violations' rather than flowery eulogies over dead Jewish victims. That is Kiddush Hashem. The State of Israel came into being not because the Jew deserved it, but because the gentile did. It came into being not because the Jew was worthy of it, but because the Name of G-d had reached its fill of humiliation and desecration. \"I do not do this for your sake, 0 House of Israel. but for the sake of My holy Name, which you have desecrated among the nations.\" That is the essence and the foundation of foundations. We say Hallel on Yom HaAtzmaut, not because the government or we are worthy of the miracle but because G-d has decided to put an end to Hillul Hashem. The sins and demerits of the Jews who created the state are of absolutely no relevance to its creation. Israel came into being because ISRAEL IS THE ESSENCE AND THE APEX OF KIDDUSH HASHEM! Israel is the Jew who hits and is no longer hit. Israel is freedom and not bondage. Israel is living proof of the falsehood that is Christianity. Israel is Kiddush Hashem. Let us stop apologizing and fretting over world hatred and condemnation. They stem from their hatred of us, their frustration over our success, their terrible fear in the presence of the proof of the living G-d, 201

the Jewish G-d. The hatred will get worse because Jewish victories will continue and every Jewish victory is a dagger in the heart of the Jew-hater who sees his destiny turning to ashes. We will bring down more planes and liquidate more of those who seek to kill us. We will tread on every inch of the Land of Israel and build farms and houses and streets for our children to play in. And every brick will be a song of praise to G-d, and every seed will shout forth \"This is my G-d!\" And the Name of G-d will be hallowed and praised with every Jew who stands tall and proud and free until Jewish destiny will reach total fruition. \"On that day the L-rd will be One, and His Name One\" (Zechariah 14:9). Until then, no more gentile fists on Jewish bodies. September 14, 1973 (Meir Kahane: Beyond Words / Volume One / 1973 Pg.493) The Purity of the Impure (2016) There is a famous saying about a certain Jewish trait. There are those who ‘sin like Zimri and want the reward of Pinchas’. Only among the Jewish people will you find this dysfunctional zealotry. This week we saw a demonstration of this trait. I looked at the news and I saw the whole Parshat Pinchas come to life. It was the biggest ‘gay pride’ parade ever held in Yerushalyim. Where was Pinchas? There were of course many, but barricaded behind the police. Why would these people decide to march here in the holy city of Jerusalem? The same reason that Zimri stood in front of Moshe and proudly distorted the Torah. As Baruch Marzel said “Their goal is to destroy Judaism in the Land of Israel. They want Israel to be like all the other countries.” Benzi Gopstein proclaimed, \"At 5:00 p.m. this Thursday, in Jerusalem's Liberty Bell Park, we will try to stop the Pride Parade, which will feature all of society's scum and filth -- the bottom of the barrel of the human race -- whose only goal is to spread their pollution and befoul the atmosphere of the holy city.” I thought of the Erev Rav and it raised a few questions in my mind. In Nedarim (Lamed Vav) there is a discussion regarding Avraham. Chazal retrace the origin of the slavery of Egypt to a lack of wholeheartedness when Avraham asks for a sign in Brit HaBetarim. Whatever faith was lacking would be refined in the furnace of Egypt. Others say Avraham made a mistake by not demanding the people from Malki Tzedek after the war of five kings. If Avraham had taken these people he could have led them in the way of Hashem. The tikkun they say was done in Mitzrayim when we left with the mixed multitude. On the other hand Moshe was not commanded to take the Erev Rav (mixed multitude) with him; he did this on his own accord. He was criticized for this. The Erev Rav were the main instigators in the Egel Hazahav and have historically caused Bnei Israel many troubles. Based on these two points of view it raises a question. Should this mixed multitude have been brought into the Nation or not? Was it good or was it bad? If we look a little deeper, we see that in Parshat Pinchas it was actually not the Erev Rav that caused this plague but the purest of the pure. Zimri was a leader of a tribe with lineage back to the forefathers of the Nation. In fact Pinchas whose zealotry saved the day by stopping the plague and elevating Israel to a higher standard, was himself from a lineage that included converts. How do we understand this? It seems to me that within my question is the answer. Is the Erev Rav good or bad? Its both. There are negative aspects of outside influences that can infect even the purest of the pure. On the other hand 202

sometimes there is a new blood that is infused within Israel that leads to the highest places of holiness. What would Israel be without Pinchas, Rabbi Akiva and David Hamelech himself? We wrote earlier that Nasso was the extension of Bamidbar. From this new National formation would now come the dedication of the Temple. Pinchas is the extension of Balak and from this refinement comes the mussaf offerings; a refinement of the Temple service from within this national entity. The final refinement of our National soul is dealing with those who sin like Zimri and want the reward of Pinchas. The clarification of true peace which according to Binyamin Kahane is not ‘co-existence’ with evil but the ‘removal’ of evil. Then there is peace. As our various streams of religiosity now share a mutual destiny of art science and spirit we have also become the reluctant defenders of evil forces against the free world. It is within this realm that the final tikkun will take place. It is also the moral decay from within that can remove our protection as avengers as we see in Parsha Pinchas. That which our enemies cannot do, only we can do to ourselves. We are living now in these last stages of our refinement as a people. The 240 of Amalek and the Mar (bitterness) of Chesvon (Rav Meir) must be transformed into Ram (240). From the lowest to the highest. “.. for the children of Israel went out with a high hand (Yad Rama).” (Shmot 14:8) Hamelech HaYoshev al Kisse RAM venissa. ‘O king enthroned upon a high and lofty throne.’ (Yishayahu 6:1) The highest level of the kings throne will be cemented by the transformation of this impurity into the finest gold. The 24,000 that were killed in the Plague mirror the 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva who are rebuilding what was destroyed. The final leg of the throne is incomplete as long as Amalek battles our body and infects our minds. The battle of Amalek was forced upon us at the height of our glory. ‘For the hand is on the throne of God, Hashem maintains a war against Amalek from generation to generation.’ (Shmot 17:16). In this passage the word for ‘throne’ is spelled defectively missing the letter Aleph. Because of Amalek the throne is not secure. Amalek (240), the worst of our enemies who spread through the world today with their suicide bombers and sadistic cult of death are strengthened by the doubt (240) and disbelief among Israel. Parshat Pinchas always falls around the weeks preceding Tisha Bav and the fast of 17 Tammuz. These dates will eventually be days of celebration when the final refinement of our people is complete and Amalek will be defeated. The weakest leg of the throne will eventually become the strongest. That which has wrought so much suffering will bring the greatest refinement. Today the days that are filled with sorrows of the pasts, and conflicts of Pinchas in the present will eventually lead to days of celebration. How will this last leg be fashioned? As we said earlier in Parshat Chukat; through the Mei Nidah, or Medina. In the shaping of the Medina that which is Holy will become tainted and that which was tainted will become Holy. We will rise to even higher levels than we had been. The wood of the Torah will make the bitter waters sweet as we are transformed. The Erev Rav brought the greatest catastrophes to Am Israel however a spirit from outside mixed with holiness inside can also bring the greatest remedy. The right mixture of the Mei Niddah is being administered each day as the secrets of the Para Aduma unfold. The dross will be separated so that even purity will come from the impure. 203

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Kahane in the Parsha Mattos 205

Collective Punishment and Collective Peace (2014) As I am writing this Israel is at war in Gaza. Over 2000 missiles have been fired into all parts of Israel in the last two weeks and by a miracle they have all been intercepted. Our evil enemy Hamas hides behind civilians and woman and children while they fire their rockets hoping for civilian casualties in Israel. Prime Minister Netanyahu said Hamas is \"committing a double war crime. They want more civilian casualties, whereas we want no civilian casualties.\" They base their headquarters in hospitals and schools and hold babies in their arms as they shoot their missiles into Tel Aviv and Jerusalem praying that Israel will strike back and be condemned for the Arab casualties that will result. The world knows that these people are despicable and immoral by their love of death and hatred of Israel however it is a moral confusion that only Israel can rectify. This moral confusion is coincidentally discussed in this weeks Parsha, regarding both the concept of collective punishment as well as the demand to believe fully in our ability to conquer the Land of Israel. On an interview with CNN this week Netanyahu said 'We use anti missile systems to protect our civilians, they use their civilians to protect their missiles. That is the difference between us.' The Collective and the Comfortable (2014) :‫נון‬-‫ יבן‬,‫ יויה הו מש כע‬,‫ כה נק ינ יזי‬,‫ ני מפ הנה‬-‫ יב נל יתי הכ ילב הבן‬12 save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; for they followed ‫ א נח ןרי כיה הוה‬,‫יכי ימ כלאו‬ Hashem fully. (Bamidbar 32:12) :‫ הגד נו יל נב יני נראו יבן‬-‫ יל נב יני‬,‫ ו כו היא המר המ השה‬6 And Moses said unto the children of Gad and to ‫ ןת כשבו הפה‬,‫ כו שא תתם‬,‫ הי הבאו של ימ כל הח המה‬,‫ שהא ןחי תכם‬the children of Reuben: 'Shall your brethren go to the war, and shall ye sit here? (Bamidbar 32:6) Today as in the past it is only a small percentage of our Nation that believes fully in our mission and is not deterred. In recent years there is a greater feeling of unity here in Israel as we run for shelters together when the sirens wail, however we still sacrifice our soldiers in house to house combat (instead of large aerial bombings) for fear of world condemnation. The culmination of Moshes teaching is summed up in this last mitzva that Moshe commands before he dies. 'Harass the Midianites and take Hashem's vengeance'. Moshes last mitzvah reverberates today. The final lessons we are learning today, are the lessons that precede the coming of Moshiach. Vengeance against the Midianites and conquering the Land 'fully' seem to be connected. A people that has forfeited its life because of its immorality and a tribe that feels it is enough to settle the Land without fighting its battles have something to do with each other. The dove of Israel will never find rest as long as her mission is not yet full. 206

In the Haftorah Yermiyahu stands against the government of Israel to proclaim Hashems will and is imprisoned for his prophecies. In our day Rav Kahane also stood and protested against the government to proclaim the commandments of the Torah and was imprisoned for it. What he warned of in the past we are beginning to see today as the people of Gaza use their children as human shields and inflame the Arabs of Israel with their Jew hatred. The Rav brought down Abarbanel (on Ex. 34:11-12 ) who writes: This is why it is said, “[the land] where you are coming.” Since Israel came to the land and took it from its inhabitants, and they feel that is has been stolen from them, how will they make a covenant of friendship with you? Rather the opposite will occur. “They will be a fatal trap for you.” When war strikes you, they will join your enemies and fight you. In other words the Arabs of Israel fit the description of the Canaanites as do any other nation that dwells in the Land before the Jews arrive. As long as we are not clear as to who our enemy is and simply try and settle the Land while ignoring the cancer that grows around us there will be no peace. Midian comes from the word Madan (Strife). It is the Sinat Chinam within (causeless hatred) that dissuades us from our cause that brings about our victories today that remain defeats. When we are clear and unified towards our cause and realize the evil of our enemy we will fulfill the final lesson that Moshe taught. In the battle of Hashem's vengeance as it was in the past so it will be in the future: “The commanders of thousands in the legions, the officers of the thousands and the officers of the hundreds, approached Moses. They said to Moses, “Your servants took a census of the men of war under our command, and not a man of us is missing”. (Devarim 31: 48,49) The Laws of Possession ,‫ הי נש יבי ההא הרץ‬-‫לא תוה ירישו האת‬-‫ נה נו יאם‬55 But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then shall those that ye ‫ נל יש יכים‬,‫ נו הה היה נא השר ת הו יתירו ימ ההם‬--‫ימ נפ יני הכם‬ let remain of them be as thorns in your eyes, and --‫נב יעי יני הכם נו יל נצ יני ינם נב יצ ידי הכם; נו הצ נררו הא נת הכם‬ as pricks in your sides, and they shall harass you ‫ נא השר כא התם הי נש יבים הבה‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ כעל‬in the land wherein ye dwell. (Bamidbar 33:55) ‫ נא השר ניה הוה באל ההיך‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ הת הבא האל‬-‫ יד יכי‬14 When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, ‫יוי יר כש התה‬,‫ נו הי כש נב התה הבה; נוא כמ נר הת‬, ,‫הלך‬ ‫נה יתן‬ and shalt dwell therein; and shalt say: 'I will set a ‫ נא השר נס יבי הב התי‬,‫ כהג הו יים‬-‫ נכ הכל‬,‫ הא ישי המה הע כלי המ הלך‬king over me, like all the nations that are round about me'; (Dvarim 26:1) ‫ = תוה ירישו‬Drive Out = 922 ‫ = יוי יר כש התה‬Posses it = 921 + 1 (kollel ) = 922 We can see in the gematrias the connection between driving out and settling. Rav Binyamin writes 207

about this idea in the Parsha. There is no successful settlement without first driving out the inhabitants, otherwise they will constantly be a thorn in your sides. Its not enough for Reuvain to settle in the Land of Israel, unless he takes part in conquering Israel. The same applies today. There will not be a collective peace until we drive out not only the enemies near us but those that persecute the Jewish communities by Gaza and any other places within Israel. We are all part of one body. Circumcising the Land I often wondered why the Land of Israel was given to us in this way. Hashem could have given us an uninhabited land but He chose to create this dynamic that exists till this day. I wrote about the concept in Parsha Lech Lecha. Last year I asked a speaker at Rav Kahane's haskara about this question, he told me that conquering Israel is connected to the concept of Brit Mila. I thought about it some more and it seems to make somewhat more sense. This has always served as an unusual sign on the body of Israel that is condemned by some as being unnatural. Some answer that a foreskin can cause infection, while others say that we are completing the work of creation. As it is written in the Talmud The Midrash Tanchuma (Tazria 5) cites a famous dispute between Rabbi Akiva and the wicked Roman procurator, Turnus Rufus. Turnus Rufus asked Rabbi Akiva, \"Whose acts are greater, man's or God's?\" R. Akiva answered him that man's acts are greater. Turnus Rufus responded that the heavens and the earth are divine creations which man cannot equal. Rabbi Akiva disqualified this proof as out of man's realm, and thereby unfair to compare. Turnus Rufus then asked why Jews are circumcised. Rabbi Akiva responded that he knew that this question was coming, and that was why he answered the way he answered. But to prove the point itself, Rabbi Akiva brought sheaves of wheat and cakes, and said to Turnus Rufus: These sheaves were made by God, while these cakes were produced by man! Turnus Rufus insisted that the cakes are no greater than the sheaves. He then reformulated his previous point: If God wants children to be circumcised, why does the child not leave the womb circumcised? Rabbi Akiva responded: And why does his umbilical cord come out with him, with the child hanging by his stomach until the mother cuts it? Rabbi Akiva concluded: Regarding your question as to why the child is not born circumcised, this is because God gave the mitzvot to the Jewish people in order to refine them, an idea expressed by David in the verse, \"God's word is refined\" (according to his understanding of Tehillim 18:31). It seems to ring true that through the establishment of Israel and the ongoing battles we are being refined as a people. Gentiles who stand with Israel are also being refined. Our isolation from the time of Mamre and Avraham till today brings about the refinement of Israel and the world that stands with us. The Emperor proposed to R. Tanhum, 'Come, let us all be one people.' 'Very Well,' he answered, 'but we who are circumcised cannot possibly become like you; do ye become circumcised and be like us.' (Sanhedrin 39a) The Ishmaelites also do circumcision and seem to take it to even greater lengths by performing circumcision at the age of thirteen. The difference between us is that it is an act of free choice for a thirteen year old Muslim whereas for a Jew it was chosen for him when he was born as a symbol of what he represents. For us it is about refinement of character more than the willingness to sacrifice; this refinement happens even without our consent. Maybe today we see the difference symbolically. It may 208

