This is a sample of the Rebbe's classic "Rashi Sichos".
In this Sicha we will learn:
- The classic understanding of Rashi
- Questions on Rashi
- A new explanation of Rashi
- Answers
- The Inner Dimension of Rashi
- A lesson for us
(פט) וּבְבֹ֨א מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶל־אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵד֮ לְדַבֵּ֣ר אִתּוֹ֒ וַיִּשְׁמַ֨ע אֶת־הַקּ֜וֹל מִדַּבֵּ֣ר אֵלָ֗יו מֵעַ֤ל הַכַּפֹּ֙רֶת֙ אֲשֶׁר֙ עַל־אֲרֹ֣ן הָעֵדֻ֔ת מִבֵּ֖ין שְׁנֵ֣י הַכְּרֻבִ֑ים וַיְדַבֵּ֖ר אֵלָֽיו׃ (פ)
ובבא משה. שְׁנֵי כְתוּבִים הַמַּכְחִישִׁים זֶה אֶת זֶה, שְׁלִישִׁי בָא וְהִכְרִיעַ בֵּינֵיהֶם, כָּתוּב אֶחָד אוֹמֵר "וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֵלָיו מֵאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד" (ויקרא א') — וְהוּא חוּץ לַפָּרֹכֶת — וְכָתוּב אֶחָד אוֹמֵר "וְדִבַּרְתִּי אִתְּךָ מֵעַל הַכַּפֹּרֶת" (שמות כ"ה), בָּא זֶה וְהִכְרִיעַ בֵּינֵיהֶם: מֹשֶׁה בָא אֶל אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, וְשָׁם שׁוֹמֵעַ אֶת הַקּוֹל הַבָּא מֵעַל הַכַּפֹּרֶת מִבֵּין שְׁנֵי הַכְּרוּבִים — הַקּוֹל יוֹצֵא מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם לְבֵין שְׁנֵי הַכְּרוּבִים, וּמִשָּׁם יָצָא לְאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד (ספרי):
מדבר. כְּמוֹ מִתְדַּבֵּר, כְּבוֹדוֹ שֶׁל מַעְלָה לוֹמַר כֵּן, מְדַּבֵּר בֵּינוֹ לְבֵין עַצְמוֹ, וּמֹשֶׁה שׁוֹמֵעַ מֵאֵלָיו:
וידבר אליו. לְמַעֵט אֶת אַהֲרֹן מִן הַדִּבְּרוֹת (עי' ספרי):
וישמע את הקול. יָכוֹל קוֹל נָמוּךְ, תַּ"ל "אֶת הַקּוֹל", הוּא הַקּוֹל שֶׁנִּדְבַּר עִמּוֹ בְּסִינַי, וּכְשֶׁמַּגִּיעַ לַפֶּתַח הָיָה נִפְסָק וְלֹא הָיָה יוֹצֵא חוּץ לָאֹהֶל:
(1) ובבא משה AND WHEN MOSES CAME— When two Scriptural verses apparently contradict each other there comes a third and reconciles them. We have got such a case here: one verse says, (Leviticus 1:1) “And spoke unto him out of the appointed tent”, which was outside the Vail, and another verse says, (Exodus 25:22). “And I shall speak unto thee from off the Ark-lid”, thus within the Vail — then this (our verse) comes and reconciles them: Moses entered the appointed tent, and there he heard the Voice which came from above the Ark-lid, from between the two Cherubim — the Voice issued from Heaven unto the space between the two Cherubim, and from there it issued into the appointed tent where it was heard by Moses.
(2) מדבר is the same as מתדבר (it is the Hitphael form with assimiliated ת) — “He heard the Voice uttering itself”. It is out of reverence for the Most High God that Scripture speaks thus: “The Voice was speaking to itself”, and Moses would listen in (i. e., he could not help hearing it).
(3) וידבר אליו AND HE SPOKE UNTO HIM — unto him: thus excluding Aaron from the Divine communications (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 1:1, s. v. אליו).
(4) וישמע את הקול AND HE HEARD THE VOICE — One might think it was a very low voice! Scripture, however, states “the Voice” (with the definite article — the well-known Voice) — it was that thunderous Voice with which He spoke to him on Sinai, and yet when it reached the door of the appointed tent it broke off and did not issue beyond the appointed tent.
The classic understanding of Rashi:
רש"י ד"ה וידבר אליו is explaining why the Passuk says "וידבר אליו" if it already says "מדבר אליו". Rashi says that the "extra" "אליו-to him" is to emphasize that although Moshe and Aharon were in the Mishkan, only Moshe heard Hashem speak.
רש"י ד"ה וישמע את הקול is explaining the ה of "הקול". We know the ה prefix in Lashon Hakodesh means that we know this voice from earlier in Torah. Rashi says that "הקול" is the loud voice of Hashem from Mattan Torah which we already know about.
Questions:
1) Why does Rashi explain the word הקול last, if it is before the words "מדבר" and "וידבר אליו" in the Passuk?
2) Rashi starts off ד"ה וישמע את הקול saying "one might think it was a low voice, however..." Why would we assume that it was a low voice?
3) Why does Rashi add to his explanation of הקול that the voice didn't go out of the Mishkan?
4) If Rashi is explaining the ה of הקול, why does he quote the words "וישמע את" in the ד"ה?
