Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Bo

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these 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 R' Frand.

R' Frand began the first vort by talking about the Kibbutz Kommeyiut which was a frum Kibbutz and observed Shemittah. The year 1959 was a Shemittah year, but it was also a year that Israel was besieged by locusts. The locusts did not spare Kommeyiut and they attacked all the wood, including the door posts. However, the locusts did not eat any of the trees in the fields.

Thinking that this was an open miracle, the Rav of Kommeyiut went to discuss the phenomenon with the Brisker Rav. The Brisker Rav said to him, no this is not the way that you perceive it as it is a fulfillment of the pasuk in Shemos 10:14 -  לְ֠פָנָ֠יו לֹא־הָ֨יָה כֵ֤ן אַרְבֶּה֙ כָּמֹ֔הוּ וְאַֽחֲרָ֖יו לֹ֥א יִֽהְיֶה־כֵּֽן. The Brisker Rav quoted Rashi on this pasuk who asks - but wasn't there a greater plague of locusts in the time of Yoel and for which the Navi writes that there was no plague like this? Rashi explains that the locusts in Yoel's time were diverse as there were four kinds of locusts and that never again was there a plague like that. Although the plague of locusts in Egypt was only one kind, it was the most severe plague of single genus locusts of all time.

The Brisker Rav next quoted the Ramban who in turn quotes Rabbeinu Channanel that the meaning of the pasuk was that there was never a plague of locusts in Egypt's borders, ever again. 

He next quoted the Klei Yakar who observes that in Shemos 10:2 the Torah states a requirement to inform ones children and grandchildren about this plague, as the Torah states - וּלְמַ֡עַן תְּסַפֵּר֩ בְּאָזְנֵ֨י בִנְךָ֜ וּבֶן־בִּנְךָ֗ אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁ֤ר הִתְעַלַּ֨לְתִּי֙ בְּמִצְרַ֔יִם - why does this makkah have that requirement? Because when Israel is undergoing a plague of locusts (like what was occurring in 1959) there will not be any locusts in Egypt. When your children and grandchildren ask you why, you should respond based on the pasuk in Shemos 10:14 - this plague was meant to be a sign that there may be locusts in Israel, but never again in Egypt.

R' Frand closed this portion of the vort by quoting a different Medrash which states that Egypt and Kush had an ongoing war for many generations which involved a dispute over the boundary between the two countries. The dispute ended abruptly when the plague of frogs hit Egypt as the Torah states in Shemos 7:27 - וְאִם־מָאֵ֥ן אַתָּ֖ה לְשַׁלֵּ֑חַ הִנֵּ֣ה אָֽנֹכִ֗י נֹגֵ֛ף אֶת־כָּל־גְּבֽוּלְךָ֖ בַּֽצְפַרְדְּעִֽים - the plague would run to the border of Egypt.

R' Frand said a second vort on the plague of darkness, which was followed by an instruction in Shemos 12:2 "דַּבֶּר־נָ֖א בְּאָזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֑ם וְיִשְׁאֲל֞וּ אִ֣ישׁ | מֵאֵ֣ת רֵעֵ֗הוּ וְאִשָּׁה֙ מֵאֵ֣ת רְעוּתָ֔הּ כְּלֵי־כֶ֖סֶף וּכְלֵ֥י זָהָֽב" that the Jews should ask from their friends for gold and silver vessels and items.

The Vilna Gaon is troubled by the traditional interpretation of the pasuk, as a gentile is not identified as re'ehu and the laws apply differently to his property as a result. 

In light of this, the Gaon interprets the pasuk literally - that the Jews were instructed to ask each other for the vessels. And even though they were a beaten down nation with very little personal possessions, the Jews gave willingly and with a full heart one to the other. Seeing this, the Egyptians were "infected" by this same niceness as they saw how nicely the Jews were acting with each other and it made them want to be nice and generous to the Jews as well.

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Sunday Night Suds - Shiner Wicked Juicy IPA

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Shiner Wicked Juicy IPA.

