Shlach Lecha 5772

June 15, 2012 by Rabbi Yaakov Grunewald

The meaning of the name of today’s Sidra is SEND. The Almighty instructed Moses to send men to the land of Canaan in order that they should travel through it and report to him regarding a number of important matters; how fertile the land was and how well defended. The visit ended up with tragedy. The […]

Behalotecha 5772

June 8, 2012 by Rabbi Yaakov Grunewald

The meaning of the name of today’s Sidra is when you bring up. It comes from the well-known Hebrew root ALH, which means ‘going up’. Aaron was instructed by Moses to light the Menorah in a particular order. This is what Moses told him: When you raise the flame of the seven lights of the menorah, […]

Naso 5772

June 1, 2012 by Rabbi Yaakov Grunewald

The meaning of the Hebrew name of today’s Sidra is COUNT. This Sidra is the longest in the Torah and it contains 176 verses. It is remarkable that the longest Psalm, 119, also, consists of 176 verses and the longest tractate in the Talmud, Babba Batra, has 176 pages. The midrashic significance of this Sidra […]