Today's Laws and Customs:
Selichot
The Selichot ("supplication") prayers are recited in the early morning hours, before the morning prayers, in preparation for the "Days of Awe" of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Links: More on Selichot
Elul Observances
As the last month of the Jewish year, Elul is traditionaly a time of introspection and stocktaking -- a time to review one's deeds and spiritual progress over the past year and prepare for the upcoming "Days of Awe" of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur.
As the month of Divine Mercy and Forgiveness (see "Today in Jewish History" forElul 1) it is a most opportune time for teshuvah ("return" to G-d), prayer, charity, and increased Ahavat Yisrael (love for a fellow Jew) in the quest for self-improvement and coming closer to G-d. Chassidic master Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi likens the month of Elul to a time when "the king is in the field" and, in contrast to when he is in the royal palace, "everyone who so desires is permitted to meet him, and he receives them all with a cheerful countenance and shows a smiling face to them all."
Specific Elul customs include the daily sounding of the shofar (ram's horn) as a call to repentance. The Baal Shem Tov instituted the custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms). Click below to view today's Psalms.
Chapter 79 Chapter 80 Chapter 81
Psalms 79:(0) A psalm of Asaf:
(1) God, the pagans have entered your heritage.
They have defiled your holy temple
and turned Yerushalayim into rubble.
2 They have given the corpses of your servants
as food for the birds in the air,
yes, the flesh of those faithful to you
for the wild animals of the earth.
3 All around Yerushalayim
they have shed their blood like water,
and no one is left to bury them.
4 We suffer the taunts of our neighbors,
we are mocked and scorned by those around us.
5 How long, Adonai?
Will you be angry forever?
How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your wrath on the nations that don’t know you,
on the kingdoms that don’t call out your name;
7 for they have devoured Ya‘akov
and left his home a waste.
8 Don’t count past iniquities against us,
but let your compassion come quickly to meet us,
for we have been brought very low.
9 Help us, God of our salvation,
for the sake of the glory of your name.
Deliver us, forgive our sins,
for your name’s sake.
10 Why should the nations ask,
“Where is their God?”
Let the vengeance taken on your servants’ shed blood
be known among the nations before our eyes.
11 Let the groaning of the captives come before you;
by your great strength save those condemned to death.
12 Repay our neighbors sevenfold where they can feel it
for the insults they inflicted on you, Adonai.
13 Then we, your people and the flock in your pasture,
will give you thanks forever.
From generation to generation
we will proclaim your praise.
80:(0) For the leader. Set to “Lilies.” A testimony. A psalm of Asaf:
2 (1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen!
You who lead Yosef like a flock,
you whose throne is on the k’ruvim,
shine out!
3 (2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh,
rouse your power; and come to save us.
4 (3) God, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
5 (4) Adonai, God of armies, how long
will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
6 (5) You have fed them tears as their bread
and made them drink tears in abundance.
7 (6) You make our neighbors fight over us,
and our enemies mock us.
8 (7) God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
9 (8) You brought a vine out of Egypt,
you expelled the nations and planted it,
10 (9) you cleared a space for it;
then it took root firmly and filled the land.
11 (10) The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;
12 (11) It put out branches as far as the sea
and shoots to the [Euphrates] River.
13 (12) Why did you break down [the vineyard’s] wall,
so that all passing by can pluck [its fruit]?
14 (13) The boar from the forest tears it apart;
wild creatures from the fields feed on it.
15 (14) God of armies, please come back!
Look from heaven, see, and tend this vine!
16 (15) Protect what your right hand planted,
the son you made strong for yourself.
17 (16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down;
they perish at your frown of rebuke.
18 (17) Help the man at your right hand,
the son of man you made strong for yourself.
19 (18) Then we won’t turn away from you —
if you revive us, we will call on your name.
20 (19) Adonai, God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
81:1 (0) For the Leader. On the gittit. By Asaf:
2 (1) Sing for joy to God our strength!
Shout to the God of Ya‘akov!
3 (2) Start the music! Beat the drum!
Play the sweet lyre and the lute!
4 (3) Sound the shofar at Rosh-Hodesh
and at full moon for the pilgrim feast,
5 (4) because this is a law for Isra’el,
a ruling of the God of Ya‘akov.
6 (5) He placed it as a testimony in Y’hosef
when he went out against the land of Egypt.
I heard an unfamiliar voice say,
7 (6) “I lifted the load from his shoulder;
his hands were freed from the [laborer’s] basket.
8 (7) You called out when you were in trouble,
and I rescued you;
I answered you from the thundercloud;
I tested you at the M’rivah Spring [by saying,] (Selah)
9 (8) “‘Hear, my people, while I give you warning!
Isra’el, if you would only listen to me!
10 (9) There is not to be with you any foreign god;
you are not to worship an alien god.
11 (10) I am Adonai your God,
who brought you up from the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth, and I will fill it.’
12 (11) “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Isra’el would have none of me.
13 (12) So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to live by their own plans.
14 (13) How I wish my people would listen to me,
that Isra’el would live by my ways!
15 (14) I would quickly subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes.
16 (15) Those who hate Adonai would cringe before him,
while [Isra’el’s] time would last forever.
17 (16) They would be fed with the finest wheat,
and I would satisfy you with honey from the rocks.”
Elul is also the time to have one's tefillin and mezuzot checked by an accredited scribe to ensure that they are in good condition and fit for use.
Links: More on Elul
Today in Jewish History:
Passing of Belzer Rebbe (1855)
Elul 27 is the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Shalom Rokeach (1779-1855), founder of the Belz Chassidic dynasty.
Daily Quote:
When G-d desired to create man, Truth said: "He should not be created, for he will be full of lies." Kindness said: "He should be created, for he will be full of kindness."[Midrash Rabbah, Bereishit 8:5]
Daily Study:
Let Him In
So strange.
We trust that He is good, and that all He does is good.
Yet we pray. Because to us things don’t look so good. After all, His goodness is so distant from us. Beyond our understanding. Far beyond.
If so, shouldn’t we simply continue to trust? To surrender to a higher understanding?
Yet He asks us to pray. To complain and to kvetch. And He listens. And He answers our prayers.
Because this is what He most desires from us: that we make room for Him in our lives, in all that matters to us as flesh and blood human beings.
And that begins when we share with Him those things that touch us most deeply. Deep within our hearts.
“Serve G‑d, your G‑d, with all your heart,” the Torah says. The sages ask, “What kind of service do you do with your heart?”
And they answer, “Prayer.”
Pour out your heart to Him. It is the one place He can only enter once you let Him in.
-------Selichot
The Selichot ("supplication") prayers are recited in the early morning hours, before the morning prayers, in preparation for the "Days of Awe" of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Links: More on Selichot
Elul Observances
As the last month of the Jewish year, Elul is traditionaly a time of introspection and stocktaking -- a time to review one's deeds and spiritual progress over the past year and prepare for the upcoming "Days of Awe" of Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur.
As the month of Divine Mercy and Forgiveness (see "Today in Jewish History" forElul 1) it is a most opportune time for teshuvah ("return" to G-d), prayer, charity, and increased Ahavat Yisrael (love for a fellow Jew) in the quest for self-improvement and coming closer to G-d. Chassidic master Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi likens the month of Elul to a time when "the king is in the field" and, in contrast to when he is in the royal palace, "everyone who so desires is permitted to meet him, and he receives them all with a cheerful countenance and shows a smiling face to them all."
Specific Elul customs include the daily sounding of the shofar (ram's horn) as a call to repentance. The Baal Shem Tov instituted the custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms). Click below to view today's Psalms.
Chapter 79 Chapter 80 Chapter 81
Psalms 79:(0) A psalm of Asaf:
(1) God, the pagans have entered your heritage.
They have defiled your holy temple
and turned Yerushalayim into rubble.
2 They have given the corpses of your servants
as food for the birds in the air,
yes, the flesh of those faithful to you
for the wild animals of the earth.
3 All around Yerushalayim
they have shed their blood like water,
and no one is left to bury them.
4 We suffer the taunts of our neighbors,
we are mocked and scorned by those around us.
5 How long, Adonai?
Will you be angry forever?
How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your wrath on the nations that don’t know you,
on the kingdoms that don’t call out your name;
7 for they have devoured Ya‘akov
and left his home a waste.
8 Don’t count past iniquities against us,
but let your compassion come quickly to meet us,
for we have been brought very low.
9 Help us, God of our salvation,
for the sake of the glory of your name.
Deliver us, forgive our sins,
for your name’s sake.
10 Why should the nations ask,
“Where is their God?”
Let the vengeance taken on your servants’ shed blood
be known among the nations before our eyes.
11 Let the groaning of the captives come before you;
by your great strength save those condemned to death.
12 Repay our neighbors sevenfold where they can feel it
for the insults they inflicted on you, Adonai.
13 Then we, your people and the flock in your pasture,
will give you thanks forever.
From generation to generation
we will proclaim your praise.
80:(0) For the leader. Set to “Lilies.” A testimony. A psalm of Asaf:
2 (1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen!
You who lead Yosef like a flock,
you whose throne is on the k’ruvim,
shine out!
3 (2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh,
rouse your power; and come to save us.
4 (3) God, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
5 (4) Adonai, God of armies, how long
will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
6 (5) You have fed them tears as their bread
and made them drink tears in abundance.
7 (6) You make our neighbors fight over us,
and our enemies mock us.
8 (7) God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
9 (8) You brought a vine out of Egypt,
you expelled the nations and planted it,
10 (9) you cleared a space for it;
then it took root firmly and filled the land.
11 (10) The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;
12 (11) It put out branches as far as the sea
and shoots to the [Euphrates] River.
13 (12) Why did you break down [the vineyard’s] wall,
so that all passing by can pluck [its fruit]?
14 (13) The boar from the forest tears it apart;
wild creatures from the fields feed on it.
15 (14) God of armies, please come back!
Look from heaven, see, and tend this vine!
16 (15) Protect what your right hand planted,
the son you made strong for yourself.
17 (16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down;
they perish at your frown of rebuke.
18 (17) Help the man at your right hand,
the son of man you made strong for yourself.
19 (18) Then we won’t turn away from you —
if you revive us, we will call on your name.
20 (19) Adonai, God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
81:1 (0) For the Leader. On the gittit. By Asaf:
2 (1) Sing for joy to God our strength!
Shout to the God of Ya‘akov!
3 (2) Start the music! Beat the drum!
Play the sweet lyre and the lute!
4 (3) Sound the shofar at Rosh-Hodesh
and at full moon for the pilgrim feast,
5 (4) because this is a law for Isra’el,
a ruling of the God of Ya‘akov.
6 (5) He placed it as a testimony in Y’hosef
when he went out against the land of Egypt.
I heard an unfamiliar voice say,
7 (6) “I lifted the load from his shoulder;
his hands were freed from the [laborer’s] basket.
8 (7) You called out when you were in trouble,
and I rescued you;
I answered you from the thundercloud;
I tested you at the M’rivah Spring [by saying,] (Selah)
9 (8) “‘Hear, my people, while I give you warning!
Isra’el, if you would only listen to me!
10 (9) There is not to be with you any foreign god;
you are not to worship an alien god.
11 (10) I am Adonai your God,
who brought you up from the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth, and I will fill it.’
12 (11) “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Isra’el would have none of me.
13 (12) So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to live by their own plans.
14 (13) How I wish my people would listen to me,
that Isra’el would live by my ways!
15 (14) I would quickly subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes.
16 (15) Those who hate Adonai would cringe before him,
while [Isra’el’s] time would last forever.
17 (16) They would be fed with the finest wheat,
and I would satisfy you with honey from the rocks.”
Elul is also the time to have one's tefillin and mezuzot checked by an accredited scribe to ensure that they are in good condition and fit for use.
Links: More on Elul
Today in Jewish History:
Passing of Belzer Rebbe (1855)
Elul 27 is the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Shalom Rokeach (1779-1855), founder of the Belz Chassidic dynasty.