I picked this up at the Food Lion supermarket in Myrtle Beach as it was included as part of the Shiner Variety Pack.

The experts at BA classify this beer as a New England IPA which is odd since it is made in Texas, but leaving that aside, it is a style that I had never heard of. BA defines a New England IPA as

Emphasizing hop aroma and flavor without bracing bitterness, the New England IPA leans heavily on late and dry hopping techniques to deliver a bursting juicy, tropical hop experience. The skillful balance of technique and ingredient selection, often including the addition of wheat or oats, lends an alluring haze to this popular take on the American IPA.

The beer poured a rich copper with abundant carbonation and foam which settled quite quickly. As I brought the beer to my face it had a strong citrus smell which carried though each sip and did not disappoint. It was somewhat cloudy as it is unfiltered, but the hops were strong and the pine was present as well. Since I had this after splitting a Ruby Redbird with Mrs KB, I was not feeling the bite immediately, but it did kick in.

The Shiner Wicked Juicy IPA is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit although there is no symbol on the the bottle. To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about this brew click here beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/143/351195.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Belated Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vaera

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha Thursday evening. Due to family vacation and related travel and technical issues, I was unable to complete this before Shabbos. Other than that - same rules as usual apply. I have attempted to reproduce these 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 R' Frand.

The medrash about the first plague (blood) is well known in that all of the Egyptians' water turned to blood, regardless of their status and their means. If an Egyptian wanted water, he needed to buy it from a Jew and the amount that he had to pay before his blood transformed back to water was dependent on the level of payment he owed that Jew for services performed.

Still in all, the Torah does not recount that Pharaoh in any way cared that his people did not have the most basic human staple. But why did Pharaoh not care? The Meshech Chachma quotes a medrash which states that Pharaoh's personal water was unaffected. But why did he not have to pay for water? The Meshech Chachma explains that this was reimbursement to Pharaoh for the money that he spent on raising Moshe.

[Although R' Frand did not elaborate on the Meshech Chachma, I saw a further explanation of this concept in the Sha'arei Aharon which resonated with me. For the average person, he needed to pay the Jew his owed wages before the blood transformed back to water. However since Pharaoh kept Moshe in the lap of luxury, there was no payment due.]

R' Frand next quoted the Tolner Rebbi who explains that this shows the concept of HaKaras HaTov - because of all that Pharaoh did for Moshe, he did not have to buy water. But wait - isn't this like a kidnapper turning around and asking to be paid for raising the child? If it were not for the gezeira of Pharaoh that all the Jewish male children being thrown into the river, there would have been no need for this! So why should Pharaoh be paid?

The Tolner Rebbi explains that the situations are not comparable - in this case we were on the receiving end of Pharaoh's generosity and for this reason it is not comparable to the kidnapper approaching the parent. Since the Jews as a whole benefited from Moshe's being raised in the palace, there was a debt to repay. And this shows the incredible extent of the concept of HaKaras HaTov.

R' Frand said a second vort, in regards to the plague of frogs. In Shemos 7:26-8:11 the Torah tells the story of the plague of frogs which descended on Egypt. As part of this discussion, the Torah writes at 7:28 that the frogs would descend everywhere in Egypt from the palace to bedroom to the kitchen of the servants. In bringing the plague, Hashem commands Moshe to tell his brother Aharon to bring up the frogs, using the word "V'Ha'al" (8:1). The Ba'al Ha'Turim notes that this is one of two places in the Torah where Hashem uses that word. The other occurrence is when Hashem tells Moshe to bring Aharon up to Hor HaHar where Aharon will die. (Bamidbar 20:25). 

R' Frand quoted the gemara in Pesachim which discusses how Chananya, Mishael and Azaraya threw themselves into a fiery furnace rather than bow down to an idol of Nebuchadnezzar. The gemara explains that they drew a kal v'chomer from the frogs. Since the frogs were all over Egypt from the bedrooms to the kitchens and these frogs chose to fall into the ovens rather than the beds, Chananya, Mishael and Azaraya chose to fall into the furnace. These frogs did not even have a mitzva to die Al Kiddush Hashem, but people do have this obligation and so they chose to enter the furnace.

