דברי תורה פרשת מטות מסעי

פרשת מטות מסעי
Last weeks פרשה begins with the commandment to harass the מדינים-Midinites and smite them, then goes and speaks about the census of בני ישראל and then ends with the קרבנות of the מועדים. This weeks פרשה starts off with speaking about vows oaths and all the decrees the ה' commanded to משה רבנו, and then picks up from last weeks פרשה by saying “ה' spoke to משה saying ‘take vengeance for בני ישראל against the מדינים’…”
The obvious question is, what is the פרשה of vows doing in the middle of בני ישראל being commanded to smite the מדינים? Also why is the תורה take so much time and speak about the census and the קרבנות before getting to the war between בני ישראל and the מדינים??
The דור that had fallen to the women of מדין and the בעל פעור were about to enter ארץ ישראל. It was 39 years after ה' had decreed that the generation of the מתעוננים would die in the desert. בני ישראל just did a terrible עברה of immorality and עבודה זרה, two of the top three עברות from the 10 commandments. Perhaps they thought that this sin would not be able to be forgiven, only through death in the מדבר like the earlier דור.
Rabbi Moshe Grossberg from Maryland, said last שבת at a תיש in Rabbi Yehuda Willigs bunk in Camp Heller, that the reason for the seemingly “random tangent” of the תורה is to show that the sin of בני ישראל was revoked through פינכס, and ה' was now showing בני ישראל that the census was to split the portions of ארץ ישראל between everyone in each שבט living now, and the קרבנות were the מצות that would to be only be done in ארץ ישראל, and that they wouldn’t be stranded and killed in the מדבר like the past generation. עד כאן לשונו
So what about the פרשת נדרים? Why is it also listed before the war against מדין?? Following Rabbi Moshe Grossbergs pshat, בני ישראל were still afraid that they wouldn’t enter ארץ ישראל. They thought that there was no way that their sin was forgiven, 24,000 Jews from שבט ראובןdied as a result of the sin, they sinned pretty badly. Therefore comes another proof that ה' will take care of בני ישראל and will allow them to enter.
It is known that ה' showed אברהם אבינו all of ארץ ישראל and promised him that he will give his offspring the land. In fact הקדש ברוך הוא promised all of the אבות that their offspring will enter the land, ה' was telling בני ישראל here that if you make a נדר it’s a very serious thing. “If a man takes a vow to ה', or swears an oath….he shall not desecrate his word; according to whatever comes from his mouth shall he do.” ה' was telling בני ישראל that making a vow and oath means you have to follow it. We know that we are supposed to act the way ה' does, חזל say that “Just as ה' is merciful, so to we should be merciful, just as ה' has compassion, so to we should have compassion” ה' was telling us to be very careful about vows and to keep our word. Why? Just as ה' keeps his vows and oaths and does not desecrate his word, according to whatever comes from his mouth shall he do, so to we should do the same.
This perhaps is the reason as to why the פרשיות are all סמוכים, because we should never feel as if ה' has abandoned us, even when we feel down and feel like there is no hope for us, ה' is always waiting for our תפילות. Especially now during the 3 weeks we have to believe that ה' will keep his promise to return us and rebuild his dwelling place. If we truly believe this and don’t forget that ה' did not leave us and we increase our תפילות during this time period of the 3 weeks, we can bring the גאולה and turn ט' באב into a יום טוב. Have a great שבת!