Friday, Shevat 16, 5784 / January 26, 2024

In this week’s Parsha, B’Shalach, the Torah relates how G-d provided the Jewish people with Manna - Bread from heaven.

G-d told Moshe, "I will cause it to rain bread from heaven; and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion each day, that I may test them to see whether they will follow my laws or not."

The manna came down each morning covered with a layer of dew.  No matter how much manna a person collected, or how little one collected, when they brought it home it amounted to exactly "one Omer" per person in the household.  Each day, they went out and gathered their daily portion of manna.   Anything left over to the next day became spoiled. 

The manna did not come on Shabbat.  Instead, each Friday, they received a double portion of manna.

The two Challot we place on the Shabbat table each Shabbat are to commemorate the double portion of manna which came down in honor of Shabbat. 

G-d supplied the Manna during the entire 40 years in which the Jewish people traveled in the desert.

Q.   The disciples of the Talmudic sage, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, asked him, "Why didn't G-d give them a year's supply of manna all at once?  Why did they have to go out and collect the Manna each day?"

A.   Rabbi Shimon replied with the following parable:  A king had a son whom he loved very much, and he provided him with all his sustenance.   In the beginning of the year, the king would give his son all that he would need for the entire year.  As a result, the son would visit his father only once a year. 

The king wasn't happy with his son's lack of visitations, and he decided to provide food for his son, one day at a time.  From that day on, the son appeared before his father each day!

"The same was with Israel," explained Rabbi Shimon. "By having to depend upon G-d for their sustenance each day, the people of Israel were compelled to direct their hearts to their Father in heaven on a daily basis!"

There is a wonderful lesson in this for us.  The fact that G-d doesn't give us our needs all at once and sometimes they come with effort, is actually a sign of His great love toward us.  Hashem wants our communication. He desires that we pray and connect to him. When we pray each day for His help, we appear before G-d each day and reinforce our relationship with Him daily.

WITH SPECIAL PRAYERS FOR OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN ISRAEL

SHABBAT SHALOM

Montreal candle lighting time: 4:33 / Shabbat ends: 5:41