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Triennial Cycle (Triennial Torah Cycle) / Septennial Cycle (Septennial Torah Cycle)

Three and 1/2 year Lectionary Readings	Third Year of the Triennial Reading Cycle
Tishri 5, 5782 - September 10/11, 2021	Seventh Year of the Shmita Cycle

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Roll of Honor:

This Commentary comes out weekly and on the festivals thanks to the great generosity of:

His Eminence Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David and beloved wife HH Giberet Batsheva bat Sarah

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His Honor Paqid Adon David ben Abraham

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Her Excellency Giberet Prof. Dr. Emunah bat Sarah & beloved family

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His Excellency Adon Shlomoh ben Abraham

His Excellency Adon Ya’aqob ben David

For their regular and sacrificial giving, providing the best oil for the lamps, we pray that GOD’s richest blessings be upon their lives and those of their loved ones, together with all Yisrael and her Torah Scholars, amen ve amen!

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Blessings Before Torah Study

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our GOD, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us through Your commandments, and commanded us to actively study Torah. Amen!

Please Ha-Shem, our GOD, 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 delight. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. Amen!

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our GOD, 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 performing 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: Honoring 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!

A Prayer for Israel

Our Father in Heaven, Rock, and Redeemer of Israel, bless the State of Israel, the first manifestation of the approach of our redemption. Shield it with Your lovingkindness, envelop it in Your peace, and bestow Your light and truth upon its leaders, ministers, and advisors, and grace them with Your good counsel. Strengthen the hands of those who defend our holy land, grant them deliverance, and adorn them in a mantle of victory. Ordain peace in the land and grant its inhabitants eternal happiness.

Lead them, swiftly and upright, to Your city Zion and to Jerusalem, the abode of Your Name, as is written in the Torah of Your servant Moses: “Even if your outcasts are at the ends of the world, from there the Lord your God will gather you, from there He will fetch you. And the Lord your God will bring you to the land that your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it, and He will make you more prosperous and more numerous than your fathers.” Draw our hearts together to revere and venerate Your name and to observe all the precepts of Your Torah, and send us quickly the Messiah son of David, agent of Your vindication, to redeem those who await Your deliverance.

We pray for our beloved Hakham His Eminence Rabbi Dr. Yosef ben Haggai. Mi Sheberach…He who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Moses and Aaron, David and Solomon, may He bless and heal the sick person HE Rabbi Dr. Yosef ben Haggai, May the Holy One, Blessed is He, be filled with compassion for him to restore his health, to heal him, to strengthen him, and to revivify him. And may He send him speedily a complete recovery from heaven, among the other sick people of Yisrael, a recovery of the body and a recovery of the spirit, swiftly and soon, and we will say amen ve amen!

Special Requests from His Eminence Hakham Dr. Yosef ben Haggai:

He Who blessed our holy matriarchs, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, Miriam the Prophetess. Abigail, and Esther daughter of Abigail – may He bless the sick mother of three children HE Giberet Hannah bat Sarah (the much-loved niece of HH Giberet Giborah bat Sarah) and send her a complete recovery in all her organs and all her blood vessels. Please HaShem, heal her now. Please HaShem, heal her now.  Please HaShem, heal her now among the other sick people of Your people Israel.  And so may it be His will, and we all will say with one voice: AMEN ve AMEN

Sabbath “Shuva” – “of Returning/Repentance”

Shabbat	Torah Reading:	Weekday Torah Reading:
שׁוּבָה		Saturday Afternoon
“Shabbat Shuba”	Reader 1 – B’Midbar 19:1-3	Reader 1 – B’Midbar 20:14-16
“Sabbath of Returning”	Reader 2 – B’Midbar 19:4-6	Reader 2 – B’Midbar 20:17-19
“Sábado del Retorno”	Reader 3 – B’Midbar 19:7-10	Reader 3 – B’Midbar 20:19-22
B’Midbar (Num.) 19:1 – 20:13	Reader 4 – B’Midbar 19:11-16
Ashlamata:  Judges 11:1-11	Reader 5 – B’Midbar 19:17-22	Monday and Thursday Mornings
Special: Hos 14:2-10 + Mic. 7:18-20*	Reader 6 – B’Midbar 20:1-6	Reader 1 – B’Midbar 20:14-16
Psalms: 103:10-14	Reader 7 – B’Midbar 20:7-13	Reader 2 – B’Midbar 20:17-19
Mk 10:35:41: Lk 12:49-53	Maftir – B’Midbar 20:7-13	Reader 3 – B’Midbar 20:19-22

* To be read by the greatest Torah Scholar available to the local congregation.