Daily Quote:
When G-d desired to create man, Truth said: "He should not be created, for he will be full of lies." Kindness said: "He should be created, for he will be full of kindness."[Midrash Rabbah, Bereishit 8:5]
Daily Study:
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash: Parshat Nitzavim, 6th Portion (Deuteronomy 30:11-30:14) with Rashi
• Deuteronomy Chapter 30
11For this commandment which I command you this day, is not concealed from you, nor is it far away. יאכִּ֚י הַמִּצְוָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָֽנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּ֑וֹם לֹֽא־נִפְלֵ֥את הִוא֙ מִמְּךָ֔ וְלֹֽא־רְחֹקָ֖ה הִֽוא:
is not concealed from you: לֹא-נִפְלֵאת. It is not concealed from you, just as it is said: כִּי יִפָּלֵא (Deut. 17:8), [which the Targum renders as:] אֲרִי יִתְכְּסֵי [lit.,“(If the matter) is concealed”]; similarly, the verse, וַתֵּרֶד פְּלָאִים (Lam. 1:9), [which means,] “she went down into concealment,” [i.e.,] she was covered and considered [as if] hidden. לא נפלאת היא ממך: לא מכוסה היא ממך, כמו שנאמר (דברים יז, ח) כי יפלא ארי יתכסי, (איכה א, ט) ותרד פלאים, (איוב מ, יג) ותרד במטמוניות, מכוסה חבוש בטמון:
12It is not in heaven, that you should say, "Who will go up to heaven for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" יבלֹ֥א בַשָּׁמַ֖יִם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַֽעֲלֶה־לָּ֤נוּ הַשָּׁמַ֨יְמָה֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַֽעֲשֶֽׂנָּה:
It is not in heaven: for if it were in heaven, you would have to climb up after it [in order] to learn it. - [Eruvin 55a] לא בשמים היא: שאלו היתה בשמים היית צריך לעלות אחריה וללומדה:
13Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, "Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" יגוְלֹֽא־מֵעֵ֥בֶר לַיָּ֖ם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַֽעֲבָר־לָ֜נוּ אֶל־עֵ֤בֶר הַיָּם֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַֽעֲשֶֽׂנָּה:
14Rather,[this] thing is very close to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can fulfill it. ידכִּֽי־קָר֥וֹב אֵלֶ֛יךָ הַדָּבָ֖ר מְאֹ֑ד בְּפִ֥יךָ וּבִלְבָֽבְךָ֖ לַֽעֲשׂתֽוֹ:
Rather, [this] thing is very close to you: The Torah was given to you in writing and [accompanied by an] oral [explanation]. כי קרוב אליך: התורה נתנה לכם בכתב ובעל פה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 120-134
• Special Custom for the Month of Elul and High Holidays
The Baal Shem Tov instituted a custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms).
See below for today's additional chapters.
Chapter 120
This psalm rebukes slanderers, describing how the deadly effect of slander reaches even further than weapons.
1. A song of ascents. I have called out to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me.
2. O Lord, rescue my soul from the lips of falsehood, from a deceitful tongue.
3. What can He give you, and what [further restraint] can He add to you, O deceitful tongue?
4. [You resemble] the sharp arrows of a mighty one, and the coals of broom-wood.1
5. Woe unto me that I sojourned among Meshech, that I dwelt beside the tents of Kedar.
6. Too long has my soul dwelt among those who hate peace.
7. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.
FOOTNOTES
1.Which remain hot on the inside while appearing cool to the touch (Rashi).
Chapter 121
This psalm alludes to the Lower Paradise, from which one ascends to the Higher Paradise. It also speaks of how God watches over us.
1. A song of ascents. I lift my eyes to the mountains-from where will my help come?
2. My help will come from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.
3. He will not let your foot falter; your guardian does not slumber.
4. Indeed, the Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.
5. The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your protective shade at your right hand.
6. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
7. The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul.
8. The Lord will guard your going and your coming from now and for all time.
Chapter 122
The psalmist sings the praises of Jerusalem and tells of the miracles that happened there.
1. A song of ascents by David. I rejoiced when they said to me, "Let us go to the House of the Lord.”
2. Our feet were standing within your gates, O Jerusalem;
3. Jerusalem that is built like a city in which [all Israel] is united together.
4. For there the tribes went up, the tribes of God-as enjoined upon Israel-to offer praise to the Name of the Lord.
5. For there stood the seats of justice, the thrones of the house of David.
6. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; may those who love you have peace.
7. May there be peace within your walls, serenity within your mansions.
8. For the sake of my brethren and friends, I ask that there be peace within you.
9. For the sake of the House of the Lord our God, I seek your well-being.
Chapter 123
The psalmist laments the length of time we have already suffered in exile.
1. A song of ascents. To You have I lifted my eyes, You Who are enthroned in heaven.
2. Indeed, as the eyes of servants are turned to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to the Lord our God, until He will be gracious to us.
3. Be gracious to us, Lord, be gracious to us, for we have been surfeited with humiliation.
4. Our soul has been overfilled with the derision of the complacent, with the scorn of the arrogant.
Chapter 124
1. A song of ascents by David. Were it not for the Lord Who was with us-let Israel declare-
2. were it not for the Lord Who was with us when men rose up against us,
3. then they would have swallowed us alive in their burning rage against us.
4. Then the waters would have inundated us, the torrent would have swept over our soul;
5. then the raging waters would have surged over our soul.
6. Blessed is the Lord, Who did not permit us to be prey for their teeth.
7. Our soul is like a bird which has escaped from the fowler's snare; the snare broke and we escaped.
8. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Chapter 125
1. A song of ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion which never falters, but abides forever.
2. Mountains surround Jerusalem, and the Lord surrounds His people from this time and forever.
3. For the rod of wickedness will never come to rest upon the lot of the righteous; therefore the righteous need not stretch their hand to iniquity.
4. Be beneficent, O Lord, to the good and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5. But as for those that turn to their perverseness, may the Lord lead them with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel.
Chapter 126
The psalmist speaks of the future, comparing our Divine service in exile to one who sows arid land, then cries and begs God to send rain upon it so that the seed not be wasted. When he merits to reap the crop, he offers thanks to God.
1. A song of ascents. When the Lord will return the exiles of Zion, we will have been like dreamers.
2. Then our mouth will be filled with laughter, and our tongue with songs of joy; then will they say among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for these.”
3. The Lord has done great things for us; we were joyful.
4. Lord, return our exiles as streams to arid soil.
5. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.
6. He goes along weeping, carrying the bag of seed; he will surely return with songs of joy, carrying his sheaves.
Chapter 127
King David instructs his generation, and especially his son Solomon, to be sure that all one's actions be for the sake of Heaven. He also criticizes those who toil day and night in pursuit of a livelihood.
1. A song of ascents for Solomon. If the Lord does not build a house, then its builders labor upon it in vain. If the Lord will not guard a city, the vigilance of its watchman is in vain.
2. It is in vain for you, you who rise early, who sit up late, and who eat the bread of tension, for in fact He gives His loved ones sleep.
3. Behold, the heritage of the Lord is children; the fruit of the womb is a reward.
4. As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.
5. Fortunate is the man who has his quiver full of them; they will not find themselves shamed when they speak with enemies in public places.
Chapter 128
This psalm extols one who enjoys the fruits of his own labor, avoiding theft and deception, even refusing gifts. It also describes behavior appropriate to the God-fearing.
1. A song of ascents. Fortunate is every man who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.
2. When you eat of the labor of your hands, you will be happy, and you will have goodness.
3. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner chambers of your house; your children will be like olive saplings around your table.
4. Behold, so will be blessed the man who fears the Lord.
5. May the Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the goodness of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
6. And may you see children [born] to your children; peace upon Israel.
Chapter 129
The psalmist laments the troubles of Israel.
1. A song of ascents. Much have they persecuted me from my youth on. Let Israel declare it now-
2. "Much have they persecuted me from my youth on, [but] they have not prevailed against me.”
3. The plowmen plowed upon my back; they wished to make their furrow long.
4. But the Lord is just; He cut the cords of the lawless.
5. They will be humiliated and will be turned back, all the haters of Zion.
6. They will be as grass upon the rooftops that withers before one plucks it,
7. wherewith the reaper has never filled his hand, nor the sheaf-binder his arm;
8. and of which the passers-by never have said: "The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord."
Chapter 130
The psalmist prays for an end to this long exile.
1. A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call to You, O Lord.
2. My Lord, hearken to my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleas.
3. God, if You were to preserve iniquities, my Lord, who could survive?
4. But forgiveness is with You, that You may be held in awe.
5. I hope in the Lord; my soul hopes, and I long for His word.
6. My soul yearns for the Lord more than those awaiting the morning wait for the morning.
7. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is kindness; with Him there is abounding deliverance.
8. And He will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Chapter 131
In this prayer, David declares that never in the course of his life was he haughty, nor did he pursue greatness or worldly pleasures.
1. A song of ascents, by David. O Lord, my heart was not proud, nor were my eyes haughty; I did not seek matters that were too great and too wondrous for me.
2. Surely I put my soul at peace and soothed it like a weaned child with his mother; my soul was like a weaned child.
3. Let Israel hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever.
Chapter 132
David composed this psalm while he and the elders of Israel wore sackcloth, in mourning over the plague that had descended upon the land, and their being distant from the Holy Temple. David therefore offers intense prayers, entreating God to remember the hardship and sacrifice he endured for the sake of the Temple.
1. A song of ascents. O Lord, remember unto David all his suffering,
2. how he swore to the Lord, and vowed to the Mighty Power of Jacob:
3. "I will not enter into the tent of my house; I will not go up into the bed that is spread for me;
4. I will not give sleep to my eyes, nor slumber to my eyelids;
5. until I will have found a place for the Lord, a resting place for the Mighty Power of Jacob.”
6. Lo, we heard of it in Ephrath; we found it in the field of the forest.
7. We will come to His resting places; we will prostrate ourselves at His footstool.
8. Ascend, O Lord, to Your resting place, You and the Ark of Your might.
9. May Your priests clothe themselves in righteousness, and may Your pious ones sing joyous songs.
10. For the sake of David Your servant, turn not away the face of Your anointed.
11. For the Lord has sworn to David a truth from which He will never retreat: "From the fruit of your womb will I set for you upon the throne.
12. If your sons will keep My covenant and this testimony of mine which I will teach them, then their sons, too, will sit on the throne for you until the end of time.
13. For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation.
14. This is My resting place to the end of time. Here will I dwell, for I have desired it.
15. I will abundantly bless her sustenance; I will satisfy her needy with bread.
16. I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her pious ones will sing joyous songs.
17. There I will cause David's power to flourish; there I have prepared a lamp for My anointed.
18. His enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon him, his crown will blossom."
Chapter 133
1. A song of ascents, by David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together.
2. Like the precious oil [placed] upon the head, flowing [in abundance] down the beard, the beard of Aaron which rests upon his garments.
3. Like the dew of Hermon which comes down upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord has commanded blessing, life unto eternity.
Chapter 134
The psalmist exhorts the scholarly and pious to rise from their beds at night, and go to the House of God.
1. A song of ascents. Behold: Bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand in the House of the Lord in the nights.
2. Lift up your hands in holiness and bless the Lord.
3. May the Lord, Who makes heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.
Additional Three Chapters
The Baal Shem Tov instituted a custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms).
Today's Chapters are 79, 80 and 81.
Chapter 79
In this psalm, Asaph thanks God for sparing the people and directing His wrath upon the wood and stones (of the Temple). Still he cries bitterly, mourning the immense destruction: The place where the High Priest alone was allowed to enter-and only on Yom Kippur-is now so desolate that foxes stroll through it!
1. A psalm by Asaph. O God, nations have entered Your inheritance, they defiled Your Holy Sanctuary; they turned Jerusalem into heaps of rubble.
2. They have rendered the corpses of Your servants as food for the birds of heaven, the flesh of Your pious ones for the beasts of the earth.
3. They spilled their blood like water around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury [them].
4. We became the object of disgrace to our neighbors, ridicule and scorn to those around us.
5. Until when, O Lord! Will You be angry forever? Will Your jealousy burn like fire?
6. Pour Your wrath upon the nations that do not know You, upon the kingdoms that do not call Your Name,
7. for they devoured Jacob and desolated His abode.
8. Do not recall our former sins; let Your mercies come swiftly towards us, for we have fallen very low.
9. Help us, God of our deliverance, for the sake of the glory of Your Name; save us and pardon our sins for the sake of Your Name.
10. Why should the nations say, "Where is their God?" Let there be known among the nations, before our eyes, the retribution of the spilled blood of Your servants.
11. Let the groan of the prisoner come before You; liberate those condemned to death, as befits the greatness of Your strength.
