Tag: Second paragraph of Shema

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Eikev – Rabbinic Crutches


In this week’s Torah portion of Eikev we find the second paragraph of Krias Shema. It begins, “And it will be, if you hearken to My commandments that I command you this day to love Hashem, your G-D, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Devarim 11:13).
Rashi proves “to serve Him with all your heart” refers to prayer: and to serve Him with all your heart: i.e. with a service of the heart, and that is prayer, for prayer is called service, as it is said, “your G-D, Whom you serve regularly” (Dan. 6:17). But was there a [Temple] service in Babylon? Rather, [the term service is used] because he prayed, as it is said, “where there were open windows [in his upper chamber opposite Jerusalem, and three times a day he kneeled on his knees and prayed…]” (Dan. 6:11). And so, too, it states regarding Dovid, “My prayer shall be established like incense before You” (Ps. 141:2). – [Sifrei].

Rabbeinu Bachye, interpreting these words along the same lines as Rashi, elaborates on the concept of prayer. Rabbeinu Bachye says: “that Chaza”l in Berachos 26b says that tefilla, prayer was enacted in place of the daily offerings brought in the Beis HaMikdash. And you should know that the power of prayer is so great that it can (1) change nature, (2) save one from danger, and (3) nullify decrees.”

Rabbeinu Bachye goes on to show examples of all 3 categories then he says “And you should know, that from the days of Moshe until the Anshei Knesses Hegedola (The Men of Great Assembly) the prayers of the Jews were not in any order, set for everyone equally, but rather each person would pray and make an advocate for himself according to his knowledge and wisdom. Then the Anshei Knesses Hagedola put together and enacted the Shemone Esray so that it will be a formatted orderly manner coming out of everyone’s mouth. They therefore formatted it in a simple language understood so the minds won’t be confused in understanding the way it was written, and so that it will be equally accessible to every Jew whether they are wise or stupid. However, they put it together with great intent and extra supervision when putting it in the order of 3 blessings of praise in the beginning of the tefilla, which are (1) Avos (the forefather), (2) Gevuros (Hashem’s power) and (3) Kedushas Hashem (the sanctification of Hashem). And then the 3 concluding blessings which are (1) Avoda (service) (2) Hoda’ah (gratitude) (3) Birkas Kohanim (the priestly blessings). And in the middle there are 12 blessings which are inclusive of all the needs of a person, and all this was not just haphazardly put together, but rather after great in-depth analysis of what is compelling (muchrach) and needed.”

After discussing some of the kabbalistic intent the sages had when formulating the Shemone Esray, Rabbeinu Bachye concludes, “And you should understand a little bit and see how the sages made this with such intent, six blessings were for personal needs (1. Insight, 2. Repentance, 3. Forgiveness, 4. Redemption, 5. Health and healing, 6. Years of prosperity), and six were for the return of the crown to old, and the kingdom of the House of Dovid to its place (1. Ingathering of exiles, 2. Restoration of justice, 3. The righteous, 4. Rebuilding Jerusalem, 5. Davidic reign, 6. Acceptance of prayer), and with the blessing against heretics [that was added] there are 13 blessings, in conjunction with the 13 attributes of Hashem’s mercy. This is to hint to the fact that all good in the world whether its for the need of mankind or fixing the world with the Divine Kingship, all is linked to these attributes. It is upon you to pray to raise up the Blessed One On High in order to influence His power within these attributes, as it writes, ‘that has a G-D so close at hand’ (Devarim 4:7), which is to say that there is no nation which has the influence of these attributes so close at hand like us. And when is this? ‘Whenever we call [onto Him]’ (the end Devarim 4:7) …” (Click here for Hebrew text.)
The Anshei Knesses Hagedola was around at the beginning of the second Beis Hamikdash until around the Greek conquest of Alexander the Great, and included Torah leaders like Ezra, Nechemiah, Daniel, Chananiah, Mishael, Azariah, Mordechai and Zerubbabel. Before that time every Jew was able to tap in to and find the conduits and pipelines of prayer that would reach towards Heaven and Hashem’s Holy throne. Depending on the level of intensity intellectually and spiritual holiness one might have attained, his prayers might be answered quicker and or with more clarity. But the understanding, insight, and emotion was there to be able to potentially pray hard enough for ones prayers to be answered even if it means changing nature, saving people from danger, or even altering a Heavenly decree.

In the days of the Anshei Knesses Hagedola, after the return of the first exile, hiskatnus hadoros [the waning of the generations], both spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and even physically, became more and more pronounced. To the point that the sages felt that the Jews needed “crutches” to help them connect to Hashem, and therefore they made the prayers that we say to this very day. They made them with such depths of vision and insight that one can potentially reach the heights of prayer using these specific words, tapping into Hashem’s thirteen-character traits of mercy, just as the great men of yesteryear were able to achieve in their own personal prayers. Indeed, this is not just for the great and mighty sages of each generation, but even the layperson can use it to reach great heights and be answered by Hashem.

