Daily Chumash
296 episodes - English - Latest episode: 10 months ago -Daily Chumash recording with Mrs. Tsyrl Turen.
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Chumash for Shabbos Chukas Balak (First Half)
June 26, 2023 15:29 - 14 minutes - 13.4 MBBalak takes Balaam to yet another place. For a third time, they build altars and bring offerings, and for a third time, only blessings issue from Balaam's mouth: "How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel! ... G‑d, who has brought them out of Egypt with the strength of His loftiness He shall consume the nations which are his adversaries..." Balak despairs of accomplishing his goal, and sends Balaam on his way. Before leaving, Balaam prophesies about the end of days: t...
Chumash for Friday Chukas Balak, second half
June 26, 2023 15:29 - 19 minutes - 17.5 MBUpon Balaam's instructions, Balak builds seven altars and offers sacrifices to G‑d. G‑d "chances" upon Balaam, and dictates to him the words he should repeat to Balak and his ministers: "How can I curse whom G‑d has not cursed, and how can I invoke wrath if the L-rd has not been angered?..." Balaam then proceeded to shower the Israelites with blessings and praises. When Balak responds angrily to the blessings, Balaam reminds him that he can only say that which G‑d tells him to say. Balak tak...
Chumash for Thursday Chukas Balak
June 26, 2023 15:22 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBBalak sends more prestigious messengers to Balaam, promising him great riches in return for his services. Once again G‑d appeared to Balaam. This time allowing him to go — provided that he only speak the words which G‑d dictates. G‑d sends an angel with a drawn sword to block Balaam's path. While Balaam couldn't see the angel, the she-donkey he was riding did, and refused to move onwards, causing Balaam to strike her. The donkey miraculously speaks, admonishing Balaam for striking her. Eventu...
Chumash for Tuesday Chukas Balak
June 26, 2023 15:22 - 36 minutes - 33.5 MBThe Jews arrive at Mount Hor, where Aaron then passes away and is mourned. The Amalekites, disguised as Canaanites, attack the Jews. The Jews pray to G‑d and are victorious. When the Jews complain about the manna, G‑d dispatches serpents into the Israelite encampment, and many Jews die. Following G‑d's instructions, Moses fashions a copper serpent and places it atop a pole. The bitten Jews would look at this snake and be healed. The Jews journey on, making their way toward the eastern bank of...
Chumash for Monday Chukas-Balak
June 26, 2023 15:19 - 17 minutes - 16 MBG‑d tells Moses and Aaron to take a staff and gather the people in front of a certain rock. They should speak to the rock, and it would give forth water. Moses strikes the rock and it gives forth water. In the course of this episode he commits a grave error, the conventional explanation being that he struck the rock instead of speaking to it. This caused G‑d to punish Moses and Aaron, barring them from leading the Jews into Israel. Moses sends messengers to the King of Edom requesting permiss...
Sunday Chukas-Balak
June 26, 2023 15:17 - 54 minutes - 49.6 MBThe most severe of all ritual impurities is tum'at met, the impurity contracted through contact with a human corpse. This section details the purification process for an individual or object which has contracted this form of impurity. A red heifer is slaughtered and is burned together with a few added ingredients. Water from a stream is added to the ashes. On the third and seventh day after contracting tum'at met, this mixture is sprinkled upon the individual or object. After immersion in a ...
Friday Behar and Bechukotai
May 07, 2023 18:45 - 13 minutes - 12.3 MBThis section discusses various endowments pledged to the Temple coffers. A person can pledge the worth of an individual, in which case the Torah prescribes how much the person must pay — depending on the gender and age of the individual who is being "assessed." An animal which is pledged to the Temple must be offered on the altar if it is fit for sacrifice — otherwise it must be "redeemed" for its value. If the owner chooses to redeem it, he must add one fifth of its value to the redemption p...
