Since there are no Rabbi Frand shiurim on the Parsha until Elul, I generally substitute a vort from other Rabbanim each week, rather than leaving the blog without a vort for shabbos. This week, I am attempting to repeat a vort heard from a young maggid shiur in my community - R' Jeff Thurm who gives a great 40 minute parsha shiur at the BTU shul on Thursday nights. Same rules as usual apply - I have attempted to reproduce the vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to the maggid shiur.
In Devarim 8:10, the Torah states "וְאָֽכַלְתָּ֖ וְשָׂבָ֑עְתָּ וּבֵֽרַכְתָּ֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ עַל־הָאָ֥רֶץ הַטֹּבָ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָֽתַן־לָֽךְ" which is the commandment that one should bentch - make a blessing after eating. R' Jeff noted that this is one of two Torah commandments to say a blessing, the other being the mitzvah to say a bracha before learning Torah. But why are they in a different order that one makes the blessing before learning Torah, but after eating?
R' Jeff answered by quoting the Meshech Chachma who teaches that it is meant to emphasize that one blesses Hashem for these things because of a command and not based on personal feelings. When it comes to food and a person sits down to eat, it would be normal to say "thank you" for the food when it is given to him before he eats. On the other hand, after a person has filled his belly he feels less of a sense of thanks and just wants to lie down. It is at that time that we are commanded to recognize Hashem and thank him for all that we just consumed.
Its the opposite with a great Torah thought. A person can learn something which resonates with him and at that point would want to bless Hashem for giving the Torah. But we don't thank Hashem after the fact for the Torah we just learned. Instead, we bless Hashem for what we are about to learn, even though we have not yet received any benefit from it.
R' Jeff also said a vort on Devarim 10:12, in which the Torah states וְעַתָּה֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מָ֚ה יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ שֹׁאֵ֖ל מֵֽעִמָּ֑ךְ כִּ֣י אִם־לְ֠יִרְאָ֠ה אֶת־יְהֹוָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ לָלֶ֤כֶת בְּכָל־דְּרָכָיו֙ וּלְאַֽהֲבָ֣ה אֹת֔וֹ וְלַֽעֲבֹד֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ בְּכָל־לְבָֽבְךָ֖ וּבְכָל־נַפְשֶֽׁך
This is one of the more difficult pesukim to comprehend as Moshe says to the Jewish people - what does Hashem ask from you - just to fear Him and walk in His ways... But this is no small task!
R' Jeff quoted the Noam Elimelech who explains the use of the word שֹׁאֵ֖ל in the classic gemara sense, meaning a borrower. He explains that if we have a sense of fear of Hashem and inculcate that in our ways, then Hashem will ask that we do things for him.
R' Jeff also quoted the Torah Temimah who explains that the words כִּ֣י אִם־לְ֠יִרְאָ֠ה אֶת־יְהֹוָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ לָלֶ֤כֶת בְּכָל־דְּרָכָיו֙ should be understood as that if a person does fear Hashem, then he will be able to walk in His ways.
R' Jeff also quoted the Shemen HaTov who quotes the Gemara in Berachos which teaches that for Moshe this was different than for everyone else as for Moshe this was not a difficult task. But what about everyone else? The Shemen HaTov answers that based on a different gemara which discusses how in the end of days the Tzaddikim and Risha'im will each look at the Yetzer Hara and weep as the Tzaddikim will say - how big this was, yet BH we were able to overcome it. Meanwhile the Risha'im will say - how small it was, yet we could not beat it. To a person who has achieved the level of worship through Yirah and then acheived Ahava, the Yirah is not a large task to acheive.
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