Bnei Brak Bounty Vayehi B`chatzi Halayla

Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi
Volume 6 Number 9
Brought to you by Naaleh.com
Bnei Brak Bounty
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles
The hagadah tells of the five sages in Bnei
Brak who stayed awake until the morning
recounting the story of the Exodus. They
spent all night speaking of yetziat Mitzrayim
because it contains the fundamentals of
Jewish faith. The Alter of Kelm teaches that
one of the essential lessons of the story of our
redemption is hashgachat pratit. Hashem
punishes and rewards down to the smallest
detail. At kriat yam suf each of the Egyptians
sank in the sea according to the degree of
retribution he deserved.
The sages didn’t involve themselves in
chiddushim or deep mystical interpretations of
the Torah. They discussed the simple
meaning of the text in a way that was so real
to them that they were unaware that morning
had come. We are supposed to make the
story of the Exodus come alive in a way that
everyone at the seder feels as if they left
Egypt. By retelling the story with an emphasis
on Hashem's involvement in our lives, and
how much He cares and looks out for us, we
implant emunah peshuta in our children. The
hagadah begins with the story of the sages in
Bnei Brak because it wants to tell us
something very profound. “Afilu kulanu
chachamim… mitzvah aleinu l’saper.”
Although we may be accomplished and
knowledgeable in all aspects of Torah, the
mitzva is to retell the story in a simple, real,
way.
Rabbi Spero points out that the incident in
Bnei Brak happened right after the destruction
of the Beit Hamikdash. When the Temple
stood, thousands would go up to Har Habayit
to bring the Pesach sacrifice. After the
destruction, the nation was bereft, left to
conduct a seder in the absence of the glory
that once was. Still, the sages remained strong
in the face of this potentially overwhelming
sadness, and spoke all night about yetziat
mitzrayim, to fulfill the mitzva in the best
possible way. The Ohev Yisrael points out that
that the word brak is related to barak
(lightning). Mesaper comes from the root word
sapir, a shining light. On that memorable night,
they imbued us with the ability to illuminate the
long dark exile with faith and hope. They
taught us that if we hold onto emunah, the long
awaited morning will surely come. Although
circumstances may seem clouded and hard to
understand, we must recognize Hashem’s love
and feel His connection. We can’t always
perceive the full beautiful picture. All we may
see is the crisscross of threads at the back of
the tapestry. But the night of Pesach teaches
us truth. The pain of slavery did not come out
of sadism, but out of great love. The suffering
purified and elevated us so that we could
ultimately become the Chosen Nation.
Pesach celebrates the oral tradition, the give
and take between father and son. It celebrates
the fact that we were redeemed to immerse
ourselves in Torah. The word Mitzrayim is
made up of the letters mem and mem and the
word yetzer. The first mem is the first word of
the Mishna, meimasei and the last mem is the
last letter of the Mishna, b’shalom. To
overcome our own personal Egypt, our yetzer,
we must go from the first mem to the last
mem. The seder night is about telling over the
story of yetziat Mitzrayim. The four cups of
wine symbolize pardes, the four levels of
understanding of Torah. We were redeemed in
the merit of the dynamic process of Torah
which reflects our deep relationship with
Hashem.
It is a night of questions and answers, of
delving into tradition. It is a night of faith and
protection and blessing, when we can tap into
the wellsprings of strength and freedom and
begin anew.
Vayehi B’chatzi Halayla
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Avishai David
Rav Hutner notes that both midday and
midnight are called chatzot. Each is considered a climax of the day. The timing of the
redemption was exactly at midnight, a turning
point for Klal Yisrael.
When one begins to read the piyut of Vayehi
b’chatzi halayla, one gets the impression that
all the events took place on the night Pesach.
However, when we examine each statement,
it doesn’t seem to be the case. Hashem’s
admonition to Lavan not to harm Yaakov and
Yaakov's fight with the angel of Esav could
not have both occurred on the 15th of Nissan.
These events took place several days apart.
Additionally, the letters Haman sent to
exterminate Klal Yisrael and the hanging of
Haman took place within three days of each
other and couldn’t have taken place on the
same day. Rav Shlomo Kluger explains that
the intent of the piyut is not that all of the
miracles took place on Pesach night but rather
that Hashem works through the medium of
darkness and hester panim. The salvation of
Klal Yisrael came through the hand of
Hashem, who controls everything from behind
the scenes. However, there are commentaries
that contend that when the two connected
events are mentioned, it means that the first
was conceived clandestinely in the blackness
of night and the salvation came on the 15th of
Nissan b’chatzot halayla. The Targum Yonatan
maintains that these events actually occurred
on the 15th of Nisan.
