INTRIGUE

Dear Family,

I hope everyone is well.

This week's Parsha is Balak which is a most fascinating one, full of mystery and intrigue around every verse, especially if one reads the commentaries.

Bilam (a high powered non-Jewish Prophet) and Balak (King of Moav) who were enemies, and evil people, get together because of their shared hatred of the Jewish People, to try and destroy them.

Bilam V23:7 and onwards starts trying to curse the Jewish People but instead there emerges blessings:

"Balak the king of Moav led me from Aram, from the Eastern mountains, saying, 'Come curse Yaakov for me and come and arouse G-d's rage against Yisrael.'

How can I curse whom G-d Himself has not cursed, and how can I arouse rage, when The Eternal Himself has not enraged. For from their origins I see them as firm as rocks, and perceive them emanating from the hills...........

May my soul die the death of their virtuous one's, and may my end be like theirs."

What I found so interesting here, besides everything else, was a commentary from the Baal Haaturim on this last verse, which shows us how precise and deep is Torah. The Hebrew word for 'virtuous ones' used is 'yesharim'.

The Baal HaTurim says that the numerical value of yesharim is equal to that of Avos Haolam (referring to Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov). Now if you take the last letter of each of their names (mem, kuf and beis) - 'and may my end be like theirs' - their numerical value adds up to Bilam!!

And later in the Parsha he also prophesies the coming of Mashiach!

Balak

Interestingly I also heard in a shiur this week that Rut the Moavite was a descendant of Balak through Eglon.

And Rut is the mother of the Davidic Dynasty, from which Mashiach will arise!

And so what is the rationale that Mashiach should arise from such an evil source?

The Gemorra answers that it is in the merit of these Sacrifices that Balak was performing in this weeks Sedra (6x7). Even although he was doing them to try and destroy Yisrael, they were never-the-less, sacrifices to Hashem!!

The message is that we should not under-estimate the power of good deeds even when they appear evil. How much more so, when they are done with good intention.

Gut Shabbos to all.