24/02/2026
THE 7TH OF ADAR: THE DEATH (& BIRTH) OF MOSHE
Today, (Tuesday) is the 7th of Adar, the day of the death of Moshe, our teacher, of blessed memory. We read of Moshe's death in Deuteronomy 34:7): "Moshe was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eye had not dimmed, and his vigor had not diminished." Tradition holds that Moshe was born on the very same date that he died, as his 120 years were completed on the day of his death.
It is said that the evil Haman of Purim fame, when he cast lots to determine on which day to kill all the Jews of Persia, was delighted when the lot fell on the month of Adar. Knowing that it was the month of Moshe's death, he assumed that it was a propitious month for eliminating all the Jews. What he was unaware of, however, is that it was also the month of Moshe's birth, a propitious month for Israel, indeed!
Picture: Moshe, on the day of his death, on Mount Nevo, looking over the Jordan River into the promised land, the land into which he would never enter.
