FREE BOOK FROM SIVAN RACHAV MEIR ON
LORD JONATHAN SACHS ZTZAL
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Finding
the right person in the Shidduch by Rachamim Pauli
Taking the Torah as our guide we see two things in last
week’s and this week’s Parsha. And even next week’s Parsha. First Yitzchak,
then Esav and then Yacov. A woman/man from a good family. Character traits of
the person involved. Yitzchak was certainly a good family to marry into but his
great grandson from Esav, Amalek did not carry on the good character traits of
Avraham and Yitchak.
24:1 And Abraham was old, well stricken in age; and the LORD had
blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said unto his servant, the elder
of his house, that ruled over all that he had: 'Put, I pray thee, thy hand
under my thigh. 3 And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and
the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife for my son of the
daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell. 4 But thou shalt go unto my
country, and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son, even for Isaac.'
Rav Shach Ztzal used to
tell his students to avoid a woman who is stubborn or self-aggrandizing – R’
Yoseph Tzvi Ben Porat Shlita. Family background is more important than money as
one wants a woman from a good family with good Middos (internal personality
qualities such a mercy, compassion, charitable, etc. ).
5 And the servant said unto him: 'Peradventure the woman will not
be willing to follow me unto this land; must I needs bring thy son back unto
the land from whence thou came?'
Avraham specifies to
Eliezer to take a woman from his family. Eliezer says fine, assuming that I
find a proper woman from your family for Yitzchak, what happens if she is not
interested in making Aliyah to Eretz Yisrael.
6 And Abraham said unto him: 'Beware thou that thou bring not my
son back thither. 7 The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's
house, and from the land of my nativity, and who spoke unto me, and who swore
unto me, saying: Unto thy seed will I give this land; He will send His angel
before thee, and thou shalt take a wife for my son from thence.
Avraham has faith after
all he has spoken to G-D and Angels and has been told that Yitzchak will have
seed. Therefore, on prophecy and faith alone, Avraham knows that there will be
a woman for Yitzchak. If not now, then sometime in the future.
8 And if the woman be not willing to follow thee, then thou shalt
be clear from this my oath; only thou shalt not bring my son back thither.'
My son, the perfect
Korban for the Mizbayach, shall not leave the Kedusha of Eretz Yisrael.
9 And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his
master, and swore to him concerning this matter. 10 And the servant took ten
camels, of the camels of his master, and departed; having all goodly things of
his master's in his hand; and he arose, and went to Aram-naharaim, unto the
city of Nahor.
He grabbed his Bris
Kodesh and swore on the holiness of Bris Avraham with HASHEM.
11 And he made the camels to kneel down without the city by the
well of water at the time of evening, the time that women go out to draw water.
12 And he said: 'O LORD, the God of my master Abraham, send me, I pray Thee,
good speed this day, and show kindness unto my master Abraham.
Good Speed: The Midrash
tells that the journey of Eliezer took 3 hours instead of 17 days by laden
camels.
13 Behold, I stand by the fountain of water; and the daughters of
the men of the city come out to draw water. 14 So let it come to pass, that the
damsel to whom I shall say: Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may
drink; and she shall say: Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also; let the
same be she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant, even for Isaac; and
thereby shall I know that Thou hast shown kindness unto my master.'
The prayer of Eliezer
came from the heart but not from the brain. He had faith. HASHEM read the heart
and answered him properly. What would have happened if the woman who came was
lame, a kind hearted prostitute to the old servant, if she was blind or had a
criminal back ground with Nimrod as her father or so. Being the servant and
messenger of Avraham and prepared for miracles with a pure heart, faith and
love; HASHEM would answer him correctl.y
15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold,
Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor,
Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. 16 And the damsel was
very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her; and she went
down to the fountain, and filled her pitcher, and came up.
She was attractive, a
virgin who was not one of these “virgins in name only”. The water rose towards
her.
17 And the servant ran to meet her, and said: 'Give me to drink, I
pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher.' 18 And she said: 'Drink, my lord';
and she hastened, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.
19 And when she had done giving him drink, she said: 'I will draw for thy
camels also, until they have done drinking.'
She had the quality of
Chesed (Mercy) that Avraham had towards guests and strangers.
20 And she hastened, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and
ran again unto the well to draw, and drew for all his camels. 21 And the man
looked stedfastly on her; holding his peace, to know whether the LORD had made
his journey prosperous or not.
Like Avraham with the
visiting idolatrists (Angels), she hastened, said little and delivered much.
22 And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the
man took a golden ring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands
of ten shekels weight of gold; 23 and said: 'Whose daughter art thou? tell me,
I pray thee. Is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in?'
She has passed the
prayer test of Eliezer but now comes the real nitty-gritty test and that is
Avraham’s requirement for a good family to marry his son.
24 And she said unto him: 'I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of
Milcah, whom she bore unto Nahor.' 25 She said moreover unto him: 'We have both
straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.'
I am from a proper and
close family and we can host you.
26 And the man bowed his head, and prostrated himself before the
LORD. 27 And he said: 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who
hath not forsaken His mercy and His truth toward my master; as for me, the LORD
hath led me in the way to the house of my master's brethren.'
He is praising HASHEM
even if the mission is not complete as he has had personal guidance from
HASHEM.
28 And the damsel ran, and told her mother's house according to
these words. 29 And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban; and Laban
ran out unto the man, unto the fountain. 30 And it came to pass, when he saw
the ring, and the bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the
words of Rebekah his sister, saying: 'Thus spoke the man unto me,' that he came
unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the fountain.
Lavan has ran to the
well-spring. He is looking for reward and wants either to ambush Eliezer or get
some price out of him for Rivka in gold.
31 And he said: 'Come in, thou blessed of the LORD; wherefore are
you standing without? for I have cleared
the house, and made room for the camels.'
The Pshat here is a
welcoming one like a member of Avraham’s family for hospitality. It is only the
Midrash that knows his wicked and rotten person he would become in the future. However,
the rules of learning also require Pshat and maybe Lavan did not yet become the
person we know of at the end of next week’s Parsha.
32 And the man came into the house, and he ungirded the camels; and
he gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the
feet of the men that were with him. 33 And there was set food before him to
eat; but he said: 'I will not eat, until I have told mine errand.'
There is a Midrash here
that states Lavan tried to poison Eliezer and the plate of Bethuel and that is
why Lavan negotiates instead of his father. It could be that Bethuel was losing
his facilities and Lavan was given the task instead of his father. In the
Midrash Bethuel eats the poison, dies and Lavan takes over.
And he said: 'Speak on.' 34 And he said: 'I am Abraham's servant.
35 And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great; and He
hath given him flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and men-servants and
maid-servants, and camels and asses. 36 And Sarah my master's wife bore a son
to my master when she was old; and unto him hath he given all that he hath. 37
And my master made me swear, saying: Thou shalt not take a wife for my son of
the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell. 38 But thou shalt go
unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son. 39 And I
said unto my master: Peradventure the woman will not follow me. 40 And he said
unto me: The LORD, before whom I walk, will send His angel with thee, and
prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my
father's house; 41 then shalt thou be clear from my oath, when thou come to my
kindred; and if they give her not to thee, thou shalt be clear from my oath. 42
And I came this day unto the fountain, and said: O LORD, the God of my master
Abraham, if now Thou do prosper my way which I go:
Eliezer has told the
story of Avram to Avraham, his journey and its purpose. So if you don’t want
Rivka to marry, send me to part of the family that can supply a proper Shidduch
for Yitzchak.
43 behold, I stand by the
fountain of water; and let it come to pass, that the maiden that cometh forth
to draw, to whom I shall say: Give me, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher
to drink; 44 and she shall say to me: Both drink thou, and I will also draw for
thy camels; let the same be the woman whom the LORD hath appointed for my
master's son. 45 And before I had done speaking to my heart, behold, Rebekah
came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the
fountain, and drew. And I said unto her: Let me drink, I pray thee. 46 And she
made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said: Drink, and I
will give thy camels drink also. So I drank, and she made the camels drink
also. 47 And I asked her, and said: Whose daughter art thou? And she said: The
daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bore unto him. And I put the ring
upon her nose, and the bracelets upon her hands.
So he has told of the
prayer, the miraculous fulfillment with Rivka.
48 And I bowed my head, and prostrated myself before the LORD, and
blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the right way
to take my master's brother's daughter for his son. 49 And now if ye will deal
kindly and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me; that I may turn
to the right hand, or to the left.'
Please tell me if you
think Rivka is good for my master or not.
