Chumashחומש

לא תעשו עול במשפט. מְלַמֵּד שֶׁהַדַּיָּן הַמְקַלְקֵּל אֶת הַדִּין קָרוּי עַוָּל, שָׂנוּי וּמְשֻׁקָּץ, חֵרֶם וְתוֹעֵבָה, שֶׁהָעָוֶל קָרוּי תּוֹעֵבָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר כִּי תוֹעֲבַת ה' וְגוֹ' כֹּל עֹשֵׂה עָוֶל (דברים כ"ה), וְהַתּוֹעֵבָה קְרוּיָה חֵרֶם וְשֶׁקֶץ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְלֹא תָבִיא תוֹעֵבָה אֶל בֵּיתֶךָ וְהָיִיתָ חֵרֶם כָּמֹהוּ שַׁקֵּץ תְּשַׁקְּצֶנּוּ וְגוֹ' (שם ז'):

לא תעשו עול במשפט YE SHALL NOT DO INJUSTICE IN JUDGMENT — This teaches us that the judge who perverts judgment is called an "unjust person" (עַוָּל), hateful and detested, doomed to destruction, and an abomination. He is rightly called thus for the unjust person (עַוָּל) is called by Scripture "abomination", as it is said (Deuteronomy 25:16) "For all that do [such things] all that do injustice (עַוָּל=עֹשֵׂה עָוֶל) are an abomination (תועבה) unto the Lord thy God”. The abomination (תועבה), on its part, is called by Scripture חרם and שקץ, as it is said (Deuteronomy 7:26) "Neither shalt thou bring an abomination (תועבה) into thine house, lest thou be a doomed thing (חרם) like it; but thou shall regard it as שקץ.

לא תשא פני דל. שֶׁלֹּא תֹאמַר עָנִי הוּא זֶה, וְהֶעָשִׁיר חַיָּב לְפַרְנְסוֹ, אֲזַכֶּנּוּ בַדִּין וְנִמְצָא מִתְפַּרְנֵס בִּנְקִיּוּת (ספרא):

לא תשא פני דל THOU SHALT NOT RESPECT THE PERSON OF THE INDIGENT — i. e. thou shalt not say, "This is a poor man, and the rich man has in any case the duty of supporting him; I will find in favor of him (the poor man) and he will consequently obtain some support in a respectable fashion (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 2).

ולא תהדר פני גדול. שֶׁלֹּא תֹאמַר עָשִׁיר הוּא זֶה, בֶּן גְּדוֹלִים הוּא זֶה, הֵיאַךְ אֲבַיְּשֶׁנּוּ וְאֶרְאֶה בְּבָשְׁתּוֹ? עֹנֶשׁ יֵשׁ בַּדָּבָר לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר וְלֹא תֶהְדַּר פְּנֵי גָדוֹל:

ולא תהדר פני גדול NOR HONOR THE PERSON OF THE MIGHTY — thou shalt not say, “This is a rich man, or, this man is of noble descent (lit., the son of great people) how can I possibly put him to shame and be witness to his shame? There is punishment for such a thing!” It is for this reason that Scripture states, "thou shalt not honor the person of the mighty” (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 3).

בצדק תשפט עמיתך. כְּמַשְׁמָעוֹ; דָּ"אַ: הֱוֵי דָן אֶת חֲבֵרְךָ לְכַף זְכוּת (שבועות ל'):

בצדק תשפט עמיתך IN RIGHTEOUSNESS SHALT THOU JUDGE THY COMPANION — Take this as the words imply (i.e. take the word צדק as what it usually implies: strict right). Another explanation is: Judge thy fellow man with an inclination in his favour (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 4; Shevuot 30a).

