Torah Reading
Ha'azinu: Deuteronomy 32:1 “Hear, oh heavens, as I speak!
Listen, earth, to the words from my mouth!
2 May my teaching fall like rain.
May my speech condense like dew,
like light rain on blades of grass,
or showers on growing plants.
3 “For I will proclaim the name of Adonai.
Come, declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock! His work is perfect,
for all his ways are just.
A trustworthy God who does no wrong,
he is righteous and straight.
5 “He is not corrupt; the defect is in his children,
a crooked and perverted generation.
6 You foolish people, so lacking in wisdom,
is this how you repay Adonai?
He is your father, who made you his!
It was he who formed and prepared you!
(ii) 7 “Remember how the old days were;
think of the years through all the ages.
Ask your father — he will tell you;
your leaders too — they will inform you.
8 “When ‘Elyon gave each nation its heritage,
when he divided the human race,
he assigned the boundaries of peoples
according to Isra’el’s population;
9 but Adonai’s share was his own people,
Ya‘akov his allotted heritage.
10 “He found his people in desert country,
in a howling, wasted wilderness.
He protected him and cared for him,
guarded him like the pupil of his eye,
11 like an eagle that stirs up her nest,
hovers over her young,
spreads out her wings, takes them
and carries them as she flies.
12 “Adonai alone led his people;
no alien god was with him.
(iii) 13 He made them ride on the heights of the earth.
They ate the produce of the fields.
He had them suck honey from the rocks
and olive oil from the crags,
14 curds from the cows and milk from the sheep,
with lamb fat, rams from Bashan and goats,
with the finest wheat flour;
and you drank sparkling wine from the blood of grapes.
15 “But Yeshurun grew fat and kicked
(you grew fat, thick, gross!).
He abandoned God his Maker;
he scorned the Rock, his salvation.
16 They roused him to jealousy with alien gods,
provoked him with abominations.
17 They sacrificed to demons, non-gods,
gods that they had never known,
new gods that had come up lately,
which your ancestors had not feared.
18 You ignored the Rock who fathered you,
you forgot God, who gave you birth.
(iv) 19 “Adonai saw and was filled with scorn
at his sons’ and daughters’ provocation.
20 He said, ‘I will hide my face from them
and see what will become of them;
for they are a perverse generation,
untrustworthy children.
21 They aroused my jealousy with a non-god
and provoked me with their vanities;
I will arouse their jealousy with a non-people
and provoke them with a vile nation.
22 “‘For my anger has been fired up.
It burns to the depths of Sh’ol,
devouring the earth and its crops,
kindling the very roots of the hills.
23 I will heap disasters on them
and use up all my arrows against them.
24 “‘Fatigued by hunger, they will be
consumed by fever and bitter defeat;
I will send them the fangs of wild beasts,
and the poison of reptiles crawling in the dust.
25 Outside, the sword makes parents childless;
inside, there is panic,
as young men and girls alike are slain,
sucklings and graybeards together.
26 “‘I considered putting an end to them,
erasing their memory from the human race;
27 but I feared the insolence of their enemy,
feared that their foes would mistakenly think,
“We ourselves accomplished this;
Adonai had nothing to do with it.”
28 “‘They are a nation without common sense,
utterly lacking in discernment.
(v) 29 If they were wise they could figure it out
and understand their destiny.
30 After all, how can one chase a thousand
and two put ten thousand to rout,
unless their Rock sells them to their enemies,
unless Adonai hands them over?
31 For our enemies have no rock like our Rock —
even they can see that!
32 “‘Rather, their vine is from the vine of S’dom,
from the fields of ‘Amora —
their grapes are poisonous,
their clusters are bitter;
33 their wine is snake poison,
the cruel venom of vipers.
34 “‘Isn’t this hidden with me,
sealed in my storehouses?
35 Vengeance and payback are mine
for the time when their foot slips;
for the day of their calamity is coming soon,
their doom is rushing upon them.’
36 “Yes, Adonai will judge his people,
taking pity on his servants,
when he sees that their strength is gone,
that no one is left, slave or free.
37 Then he will ask, ‘Where are their gods,
the rock in whom they trusted?
38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices
and drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let him get up and help you,
let him protect you!
39 See now that I, yes, I, am he;
and there is no god beside me.
I put to death, and I make alive;
I wound, and I heal;
no one saves anyone from my hand!
(vi) 40 “‘For I lift up my hand to heaven and swear,
“As surely as I am alive forever,
41 if I sharpen my flashing sword
and set my hand to judgment,
I will render vengeance to my foes,
repay those who hate me.
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
my sword will devour flesh —
the blood of the slain and the captives,
flesh from the wild-haired heads of the enemy.”’
43 “Sing out, you nations, about his people!
For he will avenge the blood of his servants.
He will render vengeance to his adversaries
and make atonement for the land of his people.”
(vii) 44 Moshe came and proclaimed all the words of this song in the hearing of the people and of Hoshea the son of Nun.
45 When he had finished speaking all these words to all Isra’el, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all the words of my testimony against you today, so that you can use them in charging your children to be careful to obey all the words of this Torah. 47 For this is not a trivial matter for you; on the contrary, it is your life! Through it you will live long in the land you are crossing the Yarden to possess.”
(Maftir) 48 That same day Adonai said to Moshe, 49 “Go up into the ‘Avarim Range, to Mount N’vo, in the land of Mo’av across from Yericho; and look out over the land of Kena‘an, which I am giving the people of Isra’el as a possession. 50 On the mountain you are ascending you will die and be gathered to your people, just as Aharon your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. 51 The reason for this is that both of you broke faith with me there among the people of Isra’el at the M’rivat-Kadesh Spring, in the Tzin Desert; you failed to demonstrate my holiness there among the people of Isra’el. 52 So you will see the land from a distance, but you will not enter the land I am giving to the people of Isra’el.”
II Samuel 22:1 David said the words of this song to Adonai on the day Adonai delivered him from the power of all his enemies and from the power of Sha’ul. 2 He said:
“Adonai is my Rock, my fortress and deliverer,
3 the God who is my Rock, in whom I find shelter,
my shield, the power that saves me,
my stronghold and my refuge.
My savior, you have saved me from violence.
4 I call on Adonai, who is worthy of praise;
and I am saved from my enemies.
5 “For death’s breakers were closing over me,
the floods of B’liya‘al terrified me,
6 the ropes of Sh’ol were wrapped around me,
the snares of death lay there before me.
7 In my distress I called to Adonai;
yes, I called to my God.
Out of his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry entered his ears.
8 “Then the earth quaked and shook,
the foundations of heaven trembled.
They were shaken because he was angry.
9 Smoke arose in his nostrils;
and from his mouth, devouring fire,
with coals blazing from it.
10 He lowered heaven and came down
with thick darkness under his feet.
11 He rode on a keruv and flew,
he was seen on the wings of the wind.
12 He made darkness his canopy around him,
thick clouds in the skies dense with water.
13 From the brightness before him,
fiery coals flamed out.
14 “Adonai thundered from heaven,
Ha‘Elyon sounded his voice.
15 He sent out arrows and scattered them;
with lightning he routed them.
16 The channels of the sea appeared,
the foundations of the world were exposed
at Adonai’s rebuke,
at the blast of breath from his nostrils.
17 “He sent from on high, he took me
and pulled me out of deep water;
18 he rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from those who hated me, for they were stronger than I.
19 They came against me on my day of calamity,
but Adonai was my support.
20 “He brought me out to an open place;
he rescued me, because he took pleasure in me.
21 Adonai rewarded me for my uprightness,
he repaid me because my hands were clean.
22 “For I have kept the ways of Adonai,
I have not done evil by leaving my God;
23 for all his rulings were before me,
I did not depart from his regulations.
24 I was pure-hearted toward him
and kept myself from my sin.
25 “Hence Adonai repaid me for my uprightness,
according to my purity in his view.
26 With the merciful, you are merciful;
with the champion of purity, you are pure;
27 with the honest, you are honest;
but with the crooked you are cunning.
28 People afflicted, you save;
but when your eyes are on the haughty, you humble them.
29 “For you, Adonai, are my lamp;
Adonai lights up my darkness.
30 With you I can run through a whole troop of men,
with my God I can leap a wall.
31 “As for God, his way is perfect,
the word of Adonai has been tested by fire;
he shields all who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God but Adonai,
and who is a Rock but our God?
33 “God is my strength and protection;
he makes my way go straight.
34 He makes me swift and sure-footed as a deer
and enables me to stand on my high places.
35 He trains my hands for war
until my arms can bend a bow of bronze;
36 You give me your shield, which is salvation;
your answers make me great.
37 You lengthen the steps I can take,
yet my ankles do not turn.
38 “I pursued my enemies and wiped them out,
without turning back until they were destroyed.
39 I destroyed them, crushed them; they can’t get up;
they have fallen under my feet.
40 “For you braced me with strength for the battle
and bent down my adversaries beneath me.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs in flight,
so that I could destroy those who hate me.
42 “They looked, but there was no one to help,
even to Adonai, but he didn’t answer.
43 I pulverized them like dust on the ground,
pounded and stamped on them like mud in the streets.
44 “You also freed me from the quarrels of my people.
You kept me to be the head of the nations;
a people I did not know now serve me.
45 Foreigners come cringing to me;
the moment they hear of me, they obey me.
46 Foreigners lose heart as they stagger from their fortresses.
47 “Adonai is alive! Blessed is my Rock!
Exalted be God, the Rock of my salvation,
48 the God who gives me vengeance
and makes peoples submit to me.
49 He brings me out from my enemies.
You raise me over those who rebel against me,
you rescue me from violent men.
50 “So I give thanks to you, Adonai, among the nations;
I sing praises to your name.
51 He is a tower of salvation for his king;
he displays grace to his anointed,
to David and his descendants forever.”
Today in Jewish History:
• Passing of R. Akiva Eiger (1837)
Passing of Rabbi Akiva Eiger (1761-1837), outstanding Talmudist and Halachic authority.
• Passing of Rebbe Maharash (1882)
Tishrei 13 is the yahrtzeit of the fourth Rebbe of Chabad-Lubavitch, Rabbi Shmuel Schneersohn, known as "Maharash" (a Hebrew acronym for "our master Rabbi Shmuel").
Rabbi Shmuel was born in the town of Lubavitch on the 2nd of Iyar of the year 5594 from creation (1834). His father was the third Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch (1789-1866). Though the youngest of Rabbi Menachem Mendel's seven sons, Rabbi Shmuel was chosen to succeed his father as the leader of Chabad Chassidism in the movement's capitol, Lubavitch, at the latter's passing in 1866 (four of his brothers established branches of Chabad in other towns in White Russia and Ukraine).
In addition to authoring and delivering more than 1,000 maamarim (discourses) of Chassidic teaching, Rabbi Shmuel was extensively involved in Jewish communal affairs and traveled throughout Europe in order to generate pressure on the Czarist regime to halt its instigation of pogroms against the Jews of Russia. Rabbi Shmuel passed away at the age of 48 on Tishrei 13, 5643 (1882).
Links: More on the Rebbe MaharashDaily Study:
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash: Ha'Azinu, 7th Portion Deuteronomy 32:44-32:52 with Rashi
• Deuteronomy Chapter 32
44And Moses came and spoke all the words of this song into the ears of the people he and Hoshea the son of Nun. מדוַיָּבֹ֣א משֶׁ֗ה וַיְדַבֵּ֛ר אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵ֥י הַשִּׁירָֽה־הַזֹּ֖את בְּאָזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֑ם ה֖וּא וְהוֹשֵׁ֥עַ בִּן־נֽוּן:
He and Hoshea the son of Nun: It was the Sabbath upon which there were two leaders [because the office was being transferred to Joshua, i.e.,] authority was taken from one and given to the other. — [Sotah 13b] Moses appointed a meturgeman [literally, an interpreter, here a spokesman] for Joshua, [to relay to the public what Joshua said,] so that Joshua could expound [on the Torah] in Moses’ lifetime, so that Israel would not say [to Joshua], “During your teacher’s lifetime you did not dare to raise your head!” - [Sifrei 31:1] And why does Scripture here call him Hoshea [for his name had long since been changed to Joshua (see Numb. 13:16). To imply [lit., to say] that Joshua did not become haughty, for although he was given high status, he humbled himself as he was at the beginning [when he was still called Hoshea]. — [Sifrei 32:44] הוא והושע בן נון: שבת של דיוזגי היתה, נטלה רשות מזה ונתנה לזה, העמיד לו משה מתורגמן ליהושע, שיהא דורש בחייו, כדי שלא יאמרו ישראל בחיי רבך לא היה לך להרים ראש. ולמה קוראו כאן הושע, לומר שלא זחה דעתו עליו, שאף על פי שנתנה לו גדולה, השפיל עצמו כאשר מתחלתו:
45And Moses finished speaking all these words to all Israel. מהוַיְכַ֣ל משֶׁ֔ה לְדַבֵּ֛ר אֶת־כָּל־הַדְּבָרִ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה אֶל־כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
46And he said to them, "Set your hearts to all of the words which I bear witness for you this day, so that you may command your children to observe to do all the words of this Torah. מווַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵהֶם֙ שִׂ֣ימוּ לְבַבְכֶ֔ם לְכָ֨ל־הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָֽנֹכִ֛י מֵעִ֥יד בָּכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם אֲשֶׁ֤ר תְּצַוֻּם֙ אֶת־בְּנֵיכֶ֔ם לִשְׁמֹ֣ר לַֽעֲשׂ֔וֹת אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵ֖י הַתּוֹרָ֥ה הַזֹּֽאת:
Set your hearts: A person must direct his eyes, his heart, and his ears to the words of the Torah, for Scripture states (Ezek. 40: 4),“Son of man, see with your eyes, and listen with your ears, and set your heart [upon all that I show you]” [namely, the plan of the Holy Temple]. Now, here, we have an inference from major to minor: If in the case of the plan of the Holy Temple, which is visible to the eyes and which is measured with a measuring-rod, a person must direct his eyes, ears, and heart to understand, how much more so must he do so to understand the words of the Torah, which are likened to “mountains suspended by a hair” [i.e., numerous laws derived from a single word of the Torah]?!- [Sifrei 32:45] שימו לבבכם: צריך אדם שיהיו עיניו ולבו ואזניו מכוונים לדברי תורה, וכן הוא אומר (יחזקאל מ, ד) בן אדם ראה בעיניך ובאזניך שמע ושים לבך וגו', הרי דברים קל וחומר, ומה תבנית הבית שהוא נראה לעינים ונמדד בקנה צריך אדם שיהיו עיניו ואזניו ולבו מכוונים להבין, דברי תורה שהן כהררין התלויין בשערה על אחת כמה וכמה:
47For it is not an empty thing for you, for it is your life, and through this thing, you will lengthen your days upon the land to which you are crossing over the Jordan, to possess it." מזכִּי לֹֽא־דָבָ֨ר רֵ֥ק הוּא֙ מִכֶּ֔ם כִּי־ה֖וּא חַיֵּיכֶ֑ם וּבַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֗ה תַּֽאֲרִ֤יכוּ יָמִים֙ עַל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר אַתֶּ֜ם עֹֽבְרִ֧ים אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֛ן שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ:
For it is not an empty thing for you: You do not labor over it in vain, for a great reward is contingent upon it, for “it is your life” [that is, the reward is life itself]. Another explanation: There is not one empty [i.e., superfluous] word in the Torah which, if properly expounded upon, will not have a reward attached to it. You must know this, for [as an illustration:] our Rabbis teach, Scripture states, “And Lotan’s sister was Timna” (Gen. 36:22). [What, one might ask, is the purpose of telling us this? Furthermore, an earlier verse states,] “and Timna was a concubine [to Eliphaz the son of Esau]” (Gen. 36:12). [Is it necessary for the Torah to state this at all? But our Rabbis explain, as follows:] Because Timna said,“If I am unworthy to become Eliphaz’s wife, I hope, at least, to become his concubine!” So why does Scripture enter into all these details [of her birth and marriage]? To teach us the greatness of Abraham, that rulers and kings yearned to cleave to his seed. [Lotan was a prince of Seir; thus the verse tells us that Timna was of noble ancestry; and yet, she preferred to be a mere concubine to Eliphaz, Abraham’s great grandson, rather than become a princess in her own nation.]- [Sifrei 32:46] כי לא דבר רק הוא מכם: לא לחנם אתם יגעים בה, כי הרבה שכר תלוי בה, כי הוא חייכם. דבר אחר אין לך דבר ריקן בתורה שאם תדרשנו שאין בו מתן שכר, תדע לך שכן אמרו (בראשית לו, כב) ואחות לוטן תמנע, (שם לו, יב) ותמנע היתה פלגש וגו' לפי שאמרה איני כדאי להיות לו לאשה הלואי ואהיה פילגשו, וכל כך למה, להודיע שבחו של אברהם שהיו שלטונים ומלכים מתאוים להדבק בזרעו:
48And the Lord spoke to Moses on that very day, saying, מחוַיְדַבֵּ֤ר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־משֶׁ֔ה בְּעֶ֛צֶם הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּ֖ה לֵאמֹֽר:
And the Lord spoke to Moses on that very day: Heb. בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה. In three places Scripture employs the phrase: בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה [which has the meaning, “at the strongest light of the day”]. First, regarding Noah, Scripture states,“On that very day (בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה) Noah entered [… the ark]” (Gen. 7:13), which means in the glare of full daylight. Noah’s contemporaries said: “We swear by such and such, that if we notice him about to enter the ark, we will not let him proceed! Moreover, we will take axes and hatchets and split open the ark!” So the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will have Noah enter at midday, and let anyone who has the power to prevent it, come and prevent it!” Second, regarding Egypt, Scripture states, “On that very day, the Lord brought [the children of Israel] out [of the land of Egypt]” (Exod. 12:51). The Egyptians said: “We swear by such and such, that if we notice them about to leave, we will stop them! And not only that, but we will take swords and other weapons, and kill them!” So, the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will bring them out in the middle of the day, and let anyone who has power to prevent it, come and prevent it!” Likewise here, regarding Moses’ death, Scripture states,“on that very day (בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה) .” The children of Israel said, “We swear by such and such, that if we notice Moses [ascending the mountain to die], we will not let him do so! The man who brought us out of Egypt, divided the Red Sea for us, brought the manna down for us, made flocks of quails fly over to us, brought up the well for us, and gave us the Torah-we will not let him!” Thereupon, the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will have Moses ascend the mountain [to his resting place] in the middle of the day!” - [Sifrei 32:47] וידבר ה' אל משה בעצם היום הזה: בשלשה מקומות נאמר בעצם היום הזה, נאמר בנח (שם ז, יג) בעצם היום הזה בא נח וגו', במראית אורו של יום, לפי שהיו בני דורו אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בו אין אנו מניחין אותו ליכנס בתיבה, ולא עוד אלא אנו נוטלין כשילין וקרדומות ומבקעין את התיבה. אמר הקב"ה הריני מכניסו בחצי היום, וכל מי שיש בידו כח למחות יבא וימחה. במצרים נאמר (שמות יב, נא) בעצם היום הזה הוציא ה', לפי שהיו מצרים אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בהם אין אנו מניחים אותם לצאת, ולא עוד אלא אנו נוטלין סייפות וכלי זיין והורגין בהם. אמר הקב"ה הריני מוציאן בחצי היום וכל מי שיש בו כח למחות יבא וימחה. אף כאן במיתתו של משה נאמר בעצם היום הזה, לפי שהיו ישראל אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בו אין אנו מניחין אותו, אדם שהוציאנו ממצרים וקרע לנו את הים והוריד לנו את המן והגיז לנו את השליו והעלה לנו את הבאר ונתן לנו את התורה אין אנו מניחין אותו. אמר הקב"ה הריני מכניסו בחצי היום וכו':
49Go up this Mount Avarim [to] Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is facing Jericho, and see the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel as a possession, מטעֲלֵ֡ה אֶל־הַר֩ הָֽעֲבָרִ֨ים הַזֶּ֜ה הַר־נְב֗וֹ אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מוֹאָ֔ב אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֣י יְרֵח֑וֹ וּרְאֵה֙ אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ כְּנַ֔עַן אֲשֶׁ֨ר אֲנִ֥י נֹתֵ֛ן לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לַֽאֲחֻזָּֽה:
50And die on the mountain upon which you are climbing and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. נוּמֻ֗ת בָּהָר֙ אֲשֶׁ֤ר אַתָּה֙ עֹלֶ֣ה שָׁ֔מָּה וְהֵֽאָסֵ֖ף אֶל־עַמֶּ֑יךָ כַּֽאֲשֶׁר־מֵ֞ת אַֽהֲרֹ֤ן אָחִ֨יךָ֙ בְּהֹ֣ר הָהָ֔ר וַיֵּאָ֖סֶף אֶל־עַמָּֽיו:
Just as your brother Aaron died: [God said to Moses:] “Die with the same death that you witnessed and longed for, that Moses removed Aaron’s first [i.e., upper] garment and dressed Eleazar [Aaron’s son] with it. Then, Moses did the same with the second garment, and the third. Aaron then saw his son in his glory [of his new office]. Moses then said to him: ”Aaron my brother! Go up onto the couch,“ and Aaron went up. ”Stretch out your hands,“ and Aaron stretched [out his hands]. ”Stretch out your legs,“ and Aaron stretched [out his legs]. ”Close your eyes,“ and Aaron closed [his eyes]; ”Close your mouth,“ and Aaron closed [his mouth], and he passed away. Thereupon, Moses said, ”Fortunate is the one who dies a death like this!" - [Sifrei 32:49] כאשר מת אהרן אחיך: באותה מיתה שראית וחמדת אותה, שהפשיט משה את אהרן בגד ראשון והלבישו לאלעזר וכן שני וכן שלישי וראה בנו בכבודו. אמר לו משה אהרן אחי עלה למטה, ועלה. פשוט ידיך, ופשט. פשוט רגליך, ופשט. עצום עיניך, ועצם. קמוץ פיך, וקמץ והלך לו. אמר משה אשרי מי שמת במיתה זו:
51Because you betrayed Me in the midst of the children of Israel at the waters of Merivath Kadesh, [in] the desert of Zin, [and] because you did not sanctify Me in the midst of the children of Israel. נאעַל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר מְעַלְתֶּ֜ם בִּ֗י בְּתוֹךְ֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל בְּמֵֽי־מְרִיבַ֥ת קָדֵ֖שׁ מִדְבַּר־צִ֑ן עַ֣ל אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־קִדַּשְׁתֶּם֙ אוֹתִ֔י בְּת֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
Because you betrayed Me: You caused the people to rebel against Me. על אשר מעלתם בי: גרמתם למעול בי:
because you did not sanctify Me: [Says God to Israel:] You caused Me not to be sanctified [see Yalkut , end of Ha’azinu]: I said to you “Speak to the rock” [to provide you with water in the desert (see Num. 20:8)], but instead, they hit the rock, and so, they had to hit it twice [in order to extract water]. Had they, however, spoken to it [as I told them], so that the rock would have given forth water without being hit, the Name of Heaven would have been sanctified, for the Israelites would have said,"If the rock, which is subject neither to reward nor punishment, for if it acts meritoriously [i.e., fulfills God’s will,] it receives no reward, and if it sins [i.e., not fulfilling God’s will,] it is not punished, and yet [without any of these incentives] the rock fulfills the command of its Creator [by producing water when spoken to], how much more so should we [who do have the incentives of reward and punishment fulfill our Creator’s will]! על אשר לא קדשתם אותי: גרמתם לי שלא אתקדש אמרתי לכם (במדבר כ, ח) ודברתם אל הסלע והם הכוהו והוצרכו להכותו פעמים ואילו דברו עמו ונתן מימיו בלא הכאה היה מתקדש שם שמים, שהיו ישראל אומרים ומה הסלע הזה שאינו לשכר ולא לפורענות אם זכה אין לו מתן שכר ואם חטא אינו לוקה כך מקיים מצות בוראו אנו לא כל שכן:
52For from afar, you will see the land, but you will not come there, to the land I am giving the children of Israel. נבכִּ֥י מִנֶּ֖גֶד תִּרְאֶ֣ה אֶת־הָאָ֑רֶץ וְשָׁ֨מָּה֙ לֹ֣א תָב֔וֹא אֶל־הָאָ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אֲנִ֥י נֹתֵ֖ן לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
from afar: Heb. כִּי מִנֶּגֶד from afar. כי מנגד: מרחוק:
you will see [the Land]: For if you do not see the Land now, you will no longer see it in your lifetime. תראה וגו': כי אם לא תראנה עכשיו לא תראנה עוד בחייך:
but you will not come there: But I know that the Land is dear to you. That is why I say to you,“Go up [the mountain] and see [it]!” ושמה לא תבוא: וידעתי כי חביבה היא לך על כן אני אומר לך עלה וראה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 69 - 71
• Chapter 69
1. For the Conductor, on the shoshanim,1 by David.
2. Deliver me, O God, for the waters have reached until my soul!
3. I have sunk in muddy depths without foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the current sweeps me away.
4. I am wearied by my crying, my throat is parched; my eyes pined while waiting for my God.
5. More numerous than the hairs on my head are those who hate me without reason. Mighty are those who would cut me off, those who are my enemies without cause. What I have not stolen, I will then have to return.
6. O God, You know my folly, and my wrongs are not hidden from You.
7. Let not those who hope in You be shamed through me, O my Lord, God of Hosts; let not those who seek You be disgraced through me, O God of Israel,
8. because for Your sake I have borne humiliation, disgrace covers my face.
9. I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother's sons,
10. for the envy of Your House has consumed me, and the humiliations of those who scorn You have fallen upon me.
11. And I wept while my soul fasted, and it was a humiliation to me.
12. I made sackcloth my garment, and became a byword for them.
13. Those who sit by the gate speak of me, and [of me] are the songs of drunkards.
14. May my prayer to You, Lord, be at a gracious time; God, in Your abounding kindness, answer me with Your true deliverance.
15. Rescue me from the mire, so that I not sink; let me be saved from my enemies and from deep waters.
16. Let not the current of water sweep me away, nor the deep swallow me; and let not the pit close its mouth over me.
17. Answer me, Lord, for Your kindness is good; according to Your abundant mercies, turn to me.
18. Do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress-hurry to answer me.
19. Draw near to my soul and liberate it; redeem me, so that my enemies [not feel triumphant].
20. You know my humiliation, my shame, and my disgrace; all my tormentors are before You.
21. Humiliation has broken my heart, and I have become ill. I longed for comfort, but there was none; for consolers, but I did not find.
22. They put gall into my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
23. Let their table become a trap before them, and [their] serenity, a snare.
24. Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and let their loins continually falter.
25. Pour Your wrath upon them, and let the fierceness of Your anger overtake them.
26. Let their palace be desolate, let there be no dweller in their tents,
27. for they persecute the one whom You struck, and tell of the pain of Your wounded ones.
28. Add iniquity to their iniquity, and let them not enter into Your righteousness.
29. May they be erased from the Book of Life, and let them not be inscribed with the righteous.
30. But I am poor and in pain; let Your deliverance, O God, streng-then me.
31. I will praise the Name of God with song, I will extol Him with thanksgiving!
32. And it will please the Lord more than [the sacrifice of] a mature bull with horns and hooves.
33. The humble will see it and rejoice; you seekers of God, [see] and your hearts will come alive.
34. For the Lord listens to the needy, and He does not despise His prisoners.
35. Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that moves within them,
36. for God will deliver Zion and build the cities of Judah, and they will settle there and possess it;
37. and the seed of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His Name will dwell in it.
FOOTNOTES
1.A musical instrument shaped like a shoshana, a rose (Metzudot).
Chapter 70
David prays that his enemies be shamed and humiliated for their shaming him and reveling in his troubles. Then the righteous will rejoice, and chant songs and praises always.
1. For the Conductor, by David, to remind.
2. O God, [come] to rescue me; O Lord, hurry to my aid.
3. Let those who seek my life be shamed and disgraced; let those who wish me harm retreat and be humiliated.
4. Let those who say, "Aha! Aha!" be turned back in return for their shaming [me].
5. Let all who seek You rejoice and delight in You, and let those who love Your deliverance say always, "May God be exalted!”
6. But I am poor and needy; hurry to me, O God! You are my help and deliverer; O God, do not delay!
Chapter 71
In this awe-inspiring prayer, David speaks of his enemies' desire to kill him, declaring him deserving of death.
1. I have taken refuge in You, O Lord; I will never be shamed.
2. Rescue me and deliver me in Your righteousness; incline Your ear to me and save me.
3. Be for me a sheltering rock, to enter always. You have ordered my salvation, for You are my rock and my fortress.
4. O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked, from the palm of the scheming and violent.
5. For You are my hope, O my Lord, God, my security since my youth.
6. I have relied on You from the womb; You drew me from my mother's innards; my praise is of You always.
7. I became an example to the masses, yet You were my mighty refuge.
8. Let my mouth be filled with Your praise, all day long with Your glory.
9. Do not cast me aside in old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails;
10. for my enemies say of me, and those who watch my soul conspire together,
11. saying, "God has forsaken him. Give chase and catch him, for there is no rescuer.”
12. O God, do not distance Yourself from me; my God, hurry to my aid.
13. Let the adversaries of my soul be shamed and consumed; let those who seek my harm be enwrapped in disgrace and humiliation.
14. But as for me, I will always hope; I will add to all Your praises.
15. My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, all day long of Your deliverance, for I do not know their number.
16. I come with the strength of my Lord, God; I mention Your righteousness, Yours alone.
17. O God, You have taught me since my youth, and to this day I tell of Your wonders.
18. Even into old age and hoariness, O God, do not abandon me, until I tell of Your might to the generations, and of Your strength to all who are to come.
