Don't Be Frozen in Time
"וירא העם כי בשש משה לרדת מן ההר ויקהל העם על אהרן"
There are several major ideas in the Torah that Rashi repeats many times.
When Bnei Yisrael see Moshe is "late" they start up with Aharon (ויקהלו) and tell him what to do; they don't ask him what to do!
Rashi says אני לא באתי אלא לפרש פשוטו של מקרא - that his goal is to explain the פשט. Yet Rashi fills in a lot of details from the Midrash that significantly change the story of the Golden Calf!
Why is the term עם used 21 times in the episode of the Egel? Why do we only encounter the name "בני ישראל" once? What is the difference between the two terms?
Delivered at the OU Israel Center, February 19, 2019 (Purim Katan 5779) Sponsored in loving memory of Marsha Tekuzener, z"l by her family on the occasion of her shloshim