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    BE LIKE A LION

    In this week’s parsha, we meet Balak, king
    of Moav. Though he was a king, the Chumash
    introduces him as Balak, son of Tzipor –
    sans the title melech, king. Ramban explains
    that Balak was an ordinary man, who upon
    seeing the encampments of Bnei Yisroel,
    became filled with feelings of fear, hatred
    and disgust. Strong, powerful emotions, that
    Balak exploited to incite the Moavites
    against the Jewish nation. He successfully
    built up a strong following, and ultimately
    became their king.
    Balak saw in Bnei Yisroel a nation that grew
    and flourished, despite enduring the most
    difficult conditions in Egypt. A nation who
    even though were weakened by their
    seemingly endless travel through the desert,
    were able to defeat those who dared to
    confront and challenge them.
    Balak realized that Bnei Yisroel’s strength
    and survival were a divine gift. They were
    HaShem’s people, led by Moshe, a spiritual
    leader, not a warrior. Balak decided that the
    only way to fight them was with spiritual

    power, and sought out the services of Bilaam,
    a sorcerer and practitioner of black magic.
    Balak’s hatred was so all-encompassing, that
    he offered to compensate Bilaam, both
    financially and with great honor. All Bilaam
    had to do was curse Bnei Yisroel.
    “Moav became very frightened of the
    people… ki rav hu… because they were
    many, and Moav was disgusted because of
    Bnei Yisroel…” (Bamidbar 22:2-3)
    Ki rav hu, because they were many. It is now

    over three thousand years later, but the anti-
    Semitism, the feelings of “they are many”

    still exists. Our nation is a minority, yet the
    majority of the world sees us as “many”. The
    chants of “from the river to the sea” doesn’t
    tolerate the existence of the Jewish nation.
    Even one minuscule strip of land is
    considered too much.
    Even though it was more than a half-century
    ago, I can still visualize the picture in my
    mind. It was during the Yom Kippur War. A
    political cartoon appeared in one of the
    papers. It portrayed Arab leaders standing on
    the map of Israel, with one of them kicking
    an Israeli towards the sea.

    Ki rav hu, because they are many.
    How often have we heard that the
    Jews control Wall Street, the Jews
    control Hollywood, the Jews control
    the media, the Jews control
    Washington. Ki rav hu, because they
    are many. For some, even one Jew is
    a Jew too many.
    Balak recognized that our existence
    was beyond natural – it was a
    miracle, and it bothered him to no
    end. A miracle that has continued
    throughout the ages. What other
    nation has faced so many enemies,
    yet has survived and is here to prove it.
    B’chol dor vador, in every generation, there
    are those who try to destroy us, to knock us
    down, to do us in. Babylonians, Greeks,
    Romans, Crusaders, The Inquisition,
    pogroms, the Holocaust. And today’s
    merciless enemies, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran,
    Houthis, and the terrorists they inspire
    throughout the world – even at our own
    doorstep.
    But the miracle of our existence endures.
    Am Yisroel Chai. Our people are here. We
    are a nation of survivors.
    What is our secret? In Tehillim we say,
    “Eileh va’rechev, v’eileh va’susim, some
    by chariot, and some by horse, va’anachnu
    b’shem HaShem Elokeinu nazkir, but we
    call out in the name of HaShem, our G-d.”
    To live one’s life being part of HaShem’s
    nation. To live life knowing that we are a
    miracle. That there is a HaShem above who
    watches over us. To really believe that
    although we may not always understand
    His ways, there is a reason for everything.
    HaShem appeared to Bilaam, telling him
    not to heed King Balak’s request, yet
    Bilaam couldn’t resist. But, the King of
    kings had other plans.
    “There came upon him a Ruach Elokim, a
    spirit of G-d” (Bamidbar 24:2). Rashi cites
    a Midrash which says that despite Bilaam’s
    malevolent intentions, a spirit entered his
    heart, warning him not to curse Bnei
    Yisroel. Thereupon, Bilaam’s words
    became words of blessing.
    “Mah tovu ohalecha Yaakov, How goodly
    are your tents, (children of)
    Jacob, mish’ke’nosecha Yisroel, your
    dwelling places, (children of) Israel”.
    (Bamidbar 24:5) Words said by Bilaam – a
    curse turned into blessing. A bracha so
    eloquent, so meaningful, so intrinsic to our
    faith, that we begin Shacharis prayers with
    these very words.
    Rashi explains that Bilaam was referring to
    the beautiful way Bnei Yisroel built their

    tents. No two openings faced one another.
    Each family respected the privacy of their
    neighbor, never looking in, or even taking a
    peek. Man is by nature a curious creature.
    Just think of all the traffic backups caused by
    rubbernecking – people just having the urge
    to see what’s going on.
    A powerful lesson to internalize. To not only
    respect our neighbor’s privacy, but to honor
    our family’s privacy, and even our own. Not
    everything has to be out there.
    Mah tovu ohalecha, how goodly are your
    tents. When I think of tents, two “tents”
    come to mind. The tent of Avraham Avinu,
    and the tent of Yaakov Avinu. Avrohom was
    known for his tent of chesed. His tent stood
    alone in the desert, and was built with
    openings on all four sides, making it
    accessible to people approaching it from all
    directions. A tent of true hachnossas orchim.
    Yaakov was known as an “ish taam, yosheiv
    ohalim, a complete, pure man, who sat in his
    tents. “Ohalim”, tents. Our sages have many
    explanations regarding the tents of Yaakov.
    One explanation is this alludes to the two
    tents housing the study halls of Shem and
    Ever. Another understanding is that one was
    a tent for learning, and a second for prayer. A
    third teaching is that one tent was for study
    and the other symbolized the tent of “real
    life” – Yaakov taking the lessons home and
    living them.
    My mother would always say in her classes
    that one can see references to current events
    in the weekly parsha. We are all so grateful
    to HaShem at the success of Operation Am
    KeLavi Yakum, meaning a people who arise
    like a lion. How uncanny it is that amongst
    the many phrases expressed by Bilaam in
    this week’s parshas Balak, is the verse “Hen
    am kelavie yakum, Behold, the people arise
    like a lion.” (Bamidbar 23:24) Each of us
    can take a cue from these powerful words.
    Each of us has opportunities to rise like a
    lion. To build our own tents of Torah, chesed,
    emunah, and proper midos. To stand tall and
    proud in our faith, and to be relentless in
    defending our values and way of life.