50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said: 'The thing proceeds
from the LORD; we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. 51 Behold, Rebekah is
before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the
LORD hath spoken.' 52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard
their words, he bowed himself down to the earth unto the LORD. 53 And the
servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and
gave them to Rebekah; he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious
things. 54 And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and
tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said: 'Send me away
unto my master.'
There is a possibility
that Lavan answer before or with Bethuel. The possibility is happened like the present
King of the Saudis and his youngest son is the crown prince. Like Mohammed ben
Salman, Lavan speaks in the name of Bethuel and not that Bethuel died.
55 And her brother and her mother said: 'Let the damsel abide with
us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.' 56 And he said unto
them: 'Delay me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I
may go to my master.' 57 And they said: 'We will call the damsel, and inquire
at her mouth.'
Then after the
negotiations end, Eliezer seeing success wants that she would come with him now
and they want a delay. It is now up to Rivka to have the finally word for she
has been married through the money exchange. {The first Mishnah in Meseches
Kiddushin (Talmud of Marriage) is how a man acquires a wife. 1) Money – today
the ring, 2) contract – the Ketuvah and 3) Marital Relations which can only be
consummated when she goes to Yitzchak.
58 And they called Rebekah, and said unto her: 'Wilt thou go with
this man?' And she said: 'I will go.' 59 And they sent away Rebekah their
sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.
Her nurse, Devorah, who
remained with her and served Yacov on his journey to and fro from Lavan. We are
not told this into Parsha Vayishlach.
60 And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her: 'Our sister, be
thou the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let thy seed possess the
gate of those that hate them.'
A lovely blessing for
their sister.
61 And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the
camels, and followed the man. And the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.
62 And Isaac came from the way of Beer-lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the land of
the South. 63 And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide; and
he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, there were camels coming. 64 And
Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she alighted from the
camel. 65 And she said unto the servant: 'What man is this that walketh in the
field to meet us?' And the servant said: 'It is my master.' And she took her
veil, and covered herself.
It is possible for a
married woman in front of her children and servants to go without her hair and
face covered but now for meeting her husband she wants to show that she is
modest.
66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67
And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she
became his wife; and he loved her. And Isaac was comforted for his mother.
Unlike the story book
love of Yacov with Rachel, Yitzchak first married and he learned to love her
and be comforted for his mother. We do not see the fairy-tale type of love but
we do see a married partnership with mutual respect and the beginning of a
functionary family.
The different types of
Shidduchim in the Torah for our own ideas of love and marriage. 1) Avraham: The
importance of marrying somebody from a good family and perhaps similar family.
2) Eliezer: Quality personality. 3) Esav in this week’s Parsha marries Mahalath
the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son like a prince marrying a cousin who is a
princess (European Royalty or Diana Spencer with Prince Charles) to produce
proper heirs for mother and father similar to the standard that Avraham uses.
4) Yacov’s marriages that are different. Rachel is a fairy-tale type of romance
but unfortunately with the birth of Benyamin it ends. Bilhah and Zilpah become
his wives through sister rivalry and there seems to be a connection
romantically with Bilhah. Leah is a forced marriage by her father but there is
love. He consults with both Leah and Rachel regarding Lavan and he must have
loved her to seek his eternal rest next to her in the Machpelah but it is not
the shooting stars and lightning with Rachel but the maturing love like
Yitzchak and Rivka.
Parsha Toldos
These are the
generations of Yitzchak. Yitzchak was married at 40 years of Age and Avraham
140. Only when Avraham reached 160 did he see grandchildren from Yitzchak.
Yishmael had produced a lot of children by then. But his physical and spiritual
Heir would come from Yitzchak.
25:19 And these
are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begot Isaac. 20 And Isaac
was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean,
of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife.
Rivka and Yitzchak
married and we see that she comforted him and then he loved her from last
week’s Parsha
21 And Isaac entreated the LORD for his wife, because she was
barren; and the LORD let Himself be entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife
conceived. 22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said: 'If
it be so, wherefore do I live?' And she went to inquire of the LORD.
All three of the Avos
dealt with barren wives and prayed. Eventually a child or in our case, twins,
were to be born.
23 And the LORD said unto her: Two nations are in thy womb, and two
peoples shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be
stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. 24 And
when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her
womb. 25 And the first came forth ruddy, all over like a hairy mantle; and they
called his name Esau. 26 And after that came forth his brother, and his hand
had hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob. And Isaac was
threescore years old when she bore them.
What was the inquiry?
When Rivka passed by a Beis Midrash of HASHEM, Yacov kicked inside. When she
passed by an idol’s house/building/altar, Esav kicked inside. Once she knew
that it was not a crazy child with a split personality but two children. One
with soul of a Tzadik and one with a soul of live drink and be merry for
tomorrow we die.
27 And the boys grew; and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the
field; and Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents. 28 Now Isaac loved Esau,
because he did eat of his venison; and Rebekah loved Jacob.
That is the difference
between a father and a mother. The father sees the boys/men in practical terms.
The mother sees the personality traits and Yacov is better than his brother
with truth and fear of G-D.
29 And Jacob sod pottage; and Esau came in from the field, and he
was faint. 30 And Esau said to Jacob: 'Let me swallow, I pray thee, some of
this red, red pottage; for I am faint.' Therefore was his name called Edom. 31
And Jacob said: 'Sell me first thy birthright.'
This was the day that
Avraham died and Yitzchak was in mourning. Yacov prepared round items
symbolizing reincarnation – Lentils, beans, chick peas, eggs and rolls. Esav
was out hunting. On that day he ate a limb from a living animal before the
slaughter was completed. He shot and killed Nimrod and he saw a betrothed
maiden (married without being yet with her husband) and raped her. He also
worshipped a strange god and one other thing that my memory fails me today.
32 And Esau said: 'Behold, I am at the point to die; and what
profit shall the birthright do to me?' 33 And Jacob said: 'Swear to me first';
and he swore unto him; and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
Esav was far from dying
but wanted things in the here and now no tales about the inheritance in the
next world.
34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat
and drink, and rose up, and went his way. So Esau despised his birthright.
The contract between
them was that Yacov wanted inheritance of title, the next world would go to
Yacov with a base for existence in this world. Esav would inherit this world.
26:1 And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine
that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the
Philistines unto Gerar. 2 And the LORD appeared unto him, and said: 'Go not
down unto Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of. 3 Sojourn in
this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and
unto thy seed, I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which
I swore unto Abraham thy father;
Just as the holy Korban,
Yitzchak, cannot leave to go to Rivka so to with the famine. He can only find a
better place in the land to be.
4 and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will
give unto thy seed all these lands; and by thy seed shall all the nations of
the earth bless themselves; 5 because that Abraham hearkened to My voice, and
kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.'
You will have millions
upon millions of descendants.
6 And Isaac dwelt in Gerar. 7 And the men of the place asked him of
his wife; and he said: 'She is my sister'; for he feared to say: 'My wife';
'lest the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah, because she is fair to
look upon.'
This happened with
Avraham “because there is no fear of G-D in this place” and Yitzchak sees the
same.
8 And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that
Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold,
Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife. 9 And Abimelech called Isaac, and
said: 'Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how said thou: She is my
sister?' And Isaac said unto him: 'Because I said: Lest I die because of her.'
He caught them in game
and a romantic embrace. So Yitzchak now states the truth.
10 And Abimelech said: 'What is this thou hast done unto us? one of
the people might easily have lain with thy wife, and thou would have brought
guiltiness upon us.'
Of course my town is
like the worst of Chicago, South Bronx, Inglewood Las Angeles, etc.
11 And Abimelech charged all the people, saying: 'He that touches
this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.'
I, the king, command:
stay away from this man’s wife.
12 And Isaac sowed in that land, and found in the same year a
hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him.
HASHEM blessed Yitzchak
with abundance.
13 And the man waxed great, and grew more and more until he became
very great. 14 And he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and
a great household; and the Philistines envied him. 15 Now all the wells which
his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the
Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. 16 And Abimelech said
unto Isaac: 'Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.'
Jealousy of what would
be known as Jewish Ingenuity.
17 And Isaac departed thence, and encamped in the valley of Gerar,
and dwelt there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water, which they had dug
in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after
the death of Abraham; and he called their names after the names by which his
father had called them. 19 And Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and found
there a well of living water. 20 And the herdsmen of Gerar strove with Isaac's herdsmen,
saying: 'The water is ours.' And he called the name of the well Esek; because
they contended with him.
Ok, it is clear you don’t
want me. Therefore, I will dig wells in areas that my father dug previous. But
it seems that I belonged according to the local UN to the Plishtim even though
it said “Property of Avraham” on it.
