Today's Laws and Customs:
"The Three Weeks"During the Three Weeks, from 17th of Tamuz to the 9th of Av, we commemorate the conquest of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Holy Temple and the dispersion of the Jewish people.
Weddings and other joyful events are not held during this period; like mourners, we do not cut our hair, and various pleasurable activities are limited or proscribed. (The particular mourning customs vary from community to community, so consult a competent halachic authority for details.)
Citing the verse (Isaiah 1:27) "Zion shall be redeemed with mishpat [Torah] and its returnees with tzedakah," the Rebbe urged that we increase in Torah study(particularly the study of the laws of the Holy Temple) and charity during this period.
Links:
Today in Jewish History:
Baal Shem of Worms (1636)
The noted Kabbalist Rabbi Eliyahu ben Moshe Loanz, known as "Rabbi Eliyahu Baal Shem" of Worms, Germany, passed away on the 21st of Tammuz of the year 5396 from creation (1636 CE). He was a grandson of the famed shtadlan (Jewish activist) R. Joselman of Rosheim, and the author of Michlal Yofi commentary on Ecclesiastes.Daily Quote:
Daily Study:
The Torah commands: "Six days shall you labor, and do all your work." Is it then possible for a person to do "all his work" in six days? But rest on Shabbat as if all your work is done[Mechilta]
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash with Rashi
Parshat Pinchas
In Israel: Matot
• Numbers Chapter 27
6The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ווַיֹּ֥אמֶר יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶל־משֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר:
7Zelophehad's daughters speak justly. You shall certainly give them a portion of inheritance along with their father's brothers, and you shall transfer their father's inheritance to them. זכֵּ֗ן בְּנ֣וֹת צְלָפְחָד֘ דֹּֽבְרֹת֒ נָתֹ֨ן תִּתֵּ֤ן לָהֶם֙ אֲחֻזַּ֣ת נַֽחֲלָ֔ה בְּת֖וֹךְ אֲחֵ֣י אֲבִיהֶ֑ם וְהַֽעֲבַרְתָּ֛ אֶת־נַֽחֲלַ֥ת אֲבִיהֶ֖ן לָהֶֽן:
Zelophehad’s daughters speak justly: As the Targum [Onkelos] יָאוּת, rightly. [As if God said,] This is the way this passage is inscribed before Me on high (Sifrei Pinchas 18). It teaches us that their eye perceived what Moses’ eye did not. - [see Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 8] כן בנות צלפחד דברת: כתרגומו יאות, כך כתובה פרשה זו לפני במרום, מגיד שראתה עינן מה שלא ראתה עינו של משה:
Zelophehad’s daughters speak justly: Their claim is just. Fortunate is the person with whose word the Holy One, blessed is He, concurs. - [Sifrei Pinchas 18] כן בנות צלפחד דברת: יפה תבעו. אשרי אדם שהקב"ה מודה לדבריו:
You shall certainly give: [The double expression נָתֹן תִּתֵּן denotes] two portions: the portion of their father, who was among those who came out of Egypt, and the portion which he shared with his brothers in the property of [his father] Hepher. — [Sifrei Pinchas 19, B.B. 116b, 118b]. נתן תתן: שני חלקים, חלק אביהן, שהיה מיוצאי מצרים, וחלקו עם אחיו בנכסי חפר:
and you shall transfer: Heb. וְהַעֲבַרְתָּ, an expression denoting“anger” (עֶבְרָה) [for God is angry] when one does not leave a son to inherit him (B.B. 116a). Another interpretation: Since a daughter transfers an inheritance from one tribe to another, when her son or husband inherit from her, since [the prohibition of] “you shall not transfer an inheritance” (36:7) was directed only at that generation. The same [reason] applies to [the wording of the command] “you shall transfer the inheritance to his daughter” (verse 8). In the case of all of them it says, “you shall give over” but in the case of a daughter, it says, “you shall transfer.” - [Sifrei Pinchas 21] והעברת: לשון עברה הוא במי שאינו מניח בן ליורשו. דבר אחר על שם שהבת מעברת נחלה משבט לשבט [שבנה ובעלה יורשין אותה. שלא תסוב נחלה לא נצטוה אלא לאותו הדור בלבד] וכן והעברתם את נחלתו לבתו, בכולן הוא אומר ונתתם, ובבת הוא אומר והעברתם:
8Speak to the children of Israel saying: If a man dies and has no son, you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter. חוְאֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל תְּדַבֵּ֣ר לֵאמֹ֑ר אִ֣ישׁ כִּֽי־יָמ֗וּת וּבֵן֙ אֵ֣ין ל֔וֹ וְהַֽעֲבַרְתֶּ֥ם אֶת־נַֽחֲלָת֖וֹ לְבִתּֽוֹ:
9If he has no daughter, you shall give over his inheritance to his brothers. טוְאִם־אֵ֥ין ל֖וֹ בַּ֑ת וּנְתַתֶּ֥ם אֶת־נַֽחֲלָת֖וֹ לְאֶחָֽיו:
10If he has no brothers, you shall give over his inheritance to his father's brothers. יוְאִם־אֵ֥ין ל֖וֹ אַחִ֑ים וּנְתַתֶּ֥ם אֶת־נַֽחֲלָת֖וֹ לַֽאֲחֵ֥י אָבִֽיו:
11If his father has no brothers, you shall give over his inheritance to the kinsman closest to him in his family, who shall inherit it. This shall remain a decreed statute, as the Lord commanded Moses. יאוְאִם־אֵ֣ין אַחִים֘ לְאָבִיו֒ וּנְתַתֶּ֣ם אֶת־נַֽחֲלָת֗וֹ לִשְׁאֵר֞וֹ הַקָּרֹ֥ב אֵלָ֛יו מִמִּשְׁפַּחְתּ֖וֹ וְיָרַ֣שׁ אֹתָ֑הּ וְהָ֨יְתָ֜ה לִבְנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לְחֻקַּ֣ת מִשְׁפָּ֔ט כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־משֶֽׁה:
to the kinsman closest to him in his family: Only [kin from] the father’s side is considered “family.” - [Sifrei Pinchas 22, B.B. 109b] לשארו הקרב אליו ממשפחתו: ואין משפחה קרויה אלא משפחת האב:
12The Lord said to Moses, "Go up to this mount Abarim and look at the land that I have given to the children of Israel. יבוַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־משֶׁ֔ה עֲלֵ֛ה אֶל־הַ֥ר הָֽעֲבָרִ֖ים הַזֶּ֑ה וּרְאֵה֙ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֖תִּי לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
Go up to this mount Abarim: Why is this [passage] juxtaposed here [with the previous passage]? When the Holy One, blessed is He, said, “You shall certainly give them…” (verse 7), he [Moses] said, “The Omnipresent commanded me to allocate the inheritance! Perhaps the decree has been annulled, and I will enter the Land?” The Holy One, blessed is He, said to him, “My decree remains as it was” (Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 9). Another interpretation: Since Moses had entered the territories of the descendants of Gad and the descendants of Reuben, he rejoiced, saying, “It seems that the vow [made] regarding me has been annulled.” This can be compared to a king who decreed that his son could not enter the portals of his palace. He [the king] entered the gate, with him [the son] following; the courtyard, with him following; the foyer with him following. When he was about to enter the inner chamber, he said to him, “My son, from here on, it is forbidden for you to enter.” - [Sifrei Pinchas 23] עלה אל הר העברים: למה נסמכה לכאן, כיון שאמר הקב"ה נתן תתן להם, אמר אותי צוה המקום להנחיל, שמא הותרה הגזירה ואכנס לארץ. אמר לו הקב"ה גזרתי במקומה עומדת. דבר אחר כיון שנכנס משה לנחלת בני גד ובני ראובן שמח ואמר כמדומה שהותר לי נדרי, משל למלך שגזר על בנו שלא יכנס לפתח פלטין שלו נכנס לשער והוא אחריו, לחצר והוא אחריו, לטרקלין והוא אחריו, כיון שבא ליכנס לקיטון, א"ל בני מכאן ואילך אתה אסור ליכנס:
13And when you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your brother was gathered. יגוְרָאִ֣יתָה אֹתָ֔הּ וְנֶֽאֱסַפְתָּ֥ אֶל־עַמֶּ֖יךָ גַּם־אָ֑תָּה כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר נֶֽאֱסַ֖ף אַֽהֲרֹ֥ן אָחִֽיךָ:
just as Aaron your brother was gathered: From here [we see] that Moses yearned for a death like Aaron’s (Sifrei Pinchas 23). Another interpretation: You are no better than he (Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 9); “because you did not sanctify…” Deut. 32:51). But if you had sanctified Me, your time to depart from the world would not yet have arrived. On each occasion that their death is mentioned, their sin is mentioned, for a decree had been pronounced against the generation of the desert, that they should die in the desert on account of their sin that they did not believe. Moses therefore requested that his sin be mentioned, so that it should not be said that he was one of those who rebelled. This is analogous to two women who were flogged by the court, one for immoral behavior [adultery] and the other for eating unripe produce of the sabbatical year [a lighter offense]…. Here too, wherever their death is mentioned, their sin is mentioned, to tell you that they had no [sin] other than this [sin] alone. - [Sifrei Pinchas 23, Yoma 86b] כאשר נאסף אהרן אחיך: מכאן שנתאוה משה למיתתו של אהרן. דבר אחר אין אתה טוב ממנו, (דברים לב, נא) על אשר לא קדשתם, הא אם קדשתם אותי עדיין לא הגיע זמנכם להפטר. בכל מקום שכתב מיתתם כתב סרחונם, לפי שנגזרה גזרה על דור המדבר למות במדבר בעון שלא האמינו, לכך בקש משה שיכתב סרחונו, שלא יאמרו אף הוא מן הממרים היה. משל לשתי נשים שלוקות בבית דין אחת קלקלה ואחת אכלה פגי שביעית וכו', אף כאן בכל מקום שהזכיר מיתתן הזכיר סרחונם, להודיע שלא היתה בהם אלא זו בלבד:
14Because you disobeyed My command in the desert of Zin when the congregation quarreled, [when you were] to sanctify Me through the water before their eyes; these were the waters of dispute at Kadesh, in the desert of Zin. ידכַּֽאֲשֶׁר֩ מְרִיתֶ֨ם פִּ֜י בְּמִדְבַּר־צִ֗ן בִּמְרִיבַת֙ הָֽעֵדָ֔ה לְהַקְדִּישֵׁ֥נִי בַמַּ֖יִם לְעֵֽינֵיהֶ֑ם הֵ֛ם מֵֽי־מְרִיבַ֥ת קָדֵ֖שׁ מִדְבַּר־צִֽן:
These were the waters of dispute at Kadesh: These [waters] alone; they [Moses and Aaron] had no other sin to their name (Sifrei Pinchas 23). Another interpretation: Those [waters] which instigated the rebellion [of the Israelites] at Marah were the same as those which caused the rebellion at the Red Sea [in Rephidim (Levush, Divrei David)], and those same ones provoked the rebellion in the desert of Zin. - [Source unknown] הם מי מריבת קדש: הם לבדם אין בהם עון אחר. דבר אחר הם שהמרו במרה, הם היו שהמרו בים סוף, הם עצמם שהמרו במדבר צין:
15Moses spoke to the Lord, saying: טווַיְדַבֵּ֣ר משֶׁ֔ה אֶל־יְהֹוָ֖ה לֵאמֹֽר:
Moses spoke to the Lord…: This [verse comes] to let us know the virtues of the righteous, for when they are about to depart from the world, they disregard their own needs and occupy themselves with the needs of the community. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] וידבר משה אל ה' וגו': להודיע שבחן של צדיקים שכשנפטרין מן העולם מניחין צרכן ועוסקין בצרכי צבור:
saying: He said to Him, “Answer me whether You are appointing a leader for them or not.” - [Sifrei Pinchas 23] לאמר: אמר לו השיבני אם אתה ממנה להם פרנס אם לאו:
16"Let the Lord, the God of spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation, טזיִפְקֹ֣ד יְהֹוָ֔ה אֱלֹהֵ֥י הָֽרוּחֹ֖ת לְכָל־בָּשָׂ֑ר אִ֖ישׁ עַל־הָֽעֵדָֽה:
Let the Lord… appoint: When Moses heard that the Omnipresent told him to give Zelophehad’s inheritance to his daughters, he said, “It is time to ask for my own needs-that my son should inherit my high position.” The Holy One, blessed is He, said to him, That is not My intention, for Joshua deserves to be rewarded for his service, for he “would not depart from the tent” (Exod. 33:11). This is what Solomon meant when he said, “He who guards the fig tree eats its fruit” (Prov. 27:18). - [Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 11] יפקד ה': כיון ששמע משה שאמר לו המקום תן נחלת צלפחד לבנותיו אמר הגיע שעה שאתבע צרכי שיירשו בני את גדולתי. אמר לו הקב"ה לא כך עלתה במחשבה לפני, כדאי הוא יהושע ליטול שכר שמושו שלא מש מתוך האהל. וזהו שאמר שלמה (משלי כז, יח) נוצר תאנה יאכל פריה:
God of the spirits: Why is this said? He said to Him, “Master of the universe, the character of each person is revealed to you, and no two are alike. Appoint over them a leader who will tolerate each person according to his individual character.”- [Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 10] אלהי הרוחות: למה נאמר, אמר לפניו רבש"ע גלוי וידוע לפניך דעתו של כל אחד ואחד ואינן דומין זה לזה, מנה עליהם מנהיג שיהא סובל כל אחד ואחד לפי דעתו:
17who will go forth before them and come before them, who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd." יזאֲשֶׁר־יֵצֵ֣א לִפְנֵיהֶ֗ם וַֽאֲשֶׁ֤ר יָבֹא֙ לִפְנֵיהֶ֔ם וַֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר יֽוֹצִיאֵ֖ם וַֽאֲשֶׁ֣ר יְבִיאֵ֑ם וְלֹ֤א תִֽהְיֶה֙ עֲדַ֣ת יְהֹוָ֔ה כַּצֹּ֕אן אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵֽין־לָהֶ֖ם רֹעֶֽה:
who will go forth before them: Not like the kings of the [gentile] nations, who sit at home and send their armies to war, but as I did, for I fought against Sihon and Og, as it says, “Do not fear him” (21:34), and as Joshua did, as it says, “Joshua went to him and said to him, Are you for us [or for our enemies]?” (Josh. 5:13). Similarly, concerning David it says, “For he went forth and came in before them” (I Sam. 18:16)-he went out [to battle] at their head and came in before them. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] אשר יצא לפניהם: לא כדרך מלכי האומות שיושבים בבתיהם ומשלחין את חיילותיהם למלחמה, אלא כמו שעשיתי אני שנלחמתי בסיחון ועוג, שנאמר (במדבר כא, לד) אל תירא אותו. וכדרך שעשה יהושע, שנאמר (יהושע ה, יג) וילך יהושע אליו ויאמר לו הלנו אתה וגו'. וכן בדוד הוא אומר (ש"א יח, טז) כי הוא יוצא ובא לפניהם, יוצא בראש ונכנס בראש:
who will lead them out: through his merits. - [Sifrei Pinchas 23] ואשר יוציאם: בזכיותיו:
and bring them in: through his merits. - [Sifrei Pinchas 23] Another interpretation: “Who will bring them in” [means] that You should not do to him as You did to me, for I may not bring them into the Land. — [Num. Rabbah 21:15] ואשר יביאם: בזכיותיו. דבר אחר ואשר יביאם שלא תעשה לו כדרך שאתה עושה לי, שאיני מכניסן לארץ:
18The Lord said to Moses, "Take for yourself Joshua the son of Nun, a man of spirit, and you shall lay your hand upon him. יחוַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה אֶל־משֶׁ֗ה קַח־לְךָ֙ אֶת־יְהוֹשֻׁ֣עַ בִּן־נ֔וּן אִ֖ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־ר֣וּחַ בּ֑וֹ וְסָֽמַכְתָּ֥ אֶת־יָֽדְךָ֖ עָלָֽיו:
Take for yourself: Encourage him verbally, [and say,] “Fortunate are you that you have merited to lead the children of the Omnipresent!” - [Sifrei Pinchas 23 on verse 22] קח לך: קחנו בדברים אשריך שזכית להנהיג בניו של מקום:
for yourself: Someone verified by you, someone you know. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] לך: את שבדוק לך את זה אתה מכיר:
a man of spirit: As you requested; someone able to deal with the character of each one. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] אשר רוח בו: כאשר שאלת שיוכל להלוך כנגד רוחו של כל אחד ואחד:
and you shall lay your hand upon him: Provide him with an announcer so that he can expound [halachic discourses] during your lifetime, so they should not say about him that he dared not raise his head in the days of Moses. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] וסמכת את ידך עליו: תן לו מתורגמן שידרוש בחייך, שלא יאמרו עליו, לא היה לו להרים ראש בימי משה:
19And you shall present him before Eleazar the kohen and before the entire congregation, and you shall command him in their presence. יטוְהַֽעֲמַדְתָּ֣ אֹת֗וֹ לִפְנֵי֙ אֶלְעָזָ֣ר הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְלִפְנֵ֖י כָּל־הָֽעֵדָ֑ה וְצִוִּיתָ֥ה אֹת֖וֹ לְעֵֽינֵיהֶֽם:
and you shall command him: Concerning Israel; be aware that they are troublesome and obstinate. [You accept office] on condition that you take upon yourself [all this]. - [See Sifrei Beha’alothecha 42] וצויתה אתו: על ישראל, דע שטרחנין הם סרבנים הם, על מנת שתקבל עליך:
20You shall bestow some of your majesty upon him so that all the congregation of the children of Israel will take heed. כוְנָֽתַתָּ֥ה מֵהֽוֹדְךָ֖ עָלָ֑יו לְמַ֣עַן יִשְׁמְע֔וּ כָּל־עֲדַ֖ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
You shall bestow some of your majesty upon him: This refers to the radiance of the skin of his face (see Exod. 34:29). ונתתה מהודך עליו: זה קירון עור פנים:
some of your majesty: But not all of your majesty. Thus, we learn that the face of Moses was [radiant] like the sun, whereas the face of Joshua was like the moon. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23, b.b. 75a] מהודך: ולא כל הודך נמצינו למדין פני משה כחמה פני יהושע כלבנה:
so that all the congregation of the children of Israel will take heed:[meaning] that they will behave toward him with reverence and awe, just as they behaved toward you. למען ישמעו כל עדת בני ישראל: שיהיו נוהגין בו כבוד ויראה כדרך שנוהגין בך:
21He shall stand before Eleazar the kohen and seek [counsel from] him through the judgment of the Urim before the Lord. By his word they shall go, and by his word they shall come; he and all Israel with him, and the entire congregation." כאוְלִפְנֵ֨י אֶלְעָזָ֤ר הַכֹּהֵן֙ יַֽעֲמֹ֔ד וְשָׁ֥אַל ל֛וֹ בְּמִשְׁפַּ֥ט הָֽאוּרִ֖ים לִפְנֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה עַל־פִּ֨יו יֵֽצְא֜וּ וְעַל־פִּ֣יו יָבֹ֗אוּ ה֛וּא וְכָל־בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֥ל אִתּ֖וֹ וְכָל־הָֽעֵדָֽה:
He shall stand before Eleazar the priest: Here is [the response to] the request that you made [that your children should inherit you]; this honor shall not depart from your father’s house, for even Joshua will have need for Eleazar. — [Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 11] ולפני אלעזר הכהן יעמד: הרי שאלתך ששאלת שאין הכבוד הזה זז מבית אביך, שאף יהושע יהא צריך לאלעזר:
and seek [counsel from] him: when he finds it necessary to go to war. - [Sanh. 16a] ושאל לו: כשיצטרך לצאת למלחמה:
By his word: Eleazar’s [word]. על פיו: של אלעזר:
and the entire congregation: The Sanhedrin. — [Yoma 73b, Sanh. 16a] וכל העדה: סנהדרין:
22Moses did as the Lord had commanded him, and he took Joshua and presented him before Eleazar the kohen and before the entire congregation. כבוַיַּ֣עַשׂ משֶׁ֔ה כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֹת֑וֹ וַיִּקַּ֣ח אֶת־יְהוֹשֻׁ֗עַ וַיַּֽעֲמִדֵ֨הוּ֙ לִפְנֵי֙ אֶלְעָזָ֣ר הַכֹּהֵ֔ן וְלִפְנֵ֖י כָּל־הָֽעֵדָֽה:
and he took Joshua: He took him [by encouraging him] with words, and informed him of the reward in store for the leaders of Israel in the World to Come. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23] ויקח את יהושע: לקחו בדברים והודיעו מתן שכר פרנסי ישראל לעולם הבא:
23He laid his hands upon him and commanded him, in accordance with what the Lord had spoken to Moses. כגוַיִּסְמֹ֧ךְ אֶת־יָדָ֛יו עָלָ֖יו וַיְצַוֵּ֑הוּ כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֛ר דִּבֶּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּיַד־משֶֽׁה:
He laid his hands: generously; over and above what he had been commanded. For the Holy One, blessed is He, said to him,“and you shall lay your hand upon him” (verse 18), but he did it with both his hands. He fashioned him like a full and overflowing vessel, filling him with wisdom in abundance. — [Sifrei Pinchas 23, Sanh. 105b] ויסמך את ידיו: בעין יפה יותר ויותר ממה שנצטווה. שהקב"ה אמר לו וסמכת את ידך, והוא עשה בשתי ידיו, ועשאו ככלי מלא וגדוש ומלאו חכמתו בעין יפה:
in accordance with what the Lord had spoken to Moses: [That is,] also with respect to the majesty; He bestowed some of his majesty [radiance] upon him. כאשר דבר ה': אף לענין ההוד נתן מהודו עליו:
Daily Tehillim - Psalms
Chapters 104-105
• Chapter 104
This psalm tells of the beauty of creation, describing that which was created on each of the six days of creation. It proclaims the awesomeness of God Who sustains it all-from the horns of the wild ox to the eggs of the louse.
1. My soul, bless the Lord! Lord my God, You are greatly exalted; You have garbed Yourself with majesty and splendor.
2. You enwrap [Yourself] with light as with a garment; You spread the heavens as a curtain.
3. He roofs His heavens with water; He makes the clouds His chariot, He moves [them] on the wings of the wind.
4. He makes the winds His messengers, the blazing fire His servants.
5. He established the earth on its foundations, that it shall never falter.
6. The depths covered it as a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.
7. At Your exhortation they fled; at the sound of Your thunder they rushed away.
8. They ascended mountains, they flowed down valleys, to the place which You have assigned for them.
9. You set a boundary which they may not cross, so that they should not return to engulf the earth.
10. He sends forth springs into streams; they flow between the mountains.
11. They give drink to all the beasts of the field; the wild animals quench their thirst.
12. The birds of the heavens dwell beside them; they raise their voice from among the foliage.
13. He irrigates the mountains from His clouds above; the earth is satiated from the fruit of Your works.
14. He makes grass grow for the cattle, and vegetation requiring the labor of man to bring forth food from the earth;
15. and wine that gladdens man's heart, oil that makes the face shine, and bread that sustains man's heart.
16. The trees of the Lord drink their fill, the cedars of Lebanon which He planted,
17. wherein birds build their nests; the stork has her home in the cypress.
18. The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the rabbits.
19. He made the moon to calculate the festivals; the sun knows its time of setting.
20. You bring on darkness and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep forth.
21. The young lions roar for prey, and seek their food from God.
22. When the sun rises, they return and lie down in their dens.
23. Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening.
24. How manifold are Your works, O Lord! You have made them all with wisdom; the earth is full of Your possessions.
25. This sea, vast and wide, where there are countless creeping creatures, living things small and great;
26. there ships travel, there is the Leviathan that You created to frolic therein.
27. They all look expectantly to You to give them their food at the proper time.
28. When You give it to them, they gather it; when You open Your hand, they are satiated with goodness.
29. When You conceal Your countenance, they are terrified; when You take back their spirit, they perish and return to their dust.
30. When You will send forth Your spirit they will be created anew, and You will renew the face of the earth.
31. May the glory of the Lord be forever; may the Lord find delight in His works.
32. He looks at the earth, and it trembles; He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33. I will sing to the Lord with my soul; I will chant praise to my God with my [entire] being.
34. May my prayer be pleasant to Him; I will rejoice in the Lord.
35. May sinners cease from the earth, and the wicked be no more. Bless the Lord, O my soul! Praise the Lord!
Chapter 105
When David brought the Holy Ark up to the City of David, he composed this psalm and sang it before the Ark. He recounts all the miracles that God performed for the Jews in Egypt: sending before them Joseph, who was imprisoned, only to be liberated by God, eventually attaining the status of one who could imprison the princes of Egypt without consulting Pharaoh.
1. Offer praise to the Lord, proclaim His Name; make His deeds known among the nations.
2. Sing to Him, chant praises to Him, speak of all His wonders.
3. Glory in His holy Name; may the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4. Search for the Lord and His might; seek His countenance always.
5. Remember the wonders that He has wrought, His miracles, and the judgements of His mouth.
6. O descendants of Abraham His servant, children of Jacob, His chosen ones:
7. He is the Lord our God; His judgements extend over the entire earth.
8. He remembers His covenant forever, the word which He has commanded to a thousand generations;
9. the covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac.