Thursday Behar and Bechukotai
May 07, 2023 18:43 - 16 minutes - 15.4 MBAnd more blessings: An overabundance of crops and G‑d's presence will be revealed in our midst. This section then describes the severe, terrifying punishments which will be the Jews' lot if they reject G‑d's mitzvot. The punishments include disease, famine, enemy occupation of the land, exile, and desolation of the land. The non-observance of the Sabbatical year is singled out as the reason for the desolation of the land. The aliyah concludes with G‑d's promise never to utterly forsake us eve...
Chumash for Tuesday Behar Bechukotai
May 07, 2023 18:35 - 21 minutes - 19.6 MBThe laws mentioned above apply to fields and homes in un-walled cities. Homes in walled cities, on the other hand, may only be redeemed up to one year after the sale; otherwise they become the permanent property of the buyer. Another exception to these rules is the property allotted to the Levites, which are always redeemable. We are commanded to assist our brethren by coming to their aid before they become financially ruined and dependent on the help of others. We are also forbidden from cha...
Chumash for Monday Behar Bechukotai
May 07, 2023 18:31 - 20 minutes - 18.7 MBThis section addresses an obvious concern: "What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not sow our gather our grain?!" G‑d reassures us that He will bless the sixth year's harvest, and it will produce enough to provide for three years! The Torah then gives the rationale for the prohibition against selling land for perpetuity (instead, land can only be "leased" until the Jubilee year) — "Because the Land belongs to Me; you are strangers and residents with Me." The seller of land, or his re...
CHUMASH FOR SUNDAY BEHAR BECHUKOTAI
May 07, 2023 12:38 - 15 minutes - 14.4 MBG‑d commands Moses regarding the Sh'mitah (Sabbatical) and Jubilee years. Every seventh year is a Sabbatical year, when it is forbidden to work the land (in the Land of Israel). After seven sets of seven years a Jubilee year is proclaimed. During Jubilee years all the laws of the Sabbatical year apply, and, in addition to the Sabbatical laws, all slaves are set free and all lands revert to their original owners. We are commanded to conduct business ethically. Since all land reverts to their o...
Tanya for Friday of Acharei Mos- Kedoshim
April 25, 2023 04:42 - 10 minutes - 9.56 MBWe are commanded to love converts. We are also enjoined to be truthful in business dealing by maintaining honest weights and measures. The Torah prescribes capital punishment for one who worships Molech; a form of idolatry which required human sacrifices. The Torah also describes the punishment which will befall the nation if they neglect to punish Molech worshippers.
Chumash for Thursday Acharei Mos- Kedoshim
April 25, 2023 04:40 - 14 minutes - 13.3 MBMore mitzvot: Not to pervert justice, gossip, be indifferent to a fellow's predicament, hate a fellow Jew, bear grudges, or take revenge. To reprimand a sinner, and to love every Jew. The following statutes are also given here: not to sow a field with two kinds of seed, wear a garment made of a mixture of wool and linen (shatnez), or crossbreed animals. The section also includes with the laws of one who commits adultery with a half-free maidservant. We are introduced to the laws of "orlah," t...
Chumash for Monday Acharei Mos- Kedoshim
April 25, 2023 04:40 - 21 minutes - 19.8 MBAfter concluding the order of the Yom Kippur service in the Temple, the Torah instructs us to observe Yom Kippur as a Day of Atonement when we must abstain from work and "afflict" ourselves. The Jews are then forbidden to offer sacrifices anywhere other than the Tabernacle or Temple.
Chumash for Tuesday Acharei Mos Kedoshim
April 25, 2023 04:40 - 11 minutes - 10.6 MBWe are enjoined not to consume blood. When slaughtering fowl or undomesticated animals, we are commanded to cover their blood with earth. The Jews are admonished not to follow the depraved ways of the Egyptians and Canaanites. On this note, the Torah provides a list of prohibited sexual relationships. The list includes adultery, cohabiting with a menstruating woman, and forbidden close relatives.
Sunday for Acharei Mos-Kedoshim
April 25, 2023 04:34 - 13 minutes - 12.5 MBThe High Priest is instructed to only enter the Holy of Holies chamber of the sanctuary once a year, on Yom Kippur; and even on this holiest day of the year, the entry into the Temple's inner sanctum must be accompanied by a special service and specific offerings which are detailed in this reading. The High Priest was only permitted to enter amidst a cloud of burning incense. Also, special white garments were worn by the High Priest on this day. While offering the day's sacrifices, the High P...