21 And they dug another
well, and they strove for that also. And he called the name of it Sitnah.
The same UN, the same
Plishtim and Yitzchak lost again.
22 And he removed from thence, and dug another well; and for that
they strove not. And he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said: 'For now
the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.'
Until he came to a third
well further and the Plishtim no longer bothered to claim the land that was not
theirs .
23 And he went up from thence to Beer-Sheba. 24 And the LORD
appeared unto him the same night, and said: 'I am the God of Abraham thy
father. Fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy
seed for My servant Abraham's sake.' 25 And he built an altar there, and called
upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's
servants dug a well. 26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath his
friend, and Phicol the captain of his host. 27 And Isaac said unto them:
'Wherefore are ye come unto me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from
you?'
Oops Ferdinand and Isabella
released that they had ruined their financial base). Now they realized that it
was Yitzchak’s G-D that had blessed him.
28 And they said: 'We saw plainly that the LORD was with thee; and
we said: Let there now be an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let
us make a covenant with thee; 29 that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not
touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent
thee away in peace; thou art now the blessed of the LORD.' 30 And he made them
a feast, and they did eat and drink. 31 And they rose up betimes in the
morning, and swore one to another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed
from him in peace. 32 And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac's servants
came, and told him concerning the well which they had dug, and said unto him:
'We have found water.' 33 And he called it Shiba. Therefore the name of the
city is Beer-Sheba unto this day.
More or less he was
forced into a ‘peace agreement’ in which he had no benefit from it.
34 And when Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith the
daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite.
35 And they were a bitterness of spirit unto Isaac and to Rebekah.
If at the age of 15 Esav
raped a woman, don’t think for one minute that he was a Tzadik. Only he waited until
he was 40 to impress his father, who married at 40. But who wants their son
married to these women of bad family and with bad character traits to raise
their future generations. His great grand children would one day crucify Jews,
stab them, leave their naked bodies and entrails in the streets.
27:1 And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes
were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son, and said unto
him: 'My son'; and he said unto him: 'Here am I.' 2 And he said: 'Behold now, I
am old, I know not the day of my death. 3 Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy
weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me venison;
4 and make me savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat;
that my soul may bless thee before I die.'
His mother had died at
the age 127 and he was turning 123 and wanted to bless his favorite son perhaps
Yacov too before he died.
5 And Rebekah heard when
Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison,
and to bring it. 6 And Rebekah spoke unto Jacob her son, saying: 'Behold, I
heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying: 7 Bring me venison, and
make me savory food, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my
death. 8 Now therefore, my son, hearken to my voice according to that which I
command thee. 9 Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of
the goats; and I will make them savory food for thy father, such as he loveth;
10 and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, so that he may bless
thee before his death.'
Rivka sees and hears
what is going on. She is sharp and knows very well her boys. This no-good hunter
with the idolatresses for wives does not deserve the blessing of Avraham but
the Talmud Chacham does.
11 And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: 'Behold, Esau my brother
is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12 My father peradventure will feel me,
and I shall seem to him as a mocker; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not
a blessing.' 13 And his mother said unto him: 'Upon me be thy curse, my son;
only hearken to my voice, and go fetch me them.'
I am with a smooth body,
what you see on me is what you get no tricks of one kind or other.
14 And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother; and
his mother made savory food, such as his father loved. 15 And Rebekah took the
choicest garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and
put them upon Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the kids of
the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck.
She made like gloves for
his hand and a garment for his neck.
17 And she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had
prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. 18 And he came unto his father, and
said: 'My father'; and he said: 'Here am I; who art thou, my son?' 19 And Jacob
said unto his father: 'I am Esau thy first-born; I have done according as thou
bade me. Arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless
me.'
We should read it like
this: Who are you my son? I am (thy son), Esav is your first born.
20 And Isaac said unto his son: 'How is it that thou hast found it
so quickly, my son?' And he said: 'Because the LORD thy God sent me good
speed.' 21 And Isaac said unto Jacob: 'Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel
thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.' 22 And Jacob went near
unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said: 'The voice is the voice of Jacob,
but the hands are the hands of Esau.'
You sound a lot like Yacov but you have hairy and rough
hands like Esav.
23 And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his
brother Esau's hands; so he blessed him. 24 And he said: 'Art thou my very son
Esau?' And he said: 'I am.' 25 And he said: 'Bring it near to me, and I will
eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee.' And he brought it near
to him, and he did eat; and he brought him wine, and he drank.
I had help from heaven
like Eliezer in his time.
26 And his father Isaac said unto him: 'Come near now, and kiss me,
my son.' 27 And he came near, and kissed him. And he smelled the smell of his
raiment, and blessed him, and said: See, the smell of my son is as the smell of
a field which the LORD hath blessed.
The garment had the
smell of Esav’s garment not that of sheep, goats and Yacov.
28 So God give thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fat places of
the earth, and plenty of corn and wine. 29 Let peoples serve thee, and nations
bow down to thee. Be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down
to thee. Cursed be every one that curses thee, and blessed be every one that
blesses thee. 30 And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of
blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac
his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
He got the blessing of
Avraham with dew from heaven and then the fat of the earth. Esav would get the
blessing of the fat of the earth first.
31 And he also made savory food, and brought it unto his father;
and he said unto his father: 'Let my father arise, and eat of his son's
venison, that thy soul may bless me.' 32 And Isaac his father said unto him:
'Who art thou?' And he said: 'I am thy son, thy first-born, Esau.' 33 And Isaac
trembled very exceedingly, and said: 'Who then is he that hath taken venison,
and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou came, and have blessed
him? yea, and he shall be blessed.' 34 When Esau heard the words of his father,
he cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry, and said unto his father:
'Bless me, even me also, O my father.'
Trembled Pshat – he realized
his mistake – Drash – he saw Gehennom for Esav in the future.
35 And he said: 'Thy brother came with guile, and hath taken away
thy blessing.' 36 And he said: 'Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath
supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he
hath taken away my blessing.' And he said: 'Hast thou not reserved a blessing
for me?'
Yitzchak did not know of
the sale of his birthright unto now.
37 And Isaac answered and said unto Esau: 'Behold, I have made him
thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn
and wine have I sustained him; and what then shall I do for thee, my son?' 38
And Esau said unto his father: 'Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless
me, even me also, O my father.' And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. 39 And
Isaac his father answered and said unto him: Behold, of the fat places of the
earth shall be thy dwelling, and of the dew of heaven from above; 40 And by thy
sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to
pass when thou shalt break loose, that thou shalt shake his yoke from off thy
neck. 41 And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed
him. And Esau said in his heart: 'Let the days of mourning for my father be at
hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.'
His hatred and cry would end up in the days of
Mordechai who cried a great cry from the great grandson of Amalek, Haman.
42 And the words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah; and
she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him: 'Behold, thy
brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee.
43 Now therefore, my son, hearken to my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my
brother to Haran; 44 and tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury
turn away; 45 until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that
which thou hast done to him; then I will send, and fetch thee from thence; why
should I be bereaved of you both in one day?' 46 And Rebekah said to Isaac: 'I
am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob take a wife of
the daughters of Heth, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good
shall my life do me?'
She has to keep Yacov far away from Esav. She has a
great excuse the daughter of the Hittites who married Esav. She wants to have
good descendants of worthy women.
28:1 And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and
said unto him: 'Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. 2 Arise,
go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a
wife from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. 3 And God
Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou
mayest be a congregation of peoples; 4 and give thee the blessing of Abraham,
to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land of thy sojornings,
which God gave unto Abraham.' 5 And Isaac sent away Jacob; and he went to Paddan-aram
unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob's and
Esau's mother.
So Yitzchak has commanded Yacov to leave and Esav will
not suspect that Rivka heard him. It is only for a Shidduch.
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to
Paddan-aram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave
him a charge, saying: 'Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan';
Don’t take a girl from these people.
7 and that Jacob hearkened to his father and his mother, and was
gone to Paddan-aram; 8 and Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan pleased not
Isaac his father; 9 so Esau went unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives that he
had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth, to
be his wife.
Only after Esav saw that Yacov was blessed by his
parents for going out to search for a proper family with a woman to marry into,
did he look into a cousin from great uncle Yishmael’s family.
From Ayelet the Krystyna Skarbek Spy Story
She stood at the border with grenades
under both arms, pins already pulled, and smiled at the German guards:
"Shoot me, and we all die together."
The guards fled. She calmly replaced
the pins, tucked the grenades away, and continued her mission as if nothing had
happened.
Just another day for Britain's most
audacious spy.