seem like an act of greater self-sacrifice to willingly die for a cause however it is much nobler to live a life of self-sacrifice for the benefit of others than to sacrifice yourself in order to take others down with you. Brit Mila and Complete Faith ‫תנואון‬--‫ ילב נב יני יי נש הר יאל‬-‫ האת‬, ‫ז נו הל המה‬ 7 Why do you dissuade the heart of the children ,‫ימ נע הבר‬ Hashem ‫ ניה הוה‬,‫ הנ כתן הל ההם‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫האל‬ of Israel from crossing to the Land that has given them? (Bamidbar 32:7) ,‫ כי נע הקב; כו הי בא כהב‬-‫ נב ידי הנה כבת‬,‫ ג שו ית כד שבק כנ נפש הו‬3 And his soul did cleave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and ‫ ילב כה כנ נע הר‬-‫ כעל‬,‫ כו ני כד יבר‬,‫ כה כנ נע הר‬-‫האת‬ spoke comfortingly unto the damsel (Bereshit 34:3) ‫ = תנואון‬dissuade = 513 ‫ = שו ית כד שבק‬did cleave = 512 + 1 (kollel ) = 513 The emotional argument of the Jewish victims of terror that are violated and raped and start to believe that they are the oppressor causes us to lose our sense of purpose and mission. We are dissuaded from our path by the desire to intermarry and absolve ourselves of our mission. The Brit Mila separates us and redefines us once again. The Canaanites of today, like the people of ancient Schem, may think that they are the new Jews. By demonstrating their willingness to sacrifice, they believe that soon they will have the opportunity to rape and pillage Israel. The opposite is true. Their sacrifice will bring them collective punishment while refining the rest of the world. They will cause the reluctant conquerors to drive out evil, circumcise Israel, and complete Creation. Isaac and Ishmael were engaged in a controversy. Said Ishmael to Isaac: \"I am more beloved to G-d than you, since I was circumcised at the age of thirteen, but you were circumcised as a baby and could not refuse.\" Isaac retorted: \"All that you gave up to G-d was three drops of blood. But lo, I am now thirty-seven years old, yet if G-d desired of me that I be slaughtered, I would not refuse. Said the Holy One, blessed be He: \"This is the moment!\" (Midrash Rabbah) 209

,‫ ההא הרץ; הבאו‬-‫ האת‬,‫ ח נר יאה הנ כת יתי יל נפ יני הכם‬8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and ‫ נא השר ינ נש כבע ניה הוה‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ ו כרשו האת‬possess the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, ‫הל יתת‬ ‫ו נל כי נע הקב‬ ‫כל נא הב יתי הכם נלא נב הר ההם נל יי נצ החק‬ to give unto them and to their seed after them.' ‫ ו נל כז נר העם א נח ירי ההם‬,‫הל ההם‬ (Devarim 1:8) ,‫ הי נש יבי ההא הרץ‬-‫לא תוהריישו האת‬-‫ נה נו יאם‬55 But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then shall those that ye ‫ נל יש יכים‬,‫ נו הה היה נא השר ת הו יתירו ימ ההם‬--‫ימ נפ יני הכם‬ let remain of them be as thorns in your eyes, and --‫נב יעי יני הכם נו יל נצ יני ינם נב יצ ידי הכם; נו הצ נררו הא נת הכם‬ as pricks in your sides, and they shall harass you ‫ נא השר כא התם הי נש יבים הבה‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ כעל‬in the land wherein ye dwell. (Bamidbar 33:55) ‫ ת הוריישו‬- Drive out, has within it the letters ‫ ו כרשו‬- Posses Ishmael will cause the heart that dissuaded itself from its mission due to wealth and comfort to return to its source. The heroism and valor that is represented among our Nation will grow in contrast to the jeers of Ishmael and will and cause us to erase all doubts and possess the Land in its entirety. Collective Punishment In his article 'A Jewish Heart' Rav Kahane writes about collective punishment ….the heart of a Jewish soldier, murdered from an ambush in the Gaza Strip, was placed in the chest of an Arab “Palestinian,” Hanna Haddad ...There were pages and pages and speeches and speeches of similar paeans of praise for the humanity shown by Jews. And the story became the very symbol of the “Jewish heart” that transcends enmity and hatred and war, that saves the life of a man who hates the Jewish state and dreams of its destruction. No matter! The Jew is not supposed to hate the enemy; he is above that. So the conventional wisdom of the gentilized Jews of Hellenism. He goes on to tell the story of a Jew who died because an Arab family refused to give him a heart he needed, even when large sums of money were offered. The family was quoted as saying (me) “Those killed in the intifada are martyrs, martyrs of the entire Palestinian nation, and their heart already belongs to it . . . .” (And in addition, what normal Arab would give a heart to save the life of a Jew, his deadly enemy who took his land from him?) The tragedy of our times is the loss of Divine Jewish values, one of which is the obligation to 210

hate evil; to hate the enemy. We have – thanks to the gentilized values that have swallowed us up – lost our sense of indignation against evil, forgotten to hate it with a passion. And because of that, good people die even as we allow the evil ones to live, flourish and kill them. …...Do not be “better” than they, since in the end you will not be better but deader. And certainly do not be “better” than the All Mighty, who commanded you to be cruel and merciless against those who rise up against you and against G-d, “for whoever rises up against Israel is as one who rises up against the Holy One, Blessed be He” (Mechilta, B’shalach). And the Sifri (Shoftim 192): “Against your enemies [you go to war] and not against your brothers, neither Yehuda against Shimon nor Shimon against Yehuda who, if you fell into their hands, would have mercy on you . . . but against your enemies you go to war, who would not have mercy on you.” And Eyleh ha’Dvarim Zuta: You go to war against your enemies. If you have mercy on them, they will then go to war against you. It is similar to a shepherd who, while tending his sheep in a forest, found a baby wolf. He had pity on it and nurtured it. His employer saw it and said: Kill it; do not have pity on it lest it be a danger to the sheep. But he did not listen and so when the wolf grew it would see a sheep and kill it, a goat and eat it. Said the employer: Did I not tell you not to have pity on it? So did Moses say: ‘But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the Land before you, then those whom you will allow to remain of them will be thorns in your eyes” (Bamidbar 33:55) That is Judaism. That is authentic Judaism. And true Judaism looks upon every member of an enemy nation as an enemy, unless he proves that he is not. Yes, there is collective punishment in Judaism. Written January 1990 Bereshit and Bamidbar It appears to me that there is a connection between the end of the book of Bereshit and the end of the book Bamidbar. What is this connection? The last number of chapters in Bereshit are focused on the same topic; the story of Yoseph. The last number of chapters in Bamidbar are also connected to the same topc; the story of Pinchas. The story of Yoseph deals with the rift between the tribes , its resolution and the concepts of Moshiach ben Yoseph and Moshiach ben Dovid. We read in the end of the book of Bamidbar in Mattos/Massaei the conclusion of a story that began in Balak and has continued throughout the last number of chapters. The topic is different however the idea of one theme that continues through a number Parshiot is similar. In the case of Bamidbar the theme is National vengeance against our enemies, rectification through Kiddush Hashem and inheritance of our Land. On the surface the topics of the end of Bamidbar and the end of Bereshit do not seem to be related, however I submit that they are in fact related. There is a hint of this relation in the very last few paragraphs that discuss the story of the daughters of Zelophehad who are described as descending from the 'children of Menashe, son of Yoseph. Before I connect the two themes, let me add another idea. The Lubavitch Rebbe in his Sicha on our Parsha mentions an interesting idea. We are ending the book of Bamidbar and saying Chazak Chazak 211

VeNitchazek in a time that does not seem to match. At this time of year when we observe Tisha B'Av and the laws of mourning that surround it, it does not seem to be a time of strength but rather weakness and devastation. He goes on to explain that it is not a coincidence and that in fact although it seems like a contradiction, this time has within it the potential of strength. In addition the destruction was the first stage in the rebuilding. I would like to submit that the strength that is hidden within this time of weakness is connected to these two books. First let us explain a simple concept that every psychologist knows. When one has a weakness and he works at this weakness and overcomes it, this weakness becomes his greatest strength. For a simple example many smokers who quit smoking can not stand to be around smokers because they are much more sensitive to the smoke than they ever were when they were smoking. Whatever one's weakness is, when one understand it and learns the tools to battle his weakness, he becomes a master of this particular attribute. With this is in mind let us now connect the two books. Bamidbar is actually the last book of the Torah given by Hashem, and Dvarim is a repetition by Moshe. It seems to me that the lesson that was learned among the tribes with the story of Yoseph, is further refined at the end of the Torah and then refined even further by Moshes repetition and accenting over and over again this same theme in the book of Devarim. What theme exactly are we speaking about? In Bereshit the family of Israel became unified and we understood our internal animosities. As the brothers made the required correction this led to a revelation and true reflection of events. Suddenly we understood every chapter that brought us to this final one. In the last chapters of Bamidbar the Nation is already unified and prepared to enter the Land of Israel. There is however one last lesson that needs to be learned. This last lesson and mitzva of the Torah is tied into Moshe's very existence. As Binyamin Kahane writes: When the desecration of G-d's Holy Name is at stake, there is no time to waste! Our sages teach: \"Moshe craved to see vengeance taken against Midyan before his death.\" When he saw that the vengeance he craved was not completed, he became furious. The sages continue: \"If Moshe wanted to live a few more years, the power was in his hands. G-d had said to him, take vengeance, and then you will be gathered amongst your people. The Torah stipulates Moshe's death on his taking revenge against Midyan. This is to teach you Moshe's greatness. He said, so that I shall live shall I delay the vengeance of Israel?!\" (BaMidbar Raba 22:2) The last lesson of the Torah, the climax of Moshe's teaching was to prepare Israel to conquer the Land of Israel, to bring divine retribution to the enemies of Israel, and for the Jewish people to inherit the Land. The whole concept of collective punishment that we deal with today is studied in these Parshiot. Moshe clarifies the concept of National retribution as well as personal retribution between Jews with the building of the Ir Hamiklat. The refinement that we must learn in the final days, is that our unity is not enough if we lack purpose. Yoseph and the brothers were unified, however that unity was still in Mitzrayim. The lesson we must learn is 'Sur mi Ra v Oseh Tov' – depart from evil and do good. There is no coexistence with evil. Evil must depart before good and peace can reign. Now when it is time to conquer our Land and inherit it there must be a clear retribution against our enemies and a settlement that is permanent. Binyamin further writes: The leaders of the settler movements made a tragic mistake in thinking all these years that they can build one yishuv after another and in the meantime ignore the existence of two million 212

Arabs who surround these settlements and dream of the day when they can throw them into the sea. ANOTHER SETTLEMENT IS NOT THE ANSWER TO THE ARAB TERROR, BUT RATHER THE ARAB TERROR IS A RESULT OF US BEING CONTENT WITH MAKING SETTLEMENTS AND NOT COMPLETING THE ENTIRE MITZVAH The entire Mitzvah is not only settling our Land but also expelling our enemies. If we do not expel our enemies then Moshiach and peace and all of the good that is intended for us and the world will not be revealed. This lesson was also given to Revain who was content to settle and was chastised by Moshe that settlement without conquest is not enough. We must feel the pain of our brothers in Yesha (the territory of Yosephs brother Binyamin) which has become now our National pain as we are all now in the same boat. There can no longer be indifference as we are the direct victims of this indifference. The weakness that we had for running from our mission from the time of the spies that were punished on Tisha Bav to the time of the corruption of the Temple to today has within it the potential for our greatest strength. This strength is Kiddush Hashem which comes from standing against adversity with faith in our new found hearts to punish and expel our enemies without fear which in turn will bring a much greater protection from above as well as below. The lessons that tied together the last chapters of Bereshit must be further refined as the Pinchas within us grows and we enter the Land of Israel unified but also with purpose and faith to circumcise the Land with our newly circumcised hearts. Menachem Av and Mar Cheshvon What could be the connection between Mar Cheshvon and Menachem Av? Before we answer this question we must recall what said earlier regarding the vengeance against the Midianites. ,‫ מיאית‬,‫ ינ כק שמת כב ןני יי כש הר ןאל‬,‫ ב ננ הקם‬2 'Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites; ‫ כע המיך‬-‫ יתא יסף האל‬,‫ כה ימ נד הי ינים; א כחר‬. afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people. ‫ יה הח נלצו‬,‫ הה העם ילא המר‬-‫ ג כו ני כד יבר המ השה האל‬3 And Moses spoke unto the people, saying: 'Arm ,‫ ימ נד הין‬-‫ כעל‬,‫ ימ יא נת הכם נא הנ ישים כל הצ הבא; נו יי נהיו‬ye men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian, to execute the LORD'S ‫נב ימ נדיהן‬ ,‫ כיה הוה‬-‫ינ כק שמת‬ ‫ הל יתת‬. vengeance on Midian. (Numbers: Chapter 31:2, 3) Rav Kahane points out an important concept that our Sages teach us when they explain why the above text is altered. The vengeance of Israel is the vengeance if Hashem. We are the barometer of Chillul Hashem and Kiddush Hashem. We see then name Kahane inside gematria ‘fully’ as he along with Calev and Yehoshua were among the few who stood against the many to direct the Nation and chastise them for not rising to their calling. 213