Summary of the Torah Seder - B’Midbar (Num.) 19:1 - 20:13

· Numbers 19:1-10 – Preparation of the Ashes of the Red Heifer

· Numbers 19:11-13 – The Specific Purpose of the Water for Purification

· Numbers 19:14-22 – Mode of Purification

· Numbers 20:1 – Death of Miriam

· Numbers 20:2-9 – Striking the Rock

· Numbers 20:10-13 – Sin of Moses and Aharon

Rashi & Targum Pseudo Jonathan

for: B’Midbar (Num.) 19:1 - 20:13

Rashi	Targum
1. The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:	1. AND the Lord spoke with Mosheh and Aharon, saying:
2. This is the statute of the Torah which the Lord commanded, saying, Speak to the children of Israel and have them take for you a perfectly red unblemished cow, upon which no yoke was laid.	2. This is the decree, the publication of the law which the LORD has commanded, saying; Speak to the sons of Israel, that they bring to you from the separation of the fold a red heifer, two years old, in which there is neither spot nor white hair, on which no male has come, nor the burden of any work been imposed, neither hurt by the thong, nor grieved by the goad or prick, nor collar (band) or any like yoke.
3. And you shall give it to Eleazar the kohen, and he shall take it outside the camp and slaughter it in his presence.	3. And you will give her unto Elazar, the chief of the priests, who will lead her alone without the camp, and set round about her a railing (border) of the branches of fig trees; and another priest will slay her with the two signs before him, after the manner of other animals, and examine her by the eighteen kinds of divisions.
4. Eleazar the kohen shall take from its blood with his finger and sprinkle it toward the front of the Tent of Meeting seven times.	4. And Elazar, in his priestly dress, will take of her blood with the finger of his right hand, without (first) containing it in a vessel, and will sprinkle the border of fig branches, and (afterwards) from the midst of a vessel on one side towards the tabernacle of ordinance, with one dipping, seven times (will he sprinkle).
5. The cow shall then be burned in his presence; its hide, its flesh, its blood, with its dung he shall burn it.	5. And they will bring her out from the midst of the railing and another priest, while Elazar looks on, will burn the heifer, her skin, flesh, and blood, with her dung will he burn.
6. The kohen shall take a piece of cedar wood, hyssop, and crimson wool, and cast them into the burning of the cow.	6. And another priest will take a piece of cedar wood and hyssop, and (wool) whose color has been changed to scarlet, and throw them into the midst of the burning of the heifer; and he will enlarge the burning, that the ashes may be increased.
7. The kohen shall wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water, and then he may enter the camp, and the kohen shall be unclean until evening.	7. And the priest who slew the heifer will wash his dress in forty satas of water, and afterwards he may go into the camp; but the priest before his ablution will be unclean until the evening.
8. The one who burns it shall wash his clothes in water and cleanse his body in water, and he shall be unclean until evening.	8. And the priest who was employed in the burning will wash his dress in forty satas of water, and his flesh in forty satas, and before his ablution will be unclean until the evening.
9. A ritually clean person shall gather the cow's ashes and place them outside the camp in a clean place, and It shall be as a keepsake for the congregation of the children of Israel for sprinkling water, [used] for cleansing.	9. And a man, a priest who is clean, will gather up the ashes of the heifer in an earthenware receptacle, its opening covered round about with clay; and will divide the ashes into three portions, of which one will be placed within the wall (of Jerusalem), another in the Mount of Olives, and the third portion be in the custody of the Levites; and it will be for the congregation of Israel, for the Water of Sprinkling: it is the heifer (immolated) for the remission of sins.
10. The one who gathers the cow's ashes shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until evening. It shall be an everlasting statute for the children of Israel and for the proselyte who resides in their midst.	10. And the priest who gathered up the ashes of the heifer will wash his clothes, and before his ablution be unclean till the evening. And this will be for the cleansing of the children of Israel, a statute for ever.
11, Anyone touching the corpse of a human soul shall become unclean for seven days.	11. Whoever touches the body of a dead man, or of a child of some months old, either his body or his blood, will be unclean seven days.
12. On the third and seventh days, he shall cleanse himself with it, so that he can become clean. But if he does not sprinkle himself with it on the third and seventh days, he shall not become clean.	12. He will sprinkle himself with this water of the ashes on the third day, and on the seventh day he will be clean. But if he sprinkle not himself on the third day, his uncleanness will remain upon him, and he will not be clean on the seventh day.
13. Whoever touches the corpse of a human soul which dies, and he does not cleanse himself, he has defiled the Mishkan of the Lord, and that soul shall be cut off from Israel. For the sprinkling water was not sprinkled on him, so he remains unclean, and his uncleanness remains upon him.	13. Whoever has touched the body of a dead man, or of a child nine months old, either the body or the blood, and will not sprinkle himself, he has defiled the tabernacle of the LORD, and that man will be cut off from Israel; forasmuch as the water of sprinkling is not sprinkled upon him, he is unclean, his uncleanness is yet on him, until he will sprinkle himself; yet may he sprinkle and make ablution on the seventh evening.
14. This is the law: if a man dies in a tent, anyone entering the tent and anything in the tent shall be unclean for seven days.	14. This is the indication of the law concerning a man when he has died under the outspread tent everyone who enters into the tent by the way of the door, but not from its side, when its door is open, (or when one has opened its door,) and whatever is in the tent, its floor, stone, wood, and vessels, will be unclean seven days.
15. Any open vessel which has no seal fastened around it becomes unclean.	15. And every earthen vessel which has no covering fastened upon its mouth, which would have kept it separate from the uncleanness, is defiled by the uncleanness of the air which touches its mouth, and its interior, and not the outside of it (only).
16. Anyone who touches one slain by the sword, or a corpse, or a human bone or a grave, in an open field, he shall be unclean for seven days.	16. And whoever will touch not one who has died in his mother's womb, but who has been slain with the sword on the face of the field, or the sword with which he was slain, or the dead man himself, or a bone of his, or the hair, or the bone of a living man which has been separated from him, or a grave, or a shroud, or the bier, will be unclean seven days.
