BAIS HAVAAD ON THE PARSHA Parshas Balak 5773: Fiduciary Misrepresentation
The Medrash tells us that although "No other prophet arose in Israel like Moshe," (Devarim, 34:10) nonetheless amongst the nations there was a comparable prophet - Bil'am!
R' Yehoshuah Leib Diskin explains this surprising statement of Chazal by expounding on the concept of nevu'ah, prophecy. In these few lines we do not pretend to do justice to this deep and complex subject, but very briefly, he explains what Chazal mean when they say that Moshe Rabbenu was the only prophet who saw be'aspaklaria hameirah - with a clear visualization. All other nevi'im saw visions, sometimes parables - an almond staff, a menorah - and it was their task to accurately interpret the vision to the prophecy that they were to pass on to the people. As the generations proceeded and the levels of prophecy dropped, the visions became more and more obscure, until Doniel, for example, at one point declared to the angel that he did not understand the explanation behind the vision.
Moshe Rabbenu was unique in that he did not see a vision or a parable, but received direct to his intellect the message of Hashem, with no need to interpret it. All other prophets said, "Koh amar Hashem," - Like this Hashem has spoken, whereas Moshe said, "Zeh hadovor" - This is the word of Hashem."
When Bil'am came to curse the Bnei Yisrael, Hashem gave him a prophecy that would instead be a blessing for Klal Yisroel. Of course Bil'am did not deserve to receive any level of nevu'ah, but on this occasion, Bil'am could not receive a regular prophecy, because that would require the input and interpretation of the prophet, and Hashem did not want that Rasha to misinterpret the prophecy for the bad. And thus it was that for the only time in history, someone other than Moshe received a prophecy of the highest level - a direct message with no interpretation or input from the prophet, but a clear message from Hashem to bless Klal Yisroel.
In this week's journal we will discuss the topic of the validity of the financial transactions of an agent or partner who misrepresents another, and exceeds the authority given to him.(AUDIO HERE)
CLICK HERE FOR PRINT VERSION.
The Medrash tells us that although "No other prophet arose in Israel like Moshe," (Devarim, 34:10) nonetheless amongst the nations there was a comparable prophet - Bil'am!
R' Yehoshuah Leib Diskin explains this surprising statement of Chazal by expounding on the concept of nevu'ah, prophecy. In these few lines we do not pretend to do justice to this deep and complex subject, but very briefly, he explains what Chazal mean when they say that Moshe Rabbenu was the only prophet who saw be'aspaklaria hameirah - with a clear visualization. All other nevi'im saw visions, sometimes parables - an almond staff, a menorah - and it was their task to accurately interpret the vision to the prophecy that they were to pass on to the people. As the generations proceeded and the levels of prophecy dropped, the visions became more and more obscure, until Doniel, for example, at one point declared to the angel that he did not understand the explanation behind the vision.
Moshe Rabbenu was unique in that he did not see a vision or a parable, but received direct to his intellect the message of Hashem, with no need to interpret it. All other prophets said, "Koh amar Hashem," - Like this Hashem has spoken, whereas Moshe said, "Zeh hadovor" - This is the word of Hashem."
When Bil'am came to curse the Bnei Yisrael, Hashem gave him a prophecy that would instead be a blessing for Klal Yisroel. Of course Bil'am did not deserve to receive any level of nevu'ah, but on this occasion, Bil'am could not receive a regular prophecy, because that would require the input and interpretation of the prophet, and Hashem did not want that Rasha to misinterpret the prophecy for the bad. And thus it was that for the only time in history, someone other than Moshe received a prophecy of the highest level - a direct message with no interpretation or input from the prophet, but a clear message from Hashem to bless Klal Yisroel.
In this week's journal we will discuss the topic of the validity of the financial transactions of an agent or partner who misrepresents another, and exceeds the authority given to him.(AUDIO HERE)
CLICK HERE FOR PRINT VERSION.
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