:‫נון‬-‫ יבן‬,‫ יויה הו מש כע‬,‫ כה נק ינ יזי‬,‫ ני מפ הנה‬-‫ יב נל יתי הכ ילב הבן‬12 save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; for they followed ‫ א נח ירי ניה הוהימ כלאו‬, ‫כיי‬ Hashem fully. (Bamidbar 32:12 ‫ = מי כלאו‬seventy six = Kahane (plus Aleph) The Rav more than any other leader felt this Chillul Hashem and tried to raise Am Israel to avenge the desecration of Hashem constantly visited upon the body of the Jewish people. We mentioned that by Reuvain settling the Land without expelling our enemies it would cause a type of Chillul Hashem that would be detrimental to Israel. We mentioned that some of the root causes of this harmful behavior may be in the physical attachments we mentioned earlier. There is another Gematria that may allude to the correction of these potentially detrimental desires. The word 'inherit' is also the same Gematria. The great ones have left us with their directions. We must be a little like them and overcome our own attachments so that we can inherit and posses rather than dissuade. ‫תנואון‬--‫ ילב נב יני יי נש הר יאל‬-‫ האת‬, ‫ז נו הל המה‬ 7 Why do you dissuade the heart of the children ,‫ימ נע הבר‬ Hashem ‫ ניה הוה‬,‫ הנ כתן הל ההם‬-‫ נא השר‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫האל‬ of Israel from crossing to the Land that has given them? (Bamidbar 32:7) ,‫ ההא הרץ; הבאו‬-‫ האת‬,‫ ח נר יאה הנ כת יתי יל נפ יני הכם‬8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in and ‫ נא השר ינ נש כבע ניה הוה‬,‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ ו כרשו האת‬possess the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, ‫הל יתת‬ ‫ו נל כי נע הקב‬ ‫כל נא הב יתי הכם נלא נב הר ההם נל יי נצ החק‬ to give unto them and to their seed after them.' ‫ ו נל כז נר העם א נח ירי ההם‬,‫הל ההם‬ (Dvarim 1:8) It's interesting to note that this word is written twice; once in the written form and an oral variation. The word we hear spoken by the chazan and the written word are slightly different. If we look at the Gematria of both these words although their Gematria is different we still see variations of the word inheritance related to them. ‫ – תנואון‬written (513) - ‫ תניכ און‬- spoken (517) ‫ תנ כי און‬- spoken (517) ‫ לא הנ כת התה הז כרע; נו יה ינה‬,‫ יהן ילי‬--‫ ג כו היא המר א נב הרם‬3 And Abram said: 'See to me You have given no ‫ הא יתיי הורןש‬,‫ יבי יתי‬-‫ הבן‬offspring; and see, my steward inherits me...' (Bereshit 15:3) 214

‫ תנ כי און‬- spoken (517) ‫ יוה ןרש‬- inherits (516+1) = 517 -‫ו ננ כת התם האת‬--‫ נלא יביו‬,‫ יאין א יחים‬-‫ יא נו יאם‬11 If there are no brothers of his father, you shall give his inheritance to his relative who is closest ‫כו הי שרש‬,‫ימ ימ נש כפ נחת הו‬‫יא הליו‬‫כה הק הרב‬‫יל נש יאר הו‬‫כנ נח הלת הו‬ to him of his family, it. This and he shall inherit ‫ נל מח כקת‬,‫הא התה; נו הה ני התה יל נב יני יי נש הר יאל‬ shall be for the children of Israel a decree of ‫ המ השה‬-‫ האת‬,‫ ככ נא השר יצ הוה ניה הוה‬,‫ ימ נש הפט‬justice as Hashem commanded Moses.' ‫ תנ כי און‬- spoken (517) ‫ כו הי שרש‬- inherit (516+1) = 517 If we examine these differences closer we see that the spoken word is related to two personal issues while the written word is related to the collective. I suggest that the reason may be that although this a collective commandment we should hear it as something personal as in truth we see and hear it unfolding before our eyes. Collectively we know that we have a commandment to drive out our enemies however don't really understand or ‘hear’ this commandment until it becomes a personal reality. If we do nothing our enemies fill in the vacuum we leave. The moment we retreated from Gush Katif the area was destroyed and became a festering breeding ground for terror. When we are able to dislodge ourselves and go to the forefront along with our brothers we will inherit our Land fully and live in peace. Just as we exchanged the words Israel for Hashem when it came to vengeance and Chillul Hashem in Parshat Pinchas, here was can exchange the Mar Cheshvon of the Rav to Mencahem Av. When we follow the path that Rav Meir carved with his life of mesirut nephesh we will begin to sweeten Mar Chesvon. In doing so not only will it sweeten Cheshvon, but also Av. The comfort that Hashem sends to His children in Menachem Av will be transformed to the comfort we send to our father. When we throw out the enemies of Hashem's people and rebuild His temple. Menachem Av will be transformed to comfort our Abba our Av. Then Menachem Av will have a completely different meaning. 215

The Barometer (2018) (at a farbrengen) Feivel do you have any questions? I have a question for Rabbi Butman.You have passed your bar mitzvah and you have past your second bar mitzvah last year at 83. Now at your age what are your concerns? Health? Security? Your children? Your grandchildren? Your great-grandchildren? What was the Rebbe Moshe Rabennu doing after his second bar mitzvah? What was his main concern at a hundred and twenty years of age? We read in the Torah that his main concern was vengeance against the Midianites, even at the cost of his own life. How can we understand this? Vengeance is something we normally associate with young and passionate people not someone who's 120 years old. Vengeance is something we usually say is in God's hands not our hands. It is not associated with Holiness and spirituality but the opposite - primitive and unrefined behavior. Yet we must ask ourself if this is what concerned Moses it must be something spiritual in fact he explains in this Parsha the very nature of national vengeance. When Hashem says 'take vengeance for the children of Israel' Moshe replies to the children of Israel 'take vengeance for Hashem' and we learn here that haters of Israel that come to murder Jewish people cause a desecration of God's name. We also learn that when the people of Israel punish them it causes a sanctification of God's name; for the people of Israel are seen as God's representatives. If our enemies can get away with murder, then our God is seen as weak and it desecrates His name. Let me also add something to what Rabbi Halperin said earlier regarding why we say chazak at the end of this book. The Rabbi said this is the time of Tisha B'Av and a point of our weakness not a point of our strength. He explained that the destruction is part of the process of the building of the final Bet Hamigdash. We are actually in the process of building even as we remember the destruction. Now I have a question. This may be true that we are in the process of building however where are we currently in this journey towards building the final Temple? I submit that the degree to which the concept of national vengeance is abhorrent to us, is the degree to which the temple is distant from us. We can be standing right in front of the Har Habayit but the thought of throwing out the Jew haters on the other side of the wall who plan our destruction everyday is so remote that the Temple itself that we stand in front of is also just as remote. We learn also in the Parsha this week then if we don't throw out the inhabitants of the land then what God intended to do to them he will do to us. In other words if we simply build like Ruvain wanted to without conquest, not only will the conquest not be successful but the very building will be destroyed. There are two parts to settling our Land; throwing out our enemies and then building this Holy Place. As we witnessed already with Gush Katif, if we don't throw out the Jew haters that which we had built will be destroyed and our enemies will only increase. This is probably something that Moses was thinking about in his old age. When we follow King David's instruction to turn from evil and do good (sur mi ra ve ode tov) then our building will last. Doing good without removing evil will not last. When we remove evil from our midst then we will have a just and lasting peace. On that day we will give the name Menachem Av a new meaning. Instead of the father comforting his children his children by doing the right thing and carrying on their father's will, will in fact comfort their father. Menachem Av will be a time when the children will bring comfort to their Abba (their Av) and this will be the new meaning of Menachem Av. (L'chaim) 216

This would be a good place to bring in an article I read recently by Shnuel Sackett. Where are they Going to Go? By Shmuel Sackett Every time anyone speaks about moving Arabs out of Eretz Yisrael, the first question is always the same: “But where are they going to go?” This article will answer that exact question. On July 9, 2018 an article was published by “Yahoo Business Insider” which stated that a whopping 800,000 foreign workers have left Saudi Arabia in the last two years!! 800,000!! Nowhere in the article did it state where they went because that wasn’t the point… they simply left. They went wherever their heart and dreams took them. They packed up their homes and their possessions and moved out of Saudi Arabia. They left permanently and I highly doubt many even looked back. You might say that the reason these 800,000 left were because they were replaced by the local Saudi population… but, actually, the complete opposite is true! The article states clearly that employers have a serious problem because “young Saudi men and women are lazy and not interested in working.” Therefore, Saudi Arabia needed these workers and, because they left, have a gaping hole in their workforce. The article further states that employers are “struggling to fill jobs”. Hmmm… 800,000 workers are needed in a Moslem country that speaks Arabic… Any ideas who could possibly replace those missing workers? Let’s think this through for a moment. Saudi Arabia is a country with a tremendous amount of open, undeveloped land. Yes, much of that land is desert, but look what Israel did to its own desert… it made it bloom! Israel is leading the world in desalination plants and agriculture hi-tech and would gladly help its neighbor develop and populate the desert. People moving there could get large amounts of land for free and could build the homes of their dreams. Think about an Arab crammed into a little apartment in Gaza, Ramallah or Hebron. With a guaranteed job in hand, why would they not move to Saudi Arabia and live in a palace? Wait, I’m not finished yet, it gets even better! According to the Zehut party platform, all Arabs wishing to emigrate from Israel (Israeli Arabs as well as those living in the West Bank / Gaza) will be compensated for their property at market value. The State of Israel will purchase their homes and also pay all moving expenses to Saudi Arabia. These Arabs will then arrive in a country where they speak the language and whose religion is their own. They will have money from the sale of their home and the entire move won’t cost them a dime. They will have instant jobs, be able to have property 10 times the size of their current residence and live a quality of life better than 90% of their Arab cousins. This plan protects their human rights, their religious freedom and safeguards their financial future. So, the next time someone asks, “But where will they go??” give them this article. If they truly want to help the Arabs of Israel gain a better future for themselves and their families, this is the plan that must come to fruition. 217

Inside Outside (2019) There seems to be a connection between the last few chapters of Bamidbar and the last chapters of Bereshit. There are a few similarities. The story of Yoseph continues over a number of Parshiot and here the story of Bilaam and Pinchas continue for a number of Parshiot. In the story of Yoseph there was a disconnection between the majority of the Nation and a small minority. The truth was hidden from most of the Nation. In the end that truth was revealed by the one that was hated. In fact the hated one turns out to be on a higher level than the rest of the Nation and in fact saves them upon his own shoulders. The hated one was thought to be an outsider in the case of Yoseph and thought to be acting similar to Esav. In the case of Pinchas he was scorned also for being an outsider, from a family of converts. Who is this outsider coming to kill a Prince in Israel? Why is there this calculation of one percent against ninety nine percent? If we think about it Israel itself which represent Gods truth in this world is about a half of one percent of the world’s population. It doesn't seem fair that Hashem injects a half of one percent of truth to convert an entire world of falsehood. How are we to conquer an entire world to build Hashems kingdom here? The answer is that we must put the entire world inside this half of one percent. Does this make sense? If we are already a half of one percent against an entire world should we also put this entire world inside this half of one percent? This is not unusual however. In medicine there is something similar. A deadly virus can only be completely cured by taking a part of this virus and putting it into the body. Only then can one be completely immune. How was this done inside the body of Israel? Moshe allowed the mixed multitudes to enter the body of Israel and it had both a positive and negative effect. Their negative influence infected the Nation to the highest levels where even a Prince in Israel tried to undermine the entire Torah. Who saved the day? Pinchas, whose grandfather Yitro was a convert. There were those who accused Pinchas of being a murderer. How dare he come to kill a Prince of Israel, when he came from a family that once worshipped idols? Yet this Pinchas was considered the greatest Israelite of his time. He saved the entire Nation on his back. Throughout our history many of our greatest leaders came from outside to inside the Nation to save us and raise us up and bring us back to our calling. From Yoseph who was thought to be another Esav and hated and yet saved the entire Nation on his back to Pinchas who was scorned as a murderer yet saved the entire nation, given the priesthood and called the Prince of Peace. The greatest of our leaders were outcasts and many came from families of converts like Rabbi Akiva, even David Hamelech the ultimate Israelite who is the Moshiach. We see this in our own time. The gematria for Zimri is equivalent to 'Rabin'. The gematria for Pinchas is equivalent to 'Meir Kahane'. It’s not so unusual as the story is quite similar. The Erev Rav (mixed multitudes) mentality reached the heads of the monarchy with the Oslo process that has caused a terrible plague and brought the average death toll four times higher than the preceding 26 years. * ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Israeli academic Efraim Karsh described the Accords as \"the starkest strategic blunder in [Israel's] history,\" creating the conditions for \"the bloodiest and most destructive confrontation between Israelis and Palestinians since 1948\" and radicalizing \"a new generation of Palestinians\" living under the rule of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas with \"vile anti-Jewish (and anti-Israel) incitement unparalleled in scope and intensity since Nazi Germany.\" Karsh notes: \"All in all, more than 1,600 Israelis have been murdered and another 9,000 wounded since the signing of the DOP [Declaration of Principles]—nearly four times the average death toll of the preceding twenty-six years.\" 218