The question is how does this really make sense, and is it really possible? If we are such laypersons nowadays, and we don’t reach the toes of Jews who lived 2000, 1000, 500, 300, or even 100 years ago, how can our prayers do anything to tap into the conduits and pipelines of prayer, to reach Hashem and be answered, even if we do have crutches to help us? But we are still so far gone?

However, it would seem that Hashem still believes in us and made sure that He had sages who created for us a system that even the simple of simpletons can use, be inspired by, and tear out their hearts to reach Hashem, if they only truly try. It is within the potential of every Jew to scale the heights and reach very close to Hashem, to the point that Hashem will want to answer his or her prayers. Hashem is just waiting for you to reach those heights. It is within each and every one of us; we just have to muster up the energy and effort to focus in and find it.

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Eikev – Educating Our Jewish Children

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The second paragraph of the Shema is found towards the end of this week’s Torah portion of Eikev. The Ramban points out a very subtle but fascinating difference between the first two paragraphs of the Shema. Around the conclusion of the second paragraph the Torah states, “Teach them to your children, to discuss them, while you sit in your home, while you walk on the way, when you retire and when you arise” (Devarim 11: 19). In the first paragraph of shema it writes, “Inform through teaching your children and speak of them while you sit in your home, while you walk on the way, when you retire and when you arise” (Devarim 6:7).
The Ramban observes, “It makes sense according to the simple explanation of the pesukim that the Torah is coming to add something here (in the second paragraph of the Shema) when it says ‘to discuss them,’ for there (in the first paragraph of the Shema) it commands ‘and you speak them when you sit in your house’. Here it is saying we should teach our children to the point that the children will be constantly speaking about it at all times. It also adds here, ‘teach them’ but there it says ‘inform through teaching’ which means to tell them about the mitzvos. Here, they should teach to them so that they will know it, and make them understand them and the reason [behind the mitzvos] to speak them with you at all time.” (Click here for Hebrew text.)

In the first paragraph of the Shema, the Ramban remarks that “these mitzvos are already hinted to, because after there was a command to observe the mitzvos, as a statute in the world for all your generations, ‘Between Me and the Jews, it shall be an eternal sign’ (Shemos 31:17). ‘This is my covenant that you shall observe between you and Me and between your children after you’ (Breishis 17:10). Behold we are commanded to inform our children about the mitzvos, and how can you inform them if you don’t teach it to them?!” (Click here for Hebrew text.)
At first glance there seems to be a progression; Hashem first commanded the generation in the Desert to know and observe the mitzvos. This is an obligation for all generations, but perhaps one might think the subsequent generations would have to figure out on their own how to observe them. Therefore the first paragraph of the Shema commands the parents to tell their children about the mitzvos, possibly assuming that once we know what to do, we can figure out on our own how to do it. Then in the second paragraph of the Shema Hashem instructs the parents to teach the children so well that this is all they talk about all day.

However, if this is true, then why did the Torah have to tell us this in this sequence? Why not just get to the point and command the parents to be sure the children know how to properly observe the Torah and Mitzvos? Also, the Ramban, in the first paragraph of the Shema, seems to refer to telling over the mitzvos as teaching them, for how else would they know them? But, in the second paragraph, he seems to refer to this level as just stating the mitzvos, and the third level as teaching them in their entirety. But is this a contradiction in the Ramban; and if not, what is the difference between the two levels of progression?

Upon further analysis it would seem that the Ramban is showing us the process of educating our children. Ideally, Hashem first commanded us to have the resolve to be Torah observant and only then we can give it over to the next generation. Then, once the parents are following the Torah and mitzvos, the Torah instructs the parents to lecture the children on how to fulfill the Torah and mitzvos in its entirety. But lecturing isn’t enough; to ensure the next generation will be properly observant there has to be an attitude of dialogue. Children have to feel comfortable in asking their parents if they are observing the Torah and keeping the mitzvos in the proper manner, to the point that this is the focal point of their lives. Torah is all they speak about and enjoy speaking about. Everything they do and talk about is connected to the Torah in some shape or form. Only then has the parents ideally reached their obligation of ensuring the continuity of the Torah and its mitzvos to the next generation.

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Eikev – Israel’s Defense Force and Offensive

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At the end of this week’s Torah portion of Eikev, the Torah states: “For if you keep all these commandments which I command you to do them, to love the Lord, your God, to walk in all His ways, and to cleave to Him, then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you, and you will possess nations greater and stronger than you” (Devarim 11:22-23).