Her name was Krystyna Skarbek—codename
Christine Granville—and her story reads like fiction because the truth was too
extraordinary for anyone to invent.
Poland, September 1939.
Krystyna watched her homeland crushed
under Nazi boots in a matter of weeks. Most people in her position would have
accepted defeat, sought safety, mourned from a distance.
She did the opposite.
Within months, she made it to England
and walked straight into British intelligence headquarters with a proposition
that sounded like suicide:
Let me ski through the Carpathian
Mountains in winter, cross into occupied Poland, print and distribute anti-Nazi
propaganda, establish intelligence networks, and help evacuate resistance
fighters.
The Special Operations Executive (SOE)
looked at this 31-year-old Polish countess and saw either brilliance or
insanity.
They approved the mission.
December 1939. While most of Europe
huddled in fear, Krystyna skied through treacherous mountain passes into
Hungary, set up underground printing operations, then made the deadly crossing
into Nazi-occupied Poland.
She didn't just distribute flyers. She
built entire intelligence networks. She coordinated resistance operations. She
became so effective that within months, large reward posters bearing her
likeness appeared in every Polish train station.
The Gestapo wanted her desperately.
In 1941, they got their chance. Captured.
Interrogated. Facing torture and execution. Most agents broke under Gestapo
questioning. Krystyna had already prepared her escape plan.
She bit down on her tongue so hard
that blood pooled in her mouth, then began coughing violently, spraying crimson
across the interrogation room.
"Tuberculosis," she gasped
between bloody coughs, making herself appear contagious and dying.
The Gestapo—more terrified of
infection than impressed by bravery—released her immediately.
She escaped to SOE headquarters in
Cairo, only to face a new enemy: suspicion. British intelligence suspected she
might be a double agent. For months she was sidelined, investigated,
scrutinized.
The woman who'd risked everything for
the Allied cause had to prove her loyalty all over again. Eventually cleared,
she begged to return to Poland.
Too dangerous, they said. You're too
recognizable. Too wanted. Your face is too famous.
So in July 1944, she did what any
reasonable person would do: she parachuted into occupied France instead.
Southern France became her new
battlefield. She coordinated operations between French resistance fighters and
Italian partisans, moving through enemy territory with such confidence that she
often walked past German checkpoints without raising suspicion.
When they did stop her? She had
creative solutions. Like those grenades at the Italian border.
But her most legendary exploit came in
August 1944, in the town of Digne.
Three British SOE agents—including
Francis Cammaerts, one of the most valuable operatives in France—had been
captured by the Gestapo and sentenced to execution. They had hours to live.
Krystyna walked into Gestapo
headquarters, Alone, Unarmed, With nothing but nerves of steel and a silver
tongue. She convinced the Gestapo liaison that the war was already lost. That
the Allies were coming. That executing British prisoners would guarantee his
own death sentence at war's end—but releasing them might earn him mercy.
She negotiated their freedom for 2
million francs—money she didn't even have but promised to deliver. The Gestapo
agreed. Hours before their scheduled execution, all three agents walked free. Krystyna
had bluffed her way into one of the most daring rescues of the entire war.
By the time victory came in 1945,
Christine Granville had become Britain's longest-serving female special
agent—decorated with the George Medal, OBE, and Croix de Guerre.
Churchill himself reportedly called
her "my favorite spy." But peacetime held no place for women like her.
The world that once desperately needed her courage now found her inconvenient.
She struggled to find work, to fit into the ordinary world after years of
extraordinary danger.
And then, tragically, the woman who
survived countless Nazi encounters was murdered in 1952 by an obsessed
acquaintance in a London hotel.
She was only 44 years old.
She survived Gestapo torture.
Parachute drops behind enemy lines. Mountain crossings in winter. Years of
living one mistake away from execution.
Only to be killed in peacetime by a
man who couldn't accept her rejection.
But her legacy endures.
Krystyna Skarbek proved that courage
has no gender. That audacity can be a weapon more powerful than any gun. That
sometimes the most dangerous person in the room is the one everyone
underestimates. The Germans thought women were invisible. Krystyna made sure
they were unforgettable.
She stood at borders with live
grenades. Walked into Gestapo headquarters unarmed. Bluffed her way through
impossible situations. And saved countless lives through sheer, unshakeable
nerve.
She wasn't just brave. She was
strategically fearless—using the enemy's assumptions against them, turning
vulnerability into power, making audacity her greatest weapon.
In a war filled with heroes, Krystyna
Skarbek stood apart—not because she was reckless, but because she understood
that sometimes the boldest move is the smartest one.
Her name was Krystyna Skarbek.
Codename: Christine Granville.
Britain's longest-serving female spy.
Churchill's favorite. The woman who made the impossible look routine. And she
deserves to be remembered.
From Yehoshua Friedman: Last Stand of Captain Solomon
D.D.S.
When they found
him, his hands were still on the machine gun. 98 enemy soldiers lay dead around
him. And America refused to call him a hero for 58 years. His name was Captain
Benjamin Lewis Salomon. He was a dentist from Milwaukee. And on July 7, 1944,
he made a choice that violated every rule of war—but saved every life under his
care. The Healer Ben Salomon never wanted to be a warrior. He'd spent years
training to fix teeth, to ease pain, to heal. When World War II came, he
enlisted like millions of other Americans, but his contribution was supposed to
be medical, not martial.
By 1944, Captain
Salomon was serving with the 105th Infantry Regiment on Saipan—a tiny Pacific
island that had become a bloodbath. American forces were fighting to take the
island from entrenched Japanese defenders who had vowed to die rather than
surrender. Salomon wasn't on the front lines. He was fifteen yards behind them,
running a field hospital—a canvas tent where mangled soldiers were brought for
desperate surgeries and last chances at survival. His job was to heal.
The Geneva
Convention protected him for exactly that reason. Medical personnel weren't
combatants. They were neutral. Even in total war, they were supposed to be
sacred. But on the morning of July 7, 1944, the rules stopped mattering.
The Wave: The
Japanese launched a banzai charge. If you don't know what that means, picture
this: thousands of soldiers, many already wounded or malnourished, charging
directly at American positions in a massive human wave. No cover. No tactics.
Just bodies and bayonets and the certainty of death, throwing themselves
forward in a final, desperate attempt to overwhelm through sheer numbers. It
was suicide warfare. And it was coming straight at the field hospital. Inside
the tent, Ben Salomon was performing surgery. Wounded men lay on every
available surface. Some were unconscious. Some were missing limbs. None of them
could fight. Most couldn't even walk. The first sound was screaming. Not from
inside the tent—from outside. American soldiers yelling warnings, firing
frantically, falling back as the wave crashed over their positions. Then Japanese
soldiers burst through the tent flap. Bayonets raised. Eyes wild. Coming for
the wounded.
The Choice: Most
people, if we're honest, would have frozen. Or run. Or died trying to explain
that they were medical personnel, protected, neutral. Ben Salomon killed the
first Japanese soldier with his bare hands. Then he grabbed a rifle from a
wounded American and shot a second soldier who was bayoneting patients in their
cots. Then a third. But he could do basic math. There weren't three enemy
soldiers. There were hundreds pouring through the broken American lines. The
field hospital was going to be overrun in minutes. Every wounded man inside
would die. Unless someone bought them time. Salomon turned to the medics and
corpsmen. "Get them out. Now. "Then he picked up a machine gun. And
with that single action, he stopped being protected by international law. He
stopped being a non-combatant. He stopped being a healer. He became a weapon.
The Last Stand: Salomon
dragged the machine gun to the forward-most position—about 50 yards in front of
the hospital tent. A tripod-mounted .30 caliber Browning. From there, he had a
clear field of fire across the approach to the hospital. From there, he could
see them coming. From there, he could hold the line. Behind him, medics and
corpsmen scrambled. They dragged wounded men who couldn't walk. They carried
soldiers missing legs. They pulled, pushed, crawled toward the rear positions,
desperate to evacuate before the Japanese reached them. Every second they
needed, Ben Salomon bought for them. The Japanese came in waves. Dozens at a
time. Then hundreds. Salomon fired until the barrel glowed red-hot. The machine
gun roared continuously, spitting rounds at 500 per minute. Bodies fell. More
came. He kept firing. When they got within 20 yards, he shot them point-blank.
When they reached his position, he fought hand-to-hand. When they bayoneted
him, he grabbed the blade with his bare hands and kept fighting. He was shot.
He kept firing. He was stabbed. He kept firing. He was bleeding from dozens of
wounds. He kept firing. Because behind him, wounded men were still evacuating.