12. Repay our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom, for the disgrace with which they reviled You, O Lord.
13. And we, Your people, the flock of Your pasture, will thank You forever; for all generations we will recount Your praise.
Chapter 80
An awe-inspiring prayer imploring God to draw near to us as in days of old.
1. For the Conductor, on the shoshanim, 1 a testimony by Asaph, a psalm.
2. Listen, O Shepherd of Israel, Who leads Joseph like sheep. Appear, You Who is enthroned upon the cherubim.
3. Arouse Your might before Ephraim, Benjamin and Menashe, for it is upon You to save us.
4. Return us, O God; cause Your countenance to shine, that we may be saved.
5. O Lord, God of Hosts, until when will You fume at the prayer of Your people?
6. You fed them bread of tears, and gave them tears to drink in great measure.
7. You have made us an object of strife to our neighbors; our enemies mock to themselves.
8. Return us, O God of Hosts; cause Your countenance to shine, that we may be saved.
9. You brought a vine out of Egypt; You drove out nations and planted it.
10. You cleared space before it; it took root and filled the land.
11. Mountains were covered by its shade, and its branches became mighty cedars.
12. It sent forth its branches till the sea, and its tender shoots to the river.
13. Why did You breach its fences, so that every passerby plucked its fruit?
14. The boars of the forest ravage it, and the creepers of the field feed upon it.
15. O God of Hosts, please return! Look down from heaven and see, and be mindful of this vine,
16. and of the foundation which Your right hand has planted, and the son whom You strengthened for Yourself.
17. It is burned by fire, cut down; they perish at the rebuke of Your Presence.
18. Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand, upon the son of man whom You strengthened for Yourself.
19. Then we will not withdraw from You; revive us, and we will proclaim Your Name.
20. O Lord, God of Hosts, return us; cause Your countenance to shine that we may be saved.
Chapter 81
This psalm was chanted in the Holy Temple on Rosh Hashanah, a day on which many miracles were wrought for Israel.
1. For the Conductor, upon the gittit,1 by Asaph.
2. Sing joyously to God, our strength; sound the shofar to the God of Jacob.
3. Raise your voice in song, sound the drum, the pleasant harp, and the lyre.
4. Blow the shofar on the New Month, on the designated day of our Holy Day;
5. for it is a decree for Israel, a ruling of the God of Jacob.
6. He ordained it as a precept for Joseph when he went forth over the land of Egypt; I heard a language which I did not know.
7. I have taken his shoulder from the burden; his hands were removed from the pot.2
8. In distress you called and I delivered you; [you called] in secret, and I answered you with thunderous wonders; I tested you at the waters of Merivah, Selah.
9. Hear, My people, and I will admonish you; Israel, if you would only listen to Me!
10. You shall have no alien god within you, nor shall you bow down to a foreign deity.
11. I am the Lord your God who brought you up from the land of Egypt; open wide your mouth, [state all your desires,] and I shall grant them.
12. But My people did not heed My voice; Israel did not want [to listen to] Me.
13. So I sent them away for the willfulness of their heart, for following their [evil] design.
14. If only My people would listen to Me, if Israel would only walk in My ways,
15. then I would quickly subdue their enemies, and turn My hand against their oppressors.
16. Those who hate the Lord would shrivel before Him, and the time [of their retribution] shall be forever.
17. I would feed him [Israel] with the finest of wheat, and sate you with honey from the rock.
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 19
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Friday, 27 Elul, 5776 · 30 September 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 19
Chumash: Parshat Nitzavim, 6th Portion (Deuteronomy 30:11-30:14) with Rashi
• Deuteronomy Chapter 30
11For this commandment which I command you this day, is not concealed from you, nor is it far away. יאכִּ֚י הַמִּצְוָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָֽנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּ֑וֹם לֹֽא־נִפְלֵ֥את הִוא֙ מִמְּךָ֔ וְלֹֽא־רְחֹקָ֖ה הִֽוא:
is not concealed from you: לֹא-נִפְלֵאת. It is not concealed from you, just as it is said: כִּי יִפָּלֵא (Deut. 17:8), [which the Targum renders as:] אֲרִי יִתְכְּסֵי [lit.,“(If the matter) is concealed”]; similarly, the verse, וַתֵּרֶד פְּלָאִים (Lam. 1:9), [which means,] “she went down into concealment,” [i.e.,] she was covered and considered [as if] hidden. לא נפלאת היא ממך: לא מכוסה היא ממך, כמו שנאמר (דברים יז, ח) כי יפלא ארי יתכסי, (איכה א, ט) ותרד פלאים, (איוב מ, יג) ותרד במטמוניות, מכוסה חבוש בטמון:
12It is not in heaven, that you should say, "Who will go up to heaven for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" יבלֹ֥א בַשָּׁמַ֖יִם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַֽעֲלֶה־לָּ֤נוּ הַשָּׁמַ֨יְמָה֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַֽעֲשֶֽׂנָּה:
It is not in heaven: for if it were in heaven, you would have to climb up after it [in order] to learn it. - [Eruvin 55a] לא בשמים היא: שאלו היתה בשמים היית צריך לעלות אחריה וללומדה:
13Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, "Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?" יגוְלֹֽא־מֵעֵ֥בֶר לַיָּ֖ם הִ֑וא לֵאמֹ֗ר מִ֣י יַֽעֲבָר־לָ֜נוּ אֶל־עֵ֤בֶר הַיָּם֙ וְיִקָּחֶ֣הָ לָּ֔נוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵ֥נוּ אֹתָ֖הּ וְנַֽעֲשֶֽׂנָּה:
14Rather,[this] thing is very close to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can fulfill it. ידכִּֽי־קָר֥וֹב אֵלֶ֛יךָ הַדָּבָ֖ר מְאֹ֑ד בְּפִ֥יךָ וּבִלְבָֽבְךָ֖ לַֽעֲשׂתֽוֹ:
Rather, [this] thing is very close to you: The Torah was given to you in writing and [accompanied by an] oral [explanation]. כי קרוב אליך: התורה נתנה לכם בכתב ובעל פה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 120-134
• Special Custom for the Month of Elul and High Holidays
The Baal Shem Tov instituted a custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms).
See below for today's additional chapters.
Chapter 120
This psalm rebukes slanderers, describing how the deadly effect of slander reaches even further than weapons.
1. A song of ascents. I have called out to the Lord in my distress, and He answered me.
2. O Lord, rescue my soul from the lips of falsehood, from a deceitful tongue.
3. What can He give you, and what [further restraint] can He add to you, O deceitful tongue?
4. [You resemble] the sharp arrows of a mighty one, and the coals of broom-wood.1
5. Woe unto me that I sojourned among Meshech, that I dwelt beside the tents of Kedar.
6. Too long has my soul dwelt among those who hate peace.
7. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.
FOOTNOTES
1.Which remain hot on the inside while appearing cool to the touch (Rashi).
Chapter 121
This psalm alludes to the Lower Paradise, from which one ascends to the Higher Paradise. It also speaks of how God watches over us.
2. My help will come from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.
3. He will not let your foot falter; your guardian does not slumber.
4. Indeed, the Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.
5. The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your protective shade at your right hand.
6. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
7. The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul.
8. The Lord will guard your going and your coming from now and for all time.
Chapter 122
The psalmist sings the praises of Jerusalem and tells of the miracles that happened there.
1. A song of ascents by David. I rejoiced when they said to me, "Let us go to the House of the Lord.”
2. Our feet were standing within your gates, O Jerusalem;
3. Jerusalem that is built like a city in which [all Israel] is united together.
4. For there the tribes went up, the tribes of God-as enjoined upon Israel-to offer praise to the Name of the Lord.
5. For there stood the seats of justice, the thrones of the house of David.
6. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; may those who love you have peace.
7. May there be peace within your walls, serenity within your mansions.
8. For the sake of my brethren and friends, I ask that there be peace within you.
9. For the sake of the House of the Lord our God, I seek your well-being.
Chapter 123
The psalmist laments the length of time we have already suffered in exile.
1. A song of ascents. To You have I lifted my eyes, You Who are enthroned in heaven.
2. Indeed, as the eyes of servants are turned to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to the Lord our God, until He will be gracious to us.
3. Be gracious to us, Lord, be gracious to us, for we have been surfeited with humiliation.
4. Our soul has been overfilled with the derision of the complacent, with the scorn of the arrogant.
Chapter 124
1. A song of ascents by David. Were it not for the Lord Who was with us-let Israel declare-
2. were it not for the Lord Who was with us when men rose up against us,
3. then they would have swallowed us alive in their burning rage against us.
4. Then the waters would have inundated us, the torrent would have swept over our soul;
5. then the raging waters would have surged over our soul.
6. Blessed is the Lord, Who did not permit us to be prey for their teeth.
7. Our soul is like a bird which has escaped from the fowler's snare; the snare broke and we escaped.
8. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Chapter 125
1. A song of ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion which never falters, but abides forever.
2. Mountains surround Jerusalem, and the Lord surrounds His people from this time and forever.
3. For the rod of wickedness will never come to rest upon the lot of the righteous; therefore the righteous need not stretch their hand to iniquity.
4. Be beneficent, O Lord, to the good and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5. But as for those that turn to their perverseness, may the Lord lead them with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel.
Chapter 126
The psalmist speaks of the future, comparing our Divine service in exile to one who sows arid land, then cries and begs God to send rain upon it so that the seed not be wasted. When he merits to reap the crop, he offers thanks to God.
1. A song of ascents. When the Lord will return the exiles of Zion, we will have been like dreamers.
2. Then our mouth will be filled with laughter, and our tongue with songs of joy; then will they say among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for these.”
3. The Lord has done great things for us; we were joyful.
4. Lord, return our exiles as streams to arid soil.
5. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.
6. He goes along weeping, carrying the bag of seed; he will surely return with songs of joy, carrying his sheaves.
Chapter 127
King David instructs his generation, and especially his son Solomon, to be sure that all one's actions be for the sake of Heaven. He also criticizes those who toil day and night in pursuit of a livelihood.
1. A song of ascents for Solomon. If the Lord does not build a house, then its builders labor upon it in vain. If the Lord will not guard a city, the vigilance of its watchman is in vain.
2. It is in vain for you, you who rise early, who sit up late, and who eat the bread of tension, for in fact He gives His loved ones sleep.
3. Behold, the heritage of the Lord is children; the fruit of the womb is a reward.
4. As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.
5. Fortunate is the man who has his quiver full of them; they will not find themselves shamed when they speak with enemies in public places.
Chapter 128
This psalm extols one who enjoys the fruits of his own labor, avoiding theft and deception, even refusing gifts. It also describes behavior appropriate to the God-fearing.
1. A song of ascents. Fortunate is every man who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.
2. When you eat of the labor of your hands, you will be happy, and you will have goodness.
3. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner chambers of your house; your children will be like olive saplings around your table.
4. Behold, so will be blessed the man who fears the Lord.
5. May the Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the goodness of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
6. And may you see children [born] to your children; peace upon Israel.
Chapter 129
The psalmist laments the troubles of Israel.
1. A song of ascents. Much have they persecuted me from my youth on. Let Israel declare it now-
2. "Much have they persecuted me from my youth on, [but] they have not prevailed against me.”
3. The plowmen plowed upon my back; they wished to make their furrow long.
4. But the Lord is just; He cut the cords of the lawless.
5. They will be humiliated and will be turned back, all the haters of Zion.
6. They will be as grass upon the rooftops that withers before one plucks it,
7. wherewith the reaper has never filled his hand, nor the sheaf-binder his arm;
8. and of which the passers-by never have said: "The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord."
Chapter 130
The psalmist prays for an end to this long exile.
1. A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call to You, O Lord.
2. My Lord, hearken to my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleas.
3. God, if You were to preserve iniquities, my Lord, who could survive?
4. But forgiveness is with You, that You may be held in awe.
5. I hope in the Lord; my soul hopes, and I long for His word.
6. My soul yearns for the Lord more than those awaiting the morning wait for the morning.
7. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord there is kindness; with Him there is abounding deliverance.
8. And He will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Chapter 131
In this prayer, David declares that never in the course of his life was he haughty, nor did he pursue greatness or worldly pleasures.
1. A song of ascents, by David. O Lord, my heart was not proud, nor were my eyes haughty; I did not seek matters that were too great and too wondrous for me.
