Parashat Chukat / פרשת חקת
Pesukim פסוקים are the "verses" of Scripture divided into Parashaot (Portions) read in the synagogue each week. On Monday's & Thursdays there are 3 divisions of the week's Parasha read and on Shabbat all 6 are read including a Maftir (added), which makes up the final Pesukim (verses) of the Parasha totaling (7) Aliyot each week. Rabbi Eric will give a short d'rash on each of the daily Pesukim that make up the week's Parasha for a good daily dose of Torah. For more explanation on how the Torah is read and divided daily and weekly in the Synagogue see the following links:
The Daily Pesuk for, June 18, 2018 / 5,Tamuz 5778
Numbers 19:18-20:6 (11 p'sukim)
18 Then a clean person will take some hyssop, dip it into the water, and, sprinkle it on the tent, all of the furnishings, and the people who were there, as well as the one touching the bone, the one killed, the corpse or the grave.
19 The clean person will sprinkle the unclean one on the third and seventh days. He is to purify himself on the seventh day, and on the seventh day he is to wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and at evening he will be clean.
20 However, that man who is unclean but does not purify himself will be cut off from the community. He has defiled the Sanctuary of Adonai, since the cleansing water was not sprinkled on him. He is unclean. 21 This will be a permanent ordinance for them. The one sprinkling the cleansing water is also to wash his clothes, and anyone touching the cleansing water will be unclean until evening. 22 Anything touched by an unclean person becomes unclean, and anyone touching it will be unclean until evening.”
Water from the Rock
20 In the first month, the entire community of Bnei-Yisrael arrived at the wilderness of Zin. The people stayed at Kadesh. There Miriam died and was buried.
2 Now there was no water for the community, so they assembled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The people quarreled with Moses saying, “If only we had died when our brothers died before Adonai! 4 Now why have you brought the community of Adonai into this wilderness, for us and our livestock to die here? 5 Why have you brought us from Egypt to bring us to this evil place—a place without grain, fig, grapevine or pomegranate—and there’s no water to drink!”
6 So Moses and Aaron went from before the assembly to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and fell on their faces.
Then the glory of Adonai appeared to them.
18 וְלָקַ֨ח אֵז֜וֹב וְטָבַ֣ל בַּמַּיִם֮ אִ֣ישׁ טָהוֹר֒ וְהִזָּ֤ה עַל־הָאֹ֙הֶל֙ וְעַל־כָּל־הַכֵּלִ֔ים וְעַל־הַנְּפָשׁ֖וֹת אֲשֶׁ֣ר הָֽיוּ־שָׁ֑ם וְעַל־הַנֹּגֵ֗עַ בַּעֶ֙צֶם֙ א֣וֹ בֶֽחָלָ֔ל א֥וֹ בַמֵּ֖ת א֥וֹ בַקָּֽבֶר׃
19 וְהִזָּ֤ה הַטָּהֹר֙ עַל־הַטָּמֵ֔א בַּיּ֥וֹם הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֖י וּבַיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֑י וְחִטְּאוֹ֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔י וְכִבֶּ֧ס בְּגָדָ֛יו וְרָחַ֥ץ בַּמַּ֖יִם וְטָהֵ֥ר בָּעָֽרֶב׃
20 וְאִ֤ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־יִטְמָא֙ וְלֹ֣א יִתְחַטָּ֔א וְנִכְרְתָ֛ה הַנֶּ֥פֶשׁ הַהִ֖וא מִתּ֣וֹךְ הַקָּהָ֑ל כִּי֩ אֶת־מִקְדַּ֨שׁ יְהוָ֜ה טִמֵּ֗א מֵ֥י נִדָּ֛ה לֹא־זֹרַ֥ק עָלָ֖יו טָמֵ֥א הֽוּא׃