Still crawling toward safety. Still depending on those extra seconds he was
buying with his life.
He had one mission
now: keep the enemy away from the hospital tent until every single man was
clear. He didn't stop until his body physically couldn't continue.
What They Found: When
American forces retook the position hours later—after the banzai charge had
been repulsed and the front lines stabilized—they found Captain Benjamin
Salomon slumped over his machine gun. His hands were still gripping the weapon.
His body had 76 wounds. Twenty-four bullet holes. More than twenty bayonet
punctures. Slash marks across his arms and face. And in a grotesque circle
around his position lay 98 dead Japanese soldiers. Ninety-eight. One dentist
with a machine gun had held off hundreds of attacking soldiers long enough for
every wounded man in that field hospital to be evacuated. Everyone under his
care survived. Ben Salomon had traded his life for theirs. One for dozens. And
he'd made it count.
The 58-Year
Silence: You'd think that would be the end of the story. Immediate Medal of
Honor. Hero's funeral. His name in history books. It wasn't. Salomon was
recommended for the Medal of Honor—America's highest military decoration,
reserved for those who display "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at
the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. "The recommendation
was rejected. Why? Because he'd violated his status as a medical officer. The
Geneva Convention protected doctors and medics precisely because they didn't
fight. By picking up that machine gun, Salomon had technically become a
combatant. And the military brass worried that honoring him might encourage
other medical personnel to abandon their protected status and take up arms.
Never mind that he saved dozens of lives doing exactly what the Medal of Honor
is supposed to recognize. Never mind that his sacrifice was selfless and
extraordinary beyond measure. The rules said medics don't fight. And following
the rules mattered more than honoring the man. For 58 years, Ben Salomon's
courage went officially unrecognized. His family knew what he'd done. The men
he saved knew. But America didn't.
The Campaign: In
the 1990s, a military dentist named Dr. Robert West learned about Salomon's
story and was outraged. How could America leave such obvious heroism unhonored
for half a century? West launched a campaign. He tracked down survivors—elderly
men now, but still grateful for the dentist who'd given them a future. He
compiled evidence. He fought military bureaucracy with the same stubborn
determination Salomon had shown on that machine gun. He wouldn't let it go.
Finally, on May 1,
2002—58 years and nearly 10 months after that July morning on Saipan—President
George W. Bush posthumously awarded Captain Benjamin Lewis Salomon the Medal of
Honor. The medal was presented to his family. Ben wasn't there to receive it.
He'd been dead for 58 years, buried in a military cemetery, his story known to
few outside his regiment. But now, officially, America acknowledged what should
have been obvious from the beginning: Ben Salomon was a hero.
The Man: Here's
what gets lost in the statistics—the 98 enemy dead, the 76 wounds, the 58-year
wait: Ben Salomon was 33 years old when he died. He'd graduated from Marquette
University School of Dentistry. He had family waiting for him back in
Milwaukee. He had a whole life ahead of him after the war. He'd trained for
years to heal people, not kill them. He'd taken an oath to do no harm. But when
the moment came—when he had to choose between the person he'd trained to be and
the person the moment required—he chose the latter without hesitation. He
became a killer so his patients could live. He abandoned his protected status
so wounded men who couldn't defend themselves wouldn't die helpless in their
cots. That's the choice that haunts and inspires: he didn't do what he was
supposed to do according to the rules. He did what was right.
The Question: Ben
Salomon's story matters because it asks us something uncomfortable: What are
you willing to sacrifice for people who can't protect themselves? Not in the
abstract. Not in theory. In the actual moment when the enemy is coming and
you're the only thing standing between them and helpless people who depend on
you. Most of us will never face that choice. We'll never have to decide whether
to violate every rule we've been taught in order to save lives. But Ben Salomon
did face it. And his answer was immediate and absolute: Yes. Whatever it costs.
Whatever the rules say. Whatever happens after .He bought time with bullets. He
traded his future for theirs. He held the line until he physically couldn't
anymore. And when they found him, his hands were still on the gun. July 7, 1944
He was a dentist from Milwaukee. He was supposed to heal, not kill. He was
protected by international law. But when hundreds of enemy soldiers came for
the wounded men in his care—men who couldn't run, couldn't fight, couldn't even
stand—he didn't think about rules or consequences or recognition. He thought
about the men in those cots who had families waiting, futures planned, lives
worth living. So he picked up a machine gun and became their shield.
Ninety-eight enemy soldiers fell before he did. Every single wounded man under
his care survived.
And it took
America 58 years to say what should have been said on July 8, 1944:Thank you,
Captain Salomon. You violated the rules to follow a higher law: that those who
can fight have a duty to protect those who can't. You gave everything so others
could have anything. You didn't wait for permission or approval. You saw what
needed to be done and you did it. That's not just heroism. That's love—fierce,
sacrificial, and absolute. The kind that doesn't count the cost because the
cost doesn't matter compared to the lives you're protecting. Your courage
didn't fit the rulebook. But it saved dozens of lives. And ultimately, that's
what heroes do—they ignore every rule except one: Protect those who cannot protect
themselves. No matter what it costs.
My son lost his legs (but) look at him run. Video in Hebrew
story w/English Subtitles.
https://www.chabad.org/multimedia/video_cdo/aid/7120013/jewish/My-Son-Lost-His-Legs-Look-at-Him-Run.htm
I almost lost this nice historical
piece from Diane Bederman due to my cold. https://dianebederman.com/sadly-october-7-was-not-unique-in-jewish-history/
The most outrageous
lie of all by R’ Yerachmiel Tilles
https://ascentofsafed.com/cgi-bin/ascent.cgi?Name=1458-09
In the times of the
Ruzhiner Rebbe [2nd quarter of 19th century], there lived a melamed (tutor)
named R. Menashe who taught Torah to young children in a small village near
Ruzhin. R. Menashe was a devoted, wonderful melamed, but he was also extremely
poor. He was so impoverished that he didn't even have enough money to properly
feed his growing family. As his children grew older and were nearing
marriageable age, he began to worry how he would be able to afford their
engagement and wedding expenses.
R. Menashe was
accustomed to travel to Ruzhin every year on Hoshana Rabbah, and he would bask
in the holy atmosphere until after Simchas Torah, when he would return home.
This year, he decided that he wouldn't leave Ruzhin until he got a blessing
from the Rebbe for sufficient livelihood to cover his basic expenses and to
marry off his children.
The Ruzhiner Rebbe
was accustomed to Daven (pray) in a private room on the side of the Bais
Medrash (Torah-study Hall), where he would seclude himself and engage in his
holy Avodah. The chasidim would gather near the door to his room, hoping to
have the merit to hear the Rebbe's prayers.
That Hoshana Rabbah,
R. Menashe was standing near the Rebbe's door during the recitation of the
unique once-a-year prayer service of that holy day when suddenly the door
opened a crack. The Rebbe looked at the chasidim standing there and, when he
saw R. Menashe, he motioned for him to come closer.
R. Menashe nervously
approached the door and the Rebbe said to him, "L'chaim! ("to
life!"), R. Menashe. It has just been decreed that you will become very
rich. The wealth will come to you in an unexpected way. L'chaim! I bless you
that you shall not forget your brethren even when you are rich!"
After the prayers,
dozens of chasidim who had heard about the Rebbe's blessing came over to wish
R. Menashe "mazal tov" on the wealth he was about to receive. None of
them had any doubt that the Rebbe's words would be fulfilled.
Some businessmen
offered to be his partner in business but he did not accept any of the offers.
The Rebbe had told him that his wealth would come in an unexpected way, so he
did not want to enter a standard business arrangement.
When Simchas Torah
(the concluding holiday of the season) ended, several wealthy men approached
him and offered him a ride on their fancy carriages - as is befitting a wealthy
man - but he also refused these offers. He began to walk home with his
traveling bag slung over his shoulder, with a heart full of joy because of the
good tidings he had received.
As he walked, it
began to rain heavily. He looked for a place to seek shelter from the elements,
and saw a small roadside inn, which he hurried to enter.
Inside, he saw that
there were about 50 Russian soldiers staying in the inn. They were playing card
games and drinking whiskey when one of them suggested they play a different
kind of gambling game. He explained the rules - each one would try to say the
most outlandish lie, and the one with the best lie would get a 100-ruble prize,
which they all would chip in for.One of the soldiers began, "Yesterday, I
saw a donkey with eight legs!" A second soldier tried to outdo him and
said, "A month ago, my neighbor's cow gave birth to a calf with two heads
and a horse with eight legs!"