2. Surely I put my soul at peace and soothed it like a weaned child with his mother; my soul was like a weaned child.
3. Let Israel hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever.
Chapter 132
David composed this psalm while he and the elders of Israel wore sackcloth, in mourning over the plague that had descended upon the land, and their being distant from the Holy Temple. David therefore offers intense prayers, entreating God to remember the hardship and sacrifice he endured for the sake of the Temple.
1. A song of ascents. O Lord, remember unto David all his suffering,
2. how he swore to the Lord, and vowed to the Mighty Power of Jacob:
3. "I will not enter into the tent of my house; I will not go up into the bed that is spread for me;
4. I will not give sleep to my eyes, nor slumber to my eyelids;
5. until I will have found a place for the Lord, a resting place for the Mighty Power of Jacob.”
6. Lo, we heard of it in Ephrath; we found it in the field of the forest.
7. We will come to His resting places; we will prostrate ourselves at His footstool.
8. Ascend, O Lord, to Your resting place, You and the Ark of Your might.
9. May Your priests clothe themselves in righteousness, and may Your pious ones sing joyous songs.
10. For the sake of David Your servant, turn not away the face of Your anointed.
11. For the Lord has sworn to David a truth from which He will never retreat: "From the fruit of your womb will I set for you upon the throne.
12. If your sons will keep My covenant and this testimony of mine which I will teach them, then their sons, too, will sit on the throne for you until the end of time.
13. For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation.
14. This is My resting place to the end of time. Here will I dwell, for I have desired it.
15. I will abundantly bless her sustenance; I will satisfy her needy with bread.
16. I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her pious ones will sing joyous songs.
17. There I will cause David's power to flourish; there I have prepared a lamp for My anointed.
18. His enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon him, his crown will blossom."
Chapter 133
1. A song of ascents, by David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together.
2. Like the precious oil [placed] upon the head, flowing [in abundance] down the beard, the beard of Aaron which rests upon his garments.
3. Like the dew of Hermon which comes down upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord has commanded blessing, life unto eternity.
Chapter 134
The psalmist exhorts the scholarly and pious to rise from their beds at night, and go to the House of God.
1. A song of ascents. Behold: Bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord who stand in the House of the Lord in the nights.
2. Lift up your hands in holiness and bless the Lord.
3. May the Lord, Who makes heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.
Additional Three Chapters
The Baal Shem Tov instituted a custom of reciting three additional chapters of Psalms each day, from the 1st of Elul until Yom Kippur (on Yom Kippur the remaining 36 chapters are recited, thereby completing the entire book of Psalms).
Today's Chapters are 79, 80 and 81.
Chapter 79
In this psalm, Asaph thanks God for sparing the people and directing His wrath upon the wood and stones (of the Temple). Still he cries bitterly, mourning the immense destruction: The place where the High Priest alone was allowed to enter-and only on Yom Kippur-is now so desolate that foxes stroll through it!
1. A psalm by Asaph. O God, nations have entered Your inheritance, they defiled Your Holy Sanctuary; they turned Jerusalem into heaps of rubble.
2. They have rendered the corpses of Your servants as food for the birds of heaven, the flesh of Your pious ones for the beasts of the earth.
3. They spilled their blood like water around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury [them].
4. We became the object of disgrace to our neighbors, ridicule and scorn to those around us.
5. Until when, O Lord! Will You be angry forever? Will Your jealousy burn like fire?
6. Pour Your wrath upon the nations that do not know You, upon the kingdoms that do not call Your Name,
7. for they devoured Jacob and desolated His abode.
8. Do not recall our former sins; let Your mercies come swiftly towards us, for we have fallen very low.
9. Help us, God of our deliverance, for the sake of the glory of Your Name; save us and pardon our sins for the sake of Your Name.
10. Why should the nations say, "Where is their God?" Let there be known among the nations, before our eyes, the retribution of the spilled blood of Your servants.
11. Let the groan of the prisoner come before You; liberate those condemned to death, as befits the greatness of Your strength.
12. Repay our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom, for the disgrace with which they reviled You, O Lord.
13. And we, Your people, the flock of Your pasture, will thank You forever; for all generations we will recount Your praise.
Chapter 80
An awe-inspiring prayer imploring God to draw near to us as in days of old.
1. For the Conductor, on the shoshanim, 1 a testimony by Asaph, a psalm.
2. Listen, O Shepherd of Israel, Who leads Joseph like sheep. Appear, You Who is enthroned upon the cherubim.
3. Arouse Your might before Ephraim, Benjamin and Menashe, for it is upon You to save us.
4. Return us, O God; cause Your countenance to shine, that we may be saved.
5. O Lord, God of Hosts, until when will You fume at the prayer of Your people?
6. You fed them bread of tears, and gave them tears to drink in great measure.
7. You have made us an object of strife to our neighbors; our enemies mock to themselves.
8. Return us, O God of Hosts; cause Your countenance to shine, that we may be saved.
9. You brought a vine out of Egypt; You drove out nations and planted it.
10. You cleared space before it; it took root and filled the land.
11. Mountains were covered by its shade, and its branches became mighty cedars.
12. It sent forth its branches till the sea, and its tender shoots to the river.
13. Why did You breach its fences, so that every passerby plucked its fruit?
14. The boars of the forest ravage it, and the creepers of the field feed upon it.
15. O God of Hosts, please return! Look down from heaven and see, and be mindful of this vine,
16. and of the foundation which Your right hand has planted, and the son whom You strengthened for Yourself.
17. It is burned by fire, cut down; they perish at the rebuke of Your Presence.
18. Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand, upon the son of man whom You strengthened for Yourself.
19. Then we will not withdraw from You; revive us, and we will proclaim Your Name.
20. O Lord, God of Hosts, return us; cause Your countenance to shine that we may be saved.
Chapter 81
This psalm was chanted in the Holy Temple on Rosh Hashanah, a day on which many miracles were wrought for Israel.
1. For the Conductor, upon the gittit,1 by Asaph.
2. Sing joyously to God, our strength; sound the shofar to the God of Jacob.
3. Raise your voice in song, sound the drum, the pleasant harp, and the lyre.
4. Blow the shofar on the New Month, on the designated day of our Holy Day;
5. for it is a decree for Israel, a ruling of the God of Jacob.
6. He ordained it as a precept for Joseph when he went forth over the land of Egypt; I heard a language which I did not know.
7. I have taken his shoulder from the burden; his hands were removed from the pot.2
8. In distress you called and I delivered you; [you called] in secret, and I answered you with thunderous wonders; I tested you at the waters of Merivah, Selah.
9. Hear, My people, and I will admonish you; Israel, if you would only listen to Me!
10. You shall have no alien god within you, nor shall you bow down to a foreign deity.
11. I am the Lord your God who brought you up from the land of Egypt; open wide your mouth, [state all your desires,] and I shall grant them.
12. But My people did not heed My voice; Israel did not want [to listen to] Me.
13. So I sent them away for the willfulness of their heart, for following their [evil] design.
14. If only My people would listen to Me, if Israel would only walk in My ways,
15. then I would quickly subdue their enemies, and turn My hand against their oppressors.
16. Those who hate the Lord would shrivel before Him, and the time [of their retribution] shall be forever.
17. I would feed him [Israel] with the finest of wheat, and sate you with honey from the rock.
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 19
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Friday, 27 Elul, 5776 · 30 September 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, middle of Epistle 19
• והנה בחינת חכמת אלקות ברוך הוא, המלובשת בתרי״ג מצות התורה, נקראת בשם בחינת אחוריים דחכמה
Now, the aspect of the blessed Divine Chochmah that is vested in the 613 commandments of the Torah, is referred to as the hindmost aspect of Chochmah.
The Alter Rebbe had previously said that (a) Moses’ prophetic comprehension of the Sefirah of Chochmah consisted merely of the achorayim (the hindmost aspect) of Chochmah. He then went on to say that (b) the source of the Torah inChochmah is the same, for it too transcends reason. The Alter Rebbe is now saying that (c) even the Chochmah vested in the 613 commandments is referred to as no more than the achorayim of Chochmah.
כי כל אחוריים שבספירות, הן מדרגות החיצונות והתחתונות במעלה שבספירה זו, מה שיוכלו לירד ולהתפשט למטה, להתלבש בברואים להחיותם
For the achorayim of any one of the Sefirot are the external and lower levels within that Sefirah, which are capable of descending and extending downwards, to become vested in created beings in order to animate them.
ובחינת הפנים היא הספירה עצמה, המיוחדת במאצילה, אין סוף ברוך הוא, בתכלית היחוד
The aspect of the panim (the “face” or inner dimension) of the Sefirah is the Sefirah itself as it is united with its Emanator, the blessed Ein Sof, in an absolute union.
כגון, דרך משל, ספירת חכמה, שהיא מיוחדת במאצילה, אין סוף ברוך הוא, בתכלית היחוד, כי הקב״ה וחכמתו אחד כמו שכתוב לעיל
As, for example, the Sefirah of Chochmah, the Sefirah now under discussion: It is united with its Emanator, the blessed Ein Sof, in absolute unity, for the Holy One, blessed be He, and His Wisdom, are One (1as explained above) — evidently in reference to Part I, chs. 2 and 52.
ומה שמאיר ומתפשט מחכמתו יתברך למטה בתחתונים, שהם בעלי גבול ותכלית
But that which radiates and extends from His blessed Chochmah to the limited and finite nether beings below,
ומתלבש בהם
and becomes vested in them,
Light that merely “radiates” and “extends” does not necessarily contract according to the limitations of the recipient of the light; it may “radiate” and “extend” in an encompassing manner (makkif) and thus not be subject to them. However, when the illumination is “vested” within a receptor, this implies adjustment to its limitations.
Hence, a light that becomes vested within finite created beings cannot possibly be infinite, as would be the case if the actualSefirah as united with its Emanator — and thus as infinite as its Emanator — would descend into created beings. Therefore, the life-giving force which is vested within creation —
נקרא אחוריים
is called achorayim: it is the external aspect of the Sefirah and not the Sefirah itself,
ונקרא גם כן בחינת עשיה שבאצילות
and it is also called the aspect of Asiyah within Atzilut.
The external aspect of Chochmah — Chochmah here being an allusion to the World of Atzilut — is termed the level ofAsiyah within Atzilut,2 i.e., that level of Atzilut that is capable of descending below.
פירוש, על דרך משל, כמו שבאדם התחתון, שיש בנשמתו ה׳ מדרגות, זו למטה מזו
The meaning of this will be understood by way of analogy with terrestrial man, whose soul spans five ranks, one lower than the other.
שהן בחינת השכל והמדות ומחשבה ודבור ומעשה, והמעשה היא התחתונה שבכולם
These are the faculties of the intellect, the emotive attributes, thought, speech, and action, with action the lowest of them all.
I.e., the soul manifests itself in action to a much lesser degree than it does in the other four levels.
שהחיות המתפשט מהנשמה ומלובש בכח המעשה, הוא כאין לגבי החיות המתפשט ממנה ומלובש בכח הדבור
For the life-force that extends from the soul and is vested in the faculty of action, is as nothing compared to the life-force that extends from it and is vested in the faculty of speech.
שהוא כאין לגבי החיות המתפשט ממנה, ומלובש במחשבה ומדות ושכל
The latter in turn is as nothing compared to the life-force that extends from [the soul] and is vested in thought, in the emotive attributes, and in the intellect.
The latter three faculties are always united with the soul. Even the faculty of thought, which is merely a “garment” of the soul (i.e., one of its means of expression), is always united with it, and therefore, like the soul itself, always in a manifest state. Speech and action, however, are “garments” that are separate from the soul. Thus, insofar as speech is concerned, there is3 “A time to speak and a time to refrain from speech,” while action is even more distant from the soul than speech.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. | Parentheses appear in the original text. |
| 2. | Note of the Rebbe: “So it is written in the editions that I have seen. It would seem, however, that the text should have stated‘Asiyah of Chochmah.’ Possibly, however, since the Alter Rebbe is speaking here of the difference between the finite and the infinite — the Torah at the level of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah, as compared to the Torah at the level of Atzilut (where תורתך — ‘Your Torah,’ refers to the Torah of Atzilut, while שלמדתנו — ‘that You have taught us’ refers to the Torah of Beriah) — he therefore stresses ‘of Atzilut’.“ As to the relevance of this subject to our text: The infinity of the World of Atzilut lies in its correspondence to the Sefirah ofChochmah (i.e., the letter yud of the Four-Letter Name), while the Worlds of Beriah-Yetzirah-Asiyah correspond to the other [lower] Sefirot.” |
| 3. | See Kohelet 3:7. |
| Rambam: Sefer Hamitzvos: |
• Friday, 27 Elul, 5776 · 30 September 2016
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Negative Commandment 294
Punishing an Individual Coerced to Sin
"But to the girl you shall do nothing"—Deuteronomy 22:26.