10. He established it for Jacob as a statute, for Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11. stating, "To you I shall give the land of Canaan"-the portion of your inheritance,
12. when they were but few, very few, and strangers in it.
13. They wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another people.
14. He permitted no one to wrong them, and admonished kings for their sake:
15. "Do not touch My anointed ones, and do not harm My prophets.”
16. He called for a famine upon the land; He broke every source of bread.
17. He sent a man before them; Joseph was sold as a slave.
18. They afflicted his foot with chains, his soul was put into iron;
19. until the time that His words came, the decree of the Lord purified him.
20. The king sent [word] and released him, the ruler of nations set him free.
21. He appointed him master of his house and ruler of all his possessions,
22. to imprison his princes at will, and to enlighten his elders.
23. Thus Israel came to Egypt, and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham (Egypt).
24. He multiplied His nation greatly, and made it mightier than its adversaries.
25. He turned their hearts to hate His nation, to conspire against His servants.
26. He sent Moses, His servant; Aaron, whom He had chosen.
27. They placed among them the words of His signs, miracles in the land of Ham.
28. He sent darkness and made it dark, and they did not defy His word.
29. He transformed their waters to blood, and killed their fish.
30. Their land swarmed with frogs in the chambers of their kings.
31. He spoke, and hordes of wild beasts came, and lice throughout their borders.
32. He turned their rains to hail, flaming fire in their land;
33. it struck their vine and fig tree, it broke the trees of their borders.
34. He spoke, and grasshoppers came, locusts without number;
35. and it consumed all grass in their land, it ate the fruit of their soil.
36. Then He smote every firstborn in their land, the first of all their potency.
37. And He took them out with silver and gold, and none among His tribes stumbled.
38. Egypt rejoiced at their leaving, for the fear [of Israel] had fallen upon them.
39. He spread out a cloud for shelter, and a fire to illuminate the night.
40. [Israel] asked, and He brought quail, and with the bread of heaven He satisfied them.
41. He opened a rock and waters flowed; they streamed through dry places like a river,
42. for He remembered His holy word to Abraham His servant.
43. And He brought out His nation with joy, His chosen ones with song.
44. He gave them the lands of nations, they inherited the toil of peoples,
45. so that they might keep His statutes and observe His laws. Praise the Lord!
Tanya: Parshat Pinchas, 4th Portion (Numbers 27:6-27:23)
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Wednesday, 21 Tammuz, 5776 · 27 July 2016
• Parshat Pinchas, 4th Portion (Numbers 27:6-27:23)
• וביאור הענין
To explain:
What characteristics of the soul also characterize Havayah, the Four-Letter Name of G‑d, and thus indicate that the soul is indeed a part of that Name? In answer to this question, the Alter Rebbe now explains that just as the Ten Sefirot are included within the Tetragrammaton, so, too, there are ten corresponding faculties that are intrinsic to the soul.
כנודע ממאמר אליהו: אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תיקונין, וקרינן להון עשר ספירן, לאנהגא בהון עלמין סתימין וכו׳
There is a well-known statement of Eliyahu, in the passage entitled Patach Eliyahu, in the introduction to Tikkunei Zohar: “You are He Who elicited the ten tikkunim (lit., ‘garments’) which we call the Ten Sefirot, by which to conduct the concealed worlds…[and the revealed worlds...].1
אנת הוא חכים, ולא בחכמה ידיעא
You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom;
אנת הוא מבין, ולא בבינה ידיעא וכו׳
You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding; and so on“ — with regard to the remaining Sefirot.
וכל הי׳ ספירות נכללות ונרמזות בשם הויה ברוך הוא
All the Ten Sefirot are included and represented in their source, the Tetragrammaton.
The Alter Rebbe now shows how the various Sefirot find expression in the four letters that comprise this Divine Name, Havayah.
כי היו״ד, שהיא בחינת נקודה לבד, מרמזת לחכמתו ית׳
The yud, which is a simple point, extending in neither length nor breadth, indicates G‑d’s Wisdom, the Sefirah of Chochmah,
שהיא בבחינת העלם והסתר קודם שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה
which is the state of concealment and obscurity, before it develops into a state of expansion and revelation in comprehension and understanding.
והקוץ שעל היו״ד רומז לבחינת רצון העליון ברוך הוא, שלמעלה מעלה ממדרגת בחינת חכמה עילאה כנודע
(2The “thorn” above3 the yud indicates the Supreme Will, this being the level of Keter, which transcends by far the level of Chochmah Ila‘ah, Supernal Wisdom, as is known.)
ואחר שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה לעלמין סתימין
When [the seminal “point” of Chochmah] is eventually amplified and revealed as something comprehensible to the concealed worlds, i.e., when it descends to the level and Sefirah of Binah,
נכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳, שיש לה בחינת התפשטות לרוחב, המורה ומרמז על הרחבת הביאור וההבנה
it is then contained and represented in the letter hei of the Tetragrammaton. This letter extends in breadth, implying a breadth of explanation and understanding, which is the function of Binah.
וגם לאורך, המורה על בחינת ההמשכה וההשפעה מלמעלה למטה לעלמין סתימין
[The letter hei] also extends in length, to indicate extension and flow downward into the concealed worlds.
The hidden worlds are nourished from the level of Binah, so that they may have an understanding of G‑dliness.
ואחר כך, כשנמשכת המשכה והשפעה זו יותר למטה לעלמין דאתגליין
In the next stage, when this extension and flow are drawn still lower into the revealed worlds,
וכמו האדם שרוצה לגלות חכמתו לאחרים על ידי דבורו, על דרך משל
which may be compared, by way of analogy, to one who wishes4 to reveal his thoughts to another through his speech,
נכללת ונרמזת המשכה זו באותיות ו״ה
this extension is contained and represented in the [final] letters vav and hei [of the Tetragrammaton].
כי הוי״ו מורה על ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
For the letter vav, which is shaped like a vertical line, indicates downward extension.
There is another connection between this stage and the letter vav:
וגם המשכה זו היא על ידי מדת חסדו וטובו ושאר מדותיו הקדושות, הנכללת בדרך כלל במספר שש שבפסוק: לך ה׳ הגדולה וגו׳ עד לך ה׳ הממלכה, ולא עד בכלל
Also, this downward flow into the revealed worlds is effected through the Divine traits of benevolence and goodness and [G‑d’s] other holy traits, included in general terms in the six attributes, the numerical equivalent of vav, in the verse,5 “Yours, O G‑d, is greatness...,” — until “Yours, O G‑d, is sovereignty...,” but not including it.
כי מדת מלכותו ית׳ נקראת בשם דבר ה׳
For His attribute of sovereignty is called the “Word of G‑d” (and speech is not one of the middot, the spiritual emotive attributes),
כמו שכתוב: באשר דבר מלך שלטון
as in the verse,6 “Wherever the word of the king holds sway.”
Supernal speech, then, is related to Malchut, G‑d’s sovereignty.
ונכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳ אחרונה של שם ה׳
This [attribute of sovereignty] is contained and represented in the final hei of the Tetragrammaton, in the following manner:
כי פנימיות ומקור הדבור הוא ההבל העולה מן הלב, ומתחלק לה׳ מוצאות הפה: אחה״ע מהגרון וכו׳
The internal aspect and the source of speech is the breath that rises from the heart, then is particularized into the five oral articulations (five being the numerical equivalent of the letter hei). [One of these produces the bracket of letters] alef, chet, hei and ayin from the throat, another produces the bracket of letters beit, vav, mem and pei from the lips, and so on.
At any rate, the internal aspect of speech is breath.
וגם הברת הה״א היא בחינת הבל לבד
In particular, the enunciation of the letter hei is solely unvocalized breath,
כמו שכתוב: אתא קלילא דלית בה מששא
as in the phrase,7 “A light letter without substance.”
Emanating, as it does, solely from the breath, it alludes to the level of Malchut and speech whose internal aspect is “breath”.
ואף שאין לו דמות הגוף חס ושלום
Now “He has no corporeal form,” G‑d forbid.
How, then, can one differentiate Above between those letters that possess substance and those that do not?
אך דברה תורה כלשון בני אדם
Nevertheless, “the Torah speaks as in the language of men.”
Since on the mortal plane this differentiation exists, it is also applied to the Divine plane, for spiritually, too, there exists a corresponding difference between the letter hei and the other letters.
בשגם
Moreover (i.e., there is yet another reason why this analogy is apt, notwithstanding the fact that G‑d has no corporeal form):
שגם דבר ה׳ כ״ב אותיות המתחלקות לה׳ חלקי המוצאות, ובהן נברא כל היצור
for G‑d’s speech as well consists, as it were, of twenty-two letters that separate into the five articulations that produce the Divine speech from which all beings were created.
וכמו שכתוב בליקוטי אמרים חלק ב׳ פי״א ביאור ענין אותיות אלו
(8For a discussion of these letters and their significance, see Likutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 11.)
We thus see that all the Ten Sefirot are included and represented within the Tetragrammaton. The Alter Rebbe now goes on to explain that likewise within the soul, which is part of the Tetragrammaton, there exist ten corresponding levels or faculties.
וככה ממש, על דרך משל, המבדיל הבדלות לאין קץ, בנשמת האדם
Analogously, exactly the same applies to the soul of man, again keeping in mind the infinite separation between the Creator and the created soul,
שהיא בחינת נפש האלקית דמתוכיה נפח
which is the divine soul which “He blew from within Himself.”
Since the soul derives from the internal aspect of G‑dliness, the Tetragrammaton, which comprises the Ten Sefirot, the soul likewise comprises the following characteristics:
יש בה בחינת שכל הנעלם, המרומז באות יו״ד
There is [the initial state of Chochmah,] the hidden concept alluded to by the letter yud,
Just as the letter yud lacks length and breadth and is but a simple point, so, too, is Chochmah a faculty that lacks intellectual length and breadth, merely —
שבכחו לצאת אל הגילוי, להבין ולהשכיל באמתתו ית׳ ובגדולתו וכו'
possessing the potential of being revealed, and thereby understanding and conceiving G‑d’s true existence and greatness,
כל חד וחד לפום שיעורא דיליה, לפי רוחב שכלו ובינתו
in each person according to his measure, according to the breadth of his intellect and understanding.
While the degree of one’s comprehension of G‑dliness depends on the breadth of one’s intellect, a Jew’s essential ability to find G‑d’s true being and greatness securely integrated in his mind, stems from the soul’s attribute of Chochmah, alluded to in the letter yud.
וכפי אשר מעמיק שכלו ומרחיב דעתו ובינתו להתבונן בגדולתו ית׳
As a man deepens his intelligence, as he broadens his mind and comprehension, to contemplate G‑d’s greatness,
אזי מרומזת בינתו באות ה״א, שיש לה רוחב
his now-developed understanding, the faculty of Binah, is alluded to by the letter hei, that has breadth, indicating the breadth of his understanding.
וגם אורך, המורה על ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
[The hei] also has length, to indicate downward extension,
להוליד מבינתו והתבוננותו בגדולת ה׳ אהבה ויראה ותולדותיהן
so that from his understanding and contemplation of G‑d’s greatness, he arouses love and fear and their offspring, i.e., the other emotive attributes, which are termed the offspring or branches of love and fear,
במוחו ותעלומות לבו
in his mind and in the recesses of his heart,
At this early stage in the generation of the spiritual emotions of love and fear and so on, they are not yet manifest.
ואחר כך בבחינת התגלות לבו
until ultimately they find overt expression in his heart.
The downward progression of intellect into the realm of emotions is thus indicated by the vertical length of the letter hei.
ומזה נמשכה עבודה האמיתית בעסק התורה והמצות, בקול ודבור או מעשה
These [spiritual emotions] lead to the true service of G‑d, in Torah study and mitzvah observance, with voice and speech or with deed.
True divine service is that which is motivated by the love and awe of G‑d, as explained above in Part I, ch. 4.
הן אותיות וא״ו ה״א וכו׳
This is the import of the [final] letters vav and hei [of the Four-Letter Name, Havayah]..., for vav alludes to voice and speech, while hei alludes to action.
וגם ההתבוננות, להבין ולהשכיל באמתתו וגדולתו ית׳, נמשכה גם כן מן התורה
Furthermore, contemplation that endeavors to understand and conceive of G‑d’s true being, also derives from Torah,
I.e., such contemplation must necessarily be preceded by the study of Torah,
דאורייתא מחכמה נפקא, היא בחינת יו״ד של שם הויה וכו׳
for9 “Torah proceeds from Chochmah,” which is the yud of the Tetragrammaton.
