1. Daily Study of Parshas Pinchas
This morning, we focused on Parshas Pinchas, following the Rebbe’s directive that each day one should study the section of Torah corresponding to that day. Since today is Monday, we are learning the Monday portion of Pinchas. In this section, the Torah recounts the census of the Jewish people, listing all the families and tribes.
Rashi, in the previous parsha, explains that this counting follows a devastating plague. After many Jews were enticed into forbidden relationships with Midianite women, Hashem’s anger was aroused and a plague struck, resulting in 24,000 deaths. In response, Hashem instructs Moshe and Eleazar—since Aharon has already passed away—to count the Jewish people anew.
2. The Unique Wording in the Census
As the Torah lists each tribe and their families, there is a notable linguistic pattern. For example, when mentioning Reuven’s descendants, it does not simply say “Mishpachas Chanoich” (the family of Chanoich), but rather “Mishpachas Ha-Chanoichi.” Similarly, for Palu it says “Mishpachas Ha-Palui.” There is an extra hey—the letter ‘h’—at the beginning and an extra yud—the letter ‘y’—at the end of each family name.
This pattern repeats for each family: a hey at the start and a yud at the end. Rashi addresses this unusual change in spelling and explains its significance.
3. Rashi’s Explanation: Defending Jewish Lineage
Rashi explains that the nations of the world would mock or degrade the Jewish people for tracing their lineage by family. They questioned how it was possible to know if these children truly belonged to their fathers. Their argument was that since Egyptians had enslaved and dominated Bnei Yisrael physically, surely they also had access to their wives. Thus, they insinuated that many children were not really fathered by their supposed fathers but by Egyptians.
The Torah responds to this accusation by placing Hashem’s name on every family: a hey at the beginning and a yud at the end of each family name. This combination forms Yud-Key, two letters from Hashem’s name. This serves as testimony from Hashem Himself that these are indeed legitimate families descended from their fathers.
4. The Meaning of Shifte Yud-Key
This idea is further reflected in Tehillim (Psalms), where it refers to “Shifte Yud-Key”—the tribes of Yud-Key. Rashi explains that this phrase means tribes marked with Hashem’s name: both a yud and a hey. The presence of these letters in their names is Hashem’s own testimony to their true lineage as part of Bnei Yisrael.
5. Additional Details in Parshas Pinchas
The parsha continues with more details about how each tribe was counted and various nuances regarding numbers and names. There are interesting discrepancies between those who went down to Mitzrayim and those counted here—some families are missing or have different names. Rashi discusses many such details throughout Parshas Pinchas.
These topics offer much more depth for future study sessions as we continue our journey through Chumash together.