It is forbidden to punish a person for the commission of a sin which he was coerced to do.
Full text of this Mitzvah »• Punishing an Individual Coerced to Sin
Negative Commandment 294
Translated by Berel Bell
The 294th prohibition is that we are forbidden from punishing a person who was forced to commit a transgression, since the act was done unwillingly.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "You must not impose any penalty upon the girl."
Our Sages said in tractate Sanhedrin,2 "The Torah exempts a person in the case of force, as it is written,3 'You must not impose any penalty whatsoever upon the girl.' "
FOOTNOTES
1.Deut. 22:26. The previous verses (ibid,. 23-24) speak of a young married woman who committed adultery, in which case both she and the man are punished. This verse speaks of a case of rape, to say that only he is punished, not her.
2.Our versions of tractate Sanhedrin do not contain this statement. It is found in Nedarim 67a, Bava Kama 28b, and Avodah Zorah 54a. See Kapach 5731, footnote 39.
3.Deut., ibid.
Negative Commandment 290
Issuing a Punitive Sentence Based on Circumstantial Evidence
"And an innocent and righteous person you shall not slay"—Exodus 23:7.
We are forbidden to punish an individual based on circumstantial evidence, even if the person's guilt is virtually certain.
For example: A person was pursuing his enemy with the intent to murder him. The pursued escaped into a house, followed by the pursuer. Witnesses then enter the house and find the victim lying murdered, still convulsing, and the pursuer standing over him holding a knife—both people covered with blood. The courts may not execute the pursuer since there were no witnesses who actually saw the murder.
Though this law might seem unjust [as it will inevitably lead to the exoneration of certain criminals], here's the rationale:
In the realm of the possible, some possibilities are extremely probable, some are extremely unlikely, and then there's the full broad gamut of possibilities that fall somewhere between these two extremes. If the Torah were to allow the courts to punish an individual in an instance where the probability of guilt is almost definite (similar to the above example), then the courts would also come to punish in cases in which the guilt is less and less probable, until they would execute defendants based on flimsy estimation according to the judge's imagination.
Therefore G‑d "closed the door" to this possibility and forbade any punishment unless there are witnesses who are certain beyond a doubt that the event transpired and that there is no other possible explanation.
If we do not inflict punishment, even when the offense is most probable, the worst that could happen is that someone who is really guilty will be found innocent. But if punishment was implemented based on circumstantial evidence, it is possible that someday an innocent person would be executed. And it is preferable that a thousand guilty people be set free than to execute one innocent person.
Similarly, if two witnesses testified that a person committed two different capital offenses, each one having seen only one of the acts – e.g., one witness testified that he saw a person working on Shabbat, and another witness testified that he saw the person worshipping idols – that person cannot be executed.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• Issuing a Punitive Sentence Based on Circumstantial Evidence
Negative Commandment 290
Translated by Berel Bell
The 290th prohibition is that we are forbidden from punishing someone based on our estimation [without actual testimony], even if his guilt is virtually certain. An example of this is a person who was chasing after his enemy to kill him. The pursued escaped into a house and the pursuer entered the house after him. We enter the house after them and find the victim lying murdered, with the pursuer standing over him holding a knife, with both covered with blood. The Sanhedrin may not inflict the death penalty1 on this pursuer since there were no witnesses who actually saw the murder.
The Torah of Truth (Toras Emess) comes to prohibit his execution with G‑d's statement2 (exalted be He), "Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty."
Our Sages said in Mechilta:3 "If they saw him chasing after another to kill him and they warned him, saying, 'He is a Jew, a son of the Covenant! If you kill him you will be executed!' If the two went out of sight and they found one murdered, with the sword in the murderer's hand dripping blood, one might think that he can be executed. The Torah therefore says, 'Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty.' "
Do not question this law and think that it is unjust, for there are some possibilities that are extremely probable, others that are extremely unlikely, and others in between. The category of "possible" is very broad, and if the Torah allowed the High Court to punish when the offense was very probable and almost definite (similar to the above example), then they would carry out punishment in cases which were less and less probable, until people would be constantly4 executed based on flimsy estimation and the judges' imagination. G‑d (exalted be He), therefore "closed the door" to this possibility and forbid any punishment unless there are witnesses who are certain beyond a doubt that the event transpired and that there is no other possible explanation.
If we do not inflict punishment even when the offense is most probable, the worst that could happen is that someone who is really guilty will be found innocent. But if punishment was given based on estimation and circumstantial evidence,5 it is possible that someday an innocent person would be executed. And it is preferable and more proper6 that even a thousand guilty people be set free than to someday execute even one innocent person.
Similarly, if two witnesses testified that the person committed two capital offenses, but each one saw only one act and not the other, he cannot be executed. For example: One witness testified that he saw a person doing a melachah on Shabbos and warned him not to. Another witness testified that he saw the person worshipping idols and warned him not to. This person cannot be executed by stoning.7 Our Sages said,8 "If one witness testified that he worshipped the sun and the other testified that he worshipped the moon, one might think that they can joined together.9 The Torah therefore said, 'Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty.'"
FOOTNOTES
1.They are allowed, however, in extreme circumstances, to order him executed as an emergency measure.
2.Ex. 23:7.
3.Ibid.
4.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 21, that the correct translation of the Arabic tzara is tamid (constantly), rather than the translation in the 5718 Rav Kook edition, b'avel. Chavel, following that version, translates "unwarrantable presumptions."
5.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 23, that this is the correct translation of the Arabic k'ra'in rather than the translation in the 5718 Rav Kook edition, dimui. Chavel, following that version, translates "suppositions."
6.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 24, translates ratzui, but writes that he could not find an equivalent Hebrew word, since the Arabic achut indicates taking extra precautions to avoid executing an innocent person.
7.Literally "stoning." See P229.
8.Mechilta, loc cit.
9.I.e. that there are two witnesses that he worshipped idols.
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Negative Commandment 294
Punishing an Individual Coerced to Sin
"But to the girl you shall do nothing"—Deuteronomy 22:26.
It is forbidden to punish a person for the commission of a sin which he was coerced to do.
Full text of this Mitzvah »• Punishing an Individual Coerced to Sin
Negative Commandment 294
Translated by Berel Bell
The 294th prohibition is that we are forbidden from punishing a person who was forced to commit a transgression, since the act was done unwillingly.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "You must not impose any penalty upon the girl."
Our Sages said in tractate Sanhedrin,2 "The Torah exempts a person in the case of force, as it is written,3 'You must not impose any penalty whatsoever upon the girl.' "
FOOTNOTES
1.Deut. 22:26. The previous verses (ibid,. 23-24) speak of a young married woman who committed adultery, in which case both she and the man are punished. This verse speaks of a case of rape, to say that only he is punished, not her.
2.Our versions of tractate Sanhedrin do not contain this statement. It is found in Nedarim 67a, Bava Kama 28b, and Avodah Zorah 54a. See Kapach 5731, footnote 39.
3.Deut., ibid.
Negative Commandment 290
Issuing a Punitive Sentence Based on Circumstantial Evidence
"And an innocent and righteous person you shall not slay"—Exodus 23:7.
We are forbidden to punish an individual based on circumstantial evidence, even if the person's guilt is virtually certain.
For example: A person was pursuing his enemy with the intent to murder him. The pursued escaped into a house, followed by the pursuer. Witnesses then enter the house and find the victim lying murdered, still convulsing, and the pursuer standing over him holding a knife—both people covered with blood. The courts may not execute the pursuer since there were no witnesses who actually saw the murder.
Though this law might seem unjust [as it will inevitably lead to the exoneration of certain criminals], here's the rationale:
In the realm of the possible, some possibilities are extremely probable, some are extremely unlikely, and then there's the full broad gamut of possibilities that fall somewhere between these two extremes. If the Torah were to allow the courts to punish an individual in an instance where the probability of guilt is almost definite (similar to the above example), then the courts would also come to punish in cases in which the guilt is less and less probable, until they would execute defendants based on flimsy estimation according to the judge's imagination.
Therefore G‑d "closed the door" to this possibility and forbade any punishment unless there are witnesses who are certain beyond a doubt that the event transpired and that there is no other possible explanation.
If we do not inflict punishment, even when the offense is most probable, the worst that could happen is that someone who is really guilty will be found innocent. But if punishment was implemented based on circumstantial evidence, it is possible that someday an innocent person would be executed. And it is preferable that a thousand guilty people be set free than to execute one innocent person.
Similarly, if two witnesses testified that a person committed two different capital offenses, each one having seen only one of the acts – e.g., one witness testified that he saw a person working on Shabbat, and another witness testified that he saw the person worshipping idols – that person cannot be executed.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• Issuing a Punitive Sentence Based on Circumstantial Evidence
Negative Commandment 290
Translated by Berel Bell
The 290th prohibition is that we are forbidden from punishing someone based on our estimation [without actual testimony], even if his guilt is virtually certain. An example of this is a person who was chasing after his enemy to kill him. The pursued escaped into a house and the pursuer entered the house after him. We enter the house after them and find the victim lying murdered, with the pursuer standing over him holding a knife, with both covered with blood. The Sanhedrin may not inflict the death penalty1 on this pursuer since there were no witnesses who actually saw the murder.
The Torah of Truth (Toras Emess) comes to prohibit his execution with G‑d's statement2 (exalted be He), "Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty."
Our Sages said in Mechilta:3 "If they saw him chasing after another to kill him and they warned him, saying, 'He is a Jew, a son of the Covenant! If you kill him you will be executed!' If the two went out of sight and they found one murdered, with the sword in the murderer's hand dripping blood, one might think that he can be executed. The Torah therefore says, 'Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty.' "
Do not question this law and think that it is unjust, for there are some possibilities that are extremely probable, others that are extremely unlikely, and others in between. The category of "possible" is very broad, and if the Torah allowed the High Court to punish when the offense was very probable and almost definite (similar to the above example), then they would carry out punishment in cases which were less and less probable, until people would be constantly4 executed based on flimsy estimation and the judges' imagination. G‑d (exalted be He), therefore "closed the door" to this possibility and forbid any punishment unless there are witnesses who are certain beyond a doubt that the event transpired and that there is no other possible explanation.
If we do not inflict punishment even when the offense is most probable, the worst that could happen is that someone who is really guilty will be found innocent. But if punishment was given based on estimation and circumstantial evidence,5 it is possible that someday an innocent person would be executed. And it is preferable and more proper6 that even a thousand guilty people be set free than to someday execute even one innocent person.
Similarly, if two witnesses testified that the person committed two capital offenses, but each one saw only one act and not the other, he cannot be executed. For example: One witness testified that he saw a person doing a melachah on Shabbos and warned him not to. Another witness testified that he saw the person worshipping idols and warned him not to. This person cannot be executed by stoning.7 Our Sages said,8 "If one witness testified that he worshipped the sun and the other testified that he worshipped the moon, one might think that they can joined together.9 The Torah therefore said, 'Do not kill a person who has not been proven guilty.'"
FOOTNOTES
1.They are allowed, however, in extreme circumstances, to order him executed as an emergency measure.
2.Ex. 23:7.
3.Ibid.
4.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 21, that the correct translation of the Arabic tzara is tamid (constantly), rather than the translation in the 5718 Rav Kook edition, b'avel. Chavel, following that version, translates "unwarrantable presumptions."
5.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 23, that this is the correct translation of the Arabic k'ra'in rather than the translation in the 5718 Rav Kook edition, dimui. Chavel, following that version, translates "suppositions."
6.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 24, translates ratzui, but writes that he could not find an equivalent Hebrew word, since the Arabic achut indicates taking extra precautions to avoid executing an innocent person.
7.Literally "stoning." See P229.
8.Mechilta, loc cit.
9.I.e. that there are two witnesses that he worshipped idols.
