פרשת כי תבוא

Dvar Torah

The Rightful Owner

(דברים כו:ב) וְלָקַחְתָּ מֵרֵאשִׁית כָּל פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר תָּבִיא מֵאַרְצְךָ...

The Torah tells us (Devarim 26:2) "And you shall take of the first of every fruit of the ground". This fruit is to be brought to the Bet Hamikdash and given to the Kohen as Bekurim.

Imagine that we are farmers, and we work very hard to plow, seed, weed, water, and cut our crop and fruits. We wait and toil all summer long to have our homegrown produce. Then, when it finally comes we.... give it away to someone who did not work for it at all?!  Why can we not just give them the second fruits and keep the first fruit? After all, the first is the most enjoyable since it is the first of our work.

The Torah is teaching us a valuable lesson.  Like everything in the world, the fruits are from Hashem. Even though we feel like we made them, they still are a gift from Hashem. Therefore we bring the first fruits that we harvest to the Bet Hamikdash, which is like Hashem’s house and share it with the people who work for Hashem. So what we are really doing is showing who is the real owner, Hashem.

Also, we can see that although we feel that the first fruit is the most precious to us and the others we may take for granted, we should learn that all of our possessions are from Hashem and just as valuable and precious as the first fruits. 

With this in mind, how should we treat all of our belongings? How should we treat other people’s belongings?

Shabbat Shalom!

Parsha Questions

1) When does the מצוה of בכורים become applicable? (דברים כו:א-ב)

2) From which fruits is בכורים brought? (רש"י דברים כו:ב)

3) Where is בכורים brought and to whom is it given? (דברים כו:ב-ד)

4) When bringing בכורים, why do we mention ארמי אובד אבי [“ Lavan tried to destroy my father”]? Explain. (רש"י דברים כו:ה)

5) Which land is ארץ זבת חלב ודבש  (A land that flows with milk and honey)? (דברים כו:ט)

6) What lesson can we learn from בכורים being given away? (רש"י דברים כו:יא)

7) Which tribe was on which mountain for the blessing and un-blessings? (דברים כז:יא-יג)

8) What else did the בני ישראל use the 12 stones that were on הר עיבל for? (דברים כז:ב-ח עיין רש"י ב)

9) Which mountains did the לויים face when saying the ברכה? דברים כז:יב))

10) Which mountain did the לויים face when saying the קללה was said? דברים כז:יג))

11) What did the בני ישראל say after each ארור was said? דברים כז:טו-כו))

12) ארור מכה רעהו בסתר. What is this referring to? רש"י דברים כז:כד))

13) What promise does ה' say would happen if we keep all of the מצות of the תורה?

      דברים כח:א-יד)) (Write a summary)

Classroom Check-in!

Questions about what we are learning in class

1) What is Mesorah?

2) What event took place at Har Sinai?

3) What was Moshe given at Har Sinai?

4) What is included in Torah SheBichtav?

5) Why might motorized vehicles not be allowed in the park after dark? 

Torah Math

In this week’s Parasha we are taught about bringing the first fruits that are grown, up to Yerushalayim and giving them to the Kohain Gadol.  The Torah uses the word “ולקחת” to tell us to “take” the fruits and in a hidden way which fruits to take, the 7 special ones of the land of Israel!

ולקחת    =   בשבעה המינים  =  544

 TORAH TRIVIA!

Super Stumper Question:

This a question to ask others and discuss the answers.

Question of the week: This week’s Parasha teaches us about Bikurim. What Shevet [tribe] NEVER brought Bikurim? Why? 

Kollel Quiz 

#1 Who Am I?

1. I am not a firstborn.

2. I am tied up.

3. I am a basket case.

4. I am waved.

#2 Who Am I?

1. I am for next week.

2. I am at least four before.

3. I begin at midnight.

4. This year I come for a week.

Submit this answer by clicking here

 FOOD Section!

Can you guess what this recipe has to do with this week’s Parsha?

Fruit Salad or סלט פירות is one of the most popular desserts in Israel. As you might know, it is very warm in Israel during the year, and fruit salad is easy to make, fresh and light dessert. If you are traveling in Israel, you have to visit Shuk Mahane Yehuda. There you will find a variety of fresh fruits that will make your fruit salad taste even better. You can add any fruit you like: Strawberry, grapes, kiwi. Bon appétit!

Ingredients:

2 oranges

2 green apples

2 pears

4 tsp. lemon juice

4 tsp. honey

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

pomegranate

Mix lemon juice, honey, and cinnamon. Remove seeds from pomegranates. Peel oranges, separate sections, and cut into ¾ inch pieces. Core apple and pear and chop into ¾ inch pieces. Immediately mix apples and pears with the lemon-honey dressing (to prevent browning), and mix everything together.