FOOTNOTES
1.The Rebbe asks the following question: The statement that the purpose of the Ten Sefirot (which, as he shall soon say, are included within the Tetragrammaton) is “to conduct the concealed worlds,” seems to contradict the earlier statement that the Tetragrammaton transcends by far the state of “letters” (from which the various worlds and their creatures come into being).
The Alter Rebbe resolves this, explains the Rebbe, by now going on to quote, “You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom; You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding....” This cannot possibly refer to the state of “letters”, since their purpose is to make known and to reveal (as oft stated in Part II of Tanya). Rather, the above-mentioned conduct of the worlds first relates only to the “concealed worlds,” worlds that are “not known.”
2.Parentheses are in the original text.
3.Note of the Rebbe: “The Alter Rebbe stresses ‘above’, for the ‘thorn’ that projects beneath the yud has a different significance.”
4.Note of the Rebbe: “In the analogy the Alter Rebbe speaks of ‘one who wishes to reveal his thoughts to another,’ for this mirrors the ‘Divine traits of benevolence and goodness’ that are mentioned below.”
5.I Divrei HaYamim 29:11.
6.Kohelet 8:4.
7.From the hymn entitled Akdamut.
8.Parentheses are in the original text.
9.Zohar II, 85a, 121a.
To explain:
What characteristics of the soul also characterize Havayah, the Four-Letter Name of G‑d, and thus indicate that the soul is indeed a part of that Name? In answer to this question, the Alter Rebbe now explains that just as the Ten Sefirot are included within the Tetragrammaton, so, too, there are ten corresponding faculties that are intrinsic to the soul.
כנודע ממאמר אליהו: אנת הוא דאפיקת עשר תיקונין, וקרינן להון עשר ספירן, לאנהגא בהון עלמין סתימין וכו׳
There is a well-known statement of Eliyahu, in the passage entitled Patach Eliyahu, in the introduction to Tikkunei Zohar: “You are He Who elicited the ten tikkunim (lit., ‘garments’) which we call the Ten Sefirot, by which to conduct the concealed worlds…[and the revealed worlds...].1
אנת הוא חכים, ולא בחכמה ידיעא
You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom;
אנת הוא מבין, ולא בבינה ידיעא וכו׳
You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding; and so on“ — with regard to the remaining Sefirot.
וכל הי׳ ספירות נכללות ונרמזות בשם הויה ברוך הוא
All the Ten Sefirot are included and represented in their source, the Tetragrammaton.
The Alter Rebbe now shows how the various Sefirot find expression in the four letters that comprise this Divine Name, Havayah.
כי היו״ד, שהיא בחינת נקודה לבד, מרמזת לחכמתו ית׳
The yud, which is a simple point, extending in neither length nor breadth, indicates G‑d’s Wisdom, the Sefirah of Chochmah,
שהיא בבחינת העלם והסתר קודם שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה
which is the state of concealment and obscurity, before it develops into a state of expansion and revelation in comprehension and understanding.
והקוץ שעל היו״ד רומז לבחינת רצון העליון ברוך הוא, שלמעלה מעלה ממדרגת בחינת חכמה עילאה כנודע
(2The “thorn” above3 the yud indicates the Supreme Will, this being the level of Keter, which transcends by far the level of Chochmah Ila‘ah, Supernal Wisdom, as is known.)
ואחר שבאה לבחינת התפשטות וגילוי ההשגה וההבנה לעלמין סתימין
When [the seminal “point” of Chochmah] is eventually amplified and revealed as something comprehensible to the concealed worlds, i.e., when it descends to the level and Sefirah of Binah,
נכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳, שיש לה בחינת התפשטות לרוחב, המורה ומרמז על הרחבת הביאור וההבנה
it is then contained and represented in the letter hei of the Tetragrammaton. This letter extends in breadth, implying a breadth of explanation and understanding, which is the function of Binah.
וגם לאורך, המורה על בחינת ההמשכה וההשפעה מלמעלה למטה לעלמין סתימין
[The letter hei] also extends in length, to indicate extension and flow downward into the concealed worlds.
The hidden worlds are nourished from the level of Binah, so that they may have an understanding of G‑dliness.
ואחר כך, כשנמשכת המשכה והשפעה זו יותר למטה לעלמין דאתגליין
In the next stage, when this extension and flow are drawn still lower into the revealed worlds,
וכמו האדם שרוצה לגלות חכמתו לאחרים על ידי דבורו, על דרך משל
which may be compared, by way of analogy, to one who wishes4 to reveal his thoughts to another through his speech,
נכללת ונרמזת המשכה זו באותיות ו״ה
this extension is contained and represented in the [final] letters vav and hei [of the Tetragrammaton].
כי הוי״ו מורה על ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
For the letter vav, which is shaped like a vertical line, indicates downward extension.
There is another connection between this stage and the letter vav:
וגם המשכה זו היא על ידי מדת חסדו וטובו ושאר מדותיו הקדושות, הנכללת בדרך כלל במספר שש שבפסוק: לך ה׳ הגדולה וגו׳ עד לך ה׳ הממלכה, ולא עד בכלל
Also, this downward flow into the revealed worlds is effected through the Divine traits of benevolence and goodness and [G‑d’s] other holy traits, included in general terms in the six attributes, the numerical equivalent of vav, in the verse,5 “Yours, O G‑d, is greatness...,” — until “Yours, O G‑d, is sovereignty...,” but not including it.
כי מדת מלכותו ית׳ נקראת בשם דבר ה׳
For His attribute of sovereignty is called the “Word of G‑d” (and speech is not one of the middot, the spiritual emotive attributes),
כמו שכתוב: באשר דבר מלך שלטון
as in the verse,6 “Wherever the word of the king holds sway.”
Supernal speech, then, is related to Malchut, G‑d’s sovereignty.
ונכללת ונרמזת באות ה׳ אחרונה של שם ה׳
This [attribute of sovereignty] is contained and represented in the final hei of the Tetragrammaton, in the following manner:
כי פנימיות ומקור הדבור הוא ההבל העולה מן הלב, ומתחלק לה׳ מוצאות הפה: אחה״ע מהגרון וכו׳
The internal aspect and the source of speech is the breath that rises from the heart, then is particularized into the five oral articulations (five being the numerical equivalent of the letter hei). [One of these produces the bracket of letters] alef, chet, hei and ayin from the throat, another produces the bracket of letters beit, vav, mem and pei from the lips, and so on.
At any rate, the internal aspect of speech is breath.
וגם הברת הה״א היא בחינת הבל לבד
In particular, the enunciation of the letter hei is solely unvocalized breath,
כמו שכתוב: אתא קלילא דלית בה מששא
as in the phrase,7 “A light letter without substance.”
Emanating, as it does, solely from the breath, it alludes to the level of Malchut and speech whose internal aspect is “breath”.
ואף שאין לו דמות הגוף חס ושלום
Now “He has no corporeal form,” G‑d forbid.
How, then, can one differentiate Above between those letters that possess substance and those that do not?
אך דברה תורה כלשון בני אדם
Nevertheless, “the Torah speaks as in the language of men.”
Since on the mortal plane this differentiation exists, it is also applied to the Divine plane, for spiritually, too, there exists a corresponding difference between the letter hei and the other letters.
בשגם
Moreover (i.e., there is yet another reason why this analogy is apt, notwithstanding the fact that G‑d has no corporeal form):
שגם דבר ה׳ כ״ב אותיות המתחלקות לה׳ חלקי המוצאות, ובהן נברא כל היצור
for G‑d’s speech as well consists, as it were, of twenty-two letters that separate into the five articulations that produce the Divine speech from which all beings were created.
וכמו שכתוב בליקוטי אמרים חלק ב׳ פי״א ביאור ענין אותיות אלו
(8For a discussion of these letters and their significance, see Likutei Amarim, Part II, ch. 11.)
We thus see that all the Ten Sefirot are included and represented within the Tetragrammaton. The Alter Rebbe now goes on to explain that likewise within the soul, which is part of the Tetragrammaton, there exist ten corresponding levels or faculties.
וככה ממש, על דרך משל, המבדיל הבדלות לאין קץ, בנשמת האדם
Analogously, exactly the same applies to the soul of man, again keeping in mind the infinite separation between the Creator and the created soul,
שהיא בחינת נפש האלקית דמתוכיה נפח
which is the divine soul which “He blew from within Himself.”
Since the soul derives from the internal aspect of G‑dliness, the Tetragrammaton, which comprises the Ten Sefirot, the soul likewise comprises the following characteristics:
יש בה בחינת שכל הנעלם, המרומז באות יו״ד
There is [the initial state of Chochmah,] the hidden concept alluded to by the letter yud,
Just as the letter yud lacks length and breadth and is but a simple point, so, too, is Chochmah a faculty that lacks intellectual length and breadth, merely —
שבכחו לצאת אל הגילוי, להבין ולהשכיל באמתתו ית׳ ובגדולתו וכו'
possessing the potential of being revealed, and thereby understanding and conceiving G‑d’s true existence and greatness,
כל חד וחד לפום שיעורא דיליה, לפי רוחב שכלו ובינתו
in each person according to his measure, according to the breadth of his intellect and understanding.
While the degree of one’s comprehension of G‑dliness depends on the breadth of one’s intellect, a Jew’s essential ability to find G‑d’s true being and greatness securely integrated in his mind, stems from the soul’s attribute of Chochmah, alluded to in the letter yud.
וכפי אשר מעמיק שכלו ומרחיב דעתו ובינתו להתבונן בגדולתו ית׳
As a man deepens his intelligence, as he broadens his mind and comprehension, to contemplate G‑d’s greatness,
אזי מרומזת בינתו באות ה״א, שיש לה רוחב
his now-developed understanding, the faculty of Binah, is alluded to by the letter hei, that has breadth, indicating the breadth of his understanding.
וגם אורך, המורה על ההמשכה מלמעלה למטה
[The hei] also has length, to indicate downward extension,
להוליד מבינתו והתבוננותו בגדולת ה׳ אהבה ויראה ותולדותיהן
so that from his understanding and contemplation of G‑d’s greatness, he arouses love and fear and their offspring, i.e., the other emotive attributes, which are termed the offspring or branches of love and fear,
במוחו ותעלומות לבו
in his mind and in the recesses of his heart,
At this early stage in the generation of the spiritual emotions of love and fear and so on, they are not yet manifest.
ואחר כך בבחינת התגלות לבו
until ultimately they find overt expression in his heart.
The downward progression of intellect into the realm of emotions is thus indicated by the vertical length of the letter hei.
ומזה נמשכה עבודה האמיתית בעסק התורה והמצות, בקול ודבור או מעשה
These [spiritual emotions] lead to the true service of G‑d, in Torah study and mitzvah observance, with voice and speech or with deed.
True divine service is that which is motivated by the love and awe of G‑d, as explained above in Part I, ch. 4.
הן אותיות וא״ו ה״א וכו׳
This is the import of the [final] letters vav and hei [of the Four-Letter Name, Havayah]..., for vav alludes to voice and speech, while hei alludes to action.
וגם ההתבוננות, להבין ולהשכיל באמתתו וגדולתו ית׳, נמשכה גם כן מן התורה
Furthermore, contemplation that endeavors to understand and conceive of G‑d’s true being, also derives from Torah,
I.e., such contemplation must necessarily be preceded by the study of Torah,
דאורייתא מחכמה נפקא, היא בחינת יו״ד של שם הויה וכו׳
for9 “Torah proceeds from Chochmah,” which is the yud of the Tetragrammaton.
FOOTNOTES
1.The Rebbe asks the following question: The statement that the purpose of the Ten Sefirot (which, as he shall soon say, are included within the Tetragrammaton) is “to conduct the concealed worlds,” seems to contradict the earlier statement that the Tetragrammaton transcends by far the state of “letters” (from which the various worlds and their creatures come into being).
The Alter Rebbe resolves this, explains the Rebbe, by now going on to quote, “You are wise, but not with a knowable attribute of wisdom; You understand, but not with a knowable attribute of understanding....” This cannot possibly refer to the state of “letters”, since their purpose is to make known and to reveal (as oft stated in Part II of Tanya). Rather, the above-mentioned conduct of the worlds first relates only to the “concealed worlds,” worlds that are “not known.”
2.Parentheses are in the original text.
3.Note of the Rebbe: “The Alter Rebbe stresses ‘above’, for the ‘thorn’ that projects beneath the yud has a different significance.”
4.Note of the Rebbe: “In the analogy the Alter Rebbe speaks of ‘one who wishes to reveal his thoughts to another,’ for this mirrors the ‘Divine traits of benevolence and goodness’ that are mentioned below.”
5.I Divrei HaYamim 29:11.
6.Kohelet 8:4.
7.From the hymn entitled Akdamut.
8.Parentheses are in the original text.
9.Zohar II, 85a, 121a.
Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
• Wednesday, 21 Tammuz, 5776 · 27 July 2016
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
• Wednesday, 21 Tammuz, 5776 · 27 July 2016
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
• Negative Commandment 265 (Digest)
Plotting to Acquire a Coveted Item
"You shall not covet your neighbor's house"—Exodus 20:17.
It is forbidden to devise plots in pursuit of acquiring a fellow's property or possession [that he is reluctant to part with. E.g., by harassing the owner of the item to sell it, or retaining friends to go and talk him into selling it].
One who does so and ends up acquiring the item, even if he pays much money for it, has transgressed this biblical prohibition.
The 265th prohibition is that we are forbidden from using our thought to think up schemes of how to acquire something that belongs to our brother.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "Do not envy (lo sach'mod) your neighbor's house."
The Mechilta says, "From the phrase 'Do not envy,' I might think the prohibition applies even if you just feel envy. But another verse2 says, 'Do not be envious of the gold and silver on them [i.e. idolatrous statues] and take it for yourselves.' Just as in that case the prohibition applies only when [because of his envy] he does an action, so too here it applies only when he does an action." This shows that the prohibition forbids carrying out schemes to acquire for ourselves one of our brother's belongings that we desire.
Even buying it at a high price is included in the transgression "Do not envy."
Rabbi Berel Bell is a well-known educator, author and lecturer. He and his family reside in Montreal, Canada.
From "Sefer Hamitzvot in English," published by Sichos in English.
FOOTNOTES
1.Ex. 20:14.
2.Deut. 7:25.
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
• Negative Commandment 265 (Digest)
Plotting to Acquire a Coveted Item
"You shall not covet your neighbor's house"—Exodus 20:17.
It is forbidden to devise plots in pursuit of acquiring a fellow's property or possession [that he is reluctant to part with. E.g., by harassing the owner of the item to sell it, or retaining friends to go and talk him into selling it].
One who does so and ends up acquiring the item, even if he pays much money for it, has transgressed this biblical prohibition.
The 265th prohibition is that we are forbidden from using our thought to think up schemes of how to acquire something that belongs to our brother.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "Do not envy (lo sach'mod) your neighbor's house."
The Mechilta says, "From the phrase 'Do not envy,' I might think the prohibition applies even if you just feel envy. But another verse2 says, 'Do not be envious of the gold and silver on them [i.e. idolatrous statues] and take it for yourselves.' Just as in that case the prohibition applies only when [because of his envy] he does an action, so too here it applies only when he does an action." This shows that the prohibition forbids carrying out schemes to acquire for ourselves one of our brother's belongings that we desire.
Even buying it at a high price is included in the transgression "Do not envy."
Rabbi Berel Bell is a well-known educator, author and lecturer. He and his family reside in Montreal, Canada.
From "Sefer Hamitzvot in English," published by Sichos in English.
FOOTNOTES
1.Ex. 20:14.
2.Deut. 7:25.
• Rambam - 1 Chapter a Day
Tum'at Met - Chapter 11
• Tum'at Met - Chapter 11
Tum'at Met - Chapter 11
• Tum'at Met - Chapter 11
1
With regard to the earth of the Diaspora:66 our Sages instituted a decree regarding a clod of earth - that it be considered like a beit hapras. They would only deem impure one who walked on it or touched or carried its earth. Afterwards, they decreed that even its space imparts impurity, even if one did not touch or carry its earth. Instead, even when one merely inserted his head and the majority of his body into the space of the Diaspora, he becomes impure. Similarly, if the open space of an earthenware implement was taken into the Diaspora or the larger portion of other types of implements were taken into the open space of the Diaspora, they contract impurity.
א
ארץ העכו"ם בתחילה גזרו על גושה בלבד כבית הפרס ולא היו מטמאים אלא המהלך בה או נוגע או נושא מעפרה חזרו וגזרו על אוירה שיטמא ואע"פ שלא נגע ולא נשא אלא כיון שהכניס ראשו ורובו לאויר ארץ העכו"ם נטמא וכן כלי חרש שהכניס אוירו לארץ העכו"ם ושאר כלים שהכניס רובם לאויר ארץ העכו"ם נטמאו:
2
The impurity of the open space of the Diaspora is not as severe as the impurity of its earth, but instead, is more lenient. Because of the impurity of its earth, terumot and sacrificial foods are burnt and one who carries such earth contracts the impurity that lasts seven days and the ashes of the Red Heifer must be sprinkled on him on the third and seventh days. When, by contrast, one contracts impurity through entering its open space, it is not required that the ashes of the Red Heifer be sprinkled on him on the third and seventh days, merely that he immerse himself in amikveh and wait until sunset. Similarly, the ruling concerningterumot and sacrificial foods that contracted impurity through entering its open space is held in abeyance; they are not eaten, nor are they burnt.
ב
טומאת אויר ארץ העכו"ם לא עשו אותה כטומאת עפרה אלא קלה היא ממנה שעל טומאת עפרה שורפין תרומות וקדשים והמתטמא בגושא טמא טומאת שבעה וצריך הזייה שלישי ושביעי אבל הנטמא באוירה א"צ הזייה שלישי ושביעי אלא טבילה והערב שמש וכן תרומה וקדשים שנטמאו מחמת אוירה תולין לא אוכלין ולא שורפין:
3
The earth of the Diaspora and the earth of a beit hapras impart impurity when touched or carried, as explained.
What is the measure that imparts impurity? The amount of earth necessary for a seal for sacks. This is the size of the large ball of a sack-maker's needle.
The following rules apply when the earth of the Diaspora or the earth of a beit hapras comes attached to a vegetable. If there is an amount the size of the seal of a sack in one place, it imparts purity. If not, the various pieces of earth are not combined. The rationale is that our Sages instituted a decree only on a clod of earth in its natural state. An incident occurred when letters from the Diaspora were coming to the sons of the High Priests and there were about a se'ah or two of seals. They nevertheless did not show any concern regarding their impurity, because not one of the seals was as large as the seal of a sack.
ג
עפר ארץ העכו"ם ועפר בית הפרס מטמאין במגע ובמשא כמו שביארנו וכמה שיעורן כחותם המרצופין והוא כפיקה גדולה של סקאין עפר בית הפרס ועפר חוצה לארץ שבא בירק אם יש במקום אחד כחותם המרצופין מטמא ואם לאו אינו מצטרף שלא גזרו אלא על גוש כברייתו מעשה שהיו אגרות באות מחוצה לארץ לבני כהנים גדולים והיו בהן כסאה וכסאתים חותמות ולא חשו להן משום טומאה לפי שלא היה בחותם מהן כחותם המרצופין:
4
The following rules apply when a person brings ovens, cups, and other earthenware utensils from the Diaspora. Until they were fired in a kiln, they are considered impure because of the earth of the Diaspora. Once they were fired, they are considered impure like an earthenware utensil that became impure in the lands of the Diaspora. Such a utensil does not impart impurity to people or utensils, as we explained.
ד
המביא תנורים וספלין וכלי חרש מחו"ל עד שלא הוסקו טמאים משום ארץ העכו"ם משהוסקו טמאים משום כלי חרס שנטמא בארץ העכו"ם שאינו מטמא אדם וכלים כמו שביארנו:
5
When a person is walking on mountains and boulders in the Diaspora, he contracts the impurity that lasts seven days. If he proceeds in the sea or in a place where the waves of the sea wash up, he is pure despite the decree against touching the earth of the Diaspora, but is impure because of the decree against entering its open space.
One who enters the Diaspora in a cabinet, chest, or closet which are carried in the air is impure, because a tent that is movable, is not considered as a tent.
ה
המהלך בארץ העכו"ם בהרים ובסלעים טמא טומאת שבעה בים ובמקום שהים עולה בזעפו טהור משום נוגע בארץ העכו"ם וטמא משום אוירה הנכנס לארץ העכו"ם בשידה תיבה ומגדל הפורחין באויר טמא שאהל זרוק אינו קרוי אהל:
6
The earth of Syria is impure like the earth of the Diaspora. Its open space is pure, because a decree was not imposed concerning it.
Therefore if there was a portion of Syria next to Eretz Yisrael, one edge to the other edge without the earth of the Diaspora, a cemetery, or a beit hapras interposing between them, one could enter there in a state of purity in a cabinet, chest, or closet, provided he did not touch its earth. Similarly, if there is a portion of the earth of the Diaspora next to Eretz Yisrael and there is no place of impurity between them, it may be checked and is considered as pure.
ו
סוריא עפרה טמא כחוצה לארץ ואוירה טהור לא גזרו על אוירה לפיכך אם היתה סמוכה לארץ ישראל שפה בשפה ולא היה מפסיק ביניהן לא ארץ העכו"ם ולא בית הקברות ולא בית הפרס הרי זה יכול להכנס לה בטהרה בשידה תיבה ומגדל והוא שלא יגע בגושה וכן ארץ העכו"ם הסמוכה לארץ ישראל ואין ביניהן מקום טמא הרי זו נבדקת וטהורה:
7
A place where gentiles dwelled in Eretz Yisrael is considered impure like the earth of the Diaspora until it is inspected, lest a miscarried fetus have been buried there.
ז
מקום ששכנו בו עכו"ם בא"י הרי זה מטמא כארץ העכו"ם עד שיבדק שמא קברו בו נפלים:
8
The ruling concerning terumah and sacrificial food that became impure because they were brought into a dwelling of the gentiles should be held in abeyance; they are not eaten, nor are they burnt.
How long must gentiles stay in a dwelling for it to require an inspection? 40 days, sufficient time for a woman to become pregnant and miscarry a fetus that conveys impurity. Even if a gentile man without a wife stays in a dwelling for 40 days, it is impure until it is inspected. This is a decree, instituted because of a dwelling where there is a woman. Even a servant, a eunuch, a woman, or a minor of nine years of age causes a dwelling to be considered as "the dwelling of a gentile."
ח
ותרומה וקדשים שנטמאו מחמת מדור העכו"ם תולין לא אוכלין ולא שורפין וכמה ישהו במקום ויהיה צריך בדיקה ארבעים יום כדי שתתעבר אשה ותפיל נפל שמטמא אפילו איש שאין עמו אשה אם שהה ארבעים יום מדורו טמא עד שיבדק גזירה משום מדור שתהיה בו אשה אפילו עבד וסריס או אשה או קטן בן תשע שנים ויום אחד עושה מדור העכו"ם:
9
If there was a Jewish servant, woman, or minor who was nine years old in a dwelling of the gentiles, guarding so that a fetus would not be buried there, an inspection is not required.
What do they inspect? The deep septic drains and the cisterns of squalid water. Wherever a pig or a mole could drag out the fetus, an inspection is not necessary, because it can be assumed that they will drag it out.
When a dwelling of the gentiles is destroyed, it is still considered impure, until it is inspected.
ט
מדור עכו"ם שהיה בו עבד (מישראל) או אשה או קטן בן תשע משמרין אותו שלא יקברו שם נפל אינו צריך בדיקה ואת מה הן בודקין את הביבין העמוקים ואת המים הסרוחין וכ"מ שהחזיר והחולדה יכולין להוליך משם הנפל אינו צריך בדיקה מפני שהן גוררי אותם משם מדור העכו"ם שחרב הרי הוא בטומאתו עד שיבדק:
10
A covered walkway is not included in the decree concerning the dwellings of the gentiles because it is open and there is no place to hide a miscarried fetus.
There are ten places where the decree concerning the dwellings of the gentiles does not apply. Since these are not permanent dwellings, a decree considering them impure was not instituted with regard to them. These are the ten places: a) Arab tents, b)sukkot, c) rubber tents, d) storage areas, e) roofed areas above pillars without walls; people would dwell there in the summer, f) guard houses, g) the open space of a courtyard, h) a bathhouse, i) a workshop where arrows and other weapons are fashioned, and j) soldiers' barracks.
י
האיצטווניות אין בהן משום מדור עכו"ם לפי שהיא גלויה ואין בה מקום להטמין הנפלים ועשרה מקומות אין בהם משום מדור עכו"ם לפי שאין דירתן קבועה לא גזרו עליהן טומאה ואלו הן העשרה מקומות אהלי הערביים והסוכות והצריפין והבורגנין והתקרה שע"ג העמודים ואין לה דפנות והן בתי הקיץ ובית שער ואוירה של חצר והמרחץ ומקום שעושין בו החצים וכלי המלחמה ומקום הלגיונות:
11
The decree applying to the dwellings of gentiles does not pertain to a store unless a gentile dwells there. When a courtyard is impure as a result of the decree applying to the dwelling of gentiles, its gatehouse and the open space above it are impure like it. The decree applying to the dwellings of gentiles and the concept of a beit hapras do not apply in the Diaspora.
