|
Esnoga
Bet Emunah 1101 Surrey Trace SE, Tumwater, WA 98501 United
States of America ©
2012 E-Mail: gkilli@aol.com |
|
Esnoga
Bet El 102
Broken Arrow Dr. Paris
TN 38242 United
States of America ©
2012 E-Mail: waltoakley@charter.net |
Triennial Cycle (Triennial
Torah Cycle) / Septennial Cycle (Septennial Torah Cycle)
|
Three
and 1/2 year Lectionary Readings |
Fourth
Year of the Reading Cycle |
|
Ellul 21, 5772 – Sept 07/08, 2012 |
Fourth
Year of the Shmita Cycle |
Candle Lighting and Habdalah Times:
|
Conroe & Austin, TX, U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:28 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:21 PM |
Brisbane, Australia Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 5:19 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 6:12 PM |
Bucharest, Romania Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:23 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:23 PM |
|
Chattanooga, & Cleveland,
TN, U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:41 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:36 PM |
Jakarta, Indonesia Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 5:34 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 6:23 PM |
Manila & Cebu,
Philippines Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 5:46 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 6:31 PM |
|
Miami, FL, U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:15 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:07 PM |
Olympia, WA, U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:21 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:23 PM |
Murray, KY, & Paris, TN. U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 6:56 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 7:51 PM |
|
Sheboygan
& Manitowoc, WI, US Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 6:57 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 7:57 PM |
Singapore, Singapore Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 6:48 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 7:37 PM |
St. Louis, MO, U.S. Fri. Sept 07 2012 – Candles at 7:03 PM Sat. Sept 08 2012 – Habdalah 8:00 PM |
For other places see: http://chabad.org/calendar/candlelighting.asp
Roll of Honor:
This Torah commentary comes to you courtesy of:
His Honor Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David and beloved wife HH Giberet
Batsheva bat Sarah
His Honor Paqid Adon Mikha ben Hillel
His Honor Paqid Adon David ben Abraham
Her Excellency Giberet Sarai bat Sarah & beloved family
His Excellency Adon Barth Lindemann & beloved family
His Excellency Adon John Batchelor & beloved wife
His Excellency Adon Ezra ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Karmela
bat Sarah,
His Excellency Dr. Adon Yeshayahu ben Yosef and beloved wife HE Giberet
Tricia Foster
His Excellency Adon Yisrael ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet
Elisheba bat Sarah
His Excellency Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Vardit
bat Sarah
Her Excellency Giberet Laurie Taylor
His Honor Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet
Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah
Her Excellency Prof. Dr. Conny Williams & beloved family
Her Excellency Giberet Gloria Sutton & beloved family
His Excellency Adon Albert Carlsson and beloved wife Giberet Lorraine
Carlsson
For their regular and
sacrificial giving, providing the best oil for the lamps, we pray that G-d’s
richest blessings be upon their lives and those of their loved ones, together
with all Yisrael and her Torah Scholars, amen ve amen!
Also a great thank you and great blessings be upon all who send comments
to the list about the contents and commentary of the weekly Torah Seder and
allied topics.
If you want to subscribe to our list and ensure that you never lose any
of our commentaries, or would like your friends also to receive this
commentary, please do send me an E-Mail to benhaggai@GMail.com with your E-Mail or the E-Mail addresses of your friends. Toda Rabba!
Shabbat: “VaYar’ Adonai” & Shabbat:
Nachamu VI
Sabbath: “And saw Adonai” &
“Comfort/Strengthening - VI”
|
Shabbat |
Torah
Reading: |
Weekday
Torah Reading: |
|
וַיַּרְא
יְהוָה |
|
|
|
“VaYar’ Adonai” |
Reader 1 – B’Midbar 29:31-33 |
Reader 1 – B’resheet 30:22-24 |
|
“And saw Ha-Shem” |
Reader 2 – B’Midbar
29:34-30:2 |
Reader 2 – B’resheet 30:25-27 |
|
“Y vió Ha-Shem” |
Reader 3 – B’Midbar 30:3-5 |
Reader 3 – B’resheet 30:28-30 |
|
B’resheet (Gen.) 29:31 –
30:21 |
Reader 4 – B’Midbar 30:6-8 |
|
|
Ashlamatah: 1
Sam. 1:2-11 + 2:28 |
Reader 5 – B’Midbar 30:9-13 |
|
|
Special: Isaiah 60:1-22 |
Reader 6 – B’Midbar 30:14-16 |
Reader 1 – B’resheet 30:22-24 |
|
Psalm 24:1-10 |
Reader 7 – B’Midbar 30:17-21 |
Reader 2 – B’resheet 30:25-27 |
|
|
Maftir – B’Midbar 30:19-21 |
Reader 3 – B’resheet 30:28-30 |
|
N.C.: Jude 1-2, Luke
6:19-23, Acts 6:7 |
Isaiah 60:1-22 |
|
Blessings Before Torah Study
Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d,
King of the universe, Who has sanctified us through Your commandments, and
commanded us to actively study Torah. Amen!
Please Ha-Shem, our G-d, sweeten the
words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of all Your people Israel.
May we and our offspring, and our offspring's offspring, and all the offspring
of Your people, the House of Israel, may we all, together, know Your Name and
study Your Torah for the sake of fulfilling Your desire. Blessed are You,
Ha-Shem, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. Amen!
Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d,
King of the universe, Who chose us from all the nations, and gave us the Torah.
Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!
Ha-Shem spoke to Moses, explaining a
Commandment. "Speak to Aaron and his sons, and teach them the following
Commandment: This is how you should bless the Children of Israel. Say to the
Children of Israel:
May Ha-Shem bless you and keep watch
over you; - Amen!
May Ha-Shem make His Presence
enlighten you, and may He be kind to you; - Amen!
May Ha-Shem bestow favor on you, and
grant you peace. – Amen!
This way, the priests will link My
Name with the Israelites, and I will bless them."
These are the Laws for which the
Torah did not mandate specific amounts: How much growing produce must be left
in the corner of the field for the poor; how much of the first fruits must be
offered at the Holy Temple; how much one must bring as an offering when one
visits the Holy Temple three times a year; how much one must do when doing acts
of kindness; and there is no maximum amount of Torah that a person must study.
These are the Laws whose benefits a
person can often enjoy even in this world, even though the primary reward is in
the Next World: They are: Honouring one's father and mother; doing acts of
kindness; early attendance at the place of Torah study -- morning and night;
showing hospitality to guests; visiting the sick; providing for the financial
needs of a bride; escorting the dead; being very engrossed in prayer; bringing
peace between two people, and between husband and wife; but the study of Torah
is as great as all of them together. Amen!
Rashi
& Targum Pseudo Jonathan
for:
B’resheet (Genesis) 29:31 – 30:21
|
Rashi’s Translation |
Targum Pseudo Jonathan |
|
31. And the Lord saw that Leah was
hated, so He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. |
31. And it was revealed before the LORD that Leah was
not loved in the sight of Ya’aqob; and He said in His Word that sons should
be given her, and that Rachel should be barren. |
|
32. And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she named
him Reuben, for she said, "Because the Lord has seen my affliction, for
now my husband will love me." |
32. And Leah conceived and bare a son, and called his name Reuben: for she
said, My affliction was manifest before the LORD, therefore now will my
husband love me; for my affliction has been manifested before the LORD as
will be the affliction of my children before the LORD when they will be
enslaved in the land of the Mizraee. |
|
33. And she conceived again and
bore a son, and she said, "Since the Lord has heard that I am hated, He
gave me this one too." So she named him Simeon. |
33. And she conceived again, and bare a son. And she said,
Because it was heard before the LORD that I was hated, and He gave me this
also: and so will be heard before Him the voice of my children when they will
be enslaved in Mizraim. And she called his name Shimeon. |
|
34. And she conceived
again and bore a son, and she said, "Now this time my husband will be
attached to me, for I have borne him three sons; therefore, He named him
Levi. |
34. And she conceived again, and bare a son, and said, This
time will my husband be united to me, because I have borne him three sons;
and thus will it be that my children will be united to serve before the LORD:
therefore she called his name Levi. |
|
35. And she conceived again and bore a son, and she
said, "This time, I will thank the Lord! Therefore, she named him Judah,
and [then] she stopped bearing. |
35. And she conceived again, and bare a son, and said, This time will I give
praise before the LORD; for from this my son kings will come forth, and from
him will spring David the king, who will offer praise before the LORD;
therefore she called his name Jehudah. And she ceased to bear. |
|
|
|
|
1. And Rachel saw that she had not
borne [any children] to Jacob, and Rachel envied her sister, and she said to
Jacob, "Give me children, and if not, I am dead." |
1. And Rachel saw that she bare not to Ya’aqob, and Rachel was envious
of her sister, and said to Ya’aqob, Pray before the LORD that He give me
children; and if not, my life I will reckon as the dead. |
|
2. And Jacob became angry with
Rachel, and he said, "Am I instead of God, Who has withheld from you the
fruit of the womb?" |
2. And the anger of Ya’aqob was stong against Rachel, and he said, Why
do you ask of me? Ask before the LORD, from before whom are children, and who
has restrained from you the fruit of the womb. |
|
3. So she said, "Here is my maidservant Bilhah;
come to her, and she will bear [children] on my knees, so that I, too, will
be built up from her." |
3. And she said, Behold my handmaid Bilhah, enter with her, that she may
bear, and I may increase and may be built up from her. |
|
4. So she gave him her maidservant
Bilhah for a wife, and Jacob came to her. |
4. And she made her handmaid Bilhah free, and delivered her to him,
and Ya’aqob entered with her. |
|
5. And Bilhah conceived, and she
bore Jacob a son. |
5. And Bilhah conceived, and bare a son to Ya’aqob. |
|
6. And Rachel said, "God has
judged me, and He has also hearkened to my voice and has given me a
son"; so she named him Dan. |
6. And Rachel said, The LORD has judged me in His good mercies; He has
also heard the voice of my prayer, and given me a son; and so it is to be
that He will judge by the hand of Shimshon bar Manovach, who will be of his
seed; and has he not delivered into his hand the people of the Philistaee?
Therefore she called his name Dan. |
|
7. And Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, conceived again
and bore Jacob a second son. |
7. And Bilhah the handmaid of Leah conceived again and bare a second son
to Ya’aqob. |
|
8. And Rachel said, "[With]
divine bonds I have been joined to my sister; I have also prevailed"; so
she named him Naftali. |
8. And Rachel said, With affliction afflicted was I before the LORD in
prayer; therefore He has received my request that I might have a son as my
sister, and has given me two. Even so are my children to be redeemed from the
hand of their enemies when they will afflict themselves in prayer before the
LORD; and she called his name Naphtali. |
|
9. When Leah saw that she had
stopped bearing [children], she took her maidservant Zilpah, and gave her to
Jacob for a wife. |
9. And Leah saw that she had ceased from
bearing, and she made Zilpha her handmaid free, and gave her unto Ya’aqob to
wife. |
|
10. And Zilpah, Leah's maidservant,
bore Jacob a son. |
10. And Zilpha the handmaid of Leah conceived, and bare Ya’aqob a son; |
|
11. And Leah said, "Luck has come"; so she
named him Gad. |
11. and Leah said, Good fortune comes; His children will surely inherit
their habitation on the east side of Jarden: and she called his name Gad. JERUSALEM: And Leah said, Good success
Comes; for the feastings of the Gentiles are to be cut off: and she called
his name Gad.. |
|
12. And Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, bore Jacob a
second son. |
12. And Zilpha the handmaid of
Leah bare a second son to Ya’aqob. |
|
13. And Leah said, "Because of my good fortune,
for women have declared me fortunate"; so she named him Asher. |
13. And Leah said, Praise will
be mine: for the daughters of Israel will praise me, as his children will be
praised before the LORD for the goodness of the fruit of His land; and she
called his name Asher. |
|
14. Reuben went in the days of the
wheat harvest, and he found dudaim in the field and brought them to Leah, his
mother, and Rachel said to Leah, "Now give me some of your son's
dudaim." |
14. And Reuben went in the days of
Sivan, in the time of wheat harvest, and found (Yaveruchin) mandrakes in the
field; and he brought them to Leah his mother. And Rachel said to Leah, Give
me now of your son's mandrakes. |
|
15. And she said to her, "Is
it a small matter that you have taken my husband, that [you wish] also to
take my son's dudaim?" So Rachel said, "Therefore, he shall sleep
with you tonight as payment for your son's dudaim." |
15. And she said to her, Is it a
little thing that you have taken my husband, and you seek to take also my
son's mandrakes? And Rachel said, Therefore will he lie with you this night
for your son's mandrakes. JERUSALEM: For a week he will consort with you. |
|
16. When Jacob came from the field
in the evening, and Leah came forth toward him, and she said, "You shall
come to me, because I have hired you with my son's dudaim," and he slept
with her on that night. |
16. And Ya’aqob came from the field
at evening. And Leah heard the voice of the braying of the ass, and knew that
Ya’aqob had come, and Leah went forth to meet him, and said, You will enter
with me, because hiring I have hired you with my son's mandrakes from Rachel
my sister. |
|
17. And God hearkened to Leah, and she conceived and
bore Jacob a fifth son. |
17. And he lay with her that
night. And the LORD heard the prayer of Leah, and she conceived, and bare to
Ya’aqob a fifth son. |
|
18. And Leah said, "God has given [me] my reward
for I have given my maidservant to my husband"; so she named him
Issachar. |
18. And Leah said, The LORD has
given me my reward, for that I gave my handmaid to my husband; even so will
his children receive a good reward, because they will occupy themselves with
the Law. And she called his name Issakar. |
|
19. And Leah conceived again, and
she bore Jacob a sixth son. |
19. And Leah conceived again, and
bare a sixth son to Ya’aqob; and said, The LORD has endowed me with a good
dowry by children. This time will the habitation of my husband be with me, because
I have borne him six sons: and thus will his children receive a good portion.
And she called his name Zebulun. |
|
20. And Leah said, "God has
given me a good portion. This time, my husband will live with me, for I have
borne him six sons"; so she named him Zebulun. |
20. - - - |
|
21. And afterwards, she bore a daughter, and she
named her Dinah. |
21. And afterward she bare a
daughter, and called her name Dinah; for she said, Judgement is from before
the LORD, that there will be from me a half of the tribes; but from Rahel my
sister will go forth two tribes, even as they will proceed (in like manner)
from each of the handmaids. And the prayer of Leah was heard before the LORD;
and the infants were changed In their wombs; and Joseph was given to the womb
of Rachel, and Dinah to the womb of Leah. |
|
|
|
Summary of the
Torah Seder – B’resheet (Genesis) 29:31 – 30:21
·
The birth of
Jacob’s children – Gen. 29:31 – 30:21
Welcome to the
World of P’shat Exegesis
In
order to understand the finished work of the P’shat mode of interpretation of
the Torah, one needs to take into account that the P’shat is intended to
produce a catechetical output, whereby a question/s is/are raised and an
answer/a is/are given using the seven Hermeneutic Laws of R. Hillel and as well
as the laws of Hebrew Grammar and Hebrew expression.
The
Seven Hermeneutic Laws of R. Hillel are as follows
[cf.
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=472&letter=R]:
1.
Ḳal va-ḥomer: "Argumentum a minori ad majus" or "a
majori ad minus"; corresponding to the scholastic proof a fortiori.
2.
Gezerah shavah: Argument from analogy. Biblical passages containing
synonyms or homonyms are subject, however much they differ in other respects,
to identical definitions and applications.
3.
Binyan ab mi-katub eḥad: Application of a provision
found in one passage only to passages which are related to the first in content
but do not contain the provision in question.
4.
Binyan ab mi-shene ketubim: The same as the preceding, except that the provision
is generalized from two Biblical passages.
5.
Kelal u-Peraṭ and Peraṭ u-kelal:
Definition of the general by the particular, and of the particular by the
general.
6.
Ka-yoẓe bo mi-maḳom aḥer:
Similarity in content to another Scriptural passage.
7.
Dabar ha-lamed me-'inyano: Interpretation deduced from the context.
Reading Assignment:
The
Torah Anthology: Yalkut Me’Am Lo’Ez - Vol IIIa: The Twelve Tribes
By:
Rabbi Yaaqov Culi, Translated by: Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan
Published
by: Moznaim Publishing Corp. (New York, 1990)
Vol.
3a – “The Twelve Tribes,” pp. 62-75
Rashi’s
Commentary for: B’resheet (Genesis) 29:31
– 30:21
32 and she named him Reuben -(Ber. 7b) Our Sages explained: She said, “Look at
the difference between my son and the son of my father-in-law, who sold the
birthright to Jacob (above 25:33). This one (Reuben) did not sell it to Joseph,
but he nevertheless did not contend against him but sought to take him out of
the pit.”
34 this time my husband will be attached Heb. יִלָּוֶה . Since the Matriarchs were prophetesses,
they knew that twelve tribes would emanate from Jacob, and that he would marry
four wives, she said, “From now on, he will find no fault with me for I have
contributed my share in (producing) sons.”-[from Bereisheet Rabbathi,
attributed to Rabbi Moshe Hadarshan, Midrash Aggadah] [I.e., three sons were
thought to be each wife’s share of the twelve.]
therefore Whoever is referred to
with the expression עַל-כֵּן had a large population, except Levi, because the Ark
destroyed many of them.- [from Gen. Rabbah 71:4]
He named him Levi [I
wondered why] it is written concerning this one, “and he named,” while
concerning all [the others], it is written, “and she named.” There is an
aggadic midrash in Deuteronomy Rabbah, [which relates] how the Holy One,
blessed be He, sent Gabriel and he brought him (Levi) before Him, and He gave
him this name, and He gave him the twenty-four priestly gifts; and because he
accompanied him (לִוָּהוּ) with gifts, he named him Levi.