19. Your righteousness, O God, reaches the high heavens, for You do great things; O God, who is like You!
20. You, Who has shown me many and grievous troubles, You will revive me again; You will lift me again from the depths of the earth.
21. You will increase my greatness; You will turn and console me.
22. I too1 will thank You on the lyre for Your faithfulness, My God; I will sing to You on the harp, O Holy One of Israel.
23. My lips will rejoice when I sing to you, as well as my soul which You have redeemed.
24. My tongue will also utter Your righteousness all day, for those who seek my harm are shamed and disgraced.
FOOTNOTES
1.As you increase my greatness, so will I increase your praise (Metzudot).
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 22
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Shabbat, 13 Tishrei, 5777 · 15 October 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 22
• Deuteronomy Chapter 32
44And Moses came and spoke all the words of this song into the ears of the people he and Hoshea the son of Nun. מדוַיָּבֹ֣א משֶׁ֗ה וַיְדַבֵּ֛ר אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵ֥י הַשִּׁירָֽה־הַזֹּ֖את בְּאָזְנֵ֣י הָעָ֑ם ה֖וּא וְהוֹשֵׁ֥עַ בִּן־נֽוּן:
He and Hoshea the son of Nun: It was the Sabbath upon which there were two leaders [because the office was being transferred to Joshua, i.e.,] authority was taken from one and given to the other. — [Sotah 13b] Moses appointed a meturgeman [literally, an interpreter, here a spokesman] for Joshua, [to relay to the public what Joshua said,] so that Joshua could expound [on the Torah] in Moses’ lifetime, so that Israel would not say [to Joshua], “During your teacher’s lifetime you did not dare to raise your head!” - [Sifrei 31:1] And why does Scripture here call him Hoshea [for his name had long since been changed to Joshua (see Numb. 13:16). To imply [lit., to say] that Joshua did not become haughty, for although he was given high status, he humbled himself as he was at the beginning [when he was still called Hoshea]. — [Sifrei 32:44] הוא והושע בן נון: שבת של דיוזגי היתה, נטלה רשות מזה ונתנה לזה, העמיד לו משה מתורגמן ליהושע, שיהא דורש בחייו, כדי שלא יאמרו ישראל בחיי רבך לא היה לך להרים ראש. ולמה קוראו כאן הושע, לומר שלא זחה דעתו עליו, שאף על פי שנתנה לו גדולה, השפיל עצמו כאשר מתחלתו:
45And Moses finished speaking all these words to all Israel. מהוַיְכַ֣ל משֶׁ֔ה לְדַבֵּ֛ר אֶת־כָּל־הַדְּבָרִ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה אֶל־כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
46And he said to them, "Set your hearts to all of the words which I bear witness for you this day, so that you may command your children to observe to do all the words of this Torah. מווַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲלֵהֶם֙ שִׂ֣ימוּ לְבַבְכֶ֔ם לְכָ֨ל־הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָֽנֹכִ֛י מֵעִ֥יד בָּכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם אֲשֶׁ֤ר תְּצַוֻּם֙ אֶת־בְּנֵיכֶ֔ם לִשְׁמֹ֣ר לַֽעֲשׂ֔וֹת אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵ֖י הַתּוֹרָ֥ה הַזֹּֽאת:
Set your hearts: A person must direct his eyes, his heart, and his ears to the words of the Torah, for Scripture states (Ezek. 40: 4),“Son of man, see with your eyes, and listen with your ears, and set your heart [upon all that I show you]” [namely, the plan of the Holy Temple]. Now, here, we have an inference from major to minor: If in the case of the plan of the Holy Temple, which is visible to the eyes and which is measured with a measuring-rod, a person must direct his eyes, ears, and heart to understand, how much more so must he do so to understand the words of the Torah, which are likened to “mountains suspended by a hair” [i.e., numerous laws derived from a single word of the Torah]?!- [Sifrei 32:45] שימו לבבכם: צריך אדם שיהיו עיניו ולבו ואזניו מכוונים לדברי תורה, וכן הוא אומר (יחזקאל מ, ד) בן אדם ראה בעיניך ובאזניך שמע ושים לבך וגו', הרי דברים קל וחומר, ומה תבנית הבית שהוא נראה לעינים ונמדד בקנה צריך אדם שיהיו עיניו ואזניו ולבו מכוונים להבין, דברי תורה שהן כהררין התלויין בשערה על אחת כמה וכמה:
47For it is not an empty thing for you, for it is your life, and through this thing, you will lengthen your days upon the land to which you are crossing over the Jordan, to possess it." מזכִּי לֹֽא־דָבָ֨ר רֵ֥ק הוּא֙ מִכֶּ֔ם כִּי־ה֖וּא חַיֵּיכֶ֑ם וּבַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֗ה תַּֽאֲרִ֤יכוּ יָמִים֙ עַל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר אַתֶּ֜ם עֹֽבְרִ֧ים אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֛ן שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ:
For it is not an empty thing for you: You do not labor over it in vain, for a great reward is contingent upon it, for “it is your life” [that is, the reward is life itself]. Another explanation: There is not one empty [i.e., superfluous] word in the Torah which, if properly expounded upon, will not have a reward attached to it. You must know this, for [as an illustration:] our Rabbis teach, Scripture states, “And Lotan’s sister was Timna” (Gen. 36:22). [What, one might ask, is the purpose of telling us this? Furthermore, an earlier verse states,] “and Timna was a concubine [to Eliphaz the son of Esau]” (Gen. 36:12). [Is it necessary for the Torah to state this at all? But our Rabbis explain, as follows:] Because Timna said,“If I am unworthy to become Eliphaz’s wife, I hope, at least, to become his concubine!” So why does Scripture enter into all these details [of her birth and marriage]? To teach us the greatness of Abraham, that rulers and kings yearned to cleave to his seed. [Lotan was a prince of Seir; thus the verse tells us that Timna was of noble ancestry; and yet, she preferred to be a mere concubine to Eliphaz, Abraham’s great grandson, rather than become a princess in her own nation.]- [Sifrei 32:46] כי לא דבר רק הוא מכם: לא לחנם אתם יגעים בה, כי הרבה שכר תלוי בה, כי הוא חייכם. דבר אחר אין לך דבר ריקן בתורה שאם תדרשנו שאין בו מתן שכר, תדע לך שכן אמרו (בראשית לו, כב) ואחות לוטן תמנע, (שם לו, יב) ותמנע היתה פלגש וגו' לפי שאמרה איני כדאי להיות לו לאשה הלואי ואהיה פילגשו, וכל כך למה, להודיע שבחו של אברהם שהיו שלטונים ומלכים מתאוים להדבק בזרעו:
48And the Lord spoke to Moses on that very day, saying, מחוַיְדַבֵּ֤ר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־משֶׁ֔ה בְּעֶ֛צֶם הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּ֖ה לֵאמֹֽר:
And the Lord spoke to Moses on that very day: Heb. בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה. In three places Scripture employs the phrase: בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה [which has the meaning, “at the strongest light of the day”]. First, regarding Noah, Scripture states,“On that very day (בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה) Noah entered [… the ark]” (Gen. 7:13), which means in the glare of full daylight. Noah’s contemporaries said: “We swear by such and such, that if we notice him about to enter the ark, we will not let him proceed! Moreover, we will take axes and hatchets and split open the ark!” So the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will have Noah enter at midday, and let anyone who has the power to prevent it, come and prevent it!” Second, regarding Egypt, Scripture states, “On that very day, the Lord brought [the children of Israel] out [of the land of Egypt]” (Exod. 12:51). The Egyptians said: “We swear by such and such, that if we notice them about to leave, we will stop them! And not only that, but we will take swords and other weapons, and kill them!” So, the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will bring them out in the middle of the day, and let anyone who has power to prevent it, come and prevent it!” Likewise here, regarding Moses’ death, Scripture states,“on that very day (בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה) .” The children of Israel said, “We swear by such and such, that if we notice Moses [ascending the mountain to die], we will not let him do so! The man who brought us out of Egypt, divided the Red Sea for us, brought the manna down for us, made flocks of quails fly over to us, brought up the well for us, and gave us the Torah-we will not let him!” Thereupon, the Holy One, Blessed is He, said: “I will have Moses ascend the mountain [to his resting place] in the middle of the day!” - [Sifrei 32:47] וידבר ה' אל משה בעצם היום הזה: בשלשה מקומות נאמר בעצם היום הזה, נאמר בנח (שם ז, יג) בעצם היום הזה בא נח וגו', במראית אורו של יום, לפי שהיו בני דורו אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בו אין אנו מניחין אותו ליכנס בתיבה, ולא עוד אלא אנו נוטלין כשילין וקרדומות ומבקעין את התיבה. אמר הקב"ה הריני מכניסו בחצי היום, וכל מי שיש בידו כח למחות יבא וימחה. במצרים נאמר (שמות יב, נא) בעצם היום הזה הוציא ה', לפי שהיו מצרים אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בהם אין אנו מניחים אותם לצאת, ולא עוד אלא אנו נוטלין סייפות וכלי זיין והורגין בהם. אמר הקב"ה הריני מוציאן בחצי היום וכל מי שיש בו כח למחות יבא וימחה. אף כאן במיתתו של משה נאמר בעצם היום הזה, לפי שהיו ישראל אומרים בכך וכך אם אנו מרגישין בו אין אנו מניחין אותו, אדם שהוציאנו ממצרים וקרע לנו את הים והוריד לנו את המן והגיז לנו את השליו והעלה לנו את הבאר ונתן לנו את התורה אין אנו מניחין אותו. אמר הקב"ה הריני מכניסו בחצי היום וכו':
49Go up this Mount Avarim [to] Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is facing Jericho, and see the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel as a possession, מטעֲלֵ֡ה אֶל־הַר֩ הָֽעֲבָרִ֨ים הַזֶּ֜ה הַר־נְב֗וֹ אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מוֹאָ֔ב אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֣י יְרֵח֑וֹ וּרְאֵה֙ אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ כְּנַ֔עַן אֲשֶׁ֨ר אֲנִ֥י נֹתֵ֛ן לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לַֽאֲחֻזָּֽה:
50And die on the mountain upon which you are climbing and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people. נוּמֻ֗ת בָּהָר֙ אֲשֶׁ֤ר אַתָּה֙ עֹלֶ֣ה שָׁ֔מָּה וְהֵֽאָסֵ֖ף אֶל־עַמֶּ֑יךָ כַּֽאֲשֶׁר־מֵ֞ת אַֽהֲרֹ֤ן אָחִ֨יךָ֙ בְּהֹ֣ר הָהָ֔ר וַיֵּאָ֖סֶף אֶל־עַמָּֽיו:
Just as your brother Aaron died: [God said to Moses:] “Die with the same death that you witnessed and longed for, that Moses removed Aaron’s first [i.e., upper] garment and dressed Eleazar [Aaron’s son] with it. Then, Moses did the same with the second garment, and the third. Aaron then saw his son in his glory [of his new office]. Moses then said to him: ”Aaron my brother! Go up onto the couch,“ and Aaron went up. ”Stretch out your hands,“ and Aaron stretched [out his hands]. ”Stretch out your legs,“ and Aaron stretched [out his legs]. ”Close your eyes,“ and Aaron closed [his eyes]; ”Close your mouth,“ and Aaron closed [his mouth], and he passed away. Thereupon, Moses said, ”Fortunate is the one who dies a death like this!" - [Sifrei 32:49] כאשר מת אהרן אחיך: באותה מיתה שראית וחמדת אותה, שהפשיט משה את אהרן בגד ראשון והלבישו לאלעזר וכן שני וכן שלישי וראה בנו בכבודו. אמר לו משה אהרן אחי עלה למטה, ועלה. פשוט ידיך, ופשט. פשוט רגליך, ופשט. עצום עיניך, ועצם. קמוץ פיך, וקמץ והלך לו. אמר משה אשרי מי שמת במיתה זו:
51Because you betrayed Me in the midst of the children of Israel at the waters of Merivath Kadesh, [in] the desert of Zin, [and] because you did not sanctify Me in the midst of the children of Israel. נאעַל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר מְעַלְתֶּ֜ם בִּ֗י בְּתוֹךְ֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל בְּמֵֽי־מְרִיבַ֥ת קָדֵ֖שׁ מִדְבַּר־צִ֑ן עַ֣ל אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹֽא־קִדַּשְׁתֶּם֙ אוֹתִ֔י בְּת֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
Because you betrayed Me: You caused the people to rebel against Me. על אשר מעלתם בי: גרמתם למעול בי:
because you did not sanctify Me: [Says God to Israel:] You caused Me not to be sanctified [see Yalkut , end of Ha’azinu]: I said to you “Speak to the rock” [to provide you with water in the desert (see Num. 20:8)], but instead, they hit the rock, and so, they had to hit it twice [in order to extract water]. Had they, however, spoken to it [as I told them], so that the rock would have given forth water without being hit, the Name of Heaven would have been sanctified, for the Israelites would have said,"If the rock, which is subject neither to reward nor punishment, for if it acts meritoriously [i.e., fulfills God’s will,] it receives no reward, and if it sins [i.e., not fulfilling God’s will,] it is not punished, and yet [without any of these incentives] the rock fulfills the command of its Creator [by producing water when spoken to], how much more so should we [who do have the incentives of reward and punishment fulfill our Creator’s will]! על אשר לא קדשתם אותי: גרמתם לי שלא אתקדש אמרתי לכם (במדבר כ, ח) ודברתם אל הסלע והם הכוהו והוצרכו להכותו פעמים ואילו דברו עמו ונתן מימיו בלא הכאה היה מתקדש שם שמים, שהיו ישראל אומרים ומה הסלע הזה שאינו לשכר ולא לפורענות אם זכה אין לו מתן שכר ואם חטא אינו לוקה כך מקיים מצות בוראו אנו לא כל שכן:
52For from afar, you will see the land, but you will not come there, to the land I am giving the children of Israel. נבכִּ֥י מִנֶּ֖גֶד תִּרְאֶ֣ה אֶת־הָאָ֑רֶץ וְשָׁ֨מָּה֙ לֹ֣א תָב֔וֹא אֶל־הָאָ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אֲנִ֥י נֹתֵ֖ן לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל:
from afar: Heb. כִּי מִנֶּגֶד from afar. כי מנגד: מרחוק:
you will see [the Land]: For if you do not see the Land now, you will no longer see it in your lifetime. תראה וגו': כי אם לא תראנה עכשיו לא תראנה עוד בחייך:
but you will not come there: But I know that the Land is dear to you. That is why I say to you,“Go up [the mountain] and see [it]!” ושמה לא תבוא: וידעתי כי חביבה היא לך על כן אני אומר לך עלה וראה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 69 - 71
• Chapter 69
1. For the Conductor, on the shoshanim,1 by David.
2. Deliver me, O God, for the waters have reached until my soul!
3. I have sunk in muddy depths without foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the current sweeps me away.
4. I am wearied by my crying, my throat is parched; my eyes pined while waiting for my God.
5. More numerous than the hairs on my head are those who hate me without reason. Mighty are those who would cut me off, those who are my enemies without cause. What I have not stolen, I will then have to return.
6. O God, You know my folly, and my wrongs are not hidden from You.
7. Let not those who hope in You be shamed through me, O my Lord, God of Hosts; let not those who seek You be disgraced through me, O God of Israel,
8. because for Your sake I have borne humiliation, disgrace covers my face.
9. I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother's sons,
10. for the envy of Your House has consumed me, and the humiliations of those who scorn You have fallen upon me.
11. And I wept while my soul fasted, and it was a humiliation to me.
12. I made sackcloth my garment, and became a byword for them.
13. Those who sit by the gate speak of me, and [of me] are the songs of drunkards.
14. May my prayer to You, Lord, be at a gracious time; God, in Your abounding kindness, answer me with Your true deliverance.
15. Rescue me from the mire, so that I not sink; let me be saved from my enemies and from deep waters.
16. Let not the current of water sweep me away, nor the deep swallow me; and let not the pit close its mouth over me.
17. Answer me, Lord, for Your kindness is good; according to Your abundant mercies, turn to me.
18. Do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress-hurry to answer me.
19. Draw near to my soul and liberate it; redeem me, so that my enemies [not feel triumphant].
20. You know my humiliation, my shame, and my disgrace; all my tormentors are before You.
21. Humiliation has broken my heart, and I have become ill. I longed for comfort, but there was none; for consolers, but I did not find.
22. They put gall into my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
23. Let their table become a trap before them, and [their] serenity, a snare.
24. Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and let their loins continually falter.
25. Pour Your wrath upon them, and let the fierceness of Your anger overtake them.
26. Let their palace be desolate, let there be no dweller in their tents,
27. for they persecute the one whom You struck, and tell of the pain of Your wounded ones.
28. Add iniquity to their iniquity, and let them not enter into Your righteousness.
29. May they be erased from the Book of Life, and let them not be inscribed with the righteous.
30. But I am poor and in pain; let Your deliverance, O God, streng-then me.
31. I will praise the Name of God with song, I will extol Him with thanksgiving!
32. And it will please the Lord more than [the sacrifice of] a mature bull with horns and hooves.
33. The humble will see it and rejoice; you seekers of God, [see] and your hearts will come alive.
34. For the Lord listens to the needy, and He does not despise His prisoners.
35. Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that moves within them,
36. for God will deliver Zion and build the cities of Judah, and they will settle there and possess it;
37. and the seed of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His Name will dwell in it.
FOOTNOTES
1.A musical instrument shaped like a shoshana, a rose (Metzudot).
Chapter 70
David prays that his enemies be shamed and humiliated for their shaming him and reveling in his troubles. Then the righteous will rejoice, and chant songs and praises always.
1. For the Conductor, by David, to remind.
2. O God, [come] to rescue me; O Lord, hurry to my aid.
3. Let those who seek my life be shamed and disgraced; let those who wish me harm retreat and be humiliated.
4. Let those who say, "Aha! Aha!" be turned back in return for their shaming [me].
5. Let all who seek You rejoice and delight in You, and let those who love Your deliverance say always, "May God be exalted!”
6. But I am poor and needy; hurry to me, O God! You are my help and deliverer; O God, do not delay!
Chapter 71
In this awe-inspiring prayer, David speaks of his enemies' desire to kill him, declaring him deserving of death.
1. I have taken refuge in You, O Lord; I will never be shamed.
2. Rescue me and deliver me in Your righteousness; incline Your ear to me and save me.
3. Be for me a sheltering rock, to enter always. You have ordered my salvation, for You are my rock and my fortress.
4. O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked, from the palm of the scheming and violent.
5. For You are my hope, O my Lord, God, my security since my youth.
6. I have relied on You from the womb; You drew me from my mother's innards; my praise is of You always.
7. I became an example to the masses, yet You were my mighty refuge.
8. Let my mouth be filled with Your praise, all day long with Your glory.
9. Do not cast me aside in old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails;
10. for my enemies say of me, and those who watch my soul conspire together,
11. saying, "God has forsaken him. Give chase and catch him, for there is no rescuer.”
12. O God, do not distance Yourself from me; my God, hurry to my aid.
13. Let the adversaries of my soul be shamed and consumed; let those who seek my harm be enwrapped in disgrace and humiliation.
14. But as for me, I will always hope; I will add to all Your praises.
15. My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, all day long of Your deliverance, for I do not know their number.
16. I come with the strength of my Lord, God; I mention Your righteousness, Yours alone.
17. O God, You have taught me since my youth, and to this day I tell of Your wonders.
18. Even into old age and hoariness, O God, do not abandon me, until I tell of Your might to the generations, and of Your strength to all who are to come.
19. Your righteousness, O God, reaches the high heavens, for You do great things; O God, who is like You!
20. You, Who has shown me many and grievous troubles, You will revive me again; You will lift me again from the depths of the earth.
21. You will increase my greatness; You will turn and console me.
22. I too1 will thank You on the lyre for Your faithfulness, My God; I will sing to You on the harp, O Holy One of Israel.
23. My lips will rejoice when I sing to you, as well as my soul which You have redeemed.
24. My tongue will also utter Your righteousness all day, for those who seek my harm are shamed and disgraced.
FOOTNOTES
1.As you increase my greatness, so will I increase your praise (Metzudot).
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 22
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Shabbat, 13 Tishrei, 5777 · 15 October 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 22
• Part (a)
In the present letter the Alter Rebbe bemoans the fact that his chassidim trouble him by seeking advice on physical matters, such as their livelihood s. Such advice, he argues, is within the province of prophets, not of Torah scholars. In conclusion he explains how one should accept physical suffering in such a way that it enhances his love and fear of G‑d.
The opening and closing passages of the original letter, which were not reproduced in Tanya,1 throw considerable light on the middle passage, which appears below.
At the beginning of the original letter, the Alter Rebbe defines set times during which he will henceforth receive people for private audience — yechidut. He then protests in strong terms that the many requests for advice on mundane affairs interfere with other areas of his Torah activity. As our Sages ask,2 “Is it conceivable that Moses spent the whole day judging? When would he then find time to study Torah?”
This leads on to the portion of the letter that appears here in Tanya. In the original letter, the Alter Rebbe then concludes by declaring that the appointed times for visits and private audiences must be adhered to. Moreover, he “penalizes” those who will not heed his decree, going so far as to threaten to leave the country if he is not heeded.
As we all know, however, chassidim in every generation have in fact asked their Rebbe for advice in mundane matters and, moreover, each of the Rebbeim has in fact obliged. How is this possible? Elder chassidim of earlier generations used to explain that the Alter Rebbe himself sanctions this conduct — in the letter that he wrote “close to the time of his passing,”3 regarding the value of “fraternity and counsel from afar with regard to all family matters....”
אהוביי אחיי ורעיי
My beloved, my brethren and friends:
מאהבה מסותרת, תוכחת מגולה
Out of [my] hidden love [for you, springs] an overt rebuke.4
לכו נא ונוכחה
“Come now and let us debate”;5
זכרו ימות עולם, בינו שנות דור ודור
remember the days of old, consider the years of every generation.6
ההיתה כזאת מימות עולם, ואיה איפוא מצאתם מנהג זה, באחד מכל ספרי חכמי ישראל הראשונים והאחרונים
Has such a thing ever happened in days past? Where indeed have you found such a custom in any of the books of the early or latter sages of Israel,
להיות מנהג ותיקון לשאול בעצה בגשמיות, כדת מה לעשות בעניני העולם הגשמי
that it should be the custom and established norm to ask for advice in mundane matters, as to what one ought to do in matters of the physical world?
אף לגדולי חכמי ישראל הראשונים, כתנאים ואמוראים, אשר כל רז לא אנס להו, ונהירין להון שבילין דרקיע
[Such questions were not asked] even of the greatest of the former sages of Israel, such as the tannaimand amoraim, the authors of the Mishnah and the Gemara,7 “from whom no secret was hidden,” and8 “for whom all the paths of heaven were clearly illuminated,”
כי אם לנביאים ממש אשר היו לפנים בישראל, כשמואל הרואה, אשר הלך אליו שאול לדרוש ה׳, על דבר האתונות שנאבדו לאביו
but only of actual prophets who used to live among the Jewish people, such as Samuel the Seer to whom Saul went to inquire of G‑d through him about the donkeys that his father had lost.
Why, indeed, were sages of stature such as the tannaim and amoraim not asked about mundane matters?
כי באמת כל עניני אדם, לבד מדברי תורה ויראת שמים, אינם מושגים רק בנבואה
For in fact all matters pertaining to man, except for words of Torah and the fear of heaven, are apprehended only by prophecy.
ולא לחכמים לחם
[As the verse states,9] “there is no bread unto the wise,”
כמאמר רז״ל: הכל בידי שמים, חוץ מיראת שמים
and as our Sages, of blessed memory, said,10 “Everything is in the hands of heaven except for the fear of heaven.”
ושבעה דברים מכוסים כו׳: אין אדם יודע במה משתכר, ומלכות בית דוד מתי תחזור כו׳
Likewise,11 “Seven things are hidden...: no man knows how he will earn his living, nor when the Kingdom of David will be restored...,” i.e., when Mashiach will come.
הנה הושוו זה לזה
Note that these [two questions] are likened to one another. Just as no one knows exactly when Mashiach will come, so, too, no one knows by what means he in fact will obtain his sustenance.
ומה שכתוב בישעיה: יועץ וחכם חרשים
As for the phrase in Isaiah,12 “A counselor and a man whose wisdom silences all,” suggesting that Torah wisdom qualifies one to advise in other fields as well, —
וכן מה שאמרו רז״ל: ונהנין ממנו עצה ותושיה
and also, as for the statement of our Sages,13 of blessed memory, regarding one who studies Torah lishmah, “for its own sake,” that “people derive from him the benefit of etzah (counsel) and tushiyah (wisdom),” —
היינו בדברי תורה, הנקרא תושיה
these teachings refer specifically to [counsel in] matters of the Torah, which is called14 tushiyah(assistance).
כמאמר רז״ל: יועץ, זה שיודע לעבר שנים ולקבוע חדשים
Thus the Sages, of blessed memory, said: A counselor is one who knows how to intercalate years, making certain years leap years by interpolating an additional month of Adar, and how to determine the months, establishing what day is Rosh Chodesh, the first day of the lunar month,
שסוד העיבור קרוי עצה וסוד בלשון התורה, כדאיתא בסנהדרין דף פ״ז, עיין שם בפירוש רש״י
for in Torah terminology the principle of intercalation is called “counsel” and “a secret,” as stated in Tractate Sanhedrin, p. 87; see the commentary of Rashi there, which states explicitly that the terms “counselor” and “advice” are related to the principle of intercalation.
* * *
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. | They appear in full in Igrot Kodesh (Letters) of the Alter Rebbe (Kehot, N.Y., 5740), sec. 24. |
| 2. | Shabbat 10a. |
| 3. | Igrot Kodesh (op. cit.), sec. 65. |
| 4. | Cf. Mishlei 27:5. |
| 5. | Yeshayahu 1:18. |
| 6. | Cf. Devarim 32:7. |
| 7. | Cf. Chullin 59a. |
| 8. | See Berachot 58b. |
| 9. | Kohelet 9:11. |
| 10. | Berachot 33b. |
| 11. | Pesachim 54b. |
| 12. | 3:3. |
| 13. | Avot, beginning of ch. 6. |
| 14. | Sanhedrin 26b, et al. |
| Rambam: Sefer Hamitzvos: |
• Shabbat, 13 Tishrei, 5777 · 15 October 2016
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Positive Commandment 179
Examining the Witnesses
"You shall inquire, search, and ask diligently"—Deuteronomy 13:15.
Judges are commanded to deliberately, thoroughly and painstakingly cross-examine witnesses, and only then to issue a verdict and punish.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• Examining the Witnesses
Positive Commandment 179
Translated by Berel Bell
The 179th mitzvah is that we are commanded to investigate and examine the witnesses' testimony before inflicting punishment and issuing a legal decision. We must be as exact as possible in order to avoid making innocent people guilty by reaching a decision based on first impressions and in haste.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "You must investigate and examine, making careful inquiry. And if it is established to be true..." [then you must carry out the punishment].
The details of this mitzvah and its various categories — including how to investigate,2 how to examine,3 how precise we must be, and when the testimony is accepted or rejected based on the investigation — are explained in tractate Sanhedrin.4
FOOTNOTES
1.Deut. 13:15.
2.The questions referred to as d'rishos address the main subject of the testimony, such as which idol was worshiped, what was the murder weapon, etc. See Hilchos Eidus, Ch. 1, Halachah 4; S'ma, Choshen Mishpat 30:5.
3.The questions referred to as chakiros include the time (i.e. the year, the year of the shemitah cycle, the month, the date, the day of the week, the hour) and the location where the act took place. There are a total of seven chakiros. See Hilchos Eidus, ibid.
4.40a ff.
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Positive Commandment 179
Examining the Witnesses
"You shall inquire, search, and ask diligently"—Deuteronomy 13:15.
Judges are commanded to deliberately, thoroughly and painstakingly cross-examine witnesses, and only then to issue a verdict and punish.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• Examining the Witnesses
Positive Commandment 179
Translated by Berel Bell
The 179th mitzvah is that we are commanded to investigate and examine the witnesses' testimony before inflicting punishment and issuing a legal decision. We must be as exact as possible in order to avoid making innocent people guilty by reaching a decision based on first impressions and in haste.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "You must investigate and examine, making careful inquiry. And if it is established to be true..." [then you must carry out the punishment].
The details of this mitzvah and its various categories — including how to investigate,2 how to examine,3 how precise we must be, and when the testimony is accepted or rejected based on the investigation — are explained in tractate Sanhedrin.4
FOOTNOTES
1.Deut. 13:15.
2.The questions referred to as d'rishos address the main subject of the testimony, such as which idol was worshiped, what was the murder weapon, etc. See Hilchos Eidus, Ch. 1, Halachah 4; S'ma, Choshen Mishpat 30:5.
3.The questions referred to as chakiros include the time (i.e. the year, the year of the shemitah cycle, the month, the date, the day of the week, the hour) and the location where the act took place. There are a total of seven chakiros. See Hilchos Eidus, ibid.
4.40a ff.
• Rambam - 1 Chapter: Tum'at Okhalin Tum'at Okhalin - Chapter 2
• Tum'at Okhalin - Chapter 2
• Rambam - 3 Chapters: Avel Avel - Chapter 3, Avel Avel - Chapter 4, Avel Avel - Chapter 5
1
All foods that grow from the earth are not susceptible to ritual impurity until they are uprooted from the ground. As long as they are connected to the earth - even by a small root, as long as they can sustain themselves from it - they are not susceptible to impurity.