Rabin’s assassin was a student of Rabbi Kahane and the same thing they said about Pinchas they say about him and others like him. ‘Who are these Americans that come with their radical ideas from foreign cultures to teach us Israelis how to be more Jewish? How could an evil person come and kill a Prince in Israel? They only make it worse for us as they settle disputed lands and cause us more problems in the eyes of the world.’ This seems like a very similar argument that we see in the Parsha. There is always need for new blood and a new heart to raise our people up to fulfill their mission in the world. Not only do we see the concept of injecting part of the attacking virus into the body to create immunity but in psychology there is a similar idea that one must conquer his phobias. If one has a particular weakness he must work on this until eventually that weakness becomes his strength and his crown. Yacov our forefather ran from Esav until he eventually had to face his nemesis and battle him in order to become Israel. There is always new blood that comes from inside and outside to draw attention to our Achilles heel and to fix it once and for all by leaving the status quo. If we are accepting of an unavoidable plague of enemies that murder us from within and prevent us from building our temple, then we behave similar to Reuvain in our Parsha who wishes to settle without conquering. Only when we feel the pain of all the Jewish people and transform the Erev Rav that is within for our betterment, will we be able to remove enemies that grow like a cancer within and will we be free to settle undisturbed and have the ‘desire’ to build our Temple. When that tiny minority of truth influences the majority to raise themselves to their calling and truly be the Holy people transformed from Yacov to Israel, then like a domino effect the whole world around us will be transformed from our inside to their outside. The outside that invades the inside must be transformed and corrected using the same outside elements. The outside elements that cause a Prince of Israel to lead the Nation down a destructive path can only be corrected by another outside influence that brings a new and rejuvenated blood to the Holy Nation. When Israel rises to its calling then Menachem Av will not be Av the 'month' but Av our 'father' in Heaven and instead of Him bring 'us' comfort we will bring 'Him' comfort and we and the whole world will be blessed. 219

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Kahane in the Parsha Book of Devarim 221

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Kahane in the Parsha Devarim 223

Devarim The Missing Piece of Faith ,‫ כביה הוה‬,‫ כמ נא ימי ינם‬,‫ יאי ננ הכם‬--‫ כה הזה‬,‫ לב ו כב הד הבר‬32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD ‫ באל יהי הכם‬your God (Devarim 1:32) ‘Yet in ‘this’ matter you do not believe in Hashem, your G-d…’ (Devarim 1:32) \"‫\"ובדבר הזה אינכם מאמינים ביהוה‬ ‘This’ matter, I believe refers to warfare. The idea that Hashem is also the Master of War and will drive out our enemies before us, is the type of faith that Israel is criticized for lacking in this passage. ‫ נשמ הו‬,‫ יאיש ימ כל הח המה; ניה הוה‬,‫ ג ניה הוה‬3 The LORD is a man of war, The LORD is His name. (Shemot 15:3) This passage certainly reminds us of our own times and a similar chastisement was given in many speeches by the Rabbi. Many people agreed with his position, but felt it wasn't “realistic”. What did they mean “realistic”? The Rabbi said that what they were really saying is: How do you dare do it? What will the world say? That is it wasn't a technical problem of “how” can we throw them out, but something much deeper. It was a matter of faith. Do we believe God is more omnipotent then the President who is occupying the White House? Do we dare fulfill the mitzvot that will save our lives but might enrage the world? (Wit and Wisdom of Rabbi Meir Kahane Lenny Goldberg Pg.153) ,‫שמ נא ימי ינם‬ ,‫ינככת ם‬ ‫ ןא‬--‫ כה הזה‬,‫לב ו כב הד הבר‬ 32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD your God ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫כביה הוה‬ (Devarim 1:32) The letters inside this passage spell ‘Kahane Maamin’ (Kahane believes). Even though this lack of faith and lack of desire in our physical ability to conquer the Land has always been a weak point in our religiosity, Rav Kahane raised a generation of leaders that had this ‘true faith’. We sinned with the chet haegel because we wanted to be more spiritual. We sinned with the meraglim, because we didn’t want to be more physical. This is the problem; to bring Hashems commandments into this world. The Torah is not a religion, it is a national constitution. We are commanded to be a Nation that has faith in G-d and does not rely on strange gods or fickle allies. 224

The Nation Developing the Missing Piece At the end of the Parsha, Moshe commands the Nation: ‘You shall not fear them, for Hashem, your G-d – He shall wage war for you.’ The last part of the verse in Hebrew : ‘He shall wage war for you’ ‫הוא‬ ,‫באל יהי הכם‬ ‫ניה הוה‬ ‫יכי‬ :‫ יתי הראום‬,‫כב לא‬ 26 You shall not fear them, for Hashem, your G-d – He shall wage war for you. ‫שה ינ כל החם הל תכם‬ (Devarim 3:22) (He shall wage war for you) has within it the words Praise Kahane (Hallelu Kahane) = ‫הוא הנלחם לכם‬ ‫לחם ל םא הנ כ‬ ‫ = הו‬Kahane ‫ = א הנ חם כםהו ל ל‬Hallelu - Praise The connection I see between Hashem waging war for us and Praise Kahane is the following. When the Tzadik is persecuted it is as if Hashem is persecuted, and alternatively when the Tzadik is praised Hashem is also praised. When the Nation restores Kahane and gives credit to the source of the revolution today that is demanding ‘true’ Jewish leadership, then Hashem’s emissary will be vindicated and His name too will be restored. When a significant number of the Nation will have done Teshuva to the point where Praise Kahane is no longer ‘illegal’ but rather an expression of faith in the fullness of Hashem, not only as the Merciful G-d but also as ‘Master of War’, then we will prepare for war but won’t have much to do, because Hashem will wage war for us, and our enemies will flee. Rav Kahane more than any other Jewish leader understood and taught us that if we do what is required without fear of what the world will say Hashem will wage war for us. The Fast Road and the Slow Road ‘…eleven days from Horeb..’ (Devarim 1:2) Artscroll writes: G-d said that the time had come for them to enter Eretz Yisrael, and instructed them to use the route that skirts Mount Seir. Normally, it would have been an eleven day journey to Kadesh- barnea, but G-d was so anxious for them to enter the Land quickly that He miraculously brought them there in only three days. This should have been more than adequate proof that G-d was guiding them-yet the people wanted spies to reassure themselves-and then they believed the calumnies about the Land. We read in the Haftorah of Ki Savo : ‘I am Hashem, I will hurry it [the Redemption] in its time.’ Yeshaya (60:22). From here we see the concept of a fast road and a slow road towards redemption. Rav Kahane spoke about this many times, and tried to raise the Nation to the level of wanting the hurried redemption, rather than the redemption ‘in it’s time’. 225

The concept of the ‘hurried’ redemption we see exemplified here in our passage pertaining to eleven days. On one side an eleven day journey was miraculously made in three days, and on the other side a failure to grasp the proximity of Hashem or not to desire it, resulted in wandering for forty years and dying in the desert. ‫ הש כמע‬-‫ יל נפ יני ניה הוה; נולא‬,‫ מה כו הת משבו כו ית נבכו‬45 Then you retreated and wept before Hashem, ‫ נולא הה בא יזין נא ילי הכם‬,‫ ניה הוה נב הק נל הכם‬but Hashem did not listen to your voice and He did not hearken to you. (Devarim 1:45) ‘Then you retreated and wept before Hashem, but Hashem did not listen to your voice and He did not hearken to you.’ (Devarim 1:45) Artscroll writes: Moses praises Israel, saying that they acknowledged their sin and repented openly. Even so, their sin could not be forgiven, because G-d had taken an oath to punish them (Numbers 14:21-23). The sages teach (Rosh Hashanah 18a) that a decree accompanied by an oath cannot be annulled (Ramban). There is a point where the three day journey becomes the eleven day journey, or the ‘hurried’ redemption becomes the ‘in it’s time’ redemption, and there is little that can be done. It’s interesting to note that the passage quoted above in Hebrew is made up of eleven words. \"‫שמע יהוה בקלכם ולא האזין אליכם‬-‫\"ותשבו ותבכו לפני יהוה ולא‬ ‘Eleven years’ is also written in the prophecy of Yecheskel, who prophesied eleven years after the destruction of the Temple that Yermiyahu warned about. Eleven years here suggests that the great Holocaust the Nation of Israel had suffered with the destruction of the Temple was an indication that redemption was no longer being ‘hurried’, but was unfolding ‘in it’s time’, which in this case meant the next two thousand years. The last straw in such a decree from above is always determined from our actions below towards Hashem’s emissary, which in this case was Yermiyahu. Eleven years earlier, he was imprisoned by the government of Israel for the Torah he was prophesying. They chose to silence the messenger instead of heeding the message. This of course sounds familiar in our own time, as Rav Kahane was imprisoned countless times for his Torah. It’s no coincidence that the twin towers were struck down not far away from the place Rav Kahane was struck down eleven years previously. In that 11th year Binyamin was also struck down nine months before the twin towers, sealing the fate that would be born nine months later and heralding in a time of redemption ‘in it’s time’. Eicha and it’s Antidote The famous passage in Devarim that hints at Tisha B’Av, which always falls out on Parsha Devarim is the following: ‫אןי הכה‬,‫ הט נר נח הכם ו כמ כש נא הכם‬,‫ נל כב ידי‬,‫הא השא‬ 12 How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, ‫יב‬ and your burden, and your strife? ‫נו ירי נב הכם‬ (Devarim 1:12) ‘(Eicha) How can I alone carry your contentiousness..’(Devarim 1:12) 226

As we wrote earlier about the ‘missing piece of faith’, and in Parshat Pinchas, we see a pattern in our history of evolution through suffering. As our consciousness evolves as a people we will begin to understand the degree to which we brought about our own suffering and rectify the ‘Moom’ (the blemish). The Creator who created the world ‘first in thought and last in deed’ expressed this idea in the ‘Yud’ ‘Hey’’Vav’ ‘Hey’. ‫יהוה‬ One can see from this picture of Hashems name that the original 'Yud' above is reflected in the small ‘yud’ at the bottom of the last ‘Hey’. This letter ‘Hey’ can be seen as a small ‘yud’ that is planted like a seed next to a ‘Daled’ forming the last ‘Hey’ of Hashem’s name. The ‘Daled’ (4) gematria four, alludes to the spreading out in all directions of the ‘Yud’ of above so that it becomes internalized within the Nation below. This in a nutshell is the purpose of Creation – reflecting Hashem’s light back to Him so that He can walk before us as He intended to do on the third day from Horeb. As we say at the end of every prayer in Alyenu – Bayom hahu, Iye Adoshem echad oShmo Echad – On that day God will be One and His name will be One. The education we are learning over these millenniums, is that the more we persecute the Yoseph’s of each generation (who are Hashem’s emissaries), the more we bring suffering upon ourselves, and seal our fate of ‘Eicha’. When we change our ways and begin to understand that the Tzadik is not the enemy that must be imprisoned or assassinated, but the voice of Hashem trying to raise us to a higher standard, then we will properly reflect the 'Yud' below. Destroying the Sar of Cheshbon As for the Avvim who dwell in open cities until Gaza, the Caphtorim who went out of Caphtor destroyed them, and dwelled in their place. Rise up, go and cross Arnon Brook; see! Into your hand have I delivered Sihon king of Heshbon, theAmorite, and his land; begin to drive him out and provoke war with him. (Devarim 2:23-24) In this passage Hashem tells Israel that they have the legitimate right to make war with these people. Avraham had made a pact with the Philistines in the past, therefore Hashem providentially cause the Caphtorim to conquer the Avvim (who were a Philistine clan), and hardening the heart of Sihon (to make war) giving Israel both the legitimacy to wage war, and the necessity to do it. In our times our Rav spoke many times about destroying the psychological barriers that prevent us from returning to Israel as well as making war physically against those who come to attack us. He used to joke that one must tear up the list of excuses that keep him in the exile. An account of money owed in Hebrew is called a ‘Chesbon’. This was the 1st king that was conquered as we entered the Land of Israel, and spiritually we must tear up our own ‘Cheshbon’ to make the 1st step which is Aliya. On another level, the ‘Jewish guilt’ that prevents us from conquering our Land he proved time and time again to be unfounded guilt and a ‘mercy of fools’ whose cloak of morality, is in reality, immoral and cruel for ‘those who are kind to the cruel will one day be cruel to the kind’, as we see today with Gush Katif. We learn from Chazal that before destroying our enemies below, Hashem first destroys their Sar (ministering angel) above. Effectively what the Tzadik does, is destroys the legitimacy of the Goliaths 227

that face us, so that instead of standing frozen and confused, we act as young David armed with the pebble of truth that will put an end to desecration and allow good to triumph over evil. Tisha B’Av The day Moshiach ben Yoseph is killed is a day that the Temple and it’s finest gold is destroyed. Will there ever be another like this giant who’s words were silver and gold and who was the most loyal servant of the King? ‘Could this be the City that was called Perfect in Beauty, Joy of all the Earth? All your enemies jeered at you; they hiss and gnash their teeth. They say ‘We have devoured her! Indeed this is the day we longed for; we have actually seen it!’ ” (Eicha 2:15-16) All of those who feared Rav Kahane for he was a giant among men celebrated his defeat, but on the day of his destruction is also the day of his birth. From the ashes of the destruction of Rav Kahane and 11 years later his son and his wife as well, comes a new Torah that is like a fire burning in the hearts of not only the giants but even the small ones, who have now grown and brought about a new generation. Alas-the gold is dimmed! The finest gold is changed! Sacred stones are scattered at every street corner! (Eicha 4:1) ‫התם כהט הוב;תנא שה תכ‬ ‫יי נש‬ ,‫הז ההב‬ ‫יו כעם‬ ‫יאי הכה‬ ‫א‬ 1 How is the gold become dim! How is the most fine gold changed! The hallowed stones are ‫ א‬,‫ככ הנה‬-‫ הכל‬,‫ נב הראש‬,‫ הק הדש‬-‫נב יני‬ ‫ ית נש כת יפ‬poured out at the head of every street. ‫חוצ הות‬. (Eicha 4:1) In these lines is a message for today. The Eicha in our generation was the loss of this finest gold, both father and son. The names Kahane are twice intertwined with the precious things in Hashems treasury that we destroyed with our indifference and persecution. I see here also an echo of another passage in the Haftorah of Nitzavim (from September 11th). ‫ כפנו הד הרך הה העם; הסלויע ו כבר‬,‫י בנר יע ו כב נש הע ירים‬ 10 Go through, go through the gates, clear ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway, -‫ הה ירימו ינס כעל‬,‫הסלו כה נמ יס הלה כס נקלו ימ הא הבן‬ gather out the stones; lift up an ensign over the ‫ הה כע ימים‬peoples. (Yishayahu 62:10) ‫ = יע נברו יע נברו‬Go Through, Go Through ‫ = עי כברו עי כברו‬Rav ‫ = יעבנרו עי כברו‬seventy six 76 = Gematria: Kahane In his death as the hallowed stones are poured out, the Rav was telling us 'Go through the gates' 'Lift up the stones in our pathway, they are nothing, go through. Don't worry about the Arabs or Washington or world pressure, or the Chesbon that keeps you in the exile. Conquer the Land and do Hashems will, He won't forsake us. He is waiting for us to have this type of faith. For us to believe in Him in 'this' way. ('this way' see: Devarim 1:32) 228