Rabbeinu Bachye remarks on these pesukim: “If you follow the mitzvos of the Torah then Hashem will kick out the enemies from amongst you, for on this condition you are entering the land. In the Medrish it cites (Medrish Tanchuma Breishis 1): ‘For if you keep’ (אם שמור תשמרון) If you keep the mitzvos of the Torah you will be protected, meaning you will be protected from any enemy and from any destructive force. So to the previous paragraph starts ‘And it will be if you will listen’ (והיה אם שמוע תשמעו, which is the beginning of the second paragraph of Shema) it also mean if you listen to the words of the Torah, you will be listened to [in your prayers]. The opposite is also true [if you don’t listen and keep the mitzvos then Hashem won’t be quick to listen to your cries and protect you.] Similarly it says in Mishley 21:13: ‘He who stops up his ear from the cry of a poor man-he, too, will cry out and not be answered.’ [Implying if he does help the poor his own prayers will be accepted too.]” (Click here for Hebrew text.)

In the first part of pasuk 23 it says:“Then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you,” Rabbeinu Bachye says it refers to “those who are closer to you [inside Israel] and then afterwards, ‘Every place upon which the soles of your feet will tread,’ (pasuk 24), which is the farther places. For this reason Chazal say (Sifri Ekev 51) about King David that he did something out of order and against the commands of the Torah, for he first captured the farther places which were Aram Tzova and Aram Naharayim which are farther from the Land of Israel and then afterward he captured the closer ones. For this reason they say in Gitten 47a that the conquering of the individual isn’t considered conquering. It is called ‘the conquering of the individual’ because there weren’t 600,000 people with him and it was not considered a conquering for the sake of the Holiness of the land regarding maaser (tithes) and shmita (sabbatical year) on a Torah level but rather only on a rabbinic level. Aram Tzova is Syria as we learn in the Sifri quoted before.”

We can infer from this Rabbeinu Bachye that if King David would have conquered everything in the proper order, with the backing of the entire nation, by first finishing to conquer the territories in Israel proper, as was started in the times of Yehoshua, and then continuing on to Syria and Aram Naharayim, then those latter places would also have been imbued with the same Torah level of Holiness and obligation in mitzvos, such as maaser and shmita. However, as a consequence for not strictly following the Torah, and doing things out of order, the farther lands that King David conquered were only sanctified on a rabbinic level.

There is a very interesting observation that could be pulled out of these two pesukim for why Rabbeinu Bachye specifically mentioned the incident with King David at this juncture, besides the fact that he transgressed these very pesukim of pasuk 23 and 24. Pasuk 22 points out that if we follow the Torah to the strictest letter of the law in Israel, then Hashem guarantees that we will be unharmed by any enemy, and in fact all our enemies will be outside the land of Israel. Now people might say: ‘come on, give us a break, look at how many people are Torah observant or are changing over and are finding their Torah roots in Israel and still our enemy is amongst us. And not only threatening us but actually harming us. How could it be with so much good in The Promise Land?!’

The obvious answer is that we aren’t perfect, and that not everyone is following Hashem’s word. But what we also see is that reward and punishment aren’t all or nothing. We are still in the land and there have been many miracles that have allowed us to stay in Eretz Yisrael. Wwe see this from King David, who was known to be on such a high level of relationship with Hashem, as testified in his Sefer Tehillim (Psalms) that was written with Divine Inspiration. He was a prophet, who led the Jewish People faithfully for forty years, and was deserving of having the Beis HaMikdash to be built in his day, if not for the fact that he was involved in bloodshed, albeit for the sake of defending his people and conquering the Holy Land. Yet we see here that whatever miscalculation it was for King David to choose to conquer Syria and its adjoining land first before finishing the conquest of Israel, there were consequences. He did it totally for the sake of Heaven, and proof is in the consequence, that the land he conquered was just not as holy as it could have been; yet any level of mishap deserves a consequence. It cannot simply be ignored.

But what we also see is that even what seems to be a very subtle consequence is a consequence which makes for a difference and has major ramifications. Who knows what would have happened if the land would have been conquered correctly? Would it have been at the Torah level of holiness and obligations to fulfill the mitzvos concerning land just like the rest of Israel has?

We have to realize that even the small differences in our service of Hashem makes for a difference. In this way we can be more observant of how we act and the choices we make. But also the consequences of our actions must be thought out clearly and realized; for, imagine the fact that something is rabbinic and not on a Torah level is a punishment for the actions of King David!

If we are more careful and thoughtful in what we do and are mindful to try to kindly help others do the right thing then peace and serenity will be granted for all of us in the Holy Land, and all our prayers will be answered with all of us in the Promised Land, speedily in our days.