gematria

  In this week’s Torah reading ,Zera Shimshon says that Pinchas who will come in the cloak of Elijah will herald peace in the world at the end of days. The phrase in Hebrew, she’yovo b’acharis hayamim laasos shalom b’olam, equals 2369. Another prhase with the same number can be found at Numbers 1:39, where the count of Dan is given. What’s the connection over here? The answer can be found in the book called The Pleasant Way, authored by Rav Avrohom Pam, ztl, and confirmed with gematria.    In his essay, at page 195-197 he brings down the chafeitz chayim who explains that great accomplishments can happen even from a handicapped child like Chushim, who was deaf and was the only son of Dan and who ended up beheading Esau because he could not understand what was holding up the funeral of his grandfather because he could not hear what was Esau’s complaint. Rabbi Pam mentions that from one child became a tribe of over 60,000 persons, second only to the tribe of Judah. This is confirmed wit