(61) What did Adam HaRishon see that caused him to sin?

(61) I heard the following puzzling Midrash - What did Adam HaRishon see that caused him to sin? He saw two.

I heard an explanation of this Midrash based on the Mishnah in Pirkei Avos, Chapter 3 "Akavia ben Mehallel said: Look at three things and you will not come to sin. From where you came from - from a putrid drop, to where you are going - to a place of dirt and worms, and before whom you are destined to give an accounting of your life - before the Supreme King of Kings, Hashem. But Adam Harishon was created by Hashem's hands, and not fom a putrid drop. Therefore he only saw two of these three things, and so he came to sin.

(62) One wears tefillin only on Shabbos?!

(62) See what I wrote above in No.23 to explain the puzzling Midrash "One does not put on tefillin except on Shabbos - בשבת".

I heard an another explanation of this Midrash. Everyday in the Song of the Day at the end of Shacharis we say בשבת. That is, on Sunday we say "Today is the first day בשבת (of the Shabbos)", and on Monday we say "Today is the second day בשבת", and so too the rest of the weekdays. But on Shabbos we say "Today is the Holy Shabbos" and we don't say בשבת.

This is what the Midrash means that we only wear tefillin בשבת, that is, every weekday when we say בשבת, but on Shabbos when we don't say בשבת, we don't wear tefillin.

(65) Where does the Torah allude that Hashem does not accept the prayers of a murderer?

(65) I heard a puzzling Midrash which comments on the posuk in Isaiah (1,15) - "When you spread out your hands I will hide My eyes from you; even when you pray at length I do not hear; your hands are full of blood". This is what Yehudah said to his brothers (Bereishis 37,26) "What בצע (profit) is there if we kill our brother".

It seems in my humble opinion that the explanation of this Midrash is according to what Chazal said, that the forefathers instituted the three daily prayers. And the sefer Olelos Ephraim wrote that the exponents of the Torah gave a mnemonic for this, that the second letters of the names of the forefathers hints to these three prayers.

Thus the letter ב of אברהם stands for בוקר - Shacharis, the letter צ of יצחק stands for צהרים - Minchah, and the letter ע of יעקב stands for ערב - Maariv, which together spells בצע.

This is what the Midrash means "When you spread out your hands I will hide My eyes from you...your hands are full of blood". Chazal explain that this means that Hashem will not accept the prayers of someone who has killed a person, and this is what Yehudah said to his brothers: What בצע, that is, what will be the benefit of our praying in the morning, afternoon and evening if we kill our brother, because Hashem will not accept our prayers.