35 This time, I will thank since I have taken more than my share.
Consequently, I must offer up thanks.-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:4]
Chapter 30
1 and Rachel envied her sister She envied her good deeds. She said, “If she had
not been more righteous/generous than I, she would not have merited children”
(Gen. Rabbah 71:5).
Give me Did your father [not]
do that for your mother? Did he not pray for her?-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:7]
I am dead From here [we learn]
that whoever has no children is counted as dead.-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:6]
2 Am I instead of God Am I in His place?
Who has withheld from you You say that I should do as my father did. I am
not like my father. My father had no sons [at the time he prayed], but I have
sons. [It is thus apparent that] He has withheld [children] from you, not from
me.-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:7]
3 on my knees As
the Targum renders: and I will rear [them].
so that I, too, will be built up What is [the meaning of] “too”? She said to him,
“Your grandfather Abraham had sons from Hagar; yet he girded his loins (he
prayed fervently) on Sarah’s behalf.” He replied, “My grandmother brought her
rival into her house.” She said, “If this matter is holding things up (prevents
me from having children), here is my maidservant.”-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:7]
so that I, too, will be built up from her like Sarah.-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:7]
6 God has judged me He judged me, declared me guilty, and then
declared me innocent.-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:7].
8 divine bonds Heb. נַפְתּוּלֵי אֱלֽהִים . Menachem ben Saruk (p. 147) classified
it in the grouping of Num. 19:15, “a cover bound (פָּתִיל) .” With bonds from the Omnipresent, I
have joined my sister to merit children. But I interpret it as an expression of
“perverse and crooked (וּפְתַלְתּֽל) .” (Deut. 32:5). I have stubbornly
pleaded many tortuous pleas to the Omnipresent to be equal to my sister.
I have also prevailed He yielded to my importunities. Onkelos, however,
rendered it as an expression of prayer (תְּפִלָּה) : נַפְתּוּלֵי
אֱלֽהִים
נִפְתַּלְתִּי . Requests beloved to Him were accepted on
my behalf, and I was answered like my sister. נִפְתַּלְתִּי means: my prayer was accepted. There are
many aggadic midrashim that interpret this phrase with the method of notarikon,
(i.e., each group of letters represents a word).
10 And Zilpah...bore In the case of all of them (i. e., all Jacob’s
wives), conception is mentioned, except for Zilpah, because she was the
youngest of them all and so young in years that her pregnancy was not noticed.
In order to deceive Jacob, Laban gave her to Leah, so that he would not
perceive that they were bringing in Leah, for this was their custom, to give
the older maidservant to the older [daughter] and the younger [maidservant] to
the younger [daughter].-[from Gen. Rabbah 71:9]
11 “Luck has come” Heb. בָּא
גָּד .
Good luck has come [Targum Jonathan ben Uzziel] similar to (Shab. 67b) ”May my
fate be lucky (גָד
גַדִּי) and not fatigued,” and similar to this (Isa. 65:11), “who set
a table for Gad.” According to the Aggadah [Midrash Aggadah in the name of
“some say”], he was born circumcised גָּד , meaning “cut off”), like Dan. 4:11, “cut
down (גּֽדוּ) the tree,” but I do not know why it is
written as one word (בָּגָד) [in our verse]. Another explanation: Why
is it read as one word? בָּגָד is like בָָּגַדְתָּ בִּי , you betrayed me when you came to my
handmaid, as a man who has betrayed (בָּגַד) the wife of his youth.
14 in the days of the wheat harvest [This is] to tell the praise of the [progenitors
of] the tribes. It was harvest time, and he did not stretch out his hand upon
stolen property, to bring wheat or barley, but only upon an ownerless thing,
which no one cares about.-[from Gen. Rabbah 72:2]
dudaim - (Sanh. 99b) Sigli. This
is an herb, [called] jasmine in Arabic.
15 that [you wish] also to take my son’s dudaim? This is a question: and [do you wish] to do this
also, to take also my son’s dudaim? The Targum for this is וּלְמֵיסַב , and to take.
Therefore, he shall sleep with you tonight Tonight’s cohabitation belonged to me, but I will
give it to you in lieu of your son’s dudaim. Since she treated the cohabitation of the righteous/generous
man lightly, she did not merit to be buried with him.-[from Gen.
Rabbah 72:3]
16 I have hired you I gave Rachel her payment.-[from Targum Jonathan]
on that night Heb. בַָּלַיְלָה
הוּא .
The Holy One, blessed be He, assisted that Issachar should be born from that
union.-[from Niddah 31a]
17 And God hearkened to Leah That she desired and was seeking means to increase
the number of tribes.-[from Gen. Rabbah 72:5]
20 a good portion Heb. זֶבֶד
טוֹב .
[To be interpreted] according to its Aramaic translation [ חוּלַק טַב , a good portion].
will live with me An expression of a dwelling place; herberjerie in
O. F.; lodging, abode, home. From now on, his principal dwelling will be only
with me, because I have as many sons as all his [other] wives have.
21 Dinah Our Sages explained
that Leah pronounced judgment (דָּנָה) upon herself. [She reasoned:] If this is
a male, my sister Rachel will not be [esteemed even] as one of the handmaids.
So she prayed over him, and he was turned into a female (Ber. 60a).
Welcome to the
World of Remes Exegesis
Thirteen rules compiled by Rabbi Ishmael b. Elisha for the elucidation of
the Torah and for making halakic deductions from it. They are, strictly
speaking, mere amplifications of the seven Rules of Hillel, and are collected in
the Baraita of R. Ishmael, forming the
introduction to the Sifra and reading a follows:
Rules seven to eleven are formed by a subdivision of
the fifth rule of Hillel; rule twelve corresponds to the seventh rule of
Hillel, but is amplified in certain particulars; rule thirteen does not occur
in Hillel, while, on the other hand, the sixth rule of Hillel is omitted by
Ishmael. With regard to the rules and their application in general. These rules
are found also on the morning prayers of any Jewish Orthodox Siddur.
Ramban’s
Commentary for: B’resheet (Genesis) 29:31
– 30:21
31. AND THE ETERNAL SAW THAT LEAH WAS HATED. Now Leah had deceived her sister and also Jacob.
For even if we were to say that she showed respect for her father, who took her
and brought her in to him and she was not
rebellious against him, she should have by word or sign indicated that she was
Leah. All the more is this so since she feigned
herself all night to be another, which was the reason why Jacob did not
recognize her until he saw her in the morning. It was for this reason
that Jacob hated her. But God, knowing that she did
so in order to be married to the righteous/generous one, had compassion upon
her. And so the Rabbis said in Beresheet Rabba[1]
"When Jacob saw the deeds by which Leah had deceived her sister, he
decided to divorce her. But when the Holy One, blessed be He,
remembered her by giving her children, Jacob said, 'Shall I divorce the mother
of these children?' " This is the meaning of the expression, And the Eternal saw: He had compassion upon her so
that Jacob should not leave her. But there are some scholars[2]
who say that in the case of two wives, one of whom
is loved exceedingly, the second one, who is the less beloved, is called
"hated" relative to the first, just as Scripture said,
And he loved Rachel more than Leah,[3]
but not that he hated her. Leah however was ashamed of the matter and so G-d
saw her affliction.
30:1. GIVE ME CHILDREN. The
commentators[4] said
that this means that Rachel asked Jacob to pray on
her behalf. Or else I die - Rashi comments: "For one who is
childless may be considered as dead." This is
a Midrash of our Rabbis.[5]
But I
wonder. If so, why was Jacob angry with her? And why did he say, Am I in
G-d's stead?[6] for
God hearkens to the righteous/generous.[7]
[I wonder concerning] that which Jacob said [to
Rachel, as quoted in Rashi:[8]
"You say that I should do as did my father, who prayed on behalf of Rebekah, but I am not circumstanced as my father was. My]
father had no children at all. I, however, have children. It is from you that
He had withheld children and not from me." Do
not the righteous/generous pray on behalf of others? There were Elijah[9]
and Elisha[10] who
prayed on behalf of strange women.
It
would appear that on account of Jacob's answer, our Rabbis took him to task, saying in
Beresheet Rabba:[11]
"The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Jacob,
'Is this the way to answer a woman who is oppressed by her barrenness? By your life! Your
children are destined to stand before her son Joseph!' "
In
line with the plain meaning of Scripture, Rachel asked of Jacob that he give
her children, but her intent was truly to say that he should pray on her behalf and continue indeed to pray until God
would, in any case, grant her children, and if not, she would mortify herself
because of grief. In her envy she spoke improperly,
thinking that because Jacob loved her he would fast, put on sackcloth with
ashes,[12] and
pray until she would have children, so that she
should not die of her grief.
2. AND JACOB'S ANGER WAS KINDLED. It
is not in the power of the righteous/generous that their prayer be heard and
answered in any case, and because she spoke in the
manner of yearning women who are loved, thus attempting to frighten him with
her death, his anger was kindled. Therefore, he said
to her that he is not in God's stead that he should remember the barren ones by
giving them children in any case, and he does not
care about it since it is from her that children were withheld and not from
him. He said this in order to admonish her and shame her. Now the
righteous/generous woman Rachel, seeing that she could not rely upon Jacob's
prayer, then went to pray on her own behalf to Him Who hears the cry
of those in trouble. This is the sense of the verse, And G-d hearkened to
her.[13]
Perhaps
we can rectify Jacob's retort in consonance with the opinion of our Rabbis [who
related that Jacob said to Rachel, "It is from you that he
has withheld children and not from me,"] for it is impossible to think that Jacob did not pray on
behalf of his beloved wife who was barren, however
his prayer was not accepted.
Now
Rachel came to him with a pretext saying that he should, in any case, give her
children through his prayer for he is not of less stature than his
father who did so. At this, his anger was kindled and he said to her that the
matter is up to G-d and not to him, and that his father's prayer was
heard because he was a righteous/generous man and was destined to have
children, but here it is from her that He has withheld children. This is a
correct interpretation.
5. AND SHE BORE 'L'YAAQOV' (TO JACOB) A SON. In
the case of all the handmaids Scripture mentions the phrase, to Jacob
[in connection with the birth of their children],
in order to relate that Jacob desired and acknowledged them and that they were
not called by him "sons of the handmaids,"
but "sons of Jacob," just like the sons of the mistresses who traced
their lineage to him. In the case of the fifth and sixth sons of Leah
it also says, to Jacob,[14]
since due to her abundance of sons, Scripture deems it necessary to say that Jacob
desired and befriended all of them. This is not
mentioned in connection with the birth of the first [four sons of Leah because
it is obvious that Jacob desired them].
.
9. WHEN LEAH SAW THAT SHE HAD LEFT OFF BEARING SHE
TOOK ZILPAH HER HANDMAID, etc. I do not know what motivated this
deed of Leah and why she gave her handmaid to her husband for she was not
barren that she should hope to have children through Zilpah, and
it is not natural for women to increase the number of their husbands' wives. We
must, however, say that
the matriarchs were prophetesses,[15]
who knew that Jacob was destined to establish twelve tribes, and Leah desired
that the majority of his sons be from her or from her handmaid,
who was in her power, so that her sister Rachel would not prevail over her with
respect to the number of her sons. Therefore, she said,
God has given me my share, because I have given my handmaid to my husband[16]
Jacob also came unto her on account of this, i.e., that he
raise many sons for he knew it to be so, as our Rabbis have said.[17]
It is
possible that knowing that the Land had been given to their children, and
realizing that Abraham and Isaac had not had many children, Jacob wanted to have many wives in order to
increase his progeny so as to inherit the Land, for a fourth generation will
come hither again,[18]
and so Leah wanted to give him her handmaid so that he would not wed a
stranger.
14. 'DUDA'IM.' These
are 'sigli' (violets). In Arabic it is called jasmin.
So I found in Rashi's commentary. But this is not so for the Arabic jasmin
bears the same name in the words of our Rabbis, as
they say in the chapter Bameh Tomnin:[19]
"Poppy pomace
flavored with jasmin maybe used [as a lotion on the
Sabbath] ," while they say sigli is an
odorous herb concerning which they have said[20]
that on smelling it, one recites the blessing:
"Blessed are You ... who creates odorous plants." However, their
season is not in the days of the wheat, but perhaps Reuben found
them there by chance. It is best to accept Onkelos' opinion concerning the
translation of duda'im, which he rendered as yavruchin
(mandrakes). In Beresheet Rabba[21]
it is also explained similarly: "Rabbi Chiya
the son of Rabbi Abba said, 'Yavruchin,' " and these are yavruach
in Arabic.
Now
Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote: "Onkelos translated duda'im as
'mandrakes,' and so they are called in Arabic. They have a good odor. And it is so written: The mandrakes give forth fragrance.[22]
They resemble the human form as they have the shape of the human head and hands. Now some say that they are an aid to pregnancy,
but I do not know it since their effect is to produce the cold fluid in the
body." These are Ibn Ezra's words.
The
correct interpretation is that Rachel wanted the duda'im for
delight and pleasure, for Rachel was visited with children through prayer, not by medicinal methods. And Reuben brought the branches of duda'im
or the fruit, which resemble apples and have a good odor. The stem, however, which is shaped in the form of the human head
and hands, he did not bring, and it is the stem which people say is an aid to
pregnancy. And if the matter be true, it is by some peculiar effect,
not by its natural quality. But I have not seen it thus in any of the medicinal
books discussing mandrakes.
15. IS IT A SMALL MATTER THAT YOU HAVE TAKEN AWAY
MY HUSBAND? The intent thereof is as follows: "Is it a
small matter that you take my husband unto yourself
as if you are his wife and I am the handmaid? Will you now also make yourself
the mistress to take the mandrakes in whose odor I
delight?"
It is
possible that Rachel wanted the mandrakes in honor of Jacob to perfume his couch.
Leah had done in the
customary way of women, just as it is
written, I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.[23]
Therefore, Leah said, Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband from me that you now also take my son's mandrakes to win him over
with them?
And
some scholars say[24]
that duda'im are herbs, which act as a male aphrodisiac, the word
being derived from the expression, the time of 'dodim'
(love).[25]
Therefore Leah said, Is it a small matter that you have taken away my
husband? as I have mentioned.
20. G-D HAS 'Z'VADANI' (ENDOWED) ME WITH A GOOD
'ZEVED' (DOWRY). The commentators have not found the source of this
word in the Sacred Language. We
could perhaps say that zeved is a composite word formed from zeh bad,
just as is the word madua, [which is composed of the two words, mah dua, meaning "what is the opinion of
this matter" or simply "why"] or the word bagad[26]
in its written form. [It is read, however, as two words:
ba gad (good luck comes)] Since the vowel signs segol
and patach interchange in many places, particularly in composite
words, [the second segol in zeved
could have come from the patach of bad: zeh
bad]. So also in the word tzalmaveth, [which consists of
the two words: tzeil maveth (the
shade of death)] , and the word biladai, [composed of bal ad
(except unto, except unto me, or except me)]. And the second part (bad)
of the word zeved comes from the word badim
(branches), as in, 'badei' (staves)
of accacia-wood;[27] And
it brought forth 'badim' (branches), and shot forth sprigs.[28]
The thick branches of a tree are called badim,
and then the word was appropriated to mean "children," as in, The
first-born of death will devour 'badav' (his sons);[29]
His ill-founded 'badav' (sons).[30]
Therefore Leah said that this son whom God had given her would be a good son
for he will cause her husband to reside in her
shadow, as "he will now 'yizbleini' (dwell with me) in my
shadow." Similarly, I have surely built You a house 'z'oul' (of habitation),[31]
meaning "in order to abide in His shadow." This was said in this
fashion out of respect for the Supreme One, just as Solomon said,
Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You, how much less
this house that I have built![32]
Likewise, The sun and moon stand still 'z'vulah'
(in their habitation),[33]
meaning "stand still in the place where they abide," as it is said, In
them [the heavens] has He set a tent for the sun.[34]
Now
Onkelos translated zeved tov as a good portion. I did not
understand his reasoning until I saw in the Jerusalem Targum:[35]
"The word of G-d has outfitted me (zavad)
with good provision." [Zavad is written here with two vavim
instead of the beth with which the word zeved is written in the Torah.] From this I learned that both
Onkelos and the Jerusalem Targum considered the word zeved of the
Torah, which is spelled with the letter beth,
as if it were written with the letter vav, and they connected it
to the Aramaic language which translates the Hebrew word tzeidah
(provision) as zvadim (provisions). Leah thus said that G-d had
made this son a good provision and a good portion for her because her husband, due to her
many children, will now live mainly with her, and thus she will be supported
together with him when it is well with him. The vav
and the beth are used interchangeably in our language in many
places, such as: ta'avah (desire) written with a vav,[36]
and ta'avah, written with a beth;[37]
geivi (My back) - [written with a vav] - I have
given to the smiters,[38]
and, Upon 'gabi' (my back) - [written with a beth] -
the plowers plowed.[39]
So also, 'Lekitzuei' (To the bottoms) - [written with a beth]
- of the mountains I went down,[40]
is as if it were written, lekitzvei
with a vav. Also, 'Laparbor' (For the precinct) -
[written with a beth] - westward, four at the causeway,[41]
serves as the basis of the word parvor,
written with a vav, as it is written, By the chamber of
Nethan-melech the officer, which was 'baparvorim' (in the precincts),[42]
written with a vav, and the meaning
of both forms, [whether written with a beth or vav]
is the Court which is outside the wall. 'Umigrash' (And open land) round about the cities,[43]
is rendered by the Jerusalem Targum as, uparvor. And so did the
Jonathan Targum translate migrashoth (open
lands) as parvoraya.[44]
In the Mishnah we also find the vav and the beth
interchange: "A tarvad (spoon)-full," written with a vav,[45]
and in some editions it is written, tarbad,
with a beth; "A board which has no levazbiz
(edges)," written with a beth,[46]
and in certain places they use the word lazbiz,
written with a beth,[47]
while in other places they use lazviz written with a vav.[48]
Also, itztaba (a balcony), written with
a beth,[49]
and itztava, written with a vav,[50]
and many other similar words. In the Jerusalem Talmud they also write avir
(space)[51]
with a beth in place of the usual vav,
as they were not particular about that.