א
כל האוכלין הגדילין מן הקרקע אינן מקבלין טומאה עד שיעקרו אבל כל זמן שהן מחוברין אפילו כשורש קטן שיכולין לחיות ממנו אינן מקבלין טומאה:
2
When a branch of a fig tree was broken off, yet it is still connected by its bark, but it cannot sustain itself from it, all the fruit on it are susceptible to ritual impurity. There is an unresolved doubt with regard to this matter: Is the remainder of the tree considered as a handle to this broken branch or not?
ב
ייחור של תאנה שנפשח ומעורה בקליפה שאינו יכול לחיות ממנה כל האוכלין שבו מתטמאין ויש בדבר ספק אם היה שאר האילן כמו יד לזה הייחור שנשבר או לאו:
3
When vegetables become dried out while budding, e.g., cabbage or squash that becomes dried out while budding, they are not susceptible to the impurity associated with foods. If produce was harvested with the intent of it being dried, it is considered as food until it becomes totally dry and hard like wood.
ג
ירקות שיבשו באיביהן כגון כרוב ודלעת שיבשו באיביהן אינן מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין ליקטן לייבשן הרי הן אוכלין כשהיו עד שייבשו ויעשו כעץ:
4
When the branches of a tree that contained fruit were broken off, the fruit is considered as having been harvested. Similarly, if a tree containing fruit dried out, the fruit is considered as having been harvested.
ד
אילן שנפשח ובו פירות הרי הן כתלושין וכן אם יבש האילן ובו פירות הרי הן כתלושין:
5
When figs dry out when budding, they contract impurity in their place.
ה
תאנים שיבשו באיביהן מטמאות טומאת אוכלין במקומן:
6
All foods that come from living animals are not susceptible to ritual impurity until the animals die. If one slaughtered a domesticated animal, wild animal, or fowl, even though it is still in its death throes, it is susceptible to ritual impurity.
When do fish contract impurity? When they die. If a factor arose that caused a fish to be considered as tereifah and it contracted impurity when it is in its their death throes, there is an unresolved question: Is it considered as if it had died, because it already became tereifah? Or is it not susceptible to ritual impurity until it becomes inanimate like stone and does not move?
If a limb or meat that was loosely hanging from a domesticated or wild animal and could not rejuvenate itself was made fit to contract impurity, it is susceptible to impurity even when in its place attached to the animal, because it is already considered as food that has been separated. If the animal was slaughtered, the slaughter makes it fit to contract impurity, because the entire animal is considered as a "handle," to this limb. And when a "handle" is made susceptible to ritual impurity, the entire organ becomes susceptible, as will be explained. There is an unresolved question if an animal can become a "handle" to a loosely hanging limb or flesh in the animal's lifetime.
ו
כל האוכלין שהן מבעלי חיים אינן מקבלין טומאה עד שימותו שחט בהמה חיה ועוף אף על פי שעדיין הן מפרכסין מקבלין טומאה ודגים מאימתי מקבלין טומאה משימותו נולד בהן טריפה ונתטמאו כשהן מתנדנדין הרי יש בדבר ספק אם הן חשובין כמתים הואיל ונטרפו או אינן מקבלין טומאה עד שידמו כאבן ולא יתנדנדו האבר או הבשר המדולדלין בבהמה או חיה שאינן יכולין לחיות אם הוכשרו מקבלין טומאה במקומן מפני שהן חשובין כאוכל שפירש נשחטה הבהמה הוכשרו בשחיטה שהבהמה כולה כמו יד לאבר זה ויד שהוכשר הוכשר האבר כולו כמו שיתבאר ויש בדבר ספק אם תהיה הבהמה בחייה כמו יד לאבר או בשר המדולדלין בה:
7
When one slaughters a domesticated animal, wild animal, or fowl, all of its meat becomes susceptible to ritual impurity because of the blood that emerges at the time of ritual slaughter. Therefore, if no blood emerges at the time of ritual slaughter, all of the meat must be made susceptible to ritual impurity like all other foods that were not yet made susceptible to impurity.
ז
השוחט בהמה חיה ועוף הוכשר כל הבשר בדם שיצא בשחיטה לפיכך אם לא יצא מהן דם בשחיטה הרי כל בשרן צריך הכשר ככל האוכלין שלא הוכשרו:
8
When foods are made susceptible to impurity while they are attached to the earth or they were made susceptible with water that was attached to the ground, they are not susceptible to impurity. They receive this status only after coming in contact with water that is not in contact with the earth or with other liquids after the produce has been detached from the earth, as implied byLeviticus 11:34: "in any container." It can be inferred that a liquid does not make food susceptible to impurity unless it was lifted from the ground, like water in a container. If one drew water with a container and then poured it on the ground, it does not make food susceptible to impurity.
ח
אוכלין שהוכשרו כשהן מחוברין לקרקע או שהוכשרו במים המחוברים שבקרקע אינו הכשר עד שיוכשרו אחר שנעקרו במים התלושין מן הקרקע או בשאר משקין שנאמר בכל כלי אינו מכשיר עד שיתלש מן הקרקע כעין המים שבכלים שאב המים בכלי ונתנן בקרקע אינן מכשירין:
9
When a zucchini was planted in a flowerpot and it grew, even though portions of it emerged outside the flowerpot, it is not susceptible to ritual impurity. The rationale is that when a flowerpot has a hole through which a small root can protrude, produce growing in it is considered as attached to the earth and anything planted in it is not susceptible to ritual impurity. Similarly, if there was water in it, the water does not make produce susceptible to impurity.
ט
קישות שנטעה בעציץ והגדילה אף על פי שיצאת חוץ לעציץ אינה מקבלת טומאה ועציץ שהוא נקוב כדי שיצא בו שורש קטן הרי הוא כארץ והנטוע בו אינו מקבל טומאה וכן אם היו בו מים אינן מכשירין:
10
When a flowerpot does not have a hole, anything growing in it is susceptible to ritual impurity. If there is water in it, that water makes produce susceptible to impurity.
י
עציץ שאינו נקוב הרי הנטוע בו מקבל טומאה ואם היו מים בתוכו מכשירין:
11
Vessels made from animal turds or earth from which roots can break through and protrude do not cause plants to become susceptible to impurity. Even though they do not have a hole, they are considered as if they have a hole.
יא
כלי גללים וכלי אדמה שהשרשים יכולין לבקוע בהן ולצאת אינן מכשירין את הזרעים ואף על פי שאינן נקובין הרי הן כנקובין:
12
When a flowerpot was filled with earth until its edge, it is no longer considered as a container. Instead, it is considered as a flat surface that does not have an edge, for it is no longer a receptacle.
יב
עציץ שמילאהו עפר עד שפתו אינו חשוב כלי אלא הרי הוא כטבלא שאין לה שפה שאינו כלי קיבול:
13
When impure liquids fall on foods, the foods become impure even though they fell contrary to the desire of the owner. The rationale is that the food's contraction of impurity occurs at the same time as it became susceptible to impurity. This applies provided the liquids are not on the earth.
יג
משקין טמאין שנפלו על האוכלין נטמאו אף על פי שנפלו שלא ברצון הבעלים שהרי הטומאה וההכשר באין כאחת והוא שלא יהיו בקרקע:
14
Whenever food has spoiled and rotted to the point that it is no longer fit for human consumption, it is not susceptible to ritual impurity. Similarly, a liquid that has spoiled and become foul to the point that it is no longer fit for human consumption is not susceptible to ritual impurity, just as it does not make foods susceptible to ritual impurity, as implied by Leviticus 11:34: "which he shall drink."
יד
כל אוכל שנפסד ונסרח עד שאינו ראוי למאכל אדם אינו מקבל טומאה וכן משקה שנסרח ונפסד ואינו ראוי לשתיית אדם אינו מקבל טומאה כדרך שאינו מכשיר שנאמר אשר ישתה:
15
When one cooked an animal's hide or thought of partaking of a placenta, they contract ritual impurity as an independent entityy.
טו
העור ששלקו והשליא שחישב עליה לאכילה מתטמאין טומאת אוכלים בפני עצמן:
16
When one cooks the hide of a donkey, there is an unresolved question whether it contracts ritual impurity as an independent entity, because it was cooked or it does not contract impurity, because it is very disgusting.
טז
עור החמור ששלקו הרי זה ספק אם מתטמא טומאת אוכלים בפני עצמו מפני ששלקו או אינו מתטמא מפני שהוא מאוס הרבה:
17
Kernels of wheat that are found in cattle turds or barley that is found in animal turds that were collected are not susceptible to ritual impurity. If one thought of partaking of them, they contract the ritual impurity associated with foods.
יז
חטים שבגללי בקר ושעורים שבגללי הבהמה שליקטן אין מקבלין טומאה ואם חישב עליהן לאכילה מתטמאות טומאת אוכלין:
18
When food became impure and after it became impure, it spoiled and rotted, if it became unfit for a dog to eat or it became dry like a shard, it is pure. If it became unfit for human consumption, but it is still fit for a dog, it remains impure as it was beforehand.
Whenever food becomes impure, it cannot regain purity by being immersed in a mikveh.
יח
כל אוכל שנטמא ואחר שנטמא נפסל ונסרח אם נפסל מלאכול הכלב או שיבש כחרש ה"ז טהור ואם נפסל מלאכול אדם ועדיין הוא ראוי לכלב ה"ז טמא כשהיה וכל האוכלין שנטמאו אין להן טהרה במקוה:
19
When one sows impure seeds, the plant that grows from them is pure, even if it is an entity whose seed does not decompose. The above applies provided the seeds sprout roots. If, however, they do not sprout roots, they remain impure even if the seed decomposes.
יט
זרעים טמאים שזרעם הרי הצומח מהן טהור ואפילו בדבר שאין זרעו כלה והוא שהשרישו אבל קודם השרשה הרי הן בטומאתן אפילו בדבר שזרעו כלה:
20
When food is attached to a utensil, it is no longer considered as food. If the utensil becomes impure, it contracts the impurity of the utensil. Since the food serves as wood, it is considered as wood.
כ
אוכלין שמחוברין לכלים בטלו מתורת אוכל ואם נטמא הכלי הרי הן מתטמאין בטומאת הכלי הואיל והן משמשין תשמיש עץ הרי הן כעץ:
21
Whenever a liquid contracts impurity and afterwards spoils and becomes foul, it remains impure forever. For the impurity of a liquid never departs, even if it becomes unfit for a dog to drink. Liquid that becomes impure can never regain purity. The only exception is water, i.e., if one immersed impure water in amikveh, when the water of the mikveh covers the impure water, it regains purity.
Hot impure water can be immersed in a cold mikveh. Similarly, cold water can be immersed in hot water, foul water can be immersed in pleasant water, and pleasant water in foul water.
כא
כל משקה שנטמא ואחר שנטמא נפסד ונסרח הרי זה בטומאתו לעולם שאין המשקה יוצא על ידי הכלב לעולם ואין למשקה שנטמא טהרה חוץ מן המים בלבד שאם הטביל מים טמאים במקוה כיון שצפו מי מקוה עליהן טהרו ומטבילין חמין בצונן וצונן בחמין ורעים ביפים ויפים ברעים:
22
When a staff was thoroughly wet with impure liquids, if a portion of it was immersed, the water on the other portion is not purified until it is immersed in its entirety.
כב
מקל שהיא מליאה משקין טמאים והטביל מקצתה במקוה לא טהרו המים שעל מקצתה עד שיטבול את כולה:
23
When snow becomes impure and a portion of it is joined to the waters of a mikveh, since a portion became pure, it becomes pure in its entirety.
כג
שלג שנטמא והשיק מקצתו למי מקוה הואיל וטהר מקצתו טהר כולו:
24
Temed that became impure - whether it became impure after the water was mixed with the grape dregs or whether the grape dregs were mixed with impure water - until it becomes vinegary, it can be brought into contact with a mikveh and purified, for it is like water. Once it becomes vinegary, it's like wine and it cannot be purified in a mikveh.
כד
התמד הטמא בין שנטמא אחר שתמדו בין שתמדו במים טמאים עד שלא החמיץ משיקו במקוה ויטהר שהרי הוא כמים משהחמיץ הרי הוא כיין ואין לו טהרה במקוה:
25
When a pot was filled with liquids, e.g., honey, wine, or the like, and placed in a mikveh and then a person who was a primary derivative of impurity extended his hand outward and touched the liquids, the liquids become impure even though they are in the mikveh. And the pot contracts impurity from the liquids in it, even though it is in the mikveh.
If, by contrast, the pot contained water, the pot is pure, because a derivative of impurity never imparts impurity to an earthenware container. Nor does the water it contains contract impurity, for it is mixed with the water of the mikveh. If, however, a person who is considered a source of impurity extended his hand and touched it, the pot becomes impure, for a mikveh does not impart purity to an earthenware container.
כה
קדירה שמליאה משקין כגון דבש ויין וכיוצא בהן ונתונה בתוך המקוה ופשט הראשון לטומאה את ידו ונגע בה הרי זה מטמא את המשקין אף על פי שהיא בתוך המקוה ונטמאת הקדירה מחמת המשקין שבתוכה אע"פ שהיא בתוך המקוה היתה מליאה מים הקדירה טהורה שאין הראשון מטמא כלי חרס לעולם ואין המים שבתוכה טמאים מפני שהן מעורבים במי המקוה פשט אב הטומאה את ידו ונגע בה נטמאת הקדירה שאין המקוה מטהר כלי חרס:
26
Drainage water can be assumed to be impure. If rain water descended upon it to the extent that it became the majority, the mixture is pure. If they are of equal quantities, everything is impure, whether the water is found in a container or on the earth.
When does this apply? When the drainage water came first. If, however, the rain water came first and then even the slightest amount of drainage water fell upon them, everything is impure, for when impure liquids descend into pure liquids, even the slightest amount imparts impurity.
כו
מי שפיכות הרי הן בחזקת טומאה ירדו עליהן מי גשמים אם רבו עליהן הרי הן טהורים מחצה למחצה הכל טמא בין בכלים בין בקרקעות אימתי בזמן שקדמו מי שפיכה אבל קדמו מי גשמים וירדו עליהן כל שהוא ממי שפיכות הכל טמא שמשקין טמאין שירדו לטהורים מטמאין בכל שהוא:
27
When a person spreads mud on the roof of his house or if he washes his clothes and water is dripping from them and then it rained and the dripping increased, we conclude that the majority is rain water and the water that drips is pure.
כז
הטורף את גגו והמכבס את כסותו והרי הן מנטפים ירדו עליהן גשמים ורבו הנטיפות הרי רבו מי גשמים עליהן והנוטפים מהן טהורין:
28
The following rules apply when a person applied ritually pure oil to his body and afterwards contracted impurity. If he immersed himself while the oil is still on his body, if merely the amount of oil to rub on a small finger was applied, the oil is pure as it was originally.
If a person applies impure oil to his body and immerses himself, the oil on his body does not regain purity. Instead, if there is moist oil on his body, the oil remains impure. If there is not enough that feels moist, it is nullified because of the small amount that is there.
כח
הסך שמן טהור ונטמא זה האדם וטבל והרי השמן על בשרו אם היה כדי סיכת אבר קטן הרי הוא טהור כשהיה מקודם סך שמן טמא וטבל לא טהר השמן שעליו אלא אם נשאר ממנו משקה טופח הרי השמן בטומאתו ואם לא נשאר ממנו כדי להטפיח ממנו בטל במיעוטו:
• Avel - Chapter 3
• Hayom Yom: Today's Hayom Yom
1
With the exception of the six relatives mentioned in the Torah and his wife, whenever a priest becomes impure because of contact with a corpse, if there are witnesses and a warning is administered, he is punished by lashes, as Leviticus 21:1 states: "No one shall contract ritual impurity for the sake of a deceased person among his people."
This applies whether one touches the corpse, stands over it, or carries it. And it applies to a corpse and to all other forms of ritual impurity stemming from a corpse, as implied by "No one shall contract ritual impurity for the sake of a deceased person among his people." In Hilchot Tumat Meit, we already described all the factors associated with a corpse that convey ritual impurity according to Scriptural Law and according to Rabbinic Law.
א
כל כהן שנטמא למת חוץ מששה מתים המפורשים בתורה או אשתו בעדים והתראה הרי זה לוקה שנאמר לנפש לא יטמא בעמיו ואחד הנוגע במת או המאהיל או הנושא ואחד המת ואחד שאר הטומאות הפורשות מן המת שנאמר לנפש לא יטמא בעמיו וכבר פירשנו בהלכות טומאת מת כל דברים המטמאין מן המת מן התורה או מדבריהם:
2
Similarly, a priest receives lashes if he touches a grave. He may, however, touch clothes that touched a corpse, even though by doing so, he contracts ritual impurity that continues for seven days.
ב
וכן אם נגע הכהן בקבר לוקה אבל נוגע הוא בבגדים שנגעו במת אע"פ שמיטמא בהן טומאת שבעה:
3
Similarly, if a priest enters a covered structure into which ritual impurity enters, he is lashed. This applies even though the source of impurity itself is in another building. We have already explained all the types of "tents" into which ritual impurity can enter and depart, the laws involving foliage and projections, the entities which bring ritual impurity and those which interpose between ritual impurity, which involve Scriptural Law and which involve Rabbinic Law. All of this is discussed in Hilchot Tumat Meit.
There we explained that non-Jews do not convey ritual impurity through overhangs. Therefore their graves are pure and a priest may enter their cemetery and walk on their graves. He is forbidden only to touch impurity or carry it, as we explained there.
ג
וכן אם נכנס לאהל טמא שנכנסה לו הטומאה לוקה אע"פ שעצמה של טומאה בבית אחר וכבר ביארנו כל האהלים שתכנס להן הטומאה או שתצא מהן ודין הסככות והפרעות וכל הדברים המביאין את הטומאה והחוצצין בפני הטומאה ואין זה מהן דין תורה ואי זה מהן מדבריהן הכל בהלכות טומאת מת ושם ביארנו שאין עכו"ם מטמאין באהל ולפיכך קברותיהם טהורים ומותר לכהן ליכנס לשם ולדרוך על קברותיהם ואינו אסור אלא שיגע בטומאה או שישאנה כמו שביארנו שם:
4
The following laws apply when a priest enters a building where a corpse is located or a cemetery inadvertently and he is given a warning after he discovers the fact. If he jumps and leaves, he is not liable. If, however, he remains there for the time it takes to prostrate oneself which we explained with regard to impurity in the Temple, he is lashed.
If he entered and departed, entered and departed, if he was given a warning for each time, he is given lashes for every entrance. Similarly, if he touches a corpse, is giving a warning, and then disengages himself, and afterwards, touches it and is given a warning - even if this sequence is repeated one hundred times, he is given lashes for each touch.
If he was touching a corpse and did not disengage himself or was standing in the cemetery and touched other corpses, although he is given a warning several times, he receives lashes only once. For as long as he does not cease, he is continuing to desecrate his priestly state.
ד
כהן שנכנס לאהל המת או לבית הקברות בשגגה ואחר שידע התרו בו אם קפץ ויצא פטור ואם ישב שם כדי השתחויה כמו שביארנו בענין טומאת מקדש הרי זה לוקה נכנס ויצא וחזר ונכנס ויצא אם התרו בו על כל פעם ופעם לוקה על כל כניסה וכניסה וכן אם נגע במת והתרו בו ופירש וחזר ונגע והתרו בו אפילו מאה פעמים לוקה על כל אחת ואחת היה נוגע ולא פירש או שהיה עומד בבית הקברות ונגע במתים אחרים אף על פי שהתרו בו כמה פעמים אינו לוקה אלא אחת שהרי מחולל ועומד כל זמן שלא פירש:
5
The following rules apply when one causes a priest to contract ritual impurity. If they both acted intentionally, the priest receives lashes and the person who caused him to contract impurity violates the prohibition against placing a stumbling block in front of the blind. If the priest was not aware of the transgression and the person who caused him to contract impurity acted intentionally, that person receives lashes.
ה
המטמא את הכהן אם היו שניהם מזידין הרי הכהן לוקה וזה שטמאו עובר על ולפני עור לא תתן מכשול היה הכהן שוגג וזה שטמאו מזיד הרי זה שטמאו לוקה:
6
A High Priest may not become impure for the sake of his relatives, as Leviticus 21:11 states: "He shall not become impure for his father's or mother's sake." Similarly, he does not enter a shelter where there is a corpse, even the corpse of one of his relatives, as ibid.:30 states: "He shall not enter a place where there is any corpse." Thus we learn that he is liable both for not entering and for not becoming impure.
What is implied? If the High Priest touches or carries a corpse, he receives lashes for one transgression. If he enters a shelter and remains there until a person dies or he enters a chest, bureau, or drawer, and a colleague comes and opens the top of this container and thus his contact with impurity and his entrance into the shelter come at the same time, he receives two sets of lashes, for the prohibition against entering and for the prohibition against becoming impure.
ו
כהן גדול אינו מטמא לקרובים שנאמר לאביו ולאמו לא יטמא וכן אינו נכנס עם המת באהל אפילו קרוביו שנאמר ועל כל נפשות מת לא יבא הא למדת שהוא חייב בלא יבא וחייב בלא יטמא כיצד נגע או נשא לוקה אחת נכנס לאהל וישב שם עד שמת עליו המת או שנכנס לשידה תיבה ומגדל ובא חבירו ופרע עליו גג השידה שהרי טומאה וביאה באין כאחד הרי זה לוקה שתים משום לא יבא ומשום לא יטמא:
7
If the High Priest became impure beforehand, and then entered a shelter where a corpse was located, if he is warned, he should receive lashes even for this entry.
ז
נטמא מקודם ואחר כך נכנס לאהל אם התרו בו לוקה אף על הביאה:
8
When a priest - even a High Priest - encounters an unattended corpse on the road, he is obligated to become impure for its sake and bury it. What is meant by an unattended corpse? A Jewish corpse cast away on the road without anyone to bury it. This is a halachah conveyed by the received tradition.
When does the above apply? When the priest is alone and there is no one else with him; even when he calls out on the road, no one answers him. If, however, when he calls others answer, this is not considered an unattended corpse. Instead, he should call to the others and they should come and tend to the corpse.
ח
כהן שפגע במת מצוה בדרך הרי זה מטמא לו אפילו כהן גדול חייב להטמא לו ולקוברו ואיזהו מת מצוה אחד מישראל שהיה מושלך בדרך ואין לו קוברין דבר זה הלכה מפי הקבלה במה דברים אמורים כשהיה הכהן לבדו ואין עמו אחר ואפילו קרא שם בדרך ואין לו עונה אבל אם כשיקרא אחרים עונים אותו אין זה מת מצוה אלא יקרא לאחרים ויבואו ויעסקו בו:
9
If a priest and a nazirite are proceeding on a road and they encounter an unattended corpse, the nazirite should tend to it. The rationale is that his holiness is not of an eternal nature. The priest - even an ordinary priest - should not become impure.
If a High Priest was going together with an ordinary priest, the ordinary priest should become impure. The general principle is: Whoever is on a higher level of holiness should become impure last. When a s'gan and the priest anointed to lead the army at war encounter an unattended corpse, the priest anointed to lead the army at war should become impure, not the s'gan.
ט
היו כהן ונזיר מהלכין בדרך ופגעו במת מצוה יתעסק בו הנזיר לפי שאין קדושתו קדושת עולם ואל יטמא בו הכהן אע"פ שהוא כהן הדיוט היה כהן גדול וכהן הדיוט יטמא ההדיוט וכל הקודם את חבירו במעלה מתאחר בטומאה וסגן עם משוח מלחמה שפגעו במת מצוה יטמא משוח מלחמה ואל יטמא הסגן:
10
When a nasi dies, everyone - even priests - should become impure for his sake. Our Sages had him considered as an unattended corpse, because everyone is obligated in his honor. Similarly, all must observe the rites of aninut for his sake.
י
נשיא שמת הכל מטמאין לו אפילו כהנים עשאוהו כמת מצוה לכל מפני שהכל חייבין בכבודו וכן הכל אוננין עליו:
11
The daughters of Aaron were not warned to avoid the ritual impurity imparted by a corpse. This derived from Leviticus 21:1: "Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron...." Implied is "the sons of Aaron," and not "the daughters of Aaron."
Similarly, challalim are permitted to become impure. This is also derived from the words, "the priests, the sons of Aaron," i.e., to be included in the prohibition, their priesthood must be intact.
יא
בנות אהרן לא הוזהרו על טומאת מת שנאמר אמור אל הכהנים בני אהרן ולא בנות אהרן וכן החללים מותרין להטמא שנאמר בני אהרן עד שיהיו בכיהונם:
12
When a priest is a minor, the adults are warned that they should not have him contact ritual impurity. If he comes to contract impurity on his own initiative, the court is not obligated to separate him from the source of impurity. His father, however, must educate him in the holiness of the priesthood.
יב
כהן קטן הרי הגדולים מוזהרים שלא יטמאוהו ואם בא להטמא מעצמו אין בית דין מצווין עליו להפרישו אבל אביו צריך לחנכו בקדושה:
13
The four cubits circumscribed around a corpse are deemed impure. Any priest that enters into these four cubits is given stripes for rebellious conduct.
Similarly, if priests enter a beit hapras, go to the diaspora, become impure through contact with a mixture of blood, a gravestone, or the stones which support the gravestone, and the like, they are given stripes for rebellious conduct, because these entities are sources for ritual impurity by Rabbinic decree, as we explained inHilchot Tumat Meit. If, however, a priest enters a cemetery, he receives lashes according to Scriptural Law.
יג
מת תופש ארבע אמות שלו לטומאה וכל כהן שנכנס לתוך ארבע אמות מכין אותו מכת מרדות וכן אם נכנסו לבית הפרס או יצא חוצה לארץ או שנטמא בדם תבוסה או בגולל ובדופק וכיוצא בהן מכין אותו מכת מרדות מפני שהן אבות של דבריהם כמו שביארנו בהלכות טומאת מת אבל אם נכנס לבית הקברות לוקה מן התורה:
14
It is permissible for a priest to become impure through walking through a beit hapras or the diaspora for the sake of a mitzvah, when there is no way other than that, e.g., he went to marry or to study Torah. Even though there is someone who could teach him in Eretz Yisrael, he is permitted to leave, because a person does not merit to learn from every colleague.
Similarly, a person may incur ritual impurity that is Rabbinic in origin to show respect to other people. What is implied? If a mourner walked through a beit hapras, everyone follows after him to comfort him. Similarly, we may walk over the coffins of the dead to greet Jewish kings. This is allowed even to greet gentile kings, so that a distinction will be able to be made between them and Jewish kings when their glory will return to its place. Similarly, leniency is granted in all analogous situations. Also, a priest may incur ritual impurity of Rabbinic origin to enter in judgment and disputation with gentiles concerning property, for he is saving it from their hands. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations.
יד
מותר לכהן להטמא בבית הפרס או בחוצה לארץ לדבר מצוה בזמן שאין שם דרך אלא היא כגון שהלך לישא אשה או ללמוד תורה אף על פי שיש שם מי שילמדנו בארץ ישראל לא מן הכל אדם זוכה ללמוד וכן מיטמא בטומאה מדבריהם לכבוד הבריות כיצד אבל שהלך בבית הפרס הכל הולכין אחריו שם לנחמו וכן מדלגין על גבי ארונות של מתים לקראת מלכי ישראל ואפילו מלכי עכו"ם כדי להבחין בינם לבין מלכי ישראל כשיחזור כבודן למקומן וכן כל כיוצא בזה וכן מיטמא בטומאה של דבריהם לדון עם העכו"ם ולערער עמהן מפני שהוא מציל מידם וכן כל כיוצא בזה:
Avel - Chapter 4
1
These are the customs observed by the Jewish people with regard to corpses and burial. We close the eyes of the deceased. If one's mouth hangs open, we tie the jaw close. After washing the corpse, we stuff close the orifices, anoint it with different fragrances, cut its hair, and dress it in shrouds of white linen which are not expensive. Our Sages followed the custom of using a cloak worth a zuz, so as not to embarrass a person who lacks resources. We cover the faces of the deceased so as not to embarrass the poor whose faces turned black because of hunger.
א
מנהג ישראל במתים ובקבורה כך הוא מאמצין עיניו של מת ואם נפתח פיו קושרין את לחייו ופוקקין את נקביו אחר שמדיחין אותו וסכין אותו במיני בשמים וגוזזין שערו ומלבישין אותו תכריכין תפורין בחוט של פשתן לבנים ולא יהיו דמיהן יקרים ונהגו חכמים בסודר שוה זוז שלא לבייש את מי שאין לו ומכסין פני המת שלא לבייש את העניים שפניהם מושחרין ברעב:
2
It is forbidden to bury the dead, even a nasi among the Jewish people, in silk shrouds or clothes embroidered with gold, for this is an expression of haughtiness, the destruction of useful property, and the emulation of gentile practices.
We carry the dead on our shoulders to the cemetery.
ב
ואסור לקבור בתכריכין של משי ובגדים המוזהבין הרקומין אפילו לנשיא שבישראל שזהו גסות הרוח והשחתה ומעשה עכו"ם וסובלין את המת על הכתף עד בית הקברות:
3
The pallbearers are forbidden to wear sandals, lest the strap of one of them snap and he hold back the performance of the mitzvah.
ג
ונושאי המטה אסורין בנעילת הסנדל שמא תפסק רצועה מסנדלו של אחד מהן ונמצא מתעכב מן המצוה:
4
We dig burial caves in the earth and make hollows at the side of the caves. There we bury the corpse with its face upward; we then place the earth and the stones back in place above it. They may bury it in a wooden coffin.
Those who accompany the corpse tell him: "Go in peace," asGenesis 15:15 states: "You will go to your ancestors in peace."