This went on for a
while, with each soldier trying to tell a lie that was more unbelievable than
his friends' lies. However, the judge kept saying that none of the lies were
outrageous enough, as theoretically all of them could possibly happen.
R. Menashe was
standing on the side and built up the nerve to step forward and say that he
wanted to join the competition. The soldiers eyed him hatefully, enraged by the
fact that a Jew dared to interrupt their activity.
The judge, however,
told him, "You know what? Let's make a deal. If you win, you can take the
100 rubles. If you fail, however, we'll give you 100 lashes."
Menashe was unfazed
and said he was ready to start. The judge quieted the crowd and told him to
begin.
Menashe looked at
the judge and said, "First of all, I want to tell all of you that I
recognize the judge. Did you know that he is a Jew?"
These words caused a
great commotion. Everyone began to scream, "That's a lie!" Suddenly,
they quieted down; they belatedly realized that the Jew had succeeded in
telling a lie that none of them believed, and so they would have to give him
the 100 rubles.
The judge was very
impressed by the Jew's wisdom. He gave him the money and asked him to come
visit him in the army camp, where he was the commanding officer. He also handed
him a pass, confirming that he had the right to visit him in the camp. He
signed the pass with his name: Anatoli Ivanov.
Two weeks later, R.
Menashe went to the camp and showed his pass to the guard. He was allowed in
and shown to the commander's room. Ivanov was happy to see him. He said:
"I know that
Jews are not only smart, they are also trustworthy. I am in command of 5,000
soldiers who faithfully serve Czar Nicholai. Recently I noticed that the
soldiers are getting weaker. It is clear to me that the person in charge of
providing them with food is a fraud and a swindler and does not buy good food
for them. Therefore, I want to hire you to be in charge of buying the soldiers'
food."
R. Menashe
immediately thought that this must be what the Ruzhiner Rebbe had predicted,
and he accepted the job. From then on, R. Menashe's life totally changed.
During the week, he
lived in the army camp, where he was in charge of the food. As the soldiers
regained their strength, everyone saw how honest and trustworthy he was. While
he now had sufficient parnasah (income), he nevertheless wondered why the
Rebbe's blessing had not been fully fulfilled, as he still was far from
wealthy.
A short while later,
Czar Nikolai had a foolish idea enter his head. He announced that all the
soldiers of the army would need to train to march a long way with heavy loads
because he eventually wanted to hold a big march in his presence, so everyone
would march a long way with a heavy rucksack on their backs for practice.
Commander Ivanov
took pity on the soldiers and, knowing that they would not be able to withstand
it, decided to ignore the order and not to train them to do this. Indeed, all
the soldiers in other camps took this training, but Ivanov's camp remained the
only one that didn't.
Ultimately, the
order came from the Czar that on a certain day everyone must report to a
designated place. The next day, when Menashe arrived at the gates of the camp,
Ivanov greeted him with a sullen face. He told him, "I have to tell you
goodbye."
Menashe asked him
what happened, and the commander told him, "I did not listen to the Czar's
order to train my soldiers to march a long way with heavy loads. When the Czar
sees during the parade that the soldiers serving in my camp are dropping like
flies at the very beginning of the parade, he will surely remove me from my
post, and he might even execute me as punishment for not listening in
him."
R. Menashe suggested
to him that he fill the soldiers' bags with straw, which does not weigh much,
so that they could easily walk on their feet the whole way. The commander was
very happy to hear his suggestion. He immediately gathered all the officers and
soldiers and made them swear a solemn oath that they would not tell anything
about this idea.
When the big day
arrived, Czar Nicholai arrived with a large entourage of high-ranking officials.
After the trumpets sounded, the soldiers of the other brigades began to march
with heavy packs on their backs. After just a few minutes, they all began to
fall down. The Czar face turned red with anger, and he decreed that they all be
sent to a prison camp.
When Commander
Ivanov's unit started marching, however, they walked all the way with their
heads held high. The Czar was so happy to see that at least one commander
obeyed him that he did not think to check what they had put in their sacks. He
promoted Ivanov to the position of general. As soon as possible after that, as
a sign of gratitude, Ivanov appointed R. Menashe to be in charge of providing
all the food for all the soldiers in the Russian Army.
As a result, R.
Menashe became extremely wealthy, as the Rebbe had promised. He did not forget
the Rebbe's words, and he always took notice of the poor among his fellow Jews
and gave Tzeduka with an open hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Adapted by Yerachmiel Tilles from the Vayikra 5785 email of "The
Way of Emunah": Collected Thoughts from Rabbi Meir Isamar Rosenbaum, as
posted on "Shabbos Stories for Shemini 5785".
Why This Week? In
this week's Torah reading, Toldos (26:12-13):
"Isaac sowed in that region in that year and he reaped a hundred times
more than he expected, for G-D had blessed him. Thus, the man prospered, and
continued to prosper until he became extremely wealthy. [translation from
chabad.org]
Biographical note:
Rabbi Yisrael Friedmann of Ruzhin [3 Tishrei 5557 - 3 Mar-Cheshvan 5611 (Sept.
1796 - Oct. 1850)] was a great-grandson of the Maggid of Mezritch. At a young
age he was already a charismatic leader with a large following of chasidim.
Greatly respected by the other rebbes and Jewish leaders of his generation, he
was--and still is--referred to as "The Holy Rhyziner." Six of his
sons established Chassidic dynasties, several of which -- Sadigora, Boyaner,
etc. -- are still thriving today. [Of all the pious leaders of his generation,
it is known that 'the Holy Ruzhiner. is the only one about whom the Alter Rebbe
of Chabad said is worthy of becoming the Mashiach.] [Portrait commonly accepted
to be of Rabbi Yisrael of Rhyzhin]
Milestone: Miriam Feirberg, 74,
Mayor of Netanya. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/418140
Inyanay Diyoma
Nov. 14th, Nov. 15th
and Nov. 16th
Swords of Iron Day 770, Day 771, and
Day 772 start of week 111
I was missing in inaction. Friday, I
started falling asleep at the computer, had a little cough and sniffles and
slept an hour. Shabbos I developed a 38.1C or 100.6 F and today 37.1C or just
close to 100F. I had a personal trainer for today and had to opt out. I am not
20, 30 or 40 but closing in too fast on 80.
The search for the missing 3 bodies
was called off for two days due to flash flooding rains. The coast got up to
100 mm rain or 4 inches Yerushalayim 22 mm or close to an inch.