לא תלך רכיל. אֲנִי אוֹמֵר עַל שֵׁם שֶׁכָּל מְשַׁלְּחֵי מְדָנִים וּמְסַפְּרֵי לָשׁוֹן הָרַע הוֹלְכִים בְּבָתֵּי רֵעֵיהֶם לְרַגֵּל מַה יִּרְאוּ רָע, אוֹ מַה יִּשְׁמְעוּ רָע, לְסַפֵּר בַּשּׁוּק, נִקְרָאִים הוֹלְכֵי רָכִיל — הוֹלְכֵי רְגִילָה, אשפיי"מנט בְּלַעַז. וּרְאָיָה לִדְבָרַי, שֶׁלֹּא מָצִינוּ רְכִילוּת שֶׁאֵין כָּתוּב בִּלְשׁוֹן הֲלִיכָה, לֹא תֵלֵךְ רָכִיל, הֹלְכֵי רָכִיל נְחֹשֶׁת וּבַרְזֶל (ירמיהו ו'), וּשְׁאָר לָשׁוֹן הָרַע אֵין כָּתוּב בּוֹ הֲלִיכָה, מְלָשְׁנִי בַסֵּתֶר רֵעֵהוּ (תהילים ק"א), לָשׁוֹן רְמִיָּה (שם ק"כ), לָשׁוֹן מְדַבֶּרֶת גְּדֹלוֹת (שם י"ב); לְכָךְ אֲנִי אוֹמֵר שֶׁהַלָּשׁוֹן הוֹלֵךְ וּמְרַגֵּל, שֶׁהַכַּ"ף נֶחֱלֶפֶת בְּגִימֶ"ל, שֶׁכָּל הָאוֹתִיּוֹת שֶׁמּוֹצָאֵיהֶם מִמָּקוֹם אֶחָד מִתְחַלְּפוֹת זוֹ בָזוֹ, בֵּי"ת בְּפֵ"א וְגִימֶ"ל בְּכַ"ף וְקוֹ"ף, וְנוּ"ן בְּלָמֶ"ד, וְזַיִ"ן בְּצָדִ"י, וְכֵן וַיְרַגֵּל בְּעַבְדְּךָ (שמואל ב י"ט) — רִגֵּל בְּמִרְמָה לֵאמֹר עָלַי רָעָה, וְכֵן לֹא רָגַל עַל לְשֹׁנוֹ (תהילים ט"ו), וְכֵן רוֹכֵל — הַסּוֹחֵר וּמְרַגֵּל אַחַר כָּל סְחוֹרָה, וְכֵן הַמּוֹכֵר בְּשָׂמִים לְהִתְקַשֵּׁט בָּהֶם הַנָּשִׁים, עַל שֵׁם שֶׁמְּחַזֵּר תָּמִיד בָּעֲיָרוֹת, נִקְרָא רוֹכֵל לְשׁוֹן רוֹגֵל; לָא תֵיכוּל קוּרְצִין כְּמוֹ וַאֲכַלוּ קַרְצֵיהוֹן דִּי יְהוּדָיֵא (דניאל ג׳:ח׳), אָכַל בֵּיהּ קוּרְצָא בֵּי מַלְכָּא (ברכות נ"ח:); נִרְאֶה בְעֵינַי שֶׁהָיָה מִשְׁפָּטָם לֶאֱכֹל בְּבֵית הַמְקַבֵּל דִּבְרֵיהֶם שׁוּם הַלְעָטָה, וְהוּא גְמַר חִזּוּק שֶׁדְּבָרָיו מְקֻיָּמִים וְיַעֲמִידֵם עַל הָאֱמֶת, וְאוֹתָהּ הַלְעָטָה נִקְרֵאת אֲכִילַת קוּרְצִין, לְשׁוֹן קוֹרֵץ בְּעֵינָיו (משלי ו'), שֶׁכֵּן דֶּרֶךְ כָּל הוֹלְכֵי רָכִיל לִקְרֹץ בְּעֵינֵיהֶם וְלִרְמֹז דִּבְרֵי רְכִילוּתָן, שֶׁלֹּא יָבִינוּ שְׁאָר הַשּׁוֹמְעִים:

לא תלך רכיל THOU SHALT NOT GO ABOUT AS A TALE BEARER — I say that because all those who sow discord between people and all who speak slander go into their friends' houses in order to spy out what evil they can see there, or what evil they can hear there so that they may tell it in the streets —they are called הולכי רכיל which it the same as הולכי רגילה, "people who go about spying"; espiement in O. F. A proof of my statement is the fact that we do not find anywhere the term רגיל used in Scripture except in connection with the expression הלך "to go". Examples are: the phrase here, לא תלך רכיל; (Jeremiah 6:28) "[They are all] walking as spies: they are brass and iron". But as for any other expressions for “slander”, the verb הלך is not used with them. Examples are (Psalms 101:5) "whoso privily slandereth his neighbour”; (Psalms 120:2) "false tongue"; (Psalms 12:4) "the tongue that speaketh proud things (slander)". For this reason I say that this expression (הולך רכיל) means "going about ומרגל, and spying out” (רגל = רכל), because the כ may interchange with ,ג since all letters the pronounciation of which are of the same place in the organs of speech may interchange with each other e. g., בי"ת with גימ"ל ,פ"א with כ"ף or with נו"ן ;קו"ף with זי"ן ;למ"ד with צד"י. And in a similar sense we have, (II Samuel 19:28) "He spied against thy servant [to my lord]” which implies, "he spied me out with subtly in order to speak evil about me to my lord״ (and thus וירגל comes to mean "to slander”). Similar is (Psalms 15:8): לא רגל על לשונו which means, "he has not spied out in order to have evil on his tongue”. Similarly the רוכל, the trader, is one who goes round and searches for (spies out) all kinds of merchandise, and so also the seller of perfumes which women use to make themselves nice, because he constantly goes about in the villages, he is called רוכל, which has the same meaning as רוגל. And its translation in the Targum לא תיכול קורצין, has the same meaning as (Daniel 3:8) "and they slandered (אכלו קורציהון) the Jews”; and as (Berakhot 58a) "he slandered him (אכל ביה קורצא בי מלכא) to the king”. It seems to me that people had the custom to eat a little snack in the house of him who listened to their slanderous words, and this served as the final confirmation that his (the slanderer's) statements were well founded and that he would maintain the truth of them. This "snack” was called אכילת קורצין, the word קורצא being connected in meaning with the root קרץ in (Proverbs 6:13) "He winketh (קורץ) with his eyes”, for it is the manner of all who go about slandering to wink with their eyes and to suggest their slanderous statements by innuendos in order that others who happen to hear them should not understand them.

לא תעמד על דם רעך. לִרְאוֹת בְּמִיתָתוֹ וְאַתָּה יָכוֹל לְהַצִּילוֹ, כְּגוֹן טוֹבֵעַ בַּנָּהָר וְחַיָּה אוֹ לִיסְטִים בָּאִים עָלָיו (סנהדרין ע"ג):

לא תעמד על דם רעך NEITHER SHALT THOU STAND AGAINST THE BLOOD OF THY FELLOW — witnessing his death, you being able to rescue him: if, for instance, he is drowning in the river or if a wild beast or a robber is attacking him (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 8; Sanhedrin 73a).

אני ה'. נֶאֱמָן לְשַׁלֵּם שָׂכָר, וְנֶאֱמָן לִפָּרַע:

‎'אני ה‎‎ I AM THE LORD — Who am faithful in paying reward to those who obey My commandments and Who am certain to punish those who transgress them.

ולא תשא עליו חטא. לֹא תַלְבִּין אֶת פָּנָיו בָּרַבִּים (עי' ספרא):

ולא תשא עליו חטא [THOU SHALT IN ANY WISE REBUKE THY COMPANION] AND NOT BEAR A SIN ON ACCOUNT OF HIM — i. e. though rebuking him thou shalt not expose him to shame (lit., make his face grow pale) in public, in which case you will bear sin on account of him (cf. Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 8; Arakhin 16b).

לא תקם. אָמַר לוֹ הַשְׁאִילֵנִי מַגָּלְךָ, אָמַר לוֹ לָאו, לְמָחָר אָמַר לוֹ הַשְׁאִילֵנִי קַרְדֻּמְּךָ, אָמַר לוֹ אֵינִי מַשְׁאִילְךָ כְּדֶרֶךְ שֶׁלֹּא הִשְׁאַלְתַּנִי, זוֹ הִיא נְקִימָה; וְאֵיזוֹ הִיא נְטִירָה? אָמַר לוֹ הַשְׁאִילֵנִי אֶת קַרְדֻּמְּךָ, אָמַר לוֹ לָאו, לְמָחָר אָמַר לוֹ הַשְׁאִילֵנִי מַגָּלְךָ, אָמַר לוֹ הֵא לְךָ, אֵינִי כְמוֹתְךָ שֶׁלֹּא הִשְׁאַלְתַּנִי, זוֹ הִיא נְטִירָה, שֶׁנּוֹטֵר הָאֵיבָה בְּלִבּוֹ, אַעַ"פִּי שֶׁאֵינוֹ נוֹקֵם (ספרא; יומא כ"ג):

לא תקם THOU SHALT NOT AVENGE — If one says to another “Lend me your sickle", and he replies, “No!", and the next day he (the latter) says to him (the former), “Lend me your hatchet”, and he retorts, “I am not going to lend it to you, just as you refused to lend me your sickle״ — this is avenging. And what is “bearing a grudge”? If one says to another, “Lend me your hatchet”, and he replies “No!” and on the next day he says to him “Lend me your sickle”, and he replies: “Here it is; I am not like you, because you would not lend me” — this is called “bearing a grudge (נטירה)” because he retains (נוטר) enmity in his heart although he does not actually avenge himself (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 10-11; Yoma 23a).

