This week's parsha, Parshas Ki Sisa, opens up with the very famous ענין of the
מחצית השקל. Moshe is commanded to count Bnai Yisrael using a half-shekel coin, like it says,
מחצית השקל. Moshe is commanded to count Bnai Yisrael using a half-shekel coin, like it says,
(יב) כִּ֣י תִשָּׂ֞א אֶת־רֹ֥אשׁ בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֘ל לִפְקֻדֵיהֶם֒ וְנָ֨תְנ֜וּ אִ֣ישׁ כֹּ֧פֶר נַפְשׁ֛וֹ לַה' בִּפְקֹ֣ד אֹתָ֑ם וְלֹא־יִהְיֶ֥ה בָהֶ֛ם נֶ֖גֶף בִּפְקֹ֥ד אֹתָֽם׃ (יג) זֶ֣ה ׀ יִתְּנ֗וּ כָּל־הָעֹבֵר֙ עַל־הַפְּקֻדִ֔ים מַחֲצִ֥ית הַשֶּׁ֖קֶל בְּשֶׁ֣קֶל הַקֹּ֑דֶשׁ עֶשְׂרִ֤ים גֵּרָה֙ הַשֶּׁ֔קֶל מַחֲצִ֣ית הַשֶּׁ֔קֶל תְּרוּמָ֖ה לַֽה'׃
(12) When you take a census of the Israelite people according to their enrollment, each shall pay the LORD a ransom for himself on being enrolled, that no plague may come upon them through their being enrolled. (13) This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-shekel by the sanctuary weight—twenty gerahs to the shekel—a half-shekel as an offering to the LORD.
After this command, the psukim go on to discuss the creation of the כיור that the Kohanim would use to wash their hands and feet before performing the avodah.
(יח) וְעָשִׂ֜יתָ כִּיּ֥וֹר נְחֹ֛שֶׁת וְכַנּ֥וֹ נְחֹ֖שֶׁת לְרָחְצָ֑ה וְנָתַתָּ֣ אֹת֗וֹ בֵּֽין־אֹ֤הֶל מוֹעֵד֙ וּבֵ֣ין הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ וְנָתַתָּ֥ שָׁ֖מָּה מָֽיִם׃ (יט) וְרָחֲצ֛וּ אַהֲרֹ֥ן וּבָנָ֖יו מִמֶּ֑נּוּ אֶת־יְדֵיהֶ֖ם וְאֶת־רַגְלֵיהֶֽם׃ (כ) בְּבֹאָ֞ם אֶל־אֹ֧הֶל מוֹעֵ֛ד יִרְחֲצוּ־מַ֖יִם וְלֹ֣א יָמֻ֑תוּ א֣וֹ בְגִשְׁתָּ֤ם אֶל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֙חַ֙ לְשָׁרֵ֔ת לְהַקְטִ֥יר אִשֶּׁ֖ה לַֽה':
(18) Make a laver of copper and a stand of copper for it, for washing; and place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar. Put water in it, (19) and let Aaron and his sons wash their hands and feet [in water drawn] from it. (20) When they enter the Tent of Meeting they shall wash with water, that they may not die; or when they approach the altar to serve, to turn into smoke an offering by fire to the LORD,
The next mitzvah in this chain of seemingly disconnected commands is the creation of the special oil used to annoint the kohanim and all the כלים of the Bais HaMikdash. Moshe is commanded to take a specific blend of certain spices and oil to create the mixture for the שמן המשחה.
Afterward, the psukim describe the creation of the קטרת in all of it's detail, then the decision to appoint Betzalel to oversee the creation of the כלים, and finally the mitzvah of Shabbos.
It seems to be a rather interesting chain of psukim, and what follows next is intriguing. It would be logical for more halachos to follow, perhaps more details about shabbos or the כלים. Instead, next comes the infamous passuk:
Afterward, the psukim describe the creation of the קטרת in all of it's detail, then the decision to appoint Betzalel to oversee the creation of the כלים, and finally the mitzvah of Shabbos.
It seems to be a rather interesting chain of psukim, and what follows next is intriguing. It would be logical for more halachos to follow, perhaps more details about shabbos or the כלים. Instead, next comes the infamous passuk:
(א) וַיַּ֣רְא הָעָ֔ם כִּֽי־בֹשֵׁ֥שׁ מֹשֶׁ֖ה לָרֶ֣דֶת מִן־הָהָ֑ר וַיִּקָּהֵ֨ל הָעָ֜ם עַֽל־אַהֲרֹ֗ן וַיֹּאמְר֤וּ אֵלָיו֙ ק֣וּם ׀ עֲשֵׂה־לָ֣נוּ אֱלֹהִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֤ר יֵֽלְכוּ֙ לְפָנֵ֔ינוּ כִּי־זֶ֣ה ׀ מֹשֶׁ֣ה הָאִ֗ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֤ר הֶֽעֱלָ֙נוּ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם לֹ֥א יָדַ֖עְנוּ מֶה־הָ֥יָה לֽוֹ׃
(1) When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, the people gathered against Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who shall go before us, for that man Moses, who brought us from the land of Egypt—we do not know what has happened to him.”
Right after all of these mitzvos and commands about the purest objects, the כלים in the Bais HaMikdash, we have the story of חטא העגל. The question is, how does it fit in? What's the connection of all the previous psukim to each other, and how do they connect to this sin?
Each of the previous sets of psukim were talking about a physical thing that was made holy by HaShem, and was made holy so it could be used to serve Him.