17. They shall take for that unclean person from the ashes of the burnt purification offering, and it shall be placed in a vessel [filled] with spring water.	17. And for him who is unclean, they will take of the ashes of the burnt sin offering, and put spring water upon them in an earthen vessel.
18. A ritually clean person shall take the hyssop and dip it into the water and sprinkle it on the tent, on all the vessels, and on the people who were in it, and on anyone who touched the bone, the slain person, the corpse, or the grave.	18. And let a man, a priest, who is clean, take three branches of hyssop bound. together, and dip (them) in the water at the time of receiving the uncleanness, and sprinkle the tent and all its vessels, and the men who are in it, or upon him who has touched the bone of a living man that has been severed from him, and has fallen, or him who has been slain with the sword, or has died by the plague, or a grave, or a wrapper, or a bier.
19. The ritually clean person shall sprinkle on the unclean person on the third day and on the seventh day, and he shall cleanse him on the seventh day, and he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and he shall become ritually clean in the evening.	19. And the priest who is clean will sprinkle upon the unclean man on the, third day, and on the seventh day, and will make him clean on the seventh day; and he will sprinkle his clothes, and wash himself with water, and at eventide be clean.
20. If a person becomes unclean and does not cleanse himself, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation, for he has defiled the Sanctuary of the Lord; the sprinkling waters were not sprinkled upon him. He is unclean.	20. But the unclean man who will not be sprinkled, that man will be cut off from among the congregation, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD; the water of sprinkling has not been sprinkled upon him, he is unclean.
21. This shall be for them as a perpetual statute, and the one who sprinkles the sprinkling waters shall wash his clothes, and one who touches the sprinkling waters shall be unclean until evening.	21. And it will be unto you an everlasting statute. The priest, also, who sprinkles the water of sprinkling will sprinkle his clothes, and he who touches the water of sprinkling will be unclean until evening.
22. Whatever the unclean one touches shall become unclean, and anyone touching him shall be unclean until evening.	22. And whatever the unclean person has touched, though he carry it not, will be unclean; and the clean man who touches him will be unclean till evening.
1. The entire congregation of the children of Israel arrived at the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people settled in Kadesh. Miriam died there and was buried there.	1. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel came to the desert of Zin on the tenth day of the month Nisan. And Miriam died there, and was buried there.
2. The congregation had no water; so they assembled against Moses and Aaron.	2. And as on account of the innocence of Miriam a well had been given, so when she died the well was hidden, and the congregation had no water.
3. The people quarreled with Moses, and they said, "If only we had died with the death of our brothers before the Lord.	3. And they gathered against Mosheh and Aharon, and the people contended with Mosheh, and said, Would that we had died when our brethren died before the LORD!
4. Why have you brought the congregation of the Lord to this desert so that we and our livestock should die there?	4. And why have you brought the congregation of the LORD into this desert, that we and our cattle may die here?
5. Why have you taken us out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place; it is not a place for seeds, or for fig trees, grapevines, or pomegranate trees, and there is no water to drink.	5. And why did you make us come up out of Mizraim., to bring us to this evil place, a place which is not fit for sowing, or for planting fig trees, or vines, or pomegranates, and where there is no water to drink?
6. Moses and Aaron moved away from the assembly to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, and they fell on their faces. [Then] the glory of the Lord appeared to them.	6. And Mosheh and Aharon went from the face of the murmuring congregation to the door of the tabernacle of ordinance, and bowed upon their faces, and the Glory of the LORD's Shekinah was revealed to them.
7. The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:	7. And the LORD spoke with Mosheh, saying:
8. "Take the staff and assemble the congregation, you and your brother Aaron, and speak to the rock in their presence so that it will give forth its water. You shall bring forth water for them from the rock and give the congregation and their livestock to drink."	8. Take the rod of the miracles, and gather the congregation, you, and Aharon your brother, and both of you adjure the rock, by the Great and manifested Name, while they look on, and it will give forth its waters: but if it refuse to bring forth, smite it once with the rod that is in your hand, and you will bring out water for them from the rock, that the congregation and their cattle may drink.
9. Moses took the staff from before the Lord as He had commanded him.	9. And Mosheh took the rod of the miracles from before the LORD, as he had commanded him.
10. Moses and Aaron assembled the congregation in front of the rock, and he said to them, "Now listen, you rebels, can we draw water for you from this rock?"	10. And Mosheh and Aharon gathered the congregation together before the rock. And Mosheh said to them, Hear now, rebels: is it possible for us to bring forth water for you from this rock?
11. Moses raised his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, when an abundance of water gushed forth, and the congregation and their livestock drank.	11. And Mosheh lifted up his hand, and with his rod struck the rock two times: at the first time it dropped blood; but at the second time there came forth a multitude of waters. And the congregation and their cattle drank.
12. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "Since you did not have faith in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly to the Land which I have given them.	12. But the LORD spoke to Mosheh and Aharon with the oath, Because you have not believed in My Word, to sanctify Me in the sight of the children of Israel, therefore you will not bring this congregation into the land that I will give them.
13. These are the waters of dispute [Mei Meribah] where the children of Israel contended with the Lord, and He was sanctified through them.	13. These are the Waters of Contention, where the sons of Israel contended before the LORD on account of the well that had been hidden; and He was sanctified in them, in Mosheh and Aharon, when (the waters) were given to them.

