1. "And Balak the son of Tzipor saw" (Bemidbar 22:2). Rabbi Shimon said, He "saw." What did he see? HE RESPONDS: It is definitely a real vision. He perceived through the gaze of Chochmah and he saw with his eyes, MEANING THE EYES OF CHOCHMAH. He noticed through the perception of wisdom, as it says that "Abimelech, king of the Philistines looked out at a window" (Beresheet 26:8). What is the meaning of: "out at a window?" It is as it is written: "The mother of Sisera looked out at the window" (Shoftim 5:28). It is assuredly the window of Chochmah at the rim of the edges of the stars. THAT IS THE WINDOW THAT IS MENTIONED WITH REFERENCE TO SISERA'S MOTHER AND ABIMELECH, and these are the windows TO Chochmah, MEANING THAT THERE EXIST MANY WINDOWS and there is one window where all wisdom are. Whoever looks at the essence of wisdom can look through it. Here too: "And Balak...saw" through his wisdom, MEANING HIS OWN PRIVATE WINDOW.

257. "Over Philistia I will cry in triumph" (Tehilim 108:10). This too, David saw with distant vision. He said, Canaan is the bad side of the Other Side and the Philistines stem from there, FROM CANAAN (YEHOSHUA 13). What is there TO BE DONE against the Other Side? It is the blowing of the horn (Heb. truah), as it says, "if you go to war in your land...then you shall blow an alarm..." (Bemidbar 10:9). TRUAH MEANS BREAKING in order to break down his power and strength. Therefore, "over Philistia I will cry (blow) in triumph," MEANING HE WILL BREAK THEM, because that is what they deserve.

301. "For He has done marvelous things:" That is what He did with the Philistines and what He did to their deities. "His right hand...gained Him the victory" (Tehilim 98:1). Who? Meaning itself. Who is Itself? It is that psalm itself, WHICH IS THE SHECHINAH THAT IS REFERRED TO AS A PSALM because a supernal holy spirit, ZEIR ANPIN, was stored in it. "His right," WHAT IS IT? It is that quality that the old man inherited, ABRAHAM, THAT IS CHESED. That right holds on to that psalm and does not abandon it to the hands of another.

372. He opened with the verse: "Yah has chastised me severely: but He has not given me up to death" (Tehilim 118:18). King David said, "YAH HAS CHASTISED ME SEVERELY" about all that he had done in this world and he said about the confidence he had in that world, "BUT HE HAS NOT GIVEN ME UP TO DEATH." For from everything that happened to him in this world - that he was pursued and he escaped from all his pursuers to a strange land, in the land of Moab, and in the land of the Philistines - the Holy One, blessed be He, has saved him and did not leave him to die. He said, "BUT HE HAS NOT GIVEN ME UP TO DEATH" about his confidence in that world, THE ETERNAL.

386. Idol worship: How do we know THAT DUE TO THAT CAUSE PLAGUES COME? Because it is written: "And when Moses saw that the people were in disorder; for Aaron had made them disorderly" (Shemot 32:25). What is the meaning of, "were in disorder?" It means that they were inflicted with leprosy. It is written here, "were in disorder (Heb. paru'a)" and it is written there, "And the diseased man in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and the hair of his head shall grow long (Heb. paru'a)..." (Vayikra 13:45). JUST LIKE IT MEANS LEPROSY THERE, HERE TOO IT IS LEPROSY. About cursing the name of Hashem, HOW DO WE KNOW? It is because it is written: "This day will Hashem deliver you (Heb. yesagercha) into my hand" (I Shmuel 17:46), MEANING THE PHILISTINE WHO WAS REVILING AND CURSING THE NAME. It is written ABOUT THE LEPER: "And the priest shall shut him up (Heb. hisgiro)" (Vayikra 13:5). WE UNDERSTAND FROM THIS COMPARISON BY ANALOGY. JUST LIKE IT WAS REGARDING LEPROSY THERE, HERE TOO IT HAS TO DO WITH LEPROSY.

387. Rabbi Aba said, This matter REGARDING THE PHILISTINE has not suited me, and I need to study it further. Rabbi Elazar said, It is definitely so. This Philistine was close to the lineage of David and was the son of Orpah. That is the meaning of what is written: "Out of the ranks (Heb. ma'arachot) of the Philistines" (I Shmuel 17:23). Do not pronounce "ma'arachot," but read 'from the caves (Heb. me'arot) of the Philistines,' because he caused shame to his mother, making her as a cave, because it is written: "And the Philistine cursed David by his Elohim" (Ibid. 43). David gazed at him with an evil eye and anywhere THAT DAVID was gazing with an evil eye, all kinds of leprosy flowed from the eyes of David. This is the way it was regarding Joab. As soon as David gazed at him with an evil eye, it is written: "And let the house of Joab never lack such as are afflicted with an issue, or with leprosy..." (II Shmuel 3:29).

388. Here with this Philistine, as soon as he cursed the Name, David looked at him with an evil eye and saw on his forehead that he became leprous. Immediately, "the stone buried itself in his forehead" (I Shmuel 17:49), because the leprosy was stuck to his forehead. All this was DUE TO the impression of the evil eye of the leprosy in his forehead, that this stone was actually sunk into his brow. IT IS definite that he was a leper.