One Hundred Words on the Parshah
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One Hundred Words on the Parshah
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HOME > VIEW BY PARSHA > BEHAALOSCHA
Parshas Behaaloscha
“When you go to wage war in your land against an enemy who oppresses you, you shall blow trumpets (chatzotzros) before Hashem your God and you shall be saved from your foes.” (Bamidbar 10:9)
On Rosh Hashana we are required to recite ten Biblical verses that speak about shofar in the Shofros section of Tefilas Musaf. One of the verses that we recite comes from this week’s Torah portion (immediately after the verse quoted above):
וביום שמחתכם ובמועדיכם ובראשי חדשיכם ותקעתם בחצצרת על עלתיכם ועל זבחי שלמיכם והיו לכם לזכרון לפני אלקיכם אני ה' אלקיכם
“Also on the day of your gladness and your festivals and new moons you shall blow trumpets over your elevation offerings and the slaughterings of your peace offerings and they shall be to you a memorial before your God, I am Hashem, your God.”
The use of this verse seems anomalous, in that it doesn’t mention shofar at all, but only the chatzotzros. For this reason, some rishonim (Ramban, Rabbeinu Yonah) did not recite this verse but substituted other verses in its place. (See Rosh, Rosh Hashana 4:3, and Avudarham)
Rav Henkin defends the established custom to recite this verse by theorizing that, in addition to the mitzvah of shofar on Rosh Hashana, there is also a requirement to blow chatzotzros, because the שטן is like an oppressive enemy (צר הצרר) against whom we are waging war, and we blow the trumpets so that we “shall be saved from [our] foes.”
Rav Henkin explains that the mitzvah of shofar is fulfilled by blowing shofar prior to Tefillas Musaf and the chatzotzros were blown either during the Tefila or during chazaras hashatz. Using a shofar in place of the chatzotzros (as we do today) is considered a viable alternative.
Accordingly, the use of a verse about the chatzotzros in Shofros is acceptable because there was also a mitzvah blow chatzotzros on Rosh Hashana.
After the משכן was completed, the twelve נשיאים brought their קרבנות, one each day. The מדרש states that אהרון הכהן felt bad for not being given the same opportunity as the twelve נשיאים. Hashem comforted him with the command to light the מנורה on a constant basis. This would be a greater act than the sacrifices by the נשיאים. The חזקוני quotes the מדרש and points out that אהרוןwas told to light the מנורה already on the day the first נשיא brought his קרבן. It would seem that אהרון had already anticipated the rest of the קרבנות and therefore, felt bad. At that point it was appropriate to comfort him immediately.
A takeaway: We should anticipate people’s hurt early on and fix it as soon as possible “with light”.
All learning should be a zechus for a refuah shelaimah for Yosef Ezriel Ben Chaya Michal