ואהבת לרעך כמוך. אָמַר רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא זֶה כְּלָל גָּדוֹל בַּתּוֹרָה (ספרא):

ואהבת לרעך כמוך THOU SHALT LOVE THY FELLOW MAN AS THYSELF —Rabbi Akiba said: “This is a fundamental principle of the Torah” (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 12; Talmud Yerushalmi Nedarim 9:3).

את חקתי תשמרו. וְאֵלּוּ הֵן: בְּהֶמְתְּךָ לֹא תַרְבִּיעַ כִּלְאַיִם וְגוֹ'; חֻקִּים — אֵלּוּ גְזֵרַת מֶלֶךְ שֶׁאֵין טַעַם לַדָּבָר:

חקתי תשמרו ‎את YE SHALL KEEP MY ORDINANCES — These are they: “Thou shalt not cause two kinds of thy cattle to gender etc.”, (and the other ordinances laid down in this verse), for by the term חוקים are meant those enactments of the King for which no reason is given and those that precede are not of this character.

ובגד כלאים. לָמָּה נֶאֱמַר? לְפִי שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר "לֹא תִלְבַּשׁ שַׁעַטְנֵז צֶמֶר וּפִשְׁתִּים יַחְדָּו" (דברים כ"ב), יָכוֹל לֹא יִלְבַּשׁ גִּזֵּי צֶמֶר וַאֲנִיצֵי פִשְׁתָּן, תַּ"ל "בֶּגֶד", מִנַּיִן לְרַבּוֹת הַלְּבָדִים? תַּ"לֹ "שַׁעַטְנֵז" — דָּבָר שֶׁהוּא שׁוּעַ טָווּי וְנוּז. וְאוֹמֵר אֲנִי נוּז לְשׁוֹן דָּבָר הַנִּמְלָל וְשָׁזוּר זֶה עִם זֶה לְחַבְּרוֹ, טישט"יר בְּלַעַז, כְּמוֹ "חַזְיָין לִנְזָאֵי דְאִית בְּהוֹן" (מועד קטן י"ב), שֶׁאָנוּ מְפָרְשִׁין לְשׁוֹן כִּמּוּשׁ, פליש"טרא, וּלְשׁוֹן שַׁעַטְנֵז פֵּרֵשׁ מְנַחֵם מַחְבֶּרֶת צֶמֶר וּפִשְׁתִּים:

ובגד כלאים NEITHER SHALL A GARMENT MINGLED OF LINEN AND WOOLLEN [COME UPON THEE] — Why is this st‎atement made (how does the particular form of words used here tell us some point of law which is not contained in Deuteronomy 22:21 which bears upon the same subject)? Because Scripture states there “Thou shalt not wear שעטנז, wool and linen together” I might think that one must not wear in combination wool (i. e. wool as it comes from the shearing) and combed flax! Scripture therefore states here “a garment (i. e. something made of a cloth) [mingled of woollen and linen shall not come upon thee]”, thus excluding loose pieces of wool and flax in combination, which do not form a בגד. Whence do we know that this prohibition extends to felt-stuff (which though not being really בגד, since the material is not worked up into cloth, is, however, made of wool and linen pressed into one material)? Because Scripture states in Deuteronomy “שעטנז shall not come upon thee” which means a material that is calendered (pressed, שוע), or woven (טוי) or twisted (נוז) together — (שעטנז is taken to be an abbreviation of these words) (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 4 18). I say that נוז is an expression for material which is dried by rubbing between the fingers in order to extend it into threads, these being then twined together so that it forms a coherent web. This is called tistre in O. F. (cf. Rashi on Gittin 59a s. v. דבר הנמלל ונמתח). Similar is the expression to be found in the Talmud (Moed Katan 12b): חזין לגזאי דאית בהון, “The sesame-plant may be plucked on חולו של מועד because it is fit for use on account of the נזאי, the dried-up kernels which it contains” — which word, viz., נזאי, we explain to mean as much as “withering”, flestre in O. F.. Menachem explains שעטנו to denote a combination of wool and linen.

