Parsha Review Podcast · Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe

You're listening to Rabbi Aryeh Wolbe of Torch in Houston, Texas. This is the Parsha Review Podcast.

Good morning, everybody. Welcome back to the parsha review podcast this week's parsha is Pasha's Korach What was the story of Korach? So we know that Korach was jealous of Moshe and Aaron he says Why are they the ones in charge? We I want to be the one in charge He even says even even more. He says the color a dog cool. I'm Kiddush him. Everybody is holy, Why should you guys be elevated above anybody else? And it's very interesting that if you look at the words of our sages and you learn about This this strife this this fight that's going on is a lot that we need to talk about a lot that we need to discuss So the Jewish people are in the desert They're being led by Moshe and Aaron and Korach who is an equal descendant from the tribe of Levy, Says Moshe and Aaron are my first cousins. There's no reason that they have leadership power instead of me That's his first approach Okay, and then he sees but that's not gonna work. So he goes why are you elevated? Everybody's holy and then he starts questioning the Torah He starts questioning the laws of Tzitzit if a garment is all blue Do you need to have the fringes if a house is full of Torah Torah books? Do you need a mezuzah? So now he starts questioning
the foundations of our very Judaism and the entire chapter 16 in the book of Numbers in the book of Amidbar deals with this whole challenge with Korach So I want to bring a Mishnah I was having a conversation this morning over coffee with my dear friend the chief rabbi of Austin Rabbi Moshe Trepp and we were talking about the power show What else do two guys to talk about over coffee you talk about the Torah portion, right?
So we got into this whole conversation about what is a mach lokas? What is a fight a war a battle a struggle a disagreement? So we have to be careful about the word disagreement because disagreement does not mean What we might think it means One might think that in Judaism. We don't have disagreements That's a very very untrue because we see all over the Talmud every single line of the Talmud There is an argument. There is a disagreement
Every single page of Talmud is arguing back and forth and those aren't called Rebellions of Korach. They aren't called rebellions of Hillel and Shammai. Those aren't called rebellions instead. What are they called? Mach lokas lashem shamayim for the sake of heaven So what's the difference between a fight which is for the sake of heaven versus a fight? Which is the fight of Korach who talks about this the Mishnah the Mishnah in chapter 5 of Ethics of our fathers of Pirkei Avot the Mishnah says as follows
Kol mach lokas shehi lashem shamayim sofalehizkayim. Any dispute that is for the sake of heaven will have a constructive outcome But one that is not for the sake of heaven will not have a constructive outcome And what is an example? Eizu mach lokas shehi lashem shamayim and what is an example of a Dispute for the sake of heaven the dispute between Hillel and Shammai Zu mach lokas Hillel vashamayim and what is an example of a dispute that is not for the sake of heaven?
She'einu lashem shamayim? Zu mach lokas Korach v'adoso. That is the dispute of Korach and his entire company So my dear friend asked a fabulous question. He says I don't understand When you have a dispute you have two different sides So you have the side of Hillel you have the side of Shammai But we see an inconsistency in this Mishnah Where we don't have that when we talk about Korach. We say it wasn't Korach and Moshe Who was it? It was Korach and his people
It wasn't Korach and Moshe Meaning this was not a fight in a disagreement That was like any other disagreement Where you can have two different constructive opinions, you know the argument that you have between Hillel and Shammai is Should the sukkah be 10 Amos is that too high or 20 Amos, but not that you shouldn't have a sukkah You know, do you do like this or do you do like that? But it's not that you don't do it at all so this argument of
Korach was much more than just a dispute with Moshe There was an internal dispute among themselves already That was unholy among themselves already there was a lack of respect a lack of Authenticity to what they were doing Let's just look I want to show you what the what the Rabbeinu Yonah brings one of the great commentators Brings about this mission. He says so for this time, you know what? It means that it will have a constructive outcome Dei o'shneim miskayimos mipnei she'shneim
