מִי מָנָה עֲפַר יַעֲקֹב (במדבר כג, י)

HAS ANYONE COUNTED THE DUST OF YAAKOV... (BAMIDBAR 23:10)

The mitzvot they fulfill with dust are innumerable: “You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together” (Devarim 22:10); “You shall not sow your field with a mixture of seeds” (Vayikra 19:19)... —Rashi

Bilaam extolled the praise of the Jewish people, thereby explaining why he is unable to curse them. According to one interpretation brought by Rashi, Bilaam exclaimed “The mitzvos that they observe with dust alone are innumerable!” Rashi then cites a few examples of the many mitzvosobserved with dust.

Rashi’s choice of examples, however, was not arbitrary. Rather, the specific mitzvos cited by Rashi emphasize another nuance in Bilaam’s praise.

There are several mitzvos in the Torah which are not only obligatory upon the Jews, but on “the offspring of Noach” – all of mankind – as well. Among those commandments, the Talmud states that gentiles are forbidden to crossbreed animals and graft different species of trees together. Still, the prohibition of hybridization for gentiles is limited. “They are permitted to wear garments of mixed fabrics [of wool and linen] and sow diverse seeds together; they are forbidden only to hybridize dissimilar animals and graft trees of different kinds (Sanhedrin 56b).”

For a Jew, however, these very prohibitions are broader in scope. The non-Jew’s restriction is limited to direct mutations to nature. A Jew, however, is even prohibited to join two species to plow under one yoke, or to plant diverse seeds in which the hybridization later happens on its own!

Therefore, to explain Bilaam’s praise that the merits and mitzvos of the Jewish people are so numerous, Rashi specifically  cites these twomitzvos as examples. These two examples draw attention to the fact that even in those aspects of mitzvah observance – and the ensuing merit -that are incumbent upon the rest of the world, the Jew’s obligations in those very areas outnumber them.

וְזֹאת הַתְּרוּמָה אֲשֶׁר תִּקְחוּ מֵאִתָּם... וַעֲצֵי שִׁטִּים:- שמות כה, ג-ה)

And this is the contribution that you shall take from them … and acacia wood. (Shemot 25-3)

Where did they get this (acacia wood) in the desert? R’ Tanchuma explained that our forefather Yaakov foresaw with Ruach Hakodesh that Bnei Yisrael were destined to build a Mishkan in the desert, so he brought cedars to Egypt and planted them. He commanded his sons to take them with them when they left Egypt. – Rashi

Many commentaries are of the opinion that acacia wood was available in nearby forests, or for sale from other nations (see Ibn Ezra, Divrei David, Baalei Hatosfos). What then was the necessity or purpose of Yaakov bringing them with him and planting them in Egypt, according to R’ Tanchuma quoted in Rashi? 

Rashi answers this question by (deviating from his typical style of anonymous quotation, and) quoting this teaching with the name of its author: Tanchuma, from the Hebrew word נחמה, comfort.

There may have been wood available for Bnei Yisrael via other means, but Yaakov brought along these trees and replanted them in Egypt to serve as a comfort for Bnei Yisrael during their enslavement in Egypt. In the most difficult moments of their slavery, Bnei Yisrael were able to draw more hope and comfort from thisvisible proof of the promise of redemption than from the mere knowledge that G-d had promised to eventually redeem them, as He had promised Yaakov “I will also raise you (from there)”.

Therefore Yaakov specifically brought acacia trees with him, from the land which was associated with G-d’s promise, to provide the comfort of a visual symbol of G-d’s promise of freedom, and the Mishkan for G-d which they would eventually build.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם מֶלֶךְ מִצְרַיִם לָמָּה משֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן תַּפְרִיעוּ אֶת הָעָם מִמַּעֲשָׂיו לְכוּ לְסִבְלֹתֵיכֶם-שמות ה, ד 

The king of Egypt said to them, "Why, Moshe and Aharon, do you disturb the people from their work? Go to your own labors." (Shemot 5:4)

This means “Go to your work that you have to do in your houses.” But [he was not referring to the Egyptian bondage, as] the labor of the Egyptian bondage was not incumbent upon the tribe of Levi. –Rashi

Ramban explains that “Pharaoh understood the need for every nation to have spiritual leaders and guides and therefore left the tribe of Levi as the teachers and elders.” Hence, Pharaoh was telling Moshe and Aharon that they should return to their study of Torah, and to their job of teaching the people Torah, but should not involve themselves in the goings-on in the lives of the rest of the nation.

Had the Bnei Yisrael remained in Egypt for one moment longer they could never have been redeemed from the low level to which they would sink (Arizal). Therefore, at G-d’s bidding, Moshe and Aharon ignored Pharaoh’s instruction, allowing for the Exodus of the Bnei Yisrael in the nick of time.

Herein lies a most powerful lesson.

An attitude of concerning oneself only with one’s personal Torah study and observance, at the very most teaching Torah to those who are interested, is an attitude that stems from Pharaoh. G-d’s instruction to Moshe is to defy this attitude. Notwithstanding your own freedom, you must concern yourself with the personal lives of your fellow Jews. Free them from enslavement to Pharaoh, that is, their subjection to material pursuits, by actively providing their true freedom – by enabling them to dedicate all their energies to the service of G-d. And if not now, when?