Reading Assignment:

The Torah Anthology: Yalkut Me’Am Lo’Ez - Vol 14: Numbers – II – Final Wonderings

By: Rabbi Yitzchaq Magriso

Published by: Moznaim Publishing Corp. (New York, 1983)

Vol. 14 – “Numbers – II – Final Wonderings,” pp. 67-91

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.

Rashi Commentary for: B’Midbar (Num.) 19:1 – 20:13

Chapter 19

2 This is the statute of the Torah Because Satan and the nations of the world taunt Israel, saying, “What is this commandment, and what purpose does it have?” Therefore, the Torah uses the term “statute.” I have decreed it; You have no right to challenge it.-[Yoma 67b]

and have them take for you It will always be called on your name; 'the cow which Moses prepared in the desert.’-[Mid. Tanchuma Chukath 8, see Etz Yosef]

perfectly red Heb. אֲדֻמָּה תְּמִימָה , lit., red, perfect. It shall be perfect in redness, so that two black hairs disqualify it.-[Sifrei Chukath 5]

3 Eleazar The mitzvah was performed by the deputy [to the kohen gadol].-[Sifrei Chukath 8]

outside the camp Outside all three camps.-[Yoma 68a]

and slaughter it in his presence A non-kohen slaughters it while Eleazar watches.-[Yoma 42a]

4 toward the front of the Tent of Meeting [In later generations, when this rite will be performed outside the Temple in Jerusalem,] he is to stand to the east of Jerusalem and to direct his gaze toward the entrance to the Temple while sprinkling the blood.-[Sifrei Chukath 14]

7 enter the camp The camp of the Divine Presence, because no ritually unclean person is banished from two camps, except one who experienced a flow, one who experienced a seminal emission, or one afflicted with tzara’ath. [Hence, he is admitted to the one camp from which he was banished.] -[Pes. 67a]

and the kohen shall be unclean until evening Transpose it [the verse] and explain it [thus]: He shall be unclean until evening, and then he may enter the camp.