יא
החנות אין בה משום מדור עכו"ם אא"כ היה דר בתוכה חצר שהיא טמאה משום מדור העכו"ם הרי בית שער שלה ואוירה טמאין כמוה ואין מדור העכו"ם ולא בית הפרס בחוצה לארץ:
12
The decree concerning the impurity of the earth of the Diaspora does not apply to gentile cities enclosed within the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael, e.g., Sisis and its suburbs, Ashkelon and its suburbs, despite the fact that they are exempt from the tithes and from the obligations of the Sabbatical year,
Although the roadways taken by festive pilgrims from Babylon are surrounded by the earth of the Diaspora, they are presumed to be pure.
יב
עיירות המובלעות בארץ ישראל כגון סיסית וחברותיה [אשקלון וחברותיה] אף על פי שפטורות מן המעשרות ומן השביעית אין בהן משום ארץ העכו"ם וחזקת דרכים של עולי בבל טהורות אע"פ שהן מובלעות בארץ העכו"ם:
• Rambam - 3 Chapters a Day
Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Seven, Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Eight, Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Nine
Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Seven, Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Eight, Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Nine
• Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Seven
1
Whenever a person becomes financially obligated to a fellow Jew, denies that obligation and takes a false oath to support his denial, should he later admit his obligation he is liable to return the principal that he denied plus a surcharge of one fifth of the new total. He is also liable to bring a sacrifice, which is called a guilt offering, for robbery.
א
כל מי שנתחייב ממון לחבירו הישראל וכפר בו ונשבע על שקר הרי זה חייב להחזיר לו הקרן שכפר בו והוספות חומש. וחייב בקרבן והוא הנקרא אשם גזלות:
2
The above applies to any of the following: one who robbed, one who withheld money due a colleague, one who stole, one who took a loan, one who was given an entrusted article, one who discovered a lost article and denied it, a partner with whom money belonging to the partnership remained, and an employer for whom a worker performed work, but was not paid.
To state the general principle: Whenever a person who admitted the obligation would be obligated by law to pay, he must pay the principal and a fifth if he denies his obligation, as Leviticus 5:21says: "If he denies his colleague's claim regarding an entrusted object...."
ב
אחד הגוזל או העושק או הגונב או שהלוהו או שהפקיד אצלו או מצא אבדה וכחש בה או שהיתה ביניהן שותפות ונשאר לו אצלו ממון או שעשה לו מלאכה ולא נתן לו שכרו כללו של דבר כל שאילו הודה חייב לשלם בדין וכפר ונשבע משלם קרן וחומש שנאמר וכחש בעמיתו בפקדון:
3
When does the above apply? When the person is obligated to pay because of his own actions. When, however, he is liable because of his father, he is not liable for the additional fifth.
What is implied? If one's father robbed or stole or was in debt to others, and the son knew of the matter, and after the father's death the son denied the claim, took an oath and afterwards admitted his liability, he need pay only the principal. For Leviticus 5:23 states: "that he obtained by robbery," implying that one is liable for an additional fifth for one's own robbery, but not for robbery committed by one's father.
ג
במה דברים אמורים כשהיה חייב לשלם מחמת עצמו אבל אם היה חייב לשלם מחמת אביו אינו משלם חומש. כיצד כגון שגזל אביו או גנב או שהיה חייב לאחרים והבן יודע וכפר הבן ונשבע ואחר כך הודה משלם הקרן בלבד שנאמר אשר גזל על גזלו הוא מוסיף חומש ואינו מוסיף חומש על גזל אביו:
4
When does the above apply? When the object obtained by robbery no longer exists. Different laws apply however, when a person's father obtained an object by robbery and then died, and the object still exists. If the heir denies his obligation, takes an oath to that effect and then admits his liability, he is liable for the principal and the addition of a fifth.
ד
במה דברים אמורים בשאין הגזלה קיימת אבל אם גזל אביו ומת והגזלה קיימת וכפר היורש ונשבע ואחר כך הודה משלם קרן וחומש:
5
If the father committed robbery, took a false oath, admitted his guilt and then died, his heir must pay the principal and the addition of a fifth.
ה
גזל האב ונשבע האב והודה ואחר כך מת הרי היורש משלם קרן וחומש:
6
If the father committed robbery, took a false oath and then died, and the heir admitted the father's guilt, the heir is liable to pay only the principal.
In either instance, the heir is not obligated to bring the guilt offering.
ו
גזל ונשבע ומת והודה היורש משלם הקרן בלבד ובין כך ובין כך היורש פטור מן האשם:
7
A person who takes a false oath in response to the claim of a gentile and later admits his guilt is obligated to pay the principal, but not the additional fifth, for Leviticus 5:21 speaks of one who "denies his colleague's claim."
Similarly, a person who takes less than the worth of a p'rutah by robbery, denies the charge and takes a false oath to that effectis not liable to pay an additional fifth, for anything less than a p'rutah'sworth is not considered a significant financial responsibility.
What is meant by an additional fifth? One fourth of the principal. For example, if a person obtained four zuz by robbery and took a false oath, he must pay five. If the object obtained by robbery itself still exists, it must be returned and a fourth of its value added.
ז
הנשבע לעכו"ם משלם את הקרן ואינו חייב בחומש שנאמר וכחש בעמיתו. וכן הגוזל פחות משוה פרוטה וכפר ונשבע אינו חייב בחומש שאין פחות משוה פרוטה ממון. כמה הוא החומש. אחד מארבעה בקרן שאם גזל שוה ארבעה ונשבע משלם חמשה. ואם היתה הגזלה קיימת מחזיר אותה ונותן דמי רביע שלה:
8
A person who takes a false oath denying a financial claim is not liable to pay an additional fifth unless he himself admits his guilt. If, however, witnesses come and despite his continued denial establish his guilt through their testimony, he is liable to pay only the principal, but not the additional fifth.
The rationale is that the additional fifth and the sacrifice were instituted for the sake of atonement. Therefore, he is obligated for them only when it is his admission that makes him liable.
ח
אין הנשבע על כפירת ממון משלם חומש עד שיודה מעצמו. אבל אם באו עדים והוא עומד בכפירתו משלם הקרן בלבד על פי עדים ואינו משלם את החומש. שהחומש עם הקרבן לכפרה הם באים ואינו מביאם אלא על פי עצמו:
9
When a person robs from a colleague, even if he denied the robbery - as long as he did not take a false oath - if he afterwards admits his guilt he is not liable to seek out the owner to return the money in his possession. Instead, it may remain in the possession of the robber until the owner comes and take his due.
If, however, he took a false oath concerning property worth ap'rutah or more, he is obligated to seek out the owner to return the money to him even if he is on far removed islands. The rationale is that once the robber took a false oath, the owner has despaired of the return of his property and will not demand it again.
ט
הגוזל את חבירו אע"פ שכפר בו הואיל ולא נשבע אם חזר והודה אינו חייב לרדוף אחר הבעלים עד שיחזיר להם ממון שבידו אלא יהא ביד הגזלן עד שיבאו הבעלים ויטלו שלהן. אבל אם נשבע על שוה פרוטה ומעלה חייב [א] לרדוף אחר הבעלים עד שיחזיר להם אפילו הם באיי הים. מפני שכבר נתייאשו מאחר שנשבע ואינן באין עוד לתבעו:
10
Even if a robber returned the entire worth of the object obtained by robbery with the exception of a p'rutah, he is obligated to bring it to the original owner. He may not give thep'rutah to the owner's son or agent unless the owner appointed an agent for this purpose in the presence of witnesses.
If the robber brings the principal and the additional fifth to the Rabbinic court in his city, he may bring a guilt offering and gain atonement thereby. The court will then ensure that the object obtained by robbery will reach its original owner. Similarly, the robber may give the article to an agent of the court. Whenever a person returns an object obtained by robbery or the like to a Rabbinic court, he has fulfilled his obligation to return it.
י
אפילו החזיר הגזלה כולה חוץ משוה פרוטה חייב להוליכה אחר הנגזל. ד ולא יתן לא לבנו של נגזל ולא [ב] לשלוחו אלא אם כן עשה הנגזל השליח בעדים. ואם הביא את הגזלה ואת החומש לבית דין שבעירו הרי זה מביא אשם ומתכפר לו ובית דין מטפלין בה עד שתגיע לבעלה. וכן נותן הוא לשליח בית דין. וכל הנותן הגזלה וכיוצא בו לבית דין יצא:
11
When the robber gave the original owner the principal, but not the additional fifth, the owner waived payment of the principal but not of the additional fifth, or he waived payment of both with the exception of less than a p'rutah's worth of the principal, the robber does not have to seek out the owner. Instead, when the owner comes he will take the remainder of what is due him.
This ruling is followed when the owner waives payment of everything but less than a p'rutah's worth of the principal even when the object obtained by robbery itself exists. We do not suspect that perhaps the value of the article will increase, and thus the portion remaining will become worth a p'rutah.
If, however, the robber gave the owner the additional fifth, but did not give him the principal, or if the owner waived payment of the additional fifth but not of the principal, or he waived payment of both with the exception of less than a p'rutah's worth of the principal, the robber must seek out the owner or give the money to the Rabbinic court in his town, as explained in the previous halachot.
יא
נתן לו את הקרן ולא נתן לו את החומש או שמחל לו את הקרן ולא מחל לו על החומש או שמחל לו על זה ועל זה חוץ מפחות שוה פרוטה בקרן אינו צריך להוליך אחריו אלא יבא הנגזל ויטול את השאר ואע"פ שהגזלה עצמה קיימת אין חוששין שמא תתייקר ונמצא הנשאר שוה פרוטה. אבל אם נתן לו את החומש ולא נתן לו את הקרן או שמחל לו על החומש ולא מחל לו על הקרן או שמחל לו על זה ועל זה חוץ משוה פרוטה בקרן חייב להוליכו אחריו או לתת לבית דין שבעירו כמו שביארנו:
12
If the robber returned the principal to the owner after denying his claim and taking a false oath and then denied owing him the additional fifth and took a false oath concerning this, the additional fifth is considered as part of the principal with regard to all matters, and the robber must pay another fifth because of it.
This is derived from Leviticus 5:24, which states: "And he shall add its fifths." The use of the plural teaches that he must add a fifth to a fifth if he continues to take false oaths until the fifth that he denies - and concerning which he takes a false oath - is worth less than ap'rutah.
יב
המחזיר את הקרן לבעלים וכפר פעם שניה בחומש ונשבע עליו נעשה החומש כקרן לכל דבר ומשלם עליו חומש אחר שנאמר וחמישיתיו יוסף עליו מלמד שהוא מוסיף חומש על חומש עד שיתמעט החומש שיכפור בו ונשבע עליו משוה פרוטה:
13
The following rule applies with regard to a person who had been entrusted with an object for safekeeping and who repeatedly took false oaths concerning the entrusted article. For example, the watchman claimed that the article was lost, took a false oath to support his claim and then admitted that it was in his possession. He then claimed it was lost and took a second false oath and then admitted it was in his possession. He must pay an additional fifth for every false oath, plus the principal.
This is derived from the phrase cited above: "And he shall add its fifths." The use of the plural teaches that he must pay several fifths for one principal.
יג
מי שהיה אצלו פקדון וטען שאבד ונשבע וחזר והודה שהוא אצלו. וחזר וטען שאבד ונשבע וחזר והודה שהוא אצלו משלם חומש לכל שבועה ושבועה עם הקרן האחד שנאמר וחמישיתיו יוסף עליו מלמד שהוא משלם כמה חומשין על קרן אחד:
Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Eight
1
When a person robs a colleague and then the person whom he robbed dies, he must return the object obtained by robbery to his heirs. If the object became lost or underwent a change, he must pay them its value. If the robber originally denied the robbery and took a false oath to that effect, he must pay the heirs the principal and an additional fifth.
א
הגוזל א את חבירו ומת הנגזל יחזיר הגזילה ליורשים. ואם אבדה או נשתנית נותן להם דמיה. ואם נשבע לו ואחר כך מת נותן ליורשים הקרן והחומש:
2
The following laws apply when a person robs his father and takes a false oath, and then the father dies. If the object obtained by robbery no longer exists, or it has undergone a change, he should make a reckoning with his brothers with regard to the principal and the additional fifth. If the object obtained by robbery exists, he is obligated to remove it from his possession. Therefore, he must give the object and the additional fifth to his brothers, and they must make a reckoning with him.
ב
הגוזל את אביו ונשבע לו ומת האב. אם אין הגזילה קיימת או נשתנית עושה חשבון עם אחיו על הקרן ועל החומש. ואם הגזילה קיימת חייב להוציא הגזלה עצמה מתחת ידו. לפיכך נותן את הגזלה ואת החומש לאחיו ועושה עמהן ב חשבון:
3
If the robber does not have any brothers, and he is thus the only heir, he must still remove the object obtained by robbery from his possession by giving it to his children.