• Rambam - 1 Chapter a Day She'ar Avot haTum'ah - Chapter 7
• She'ar Avot haTum'ah - Chapter 7
• Rambam - 3 Chapters a Day Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 13, Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 14, Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 15
1
It is explicitly stated in the Torah that foods and liquids contract ritual impurity, as Leviticus 11:34 states: "Of all foods that will be eaten that were exposed to water will become impure and any beverage which one will drink in any vessel will become impure."
Food that contracted impurity does not impart impurity to other foods according to Scriptural Law. Nor do liquids that contracted impurity impart impurity to other entities according to Scriptural Law. Nevertheless, according to Rabbinic Law, it was decreed that impure food that touched other foods would impart impurity to them. Similarly, if impure foods touched liquids, the liquids are impure. Food does not, by contrast, ever impart impurity to a container that it touches even according to Rabbinic Law. Similarly, the Sages decreed that impure liquids should impart impurity to foods, liquids, and keilim that they touch.
א
דבר מפורש בתורה שהאוכלין והמשקין מתטמאין שנאמר מכל האוכל אשר יאכל אשר יבא עליו מים יטמא וכל משקה אשר ישתה בכל כלי יטמא ואין האוכל שנטמא מטמא אוכל אחר מן התורה ולא המשקין שנטמאו מטמאין דבר אחר מן התורה אבל מד"ס גזרו על האוכל הטמא שאם נגע באוכל אחר טימאהו וכן אם נגע אוכל הטמא במשקין טמאין ואין אוכל מטמא כלי שנגע בו לעולם ואפילו מדבריהם וכן גזרו על המשקין הטמאים שיטמאו אוכלין או משקין או כלים שנגעו בהן:
2
There are no derivatives of impurity that impart impurity tokeilim other than impure liquids. This impurity is a Rabbinic decree. It applies provided the original source of the liquid's impurity is a primary category of impurity, whether of Scriptural or Rabbinic origin.
Why did they decree that impure liquids should impart impurity tokeilim? Because of a similarity to the liquids that emanate from azav, which are a primary source of impurity and impart impurity tokeilim according to Scriptural Law, as ibid. 15:8 states: "When azav shall spit on a person who is pure," as we explained.
ב
אין לך ולד טומאה שמטמא כלים אלא משקין טמאים בלבד וטומאה זו מדבריהם והוא שיהיו אותן המשקין טמאין מחמת אב מאבות הטומאות בין של תורה בין של דבריהם ומפני מה גזרו על המשקין טמאין שיטמאו כלים גזירה משום משקה הזב שהוא אב ומטמא כלים דין תורה שנאמר וכי ירוק הזב בטהור כמו שביארנו:
3
When the Sages decreed that impure liquids should impart impurity to containers, they decreed that they should impart impurity from their inner surfaces.
What is implied? If impure liquids fell into the inner space of an earthenware container, it becomes impure in its entirety. It is considered as a secondary derivative. If they touch other containers on their inner surface, they become impure in their entirety and are considered as secondary derivatives of impurity. If, however, impure liquids touch the outer surface of a container, whether it be an earthenware container, a k'li that can be purified by immersion, or a metal k'li, only the outer surface becomes impure. The outer surface is considered as a secondary derivative, but its inner surface does not become impure.
In what context does the above apply? To terumah. For sacrificial foods, by contrast, when the outside of a container becomes impure, it becomes impure in its entirety and it is considered a secondary derivative of impurity in its entirety.
ג
כשגזרו על המשקין שיטמאו את הכלים גזרו שיהיו מטמאין את הכלים מתוכן כיצד אם נפלו לאויר כלי חרס נטמא כולו והרי הוא שני ואם נגעו בשאר כלים מתוכן מטמא כולן ונעשו שניים אבל אם נגעו משקין טמאים באחורי הכלי שיש לו תוך בין בכלי חרס בין בכלי שטף וכלי מתכות נטמאו אחוריו בלבד והרי אחוריו שני ולא נטמא תוכו במה דברים אמורים לתרומה אבל לקדש כלי שנטמאו אחוריו נטמא כולו והרי כולו שני לטומאה:
4
We already explained, that foods do not impart impurity to utensils, but that liquids do. Why did our Sages make the above distinction - that when the outer surface of a container was touched by impure liquids, its inner surface does not become impure for terumah? To make it known that the impurity of thesekeilim is a Rabbinic institution so that terumah and sacrificial foods will not be burnt as a result.
ד
כבר ביארנו שהאוכלין אין מטמאין כלים והמשקין מטמאין ולמה עשו בטומאת משקין היכר זה ואמרו שהכלי שנגעו משקין טמאין באחוריו לא נטמא תוכו לתרומה להודיע שטומאת כלים אלו מדבריהם שלא ישרפו עליה תרומה וקדשים:
5
We already explained that foods and liquids that touch one of the primary sources of impurity become primary derivatives of impurity. Similarly, if food touched a person or a k'li that had contracted impurity from a source of impurity, that food becomes a second derivative of impurity. Food that touches this secondary derivative is considered a tertiary derivative of impurity and if the tertiary derivative touches a fourth food, it is considered a fourth degree derivative of impurity.
To what does the above apply? To foods. With regard to liquids, by contrast, whether a liquid touches a primary source of impurity, a primary derivative or a secondary derivative, that liquid is considered as a primary derivative. It imparts impurity to another liquid, which in turn can impart impurity to another liquid, even if there is a chain of a hundred. For there is no concept of degrees of impurity with regard to liquids.
What is implied? When wine touched a primary source of impurity or a primary or secondary derivative, the wine is considered as a primary derivative of impurity. Similarly, if this wine touched oil, that oil touched milk, that milk touched honey, that honey touched water, and that water touched wine, in an endless chain, all the liquids are considered as primary derivatives. It is as if each one of them contracted impurity from a primary source. They all impart impurity to keilim. Similarly, if the outer surface of a container contracted impurity from a liquid and other liquids touched that impure outer surface, even if the other liquids are not sacred, the other liquids are considered as a primary derivative of impurity and impart impurity to other containers, making them secondary derivatives of impurity. Needless to say, they impart impurity to other foods and liquids.
ה
כבר ביארנו שהאוכלין והמשקין שנגעו באב מאבות הטומאות הרי הן ראשון לטומאה וכן אם נגע אוכל באדם או בכלי שנטמא באב הרי אותו האוכל שני לטומאה ואוכל שנגע בזה השני נקרא שלישי לטומאה ואם נגע השלישי באוכל (רביעי) ה"ז נקרא רביעי לטומאה בד"א באוכלין אבל המשקין אחד משקה שנגע באב הטומאה או שנגע בראשון או שנגע בשני הרי אותו המשקה תחלה לטומאה ומטמא את חבירו וחבירו את חבירו אפילו הן מאה שאין מונין במשקין כיצד יין שנגע באב הטומאה או בראשון או בשני הרי יין זה כראשון לטומאה וכן אם נגע יין זה בשמן ושמן בחלב וחלב בדבש ודבש במים ומים ביין אחר וכן עד לעולם כולן ראשון לטומאה וכאילו כל אחד מהן נטמא באב תחלה וכולן מטמאין את הכלים וכן כלי שנטמאו אחוריו במשקין ונגעו משקין אחרים באחורי הכלים הטמאין אפילו היו משקין חולין נעשו המשקין האחרים תחלה לטומאה ומטמאין כלים אחרים ועושין אותן שניים ואין צ"ל שהן מטמאין אוכלין ומשקין אחרים:
6
When the outer surface of a container contracted impurity and then foods - even food that are terumah - touched this impure outer surface, the foods are pure. For when only the outer surface of a container contracts impurity, it does not impart impurity to foods with the exception of sacrificial foods. For when the outer surface of a container contracts impurity, it is considered as entirely impure with regard to sacrificial foods, as we explained. Therefore, it imparts impurity to sacrificial foods.
ו
אחורי הכלי שנטמאו במשקין ונגעו אוכלין באחורי הכלי הטמא אפילו אוכלי תרומה הרי הן טהורין שהכלי שנטמאו אחוריו בלבד אינו מטמא את האוכלין אלא לקדש בלבד שהכלי שנטמאו אחוריו ה"ז טמא כולו לקדש כמו שביארנו ולפיכך מטמא אוכל הקדש:
• Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 13
• Hayom Yom: Today's Hayom Yom
1
When a person is sentenced to death, he is taken out of the court and led to the place of execution. One person stands at the entrance to the court with flags in his hands and a horse distant from him. An announcement is made before him: "So-and-so is being taken to be executed in this-and-this manner, because he violated this prohibition, in this place at this time. So-and-so and so-and-so are the witnesses. If there is anyone who knows a rationale leading to his acquittal, let them come and tell us."
If a person says: "I know a rationale that leads to his acquittal," the person with the flags waves them and the rider on the horse races to bring the defendant back to the court. If a factor leading to his acquittal is found, he is released. If not, he is taken back for execution.
If the defendant himself says: "I know a rationale that leads to my acquittal," even though there is no substance to his words, he is returned to the court once or twice. We suspect that perhaps out of fear, he could not present his arguments and when he is returned to the court, he will be composed and will state a substantial reason for acquittal.
If they return him to the court, and it is discovered that his words are without substance, for a third time, he is taken to be executed. If on this third occasion, he also says: "I know a rationale that leads to my acquittal," we return him to the court - even several times - if his words are substantial. For this reason, two scholars are sent to accompany him and listen to his statements on the way. If his words are of substance, he is returned to the court. If not, he is not returned.
If an argument leading to his acquittal is not discovered, he is brought out for execution. The witnesses are the ones who execute him in the manner for which he is liable. When a murderer is not executed by his witnesses, all other people are obligated to execute him.
Approximately ten cubits from the place of execution, he is told to confess. For all those who are executed should confess. For if they confess, they receive a portion in the world to come. If he does not know how to confess, we tell him: "Say 'may my death atone for my sins.' Even if he knows that he was the victim of false testimony, he should confess in this manner.
א
מי שנגמר דינו למיתה מוציאין אותו מבית דין ואחד עומד על פתח בית דין והסודרין בידו והסוס רחוק ממנו והכרוז יוצא לפניו פלוני יוצא ליהרג במיתה פלונית על שעבר עבירה פלונית במקום פלוני בזמן פלוני ופלוני ופלוני עדיו מי שיודע לו זכות יבא וילמד עליו אמר אחד יש לי ללמד עליו זכות זה מניף בסודרין וזה הרוכב על הסוס רץ ומחזיר את הנדון לבית דין אם נמצא לו זכות פוטרין אותו ואם לא יחזור ויצא להריגה אמר הוא בעצמו יש לי ללמד על עצמי זכות אע"פ שאין ממש בדבריו מחזירין אותו פעם ראשונה ושנייה שמא מפני הפחד נסתתמו טענותיו וכשיחזור לבית דין תתיישב דעתו ויאמר טעם החזירוהו ולא נמצא ממש בדבריו מוציאין אותו פעם שלישית אמר בשלישית יש לי ללמד על עצמי זכות אם יש ממש בדבריו מחזירין אותו אפילו כמה פעמים לפיכך מוסרין לו שני תלמידי חכמים ששומעין דבריו בדרך אם יש ממש בדבריו מחזירין אותו ואם לאו אין מחזירין אותו אם לא נמצא לו זכות מוציאין אותו ועדיו הם ההורגין אותו בכל מיתה שיתחייב בה ורוצח שלא הרגוהו עדיו חייבין להמיתו ביד כל אדם רחוק ממקום ההריגה כעשר אמות אומר לו התודה שכן דרך כל המומתין מתודין וכל המתודה יש לו חלק לעולם הבא אם אינו יודע להתודות אומרים לו אמור תהא מיתתי כפרה על כל עונותי אפילו ידע בעצמו ששקר העידו עליו כך הוא מתודה:
2
After he confessess, he is given a granule of frankincense dissolved in a cup of wine, so that he will lose control of his mind and become drunk. Afterwards, he is executed in the manner for which he is liable.
ב
ואחר שמתודה משקין אותו קורט של לבונה בכוס של יין כדי שתטרף דעתו עליו וישתכר ואחר כך יהרג במיתה שהוא חייב בה:
3
The wine, the frankincense, the stone used to execute a person stoned to death, the sword used to decapitate a defendant, the cloth use for strangulation, the pole on which a blasphemer or an idolater is hung after being executed, the flags that are waved before those being executed, and the horse that runs to save him all are paid for from communal funds. Anyone who wants to donate them may donate them.