Money, one of the most גשמי things, was used to count HaShem's holy nation and then used in the Mishkan. The passuk calls this donation of a half shekel a תרומה לה! It was elevated in it's status and became holy. The כיור was the thing which enabled to Kohanim to go in and do the avodah. The oil and spices, again things which are very physical and are used in the mundane world all the time, were elevated to such a holy status that if someone used them for something other than their set purpose, that person gets כרת!
Then, when talking about Shabbos, HaShem took time, a physical, mundane, thing and elevated it to a day of connection to Him. The whole beginning of the parsha is giving this message of taking the גשמיות and making it רוחני.
So when חטא העגל happened, Bnai Yisrael thought they were doing the same thing! They were worried- they knew that nobody could survive 40 days and nights without food or water, and so they thought that they had lost their leader, their connection to HaShem. Bnai Yisrael didn't want a new god, they wanted a physical connection to the God! Whether it was considered actual Avodah Zarah or not, the mefarshim discuss that their intentions were good.
This is exactly what the Sefer Kuzari says- people can relate to the physical. Bnai Yisrael looked at Moshe Rabbeinu as the go between for them and HaShem. When they lost Moshe, they looked for a replacement.
The Ramban points out that we know that was the goal because when Moshe came down and destroyed the calf, Bnai Yisrael didn't protest at all! Had they wanted more than a physical go between they would've been devastated.
Bnai Yisrael thought that they were doing the right thing by taking a physical item and elevating it, but they failed to realize one crucial part- the physical can only be elevated when HaShem says it should be. The Meshech Chochma, R Meir Simcha M'Dvinsk, points this out when Moshe breaks the luchos. The only things that are inherently kadosh are HaShem and the Torah. Nothing else is holy unless HaShem says it is. Shuls are only allowed because HaShem said we should make them, for example. The שמן המשחה was essentially just oil and spices but because HaShem said it is holy, it became kadosh. This was what Bnai Yisrael forgot.
I think this is a very poignant message for us too. Sometimes we make cheshbonos, we think we can decide which mitzvos are more important, or which mitzvos don't apply to us. We decide, for example, the Kibud Av V'eim trumps not being on your phone in davening when a WhatsApp from our mother comes in. We calculate that we are allowed to let someone speak lashon hara, because speaking out against it would embarrass the person and that's an aveirah.
We fail to remember who is running the show and making calculations, and we would all do well with a reminder.
As my teacher, Rav Hanoch Teller said once- sometimes, when you bowl, you think you bowled perfectly straight, that is until your ball ends up in the gutter and you realize your angle was off the whole time.
B'Ezras HaShem we can take the message of Parshas Ki Sisa and remember that HaShem is the only one who can make calculations, and we can try to make sure our angle, our point of view perfectly aligns with His.
Good shabbos!
Each of the previous sets of psukim were talking about a physical thing that was made holy by HaShem, and was made holy so it could be used to serve Him.
Money, one of the most גשמי things, was used to count HaShem's holy nation and then used in the Mishkan. The passuk calls this donation of a half shekel a תרומה לה! It was elevated in it's status and became holy. The כיור was the thing which enabled to Kohanim to go in and do the avodah. The oil and spices, again things which are very physical and are used in the mundane world all the time, were elevated to such a holy status that if someone used them for something other than their set purpose, that person gets כרת!
Then, when talking about Shabbos, HaShem took time, a physical, mundane, thing and elevated it to a day of connection to Him. The whole beginning of the parsha is giving this message of taking the גשמיות and making it רוחני.
So when חטא העגל happened, Bnai Yisrael thought they were doing the same thing! They were worried- they knew that nobody could survive 40 days and nights without food or water, and so they thought that they had lost their leader, their connection to HaShem. Bnai Yisrael didn't want a new god, they wanted a physical connection to the God! Whether it was considered actual Avodah Zarah or not, the mefarshim discuss that their intentions were good.
This is exactly what the Sefer Kuzari says- people can relate to the physical. Bnai Yisrael looked at Moshe Rabbeinu as the go between for them and HaShem. When they lost Moshe, they looked for a replacement.
The Ramban points out that we know that was the goal because when Moshe came down and destroyed the calf, Bnai Yisrael didn't protest at all! Had they wanted more than a physical go between they would've been devastated.
Bnai Yisrael thought that they were doing the right thing by taking a physical item and elevating it, but they failed to realize one crucial part- the physical can only be elevated when HaShem says it should be. The Meshech Chochma, R Meir Simcha M'Dvinsk, points this out when Moshe breaks the luchos. The only things that are inherently kadosh are HaShem and the Torah. Nothing else is holy unless HaShem says it is. Shuls are only allowed because HaShem said we should make them, for example. The שמן המשחה was essentially just oil and spices but because HaShem said it is holy, it became kadosh. This was what Bnai Yisrael forgot.
I think this is a very poignant message for us too. Sometimes we make cheshbonos, we think we can decide which mitzvos are more important, or which mitzvos don't apply to us. We decide, for example, the Kibud Av V'eim trumps not being on your phone in davening when a WhatsApp from our mother comes in. We calculate that we are allowed to let someone speak lashon hara, because speaking out against it would embarrass the person and that's an aveirah.
We fail to remember who is running the show and making calculations, and we would all do well with a reminder.
As my teacher, Rav Hanoch Teller said once- sometimes, when you bowl, you think you bowled perfectly straight, that is until your ball ends up in the gutter and you realize your angle was off the whole time.
B'Ezras HaShem we can take the message of Parshas Ki Sisa and remember that HaShem is the only one who can make calculations, and we can try to make sure our angle, our point of view perfectly aligns with His.
Good shabbos!