Hiskavnu le'emes v'le'shem shamayim. He says here's the difference between a real good constructive disagreement Versus Korach, which is just an uprising for the sake of power of ego of discord What is going on here? You see you have to look at how it ended. How did it end it? Ended with Moshe saying if you're right Then you should be the leader No problem means he's ready to give up everything He says I Moshe. I'm not fighting for myself
I'm not in this position because I want the kudos. I want the leadership mantle In fact Moshe didn't want it. I'm doing this because this is the will of Hashem and If Hashem decides to side with you No problem No problem. It's yours. Take it So Moshe wasn't even fighting with him. You know, I always say said to tell this to my children We've said this numerous times here a fight only begins when you have two parties If I punch you that's not a fight
If you punch me back now, that's a fight So Korach punches at Moshe not physically But Moshe doesn't respond Because Moshe is not in a fight. Moshe is on a mission he's on a mission that the Almighty placed him in this world to accomplish something and If God doesn't want me to I make a u-turn. No problem. I have no I have no game in this It's not my battle, it's not personal This is what the Almighty wants. This is what what will be and
What does Moshe say tomorrow? We'll bring offerings and whosoever's offering will be accepted. That'll be a sign from Hashem. Why did Moshe push it off to tomorrow? Because Moshe wasn't in a fight with them. Moshe was hoping and this is what our sages teach us Moshe was hoping that overnight they'll sleep over it and they'll be like, you know what this really isn't a good idea We really have our own personal motivations here This is not an altruistic fight This is not a fight without an agenda
this was a fight that had a very clear and open personal agenda You know the argument of Hillel and Shammai That we have throughout the Talmud Wasn't a personal argument They were they were closest of friends They were the closest of friends. You see the sages in the Talmud were so close to one another They were best friends. They have such a respect and an awe. There's nothing wrong with having a difference of opinions When your goal is the truth
When your goal is to attain the truth on the contrary, I want to hear your opinion because maybe I'm wrong Maybe I have the wrong understanding and you're right That's what we need to understand in an argument is not to be afraid of another opinion not to be afraid of like, oh They're disagreeing. They're rebelling against me. Moshe didn't care. Moshe didn't care It was of no interest to Moshe Who was arguing you might have a good argument. Let's bring it to Hashem. Hashem is the MS
Hashem is the truth and If Hashem sides with you, I rest my case I'm not fighting with Korach That's we have to understand what humility that is For Moshe. Moshe doesn't say excuse me. Do you know who I am? He doesn't say that Moshe doesn't say that Moshe's like I'm on a mission Which is why when we see that Moshe when Moshe dies the eulogy is only two words Only two words Eved Hashem
Servant of God, that's it. Whatever God wanted. He did. That's it. I'm a servant. I have no personal opinion I have no personal agenda. I have no personal desire for honor for glory. What Hashem wants is what I get What Hashem wants is what I do This is not a personal battle This is not a personal struggle and there are so many so many commentaries talking about this Mishnah in ethics of our fathers
They're unwilling so we you know, we we spoke about this previously in a different episode of our Parsha review podcast we talked about the challenge of Korach that really he was a little communist He was a little communist where he really wanted to control Communism is only good for the people in control. It's not good for the subjects. It's not good for the people so I wanted to read a piece of the Palaeoids the Palaeoids is a phenomenal teaching of Rebbe Eleazar Papal and
He has on many many different topics. Well one day we'll get through this in our Jewish inspiration podcast We'll hopefully go through his entire article just came out with the four volume set of it translated elucidated really beautiful job so I want to learn with you today a little bit about strife and the terrible atrocities of argument and Machlokas of strife So Yehudua Kama Sonui HaMachlokas We are all well aware of just how hated strife is before Hashem. Hashem hates strife
As is explicitly stated in the words of our Holy Sages He says and because of its terrible severity how much must a person strengthen himself with all his might and power To distance himself and in fact actively flee from it as one flees from death itself If you knew there was a fire burning you're not running into that fire. You run the other way You run the other way