If this son who robbed his father does not have children, he may give it to his creditor, give it as a loan or give it to charity. In such instances, since he has removed the object itself from his possession, he is no longer under obligation, even though he gave it as a present or repaid his debt with it. He must, however, tell the recipient: "This article was obtained by robbery from my father."
ג
אם אין לו אחין שנמצא זה הגזלן לבדו הוא היורש מוציא הגזלה מתחת ידו לבניו ואם אין בנים לזה הבן הגזלן נותנה לבעל חובו או בהלואתו או לצדקה הואיל ויצאה גזלה עצמה מתחת ידו נפטר אע"פ שנתנה מתנה או פרעה בחובו והוא שיודיעם ג ויאמר זה גזל אבא:
4
Similar laws apply in the following instance. A person robs a convert, takes a false oath in response to his claim and then admits the robbery to him, and the convert considers the entire obligation a debt. If afterwards the convert dies, the robber acquires the object obtained by robbery as his own. He nevertheless is obligated to remove it from his possession.
ד
וכן הגוזל את הגר ונשבע לו וחזר והודה לו וזקף עליו הכל מלוה ואחר כך מת הגר אף על פי שזכה בגזילה חייב להוציאה [א] מתחת ידו:
5
When does the above apply? When he admitted the robbery to the convert in the interim. If, however, he robbed a convert who did not have any heirs and took a false oath to him, and the convert died, he is obligated to pay the principal and the additional fifth to the priests of the watch serving in the Temple that week. He then brings a guilt offering and thus achieves atonement.
ה
במה דברים אמורים
6
Based on the Oral Tradition, it was taught that the verse in the Torah Numbers 5:8: "If a person does not have a redeemer..." refers to a convert who died without leaving heirs. The guilt offering the verse refers to is the object obtained by robbery or its worth.
For this reason, a person who returns an object that had been obtained by robbing a convert to the priests at night does not fulfill his obligation. For the verse describes this return as a guilt offering, and sacrifices are not offered at night.
The priests may not divide one object obtained by robbing a convert together with another object obtained by robbing a convert, just as they are not permitted to divide the meat of one guilt offering together with the meat of another guilt offering.
ו
מפי השמועה למדו שזה שנאמר בתורה ואם אין לאיש גואל בגר שמת ואין לו יורשים הכתוב מדבר ואשם זה האמור כאן הוא הגזילה או דמיה. לפיכך המחזיר גזל הגר בלילה לא יצא. שהרי אשם קראו הכתוב ואין מקריבין בלילה. ואין הכהנים חולקין גזל הגר כנגד גזל הגר כדרך שאין חולקין בשר אשם נגד בשר אשם אחר:
7
Whenever the value of an object obtained by robbing a convert is not sufficient to give every priest from the watch of that week at least a p'rutah's worth, the robber who returns it does not fulfill his obligation. This is implied by Numbers, ibid., which states "it should be returned to God, to the priest," implying that a significant value must be returned to each priest.
Why does the verse referring to the robbery of a convert use the term "a man"? To teach that if the convert has attained majority, we must research the matter to determine whether or not he has heirs. If, however, the convert is a minor, there is no need to research the matter, for we can assume that he does not have heirs.
ז
כל גזל הגר שאין בו שוה פרוטה לכל כהן וכהן מאנשי משמר לא יצא המחזירו ידי השבה שנאמר המושב לה' לכהן עד שתהיה השבה לכל כהן. ולמה נאמר בגזל הגר איש שהאיש אתה צריך לחקור ולחזר עליו אם יש לו יורשים או אם אין לו אבל אם היה הגר [ב] קטן אי אתה צריך לחזר עליו אלא חזקתו שאין לו יורשים:
8
With regard to the repayment of property obtained by robbing a convert, the priests are considered as recipients of presents. Therefore, when a person robs chametz from a convert who dies without heirs and maintains possession of the chametz that he obtained by robbery during Pesach, he is obligated to pay the priests its value at the time of the robbery. For if he gave it to them at the present time, it would not be considered to be a gift, for one is forbidden to benefit from it. If, however, the convert himself were still alive, he could tell him: "Here is your article," as we have explained.
ח
הכהנים בגזל הגר כמקבלי מתנות הן. לפיכך הגוזל חמץ מן הגר שאין לו יורשים ועבר עליו הפסח חייב ליתן לכהנים את דמיו כשעת הגזלה. שאם יתנהו להן עכשיו אינה מתנה שהרי הוא אסור בהנאה ואילו היה הגר קיים היה אומר לו הרי שלך לפניך כמו שביארנו:
9
When a priest robs from a convert who has no heirs, takes a false oath to him, and then the convert dies before the object obtained by robbery is returned to him, the priest does not acquire the object in his possession. Instead, he must give it to his brethren, the priests of the watch serving in the Temple that week.
ט
כהן שגזל גר שאין לו יורשים ונשבע לו ומת הגר לא זכה זה בגזלו שתחת ידו אלא יוציא מתחת ידו לכל אחיו הכהנים בני המשמורת:
10
The following rules apply when a person robs from a convert, takes a false oath to him, the convert dies, the robber sets aside his guilt offering and the object obtained by robbery with the intent of bringing them to the priests, but dies before he could gain atonement. The robber's sons inherit the money set aside to pay for the object obtained by robbery or the object itself. The animal set aside for the guilt offering should pasture until it receives a disqualifying blemish, as has been explained in the appropriate place.
י
הגוזל את הגר ונשבע לו ומת הגר והפריש אשמו וגזלתו להעלותן לכהנים ומת הגזלן קודם כפרה הרי בני הגזלן יורשים את כסף הגזלה או הגזלה עצמה והאשם ירעה עד שיפול בו מום כמו שביארנו במקומו:
11
If the robber gave the money to the priests of the watch, but died before the sacrifice that brings him atonement could be offered, the robber's heirs may not expropriate the money from the priests.
This is derived from Numbers 5:10: "When a man gives it to the priest, it shall be his." Even when the robber is a child who does not have the halachic capacity to give his property away as a present, his heirs cannot have the property expropriated from the priests.
יא
נתן הגזלן את הכסף לאנשי משמר [ג] ומת קודם כפרה אין יורשי הגזלן יכולין להוציא מיד הכהנים שנאמר איש אשר יתן לכהן לו יהיה. ואפילו היה הגזלן קטן שאין מתנתו מתנה אין יורשים מוציאין מיד הכהנים:
12
If the robber gave the money to priests from a watch that was not serving in the Temple at that time, and the animal to be sacrificed as the guilt offering to the priests of the watch serving in the Temple that week, the money should be given to the priests of the appropriate watch. For a watch that took money at a time other than its week did not acquire it, and it may be expropriated from the members of that watch.
יב
נתן את הכסף לאחת מן המשמרות ואת האשם למשמרה זו שהיא שבתה יחזיר הכסף אצל האשם לאנשי המשמרה הקבועה שהמשמרה שלקחה כסף בלא שבתה לא זכתה ומוציאין מידה:
13
The guilt offering should not be sacrificed until the robber returns the principal to its owner, or to the priests if it was a convert without heirs who was robbed.
If the robber gave the owner the principal but not the additional fifth and had the guilt offering sacrificed, he is granted atonement, for the additional fifth does not prevent atonement from being granted. He is, however, obligated to give the owner the additional fifth after receiving atonement.
יג
אין מקריבין את האשם עד שיחזיר הגזלן הקרן לבעלים או לכהנים אם היה גזל גר שאין לו יורשים. נתן את הקרן והקריב אשמו נתכפר לו ואין החומש מעכב הכפרה וחייב ליתן את החומש אחר כפרה:
14
The obligation to pay an additional fifth does not apply with regard to the robbery of Canaanite servants, promissory notes and landed property. This is derived from Leviticus 5:21, which states: "If he denies his colleague's claim regarding an entrusted object...." All the subjects mentioned in the verse are movable property that itself has financial worth. Thus, it excludes landed property - and servants, for they are equated with landed property - and promissory notes, for they themselves are not of financial worth.
Similarly, if these articles were obtained by robbing a convert who has no heirs, there is no obligation to give them to the priests.
Moreover, landed property never becomes the property of a robber, but rather it always remains the property of its rightful owner. Even if it were to be sold to a thousand people in succession and the owner were to despair of its return, it must be returned to its rightful owner without charge.
The person from whom it was expropriated should then sue the person who sold it to him. Each person in turn should sue the one who sold it to him, until the person who purchases it from the robber should sue the robber and collect from him, as will be explained in the following chapter.
יד
העבדים והשטרות והקרקעות אין בהן תוספת חומש שנאמר וכחש בעמיתו בפקדון כל האמור בענין מטלטלין הוא וגופן ממון יצאו קרקעות ועבדים שהוקשו לקרקעות ויצאו שטרות שאין גופן ממון. וכן אם היו גזל גר שאין לו יורשים אינן חוזרים לכהנים. א וכן הקרקע [ד] אינה נקנית לעולם לגזלן אלא ברשות בעליה עומדת. ואפילו נמכרה לאלף זה אחר זה ונתייאשו הבעלים הרי זו חוזרת לנגזל בלא דמים. וכל מי שיצאה מתחת ידו חוזרת על זה שמכרה לו וחוזר המוכר השני על המוכר הראשון עד שיחזור הלוקח מן הגזלן על הגזלן ויטול ממנו כמו שיתבאר:
Gezelah va'Avedah - Chapter Nine
1
The following rules apply when a person robs a colleague of property and depreciates its value - e.g., he digs cisterns, trenches or caverns in it, or he cuts down trees, spoils springs or destroys a building - he is obligated to return the house or the field in its original condition, or to pay the owner for the depreciation of value.
If, however, the property depreciats in value as a result of natural phenomena - e.g., the flooding of a river or a fire that came as a result of lightning - the robber can tell the owner: "Here is your property." For landed property remains in the possession of its owner at all times, and the robber is not responsible for its decrease in value. Therefore, he is responsible only when he personally causes the damages. This is not the case with regard to movable property, as has been explained.
א
הגוזל קרקע מחבירו והפסידה. כגון שחפר בה בורות שיחין ומערות או שקצץ את האילנות ושחת את המעיינות והרס הבנין חייב להעמיד לו בית או שדה כשהיו בשעת הגזלה או ישלם דמי מה שהפסיד.
2
The following rules apply when a person robs a colleague of a field and it was in turn taken from him by robbery and seized by brigands in the name of the king. If this is a condition that plagues the land as a whole - e.g., the king has confiscated the fields or homes of all the land's inhabitants - the robber can tell the owner: "Here is your property." If, however, it was confiscated because of the robber, the robber is obligated to provide the owner with another field.
ב
גזל שדה ונגזלה ממנו ונטלוה מציקים בכח המלך. אם מכת מדינה היא כגון שלקח המלך שדות או בתים של כל אנשי המדינה אומר לו הרי שלך לפניך ואם מחמת הגזלן נלקחה חייב להעמיד לו שדה אחרת:
3
If the king compelled the robber to show him all the property he owned, and the robber showed him the field that he obtained by robbery together with his other fields, and the king confiscated it, the robber is obligated to provide the owner with another field comparable to the one taken, or to pay its value.
ג
אנס המלך את הגזלן [א] ואמר לו הראה לנו כל מה שיש לך והראה שדה זו שגזל בכלל שדותיו ונטלה המלך. חייב להעמיד לו שדה אחרת כמותה או נותן דמיה:
4
When a person obtains a field by robbery and damages it by his actions, the owner of the field is entitled to collect the damages only from the property in the robber's possession; his obligation is equivalent to that of a loan supported by a verbal commitment.
If the robber was called to court and obligated to pay for the damage to the property obtained by robbery, and afterwards sells other property that he owned, the rightful owner of the property taken by robbery may collect his due from properties that the robber has already sold.
ד
גזל שדה והפסידה בידו כשבעל השדה גובה את דמי מה שהפסיד הגזלן גובה אותן מנכסים בני חורין מפני שהיא כמלוה על פה. ואם עמד הגזלן בדין ונתחייב לשלם ואחר כך מכר גובה מנכסים משועבדין:
5
If a person obtains properts by robbery and benefits from its produce, he must pay for all the produce that he consumed from the property in his possession.
When a person obtains landed property by robbery and increases its worth, the increase should be evaluated. The robber is placed at a disadvantage. If the increase in the property's value is greater than the expenses he undertook, the owner is required to reimburse him only for the expenses. If the expenses he undertook are greater than the increase in the property's value, he receives reimbursement for the expenses only to the extent of the increase in value.