Markings are made on the graves. A tombstone is placed on the grave. For the righteous, by contrast, a tombstone is not placed, because their words will cause them to be remembered; a person will not need to visit in the cemeteries.
ד
וחופרין בעפר מערות ועושין כוך בצד המערה וקוברין אותו בו ופניו למעלה ומחזירין העפר והאבנים עליו ויש להן לקבור בארון של עץ והמלוין אותו אומרין לו לך בשלום שנאמר ואתה תבוא אל אבותיך בשלום ומציינין את כל בית הקברות ובונין נפש על הקבר והצדיקים אין בונים להם נפש על קברותיהם שדבריהם הם זכרונם ולא יפנה אדם לבקר הקברות:
5
A person in his deathroes is considered as a living person with regard to all matters. We do not tie his cheek, stuff his orifices, nor to we place a metal utensil or a utensil that cools on his navel so that his body will not bloat. We do not anoint it or wash it or place it on sand or on salt until the person dies.
One who touches him is considered as shedding blood. To what can the matter be compared? To a candle that is flickering, were a person to touch it, it will be extinguished. Similarly, anyone who closes a dying person's eyes as his soul expires is considered as shedding blood. Instead, they should wait some lest he have fainted. Similarly, we do not rend our clothes because of him, uncover our shoulders, recite eulogies, or bring a coffin or shrouds into the house until the person dies.
ה
הגוסס הרי הוא כחי לכל דבר אין קושרין לחייו ואין פוקקין נקביו ואין מניחין כלי מתכות וכלי מיקר על טבורו שלא יתפח ולא סכין אותו ולא מדיחין אותו ולא מטילין אותו על החול ולא על המלח עד שעה שימות והנוגע בו הרי זה שופך דמים למה זה דומה לנר שמטפטף כיון שיגע בו אדם יכבה וכל המאמץ עיניו עם יציאת נפש הרי זה שופך דמים אלא ישהא מעט שמא נתעלף וכן אין קורעין עליו ולא חולצין כתף ולא מספידין ולא מכניסין עמו ארון ותכריכין בבית עד שימות:
6
When a person's dead is lying before him, he should eat in another house. If he does not have another house, he should construct a partition and eat. If he does not have the materials to make a partition, he should turn away his face and eat. Under no circumstances should he recline and eat or eat meat or drink wine.
He does not recite the blessing before eating, nor the grace after meals. Others do not recite the blessings for him, nor is he included in a quorum of three for the recitation of grace. He is free from the obligation to recite the Shema, pray, put on tefillin, or observe any of the mitzvot stated in the Torah.
On the Sabbath, he should recline, eat meat, and drink wine, recite the blessing before eating, and recite grace. Others may recite blessings for him. He is included in a quorum for grace and is obligated in all the mitzvot of the Torah with the exception of sexual relations.
Once the dead is buried, he is permitted to eat meat and drink a small amount of wine to help digest the food that he has eaten, but not in an unrestrained manner.
ו
מי שמתו מוטל לפניו אוכל בבית אחר אין לו בית אחר עושה מחיצה ואוכל אין לו דבר לעשות מחיצה מחזיר פניו ואוכל ובין כך ובין כך אינו מיסב ואוכל ולא אוכל בשר ולא שותה יין ואינו מברך ואינו מזמן ואין מברכין עליו ואין מזמנין עליו ופטור מקריאת שמע ומן התפלה ומתפילין ומכל מצות האמורות בתורה בשבת מיסב ואוכל בשר ושותה יין ומברך ומזמן ומברכין עליו ומזמנין עליו וחייב בכל מצות האמורות בתורה חוץ מתשמיש המטה נקבר המת הרי זה מותר לאכול בשר ולשתות יין מעט כדי לשרות אכילה שבמיעיו אבל לא לרוות:
7
We do not delay the burial of the dead. Instead, we hurry to bury him immediately. Hastening the burial is praiseworthy. For one's father and mother, by contrast, it is demeaning.
ז
אין משהין את המת אלא מדחין מטתו מיד וכל המדחה מטתו הרי זה משובח ועל אביו ועל אמו הרי זה מגונה:
8
On Friday or the day before a festival, or when rain was drenching the coffin, it is permitted to hurry even the funeral of one's parents. For the person hurried the funeral only as an expression of honor for his father and mother.
Whoever delays the burial of his dead overnight violates a negative commandment, unless he delays the burial for the honor of the dead and to complete providing for his needs.
ח
היה ערב שבת או ערב יום טוב או שהיו גשמים מזלפין על המטה מותר שלא מיהר אלא לכבוד אביו ואמו וכל המלין את מתו עובר בלא תעשה אא"כ הלינו לכבודו ולהשלים צרכיו:
9
On the first day alone, it is forbidden for a mourner to put ontefillin or to eat food of his own. He must sit on a overturned bed. During the remainder of the days of mourning, he may eat his own food, sit on a mat or on the ground, and put on tefillin.
What is the source which teaches that a mourner may not put ontefillin on the first day? Instructions were given Ezekiel (Ezekiel 24:17): "Your glory should be bound upon you." Implied is other people are forbidden. He was instructed: "Do not eat the bread of men." Implied is that other people should eat from others on the first day and are forbidden to eat their own food.
ט
האבל ביום ראשון בלבד אסור להניח תפילין ולאכול משלו וחייב לישב על מטה כפויה ובשאר ימי האבל מותר לו לאכול משלו ולישב על גבי מפץ או קרקע ומניח תפילין ומנין שהוא אסור ביום ראשון להניח תפילין שהרי נאמר ליחזקאל פארך חבוש עליך מכלל שכל העם אסורין ונאמר לו ולחם אנשים לא תאכל מכלל שכל העם אוכלין משל אחרים ביום ראשון ואסורין לאכול משל עצמן:
Avel - Chapter 5
1
These are the matters forbidden to a mourner on the first day according to Scriptural Law and on the remaining seven days according to Rabbinic Law. He is forbidden to cut his hair, launder his clothes, wash, anoint himself, engage in sexual relations, wear shoes, perform work, study the Torah, stand his bed upright, leave his head uncovered, and greet others, eleven matters in total.
א
אלו דברים שהאבל אסור בהן ביום ראשון מן התורה ובשאר ימים מדבריהם: אסור לספר ולכבס ולרחוץ ולסוך ולשמש מטתו ולנעול את הסנדל ולעשות מלאכה ולקרות בדברי תורה ולזקוף את המטה ולפרוע את ראשו ולשאול שלום הכל אחד עשר דבר:
2
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to have his hair cut? Leviticus 10:6 warns the sons of Aaron: "Do not let the hair of your heads grow untended." Implied is that every mourner is forbidden to cut his hair. Instead, he lets his hair grow untended. Just as he is forbidden to cut off his hair; so, too, he is forbidden to trim his beard and any other hair on his body. This applies to cutting hair and having one's own hair cut. If he was in the midst of a haircut and he heard that his father died, he may complete the haircut. This applies to cutting hair and having one's own hair cut.
Similarly, it is forbidden to cut off one's mustache or to cut one's nails with a utensil. One may, however, bite off one's nails or trim them with one's other nails.
ב
ומנין שהאבל אסור בתספורת שהרי הזהיר בני אהרן ראשיכם אל תפרעו מכלל שכל המתאבל אסור לספר שערו אלא מגדל פרע וכשם שאסור לגלח שער ראשו כך אסור לגלח שער זקנו וכל שער שיש בו אחד המגלח ואחד המתגלח היה מגלח ושמע שמת אביו משלים תגלחת שערו אחד המגלח ואחד המתגלח וכן אסור לגלח שפה וליטול צפרניו בכלי אבל בשיניו או שנוטל צפורן בצפורן מותר:
3
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to launder his clothes and to wash and anoint his body: II Samuel 14:2states: "Please conduct yourself as a mourner; please wear mourner's clothes and do not anoint yourself with oil." Washing is including in anointing oneself, for it is a preliminary step before anointing oneself as Ruth 3:3 states: "Wash and anoint yourself."
Just as a mourner is forbidden to launder clothes; so, too, he is forbidden to wear new and freshly pressed white clothes.
ג
ומנין שהאבל אסור לכבס בגדיו ולרחוץ גופו ולסוך שנאמר התאבלי נא ולבשי בגדי אבל ואל תסוכי שמן ורחיצה בכלל סיכה שהרחיצה קודמת לסיכה שנאמר ורחת וסכת וכשם שאבל אסור בכיבוס בגדים כך אסור ללבוש כלים לבנים חדשים ומגוהצין:
4
As it is forbidden to anoint one's entire body; so, too, it is forbidden to anoint a portion of one's body. To remove filth, however, it is permitted. Similarly, it is forbidden to wash a portion of one's body in hot water. One may, however, wash one's face, one's hands, and one's feet - but not one's entire body - in cold water.
ד
אסור לסוך מקצת גופו ככל גופו ואם להעביר את הזוהמא מותר וכן אסור ברחיצת מקצת גופו בחמין אבל בצונן רוחץ פניו ידיו ורגליו אבל לא כל גופו:
5
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to engage in sexual relations. II Samuel 12:24 states: "And David comforted his wife, Batsheva, and he came to her and lay with her." This indicates that this was forbidden beforehand.
Similarly, a mourner should not marry a woman, nor should a woman marry while mourning even though they do not engage in relations. It is permitted for a mourner to remain in solitude with his wife even though he is forbidden to engage in sexual relations.
ה
מנין לאבל שאסור בתשמיש המטה שנאמר וינחם דוד את בת שבע אשתו ויבא אליה וישכב עמה מכלל שהיה אסור מקודם וכן לא ישא האבל אשה ולא תנשא אשה אע"פ שאין משמשין מטתן ומותר להתיחד עם אשתו ואף על פי שהוא אסור בתשמיש המטה:
6
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to wear shoes? Ezekiel was instructed Ezekiel 24:17: "And place your shoes on your feet." Implied is that all others are forbidden. If a person is traveling on a journey, he may wear shoes and proceed on his way. When he enters a city, he should remove his shoes.
ו
מנין שהאבל אסור בנעילת הסנדל שהרי נאמר ליחזקאל ונעליך תשים ברגליך מכלל שכל העם אסורין היה בא בדרך נועל והולך וכשיכנס במדינה חולץ מנעליו:
7
An allusion to the prohibition against a mourner performing labor can be derived from Amos 8:10: "I shall transform your festivals into mourning." Just as it is forbidden to perform work on a festival; so, too, a mourner is forbidden to perform work. And just as a mourner is forbidden to perform work; so, too, is he forbidden to engage in commercial transactions and to travel from city to city on a business trip.
ז
רמז לאבל שאסור בעשיית מלאכה זה שנאמר והפכתי חגיכם לאבל מה חג אסור בעשיית מלאכה אף אבל אסור בעשיית מלאכה וכשם שהוא אסור בעשיית מלאכה כך הוא אסור לישא וליתן בסחורה ולילך ממדינה למדינה בסחורה:
8
For the first three days, all mourners, even a poor person who derives his livelihood from charity, are forbidden to perform work. After that period, if the mourner is indigent, he may perform this work privately in his home. A woman may spin fabric on a spindle in her home.
ח
כל שלשה ימים הראשונים אסור בעשיית מלאכה אפילו היה עני המתפרנס מן הצדקה מכאן ואילך אם היה עני עושה בצנעה בתוך ביתו והאשה טוה בפלך בתוך ביתה:
9
When two brothers or two partners operate one store together and one of them is forced to mourn, the store should be closed for all seven days of mourning.
ט
שני אחים או שני שותפין שהיו בחנות אחת ואירע אבל לאחד מהן נועלין את החנות כל שבעה:
10
Even activities which are permitted to be performed duringchol hamo'ed may not be performed by a mourner during the days of mourning. Others may, however, perform these tasks on his behalf.
What is implied? If it is necessary to turn over a person's olives, put pitch on his barrels, or bring his flax up from the vat where it is soaking or his wool from the kettle where it is being dyed, he may hire someone else to perform this task on his behalf so that he will not suffer a loss. And he may have his field irrigated in the irrigation season.
י
אפילו דברים שמותר לעשותן בחולו של מועד אסור לאבל לעשותן בידו בימי אבלו אבל אחרים עושים לו כיצד היו זיתיו להפוך וכדיו לגוף ופשתנו לעלות מן המשרה וצמרו מן היורה שוכר אחרים לעשות לו כדי שלא יאבדו ומרבצין לו שדהו משתגיע עונת המים:
11
His sharecroppers or those who hire his fields may perform work in their ordinary way. But donkey-drivers and camel-drivers who rent his animals and sailors who rent his ships should not perform work. If the animals or ships were hired out or rented out previously for a specific time, the renters may perform work.
יא
האריסין והחכירין שלו והקבלנין הרי אלו יעשו כדרכן אבל החמרים והגמלים בבהמות שלו והספנים בספינה שלו הרי אלו לא יעשו ואם היו מוחכרים או מושכרים מקודם לזמן קצוב הרי אלו יעשו:
12
A worker hired by the day - even if he is located in another city - should not perform work on behalf of the mourner.
יב
שכיר יום אפילו בעיר אחרת לא יעשה לו:
13
When a mourner was charged with doing tasks on behalf of others, whether as a contractor or not as a contractor, he should not do it. If his tasks were entrusted to others, they should not work on it in his home, but may work on it elsewhere.
יג
האבל שהיתה מלאכת אחרים בידו בין בקבלנות בין שאינה בקבלנות לא יעשה היתה מלאכתו ביד אחרים בביתו לא יעשו בבית אחר עושין:
14
If a mourner has litigation with a colleague, he should not prosecute the matter throughout the seven days of mourning. If it concerned a matter that could lead to a loss, he should appoint an agent. The Geonim ruled in this manner.
יד
היה לו דין עם אדם אינו תובעו כל שבעת ימי האבילות ואם היה דבר אבד עושה שליח כזה הורו הגאונים:
15
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to speak words of Torah? Ezekiel was instructed Ezekiel 24:17: "Be silent from groaning."
טו
מנין שהאבל אסור בדברי תורה שהרי נאמר ליחזקאל האנק דום:
16
He is forbidden to read from the Torah, the Prophets, and the Holy Scriptures and to study the Mishnah, the Midrash, and the Halachot. If many require his instruction, he is permitted, provided he does not appoint a spokesman. Instead, he should whisper to the person sitting next to him. That person should relate the teachings to the spokesman and the spokesman should communicate them to the people at large.
טז
אסור לקרות בתורה בנביאים ובכתובים ולשנות במשנה ובמדרש ובהלכות ואם היו רבים צריכין לו מותר ובלבד שלא יעמיד תורגמן אלא ילחוש לאחר בצדו וזה שבצדו אומר לתורגמן והתורגמן משמיע לרבים:
17
Which source teaches that a mourner should not sit on a bed? II Samuel 13:31 states: "And the king arose, rent his garments, and lay on the ground."
יז
ומנין שאין האבל יושב על המטה שנאמר ויקם המלך ויקרע את בגדיו וישכב ארצה:
18
A mourner is obligated to overturn his bed for all seven days of mourning. This applies not only to his own bed. Instead, he must overturn all the beds he has in his house. Moreover, even if he has ten beds in ten homes in ten cities, he is obligated to overturn all of them. Even if there are five brothers and one of them dies, all the remainder must overturn their beds.
When a bed is set aside to be used for money or for utensils, it need not be overturned. Similarly, a dargesh need not be overturned. Instead, the straps should be released and the bed allowed to fall.
When bed posts emerge from a bed and so it is impossible to turn it over, he should turn it on its side while upright; this is sufficient.
If a person turned all his own beds over, but slept on beds belonging to others, on a chair, on a chest, or on the ground, he does not fulfill his obligation. Instead, he must sleep on the overturned bed.
יח
וחייב לכפות המטה כל שבעה ולא מטתו בלבד הוא כופה אלא כל המטות שיש לו בתוך ביתו הוא כופה אפילו עשר מטות בעשרה בתים ובעשר עיירות חייב לכפות את כולן ואפילו חמשה אחים ומת אחד מהן כולן כופין את מטותיהן המטה המיוחדת לכלים או למעות אינו צריך לכפותה דרגש אינו צריך לכפותו אלא מתיר את קרביטיו והוא נופל מאליו מטה שנקליטיה יוצאין ממנה שהרי אי אפשר להפכה זוקפה ודיו הפך כל מטותיו והיה הוא ישן על גבי מטות אחרים או על גבי כסא או על גבי ארון או על גבי קרקע לא יצא ידי חובתו אלא ישן על גבי המטה הכפויה:
19
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to uncover his head? Ezekiel was instructed Ezekiel 24:17: "Do not veil your face until the lips." Implied is that others are obligated to cover their heads. He should use the sash with which he covers his head and wind a portion of it over his mouth slightly. In this vein, Onkelos renders Leviticus 13:45: "He should veil his face until his lips," as "He should cover himself like a mourner."
יט
מנין לאבל שאסור בפריעת הראש שהרי נאמר ליחזקאל לא תעטה על שפם מכלל ששאר האבלים חייבין בעטיפת הראש והסודר שמכסה בו ראשו עוטה ממקצתו מעט על פיו שנאמר ועל שפם יעטה ואונקלוס תרגם כאבלא יתעטף:
20
Which source teaches that a mourner is forbidden to exchange greetings with colleagues? Ezekiel was instructed: "Be silent from groaning."
For the entire first three days, if someone greets him, he does not respond with greetings. Instead, he notifies him that he is a mourner. From the third day until the seventh, when a person greets him, he should respond with greetings. From the seventh until the thirtieth day, he may greet others, but others should not greet him until after thirty days have passed. And when he is in mourning for his father or mother, he should not be greeted until after twelve months.
If he is forbidden to greet a colleague during the mourning period, one can certainly infer that he is forbidden to engage in lengthy talk and frivolity, as implied by the instruction: "Be silent." He should not hold an infant in his arms so that he will not lead him to laughter. And he should not enter a place of celebration, e.g., a feasting hall or the like.
כ
ומנין שהאבל אסור בשאלת שלום שנאמר האנק דום כל שלשה ימים הראשונים מי שנתן לו שלום אין מחזיר לו אלא מודיעו שהוא אבל ומשלשה ועד שבעה מי ששאל בשלומו מחזיר לו שלום ומשבעה ועד שלשים שואל בשלום אחרים אבל אחרים אין שואלין בשלומו עד לאחר שלשים ועל אביו ועל אמו אין שואלין בשלומו עד לאחר שנים עשר חדש אם בשאלת שלום נאסר באבל קל וחומר שהוא אסור להרבות דברים ולשחוק שנאמר דום ולא יאחוז תינוק בידו שלא יביאנו לידי שחוק ולא יכנס למקום שמחה כגון בתי המשתאות וכיוצא בהן:
• Shabbat, 13 Tishrei, 5777 · 15 October 2016
• "Today's Day"
• Tuesday, Tishrei 13, 5704
Torah lessons: Chumash: B'racha, Shlishi with Rashi.
Tehillim: 69-71.
Tanya: XXII(a). My beloved, (p. 517) ...commentary of Rashi. (p. 517).
The Rebbe Maharash passed away on this day in 5643 (1882). He was interred in Lubavitch.
The beginning of Igeret 22 and its close were not published in Igeret Hakodesh.1 (It was printed in the publication Hatamim No. 2.)
FOOTNOTES
1.Tanya part IV. Today's lesson.
• Daily Thought:• "Today's Day"
• Tuesday, Tishrei 13, 5704
Torah lessons: Chumash: B'racha, Shlishi with Rashi.
Tehillim: 69-71.
Tanya: XXII(a). My beloved, (p. 517) ...commentary of Rashi. (p. 517).
The Rebbe Maharash passed away on this day in 5643 (1882). He was interred in Lubavitch.
The beginning of Igeret 22 and its close were not published in Igeret Hakodesh.1 (It was printed in the publication Hatamim No. 2.)
FOOTNOTES
1.Tanya part IV. Today's lesson.
Return with Love
Don’t waste a good sin.
“All that G‑d does is good, even the wicked person on the day of his wickedness.” (Proverbs 16:4)
Why did a G‑d who hates evil create a world where evil can take charge of a human being?
Only so that this human being would be driven yet higher than could ever be reached without sin.
Return from fear, and the sin has not accomplished its goal. It is a wasted sin.
Return from love, and the night has found its day. It has driven you higher.[Likutei Sichot vol. 17, page 190.]
CHABAD - TODAY IN JUDAISM: Friday, 14 October 2016 - Today is: Friday, 12 Tishrei, 5777 · 14 October 2016 - Candle Lighting
Light Candles before sunset ––:––.
Today's Laws & Customs:
• Omit Tachnun
Tachnun (confession of sins) and similar prayers are omitted.
Today in Jewish History:
• Passing of R. Abraham "The Angel" (1776)
The 12th of Tishrei is the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the passing) of Rabbi Abraham (1740-1776) the son of Rabbi DovBer of Mezeritch and study partner of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi; known as "Rabbi Abraham the Angel" for his saintliness and ascetism.
Daily Quote:Every day a heavenly voice issues forth from Mount Sinai[Ethics of the Fathers, 6:2]Daily Study:
Chitas and Rambam for today:
Chumash: Ha'Azinu, 6th Portion Deuteronomy 32:40-32:43 with Rashi
• Deuteronomy Chapter 32
40For I raise up My hand to heaven, and say, 'As I live forever.' מכִּֽי־אֶשָּׂ֥א אֶל־שָׁמַ֖יִם יָדִ֑י וְאָמַ֕רְתִּי חַ֥י אָֽנֹכִ֖י לְעֹלָֽם:
For I raise up My hand to heaven: For in My fury, I will raise up My hand to Myself, making an oath. כי אשא אל שמים ידי: כי בחרון אפי אשא ידי אל עצמי בשבועה:
and say, “As I live…”: This is the expression of an oath, like the verse, “’As I live,’ says the Lord, 'if not for that which you have spoken in My ears’” (Num. 14:28). So too, here in our verse [the meaning is]:“I swear, just as I live [forever]…”. ואמרתי חי אנכי: לשון שבועה הוא אני נשבע חי אנכי:
41When I sharpen the blade of My sword, and My hand grasps judgment, I will bring vengeance upon My adversaries and repay those who hate Me. מאאִם־שַׁנּוֹתִי֙ בְּרַ֣ק חַרְבִּ֔י וְתֹאחֵ֥ז בְּמִשְׁפָּ֖ט יָדִ֑י אָשִׁ֤יב נָקָם֙ לְצָרָ֔י וְלִמְשַׂנְאַ֖י אֲשַׁלֵּֽם:
When I sharpen the blade of My sword: If I sharpen the blade of My sword, so that it will shine (בְּרַק) [The word בְּרַק, literally lightning, means shine or flash] (see Ezek. 21:15), flandor in Old French. אם שנותי ברק חרבי: אם אשנן את להב חרבי, כמו (יחזקאל כא, טו) למען היות לה ברק שפלנדו"ר [ברק]:
and My hand grasps judgment: leaving the attribute of mercy [and applying the attribute of justice] on My enemies who harmed Israel, for “I was angry only a little, but they helped to do harm” (Zech. 1:15). Another explanation: My hand will grasp the attribute of justice, sustaining it and exacting vengeance with it. ותאחז במשפט ידי: להניח מדת רחמים באויבי שהרעו לכם, (זכריה א, טו) אשר אני קצפתי מעט והמה עזרו לרעה. דבר אחר ותאחז ידי את מדת המשפט להחזיק בה ולנקום נקם:
I will bring vengeance upon My adversaries: Our Rabbis learned in the Aggadah (Mechilta Shemoth 14:3): By virtue of the expression in the verse,“and grasp judgment in My hand,” we understand that the nature of a human being is not like that of the Holy One, Blessed is He. For it is the nature of a human to cast an arrow, but he is unable to retrieve it. The Holy One, blessed be He, however, shoots His arrows and He can indeed retrieve them, as if He were holding them in His hand. Now, lightning is His arrow, [alluded to here] by the phrase בְּרַק חַרְבִּי, literally “the lightning of My sword,” [and the verse continues,] “and grasping judgment in My hand.” here, “judgment” refers to retribution; justize in Old French. אשיב נקם וגו': למדו רבותינו באגדה מתוך לשון המקרא שאמר ותאחז במשפט ידי, לא כמדת בשר ודם מדת הקב"ה, מדת בשר ודם זורק חץ ואינו יכול להשיבו, והקב"ה זורק חציו ויש בידו להשיבם, כאלו אוחזן בידו, שהרי ברק הוא חצו, ונאמר כאן ברק חרבי ותאחז במשפט ידי, והמשפט הזה לשון פורענות הוא בלע"ז יושטיצי"א [עונש]:
42I will intoxicate My arrows with blood, and My sword will consume flesh, from the blood of the slain and the captives, from the first breach of the enemy.' מבאַשְׁכִּ֤יר חִצַּי֙ מִדָּ֔ם וְחַרְבִּ֖י תֹּאכַ֣ל בָּשָׂ֑ר מִדַּ֤ם חָלָל֙ וְשִׁבְיָ֔ה מֵרֹ֖אשׁ פַּרְע֥וֹת אוֹיֵֽב:
I will intoxicate My arrows with blood: of the enemy; אשכיר חצי מדם: האויב:
and My sword will consume flesh: their flesh [i.e., of the enemy]. וחרבי תאכל בשר: בשרם:
from the blood of the slain and the captives: [All] this will happen to them, because of the sin of the blood of Israel’s slain, and of the captives they took from them. מדם חלל ושביה: זאת תהיה להם מעון דם חללי ישראל ושביה ששבו מהם:
from the first breach of the enemy: From the very first breach the enemy made. For when the Holy One, Blessed is He, inflicts punishment upon the nations, He visits upon them their own sin and the sins of their ancestors, from the very first breach they made in Israel. — [Sifrei 32:42] מראש פרעות אויב: מפשע תחלת פרצות האויב, כי כשהקב"ה נפרע מן האומות פוקד עליהם עונם ועונות אבותיהם מראשית פרצה שפרצו בישראל:
43Sing out praise, O you nations, for His people! For He will avenge the blood of His servants, inflict revenge upon His adversaries, and appease His land [and] His people. מגהַרְנִ֤ינוּ גוֹיִם֙ עַמּ֔וֹ כִּ֥י דַם־עֲבָדָ֖יו יִקּ֑וֹם וְנָקָם֙ יָשִׁ֣יב לְצָרָ֔יו וְכִפֶּ֥ר אַדְמָת֖וֹ עַמּֽוֹ:
Sing out praise, O you nations, for His people: At that time, the nations will praise Israel, saying: "You see, now, what the praise of this nation is! That they cleaved to the Holy One, Blessed is He, through all the sufferings that befell them, and they did not forsake Him! They appreciated His goodness and His praise! הרנינו גוים עמו: לאותו הזמן ישבחו האומות את ישראל ראו מה שבחה של אומה זו שדבקו בהקב"ה בכל התלאות שעברו עליהם ולא עזבוהו, יודעים היו בטובו ובשבחו:
and He will avenge the blood of His servants: i.e., [God will avenge] the shedding of their blood, as the phrase literally means. כי דם עבדיו יקום: שפיכות דמיהם כמשמעו:
inflict revenge upon His adversaries: for the robbery and the violence [which they perpetrated against Israel], like the matter that is stated, “Egypt will be a desolation and Edom as a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah…” (Joel 4:19); and Scripture also states, “For the violence against your brother Jacob…” (Obad. 1: 10). ונקם ישיב לצריו: על הגזל ועל החמס, כענין שנאמר (יואל ד, יט) מצרים לשמה תהיה ואדום למדבר שממה תהיה מחמס בני יהודה, ואומר (עובדיה א, י) מחמס אחיך יעקב וגו':
and appease His land and His people: And He will appease His land and His people for the distresses that they experienced, and that the enemy perpetrated against them. וכפר אדמתו עמו: ויפייס אדמתו ועמו על הצרות שעברו עליהם ושעשה להם האויב:
and appease: Heb. וְכִפֵּר, an expression of conciliation and appeasement, as in the verse, אֲכַפְּרָה פָּנָיו, which is rendered in the Targum as: “I will appease his anger” (Gen. 32:21). וכפר: לשון רצוי ופיוס, כמו (בראשית לב, כא) אכפרה פניו אנחיניה לרוגזיה:
and appease His land: And what is His land? His people. When His nation is comforted, His land is also comforted. Thus, Scripture says, “O Lord, You have appeased Your land” (Ps. 85:2). How have You appeased Your land? [That same verse continues:] “You have returned the captivity of Jacob.” This [section] is explained in different ways in Sifrei. Rabbi Judah and Rabbi Nehemiah differed regarding its explanation: Rabbi Judah explains the whole section as referring to Israel, while Rabbi Nehemiah explains the whole section as referring to the other nations. [Now Rashi proceeds to explain this whole section according to the two approaches.] Rabbi Judah explains it as referring to Israel, as follows: From “I said that I would make an end of them,” until “The Lord did none of this!” [verses 26-27], as I have explained above. [Verse 28:] “For that nation is lacking counsel” means that Israel lacks My Torah, because the Torah provides Israel with sound counsel; “and they have no understanding” means that they do not reflect on how one individual of the nations could pursue one thousand of them, unless it is “because their Rock had sold them over” (verse 30); “for their rock is not like our [Mighty] Rock” (verse 31). Everything is as I have explained it until the end. Rabbi Nehemiah explains the section as referring to the other nations, [as follows]: [Verse 28:] ”For they are a nation devoid of counsel,” until “Nevertheless, our enemies sit in judgment” (verses 28-31), he explains as I explained. וכפר אדמתו: ומה היא אדמתו עמו. כשעמו מתנחמים ארצו מתנחמת, וכן הוא אומר (תהלים פה, ב) רצית ה' ארצך, במה רצית ארצך, שבת שבות יעקב. בפנים אחרים היא נדרשת בספרי, ונחלקו בה ר' יהודה ור' נחמיה. ר' יהודה דורש כולה כנגד ישראל, ור' נחמיה דורש כולה כנגד האומות. רבי יהודה דורשה כלפי ישראל אמרתי אפאיהם, כמו שפירשתי עד ולא ה' פעל כל זאת. כי גוי אובד עצות המה אבדו תורתי שהיא להם עצה נכונה. ואין בהם תבונה להתבונן איכה ירדוף אחד מן האומות אלף מהם אם לא כי צורם מכרם, כי לא כצורנו צורם, הכל כמו שפירשתי עד תכליתו. ור' נחמיה דורשה כלפי האומות כי גוי אבד עצות המה, כמו שפירשתי תחלה עד ואויבינו פלילים:
[32] For their vine is of the vine of Sodom: That of the nations, כי מגפן סדום גפנם: של אומות:
and of the field of Gomorrah…: And the nations do not give any thought to attribute the greatness to Me. ומשדמת עמורה וגו': ולא ישימו לבם לתלות הגדולה בי:
their grapes are grapes of rosh: This is what Scripture says, “Were it not that the enemy’s wrath was heaped up (verse 27)” against Israel, to poison and embitter them, and therefore (verse 32), “they have bitter clusters,” and they will be forced to eat them because of what they did to My children. ענבמו ענבי רוש: הוא שאמר לולי כעס אויב אגור על ישראל להרעילם ולהמרירם, לפיכך אשכלות מרורות למו להלעיט אותם על מה שעשו לבני:
[33] Their wine is the bitterness of serpents: ready to give them [the nations] to drink because of what they did to them [Israel]. חמת תנינם יינם: מוכן להשקותם על מה שעושין להם:
[34] [Is it not] stored up with Me: i.e., this cup [of poison], as Scripture states, “For a cup is in the hand of the Lord […which all the wicked of the world will…drink]” (Ps. 75:9). [35] כמוס עמדי: אותו הכוס, שנאמר (תהלים עה, ט) כי כוס ביד ה' וגו':
at the time their foot trips: [i.e., when the nations’ foot trips,] as Scripture says, “A foot will trample it,” [referring to the downfall of the wicked] (Isa. 26:6). לעת תמוט רגלם: כענין שנאמר (ישעיה כו, ו) תרמסנה רגל:
[36] For the Lord will judge His people: when explaining the section according to this [Rabbi Nehemiah’s] explanation, [the word כִּי in the expression] כִּי יָדִין does mean “because,” and the judgment spoken of here does not refer to sufferings [of Israel], but rather, the verse means: Because God will plead the cause of Israel against those who have oppressed her, when “He sees that the [nations’] power is increasing…” [37] כי ידין ה' עמו: בלשון זה משמש כי ידין בלשון דהא, ואין ידין לשון יסורין, אלא כמו כי יריב את ריבם מיד עושקיהם, כי יראה כי אזלת יד וגו':
Then he will say, “Where is their Deity?”: The enemy will say, “Where is Israel’s God?” just as the wicked Titus said, when he rent the veil [of the Holy Temple] (see Gittin 56b), as Scripture states, “And my enemy will see [God’s righteousness], and shame will cover her, who says to me, ‘Where is the Lord, your God?’” (Micah 7:10). ואמר אי אלהימו: האויב יאמר אי אלהימו של ישראל, כמו שאמר טיטוס הרשע כשגדר את הפרכת, כענין שנאמר (מיכה ז, י) ותרא אויבתי ותכסה בושה האומרה אלי איו ה' אלהיך:
[39] See now that it is I!: Then the Holy One, Blessed is He, will reveal His salvation and say: “Now you see that it is I! I am the One!” From Me the evil befell you, and from Me good will come upon you; ראו עתה כי אני וגו': אז יגלה הקב"ה ישועתו ויאמר ראו עתה כי אני אני הוא מאתי באת עליהם הרעה ומאתי תבא עליהם הטובה:
and no one can rescue from My Hand: i.e., who will rescue you from the disaster I will bring upon you. ואין מידי מציל: מי שיציל אתכם מן הרעה אשר אביא עליכם:
[40] For I raise up My place to heaven: Heb. כִּי אֶשָּׂא אֶל שָׁמַיִם יָדִי. This is to be understood as, “I have raised up (נָשָׂאתִי).” My Divine Presence has always dwelt in the heaven, as the Targum renders it. And even if a weak one is above, and a strong one is below, the fear of the one above is upon the one below. How much more is this so, since the Mighty One is above, and the weak one is below?! כי אשא אל שמים ידי: כמו כי נשאתי, תמיד אני משרה מקום שכינתי בשמים, כתרגומו אפילו חלש למעלה וגבור למטה, אימת העליון על התחתון, וכל שכן שגבור למעלה וחלש מלמטה:
My place: [According to this explanation, the word] יָדִי means “the [dwelling] place of My Divine Presence,” as in the verse, “every man in his place (יָדוֹ)” (Num. 2:17). [Continues God:] Now, it was within My power to punish you [nations] immediately, but I said, “As I live forever,” I will not hasten to exact punishment-there is time for this, because I live forever! I will exact the punishment [from the nations] in the latter generations. Furthermore, I have the power to exact punishment both from the living and the dead. A mortal king, who may die at any moment, hastens to avenge himself during his lifetime, because either he or his enemy may die without seeing his punishment being meted out upon him, but I, [says God,] live forever, so that if the enemy dies and I have not yet exacted punishment upon them, I will exact punishment from them when they are dead. ידי: מקום שכינתי, כמו (במדבר ב, יז) איש על ידו, והיה בידי להפרע מכם, אבל אמרתי שחי אנכי לעולם, איני ממהר לפרוע, לפי שיש לי שהות בדבר, כי אני חי לעולם, ובדורות אחרונים אני נפרע מהם והיכולת בידי להפרע מן המתים ומן החיים. מלך בשר ודם שהוא הולך למות ממהר נקמתו להפרע בחייו, כי שמא ימות הוא או אויבו ונמצא שלא ראה נקמתו ממנו, אבל אני חי לעולם ואם ימותו הם ואיני נפרע בחייהם, אפרע במותם:
[41] When I sharpen the blade of my sword: There are instances in Scripture where the word אִם is not used conditionally [i.e., it does not mean “if”. Here, אִם means “when,” and thus, the verse means:] “When I sharpen the blade of My sword, and My hand grasps judgment…,” and all these remaining verses are as I have explained them above. אם שנותי ברק חרבי: הרבה אם יש שאינם תלויין, כשאשנן ברק חרבי ותאחז במשפט ידי וכו', כמו שפירשתי למעלה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 66 - 68
• Chapter 66
This psalm describes the praises and awe-inspiring prayers that we will offer God upon the ingathering of the exiles.
