Episode Details

נת' בהתוועדות קודמת בשיטת רש"י בפשש"מ, שענני הכבוד שהיו בזכות אהרן לא חזרו אחר הסתלקותו, כי יכלו להסתדר בלעדיהם. (משא"כ העננים שהיו הכרחיים להריגת נחשים ועקרבים וכיו"ב). ושאלו ע"ז הרי (גם) ענני הכבוד היו הכרחיים, וכמ"ש [בראשון דפ' עקב] "שמלתך לא בלתה וגו'" ופרש"י: "שמלתך לא בלתה, ענני כבוד היו שפים בכסותם ומגהצים אותם כמין כלים מגוהצים, ואף קטניהם כמו שהיו גדלים הי' גדל לבושן עמהם, כלבוש הזה של חומט שגדל עמו"?! הנה "גיהוץ השמלות" ע"י העננים לא הי' הכרחי אלא ענין של כבוד: 1) כמו שהאשה יכלה לתפור כפתור שנפל, יכלה לגהץ את השמלות! 2) הרי יצאו ממצרים עם כמות עצומה של "שמלות", ויכלו להחליף את השמלות שבלאו. 3) יכלו לקנות בגדים כשעברו במסעם במקומות ישוב. ובנוגע להענין ש"גדל לבושן עמהם", הרי לא העננים פעלו זה אלא "כלבוש הזה של חומט שגדל עמו" מצ"ע!

ב' חלקים משיחת ליל חמשה עשר באב ה'תשל"ט

It was discussed during the previous farbrengen that according to Rashi, according to the plain meaning of Chumash, the Clouds of Glory (which came in Aharon’s merit and which served to honor the Jewish people) did not return after Aharon’s passing because they were not essential. (Unlike the clouds that killed the snakes and scorpions etc., which were essential.) The question was asked: Seemingly, the Clouds of Glory also served an essential purpose, as the verse states (at the beginning of parashas Ekev), “Your garment did not wear out…,” on which Rashi explains: “The Clouds of Glory would rub their clothes  and press them as is done with laundered clothes, and even their young, as they grew, their clothes grew with them like a turtle’s ‘clothing’ [i.e. its shell] which  grows with it.” The obvious answer is that wearing pressed garments was not essential, but merely a matter of honor, for the following reasons: (1) After the clouds departed, the women had the option of pressing the garments themselves if they wished. (2) We know that the Jewish people took an enormous quantity of clothing with them when the left Egypt. Therefore, if any clothing became worn out after the departure of the Clouds of Glory, they could be replaced by those additional clothes taken from Egypt. (3) The Jewish people had the option of buying new clothing from the inhabited areas they passed by on their journey. As for the issue of the clothing growing with the children, Rashi states clearly that it was like the growth of a turtle’s shell, which happens on its own – it had nothing to do with clouds.

2 excerpts from sichah of Tuesday night, 15 Menachem-Av 5739