Ketubim:
Psalms 24:1-10
|
Rashi’s Translation |
Targum |
|
1. Of David, a song. The land and
the fullness thereof are the Lord's; the world and those who dwell therein. |
1. Of David. A Psalm. Behold, the earth and its
creatures are the LORD's, the world and those who dwell in it. |
|
2. For He founded it upon seas and
established it upon rivers. |
2. For He set a foundation on the seas and fixed it
firmly on the rivers. |
|
3. Who will ascend upon the Lord's
mount and who will stand in His Holy place? |
3. Who will ascend the mount of the LORD's sanctuary?
And who will stand in his holy place? |
|
4. He who has clean hands and a
pure heart, who has not taken My name in vain and has not sworn deceitfully. |
4. One with clean hands and a pure mind, who has not
sworn to a lie to make himself guilty, and who has not made an oath in guile. |
|
5. He shall receive a blessing
from the Lord and charity from the God of his salvation. |
5. He will receive blessings from the presence of the
LORD, and generosity from God his redemption. |
|
6. This is the generation of those
who seek Him, who seek Your presence-Jacob, forever. |
6. This is the generation that seeks Him, that looks for His
countenance, O Jacob, forever! |
|
7. [You] gates, lift your heads
and be uplifted, [you] everlasting portals, so that the King of Glory may
enter. |
7. Lift up, O sanctuary gates, your heads; and stand
erect, O eternal entrances, that the glorious king may enter. |
|
8. Who is this King of Glory? The
Lord, Who is strong and mighty, the Lord Who is a mighty warrior. |
8. Who is this glorious king? The LORD, strong and mighty,
the LORD, a mighty ruler and one who wages battle. |
|
9. [You] gates, lift your heads
and lift up, [you] everlasting portals, so that the King of Glory may enter. |
9. Lift up your heads, O gates of the Garden of Eden; and
stand erect, O eternal entrances, and the glorious king will enter. |
|
10. Who is this King of Glory? The
Lord of Hosts-He is the King of Glory forever. |
10. Who is this glorious king? The LORD Sabaoth, He is the
glorious king forever. |
|
|
|
Rashi’s
Commentary on Psalms 24:1-10
1 The land...are the Lord’s The land of Israel.
the world The other lands.
2 founded it upon seas Seven seas surrounded Eretz Yisrael and four
rivers: the Jordan, Yarmuk, Karmion, and Pigah.
3 Who will ascend upon the Lord’s mount Although all the inhabitants
of the world are His, not everyone deserves to come near to Him, except these:
he who has clean hands, etc.
4 who has not taken My name in vain Who has not sworn with My name
and My soul in vain. We find an expression of an oath used with the soul (nefesh),
as it is stated (in Amos 6: 8): “The Lord God swore by Himself (eytpa).”
6 This [generation,] whose deeds are such - this is the generation of
those who seek him.
7 [You] gates, lift your heads In the days of Solomon his son, when
he comes to bring the Ark into the Holy of Holies and the gates cling to each
other, he [Solomon] recited twenty-four praises, but he was not answered until
he said (II Chron. 6:42): “Do not turn back the face of Your anointed; remember
the kind deeds of David, Your servant.”
9 everlasting portals Portals whose sanctity is everlasting.
Meditation from
the Psalms
Psalms 24:1-10
By: HH
Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David
King
David brought a terrible plague, lasting three days, on Israel by counting his
soldiers. The plague, from HaShem, was halted with a sacrifice on the threshing floor
that would become the Temple.[52] The Temple mount was
purchased, from the king of the Yevusi,[53] by King David, for fifty
shekels, to stay the judgment of his census. David composed this psalm on the
day that he purchased the land of the Temple site from Aravna, the king of the
Yevusi.[54] At that time, David erected a
temporary altar upon which he offered sacrifices of thanksgiving.
2 Divrei
Hayamim (Chronicles) 3:1 Then Solomon began to build the
temple of HaShem in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where HaShem had appeared to his
father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place
provided by David.
2 Shmuel (Samuel) 24:14-25 David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the
hands of HaShem, for his mercy is great; but do not let me fall into the hands
of men.” So HaShem sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of
the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba
died. When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, HaShem was
grieved because of the calamity and said to the angel who was afflicting the
people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of HaShem was then at the threshing floor of
Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking down
the people, he said to HaShem, “I am the one who has sinned and done wrong.
These are but sheep. What have they done? Let your hand fall upon me and my family.”
On that day Gad went to David and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to
HaShem on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David went up, as
HaShem had commanded through Gad. When Araunah looked and saw the king and his
men coming toward him, he went out and bowed down before the king with his face
to the ground. Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
“To buy your threshing floor,” David answered, “so I can build an altar to
HaShem, that the plague on the people may be stopped.” Araunah said to David,
“Let my lord the king take whatever pleases him and offer it up. Here are oxen
for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the
wood. O king, Araunah gives all this to the king.” Araunah also said to him,
“May HaShem your God accept you.” But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I
insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to HaShem my God burnt
offerings that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the
oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them. David built an altar to HaShem
there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then HaShem
answered prayer in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.
The
threshing floor is an apt description of the Temple. It was the threshing floor of
Araunah that King David purchased as the place for the Temple. This
threshing floor (the Holy of Holies) is the place of intimacy between HaShem
and His bride. It is the place of atonement (Yom HaKippurim). This atonement is
achieved within the intimacy between HaShem and His people.
Note
in the following Midrash how the threshing floor was associated with harlotry,
which is intimacy with the wrong person:
Midrash Rabbah
- Ruth V:15 AND WHEN BOAZ HAD EATEN AND DRUNK, AND HIS HEART WAS GOOD (III,
7). Why was his heart good? Because he recited the grace after meals. Another
interpretation: AND HIS HEART WAS GOOD: he ate different kinds of sweet things
after his meal, as they accustom the tongue to the Torah. Another
interpretation of AND HIS HEART WAS GOOD: he occupied himself with the words of
the Torah, as it is said, The law of thy mouth is good to me (Ps. CXIX, 72).
Another interpretation: AND HIS HEART WAS GOOD: he sought a wife, as it is
said, Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing (Prov. XVIII, 22). HE WENT TO
LIE DOWN AT THE END OF THE HEAP OF CORN. R. Judah Nesiah inquired of R.
Phinehas b. Hama: Boaz was one of the notables of his generation, and yet it
says that HE WENT TO LIE DOWN AT THE END OF THE HEAP OF CORN: He answered him: That
generation was steeped in immorality, and they used to pay harlots from the
threshing-floors, as it is said, Rejoice not, O Israel, unto exaltation,
like the peoples... Thou hast loved a harlot’s hire upon every threshing-floor
(Hoshea 9:1). And righteous men do not act so. Moreover, because the righteous
spurn ill-gotten gain, their possessions are precious to them’.
It
is also worthy of note that when Ruth went to the threshing floor where Boaz
was sleeping, her desire was for marital intimacy.
Ruth 3:6-9 And
she went down unto the threshing floor, and did according to all that her
mother in law bade her. 7 And when Boaz
had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of
the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her
down. 8 And it came to pass at midnight,
that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his
feet. 9 And he said, Who art thou? And
she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine
handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.
In
our Torah portion last week, Yaakov saw “a ladder set up on the earth, and the
top of it reached to heaven; and behold the angels of HaShem ascending and
descending on it”.[55] And at the threshing
floor of Aravna the Yevusi, David sees “the angel of the Lord standing between
the earth and the heaven, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over
Jerusalem”.[56]
The connection between earth and heaven which is mentioned in both
places is part of the essence of the Temple, the Bet HaMikdash. In both
places, there is a revelation of HaShem and of an angel, the revelation of a
place, fear of HaShem, and calling the place by a name.
The
Rambam tells us that, “It is a well-known tradition that the place where David
and Solomon built the altar in the threshing floor of Aravna is the place where
Avraham built the altar and bound Yitzchak. It is the place where Noach built
an altar when he went forth from the ark. It is the place where Cain and Abel
sacrificed, and it is the place where Adam offered a sacrifice when he was
created and from that very place he was created. Our sages said, ‘From that
place where he was created, there he will obtain forgiveness of his sin’”.[57]
David’s
intention was that this psalm should be recited on the day of the inauguration
of the Temple. For this reason, this psalm is recited by Ashkenazi
congregations as they accompany the Torah scroll back to the synagogue Ark
following the reading of the portion.[58] So basic and profound is
the message of this psalm, that it was chosen for all congregations to read
this psalm as the ‘Song of the Day’ for the first day of the week. This psalm
was selected to be read on the first day of the week on account of verses one
and two:
Tehillim
(Psalm) 24:1-2 A Psalm of David. {N} The earth is HaShem’s, and the
fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For He hath founded
it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods.
This
formulation is similar to the Torah’s description of the first day of creation.
The verses “Lift up your heads … so that the King of Glory may come in”, are
included among the verses of Malkhuyyot recited in the Musaf Amida on Rosh
HaShanah. In addition the beginning of the psalm alludes to the creation of the
world, as was mentioned above, so that the entire psalm relates to the themes
of Rosh HaShanah. [59]
The
general concept of this month, the month of
Elul, is the time when the King is in the field, available to all. Although on Yom
HaKippurim one sees the higher levels of a King in His palace, in Elul one sees
the true love, the true connection between the King and His people. The
“palace” is comparable to the Holy of Holies, the exclusive quarters of the
King where none dare enter. But in the field He is approachable, accepting all
with a smiling countenance.
Some
interesting historical events for this week:
Elul
23 Noah kept the dove 6 days
before dispatching it the next morning.[60]
Elul
24 Noah's dove brings back an olive branch.[61]
David lies with Bathsheba.[62]
Preparations made to work on
Ezra's temple begins.[63]
Elul
25 The world was created on this day, according
to the Rabbis. HaShem said, “Let there be light”.
Elul
26 God separates the
waters above from the waters below.[64] This is the
second day of creation.
Elul
27 God creates dry land and
plants.[65] This is the
third day of creation.
Finally,
this psalm commemorates one of the most significant events in history! As
we said earlier, this psalm was composed on the occasion of the purchase of the
Temple site. However, when viewed from a mystical and historical perspective,
this event is monumental!
There
were three places which the Patriarchs and King David purchased with money.
They were:
1.
The Cave
of Machpelah near Hebron where the Patriarchs and their wives are buried. This
site was purchased by Avraham Avinu.
2.
The
field near Shechem where Yosef HaTzaddik is buried. This site was purchased
by Yaaqov Avinu.
3.
Har
HaBayit, the Temple mount, in Jerusalem. This site was purchased by
David HaMelech.
To
understand the significance of these three places it is necessary to ask a
question: Why is “First”
more important than the “Best”? (Read that question again! Ponder it
for a moment. If you do not appreciate the question, then you will never
appreciate the answer.)
Bikkurim
[first fruits], Bechor [the first born], the separation of the
Priestly gift of challah, the first shearings of the wool, the first of the
dough, the firstborn of man and animal, all have something in common. They all
represent beginnings; they are all “Firsts”.
The
Torah asks us to bring the first fruits to the Beit HaMikdash, the
Temple. The Torah does not specify that we should “bring the best”; rather the
Torah specifies that we should “bring the first”. Likewise, we are not
commanded to pick the best or the brightest son to be dedicated to the Divine
Service in the Beit HaMikdash. We are commanded to devote the first son
to that Service.
Why does the Torah insist on “firsts”
and not “bests”? The reason for the preference for “firsts” is because the
“first” sets the tone. “First” is the beginning, the foundation. It might not
be so bad if a building has a flaw on the fourth or fifth floor, but a flaw in
the foundation is very serious. The foundation sets the tone.
Each
of these three cities is notable as a “First”. This suggests that they are
foundational to the use of the land.
The
Torah documents the purchase of the land for the tombs of the Patriarchs and
the land that contains the tomb of Yosef HaTzaddik . The only other parcel
whose purchase is documented, in perpetuity, by Scripture itself is the site of
the Beit HaMikdash, the Temple, in Jerusalem. These three special places, in
Eretz Israel, are mentioned explicitly in the Midrash:
Midrash Rabbah
- Genesis LXXIX:7 AND HE BOUGHT THE PARCEL OF GROUND, etc. (XXXIII, 19). R. Judan b.
R. Simon said: This is one of the three places regarding which the nations of
the world cannot taunt Israel and say, ‘ Ye have stolen them.’ These are they:
The cave of Machpelah, the [site of the] Temple, and the sepulcher of Yosef
HaTzaddik . The cave of Machpelah: And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver
(Gen. XXIII, 16). The Temple: So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred
shekels of gold (I Chron. XXI, 25). And Yosef HaTzaddik’s sepulcher: AND HE
BOUGHT THE PARCEL OF GROUND.
R.
Aharon Soloveitchik[66] calls this kind of
acquisition “chazakah”, holding. It comes from HaShem’s commandment to Adam “to
guard the garden and keep it”. (Beresheet 2:13) This is the gift of reaching
unto things through cultivation, work and dedication.
How
tragically ironic it is that it is in regard to these very areas: Hebron, Shechem,
and the Temple Mount, we are forced to stand up against the world to defend our
rights of ownership.
“The
entire war is based on who’s in charge of the holy sites. The Arabs sense that
their life force comes from the Jews’ holy sites. That’s why their battles have
always been focused on the tombs of the righteous/generous, because these
places nourish their life force. It’s no wonder that they hold fast to Kever
(the tomb of) Yosef, Kever Rachel Imeinu, Machpelah, and most
importantly, The Temple mount.”[67]
Now
these three cities Shechem, Hebron, and Jerusalem all share certain common
features:
As
Jews, we believe that legally and morally according to our laws and history
these places are part of our Jewish nation. However, this is not just an
historical and religious claim, it also represents a value of “Shayichut Eretz
Israel”; the connection to the Land of Israel.
It
appears that Avraham went first to Shechem, then to Jerusalem, and finally he
went south to the area of Hevron. These three places seem to contain the
essence of the land as promised to Avraham.
The
three cities were purchased with money and provide a proof that they belong to
the Jewish people. The purchase of land by Jeremiah,[69] serves as a proof that
the purchase of the land is inviolate and constitutes a firm link to the land
for the purchaser and his offspring.
Each
of these cities also symbolizes an eternal contact point
that must be maintained or else we will have problems!
Now
let’s look at Mashiach ben Yosef as He went to the Galil and to Shechem:
Zohar, VaYakhel
220a Rebi Shimon said ... The land of Galil is where Melech Mashiach
will be revealed, because it is in the territory of Yosef. It was destroyed
first, and it is the place where he will first be revealed from all the places,
before spreading to the nations ... as it says:
Yehoshua 24:32
“And the bones of Yosef which they brought up from Egypt for burial in
Shechem.”
The
Zohar indicates that the meaning of the pasuk in Yehoshua pertains to Mashiach.
So when we see the sod level (the same as the Zohar) gospel showing His Majesty
in the Galil, it is what we would expect:
Yochanan (John)
4:5-7 Then comes he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near
to the parcel of ground that Ya’aqob gave to his son Yosef HaTzaddik. Now Ya’aqob’s
well was there. Yeshua therefore, being wearied with [his] journey, sat thus on
the well: [and] it was about the sixth hour. There comes a woman of Samaria to
draw water: Yeshua said unto her, Give me to drink.
Because,
when you think about it, all that Mashiach boils down to, in the end, is
helping Yaaqov leave behind all connections to Esav once and for all, so that
he can finally take his right place in history as Israel. Obliteration
of evil, identified only with the Days of Mashiach is synonymous with the
cleansing of all traces of Esav within the heart of every Jew. It is also what
the Talmud refers to as the “slaughtering of the yetzer hara” in Mashiach’s
day.[70]
There
is so much more to this story, but in the interest of brevity (this commentary
is way too long already), I will leave it here.