The Americans are willing to forego
disarming Hamas according to the news article but we are preparing to do the
job and without living hostages all we have to do is remove population and bomb
the area heavily. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-said-considering-forgoing-hamas-disarmament-to-begin-reconstruction-as-talks-stall/
Researchers say that Hitler’s DNA
had Kallman Disorder or incomplete puberty, possibly bi-polar, schizophrenic
and possibly autistic. https://www.timesofisrael.com/groundbreaking-analysis-of-hitlers-dna-finds-genetic-disorder-but-no-jewish-ancestry/
ISIS
terror cell arrested, preventing imminent attack | Israel National News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/tel-aviv-bound-flight-from-georgia-aborts-takeoff-after-bird-strike-report/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/study-4300-year-old-cup-with-oldest-depiction-of-creation-features-a-celestial-ark/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/you-brought-me-home-ex-hostages-thank-protesters-for-their-return-call-for-last-3-captives-release/
It is not only the left that calls
Netanyahu a liar and a traitor to Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/pms-far-right-allies-up-in-arms-over-us-plans-offer-of-path-to-palestinian-statehood/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/haredi-lawmakers-targeted-by-protesters-opposing-conscription-bill-prompting-outcry/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/likud-mk-says-idf-conscription-bill-aims-to-draft-half-of-haredim-not-in-yeshiva/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-says-hes-weighing-saudi-request-to-purchase-f-35s-they-wanna-buy-a-lot-of-jets/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/we-aint-fleeing-demand-for-firearms-said-to-rise-among-nyc-jews-after-mamdani-elected/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/chilean-far-right-looms-large-in-election-dominated-by-crime-threats-of-deportations/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/praise-for-french-nazi-collaborator-petain-prompts-legal-action-condemnation/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-breaks-with-ranting-lunatic-taylor-greene-amid-calls-for-epstein-file-release/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/lebanon-to-file-un-complaint-accusing-israel-of-building-border-wall-beyond-blue-line/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/columbia-university-investment-committee-rejects-demands-to-divest-from-israel/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/foreign-national-found-decapitated-in-tel-aviv-woman-shot-dead-near-kafr-qasim/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/haifa-daycare-owner-unknowingly-brings-rabid-dog-to-work-which-then-attacks-children/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/soroka-hospital-gala-honors-ny-plastic-surgeon-for-pro-bono-work-during-israel-hamas-war/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/south-africa-probing-origin-of-unexpected-charter-flight-carrying-153-palestinians/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/tinder-swindler-freed-from-georgian-custody-after-germany-pulls-extradition-request/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/greece-in-talks-to-buy-anti-aircraft-artillery-systems-from-israel/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-receives-casket-with-apparent-body-of-hostage-from-red-cross-in-gaza-2/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/head-of-polices-lahav-433-major-crimes-unit-named-as-senior-officer-under-investigation/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/first-rains-storms-roll-into-israel-ending-record-breaking-hot-start-to-november/
https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/toyota-opens-massive-north-carolina-battery-plant-confirms-10b-us-investment
Op-Ed Ayoub: How
Turkey’s latest defiance undermines American security | Israel National News
Chikli: Turkey
establishing forward base in Syria that will threaten Israel | Israel National
News
Finance Minister takes care of his
base while starving out the Charedim. Gov to approve NIS 114
Million for Yeshivas, youth movements, and National Service | Israel National
News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/irans-revolutionary-guards-confirm-seizing-oil-tanker-sailing-off-uae-coast/
Suspect
sought after alleged hate crime against Jewish man in Toronto | Israel National
News
Hamas captivity survivors
give chilling testimony at the UN | Israel National News
Yesha Council head backs
IDF, slams anarchists for violence in Samaria | Israel National News
Southern Israel: Soldier
suspected of discharging weapon, wounding friend | Israel National News
A glimpse into the IDF's
massive exercise in Judea and Samaria | Israel National News
Shin Bet Chief David Zini
responds to petition challenging his appointment | Israel National News
Three Bedouins arrested
after they threatened to murder Minister Ben-Gvir | Israel National News
Nukhba terrorists are
producing weapons in prison cells | Israel National News
Sharaa confirms Syria is
in direct talks with Israel | Israel National News
Stabbing in Lod: Suspect
arrested near Dimona, terror ruled out | Israel National News
Strauss raises ice cream
prices | Israel National News
New poll: Bennett,
Netanyahu, tied for role of PM | Israel National News
Poll: Likud leads with 27
seats | Israel National News
Netanyahu condemns Macron
for calling Abbas 'prince of peace' | Israel National News
Canadian intel chief
warns: Jews are being targeted | Israel National News
Louisiana appeals ruling
blocking Ten Commandments displays | Israel National News
Russia challenges US Gaza
plan with rival UN resolution | Israel National News
Canada foiled Iranian
assassination attempts, spy chief confirms | Israel National News
Lahav 433
Chief revealed as officer under internal investigation | Israel National News
Outrage in Germany: Call
to cancel auction of Holocaust artifacts | Israel National News
Building in Beit Shemesh
used as a kindergarten collapsed | Israel National News
Antisemitic graffiti
found in Brooklyn, local leaders condemn the hate | Israel National News
Supreme Court: Levin must
appoint new candidate to oversee MAG investigation | Israel National News
IDF: Hezbollah’s
assassination unit murdered Lebanese politician | Israel National News
Leading rabbi in France
urges: Only Torah study in yeshivas | Israel National News
Chief Rabbi David Yosef
secures release of an 'aguna' in Argentina | Israel National News
Nov. 17th
Swords of Iron Day 773
TREASON: It’s hidden in the fine print in section 19 of the agreement
between ‘everybody’. It is called a Palestinian State. The accords signed at
Sharm El Sheik says just that. It was Netanyahu alone that allowed Egypt to get
the advanced submarines and he invested a “loan” of $400,000 and a certain
stock was sold at $16,000,000 and then fell down. Ok Pelosi also made 16,000%
in stocks in her years through the ‘wise’ investments of her husband. So did
the late Diane Feinstein so there is nothing new under the sun.
Tonight the UN is going to issue a
weak resolution on a Palestinian State. IN SHORT ONLY HASHEM YISBORACH CAN SAVE
US! https://www.timesofisrael.com/pms-far-right-allies-up-in-arms-over-us-plans-offer-of-path-to-palestinian-statehood/
Katz and others in the Likud just
woke up along with two parties! 'Path To Palestinian
Statehood': Ben-Gvir and Smotrich demand action from Netanyahu | Israel
National News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/government-moves-to-appoint-own-probe-into-oct-7-nixing-state-commission-of-inquiry/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/border-police-accused-of-detaining-entire-bedouin-hamlet-for-hours-in-blanket-sweep/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-breaks-silence-on-burgeoning-settler-violence-vows-forceful-action/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/court-says-levin-can-choose-sde-teiman-investigation-supervisor-but-disqualifies-kula/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/international-tennis-games-to-return-to-israel-in-february-for-1st-time-since-oct-7/
https://www.foxnews.com/media/marjorie-taylor-greene-apologizes-taking-part-toxic-politics-amid-trump-attacks
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-reveals-maduro-would-like-talk-military-options-remain-table-venezuela
https://www.foxnews.com/world/us-marines-exchanged-gunfire-suspected-gang-members-haiti-official-says
Hamas opposes US proposal
at United Nations | Israel National News
Hostage survivor Avinatan Or revealed new details last night
(Monday) about his attempt to escape captivity in the Gaza Strip. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/417898
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-calls-house-republicans-vote-release-epstein-files-we-have-nothing-hide
Low-earning IDF
reservists to get additional payment | Israel National News
Germany cancels arms
embargo on Israel | Israel National News
Rabbi
Lando to donors: Woe to us if the yeshivas close | Israel National News
Authorities begin
demolition of Jewish homes in Gush Etzion outpost | Israel National News
Haredi MKs to get
increased security following Draft Law protests | Israel National News
Report: Hamas stockpiling
weapons around the world for post-war use | Israel National News
Hamas terrorists in Rafah
tunnel refuse to surrender, Palestinian source says | Israel National News
At
least 32 killed in southeastern Congo after bridge at mine collapsed,
authorities say | AP News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/man-charged-with-spying-for-iran-during-war-sharing-photos-of-airbase-taken-by-wife/
Nov. 18th
Swords of Iron Day 774
The war is not really over. Little
incidents make the local news for a minute but not the internet news. Hamas is
trying our patience and from time to time they are rewarded with a Shachid or
two trying to infiltrate the yellow line. Hezballah is acting up. Despite the
visit with Trump last week, Russia sent troops to Syria to be close to our
northern border. To top this off, Iran is preparing for another round. They are
running out of drinking water for Teheran but instead of building a
desalinization plant, they prefer precision missiles from China with a goal of
2000 launches a day. The US Congress is trying to make stricter sanctions on
Russia and Iran but they continue unabated. Finally, three hostage bodies remain
in captivity.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/un-security-council-backs-resolution-endorsing-trump-plan-and-foreign-gaza-force/
Anti-Israel but they destroy a Cross: Catholic
Church in Berlin Condemns Antisemitism as Anti-Israel Agitators Vandalize
Historic Crucifix | Algemeiner.com
Extortion, bribery, power
games: Rabbinical court rocked by fraud allegations | Israel National News
Watch: War amputee Chabad
emmissary joins in music from hospital bed | Israel National News
Report: US rethinks
disarming Hamas in Gaza | Israel National News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-says-saudis-will-get-f-35s-bucking-israeli-hope-hed-condition-sale-on-peace/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/levin-to-lead-ben-gvir-smotrich-and-others-in-delineating-governments-oct-7-probe/
https://www.foxnews.com/world/russian-drone-strikes-tanker-ukraines-odesa-zelenskyy-closes-us-gas-deal
https://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-extremists-burn-palestinian-homes-and-cars-in-west-bank-idf-searching-for-perps/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-officials-say-hamas-handed-over-findings-to-red-cross-not-body-of-hostage/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/goose-bumps-12000-year-old-figurine-from-israel-shows-surreal-woman-bird-mating-scene/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/knesset-passes-law-expanding-rabbinical-courts-powers-to-arbitrate-civil-disputes/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-world-first-israeli-scientists-use-rna-based-gene-therapy-to-stop-als-deterioration/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/neo-nazi-pleads-guilty-to-monstrous-plots-to-poison-jewish-children-in-nyc/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/security-beefed-up-for-2-utj-lawmakers-over-threats-from-haredi-extremists-report/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/man-who-testified-in-histadrut-corruption-probe-dies-by-suicide/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-asks-icc-to-bar-prosecutor-under-investigation-from-cases-against-pm-gallant/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/crew-of-tanker-seized-by-iran-has-made-contact-and-is-safe-vessel-manager-says/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/6-anti-israel-activists-stand-trial-in-uk-for-breaking-into-elbit-site/
No findings reported on
DNA sample transfered from Gaza | Israel National News
US cancels meetings with
Lebanese Military chief over anti-Israel statement | Israel National News
Report: Israel-Syria
security talks deadlocked over withdrawal demands | Israel National News
Poll:
70% of Israelis reject Palestinian state on 1967 lines | Israel National News
Police Chase: Robber dies
in vehicle rollover | Israel National News
IDF to political echelon:
F-35 sale to Saudis endangers Israeli security | Israel National News
US cancels meetings with
Lebanese Military chief over anti-Israel statement | Israel National News
Cloudflare
outage disrupts X, OpenAI, PayPal and major online games also Arutz 7.