Devarim 2012 The Book of Malchut As we explained in Behalotecha (Bamidbar 10:35,36) there is a tradition that these two passages are a separate book. This would mean that the section before and after these passages are counted as separate books bringing the count to seven books of Torah instead of five. If we read these books according to the seven levels of the Sephira then the beginning of Bamidbar and the above mentioned passages (Bamidbar 10:35,36) correspond to Netzach and Hod. The complaints which begin right after and follow through Shalch, Korach, Chukat, Pinchas, till the end of Bamidbar correspond to Yesod. Devarim corresponds to Malchut. The unity that was achieved from the forty nine days after Pesach culminated in the military parade we saw in the beginning of Bamidbar. We went forth as a Nation and our enemies were scattered before our Torah. We went forth on the two legs of Netzach and Hod. The complaints that follow contain the deep mysteries of Yesod. So many calamities befell us, as well as divisions and rebellions. The book of Devarim looks back at our journey and explains it in a way that can only be understood once we have experienced these National catastrophes. Artscrolls Masoratic note seems to corroborate this idea. There are 105 verses in the Sidrah, numerically corresponding to the mnemonic ‫מלכי \"ה‬ The mnemonic suggest that God gave authority over the countries of the world to their respective kings, meaning that He has ultimate authority over the world, so that He was justified in giving the Land of Israel, when it pleased Him to do so, as Rashi comments to Genesis 1:1 (R' David Feinstein) – from Artscroll Siddur Pg 957 The 105 verses of Parsha Devarim indicate that this new book deals with Malchut. Yesod is related to Moshiach ben Yoseph who conquers the Land of Israel and Malchut is related to Moshiach ben David who rebuilds the Temple and restores Hashems kingdom here on earth. After the battles have been waged we can look back and understand our mistakes and see Hashems hand in the whole process. Jewish Relativity in Time and Space Chazal explains that the eleven days from Chorev are mentioned here as a rebuke. After receiving the commandments at Chorev it was an eleven day journey to Israel. They miraculously arrived in only three days. This Divine intervention should have been more than enough to convince the Nation that Hashem was leading them and they should have no fears. Instead they wanted to send spies and the rest of the story we know. Eleven days was the 'natural' amount of time and three days was the 'above nature' time that Hashem altered for the sake of Israel. There are events that happen in their natural time and there are events that are altered based upon our actions. This is Jewish relativity in time and space. Hashem foretold four hundred years of exile to Avraham (Bereshit 15:13) but because of our suffering in Egypt these years were re-calculated from Itzchaks birth which left us 210 years in Egypt of which not all were years of slavery, only the last 86. 229

Rabbi Nachum Kahane writes about the process and events of history. Jewish history – and probably world history – can be divided into two general eras: the era of recuperation and the era of epoch. Four years of intense anxiety, emotion, physical pain and total mental immersion are invested in the few days of the Olympic Games. Without the years of pain, there would be no Olympic gain; but the headlines will feature mostly the week of the epoch while disregarding the years of an athlete's preparation. We became a holy nation not on account of the miracle of the Red Sea or the revelation at Mount Sinai, but as a result of the inconspicuous, yet arduous 38 years of Torah study under the tutelage of Moshe and Aaron....The Torah records the important events of our history. The preparations have to be studied between the lines. (With All Your Might pg 803) The event is what is remembered but it is the process that determines how and when the event will transpire. He continues: The epochal Shoah brought the curtain down on the galut, with the current remnant surviving there only by inertia; and with the next miraculous, metaphysical event to be played out at some unknown time in the future. (Ibid. pg 804) How long will this current remnant survive by inertia? Sept 11 and Eleven days from Horeb World War I – which began the downward slide to the Holocaust – began on Tisha B’av. As Rav Nachum Kahane points out the Jewish version of September 11 is also related to Tisha B'Av, which occurs on the 9th of the 11th Hebrew month of Av – the original 9-11. Both of these events are bookends of history – the event that marked the beginning of Jewish exile and the events that marked the end of the exile. If our Nation had heard the bells tolling in the 1920's when the doors of Israel were opening there would not have been a Shoa. Each time the bell tolls, there are about 20% that hear. Twenty percent left Egypt, twenty percent came in the 1920's, another twenty percent came at the time of the Shoa and today as the bell tolls from the twin towers another twenty percent arrive in Israel. There are those who hear the bells and escape while there are those who plug their ears and are lost in the darkness of Egypt. Personally I have experienced the 11 days and the 3 days journey. The concepts I have been discussing above are not only concepts but personal transformations I have felt between preparation and epoch. After September 11 I was pulled out of the exile by G-ds merciful hand even though I was not prepared. My brothers offer of a free trip was Divine intervention for me. Finding a temporary place for me to stay with hardly any money or security, it was enough for me to jump into the sea. Once my feet were wet I let go, and the wave that carried me was and still is my security. Time stood still and I became ten years younger . What is above nature is normal in this new Land. I set my cup of tea down and my friend at the bet knesset said 'careful your cup is on the edge'. I replied 'just like the Jewish people in Israel are on the edge but they always feel Hashem close by watching them so they don't fall.' Rabbi Kahane used to always plead with the Jewish people to hurry the redemption by heeding the call and not to wait for redemption to come 'in its time' accompanied by tragedies. We have an 11 day 230

journey that can become a 3 day journey. We have a grace period where the bell tolls and we can heed the call and escape Egypt and in the process witness many awesome miracles. We can be sacrifices through death and darkness or sacrifices through life and participation in epic times. The bell has tolled three times, in the 20's and the 40's and now the last call. Jump in and alter your time and space. The Measurement of True Faith (2014) We spoke about this passage in Parsha Chukat and the relationship to Mitspe and the different spirit that characterized the true shepherds of Israel. ,‫ יתי נראון‬-‫ כת כע נרצון נולא‬-‫ לא‬:‫ נא יל הכם‬,‫ כט הו הא כמר‬29 Then I said unto you: 'Dread not, neither be ‫ ימ ההם‬. afraid of them. ‫ הוא‬,‫ ל ניה הוה באל יהי הכם כה הה ילך לי כפנןיכתם‬30 The LORD your God who goes before you, He shall fight for you, according to all that ,‫יא נת הכם‬ ‫הע השה‬ ‫ נכ הכל נא השר‬:‫יי הל יחם הל הכם‬ in Egypt before your eyes; ‫ נל יעי יני הכם‬--‫נב ימ נצ כר יים‬ He did for you ‫ נא השר ננ הש נאך ניה הוה‬,‫ נא השר הר יאי הת‬,‫ ו כב ימ נד הבר‬31 and in the wilderness, where thou hast seen -‫ נב הכל‬--‫ נבנ הו‬-‫ יאיש האת‬-‫ ככ נא השר יי השא‬,‫ באל ההיך‬how that the LORD thy God bore thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ‫ כה המק הום‬-‫כעד‬ ‫ הב נא הכם‬-‫כעד‬ ,‫נה כל נכ התם‬ ‫נא השר‬ ‫כה הד הרך‬ ye came unto this place. ‫כה הזה‬ ,‫ כמ נא ימי ינם‬,‫ יאי ננ הכם‬--‫ שה תזה‬,‫ לב ו שב הד הבר‬32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫ כביה הוה‬LORD your God, (Devarim 1:29-32) ‫ = ו שב הד הבר‬Yet in this thing = 231 ‫ = ליפכ ןניכתם‬Who goes before you = 230+1(kollel) = 231 ‫ כו היא המר‬,‫ יי נש הר יאל‬-‫ הכל‬-‫ א כו יי נק הרא המ השה האל‬1 And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto ‫ נא השר הע השה‬-‫ יאת הכל‬,‫ כא התם נר יאי התם‬:‫ נא יל ההם‬them: Ye have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt unto Pharaoh, ‫ נל כפ נר העהכל ןעי ןני תכם‬,‫נב הא הרץ ימ נצ כר יים‬ ‫ניה הוה‬ and unto all his servants, and unto all his land ‫א נרצ הו‬-‫ ו נל הכל‬,‫ נע הב הדיו‬-‫ו נל הכל‬ (Devarim 29:1) ‫ = כל ןעי ןני תכם‬Before your eyes = 230+1(kollel) = 231 ‫ = ימ ןקץ‬In the End = 230+1(kollel) = 231 231

In the end of days we will understand what was always right before our eyes. Our stumbling block was our faith to really believe that Hashem will protect us if we do what He requires of us, even if it angers the world. We are in the beginning of this end. We are in the last journey of Moshe who said take the Lord's vengeance. Israel is no longer the sheep led to the slaughter, but the avenger who is saving the world from barbarism and the death worship of radical Islam. We are currently in a war and have destroyed much of Hamas, despite the worlds cries of the civilian human shields that Hamas surrounds themselves with. Still we lost more than sixty young men; much of this due to our concern over enemy civilian deaths. When we become less concerned with world opinion, and more concerned with Hashems vengeance no soldier will lose his life in battle. ‫הוא‬ ,‫באל יהי הכם‬ ‫ניה הוה‬ ‫ יכי‬:‫ יתי הראום‬,‫כב לא‬ 22 Ye shall not fear them; for the LORD your ‫שה ינ כל החם הל תכם‬ God, He shall wage war for you.' (Devarim 3:22) -‫ נע הב הדיך הנ נשאו האת‬,‫ המ השה‬-‫ האל‬,‫ מט כו היא נמרו‬49 and they said unto Moses: 'Thy servants have -‫ נא השר נב הי ידנו; נולא‬,‫ הראש א ננ ישי כה ימ נל הח המה‬taken the sum of the men of war that are under our ‫ יאיש‬,‫ ינ כפ שקד ימ המנו‬charge, and not a man of us is missing. (Bamidbar 31:49) ‫ = הוא שה ינ כל החם הל תכם‬He shall wage war for you = 235 ‫( = ינ כפ שקד‬not a man of us is) missing 234+1(kollel) = 235 There is something else hidden in this passage. ‫ה אן כנ תכ‬,‫ כמ נא ימי ינם‬,‫ם‬ 32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD ‫י‬ -- ‫ כה הז‬,‫לב ו כב הד הבר‬ your God, ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫כביה הוה‬ (Devarim 1:32) ‫שה תז י ם‬,‫ כמ נא ימי ינם‬, 32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD ‫ננ הכ‬ ‫אי‬--‫ ה‬,‫לב ו כב הד הבר‬ your God, ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫כביה הוה‬ (Devarim 1:32) ‫ = כהנא‬Kahane ‫ = מי זה כהנא‬Mi ze Kahane? (who is this Kahane?) 232

Hidden in this passage 'in this thing' you do not believe is the name Kahane. The other letters spell 'who is this Kahane?' What is the meaning? Rabbi Kahane demonstrated to am Israel that Hashem is stronger than Washington or Moscow or the United Nations or our Arab enemies. If we have the faith to do His will, He will cover our backs. The Torah of Rabbi Kahane is 'this thing' that you don't believe in. We have a G-d that we believe in, customs that we observe, and a religion with a wealth of knowledge and wisdom. Yet with all of our faith and wisdom we prefer to weep on Tisha B'Av instead of demanding for our Temple to be rebuilt. We prefer to call ourselves sinners when Jews are murdered by Arabs rather than throwing our enemies out. We fear the reactions of the world, and not Hashems punishments, which ironically are precisely the reactions of the world because we 'don't' do His will. The measurement of the lack of this 'type' of faith can be measured by ones reaction to Kahane. If your reaction is 'yes but its not practical' or ' but how will the world react?' then you lack the faith that he demonstrates. Don't think that I am saying if you don't like my Rabbi then you have no faith in G-d for I too suffer from this certain type of Jewish anti-Antisemitism. I remember long ago when a Charedi man prayed in my synagogue in Toronto. Some small voice inside my head said 'I bet he thinks he is holier than us, we keep shabaat too'. The reaction of a less observant Jew to a more observant Jew can be ridicule based upon guilty feelings. Part of the animosity is because we know we are not as observant and to put him down will make us feel a little better about ourselves. The same process is true for Rabbi Kahane. Because we are afraid to rise to the level he demands we say 'he is not relevant', or he is an 'extremist'. On the other hand one who says 'mi ze Kahane'? because he wants to learn more about this man, is one who is attracted by the faith and accomplishment of this great leader. The holy sparks that were drawn to the Rav and said to themselves 'mi ze?' who is this? This is a type of Jew I have never seen before! This is a reason to become Jewish! Many non-Jews also loved Rabbi Kahane and asked why there were not more Jews like him? The nations are waiting for us to show spiritual leadership and build Hashems kingdom here on earth. His spirit was among the youth of Gush Katif that spread the orange ribbons across the Nation and pleaded with our leaders to stop the great sin that they transgressed. His spirit is growing within the leadership of the Nation that is maturing into a 'Jewish' state and not just a Hebrew speaking Scandinavia (as he used to put it). Only in Israel are Jew uprooted from their homes, synagogues destroyed and graves desecrated to appease the world under the banner of 'democracy' which is really a feudal system run by a small group of left wing judges. For those who don't believe in the G-d of Israel and His Torah I can understand their fears, but for those who do, where is their protest? When Rabbi Kahane attempted successfully to make agreements with Arabs who were happy to immigrate, he was persecuted, when he tried to lead the Nation he was banned. For every Heavenly law he tried to bring down to earth he was persecuted and those who agreed and understood these laws were silent. It is in 'this' way that we do not believe. Even worse than this we seek to destroy those who do. Calev and Gush Katif My friend Ruben mentioned to me that the root of the word Yephuna is 'Panui' which is the word used for the expulsion of the people of Gush Katif. It literally means evacuation but this is the term that is associated with driving Jews from their homes. Calev can also be read 'like a heart'. 233

