From the Rabbi:
In Parshat Sh'lach, before the scouts (or spies, perhaps?) went to check out the Land, Moshe provided them with instructions:
...Go up there into the Negev and on into the hill country and see what country it is. Are the people who dwell in it strong or weak, few or many? Is the country in which they dwell good or bad? Are the towns they live in open or fortified? Is the soil rich or poor? Are there trees in it or not? (Bamidbar 13:17-19)
Moshe also told them what to bring back: You shall strengthen yourselves and take from the fruit of the Land. This was during the season of the first ripe grapes (Verse 20).
Then the Torah records which fruits they brought back: They reached Nachal Eshkol and there they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes- it has to be borne on a carrying frame by two of them- and some pomegranates and figs (verse 23).
They may have also brought dates, as they said (verse 27): We arrived at the land to which you sent us and indeed it flows with milk and honey and this is its fruit. ("Honey" in the Torah usually refers to date honey).
Out of the seven species of the Land of Israel, the only ones that they did not mention or bring back were wheat, barley and olives.
Rabbi Moshe Lichtman, in his book, Eretz Yisrael in the Parashah, quotes Rabbi Zev Leff: The scouts brought back the fruits that people usually eat for dessert, not the ones used for the main part of the meal. In effect they were saying, “Eretz Yisrael is a nice place to visit- a beautiful vacation spot…but it is not a practical, viable place to live.”
This is a powerful message for whenever we get to go up to the Land of Israel. Rabbi Leff is teaching that we should view going up to the Land of Israel, as just that, going up, an Aliyah. Even if we go to Israel for a short time, we are tasked with using the opportunity not just for personal pleasure and gain (like tourists) but as an opportunity for personal growth (recognizing the blessing that is the Land of Israel.)
May we all merit to truly make aliyah to the Land of Israel!
Shabbat Shalom!
Upcoming Classes
NOTE: Sunday and Tuesday classes will not be meeting this week while Rabbi Bergman is away. Wednesday's class is being paused until further notice.
Saturday at 7:45 pm - Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers)
Sunday at 7:00 pm - KOT Beit Midrash
Tuesday at 1:00 pm - Parsha Conversations
Wednesday at 7:30 pm - Teachings of Rabbi Sacks
