Shavuot and Peace

 B”H 

Perhaps it was due to sensationalist thinking, or perhaps an over-reliance on AI and certain “hallucination loops,” but whatever “Storage Wall” of Iranian oil was predicted clearly did not materialize—and neither did an imminent attack over Memorial Day weekend. It was an important reminder to leave such extrapolations to the “experts.”

I do want to say, nevertheless, that if there is in fact a durable peace, it is worth noting that it was announced on Shabbat (still Shavuot in the Diaspora). The conclusion of the war was just like its start: on Shabbat, on a holiday also called Atzeret.

Atzeret means to stop. Like Shemini Atzeret (the 8th day), Shavuot (the 50th day) is connected to what is above nature. It is a reward for our hard work that comes directly from Hashem, often not in the way we would expect.

No longer in the business of predictions or extrapolations, we enter this upcoming Shabbat with a prayer: may the peace be real and ever-expanding, and may the Children of Abraham, the Children of Isaac, and the Children of Israel finally have the ultimate peace with the coming of Moshiach.

Week 17 (Book 7): The Bee-Eater is Saying

 B”H

The bee-eater is saying,

I will whistle to them and gather them, 

He sent from on high [and] He took me; 

The twins of a gazelle, who graze among the roses.

He drew me out of many waters.

And they shall increase as they have before increased.

Indeed, You are the splendor of their might, 

The Lord dominated the strong for me.

And in Your goodwill our glory is exalted. 

They sacrificed to demons, which have no power, 

All the inhabitants of Canaan melted. 

May dread and fright fall upon them;

Which your forefathers did not fear. 

Then ruled a remnant among the mighty of the nations; 

Deities they did not know, new things that only recently came,

Swords are in their lips, for [they say], "Who hears?” 

All the quivers of the mighty men.

And You, Lord, G-d of Hosts, G-d of Israel, 

Until the sun spreads and the shadows flee, 

Wake up to remember all the nations; 

A thousand shields hanging on it, 

Behold, they spew with their mouths, 

Your two breasts are like two fawns, 

They howl like the dog and circle the city. 

And to the hill of frankincense.

And Eli answered and said: Go in peace,

I will go to the mountain of myrrh

And the God of Israel will grant your request 

For I have redeemed them, 

They return toward evening, 

Your neck is like the Tower of David, built as a model; 

Do not grant favor to any of the iniquitous traitors, Selah. 

Which you have asked of Him.

Week 16 (Book 7): The Ducks are Saying

 B”H

The Ducks are saying, 

That came up from the washing,

All of whom are perfect, 

Trust in G-d forever and ever, 

They rejoice in Your Name all day, 

For G-d, the Eternal, is the strength of worlds. 

Your teeth are like a flock of uniformly shaped [ewes] 

And they are exalted through Your righteousness.

Your temple is like a split pomegranate from within your kerchief.

They provoked His zeal with alien worship; 

By the rebuke of the Lord and the blast of the breath of His nostrils.

Without iniquity [on my part,] they run and prepare 

Awaken towards me and see! 

They made Him angry with abominable deeds. 

Rescue me from evildoers, save me from men of bloodshed. 

And my vexation have I spoken hitherto.

Not because of my sin nor my transgression, O Lord. 

Count not thy handmaid for a wicked woman: 

For behold they lie in ambush for my soul, 

For out of the abundance of my complaint 

Mighty ones gather against me

Then the chieftains of Edom were startled; 

Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your speech is comely; 

[As for] the powerful men of Moab, trembling seized them;

Your hair is like a flock of goats 

Praise! Praise! Utter a song.

Behold, you are fair, my beloved; behold, you are fair; 

Your eyes are [like] doves, from within your kerchief; 

Arise Barak, and capture your captives, son of Abinoam.

And the depths of the sea appeared; 

That streamed down from Mount Gilead.

The foundations of the world were laid bare,

And there is no bereavement among them.

Week 15 (Book 7): The Wild Goose Is Saying

 B”H

The wild goose flying in the wilderness, 

When it sees Israel busy with Torah, is saying, 

Fortunate is the people that know the blasting of the shofar; 

A voice cries out: Prepare in the wilderness the way for G-d, 

O Lord, may they walk in the light of Your countenance.

Make straight in the desert a path for our G-d

Go out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze upon King Solomon, 

Then the people of the Lord went down to the cities. 

King Solomon made himself a palanquin of the trees of Lebanon.

Praise! Praise! Deborah.

Its pillars he made of silver, its couch of gold, its curtain of purple, 

For the salvations of my countenance and my G-d.

On the day of his nuptials and on the day of the joy of his heart.

Hope to G-d, for I will yet thank Him 

For the conductor, al tashcheth; of David a michtam, 

Its interior inlaid with love, from the daughters of Jerusalem.

