Parshat Shelach tells the story of the spies who were sent to spy out the land of Israel. Although Yehoshua and Kalev remained faithful to Hashem, the rest of the group did not, and the mission ended with disastrous results.

After Moshe's death, when Yehoshua took over leadership of the nation he sent spies again. This seems perplexing. You would think he would have learned his lesson from what happened.

To understand this, we must study the crucial difference between the first and second mission. The spies Moshe sent didn't think they deserved Hashem's direct assistance. The Torah records their statement of self-doubt, "We were like grasshoppers in our own eyes." They wanted to see if the land could be conquered without Divine intervention. In one sense, this was reasonable thinking. Miracles are not Hashem's way of conducting the world. Why then were they held accountable?

Certainly a person must maximize his efforts but there is one exception, in the case of a Divine promise. The spies were wrong for assessing the land in a natural fashion because Hashem pledged He would give us the land. When Yehoshua sent spies again, he didn't do so to find out if they would succeed. He wanted to better formulate his strategy. His question was not, "Can Hashem conquer the land?" His question was, "What is my role?"

We must ask ourselves, "Who am I meant to be at the moment?" If you think that it's all up to you then essentially you are removing Hashem from the picture. Conversely, relying on Hashem with closed eyes, is taking away His purpose in creating us. We're supposed to demand from ourselves to figure out our role. "What am I meant to do?" and "Where's my place?" are questions we should ask ourselves. But at the same time we must have complete trust in the One who ultimately makes it all happen.

The Arizal taught that the place where one lives has a spiritual effect. A society builds its unique aspects based on the physical place where it is located. This in turn influences the nation on a spiritual level. Chazal tell us that each land has an officer in heaven that guards it. The officer of Eretz Yisrael is Hashem himself. A Jew who lives in Israel receives his spiritual nourishment directly from Hashem. One who leaves the land is like a fetus straining the cord to move far away from its mother.

Every year when the parsha of Pinchas was read, the Lev Simcha would emphasize the greatness of the parsha, which describes the settling of the tribes in Israel and the different portions of the land that were given to each shevet. Zevulun was allocated territory near Haifa. Yehuda received the area of Yerushalayim and to the south and west. Each tribe received the portion of land that would bring them closest to Hashem.

The Baal Haturim quotes the Sifri, which says that Hashem showed Moshe all of Israel, the tunnels, the caves, and the buried treasures of silver and gold. Why did Hedo this? On a simple level it was to assure Moshe that He would fulfill the promise He made to the Jews to give them a bountiful land. But there's a deeper explanation. When the Torah mentions treasures it refers to the heart of Eretz Yisrael. Kesef, silver, comes from the root word kisufim - longing. The treasure hidden in Israel is the yearning to serve Hashem.

The Shla Hakadosh wrote that a Jew should have an innate love for Israel and a deep desire to settle there just as a child longs to sit in his mother's lap. Tisha B'av was given to us because we didn't appreciate the land. The Jews rejected eretz chemda, the land of desire. The tikun (rectification) is to long for Eretz Yisrael with all our soul. "Ki ratzu avadecha et avaneha." For your servants desired her stones. To appreciate the land one must yearn to kiss its dust.

Sefer Otzar Hayirah states, all the holiness of Klal Yisrael is in Eretz Yisrael. When a person purifies himself, it is as if he conquers a portion of the land. The evil inclination tells us, "Listim atem," you are thieves. Israel doesn't belong to you. Spirituality is beyond your grasp. You can never achieve perfection. Therefore, Hashem begins the Torah with Bereisheet and Rashi says, "The strengths of his deeds he told his nation." Hashem assured us that the land would be given to us. Israel, and its associated spirituality, is our destiny.

Bilam, Balak, and Amalek attacked the Jews at great personal risk. They knew that if klal yisrael would come into Eretz Yisrael and keep the mitzvot haelyut b'aretz (commandments connected to the land), they would radiate holiness to the whole world, which would affect them too. Therefore, they risked their safety to prevent it.

A person who succeeds in coming to Israel, the source of holiness, has achieved victory over the yetzer hara. He accomplishes this through brazenness and stubbornness. The Shulchan Aruch says a person must be bold to serve Hashem. The Almighty has tremendous joy in us when we stand strong and don't let anything move us away from sanctity.

The verse in Tehillim says, "Yerushalayim harim saviv la." Yerushalayim is surrounded by hills. There are constant ups and downs. "V'Hashem saviv l'amo." Hashem encircles us. He gives us the strength to overcome all obstacles.