‫ כהד הור‬,‫ יי נר האה יאיש הב נא הנ ישים הה יא הלה‬-‫ לה יאם‬35 'Surely there shall not one of these men, even ‫ נא השר‬,‫ ההא הרץ כהט הו הבה‬,‫ יאת‬--‫ הה הרע כה הזה‬this evil generation, see the good land, which I ‫ הל יתת כל נא הב יתי הכם‬,‫ ינ נש כב נע יתי‬swore to give unto your fathers, ‫ כי אפ תנה‬-‫הכ ןלב תבן‬,‫ הוא יי נר הא הנה‬, 36 save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, he shall see it; and to him will I give the land that he hath --‫ ו נל הב הניו‬,‫ הבה‬-‫הד כרך‬ trodden upon, and to his children; because he hath ‫נא השר‬ ‫לו זו הל יתי‬ ‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ הא יתן האת‬-‫נול הו‬ ‫ נא השר ימ ילא א נח ירי ניה הוה‬,‫ כי כען‬wholly followed the LORD.' (Devarim 1:35,36) ‫ כי אפ תנה‬-‫ = הכ ןלב תבן‬read as ‫כ ןלב פנוי‬ Read: Like the heart of the children of the pinui (the evacuation). The tragedies that have shaped our Nation from the two thousand years of exile to the Shoa and the re- birth of our Nation have shaped our character. A new Jew was born from the ashes of the Warsaw Ghetto, and a new Jew was also born from the expulsions that we have perpetrated against our brothers and children. It is only this last Jew that will remain and those whose hearts beat to this drum. There are many Jewish leaders in the exile and represented here that applaud the exile of our people from Yesha and seek to disengage with our Land and re-write our Torah as well. There was a recent hysteria by several dozen Jewish leaders in America when the Levy report came out which asserted that the settlements are legal under International Law. More than 40 prominent communal leaders and philanthropists wrote to the Prime Minister and said. “We fear that this report, if approved, will place the two-state solution, and the prestige of Israel as a democratic member of the international community, in peril.” What they are really saying is whether its legal or not, whether it belongs to us or not, whether G-d gave it to us or not, we are afraid of what the world will say so just throw it out. The last refinement of our people is coming and those who cling to darkness and seek to undermine our Nation will not succeed. What will be left as always will be the same 20% that left Egypt and in our time those who feel the pain of Calev ben Yefunah and the love of their Land as Calev did. These souls can be found not only in the heart of Yesah but all across the country. Even in Tel Aviv where I am writing from the majority of our Nation is Zionist and traditional and will not give away the Land we fought and died for. In the recent Likud primaries the Moshe Feiglin camp once again increased in numbers and many of the votes came not only from Yesha but also from Tel Aviv. Here is an excerpt from the news at that time: The Feiglin camp..said it was happy with the results, saying he managed to win more votes than in the last primary elections in 2007. They also pointed out that Feiglin gained support in many communities outside of Judea and Samaria. He claimed that his platform, which advocates abandoning the two-state solution to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, annexation of the West Bank and encouraging Palestinians to emigrate through financial inducements, has support far beyond the settler community. “Around 70-80 percent of my vote did not come from people I brought into the party or from 234

the settlements in Judea and Samaria, but from places like Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Beersheba,” Feiglin told the Report. “More and more people all across the country are starting to dream our dream.” Feiglin said the solution to the Palestinian issue was for them to leave the country. “The will to emigrate is there, we see it in the surveys. And countries crying out for modern semi-skilled and skilled labor would be willing to absorb them. The question is whether those countries get people who built mud huts in Sudan or people who built the Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv,” he said. “I am not talking about transfer or about trains or buses. No one can complain about people being given money and emigrating freely,” he added. The heart of Calev and Yehoshua which also represents Moshiach ben Yoseph and Moshiach ben David as Calev was from Yehuda and Yehoshua was from the tribe of Ephraim will be united in their mission, as will be the people that support them and sacrifice for the same goals. Whether they are the brokenhearted of Gush Katif whose lives were destroyed, or their brothers in any of the major cities of Israel it is the children of these broken hearts that will be rewarded. Those who seek to appease our enemies and inform on their brothers will come to a bad end. Yerushalaym is built by the brokenhearted. Moshiach and Kahane 2015 I found the Rav's name hidden inside a famous passage of Devarim In this passage there is an illusion to the book of Eicha which we read at this time. Seeing the Rav's name here adds a new insight into this passage that I never saw before. -‫ לא‬:‫ הב יעת כה יהוא ילא המר‬,‫ ט הו הא כמר נא יל הכם‬9 And I said to you at that time, saying: 'I cannot ‫ נש יאת הא נת הכם‬,‫או ככל נל כב ידי‬. carry you alone. ‫ יה נר הבה הא נת הכם; נו יה ננ הכם‬,‫ י ניה הוה באל יהי הכם‬10 Hashem your God has multiplied you, and, ‫ נככ הו נכ יבי כה הש כמ יים הל הרב‬,‫ כהי הום‬. behold, you are like the stars of heaven for abundance. --‫ הי יסף נע ילי הכם הכ הכם‬,‫ יא ניה הוה באל יהי נאב הו ית הכם‬11 May Hashem, the God of your forefathers, add ‫ ככ נא השר יד הבר הל הכם‬,‫ הא הלף נפ הע ימים; יוי הב ירך הא נת הכם‬to you a thousand times yourselves, and bless you, as He has spoken to you. ‫ןאי הכה‬,‫ הט נר נח הכם ו כמ כש נא הכם‬,‫ נל כב ידי‬,‫הא השא‬ 12 How can I alone carry your contentiousness, ‫יב‬ ‫ נו ירי נב הכם‬. your burdens, and your quarrels? ….. ‫ יאי הכה הא השא‬.‫ככ נא השר יד הבר הל הכם‬ ….. ‫ ןאי הכה הא השא‬.‫ככ נא השר יד הבר הל הכ ם‬ ….. ‫ יאיכהה הא השא‬.‫ככ נא השר יד הבר הלכת ם‬ 235

If you add the Mem from the preceding letter of Eicha and the Yud from Eicha this equals Nun and spells Kahane. The three preceding letters have the Resh from Meir and the Mem and Yud of Meir equals fifty the same as the Lamed Chaf. ‫ ןאי הכה‬.‫ = ם‬Kahane (76) ‫ = יד הבר הלכת ם‬Meir (250 +1) The fact that the hidden Kahane is connected to the previous line reveals something about this passage. I submit that it is not that Moshe could not have led the people but there wasn't enough support from the people themselves to overcome all of this contentiousness. Rav Kahane fought an uphill battle and by far his greatest adversaries were the Jewish people themselves and the judges of Israel who put roadblock after roadblock against him. They persecuted him, imprisoned him and quite likely arranged his sudden death (see Parshiot dealing with Yoseph). Rav Kahane was taken away in a similar way that Moshe was taken away; because the people were not worthy of them. Moshe was able to lead the revolution that brought the people out of Mitrayim, reveal the Torah to them, and give them the yearning for Israel that he had but he was not able to lead them there. The physical manifestations that he accomplished barely succeeded. The people rebelled all along the way. And now this final vision was beyond the grasp of the people. Although the younger generation was capable and had a new mindset as they entered not as slaves but as conquerors, there was still much further to go in order to enter the Land as Moshe would have intended. Rav Kahane accomplished huge impossible tasks and changed the mindset of the Jewish people. He stood against impenetrable super powers and freed millions of Jews, however the hardest battle of all is to free the Jewish people from themselves. On his dying lips were probably the same prayers of Moshe that the people should increase like the stars in Heaven. One of the greatest lessons of Tisha B'Av is that we learn that on the same day of destruction the Moshiach is born. On the same day that all of our hopes and aspirations were destroyed; when Hashem himself destroyed the heroes of Israel that fought for Him; on this same day a new day is born from the seeds of this destruction. A new type of Jew is born. One may ask if on the lips of these great leaders was a prayer that Israel should be multiplied, would that not also multiply the quarrels and contentiousness? It seems to me that there is an additional word ‫הכ תכם‬that does not need to be there. 'Add to you a thousand times yourselves' ‫הי יסף נע ילי הכם‬ It could have been written 'May Hashem add to you a thousand times.' The Gematria of ‫ הכ הכם‬equals eighty, in Hebrew Shmonim. I wonder if there is an illusion to Chashmonayim. In other words that the Chashmonayim should increase within you. Those who fought against the Hellenists and rebuilt the Temple on Chanuka. Eicha has within it the seeds of a new future built on the tears and yearning of great leaders who fought to bring us to the edge of glory, but we must have a little more Moshe and Rav Kahane within us to overturn the rule of judges who fear foreign rulers and lack the fear of Hashem. The persecution of our people and God fearing leaders must end. The solution will come when we drive out our enemies and rebuild our Temple. In order to do this, not only the Torah of Moshe but the Torah of Rav Kahane must become internalized within the Nation and grow so that we can enter the Land as intended by Moshe and there will never be another Eicha. 236

Tisha B’Av Tish (2016) This year Tisha B’Av fell out on Shabbat. At the Chabbad Farbrengen Rav Halperin pointed out there there is no contradiction with the concept of the Moshiach being born on Tisha B’Av and the Rebbes birthday which is at a different time. In England there is a public birthday for the Queen in the summer making it easier for parades, but her private birthday is at another time of the year. I was asked to say a L’Chaim and so I said the following: If I may offer another suggestion let me explain why I believe that the Moshiach is born on Tisha B’Av. Tisha B’Av is a time we have suffered from our accumulated sins beginning with the spies who cried on Tisha B’Av to a series of World Wars that began on Tisha B’Av to September 11 which is a 9/11 on a different calendar. Whatever sin or deficiency that is leading us down a road of destruction must be remedied and when it is, Moshiach will be born. It's not that Moshiach will save us, but rather when we have saved ourselves, Moshiach will arrive as a consequence of our self-development. Let me explain what I mean. I then shared what Binyamin wrote about Tisha B’Av and the story of Napoleon which exemplified our faith in the exile which will be rewarded one day (See Binyamin on Tisha B’Av). Binyamin points out that although our mourning for the Temple was commendable in the exile how could we sit and cry today? Not only do we live in Israel, but we are an independent country with our own police and army. Why are we crying instead of throwing out our enemies and building the Temple? He draws a parallel to Yam Suf when Hashem told us this is not a time for crying, but to go through the sea and then it split. ‘Let me add something to what Binyamin wrote’ I said. ‘Why is it that we still sit and cry on Tisha B’Av? Why does this Geula we dream about still seem so far off? Hashem tells us in this week's Parsha. Because in ‘this way’ you do not believe. What is ‘this way’? This way is the whole Torah of Rav Kahane. When he spoke about throwing out our enemies regardless of the animosity it would create among the Arab world or America many people including many Torah observant Jews responded that although faith is important we must be practical. How could we survive without America and the whole world against us? This right there is the flaw the Rav pointed out. He wrote many pages about Emunah. He said that Emunah is not a luxury, to be embraced and endorsed when times are good and the living is easy and it is never needed. Precisely when it is needed and it becomes a meaningful things, we say, let's’ be practical. Of what value is this type of faith?’ One of the Rabbis interjected ‘So go and throw out our enemies and build the Temple if you have so much faith’. I answered ‘What you said right there, is an even bigger problem and is the reason that I still cry on Tisha B’Av.’. I continued ‘There was a man who stood alone and said these things. His name was Meir Kahane. He drew more and more people until he had so much support that he was on the verge of gaining a lot of seats in the knesset and making the Geula a reality. He also had many enemies especially Jewish ones that wanted to destroy him. Do you know who killed Rav Kahane h’yd? Was it an Arab? Was it possibly the government that sent the Arab? Or was it all of us, myself included, that didn’t do enough to support him. The sin is not only that in ‘this way’ we don’t believe but those who do believe we despise. We compound the sin. Rather than saying ‘wow, such Emunah, your right, we must go into the sea or at least contribute to this cause’, we joke and we ridicule and slander. Why? Because this type of faith 237

makes us look bad or we feel it's dangerous; because we lack this faith. Let me end with something positive. The passage preceding Eicha is a passage full of blessing. --‫ הי יסף נע ילי הכם הכ הכם‬,‫ יא ניה הוה באל יהי נאב הו ית הכם‬11 May Hashem, the God of your fathers, add to ‫ ככ נא השר יד הבר הל הכם‬,‫ הא הלף נפ הע ימים; יוי הב ירך הא נת הכם‬you a thousand yourselves, and bless you, as He had spoken to you!-- ,‫ הט נר נח הכם ו כמ כש נא הכם‬,‫ נל כב ידי‬,‫ יב יאי הכה הא השא‬12 How can I alone carry your contentiousness, ‫ נו ירי נב הכם‬your burdens, and your quarrels? (Dvarim 1:11,12) As I studied the word Eicha I noticed that if you add the letter Mem from the previous word, the gematria comes out to 76 which is Kahane. ‫ ןאי הכה‬+ mem ‫ = ם‬Kahane (76) The question then arises why would this gematria attach itself to a previous passage unless there was something to learn from this? When you take off the Mem of Diber Lachem you can rearrange the letters to spell davar kal (something simple). ‫ הא הלף‬--‫ הי יסף נע ילי הכם הכ הכם‬,‫ יא ניה הוה באל יהי נאב הו ית הכם‬11 May Hashem, the God of your fathers, add to you a thousand yourselves, and bless you, ‫םיד תבר הל תכ‬ ‫ ככ נא השר‬,‫נפ הע ימים; יוי הב ירך הא נת הכם‬ as He had spoken to you!-- ,‫ הט נר נח הכם ו כמ כש נא הכם‬,‫ נל כב ידי‬,‫ יב יאי הכה הא השא‬12 How can I alone carry your ‫ נו ירי נב הכם‬contentiousness, your burdens, and your quarrels? (Dvarim 1:11,12) The point it seems to me is that when we acquire this Emunah, Geula will be an easy thing to accomplish. It says Hashem will add 1000 times yourselves (Lachem). Why does it say 1000 times ‘yourselves’? Imagine that you felt there were 1000 more of you. On the day that we have developed this type of Emunah the consequence is that we will feel like 1000 times more of what we are now. This inner feeling will also be projected outwardly and our enemies will see 1000 angels by our side and will run away in fear. The root of the treacherous and cruel crimes we commit against our fellow Jews especially those who have this type of Enumah is because of fear we have which is the direct product of a lack of faith. Instead of being fearful and condemning and ridiculing this type of faith we must study it and practice it so that we can say that in this way, we do indeed believe in Hashem. Then the Moshiach will already have been born and instead of being a lonely persecuted voice that stands against the mob he will become the voice that reflects the generation. It all begins here in our hearts and in the bottle of Vodka on the table. 238