Fighting is fire. You run the other way. I don't want to fight. I'm not in the fight. I'm not here to fight I'm here to serve Hashem And now we need to know that one who has not been tempted with sufficient reason to raise strife With his fellow has nothing to be proud of if he refrains from quarreling That means if you're not in you have no you have no like for example
You know, how many times do you hear stories of people fighting? You're like why why are they fighting? Why it's so senseless I was once called this Person calls me up. He says to me. I need to I need you to come to my office. We need to talk Okay, he came to some of the classes in one of the congregations when we did the shalavet in the different synagogues I want to talk. Okay, what's going on? He says well a family got a big inheritance and
All the siblings are fighting. What should we do? So what me as an outsider? What do I say? Why are they fighting? Just divide it up and finished. No, it's not so simple Why is it not so simple? Because everyone wants everything Everybody wants everything everybody wants the whole thing. So of course there's gonna be a fight So I said to him I said look I hate to say this to you and I hope to be I hope not to be like redundant or or silly
But you know who's gonna make the money The lawyers the lawyers are gonna make all the money so I said you have a choice you guys can fight and fight all you want Or you can just be practical be pragmatic and and realize that Okay, so you'll get a little bit less than you originally thought you see in an argument What our problem is is that we always believe that one side needs to be right and the other is wrong
And what the Talmud teaches us is that's not the case The other one does not need to be wrong They can also be right and it doesn't mean that we have we follow them when it comes to halakha We can only follow one when it comes to halakha either we do 20 or we do 10. You can't do 15 It's not the way it works. It's either 20 or 10. It doesn't mean the 10 is wrong
He has his very valid reasoning for that 10 and he has a very valid reason for the 20 and is going to be a Decision that is made by the end of the Talmud why we go either with the 20 or with the 10 There's no such rule of compromise. Oh, let's just compromise compromise is never truth Compromise is never truth. You're new to our class. So we'll give you the example that we've given before
So if if Ed and I have a dispute, he says you rabbi owe me $10. I said then and I paid you back Okay, we have a court here of three people. We're gonna go to the court So he says 10 I say 0 10 0 10 0 so what is what is what does the court suggest at the end guys? Can we compromise give 5 and we're done? All right
That way he loses 5 I lose 5 and now we're all in the same on the same boat 5 is for sure not true Because it's either 10 or at 0 5 is a lie But we're willing to accept that we're willing to push away the truth for peace Peace doesn't mean that there's going to be harmony Peace doesn't mean that now everyone's gonna be happy. It's I'm willing to let go of my side to not hurt
To not be in pain and as long as I'm ready to let go that's when you'll have peace But the ultimate peace is not when I have to give up a lie and do 5 out of 10 or 0 5 is for sure not is well, I'm willing you know, what the whole 10 you can keep the whole 10 meaning Peace does not have to come at the price of a compromise per se
Again, sometimes it's very pragmatic. We see now we're dealing with the Iran deal. I don't want to get into it. It's not our topic however For someone to think that you will come out with a hundred percent of what you want Show me the case where that happened. I can show you a few Right, you know the six-day war we got much more than we bargained for But we gave back the temple mount. Why? Why did we do that? It was you know again
You don't always come out with what with everything that you bargained for But the idea that strife is a devastating thing God does not want to be in the presence where there is a fight In fact, the Kohen we mentioned this previously a Kohen is not allowed to serve in the temple when there is a fight Excuse me, if someone is in a fight with a Kohen the Kohen is not allowed to serve in the temple because he needed to be the example of pristiness of
Clarity of happiness and where you have a fight you have disappointment you have sadness So now the Paleo it's continues He says key in bizos. He is hollow. Yes hollow rather only with this may one glorify himself With which is that he's not involved in in this a verse from Jeremiah K'asher yi elosiba gdol olas usmach lokas When he indeed has a great cause to engage in strife yet He refrains from doing so kigon shechotim k'negdo b'kufo b'mono b'chvodo for instance when others
