" Moshe and the Children of Israel chose to sing אז SHABBAT SHALOM. Today is 13 Shevat 5780, Shabbat 4. “Then Shirah. One may still say Kiddush Levanah tonight. this song...” (15:1). When they left Egypt and felt liberated

Mazal Tov to Dovi Stier upon today’s celebration of his Bar from the Egyptian taskmasters, they did not sing. But now, after seeing Pharaoh and the remnants of his army die in the Mitzvah, and to Dovi’s parents Oren & Danielle Stier and Red Sea, the threat that Egypt presented was finally ended. the entire family. THEN they could sing. Similarly when Bnei Yisrael TORAH DIALOGUE experienced the death of Haman in Persia years later, they (p. 265 Hz) (p. 407 S) (p. 262 Hi) (p. 366 AS) did not say Hallel because they were still under BESHALACH Exodus 13:17 Achashveirosh’s rule. But here, their liberation was complete, [Compiled by Edward Davis (RED), and they were on their way to Mt. Sinai where they would Rabbi Emeritus and Sephardic Minyan Rabbi enter into a Covenant with Hashem: to obey the Mitzvot of the Young Israel of Hollywood-Ft. Lauderdale] Torah. The destiny of Israel is to accomplish a specific 1. “The Children of Israel were armed as they went up from mission, to rid the world of idols. The Jewish influence over Egypt” (13:18). The word “Chamushim” is literally translated Christianity and Islam was to bring the pagan, idolatrous world as armed, but the root of the Hebrew word can also be to monotheism. Years would go by, but ultimately this mission translated as “one fifth” (see Rashi). The Midrash says that was accomplished. And this mission was a building block to only one fifth of the Jewish population left Egypt; four fifths bringing the Mashiach! (RED) were killed (by Hashem) in the Plague of Darkness. They were 5. With the Mannah came the Mitzvah of Shabbat, which not worthy of being redeemed. The Midrash actually offers was given to all of Israel, not just to the individual Jews. We different interpretations, that one fiftieth survived the see this in Israel today where demonstrations and rock Darkness. Others say one in five hundred. These are throwing greet Shabbat desecrations. I am a product of my astronomical figures. Rabbi Eliezer Gordon, the Rabbinic upbringing. I have lived my whole life in communities where Chief Justice and Rosh of Telz (1841 - 1910 the Shabbat observing Jews are the minority among my London) (father-in-law of the Oznaim LaTorah, Rabbi Zalman Jewish neighbors. When my Jewish neighbor would get into Sorotzkin) estimated that the average Jewish family in Egypt his car on Shabbat, I am not shocked or disappointed. I will had 60 children. Therefore the Jewish population was truly greet him with a casual Shabbat Shalom and we go our huge. With these large losses in the Plague of Darkness, there separate ways. I do not share any anger with my Orthodox co- were still at least 2.5 million Jews who exited Egypt. (Oznaim religionists in Eretz Yisrael. But maybe I should. If all of us are LaTorah) commanded to keep Shabbat, maybe I should feel outrage. 2. While the Jewish people were collecting the gold and Shabbat is unique. The Midrash backs up the popular song silver from the Egyptians, something they were doing as a “Just one Shabbos and we’ll all be free!” It is only the Mitzvah Mitzvah, at the request of Hashem, Moshe was locating the of Shabbat that warrants such a statement. In the early part bones of Yosef. He was involving himself individually in the of the 20th century in America, there was strong public Mitzvah of transporting Yosef’s remains to be buried in Eretz resistance to Jewish store owners who worked on Shabbat. Yisrael. For forty years, these two arks accompanied Bnei But those store owners won that battle. Shabbat was always Yisrael in their travels in the desert. This was a serious on the defensive. It is time to reverse that trend. Invite a non- message to the Jewish people. The person in one ark observant Jewish neighbor over for a Shabbat meal! (RED) observed all the Mitzvot represented in the second ark. Yosef withstood the influence of the Egyptian culture; he was even HAFTORAH able to overcome the temptation to succumb to Mrs. (p. 281 Hz) (p. 434 S) (p. 850 Hi) (p. 1152 AS) Potiphar’s sexual overtures. With all the “isms” that exist in the JUDGES 4:4 world, every Jew is capable of living a life committed to Torah. Shabbat Shira gets its name because we are reading a

