The very first Rashi in the entire torah says that the entire book of Bereshit and book of Shemot until parsha Bo is only needed to tell us that the world belongs to God and that he can give it to whomever he wants. In this, case the land of Israel to the Jews. Right at the beginning therefore, 14 ½ parshot, 25 % of the entire Torah are not needed except to teach us the importance of the land of Israel for the Jews. The Vilnah Gaon said that the whole torah can be found in its first word. Perhaps the reason he said this was based on this Rashi. As an addition to this, the first letter is a “bet”. This letter said as a word means “house”. As in the “house of G-d”
Perek 1 Posuk 1 “In the beginning”
The torah begins with a letter “bet” and ends with a “lamad”. These two letters are the letters used in the hebrew word for “heart”. In order to come to G-ds beloved garden commonly called Israel one needs to feel it in their heart.
Perek 1 Posuk 2 “And the land was empty and void”
Rashi says the universe was so empty at this point a person would be amazed at the emptiness and void. In spite of this Rav Meir Kahane pointed out that the law of physics prevents any two objects to occupy the same place at the same time. So too exile and redemption cannot occur simultaneously. Once the State of Israel was founded the exile was eliminated. Anyone wanting to turn down the privilege to get a free ticket to a fully developed country that is the only reward promised to us for being a righteous person (see the second paragraph from the shema said daily by everyone calling themselves a religious Jew) that is their loss. G-d has done his part. Now it is our turn to do our part and continue the redemption. See the next to last sentence in Eichah Perek 5 Posuk 21 where it says “return us G-d to you and we will return anew like before.”
Perek 1 Posuk 11 “God said let the earth sprout vegetation, herbage yielding seed after its kind. Fruit trees yielding fruit.”
Rashi here says this means that the wood of the trees was supposed to have the same taste as the fruit but the trees refused. Rav Nachman from the old city of Jerusalem explains the midrash Bereishet Rabbah Perek 5 that all trees except the etrog tree were afraid that if they had done the will of G-d then people would eat them until they would become extinct. Rav Nachman from the city of Jerusalem says that de facto all the trees other than the etrog were saying, “Hey G-d you don’t really know what you want. Yes, you gave us an order but you do not really want us to do it. We know better. You want us to keep our species alive” All too often do people who learn torah say the same thing, “Yes G-d there is a mitzvah to live in Israel and do the army but what you really want is for us to live outside Israel learning torah and doing acts of kindness. You do not really know what you want. Just keep in mind the etrog is extremely bitter to show us what its life must have been like with its other tree friends but still G-d calls it the beautiful fruit.
Perek 1 Posuk 11 “God said let the earth sprout vegetation herbs yielding seed after its kind. Fruit trees yielding fruit.”
Rav Elchanon Wasserman would give an example relating to this refusal of the world’s vegetation to fulfil G-ds will because they knew better than G-d. He said it is like a King that sent a hunchback to be an ambassador to a foreign country. Before he left he was told however not to make under any circumstances any bets. When the hunchback ambassador arrived at his new post he was bet he was really not a hunchback. Thinking he could make his King look good by showing how he hired handicapped individuals he took off his shirt. When the hunchback returned to his king he said, “I made you look good”. The king however screamed at him, “you idiot I bet the other king that all my servants obeyed me completely”. Similarly we can do the same thing by being so involved in learning and showing the torah to the entire world we do not bother with all the commands involved in following it. See for example the commentaries that say, the whole reason the generation of the spies sinned thereby giving us Tisha Baav was because they felt that they would learn torah better outside of G-ds beloved garden. Or see Rashi in Parshot Eikav Perek 11 Posuk 18 or the Ramban there that the mitzvot do not apply outside Israel. They hold that the mitzvot only have educational value outside G-ds beloved garden. Their sources are the Sifrei Parshot Eikav, Piskei 43. Also see Ramban in Parsha Achrei Mot Perek 18 Posuk 25 that the mitzvot are only for educational purposes outside Israel. Or see the numerous comments in the gemorah Ketubot page 110 regarding Israel.
Perek 1 Posuk 28 “and G-d said to them be fruitful and multiply”.
The shulchan uruch (a major religious law book) even haezer 75:4 says explicitly, that in spite of the mitzvah of producing children if a couple has a dispute, of moving to Israel or staying in exile, one divorces and moves to Israel. As a matter of fact if the wife doesn’t want to accompany the husband, the ketubah (agreement to pay alimony) is not paid. And should the husband not want to move he is required to pay the wife.
Perek 2 Posuk 2 “And G-d finished on the seventh day.”
Rashi quotes Rav Shimon who says a human does not know the precise moment Shabbat starts but G-d does. If a baby boy is born on Shabbat his brit is 8 days later exactly on Shabbat. However, what if his brit is delayed because he is sick and the doctors rule he can have it on Shabbat? Or the baby is born at sundown resulting in a doubt of which is his eighth’s day. We rule that Shabbat overrides the mitzvah of brit. This is because a human being, in this case a doctor or a Rav, has made a decision regarding the advisability of doing a mitzvah. The word mitzvah does not mean doing a good deed. The word mitzvah means doing a command of G-d. The mitzvah of Brit Milah was only given to us when Avrom wanted a sign the Jewish people would never lose Israel even if they would sin. Living in Israel is a privilege. Rav Nachman from the old city in Jerusalem says no one comes to Israel unless G-d signs off on it. In order to be worthy of coming to Israel one has to do what G-d wants Not what one wants in the name of G-d.
Perek 2 Posuk 3 “ And G-d blessed the seventh day and made it holy because he rested from all his work”
Shabbat is a major mitzvah called a sign that we are G-ds chosen people. In spite of this, the halacha in Shulchan Uruch 329:6, 7 is very clear we break this most important mitzvah, to defend just straw in a border city in Israel even if there is no life and death issue. We do this to prevent non Jews from entering G-ds Beloved garden and trying to get a foothold on it.
Perek 2 Posuk 3 “ And G-d blessed the seventh day and made it holy because he rested from all his work”
Rav Avigdor Miller in his tape #300 quotes the Gemorah in Avodah Zorah that a Jew outside of Israel worships idols in purity. Looking around anyone can see in Israel unlike any other country Saturday is not just Sunday. Phone rates are cheaper and all stores close on Saturday. Buses do not work. How can a Jew do the positive mitzvah of remember the Shabbat if all the stores are open on Shabbat and closed on Sunday?