The Ba'al HaTurim then quoted a Medrash on Tehillim which notes that when the Torah discusses the death of the frogs after Moshe prayed to Hashem there is no mention that the frogs that were in the oven died like all the other frogs...because those frogs who threw themselves into the ovens did not die! Moshe & Aharon had a chance to sanctify Hashem's name but did not do so. For this reason they would die on Hor HaHar.

R' Frand then quoted R' Elya Svei who explained that the frogs could have made an analysis and decided which is the bigger kiddush Hasehm - to drive them crazy for seven days or to jump in the fire, and decided that by being a pain for seven days would be a bigger kiddush Hashem. However the lesson is that where is a chance to make a kiddush Hashem, there should not be an analysis. Instead, there should be action. And because the frogs acted, they "lived to tell the tale" as those who jumped in the ovens survived.

R' Frand then quoted the Tosfos on Pesachim which asked, why did Chananya, Mishael and Azaraya have to draw a lesson from the frogs? There are three mitzvos which a Jew must die rather than transgress. Since idol worship is one of those three mitzvos, this would have been enough of a reason for Chananya, Mishael and Azaraya to fall into the furnace, rather than bow to the idol! Tosafos answers that the idol was not truly an idol. It was a statue of Nebuchadnezzar had made of himself which he wanted people to worship to show their loyalty to him. He did not view himself as a deity and the bowing was not meant to treat him that way. Thus Chananya, Mishael and Azaraya had a real reason to draw a kal v'chomer from the frogs.

How did Chanaya, Mishael and Azarya decide what to do? They went and asked Yishaya what to do and he told them - just run away and you won't have to make the decision. But they chose not to run and they did jump in the fire, having drawn a parallel from the frogs and they too lived to tell the tale.

So when Moshe came to the opportunity to speak or hit the rock, he decided that because the Jews were not on a high enough level that they would not be zoche to have water come from the rock by merely speaking to it, that it would be better to make a smaller kiddush Hashem by having water come through hitting the rock vs speaking and nothing coming out.

R' Elya Svei explains that this why the word V'Haal is used by the frogs and by Moshe and Aharon. They failed to learn the lesson of the frogs that when its time to make a kiddush Hashem there should be no calculating or thought - there should be action. Hashem told them to speak the rock and they should have done so, rather than calculate if the Jews were worthy.

R' Frand closed the vort by explaining that had Avraham made a cheshbon - he would not have brought Yitzchak at the Akeidah because he would have said - how could I have children through Yitzchak? And as a direct result of following through, some of Yitzchak's neshama left him and when it came back to him, he was now able to have children whereas before he was prevented from doing so. The net result was that by not questioning, now Avraham could have a lineage through Yitzchak where it was not possible before. So when faced with a choice of potential kiddush Hashem when commanded by Hashem to act, one should not question, just act.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday Night Suds - New Belgium Nitro Cold Brew Cream Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at New Belgium's Nitro Cold Brew Cream Ale.

This beer is classified by New Belgium as a Cream Ale, but should not be confused with a can of Dr. Brown's Cream Ale. As explained by the experts at BA:

Cream Ales, spawned from the American light lager style, are brewed as an ale though are sometimes finished with a lager yeast or with lager beer mixed into the final product. Adjuncts such as corn or rice are frequently used to lighten the body but it is not uncommon for smaller craft brewers to make all malt Cream Ales. Pale straw to pale gold in color, they were known to have a low degree of hop bittering yet some hop aroma. More recently, a number of breweries have put their stamp on the style by giving it more of a hoppy character, nudging it toward Imperial. Well carbonated and well attenuated.

Interestingly, BA's definition of Cream Ale has a very wide range of abv as the style (according to Beer Advocate) can range from 4-8.5% abv.

When I first poured this beer I was struck by two things: (1) despite the Nitro in the name of the beer, there was no appreciable escape of fizz sound like when opening an over carbonated beer and (2) the beer poured rich brown and then when it settled it took on a much darker appearance. 

