Yehoshua B. Gordon

Why Moses was troubled by Reuben and Gad's request to settle outside of the Holy Land.

Spiritual Warfare The Torah portion of Balak opens with the Jewish people camped on the bank of the Jordan River, opposite the city of Jericho. The narrative picks up from the previous parshah, Chukat, which concluded with Moses and the Jewish people succ...

A Sudden Leap in Time One of the most phenomenal transitions in the Torah occurs in Parshat Chukat. The events of the previous portions—including the debacle of the Spies and Korach’s rebellion—all took place during the first two years of the nation’s des...

The Great Rebellion This week’s Torah portion tells the tragic story of the great rebellion led by Moses’ cousin Korach. Like Moses and Aaron, Korach was a great-grandson of Levi, and his rebellion was, sadly, rooted in jealousy. “Why are my cousins Moses...

The portion of Shelach tells the story of the 12 spies Moses sent to scout the Land of Canaan. It is one of the most riveting episodes in the entire Torah. “Go up … and see what [kind of] land it is,” Moses instructed the spies. “ … and the people who inh...

Life Lessons From the Parshah - Behaalotecha

Naso has the distinction of being the longest single portion in the entire Torah. Towards the end of the parshah, the Torah describes the offerings that the tribal leaders brought in honor of the inauguration of the Tabernacle. With the Tabernacle now com...

What does it take to be a Torah teacher? Are there qualifications?

The Torah portion of Bechukotai is the final portion of the Book of Vayikra, the third of the Five Books of Moses. Upon completing each of the Five Books, it is customary to wish each other, “Chazak, chazak, venitchazek – be strong, be strong, and may we ...

The Torah portion of Behar begins with the mitzvah of Shemitah, the Sabbatical year: And the L-rd spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, speak to the children of Israel and you shall say to them: When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land sh...