People heard, they trembled; 

Upon the crown with which his mother crowned him 

And upon finding its food in the wilderness, it says: 

And Jeshurun became fat and rebelled; 

Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings; 

You grew fat, thick and rotund; 

Blessed is the man who trusts in G-d

[Israel] forsook the G-d Who made them, 

And He sent out arrows and He scattered them, 

And spurned the [Mighty] Rock of their salvation. 

Lightning and He discomfited them. 

When Saul sent and they guarded the house to slay him. 

And Hannah answered and said: 'No, my lord, 

Why are you downcast, my soul, and why do you stir within me? 

I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit; 

With murder in my bones, my oppressors have reproached me 

I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, 

By saying to me all day long, "Where is your G-d?" 

But I poured out my soul before Hashem.

Save me from my enemies, my G-d; 

A shudder seized the inhabitants of Philistia.

Strengthen me against those who rise up against me.

And G-d shall be his assurance.

Week 11 (Book 7): The Stork is Saying

 B”H

The Stork is saying, 

Speak to the heart of Jerusalem, and call to her, 

And He rode upon a cherub and did fly; 

As an eagle awakens its nest, hovering over its fledglings, 

For her time has arrived, for her sins have been pardoned, 

You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them; 

He was seen upon the wings of the wind. 

It spreads its wings, taking them and carrying them on its pinions. 

My dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the coverture of the steps, 

If You will look upon the affliction of Your bondswoman, 

For she has taken double from G-d's hand for all her sins.

Seize for us the foxes, the little foxes, 

Who destroy the vineyards, for our vineyards are with tiny grapes.

(When the) forty thousand (went against) Israel? 

They sank like lead in the powerful waters.

And she vowed a vow, and said: to Lord of Hosts, 

And no razor shall come upon his head.

And You will remember me, and You will not forget Your bondswoman 

With this I shall know that You desire me

Show me your appearance, let me hear your voice, 

You set me before You forever.

My beloved is mine, and I am his,.

And You will give Your bondswoman a male child, 

And I, because of my integrity, You upheld me

And I shall give him to the Lord all the days of his life, 

When my enemies will not shout gleefully over me

My heart is toward the lawgivers of Israel,

Blessed is the Lord, the G-d of Israel

Who grazes among the roses

For your voice is pleasant and your appearance is comely.'

Yours are the heavens, the earth is also Yours; 

The world and all therein-You established them.

To all eternity, Amen and Amen.

,. 

 

Week 10 (Book 7): The Bat is Saying

 B”H

The Bat is saying, 

Comfort My people, comfort them, says your Lord.

And she was in bitterness of soul

And prayed unto Hashem, and wept sore.

And He bent the heavens and He came down; 

Even my ally in whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, 

Has raised his heel over me. 

And thick darkness was under His feet. 

Arise, my beloved, my fair one, and come away.

I will overtake, I will share the booty; 

My desire will be filled from them; 

When they chose new gods,

Then there was war in the cities; 

I will draw my sword, my hand will impoverish them.

Was there seen a shield or a spear

Let his wickedness pour into him;

Now that he lies down, he shall rise no more. 

You crushed Rahav (Egypt) like a corpse; 

With Your powerful arm You scattered Your enemies. 

But you, Lord, be gracious to me 

And the vines with their tiny grapes have given forth their fragrance; 

He found them in a desert land, and in a desolate, howling wasteland. 

The blossoms have appeared in the land, the time of singing has arrived,

He encompassed them and bestowed understanding upon them; 

For behold, the winter has passed; the rain is over and gone.  

And raise me up, and I will repay them.

And the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.   

The fig tree has put forth its green figs, 

He protected them as the pupil of His eye. 

Week 9 (Book 7): The Stormy Petrel is Saying

 B”H

The stormy petrel is saying, 

My beloved raised his voice and said to me, 

Light is sown for the righteous

Because the Lord's portion is His people 

'Arise, my beloved, my fair one, and come away.

Until I Deborah arose; I arose as a mother in Israel.

So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, 

The sound of my beloved! Behold, he is coming, 

Skipping over the mountains, jumping over the hills.

My foes say that evil [awaits] me: 

The depths congealed in the heart of the sea. 

[Because] the enemy said, I will pursue,

When will he die, and his name perish? 

The open cities ceased, in Israel they ceased, 

And if one comes to see [me], he speaks insincerely, 

Smoke went up in His nostrils, 

For his heart gathers iniquity for himself, 

Together they whisper against me-all my enemies; 

And fire out of His mouth did devour; 

Against me they devise my harm, 

And after they had drunk

Coals flamed forth from Him. 

You rule the vastness of the sea; 

When its waves surge, You still them.

Looking from the windows, 

Now Eli the priest sat upon his seat 

My beloved resembles a gazelle or a fawn of the hinds; 

And when he goes out he speaks of it. 

By the door-post of the temple of Hashem;    

Behold, he is standing behind our wall, 

Jacob, the lot of His inheritance.

And joy for the straight-hearted.

Peering from the lattices.