21 וְהָיְתָ֥ה לָּהֶ֖ם לְחֻקַּ֣ת עוֹלָ֑ם וּמַזֵּ֤ה מֵֽי־הַנִּדָּה֙ יְכַבֵּ֣ס בְּגָדָ֔יו וְהַנֹּגֵ֙עַ֙ בְּמֵ֣י הַנִּדָּ֔ה יִטְמָ֖א עַד־הָעָֽרֶב׃
22 וְכֹ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּע־בּ֥וֹ הַטָּמֵ֖א יִטְמָ֑א וְהַנֶּ֥פֶשׁ הַנֹּגַ֖עַת תִּטְמָ֥א עַד־הָעָֽרֶב׃ פ
20 וַיָּבֹ֣אוּ בְנֵֽי־יִ֠שְׂרָאֵל כָּל־הָ֨עֵדָ֤ה מִדְבַּר־צִן֙ בַּחֹ֣דֶשׁ הָֽרִאשׁ֔וֹן וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב הָעָ֖ם בְּקָדֵ֑שׁ וַתָּ֤מָת שָׁם֙ מִרְיָ֔ם וַתִּקָּבֵ֖ר שָֽׁם׃
2 וְלֹא־הָ֥יָה מַ֖יִם לָעֵדָ֑ה וַיִּקָּ֣הֲל֔וּ עַל־מֹשֶׁ֖ה וְעַֽל־אַהֲרֹֽן׃
3 וַיָּ֥רֶב הָעָ֖ם עִם־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ לֵאמֹ֔ר וְל֥וּ גָוַ֛עְנוּ בִּגְוַ֥ע אַחֵ֖ינוּ לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃
4 וְלָמָ֤ה הֲבֵאתֶם֙ אֶת־קְהַ֣ל יְהוָ֔ה אֶל־הַמִּדְבָּ֖ר הַזֶּ֑ה לָמ֣וּת שָׁ֔ם אֲנַ֖חְנוּ וּבְעִירֵֽנוּ׃
5 וְלָמָ֤ה הֶֽעֱלִיתֻ֙נוּ֙ מִמִּצְרַ֔יִם לְהָבִ֣יא אֹתָ֔נוּ אֶל־הַמָּק֥וֹם הָרָ֖ע הַזֶּ֑ה לֹ֣א׀ מְק֣וֹם זֶ֗רַע וּתְאֵנָ֤ה וְגֶ֙פֶן֙ וְרִמּ֔וֹן וּמַ֥יִם אַ֖יִן לִשְׁתּֽוֹת׃
6 וַיָּבֹא֩ מֹשֶׁ֨ה וְאַהֲרֹ֜ן מִפְּנֵ֣י הַקָּהָ֗ל אֶל־פֶּ֙תַח֙ אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֔ד וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֑ם וַיֵּרָ֥א כְבוֹד־יְהוָ֖ה אֲלֵיהֶֽם׃ פ
Our pesukim from chapter 20 mentions Miriams death in pesuk 1 immediately following the mitzvaot of the Parah. On this issue Rashi asks the following question:
ותמת שם מרים AND MIRIAM DIED THERE — Why is the section narrating the death of Miriam placed immediately after the section treating of the red cow? To suggest to you the following comparison: What is the purpose of the sacrifices? They effect atonement! So, too, does the death of the righteous effect atonement! (Moed Katan 28a).
The Death of the Righteous does affect atonement. Here in Moed Katan Rashi makes a very important point that most Jews today reject. That a righteous person's death DOES effect atonement. All the rabbis agree that Miriam, like Moshe and Aaron was a righteous woman, in fact Rashi also makes additional remarks connecting her death and the water that dried up...
There are two remarkable points here in today's pesukim. The connection between Miriam, the Red Heifer, and the source of water that followed Israel throughout the Exodus. What can be made of this connection, why does the Torah juxtapose these events together in these pesukim? Besides, Miriam's death happened at the end of the 40 years whereas the commandments of the Red Cow were given at the beginning, these events are not in consecutive order!?!
In a commentary on Rashi's commentary, known as Siftei Chakhamim written by Shabbetai ben Joseph Bass (1641–1718) in Amsterdam, it speaks first to the connection between Miriam and the Red Cow:
"So do the death of the righteous… You might ask: According to this, shouldn't the Torah have juxtaposed her death to the sacrifices themselves? The answer is that it is juxtaposed to the red cow because they are similar. The deaths of the righteous are not sacrifices, and the red cow is also not a sacrifice per se. Thus we learn one from the other, just as this one brings atonement, so too that one brings atonement."