In Parshat Bechukotai, the Torah tells of the disasters that will befall the Jewish people if they fail to observe the laws of the Torah properly. It says that people will panic and trip over each other. The Gemara in Sanhedrin comments on this phrase, one Jew will trip over the sins of his brother. "Melamed shekol yisrael areivim zeh lazeh." This teaches us that each Jew is responsible for another.

In Parshat Nitzavim it says, "Hanistarot l'Hashem Elokeinu v'haniglot lanu u'levanenu." The hidden things are in Hashem's domain, but that which is revealed is for us and our children." The Torah tells us that if Jews won't observe the mitzvot, the whole community will be punished. Rashi asks, how can one person be held responsible for what another thinks? He answers, that which is hidden is not our obligation. However, we have responsibility to stop that which we have the power to stop.

There is a dot on top of the words lanu u'levanenu to teach us that our obligation to another Jew didn't go into effect immediately. It only began when the Jews entered Israel with the covenant that was made at Har Grizim and Har Avel.

The Mishna in Rosh Hashana takes the concept of arvut further. You can perform a mitzvah on behalf of someone else, provided you are also obligated in the mitzvah. Therefore, a cheiresh (deaf mute), a shota (a deranged person), and a katan (a minor) cannot perform a mitzvah for others.

The Gemara says, even if one has already discharged his obligation he can still perform the mitzvah for someone else. Rashi explains that this is because of the rule of "Kol yisrael areivim zeh ba'zeh." However, this does not apply to birchat hanehenin (blessings on food and pleasant smells) because the concept of arvut is only for a mitzvah that one has a responsibility to fulfill. Eating is an optional activity.

Rava asks, can you be motzi someone (fulfill someone's obligation) with a blessing on food, when there is an obligation to eat? For example, can one person recite a blessing for someone else when eating matzah at the seder? The Rambam answers that you can. The Shulchan Aruch rules that one can recite Kiddush for others, even if one will not be eating the meal together with them. However, to be motzi someone with Hamotzi, one must eat some of the bread too.

Does the concept of arvut apply to a biblical mitzvah or to a rabbinical mitzvah or to both? The Tzlach writes in his commentary on Gemara that it only applies to biblical mitzvot. He brings proof from the Gemara in Sota that the law of arvut only took affect at Har Grizim and Har Avel. Tosfot comments that that they took upon themselves the 613 biblical mitzvot. The Tzlach infers that since at the time that arvut was introduced they only took upon themselves the biblical mitzvoth it does not apply to rabbinic mitzvot.

He brings another proof from the Rambam, who rules that if an arev did not specify an amount the arevut is worthless. He points out that while there's a fixed body of 613 mitzvoth in the Torah there is no set amount of Rabbinic laws. Therefore, arvut does not apply there.

The Chida, the Birkei Yosef, and the Ktav Sofer disagree and maintain that the principle of arvut does apply to rabbinic mitzvot. In fact the Shaagat Aryeh says that the rule of arvut only applies to mitzvot d'rabbanun and not to d'oraysa.

How does the halachic mechanism of arvut work? Although one has already discharged his obligation, since there is another Jew who needs help, it is as if one has not fulfilled his complete obligation yet. The Chikrei Lev explains that when you do a mitzvah for someone else you connect to the person on such a deep level that in a sense his obligation becomes your obligation. According to Rav Akiva Eiger, the maximum you can do is what you were originally obligated. According to the Chikrei Lev, one's level of obligation is irrelevant, as arvut applies in whatever way the person needs that connection.

We begin the Shemone Esrei with the words, "Hashem open my mouth so my lips can speak your praises." In a verse in Ezra-Nechemya, Hashem is described as, "U'merom al kol bracha utehila." He is more exalted than any blessings or praise we can offer. Our prayers are only a small token of what Hashem really deserves. To accurately and fully praise Him is beyond our ability. Therefore, we preface our prayers by pleading for assistance.

The first blessing Magen Avraham takes us back to the very beginning of the Jewish people. The forefathers founded the people of Israel with prayer. Avraham's essence was tefilah. He taught us that prayer is at the core of our relationship with Hashem.

Our forefathers showed us that the enormous distance between the Almighty and us can be bridged through tefilah. The Almighty lets us ascend the ladder to reach Him and He in turn lowers Himself to listen to our pleading. When we open our mouth to speak Hashem's praises and to thank him for his blessings, we create an intimate connection between ourselves and our beloved Creator.

Man has the ability to affect and influence Hashem's way of conducting the world. We are not doomed to fate. We can change it and bring blessing into the world. We learn this from Avraham, who prayed for the wicked people of Sedom and was successful in saving Lot and his family. Therefore, we give him the seal of this first blessing, Magen Avraham, Hashem is the shield of Avraham. We pray that the way the Almighty protected Avraham, He will continue to guard us too.