Chukat Balak: Zemer of The Week

 

 

 

In Parshat Balak, Bilaam intends to curse Bnei Yisrael, but instead he is moved to bless them. His most famous blessing begins with these words:

 

Chazal explain that what impressed Bilaam was not military strength or wealth, but the way the Jewish people built their homes – with privacy, dignity, and respect for one another.

 

Just as the WoW explores the beauty of private greatness and the sacred boundaries of a Jewish home, Mah Tovu reminds us that some of the deepest blessings in life are found not in what we display publicly, but in what we build and protect within.

It is a song about home – and about what makes a home truly beautiful.

 

The zemer for this week: מזמור לדוד ד' רעי

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg0xVi3xyMU&list=RDWg0xVi3xyMU&start_radio=1
 

Central elements of this parsha include the purification process with the Para Adumah, the passing of Miryam (and the Well of Miryam), the passing of Aharon, and Moshe’s hitting the rock.

 

Some of the zemer’s connections to the parsha:

·   Last line: 

"ושבתי בבית ד' לאורך ימים" (“and I shall dwell in the House of Hashem for the length of days”) – the Targum says that the House of Hashem refers to the Beit Hamikdash.  The parsha refers to the Beit Hamikdash in at least three places.

o Rashi (to Bamidbar 19:4) explains that the description of the Para Adumah process is referring to the Beit Hamikdash in Yerushalayim, as does the reference to “Mikdash” in Bamidbar 19:20.

o Regarding the justice that Hashem delivered due to Mei Meriva, Rashi derives from Tehillim 68:36 (about the Beit Hamikdash) that Hashem is sanctified when he carries out judgment.

·   4^th line:
“שבטך ומשענתך” (“Your rod and Your staff”) – Moshe’s staff played a central role in his hitting the rock (Bamidbar 20:8).

·   4^th line:
“המה ינחמוני” (“they console me”) – Rashi (to Bamidbar 20:25) says that when Aharon was preparing to pass away, Moshe provided him with Divrei Nichumim (words of consolation) by pointing out that Aharon’s son would succeed him, something that would not be true for Moshe himself.

o More generally, the Gemara (Taanit 9a) delves into the connection between the passing of each of Miryam, Aharon, and Moshe, and how each of those events affected Bnai Yisrael.

·  2^nd line:
“מי מנחות” (“tranquil waters”) – When Miryam died, Bnei Yisrael lost the well that had accompanied them in the desert, providing the water that they needed (Bamidbar 20:1-2).

o Soon after, Moshe summoned water from the rock (Bamidbar 20:8).

o 1^st line:
“ד' רעי; לא אחסר” (“Hashem is my shepherd; I shall not lack”) –Midrash Shocher Tov says that this refers to Hashem’s providing Bnei Yisroel with sustenance in the desert.

§ 2^nd line:
“בנאות דשא” (“in lush meadows”) – More specifically, says Midrash Shocher Tov, the Well of Miryam turned desert waste into luxurious meadows.

 

Balak Zemer
The zemer for this week: אמר ד׳ ליעקב

 

This zemer reassures Bnei Yisrael (“Bnei Yaakov”) that Hashem will never allow it to be doomed. It does so by using pesukim or paraphrases from Tanach in which Hashem provides our ancestors with such reassurances.  Six of the 22 pesukim – the highest by far of any part of Tanach – come from Parshat Balak, from the mouth of Bilaam. 

 

The central element of this parsha is the blessings that Bilaam (involuntarily) gave Bnei Yisrael.

 

Those pesukim are as follows:

·   Line #4: “דרך כוכב מיעקב” (“A star will emerge from Yaakov”) – From Bamidbar 24:17.

·   Line #6: “וירד מיעקב” (“A ruler will arise from Yaakov”) – From Bamidbar 24:19.

·   Line #9: “טובו אהליך יעקב” (“Your tents are good, Yaakov”) – From Bamidbar 24:5.

·   Line #11: “כי לא נחש ביעקב” (“Because there is no sorcery in Yaakov”) – From Bamidbar 23:23.

·   Line #12: “לא הביט עוון ביעקב” (“He perceives no wrong in Yaakov”) – From Bamidbar 23:21.

·   Line #13: “מי מנה עפר יעקב” (“Who can count the dust of Yaakov?”) – From Bamidbar 23:10.