1. For the Conductor, a song, a psalm. Raise your voices in jubilation to God, all the earth!
2. Sing the glory of His Name; make glorious His praise.
3. Say to God, "How awesome are Your deeds!" Because of Your great strength, Your enemies will [admit] their treachery to You.
4. All the earth will bow to You, and sing to You; they will sing praise to Your Name forever!
5. Go and see the works of God, awesome in His deeds toward mankind.
6. He turned the sea into dry land, and they passed through the river on foot; we rejoiced in Him there.
7. He rules the world with His might, and His eyes watch the nations; let the rebellious not exalt themselves, Selah.
8. Bless our God, O nations, and let the voice of His praise be heard.
9. He has kept us alive, and did not allow our feet to falter.
10. For You tested us, O God; You refined us as one refining silver.
11. You brought us into prison; You placed a chain upon our loins.
12. You mounted men over our head; we went through fire and water, and You brought us out to abundance.
13. I will enter Your House with burnt-offerings, I will pay to You my vows,
14. which my lips uttered and my mouth spoke in my distress.
15. I will offer up to You burnt-offerings of fat animals, with the smoke of rams; I will prepare cattle with he-goats, Selah.
16. Come listen, all you who fear God, and I will relate what He has done for my soul.
17. I called to Him with my mouth, with exaltation beneath my tongue.
18. Had I seen iniquity in my heart, my Lord would not have listened.
19. But in truth, God heard; He gave ear to the voice of my prayer.
20. Blessed is God Who has not turned away my prayer or His kindness from me.
Chapter 67
This psalm is known as an especially revered prayer. It, too, speaks of the era of the ingathering of the exiles, and the wars of Gog and Magog, a time when "the Lord will be One."
1. For the Conductor, a song with instrumental music, a psalm.
2. May God be gracious to us and bless us; may He make His countenance shine upon us forever,
3. that Your way be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.
4. The nations will extol You, O God; all the nations will extol You.
5. The nations will rejoice and sing for joy, for You will judge the peoples justly and guide the nations on earth forever.
6. The peoples will extol You, O God; all the peoples will extol You,
7. for the earth will have yielded its produce, and God, our God, will bless us.
8. God will bless us; and all, from the farthest corners of the earth, shall fear Him.
Chapter 68
An awe-inspiring and wondrous prayer, David composed this psalm referring to a future event, when Sennacherib would surround Jerusalem on Passover, during the reign of Hezekiah. He also prophesies about the good we will enjoy during the Messianic era.
1. For the Conductor; by David, a psalm, a song.
2. Let God rise, let His enemies be scattered, and let His enemies flee before Him.
3. As smoke is driven away, drive them away; as wax melts before fire, let the wicked perish before God.
4. And the righteous will rejoice, they will exult before God and delight with joy.
5. Sing to God, chant praises to His Name; extol Him Who rides upon the heavens with His Name, Yah, and exult before Him.
6. A father of orphans and judge of widows is God, in the abode of His holiness.
7. God settles the solitary into a home, and frees those bound in shackles; but the rebellious [are left to] dwell in an arid land.
8. O God, when You went out before Your nation, when You marched through the wilderness, Selah,
9. the earth trembled, even the heavens dripped before the presence of God; this mountain of Sinai [trembled] before the presence of God, the God of Israel.
10. You poured generous rain, O God; when Your heritage was weary, You secured it.
11. Your flock settled there; in Your goodness, O God, You prepare for the poor.
12. My Lord will fulfill the word of the heralds to a great legion:
13. Kings of armies will flee, they will flee; and she who inhabits the home will divide the loot.
14. Even if you lie upon the hearth,1 [you will be like] wings of a dove covered with silver, her pinions with brilliant gold.
15. When the Almighty scatters kings in her midst, those in the shadow of darkness will be made snow-white.
16. The mountain of God is a fertile mountain, the mountain of majestic peaks is a fertile mountain.
17. Why do you prance, O mountains of peaks? This is the mountain God has desired as His dwelling; the Lord will even dwell there forever.
18. The chariots of God are twice ten thousand, [with] thousands of angels; my Lord is in their midst, at Sinai, in holiness.
19. You ascended on high and took a captive,2 you seized gifts for man; and [now] even rebels dwell with Yah, God.
20. Blessed is my Lord, Who each day loads us [with beneficence], the God Who is our deliverance forever.
21. The Lord is a God of deliverances for us; and to God, my Lord, are the many avenues of death.
22. God alone crushes the heads of His enemies, the hairy skull of him who goes about in his guilt.
23. My Lord said, "I will bring back from Bashan,3 I will bring back from the depths of the sea,
24. that your foot may wade through [the enemy's] blood; that the tongue of your dogs may have its portion from your enemies.”
25. They saw Your ways, O God, the ways of my God, my King, in holiness.
26. The singers began, then the musicians, in the midst of the maidens playing timbrels.
27. In assemblies bless God; [bless] my Lord, O you who stem from Israel.
28. There Benjamin, the youngest, rules them; the princes of Judah stone them, [as do] the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
29. Your God has decreed your strength. Show Your strength, O God, Who has wrought this for our sake.
30. Because of [the glory of] Your Sanctuary upon Jerusalem, kings will bring You tribute.
31. Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds, the assembly of mighty bulls among the calves of nations, [until] each submits himself with pieces of silver. Scatter the nations that desire wars.
32. Nobles will come from Egypt; Kush will hasten [to raise] its hands to God.
33. Kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; sing praise to my Lord forever!
34. To the One Who rides upon the loftiest of ancient heavens-behold He gives forth His voice, a voice of might.
35. Ascribe power to God; His majesty is over Israel, and His might is in the skies.
36. God, You are feared from Your Sanctuary; it is the God of Israel Who grants strength and power to His people; blessed is God.
FOOTNOTES
1.And dirty yourself in exile (Metzudot).
2.Israel ascended on high and seized the Torah from the Angels (Metzudot).
3.From amongst the nations who are compared to “bulls of Bashan” (Metzudot).
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 21
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Friday, 12 Tishrei, 5777 · 14 October 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 21
• The reason given until this point for dividing one’s annual pledges into weekly or at least monthly payments, was the quality of alacrity in performing a mitzvah. The Alter Rebbe now adds two further reasons for not deferring frequent payments to one consolidated contribution at the end of the year: (a) every single act of tzedakah refines the soul of the donor; (b) every single act of tzedakah brings about a Supernal Union in the Sefirot and Partzufim.1
Rambam: Sefer Hamitzvos:
• Deuteronomy Chapter 32
40For I raise up My hand to heaven, and say, 'As I live forever.' מכִּֽי־אֶשָּׂ֥א אֶל־שָׁמַ֖יִם יָדִ֑י וְאָמַ֕רְתִּי חַ֥י אָֽנֹכִ֖י לְעֹלָֽם:
For I raise up My hand to heaven: For in My fury, I will raise up My hand to Myself, making an oath. כי אשא אל שמים ידי: כי בחרון אפי אשא ידי אל עצמי בשבועה:
and say, “As I live…”: This is the expression of an oath, like the verse, “’As I live,’ says the Lord, 'if not for that which you have spoken in My ears’” (Num. 14:28). So too, here in our verse [the meaning is]:“I swear, just as I live [forever]…”. ואמרתי חי אנכי: לשון שבועה הוא אני נשבע חי אנכי:
41When I sharpen the blade of My sword, and My hand grasps judgment, I will bring vengeance upon My adversaries and repay those who hate Me. מאאִם־שַׁנּוֹתִי֙ בְּרַ֣ק חַרְבִּ֔י וְתֹאחֵ֥ז בְּמִשְׁפָּ֖ט יָדִ֑י אָשִׁ֤יב נָקָם֙ לְצָרָ֔י וְלִמְשַׂנְאַ֖י אֲשַׁלֵּֽם:
When I sharpen the blade of My sword: If I sharpen the blade of My sword, so that it will shine (בְּרַק) [The word בְּרַק, literally lightning, means shine or flash] (see Ezek. 21:15), flandor in Old French. אם שנותי ברק חרבי: אם אשנן את להב חרבי, כמו (יחזקאל כא, טו) למען היות לה ברק שפלנדו"ר [ברק]:
and My hand grasps judgment: leaving the attribute of mercy [and applying the attribute of justice] on My enemies who harmed Israel, for “I was angry only a little, but they helped to do harm” (Zech. 1:15). Another explanation: My hand will grasp the attribute of justice, sustaining it and exacting vengeance with it. ותאחז במשפט ידי: להניח מדת רחמים באויבי שהרעו לכם, (זכריה א, טו) אשר אני קצפתי מעט והמה עזרו לרעה. דבר אחר ותאחז ידי את מדת המשפט להחזיק בה ולנקום נקם:
I will bring vengeance upon My adversaries: Our Rabbis learned in the Aggadah (Mechilta Shemoth 14:3): By virtue of the expression in the verse,“and grasp judgment in My hand,” we understand that the nature of a human being is not like that of the Holy One, Blessed is He. For it is the nature of a human to cast an arrow, but he is unable to retrieve it. The Holy One, blessed be He, however, shoots His arrows and He can indeed retrieve them, as if He were holding them in His hand. Now, lightning is His arrow, [alluded to here] by the phrase בְּרַק חַרְבִּי, literally “the lightning of My sword,” [and the verse continues,] “and grasping judgment in My hand.” here, “judgment” refers to retribution; justize in Old French. אשיב נקם וגו': למדו רבותינו באגדה מתוך לשון המקרא שאמר ותאחז במשפט ידי, לא כמדת בשר ודם מדת הקב"ה, מדת בשר ודם זורק חץ ואינו יכול להשיבו, והקב"ה זורק חציו ויש בידו להשיבם, כאלו אוחזן בידו, שהרי ברק הוא חצו, ונאמר כאן ברק חרבי ותאחז במשפט ידי, והמשפט הזה לשון פורענות הוא בלע"ז יושטיצי"א [עונש]:
42I will intoxicate My arrows with blood, and My sword will consume flesh, from the blood of the slain and the captives, from the first breach of the enemy.' מבאַשְׁכִּ֤יר חִצַּי֙ מִדָּ֔ם וְחַרְבִּ֖י תֹּאכַ֣ל בָּשָׂ֑ר מִדַּ֤ם חָלָל֙ וְשִׁבְיָ֔ה מֵרֹ֖אשׁ פַּרְע֥וֹת אוֹיֵֽב:
I will intoxicate My arrows with blood: of the enemy; אשכיר חצי מדם: האויב:
and My sword will consume flesh: their flesh [i.e., of the enemy]. וחרבי תאכל בשר: בשרם:
from the blood of the slain and the captives: [All] this will happen to them, because of the sin of the blood of Israel’s slain, and of the captives they took from them. מדם חלל ושביה: זאת תהיה להם מעון דם חללי ישראל ושביה ששבו מהם:
from the first breach of the enemy: From the very first breach the enemy made. For when the Holy One, Blessed is He, inflicts punishment upon the nations, He visits upon them their own sin and the sins of their ancestors, from the very first breach they made in Israel. — [Sifrei 32:42] מראש פרעות אויב: מפשע תחלת פרצות האויב, כי כשהקב"ה נפרע מן האומות פוקד עליהם עונם ועונות אבותיהם מראשית פרצה שפרצו בישראל:
43Sing out praise, O you nations, for His people! For He will avenge the blood of His servants, inflict revenge upon His adversaries, and appease His land [and] His people. מגהַרְנִ֤ינוּ גוֹיִם֙ עַמּ֔וֹ כִּ֥י דַם־עֲבָדָ֖יו יִקּ֑וֹם וְנָקָם֙ יָשִׁ֣יב לְצָרָ֔יו וְכִפֶּ֥ר אַדְמָת֖וֹ עַמּֽוֹ:
Sing out praise, O you nations, for His people: At that time, the nations will praise Israel, saying: "You see, now, what the praise of this nation is! That they cleaved to the Holy One, Blessed is He, through all the sufferings that befell them, and they did not forsake Him! They appreciated His goodness and His praise! הרנינו גוים עמו: לאותו הזמן ישבחו האומות את ישראל ראו מה שבחה של אומה זו שדבקו בהקב"ה בכל התלאות שעברו עליהם ולא עזבוהו, יודעים היו בטובו ובשבחו:
and He will avenge the blood of His servants: i.e., [God will avenge] the shedding of their blood, as the phrase literally means. כי דם עבדיו יקום: שפיכות דמיהם כמשמעו:
inflict revenge upon His adversaries: for the robbery and the violence [which they perpetrated against Israel], like the matter that is stated, “Egypt will be a desolation and Edom as a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah…” (Joel 4:19); and Scripture also states, “For the violence against your brother Jacob…” (Obad. 1: 10). ונקם ישיב לצריו: על הגזל ועל החמס, כענין שנאמר (יואל ד, יט) מצרים לשמה תהיה ואדום למדבר שממה תהיה מחמס בני יהודה, ואומר (עובדיה א, י) מחמס אחיך יעקב וגו':
and appease His land and His people: And He will appease His land and His people for the distresses that they experienced, and that the enemy perpetrated against them. וכפר אדמתו עמו: ויפייס אדמתו ועמו על הצרות שעברו עליהם ושעשה להם האויב:
and appease: Heb. וְכִפֵּר, an expression of conciliation and appeasement, as in the verse, אֲכַפְּרָה פָּנָיו, which is rendered in the Targum as: “I will appease his anger” (Gen. 32:21). וכפר: לשון רצוי ופיוס, כמו (בראשית לב, כא) אכפרה פניו אנחיניה לרוגזיה:
and appease His land: And what is His land? His people. When His nation is comforted, His land is also comforted. Thus, Scripture says, “O Lord, You have appeased Your land” (Ps. 85:2). How have You appeased Your land? [That same verse continues:] “You have returned the captivity of Jacob.” This [section] is explained in different ways in Sifrei. Rabbi Judah and Rabbi Nehemiah differed regarding its explanation: Rabbi Judah explains the whole section as referring to Israel, while Rabbi Nehemiah explains the whole section as referring to the other nations. [Now Rashi proceeds to explain this whole section according to the two approaches.] Rabbi Judah explains it as referring to Israel, as follows: From “I said that I would make an end of them,” until “The Lord did none of this!” [verses 26-27], as I have explained above. [Verse 28:] “For that nation is lacking counsel” means that Israel lacks My Torah, because the Torah provides Israel with sound counsel; “and they have no understanding” means that they do not reflect on how one individual of the nations could pursue one thousand of them, unless it is “because their Rock had sold them over” (verse 30); “for their rock is not like our [Mighty] Rock” (verse 31). Everything is as I have explained it until the end. Rabbi Nehemiah explains the section as referring to the other nations, [as follows]: [Verse 28:] ”For they are a nation devoid of counsel,” until “Nevertheless, our enemies sit in judgment” (verses 28-31), he explains as I explained. וכפר אדמתו: ומה היא אדמתו עמו. כשעמו מתנחמים ארצו מתנחמת, וכן הוא אומר (תהלים פה, ב) רצית ה' ארצך, במה רצית ארצך, שבת שבות יעקב. בפנים אחרים היא נדרשת בספרי, ונחלקו בה ר' יהודה ור' נחמיה. ר' יהודה דורש כולה כנגד ישראל, ור' נחמיה דורש כולה כנגד האומות. רבי יהודה דורשה כלפי ישראל אמרתי אפאיהם, כמו שפירשתי עד ולא ה' פעל כל זאת. כי גוי אובד עצות המה אבדו תורתי שהיא להם עצה נכונה. ואין בהם תבונה להתבונן איכה ירדוף אחד מן האומות אלף מהם אם לא כי צורם מכרם, כי לא כצורנו צורם, הכל כמו שפירשתי עד תכליתו. ור' נחמיה דורשה כלפי האומות כי גוי אבד עצות המה, כמו שפירשתי תחלה עד ואויבינו פלילים:
[32] For their vine is of the vine of Sodom: That of the nations, כי מגפן סדום גפנם: של אומות:
and of the field of Gomorrah…: And the nations do not give any thought to attribute the greatness to Me. ומשדמת עמורה וגו': ולא ישימו לבם לתלות הגדולה בי:
their grapes are grapes of rosh: This is what Scripture says, “Were it not that the enemy’s wrath was heaped up (verse 27)” against Israel, to poison and embitter them, and therefore (verse 32), “they have bitter clusters,” and they will be forced to eat them because of what they did to My children. ענבמו ענבי רוש: הוא שאמר לולי כעס אויב אגור על ישראל להרעילם ולהמרירם, לפיכך אשכלות מרורות למו להלעיט אותם על מה שעשו לבני:
[33] Their wine is the bitterness of serpents: ready to give them [the nations] to drink because of what they did to them [Israel]. חמת תנינם יינם: מוכן להשקותם על מה שעושין להם:
[34] [Is it not] stored up with Me: i.e., this cup [of poison], as Scripture states, “For a cup is in the hand of the Lord […which all the wicked of the world will…drink]” (Ps. 75:9). [35] כמוס עמדי: אותו הכוס, שנאמר (תהלים עה, ט) כי כוס ביד ה' וגו':
at the time their foot trips: [i.e., when the nations’ foot trips,] as Scripture says, “A foot will trample it,” [referring to the downfall of the wicked] (Isa. 26:6). לעת תמוט רגלם: כענין שנאמר (ישעיה כו, ו) תרמסנה רגל:
[36] For the Lord will judge His people: when explaining the section according to this [Rabbi Nehemiah’s] explanation, [the word כִּי in the expression] כִּי יָדִין does mean “because,” and the judgment spoken of here does not refer to sufferings [of Israel], but rather, the verse means: Because God will plead the cause of Israel against those who have oppressed her, when “He sees that the [nations’] power is increasing…” [37] כי ידין ה' עמו: בלשון זה משמש כי ידין בלשון דהא, ואין ידין לשון יסורין, אלא כמו כי יריב את ריבם מיד עושקיהם, כי יראה כי אזלת יד וגו':
Then he will say, “Where is their Deity?”: The enemy will say, “Where is Israel’s God?” just as the wicked Titus said, when he rent the veil [of the Holy Temple] (see Gittin 56b), as Scripture states, “And my enemy will see [God’s righteousness], and shame will cover her, who says to me, ‘Where is the Lord, your God?’” (Micah 7:10). ואמר אי אלהימו: האויב יאמר אי אלהימו של ישראל, כמו שאמר טיטוס הרשע כשגדר את הפרכת, כענין שנאמר (מיכה ז, י) ותרא אויבתי ותכסה בושה האומרה אלי איו ה' אלהיך:
[39] See now that it is I!: Then the Holy One, Blessed is He, will reveal His salvation and say: “Now you see that it is I! I am the One!” From Me the evil befell you, and from Me good will come upon you; ראו עתה כי אני וגו': אז יגלה הקב"ה ישועתו ויאמר ראו עתה כי אני אני הוא מאתי באת עליהם הרעה ומאתי תבא עליהם הטובה:
and no one can rescue from My Hand: i.e., who will rescue you from the disaster I will bring upon you. ואין מידי מציל: מי שיציל אתכם מן הרעה אשר אביא עליכם:
[40] For I raise up My place to heaven: Heb. כִּי אֶשָּׂא אֶל שָׁמַיִם יָדִי. This is to be understood as, “I have raised up (נָשָׂאתִי).” My Divine Presence has always dwelt in the heaven, as the Targum renders it. And even if a weak one is above, and a strong one is below, the fear of the one above is upon the one below. How much more is this so, since the Mighty One is above, and the weak one is below?! כי אשא אל שמים ידי: כמו כי נשאתי, תמיד אני משרה מקום שכינתי בשמים, כתרגומו אפילו חלש למעלה וגבור למטה, אימת העליון על התחתון, וכל שכן שגבור למעלה וחלש מלמטה:
My place: [According to this explanation, the word] יָדִי means “the [dwelling] place of My Divine Presence,” as in the verse, “every man in his place (יָדוֹ)” (Num. 2:17). [Continues God:] Now, it was within My power to punish you [nations] immediately, but I said, “As I live forever,” I will not hasten to exact punishment-there is time for this, because I live forever! I will exact the punishment [from the nations] in the latter generations. Furthermore, I have the power to exact punishment both from the living and the dead. A mortal king, who may die at any moment, hastens to avenge himself during his lifetime, because either he or his enemy may die without seeing his punishment being meted out upon him, but I, [says God,] live forever, so that if the enemy dies and I have not yet exacted punishment upon them, I will exact punishment from them when they are dead. ידי: מקום שכינתי, כמו (במדבר ב, יז) איש על ידו, והיה בידי להפרע מכם, אבל אמרתי שחי אנכי לעולם, איני ממהר לפרוע, לפי שיש לי שהות בדבר, כי אני חי לעולם, ובדורות אחרונים אני נפרע מהם והיכולת בידי להפרע מן המתים ומן החיים. מלך בשר ודם שהוא הולך למות ממהר נקמתו להפרע בחייו, כי שמא ימות הוא או אויבו ונמצא שלא ראה נקמתו ממנו, אבל אני חי לעולם ואם ימותו הם ואיני נפרע בחייהם, אפרע במותם:
[41] When I sharpen the blade of my sword: There are instances in Scripture where the word אִם is not used conditionally [i.e., it does not mean “if”. Here, אִם means “when,” and thus, the verse means:] “When I sharpen the blade of My sword, and My hand grasps judgment…,” and all these remaining verses are as I have explained them above. אם שנותי ברק חרבי: הרבה אם יש שאינם תלויין, כשאשנן ברק חרבי ותאחז במשפט ידי וכו', כמו שפירשתי למעלה:
Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 66 - 68
• Chapter 66
This psalm describes the praises and awe-inspiring prayers that we will offer God upon the ingathering of the exiles.
1. For the Conductor, a song, a psalm. Raise your voices in jubilation to God, all the earth!
2. Sing the glory of His Name; make glorious His praise.
3. Say to God, "How awesome are Your deeds!" Because of Your great strength, Your enemies will [admit] their treachery to You.
4. All the earth will bow to You, and sing to You; they will sing praise to Your Name forever!
5. Go and see the works of God, awesome in His deeds toward mankind.
6. He turned the sea into dry land, and they passed through the river on foot; we rejoiced in Him there.
7. He rules the world with His might, and His eyes watch the nations; let the rebellious not exalt themselves, Selah.
8. Bless our God, O nations, and let the voice of His praise be heard.
9. He has kept us alive, and did not allow our feet to falter.
10. For You tested us, O God; You refined us as one refining silver.
11. You brought us into prison; You placed a chain upon our loins.
12. You mounted men over our head; we went through fire and water, and You brought us out to abundance.
13. I will enter Your House with burnt-offerings, I will pay to You my vows,
14. which my lips uttered and my mouth spoke in my distress.
15. I will offer up to You burnt-offerings of fat animals, with the smoke of rams; I will prepare cattle with he-goats, Selah.
