Torah Parallels

~ Something to Think About ~ פרשת יתרו Parsha Stumpers By: Daniel Listhaus What did Yisro hear that no one else did? According to the one who holds that Yisro was attracted by the fact that B'nei Yisroel won the war against Amalek , what was so special about it? Granted they were untrained, but still the B'nei Yisroel had an army of 600,000 men between 20 and 60. Certainly it couldn't have been such a tremendous surprise that they won. Rashi writes that Yisro had 7 names. One of them was Yeser – which became Yisro after he converted. If so, didn't Yisro really only have 6 names at any given time? Yisro is called Choveiv because of his love for the Torah. Why did Yisro receive such a name any more than Moshe, Aharon, or any of Bnei Yisroel in the midbar? (18:2) Rashi sounds good in the broad sense but what specifically was Aharon worried about? Moshe’s wife and children would not have become slaves? Moshe was from shevet

~ Thoughts on the Parsha ~ Parshas Yisro The Ten Commandments: A Pangrammatic Lipogram By: Daniel Listhaus וַיְדַבֵּר אֱלֹ ק ים אֵת כָּל הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה לֵאמֹר : אָנֹכִי ה' אֱלֹ ק יךָ אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִיךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם מִבֵּית עֲבָדִים : לֹא יִהְיֶה לְךָ אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים עַל פָּנַי : לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה לְּךָ פֶסֶל | וְכָל תְּמוּנָה אֲשֶׁר בַּשָּׁמַיִם | מִמַּעַל וַאֲשֶׁר בָּאָרֶץ מִתַּחַת וַאֲשֶׁר בַּמַּיִם | מִתַּחַת לָאָרֶץ : לֹא תִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לָהֶם וְלֹא תָעָבְדֵם כִּי אָנֹכִי ה ' אֱלֹקיךָ אֵל קַנָּא פֹּקֵד עֲוֹן אָבוֹת עַל בָּנִים עַל שִׁלֵּשִׁים וְעַל רִבֵּעִים לְשׂנְאָי : וְעֹשֶׂה חֶסֶד לַאֲלָפִים לְאֹהֲבַי וּלְשֹׁמְרֵי מִצְוֹתָי : לֹא תִשָּׂא אֶת שֵׁם ה ' אֱלֹקיךָ לַשָּׁוְא כִּי לֹא יְנַקֶּה ה ' אֵת אֲשֶׁר יִשָּׂא אֶת שְׁמוֹ לַשָּׁוְא : זָכוֹר אֶת יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת לְקַדְּשׁוֹ : שֵׁשֶׁת יָמִים תַּעֲבֹד וְעָשִׂיתָ כָל מְלַאכְתֶּךָ : וְיוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי שַׁבָּת | לַה ' אֱלֹקיךָ לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה כָל מְלָאכָה אַתָּה | וּבִנְךָ וּבִתֶּךָ עַבְדְּךָ וַאֲמָת

~ Thoughts on the Parsha ~ Parshas Beshalach True Tests and Calculated Conclusions By: Daniel Listhaus וַיְהִי בְּשַׁלַּח פַּרְעֹה אֶת הָעָם וְלֹא נָחָם אֱלֹהִים דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ פְּלִשְׁתִּים כִּי קָרוֹב הוּא כִּי אָמַר אֱלֹקים פֶּן יִנָּחֵם הָעָם בִּרְאֹתָם מִלְחָמָה וְשָׁבוּ מִצְרָיְמָה : וַיַּסֵּב אֱלֹקים אֶת הָעָם דֶּרֶךְ הַמִּדְבָּר יַם סוּף וַחֲמֻשִׁים עָלוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם : וַיִּקַּח משֶׁה אֶת עַצְמוֹת יוֹסֵף עִמּוֹ כִּי הַשְׁבֵּעַ הִשְׁבִּיעַ אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר פָּקֹד יִפְקֹד אֱלֹקים אֶתְכֶם וְהַעֲלִיתֶם אֶת עַצְמֹתַי מִזֶּה אִתְּכֶם “It happened when Pharoah sent the people [from Egypt] that Hashem did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, because it was near, for Hashem said, 'Perhaps the people will reconsider when they see a war and they will return to Egypt.' And Hashem took the people around toward the way of the Wilderness to the Sea of Reeds. And the Children of Israel were armed when they went up from Egypt. Moshe

~ Something to Think About ~ פרשת בא Parsha Stumpers By: Daniel Listhaus (10:7-11) Pharoah’s advisors told him to let the men go, and Pharaoh himself was willing to let the men go. If so, why did he ask Moshe “ mi va’mi ha’hol’chim – who is going?” Why not just tell them at the onset that he as only willing to let the men go? (10:17) Why by this makka did Pharaoh ask Moshe to daven to remove it “from me”? (10:22) Rashi writes that during choshech – the wicked who did not wan to leave mitzrayim were killed. Who were these wicked who did not want to leave and why would they want to stay? Why did their wanting to stay warrant labeling them as reshaim ? (10:26) The Torah is unclear what would have happened oif Pharaoh would have let the B’nei Yisroel go? Would they have come back after “they went to serve Hashem”? Why didn't Dasan and Aviram die during makkas choshech ? After Pharoah tells Moshe, “Never come back...”, Moshe says,

~ Thoughts on the Parsha ~ Parshas Bo Anti Ambidextrous Ambitions By: Daniel Listhaus וְהָיָה לְאוֹת עַל יָדְכָה וּלְטוֹטָפֹת בֵּין עֵינֶיךָ כִּי בְּחֹזֶק יָד הוֹצִיאָנוּ ה ' מִמִּצְרָיִם “And it shall be a sign upon your arm, and for totafos between your eyes, for with a strong hand Hashem removed us from Mitzrayim.” - Bo 13:16 The Ramban [1] points out that so many of the mitzvos we do serve in some way as a ( zeicher ) remembrance of Hashem taking us out of Mitzrayim . Indeed, the makkos (plagues) in Mitzrayim continuing with yetzias Mitzrayim (exodus from Egypt) and kriyas Yam Suf (splitting of the Red Sea), and ultimately culminating with mattan Torah (receiving the Torah), serve as a timeless certificate for us that Hashem is the borei (creator) and manhig (controller) of the world and that we are His chosen people to lead a life of keeping Torah and mitzvos . One of the many mitzvos we do daily which remind of us yetzias Mitzrayim is the donning of the tefillin , a m