Friday Tazria and Metzora
April 18, 2023 05:24 - 16 minutes - 15 MBHomes, too, can be afflicted with tzara'at. If stones on a home become discolored — acquiring a strong red or green pigment — a priest is summoned. If indeed the discoloration seems to be tzara'at, the priest quarantines the home for up to three weeks. Depending on the spread of the discoloration, the home is either declared to be pure, or the specific stones are removed from the house, or, in the most extreme situations, the house is demolished. The Torah then describes the purification proc...
Tuesday Tazria Metzora
April 18, 2023 05:24 - 14 minutes - 13.3 MBThis section discusses tzara'at which appears on a bald spot, as well a white discoloration streaked with red, which can appear anywhere on the body. Also discussed is the procedure followed by an individual who is afflicted with tzara'at, the main requirement being that he must remain outside the city until his condition clears up. The Torah then discusses "clothing tzara'at," a green or red discoloration which can affect certain types of materials. The garment is shown to a priest who quara...
Thursday Tazria Metzora
April 18, 2023 05:24 - 9 minutes - 8.88 MBIf the individual suffering from tzara'at cannot afford the above sacrifices, two birds can be substituted for two of the animals. This section describes the slightly different purification process reserved for the impoverished person.
Monday Tazria Metzora
April 18, 2023 05:20 - 19 minutes - 17.8 MBWe learn the laws of tzara'at which appears following a burn to the skin. We discover that tzara'at can also affect the areas on the body covered by hair. The symptoms and laws of such a tzara'at are quite different than standard tzara'at. This section concludes with the laws of a person afflicted by multiple dull white areas on his skin.
Sunday Tazria Metzora
April 18, 2023 05:20 - 15 minutes - 14.5 MBThe Jewish people are instructed regarding the ritual impurity contracted by a woman who gives birth. The timeframe of this period of impurity differs depending whether the child is a boy or girl. At the conclusion of this period, the woman immerses in a mikvah and is required to bring certain offerings in the Temple. Incidentally, the Torah mentions the obligation to circumcise a male child on the eighth day of his life. The Torah then begins discussing the laws of tzara'at, a skin discolora...
Thursday of Vaera
January 22, 2023 02:40 - 9 minutes - 8.33 MBMoses prayed to G‑d, and the frogs all died. Egypt reeked from the odor of rotting frogs, and Pharaoh reneged on his promise. Plague Three: Aaron smote the earth with his staff, and swarms of lice attacked Egypt, covering man and beast. Even Pharaoh's magicians were amazed by this, and informed Pharaoh that this is the "finger of G‑d." Plague Four: G‑d dispatched Moses to warn Pharaoh that his land will be infested by a mixture of noxious animals. Only the land of Goshen, where the Israelite...
Monday of Vaera
January 13, 2023 11:48 - 19 minutes - 18 MBThe Torah takes a brief interlude and traces the lineage of Moses and Aaron, listing their family trees.
Sunday of Vaera
January 13, 2023 11:48 - 16 minutes - 14.7 MBThis week's portion opens with G‑d's response to Moses (continuation from the end of last week's reading). G‑d told Moses that He revealed Himself to the Patriarchs and established with them a covenant to give them the land of Canaan. And now the time has arrived to fulfill His promises. G‑d told Moses to tell the Israelites that He has heard their cries, and He will now deliver them from Egypt and bring them to the Promised Land. Moses relayed the message, but their unbearable workload prev...
Chumash for Friday of Shemot
January 13, 2023 11:45 - 16 minutes - 15.4 MBMoses took his wife and two sons and headed for Egypt. G‑d charged Moses to warn Pharaoh: "So said G‑d, 'My firstborn son is Israel. So I say to you, send out My son so that he will worship Me. And if you refuse to send him out, behold, I will slay your firstborn son.'" En route to Egypt, Moses' wife rescued her husband from divine wrath by performing a circumcision on their son. Moses met Aaron, who had come from Egypt to greet him, and together they went to Egypt, gathered the elders and p...