I took a few long sips from my pint glass and thought to myself - this is like a Guinness, but lighter. I then read the can and saw that they made the beer with High Brew Coffee, so that was why there was a strong coffee flavor. But there was some other smoothness there which I read came from oats.

So basically, this is a breakfast beer which goes very well as an after dinner dessert. Mrs KB really liked this and I am certain that I will be buying more six packs of it, if and when I remember where I found it.

The New Belgium Nitro Cold Brew Cream Ale is under kosher supervision by the Scroll-K/Va'ad of Denver, and their symbol is on the bottom of the six pack can box. However, not every brew produced by New Belgium is under kosher supervision, so look for the Scroll K on the six pack holder or box when considering purchasing any NBB product. Many of the "sours" such as the Peach Kick which was released over the summer cannot be certified kosher.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about New Belgium Nitro Cold Brew Cream Ale, click here https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/192/444929/.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Shemos

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these 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 R' Frand.

Rabbi Frand first said a vort discussing Hashem's direction to Moshe to return to Egypt as it states in Shemos 4:19 - וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֤ה אֶל־משֶׁה֙ בְּמִדְיָ֔ן לֵ֖ךְ שֻׁ֣ב מִצְרָ֑יִם כִּי־מֵ֨תוּ֙ כָּל־הָ֣אֲנָשִׁ֔ים הַֽמְבַקְשִׁ֖ים אֶת־נַפְשֶֽׁךָ - Moshe was commanded to go back to Egypt because the people who wanted to kill him have died.

R' Frand quoted the Da'as Zekeinim M'Ba'alei HaTosafos which cites a gemara in Avodah Zarah which states that the people who wanted to kill Moshe were Dasan and Aviram. But they were not dead? The gemara explains that they must have become poor, because a poor person is considered like dead (Ani Nechshav C'Meis).

The Da'as Zekeinim then asks - how do we know that they were poor? After all, there are four categories of people who are considered like dead - the Metzora, the person without children, a blind person and a poor person. The Da'as Zekeinim then proves that Dasan and Aviram could not fit into the other categories, as they could not have been Metzoraim as they would have been sent outside the camp and there is no indication that this occurred. It cannot be that they had no children, as in Parshas Korach there is a mention of their children being punished with them. Similarly, it cannot be that they were blind, as there is a mention of being blinded in Parshas Korach.

R' Frand then asked - but why could they not have been blind at the time and healed at Har Sinai when all those with ailments were healed? He answered that everyone who was healed at Har Sinai saw their affliction return after the sin of the Egel.

R' Frand then quoted R' Baruch Sorotzkin who asked - why were these people punished when others seemingly were not? After all, the people who had been miraculously healed saw their ailments return, but no one else was sickened?

R' Sorotzkin answered that the people who were miraculously healed were obligated to change the way they lived their life, because they were healed. When those people sat back and did not react when the people sinned with the Egel, they were punished as they proved themselves as unworthy of the miracle when they did not stand up and protest.

R' Frand said a second vort in connection to the reunion of Moshe and Aaron at Har HaElokim which was the same mountain that the Torah would be given on later - Har Sinai. He noted that in Parshas Yisro the Torah states in Shemos 19:2  וַיִּֽחַן־שָׁ֥ם יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל נֶ֥גֶד הָהָֽר - they encamped but the Torah uses singular form. The meforshim explain that they were like one man with one heart.

Rashi explains that this was the one and only time that the Jews encamped without infighting or bickering.

What was unique here? R' Frand quoted a sefer called Toras Hashem (whose author was unknown to him) who uses the principle Ma'seh Avos - Siman L'Banim - the actions of the fathers are a sign for the children. When Moshe and Aaron met - there was incredible love and selflessness, as Moshe had protested that Aaron should lead and Aaron was pious and genuinely happy that his younger brother was the leader.

This sense of achdus was infused into the location, so that years later when the Jews came to Har Sinai, they too felt like one.

