9
The impetus for the drasha in the medrash is specifically because the first nation the spies mentioned was amalek, and as the ikar sifsei chachamim explains why not mention the amori and chiti who live in the mountains first, must be they were trying to scare klal yisrael with the bad memory as the medrash continues with the mashal of the child who got hit ...
9
The first Rashi in Parshat Masei mentions that Israel had 14 journeys during the first year until they arrived at Ritmah (which is Kadesh Barne'a). Then they wandered for 38 years where they had 20 journeys. Then, the final year there were 8 journeys after Aharon died as they went into the land.
The 40 years of wandering in the desert retroactively include ...
8
The Ostrovtzer Rav in Me'ir Eynei Chachamim explains that a leader is imbued with the power of the group that he leads, in this case 50 people. He further notes that the Jewish people were blessed that each one of them had the power of a thousand people based upon the pasuk in Haazinu (Devarim 32, 30) (he seems to follow the Ibn Ezra's second peshat). As ...
7
Yes, the Rebbe does explain like this and explains the mergalim's report and each of their claims and the response of Kalev and Yehoshua in this light.
It can be found in Likkutei Sichos Volume 4 pg 1041 (here is an English translation and adaption).
It is based on a teaching of the Alter Rebbe, The Baal Hatanya, in Likkutei Torah here and here, which is ...
6
Sifsei Chachamim brings this question from Rabi Elazar Mizrachi who left it as a question.
The Sifsei Chachamim goes on to suggest that this limud is to tell us that Shevet Levi was not even involved in the council to send spies. He quotes Rashi, who's words are now clearer, who says Levi was not with them, but did not say Levi did not go with them.
6
Sefer Hadoros & Zemach David says Yehoshua was born in 2406 and the story of the Meraglim was in 2449, making him 43 years old.
6
I have checked through all the mefarshim I could find and haven't seen any one of them comment that the meraglim saw prophetically that they wouldn't be the leaders in Eretz Yisroel. The closest I found was the peirush of Rav Moshe Zakut on the Zohar which explains the spiritual thought process of the meraglim but it still indicates that they themselves ...
6
Or perhaps, this is the simple reading of the Zohar.
I believe that this is the closest to the mark. We can quibble over whether it actually is the simplest and most straight-forward explanation of the Zohar, but it does appear to be his understanding of the text. This assumption, that the Zohar is to be so read is shared by others. For example, Rav Yaakov ...
4
Rabbi Yochanan Zweig, my Rosh Yeshiva, explains this based on Targum Yonasan to Bamidbar 13:16: "When Moshe saw his humility, he changed his name." Why is humility a negative in this context? Moshe himself was the most humble person alive (Bamidbar 12:3), yet he sees this as a negative?
It must be, then, that Moshe was concerned that his humility would ...
4
Divrei Hayomim 2:18 says that Caleb was the son of Chetzron. Radak there says that this is Caleb ben Yefune. Radak says he was known as ben Yefune since he turned away from the Meraglim's blasphemy of the land.
Ibn Ezra disagrees and says his father's name was Yefune and his grandfather's name was Kenaz.
4
Although we often invoke Midivar Shekker Tirchack as the Torah's command not to lie, it is not really a biblical prohibition. That pasuk is actually discussing beis din and witness. When the Gemara discusses keeping your word in business it invokes another verse, הין צדק איפה צדק.
This still does not apply to a lie in conversation. For that we have the ...
4
In Pirkei Derabbi Eliezer 23 it says that Og was the only survivor of the flood other than Noach and his family (and animals) as he hanged on to a ladder:
וימח את כל היקום אשר על פני האדמה חוץ מנח וכל אשר אתו בתבה שנאמר וישאר אך נח ואשר אתו בתבה וחוץ מעוג מלך הבשן שישב לו עץ אחד מן הסולמות של התיבה ונשבע לנח ולבניו שיהיה להם עבד עולם מה עשה נח נקב חור אח' ...
4
So I looked through a number of mefarshim (commentaries) and there doesn't appear to be any reference to any prophecy. As you say, many mention this Zohar, but I think it would be fair to say that the Be'er Yosef's words are more his own personal presentation of the facts.
Rabbi Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman zt"l questions in his Sichos Avodas Levi 59 how ...
3
The prime example given by the Talmud of an overriding reason to allow misleading statements is in the interest of maintaining peace (whether marital or otherwise). This would seem to be all the more so a compelling reason when the peace in question is between G-d and the entire Jewish people.
See Yevamot 65b:
וא"ר אילעא משום רבי אלעזר בר' שמעון: מותר ...
3
The Gur Aryeh explains this Rashi.
He cites the question of Rabbi Eliyahu Mizrachi (the Re'em)
והקשה הרא״ם, דכבר כתיב בפרשת שלח (במדבר יג, ל-טו) שנים עשר אנשים, כל
אחד בשמו, ולא נכתב כלל אחד משבט לוי עמהם,
and then answers:
ואין זה קשיא, דהאי ׳מגיד׳, פירושו, מה שהוצרך משה רבנו עליו השלום
לומר לישראל ״שנים עשר אנשים״, כדי לומר משה לישראל שלא ...