Friday Toldot
November 21, 2022 11:56 - 16 minutes - 7.57 MBIsaac blessed Jacob with the "dew of the heaven and the fat of the earth," and granted him mastery over his brother. No sooner than the blessing ended, Esau arrived from the field, only to be informed by his father – who now understood what had transpired – that the blessing was already given to his younger brother. Esau was furious and Isaac comforted him with a minor blessing. Esau was determined to kill Jacob, but Rebecca, who got wind of this plot, asked Isaac to send Jacob to Charan to ...
Thursday Toldot
November 21, 2022 11:56 - 17 minutes - 8.09 MBIsaac agreed to Abimelech's request. On that day, Isaac's servants informed him that they had successfully dug another well. At the age of forty, Esau married two wives. Their idolatrous ways anguished Isaac and Rebecca. Isaac had now advanced in age, and he became blind. He summoned Esau and told him that he wished to bless him, but first he should go to the field and hunt some game for him to eat. Rebecca heard this conversation and advised Jacob to don Esau's clothing and trick Isaac into...
Tuesday Toldot
November 21, 2022 11:55 - 8 minutes - 3.71 MBIsaac became extremely wealthy. He also re-dug some of the wells that his father Abraham had dug, but had since been stopped up by the Philistines. The Philistines eventually became envious of his wealth, and asked him to leave. Isaac complied, moving away from the city and settling in the Gerar Valley. There, Isaac's servants dug two new wells but the Philistines contested his ownership over these wells. The third well he dug was uncontested.
Monday Toldot
November 21, 2022 11:55 - 6 minutes - 2.92 MBIsaac settled in Philistine. When the townspeople inquired regarding his wife, he told them that she was his sister, fearing that otherwise the Philistines would kill him in order to take Rebecca. Eventually, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, noticed that Rebecca was Isaac's wife and though he reprimanded Isaac, he issued a decree that no one touch them. While in Philistine, Isaac sowed crops, and miraculously harvested a hundred times more than a field's normal yield.
Sunday Toldot
November 21, 2022 11:55 - 18 minutes - 8.44 MBRebecca had trouble conceiving. Isaac and Rebecca prayed for children, and after twenty years of marriage Rebecca became pregnant. She was concerned about her exceedingly difficult pregnancy, and was advised by G‑d that this was due to two children – two nations – struggling in her womb. She gave birth to twin boys: a hairy, ruddy boy named Esau, and a second son, born clutching his brother's heel, named Jacob. Esau became a hunter, while Jacob was an honest man who frequented the schools of...
Sunday Chayei Sarah
November 18, 2022 12:35 - 15 minutes - 6.97 MBSarah died at the age of 127, and her grieving husband Abraham identified a plot in the city of Hebron that he wished to procure for use as a family burial ground. This plot, a cave situated in the Machpela field, belonged to Ephron the Hittite, so Abraham approached the Hittite tribe and asked for permission to purchase the parcel of land. Originally Ephron wished to give the plot to Abraham as a gift, but after Abraham insisted on paying full price the acquisition was concluded with Abraha...
Friday Chayei Sarah
November 18, 2022 12:35 - 9 minutes - 4.36 MBAbraham remarried and fathered several more children. Before his death, however, Abraham gave gifts to his other children and sent them all away, and bequeathed all the rest of his possessions to Isaac. Abraham died at the age of 175, and was buried by Isaac and Ishmael in the cave of Machpela beside his wife, Sarah.
Tuesday Chayei Sarah
November 18, 2022 12:35 - 15 minutes - 7.16 MBThe servant set out for his master's homeland and evening time found him beside the city well. He prayed for success in his mission, and asked for a heavenly sign to confirm his choice of a girl for Isaac. He would ask a maiden for a drink of water, and the one who would answer: "Certainly, and I'll also give your camels to drink as well," would be the proper choice for Isaac. Immediately a young lady approached and in response to the servant's request for a drink, she offered to give his ca...