Have truly wronged him with bodily harm monetary loss disregarding his honor V'af alpichen hu minan elav ve'enam olavim and notwithstanding This person remains among those who suffer insult, but don't respond in kind Shomim herposam ve'enam yeshivim they hear their disgrace and don't answer back Asher aleim hakosav omer ve'oavav k'tseis ha'shemesh b'gvuraso to this the verse in judges says He is the true man of virtue of whom the verse states and let those who love him Love Hashem be like the powerfully rising Sun
That what is free of all sin When we let go of argument when we let go of a fight we hear someone Denigrating us someone in public. They didn't realize you were in the room. You know so-and-so they're a cheat. They're a scandal They are there watch your pocket, and he doesn't say a word. Excuse me. He hears it He hears his own disgrace and doesn't say a word Takes it Such a person is forgiven of all the sins
In fact someone once came to one of the great sages and said Rebbe. What do I do? My master, what should I do? someone publicly humiliated me and Embarrassed me I need a blessing so that my honor should be restored The rabbi says to him What did you answer? What did you say back when you heard that disgrace? He said I didn't say anything. I stayed silent the rabbi says in that case put your hands on my head and Give me a blessing
Give you a blessing. He says yeah Says because you are clean of all sin the Talmud says that one who hears his disgrace and doesn't Respond such a person is forgiven of all sins. He says now that you're free of sin. I want a blessing from someone like you Not getting into a fight is a big deal as well. V'yodua ma sheperishu al apostok tola eretz al blima And it's known what the verse says he suspends the earth upon blima
What is blima someone who is bol empiv someone who muzzles himself? When he has a good answer back. He has a good retort He has a good line that can now even the playing field To teach that the world exists only on account of one who muzzles himself at the time of provocation You bring provoked. V'hein ba'avon Gavar oyev ha'yei tzehar shel makhlokes al izkei chinam We see in our great sinfulness the enemy has triumphed That is the Yetzirah who drives us towards strife over even
inconsequential matters people People who just love to just get into arguments and fights politicians You know all these news pundits all of these they do they love a good fight. They love a good fight It's a it's about inconsequential matters It's things that are not even not even You could just look it up. These are facts that are not so but they'll fight about it anyway Inconsequential matters they love it. That's the Yetzirah. The Yetzirah is always looking for a good fight
Ki lefiyo emes hakol hevel v'ursurach for one must realize that in truth Everything about which we argue and contend is nothing more than futile and a vexation of the spirit Ki ma yiteinu ma yosef ha-kovod she'chabdehu O ha-bizoyin she'vazehu For what does it give a person and what does he gain from the honor afforded him or by contrast from the disgrace heaped? upon him Odom ashal ha-hevel dama by his fellow man who is likened to a breath comes and goes comes and goes
But people get caught up. Let's learn from Moshe for a second. What did Moshe do? Moshe didn't get into the fight. He didn't punch back Korach stands up 250 people imagine 250 people barge into your office and start yelling and screaming at you And what does Moshe do? Stay silent Moshe's like this is not my fight. Why? Let's now step back zoom out zoom out zoom out zoom out all the way to 30,000 feet 50,000 feet And let's understand what's going on here
What does God want from us in this world? God wants us to serve him and him alone To not get carried away with all of the materialistic all the physical all the personal Matters of this world. They're here. We need to use them We have to eat because if you don't eat we won't live there are things that we need to do to function as human beings But the moment we get carried away by them Then they become the God over us and then we lose out
What Hashem is telling what we're learning telling us by this story being in the Torah Why do we need to include this story ever wonder like? Hashem is Dictating to Moshe exactly what needs to be written in the Torah Don't you think you should leave out a few of these fights and arguments like wouldn't you leave that out like you know what? This is not important for anybody to know. Let's just keep this one out This is between me and you Moshe. We're not documenting this
No, no, it's in the Torah. Why? Because Hashem wants us to learn to be like Moshe look at the results of what happened to Korach The ground opened up beneath him Swallows him up and all of his company with him What happens to Moshe they continue to thrive? They continue to prosper there wasn't Moshe fighting them Moshe didn't take an arrow and shoot them Moshe didn't take matters into his own hands. Moshe says this is not my fight Hashem. This is yours you handle this
