Balak
The passuk states, “ראשית גוים עמלק” which Onkelos translates as, “Amaleik was the first of the battles against Yisrael.” The Sefer HaChinuch explains everyone was afraid of Yisrael when they heard about the Great Hand which Hashem used to perform miracles and smite the Mitzri’im. The Amaleikim with their bad nature did not heed to this and contended with Yisrael. Because of this they removed the tremendous fear of Hashem and of Yisrael from upon the other nations. Chazal bring a mashal to this with a boiling hot bath which no one was able to enter into because it was too hot. One person goes and jumps in and gets burnt. Although he gets seriously singed, he cools off the hot bath for others to enter. So too Amaleik was the 1st of the nations to fight against Yisrael while everyone else was afraid to start up. Amaleik cooled off the heat, lessened the fear of Hashem, to make way for other nations to follow.
The midah of Amaleik is that of a leitz, a mocker. The Mesilas Yesharim brings that a mocker is comparable to a shield which is smeared with oil to slide away any arrows shot. My Rosh HaYeshiva, HaRav Yaakov Friedman shlita explained that in truth the arrows shot were directed and were meant to penetrate, however the oil causes them to slide off, away from the person. So too the rebuke given to a mocker was meant to penetrate; however, his mockery causes it all to slide away. Although everyone felt the fear of Hashem, Amaleik disregarded it, belittled it, and chilled it for everyone else.
The Sefer HaChinuch says because of what Amaleik did to us, we have a mitzva to remember – by expressing with one’s mouth and thinking about it in one’s mind. The custom in Klal Yisrael is to lein the story of Amaleik for parshas zachor in order to fulfil this mitzva the Shabbos before Purim. Since Haman, who was a descendant of Amaleik, was destroyed, and this is the subject of Purim day, it would seem to be more appropriate to lein the story of Amaleik on the Purim day. Chazal wanted to let us know, that before the miracle of Purim we have a mitzva to remember that which Amaleik did to us, so they set it to be leined the week before Purim.
The place where Amaleik came to fight Bnei Yisrael was called “Refidim.” Chazal explain this lashon hints to רפו ידיהם, they loosened up their hands from Torah and mitzvos. The Rosh HaYeshiva, HaRav Hutner zatzal inferred: it doesn’t say “ביטול תורה, they ceased from learning Torah,” that they stopped learning, rather רפו, they were lax in their learning. Torah needs involvement and toiling to understand. They loosened up their hands from being actively involved because they did not recognize the importance of learning Torah. This is exactly the place for Amaleik to find a hole, and come and fight. Amaleik is the epitome of a mocker, which is taking something important and degrading and minimizing it, to make it unimportant and cheap. Being lax in learning, reflects missing recognition of the extreme importance and greatness, learning Torah is.
In the al hanissim on Chanukah we say “וזדים ביד עוסקי תורתיך, and the mockers in the hands of those who were involved in learning Torah.” Rav Hutner zatzal explains, a זד is a mocker who belittles things, and its contrast is “those who were involved in learning Torah” which is the exact opposite. These people recognized the importance of Torah and were moser nefesh for it; and in their merit the Yevanim were given over into the hands of the Chashmona’im.
Let us always feal the fear of Hashem, and recognize the importance and greatness of Torah.
