Author: Shlomo Bar-Ayal

The difference between Moses and Korach was their motivations. Korach was ego driven. Moses didn’t care who got the credit.

Korach made his power grab based on a misinterpretation of the state that “You will be Holy.” The statement goes on to say that the Jews will be holy if they follow God’s commandments. That they were not holy just because of their birth.

When we read about the commandment of Tzitzit we are told that it is to remind us to follow God’s commandments. And that it is a reminder that the commandments are the reason we were taken out of Egypt.

One of the issues we have are nay sayers. These are people who claim you cannot do anything. When asked why, they reply that it has never been done before. We learn not to be such especially when we follow God’s plans.

Of the scouts, 12 gave a bad report but 2 did not. One was Joshua, who was Moses’s main student and designated successor, & the other was Celeb, who was Miriam’s husband. We can see the influence of Miriam in his decisions.

In the story of the spies, we have to ask, weren’t these the same people who witnessed the crossing of the Reed Sea? Didn’t they realize that they were under divine protection? The answer is that they were still in a slave mentality. Not only did they not trust in God, but they did also not trust in themselves.

The scouts sent by Moses overestimated the power of the people of the land. They forgot that the Jews had God on their side.

Last night Israel fulfilled a Biblical obligation to prevent a clear and present danger from happening. The Bible is clear on this. We are not a suicidal people. If you want peace, have a strong army ready to do their job.

The people who complained about the manna were complainers who did not care about anything but liked to complain. That is why they were punished. When something is wrong, we should try to improve it.

Miriam meant well when she complained about Moses’s seemingly neglect of his wife to Aaron. Even though she meant well, it was still wrong. This teaches us that even the great can make mistakes.