ג
זה היין והלבונה והאבן שיסקל בה הנסקל והסייף שיהרג בו הנהרג והסודר שחונקין בו הנחנק והעץ שתולין עליו הנתלה והסודרין שמניפין בה לפני הרוגי בית דין והסוס שרץ להצילו הכל באין משל ציבור ומי שירצה להתנדב יבא ויתנדב:
4
The court does not attend the funeral of the executed person. Whenever a court has a person executed, they are forbidden to eat for the remainder of that entire day.. This prohibition is included in the interdiction (Leviticus 19:26): "Do not eat upon the blood." A meal of comfort is not given the relatives of those executed by the court. This too is derived from the above verse. These acts are forbidden, but they are not punishable by lashes.
ד
אין בית דין יוצאין אחר הנהרג וכל בית דין שהרגו נפש אסורים לאכול כל אותו היום הרי זה בכלל לא תאכלו על הדם ואין מברין הקרובים על הרוגי בית דין משום לא תאכלו על הדם ודברים אלו אסורין ואין בהן מלקות:
5
When a person is held liable for the death penalty during Chol HaMoed, the court prolong their analysis of his judgment. The judges eat and drink. Afterwards, shortly before sunset, they conclude the judgment and have him executed.
ה
מי שנתחייב מיתה בחולו של מועד מעיינין בדינו ואוכלין בית דין ושותין ואח"כ גומרין את דינו סמוך לשקיעת החמה והורגין אותו:
6
Mourning rites are not held for those executed by the court. Their relatives come and inquire about the well-being of the witnesses and the well-being of the judges to show that they have no bad feelings against them in their hearts and that they acknowledge that their judgment was true. Although they do not observe the mourning rites, they do observe aninut. For aninut is solely a reflection of the feeling in one's heart.
ו
הרוגי בית דין אין מתאבלין עליהן ובאין קרוביהן ושואלים את שלום העדים ואת שלום הדיינים להודיע שאין בלבם עליהן כלום שדין אמת דנו ואף על פי שאין נוהגין אבלות הרי הן אוננים עליהם שאין אנינות אלא בלב:
7
When a person was sentenced in one court, fled, and brought to another court, we do not reopen his case. Instead, wherever two people will arise and state: "We testify that this person was sentenced to death in this court and that so-and-so and so-and-so are those who testified against him," he is executed.
When does the above apply? To a murderer. Other people who are obligated to be executed are not given that punishment until the witnesses who originally testified against them come and testify that they were sentenced to death. The witnesses must then execute the convicted themselves. The above applies provided testimony is given in a court of 23 judges.
ז
מי שנגמר דינו וברח ובא לבית דין אחר אין סותרין את דינו אלא כל מקום שיעמדו שנים ויאמרו מעידין אנו את איש פלוני שנגמר דינו בבית דין פלוני ופלוני ופלוני עדיו הרי זה יהרג במה דברים אמורים ברוצח אבל שאר חייבי מיתות עד שיבואו עדיו הראשונים ויעידו שנגמר דינו ויהרגוהו בידם והוא שיעידו בבית דין של עשרים ושלשה:
8
When a person was sentenced to death by a court in the diaspora and fled to a court in Eretz Yisrael, we reopen his case at least. If he comes before the same court who sentenced him in the diaspora, we do not reopen his case, even though they sentenced him in the diaspora and now they are in Eretz Yisrael.
ח
מי שנגמר דינו בבית דין שהיה בחוצה לארץ וברח לבית דין שבארץ ישראל סותרין את דינו על כל פנים ואם היו אותן בית דין עצמן שנגמר דינו בפניהם אין סותרין את דינו אע"פ שגמרוהו בחוצה לארץ והם עתה בארץ ישראל:
Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 14
1
Four types of execution were given to the court: stoning, burning, decapitation with a sword, and strangulation. Stoning and burning are explicitly mentioned in the Torah. Moses our teacher taught that whenever the Torah mentions the death sentence without any further description, the intent is strangulation. When a person kills a colleague, he should be decapitated. Similarly, the inhabitants of a city that goes astray are executed by decapitation.
א
ארבע מיתות נמסרו לבית דין סקילה ושריפה והריגה בסייף וחנק סקילה ושריפה מפורשין הן בתורה ומפי משה רבינו למדו שכל מיתה האמורה בתורה סתם היא חנק וההורג את חבירו מיתתו בסייף וכן אנשי עיר הנדחת מיתתן בסייף:
2
Every one of these forms of execution involves a positive commandment for the court to execute a person with the form of death for which he is liable. A king has permission to execute using only one of them - by decapitation.
ב
כל מיתה מהם מצות עשה היא לבית דין להרוג בה מי שנתחייב בה ואין רשות למלך להרוג באחת מהן אלא בסייף בלבד:
3
Whenever a person is obligated to be executed and the court did not execute him, the judges negated the observance of a positive commandment, but do not transgress a negative commandment. There is one exception: a sorcerer. If they do not kill him, they violate a negative commandment, as Exodus 22:17states: "Do not allow a sorcerer to live."
ג
כל מחוייב מיתת בית דין שלא המיתו אותו בית דין ביטלו מצות עשה ולא עברו על מצות לא תעשה חוץ מן המכשף שאם לא המיתוהו עברו על מצות לא תעשה שנאמר מכשפה לא תחיה:
4
Stoning to death is a more severe form of execution than burning. Burning is a more sever form than decapitation, and decapitation is more sever than strangulation.
When a person is liable to be executed with two different forms of execution, he should be executed with the more severe form. This applies whether he committed two transgressions, one after the other, or he committed one transgression which involved two death penalties. Even if he was sentenced to be executed for the less severe form of execution and afterwards, committed a transgression punishable by the more severe form, should he be convicted, he is executed in the more severe manner.
ד
סקילה חמורה מן השריפה ושריפה חמורה מן הסייף והסייף חמורה מן החנק וכל מי שנתחייב בשתי מיתות נדון בחמורה בין שעבר שתי עבירות זו אחר זו בין שעבר עבירה אחת שחייב עליה שתי מיתות אפילו נגמר דינו לקלה ואחר כך עבר על החמורה ונגמר דינו נידון בחמורה:
5
Both men and women are executed in these four manners.
ה
ואחד האיש ואחד האשה דנין אותן בארבע מיתות:
6
Whenever people who are all liable to be executed are mixed together, each one of them is executed in the less severe manner.
ו
כל חייבי מיתות שנתערבו זה בזה נדון כל אחד מהן בקלה שבהן:
7
When a person who has been sentenced to death becomes mixed together with others and it is unable to distinguish him from them, and similarly, when a person who was not convicted becomes mixed together with others who have been convicted and sentenced to death and it is unable to distinguish him from them, they are all released from liability. The rationale is that we complete the judgment of a person only when he is present.
ז
מי שנגמר דינו שנתערב עם שאר העם ולא נודע מי הוא מאלו או מי שלא נגמר דינו שנתערב עם מי שנגמר דינו ולא נודע מי הוא כולן פטורין לפי שאין גומרין דינו של אדם אלא בפניו:
8
When a convicted person fights for his life and it is impossible for the court to have him bound so that he can be executed in the manner in which he is obligated to die, the witnesses should kill him in any manner they can, for he has been sentenced to death. No one else, however, has the right to kill him first.
For this reason, if the hands of the witnesses are cut off, the convicted person is released. If, however, at the outset, the witnesses did not have hands, the convicted person should be executed by others.
When does the above apply? To all people who are liable to be executed by the court with the exception of a murderer. When, however, a murderer has been sentenced by the court every person should pursue him using any means possible to kill him until he is executed.
ח
מי שעמד על נפשו ולא יכלו בית דין לאוסרו עד שימיתוהו במיתה שהוא חייב בה הורגין אותו עדיו בכל מיתה שיכולין להמיתו בה מאחר שנגמר דינו ואין רשות לשאר העם להמיתו תחלה לפיכך אם נקטעה יד העדים פטור ואם היו העדים גדמין מתחלה יהרג ביד אחרים בד"א בשאר מחוייבי מיתות בית דין חוץ מן הרוצח אבל הורג נפש שנגמר דינו רודפין אחריו בכל דבר וביד כל אדם עד שממתין אותו:
9
All of the people executed by the court should not be buried in their family plots together with the entire Jewish people. Instead, the court sets aside two different burial plots: one for those who are stoned and those who are burnt, and the other for those who are decapitated and strangled. This is a halachah conveyed by the Oral Tradition.
When the flesh of the corpse decomposes, they would gather the bones and rebury them in their ancestral plots. The relatives may make a coffin and shrouds in which to rebury the bones.
ט
כל הרוגי בית דין אין קוברין אותן בקברי אבותיהם בכלל ישראל אלא שני קברות מתקנין להן בית דין אחד לנסקלין ולנשרפין ואחד לנהרגין ולנחנקין ודבר זה הלכה מפי השמועה נתאכל הבשר היו מלקטין את העצמות וקוברין אותן בקברות אבותיהן ויש לקרוביהן לעשות להן ארון ותכריכין:
10
The court must be very patient with regard to laws involving capital punishment and ponder the matter without being hasty. Whenever a court executes a person once in seven years, it is considered a savage court. Nevertheless, if it happens that they must execute a person every day, they do. They do not, however, judge two cases involving capital punishment on the same day. Instead, one is judged immediately, and the other on the following day.
If, however, the two people committed the same sin and are punished with the same form of execution, e.g., a man and a woman who committed adultery, we judge both of them on the same day. Therefore if an adulterer had relations with the daughter of a priest, since he is executed by strangulation and she is burnt to death, they are not executed on the same day.
י
צריכין בית דין להתיישב בדיני נפשות ולהמתין ולא יאיצו וכל בית דין שהרגו נפש בשבע שנים הרי אלו חבלנין אף על פי כן אם אירע להם להרוג בכל יום ויום הורגין אבל אין דנין לעולם שנים ביום אחד אלא דנין זה היום והשני למחר היו שניהם בעבירה אחת ומיתה אחת כגון נואף עם נואפת דנין שניהם ביום אחד לפיכך אם היה הנואף בועל בת כהן הואיל והוא בחנק והיא בשריפה אין הורגין שניהן ביום אחד:
11
Cases involving capital punishment are adjudicated only when the Temple is standing. It is also necessary that the High Court hold its sessions in the Chamber of Hewn Stone in the Temple. This is derived from the statements of Deuteronomy 17:12with regard to a rebellious elder: "who refuses to heed the priest." According to the Oral Tradition, it was taught: "At a time when there is a priest offering sacrifices on the altar, cases involving capital punishment are adjudicated." This applies provided the court is holding sessions in its place.
יא
אין דנין דני נפשות אלא בפני הבית והוא שיהיה בית דין הגדול שם בלשכה שבמקדש שנאמר בזקן ממרא לבלתי שמוע אל הכהן וגו' ומפי השמועה למדו שבזמן שיש כהן מקריב על גבי המזבח יש דיני נפשות והוא שיהיה בית דין הגדול במקומו:
12
At the outset, when the Temple was constructed, the Supreme Sanhedrin would hold session in the Chamber of Hewn Stone in the Courtyard of the Israelites. The place where the judges would sit was not consecrated. For only kings of the House of David were permitted to sit in the Temple Courtyard.
When the moral character of the Jewish people declined, theSanhedrin went in exile. They traveled to ten different places in exile, the last being Tiberias. Afterwards, until the present age, the Supreme Sanhedrin has never been convened. And it is an accepted tradition, that in the future, the Sanhedrin will first convene in Tiberias, and from there, they will proceed to the Temple.
יב
בתחילה כשנבנה בית המקדש היו בית דין הגדול יושבין בלשכת הגזית שהיתה בעזרת ישראל והמקום שהיו יושבין בו חול היה שאין ישיבה בעזרה אלא למלכי בית דוד וכשנתקלקלה השורה גלו ממקום למקום ולעשרה מקומות גלו וסופן לטבריא ומשם לא עמד בית דין גדול עד עתה וקבלה היא שבטבריא עתידין לחזור תחילה ומשם נעתקין למקדש:
13
40 years before the destruction of the Temple, capital punishment was nullified among the Jewish people. Although the Temple was still standing, since the Sanhedrin went into exile and were not in their place in the Temple, these laws could not be enforced.