נחרפת לאיש. מְיֻעֶדֶת וּמְיֻחֶדֶת לְאִישׁ, וְאֵינִי יוֹדֵעַ לוֹ דִמְיוֹן בַּמִּקְרָא; וּבְשִׁפְחָה כְנַעֲנִית חֶצְיָהּ שִׁפְחָה וְחֶצְיָהּ בַּת חֹרִין הַמְאֹרֶסֶת לְעֶבֶד עִבְרִי שֶׁמֻּתָּר בְּשִׁפְחָה הַכָּתוּב מְדַבֵּר:

נחרפת לאיש [AND WHOSOEVER LIETH CARNALLY WITH A WOMAN THAT IS A HANDMAID] GIVEN OVER TO A MAN — נחרפת signifies: destined and designated to a man. I do not know of any similar use of it (the root חרף) in Scripture. — And it is of a Canaanitish handmaid who is partly a שפחה and partly a free-woman and who is betrothed to a Hebrew servant who is permitted to marry a שפחה, that Scripture is here speaking (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 5 2; Keritot 11a).

והפדה לא נפדתה. פְּדוּיָה וְאֵינָהּ פְּדוּיָה, וּסְתָם פִּדְיוֹן בְּכֶסֶף:

והפדה לא נפדתה means, she is redeemed (הפדה) and not redeemed (לא נפדתה) (i. c. she is partly redeemed, but not fully redeemed; cf. Keritot 11a). An expression derived from the verb פדה, unless it be more closely defined, means redemption by money.

או חפשה. בִּשְׁטָר (ספרא):

או חפשה NOR FREEDOM [WAS GIVEN HER] through a document of release (שטר שחרור) (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 5 3).

בקרת תהיה. הִיא לוֹקָה וְלֹא הוּא, יֵשׁ עַל בֵּית דִּין לְבַקֵּר אֶת הַדָּבָר שֶׁלֹּא לְחַיְּבָהּ מִיתָה כי לא חפשה וְאֵין קִדּוּשֶׁיהָ קִדּוּשִׁין גְּמוּרִין: וְרַבּוֹתֵינוּ לָמְדוּ מִכָּאן (מכות כ"ב), שֶׁמִּי שֶׁהוּא בְמַלְקוּת תְּהֵא בִקְרִיאָה — שֶׁהַדַּיָּנִים הַמַּלְקִין קוֹרִין עַל הַלּוֹקֶה "אִם לֹא תִשְׁמֹר לַעֲשׂוֹת וְגוֹ' וְהִפְלָא ה' אֶת מַכֹּתְךָ וְגוֹ'" (דברים כ"ח):

בקרת תהיה INVESTIGATION SHALL BE MADE CONCERNING HER — she shall be punished with lashes but not he. It is for the court to investigate the matter (to discover that she is really not free) so that they should not make her liable to death (which would be the punishment of a free woman who committed adultery), כי לא חפשה BECAUSE SHE WAS NOT FREE and her marriage with the Hebrew slave was no marriage. Our Rabbis, however, (taking the word בקרת as though it were בקריאת “by reading”) learned from here that whoever is subject to lashes (the מלקות punishment) shall be subject to the recitation (קריאה) of Biblical verses — that the judges who pronounce the sentence of lashes shall recite, whilst standing by him who is lashed the verses (Deuteronomy 28:58, 59): "If thou wilt not observe to do [all the words of the law] etc… Then the Lord will distinguish thy plagues (מכותך which also implies thy "lashes") etc." (cf. Keritot 11a)

כי לא חפשה. לְפִיכָךְ אֵין חַיָּב עָלֶיהָ מִיתָה, שֶׁאֵין קִדּוּשֶׁיהָ קִדּוּשִׁין, הָא אִם חֻפְּשָׁה קִדּוּשֶׁיהָ קִדּוּשִׁין וְחַיָּב מִיתָה (ספרא):

כי לא חופשה BECAUSE SHE WAS NOT FREE therefore he, also, is not liable to death because of her, since her marriage was no marriage. It follows therefore that if she were free her marriage would have been a marriage and he would be liable to the death penalty (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 5 5).

ונסלח לו מחטאתו אשר חטא. לְרַבּוֹת אֶת הַמֵּזִיד כַּשּׁוֹגֵג (ספרא):

ונסלח לו מחטאתו אשר חטא AND THE SIN WHICH HE HATH SINNED SHALL BE FORGIVEN HIM — [The words מחטאתו אשר חטא appear to be redundant after the statement על חטאתו אשר חטא immediately preceding them, but they are intended] to include the willful sinner just as well as him who acts unintentionally amongst those who must bring this offering (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 5 7; Keritot 9a).