16. Come listen, all you who fear God, and I will relate what He has done for my soul.
17. I called to Him with my mouth, with exaltation beneath my tongue.
18. Had I seen iniquity in my heart, my Lord would not have listened.
19. But in truth, God heard; He gave ear to the voice of my prayer.
20. Blessed is God Who has not turned away my prayer or His kindness from me.
Chapter 67
This psalm is known as an especially revered prayer. It, too, speaks of the era of the ingathering of the exiles, and the wars of Gog and Magog, a time when "the Lord will be One."
1. For the Conductor, a song with instrumental music, a psalm.
2. May God be gracious to us and bless us; may He make His countenance shine upon us forever,
3. that Your way be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.
4. The nations will extol You, O God; all the nations will extol You.
5. The nations will rejoice and sing for joy, for You will judge the peoples justly and guide the nations on earth forever.
6. The peoples will extol You, O God; all the peoples will extol You,
7. for the earth will have yielded its produce, and God, our God, will bless us.
8. God will bless us; and all, from the farthest corners of the earth, shall fear Him.
Chapter 68
An awe-inspiring and wondrous prayer, David composed this psalm referring to a future event, when Sennacherib would surround Jerusalem on Passover, during the reign of Hezekiah. He also prophesies about the good we will enjoy during the Messianic era.
1. For the Conductor; by David, a psalm, a song.
2. Let God rise, let His enemies be scattered, and let His enemies flee before Him.
3. As smoke is driven away, drive them away; as wax melts before fire, let the wicked perish before God.
4. And the righteous will rejoice, they will exult before God and delight with joy.
5. Sing to God, chant praises to His Name; extol Him Who rides upon the heavens with His Name, Yah, and exult before Him.
6. A father of orphans and judge of widows is God, in the abode of His holiness.
7. God settles the solitary into a home, and frees those bound in shackles; but the rebellious [are left to] dwell in an arid land.
8. O God, when You went out before Your nation, when You marched through the wilderness, Selah,
9. the earth trembled, even the heavens dripped before the presence of God; this mountain of Sinai [trembled] before the presence of God, the God of Israel.
10. You poured generous rain, O God; when Your heritage was weary, You secured it.
11. Your flock settled there; in Your goodness, O God, You prepare for the poor.
12. My Lord will fulfill the word of the heralds to a great legion:
13. Kings of armies will flee, they will flee; and she who inhabits the home will divide the loot.
14. Even if you lie upon the hearth,1 [you will be like] wings of a dove covered with silver, her pinions with brilliant gold.
15. When the Almighty scatters kings in her midst, those in the shadow of darkness will be made snow-white.
16. The mountain of God is a fertile mountain, the mountain of majestic peaks is a fertile mountain.
17. Why do you prance, O mountains of peaks? This is the mountain God has desired as His dwelling; the Lord will even dwell there forever.
18. The chariots of God are twice ten thousand, [with] thousands of angels; my Lord is in their midst, at Sinai, in holiness.
19. You ascended on high and took a captive,2 you seized gifts for man; and [now] even rebels dwell with Yah, God.
20. Blessed is my Lord, Who each day loads us [with beneficence], the God Who is our deliverance forever.
21. The Lord is a God of deliverances for us; and to God, my Lord, are the many avenues of death.
22. God alone crushes the heads of His enemies, the hairy skull of him who goes about in his guilt.
23. My Lord said, "I will bring back from Bashan,3 I will bring back from the depths of the sea,
24. that your foot may wade through [the enemy's] blood; that the tongue of your dogs may have its portion from your enemies.”
25. They saw Your ways, O God, the ways of my God, my King, in holiness.
26. The singers began, then the musicians, in the midst of the maidens playing timbrels.
27. In assemblies bless God; [bless] my Lord, O you who stem from Israel.
28. There Benjamin, the youngest, rules them; the princes of Judah stone them, [as do] the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
29. Your God has decreed your strength. Show Your strength, O God, Who has wrought this for our sake.
30. Because of [the glory of] Your Sanctuary upon Jerusalem, kings will bring You tribute.
31. Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds, the assembly of mighty bulls among the calves of nations, [until] each submits himself with pieces of silver. Scatter the nations that desire wars.
32. Nobles will come from Egypt; Kush will hasten [to raise] its hands to God.
33. Kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; sing praise to my Lord forever!
34. To the One Who rides upon the loftiest of ancient heavens-behold He gives forth His voice, a voice of might.
35. Ascribe power to God; His majesty is over Israel, and His might is in the skies.
36. God, You are feared from Your Sanctuary; it is the God of Israel Who grants strength and power to His people; blessed is God.
FOOTNOTES
1.And dirty yourself in exile (Metzudot).
2.Israel ascended on high and seized the Torah from the Angels (Metzudot).
3.From amongst the nations who are compared to “bulls of Bashan” (Metzudot).
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 21
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
• Friday, 12 Tishrei, 5777 · 14 October 2016
• Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 21
• The reason given until this point for dividing one’s annual pledges into weekly or at least monthly payments, was the quality of alacrity in performing a mitzvah. The Alter Rebbe now adds two further reasons for not deferring frequent payments to one consolidated contribution at the end of the year: (a) every single act of tzedakah refines the soul of the donor; (b) every single act of tzedakah brings about a Supernal Union in the Sefirot and Partzufim.1
אך גם זאת מצאנו ראינו בעבודת הצדקה מעלה פרטית גדולה ונפלאה, אין ערוך אליה
Indeed, in the service of charity we have also found and noted a particularly great and incomparably wondrous virtue,
As explained above, in Iggeret HaKodesh, Epistle XII, the “act of charity” (maaseh hatzedakah) remains steadily within the conventional limits set by one’s natural inclination. In the case of the “service of charity” (avodat hatzedakah), by contrast, the individual serves G‑d by toiling, refining himself and excelling himself, until he is able to be charitable in a manner that leaps above and beyond his custom and nature.
The Alter Rebbe now teaches that even if the amount one gives is not out of the ordinary, nevertheless, if it is given with great frequency, this too qualifies as divine service, —
להיות מעשה הצדקה נעשית בפעמים רבות
when the act of charity is performed numerous times,
The Alter Rebbe is referring here not to one’s annual pledge but to the actual giving of the numerous increments which add up to its total amount, —
וכל המרבה הרי זה משובח
and whoever does so frequently is praiseworthy,
ולא בפעם אחת ובבת אחת, גם כי הסך הכולל אחד הוא
rather than at one time and all at once, even when the total sum is the same. Even then, it is far preferable to give the same amount over a longer period on numerous occasions,׳—
כמו שכתב הרמב״ם ז״ל, בפירוש המשנה ששנו חכמים ז״ל: והכל לפי רוב המעשה
as R. Moses Maimonides, of blessed memory, wrote in his commentary on the [following] mishnah2taught by the Sages,3 of blessed memory: “And everything is [judged] according to the multiplicity of action,” as opposed to the stature of the deed.
On this mishnah the Rambam explains that though a one-time donation of (say) a thousand4 gulden is truly praiseworthy, the trait of benevolence does not thereby become embedded within the donor’s psyche to the same extent as it would if he would give these same thousand coins one at a time.
והנה, מלבד כי הרמב״ם ז״ל ביאר היטב טעמו ונימוקו: כדי לזכך הנפש על ידי רבוי המעשה
Now, apart from the underlying reason [for this] that R. Moses Maimonides, of blessed memory, clearly explained, viz., “in order to refine the soul by means of the multiplicity of action,”
הנה מקרא מלא דיבר הכתוב: פעולת צדקה לחיים
an explicit verse in Scripture states that “the effect of tzedakah is for life.”
In his Notes and Emendations at the conclusion of [the Hebrew edition of] Tanya, the Rebbe refers the reader to the following two verses: In Mishlei 10:16 we find, פעולת צדיק לחיים — “The effect of a tzaddik is for life,” and in Mishlei 11:11 we find, כן צדקה לחיים — “So is tzedakah for life.” Accordingly, the Rebbe notes that the Alter Rebbe’s citation of the three words פעולת צדקה לחיים (“the effect of tzedakah is for life”) as part of “an explicit verse” is problematic.
Seemingly, this difficulty could be resolved by interpreting thus: Since “the effect of a tzaddik” is tzedakah (in the spirit of the verse,5 “G‑d is a ‘tzaddik’: He loves acts of tzedakah”), the verse which states that “the effect of a tzaddik is for life” in fact seeks to imply that “the effect of a tzaddik — viz., tzedakah — is for life.”
From the comment of the Rebbe, however, it is apparent that this interpretation is unsatisfactory, for surely “an explicit verse” should be explicit, without resort to interpretation.
דהיינו, שפעולתה וסגולתה: להמשיך חיים עליונים מחיי החיים, אין סוף ברוך הוא
This means, the effect and mystical consequence [of tzedakah] is to elicit and draw down supernal life from the Fountainhead of Life (lit., “from the Life of life”), the blessed Ein Sof,
לארץ החיים
to the Land of Life, i.e., to Malchut of Atzilut.
The Sefirah of Malchut in the World of Atzilut is known as the “Land of Life” because (relative to the more “heavenly” levels) it is the lowest level within that World. It is known as the “Land of Life” because it provides life to all the created beings of the three lower Worlds of Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah.
The effect of tzedakah, then, is to draw down life-giving Divine energy into the recipient (or “feminine”) attribute calledMalchut of Atzilut. The source of this life (the “Fountainhead of Life”) is called Za, which is the last level within the worlds that are Ein Sof, or infinite. The name Za is an acronym of the initials (ז״א) of זעיר אנפין, i.e., the bracket of six masculinemiddot, or emotive attributes of Atzilut. (This yichud of masculine and feminine middot is the “Supernal Union” spoken of below.)
היא שכינת עוזינו, שעליה נאמר: ואתה מחיה את כולם
[The Land of Life, i.e., Malchut of Atzilut] is the Shechinah which gives us strength,i.e., the Divine Presence that animates and fortifies created beings, of which it is said,6 “And You animate them all.”
The word אתה (“You”) alludes to the Sefirah of Malchut (the source of G‑d’s creative speech) in the World of Atzilut, for its spelling indicates all the letters from alef to tav, from the first letter of the alphabet to the last, while its letter hei, numerically equivalent to five, alludes to the five organs of verbal articulation, the source of the letters.7
והיא סוכת דוד הנופלת עד עפר
[The Shechinah] is identified with8 “the sukkah of David that has fallen” down to the very dust, during the time of exile.9
וכמאמר רז״ל: גלו לאדום, שכינה עמהם כו׳
As our Sages, of blessed memory, taught:10 “When [the Jewish people] were exiled to Edom, theShechinah went with them...”
Accompanying them in all their wanderings throughout this last and lowest exile of ours, the Shechinah has thereby been humbled down to the lowest depths. At a time like this, acts of tzedakah can reinvigorate it with the infinite life that they elicit from the Fountainhead of Life, the Ein Sof.
כי באתערותא דלתתא, להחיות רוח שפלים, דלית ליה מגרמיה כלום, אתערותא דלעילא
[Tzedakah has this effect] because the arousal [which man initiates] from below, to revive the spirit of the humbled (i.e., the pauper) “who has nothing at all of his own,” elicits an arousal from Above,
The quoted phrase describing the poor is advisedly borrowed from the Kabbalists’ description of the Shechinah as theSefirah (viz., Malchut of Atzilut) which11 “has nothing at all of its own, but what is given to it by others,” i.e., by the higherSefirot. The similar phrase quoted above thus highlights the fact that mortal man’s charitable initiative in reviving the spirits of his poor neighbor does not merely echo or parallel the “charity” with which the Ein Sof revives the humbled Shechinah: it quite literally activates it.
Tzedakah, then, draws down life from the Fountainhead of Life to the Sefirah of Malchut of Atzilut, which is also known as the Land of Life, —
ובפרט בהתנדב עם, להחיות יושבי ארץ החיים ממש
especially when people offer voluntarily to sustain the inhabitants of the actual Land of Life, for Eretz Yisrael, the geographical Land of Life, corresponds to the heavenly Land of Life,12 viz., Malchut of Atzilut.
ודי למבין
This will suffice for those who understand.
וכל משכיל על דבר גדול ונפלא כזה
Now whoever is enlightened as to so great and wondrous a matter, i.e., the cosmic dynamic traced above, whereby an act of tzedakah draws down Supernal life from the blessed Ein Sof to animate the exiled Shechinah,
ימצא טוב טעם ודעת כמה גדולים דברי חכמים ז״ל, שאמרו: הכל לפי רוב המעשה
will discover and appreciate how profound are the words of the Sages, of blessed memory, when they said,13 “Everything is [judged] according to the multiplicity of action.”
דהיינו מעשה הצדקה הנעשה בפעמים רבות, להמשיך חיים עליונים, ליחד יחוד עליון, פעמים רבות
This refers to the act of charity which is performed numerous times, thereby eliciting the supreme [form of] life, i.e., life that derives from the infinite Fountainhead of Life, by repeatedly bringing about the Supreme Unification of Kudsha Brich Hu and His Shechinah.
Every act of tzedakah draws Kudsha Brich Hu and Ein Sof downward to His Shechinah, down into the lowest levels of this world.
והיינו נמי כעין מה שכתב הרמב״ם: לזכך הנפש
This is also similar to what Maimonides wrote in praise of the repeated giving of tzedakah: “to refine the soul(nefesh).”
These words allude as well to the Supreme Unification that is thereby effected in the worlds above.
כנודע מזוהר הקדוש, דשכינה נקראת נפש, כי היא חיינו ונפשנו
For, as is known from the sacred Zohar,14 the Shechinah is called nefesh (“Soul”), because it is our life and our soul,
וכתיב: כי שחה לעפר נפשנו
as in the phrase,15 “Our Soul is stooped to the dust,” which alludes to the descent of the Shechinah into exile.
ולכן אמרו רז״ל: גדולה צדקה שמקרבת את הגאולה
And that is why our Sages, of blessed memory, said,16 “Great is charity, for it brings the Redemption near,”
להקימה מעפר מעט מעט
by raising [the Shechinah] from the dust by gradual stages with every act of tzedakah,
עד כי יבא שילה
“until17 Shiloh will come”18 — i.e., until Mashiach comes,19 at which time the Shechinah will be reinstated to its pristine height.
Appendix to Epistle 21
The Tzemach Tzedek20 asks the following question: Why do our Sages find it necessary to point out that21 “Each and every coin [that a Jew gives for charity] adds up to a large sum,” when in point of fact, whenever a Jew gives even a single coin for charity he is performing a mitzvah commanded in the Torah?
Thus, for example,22 “R. Elazar would give a coin to a poor man, and then pray, for it is written,23 ‘Through tzedek will I behold Your Countenance’” — and tzedek (“righteousness”) is closely related to tzedakah (“charity”). The giving of a single coin thus constitutes a mitzvah worthy of reward, for if24 “G‑d does not withhold the reward of any creature, even for words fitly spoken,” He surely rewards the fulfillment of a fully-fledged commandment ordained by the Torah. This applies especially to the mitzvah of tzedakah, which is25 “equivalent to all the other mitzvot.” Thus, too, the Rambam writes26 that this commandment should be observed even more scrupulously than all other positive commandments. Moreover,27 “Israel will be redeemed [from exile] only by virtue of their acts of charity.” Indeed, G‑d Himself praises Abraham for his charitable conduct,28 which he also taught to his children after him.
Considering, then, the sublime status of every single act of tzedakah, why do the Sages find it necessary to stress that all the individual coins contributed accumulate to total a large sum?
This would suggest, the Tzemach Tzedek goes on to say, that though the reward for one large contribution is greater, our Sages seek here to reassure us that even modest increments add up and become equally worthy of this superior reward.
On the other hand, the very need for this reassurance would lead one to believe that giving one lump sum is superior to making smaller, periodic payments. It will be recalled, however, that the Rambam demurs, noting that “everything is [judged] according to the multiplicity of action” (as opposed to the stature of the deed), so that a generous one-time donation of (say) a hundred gulden is less praiseworthy than a hundred instances of giving one coin at a time.
(And here the Tzemach Tzedek quotes the entire text of our above letter of the Alter Rebbe, with all its explanations on both the revealed and the esoteric planes of the Torah, to demonstrate the superiority of piecemeal giving.) Does this not conflict with the attitude that leads the Sages to go as far as seeking a proof-text to reassure us that many individual coins may be considered to be as valuable as one large sum?
The Tzemach Tzedek goes on to ask another question. The Gemara and the halachic codifiers determine that the mitzvah oftzedakah is properly fulfilled only if one gives a certain mini-mum — not less than a tenth of one’s earnings. Accordingly, if one made numerous charitable contributions, then even though on each such occasion he effected a Supernal Union and drew down Supreme Life to this world, he nevertheless did not perform the mitzvah (in its most complete form) unless he tithed. Conversely, if he gave a tenth or a fifth of his earnings at one time, and thereby brought about a Supernal Union only once, he nevertheless fulfilled the mitzvah properly. How can this be? Why should he be deemed to have fulfilled his obligation better than his friend, whose repeated charitable activity (though totalling less than a tithe) recharged this world with renewed spiritual energy on so many occasions?
In order to resolve this, the Tzemach Tzedek introduces two themes which he expounds at length, but which will be mentioned here only briefly.
(a) In one of the Kabbalistic schemes (אי״ק בכ״ר) by which the letters of the Holy Tongue may be arranged, the alphabet is divided into sets of three letters each. In the first set, the first letter is alef (numerically equivalent to one), the second letter isyud (numerically equivalent to ten), and the third letter is kuf (numerically equivalent to one hundred). The three letters of the second set are beit (two), kaf (twenty), and resh (two hundred). The alphabet goes on in this vein.
These numbers allude to different degrees of divine effluence that may be drawn down to this world. The degree of spirituality that is alluded to by the letter yud is ten times greater than that alluded to by the letter alef; the degree of spirituality alluded to by the letter kuf is ten times greater than the degree of spirituality alluded to by the letter yud; and so on, to one thousand and ten thousand.
In terms of the Sefirot, single digits denote the emotive attributes (the Divine middot), double digits denote the intellective attributes (the Divine mochin), hundreds designate the level of Divinity that transcends Divine intellect, while thousands and tens of thousands respectively denote the levels of Divinity known as Ratzon (“the Divine Will”) and Taanug (“Delight”). In terms of the levels of the soul within an individual Jew, the five classes of numbers correspond to the five soul-levels called (in ascending order) Nefesh, Ruach, Neshamah, Chayah and Yechidah.
Using this numerical scheme of the Hebrew letters, the Tzemach Tzedek explains that by giving tzedakah in a single-digit amount one is only able to illuminate this lowly world with the level of spirituality that is alluded to by a single-digit number, while when one gives a double-digit amount one draws down an illumination that is alluded to by double-digit numbers. And so on, when one gives in the hundreds, thousands and tens of thousands: the larger the amount, that much greater is the commensurate spirituality that is drawn down.
(b) The second theme introduced by the Tzemach Tzedek explains how tzedek (צדק — “righteousness”), which derives from the Sefirah of Malchut, is transformed into tzedakah (צדקה — “charity”) by the addition of the letter hei, and thereby elevated. The added letter hei, numerically equivalent to five, represents the five degrees of Supernal Kindness (ה׳ חסדים).
To revert now to the two manners of giving tzedakah described above. At first glance one is tempted to say that they are entirely different, each possessing a quality that the other lacks. For on the one hand, a person who gives away a hundred gold coins at a time draws down a flow of Divine illumination from the lofty level of “one hundred,” while his friend who gives only a few coins at a time brings down the Divine effluence from no higher than the single-digit level of holiness.
Nevertheless, though the latter and lesser illumination is indeed elicited on each such occasion, even a hundred such occasions are outshone by the brilliant light that derives from a higher level. For relative to higher degrees of holiness, all lower degrees are considered as naught. (Thus, for example, speaking of the hierarchies of angels, it is written that the “horns of theChayot HaKodesh” are superior to all the inferior levels of angels.)
Likewise,29 “There are those who earn their World [to Come] in a single hour.” One hour of repentance as earnest and intense as the repentance experienced by R. Elazar ben Durdaya, surpasses the lifelong divine service of a veritable tzaddik,with all his daily love and awe of G‑d. For the sheer power and drive of such repentance reaches up and draws down spiritual energy from a far superior source.
We might therefore be tempted to conclude that one can accomplish more by giving tzedakah in one lump sum, because of its qualitative superiority, than in many increments. Besides, since by giving less than a tithe in many increments one has not fully discharged his obligation, it would appear that there is something lacking in the total sum that he was to give.
How, then are we to understand the Alter Rebbe’s teaching, based on the Rambam, that giving a hundred single coins on a hundred occasions is superior and more worthy of reward than giving them all at once?
The Tzemach Tzedek resolves this in the light of the above-quoted teaching of our Sages that30 “Each and every coin [that a Jew gives for charity] adds up to a large sum.” I.e., his one hundred individual gifts of one coin all accumulate together when he gives the hundredth coin. His cumulative giving can thus draw down spiritual energy from a “triple-digit” source, just as if he had given away all his coins at once. With his modest but steady giving, this unspectacular donor has succeeded in earning both the quantity of the repeated deed (by effecting an oftrepeated Supernal Union) and the quality of the one-time deed (by drawing down illumination from a superior source).
This, concludes the Tzemach Tzedek, is a wondrous and unique characteristic of the mitzvah of tzedakah. The earlier hundred-time or thousand-time gifts do not dissipate; rather, as they accumulate, they are compounded with the later gifts until they ultimately produce one powerful hundredfold or thousandfold mitzvah.
In this light the AriZal interprets the verse,31 וצדקתו עומדת לעד — “and his righteousness (or charity) endures forever”: The spiritual impression (the “letter”) that is inscribed in the Supernal worlds by the mitzvah of tzedakah outlasts the “letters” inscribed by the performance of any other mitzvah.
In summary: The quantitative and qualitative benefits of giving tzedakah in many increments thus enable one to appreciate the teaching of Rambam afresh.
***
The Tzemach Tzedek now proceeds to consider the above-quoted ruling of the author of Levushei Serad.32
Though the Tzemach Tzedek quotes this sage with regard to practice, he himself goes only as far as to say that the last coin in the series grants its giver the merit and the reward of having given the entire amount all at once. The Levushei Serad goes further: On every single occasion that one gives a coin (from the total of a hundred coins that he had decided to give) it is considered as if he had given that total all at once. He argues as follows. This individual had in fact wanted to give the whole amount, but divided it into increments only because he sought to gratify his Maker. Hence, whenever he gives part of it, it is as if he had given the sum of one hundred, one hundred times!
The difference in their opinions could well be understood as follows.
The Tzemach Tzedek discusses the effects of tzedakah in terms of the resultant Supernal Union, and this is accomplished only through one’s actual deed, not through his intent; in point of fact, the larger amount was given only once. The Levushei Serad, by contrast, speaks in terms of the resultant Divine gratification, and this is accomplished through one’s intent as well. Hence, since the donor’s intent as he gives each coin is ultimately to give the entire amount, it follows that the delight he causes his Maker results from each of his smaller gifts as well.
However, as mentioned earlier,33 the Rebbe understands the above letter of the Alter Rebbe as follows: Since the Alter Rebbe discusses the “multiplicity of action” as a continuation of the theme of alacrity, it is obvious that when he recommends that charity be given weekly or monthly, he means thereby to hasten the giving and not delay it. The quality of alacrity obviously outweighs even that of giving in increments, if the latter policy will delay one’s donation. Surely, the hungry recipient or the charitable organization needs to be helped without delay.
The policy of giving in small increments can thus be followed only in a situation such as that which the Levushei Seradposits: If one has a large amount to give on a given day, he should not give the entire amount at once, but rather should give it a little at a time. In this way he has given the entire amount by the end of the day, but has also managed in the course of the day to practice charity many times over.
This will of course be workable only when one’s contributions are not going directly to a poor person on the same day. And, as the Rebbe pointed out above, this was the case with the periodic collections for the Kollel Chabad fund which occasioned Epistle 21.
| FOOTNOTES | |
| 1. | With regard to the possibility that the Alter Rebbe may be meaning to indicate that one should not give a large amount oftzedakah at the very beginning of the year, the Rebbe notes the following:“ According to this logic the Alter Rebbe is directing that the entire amount should not be given in Tishrei [at the beginning of the year] but only one-twelfth, while the remainder is held back, and no more than one-twelfth given each month thereafter! And this immediately follows his explanation of the praiseworthy quality of prompt performance!“ It is thus self-evident that the Alter Rebbe intends that one should act thus only if it in no way at all conflicts with giving at the earliest possible opportunity and with alacrity. It is also obvious, considering the reason given, that this applies equally to all charities, not only that of the Land of Israel.“ In addition to Maimonides’ above-quoted observation in his Commentary on the Mishnah [that the Mishnah speaks not of the amount of the deed but of the frequency of the deed], this is moreover stated as a legal directive in Levushei Serad, Hilchot Tzedakah 113:215, which is quoted in the discourse beginning LeHavin ... Kol Perutah. (See this separately-published maamar, in which the Tzemach Tzedek discusses all the above at length.)“ It would seem that the Alter Rebbe’s explanation (and this letter in general) relates specifically to the money that was collected for the Kollel, for the following reason: In those days it was conveyed to the Holy Land by a special messenger once a year (having been collected from the various towns only once in many months), as mentioned in many letters of the Rebbeim. This being so, the question naturally arises: What benefit could there possibly be in giving it weekly to a local collector? In this letter, therefore, the Alter Rebbe explains the twofold benefit: (a) promptness; (b) the frequency of the deed.” |
| 2. | Note of the Rebbe: “...And more briefly, as a point of law, in Hilchot Deot 1:7.” |
| 3. | Avot 3:15. |
| 4. | Note of the Rebbe: “The Tzemach Tzedek (loc. cit.) quotes the variant reading of R. Ovadiah of Bartenura: ‘One hundred.’” |
| 5. | Tehillim 11:7. |
| 6. | Nechemiah 9:6. |
| 7. | Note of the Rebbe: “See above, Shaar HaYichud VehaEmunah, end of ch. 2.” |
| 8. | Siddur Tehillat HaShem, p. 93. |
| 9. | Note of the Rebbe: “...Especially so during ikvot Meshicha [i.e., the generation at the end of the exile, which can hear the approaching ‘footsteps of Mashiach’]; see Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle IX.” |
| 10. | Megillah 29a (according to the text of Ein Yaakov), quoted above in the first part of Tanya, end of ch. 17. |
| 11. | Cf. Zohar I, 249b. |
| 12. | Note of the Rebbe: “Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle VIII.” |
| 13. | Avot 3:15. |
| 14. | See Zohar Chadash, Ruth 84a. |
| 15. | Tehillim 44:26. |
| 16. | Bava Batra 10a. |
| 17. | Bereishit 49:10. |
| 18. | Note of the Rebbe: “This unusual conclusion, ‘Until Shiloh will come’ (cf. the conclusion of ch. 36, et al.), becomes clear in the light of the teaching of the Zohar (I, 237b) on this verse: ‘In another place..., but here the Shechinah will arise....’” |
| 19. | Onkelos and Rashi on Bereishit 49:10, based on Sanhedrin 98b. |
| 20. | Or HaTorah — Inyanim U’Maamarei Razal, p. 40. |
| 21. | Bava Batra 9b. |
| 22. | Ibid. 10a. |
| 23. | Tehillim 17:15. |
| 24. | Bava Kama 38b. |
| 25. | Bava Batra 9a. |
| 26. | Hilchot Matnot Aniyim 10:1. |
| 27. | Shabbat 139a. |
| 28. | Bereishit 18:19. |
| 29. | Avodah Zarah 10b. |
| 30. | Bava Batra 9b. |
| 31. | Tehillim 111:3. |
| 32. | See footnote 24, above. |
| 33. | See footnote 24, above. |
• Friday, 12 Tishrei, 5777 · 14 October 2016
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Negative Commandment 195
Gluttonous Eating and Drinking
"You shall not eat over the blood"—Leviticus 19:26.
A youth is forbidden to eat and drink in a gluttonous fashion, according to the specific [extreme] conditions that define a "rebellious son." (A rebellious son is put to death. As such, the Sages interpret the afore-cited verse to mean: "Do not eat [in such a manner that will cause] blood [i.e., death].")
Full text of this Mitzvah »• Gluttonous Eating and Drinking
Negative Commandment 195
Translated by Berel Bell
Negative Commandment 196
The 195th prohibition is that we are forbidden from being a glutton and a drunkard in our youth, according to the specific conditions1 which define a ben sorer u'moreh [rebellious son].
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement2 (exalted be He), "Do not eat on the blood."3
The explanation [of why this is counted as a prohibition instead of a positive commandment to punish the ben sorer u'moreh] is that the ben sorer u'moreh is included among those who are executed by the High Court. The Torah states clearly4 that the method of execution is stoning. We already explained in the Introduction to this work5 that whenever the Torah indicates a punishment of kares or execution, the mitzvah is a prohibition, except for the Pesach sacrifice and circumcision. We therefore know that the present mitzvah is a prohibition, since this glutton and drunkard is punished by stoning if all the conditions are present.
We have mentioned the source for the punishment, but according to our principle that the Torah gives a punishment only if there is another verse which states the actual prohibition, we still need to find the actual prohibition. The Gemara says in Sanhedrin,6 "Which verse serves as the prohibition of ben sorer u'moreh? The verse, 'Do not eat on the blood.' " It is as if the verse says, "Do not eat in a way that will cause bloodshed," i.e. the eating of this glutton and drunkard which is punishable by execution. If a person would eat this wicked meal with all the negative conditions, he would transgress this prohibition.
It doesn't matter that this is a lav she'b'klalus,7 as explained in the Ninth Introductory Principle, because since there is a separate verse stating the punishment, we are not concerned whether the actual prohibition comes from a separate law or a lav she'b'klalus. We have already explained this many times and given many examples.8
The details of this mitzvah are explained in the eighth chapter of tractate Sanhedrin.
