Flowering Almond Stick

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1. Of Sticks and Stones

   Rabbi Chanoch Waxman | 30 minutes

   How did Moshe and Aharon fail to sanctify God at Mei Meriva, and why are they not permitted to enter the Land of Israel? We will gain insight into these matters by viewing our Parsha in its larger context of BeMidbar, and comparing the "stick" in our Parsha with Aharon's flowering stick in Parshat Korach and with the stick in the Parshat Beshalach.

2. The Good Figs and the Bad Figs

   Rabbi David Sabato

   The prevalent mood among those who remained in the Land of Israel after the exile of Yehoyakhin was that their brothers had been exiled from the land and they viewed themselves as heirs to the land. Yirmiyahu struggled against this perception, arguing that it is precisely the exiles, who are likened here to good figs, who will return to the land and inherit it, while those who remained in the land, who are likened to bad figs, will become diminished in numbers and disappear.

   There are several lines of similarity between the vision concerning the figs in Yirmiyahu's prophecy and the dreams of Pharaoh that were interpreted by Yosef. Yosef interprets Pharaoh's dream and reveals to him that a great calamity is about to fall upon Egypt. However, Yosef, who was sold as a slave to Egypt, succeeds in saving his family in the years of famine and sustaining them in the exile of Egypt. 

   In the same way, Yirmiyahu, the prophet of destruction and exile, stands before a great calamity that is threatening to befall the people. In this vision, Yirmiyahu reveals that it is precisely in the depths of the calamity that we find a bright spot in the form of the good figs, the exile of Yehoyakhin, who were "picked" at an earlier stage, before they became ruined, in order to constitute a base for the renewal of the people after the destruction and after the exile in Babylon.

3. Yirmiyahu’s Prophecy of Consecration - The Visions

   Rabbi David Sabato

   Despite the similarities between the vison of the almond rod and the vision of the boiling pot, there is a striking difference between the two visions. In the vision of the pot, the calamity is explicitly stated in the words of God, and even the direction from which it will come is explicitly noted. In the vision of the almond tree rod, on the other hand, the impending calamity is not explicitly mentioned. Indeed, references to God’s “haste” in fulfilling His Word appears later in Yirmiyahu's prophecies and allows for interpretation in two directions. It falls upon Yirmiyahu to identify in his prophecies of doom not only the catastrophe, but also the good that is concealed within them as the foundation for rebuilding.

   Additionally, it falls upon Yirmiyahu to stand firm and fearlessly proclaim the words of God; at the same time, God will strengthen him and protect him from those who wish to harm him. The threat and the encouragement highlighted in these verses were meant to prepare Yirmiyahu for the difficult trials that he would be forced to undergo over the course of his prophetic mission – real mortal danger and acute suicidal thoughts.

4. Yirmiyahu's Initiation: The Pot and the Almond Rod

   Rabbi David Sabato

5. Sticks, Stones, & Sour Figs: Misinterpreting Messages of Nevuah

   Shani Taragin |

   What is the unique nature of Yirmiyahu's mission? By focusing on the first perek detailing Yirmiyahu’s inauguration, we can explore Yirmiyahu’s prophetic purpose at a deeper level. God asks Yirmiyahu three times over the course of the book - "what do you see", and through an analysis of the text we can infer that this as a test to see whether he grasps the full meaning of his prophetic mission. This leads us to grapple with the concept of true and false prophecies in general, and the messages we are meant to learn from these prophecies for the future.

6. Trees in Tanakh and Tu B'Shevat - the New Year of the Trees

   HaTanakh.com Staff

7. Yirmiyahu's First Prophetic Vision: The Almond Branch

   Rabbi David Silverberg

8. Parshat Korach Part 4: Aharon's Blossoming Rod and the Death of a Generation

   Rabbi Jonathan Snowbell | 24 minutes

   This podcast discusses the importance of the names of the Leviim on the blossoming rods, and the death of the generation in the desert.

   Courtesy of www.tanachstudy.com