Monday Chayei Sarah
November 18, 2022 12:34 - 8 minutes - 3.93 MBHaving acquired the land, Abraham buried Sarah in the Cave of Machpela. At this point, Abraham summoned his servant and charged him with the mission of finding a suitable wife for his son Isaac. Abraham had his servant swear that he would not take a wife for Isaac from the local Canaanite women. Instead, he asked him to travel to Aram, his native land, and find a wife for Isaac there.
Thursday Chayei Sarah
November 18, 2022 12:34 - 18 minutes - 8.36 MBRebecca's family celebrates the engagement together with Abraham's servant. Next morning, the servant insisted on immediately returning to his master with the maiden in hand, and after Rebecca agreed, the two set out for Canaan. Isaac married Rebecca, loved her, and finally found consolation for the loss of his mother.
Tuesday Vayeira
November 06, 2022 12:11 - 22 minutes - 10.2 MBThe angels arrived in Sodom, and Lot invited them to his home to eat and rest. Word of Lot's guests spread throughout the city – a city that abhorred all acts of kindness – and the incensed residents of Sodom surrounded Lot' house, with intent to assault the guests. Lot refused the demands that he surrender his guests, and – as the Sodomites prepared to break down the door – the angels struck all those surrounding the house with blindness. The angels informed Lot of their mission, and encour...
Friday Vayeira
November 06, 2022 12:11 - 17 minutes - 7.79 MBAbimelech approached Abraham and requested to enter into a treaty with him, whereby neither party will harm the other for three generations. Abraham agreed, but reprimanded Abimelech concerning a well of water which he had dug which was stolen by Abimelech's subjects. Abraham set apart seven ewes, telling Abimelech to take them as a testimony that he, Abraham, dug the well. Abraham planted an orchard and established an inn in Beer Sheba and proclaimed the name of G‑d to all passersby.
Thursday Vayeira
November 06, 2022 12:11 - 14 minutes - 6.68 MBIsaac grew, and Sarah noticed that Ishmael, Isaac's older half-brother, was a potentially negative influence on her young child. She demanded of Abraham to expel Ishmael, along with his mother Hagar, from the household. Despite Abraham's initial misgivings, G‑d tells him: "Whatever Sarah tells you, listen to her voice!" Hagar and Ishmael wandered in the desert and eventually ran out of water. Ishmael was about to perish from thirst when an angel "opened Hagar's eyes" and showed her a well of...
Sunday Vayeira
November 06, 2022 12:03 - 16 minutes - 7.36 MBG‑d paid Abraham a visit, as he sat at the entrance of his tent. Abraham suddenly noticed three travelers passing by, and ran to invite them into his home. These passersby, who were actually angels in human disguise, accepted the invitation, and Abraham and Sarah prepared a sumptuous feast for them. The angels informed Abraham that Sarah would give birth to a child exactly one year later. Eighty-nine-year-old, post-menopausal Sarah, who was standing nearby, heard this assurance, and laughed....
Monday Vayeira
November 06, 2022 12:03 - 24 minutes - 11.1 MBThe angels departed, with Abraham escorting them on their journey. Their destination: the Sodom region; their mission: to destroy the five cities of the region, and rescue Lot (Abraham's nephew) and his family, who resided there. G‑d informed Abraham of His intention to destroy Sodom because of the great evil of its inhabitants. Abraham attempted to save the region, asking that it be spared if it contains fifty righteous people. When it was apparent that this was not the case, Abraham "barga...
Monday of Lech Lecha
October 31, 2022 05:30 - 10 minutes - 4.59 MBAnd indeed because of her beauty, Sarai was taken captive and brought to Pharaoh. G‑d struck the members of Pharaoh's palace with a plague, causing Pharaoh to hastily release Sarai. Pharaoh loaded Abram and Sarai with gifts and riches, and had them escorted out of his land. Abram returned triumphantly to Canaan.
