Simply Deep

Jon K asked: In Shmos 17:5, Rashi says Hashem specifically told Moshe to use his staff for the water in the rock to show it could also do good things. Wouldn't that further make people believe that the staff had powers in of itself? After learning with area with my son Ezra, he recorded our answer.

Rashi (19:12) says that the boundary around Har Sinai said, “Guard yourself from ascending beyond this point.” This episode analyzes this puzzling Rashi and discusses various points regarding keeping the people away from Har Sinai.

After the splitting of the sea, Rashi (Shmos 15:22) tells us that the Jews got even more gold and silver from the sea than they had previously gotten from the Egyptians. Nevertheless, Moshe forced the Jews to prematurely travel away from the sea. This episode analyzes the significance of getting this great wealth and of leaving some of it behind.

The Torah (Shmos 16:35) tells us that the Jews ate the mun for 40 years - until they entered Eretz Kenaan. Rashi explains that these 40 years weren’t all the same…This episode explores the import of this Rashi in the context of the overall purpose of the mun.

The Rambam in Brachos 10:3 (based upon a Gemara in Brachos 60a) says that we are obligated to say a bracha of Baruch Dayan Ha’emes on bad news in a state of simcha. This episode discusses how this is possible. Furthermore, it touches upon the idea of Gam zu le’tovah and “All that HaShem does is for the good.” Also discussed are some ideas on Brachos and on Hashem’s Justice.

In Shmos 12:42, the Torah tells us twice that the night of Pesach is guarded. Rashi interprets them to mean (1) HaShem guarded the night and waited for it to come in order to fulfill His promise to Avraham to redeem us on this night; and (2) it’s guarded to protect us (for all generations) from mazakim, just like the Jews in Egypt were guarded from the mashchis. As these enigmatic claims raise numerous difficulties, this episode analyzes both of these facets of Leil Shimurim. It also discusses the Ibn Ezra’s interpretation of this passuk.

Rashi (10:22) gives two reasons the Makah of Choshech. This episode raises a few problems on these reasons. Answering these questions reveals new insight into this makah and into the steps needed to enable yitzias mitzrayim.

What is the place of emuna, trust in HaShem, in a Torah life?

In a letter my mother A”H wrote before a potentially life-ending surgery, she wrote, “Enjoy and cherish every day- don’t worry so much about tomorrow - on what might or might not happen. Do the best you can - but-- if you focus your worry on tomorrow - it makes you lose today AND tomorrow-- If something bad is going to happen it will happen you won’t be able to deny it- at least you have today and so many wonderful things happen in today.”

This episode deals with the difficulty of practically internalizing this attitude based upon an analysis of Sotah 48a-b regarding Men of Emuna. One difficult statement in that Gemara which we take up is: “Whoever has bread in his basket to eat today and says, ‘What will I eat tomorrow?’ is nothing other than from those of little faith.”

When the Torah describes the plague of frogs, we find two strange Rashis: 1) in 7:29, he says that the frogs went into the Egyptians’ bellies and croaked. 2) in 8:2, he says that it started with one frog, which continued to multiply as they hit it. Are these meant to be literal? This episode tries to: explain these midrashim, look more closely at the pesukim themselves, and get some deeper insights into this plague.