Ashlamatah:
1 Sam. 1:2-11 + 2:28
|
Rashi |
Targum |
|
1. ¶ And there was one man from Ramathaim Zophim, from Mt. Ephraim, and his
name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the
son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. |
1. ¶ And there was a certain man from Ramah, from the
students of the prophets from the hill country of the house of Ephraim. And his name was Elkanah, the son of Jehoram,
son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, a man dividing a share in the holy things in the hill country of the
house of Ephraim. |
|
2. And he had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah and the name of the
second was Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. |
2. And he had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the second was Peninnah.
And Peninnah had sons. and Hannah had no sons |
|
3. And that man was wont to go up from his city from appointed time to
appointed time, to prostrate himself and to slaughter (peace offerings) to
the Lord of Hosts in Shiloh, and there the two sons of Eli, Hophni and
Phinhas, were serving the Lord. |
3. And that man went up from his city from the time of festival to festivals
to worship and to sacrifice before the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And there the two sons of Eli, Hophni and
Phinehas, were serving before' the LORD. |
|
4. And when it was the day, and Elkanah slaughtered (peace offerings), and
he would give to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters
portions. |
4. And it was the day of the festival and Elkanah sacrificed, and
he gave portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and her daughters. |
|
5. And to Hannah he would give one choice portion, for he loved Hannah, and
the Lord had shut up her womb. |
5. And he gave to Hannah one choice portion, for he loved Hannah. And from
before the LORD a child was withheld from her |
|
6. And her rival would frequently anger her, in order to make her complain,
for the Lord had shut up her womb. |
6. And her rival was provoking her, also angering her, so as to make her
jealous because from before the LORD a child was withheld from
her. |
|
7. And so he would do year by
year, as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, so she would anger
her, and she wept and would not eat. |
7. And so it was happening year by year in the time when she went up to the house of the sanctuary of the
LORD. Thus she was angering her; and she was weeping and not eating. |
|
8. And Elkanah her husband said to her, "Hannah, why do you weep? And
why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not better to you than
ten sons?" |
8. And Elkanah, her husband, said to her: "Hannah, why are you weeping?
And why are you not eating? And why is your heart sad to you? Is not my good will
to you more than ten sons?" |
|
9. And Hannah arose after eating and after drinking, and Eli the priest was
sitting on the chair beside the doorpost of the Temple of the Lord. |
9. And Hannah arose after she had eaten in Shiloh and after they had drunk. And Eli
the priest was sitting upon the chair by the side of the doorpost of the temple of the LORD. |
|
10. And she was bitter in spirit, and she prayed to the Lord, and wept. |
10. And she was bitter of soul and was praying before the LORD and weeping very much. |
|
11. And she vowed a vow, and said:
to Lord of Hosts, if You will look upon the affliction of Your bondswoman,
and You will remember me, and You will not forget Your bondswoman and You
will give Your bondswoman a man-child, and I shall give him to the Lord all the
days of his life, and
no razor shall come upon his head. |
11. And she swore an oath and said: "LORD of hosts,
indeed the affliction of Your handmaid was uncovered before You, and let my memory come in before
You. And may You not keep your handmaid far away. And may You give to Your handmaid a son in the midst of the
sons of men. And I will hand over him, who will be serving before the LORD all the days of his life. And the dominion of man will
not be upon him. |
|
12. And it was, as she prayed long
before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. |
12. And from the time that she prayed very much before the LORD, Eli was waiting for
her until she stopped |
|
13. But Hannah, she was speaking in
her heart, only her lips were moving, and her voice was not heard, and Eli
thought her to be a drunken woman. |
13. And Hannah was praying in her heart only. Her lips were moving, and her voice was not being heard. And
Eli considered her like a drunken woman. |
|
14. And Eli said to her: Until when
will you be drunk? Throw off your wine from upon yourself. |
14. And Eli said to her: "How long are you demented?
Will you not let your wine evaporate from you?" |
|
15. And Hannah answered and said:
No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit, and neither new wine nor old
wine have I drunk, and I poured out my soul before the Lord. |
15. And Hannah answered and said: "No, my master. I am
a woman anguished of spirit. And new and old wine I have not drunk. And I have told the sorrow
of my soul in prayer before the LORD. |
|
16. Deliver not your bondswoman
before the unscrupulous woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and
my vexation have I spoken until now. |
16. Do not rebuke your handmaid before the daughter of wickedness for from the
abundance of my jealousy and my anger I have prolonged prayer until now." |
|
17. And Eli answered and said: Go
in peace, and the God of Israel will grant your request which you have asked
of Him. |
17. And Eli answered and said: "Go in peace. And may
the God of Israel grant your request that you requested from
before Him." |
|
18. And she said: May your
bondswoman find favor in your eyes; and the woman went on her way and ate,
and her face was not (sad) anymore. |
18. And she said: "Let your handmaid find favor in your eyes." And the woman went on her
way, and she ate and her face was no longer sad |
|
19. And they arose early in the
morning, and prostrated themselves before the Lord: and they returned and
came to their house, to Ramah, and Elkanah knew Hannah, his wife, and the
Lord remembered her. |
19. And they got up early in the morning and worshipped before
the LORD and turned and went to their house to Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and her memory
went in before the LORD. |
|
20. And it was, when the time came
about, after Hannah had conceived, that she bore a son, and she called his
name Samuel, because (she said); "I asked him of the Lord." |
20. And it happened at the time of the completing of the days that Hannah became pregnant and
bore a son. And she called his name "Samuel," for she said: "From
before the LORD I asked for him." |
|
21. And the man, Elkanah and his
entire household, went up to slaughter to the Lord, the sacrifice of the days
and his vow. |
21. And the man Elkanah and all the men of his house went up to sacrifice before the LORD
the sacrifice of the festival and to fulfil his vow. |
|
22. But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband: "Until the
child is weaned, then I shall bring him, and he shall appear before the Lord,
and abide there forever. |
22. And Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband: "Until the
child is weaned and I bring him and he be seen before the LORD and live there forever." |
|
23. And Elkanah her husband said to her: "Do what seems good to you.
Stay until you have weaned him, only, may the Lord fulfill His word."
And the woman stayed and nursed her son, until she weaned him. |
23. And Elkanah her husband said to her: "Do what is good in your eyes. Wait until you wean him. But may the LORD
fulfil His words.” And the woman waited and nursed her son until she weaned him. |
|
24. And she brought him with her
when she had weaned him, with three bulls, and one ephah of meal, and an
earthenware jug of wine, and she brought him to the house of the Lord, to
Shiloh, and the child was young. |
24. And she brought him up with her when she weaned him,
with three bulls and one measure of flour and a skin of
wine. And she brought him to the house of the sanctuary of the LORD, to Shiloh. And the child was very young |
|
25. And they slaughtered the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. |
25. And they slaughtered the bull and brought the child unto Eli. |
|
26. And she said, "Please, my
lord! As surely as your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who was standing
here with you, to pray to the Lord. |
26. And she said: "Please, my master, by your life, my
master, I am the woman who stood with you here to pray before the LORD. |
|
27. For this child did I pray, and the Lord granted me my request, which I
asked of Him. |
27. for this child I prayed, and the LORD granted me my request that I requested from before Him. |
|
28. And I also have lent him to the
Lord; all the days which he will be alive, he is borrowed by the Lord."
And he prostrated himself there to the Lord. {S} |
28. And I have handed over him who will be serving before
the LORD. All the days that he lives, he will be serving before the LORD.
And he worshipped before the Lord there. {S} |
|
|
|
|
1. And Hannah prayed and said:
"My heart has rejoiced through the Lord; My horn has been raised by the
Lord. My mouth is opened wide against my enemies, For I have rejoiced in Your
salvation. |
1. And Hannah prayed in a spirit of prophecy and said: "Now
Samuel my son is to be a prophet on behalf of Israel. In his days they will be saved
from the hand of the Philistines, and by his hands signs and mighty deeds
will be done for them. Therefore my heart is strong in the portion that the LORD has given to
me. And also Heman, the son of Joel, the son of my son Samuel who is to arise
- he and his fourteen sons are to be speaking in song by means of lyres and
lutes with their brothers the Levites to give praise in the house of the sanctuary.
Therefore my horn is exalted in the gift that the LORD has appointed for me.
And also concerning the marvellous revenge that will be against the Philistines who are to
bring the ark on a new cart, and with it the guilt offering. Therefore the
assembly of Israel will say: 'Let my mouth be open to speak great things against my enemies,
for I rejoice in Your saving power."' |
|
2. There is none as holy as the
Lord, For there is none besides You; And there is no rock like our God. |
2. Concerning Sennacharib the king of Assyria - she prophesied and said that he and
all his armies would come up against Jerusalem, and a great sign would be
worked on him; there the corpses of his camp would fall. Therefore all the
nations, peoples, and language groups will confess and say: "There is not one who is
holy except the LORD, for there is no one apart from You;" and Your
people will say: "There is no one who is strong except our God.” |
|
3. Do not increasingly speak haughtily; Let not arrogance come out of your
mouth, For the Lord is a God of thoughts, And to Him are deeds counted. |
3. Concerning Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon - she prophesied and
said: "You Chaldeans and all the peoples who are to rule in Israel, do not say
many boastful things. Let not blasphemies go forth from your mouth, for the all-knowing
God is the LORD and upon all His works he fixes judgment. And also to you He
is to repay the revenge of your sins.” |
|
4. The bows of the mighty are
broken; And those who stumbled, are girded with strength. |
4. Concerning the kingdoms of Greece - she prophesied and said:
"The bows of the Greek warriors will be broken; and those of the house of the Hasmonean who
were weak - mighty deeds will be done for them.” |
|
5. Those who were satiated have
hired themselves out for bread, While the hungry have ceased. While the
barren woman has born seven, She that had many children, has been bereaved. |
5. Concerning the sons of Haman - she prophesied and said: "Those who were filled up on bread and growing in wealth and
abounding in money have become poor; they have returned to working as laborers
for bread, the food of their mouth. Mordecai and Esther who were needy became
rich and forgot their poverty; they returned to being free persons. So Jerusalem, which
was like a barren woman, is to be filled with her exiled people. And Rome,
which was filled with great numbers of people - her armies will cease to be; she will be
desolate and destroyed. |
|
6. . The Lord kills and makes alive;
He brings down to the grave and raises up. |
6. All these are the mighty works of the LORD, who is powerful in
the world. He puts to death and speaks so as to make alive; He brings down to
Sheol, and He is also ready to bring up in eternal life.'. |
|
7. The Lord impoverishes and makes
rich. He humbles; He also exalts. |
7. The LORD makes poor and makes rich; He humbles, also He exalts. |
|
8. He lifts the poor from the
dust; From the dunghill, He raises the pauper, To seat them with princes, And
a seat of honor He causes them to inherit, For the pillars of the earth are
the Lord's, And He placed the world upon them. |
8. He raises up the poor from the dust, from the dunghill He
exalts the needy one, to make them dwell with the righteous/generous ones,
the chiefs of the world; and he bequeaths to them thrones of glory. For before the LORD the
deeds of the sons of men are revealed. He has established Gehenna below for
the wicked ones. And the just ones - those doing His good pleasure, He has established
the world for them» |
|
9. The feet of His pious ones He
will guard, And the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, For not by strength
will man prevail. |
9. He will keep away from Gehenna the bodies of His servants, the righteous/generous
ones. And the wicked ones will walk about in Gehenna in the darkness, to make
it known that there is no one in whom there is strength having claim for the day of judgment" |
|
10. Those who strive with the Lord will be broken; Upon him will He thunder
in Heaven; The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. And He will grant
strength to His King, And raise the horn of His anointed one. {P} |
10. The LORD
will shatter the enemies who rise up to do harm to His people.
The Lord blasts down upon them from the heavens with a loud voice. He will
exact just revenge from Gog and the army of the violent
nations who come with him from the ends of the earth. And He will give power
to His king and will magnify the kingdom of his
anointed one (Messiah).” {P} |
|
11. ¶ And Elkanah went to Ramah, to
his house, and the child was serving the Lord before Eli the priest. |
11. ¶ And Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house. And the boy was serving
before the LORD during the life of Eli the priest. |
|
12. And Eli's sons, unscrupulous
men, knew not the Lord. |
12. And the sons of Eli were evil men. They did not know to fear from
before the LORD |
|
13. And this was the due of the
priests from the people: (whenever) any man would slaughter a sacrifice, the
servant of the priest would come when (one) cooked the flesh, with a
three-pronged fork in his hand. |
13. And the custom of the priests from the people - every man who was
slaughtering a sacrificial animal, and the young man of the priest was
coming, when the meat was boiling, and his three-pronged fork (was) in his hand, |
|
14. And he would thrust into the
fire-pot, or into the pot, or into the cauldron, or into the pan, everything
which the fork would pick up, the priest would take therewith; so would they
do to all Israel who came there in Shiloh. |
14. and he set it in the pan or in the cauldron or in the pot or in
the cooking vessel. Everything that the fork brought up, the priest took for
himself. Thus they were doing to all Israel who were coming to sacrifice
there in Shiloh. |
|
15. Also, before they would make
the fat smoke, and the servant of the priest would come, and would say to the
man who slaughtered, 'Give meat to roast for the priest, and he will not take
from you cooked meat, but raw. |
15. Even before the fat pieces were brought to the altar the young man
of the priest was coming and saying to the man who was slaughtering: "Give the meat
to the priest to roast. And he will not take from you boiled meat but when it
is fresh." |
|
16. And (if) the man said to him,
'Let them make the fat smoke now, and (then) take for yourself, as your soul
desires,' And he would say, 'No, but now you shall give. And if not, I shall
take by force.' |
16. And the man said to him: "Wait until the fat pieces be
brought up, and take for yourself according to the good pleasure of your soul."
And he said to him that "Now you will give it; and if not, they will
take from you against your will." |
|
17. And the sin of the lads was
great before the Lord, for the men despised the offering of the Lord. |
17. And the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for
the men robbed the sacrifices of the LORD. |
|
18. And Samuel was serving before
the Lord, being a lad girded with a linen robe. |
18. And Samuel was serving before the LORD; the young man was girt with a sleeved
tunic of linen. |
|
19. And a small robe his mother
would make for him, and she would bring it up to him from appointed time to
appointed time, when she ascended with her husband, to slaughter the
sacrifice of the (festive) days. |
19. And his mother was making for him a little robe and bringing it up
to him from the time of festival to festival when she went up with her husband to
sacrifice the sacrifice of the festival |
|
20. And Eli would bless Elkanah and
his wife, and he would say, "May the Lord grant you seed from this
woman," because of the request which he had requested of the Lord, and
they would go to his place. |
20. And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife. And he said: "May the LORD
raise up for you worthy sons from this woman on account of the petition that
he asked from before the LORD." And they went to their place. |
|
21. For the Lord remembered Hannah,
and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the lad Samuel
grew up with the Lord. {S} |
21. For the memory of Hannah entered before the LORD and she became
pregnant and bore three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew up, serving the LORD. {S} |
|
22. Now, Eli had become very old,
and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and that they would
lie with the women who congregated at the entrance of the tent of meeting. |
22. And Eli was very old. And he heard everything that his sons were doing to
all Israel and that they were sleeping with the women who came to pray at the
gate of the tent of meeting. |
|
23. And he said to them: "Why
do you do the likes of these things, for I hear evil reports about you, from
all these people. |
23. And he said to them: "Why are you acting according to these deeds so
that I hear these evil deeds of you from all the people? |
|
24. No, my sons, for the rumor
which I hear the Lord's people spreading, is not good. |
24. No, my sons. For the report that I hear the people of the LORD spreading
about is not good. |
|
25. If man will sin to man, the
judge will judge him. If, however, he will sin against God, who will
intercede in the judgment in his behalf?" But they would not hearken to
their father's voice, for the Lord desired to kill them. |
25. If a man will sin against a man, will he not come before the
judge. and he will hear their words. and he will decide between them? And if the man will
sin before the LORD, from whom will he seek and it will be forgiven to him?”