FOOTNOTES
1.For example, he must buy and consume 50 dinars worth of meat with money stolen from his father. It must be cooked rare, and eaten outside his father's property in bad company. It must be done in the three month period after he reaches bar mitzvah. See Hilchos Mamrim, Ch. 7.
2.Lev. 19:26.
3.See below, where the Rambam explains the connection of this verse to this prohibition.
4.Deut. 21:21.
5.End of Introductory Principle 14.
6.63a.
7.An "inclusive prohibition," i.e. one which includes several distinct prohibitions. The general rule regarding a lav she'b'klalus is that it counts as just one commandment even though it includes several distinct prohibitions. (See Introductory Principle Nine and N299.)
This verse, "Do not eat on the blood," is explained in Sanhedrin to include other prohibitions, such as eating sacrificial meat before the blood is spilt on the altar (N182). Although usually the separate aspects of a lav she'b'klalus are included in one single prohibition, N195 does not have this problem, as the Rambam explains further.
8.See, for example, N26; N60.
Positive Commandment 37
A Priest's Attendance at a Next of Kin's Funeral
"For [his sister], he must become impure"—Leviticus 21:3.
Priests are commanded to become ritually impure [by attending the funerals of] their next of kin. Since the Torah normally forbids priests from becoming impure through contact with a corpse, one might think that the allowance for them to attend the funeral of a relative is simply to provide them with that option, but is not compulsory. Therefore the Torah clarifies that it is mandatory. As the Talmud related that Yosef the Priest's wife died on the eve of Passover and he didn't want to become impure by attending her funeral [so that he should be able to sacrifice and eat from the Paschal Offering], so the Sages "pushed" him and forced him become impure.
Included in this mitzvah is the general obligation that everyone – priests and Israelites alike – mourn the deaths of their next of kin. (And it is because of the priest's obligation to mourn that the Torah obligates him to attend the funeral and show his respects.) According to Torah law, the mourning period is one day [following the burial]; the Sages extended this to a seven-day period of mourning.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• A Priest's Attendance at a Next of Kin's Funeral
Positive Commandment 37
Translated by Berel Bell
The 37th mitzvah is that we are commanded that Kohanim shall make themselves tameh1 for those relatives mentioned in the Torah.2 Since the Torah honored them by prohibiting them from being tameh from a dead body alone,3 and allowed them to become tameh for relatives, one could possibly think that it is optional and depends on their wishes: if they wish, they may become tameh, and if not, they will not become tameh. The Torah therefore explicitly decreed that it is a requirement.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement4 (exalted be He), [regarding the kohen's sister], "You shall become tameh for her."
The Sifra5 says, "The phrase, 'You shall become tameh for her,' is a positive commandment. Even should he not want to become tameh, he is made tameh against his will. The wife of Yosef HaKohen passed away on Erev Pesach, and he did not want to become tameh,6 and the Sages forced him to become tameh against his will."
This mitzvah is actually the commandment to mourn, i.e. that every Jew is required to mourn upon the passing of one of the six7 for who it is commanded to mourn. The commandment is said regarding a kohen to emphasize its seriousness: Even a kohen, who is normally forbidden from becoming tameh, is commanded in this case to act like any other Jew and become tameh. [It is stressed in this way] in order to prevent people from being lenient in the laws of mourning.
It has been explained8 that the first day of mourning is mandated by Torah law. Our Sages said in tractate Moed Katan,9 "The commandment of mourning does not apply during Yom Tov. If the person was already mourning [when Yom Tov began], the positive commandment which applies to everyone [i.e. rejoicing during Yom Tov] pushes away the positive commandment which applies only to the individual" [i.e. mourning]. This [phrase "positive commandment"] indicates clearly that mourning is a Torah obligation and counts as a positive commandment. However, this is only for the first day, when even a kohen becomes tameh upon the passing of a close relative. The seven days of mourning are by Rabbinic law. Be sure to understand this.
The details of this mitzvah are explained in tractate "Mashkin,"10 passages in Berachos,11 Kesuvos,12 Yevamos,13 and Avodah Zorah,14 and in Sifra, Parshas Emor el HaKohanim.
The requirement of Kohanim to become tameh for a close relative is not binding upon female Kohanim. Only one who is prohibited from becoming tameh for non-relatives is commanded to become tameh for relatives. A female kohen, since she is not prohibited from tumas meis, as explained there,15 she is also not commanded or required to become tameh [upon death of a relative]. She is required to mourn, but becoming tameh is her choice. Be sure to understand this.
FOOTNOTES
1.I.e. ritually impure by attending the funeral of a close relative.
2.Lev. 21:2-3. I.e. father, mother, son, daughter, brother and sister. By Rabbinic law, this also applies to a husband and wife.
See Hilchos Avel, 2:1.
3.And not other types of tumah
4.Lev. 21:3.
5.Ibid.
6.For her burial. Even though he was allowed to become tameh, he would then be unable to fulfill the mitzvah of partaking in the Pesach sacrifice.
7.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 26.
8.Zevachim 100a.
9.14b.
10.Moed Katan 19ff.
11.18a.
12.4b.
13.22b et al.
14.13a.
15.N166.
• Today's Mitzvah
A daily digest of Maimonides’ classic work "Sefer Hamitzvot"
Negative Commandment 195
Gluttonous Eating and Drinking
"You shall not eat over the blood"—Leviticus 19:26.
A youth is forbidden to eat and drink in a gluttonous fashion, according to the specific [extreme] conditions that define a "rebellious son." (A rebellious son is put to death. As such, the Sages interpret the afore-cited verse to mean: "Do not eat [in such a manner that will cause] blood [i.e., death].")
Full text of this Mitzvah »• Gluttonous Eating and Drinking
Negative Commandment 195
Translated by Berel Bell
Negative Commandment 196
The 195th prohibition is that we are forbidden from being a glutton and a drunkard in our youth, according to the specific conditions1 which define a ben sorer u'moreh [rebellious son].
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement2 (exalted be He), "Do not eat on the blood."3
The explanation [of why this is counted as a prohibition instead of a positive commandment to punish the ben sorer u'moreh] is that the ben sorer u'moreh is included among those who are executed by the High Court. The Torah states clearly4 that the method of execution is stoning. We already explained in the Introduction to this work5 that whenever the Torah indicates a punishment of kares or execution, the mitzvah is a prohibition, except for the Pesach sacrifice and circumcision. We therefore know that the present mitzvah is a prohibition, since this glutton and drunkard is punished by stoning if all the conditions are present.
We have mentioned the source for the punishment, but according to our principle that the Torah gives a punishment only if there is another verse which states the actual prohibition, we still need to find the actual prohibition. The Gemara says in Sanhedrin,6 "Which verse serves as the prohibition of ben sorer u'moreh? The verse, 'Do not eat on the blood.' " It is as if the verse says, "Do not eat in a way that will cause bloodshed," i.e. the eating of this glutton and drunkard which is punishable by execution. If a person would eat this wicked meal with all the negative conditions, he would transgress this prohibition.
It doesn't matter that this is a lav she'b'klalus,7 as explained in the Ninth Introductory Principle, because since there is a separate verse stating the punishment, we are not concerned whether the actual prohibition comes from a separate law or a lav she'b'klalus. We have already explained this many times and given many examples.8
The details of this mitzvah are explained in the eighth chapter of tractate Sanhedrin.
FOOTNOTES
1.For example, he must buy and consume 50 dinars worth of meat with money stolen from his father. It must be cooked rare, and eaten outside his father's property in bad company. It must be done in the three month period after he reaches bar mitzvah. See Hilchos Mamrim, Ch. 7.
2.Lev. 19:26.
3.See below, where the Rambam explains the connection of this verse to this prohibition.
4.Deut. 21:21.
5.End of Introductory Principle 14.
6.63a.
7.An "inclusive prohibition," i.e. one which includes several distinct prohibitions. The general rule regarding a lav she'b'klalus is that it counts as just one commandment even though it includes several distinct prohibitions. (See Introductory Principle Nine and N299.)
This verse, "Do not eat on the blood," is explained in Sanhedrin to include other prohibitions, such as eating sacrificial meat before the blood is spilt on the altar (N182). Although usually the separate aspects of a lav she'b'klalus are included in one single prohibition, N195 does not have this problem, as the Rambam explains further.
8.See, for example, N26; N60.
Positive Commandment 37
A Priest's Attendance at a Next of Kin's Funeral
"For [his sister], he must become impure"—Leviticus 21:3.
Priests are commanded to become ritually impure [by attending the funerals of] their next of kin. Since the Torah normally forbids priests from becoming impure through contact with a corpse, one might think that the allowance for them to attend the funeral of a relative is simply to provide them with that option, but is not compulsory. Therefore the Torah clarifies that it is mandatory. As the Talmud related that Yosef the Priest's wife died on the eve of Passover and he didn't want to become impure by attending her funeral [so that he should be able to sacrifice and eat from the Paschal Offering], so the Sages "pushed" him and forced him become impure.
Included in this mitzvah is the general obligation that everyone – priests and Israelites alike – mourn the deaths of their next of kin. (And it is because of the priest's obligation to mourn that the Torah obligates him to attend the funeral and show his respects.) According to Torah law, the mourning period is one day [following the burial]; the Sages extended this to a seven-day period of mourning.
Full text of this Mitzvah »
• A Priest's Attendance at a Next of Kin's Funeral
Positive Commandment 37
Translated by Berel Bell
The 37th mitzvah is that we are commanded that Kohanim shall make themselves tameh1 for those relatives mentioned in the Torah.2 Since the Torah honored them by prohibiting them from being tameh from a dead body alone,3 and allowed them to become tameh for relatives, one could possibly think that it is optional and depends on their wishes: if they wish, they may become tameh, and if not, they will not become tameh. The Torah therefore explicitly decreed that it is a requirement.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement4 (exalted be He), [regarding the kohen's sister], "You shall become tameh for her."
The Sifra5 says, "The phrase, 'You shall become tameh for her,' is a positive commandment. Even should he not want to become tameh, he is made tameh against his will. The wife of Yosef HaKohen passed away on Erev Pesach, and he did not want to become tameh,6 and the Sages forced him to become tameh against his will."
This mitzvah is actually the commandment to mourn, i.e. that every Jew is required to mourn upon the passing of one of the six7 for who it is commanded to mourn. The commandment is said regarding a kohen to emphasize its seriousness: Even a kohen, who is normally forbidden from becoming tameh, is commanded in this case to act like any other Jew and become tameh. [It is stressed in this way] in order to prevent people from being lenient in the laws of mourning.
It has been explained8 that the first day of mourning is mandated by Torah law. Our Sages said in tractate Moed Katan,9 "The commandment of mourning does not apply during Yom Tov. If the person was already mourning [when Yom Tov began], the positive commandment which applies to everyone [i.e. rejoicing during Yom Tov] pushes away the positive commandment which applies only to the individual" [i.e. mourning]. This [phrase "positive commandment"] indicates clearly that mourning is a Torah obligation and counts as a positive commandment. However, this is only for the first day, when even a kohen becomes tameh upon the passing of a close relative. The seven days of mourning are by Rabbinic law. Be sure to understand this.
The details of this mitzvah are explained in tractate "Mashkin,"10 passages in Berachos,11 Kesuvos,12 Yevamos,13 and Avodah Zorah,14 and in Sifra, Parshas Emor el HaKohanim.
The requirement of Kohanim to become tameh for a close relative is not binding upon female Kohanim. Only one who is prohibited from becoming tameh for non-relatives is commanded to become tameh for relatives. A female kohen, since she is not prohibited from tumas meis, as explained there,15 she is also not commanded or required to become tameh [upon death of a relative]. She is required to mourn, but becoming tameh is her choice. Be sure to understand this.
FOOTNOTES
1.I.e. ritually impure by attending the funeral of a close relative.
2.Lev. 21:2-3. I.e. father, mother, son, daughter, brother and sister. By Rabbinic law, this also applies to a husband and wife.
See Hilchos Avel, 2:1.
3.And not other types of tumah
4.Lev. 21:3.
5.Ibid.
6.For her burial. Even though he was allowed to become tameh, he would then be unable to fulfill the mitzvah of partaking in the Pesach sacrifice.
7.See Kapach, 5731, footnote 26.
8.Zevachim 100a.
9.14b.
10.Moed Katan 19ff.
11.18a.
12.4b.
13.22b et al.
14.13a.
15.N166.
• Rambam - 1 Chapter: Tum'at Okhalin Tum'at Okhalin - Chapter 1
• Tum'at Okhalin - Chapter 1
• Rambam - 3 Chapters: Mamrim Mamrim - Chapter 7, Avel Avel - Chapter 1, Avel Avel - Chapter 2
Included in this text is one positive commandment: The laws of the impurity that affects liquids and foods and what makes them fit to contract it.
This mitzvah is explained in the ensuing chapters.
1
All foods that are designated for human consumption, e.g., bread, meat, grapes, olives, and the like, are susceptible to ritual impurity. All foods that are not designated for human consumption are pure and are not susceptible to ritual impurity unless one had a specific intent and set them aside for human consumption. No foods are susceptible to ritual impurity unless it was first dampened with one of the seven liquids. This dampening is referred to as hechsher. These concepts are derived fromLeviticus 11:38 which states: "When water will be placed on a seed...."
א
כל אוכל המיוחד למאכל אדם כגון לחם ובשר וענבים וזיתים וכיוצא בהן מקבל טומאה וכל שאינו מיוחד למאכל אדם ה"ז טהור ואינו מקבל טומאה אא"כ חישב עליו וייחדו למאכל אדם וזה וזה אינו מקבל טומאה עד שיבלל תחילה באחד משבעה משקין וזהו הנקרא הכשר שנאמר וכי יותן מים על זרע:
2
These are the seven liquids that make foods susceptible to impurity: water, dew, oil, wine, milk, blood, and honey.
They do not make foods susceptible to impurity unless they fall upon them as desired by the owner. Nor may they be squalid, for squalid liquids do not make food fit to contract impurity.
Once food has been made susceptible to ritual impurity, it retains that status after it is dry, with no liquid on it.
ב
ואלו הן השבעה משקין שמכשירין את האוכלין לטומאה: המים והטל והשמן והיין והחלב והדם והדבש ואינן מכשירין עד שיפלו על האוכלין ברצון הבעלים ולא יהיו סרוחין שהמשקה הסרוח אינו מכשיר וכיון שהוכשר האוכל אע"פ שיבש והרי הוא נגוב הרי זה מקבל טומאה:
3
When food has been dampened with fruit juice, e.g., berry juice or pomegranate juice, even though it is wet and was touched by a zav or the flesh of a corpse, it is pure, because it was not made susceptible to impurity by one of the seven liquids.
ג
אוכל שהיה בלול במי פירות כגון מי תותים ורמונים אף על פי שהוא בלול ונגע בו הזב או בשר המת הרי הוא טהור מפני שלא הוכשר באחד משבעה המשקין:
4
Only the seven liquids that we mentioned are considered liquids that are susceptible to ritual impurity. Other fruit juices, by contrast, neither make foods susceptible to ritual impurity, nor do they contract ritual impurity themselves at all.
ד
אין שם משקה שמקבל טומאה אלא שבעת המשקין שמנינו בלבד אבל שאר מי פירות כדרך שאין מכשירין כך אין מקבלין טומאה כלל:
5
When grapes and olives have not reached a third of their maturity, the liquids they produce do not make foods susceptible to ritual impurity, nor are these liquids themselves susceptible to ritual impurity. Instead, they are like other fruit juices and they are pure forever.
ה
זיתים וענבים שלא הביאו שליש משקין היוצאין מהן אינן מכשירין ולא מקבלין טומאה אלא הרי הן כשאר מי פירות שהן טהורין לעולם:
6
The following herbs are not susceptible to ritual impurity even though people eat them. The rationale is that they are not eaten to receive benefit from them as independent entities, but because they impart flavor, aroma, or appearance to other foods. They include: ginger, aldartzini, the primary spices, asafetida root, asafetida, pepper, or safflower. Similar laws apply with regard to all analogous substances.
ו
אלו דברים שאינן מקבלין טומאה אע"פ שבני אדם אוכלין אותן לפי שאינן נאכלין להנאת גופן אלא מפני שנותנין טעם במאכלות או מפני הריח או המראה ואלו הן: הקושט והחמס וראשי בשמים והתיאה והחלתית והפלפלין וחלות חריע וכן כל כיוצא בהן:
7
Dill can be assumed to be used to be eaten itself like other vegetables of the field. If it is intended to flavor a cooked dish, it does not contract the impurity of foods. Once dill has imparted flavor to a cooked dish, it is considered as a waste product and it does not contract the impurity of foods.
ז
השבת סתמו לאכילת גופו כשאר ירקות שדה ואם חשב עליו לקדירה אינו מתטמא טומאת אוכלין והשבת משנתנה טעם לקדירה ה"ז כזבל ואינה מתטמאה טומאת אוכלין:
8
Dates and dried figs that were placed in a cooked dish as spices still contract the impurity associated with foods until they become spoiled to the point that they are not fit for human consumption.
ח
התמרים והגרוגרות שנתן לקדירה כתבלין עדיין הן מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין עד שיפסדו מלאכול אדם:
9
If vetch was designated for human consumption, it contracts the impurity associated with foods.
ט
הכרשינים אם ייחדן למאכל אדם מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין:
10
Hearts of palm are considered as wood in every way. If they were cooked and fried, they contract the impurity associated with foods.
י
הקור הרי הוא כעץ לכל דבר ואם שלקו וטגנו מתטמא טומאת אוכלין:
11
Grape seeds and grape pomace, even though they were collected to serve as food, do not contract the impurity associated with foods.
יא
החרצנין והזגין אף על פי שכנסן לאוכלין אינן מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין:
12
Hard olives and grapes that slip out and emerge from under the beam of the press while the produce is being pressed are not susceptible to ritual impurity.
To what degree is this leniency granted? For four kabbin for everykor. If more than that amount emerge, they are susceptible to ritual impurity. If they were set aside to be eaten, even if there are less than four kabbin, they are susceptible to ritual impurity.
יב
זיתים וענבים הקשים שנפרצין ויוצאין מתחת הקורה בשעת הדריכה אינן מקבלין טומאה ועד כמה עד ארבעה קבין לכל כור היה הנפרץ יתר מזה מקבלין טומאה ואם כנסן לאוכלין אע"פ שהן פחות מארבעה קבין מקבלין טומאה:
13
Budding dates, budding fruit, underdeveloped fruit, and black cumin are all considered as foods and they are susceptible to ritual impurity.
יג
הכפניות והפגין והבוסר והקצח הרי הן כאוכלין ומקבלין טומאה:
14
Budding leaves from branches, carob trees, pepperweed and wild onions are not susceptible to impurity until they are sweetened.
יד
לולבי זרדים וחרובין ושל ערל ועלי הלוף השוטה אינן מקבלות טומאה עד שיתמתקו:
15
Mustard seeds, lupine beans, and other foods that are pickled are susceptible to the impurity associated with foods both after they have been sweetened and before they have been sweetened.
טו
החרדל והתורמסין ושאר כל הנכבשין מטמאין טומאת אוכלין בין משהמתיקו בין עד שלא המתיקו:
16
When olives have been pickled together with their leaves, the leaves are not susceptible to ritual impurity, for they have not been pickled to be eaten, only for the sake of their appearance.
טז
זיתים שכבשן בעלין שלהן אין העלין מקבלין טומאה שלא כבשן לאוכלין אלא למראה:
17
The hairs of zucchini and its flower are not susceptible to ritual impurity, because they are not food.
יז
כשות של קישות והנץ שלה אין מקבלין טומאה מפני שאינו אוכל:
18
When honey is in its beehive, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods, even if one does not designate it as food in his mind. When one begins removing the honey, when the honey combs are broken, the honey is susceptible to impurity as a liquid. When honey flows out of a beehive, it is susceptible to impurity as a liquid. If one considers it as a food, it is susceptible to impurity as a food.
יח
דבש בכוורתו מטמא טומאת אוכלין שלא במחשבה רדה הדבש משירסק החלות מתטמא משום משקה דבש הזב מכוורתו מתטמא טומאת משקין חשב עליו לאוכלין מתטמא טומאת אוכלין:
19
Oil that has congealed is neither considered as food, nor a liquid in this context. Even if one thinks of it while it is congealed as a food or a liquid, his thought is of no consequence. Similarly, when blood has congealed, it is neither considered as food, nor a liquid. If one thinks of it as a food, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods. If one thinks of it as a liquid, his thought is of no consequence.
יט
השמן הקרוש אינו אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו כשהוא קרוש בין לאוכלין בין למשקין בטלה דעתו וכן הדם שקרש אינו אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו לאוכלין מתטמא טומאת אוכלין חשב עליו למשקין בטלה דעתו:
20
When milk has congealed, it is neither considered as food, nor a liquid. If one thinks of it as a food, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods. If one thinks of it as a liquid, his thought is of no consequence.
כ
חלב שקרש לא אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו לאוכלין מתטמא טומאת אוכלין למשקין בטלה דעתו:
21
Date honey is neither considered as food, nor a liquid. If one thinks of it as a food, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods. If one thinks of it as a liquid, his thought is of no consequence. All other fruit juices are neither considered as foods, nor liquids with regard to ritual impurity. If one thinks of one as a food or a liquid, his thought is of no consequence.
כא
דבש תמרים לא אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו לאוכלין מתטמא טומאת אוכלין למשקין בטלה דעתו ושאר כל מי פירות כולן לא אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו בין לאוכלין בין למשקין בטלה דעתו:
22
Snow is neither considered as food, nor a liquid. If one thinks of it as a food, his thought is of no consequence. If one thinks of it as a liquid, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with liquids. If a portion of it contracted impurity, the entire quantity is not considered as impure. If the snow was passed over an impure earthenware container, all of it becomes impure.
כב
השלג אינו אוכל ולא משקה חשב עליו לאוכלין בטלה דעתו למשקין מתטמא טומאת משקין נטמא מקצתו לא נטמא כולו העבירו על גבי כלי חרס הטמא נטמא כולו:
23
When one had in mind to use milk that is in the teats of a slaughtered animal, his thought is of no consequence and it is pure. If he had the intent to use congealed milk that is in the stomach of a slaughtered nursing animal, it is susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods.
כג
החלב שבכחל שחישב עליו בטלה דעתו והרי הוא טהור חשב על החלב שבקיבה הרי זה מתטמא טומאת אוכלין:
24
When grapes have been trodden upon, once one has crisscrossed over them, they are susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with liquids. If whole grapes remain, those grapes are susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods.
Similarly, when olives are loaded in an olive press, they are susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with liquids. If whole olives remain, those olives are susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods.
כד
ענבים שדרכן משיהלך בהן הדורך שתי וערב מתטמאין משקין נשתייר בהן גרגרין שלימים אותן גרגרין מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין וכן הזיתים משיטענום מתטמאין טומאת משקין נשתיירו בהן גרוגרות שלימין מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין:
25
Although it is forbidden to benefit from any of the following: produce that is orlah, mixed species that grew in a vineyard, the meat of an ox sentenced to be stoned that was slaughtered, the meat of a calf designated to have its neck broken, whether it was slaughtered beforehand or whether its neck was broken, the birds used to purify a person afflicted with tzara'at, a firstling donkey, a mixture of milk and meat, the meat of the red heifer, and meat from a sacrifice that is piggul or notar are all susceptible to the ritual impurity associated with foods.
כה
הערלה וכלאי הכרם ושור הנסקל שנשחט ועגלה ערופה בין שנשחטה בין שנערפה וציפורי מצורע ופטר חמור ובשר בחלב ובשר פרה אדומה והפיגול והנותר אף ע"פ שכל אלו אסורין בהנאה כולן מתטמאין טומאת אוכלין:
• Mamrim - Chapter 7
• Hayom Yom: Today's Hayom Yom
INTRODUCTION
Deuteronomy 21:18-21 states:
If a person will have a wayward and rebellious son who does not heed the voice of his father or the voice of his mother and they chastise him, but he does not heed them. His father and mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city and to the gate of his place. They say to the elders of his city: "This son of ours is wayward and rebellious. He does not heed our voice; he is gluttonous and a lush." All of the men of his city will clout him with stones, killing him, and you shall remove evil from your midst. All Israel shall hear and fear.
Our Sages (primarily in Sanhedrin 68b ff) interpret this passage precisely, explaining how each term used in the passage teaches us a different concept. In the chapter that follows, the Rambam summarizes and organizes their teachings, giving us a clear-cut picture of the requirements of the mitzvah. It is important to emphasize that there is a difference of opinion among our Sages if the judgment of "a wayward and rebellious son" ever took place (Sanhedrin 71a). Some maintain that such a judgment was never issued. Indeed, from all the particulars mentioned by the Rambam, one can understand that it could be impossible for such a judgment to have been issued. Others maintain that they know of an instance where an individual was executed because of this transgression.
Sanhedrin 72a asks: Is eating the gluttonous meal (to be described by the Rambam) a sufficient cause for a person to be executed? In resolution, our Sages explain that the Torah considered the ultimate fate of such a person. He will be drawn after his natural tendencies and continue to steal and eat gluttonously. Ultimately, he will become a robber and slay people in order to support his habit. It is preferable, the Torah maintains, for him to be executed early in life, before he commits such severe sins.
1
It is explicitly stated that the wayward and rebellious son described in the Torah should be stoned to death. Now the Torah does not administer a punishment unless a warning was issued first. Where was the warning issued? In Leviticus 19:26: "Do not eat upon the blood," which can be interpreted to mean: "Do not partake of food that will lead to the shedding of blood." This refers to the meal eaten by the wayward and rebellious son who is executed only because of the hateful feast of which he partook asDeuteronomy 21:20 states: "He is gluttonous and a lush." According to the Oral Tradition, we learned that this was interpreted to mean that he ate meat and drank wine in a ravenous manner.
א
בן סורר ומורה האמור בתורה הרי נתפרשה בו סקילה ולא ענש הכתוב אלא אם כן הזהיר והיכן הזהיר לא תאכלו על הדם לא תאכל אכילה המביאה לידי שפיכות דמים וזו אכילת בן סורר ומורה שאינו נהרג אלא על אכילה מכוערת שאכל שנאמר זולל וסובא מפי השמועה למדו שזולל הוא האוכל בשר ברעבתנות וסובא השותה יין ברעבתנות:
2
There are many particulars involved in the meal for which he is liable for eating. All of these are conveyed by the Oral Tradition. He is not liable for stoning until he steals from his father and buys meat and wine at a cheap price. He must then eat it outside his father's domain, together with a group that are all empty and base. He must eat meat that is raw, but not entirely raw, cooked but not entirely cooked, as is the practice of thieves. He must drink the wine as it is thinned as the alcoholics drink. He must eat a quantity of meat weighing 50 dinarim in one sitting, and drink half a log of this wine at one time.
If he stole from his father and partook of such a meal inside his father's domain, or stole from others and partook of this hateful meal in his father's domain or in another's domain, he is not liable. If the meal involves a mitzvah, even a mitzvah of Rabbinic origin, or the meal involves a transgression, even a transgression of Rabbinic origin, he is not liable. This may be inferred from the phrase (Ibid.): "He does not heed our voice"; i.e., through eating this meal, he violates only his parents' command. This excludes one who through this meal violates the words of the Torah or who partakes of it for the sake of a mitzvah.
What is implied? If he partook of such a hateful meal together with a wicked company for the sake of a mitzvah, or he partook of the second tithe in Jerusalem, even if they eat a meal comforting the bereaved which is a mitzvah of Rabbinic origin, he is not liable. Similarly, if he ate meat from animals that were not ritually slaughtered or which were trefe, teeming animals or crawling animals, and even if he ate on a communal fast day, a transgression of Rabbinic origin, he is not liable for execution.
ב
אכילה זו שהוא חייב עליה דברים הרבה יש בהם והן כולן הלכה מפי הקבלה אינו חייב סקילה עד שיגנוב משל אביו ויקנה בשר בזול ויין בזול ויאכל וישתה חוץ מרשות אביו בחבורה שכולן ריקנין ופחותין ויאכל הבשר חי ואינו חי מבושל ואינו מבושל כדרך שהגנבים אוכלים וישתה היין מזוג כדרך שהגרגרנים שותים והוא שיאכל משקל חמשים דינרין מבשר זה במלוגמא אחת וישתה חצי לוג מיין זה בבת אחת גנב משל אביו ואכל אכילה זו ברשות אביו או שגנב משל אחרים ואכל אכילה זו המכוערת בין ברשות אביו בין ברשות אחרים הרי זה פטור וכן אם גנב משל אביו ואכל אכילה מכוערת כזו ברשות אחרים והיתה אכילת מצוה אפילו מדבריהם [או אכילת עבירה אפילו מדבריהם] פטור שנאמר איננו שומע בקולנו שאינו עובר באכילה זו אלא על קולם יצא זה שעבר בה על דברי תורה או שאכלה בדבר מצוה כיצד אכל אכילה זו המכוערת עם החבורה הרעה שאוכל עמהם בדבר מצוה או שאכלו מעשר שני בירושלים אפילו אכלו בתנחומי אבלים שהיא מצוה מדבריהם הרי זה פטור וכן אם אכלה מנבלות וטריפות שקצים ורמשים אפילו אכל בתענית צבור שהיא עבירה מדבריהם הרי זה פטור מן המיתה:
3
If he partook of any type of food, but did not partake of meat, even if he partook of fowl, he is not liable. If he partook of this meal from meat, but reached the sum of 50 dinarim by including fowl, he is liable. If he drank other beverages, but did not drink wine, he is not liable.
