Torah Parallels

~ Thoughts on The Parsha ~ Parshas Shelach Who Are You Going to Believe, Me or Your Own Eyes? וְשָׁם רָאִינוּ אֶת הַנְּפִילִים בְּנֵי עֲנָק מִן הַנְּפִלִים וַנְּהִי בְעֵינֵינוּ כַּחֲגָבִים וְכֵן הָיִינוּ בְּעֵינֵיהֶם “...And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, descendents of giants. We were like grasshoppers in our eyes, and so we were in their eyes!” -Shelach  13:33             This week's  parsha  opens with Hashem's response to the  B'nei Yisroel's  request to send spies to scout  Eretz Yisroel . Hashem said to Moshe, “...send forth for yourself men...” [1]  As  Rashi [2]   comments, Hashem was not pleased with the idea of sending the  meraglim  (spies). After all, He promised us that  Eretz Yisroel  was good. What more of a guarantee could we possibly ask for? What better evidence could we possibly discover? Yet, Hashem allowed us to send in spies despite our inexcusable uncertainty and persistence.                          Rashi [3

~ Thoughts on The Parsha ~ Parshas Beha'aloscha Everyone Needs Encouragement וַיֹּאמֶר ה' פִּתְאֹם אֶל משֶׁה וְאֶל אַהֲרֹן וְאֶל מִרְיָם צְאוּ שְׁלָשְׁתְּכֶם אֶל אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וַיֵּצְאוּ שְׁלָשְׁתָּם :  וַיֵּרֶד ה' בְּעַמּוּד עָנָן וַיַּעֲמֹד פֶּתַח הָאֹהֶל וַיִּקְרָא אַהֲרֹן וּמִרְיָם וַיֵּצְאוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם “Hashem said suddenly to Moshe, to Aharon, and to Miriam, ' You three, go out to the Tent of Meeting.' And the three of them went out. Hashem descended in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance to the Tent, and He called, 'Aharon and Miriam'; and the two of them went out.” - Beha'aloscha  12:4-5             After giving us the Torah at  Har Sinai , Hashem was ready to take us straight into  Eretz Yisroel . [1] However, if there was ever a time to use the expression “so close but yet so far”, it was then. Despite the fact that  B'nei Yisroel  seemed to have everything living with the  shechina  in their midst, the Torah re