And they did not accept the word of their father, for it was the good
pleasure from before the LORD to kill them. |
|
26. And the lad, Samuel, was
growing up, and bettering himself both with the Lord and with people. {P} |
26. And the boy Samuel continued to grow, and his name was good. His ways were right
before the LORD. and his works were upright among the sons of man {P} |
|
27. ¶ And a man of God came to Eli,
and he said to him: "So said the Lord: 'Did I appear to the house of
your father, when they were in Egypt, (enslaved) to the house of Pharaoh? |
27. ¶ And the prophet of the LORD came unto Eli and said to him:
"Thus says the LORD: 'I indeed revealed Myself to the house of your
father, when they were in Egypt and were enslaved to the house of Pharaoh. |
|
28. And did I choose him from all
the tribes of Israel to be My priest, to offer up (sacrifices) on My altar,
to burn incense, to wear an ephod before Me? And did I give to the house of
your father all the fire-offerings of the children of Israel? |
28. And I took delight in" him from all the tribes of Israel
before Me, to be a priest, to bring up sacrifice upon My altar, to burn
sweet-smelling incense, to wear the ephod, to serve before Me. And I gave to the
house of your father all the offerings of the sons of Israel. |
|
29. Why (then,) do you kick at My
sacrifice, and at My meal offering which I commanded in My dwelling place,
and you honored your sons above Me, before My people, to feed yourselves from
the first part of every offering of Israel? |
29. Why are you robbing My holy sacrificial offering and My offering
that I appointed to offer before Me in My temple? And you honor your own
sons first of all to have them eat from the first of all the offering of Israel My
people. |
|
30. Therefore," says the Lord,
God of Israel, "I said, 'Your house and the house of your father will
walk before Me forever,' but now, says the Lord: Far be it from Me, for those
who honor Me shall I honor, and those who despise Me will be disgraced. |
30. Thus said the LORD God of Israel: 'Indeed I said: "Your house and the house of your
father will serve before Me forever. And now the Lord says: 'My judgments are
truth for those who act honorably before Me I will honor, and those who act despicably against My name
will become demented |
|
31. Behold days are coming when I
shall cut off your arm and the arm of your father's house, that there shall
not be an elder in your household. |
31. Behold the days are coming, and I will cut off the strength of
your seed and the strength of the seed of the house of your father from being
old in your house. |
|
32. And you will look upon a rival
(in My) dwelling place in all (the days) which (God) will do good to Israel,
and there will not be an elder in your household all of the days. |
32. And you will be considering and you will be seeing the sorrow that will come upon the
men of your house because of the sins that you have sinned in My temple. And
afterwards prosperity will come over Israel. and there will not be an old man
in your house all the days. |
|
33. Yet every man of yours shall I
not cut off from My altar, to disappoint you and to sadden your heart; and
all those raised in your house will die as young men. |
33. A man I will not cut off for you from My altar to darken your eye and to grieve
your soul. And all the multitude of your household, the young men, will be
killed. |
|
34. And this is the sign to you,
that which will befall your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas; in one day both of
them will die. |
34. And this is the sign to you, which will come unto your two sons,
unto Hophni and Phinehas. In one day the two of them will be killed |
|
35. And I shall raise up for Myself a faithful priest, who will do as is in
My heart and in My mind, and I shall build for him a sure house, and he shall
walk before My anointed all of the days. |
35. And I will
raise up before Me a faithful priest who will act according to My Memra and
according to My good pleasure. And I will
raise up for him a lasting kingdom, and he will server' before My anointed
one (Messiah) all the days. |
|
36. And it will be that everyone
who is left in your house, will come to prostrate himself before him for a
silver piece and a morsel of bread, and will say, "Take me now into one
of the priestly divisions in order to eat a morsel of bread." {P} |
36. And everyone who is left in your house will come bow low for himself for a
coin of silver and a piece of bread. And he will say: "Appoint me now to
one of the watches of the priests to eat a piece of bread." {P} |
|
|
|
Rashi’s
Commentary for: 1 Sam. 1:2-11 + 2:28
And there was one man It all follows the order, i.e., Moses gave over
the Torah to Joshua, and Joshua to the Elders, and each judge to his successor,
until it reached Eli, by whom it was given over to Samuel, as we learned in the
Mishnah (Abot 1:1): and the Elders gave it over to the Prophets.
from Ramathaim Zophim There were two hills, each visible to the other.
(Meg. 14a) Jonathan, however, renders ‘Zophim’ of the disciples of the
Prophets.
Elkanah Elkanah was a Levite of
the sons of Ebiasaf the son of Korah. Thus his ancestry is recorded in Chron.
(I, 6:7 12).
an Ephraimite
Jonathan renders: on the mountain of the House of Ephraim. Midrash Aggadah
(M.S. 1:16): Ephrathi, a palace dweller, a nobleman, an important person, like
(the Talmudic word ‘aperion’, used in B.M. 119a): Let us extend ‘aperion’ to
Rabbi Simon. An expression of favor.
3 And that man was wont to go up This is the present tense. He would go up from one
appointed season to another appointed season, to Shiloh. Midrash Aggadah (M.S.
1: 1,5,7): The route he followed this year he did not follow the next year, in
order to publicize (his pilgrimage) to the Israelites that they should do
likewise.
4 And when it was the day And it was the festive day.[after Jonathan].
5 מנה
אחת אפים one choice portion: a portion which is fit to be accepted with a
friendly countenance.
6 And her rival Her
husband’s other wife, Peninnah.
frequently anger her: Anger after anger, always. Therefore, it is
written: ‘also anger.’ She would say to her, “Did you buy your older son a
cloak today, or your younger son a shirt?”
in order to make her complain: (Literally, to make her storm.) Our rabbis
explain, “in order to make her storm” that she pray. And Peninnah had good
intentions.
her womb: Lit., opposite her
womb, and so is every expression of the word בעד .
7 And so he would do: I.e., Elkanah.
year by year: He
would give her a choice portion to demonstrate to her that he loved her and her
rival would anger her more and more according to the affection which her
husband demonstrated to her.
8 better to you: Don’t
I love you more dearly...
..than (I love) ten sons: that Peninnah has borne to me?
after eating (אכלה) . The הא is not
dotted and the אלף is voweled with a short קמץ , and it is like אחרי
אכול ,
meaning after eating in Shiloh and after drinking, and this expression is
properly used both for masculine and feminine.
9 after eating ‘After
eating’ is a gerund. It is constructed like לאכלה (Lev. 25:6) to eat, an expression
equivalent to לאכול an infinitive.
and Eli the priest was sitting on the chair: The defective spelling denotes that on that day,
he was seated on a huge chair, for he was appointed judge over Israel.
beside the doorpost: lit. on the doorpost.
11 O Lord of Hosts: Why was this Name designated here? (The answer is
as follows:) She said before Him: O Lord of the universe, You created two hosts
in Your world. The heavenly beings do not multiply, neither do they die, while
the earthly beings both multiply and die. If I am of the earthly beings let me
multiply, and if I am of the heavenly beings let me not die. I found this
explanation in the Aggadah of Rabbi Jose the Galilean. Our sages in tractate
Ber. (31b), however, expounded what they expounded: Until then there was no person who called the Holy
One, blessed be He, “Hosts.” (Why then, did Hannah call Him by this
Name?) But, so said she before Him: “O Lord of the universe, from all the hosts
which You created in Your world, do You find it difficult to grant me one son?”
if You will look:
(Lit., if seeing You will see.) In tractate Ber., our sages expounded what they
expounded.
Your bondswoman: which
is stated three times in this verse, corresponds to the three precepts which a
woman is commanded to observe.
A man child:
(Lit., seed of men, meaning) righteous/generous men, as it is written (Kings
I:2: 32): “Upon two righteous/generous men.” אנשים also means important men, as it is written
(Deut. 1:13): wise and known men.
and I shall give him to the Lord: that he be fit to be given to the Lord.
and no razor shall come upon his head: (translation follows K, however,) Jonathan renders: and the fear
of man will not be upon him.
12 watched her mouth: He waited for her to stop. Jonathan renders thus:
and Eli waited for her until she stopped.
watched: an expression of
waiting, as in (Gen. 37:11) “and his father awaited the thing,” and (Job 14:16)
“You do not wait for my sin.”
13 and Eli thought her to be a drunken woman: for they were not accustomed to praying silently.
15 Not my lord: You
are not a lord in this instance. You yourself have revealed that the holy
spirit is not resting upon you, otherwise you would know that I am not
intoxicated from wine.
I am a woman of sorrowful spirit: like Sarah (who was childless) [old editions of
Rashi].
16 Deliver not your bondswoman: Considering the fact that she spoke harshly to
him, she returned to appease him so that he deliver her not, unprotected and
disgraced, at the mercy of her rival, the unscrupulous woman.
for out of the abundance of my complaint: have I spoken harshly before you.
my complaint
(lit., my speech.) In some instances, it is an expression of grief of heart.
Another explanation is, according to the Targum, as follows: for out of the
abundance of my provocation and my vexation, have I prolonged my prayer until
now.
and my vexation: which
my rival vexes me.
Deliver not: (Lit.
do not give.) An expression of delivery, like, “deliver me not unto the will of
my adversaries” (Ps. 27:12).
17 your request ( שלתך , instead of שאלתך ). The ‘alef’ is missing to expound in
this word an expression of ‘children,’ as in Deut. 27:57: ובשליתה “and against her young, which came out, etc.”
will grant your request: He announced to her that her prayer had been
accepted.
18 May your bondswoman find favor: to beg mercy for her.
and her face was not (sad) anymore: (Lit., and she no longer had her face, meaning)
the face of anger.
19 and came to their house, and Elkanah knew: From
here is deduced that a traveler is forbidden to have marital relations.
20 when the time came about: (After the seasons and the days.) The minimum of
seasons is two and the minimum of days is also two. Hence, she gave birth after
six months and two days. From here it is deduced that a woman who gives birth
after seven months, can give birth after a fraction of the seventh month of
pregnancy.
Samuel: El after the name of
God, and in reference to the incident, he was so called, for I asked him of the
Lord.
21 the sacrifice of the days: of the appointed
seasons. his vow: The vows which he made
between pilgrimage festivals, he would sacrifice on the following festival.
22 Until the child is weaned: after twenty two months (other versions, twenty
four), for that is the time of nursing a child.
and abide there forever: “Forever” in the Levitic sense means fifty years, as it says, (Num. 8:25), “and from the age of
fifty years he shall return from the host of the work.” Figuring as follows, we
determine that Samuel’s lifetime was fifty- two years. Eli judged Israel for
forty years (see 4:18), and on the day of Hannah’s prayer, he was appointed
judge (See above v. 9). By subtracting the year in which Hannah conceived
Samuel, there remain thirty nine years. Samuel governed Israel from the time of
Eli’s death for thirteen years, figuring thus: On the day of Eli’s death, the
Ark was abducted, and it remained in the field of the Philistines for seven
months (below 6:1). From there, it was brought to Kiriath-jearim, where it
remained until David took it out of there after he had reigned seven years in
Hebron over Judah, and all Israel had accepted him as their king. And it is
written: And is was, from the day that the Ark abode in Kiriath-jearim that the
time was long, for it was twenty years, etc. (below 7:2). Subtract from them
seven years which David reigned in Hebron. We find that from the time that the
Ark was abducted until Saul’s death, were thirteen years and seven months, and
Samuel died four months before Saul.
23 only, may the Lord fulfill His word: Since you asked of Him seed of righteous/generrous
men (above v. 11), and Eli announced to you through divine inspiration: (above
v. 17) “The God of Israel will grant your request,” may the Lord fulfill His
word. This is according to the simple interpretation. The Midrash Agadah,
however, explains thus: Rabbi Nehemiah said in the name of Rabbi Samuel, the
son of Rabbi Isaac: Every day, a divine voice would resound throughout the
world, and say: A righteous man is destined to arise, and his name will be
Samuel. Thereupon, every woman who bore a son, would name him Samuel. As soon
as they saw his deeds, they would say, “This is not Samuel.” When our Samuel
was born, however, and people saw his deeds, they said, “It seems that this one
is the expected righteous/generous man.” This is what Elkanah meant when he
said, ‘May the Lord fulfill His word,’ that this be the righteous/generous
Samuel.
24 and one ephah of meal I heard from Rabbi Isaac Halevi, that she brought
one ephah of meal, which is equivalent to three seahs, from which to extract
three tenths of an ephah of fine flour, which are required for one bull (Num.
15:8), as we learned in the Mishnah (Men. 76b): The showbread was made of
twenty-four tenths of an ephah from twenty-four seahs; i.e., 1 tenth part of an
ephah of fine flour from a seah of wheat.
and an earthenware jug of wine: for a drink offering. והנער
נער and the
child was young (after Jonathan).
25 and they brought the child to Eli to see that
his prophecy was fulfilled. And our sages, however,
expounded what they expounded, that he decided a point of law, that a priest is
unnecessary for sacrificial slaughter, as it is stated in Tractate Ber. (31b).
26 Please, my lord: Take care of him that he become your disciple. And
according to the Midrash of our sages, not to punish him with death.
27 For this child did I pray: Do not say, “This one shall die and another one
shall be given to you.”
28 And I also have lent him to the Lord like a person who lends a utensil to his master,
or lends him his son to serve him.
he is borrowed
empunte in French, i.e., you have no right to punish him, for the Lord has
become a borrower over him, since I have lent him to Him, and He must return
him to me.
And he prostrated himself Samuel, and some say Elkanah.
Chapter 2
1 My mouth is opened wide against my enemies against Peninnah.
2 And there is no rock like our God. There is no artist like our God, Who makes a form
within a form (Ber. 10a).
3 Do not increasingly speak haughtily All those who are haughty when good fortune shines
upon them. And according to the peshat, she is speaking for the benefit of
Peninnah, who behaved haughtily toward her. According to the derash, however,
we follow J’s translation.
arrogance (Lit.) strong speech.
Others explain it as an expression of falsehood, something which is removed
from the truth, like ויעתק “and he moved from there to the mountain”
(Gen. 12:8). We, therefore, render: Let not falsehood come out of your mouth.
For the Lord is a God of thoughts He knows what is in your heart.
And to Him are deeds counted All men’s deeds are counted before Him. Heb.
‘nithk’nu,’ an expression of number, like: and the number (tochen) of bricks
shall you give (Ex. 5:18).
4 The bows of the mighty are broken, etc. So is the custom of the Most Holy, blessed be He.
He weakens the mighty, and strengthens the weak. He sates the hungry and
starves those who are satiated.
5 Those who were satiated and do not need to hire themselves out for any
work, He starves them, and they must hire themselves out for their daily bread,
while the hungry who would toil and weary themselves for food...
...have ceased from their toil. While the barren woman has born seven, she that had
many children has been bereaved and buries her children. Hannah bore seven, as
it is stated: For the Lord remembered Hannah, and she conceived and bore three
sons and two daughters (2:21). When Hannah bore four, Peninnah buried eight,
and when she conceived and bore a fifth child, Peninnah prostrated herself at
her feet, and begged for mercy. Consequently, they lived, and were therefore
called on her name. This is Rabbi Nehemiah’s opinion. Rabbi Judah says:
Grandchildren are considered like children, (and she saw Samuel’s two sons).
Some say: the numerical value of שבעה (seven) is equivalent to that of שמואל , (thus: ש =300, ב =2, ע =70, ה =5, totaling 377. Likewise, ש =300, מ =40, ו =6, א =1, ל =30, totaling 377).
9 His pious ones It is
spelled חסידו , His pious one. It is read חסידיו , His pious ones, i.e., either a single one or many. Likewise,
“Those who strive with the Lord will be broken.” This reading is מריביו , those who strive with Him. The spelling is מריבו , he who strives with Him, i.e., either one or many.
10 Upon him will he thunder in Heaven The spelling is עלו , they have ascended, even if they have
ascended to the heavens, He thunders upon and casts them down.
will judge the ends of the earth will judge them; in old French, jostizier.
11 was serving the Lord before Eli the priest: (The Talmud asks, “Did Samuel actually serve the
Lord?” Didn’t he serve before Eli? [He was too young to serve the Lord!] We
therefore deduce) from
here that whoever serves before a Torah scholar, is considered as though he had
served before the Divine Presence.
13 the due of the priests They themselves established this law, since they
rightfully inherited only the breast and the thigh of the peace offering.
14 or into the pot דוד is a [small] pot.
or into the cauldron קלחת is a large pot. 17 כי
נאצו ,
an expression of being despised.
18 robe (Hebrew ephod.) kardut
of linen (Jonathan). This is an expression meaning a robe (מעיל)
, for Jonathan renders ‘m’ilim’ in the passage, “for so were the virgins wont
to wear robes (m’ilim) kardutin.
19 And a small robe his mother would make for him from year to year.
20 And Eli would bless Elkanah this is the present tense (i.e., he would bless him
every year).
because of the request which he had requested for himself a son. And Eli would say to him, “May
the Lord grant seed, etc.” May it be the Divine Will that all the children
which you will have, will be from this righteous woman. This is (therefore) an
inverted sentence.
22 that they would lie This is explained according to the ordinary sense
of the passage. Our rabbis, however, said: Since they delayed the sacrifice of
their birds, (i.e., of the women who had given birth, or had had an issue. v.
Lev. 22:6 8,15:29), and they (the women) would wait until they would see their
birds being offered, the Scripture charges them as though they had lain with
them.
24 which I hear the Lord’s people spreading The rumor which the Lord’s people are spreading
about you. This is an expression similar to: “And they caused to be proclaimed
in the camp” (Ex. 36:6). Hence, they let out a rumor about you, which is not
good.
25 will judge him (Heb.
‘ufil’lo,’) an expression of judgment, like (Ex. 21:22): and he shall pay as the
judges determine (bi-flilim).
the judge Heb. elohim.
for the Lord desired to kill them For their verdict had already been sealed. Before
the verdict is sealed, however, the Scripture states: For I desire not the
death of one who dies (Ezek. 17:32).
27 And a man of God came: (The Sifrei informs us that the man of God
mentioned here) was Elkanah.
Did I appear to the house of your father From here (we deduce) that Aaron prophesied in
Egypt. What was the prophecy? It is that which is stated (Ezek. 20:7), And I
said to them: Each man, cast away the detestable things upon which his eyes
gaze, and with the idols of Egypt, defile not yourselves.
Did I appear Did
you know that I gave to Aaron this favor and greatness? 29 אשר צויתי
מעון
which I commanded in My dwelling place.
to feed yourselves from the first part, etc. (lit., and you honor your sons above Me to feed
yourselves from the first part of every offering of Israel to My people.) This
is an inverted sentence, (to be explained thus): and you honor your sons above
Me before My people, i.e., in the eyes of My people, you honored your son above
me. And what is the honor? To feed yourselves from the first part of every
offering of Israel. Your meal preceded My meal, as it is stated: Also before
they caused the fat to smoke, etc. (above, verse 15).
to feed yourselves (Heb. ‘l’havriachem’) An expression of a meal,
similar to: Please let my sister feed me bread (Heb. ‘v’thavreni’).
before My people This
reverts to: And you honor your sons above Me. You showed to My people that you
are more honored than I. And with what have you shown this? To feed yourselves
from the first part of My offering.
