Thursday, July 2, 2015
Parshas Balak: Learning Torah for the Wrong Reason can Backfire!
10:35 PM | 
Posted by
Rabbi Chaim Coffman |
"And Bilam said to Balak, 'Build me here seven altars and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams" (Numbers 23:29)
The Talmud in Nazir 23b tells us that in the merit of the 42 sacrifices that Balak gave, he merited to have a descendant the caliber of Ruth, who was the forebear of king David and the Davidic line! We learn from here the Talmud explains that if one learns Torah and keeps mitzvos not for their own sake but for whatever reason, then in the end he will keep the Torah and its mitzvos for its own sake.
When we speak about not doing the mitzvos or keeping Torah for its own sake it means either to be called a rabbi or for any other reason. If someone though wants to keep mitzvos or Torah to be able to disparage others or curse them it would be better that they weren't created. If this is true, how could the Talmud tell us that Balak gets the merit of having Ruth descend from him if his intentions were less than altruistic?
Rav Yaakov Kamentzsky in his work Emes L'Yaakov explains that in this case if someone wants to learn Torah for an ulterior motive i.e. to curse or conquer his friend or foe then this idea would not apply but the intention of Balak was that through the merit of his sacrifices he should be able to have merit and have his prayer answered to be able to curse the Jewish people.
This Rav Yaakov tells was Balak's intention and it is as if a person does something so that it will help them have merit to enter the next world. Even though he wants his prayer answered to get what he wants, in reality he is doing something for an ulterior motive.
Normally we would say in such a case that this ulterior motive will not help here and certainly won't bring a person to keep the Torah for its own sake. The novelty Rav Yaakov explains is that even though he wanted to curse the Jewish people it is as if he wants the merit for something good and he prays that Hashem will listen to him!
One thing we can take out from this is that Torah should be learned for the right reasons and that it should have the positive influence on us and help us reach our true potential. If a person though learns and treats the material like another subject but it doesn't affect their lives then what the person is doing is mental gymnastics and not learning Torah!
Even so, a person could learn Torah for the wrong reason and not have intention to implement its teachings but the Torah though could influence the person positively to go in its ways. How many times have we heard people say they wanted to learn the "old testament" to be able to "prove" that their way of thinking was right and true only to have been upended by the sweetness and clarity that a Torah lifestyle brings.
A person with an open mind can still let the Torah influence them. Even if his mind is closed, the Torah can still influence a person which is why a person even with the wrong intention can still come back to their heritage.
May we always merit to learn the sweetness of the Torah and always do what G-d wants us to.
Shabbat Shalom
The Talmud in Nazir 23b tells us that in the merit of the 42 sacrifices that Balak gave, he merited to have a descendant the caliber of Ruth, who was the forebear of king David and the Davidic line! We learn from here the Talmud explains that if one learns Torah and keeps mitzvos not for their own sake but for whatever reason, then in the end he will keep the Torah and its mitzvos for its own sake.
When we speak about not doing the mitzvos or keeping Torah for its own sake it means either to be called a rabbi or for any other reason. If someone though wants to keep mitzvos or Torah to be able to disparage others or curse them it would be better that they weren't created. If this is true, how could the Talmud tell us that Balak gets the merit of having Ruth descend from him if his intentions were less than altruistic?
Rav Yaakov Kamentzsky in his work Emes L'Yaakov explains that in this case if someone wants to learn Torah for an ulterior motive i.e. to curse or conquer his friend or foe then this idea would not apply but the intention of Balak was that through the merit of his sacrifices he should be able to have merit and have his prayer answered to be able to curse the Jewish people.
This Rav Yaakov tells was Balak's intention and it is as if a person does something so that it will help them have merit to enter the next world. Even though he wants his prayer answered to get what he wants, in reality he is doing something for an ulterior motive.
Normally we would say in such a case that this ulterior motive will not help here and certainly won't bring a person to keep the Torah for its own sake. The novelty Rav Yaakov explains is that even though he wanted to curse the Jewish people it is as if he wants the merit for something good and he prays that Hashem will listen to him!
One thing we can take out from this is that Torah should be learned for the right reasons and that it should have the positive influence on us and help us reach our true potential. If a person though learns and treats the material like another subject but it doesn't affect their lives then what the person is doing is mental gymnastics and not learning Torah!
Even so, a person could learn Torah for the wrong reason and not have intention to implement its teachings but the Torah though could influence the person positively to go in its ways. How many times have we heard people say they wanted to learn the "old testament" to be able to "prove" that their way of thinking was right and true only to have been upended by the sweetness and clarity that a Torah lifestyle brings.
A person with an open mind can still let the Torah influence them. Even if his mind is closed, the Torah can still influence a person which is why a person even with the wrong intention can still come back to their heritage.
May we always merit to learn the sweetness of the Torah and always do what G-d wants us to.
Shabbat Shalom
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