Confucius he say, “Now is good buy
time”. Global
stocks slide as AI sell-off hits Asia, Europe and US
One killed in
West Bank terror ramming, stabbing. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-874312
Nov. 19th
Swords of Iron Day 775
https://www.timesofisrael.com/mbs-tells-trump-he-wants-to-join-abraham-accords-but-path-to-palestinian-state-crucial/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/utjs-degel-hatorah-faction-says-it-supports-latest-version-of-draft-exemption-bill/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/meeting-between-witkoff-and-hamas-official-said-canceled-due-to-israeli-pressure/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/levin-appoints-retired-judge-to-oversee-sde-teiman-leak-investigation/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/5-idf-troops-among-12-detained-in-gun-running-bust-on-syrian-border/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-school-that-expelled-jews-after-antisemitic-bullying-apologizes-in-settlement/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-releases-marshall-islands-flagged-tanker-gives-no-reason-for-detention/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-house-votes-to-force-release-of-epstein-files-senate-could-follow-soon/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-strikes-hamas-facility-near-lebanons-sidon-local-officials-say-13-killed/
IDF launches wave of
strikes in Lebanon | Israel National News
Arbitrator rules: The
'Terrorists' Faction must vacate the Ponevezh Yeshiva | Israel National News
Senior Analyst: Bin
Salman does not want a Palestinian state | Israel National News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/mbs-tells-trump-he-wants-to-join-abraham-accords-but-path-to-palestinian-state-crucial/
Holocaust survivor's
dream fulfilled at 101 | Israel National News
Iran’s
Execution Spree Continues Unabated, Alarming Human Rights Groups |
Algemeiner.com
https://www.timesofisrael.com/man-killed-in-terror-attack-at-gush-etzion-junction-in-the-west-bank-3-others-wounded/
Nov. 20th
Swords of Iron Day 776
19 years ago after sundown on the 19th
of Nov. my mother, of blessed memory passed away. Today 29th of Mar
Cheshvan is her Yahrzeit so I dedicate this bulletin and my Torah writing today
in her name.
Like my friend a retired Intel
Officer told me last week or so, the north is boiling over. Hezballah is
strengthening and the Lebanese Army is impotent. Syria is trying all sort of
tricks and even the Druze stealing IDF weapons for Syrian Druze. I see no peace
in the north nor in Gaza or with the PLO as you can read today.
There used to be a TV Show Miami
Vice: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dem-congresswoman-indicted-particularly-selfish-alleged-theft-fema-relief-funds-campaign-use
In
Gaza, It’s Déjà vu All Over Again | Algemeiner.com
https://www.foxnews.com/tech/perseverance-rover-spots-mysterious-visitor-from-outer-space-rock-mars-surface-after-four-years
TREASON IN THE USA BY MEMBERS OF
CONGRESS: https://www.foxnews.com/media/blackburn-erupts-over-democrats-disturbing-video-urging-troops-defy-orders
https://www.timesofisrael.com/report-iranian-scientists-tied-to-nuclear-work-secretly-visited-russia-last-year/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/anti-zionist-protesters-chant-death-to-the-idf-at-new-york-city-synagogue/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/high-court-orders-government-to-explain-why-its-not-launching-oct-7-state-inquiry/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-consumers-froth-over-milk-shortages-dairies-spoil-for-a-fight-to-halt-industry-shakeup/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/saudi-arabia-to-receive-less-advanced-f-35-jets-than-israel-us-officials-say/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/despite-promised-reforms-pa-textbooks-still-teach-antisemitic-anti-israel-messages/
Let me clarify something
here: Whether you feel that it is unfair or not for Yeshiva Students to get
army exemptions. It is not far that Arabs and Bedouin are not required to serve
and they receive no sanctions!
https://www.timesofisrael.com/high-court-gives-government-45-days-to-draw-up-sanctions-for-haredi-draft-dodgers/
https://www.foxnews.com/us/fbi-targets-dangerous-online-764-network-including-alleged-affiliate-preying-11-year-olds-teens
https://www.timesofisrael.com/brooklyn-driver-who-killed-jewish-mom-2-daughters-sentenced-to-3-9-years-in-prison/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/scientists-create-immune-activating-molecule-to-help-the-body-fight-cancer/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-presence-in-syria-of-immense-importance-netanyahu-tells-troops-during-visit/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/miami-dolphins-quarterback-says-he-wants-to-play-nfl-game-in-jerusalem/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-proposes-kiryat-tivon-for-nvidias-multibillion-dollar-tech-campus-in-north/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-tv-networks-office-vandalized-with-threat-calling-for-blood-of-traitors/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/at-senate-hearing-trumps-pick-for-antisemitism-envoy-cites-his-own-history-with-jew-hatred/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/mossad-says-foiled-hamas-terror-plots-in-europe-were-planned-in-qatar-maybe-turkey/
Arabs attacked Migdalim
farm owner with stones near Migdalim | Israel National News
Haredi party head: No
government with haredi support without Draft Law | Israel National News
IDF reservist injured in
Shechem | Israel National News
Body of Israeli who
entered water to rescue son found in Thailand | Israel National News
Shdema: New town founded
in Gush Etzion | Israel National News
Trump to meet NYC
Mayor-elect Mamdani, calls him 'Communist' | Israel National News
The chilling testimony of
Guy Gilboa-Dalal from Hamas captivity | Israel National News
Arson suspected in Be'er
Sheva after 9 buildings burn | Israel National News
Knesset advances bill to
cut UNRWA utilities | Israel National News
1,000th aircraft in
military airlift operation arrives in Israel | Israel National News
Shabbos times. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/shabat
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-launches-wave-of-airstrikes-across-gaza-after-troops-come-under-fire/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/wave-of-idf-strikes-hit-hezbollah-weapons-depots-in-south-lebanon-after-warnings/
Nov. 21st
Swords of Iron Day 777 end of week
111
I have had trouble
sleeping due to my cold. At 3 AM I was awake and saw French 24 TV and Sky News.
Both covered a Gaza ceasefire violation and they made the poor Gaza Population
Victims (should be victims of Hamas violations- it just did show it that way
but from the Israeli reply).
230 https://www.timesofisrael.com/teenage-boy-man-killed-in-rahat-double-homicide-police-arrest-two-suspects/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-vows-to-block-foreign-access-to-bombed-nuclear-sites-unless-deal-reached/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/beersheba-resident-indicted-on-charges-of-spying-for-iran-during-military-service/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-begins-seizing-1800-dunams-of-west-bank-land-to-develop-archaeological-site/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-hosts-captives-he-helped-free-from-gaza-youre-not-hostages-anymore-youre-heroes/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/we-need-to-make-them-scared-nyc-synagogue-protest-crosses-new-red-lines/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-brushes-off-saudi-f-35-deal-says-us-will-ensure-israels-military-edge/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/updated-gaza-data-shows-famine-claims-likely-inflated-by-un-backed-monitor/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/sidestepping-state-october-7-probe-netanyahu-may-see-chance-to-outflank-opposition/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/security-agencies-said-to-push-new-plan-to-counter-surging-settler-violence/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/huckabee-hosted-ex-spy-jonathan-pollard-for-meeting-at-us-embassy-nyt-reports/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/this-brings-our-community-together-ethiopian-jews-flock-to-jerusalem-for-sigd-holiday/
IDF Intelligence reveals:
The compromising protocols of the terror axis | Israel National News
Watch: IDF reserve
brigade uncovers weapons cache in southern Syria | Israel National News
Provocation at Western
Wall: Torah Scroll smuggled through bathroom | Israel National News
Lebanese PM offers talks
with Israel, vows to disarm Hezbollah | Israel National News
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-wake-of-october-7-young-israelis-embracing-jewish-traditions-new-survey-shows/
A good Chodesh Kislev to
all and a healthy, happy and restful Shabbos,
Rachamim Pauli
