Parshat Balak 5784
Rabbi Jablinowitz
We read in this week’s parsha that when Bilam’s donkey sees the angel of Gd in front of him, he veers off the path. Bilam, who doesn’t see the angel, hits the animal in order to get him to continue moving forward. The angel then gets closer to the donkey, causing him to move further off his path, eventually crouching down and ceasing to move forward. At this point, Bilam gets angry and continues to hit the donkey.
Hashem miraculously opens up the mouth of the donkey and he asks his owner, why have you hit me three times? The pasuk states (Chapter 22, Pasuk 28), מה עשיתי לך כי הכיתני זה שלש רגלים. What have I done to you that you have hit me three times. Chazal, referencing the fact that the Torah uses the term Regalim, teach that the donkey is alluding to the fact that Bnei Yisrael have three Regalim, festivals, which they celebrate every year. He is saying to Bilam, אתה מבקש לעקור אומה החוגגת שלש רגלים בשנה; do you think you can uproot a nation that celebrates the three festivals every year?
Why are Bnei Yisrael referred to as a nation that celebrates the three festivals; אומה החוגגת שלש רגלים? There are many mitzvos that Bnei Yisrael observe. Why is it precisely the Shalosh Regalim that are used in this context to define the uniqueness of Bnei Yisrael?
When Balak first sent messengers to Bilam asking him to take on the job of cursing Bnei Yisrael, he expresses his desire to chase them out of his land (Chapter 22, Pasuk 6), ואגרשנו מן הארץ. The Medrash Rabbah teaches on these words (20,7) לא היה מבקש אלא לגרשם שלא יכנסו לארץ. Balak’s real goal was to ensure that Bnei Yisrael wouldn’t enter Eretz Yisrael. Why was this important to him? Surely, he wanted Bnei Yisrael out of his way; why did he also want to keep them out of Eretz Yisrael?
When the Torah commands the mitzvah of going up to Yerushalayim during the festivals, the pasuk says (Devarim, Chapter 16, Pasuk 16), שלש פעמים בשנה יראה כל זכורך את פני ד' אלוקיך במקום אשר יבחר. Bnei Yisrael are commanded to be seen in the place which Hashem has chosen. The Beis Hamikdash in Yerushalayim was chosen by Hashem, and He chose Bnei Yisrael to receive this mitzvah of appearing there during the Shalosh Regalim. And the pasuk in sefer Tehillim says (Chapter 122, Pasuk 4), כי שם עלו שבטים שבטי קה עדות לישראל. The fact that the tribes of Israel go up to Yerushalayim testifies to their being chosen. Hashem chose Eretz Yisrael and He chose Bnei Yisrael to receive the land of Israel.
Rashi teaches from the words of Chazal (see Rashi on Chapter 24, Pasuk 6) that we can derive from the blessings of Bilam how he wanted to curse them. The Sfas Emes teaches that there are references to Eretz Yisrael and to Bnei Yisrael’s connection to the land. When Bilam said (Chapter 23, Pasuk 9), כי מראש צורים אראנו ומגבעות אשורנו, the Sfas Emes explains that Bilam said I see the mountains and I see the peaks of Eretz Yisrael and they belong to Am Yisrael. And when Bilam says in the next pasuk מי מנה עפר יעקב, he learns that this is a reference to all mitzvos which are dependent on the land, i.e. מצוות התלויות בארץ. These mitzvos are the exclusive domain of Bnei Yisrael. Hashem told Yaakov Avinu (Bereishis, Chapter 28, Pasuk 14), והיה זרעך כעפר הארץ; your descendants will be like the עפר הארץ and fulfill the mitzvos of עפר הארץ. Only Bnei Yisrael are chosen to develop the land of Israel by performing those mitzvos which can only be fulfilled in Eretz Yisrael.
When the donkey says to Bilam, אתה מבקש לעקור אומה החוגגת שלש רגלים בשנה, he uses the word לעקור which means to uproot. Balak and Bilam didn’t only want to curse Bnei Yisrael, or even chase them out from their land. They wanted to uproot Bnei Yisrael from Eretz Yisrael. We see this from the blessings of Bilam praising the connection between Bnei Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael that he wanted to deny this connection. And we learn from the Medrash that the ארץ they wanted to chase Bnei Yisrael out of was Eretz Yisrael.
And this is the approach of our enemies until this very day. The way they attack us is by denying our rights to Eretz Yisrael. This is a fundamental argument consistently and historically used against the Jewish people. As the first Rashi on Chumash teaches, the nations claim to us לסטים אתם; you are thieves and have no right to the land. You stole it. But as Rashi adds, the pasuk in Tehillim states (Chapter 111, Pasuk 6), כח מעשיו הגיד לעמו לתת להם נחלת גוים. The land belongs to Hashem and He gave it to us.
And this is why the donkey said to Bilam, אתה מבקש לעקור אומה החוגגת שלש רגלים בשנה. This is a nation which fulfills a mitzvah which proves its connection to the land. Three times a year the whole nation goes up to the holiest place on earth, the place chosen by Hashem; because Bnei Yisrael is the nation chosen by Hashem. How, then, do you think, Bilam, that you could uproot this nation from its eternal connection to Eretz Yisrael?
Good Shabbos
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