30 I said (Heb. ‘amor amarti’)
Twice I assigned greatness to the sons of Ithamar. Concerning the sons of
Gershon and the sons of Merari, it is stated: Under the hand of Ithamar, the
son of Aaron the Priest. (Num. 4:23, 33). And Eli was one of the descendants of
Ithamar. This I found in M.S.(8:3). I have, however, heard a more fitting
version, as follows: I said: Your house and your father’s house, etc.
Originally, I gave the high priesthood to Eleazar the Priest, as it is stated:
And remove from Aaron his garments, and put them on Eleazar, his son (Num.
20:26). At the time of the concubine (in Gibeah, v. Judges 19, 21), when the
Israelites freed themselves of most of the Commandments. And who caused them
(to do so)? Phinehas and his colleagues, who should have gone around from city
to city to reprove them. I, (therefore) took the High Priesthood away from
them, and gave it to you, for you are of the descendants of Ithamar, and I
said: They shall walk before Me forever, for when greatness is assigned to
someone, it is assigned to him and to his generations forever.
for those who honor Me shall I honor The descendants of Phinehas who honored Me at
Shittim (Num. 21:7,8). And so it came about in the days of Solomon, that when
he built the Temple, Solomon dismissed Ebiathar from being a priest to the
Lord, to fulfill the word of the Lord which He had spoken to the house of Eli
(I Kings 2:27), and Zadok became High Priest, since he was of the descendants
of Phinehas, for so he is listed in the genealogical records in the Book of
Chronicles (I Chron. 6:35 38).
and those who despise Me will be disgraced
By themselves, when I shall withdraw Myself from them.
31 I shall cut off your arm I.e., the power which you exert in My House, for
you say: And if not, I shall take by force.
32 And you will look upon a rival in My dwelling
place And you will see your rival at your side in My
dwelling place like a woman who sees her rival with her in the house.
in all (the days) which (God) will do good to
Israel (Lit., in all that which
He will do good to Israel.) “When the Temple will be built in the day of
Solomon, and the goodness promised to Israel will be complete, as it is said
there: There has not failed one word of all His good promise, etc. (I Kings
8:56). Judah and Israel were many, like the sand which is by the sea (ibid.
4:20). And Judah and Israel dwelt in safety, every man under his vine and under
his fig tree, etc. all the days of Solomon (ibid. 5:5).
and there will not be an elder in your household This is an appropriate punishment. You ate
sacrifices before their time, before they made the fat smoke, similarly, you
will die before your time.
33 and to sadden (Heb.
‘v’la’div,’) same as ‘v’lad’iv.’
will die (as young) men (Lit., will die men.) There is no comparison
between mourning for a young man and mourning for a child.
34 And this is the sign to you That the prophecy will be fulfilled: In one day
your two sons will die, and this will be to you a sign that all the retribution
which was said to you, will be fulfilled. I.e., “And you will look upon a rival
in My dwelling place, etc., and all those raised in your house will die as
young men” (above 32, 33).
35 a faithful priest i.e., Zadok.
36 for a silver piece In order to earn a coin called ‘ma’ah.’
A silver piece (Heb.
Agorath Kesef,) a silver piece of the weights of twenty gerah (Exod. 30:13). ספחני Take me...into.
Special Ashlamatah: Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 60:1-22
|
Rashi |
Targum |
|
1. Arise, shine, for your light
has come, and the glory of the Lord has shone upon you. |
1. Arise,
shine, Jerusalem; for the time of your salvation has come, and the glory of
the LORD will be revealed upon you. |
|
2. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and a gross darkness the
kingdoms, and the Lord shall shine upon you, and His glory shall appear over
you. |
2. For
behold, darkness will cover the earth, and gloom the kingdoms; but the
Shekhinah of the LORD will settle in you, and His glory will be revealed upon
you. |
|
3. And nations shall go by your
light and kings by the brilliance of your shine. |
3. And peoples (Gentiles) will
come to your light, and His glory will be revealed upon you. |
|
4. Lift up your eyes all around
and see, they all have gathered, they have come to you; your sons shall come
from afar, and your daughters shall be raised on [their] side. |
4. Lift up, Jerusalem, your eyes
round about, and see all the sons of the
people of your exiles who are gathered together, they come to your midst;
your sons will come from far, and your daughters will be carried on hips. |
|
5. Then you shall see and be radiant, and your heart shall be startled and
become enlarged, for the abundance of the west shall be turned over to you,
the wealth of the nations that will come to you. |
5. Then you will see and be
radiant, and you will fear and your heart widen in fear of sins; because the wealth of the west is transferred
to you, the possessions of the peoples (Gentiles) will be brought into your
midst. |
|
6. A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and
Ephah, all of them shall come from Sheba; gold and frankincense they shall
carry, and the praises of the Lord they shall report. |
6. The
caravans of the Arabians will cover you around, the dromedaries of Midian and
Ephah; all those from Sheba will come. They will be burdened with gold and
frankincense, and those who come with them will be declaring the praises of
the LORD. |
|
7. All the sheep of Kedar shall be gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth
shall serve you; they shall be offered up with acceptance upon My altar, and
I will glorify My glorious house. |
7. All the
sheep of the Arabians will be gathered into
your midst, the rams of Nebat will minister to you; they will be offered up
for pleasure upon My altar, and I will glorify My glorious
house. |
|
8. Who are these that fly like a cloud and like doves to their cotes? |
8. Who are these that come openly like swift clouds, and (are) not to be checked? The exiles of Israel, who are gathered and come to their land, even like doves which return to the midst of their windows! |
|
9. For the isles will hope for Me, and the ships of Tarshish [as] in the
beginning, to bring your sons from afar, their silver and their gold with
them, in the name of the Lord your God and for the Holy One of Israel, for He
has glorified you. |
9. For
islands will wait for My Memra, those who go down
in ships of the sea - which spreads its sails first -to bring your sons from
far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of the LORD
your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because He has glorified you. |
|
10. And foreigners shall build your walls, and their kings shall serve you,
for in My wrath I struck you, and in My grace have I had mercy on you. |
10. The sons
of Gentiles will build up your walls, and their kings will minister to you;
for in My wrath I smote you, but in My pleasure I will have mercy
upon you. |
|
11. And they shall open your gates always; day and night they shall not be
closed, to bring to you the wealth of the nations and their kings in
procession. |
11. Your
gates will be opened continually; day and night they will not be shut; that
men may bring into your midst the possessions
of the Gentiles, with their kings chained. |
|
12. For the nation and the kingdom
that shall not serve you shall perish, and the nations shall be destroyed. |
12. For any people and kingdom
that will not serve you Jerusalem, will perish; those peoples will be utterly
destroyed. |
|
13. The glory of the Lebanon shall come to you, box trees, firs, and
cypresses together, to glorify the place of My sanctuary, and the place of My
feet I will honor. |
13. The glory
of Lebanon will be brought into your midst, cypresses, planes, and pines
together, to beautify the place of My sanctuary; and I will make the place
of the dwelling of My Shekhinah glorious. |
|
14. And the children of your oppressors shall go to you bent over, and those
who despised you shall prostrate themselves at the soles of your feet, and
they shall call you 'the city of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.' |
14. The sons
of those who subjugated you will come bent into your midst; and all who used
to incite you to anger will bow down to beseech from you at your feet; they
will call you the City of the LORD, Zion with which the Holy One of Israel is
pleased. |
|
15. Instead of your being forsaken and hated without a passerby, I will make
you an everlasting pride, the joy of every generation. |
15. Whereas
you have been forsaken and cast out, with no
one passing through, I will make you glorious forever, a house of joy from
generation to generation. |
|
16. And you shall suck the milk of
nations and the breast of kings you shall suck, and you shall know that I am
the Lord, your Savior, and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. |
16. You will be satisfied with the possessions of the Gentiles,
you will be indulged with the plunder of their kings; and you will know that
I, the LORD, am your Saviour and your Redeemer, the Strong
One of Jacob. |
|
17. Instead of the copper I will bring gold, and instead of the iron I will
bring silver, and instead of the wood, copper, and instead of the stones,
iron, and I will make
your officers peace and your rulers righteousness. |
17. Instead
of the bronze which they plundered from you, Jerusalem, I will bring gold,
and instead of iron, I will bring silver, instead of wood, bronze, instead of
stones, iron. I will
make your guardians peace and [appoint] your rulers in virtue. |
|
18. Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither robbery nor
destruction within your borders, and you shall call salvation your walls and
your gates praise. |
18. Violence
will no more be heard in your land, spoil and breaking within your border;
they will celebrate salvation upon your walls, and upon your gates they will be
praising. |
|
19. You shall no longer have the
sun for light by day, and for brightness, the moon shall not give you light,
but the Lord shall be to you for an everlasting light, and your God for your
glory. |
19. You will no longer need the
sun for light by day nor even the moon for brightness by night; but the LORD will
be your everlasting light. and your God will be your glory. |
|
20. Your sun shall no longer set, neither shall your moon be gathered in, for
the Lord shall be to you for an everlasting light, and the days of your
mourning shall be completed. |
20. Your
kingdom will no more cease, nor your glory pass away; for the LORD will be your
everlasting light, and your days of mourning will be ended. |
|
21. And your people, all of them
righteous, shall inherit the land forever, a scion of My planting, the work
of My hands in which I will glory. |
21. Your people will all be virtuous; they will
possess the land for ever, my pleasant plant, the work of My might, that I
might be glorified. |
|
22. The smallest shall become a thousand and the least a mighty nation; I am
the Lord, in its time I will hasten it. |
22. He that
is small among them shall become a thousand, and he that is faint a strong
people: I am the LORD; in its time I will bring it. |
|
|
|
Rashi’s
Commentary for: Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 60:1-22
4
shall be raised on [their] side [Jonathan renders:] on the flanks, the flanks of
the kings, they will be raised.
5 Then
you shall see and be radiant Heb. וְנָהַרְתָּ , from נְהוֹרָה , [Aramaic for light,] then you shall see
and be radiant [from Jonathan].
and
your heart shall be startled and become enlarged And
your heart shall wonder and become enlarged.
for
the abundance of the west shall be turned over to you for
the abundance of the west shall be turned over to you [after Jonathan].
the
wealth of the nations The possessions of the nations [after Jonathan].
6 A
multitude Heb. שִׁפְעַת , A multiplicity.
the
young camels of Midian Heb. בִּכְרֵי . [Jonathan renders:] הוֹגְנֵי . They are young camels. Comp. (Jer. 2:23)
“a swift young camel (בִּכְרָה) .”
and
Ephah They, too, are of the sons of Midian. Comp. (Gen. 25:4)
“Ephah and Epher.”
7 the
rams of Nebaioth Heb. אֵילֵי , rams of Nebaioth [after Jonathan].
9 as
in the beginning Like ‘as in the beginning,’ meaning in the days of
Solomon, like the matter that is stated (I Kings 10:22): “For the king had at
sea ships of Tarshish, etc.; once in three years, the ships of Tarshish would
come, etc.” Tarshish is the name of the sea.
in the
name of the Lord your God that is called upon you, for
they will hear a report of Him and the name of His might, and come.
for He
has glorified you He has given you glory.
10 and
in my grace Because I favored you; in old French, en mon
apayemant.
11 And
they shall open your gates always Heb. וּפִתְּחוּ . This is an expression of opening in the
strong conjugation (פִּעֵל) , since their opening is a perpetual
opening, a constant opening. Just as שַׁבֵּר is an expression of breaking, so is פִּתְּחוּ an expression of opening. Tresoverts in
O.F.
13 box
trees, firs, and cypresses Species of trees of the forest of Lebanon.
14
Zion of the Holy One of Israel [Lit. Zion the Holy One of Israel. Jonathan
renders:] Zion desired by the Holy One of Israel, Zion of the Holy One of
Israel.
16 and
the breast of kings Heb. וְשֽׁד , an expression of breasts (שָׁדַיִם) and ‘you shall suck’ proves it.
17
Instead of the copper that they took from you.
and I
will make your officers peace [Jonathan renders:] And I will make your officers
peace and your rulers with righteousness. פְקֻדָּתֵךְ Your appointed officers. Our Rabbis
stated: The officers who came upon you in your exile and the rulers who pressed
you will be counted for you as peace and charity (Baba Bathra 9a). [That is,
the money they have exacted from you will be counted as charity.]
19 You
shall no longer have You shall not require the light of the sun.
20 neither...be
gathered in Heb. יֵאָסֵף , an expression similar to (Joel 2:10)
“gathered in (אָסְפוּ) their brightness.” Gathered in their
light.
21 in
which I will glory That I will glory with them. Pourvanter in French.
22 in
its time I will hasten it If they are worthy, I will hasten
it; if they are not worthy, it will be in its time.
Verbal Tallies
By: HH Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben
David
& HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah
Beresheet
(Genesis) 29:31 – 30:21
I Sh’muel
(Samuel) 1:2-11 + 2:28
Special: Yeshayahu
(Isaiah) 60:1-22
Tehillim
(Psalm) 24
Jude
1-2, Lk 6:19-23, Acts 6:7, Mt. 5:1-6
The verbal
tallies between the Torah and the Ashlamata are:
LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.
Saw / indeed /
look - ראה, Strong’s number 07200.
Womb - רחם, Strong’s number 07358.
The verbal
tallies between the Torah and the special Ashlamata are:
LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.
Saw / indeed /
look - ראה, Strong’s number 07200.
Hated - שנא, Strong’s number 08130.
Opened - פתח, Strong’s number 06605.
The verbal
tallies between the Torah and the Psalm are:
LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.
Beresheet
(Genesis) 29:31 And when the LORD <03068> saw <07200> (8799) that Leah
was hated <08130> (8803), He opened <06605> (8799) her womb
<07358>: but Rachel was barren.
I
Shmuel (Samuel) 1:3 And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to
sacrifice unto the LORD <03068> of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of
Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD <03068>, were there.
I
Shmuel (Samuel) 1:5 But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but
the LORD <03068> had shut up her womb <07358>.
I
Shmuel (Samuel) 1:11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD <03068> of hosts, if
You will indeed <07200> (8800) look <07200> (8799) on the
affliction of Your handmaid, and remember me, and not forget Your handmaid, but
will give unto Your handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD
<03068> all the days of his life, and there will no razor come upon his
head.
Yeshayahu
(Isaiah) 60:1 Arise, shine; for your light is come, and the glory of the LORD
<03068> is risen upon you.
Yeshayahu
(Isaiah) 60:2 For, behold, the darkness will cover the earth, and gross darkness
the people: but the LORD <03068> will arise upon you, and His glory will
be seen <07200> (8735) upon you.
Yeshayahu
(Isaiah) 60:11 Therefore your gates will be open <06605> (8765) continually;
they will not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto you the forces of
the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.
Yeshayahu
(Isaiah) 60:15 Whereas you have been forsaken and hated <08130> (8803), so
that no man went through you, I will make you an eternal excellence, a joy of
many generations.
Tehillim
(Psalm) 24:1 « A Psalm of David. » The earth is the LORD’S
<03068>, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell
therein.
Pirqe
Abot – MeAm Lo’ez
Mishnah
2:10-12
By:
Rabbi
Yitschaq Magriso
10. Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai had five
students. They were Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chanania, Rabbi Yose the Cohen, Rabbi Shimeon ben
Nethanel. and Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh. He enumerated their good points: Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos is a cement pit that
does not lose a drop. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chanania, happy is the one who gave birth to him. Rabbi Yose the Cohen is
a saint. Rabbi Shimeon ben Nethanal fears sin. Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh is like a spring that strengthens itself.
11. He used to say: If all the sages of Israel
were on the pan of a balance, and Eliezer ben Horkanos was on the other pan, he
would' outweigh them all.
12. Abba Shaul said in his name: If all the
sages of Israel were in the pan of a balance, and Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos
was also with them, and if Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh
was in the other pan, he would outweigh them all.
Rabbi
Yehudah the Prince, the compiler of the Mishnah, was not interested in telling
us mere tales about the students of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai and the extent
of their wisdom. Rather, he was determined to teach the world a lesson in
proper conduct. Here he teaches that it is not sufficient for a person to be
well versed in the Torah if he is lax in good personal traits (middot).
Scholarship must be accompanied by a strong desire to live by Judaism and the
dread of sin, and one must be saturated with good traits and manners (derekh
eretz).
Rabban
Yochanan ben Zakkai thus told us about his five students, and why they deserved
praise. His five students were Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos, Rabbi Yehoshua
ben Chanania, Rabbi Yose the Cohen, Rabbi Shimmeon ben Nethanel. and Rabbi
Eleazar ben Arakh.
Regarding
Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos, he said that he was like a cistern sealed securely
on the inside. with the floor and walls waterproofed so that not even a drop
of water is absorbed by the surrounding soil. Rabbi Eliezer was just like that.
Everything he had learned since his childhood was retained perfectly, with absolutely
nothing forgotten. He knew everything by heart. This was achieved by constant
review of everything that he had learned.
Rabbi
Eliezer’s wisdom was so great that when Moses went on high to receive the
Torah, he heard God reviewing the section of the Red Heifer (Parah
Adumah). God said. Eliezer My son taught that a cow is called a parah
when it is two years old.
Hearing
this, Moses said, "Lord of the world, all the denizens of the world are under
Your command, including all angels of heaven and human beings on earth. How
can You declare a law in the name of a mortal human being of flesh and blood?”
