Parashat Chukat – Class Summary & Reflection Worksheet

📘 Class Summary Notes

Theme: The deepest purity comes through confronting the greatest impurity.

1. The Red Heifer – Law Beyond Logic
- Bamidbar 19:2: “This is the chok of the Torah…” – a divine decree without explanation.
- Rashi: Nations mock it, but we accept without full understanding.
- Zohar: Ashes of the red heifer burn ego, allowing supernal knowledge (da’at Elyon).

2. Miriam’s Death & The Well
- Bamidbar 20:1–2: Miriam dies; the water stops.
- Talmud (Taanit 9a): Well was in her merit.
- Sefat Emet & Zohar: Miriam represents Torah She’Be’al Peh and feminine divine flow.
- Her loss means loss of speech, flow, and inner nourishment.

3. Moshe Strikes the Rock
- Bamidbar 20:10–12
- Ramban: Sin was in angry speech, not the striking.
- Sfas Emes: A shift from miracle (striking) to maturity (speech).
- Chassidut: Moshe's leadership style no longer matched the generation's needs.

4. Fiery Serpents & Bronze Snake
- Bamidbar 21:6–9
- Mishnah (Rosh Hashanah 3:8): Looking upward to Hashem brings healing.
- Bronze snake later destroyed by Hezekiah (Melachim II 18:4) due to idolatry.
- Tosefta Sotah 13:1 lists it among hidden items, possibly symbolically.
- Rambam praises Hezekiah for restoring clarity and uprooting idolatry.

5. Transition of Leadership
- Miriam and Aharon die; Moshe is told he won’t enter the land.
- Ohr HaChaim: Transition from miracle to legacy. From personal prophecy to national responsibility.

📝 Personal Reflection & Discussion Questions

1. What does it mean to accept something as true even if it defies your understanding?
2. Can you identify a “Miriam” in your life—someone whose gifts you only truly saw after a loss or transition?
3. How do you respond when leadership fails—not in action, but in tone?
4. What flows in your own life may have dried up—and what might restore them?
5. What modern "idols" might need to be called Nehushtan—a reminder that they’re just brass?

📚 Key Terms Glossary

- Chukat (חֻקַּת): A “chok,” a divine law beyond reason.
- Parah Adumah (Red Heifer): A cow whose ashes purify the impure.
- Tzaddeket (צַדֶּקֶת): A righteous woman whose merit sustains blessing.
- Nehushtan: A term meaning “just brass,” used by Hezekiah to reject idolatry.
- Da’at Elyon: Supernal knowledge, knowledge that transcends logic.
- Torah She’Be’al Peh: The Oral Torah, living interpretation of written text.