The Cambodian Farbrengin (2017) The Chabad Rabbi from Cambodia was visiting on Shabbat. All the Rabbi’s spoke. Rav Kedem who was also visiting explained that the book of Devarim was a review of the Torah by Moshe with explanations so that the people could better understand what they have witnessed and bring it down into their lives. It’s not enough to understand things spiritually but it needs to be brought down into our physical world - this is the job of chassidut and this was Moshes intention in the book of Devarim. After 4-5 L'chaims I was allowed to say a few words. Although I am not a Rabbi I often have some questions or a few thoughts to impart. This is what I said: I want to give a L'chaim to the Rav from Cambodia but with a preface and also add something to what Rav Kedem said about the book of Devarim. I'm not a Chabad chasid as we all know but rather a student of Rav Kahane. One might define the difference between Chabad chassidut and Kahane chassidut as this. Chabad have great Ahavat Israel and everyone knows this. They will travel to the furthest corners of the world to set up an outpost whose mission is to search for lost Jew's and spread Yiddishkeit. Kahane Chassidut also has Ahavat Israel but excel in Ahavat 'Eretz' Israel. Every corner of Israel they seek to settle, however its not so easy. Just like the Chabad Rabbis who were thrown in prison years ago for their religious beliefs, today Kahane Jews are thrown in prison for settling every hilltop. Their buildings are destroyed, they are harassed, incarcerated and then they return to build and settle again. As Rav Kedem mentioned regarding the book of Devarim we must bring spiritual ideas into the physical world and this is what we see Kahane Jews doing all the time and being persecuted for it. One might say that Chabad is closer to our father and Kahanist's closer to our mother. Even though they defame us as being violent over zealous extremists, were really momma’s boys; we love our momma. You can see this reflected by our Rav who left us during Chaia Sarah where Sarah in her death began to inherit the land for the Jewish people and throw out the thorns in our midst. The last time you saw your Rebbe was in Parshat Chukat with the story of Moshe who is destined to stay in the Galut with the Jewish people. This explains much. Now in the Torah we saw today; 'Yet in 'this' thing you do not believe' (Devarim 1:32) which means in the ways of wars and politics. You could be 100% frum but not really believe that Hashem has your back when it comes to 'tachlis' issues of settling our Land, Har Habayit, the Arabs, etc. Kahane Jews don’t have this issue. In 'this thing' they 'do' believe. They believe and are ready to throw out our enemies according to the same options that Yehoshua offered the Canaanites and rebuild the Temple today. But of course the problem is they are few among the Nation. We read about the 3 day journey today and the 11 day journey; which becomes the 40 year journey. As the Rav often spoke we can bring Moshiach speedily or in its time (B'ita Achishena – In it's time I will hasten it) Yeshiyahu 60:22. The 11 day journey is a sign of 'in its time' which is accompanied with suffering like the original 9-11 Tisha B'av; the ninth day of the eleventh Hebrew month. The 9-11 we speak of today with the tragedy of the twin towers also is a wake up call for the Jewish people to come home speedily and not wait for 'in its time'. Actually it's the many differences between our tribes that determine whether it will be a 3 day or an 11 day journey or forty years. That being said, however, there are still many Jews who don't even know there is a difference between 239

a 3 day or an 11 day journey. They don't even know about any journey. They don't even know they are Jews. The sacrifice of the Cambodia Rav to raise a family in a far off outpost searching for any stray Jews is an act of self-sacrifice based on love of the Jewish people. When you look at some of the great Jewish leaders that seem like Kahane type Jews for example Rabbi Akiva who declared war against the Romans, or David Hamelech who slew Goliath or Pinchas who brought vengeance against Zimri there is something they all have in common. These great Jews came from families or ancestors that were far away from Judaism. If their families had never entered the fold they would never have been the great ones that they became. Maybe there is a David Hamelech in Cambodia that doesn't know there is even a road back. However the Rav can show him that road. Maybe he will make Aliyah and his children will become Rabbi Akiva's or slay Goliaths. We don't know. It may be harder for Kahane Jews to have Ahavat Israel when they are constantly being persecuted by their own brothers. It may be harder for Chabad Jews to have Ahavat 'Eretz' Israel when they are preoccupied in the Galut. Both are crucial. So L'Chaim to the Rav for building a road for some lost soul to return; some lost soul who may become the next Pinchas, or Rabbi Akiva or David Hamelech. 240

Kahane in the Parsha Vaetchanan 241

What Death Gives Birth To ParshaVaetchanan (August 2012) There are personal things that happen in our lives where our fate is sealed and we can no longer plead for mercy. In relationships people often say ‘it was for the best’. What does that mean? It’s possible that you were prepared and ready to build your own personal Bet Hamigdash but your partner was not and left and so you died a little. After time and with G-ds help you may find someone else that revives you from the dead and you may enter matrimony together. It was decreed that Moshe was not coming into the Land. No matter how much he prayed the decree stood. In a sense they say that Moshe had to die there so that future generations would be saved from punishment. What does it mean that Moshe must die for others to live? He wanted to build G-ds kingdom even ‘more’ with the ultimate climax of entering the Land - but he wasn’t allowed to. It wasn’t about him, it was about us. His spiritual level was so high that if he had built the Bet Migdash then Hashem would not have been able to destroy it. That would mean that instead of Hashem venting His anger on the wood and stone of the Temple He would have destroyed His people instead. Where do we see this idea in our own time? We see something similar yet opposite when we look back a few generations. I suggest that the Temples in Europe where built by Tzaddikim of the stature of Moshe. Their salvation was in fact to ‘enter’ the Temple of the ‘lower’ level (the developing settlements of Israel) but they remained with perfect principles and were destroyed because of them. Moshe’s dying when he could have forced the issue and entered was similar to his breaking of the luchot. The distance between the behavior of the Nation and the perfection of the first luchot was too wide a gap. Hashem pulled them back while Moshe hung on to them and so they broke. Remnants of this perfection remain but a new Torah needed to be re-written. We are the broken Torah that needs to be re-written throughout history until we are at the level where we can enter again with Moshe. As in relationships sometimes there is no sin on one part, but the sin of another forever closes the book. Two or three times in the Parsha Moshe says that he cannot enter because of our sins. We know that it was ‘he’ who sinned at the rock. Why does he turn it on us now? Like in relationships one partner may have destroyed all of the dreams, hopes, and aspirations of the other. One would have done everything to build a home together but it would have been built upon shaky ground. Their spiritual death may atone for some other sins that still prevent them from making their life complete. Moshe was ready but the people weren’t. We are sometimes ready but our partner isn’t and during the time of our suffering, a new soul is being prepared. When these souls meet all which is broken becomes fixed and they enter the Land together to build the Bet HaMigdash. 242

The Comfort of the United States of Israel The greatest comfort to our long suffering people is the re-birth of our Nation once again. It is through this re-birth and in-gathering of the exiles that we will come to understand who we are and how we have arrived here. All of the dissensions and conflicts within our Nation must be worked out, as we sail in this ship together. There are many sacrifices being made, some pulling more than their weight and some being carried by others. The children of those opposed to each other eventually cross over and mix. A child of one opposed to Zionism and army service may disappoint his parents by becoming a three star general. A child of a secular family may disappoint his parents by becoming a rabbi with ten children in Mea Shaarim. Tu B'Av reflects this idea. After the various tribes had inherited their areas and were careful to propagate their particular tribe, there came a time when the inheritance was solid enough that tribes were able to intermarry and become unified yet distinct. This became permitted on Tu B'Av. The currents that led to our many pogroms and Shoas can only be understood in retrospect as we have developed now as a Nation with an army and civic laws and Jewish government. The new Jew that was created with the State continues to suffer at the hands of our enemies however vengeance, deterrence and conquest are also part of our National identity. These ideas can be seen reflected in the gematria of Nachamu, the comfort that Hashem sends us after the terrible destruction of our Temple and our long exile. ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫ היא כמר‬--‫ כע ימי‬,‫א שנ נחמו שנ נחמו‬ 1 Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. (Isaiah 40:1) ‫ = שנ נחמו‬Comfort Ye = 104 ‫ יל נשמ הות‬:‫ ההא הרץ‬-‫ יי הח ילק האת‬,‫ נבג הו הרל‬-‫ נה כאך‬55 Notwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot; according to the names of the tribes of their ‫ יי כנ החלו‬,‫ נא הב התם‬-‫כמט הות‬ fathers they shall inherit. ((Bamidbar 26:55) ‫ = יי כנ החלו‬shall inherit = 104 Our comfort will come through the inheritance of our Land. ‫כל של ןמד‬--‫הא התם‬ ,‫ הב יעת כה יהוא‬,‫יד נו הא יתי יצ הוה ניה הוה‬ 14 And the LORD commanded me at that time to ‫ כל נעשה נת הכם‬:‫ מח יקים ו ימ נש הפ יטים‬,‫הא נת הכם‬ teach you statutes and ordinances, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to ‫ נא תשר שא תתם הע כב ירים הש המה כל יר כש התה‬,‫ הבא תרץ‬possess it. (Devarim 4:14) ‫ = כל של ןמד‬to teach you = 104 The understanding of our history, the mistakes we have made and continue to make as well as the victories that continue to inspire us are understood collectively as we grow and prosper surrounded by many hostile neighbors. ‫ = שנ נחמו שנ נחמו‬Comfort ye, Comfort ye = 208 243

Together = 208. The sacrifice of Itzchak was a perfect sacrifice for G-d, while the self-sacrifice of Pinchas came in the form of avenging the nation. These two types of sacrifice are the backbone of our Nation. ‫ = פינחס‬Pinchas = 208 ‫ = יצחק‬Itzchak = 208 ‫ באל יהי הכם‬,‫ היא כמר‬--‫ כע ימי‬,‫ א כנ נחמו כנ נחמו‬1 Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God. ‫ יכי‬--‫ נו יק נראו יא הלי הה‬,‫ ילב נירו הש יכלם‬-‫ ב כד נברו כעל‬2 Bid Jerusalem take heart, and proclaim unto her, ‫ יכי הל נק החה ימ כיד‬:‫ יכי ינ נר הצה נעוה הנה‬,‫ המ נלאה נצ הב האה‬that her time of service is accomplished, that her guilt is paid off; that she hath received of the ‫ כח הטא התי ההיכ כפ של יים‬-‫נב הכל‬ ,‫ניה הוה‬ LORD'S hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:1) It is implied in these passages that for every pain Hashem caused us, He will return to us a double portion of joy. The repetition of Nachamu however implies without limit. What is a double joy that has unlimited joy contained within it? I suggest it alludes to two states; the state of Israel and a future State of Judea. The final correction of our nation will come about when the rift between brothers is mended. ‫ יש נל החה‬,‫ יי נש הר יאל א יביו‬-‫ ח כו היא המר ניהו הדה האל‬8 And Judah said unto Israel his father: 'Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we ‫נו ינ יל הכה; נו ינ נח היה נולאכו הנקו המה‬ --‫יא יתי‬ ‫כה כנ כער‬ may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also ‫ כט יפנו‬-‫ כא התה כגם‬-‫ נא כנ נחנו כגם‬-‫ כגם‬,‫ הנמות‬our little ones. (Bereshit 43:8) ‫ = כו הנקו המה‬we will arise = 207+1(kollel) =208 ‫ = שנ נחמו שנ נחמו‬Comfort ye, Comfort ye = 208 ,‫ יוי כש נב התם הבא הרץ‬,‫ כה כי נר ידן‬-‫ האת‬,‫ י כו נע כב נר התם‬10 But when ye go over the Jordan, and dwell in the land which the LORD your God causeth you ‫הא נת הכם;שמ כנ יחיל‬ ‫באל יהי הכם‬ ‫ ניה הוה‬-‫נא השר‬ to inherit, and He giveth you rest from all your -‫ יוי כש נב התם‬,‫ הא ני יבי הכם ימ הס יביב‬-‫ נו יה יני כח הל הכם ימ הכל‬enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety; ‫בהטכח‬ (Devarim 12:10) ‫ = שמ כנ יחיל‬causes you to inherit = 138+1(kollel) = 139 ‫ = מדינה יהודה‬State of Yehdua = 139 We are reluctant conquerors but Hashem will cause us to inherit and through this force us to mend the rifts between us. The 613 mitzvot of the Torah cannot be fully practiced until we return to our Land. ,‫ ככ נא השר‬,‫ ימ הפ הניך‬,‫ הא ני הביך‬-‫ הכל‬-‫ יט כל נה הדף האת‬19 to thrust away all your enemies from before ‫ יד הבר ניה הוה‬. you, as Hashem spoke (Devarim 6:19) 244