"A
saint has been ordained to be born in the world," replied God, "and
it is destined that he begin with the laws of the Red Heifer. His wisdom will
be unique in all the world."
Moses
then prayed, "May it be Your will that he emerge from my loins." "By
your life," promised God, "it will be so."
From
this we can see how much knowledge a mortal human being can attain by constant
study.
Regarding
his student Yehoshua ben Chanania, Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai said,
"Blessed is the woman who gave birth to him." This indicates that besides being a great Sage and Scholar, Rabbi
Yehoshua had a personality that blended with people and he was very friendly toward
all. Whoever knew him spoke well of him and said, "Blessed is the woman
who gave birth to him."
Some
say that the mother was blessed more than anyone else because it was his mother
who was responsible for his emergence as a great Sage. When she was pregnant
with him, she made the rounds of all the Rabbinic academies (yeshivoth) asking
the Sages to pray to God that the child she was bearing would grow up to
be a Torah Scholar. From the day that he was born, she did not remove his
cradle from the academy so that nothing but words of Torah would enter his
ears.
Rabbi
Yose the Priest was praised as a saint (chasid). Besides his
extensive Torah knowledge, he also had great saintliness (chasidut),
going far beyond the requirements of the Law.
Rabbi
Shimeon ben Nethanel was praised as "fearing sin" (yerey chet).
Besides his Torah knowledge he was sin-fearing. Dreading all wrongdoing, he was ever
mindful to avoid questionable practices, even though they might have been
permitted according to the Law.
Rabbi
Eleazer ben Arakh was praised as being "a spring that strengthens itself (mayan
ha-mithgaber). He was like a fountain increasing in flow because
of the tremendous quantity of water beneath it. So too, Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh
kept on increasing his wisdom from day to day, constantly creating new concepts
(sevaroth) through his analytic power (chur'fah) and
skill in logical construction (pilpul), in which he excelled far
beyond all others.
He
used to say: if all the Sages ...
Rabban
Yochanan ben Zakkai would say that if all the sages of Israel were placed on
one side of a scale, and Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos on the other side, he would
outweigh them all. Abba Shaul then said on the authority of Rabban Yochanan ben
Zakkai, that if all the sages of Israel, including Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos,
were on one side of the scale, and Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh on the other side,
the latter would outweigh them all.
It
might seem that these two statements are contradictory. When Rabban Yochanan
ben Zakkai says that Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos would outweigh all the Sages,
he was apparently also including Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh. Abba Shaul, on the
other hand, states that Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh would outweigh all the sages,
including Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos. Apparently, Abba Shaul maintained that Rabbi Eleazar
ben Arakh was the greater scholar.
Actually,
both comparisons are true. Both are speaking of different aspects of these Sages'
wisdom. When Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai said
that Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos was greater than all the other Sages, including
Rabbi Eleazar ben Ar akh. he was speaking of his memory
and range of knowledge (bekiuth). In this respect he exceeded all
the other Sages. But when he said that Rabbi Eleazar ben Arakh
was wiser than all the Sages, including Rabbi Eliezer ben Horkanos, he was
speaking of mental acuity (charifuth) and the ability to construct
logical structures (pilpul). In this respect, he was greater than
all his colleagues.
NAZAREAN
TALMUD
Sidra
Of B’resheet (Genesis) 29:31 – 30:21
“And Saw
Ha-Shem” “VaYar Adonai”
By:
Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham &
Hakham
Dr. Yosef ben Haggai
|
School of Hakham Shaul Tosefta (Luke
6:19-23) Mishnah א:א |
School of Hakham Tsefet Peshat (Yehudah 1-2) Mishnah א:א |
|
And everyone in the congregation was trying to touch
him (Yeshua), because healing virtue came from him and he healed everyone.
And he looked at his talmidim and said: You poor ones (Eb’yónim) are blessed because yours is the kingdom
(governance) of God through
the Hakhamim and Bate Din as opposed to human kings. Those who are hungry now are blessed because they will be filled.
Those who cry now are blessed because they will laugh. You are blessed when
people are hateful towards you and when they exclude you, berate you, and call you wicked names[71]
on the account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy[72]
because your reward is in the heavens (the Y’mot HaMashiach and the ever
coming world); for this is what the
forefathers did to the prophets. |
א:א Yehudah[73]
ben
David, a servant of Yeshua the Messiah[74]
King of Israel, and brother of
Ya’aqob ben David,[75]
to the called ones and beloved[76] in G-d the Father, Tsadiqim (set
apart) and being guarded (kept)[77] in Yeshua the Messiah King of
Yisrael;
May[78]
Chessed (Loving-kindness), and Shalom (peace),
and Ahava (love),
to you be multiplied![79] |
|
School of Hakham Shaul Remes (2 Luqas -Acts 6:7) Pereq א:א |
|
|
And the Oral Torah continued to spread; and the number
of talmidim greatly increased in Yerushalayim,[80]
and a large number of Kohanim[81]
(priests) became faithfully obedient to the Oral Torah of the Master. |
|
Nazarean Codicil to be read in conjunction with the following Torah
Sedarim,
|
Gen 29:31 – 30:21 |
Psa 24 |
I Sam 1:2-11 + 2:28 |
Jude 1-2 |
Lk 6:19-23 |
Acts 6:7 |
Commentary to Hakham Tsefet’s School of Peshat
Yehudah Ben David, A Servant Of Yeshua The
Messiah King of Israel
It
should be noted that the Mishnaic text of Yehudah (Jude) immediately connects
with the Torah Seder through the names Yehudah (Judah) and Ya’aqob (Jacob). The
Lucan Tosefta connects through the idea of trouble and reward as noted in the
footnotes of the translation. 2 Luqas speaks of the Kohanim who became obedient
to the Mesorah connecting with “Levi” the father of the Kohanim.
Clement of Alexandria wrote the following concerning
Yehudah (Jude) "Judas, who wrote a letter in the Catholic,(general)[82] the brother of the sons
of Joseph as well since he knew that he was very devout man, and of the near
approach of the Master, not, however, says that he has his very brother to be,
but what did he say? Judas as being a servant of the Master Jesus Christ, and
brother of James."[83]
YEHUDAH
AS AN AMANUENSIS TO HAKHAM TSEFET
How
is it that Yehudah becomes the student and amanuensis[84] to Hakham Tsefet? One
might think that the “brother” of Yeshua and Ya’aqob would have been prominent
enough that he would not need training by another Hakham. In the previous
pericope, we saw that Hakham Tsefet was the Chief Hakham of the Nazarean Jews
during his lifetime. Therefore, it would make perfect sense that Yehudah the
brother of Yeshua and Ya’aqob would have gravitated towards the most
influential Hakham Tsefet. The “Epistle” shows his great wisdom and humility.
This is especially noteworthy. Brothers have a tendency to disdain their
siblings. In the case of Yehudah, we see that he acquiesced to the Master in
faithful obedience. We readily understand that 2 Luqas 6:1-6 has established a
quorum for the seven Paqidim attending the bench. As we will soon see Stephen’s
office as Paqid did not last long, leaving a vacancy. Stephen most likely
occupied the office of the Masoret during his tenure. Peresh (Philip) would
have occupied the office of Chazan/ Sheliach. With the death of Stephen, there
would have been a vacancy in the office of Masoret. Such being the case the
office of Chazan/Sheliach would have been open. At some point Yehudah took the
ministry of Masoret. However, we must remember that the events of 2 Luqas 6
occurred early on in the history of the Nazarean Movement.
Structure - Organic Thought - Tables And Charts in
Jude
Yehudah
organizes his thoughts in groups, usually by threes. This ancient form of a
verbal table or chart demonstrates his propensity for organic - Rabbinic
thought. Herein we can see Hakham Tsefet training an amanuensis. That Yehudah
uses language like Hakham Shaul would suggests that Hakham Tsefet the “chief”
Hakham of the Nazarean Jews of that time trained the amanuensis of Hakham
Shaul.[85] Yehudah and Hakham Tsefet
demonstrate highly organized minds and systematic writings. This wisdom shines
through their words in that there are a good number of terms used in Yehudah’s
treatise that do not appear anywhere else except the writings of Hakham
Tsefet’s Mishnaic import.
Ya'aqob's Struggles
Noting
the present struggle of Ya'aqob in our Torah Seder, we see Hakham Tsefet
through his amanuensis present Yeshua in very much the same light. Neyrey notes
that “2nd Peter” was authored by Hakham Tsefet in order to address
specific problems with the Epicureans.[86] The continuity between
Yehudah and 2nd Peter is distinguishable from nomenclature and order
of thought. Therefore, we concur with Bauckham[87] that the present treatise
of Yehudah is also authored to address specific issues. Noting that Yehudah
(Jude) was the amanuensis of Hakham Tsefet for this work. We must understand
that Marqos, Yehudah and 1st – 2nd Tsefet (Peter) are one
overarching document of Mishnaic import. Each piece of this document has
special issues that it is addressing. Therefore, rather than seeing the present
work of Yehudah as the amanuensis of Hakham Tsefet as a separate document,
we should see this as a part of Hakham
Tsefet’s Mishnaic treatise, which addresses specific issues in the Nazarean
Esnoga.
Neyrey
also notes a form of honor-shame,[88] which is composed of four
elements in the work of Yehudah and 2nd Tsefet and demonstrated in
the ministry life of Yeshua. He outlines this honor/shame interaction in the following
way.
We
agree that there is a specific structure to the "confrontations"
Yeshua has with his "opponents." Neyrey's observation is astute.
However, had Neyrey applied this same fundamental structure to Yeshua as a
Hakham establishing halakhah he would have made a discovery of monumental
proportions. Therefore, we suggest the following structure in Yeshua's
activities and establishment of halakhic norm. Yeshua was not interested in
"fame" and notoriety as suggested by Neyrey. If there was any desire
for notoriety, it was for the sake of the Mesorah. We note the following
application of determining halakhic norms in the public ministry of the Master.
Each
of Yeshua's activities initiates a halakhic claim. Hakham Tsefet's Mishnaic
treatise demonstrates a challenge against halakhic proclamation, and then gives
the riposte and verdict (decision). Hakham Tsefet presents these verdicts in
narrative form as a type of catechistic lesson. Each pericope is a catechistic
module in narrative form for sake of mnemonic. Just as a Midrash is a means of
creating a memorable parabolic mussar (ethic), the Mishnaic import of Hakham
Tsefet generates a catechistic lesson of memorable halakhah. Hakham Tsefet
presents these halakhic verdicts of the Mishnaic treatise openly for the sake
of public awareness and presentation and demonstrative halakhic norms.
We
find the following continuity with the present Torah Seder. The content of
Yehudah as an amanuensis to Hakham Tsefet matches the confrontation Ya'aqob
faces with Laban and Esau. The ten pericopes of Yehudah deal with the troubles
of Ya'aqob. In the final Torah Seder matched with Yehudah, we see Yosef ben
Ya'aqob's rise to power in Mitzrayim.
Cosmic view of Yehudah
Ancient
Jews thought of the universe and the whole of the kosmos as an organized
and structured whole.[90] This structure applies to
the kosmos and to society. According to Barré we are programed to know
what is "in place" and "out of place."[91] Both Yehudah and Hakham
Tsefet "share this perception."[92] Our comments concerning
the “Structured Universe” have undergirded this notion. Building on the Torah,
Yehudah and 2nd Tsefet explain the structured universe and society
in terms of “clean and unclean,” “order and disorder” as does the Mesorot.
Therefore, the faithfully obedient – “the
called” (Jews) who act “like G-d”
are considered “clean” finding themselves in harmony with the “powers” of G-d’s
creation. Those who act contrary to the will of G-d are “unclean” (non-observant
Gentiles) and opposed by the spheres governing G-d’s creation. There is a
division between the clean and unclean. Division or “separation” in
holiness. Those who are “kept” (shomer – guarded) separate themselves
from that which is unclean. The Tsadiqim (set apart) are
connected to G-d, full of Loving-kindness (Chessed), peace (Shalom)
and love (ahavah). Those who
do not possess these qualities are considered “unclean or impure.”
The
present Lucan Tosefta notes this same separation.
You are blessed
when people are hateful towards you and when they exclude you, berate you, and call you wicked names on
the account of the Son of Man.
Note
that the “exclusion” is initiated by the unclean. They love their separation
from the “clean” and would rather wallow in their mire than turn to G-d’s,
spiritual[93]
cleanliness. The idea of separation from clean and unclean in these periscopes
of Yehudah and 2nd Tsefet embraces three complete “Orders” of the
Mishnah, Nashim, Kodashim and Tohorot. In
other words, the Treatise of Yehudah and 2nd Tsefet covers over one
half of the Mishnah in a concise form.
The
present Lucan Tosefta suggestively speaks of the three remaining “Orders” of
the Mishnah, Nezikin, which belongs
to the Eb’yonim.
You poor ones (Eb’yónim)
are blessed because yours is the kingdom (governance) of God through
the Hakhamim and Bate Din as opposed to human kings.
The
second Order” being Zeraim.
Those who are
hungry now are blessed because they will be filled.
The
third “Order” is Moedim (Community
and communal gatherings).
Those who cry
now are blessed because they will laugh.
Compare
this verse to…
Nehemiah 8:9 And Nehemiah,
which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites
that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy (separate) unto the Lord your God; do not mourn, or weep. Because all the people cried, when they heard the words of the Torah.
Peroration
Yehuda’s
address is very significant when we view the superstructure of the document.
The brother/servant of Yeshua stands second to Hakham Tsefet as a “GUARD”
(Shomer/Ntzar) for the community. The accusations posited in this Mishnaic
treatise are not merely “accusations.” Yehudah brings charges and convictions
against those who would invade the righteous/generous community. While it not impossible to believe that
Yehudah was a Hakham, at present we see his duties as a Paqid in training. It
is more probable that Yehudah is one of the seven men of the Esnoga guarding,
protecting and fathering the community of the faithfully obedient. As a Chazan
(Sephira of Din) serving the Bench, Yehudah would have been able to bring those
who were wreaking havoc in the community to the Bet Din. Therefore, we see with
this connection to 2 Luqas the modelling of a true Chazan.[94]
In
the writings of Hakham Tsefet with Yehudah as his amanuensis, we find a
strengthening of the community through the Torah - Oral and Written.
Remes Commentary Of Hakham Shaul
Yehudah – Epistle or Mishnaic Treatise?
The
supposed “letter” (“Epistle”) of Yehuda is one of those amazing documents that
scholars quibble over in their semantic[95] musings. Yet the number
of scholarly documents on Yehudah is limited. We are confident that scholars
will someday look beyond the veneer and see Yehudah for what he is as a Torah Scholar
in his own right.
Based
on the overall structure of Yehudah we see the Mishnaic prototype in a concise
form. We also note that Yehudah is an archetypal Mishnah mirrored from the
Order of Nezikin and the specific
Tractate Sanhedrin.[96]
Based
on the following outline we see the infrastructure of a legal document rather
than an “Epistle” or “Letter.” This Legal document was circulated as a key part
of the Mishnaic Import with justifiable cause as we will see.
1.
Opening, statement of authority, servant of Yeshua
brother of Ya’aqob (vv.1-3)
2.
Charges brought against those who challenge halakhic
norms of the Torah[97] (v.4)
3.
Case Law, crimes and their punishment (vv.
5-16)
4.
Precedential Case Laws ,
The Lord’s Judgment (vv.11-15)
5.
Judgment summation (v.16)
6.
Admonition to the faithfully obedient (vv.
17-23)
7.
Summation (vv.
24-25)[98]
Yehudah Serving The Bench
We
have seen that the strengthening of the community has been the theme for these
weeks of Nahamu. The pericopes and special Ashlamatot have encouraged us to
work harder at being principle agents for fostering the Torah in our community.
We have also seen the necessity for building community. While our look at the
“Seven Men” of the Esnoga has been cursory, we have come to understand the need
for community. We have also seen that the idea of Tzfat being the river from
which the Oral Torah of Delight flows. Tzfat is also the watchman’s post for
guarding the faithfully obedient. One principle agent who is seen as the
“watchman” and “seer”[99] of the community is the
Chazan. It is also very noteworthy to mention that the Power of Din (Justice)
is personified in Ya’aqob.[100] As we stated above the
Mishnah of Yehudah’s ten pericopes concludes Yosef ben Ya’aqob’s rise to power
and struggles.[101]
The
Chazan is a witness to legal documents. And, one who dispenses authority in the
congregation.[102]
Consequently, the Lectionary sent to the Romans by Hakham Shaul captures these
men and the Chazan with perfect clarity.
Romans 13:1-5 Let
every [Gentile] soul be subject to the governing authorities [of the Jewish
Synagogue]. For there is no [legitimate] authority except [that of the Jewish
Bet Din] from God, and the authorities [of the Bet Din] that exist are
appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority [of the Bet Din]
resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment (of the
heavens) upon themselves. For the Rulers [of the Synagogue][103] are not a terror to
good works (acts of righteousness/generosity), but to (those who do) evil. Do
you want to (be) irreverent to the authority [of the Bet Din]? Rather do what
is beneficial, and you will have praise from the same. For he (the Chazan)[104]
is God's servant to you for what is beneficial. But if you do that which is
unprofitable, be afraid; for he (the Chazan)[105]
does not bear the circumcision knife[106]
in vain; for he is God's minister (Deputy of the Bet Din), avenger to execute
wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject
(obey), not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake.