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Citrus Freeze Ale

This week's Sunday Night Suds looks at Saranac Citrus Freeze Ale.

As mentioned in last week's Sunday Night Suds column, the Citrus Freeze is one of two* new beers in the Saranac Beers of Winter mix box  for 2019-2020. The box also includes new offering The Saranac Holidaze IPA (reviewed here http://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2020/01/sunday-night-suds-saranac-holidaze-haze.html), old friend Black Forest Cake (reviewed here https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/01/sunday-night-suds-saranac-black-forest.html) and Season's Best, which I am still trying to figure out if its the same Season's Best beer which was itself a recast of the Nut Brown Ale.

The Citrus Freeze is a juice infused Pale Ale brewed with tangerine and orange peel. Neither the website nor the BA review mention the type of hops which were used in the brew process and my palate can't figure it out either. I am sure that there are hops in the brew (beyond the obvious reasons) and there is some hop bite. But mostly this is a juice plus beer, the kind that you can give to someone who prefers alcopop. This beer claims to be 5.5% abv, but I feel like that may be a bit on the high side. 

Besides being sold as part of the 12 Beers of Winter mix box, this beer also is sold in six pack boxes of cans, so if you like fruity beers with no added juice, you may want to keep an eye out for the six packs.

The Citrus Freeze Ale is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit as is every other beer produced at the Matt Brewery plant in Utica, NY. Keep in mind, Saranac brews some varieties off site, so check the cans/bottles for kosher certification from the Va'ad of Detroit.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the brew, please follow this link https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/453748.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Lastly, if you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayechi

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these 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 R' Frand.

In Bereishis 49:5, Ya'akov gives his "beracha" to Shimon and Levi and tells them שִׁמְע֥וֹן וְלֵוִ֖י אַחִ֑ים כְּלֵ֥י חָמָ֖ס מְכֵרֹֽתֵיהֶֽם. This is translated as "Shimon and Levi are brothers; stolen instruments are their weapons." Rashi explains the last word as weapons, but also offers an alternative explanation that in the land that they lived in they carried weapons.

R' Frand quoted R' Elya Meir Bloch who was a Rosh Yeshiva in Telshe Yeshiva in Cleveland in the 1940s who explains that it did not mean that were armed where they lived. Instead it means that their regular lifestyle was to carry weapons. He further explained that this is not a way to live - there is a time that one needs weapons, but it should not be part of one's regular attire. By example, Ya'akov used trickery when it was needed, but this did not become part of his personality. Ya'akov gave the brothers musar that they should not live their lives in a constant state of being ready for battle.

R' Frand said a second vort on the posuk in Bereishis 49:21 which contains the beracha to Naftali - נַפְתָּלִ֖י אַיָּלָ֣ה שְׁלֻחָ֑ה הַנֹּתֵ֖ן אִמְרֵי־שָֽׁפֶר - translated as "Naftali is a swift gazelle who utters beautiful words."

He quoted the Tolner Rebbi who in turn quoted the Alexander Rebbi who linked this to the parsha of the Nesi'im in Nasso. The nasi for Naftali who was Achira Ben Einan offered the last of the twelve identical sacrifices. Rabbi Frand remarked, it is discouraging for a speaker to speak last but even more so when he is repeating what was said by many speakers before. But Achira did not have this attitude as is seen in his name - Einan - he had an Ayin Yafeh and was genuinely happy for all those who offered their sacrifices before him and was content in being last.

R' Frand linked this to the pasuk in Devarim 33:23 containing Moshe's beracha to Naftali - נַפְתָּלִי֙ שְׂבַ֣ע רָצ֔וֹן וּמָלֵ֖א בִּרְכַּ֣ת יְהֹוָ֑ה יָ֥ם וְדָר֖וֹם יְרָֽשָׁה - Naftali is satisfied and full with Hashem's blessing... - since Naftali was satisfied, he was filled with Hashem's blessing. This trait was endemic to the tribe and why Achira had no problem being last.