ג
אכל כל מאכל ולא אכל בשר בהמה אע"פ שאכל אכילה זו מבשר העוף פטור ואם אכל אכילה זו מבשר בהמה והשלים החמשים דינרים מבשר העוף חייב שתה כל משקה ולא שתה יין פטור:
4
When he ate raw meat and undiluted wine, he is not liable. The rationale is that this is an occasional occurrence and not something that a person will be drawn after. Similarly, if he ate this meal of salted meat on the third day after it was salted, or drank fresh grape juice, he is not liable. For a person will not be drawn after such matters.
ד
אכל בשר חי ושתה יין חי פטור שזה קרי הוא ואין אדם יכול להמשך בזה וכן אם אכל בשר מליח ביום השלישי למליחתו או שתה יין מגתו פטור שאין אדם יכול להמשך בזה:
5
For this transgression, the Torah does not punish a child who has not come to the age where he is responsible for the observance of mitzvot. Similarly, a man who has matured and is independent is not stoned to death, because he ate and drank such a hateful meal.
What is implied? According to the Oral Tradition, we learned that this law concerns a youth of thirteen between the time he grew two pubic hairs and the time at which his entire male organ is surrounded by pubic hair. After the entire male organ is surrounded by pubic hair, he is considered as independent and is not executed by stoning.
ה
לא ענש הכתוב קטן שלא בא לכלל המצות וכן איש שגדל והרי הוא ברשות עצמו אינו נסקל מפני שגנב ואכל ושתה אכילה זו המכוערת הא כיצד מפי השמועה למדו שאין דין זה אלא בבן שלש עשרה שנה ויום אחד שהביא שתי שערות עד שיקיף כל הגיד ואחר שיקיף השיער כל הגיד הרי הוא ברשות עצמו ואינו נסקל:
6
The entire period for which a "wayward and rebellious son" is liable is only three months from the time he manifests signs of physical maturity. For it is possible that his wife will conceive and her fetus will be recognizable within three months. This is derived from Deuteronomy 21:18: "If a person will have a wayward and rebellious son..."; a son, and not a "wayward and rebellious father."
Thus one may conclude that if one's pubic hair surrounds the entire organ before the three months are completed, he is not liable.
ו
כל ימיו של בן סורר ומורה אינן אלא שלשה חדשים מאחר שיביא שתי שערות לפי שאפשר שתתעבר אשתו ויהיה עוברה ניכר בשלשה חדשים ונאמר כי יהיה לאיש בן סורר ומורה ולא אב סורר ומורה הא למדת שאם הקיף השיער את כל הגיד קודם שישלים שלשה חדשים הרי זה פטור:
7
How is the judgment of a "wayward and rebellious son" adjudicated? First, his father and mother bring him to a court of three judges and tell them: "Our son is wayward and rebellious." They bring two witnesses who testify that he stole from his father and bought meat and wine with what he stole and partook of the meal described above after being warned. This is the first testimony.
He receives lashes as are administered to all of those who are obligated to be lashed, as Deuteronomy 21:20 states: "they chastise him, but he does not heed them." Should he steal from his father a second time and partake of such a meal, his father and mother bring him to a court of 23 judges. They bring two witnesses who testify that he stole and partook of this meal after being warned. This is the second testimony. It is acceptable if the first two witnesses also deliver the latter testimony.
After their testimony is heard, the youth is examined to see if his pubic hair surrounded his entire male organ. If that is not the case and it is not three months after he became thirteen, he complete the judgment against him as is done with all those executed by the court and he is stoned to death. He is not stoned to death unless the three judges who originally sentenced him to be lashed are present. This is implied by the phrase: "This son of ours," i.e., the one that was lashed in your presence."
ז
כיצד דנין בן סורר ומורה מביאין אותו אביו ואמו תחילה לבית דין של שלשה ואומרין להן בננו זה סורר ומורה ומביאין שני עדים שגנב משל אביו וקנה בשר ויין במה שגנב ואכל אותה אכילה האמורה אחר ההתראה וזו היא עדות הראשונה ומלקין אותו כשאר חייבי מלקות שנאמר ויסרו אותו ולא ישמע אליהם חזר וגנב משל אביו ואכל אכילה זו אביו ואמו מביאין אותו לבית דין של שלשה ועשרים ומביאין שני עדים ומעידין עליו שגנב ואכל אכילה זו האמורה אחר שהתרו בו וזו היא עדות אחרונה אפילו היו השנים הראשונים הם האחרונים ואחר שמקבלין עדותן בודקין אותו שמא הקיף השער את כל הגיד אם לא הקיף ולא שלמו לו שלשה חדשים גומרין דינו כדרך כל הרוגי בית דין וסוקלין אותו ואינו נסקל עד שיהו שם שלשה הראשונים שנאמר בננו זה זהו שלקה בפניכם:
8
If his father and his mother forgave him before he was sentenced, he is not liable.
ח
ואם מחלו לו אביו ואמו קודם שיגמר דינו פטור:
9
If he fled before he was sentenced to death and afterwards, his pubic hair surrounded his organ, he is not liable. If he fled after he was sentenced, even if he grows old, whenever he is discovered, he should be stoned to death. For whenever a person has been sentenced to death, it is as if he has already been slain and he has no blood.
ט
ברח עד שלא נגמר דינו ואח"כ הקיף השער מלמטה פטור ואם משנגמר דינו ברח אפילו הזקין כל עת שימצא יסקל שכל מי שנגמר דינו הרי הוא כהרוג ואין לו דם:
10
If his father desires to convict him and his mother does not desire, or his mother desires and his father does not desire, he is not judged as a "wayward and rebellious son," as implied byDeuteronomy 21:19: "His father and mother shall take hold of him."
If one of the parents has had his arm amputated, was lame, dumb, blind, or deaf, the son is not judged as a "wayward and rebellious son." These concepts are derived as follows: "His father and mother shall take hold of him" - This excludes parents with amputated arms" "And bring him out" - this excludes the lame. "They say" - this excludes the dumb. "This son of ours" - This excludes the blind. "He does not heed our voice" - This excludes the dumb.
י
היה אביו רוצה ואמו אינה רוצה אמו רוצה ואביו אינו רוצה אינו נעשה בן סורר ומורה שנאמר ותפשו בו אביו ואמו היה אחד מהן גדם או חגר או אלם או סומא או חרש אינו נעשה בן סורר ומורה שנאמר ותפשו בו ולא גדמים והוציאו אותו ולא חגרים ואמרו ולא אלמים בננו זה ולא סומים איננו שומע בקולנו ולא חרשים:
11
There is a Scriptural decree that a "wayward and rebellious son" should be stoned to death. A daughter, by contrast, is not judged in this manner. The rationale is that she does not have the tendency to become habituated to eating and drinking. For this reason, the Torah states: "A son," i.e., and not a daughter. Atumtum and an adrogynus are also excluded.
יא
גזירת הכתוב הוא שיסקל בן סורר ומורה אבל הבת אינה נידונית בדין זה שאין דרכה להמשך באכילה ושתיה כאיש שנאמר בן ולא בת ולא טומטום ואנדרוגינוס:
12
When an operation is performed on a tumtum and it is discovered that he is a male, he is not judged as a "wayward and rebellious son." The rationale is Deuteronomy 21:18states: "If a person will have a wayward and rebellious son...." Implied is that he must be a son at the time he receives the warning.
יב
טומטום שנקרע ונמצא זכר אינו נעשה בן סורר ומורה שנאמר כי יהיה לאיש בן סורר ומורה עד שיהיה בן משעת התראה:
13
An announcement must be made concerning the execution of a "wayward and rebellious son." What type of announcement is made? A declaration is written and sent to the entire Jewish people: "In this-and-this court, we stoned so-and-so because he was a "wayward and rebellious son.'
יג
בן סורר ומורה צריך הכרזה כיצד מכריזין עליו כותבין לכל ישראל בבית דין פלוני סקלנו פלוני מפני שהיה בן סורר ומורה:
14
A "wayward and rebellious son" is like all others executed by the court; their estate is inherited by their heirs. Even though the person's father caused him to be stoned to death, the father inherits all of his possessions.
Blessed be God who grants assistance.
יד
בן סורר ומורה הרי הוא ככל הרוגי בית דין שממונם ליורשיהן שאף על פי שאביו גרם לו סקילה הרי הוא יורש כל נכסיו:
Avel - Chapter 1
They include four mitzvot: one positive commandment and three negative commandments:
They are:
1. To mourn for one's close relatives; even a priest must become impure and mourns for his close relatives. A person should not mourn for individuals executed by the court. For this reason, I have included these laws in this book,2 for they relate to the mitzvah of burying the dead on the day of their passing which is a positive commandment.3 2. For a High Priest not to become impure because of his close relatives;
3. For him not to enter under the same shelter as a corpse;
4. For an ordinary priest not to become impure because of a corpse except for that of his close relatives. These mitzvot are explained in the coming chapters.
1
It is a positive commandment to mourn for one's close relatives,1 as implied by Leviticus 10:20: "Were I to partake of a sin offering today, would it find favor in God's eyes?" According to Scriptural Law, the obligation to mourn is only on the first day which is the day of the person's death and burial. The remainder of the seven days of mourning are not required by Scriptural Law. Although the Torah states Genesis 50:10: "And he instituted mourning for his father for seven days," when the Torah was given, the laws were renewed.
Moses our teacher ordained for the Jewish people the seven days of mourning and the seven days of wedding celebrations.
א
מצות עשה להתאבל על הקרובים שנאמר ואכלתי חטאת היום הייטב בעיני ה' ואין אבילות מן התורה אלא ביום ראשון בלבד שהוא יום המיתה ויום הקבורה אבל שאר השבעה ימים אינו דין תורה אף על פי שנאמר בתורה ויעש לאביו אבל שבעת ימים ניתנה תורה ונתחדשה הלכה ומשה רבינו תקן להם לישראל שבעת ימי אבלות ושבעת ימי המשתה:
2
From when is a person obligated to mourn? When the grave is covered. But until the corpse has been buried, a mourner is not bound by any of the prohibitions incumbent on a mourner. For this reason, King David washed and anointed himself when his son died, before he was buried.
ב
מאימתי יתחייב אדם באבל משיסתם הגולל אבל כל זמן שלא נקבר המת אינו אסור בדבר מן הדברים שהאבל אסור בהן ומפני טעם זה רחץ דוד וסך כשמת הילד טרם שיקבר:
3
When does the obligation to mourn and count the seven and the thirty days of mourning for people executed by the gentile authorities who they do not allow to be buried? When their relatives despair of asking permission from the king to bury them, even though they did not despair of stealing their corpses to bury them.
ג
הרוגי מלכות שאין מניחין אותן להקבר מאימתי מתחילין להתאבל עליהן ולספור שבעה ושלשים משיתיאשו לשאול למלך לקברן אע"פ שלא נתיאשו מלגנוב אותן:
4
When a person drowned in a river or was consumed by a wild beast, we begin mourning for him when we despair of finding his corpse. If his corpse was found limb by limb, we do not begin counting the days of mourning until his head and the majority of his body is found or they despair of finding the remainder of his corpse.
ד
מי שטבע בנהר או מי שאכלתו חיה ראה משנתיאשו לבקש מצאוהו איברים איברים אין מונין לו עד שימצא ראשו ורובו או יתיאשו מלבקש:
5
When it is customary for people to send a corpse to another city to be buried and they do not know when the burial will take place, from the time they turn back from accompanying the corpse, they are obligated to count the seven and thirty days of mourning and begin mourning rites.
ה
מי שדרכן לשלוח המת למדינה אחרת לקוברו ואינם יודעים מתי יקבר מעת שיחזרו פניהן מללוותו מתחילין למנות שבעה ושלשים ומתחילין להתאבל:
6
We do not mourn for stillborn infants. Whenever a human offspring does not live for 30 days, he is considered as stillborn. Even if he died on the thirtieth day, we do not mourn for him.
ו
הנפלים אין מתאבלין עליהן וכל שלא שהה שלשים יום באדם הרי זה נפל אפילו מת ביום שלשים אין מתאבלין עליו:
7
If we know for certain that he was born after a full nine months of pregnancy, we mourn for him even if he died on the day of his birth.
ז
ואם נודע בודאי שנולד לתשעה חדשים גמורים אפילו מת ביום שנולד מתאבלים עליו:
8
A fetus from a full term pregnancy that was stillborn, a child born in the eighth month of pregnancy who died even after living 30 days, or a fetus that emerged cut or crushed even though it endured a full term pregnancy is considered stillborn. We do not observe mourning rites for them and we do not engage in activity on their behalf.
ח
בן תשעה חדשים שנולד מת ובן שמונה שמת אפילו לאחר שלשים ומי שיצא מחותך או מרוסס אף על פי שכלו לו חדשיו הרי זה נפל ואין מתאבלין עליהן ולא מתעסקין עמהם:
9
We observe mourning rites for all of those executed by the government, even when they were executed by the government's laws and the Torah granted it license to execute them. We don't withhold anything from them. Their estate is given to the government, but they are buried in their ancestral plots.
We do not, by contrast, observe mourning rites for those executed by the court. We do, however, observe the rites of bitter regret (aninut), for aninut is an expression of the feelings in one's heart. They are not buried with their ancestors until their corpses have decomposed. Their estate, however, is granted to their heirs.
ט
כל הרוגי מלכות אע"פשנהרגו בדין המלך והתורה נתנה לו רשות להרגן הרי אלו מתאבלין עליהן ואין מונעין מהן כל דבר וממונם למלך ונקברין בקברי אבותיהן אבל כל הרוגי בית דין אין מתאבלין עליהן אבל אוננין שאין אנינות אלא בלב ואין נקברין עם אבותיהן עד שיתאכל הבשר וממונם ליורשיהם:
10
We do not conduct mourning rites for all those who deviate from the path of the community, i.e., people who throw off the yoke of the mitzvot from their necks and do not join together with the Jewish people in the observance of the mitzvot, the honoring of the festivals, or the attendance of synagogues and houses of study. Instead, they are like free and independent people like the other nations. Similarly, we do not mourn for heretics, apostates, and people who inform on Jews to the gentiles. Instead, their brothers and their other relatives wear white clothes, robe themselves in white, eat, drink, and celebrate for the enemies of the Holy One, blessed be He, have perished. Concerning them, Psalms139:21 states: "Those who hate You, O God, will I hate."
י
כל הפורשין מדרכי צבור והם האנשים שפרקו עול המצות מעל צוארן ואין נכללין בכלל ישראל בעשיית המצות ובכבוד המועדות וישיבת בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות אלא הרי הן כבני חורין לעצמן [כשאר האומות] וכן האפיקורוסין [והמומרים] והמוסרין כל אלו אין מתאבלין עליהן אלא אחיהם ושאר קרוביהם לובשין לבנים ומתעטפים לבנים ואוכלים ושותים ושמחים שהרי אבדו שונאיו של הקב"ה ועליהם הכתוב אומר הלא משנאיך ה' אשנא:
11
When a person commits suicide, we do not engage in activity on their behalf at all. We do not mourn for him or eulogize him. We do, however, stand in a line to comfort the relatives, recite the blessing for the mourners and perform any act that shows respect for the living.
What is meant by a person who commits suicide? Not necessarily one who climbs up on a roof, falls, and dies, but rather, one who says: "I am going up to the top of the roof." If we see him climb up immediately in anger or know that he was distressed and see him fall and die, we presume such a person is one who committed suicide. If, however, we see him strangled and hanging from a tree or slain and lying on the back of his sword, we presume that he is like all other corpses. We engage in activity on his behalf and do not withhold anything from him.
יא
המאבד עצמו לדעת אין מתעסקין עמו לכל דבר ואין מתאבלין עליו ואין מספידין אותו אבל עומדין עליו בשורה ואומרין עליו ברכת אבלים וכל דבר שהוא כבוד לחיים ואי זהו המאבד עצמו לדעת לא שעלה לגג ונפל ומת אלא האומר הריני עולה לראש הגג ראוהו שעלה מיד דרך כעס או שהיה מיצר ונפל ומת הרי זה בחזקת שאבד עצמו לדעת אבל אם ראוהו חנוק ותלוי באילן או הרוג ומושלך על גב סייפו הרי זה בחזקת כל המתים ומתעסקין עמו ואין מונעין ממנו דבר:
Avel - Chapter 2
1
These are the relatives for whom a person is obligated to mourn according to Scriptural Law: His mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his paternal brother and paternal sister. According to Rabbinic Law, a man should also mourn for his wife if she dies while they are married. And a woman should mourn for her husband. Similarly, a person should mourn for a maternal brother and sister.
א
אלו שאדם חייב להתאבל עליהן דין תורה אמו ואביו בנו ובתו ואחיו ואחותו מאביו ומדבריהם שיתאבל האיש על אשתו הנשואה וכן האשה על בעלה ומתאבל על אחיו ועל אחותו שהן מאמו:
2
Even a priest who does not become impure for his maternal brother and sister or for his paternal sister who is married, mourns for them. For his married paternal sister who is married, he is required to mourn by Scriptural Law.
ב
אפילו הכהן שאינו מתטמא לאחיו ואחותו מאמו ולאחותו הנשואה אע"פ שהיא מאביו מתאבל הוא עליהן ואם היתה אחותו זו הנשואה מאביו הרי הוא מתאבל עליה דין תורה:
3
A person who has a son or a brother born by a maid-servant or a gentile woman should not mourn for them at all. Similarly, when a person and his sons convert or a person and his mother are freed from slavery, they do not mourn for each other.
Similarly, a person does not observe either the rites of aninut or the mourning rites for a wife whom he has consecrated, but not married. Similarly, she does not observe either of these rites for him.
ג
בנו או אחיו הבא מן השפחה ומן הנכרית אינו מתאבל עליהן כלל וכן מי שנתגייר הוא ובניו או נשתחרר הוא ואמו אין מתאבלין זה על זה וכן אשתו ארוסה אינו מתאבל עליה ולא אונן וכן היא לא אוננת ולא מתאבלת עליו:
4
Whenever a person is obligated to mourn for a relative, he also mourns with that relative in his presence according to Rabbinical Law.
What is implied? If a person's grandson, his son's maternal brother, or son's mother dies, he is obligated to rend his garments in the presence of his son and follow the mourning rites while in his presence. Outside his presence, he is not obligated. Similar laws apply with regard to other relatives.
ד
כל קרובים שהוא חייב להתאבל עליהן הרי זה מתאבל עמהם בפניהם מדברי סופרים כיצד הרי שמת בן בנו או אחי בנו או אם בנו חייב לקרוע בפני בנו ולנהוג אבילות בפניו אבל שלא בפניו אינו חייב וכן בשאר הקרובים:
5
With regard to a wife with whom one is married: Although one must mourn for her, he does not mourn together with her for her other relatives with the exception of her father and her mother. He observes the rites of mourning for them in her presence.
When a man's father-in-law or mother-in-law dies, he overturns his bed and observes the mourning rites together with his wife within her presence, but not outside her presence. Similarly, when a woman's father-in-law or mother-in-law dies, she observes the rites of mourning in her husband's presence. With regard to other relatives, by contrast, e.g., the brother of one's wife or her son dies or when the brother of one's husband or his son dies, they do not observe the mourning rites in respect for each other.
Similarly, it appears to me that if the wife of a person's relative dies or the husband of one of his relatives, e.g., the wife of one's son or the husband of one's daughter, one need not observe mourning rites for them. Similar concepts apply in all analogous situations.
ה
אשתו הנשואה אף על פי שהוא מתאבל עליה אינו מתאבל עמה על שאר קרובים אלא על אביה ועל אמה משום כבוד אשתו נוהג אבלות עליהן בפניה כיצד מי שמת חמיו או חמותו כופה מטתו ונוהג אבילות עם אשתו בפניה אבל לא שלא בפניה וכן האשה שמת חמיה או חמותה נוהגת אבלות בפניו אבל שאר קרובים כגון שמת אחי אשתו או בנה והאשה שמת אחי בעלה או בנו אין מתאבלין זה על זה וכן יראה לי שאם מתה אשת קרובו או בעל קרובתו כגון שמתה אשת בנו או בעל בתו אינו חייב להתאבל עליהן וכן כל כיוצא בזה:
6
See how severe the mitzvah of mourning is! For the prohibition against ritual impurity is superseded so that a priest can tend to his relatives' burial and mourn for them, as Leviticus 21:2-3 states: "Except to one's flesh, to whom he is close, to his mother... to her shall he become impure." This is a positive commandment; if he does not desire to become impure, we force him to become impure against his will.
To whom does the above apply? To males who are commanded against contracting ritual impurity. Different rules apply to female members of the priestly family. Since they are not commanded against contracting ritual impurity, they are also not commanded to become impure when tending to their relatives' burial. If they desire, they may become impure and if not, they do not become impure.
ו
כמה חמורה מצות אבלות שהרי נדחת לו הטומאה מפני קרוביו כדי שיתעסק עמהן ויתאבל עליהן שנאמר כי אם לשארו הקרוב אליו לאמו וגו' לה יטמא מצות עשה שאם לא רצה להטמא מטמאין אותו על כרחו בד"א בזכרים שהוזהרו על הטומאה אבל הכהנות הואיל ואינן מוזהרות על הטומאה כן אינן מצוות להתטמא לקרובים אלא אם רצו מתטמאות ואם לאו לא מטמאות:
7
A priest is forced to contact ritual impurity to tend to his deceased wife. This obligation is Rabbinic in origin. Our Sages had her considered as an unattended corpse. Since she has no other heir aside from him, there will be no one else to tend to her. He becomes impure only for a wife he has married. If he has merely consecrated her, he does not become impure for her.
ז
אשתו של כהן מתטמא לה על כרחו ואינו מטמא לה אלא מדברי סופרים עשאוה כמת מצוה כיון שאין לה יורש אלא הוא לא תמצא מי שיתעסק בה ואינו מטמא אלא לנשואה בלבד אבל הארוסה אינו מטמא לה:
8
Similarly, a priest does not become impure for any of those individuals for whom we do not mourn as stated above: e.g., those executed by the court, those who deviate from the ways of the community, stillborn infants, and those who commit suicide.
Until when does the mitzvah to become impure apply? Until the grave is covered. Once the grave is covered, however, the graves of one's close relatives are like those of any other corpse. If a priest becomes impure for their sake, he should be punished by lashes.
ח
וכן כל אותן שאמרו שאין מתאבלין עליהן כגון הרוגי בית דין ושפרשו מדרכי צבור והנפלים והמאבד עצמו לדעת אין הכהן מטמא להן ועד מתי מצווה להתטמא לקרוביו עד שיסתם הגולל אבל מאחר שנסתם הגולל הרי הן כשאר כל המתים שאם נטמא בהן לוקה:
9
A priest should not become impure for the sake of a wife whom he is forbidden to marry. Therefore if a woman heard a report that her husband died and hence remarried, and then her first husband came, neither husband should become impure for her sake, for she is forbidden to remain married to either of them.
A priest may, however, become impure for the sake of his mother, even though she is a challalah and he may become impure for the sake of his son, his daughter, his brother and his sister even though they are of tarnished lineage. Even if they are illegitimate, he should become impure for their sake.
ט
אשתו הפסולה אינו מטמא לה לפיכך מי ששמעה שמועה שמת בעלה ונשאת ובא בעלה שניהן אין מטמאין לה שהרי היא פסולה לשניהן אבל מטמא הוא לאמו אף על פי שהיא חללה וכן מטמא לבנו ולבתו ולאחיו ולאחותו אע"פשהן פסולין אפילו היו ממזרים מטמא להן:
10
When a priest's sister is married - even to another priest, he does not become impure for her sake, "as Leviticus 21:3states: "his virgin sister who is close to him who has not been with a man." "Virgin" excludes a girl who has been raped or seduced. Should we also exclude a woman who attain majority or a woman who lost her signs of virginity because of reasons other than relations? The Torah teaches: "who has not been with a man," i.e., excluded is only one who lost her virginity because of a man. "Who has not been with a man" - this also excludes a sister who has been consecrated. He does not become impure, for her sake even if she is consecrated to a priest.
י
אחותו הנשואה אינו מטמא לה אע"פ שהיא נשואה לכהן שנאמר הבתולה הקרובה אליו אשר לא היתה לאיש הבתולה פרט לאנוסה ומפותה יכול שאני מוציא את הבוגרת ומוכת עץ תלמוד לומר אשר לא היתה לאיש מי שהוייתה בידי איש אשר לא היתה לאיש פרט לארוסה שאינו מטמא לה אף על פי שהיא ארוסה לכהן:
11
If, however, a priest's sister is divorced after consecration, before marriage, he must become impure for her sake. The phrase "who is close to him" includes a sister divorced after consecration.
יא
נתגרשה אחותו מן האירוסין מטמא לה שנאמר הקרובה אליו להביא את המגורשת מן האירוסין:
12
A priest does not become impure for the sake of his maternal brother and sister, as implied by Leviticus 21:2-3: "To his son and to his daughter, to his brother and to his sister." Just as we are speaking of a son who is fit to inherit his father's estate; so, too, he must be fit to inherit the estates of his brother and sister.
יב
אחיו ואחותו מאמו אינו מטמא להן שנאמר ולבנו ולבתו ולאחיו ולאחותו מה בנו הראוי לירושתו אף אחיו ואחותו הראויים לירושתו:
13
A priest does not become impure for the sake of relatives whose family connection is doubtful, as implied by Leviticus 21:3: "to her shall he become impure." He becomes impure for those whose connection is definite and not for those whose connection is doubtful. Accordingly, in an instance where children become intermingled, there is a son concerning whom there is a question whether he was born after seven months from conception to his mother's later husband or after nine months to her first husband, and all the like, he does not become impure for their sake due to the doubt.
Similarly, in all cases concerning divorce that involve a question concerning the validity of the divorce or an invalid bill of divorce, , the priest does not become impure for the sake of his wife.
יג
הספקות אינו מטמא להן שנאמר לה יטמא מיטמא הוא על הודאי ואינו מיטמא על הספק לפיכך הוולדות שנתערבו והבן שהוא ספק בן שבעה לאחרון או בן תשעה לראשון וכן כל כיוצא בהן אינו מיטמא להן מספק וכן כל המתגרשת ספק גירושין או בגט פסול אינו מטמא לה:
14
A priest may not become impure for the sake of a limb severed from his father while alive, nor for the sake of one of his father's bones. Similarly, when one's father's bones are being collected - even if his entire backbone is intact - a priest may not become impure for their sake.
יד
אין הכהן מטמא לאבר מן החי מאביו ולא לעצם מעצמות אביו וכן המלקט עצמות אביו אינו מטמא להן אף על פי שהשדרה קיימת:
15
If his father's head is decapitated, he may not become impure for his sake. This is implied by Leviticus 21:2: "To his father," i.e., at a time when his corpse is intact and not when it is impaired. Similar laws apply with regard to other relatives.
The prohibition against contact with ritual impurity is bypassed with regard to one's relatives; it is not released entirely. For this reason, a priest is forbidden to become impure for the sake of another corpse at the time he has become impure for the sake of his relatives. This is implied by Leviticus 21:3: "to her shall he become impure," i.e., to her alone. He does not become impure for the sake of others together with her. He should not say: "Since I became impure for the sake of my father, I will go gather so-and-so's bones" or "...touch so-and-so's grave."
Therefore when the relative of a priest dies, care must be taken to bury him at the edge of the cemetery, so that he will not have to enter the cemetery and become impure because of other graves when he buries his dead.
טו
נקטע ראשו של אביו אינו מטמא לו שנאמר לאביו בזמן שהוא שלם ולא בזמן שהוא חסר וכן שאר הקרובים הטומאה לקרובים דחויה היא ולא הותרה לכל לפיכך אסור לכהן להתטמא למת אפילו בעת שמתטמא לקרוביו שנאמר לה יטמא אינו מטמא לאחרים עמה שלא יאמר הואיל ונטמאתי על אבי אלקט עצמות פלוני או אגע בקבר פלוני לפיכך כהן שמת לו מת צריך להזהר ולקוברו בסוף בית הקברות כדי שלא יכנס לבית הקברות ולא יתטמא בקברות אחרים כשיקבור מתו:
• Friday, 12 Tishrei, 5777 · 14 October 2016
• "Today's Day"
• Monday, Tishrei 12, 5704
Torah lessons: Chumash: B'racha, Sheini with Rashi.
Tehillim: 66-68.
Tanya: Indeed, we also (p. 515) ...Shilo will come." (p. 517).
We are assured by covenant that any wide-ranging effort1 and labor pursued wisely and with friendship is never fruitless.
FOOTNOTES
1.In promulgating Jewish education, disseminating Torah, etc. (This seems to be the meaning.)
• Daily Thought:• "Today's Day"
• Monday, Tishrei 12, 5704
Torah lessons: Chumash: B'racha, Sheini with Rashi.
Tehillim: 66-68.
Tanya: Indeed, we also (p. 515) ...Shilo will come." (p. 517).
We are assured by covenant that any wide-ranging effort1 and labor pursued wisely and with friendship is never fruitless.
FOOTNOTES
1.In promulgating Jewish education, disseminating Torah, etc. (This seems to be the meaning.)
Return with Love
Don’t waste a good sin.
“All that G‑d does is good, even the wicked person on the day of his wickedness.” (Proverbs 16:4)
Why did a G‑d who hates evil create a world where evil can take charge of a human being?
Only so that this human being would be driven yet higher than could ever be reached without sin.
Return from fear, and the sin has not accomplished its goal. It is a wasted sin.
Return from love, and the night has found its day. It has driven you higher.[Likutei Sichot vol. 17, page 190.]
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