Thursday Lech Lecha
October 31, 2022 04:31 - 20 minutes - 9.32 MBAbram rebuffed the king of Sodom's wish to award him with all the war's spoils. When G‑d reassured Abram that he would be greatly rewarded for his righteousness, Abram broaches his childlessness. "What is the point of all the reward and wealth," Abram cried, "if I have no heir to inherit it?!" G‑d assured Abram that he will indeed have a child, and promised that Abram's descendents will be as numerous as the stars of the heaven.
Friday Lech Lecha
October 31, 2022 04:31 - 18 minutes - 8.58 MBAbram requested a sign from G‑d that his descendents would inherit the land of Canaan. G‑d responded in the famous "Covenant Between the Parts." Abram and the Divine Presence passed between an assortment of halved animals, and G‑d told Abram that his descendants would be exiled and in bondage for four hundred years. At the conclusion of this period, Abram's descendents would leave with great wealth, G‑d would punish the nations which enslaved them, and Abram's children would inherit the land...
Tuesday Lech Lecha
October 31, 2022 04:27 - 11 minutes - 5.26 MBLot, who had accompanied Abram and Sarai, was independently wealthy. When Lot's shepherds quarreled with Abram's shepherds, the two parted ways, with Lot settling in the province of Sodom, which was renowned for its evil inhabitants. After Lot departed, G‑d spoke to Abram again, reiterating His promise to bequeath the land to his descendents, and promising to make his descendents numerous as the soil of the earth.
Sunday Lech Lecha
October 31, 2022 04:26 - 18 minutes - 8.59 MBG‑d commanded Abram to leave his father's house and homeland, and travel to the land that He will show him. As reward for doing so, G‑d promised to make Abram the patriarch of a great nation. Abram obeyed, taking along his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot. Once Abram arrived in Canaan, G‑d informed him that He will eventually give that land to his descendents. Abram traverses the length of the land until a famine forces him to travel to Egypt. Fearing that the Egyptians would kill him in order ...
Friday of Noach
October 24, 2022 08:48 - 16 minutes - 7.69 MBNoah planted a vineyard, made wine, became drunk and fell into a deep drunken slumber — while naked. Noah's son, Ham, saw his father naked, assaulted him, and informed his two brothers of their father's state. The brothers, Shem and Japeth, modestly approached their father and covered him. When Noah awakened, he cursed Ham's son, Canaan, and blessed Shem and Japeth. This section then names Noah's seventy grandsons and great-grandsons, the antecedents of the "seventy nations," and their adopt...
Thursday of Noach
October 24, 2022 08:44 - 7 minutes - 3.62 MBG‑d told Noah that he is establishing a covenant to never again bring a flood to destroy the world. G‑d designated the rainbow as the sign of this covenant: "And it shall come to pass, when I cause clouds to come upon the earth, that the rainbow will appear in the cloud. And I will remember My covenant..."
Tuesday of Noach
October 24, 2022 08:42 - 25 minutes - 11.8 MBThe torrential rains lasted for forty days and nights. The waters rose to great heights and covered even the highest mountains, killing all humans and animals; everything died aside for Noah and the other occupants of the teivah. After the waters raged on the earth another 150 days, G‑d caused the waters to subside. The teivah eventually rested on the Ararat Mountains, and shortly thereafter the mountain peaks came into view. Noah opened the window of the teivah and dispatched birds to see w...
Monday of Noach
October 24, 2022 08:42 - 16 minutes - 7.5 MBOf kosher animals and birds, Noah was commanded to take seven pairs of each species (as opposed to one pair of all other species). Noah, his family, and the required animals boarded the teivah and the mabul began: "The springs of the great depths burst forth and the windows of the heavens opened."
Sunday of Noach
October 24, 2022 08:41 - 20 minutes - 9.47 MBWhile society as a whole descended into a state of anarchy and utter corruption, only Noah remained righteous and faithful to G‑d's ways. Noah was informed by G‑d that a mabul ("flood") will soon destroy all of civilization, and only Noah and his immediate family would survive in a teivah ("ark," boat) that he was to build. G‑d gave Noah the exact dimensions of the teivah he was to build, and commanded Noah to bring along into the teivah specimens of every species of animal and bird to repop...