‫ הא כי תביך‬-‫ הכל‬-‫ = של נה הדף תאת‬to thrust away all your enemies = 613 Appeasing a Jealous God (August 2012) ParshaVaetchanan What does it mean that Hashem is a jealous God? Kana (jealousy) is similar to the word Kane (to buy). In a sense jealousy comes from the feeling of ownership of an object that has been stolen by a thief. If we speak about 'objects' ones anger is directed at the thief for stealing what does not belong to him. He must return the object and pay a penalty for his theft. If he damages the object then he must pay whatever the price is to restore or replace this object. Now if instead of an object we are talking about a living being it raises a few questions. Can a living being be the property of someone? In addition in the case of a living being ones anger is directed equally on the object itself rather than the thief that stole this object of desire. Why is this? In relationships there is a concept of ownership. In matrimony the husband acquires a wife and she accepts to serve her husband with love and affection. If she is seduced and her heart is stolen away the husband feels anger and jealousy at the thief who seduced his wife away from him. In addition he feels bitterness to the object of his desire who has now been tarnished and forever lost to him. The snake was punished seven times more than Eve who suffered death and expulsion from the garden of Eden. The gestation period of a snake is seven times that of a human (seven years). Although Eve was punished with death and expulsion from the Garden of Eden, never to return again, Hashem still watched over her from a distance, as He does all of us. Now when Israel encountered Hashem at Sinai it was compared to returning to the Garden of Eden once again. This time however we were more mature and we became betrothed as husband and wife. A sin between husband and wife is much more serious than a sin that a child makes. Now jealousy between husband and wife and seducer we can understand because we can relate to this in human terms. The love between Hashem and Israel is similar but beyond the scope of human understanding. In human terms there would be divorce and estrangement and usually no return unless there are children involved in which case there could be ongoing friendships that take on a different form. Hashem on the other hand is more like a Latin lover. He is very passionate and it is all or nothing. The relationship in addition to being passionate is also based upon a promise to the forefathers that cannot be annulled. We are constantly playing the harlot and He is constantly enraged and abandoning us to our Nazi, Babylonian or American lovers who we cherish more than Him. He leaves us in their hands without His protection so that we understand in the end who was always watching over us. Those who would laugh about Him to their lovers and say we don't take Him seriously and were quick to abandon their own brothers and sisters for the false promises of those who seduce us in each generation, wake up suddenly and find themselves alone. Their lover turns out to be evil and the one who truly cared for them is no where to be found because we had ridiculed Him as the 'old man' to our young lovers who were more exciting. The lovers of Zion are the object of scorn and derision as they settle Yehuda and Shomron surrounded by wild wolves thirsty for their blood and strengthened by the cold hearts of their brothers and sisters who want only to dine with their gentile lovers. To prove their loyalty they abandon and disassociate 245

themselves from these lovers of Zion that they call renegades and criminals to appease their gentile friends and display their allegiance. Hashems love is constant and patient. He waits for us to mature and learn and come of age. There are those however, like Pharoah, who after many plagues still cling to their evil ways and so they lose the opportunity to make teshuva, and instead they become the example for others to fear. People will say years later, 'if only they had left before', or 'didn't they see that coming'? We all have a time line in life. Sometimes our actions are too little, too late. Sometimes we hear the whispers without having to run from earthquakes. Hashems love and jealousy are still active ingredients in the evolution of Israel and the world. Israel is a work in progress as well as the Jewish people as a whole. Although this process began before I entered the world and will continue long after I leave there are principles that we can learn from 'jealousy' that can appease an angry G-d. The best prayers come from experience. Rabbi Akiva was able to make it rain because he could say to Hashem, 'I understand you are angry at Israel and so You are withholding the rain. But do you know who I am? If I who was such a wild and angry man can overcome my anger to do your will, then certainly You who are G-d can overcome Yours'. He obligated G-d by his own pain and it worked, the rain fell. If you have loved someone dearly and they were seduced by another and it destroyed everything that to you was holy and pure there is something you can do. If you felt anger and rage at the seducer and bitterness towards the object of your desire that is now tarnished and of no use there is something you can do. If your ex lover was then betrayed by her new lover and left alone with no place to go there is something you can do. The natural thing to do is to say 'I told you so' and to let her wallow in her misery. The natural thing to do is to run away from this bitter taste and leave this helpless creature to the wolves where she belongs. Only when you have had such an experience can you make it rain so to speak but in a different way. To extend your hand to care for one that you still love, even from a distance is not a sin. The Garden of Eden may be closed forever, but to help someone who is helpless and weak, even though they were the one who destroyed your world is not a sin. If you use this pain in your prayer you may succeed in appeasing G-d. You may say 'I understand You are angry at Israel for we are betraying our brothers and sisters. I understand you want to run away and leave them to their lovers who you know are wolves. However, remember me. I was destroyed by the woman of my desire, who was seduced by another yet I still helped her from a distance when it went against my will to do so. If I who am mortal man can overcome my jealousy and anger, then You who are G-d must do so – You are obligated by me.' In this way, sometimes certain individuals are in the position to appease a jealous G-d. 246

The Reluctant Conquerors ‫ כו נא כד נב הרה יא הליך יאת‬,‫ הפה נע המד יע המ ידי‬,‫ כז נו כא התה‬27 But as for thee, stand thou here by Me, and I ‫ נא השר‬,‫ כה ימ נצ הוה נו כה מח יקים נו כה ימ נש הפ יטים‬-‫ הכל‬will speak unto thee all the commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which thou shalt ‫א הנ יכי‬ ‫נו העשו‬ ;‫נת כל נמ ידם‬ teach them, that they may do them in the land ‫הל ההםכל יר כש התה‬‫הנ יתן‬ ‫נא השר‬ ,‫הבא הרץ‬ which I give them to possess it.' (Devarim 5:27) ‫נה כר נג יתיךיה כת שע של כל כת‬ ‫ יכי‬,‫כט כו היא המר יב נל העם הלאת הון‬ 29 And Balaam said unto the ass: 'Because thou ‫ יכי כע התה‬,‫ הח הרב נב הי ידי‬-‫יבי; לו היש‬ hast mocked me; I would there were a sword in my hand, for now I had killed thee.' (Bamidbar 22:29) ‫ = כל יר כש התה‬to posses it = 935 ‫ = יה כת שע של כל כת‬you have mocked me = 935 It seems that our 'possession' comes about against our will. Our enemies seek to curse us and instead they become a laughing stock as even their donkey seems to be on a higher spiritual level than they are. Their claim that God is with them and they can orchestrate the demise of the Israelite Nation turns into a blessing rather than a curse. Had it not been for Arab aggression in 1967 we would not have Yehuda and Shomron today. Who knows what the next aggression will bring? When the concept of the 'State of Judea' is discussed most people respond that we don't need any more division, we have enough. The concept of the return of Judea however I don't believe is a divisive one, rather it will bring the final unity that prevents Moshiach from arriving. Our enemies insist on a second State for the Arabs called 'Palestine'; invented to divide and weaken Israel. The second State that is forced upon us will in fact unite us not as 'Palestine' but the 'State of Judea'. The leader unlike Ben Gurion who was the 1st Prime Minister, will be the 1st King of Israel, known also as Moshiach. The song that was sung at the dividing of the Red Sea, when the tables turned against our enemies: ‫הש הלל;נא שח ןלק‬ ,‫טא כמר א הו ייב הא נר הדף כא ישיג‬ 9 The enemy said: 'I will pursue, I will overtake, I ,‫ א יריק כח נר יבי‬--‫ית נמ הל יאמ הו כנ נפ ישי‬ ‫ת הו ירי ישמ הו הי ידי‬ will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.' (Shmot 15:9) ‫ = נא שח ןלק‬Divide = 139 ‫ = מדינה יהודה‬State of Yehdua = 139 247

Vaetchanan and Vayeshev ;‫ נולא הש כמע יא הלי‬,‫ כו כו יי נת כע יבר ניה הוה יבי נל כמ כע ננ הכם‬26 But Hashem became angry with me because of you, and He did not listen to me; Hashem said to ‫ הלך‬-‫ת הו הסף כד יברשרב‬-‫אל‬-- ,‫כו היא המר ניה הוה יא כלי‬ ‫ כב הד הבר כה הזה‬,‫יא כלי ע הוד‬ me: 'It is too much for you! Do not continue to speak further to Me about this matter. ; (Devarim 3:26) ‫ ז ו נתנו הב יהן יאש נו ישימו נע ילי ההן נק הט הרת יל נפ יני‬7 and put fire in them and put incense upon them ,‫ יי נב כחר ניה הוה‬-‫ נו הה היה הה יאיש נא השר‬,‫ המ החר‬,‫ ניה הוה‬before Hashem tomorrow; Then the man whom Hashem will choose – he is the holy one. It is ‫ הל תכם‬-‫ נב יני יל יוישרב‬, ;‫הוא כה הקד הוש‬ too much for you, O offspring of Levi. (Bamidbar 16:7) Every year I look at this Parsha and wonder about this passage. When Hashem answers to Moshe 'Rav Lach' (it is too much for you) , it seems to echo another 'Rav Lach' which Moshe himself said to Korach. Moshe said to Korach that it was 'too much' for him to desire to lead the Nation, it should be enough to be a Levite. Here it seems Hashem is saying to Moshe it is enough that you will receive a great reward in the next world but to lead Bnei Israel into the Land of Israel, this is no longer your role. There is one other place in the Torah where a phrase repeats itself with very dramatic implications. The phrase Ha Ker Na (discern please) that is used by Yehuda when presenting Yosephs blood stained cloak to his father, and then echoed in the future by Tamar who asked Yehuda to discern please who's staff and signet ring she was holding. -‫ כו הי יביאו האל‬,‫ נכ הת הנת כה כפ יסים‬-‫ לב כו ני כש נלחו האת‬32 and they sent the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father; and said: 'We found this; ‫ הנא‬-‫שה תכר‬, :‫ הזאת המ הצאנו‬,‫ כו היא נמרו‬,‫נא יבי ההם‬ ‫לא‬-‫ יאם‬--‫כה נכ הת הנת יב ננך יהוא‬ identify, if you please; Is it your son's tunic or not? (Bereshit 37:32) ‫ הח ימי הה‬-‫ נו יהיא הש נל החה האל‬,‫ כה יהוא מו יצאת‬25 When she was brought forth, she sent to her ;‫ א הנ יכי הה הרה‬,‫ יא הלה ל הו‬-‫ נל יאיש נא השר‬,‫ ילא המר‬father-in-law, saying: 'By the man, whose these are, am I with child'; and she said: 'identify, if ‫ הנא‬-‫ נל ימי כה הח הת המתשה תכר‬-- ,‫כו התא המר‬ ‫נו כה נפ יתי ילים‬ you please, whose are these, the signet, and the ‫ הה יא הלה‬,‫נו כה כמ הטה‬ cords, and the staff.' (Bereshit 38:25) In the story of Yehuda what was formerly obscure was suddenly perceived quite clearly once Tamar said this phrase. Yehuda had been responsible for causing unbearable suffering to his father while thinking at the time that it was a necessary evil. Again he was about to commit a tragedy and suddenly realized that he was making a terrible mistake. Consequently the implications that it had for his previous actions came into question. The dramatic moment of Yehuda's realization, the connection from 248

the past to the present and the sin that is implied is easier to understand than the connection between Korach and Moshe. There is no question that Korach was undermining Moshes mission and creating rebellion. There is no question that Moshe did the appropriate action. There is also no sin in Moshe pleading with Hashem to allow him to enter the Land. So how is Rav Lach connected to Haker Na? In order to understand the connection we need to look at another unusual concept within of the same passage. 'Because of you' Hashem became angry at me. It seems odd that Moshe does not accept blame for his sins but qualifies that his sin is a consequence of the rebellion of the people of Israel. Hashem did not say that because of the people Moshe was being punished, so why is Moshe not accepting the punishment for his sin completely and blaming his punishment on the people? We also see that the gematria of Lemanchem (because of you) and Rav Lach (it's too much for you) are almost identical gematrias. So what is their connection and what do we learn from the words 'because of you'? ‫ ונלא הש כמע‬,‫ כו כו יי נת כע יבר ניה הוה יבי כל שמ שע כנ תכם‬26 But Hashem became angry with me because of you, and He did not listen to me; Hashem said ‫ הלך‬-‫שרב‬-‫אל‬-- to me: 'It is too much for you! Do not ,‫יא הלי; כו היא המר ניה הוה יא כלי‬ ‫ כב הד הבר כה הזה‬,‫ת הו הסף כד יבר יא כלי ע הוד‬ continue to speak further to Me about this matter. ; 3:26 ‫ = כל שמ שע כנ תכם‬because of you = 250 ‫ הלך‬-‫ = שרב‬it is too much for you = 252 The Role of the Shepherd of Israel In order to understand the connection we must define the role of Moshe which among other things is to be the Guide and Guarantor of the Nation. Lets examine each of these positions. Guarantor: A Guarantor is responsible when a loan defaults. He pays the price for those who may not hold up their part of the bargain. Guide: A Guide is responsible to deliver a party safely to their destination. To better understand these roles let's look at an example in our own modern times. Reb Elchonon Wasserman was one of the great pre-war Roshei Yeshiva in Europe. Reb Elchonon was in his mid-60s when the war broke out. He had spent a great deal of time in America collecting for his Yeshiva in Baranovich. He resisted their pleas to remain in America and chose to return to a Europe that was about to engulfed in flames. Tragically Reb Elchonon fell victim to the Nazi collaborators on 11 Tammuz 5701/1941 when he was murdered AL Kiddush Hashem along with his son and a handful of talmidim and other Rabbonim. Reb Ephraim Oshry who was 27 years old at that time, was one of the few that 249

managed to escape. He related the following about the last thing Reb Elchonon told them. When they saw the end was near Reb Elchonon got up and spoke to them. He spoke the same way he always did; he was calm and there was no indication of panic. He said the following. “In Shamayim it seems that they consider us to be tzadikim, because we have been chosen to be Korbanos for Klal Yisroel. Therefore, we must do Tshuvah now. We don’t have much time. We must keep in mind that we will be better korbonos if we do tshuvah. In this way we will save the Yidden in America. Let no foreign thought enter our minds, Chas V’Shalom, as that will make us pigul, an unfit korban. We are now fulfilling the greatest mitzvah. Yerushalayim was destroyed with fire and will be rebuilt with fire. The same fire that will consume our bodies will one day rebuild Klal Yisroel.” (from Epoch Of The Messiah – Rabbi Elchonon Wasserman) As Guarantors the spiritual leadership of our people pays the price for a Nation that defaults on its obligations or wanders away from its destiny. In Israel today we hear a similar idea that the Bnei Torah are Guarantors of the nation, they are soldiers of a different kind who's study of Torah strengthens the Nation and we always need that pure vile of oil to light the other candles and keep the fire of Torah burning. There is of course truth to that. As Guides, however, did the Bnei Torah succeed in saving us from the great tragedy of the Shoa? When the gates of Israel opened in the turn of the century and Jewish feelings of nationalism and longing for their ancient homeland began to take shape what was the response of the Bnei Torah world? If they had encouraged aliya then, regardless of Zionists that were less observant maybe there would not have been a Shoa. If they had expressed the same love of the Land as their less observant brothers maybe there would have been a different outcome? As Guides it seems in many places they displayed an anger against the rebels of Torah that did not truly represent Hashems anger. This anger and resentment continues today. Recently I sat at a shabbat table with my Charedi friends and one Rabbi said 'Thank G-d for the great miracles we are seeing every day as more than 2000 missiles are being fired on us and He is protecting us from above'. Another Charedi Rabbi answered, 'The miracle is that the government actually made something that works! This is the miracle.' Even at such a time when we should find unity he could only say something derogatory. As Guides there are some questions to be answered from the Bnei Torah world. Are they accurately conveying Hashems will by their resentment towards Zionism or are they 'hitting the rock'? The Point of Correction Vaetchanan represent the 'point of correction'. Now that it is clear that Moshe will not be entering the Land, only now can we begin to understand what exactly was this sin that was so irreversible. Moshe thought that perhaps because of the conquest of Cheshbon it is a sign that Hashem has forgiven him and it is a good opportunity to plead for forgiveness. He is mistaken. Hashem orders him to stop. It is not that Hashem is not forgiving, nor does He not want to forgive but there is no forgiveness without correction. Most likely preceding the Shoa there were those who saw Israel turning green and rather than 250