Consequently,
we see Yehudah most likely serving in the Esnoga as a Chazan to the Bench of the
Chief Hakham Tsefet (Hokmah), Hakham Ya’aqob (Bina) and Hakham Yochanan (Da’at)
(the original ChaBaD).
Yehudah
was a Chazan HaKnesset in the true sense of the word as described by Hayman Sky[107] in the first chapter of
his Doctoral thesis on the “Chazan.” The true meaning being the Chazan
HaKenesset was a liturgical supervisor over the whole community or district.
The Masorette (Evangelist/Catechist) was
more directly connected to the Esnoga and its administration. However, the two
offices (Chazan and Masorette) have come to us as one in post Talmudic times.
While there is a connection to the musical qualities of the Chazan, we can see
that the office of the Chazan in antiquity also was directly related to the
supervision of the Esnoga and the immediate community. His relationship to the
Bench was essential. He directly related to the concept of Din (judgment)
evoking Yir’ah (fear) and awe for the authority of G-d.
Peroration
Yehudah’s
office of Chazan was especially important in the days of the first century.
Many Gentiles were connecting themselves with the community of the B’ne
Yisrael. As such these Gentiles needed to be watched very carefully. This is
not because the Gentile was inherently bad. The reason is found in the nature of
habits, and upbringing . Judaism presented a completely new way of life for
those who were embracing Torah.
The “authorities” of the Synagogue
were the interpreters of the Torah (God’s word to Israel, the Law) and they
would unquestionably have been responsible for the application of the Law
(Torah) to the Synagogue community including Christians Gentiles. The
“authorities” would judge behaviors (and faith claims) *(claims of
faithfulness)[108]
based on their interpretation of the Torah.[109]
We
will see in the next 9 weeks the amazing genius of the Nazarean Bet Din and the
community structure policed by the seven men, specifically the Chazan.
This
6th week of Nahamu touts the office of the Feminine Pastor and its
relationship with the Meturgeman/Moreh. This feminine character possesses many
skills. Key in her connection with the Chazan is the principle of restriction
and judgment. Because the Chazan holds the Circumcision Knife (μάχαιραν – machairan) he controls who is or is not a part
of the community. As such, he needs a secret agent. His detective (private eye)
is the Parnas Emet and third Pastor (Feminine) of the seven men. This Shabbat
the 3rd Parnas (Feminine Pastor) is connected with the Meturgeman as
noted above. However, the end is in the beginning and at the end of the week we
will conclude with this same connection, namely, albeit the Meturgeman connects
with the Feminine Parnas. This Feminine Pastor shines out in our Torah Seder
through the two Matriarchs Leah and Rachel who were prophetesses in their own
right, as well as through Hannah the prophetess, the mother of the prophet
Sh’muel.
Halakhic Implications
It is the duty of every Nazarean Jew to guard himself and his
community against the subversives who would repudiate the validity of Halakhic
norms established by Nazarean Hakhamim as they study and interpret the Torah
norms for the sake of the community.
Amen v’amen
Questions
for Understanding and Reflection
Blessing After Torah Study
Barúch Atáh Adonai, Elohénu Meléch HaOlám,
Ashér Natán Lánu Torát Emét, V'Chayéi Olám Natá B'Tochénu.
Barúch Atáh Adonái, Notén HaToráh. Amen!
Blessed is Ha-Shem our God, King of the universe,
Who has given us a teaching of truth, implanting within us
eternal life.
Blessed is Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!
“Now unto Him who is able to preserve you faultless, and
spotless, and to establish you without a blemish,
before His majesty, with joy, [namely,] the only one God,
our Deliverer, by means of Yeshua the Messiah our Master, be praise, and
dominion, and honor, and majesty, both now and in all ages. Amen!”
Next Shabbat: “VaYizkhor Elohim” &
Shabbat: Nachamu VII
Sabbath: “And G-d remembered” &
“Comfort/Strengthening - VII”
|
Shabbat |
Torah
Reading: |
Weekday
Torah Reading: |
|
וַיִּזְכֹּר
אֱלֹהִים |
|
|
|
“VaYizkhor Elohim” |
Reader 1 – B’resheet 30:22-24 |
Reader 1 – B’resheet 31:3-5 |
|
“And G-d remembered” |
Reader 2 – B’resheet
30:25-27 |
Reader 2 – B’resheet 31:6-8 |
|
“Y se acordó Dio” |
Reader 3 – B’resheet
30:28-30 |
Reader 3 – B’resheet 31:9-12 |
|
B’resheet (Gen.) 30:22 –
31:2 |
Reader 4 – B’resheet
30:31-34 |
|
|
Ashlamatah: I Sam
1:11-19, 22 |
Reader 5 – B’resheet 30:35-37 |
|
|
Special: Isaiah 61:10 – 63:9 |
Reader 6 – B’resheet
30:38-40 |
Reader 1 – B’resheet 31:3-5 |
|
Psalm 25:1-22 |
Reader 7 – B’resheet 30:41- 31:2 |
Reader 2 – B’resheet 31:6-8 |
|
|
Maftir – B’resheet 30:43 – 31:2 |
Reader 3 – B’resheet 31:9-12 |
|
N.C.: Jude 3, Luke 6:24-26,
Acts 6:8-15 |
Isaiah 61:10 -
63:9 |
|
Coming Festival:
Rosh HaShanah 5773 – New Year 5773
Sunday
Evening 16th of September – Tuesday Evening 18th of
September
For
further study see:
http://www.betemunah.org/teruah.html
http://www.betemunah.org/shofar.html
&
http://www.betemunah.org/knowday.html
Shalom
Shabbat!
Hakham
Dr. Yosef ben Haggai
Rosh
Paqid Adon Hillel ben David
Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham
[1] 71:2.
[2] R'dak in his
Commentary on the Torah.
[3] Verse 30
here.
[4] Rashi and
Ibn Ezra.
[5] Beresheet
Rabba 71:19.
[6] Verse 2
here.
[7] See Psalms 69:34.
[8] Verse 2
here.
[9] I Kings
18:21.
[10] II Kings
4:33.
[11] 71:10.
[12] Esther 4:1.
[13] Further, Verse 22.
[14] Ibid., Verses 17 and 19.
[15] Bereshith Rabbah, end of
Chapter 72.
[16] Verse 18 here.
[17] Beresheet Rabba 70:17. Jacob was also aware that he was destined to
establish twelve tribes.
[18] Above,
15:16.
[19] "With
What May They Cover Up" hot food, the fourth chapter In Tractate Shabbath.
50 b.
[20] Berachoth 43
b.
[21] 72:2.
[22] Song of
Songs 7:14
[23] Proverbs
7:17.
[24] I have not
been able to identify them. However, see R'dak.
[25] Ezekiel
16:8.
[26] Verse 11
here.
[27] Exodus 25:13.
[28] Ezekiel 17:6.
[29] Job 18:13.
[30] Isaiah 16:6.
See Rashi there, who explains the verse as follows: for most of Moab's sons
are illegitimate, etc.
[31] I Kings
8:13.
[32] Ibid., Verse
27.
[33] Habakkuk
3:11.
[34] Psalms 19:5.
[35] Found in our
Targum Yonathan. The traditional Targumim (translations) of the Pentateuch are
Onkelos, Yonathan, and Yerushalmi. The latter has
not reached us in its entirety.
[36] Above, 3:6.
[37] Psalms 119:20.
[38] Isaiah 50:6.
[39] Psalms129:3.
[40] Jonah 2:7.
[41] I Chronicles 26:18.
[42] II Kings 23:1l.
[43] Numbers 35:2.
[44] Ezekiel27:28.
[45] Nazir VII, 2.
[46] Pesachim
48b.
[47] Kelim II, 3.
[48] Source is
unknown to me.
[49] Shabbath 7a.
[50] Erubin 77b.
[51]Source is unknown to me.
[52] 1 Divrei Hayamim (Chronicles) 21:26
[53] The Yevusi were one of the seven wicked nations which
had to be destroyed and this threshing floor belonged to the king, the one who
embodied the strength of that nation. After of the Yevusi king was captured, he
converted.
[54] The ArtScroll Tanach Series, Tehillim, A new
translation with a commentary anthologized from Talmudic, Midrashic, and rabbinic sources. Commentary by Rabbi
Avrohom Chaim Feuer, Translation by
Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Feuer in
collaboration with Rabbi Nosson Scherman.
[55] Beresheet (Genesis) 28:12
[56] I Divrei Hayamim (Chronicles) 21:16
[57] Hilchot Beit Habechira 2:1,2
[58] On all occasions except for Shabbat morning when Psalm
29 is recited. Ibid. 54
[59] “The Bible – Psalms with the Jerusalem Commentary”, volume one. By Amos Hakham.
[60] Genesis 8:5, Rashi
[61] Rashi on Genesis 8:11
[62] Shalshelet ha-Kabbalah, Soncino Zohar, Beresheet,
Section 1, Page 8b
[63] Haggai 1:14-15
[64] Genesis 1:6
[65] Genesis 1:9-12
[66] Logic of the Mind, Logic of the Heart
[67] Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh
[68] Where Yitzchak was bound as a sacrifice.
[69] Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) chapter 36
[70] Succah 52a
[71] Connection to B’resheet 29:29, Laban gave Billah
(troubled) as a handmade to Rachel.
[72] Connection to B’resheet 30:13 “I am happy”…
[73] Verbal connection to B’resheet 29:35
[74] Yehudah ben Yosef, a servant of Yeshua the Messiah – The author of this
small Epistle wants to inform us about it author, and at the same time indicate
to us some royal manners. The Epistle could have well said: “Yehudah the
brother of Yeshua the Messiah” but found that although the statement is true,
he did not personally want to make boast of his familial ties to the Master,
but does so by way of informing us that he is the brother Ya’aqob ben David –
the brother of the Master.
[75] Connection to B’resheet 29:34 “Three sons” and Psa
24:6
[76] Some versions have “beloved” ones of the Father
[77] Note Delitzsch’s translation of our Mishnaic text and
use of וּשְׁמוּרִים – u’shmurim from Shomer. Cf. Shemot
Exodus) 23:12 Be on guard (Shomer) concerning all that I have told you. Make no
mention of the names of other gods; they shall not be heard on your lips.[77] The
other possible Mishnaic/Biblical Hebrew word which could be used her is Netzer.
(נָצַר that means to guard or watch.)
[78] Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953-2001). Vol.
16: New Testament commentary: Exposition of the Epistles of Peter and
the Epistle of Jude. Accompanying biblical text is author's translation.
New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. p 368
Also note the apparent
prayer structure of the end of the pericope. “May Loving-kindness, and peace, and love, to you be multiplied! This
shows that Yehudah is familiar with the literary aspects of prayer rubrics.
This also implicitly suggests that Yehudah is a Chazan.
[79] Kistemaker and & Hendriksen note the language and
nomenclature of Hakham Tsefet. This is because Yehudah is functioning as the
amanuensis of Hakham Tsefet. For similar language Cf. I Peter 1:2; II Peter
1:2. And again, the language of Hakham Shaul with his amanuensis Luqas. Cf. I
Tim. 1:2; II Tim. 1:2. We also call to the reader’s attention the similarity
between these statements and B'midbar (Num.) 6:22-24. Herein we have perfect
contiguity with the previous Torah Sederim.
Kistemaker, S. J., &
Hendriksen, W. (1953-2001). Vol. 16: New Testament commentary:
Exposition of the Epistles of Peter and the Epistle of Jude. Accompanying
biblical text is author's translation. New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids:
Baker Book House. p 368
[80] Connection with Psa 24:3 “the hill of the Lord”
[81] Connection to
B’resheet 29:34 Levi the ancestor of the Kohenim.
[82] Bauckham argues
against this idea calming that Jude (Yehudah) is NOT a “general Epistle.
Bauckham, R. J. (1996). Jude, 2 Peter (Word Biblical Commentary ed.,
Vol. 50). (D. A.Hubbard, & G. W. Baker, Eds.) Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
This legal document is “orders from headquarters” per se. This legal document
witnessed by the Chazan and authorized by the Bench repudiates the activities
of non-observant Gentiles who would join the Nazarean Communities.
[83] Biggs, C. (1901). A Critical and exegetical commentary
on the Epistles of St. Peter and St. Jude. Edinburgh: T & T Clark
International. p. 323
[84] A person employed to write (a Scribe – Sofer) what
another dictates or to copy what has been written by another, and also refers
to a person who signs a document on behalf of another under their
authority.
[85] Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953-2001). Vol.
16: New Testament commentary: Exposition of the Epistles of Peter and
the Epistle of Jude. Accompanying
biblical text is author's translation. New Testament Commentary. Grand
Rapids: Baker Book House. p. 367
[86] Neyrey, J. H. (1993). 2 Peter, Jude A New
Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 37c). New Haven: The
Anchor Yale Bible. Introduction p. 1
[87] Bauckham, R. J. (1996). Jude, 2 Peter (Word
Biblical Commentary ed., Vol. 50). (D. A.Hubbard, & G. W. Baker, Eds.)
Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson. p. 3
[88] The honor-shame scenario Neyrey is posits is based on
John 4:44 "a prophet is without honor in his own country."
[89] Neyrey, J. H. (1993). 2 Peter, Jude A New
Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 37c). New Haven: The
Anchor Yale Bible. p. 5
[90] Ibid. Introduction pp. 10-1
[91] Barré Michael, Fear of God and the World of Wisdom,
BTB 11 (1981) 41-43
[92] Neyrey, J. H. (1993). 2 Peter, Jude A New
Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 37c). New Haven: The
Anchor Yale Bible. Introduction p. 12
[93] Our use of “spiritual” refers to the G-d breathed Oral Torah, which delineates cleanliness and impurity.
[94] Jude acts as a prosecutor who conducts a prophetic
lawsuit against evildoers, charging them with crimes proclaiming the consistent
norm of judgment, announcing a sure judgment of punishment.
Neyrey, J. H. (1993). 2
Peter, Jude A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (Vol. 37c).
New Haven: The Anchor Yale Bible. p 24
[95] sēmantikós-
σημαντικός
[96] Below we outline the seven basic parts of Yehudah. However, if we follow the ten pericopes we might see these ten pericopes matched in the fourth order of the Mishnah Nezikin, which has ten Tractates. We feel it important to note that the Legal Mishnah of Yehuda can be broken into ten or seven sections, relating to the seven men who serve the bench of three.
[97] Implying her both Oral and Written Torah, but keeping
in mind that during Yehudah’s time the Torah was more Oral than written.
[98] These 7 divisions are further divided into the 10
natural pericopes for connection to the appropriate Torah Sederim.
[99] According to Hyman I. Sky, Development of the
Office of Hazzan Through the Talmudic Period (Distinguished Dissertations)
San Francisco: Mellen Research University Press, who followed the etymology of
the word Chazan, suggesting that it was an “Aramacized Hebrew word” from the
Aramaic idea of seeing (חזה). Sky furthers
the idea to tell us that the Chazan was an equivalent to the Hebrew (רואה) Shepherd/Pastor.
Her we suggest that the Chazan is the liturgical head over the “Pastors” and the
liturgical chief guardian of the Esnoga possessing the traits and skills of
those he watches (חזאה) over. See Melamed’s, R. E.
(2005). Aramaic Hebrew English Dictionary of the Babylonian Talmud.
Jerusalem: The Samuel and Odette Levy Foundation. pp. 171-2. Rather than use
the phrase “Aramacized Hebrew word” from the early 1970’s we see that phrase as
being Mishnaic Hebrew. It is also interesting to note the title of our present
Torah Seder. “And Saw Ha-Shem,” “VaYar Adonai.”
[100] Matt, D. C. (2004). The Zohar, Translation and
Commentary (Pritzker Edition ed., Vol. One). Stanford, CA: Stanford
University Press. p. Introduction L. It is also interesting that Ya’aqob is
also associated with Tiferet - Loving-kindness,
or Rachamim the synthesis of Chesed (love) and G’vurah
(peace – shalom).
[101] Cf. B’resheet 40:1-23
[102] Nanos, M. D. (1996). The Mystery of Romans, The
Jewish context of Paul's Letter. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press. p.
311 Cf. m. Makkot
[103] Corresponding to 1st Hakham, 2nd
Hakham and Apostle 3rd of the bench of three - Chokhmah, Bina and
Da’at (ChaBaD)
[104] The Mohel (circumciser) like the Chazan (cantor)
embody the aspirations and authority of the local congregation and the Bet Din.
(Jewish court of authority)
[105] Connected with the concept of Yir’ah, the fear of G-d.
The ministry of the Sheliach – Chazan – Bishop
[106] Here when everything is contextualized, we can
understand the meaning of these verses. The Jewish authorities hold in their
power the ability to allow or prohibit (bind and loose) circumcision,
acceptance of gentile conversion. Interestingly enough the Greek
μάχαιραν holds the idea of some sort of
contention. This is not always the case with the
μάχαιραν, however in our present case
the μάχαιραν is the judgment for or
against conversion. The Chazan who holds the circumcision knife is the final
word on ritual circumcision and conversion.
[107] Hyman I. Sky, Development of the Office of Hazzan
Through the Talmudic Period (Distinguished Dissertations) San Francisco:
Mellen Research University Press. Cf. Chapter 1
[108] My clarification
[109] Nanos, M. D. (1996). The Mystery of Romans, The Jewish context of Paul's Letter. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press. p. 312