Divar Torah from Rabbi Guy Dvir - Parashat Bamidbar

A Free Invesment

Dear Friends,In a bad economy such as the current one, it is good to know that there are still some great investments for the future. In fact, there is one investment that is guaranteed to yield a high profit even if the entire market fails. This stock costs absolutely nothing. We Jews like these types of investments, low risk and high return. This is why we Jews accepted the Torah, since it was absolutely free. This week we begin the fourth book called Sefer Bamidbar. The Midrash asks an interesting question. Why did God choose to give the Torah in a dessert of all places? There could have been many better alternatives than to give the Torah in such a desolate area. The Midrsah answers that by Giving the Torah in the dessert, God wanted to teach the Jews an eternal lesson about the nature of Torah. Just as the dessert is a completely public domain which is free for anyone who wishes to dwell in it, so too the Torah is available to anyone who wishes to acquire it. The Hazon Ish wrote that the more something is a necessary element for survival God makes it more available. For example, oxygen is something we can't live without for more than a few seconds. God therefore made oxygen so abundant that we have an unlimited supply of it for free. And don't forget water which is also an essential element for survival. It too is relatively easy to obtain due to its huge supply. In contrast, Gold and diamonds are rare commodities which humans don't need for basic survival. This makes their cost very high compared to other things. Following this line of reasoning, Torah is made available for anyone seeking it, since it is a vital element for spiritual life. A person may have a lot of money or other types of assets, but without Torah life is empty and void of any meaning. For this reason God chose the dessert as the ideal place for the giving of the Torah. The Jew should always remember that Torah belongs to him no less than it belongs to the Rabbis; however, it is incumbent on the Jew to pursue the Torah and not wait for it to come to him. Shabbat Shalom.