וְ אָ מַ רְ תָּ אֲ לֵהֶ ם אֶ ת קָ רְ בָּ נִ י לַחְ מִ י לְ אִ שַּׁ י רֵ יחַ נִ יחֹ חִ י וגו' לְ רֵ יחַ נִ יחֹ חַ אִ שֶּׁ ה לַה' (כח, ב-ו)
Command the children of Yisroel and say to them: My korban, My food for My fire, a spirit of satisfaction for Me... for a spirit of satisfaction, a fire to Hashem. (28:2-6)
Chofetz Chaim zt”l to advise him how a Rov should deal with the needs of his community. The Chofetz Chaim answered by quoting the verse that says: “And you shall be clean from Hashem and from Yisroel” (Bamidbor 32:22). He explained that a Rov must first ensure that he is “clean” before Hashem by fulfilling the Torah and mitzvos. Only afterwards should he make sure that he is “clean” before the community by taking care of their needs. If, however, one switches the order and first tries to get his community to like him before he fulfills the words of Hashem, he will end up not succeeding in either way. (Quoted in Sefer Talelei Oros)
The Malachim are Satiated From the Smell of Korbanos:
Sefer Yalkut Yehuda quotes his grandfather, the Chidushei Harim zy”a, as saying that there are many wonderful things that are sent down to this world from Hashem every single day. In addition to this, there also are “extras” that are only brought down to this world through the offering of korbanos that people bring from their cattle and livestock. He adds that the extra Heavenly goodness is many times more than the standard amount that is sent without the korbanos. The angels enjoy the smell of these korbanos. It is like food for them and makes them feel full, as if they just enjoyed a good meal. They come to love Klal Yisroel for providing them with this enjoyment. After enjoying the smell of a korban, even prosecuting angels, who were created to speak badly about Klal Yisroel, become defenders of the Jews and only say good things about them. This creates peace between the angels, who live in the higher world, and people, who live in this, lower world. When the complaints against Klal Yisroel stop and the malachim all speak only nicely about them, this gives Hashem a “nachas ruach”, a holy pleasure.
Rav Bunim of Peshischa zy”a adds that we see from the words of the posuk that the fact that the daily korbanos provide a “nachas ruach” for Hashem was already established at Har Sinai. Even today, when we have no Bais Hamikdosh and no korbanos and we cannot “feed” the malachim, we still possess one thing that can lead them to speak nicely about us. The Gemara (Menachos 110A) says that “anyone who learns the Torah of the Olah is considered to have brought an Olah.” This means that when we learn about the korbanos, it is considered as if we brought them and created their pleasant fragrance. The malachim can enjoy this fragrance even today, and they will love us and say only good things about us.
Furthermore, the Chida zt”l writes (Sefer Midbar Kedeimos, Maareches 70, Os 2) in the name of Rabenu Efraim zt”l that when one provides food for the poor, it is considered as if he brought korbanos in the Bais Hamikdosh. He learns this from the word “My korban”, which he explains to mean that if one wishes to offer korbanos in today’s times, he can offer “bread to My people” (the word “l’ishi can mean “for My fire” as well as “for My people”), meaning to poor people in need of bread.
The Korban Tamid:
A chasid who earned his livelihood by selling sheep once visited his Rebbe, the Ohev Yisroel of Apta zy”a, and bitterly complained about the hardships of his job of raising lambs. Suddenly, the Rebbe let out a tremendous groan that came from the depths of his heart and he declared, “You are talking about your sheep at a time like this? Don’t you know that a terrible tragedy struck Klal Yisroel this morning?”
The chasid was taken aback and he asked, “This morning? I didn’t hear anything about it. What tragedy took place this morning?”
The Rebbe answered, “Have you forgotten that the Bais Hamikdosh is in ruins and we were unable to bring a Korban Tamid this morning? Due to our sins, we did not have the merit of fulfilling the commandment to bring a sheep as a Korban Tamid today!”
Bain Hametzarim: An Auspicious Time to Connect to Hashem:
We must cry every day of the year for the destruction of the Bais Hamikdosh, and we certainly must use the days of the Three Weeks, which begin this Shabbos, for this purpose. On the other hand, these days – which are known as “Bain Hametzarim”, Between the Borders - are a perfect time to connect to Hashem and become close to Him. Sefer Avodas Yisroel (Parshas Masai) quotes the Magid of Mezeritch zy”a as learning this from the posuk (Eicha 1:3): “All her pursuers reached her bain hametzarim, between the borders.” This indicates that anyone who runs after Hashem during this time can reach Him.
This can be understood with a mashal: When a ruler of a country is sitting in his castle, most citizens cannot approach him. But if the ruler takes a trip to the marketplace and streets, he is close to the regular people and is approachable. At this time, they can speak to him and get his attention. So too, Bain Hametzarim is a time when Hashem is “out in the streets” and anyone can draw close to him.
The Bed Was Made With Sadness:
Rav Yosef of Ostila zy”a (son of Rav Mordechai of Neshchiz zy”a) once heard that the Chozeh of Lublin zy”a was planning on coming to his city to get some rest. He wanted to host the Chozeh in his home. However, he knew that when the Chozeh laid down on someone else’s bed, he often would begin to shout, “It is poking me!”
Therefore, he hired a worker who was an upright man and possessed much yiras shomayim to make a new bed for the Chozeh. He told the worker to immerse in a mikvah before starting to work on the bed and to think only pure thoughts as he worked. The worker was nervous about taking on this job but he could not refuse the Rov’s request. He accepted all the terms and did the job with much trepidation and fear.
As soon as he finished, he brought the bed to Rav Yosef, who covered it with brand-new pillows and blankets. He also furnished his guest room with a new lamp, table, and chairs, and locked the door to make sure no one entered.
A few days later, the Chozeh arrived in town. Rav Yosef went to greet him and asked him to be his guest. He was overjoyed when the Chozeh agreed. He escorted him into his guest room and showed him the bed he had prepared for him, explaining that it had been made especially for him by a yarei shomayim. He then offered the Chozeh to lay down and rest up from his journey.
However, as soon as the Chozeh lay down on the bed, he began to scream, “It’s poking me! It’s stabbing me!” Rav Yosef was shocked. He was afraid to suggest that the Chozeh lay down to rest on his own bed, as he might start screaming there as well. However, he ultimately did make this suggesting and the Chozeh rested on his bed without complaint.
When the Chozeh woke up, he said, “This is a very rest. Thank you, Rav Yossele.” Rav Yosef was happy to hear this but he asked, “Why did the Rebbe say that the other bed was poking him? It was made specially for the Rebbe by a yarei shomayim!”
The Chozeh answered, “The bed is fine. However, I could sense that it smelled of sadness. Since it was made by a yarei shomayim during the Bain Hametzarim, he was sad as he worked and thought about the destruction of the Bais Hamikdosh.”
From this story, we can learn the greatness of “simple” workers in past generations. The pain they felt for the destruction of the Bais Hamikdosh was noticeable to a tzadik like the Chozeh.
