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Why does the Mishna group together breaking the luchos, stopping the Korban Tamid, and breaching Jerusalem's walls as comparable tragedies? The shiur reveals that the luchos were our ketubah—when Moshe broke them, he prevented our chuppah with God. The other tragedies continue this theme of severing our marriage relationship with the Almighty.
This shiur analyzes the Mishna in Taanit 26a which lists five tragedies that occurred on Shiva Asar B'Tammuz: the breaking of the luchos, cessation of the Korban Tamid, breaching of Jerusalem's walls, burning of the Torah (תורה) by Apostomus, and placing an idol in the Temple. Rabbi Zweig asks why these seemingly disparate events are grouped together and what makes them all equally tragic. The key insight comes from Rashi (רש"י)'s commentary on the engagement gifts Eliezer gave to Rivka - two bracelets weighing ten shekels total, representing the two tablets with five commandments each. This reveals that the luchos were not merely informational (since all Ten Commandments appear in the written Torah) but were rather engagement gifts from God to the Jewish people, establishing a marriage relationship.
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Taanit 26a
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