14 Tammuz, 5770 / June 26, 2010
Triennial Cycle III: Numbers 22:39-25:9
Humash Etz Hayim, page 899
Haftarah: Micah 5:6-6:8 page 915
- (22:39-41) Balaam arrives in Moab and is received by Balak with great honor.
- (23:1-26) To Balak’s distress, God twice compels Balaam to bless and praise the Israelites.
- (23:27-24:9) Balaam makes a third attempt. In this blessing, he says the famous words of the Mah Tovu.
- (24:10-25) Balak, infuriated, fires Balaam. Balaam throws in a fourth blessing, unsolicited, predicting Israel’s conquest of Moab.
- (25:1-9) The incident at Baal Peor.
Drash – Doug Brook
Balak becomes king of Moab and hires a famous prophet, Balaam, to curse the Israelites, weakening them enough for defeat. Bilaam instead blesses them three times. Lots of writings interpret whether Balaam was a good guy, a bad guy, a guy who changed, a guy under divine influence, or just under the influence. But what does the original text really say, and what is conjecture or interpretation? How much do these many varying opinions impact Balaam’s legacy? How much do such assumptions about intention, reading between the lines, and presumption of guilt (or innocence), impact our lives, in both our own everyday interactions and in international geopolitical realms? Does Balaam, wittingly or unwittingly, teach us about being more open-minded? What does the appearance of Pinchas at the end have to do with it; is it really just scenes from next week’s episode? And what is the connection between this parshah and six Eddie Murphy films?