week of July 7

Balak: Numbers 22:2 to 25:9

Our Torah portion takes its title from the name of the kind of Moab, who engages the prophet Balaam to work for him. The Israelites have one more piece of foreign territory to traverse before reaching the Jordan River. King Balak hires a prophetic genius from the East named Balaam, to come and weaken the Israelites with his magical curses. But Balaam, for all his genius, can only utter what God puts into his mouth. His curses turn into blessings to Balak’s consternation. That is the whole point of this great narrative. 

Four times Balaam “blesses” Israel. The most famous of his utterances begins with the words, “how goodly are your tents, o’ Jacob, your dwelling places o’ Israel…” These words begin every synagogue morning service throughout the year. The intention of Balaam’s curses was as follows:

Israel should lose her temple dedicated to God in Jerusalem, and that Israel would be bereft of independence, and lose her national homeland. The Sages in later centuries said that Balaam’s curses did come true: the people Israel lost almost everything during the Roman empire. But one blessing remained: “how goodly are your tents, o’ Israel.” That is to say, we held onto our synagogues, and people would continue to pray to the Almighty. 

The Haftorah for this sedrah is from Micah, chapters 5 and 6. Please join us for a wonderful Torah study this Shabbat.