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 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.
R' Frand then made the comparison with the dogs who did not bark when the Jews left Egypt and are rewarded in multiple ways. The most famous reward is that they are given the nevilos as the pasuk states in Shemos 22:30 - וּבָשָׂ֨ר בַּשָּׂדֶ֤ה טְרֵפָה֙ לֹ֣א תֹאכֵ֔לוּ לַכֶּ֖לֶב תַּשְׁלִכ֥וּן אֹתֽוֹ.
R' Frand next quoted a Yalkut which discusses a reward for the dogs that I was not aware of. Every creature says a prayer to Hashem daily and the dog's prayer is the pasuk in Tehillim 95:7 - בֹּאוּ נִשְׁתַּֽחֲוֶ֣ה וְנִכְרָ֑עָה נִ֜בְרְכָ֗ה לִֽפְנֵי־יְהֹוָ֥ה עֹשֵֽׂנוּ. The Yalkut tells the story that R' Yishayah who was the student of R' Chanina Ben Tradyon was bothered - why is the brazen dog given this wonderful prayer? He was so bothered by this that he fasted 85 fasts so as to be worthy of an answer. An angel spoke to him and said - this is a secret from the Heaven which was entrusted to Chabakok and it was intended to be a secret until this day! But since you are the student of R' Chanina Ben Tradyon, I will tell you - it is the reward for having not barked when the Jews left Egypt.
R' Frand then mentioned a third special reward which the dogs receive - their excrement is used to prepare the parchment used for tefillin and mezuzos.
So why does the dog receive all of these rewards and there is nothing for the frog? Because the dogs went against their nature in that they did not bark. A dog can sense when the angel of death is present, but these dogs did not bark when the Jews were leaving Egypt.
R' Frand tied this into a Gemara in Avodah Zarah 18 which repeats a conversation between R' Yosef Ben Kisma and R' Chananya Ben Tradyon. R' Yosef says, I hear that you are teaching Torah in public and that the Romans might take you. R' Chananya says yes I am, Hashem should have mercy. They have a back and forth exchange. Then R' Chananya asked, am I going to Olam Haba? R' Yosef replies, have you done any great acts? R' Chananya replies that once he had monies collected for the poor for Purim that he mixed with other money. He then gave the entire mixed lot of money to charity. To this R' Yosef says - yes you will be a Ben Olam Haba.
The exchange is hard to comprehend. R' Chananya is teaching Torah in public at great risk to his life. Yet when asked what are you doing that would merit Olam Haba, he discusses the money. Why was that? R' Frand quoted the Ba'al HaTanya who explains that R' Chananya's teaching of Torah could be viewed as something that he did because he loved doing it and was addicted to Torah. But its not natural to give away the money, especially when it was accidentally mixed. Going against one's nature is a way to earn reward.
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