3
The Malbim in Sefer HaKarmel says that חפר is a more focused mission, an in-depth investigation into one location, as opposed to לתור, which is a scouting mission which sees the whole land but is not as in-depth.
Malbim does not explain this in connection with the success and failure of the missions, but perhaps the failure of the first mission was that ...
3
The Kli Yakar on יום לשנה says that the punishment actually took place one day a year on Tish'a B'Av. Thus they were punished for "forty days" but the forty days were spread over 40 years. The punishment was that all those who should have been in the army and insisted on not listening to the spies (ages 20 to 60) were allowed to live out their "service life" ...
3
RaSh"I on Numbers 26:64 (thanks to Chabad.org)
3
Excellent question! Avot D'Rav Natan ch. 9 Mishna 2 explains why. In summary, he states that that B'nai Yisra'el were tested 10 times (The Mishnah lists all 10) but they weren't punished for any of them except for the incident with the spies, because this was Lashon Hara.
At the end of the Mishnah, he states, that this is a kal vachomer we should learn, ...
3
Bamidbar - Numbers - Chapter 13
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9941/jewish/Chapter-13.htm
וַיֹּצִ֜יאוּ דִּבַּ֤ת הָאָ֨רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּר֣וּ אֹתָ֔הּ אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לֵאמֹ֑ר הָאָ֡רֶץ אֲשֶׁר֩ עָבַ֨רְנוּ בָ֜הּ לָת֣וּר אֹתָ֗הּ אֶ֣רֶץ אֹכֶ֤לֶת יֽוֹשְׁבֶ֨יהָ֙ הִ֔וא וְכָל־הָעָ֛ם אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֥ינוּ בְתוֹכָ֖הּ אַנְשֵׁ֥י מִדּֽוֹת
"They spread ...
3
I
Reuven and Gad did not request the land on the east of the yarden until after it had been conquered. See Matos 32:2 which has them asking Moshe and Elazar Hacohen (after the death of Aharon in the fortieth year). In any case, they were still considered as having received a nachalah with the others as it had been conquered and made part of the land.
The ...
3
Rashi in Shlach 13:2 explains that Bnai Yisrael had approached Moshe because they were supposed to conquer as a normal way of war. Thus, they asked to send men to determine which parts were most appropriate for the tribes. This seemed proper to Moshe and he asked Hashem what he sould do. As Rashi says:
Send for yourself: According to your own ...
2
Rashi to 14:33 says:
לא מת אחד מהם פחות מבן שישים, לכך נגזר ארבעים, כדי שיהיו אותם של בני עשרים מגיעין לכלל ששים.
Not one of them died before the age of sixty. This is why forty [years] was decreed, so that those who were twenty years old would reach the age of sixty.
Each person died at age 60.
2
Kli Yakar (who cites Yalkut Shim'oni on Numbers 13:2:4):
ד"א לכך פרט אנשים, לפי שארז"ל (ילקו"ש פנחס תשעגכז) האנשים היו
שונאים את הארץ ואמרו נתנה ראש ונשובה מצרימה (במדבר יד.ד) והנשים היו
מחבבות הארץ ואמרו תנה לנו אחזה (שם כז.ד) וע"כ אמר הקב"ה לפי דעתי שאני
רואה בעתיד היה יותר טוב לשלוח נשים המחבבות את הארץ כי לא יספרו בגנותה,
אבל לך לדעתך שאתה ...
2
The cogent explanation comes from Rashi's commentary on the passage; that is, Caleb represented the fourth generation that entered the land. In this regard, the commentary of the Jewish Publication Society provides that four generations in this context therefore means four lifespans.
Reference:
Sarna, Nahum M. (1989). Genesis. Philadelphia: Jewish ...
2
The Gemara Bava Basra 121b states explicitely that Machir (and Yair) entered Israel. This very question of why he didn't die with the rest of the Dor Hamidbar because of the sin of the meraglim (spies) is posed and answered:
והתניא יאיר בן מנשה ומכיר בן מנשה נולדו בימי יעקב ולא מתו עד שנכנסו ישראל לארץ שנאמר (יהושע ז, ה) ויכו מהם אנשי העי כשלשים וששה איש ...
2
I would argue that the premise of your question is slightly flawed. Rashi doesn't say that God was forced to do anything. What he says is that God knew that he would decree a punishment of a year per day (אלא שגלוי לפני הקב"ה שיגזור עליהם יום לשנה) and thus he shortened their travel time to 40 days. God wasn't forced to make the punishment a year for a ...
2
The fact that the meraglim lied is stated in the passuk (Bamidbar 13:32) וַיּוֹצִ֜יאוּ דִּבַּ֤ת הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּר֣וּ אֹתָ֔הּ אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל
Thus they spread calumnies among the Israelites about the land they had scouted. (calumnies= false and malicious statements designed to injure the reputation of someone or something).
and the Gemara ...
2
Rav Hirsch says that the initial request was (as I say in Did G-d command or not on sending the spies?) presented in order to follow the idea that the Bnai Yisrael would have to start living a normal life. This is based on the way Rav Hirsch explains לחפור את הארץ.
Rav Hirsch also points out that they were to then to see which parts were most appropriate ...
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