A new explanation of Rashi:
After Rashi tells us in ד"ה וידבר אליו that Aharon didn't hear Hashem's voice, we need to know how that happened. A simple explanation is that Hashem's voice was to low for most people, including Aharon, to hear it. But Moshe had better hearing and was able to hear it. We know Moshe defended Yisro's daughters from the attacking shepherd's (שמות ב:יז) so we could assume that all of Moshe's senses were stronger than most people, including his hearing, so he was able to hear Hashem's low voice. (Therefore the Passuk says "וישמע את הקול" only "he could hear the voice".)
Rashi rejects this assumption by pointing out that the ה of הקול means that this voice is "the voice we already know of", the voice from Mattan Torah, which was very loud. So it must have been a miracle that Aharon couldn't hear it. (Now we must explain "וישמע את הקול" to mean "the voice was heard (only) to Moshe".)
After learning that the voice coming from the Keruvim was like that of Mattan Torah, we have a new question. If the voice was loud enough for the 600,000 Jews at Mattan Torah to hear it, Moshe could have listened where he was in the camp. Why did Moshe need to come into the Mishkan?
Rashi answers that there was another miracle "when the voice reached the entrance it would stop and wouldn't go outside the Mishkan". Therefore Moshe had to be inside the Mishkan to hear what Hashem says.
To summarize:
רש"י ד"ה וידבר אליו says that Aharon didn't hear Hashem's voice.
We would assume that was because it was low, and only Moshe's hearing was strong enough to hear.
רש"י ד"ה וישמע את הקול rejects that by proving it was a loud voice like by Mattan Torah, and it was a miracle that only Moshe heard. He then explains that Moshe had to come inside to listen even though it was so loud because miraculously, the sound wasn't heard outside the Mishkan.
Answers:
Answer to Question 2: The assumption is that it was a low voice because that is the simplest explanation why Aharon didn't hear Hashem's voice.
Answer to Question 1: In ד"ה וישמע את הקול Rashi is rejecting the assumption that it was a low voice. Only after we know from רש"י ד"ה וידבר אליו that Aharon didn't hear Hashem's voice do we need to make this assumption. So רש"י ד"ה וישמע את הקול is necessary only after רש"י ד"ה וידבר אליו.
Answer to Question 3: Rashi needs to explain why Moshe couldn't have listened to the voice of Mattan Torah from outside the Mishkan.
Answer to Question 4: Rashi's ד"ה is וישמע את הקול because the meaning of these words changes with Rashi's explanation.
The Inner Dimension of Rashi
There is an obvious question on Rashi's explanation. Why would Hashem make a miracle for the sound to not leave the Mishkan and require Moshe to come inside?
היום יום כ"ט שבט
דער אלטער רבי האט אמאל געזאגט: פירוש רש"י אויף חומש איז יינה של תורה, פותח הלב ומגלה אהבה ויראה עצמיות.
The Alter Rebbe once said: Rashi's commentary on Chumash is the "wine of Torah." It opens the heart and uncovers one's love and fear of G-d
We can answer this question by understanding the "Wine of Torah", the more profound meaning of this Rashi as explained in Chassidus.
Rashi says the voice in the Mishkan was the voice of Hashem by Mattan Torah. The voice by Mattan Torah also ended at a certain point, albeit a point in time, not in space.
(13) No hand shall touch him, but he shall be either stoned or shot; beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they may go up on the mountain.”
(3) במשך היבל WHEN THE RAM’S HORN SOUNDS LONG — when the ram’s horn draws out a long sound that is a sign of the departure of the Shechina and that the Divine voice is about to cease, and as soon as I shall depart they shall be permitted to ascend.
Chassidus explains that this voice had to stop because if the revelation of Mattan Torah would continue, then it would be impossible for a Jew to serve Hashem with free choice. This revelation was so great that it didn't leave room for us to do anything other than what Hashem wants, taking away the opportunity to serve Hashem because we want to. therefore Hashem's voice and revelation stopped after Mattan Torah.
The same is true when Hashem's voice was revealed in the Mishkan. If it would travel throughout the world, then the whole world will be a Mishkan, a place where there is no room for free choice in serving Hashem. Therefore it stopped by the Mishkan's entrance.
אָמַר רַבִּי שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן, בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁבָּרָא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֶת הָעוֹלָם, נִתְאַוָּה שֶׁיְּהֵא לוֹ דִּירָה בַּתַּחְתּוֹנִים כְּמוֹ שֶׁיֵּשׁ בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים.
R. Samuel bar Nachman said, “When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the world, He longed to have an abode below just as He had on high.
Aside from a global revelation preventing free choice, it would also hinder the purpose of creation. Hashem desires that in a world where we don't feel G-dliness naturally, Jews should reveal G-dliness in the world through our actions, making it a home for Hashem. If Hashem's voice would have been heard outside of the Mishkan, then the world would be a house for Hashem. But not the home he desires, a home built by his nation.
A lesson for us:
A Jew shouldn't try to "stay in the Mishkan" in the world of Torah, where Hashem is revealed, and we can serve him peacefully. Our job is to be outside of the Mishkan, out in the world where Hashem's voice isn't heard, and to share with our worldly selves and everyone around us what we know from our time inside the Mishkan, thereby making our world a place where Hashem could feel at home.