The Rambam notes that this night contains a
certain magnetism and sanctity. Avraham went
to battle against the kings and on the 15th of
Nissan, b’chatzot halayla, he miraculously won
over the enemy. A year later on that very same
night, Sedom was destroyed and an angel led
Lot to safety. On the 17th of Nissan, the
daughter of Lot conceived Moav, the precursor
of Ruth, David, and Mashiach. The ashes of
destruction gave birth to the seeds of
salvation. Similarly, the legions of Sisera were
crushed at midnight as was the deity of the
Babylonians. Belshatzar was punished and
killed on this night for taking the holy vessels
of the mikdash. The paytan writes, “Leil
shimurim hu l’Hashem.” This night transcends
time.
Yitzchak intended to give the blessings to Esav
on this night. According to some opinions, he
knew Esav was a rasha and he hoped that on
leil shimurim, when Hashem’s heavenly vaults
are open, he could more easily hope to
change him. Likewise, Targum Yonatan
Continued on page 2
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Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi
Volume 6 Number 9
Brought to you by Naaleh.com
Vayehi B’chatzi Halayla
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Avishai David
Continued from page 1
suggests that Kayin and Hevel brought their
sacrifices on the 14th of Nissan. Fullness of
the moon implies the observance of Hashem’s
commands, while the diminishing of the moon
indicates sin. On the 14th and 15th of Nissan,
they saw the fullness of the moon, a sign that
their service would be accepted by Hashem
and that they could obtain perfection.
The spiritual struggle between Yaakov and the
angel of Esav took place on the night of the
14th of Nissan. Esav tried to find deficiencies
in Yaakov, just as Amalek later attempted to
cool down our faith. But Yaakov emerged
victorious and gave us merit for all generations. Chazal say this night resembles the
ultimate redemption. Leil haseder is a night of
miracles when our gratitude to Hashem knows
no bounds. As we sit at our royal tables, let us
thank Hashem for all the wonders, kindness,
and blessings He has given us and may the
joy engendered on this holy night carry us to
ultimate freedom.
Lessons From The Four Sons
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Beinish Giinsburg
One of the central parts of Magid is the
section of the four sons. The rasha asks, “Ma
ha'avodah hazot lachem,” What is this work to
you? The Hagada says, because he
excluded himself let his teeth be blunted. But
the chacham seems to exclude himself too.
He says, “Mah ha'eidot v’hachukim
v’hamishpatim asher tzivah Hashem Elokeinu
etchem? What are these statutes that
Hashem commanded you?” Yet, he gets a
proper response and we teach him the laws of
Pesach.
The commentators explain the difference. The
chacham mentions Hashem’s name, which
shows that he includes himself with Klal
Yisrael. The rasha simply excludes himself.
Still, why does the chacham say etchem? The
Daat Zekeinim explains that the chacham
refers to the original command of Hashem.
The Torah describes how the first generation
of Jews left Egypt and their children asked
their fathers, what are all these mitzvot
Hashem commanded you? So the chacham
son of today is being precise. He asks his
father, Hashem gave you these mitzvot, please
explain them to me and let us do them
together.
The Meshech Chachma points out that
regarding the chacham and tam the Hagada
says leimor. But regarding the rasha it only
says, “Ki yomru aleichem.” The Sifri in
Devarim explains that one meaning of the
word leimor is to say something in order to get
an answer. The chacham and tam are asking
sincere questions, while the rasha just attacks
with a rhetorical question.
The Kli Yakar and the Sheirit Menachem give a
third explanation. Both the chacham and tam
mention machar, tomorrow, while the rasha
does not. A basic fundamental aspect of
Judaism is “Naaseh v’nishma.” First we do,
then we try to understand. The Hagada says,
“Matza zu she’anu ochlin al shum mah?” First
we eat the matzah and then we explain why.
The reason for the mitzva is not the essence of
the mitzva. When we understand a mitzva, our
understanding adds flavor and excitement, but
the essence of a mitzva is simply to do
Hashem’s command. The tzaddik says
tomorrow I will understand, first I will do. The
rasha wants to know all the details first.
Rav Soloveitchik explains that the halacha of
not eating after afikomen is mentioned at the
very end of Mishnayot Pesachim. It doesn’t
mean we teach the chacham only this law.
Rather we teach him all the halachot of
Pesach up to and including the halacha of ein
maftirin acher haPesach. The ultimate motive
of yetziat Mitzrayim was the giving of the
Torah. We were freed physically on Pesach
but we didn’t achieve full spiritual freedom until
we received the Torah. Pesach is a direct link
to Shavuot. We begin counting toward kabalat
haTorah from the second day of Pesach. So
we see that learning halacha is an essential
part of sipur yetziat Mitzrayim and the
chacham is ready for the full story. We
conclude with this mitzva of not eating after
afikomen as a reminder to ourselves and our
children that we were redeemed from exile to
serve Hashem.
Help support Naaleh by searching the web! For more information visit www.iGive/Naaleh.com & www.iSearchiGive/Naaleh.com
visit us online at: www.naaleh.com | for questions, suggestions, or dedication opportunities, email contact@naaleh.com
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