יג
ארבעים שנה קודם חרבן בית שני בטלו דיני נפשות מישראל אע"פ שהיה המקדש קיים מפני שגלו הסנהדרין ולא היו שם במקומן במקדש:
14
In the era when cases involving capital punishment were adjudicated in Eretz Yisrael, such cases could also be adjudicated in the diaspora, provided the members of that court received semichah in Eretz Yisrael. As we have already stated, theSanhedrin exercises judicial authority in Eretz Yisrael and in the diaspora.
יד
בזמן שדנין דיני נפשות בארץ ישראל דנין דיני נפשות בחוצה לארץ והוא שיהיו הסנהדרין סמוכין בארץ כמו שביארנו שהסנהדרין נוהגת בארץ ובחוצה לארץ:
Sanhedrin veha`Onashin haMesurin lahem - Chapter 15
1
How is the mitzvah of stoning carried out? Four cubits from the place of execution, we remove the clothes of the person to be stoned; we do, however, cover his sexual organ in front. A woman is not executed naked. Instead, she is allowed to wear one cloak.
The place of execution was two storeys high. The convicted person ascends there with his hands tied, together with his witnesses. One of the witnesses pushes him at his loins from behind, he falls over, landing on his heart on the ground. If he dies because of this, they have fulfilled their obligation, for Exodus 19:13 states: "Or he will be cast down or stoned," creating an equation between a person who has a stone fall upon him with one who himself falls on the earth.
If he does not die after this fall, the witnesses pick up a stone that is so large it requires two people to carry it. The second witness lets go and the first casts the stone on the convicted person's heart. If he dies because of this, they have fulfilled their obligation. If not, he should be stoned by the entire Jewish people, asDeuteronomy 17:7 states: "The hand of the witnesses shall be raised up against him first to execute him, and the hand of the entire nation afterwards."
א
כיצד מצות הנסלקין רחוק מבית הסקילה ארבע אמות מפשיטין את המחוייב סקילה בגדיו ומכסין ערותו מלפניו ואין האשה נסקלת ערומה אלא בחלוק אחד ובית הסקילה גבוה שתי קומות עולה לשם הוא ועדיו וידיו אסורות ואחד מן העדים דוחפו על מתניו מאחוריו והוא נהפך ונופל על לבו לארץ אם מת בה יצא שהרי נאמר סקול יסקל או ירה יירה הנה השוה הנסקל שנפל את האבן עליו עם הנדחף שנפל הוא בעצמו על הארץ ואם לא מת מדחיפה זו מגביהין העדים אבן שהיתה מונחת שם משא שני בני אדם והעד השני מרפה את ידו ומשליך האבן על לבו אם מת בו יצא ואם לאו רגימתו בכל ישראל שנאמר יד העדים תהיה בו בראשונה להמיתו ויד כל העם באחרונה:
2
An idolater should be stoned at the gateway to the place where he performed the transgression. If the majority of the population of a city are gentiles, he should be stoned at the entrance to the court. This concept has been conveyed by the Oral Tradition. The term "to your gates" where Deuteronomy 17:8 states that an idolater should be executed refers to the gate where he performed the transgression and not the gate where he was sentenced.
ב
עובד ע"ז אין סוקלין אותו אלא על שער שעבד בו ואם היתה עיר שרובה עכו"ם סוקלין אותו על פתח בית דין ודבר זה קבלה מפי השמועה אל שעריך זה שער שעבד בו ולא שנגמר דינו בו:
3
The mitzvah of executing a person by burning is performed as follows: The convicted is placed in fertilizer until his knees. A firm cloth is placed within a soft cloth and they are wound around his neck. The two witnesses are positioned on either side and each pull the cloths toward himself until the convicted opens his mouth. Tin, lead, and the like are melted down and then poured into his mouth. The molten metal descends and burns his innards.
ג
מצות הנשרפין היו משקעין אותו בזבל עד ארכובותיו ונותנים סודר קשה לתוך הרך וכורך על צוארו ושני עדיו זה מושך אצלו וזה מושך אצלו עד שהוא פותח את פיו ומתיכים את הבדיל ואת העופרת וכיוצא בהן והוא זורק לתוך פיו והיא יורדת ושורפת את בני מעיו:
4
The mitzvah of decapitation is performed as follows: We cut of his head with a sword as the kings do.
ד
מצות הנהרגין מתיזין את ראשו בסייף כדרך שהמלכים עושים:
5
The mitzvah of executing a person by strangulation is performed as follows: The convicted is placed in fertilizer until his knees. A firm cloth is placed within a soft cloth and they are wound around his neck. Each of the two witnesses pulls the cloths toward himself until the convicted expires.
ה
מצות הנחנקין משקעין את המחוייב בזבל עד ארכובותיו ונותנין סודר קשה לתוך הרך וכורכין על צוארו זה מושך אצלו וזה מושך אצלו עד שתצא נפשו:
6
It is a positive commandment to hang a blasphemer and an idolater after they have been executed, as implied byDeuteronomy 21:23: "A person who is hung is cursing God." This refers to the blasphemer. With regard to an idolater, Numbers 15:30 states: "He blasphemes God."
A man is hung, but a woman is not hung, as implied byDeuteronomy 21:22: "When a man has sinned and is condemned to die, after he is executed, you shall hang him...."
ו
מצות עשה לתלות את המגדף ועובד עכו"ם שנאמר כי קללת אלהים תלוי הרי מגדף אמור ובעובד עכו"ם נאמר את ה' הוא מגדף והאיש נתלה ואין האשה נתלית שנאמר כי יהיה באיש חטא משפט מות והומת ותלית אותו:
7
How is the mitzvah of hanging carried out? After the convicted is stoned, a beam is implanted in the ground with a rafter protruding from it. The two hands of the corpse are intercrossed and he is hung close to sunset.
He is released immediately. If not, a negative commandment is transgressed, as Ibid.:23 states: "Do not let his corpse tarry overnight on the beam."
ז
כיצד מצות הנתלין אחר שסוקלין אותן משקעין את הקורה בארץ ועץ יוצא ממנה ומקיפין שתי ידיו זו לזו ותולהו סמוך לשקיעת החמה ומתירין אותו מיד ואם לן עוברין עליו בלא תעשה שנאמר לא תלין נבלתו על העץ:
8
It is a positive mitzvah to bury the persons executed by the court on the day of their execution, as Ibid. states: "For you shall surely bury him on that day."
Not only those executed by the court, but anyone who leaves a deceased overnight without burying him transgresses a negative commandment. If, however, a burial is delayed overnight to honor the deceased, e.g., to bring a coffin or shrouds, there is no transgression.
ח
ומצות עשה לקבור את כל הרוגי בית דין ביום ההריגה שנאמר כי קבור תקברנו ביום ההוא ולא הרוגי בית דין בלבד אלא כל המלין את מתו עובר עליו בלא תעשה הלינו לכבודו להביא לו ארון ותכריכין אינו עובר עליו:
9
We do not hang a person on a tree that is still growing from the ground, only from one which has been detached. In this way, the tree will not have to be chopped down before the person's burial. For the tree on which the executed is hung is buried with him, so that it will not be an unfavorable remembrance, causing people to say: "This is the tree on which so-and-so was hung."
Similarly, the stone, the sword, and the cloths used for execution are all buried near the deceased, but not in his actual grave.
ט
אין תולין על אילן המחובר לקרקע אלא על התלוש כדי שלא יהא מחוסר קציצה שהעץ שנתלה עליו נקבר עמו שלא יהא לו זכרון רע ויאמרו זה העץ שנתלה עליו פלוני וכן האבן שנסקל בה והסייף שנהרג בו הנהרג והסודרין שחונקין בהן הכל נקברין בתפישת הנהרג אבל לא בקבר עצמו:
10
The Torah mentions18 people who are executed by stoning. They are: a) a person who engages in relations with his mother, b) with his father's wife, c) his daughter-in-law, d) a maiden who was consecrated, e) a man involved in homosexual relations, f) a man who sodomizes an animal, g) a woman who has relations with an animal, h) a blasphemer, i) an idolater, j) a person who gives his descendants to Molech, k) a person who divines with an ov, l) a person who divines with an yidoni, m) a person who entices others to worship idols, n) the people who lead a city to idol worship, o) a sorcerer, p) a person who desecrates the Sabbath, q) a person who curses his father or his mother, and r) a wayward and rebellious son.
י
כל הנסקלין שבתורה שמונה עשר ואלו הן: הבא על האם ועל אשת אב ועל כלתו ועל נערה המאורסה ועל הזכור והשוכב עם בהמה והאשה המביאה את הבהמה עליה והמגדף ועובד עכו"ם והנותן מזרעו למולך ובעל אוב ובעל ידעוני והמסית והמדיח והמכשף והמחלל את השבת ומקלל אביו או אמו ובן סורר ומורה:
11
There are 10 people who are executing by burning: a) a priest's daughter who commits adultery, b) a person who has relations with his daughter, c) with his daughter's daughter, d) with his son's daughter, e) with his wife's daughter, f) with the daughter of his wife's daughter, g) with the daughter of his wife's son, h) with his mother-in-law, i) with the mother of his mother-in-law, and j) with the mother of his father-in-law.
The latter prohibitions apply if the man has relations with them during his wife's lifetime. After his wife's death, these relations are punishable by kerait alone like other incestuous relationships.
יא
כל הנשרפין עשרה ואלו הן: בת כהן שזינתה תחת בעלה ובא על בתו ועל בת בתו ועל בת בנו ועל בת אשתו ועל בת בתה ועל בת בנה ועל חמותו ועל אם חמותו ועל אם חמיו והוא שבא עליהן בחיי אשתו אבל לאחר מיתת אשתו הרי הן בכרת בלבד בכלל העריות:
12
There are two who are decapitated: a murderer, and the inhabitants of a city enticed to idolatry.
יב
הנהרגין שנים: הרוצח והנדח:
13
There are six who are executed by strangulation: a) an adulterer, b) a person who wounds his father or mother, c) a person who kidnaps a fellow Jew, d) a rebellious elder, e) an a false prophet, and f) a person who prophecies in the name of a false deity.
Thus the court executes individuals for a totality of 36 prohibitions.
יג
הנחנקין ששה ואלו הן: הבא על אשת איש החובל באביו או באמו וגונב נפש מישראל וזקן ממרא ונביא השקר והמתנבא בשם ע"ז נמצאו כל הרוגי בית דין ששה ושלשים:
• Friday, 27 Elul, 5776 · 30 September 2016
• "Today's Day"
• Monday, Elul 27, 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Ha'azinu, Sheini with Rashi.
Tehillim: 120-134. Also 79-81.
Tanya: Now, the aspect (p. 493) ...and the intellect. (p. 495).
From the holy teachings of the Alter Rebbe: "Israel, one nation on the earth."1 The nation of Israel, even in the earthly world, is bound up with the one G-d. G-d transforms the spiritual into something material; Israel transforms the material into something spiritual.2
FOOTNOTES
1.Divrei Hayamim I, 17:21.
2.See Tevet 27; Adar II 29.
• Daily Thought:• "Today's Day"
• Monday, Elul 27, 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Ha'azinu, Sheini with Rashi.
Tehillim: 120-134. Also 79-81.
Tanya: Now, the aspect (p. 493) ...and the intellect. (p. 495).
From the holy teachings of the Alter Rebbe: "Israel, one nation on the earth."1 The nation of Israel, even in the earthly world, is bound up with the one G-d. G-d transforms the spiritual into something material; Israel transforms the material into something spiritual.2
FOOTNOTES
1.Divrei Hayamim I, 17:21.
2.See Tevet 27; Adar II 29.
Let Him In
So strange.
We trust that He is good, and that all He does is good.
Yet we pray. Because to us things don’t look so good. After all, His goodness is so distant from us. Beyond our understanding. Far beyond.
If so, shouldn’t we simply continue to trust? To surrender to a higher understanding?
Yet He asks us to pray. To complain and to kvetch. And He listens. And He answers our prayers.
Because this is what He most desires from us: that we make room for Him in our lives, in all that matters to us as flesh and blood human beings.
And that begins when we share with Him those things that touch us most deeply. Deep within our hearts.
“Serve G‑d, your G‑d, with all your heart,” the Torah says. The sages ask, “What kind of service do you do with your heart?”
And they answer, “Prayer.”
Pour out your heart to Him. It is the one place He can only enter once you let Him in.
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