3. Midrash. A king had a son to whom he wished to give a Song in the Haftorah, the Song of Devorah. The story also sizable inheritance. The king reasoned that his son was too amounts to a lesson of faith in Hashem to deliver the Jewish young to appreciate, respect, and protect the inheritance just people when they are confronted with an enemy. The yet. He needs to learn and study more and establish himself expression of poetry in the biblical text is not just to show off more before he can conduct himself in a mature fashion. At a different form of sacred literature; I believe it was done in that point, the king would feel confident that the gift would be this fashion so that the people will not only record but sing the in good hands. In similar fashion did Hashem reason that it song themselves. This we see done daily when we recite the would be premature to give Eretz Yisrael to the Jewish people. Song of Moshe that we read in the parsha of today. When I They need to immerse themselves in the world of Mitzvot. was raised in attending a day school in the 1950’s, we were They need to learn, for example, about the laws of Terumah required to memorize the Song of Moshe, both here and in and Maaser before they can farm the Land. Hashem figures Ha’azinu. We were also required to memorize in part the Shira that it would be better if He took them to Mt. Sinai to receive of Devorah. This, I believe, was allowing us to understand why the Torah before entering Eretz Yisrael. Up until now the the heroes of our people wrote the poem. It is a further generation of Jews knew only about the rigorous work of reminder, in a way, to get us to comprehend and absorb the construction. They weren’t trained in warfare. Hashem message of these events, which is trust in Hashem, do what needed to equip and educate them better for the future. He we are told, adhere to Torah and respond properly in times of needed to delay their entry into Eretz Yisrael and their new life difficulty so that Hashem can assist us. Whenever miracles by keeping them in the desert for forty years until they can would come about, it would be possible for us to not only strengthen themselves and develop a new generation of Jews survive the events, but live to see our people thrive in the who would be less submissive and can abandon a life of years to come. (RED) slavery. (Rambam, Guide for the Perplexed 3:24) "

QUESTIONS FOR PARSHAT BESHALACH 5780 by Rabbi Edward Davis

I. From the Text 1. Why did Hashem not lead Bnei Yisrael by the shortest and more direct route to Eretz Yisrael? (13:17) 2. What Mitzvah did Moshe do before leaving Egypt? (13:19) 3. What was the reaction of the other nations when they heard what had happened at the Red Sea? (15:14-17) 4. How did Moshe sweeten the bitter water and make it drinkable? (15:25) 5. What was the daily portion of Mannah given to each person? (16:16) II. From Rashi 6. What percent of the Jewish people left Egypt? What happened to the rest of Bnei Yisrael (13:18) 7. Who told Pharaoh that the Jews were not returning to Egypt? (14:5) 8. How did Bnei Yisrael actually know that the Egyptians died in the Red Sea? (14:30) 9. How was Miriam a prophetess? (15:20) 10. There was no Mannah on Shabbat. Was there Mannah on Yom Tov? (16:26) III. From the 11. “This is my God and I will beautify Him.” (15:2). How do we beautify God? (Shabbat 133b) 12. When did the Mannah stop? (Kiddushin 38a) 13. The battle with Amalek was to be recorded in the Book (17:14). What Book? (Ramban, Ibn Ezra) IV. Haftorah. Judges 14. At Deborah’s side, who was the Jewish general who fought and defeated Sisera? What tribe was he from? V. Relationships a) Ephraim - Binyamin b) Sered - Dinah c) Gershon - Moshe d) Aharon - Gershom e) Peretz - Chanoch

ANSWERS FOR PARSHAT BESHALACH 5780

1. Because Bnei Yisrael would have encountered a confrontational Philistine army, and Bnei Yisrael would have tried to return to Egypt. 2. Taking Yosef’s remains for re-burial in Eretz Yisrael. 3. They were terrified and afraid. 4. He threw a special tree into the water. 5. An Omer (about 43 average-sized eggs.) 6. Only 20% left Egypt. The other 80% died during the Plague of Darkness. 7. Pharaoh sent spies along with Bnei Yisrael to report back to him. 8. The Sea tossed the dead Egyptians onto the shore, negating the possibility that the Egyptians could have come up on shore on the side of the Sea. 9. She prophesied that her mother will give birth to a son (who will be the savior). 10. No. 11. We should pick a beautiful Etrog, Sukkah, Tephillin, and the like. 12. It stopped on the 7th day of Adar, the day Moshe died. Bnei Yisrael would eat leftovers until the 16th day of Nissan, when they would be able to eat the produce of Eretz Yisrael. 13. Ramban: in the Torah. Ibn Ezra: in the Book of Hashem’s Wars, a book we no longer have. 14. Barack ben Avino’am of the tribe of Naphtali. Relationships a) Uncle Binyamin b) Aunt Dinah c) Uncle Gershon d) Uncle Aharon e) First Cousins (Peretz son of Yehudah; Chanoch son of Reuven)

SPONSORED BY THE STIER AND WEISS FAMILIES IN HONOR OF DOVI’S BAR MITZVAH