ה
גזל שדה ואכל פירותיה משלם כל הפירות שאכל מנכסים בני חורין. גזל והשביח שמין לו וידו על התחתונה אם השבח יתר על ההוצאה נוטל ההוצאה בלבד מן הנגזל ואם ההוצאה יתירה על השבח אין לו מן ההוצאה אלא שיעור השבח:
6
The following rules apply when a person obtains a field by robbery and sells it, and the purchaser causes its value to increase. If the increase in value is greater than the purchaser's expenses, he should be reimbursed for his expenses by the owner. He should collect the principal and the remainder of the increase in value from the robber.
ו
גזל שדה ומכרה והשביחה הלוקח [ב] אם השבח יתר על ההוצאה נוטל ההוצאה מבעל השדה והקרן נוטל עם שאר השבח מן הגזלן:
7
The purchaser may collect the principal even from encumbered property that the robber had sold. By contrast, he may collect the remainder of the increase in the property's value only from property presently in the robber's possession.
If the purchaser was aware that the field had been obtained by robbery when he purchased it, he is entitled to collect only the principal. He forfeits the increase in the property's value that exceeds his expense.
If his expense was greater than the increase in value, regardless of whether or not he recognized that the field was obtained by robbery, he receives reimbursement for the expenses only to the extent of the increase in value. This he collects from the owner of the field. He collects the principal from the robber, even from encumbered property that the robber had sold.
ז
הקרן גובה מנכסים משועבדים ושאר השבח מנכסים בני חורין. ואם הכיר בה שהיא גזולה כשלקחה אינו נוטל מן הגזלן אלא הקרן בלבד ומפסיד שאר השבח היתר על ההוצאה. היתה ההוצאה יתירה על השבח בין שהכיר בה שהיא גזולה בין שלא הכיר אין לו מן ההוצאה אלא שיעור השבח נוטל מבעל השדה והקרן נוטל מן הגזלן מנכסים משועבדין:
8
The following rules apply when a person obtains a field by robbery, sells it, and the purchaser derives benefit from its produce. He should calculate the value of the produce that he consumed and pay that to the owner of the field. He should collect this money from the property in the possession of robber.
If he was aware that it was obtained by robbery, he is not entitled to reimbursement for the produce, and may collect only the principal from the robber.
ח
הגוזל שדה ומכרה ואכל הלוקח פירותיה מחשבין עליו כל הפירות שאכל ומשלם לבעל השדה וחוזר וגובה אותן מן הגזלן מנכסים בני חורין. ואם הכיר בה שגזולה היא אין לו פירות ואינו גובה מן הגזלן אלא הקרן בלבד:
9
When a person sells a field that does not belong to him, the sale is not binding and the purchaser does not acquire anything, as we have explained. If, however, after selling the field, the robber purchased the field from its rightful owner, the sale to the purchaser is binding.
Even if the robber gave the field obtained by robbery away as a present and then purchased it from its rightful owner, the present is binding, because the thief took the trouble to purchase it so that he will have acted in good faith.
ט
המוכר שדה שאינה שלו אין ממכרן ממכר ולא קנה לוקח כלום כמו שביארנו. חזר הגזלן אחר שמכרה ולקחה מבעליה נתקיימה ביד [ג] הלוקח מן הגזלן. ואפילו נתנה לו הגזלן מתנה כשהיתה גזולה בידו כיון שחזר ולקחה נתקיימה ביד זה שקבל המתנה שמפני זה טרח הגזלן עד שקנאה כדי [ד] לעמוד בנאמנותו:
10
For this reason, if the purchaser sued the robber for selling him a field that did not belong to him, the robber was obligated to pay, the court ordered that an announcement be made regarding the sale of the robber's property in order to pay the purchaser, and the robber purchased the field from its rightful owner after the announcement was made, the original sale to the purchaser is not binding.
Since a public announcement was made to expropriate his property, it was revealed that the robber had not acted in good faith. We thus conclude that he did not purchase the field from its rightful owner in order to establish the validity of the original sale.
י
לפיכך אם תבע הלוקח את הגזלן מפני שמכר לו שדה שאינה שלו ונתחייב לשלם והתחיל [ה] בית דין להכריז על נכסי הגזלן כדי להגבות מהן ללוקח ואחר שהתחילו ההכרזה לקחה הגזלן מן הבעלים לא נתקיימה ביד הלוקח. שמאחר שהכריזו על נכסיו נתגלה שאינו נאמן ולא לקחה מן הבעלים כדי להעמידה ביד הלוקח:
11
If after selling the field he obtained by robbery, the robber purchased it from its rightful owner, but then sold it again, gave it away as a present or endowed it as an inheritance to another person, he has indicated that his intent in purchasing the field was not to establish the validity of the sale to the person who bought it after it was obtained by robbery.
Similarly, if the robber acquired the property as an inheritance, the validity of the original sale is not established.
יא
לקחה הגזלן מן הבעלים אחר שמכרה כשהיא גזולה וחזר ומכרה לאחר או נתנה במתנה או הורישה. הרי גילה דעתו שאינו רוצה להעמידה ביד זה שלקחה ממנו כשהיתה גזולה. וכן אם נפלה לגזלן בירושה לא נתקיימה ביד הלוקח:
12
The following principles apply if the robber expropriated from its owner the property that he had sold as payment for a debt. If the owner had property other than this, and the robber told him: "I want to collect this," we assume that his intent was to establish the validity of his sale. If, however, the owner had no other property besides this, his intent could have been solely to collect his debt.
יב
גבאה הגזלן בחובו. אם יש לנגזל קרקע אחרת ואמר לו הגזלן זו אני גובה בחובי הרי זה מתכוין להעמידה ביד הלוקח. ואם אין לנגזל קרקע אלא זו לגבות חובו הוא שנתכוון:
13
If the original owner gave the property to the robber later as a present, the purchaser acquires it. The rationale is that if the robber had not exerted himself on behalf of the owner, he would not have given him a present. Why then did he exert himself on behalf of the owner? So that the owner would give him the property and then he could act in good faith and establish the validity of his original sale.
יג
נתנוה הבעלים ה לגזלן מתנה קנאה הלוקח שאילו לא טרח לבעלים לא היו נותנים לו במתנה ומפני זה טרח כדי שיזכה בה בדין ויעמוד בנאמנותו ותתקיים ביד הלוקח:
14
The following rules apply when a person obtains a field by robbery, and after it was established that his intent was to take it by robbery, he then purchases it from the original owner. If the original owner claims: "I was acting under coercion at the time that I sold it to him. I sold it to him against my will, because he was a robber," the robber does not acquire the field, even though there are witnesses that he purchased the field in their presence. Instead, the field should be restored to its original owner, and the robber should be given back the money that he paid.
יד
הגוזל שדה ואחר שגזלה והוחזק גזלן עליה חזר ולקחה מבעלים הראשונים וטען הנגזל ואמר אנוס הייתי בשעה שמכרתיה לו ושלא לדעתי מכרתי מחמת גזלנותו לא זכה הגזלן אע"פ שיש לו עדים שבפניהם לקחה ותחזור השדה לבעלים ומחזירין לגזלן הדמים שנתן:
15
When is the money returned to the robber? When the witnesses testify that he counted out the money in their presence.
If, however, the witnesses testify that the owner of the land sold the robber the field and acknowledged that he gave him such and such an amount of money in their presence, and the owner claims that he never received the money and acknowledged this only because of his fear of the robber, then the robber is not given anything. Instead, the field is expropriated from him without payment. Since it has been established that the field was taken by robbery, we believe the owner's claim that he acknowledged the payment only out of fear.
טו
במה דברים אמורים כשהעידו העדים שמנה בפניהם את המעות. אבל אם העידו שבעל הקרקע מכר לגזלן והודה לו בפניהם שנתן לו דמים כך וכך והנגזל טוען שלא נתן לו דמים ומחמת יראה הודה לו אין לגזלן כלום אלא מוציאין ממנו השדה בלא דמים מפני שלא הודה לו אלא מפני הפחד כשטען הואיל והוחזק גזלן עליה:
16
The owner of the field does not have to issue a protest over the sale in such an instance, for it has been established that the field was taken by robbery, and any proof of ownership brought by the robber is not accepted. For this reason, he need not issue a protest.
The laws pertaining to a robber are not the same as those that apply when a person coerces a colleague and inflicts physical harm upon him until he sells the property to him. For the person who applies coercion intends to rob, but as yet has not robbed. Therefore, in that instance, if the owner does not issue a protest, the sale is binding.
טז
אין בעל השדה צריך לעשות [ו] מודעה על מכר זה הואיל והוחזק זה גזלן על שדה זו ואין ראייתו בה ראיה ואין צריך למסור מודעה. ואין דין גזלן כדין האונס את חבירו ותלה אותו עד שימכור לו. שזה האונס אינו רוצה לגזול ולא גזלו עדיין כלום לפיכך אם לא מסר המוכר האנוס מודעא ממכרו קיים:
Hayom Yom: Today's Hayom Yom
• Wednesday, 21 Tammuz, 5776 · 27 July 2016
• "Today's Day"
• Shabbat Tamuz 21 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Pinchas, Shevi'i with Rashi.
Tehillim: 104-105.
Tanya: To explain: (p. 357) ...the Tetragrammaton... (p. 361).
We do not say she'he'cheyanu during the Three Weeks1 even on Shabbat.
It is written: They shall make Me a sanctuary and I shall dwell within them.2 "Within them" means within every one of Israel. For within every Jew, the core-point of the heart's inner essence is a sanctuary for His dwelling (may He be blessed).
The site of the sanctuary remains sacred, even in times of exile and desolation. In Midrash Sh'mot Raba Chapter 2, R. Acha says: "The Shechina (Divine Presence) never departs from the Western Wall." All the desolation is limited to the buildings. So too, is the case with the personal sanctuary within each of Israel; the foundation is whole, clear and pure, as it is written, I am asleep but my heart is alert.3 Midrash Raba comments: "I am asleep for mitzvot, but my heart is alert for acts of kindness; I am asleep for charities, but my heart is alert to perform them." Every form of (spiritual) desolation (may G‑d rescue us from such) found in the people Israel is only in those aspects of the people analagous to buildings above the foundation. The foundation of the individual sanctuary, however, remains in its holy state.
Compiled and arranged by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, of righteous memory, in 5703 (1943) from the talks and letters of the sixth Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, of righteous memory.
FOOTNOTES
1.Between Tamuz 17 and Tisha B'Av (Av 9).
2.Sh'mot 25:8.
3.Shir HaShirim 5:2.
• Daily Thought:
Conscious Creation
He creates with Consciousness.
First, He is conscious of a world, of time and space. And so, that world exists.
But that is not enough; for it exists, but it is not a thing of its own. Its only value is extrinsic—His consciousness of it from beyond.
So then He is conscious of that world from within. He judges, He makes distinctions. He says, “It should be like this and not like that. This I like, this I do not.” He plays by the rules of the game that He has made.
It is in this consciousness that a true world is born, a place that feels, “Yes, I exist.”
Torah lessons: Chumash: Pinchas, Shevi'i with Rashi.
Tehillim: 104-105.
Tanya: To explain: (p. 357) ...the Tetragrammaton... (p. 361).
We do not say she'he'cheyanu during the Three Weeks1 even on Shabbat.
It is written: They shall make Me a sanctuary and I shall dwell within them.2 "Within them" means within every one of Israel. For within every Jew, the core-point of the heart's inner essence is a sanctuary for His dwelling (may He be blessed).
The site of the sanctuary remains sacred, even in times of exile and desolation. In Midrash Sh'mot Raba Chapter 2, R. Acha says: "The Shechina (Divine Presence) never departs from the Western Wall." All the desolation is limited to the buildings. So too, is the case with the personal sanctuary within each of Israel; the foundation is whole, clear and pure, as it is written, I am asleep but my heart is alert.3 Midrash Raba comments: "I am asleep for mitzvot, but my heart is alert for acts of kindness; I am asleep for charities, but my heart is alert to perform them." Every form of (spiritual) desolation (may G‑d rescue us from such) found in the people Israel is only in those aspects of the people analagous to buildings above the foundation. The foundation of the individual sanctuary, however, remains in its holy state.
Compiled and arranged by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, of righteous memory, in 5703 (1943) from the talks and letters of the sixth Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, of righteous memory.
FOOTNOTES
1.Between Tamuz 17 and Tisha B'Av (Av 9).
2.Sh'mot 25:8.
3.Shir HaShirim 5:2.
• Daily Thought:
Conscious Creation
He creates with Consciousness.
First, He is conscious of a world, of time and space. And so, that world exists.
But that is not enough; for it exists, but it is not a thing of its own. Its only value is extrinsic—His consciousness of it from beyond.
So then He is conscious of that world from within. He judges, He makes distinctions. He says, “It should be like this and not like that. This I like, this I do not.” He plays by the rules of the game that He has made.
It is in this consciousness that a true world is born, a place that feels, “Yes, I exist.”
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