It goes on to support this premise by introducing a rabbinical argument called a "gezeirah shavah". Dr. David Stern also defines this method of argument as well in his commentary, Stern says, "...one Talmudic rabbi used the principle of interpretation called g'zerah shavah. The term means "analogy" (literally, "equal decision") and operates by inferring that if a word has a particular meaning in one passage of Scripture it must have the same meaning in a second passage. (The rabbis saw that this technique could easily be misused to reach conclusions contrary to Scripture and therefore prohibited its further use; only the instances cited by the early interpreters are recognized.)"
Siftei continues, "By the Divine kiss. Since it is written here שם ["there"], and concerning Aharon it is also written “Aharon died שם ["there"].” Because if it were not for the gezeirah shavah [Scriptural comparison] why does the Torah write “שם” ["there"] twice regarding Miriam. Perforce it was for the gezeirah shavah, to teach that just as there [Aharon died] by the Divine kiss, as it is written, “By the mouth of Hashem,” so too here [for Miriam] it was by the Divine kiss....
Why then is it not said concerning her, “By the mouth of Hashem.” There are those who ask: What was Rashi’s difficulty? Didn't he explain that we learn a gezeirah shavah from Aharon through the word שם ["there"]? The answer is that Rashi is asking: Why is the gezeirah shavah necessary? Let the Torah write, “By the mouth of Hashem” explicitly. For we are forced to say that it is not a full gezeirah shavah, because if it is, why is it necessary to write “By the mouth of Hashem” regarding Aharon in order to teach that he died by the Divine kiss? We could have learned the gezeirah shavah with the word “there” from Moshe. Rather it is certain that this is not a full gezeirah shavah and therefore the Torah writes “By the mouth of Hashem” regarding Aharon. Consequently it should have also written “By the mouth of Hashem” for Miriam. Nonetheless, the Gemara (Moed Katan 28a) explicitly states that we learn the gezeirah shavah from Moshe. Accordingly one must say that Rashi is saying as follows: “She too died by the Divine kiss” meaning that one learns a gezeirah shavah from the word “there” [stated] regarding Moshe. However, regarding Aharon it says, “By the mouth of Hashem,” thus it is not necessary to learn this from Moshe. This was why Rashi says ובאהרן ["However, concerning Aharon"] rather than שבאהרן ["That was [said] about Aharon"].
Here we find an explanation for the connection between Miriam's death and the Red Cow, but what of the water?
Siftei continues, "The well in Miriam’s merit. For immediately after Miriam died they no longer had water. You might ask: Why was the well not in Aharon’s or Moshe’s merit? The answer is that it was in the merit of Miriam waiting for Moshe by the water, to see what would happen to him when he was placed there in the box [as a baby] (Shemos 2:4). In return, this merit of the well, i.e., the water that Hashem provided for the congregation was on her behalf."
So to summarize all this we know a few things:
1. The Torah juxtaposes Miriam's death with both the Red Cow and the Water drying up.
2. The rabbis explain that this is because she was a righteous woman and indeed the death of the righteous DOES effect atonement.
3. The rabbis also say that just as the Red Cow brings atonement, so too does the death of the righteous.
With this in mind we would do well to remember the words of Shaliach Shaul:
I Corinthians 10:1 For I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers and sisters, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea. 2 They all were immersed into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 And all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink—for they were drinking from a spiritual rock that followed them, and the Rock was Messiah.
So we can make a comparison there too. We know that water, the source of all life (living water) dried up at the death of Miriam, and she merited that water due to her saving Moshe at the water, and if the death of the righteous affects atonement and God accepted that... then how much more the death of the One and Only Ben Elohim, the only completely altogether Righteous One, whose death can effect atonement for all humanity for all eternity? And if Miriam can be connected to the Parah, why not the death of the Righteous Mashiach Yeshua?
John 7:37 ...Yeshua stood up and cried out loudly, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture says, ‘out of his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
Let's drink the same water that our ancestors drank in the Wilderness, let all Israel's eyes be opened and receive the Atonement achieved by the death of the True Holy One, our Mashiach Yeshua.
Amen.
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