R' Frand closed the vort by returning to the Tolner Rebbi who explained that this is the reason that Naftali utters beautiful words - he said wonderful positive things because he was happy with his lot in life. 

If you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Sunday Night Suds - Saranac Holidaze Haze IPA

The holiday season may be over, but its not too late to looks at Saranac Holidaze Haze IPA for this week's Sunday Night Suds review.

The Saranac Holidaze IPA is one of two* new beers in the Saranac Beers of Winter mix box  for 2019-2020. The box also includes new offerings Citrus Freeze, old friend Black Forest Cake (reviewed here https://kosherbeers.blogspot.com/2010/01/sunday-night-suds-saranac-black-forest.html) and Season's Best, which has been rebranded and may or not be the same beer which was itself a recast of the Nut Brown Ale.

The Holidaze Haze IPA is an unfiltered IPA brewed with Centennial, Calypso, Citra, and Galaxy hops and like many of the recent new IPAs to the market - bursting with juice but with no added juice for flavor. As this is an unfiltered beer, it poured a rather cloud rich orange color with trademark Saranac carbonation. The initial sip was a cross between grapefruit and tangelo and successive sips were all citrus. Although the beer is 6% abv, it does not have alcohol flavor and quite addictive. 

Besides being sold as part of the 12 Beers of Winter mix box, this beer also is sold in six pack boxes of cans, so if you like fruity beers with no added juice, you may want to keep an eye out for the six packs.

The Holidaze Haze IPA is under the Kosher Supervision of the Va'ad of Detroit as is every other beer produced at the Matt Brewery plant in Utica, NY. Keep in mind, Saranac brews some varieties off site, so check the cans/bottles for kosher certification from the Va'ad of Detroit.

To see what the experts on Beer Advocate think about the brew, please follow this link https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/447344.

As always, please remember to drink responsibly and to never waste good beer unless there is no designated driver.

If you've tried this beer or any others which have been reviewed on the kosher beers site, please feel free to post your comments (anonymous comments are acceptable).

Lastly, if you have seen this post being carried on another site, please feel free to click www.kosherbeers.blogspot.com to find other articles on the kosherbeers blogsite. Hey its free and you can push my counter numbers up!

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshas Vayigash

The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these 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 R' Frand.

R' Frand began the vort by quoting a Rashi on Bereishis 45:27 wherein the Torah states וַיַּרְא֙ אֶת־הָ֣עֲגָל֔וֹת אֲשֶׁר־שָׁלַ֥ח יוֹסֵ֖ף לָשֵׂ֣את אֹת֑וֹ וַתְּחִ֕י ר֖וּחַ יַֽעֲקֹ֥ב אֲבִיהֶֽם - that Rashi states that Ya'akov believed that Yosef was alive because he saw the wagons and remembered that the last topic they learned together was Eglah Arufa.

R' Frand then asked the famous questions asked by the Sefer Moshav Zekeinim which is a compilation of the Ba'alei HaTosafos that Eglah and Agalah are not the same words, so how could this be what caused him to believe? They answer that Ya'akov and Yosef were not learning about Eglah Arufa, they were learning about the wagons in Parshas Nasso in connection with the consecration of the Mishkan. Immediately after the dedication there were sacrifices that the Nessim brought, which included six covered wagons which were donated to carry the items. Why six wagons? Because there was a partnership among the tribes in the wagon. But there were also twelve oxen, one per tribe. The Ba'alei HaTosafos write that Yosef sent six wagons, so Ya'akov realized that there was a message.

R' Frand then quoted the Sefer Minchas Ani who explained that the six wagons vs twelve oxen show that sometimes one must act individually and other times, collectively. Certain times in life a person may need to act alone, by example if there is a non-glamorous job that no one wants to do. But other times a person can act with a group. Here, the oxen could be donated individually - because a person can give his own sacrifice, but the wagons could be the donation of a group.

R' Frand noted a deeper message - that he sent six wagons, one wagon per two tribes. Yosef was trying to tell Ya'akov - we are together now, there is a sheves achim - and this is why Ya'akov felt better.

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