ספר במדבר - פרשת מטות - לא:יג-כד - שלישי

So Rashi says, what does it mean 'Pekudei HaChayil'? That means those who are appointed, the officers in charge over the army. Why was Moshe Rabbeinu angry at them? Because this teaches you that all the deficiencies or faults of the generation are hung on the great people, the leaders, because they have the power to protest. Even if the fault lies with others, with the regular soldiers, still Moshe Rabbeinu directed his anger at the officers, because they have the ability to stop it. If they wouldn't allow it, it wouldn't happen.

Rashi explains 'Bidvar Bilam'—this was the advice of Bilam. Bilam told the Midianites and Moabites, even if you gather all the nations of the world, you will not be able to overcome the Jewish people. Are you more than the Egyptians, who had 600 chosen chariots? Even with all your numbers, you can't defeat them. So Bilam said, let me give you advice: the God of these people hates promiscuity. If you cause them to sin in this way, Hashem will get angry at them, and that's how you can defeat them. As it says in the Gemara and Sifri, that's what happened and why Hashem told Moshe to take revenge on Midian.

Rashi says 'Hein heinah' teaches us that they recognized them. When they brought these women from Midian, they could point and say, this is the one with whom so-and-so sinned. They were able to identify them specifically.

Rashi explains that 'kol isha yoda'at ish'—any woman who is fit to have relations, even if she hasn't actually had relations, is included. They would pass them in front of the Tzitz, and the ones who were fit for relations, their faces would turn green, so they knew who it was.

Rashi asks, why does it repeat 'harogu'? To break up the subject matter. These are the words of Rabbi Yishmael. If it didn't say 'harogu' again, you might not know whether the phrase 'kol isha yoda'at ish' goes with the males to be killed or with the females to be kept alive. Therefore, it says 'harogu' again to clarify.

Rashi explains that 'michutz la-machaneh' means they should not enter the Azarah, the courtyard of the Mishkan. It's not talking about the other camps, but specifically about not going into the Azarah until they are purified.

Rashi says that Rabbi Meir explains, the verse is talking about someone who kills with an item that can become impure. The Torah is teaching that the vessel that touched the dead body can transmit impurity to the person holding it, as if he touched the corpse himself. But if someone killed by shooting an arrow and didn't touch the body, that doesn't make him impure. The verse compares the killer to the one who touches the corpse: just as touching is by direct contact, so too killing is only when there is direct contact through the vessel.

'Titchatu'—you shall purify yourselves with the water of the niddah, just like all those who are impure from a corpse. Even those who say that the graves of non-Jews do not transmit impurity through a tent, because the Torah says 'Adam' and only Jews are called 'Adam,' still agree that non-Jews transmit impurity through touching and carrying. The word 'Adam' is only used regarding impurity of tents, but for touching and carrying, non-Jews are included and cause impurity.

Rashi says, 'atem u-shviychem'—not that the non-Jews themselves become impure and need sprinkling, but just as you, the Jewish people, are in the covenant, so too your captives, when they join the covenant and become impure, will need sprinkling. But not now, only when they convert and join the covenant.

Rashi explains that 'kol ma'aseh izim'—all things made from goats—comes to include vessels made from horns, hooves, and bones of the animals, not just the hides or skins.

Rashi explains that since Moshe came to anger, he came to make a mistake. He forgot the laws of purging the vessels of non-Jews. We find the same thing happened on the eighth day of the inauguration of the Mishkan, when Moshe got angry at Elazar and Itamar, and also when Moshe hit the rock out of anger. In each case, anger led to a mistake.

Rashi says that Elazar attributed the instruction to his teacher, Moshe. Even though Hashem only spoke to Moshe, Elazar still connected the teaching to Moshe Rabbeinu.

Rashi explains that even though Moshe only warned them about the laws of impurity, Elazar is now telling them about the laws of koshering vessels. The word 'ach' (however) means you are restricted from using these vessels even after purifying them from corpse impurity, until you also remove the forbidden absorption from non-kosher food. Our sages also say that 'ach es ha-zahav' teaches that you must remove any rust before koshering the vessel; the metal must be clean and as it is.

Anything that comes into fire, meaning a vessel that you use for cooking or roasting with fire, you have to kosher it in the same way, by putting it through fire.

"You shall pass it through fire"—that means the way you use it, that's how you kosher it. If you use it with hot water, you kosher it with hot water. If you use it with roasting, like a spit or a grill, then you have to whiten it in fire, meaning you put it directly into the fire to kosher it.

According to the simple meaning, this purification is to cleanse it from impurity of contact with the dead. He said to them, the vessels need both koshering to purify them from forbidden absorption, and also purification from impurity. And our sages learned from here that even to make them permitted from the forbidden absorption, they also require immersion for metal vessels. And the 'mei niddah' mentioned here, they expounded that it means water that is fit for a niddah to immerse in, which is forty se'ah.

Anything that does not come into fire, meaning a vessel that is not used with fire, like cups and flasks that are used with cold, and did not absorb forbidden food, does not require koshering through fire.

You shall pass it through water—meaning you immerse it in water and that's enough. And this is specifically for metal vessels.

"To the camp"—that means to the camp of the Shechinah, the Divine Presence. Because someone who is impure from contact with the dead is not required to be sent out from the camp of the Levites or the camp of Israel, only from the camp of the Shechinah.