Hashem you take this There's something which is so Great about this story because we need to learn what it means To be committed to our cause if we're committed to the cause of serving Hashem Then nobody can harm us Your boss can't harm you the HR department can't harm you your competitor cannot harm you. It's a perfect world. I Realize that I'm here to serve Hashem. Hashem will provide for me. He'll take care of me Every one of my needs will be fulfilled. I
Don't need to fight another person Fighting another person means that I'm giving myself permanence in this world I'm here and you're taking my place. You're taking my client. You're taking my honor But I'm not I'm just a fleeting shadow I'm here for a very limited amount of time. God puts us into this world to accomplish a certain mission in our service of Hashem and Now what? Do your job? You're gonna have many yetzer haraz. You're gonna have many Distractions try to pull you off
your course Don't get carried away by it Korach wasn't one of those distractions Trying to pull Moshe off. Imagine if Moshe would have responded. Excuse me. Who do you think you are? Do you know who I am? Maybe that's what most leaders would say. Do you know who I am? Me I'm the guy who took the Jewish people out of Egypt I'm the guy who's been praying for the Jewish people who sinned with the golden golden calf
I'm the one who dealt with the complainers. I'm the one who got them water. I Know Moshe's response is the most amazing response. He says me. I have nothing with this It's the will of Hashem. If Hashem wants me to be here, I'll be here. If Hashem wants you to be here, you do it Like it's not about me In every area imagine if people dealt in their marriages like this There would be peace and harmony in every home
If people in their businesses dealt like this, there would be peace and harmony people would all be happy all day There wouldn't be a fight in the world Because we're just servants of Hashem. Whatever Hashem wants us to do. That's what we'll do Hashem wants you to take away my client? Take away my client. I don't own anything. It's not my world. It's Hashem's world the minute we're able to take a step back and
Realize this is not my world. This is Hashem's world. It's not my place to fight. I can give an argument. I Can give my opinion But that doesn't make me right you wrong you right me wrong. Oh, nobody can have another opinion. I Think one of the great gifts that we have in this country that I think is a little bit overlooked is the First Amendment the freedom of speech Which wasn't in most countries in the world the Jewish people have been persecuted You know, I have my
double-sided sheets lists and lists of persecutions Why were the Jewish people persecuted for what I'll go just through a few All right with today with what's on the topic Iran Persia they had in year 351 the common era at book burnings in Italy property confiscation Milan synagogue burnings Alexandria expulsions Menorca forced conversions is fine massacres one after another synagogue burning synagogue burning expulsion Steak burnings. What was the matter? Where they care you do yours and we do ours. No
We keep there's no tolerance For anything. It's different than me. You are not allowed to have an opinion You're not all I have not allowed to live your life differently than us Why not? Why can't people just be? What they want to be? Right. Do you want to? Excuse me You want everybody in Starbucks to look just like you They have to have the same color here as you Know that everybody has their own right to express themselves exactly the way they want
Obviously, there are certain guidelines of decency. There's certain guidelines of how a person is allowed to you know, right? You can't scream fire in a crowded theater. Okay, there are certain limitations to that But this is all intolerance. By the way, these are the same countries now lecturing Israel on decency These is Spain Italy France They're all lecturing lecturing and lecturing how many Jews were murdered by their hands England It's it's unbelievable Rome the Jews were burned alive in Rome in year 1021
It's unbelievable. That's Korach. I'm right. You're wrong It's not I'm right and you may also be right. I Have an opinion and you're also entitled to an opinion. No, it's either me or you You know what? It means to fight the good fight Is that we can have a decent argument and still love each other. We don't need to agree about everything Not everything needs to be my way Not everything needs to be the way I see it. I Think there's a lot
That we can learn from this week's Torah portion that apply to us today in 2026 June 2026 that we can learn and we can grow from my dear friends Have an amazing Shabbos.

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