9 and place them outside the camp He divided it into three parts; one was put on the Mount of Olives, one was divided among all the watches, and one who put on the rampart surrounding the Temple area. The one given to the watches was outside the courtyard, allowing access to it for the inhabitants of outlying cities, whoever needed to purify himself. The one on the Mount of Olives was for the kohanim gedolim to sanctify themselves from it for use with other [red] cows. The one put on the rampart was kept as a keepsake by Scriptural ruling, as it says, "It shall be as a keepsake for the congregation of Israel.-[Sifrei Chukath 30, Parah 3:11 Tosefta Parah 3:8]

for sprinkling water Heb. לְמֵי נִדָּה , water used for sprinkling, as in, “they cast (וַיַּדּוּ) a stone at me” (Lam. 3:53); “to cast down (לְיַדּוֹת) the horns of the nations” (Zech. 2:4); an expression denoting throwing.

for purification - חַטָּאת , an expression of cleansing (חִטּוּי) , according to its simple meaning, but according to its halachoth, Scripture calls it חַטָּאת , “sin-offering,” to tell us that it is like holy objects, and using it for personal benefit is forbidden.-[Sifrei Chukath 34]

12 He shall cleanse himself with it With these ashes. - [Sifrei Chukath 39]

13 corpse of a human soul Which type of corpse? That of a human soul, to exclude an animal, that its uncleanness does not require sprinkling. Another explanation: “Of a human soul” refers to a quarter [of a log] of blood [necessary for maintaining life] -[Chul. 72a]

he has defiled the Mishkan of the Lord If he enters the courtyard even after [ritual] immersion, without having been sprinkled on both the third and seventh days.-[Sifrei Chukath 45]

his uncleanness remains Although he [ritually] immersed himself. -[Sifrei Chukath 45]

14 anyone entering the tent while the corpse is inside.

15 any open vessel Scripture refers to an earthenware vessel, whose exterior does not accept contamination, only its interior. Thus, if the seal around its top is not securely fastened, it becomes contaminated. But if there is a securely fastened seal, it remains clean. - [Sifrei Chukath 50, Chul. 25a]

fastened Heb. פָּתִיל , an expression meaning “fastened” in Hebrew. Similarly, “[With] divine bonds נִפְתַּלְתּי , I have been joined, with my sister” (Gen. 30:8).

16 in an open field The Sages expounded [on this phrase] to include the top and side of a coffin (Sifrei Chukath 56, Chul. 72a). But the simple meaning is that in an open field, where there is no tent, a corpse contaminates through contact.

19 and he shall cleanse him This consummates his cleansing.

20 If a person becomes unclean... If “Sanctuary” is stated [here], why need it say “ Mishkan ...” [in verse 13]? The answer is that if it would say “ Mishkan,” I would say that the person is punished with excision only if he enters the Mishkan in a state of uncleanness because the Mishkan was anointed with the anointing oil, but if he enters the Temple in a state of uncleanness, he would not be punished since the Temple was not anointed with the anointing oil. If it would say, “Sanctuary,” denoting the Temple, I would say that only for entering the Temple in a state of uncleanness, would he be punished by excision because its sanctity is permanent, but for entering the Mishkan in a state of uncleanness, he would not be punished because its sanctity was temporary. Therefore, it was necessary to mention both,]... as it is stated in [Tractate] Shevuoth [16b].

21 and the one who sprinkles the sprinkling waters Our Rabbis said that the one who sprinkles is actually ritually clean, but this teaches us that the one who carries the purifying waters becomes defiled with a stringent uncleanness, for even the clothes he is wearing are contaminated, unlike the one who merely touches [the sprinkling waters]. Scripture uses the expression מַזֵּה , “the one who sprinkles” to teach that the waters do not contaminate until there is an amount of water adequate for sprinkling.-[Yoma 14a]

and the one who touches... shall be unclean but he is not required to wash his clothes.

22 Whatever the unclean one touches I.e., this unclean one who was defiled by a corpse [touches], “becomes unclean.”

and anyone touching him, that is, the one defiled by a corpse-

shall be unclean until evening From here we derive that a corpse is the supreme source of contamination, whereas one touching it is a primary source of contamination, who can in turn defile another person [through contact]. This is the explanation [of this passage] according to its literal meaning and the laws associated with it. I have transcribed a homiletic interpretation from the commentary of R. Moshe Hadarshan [the preacher], which is as follows: [2]

and have them take for you From their own [possessions]; just as they removed their own golden earrings for the [golden] calf, so shall they bring this [cow] from their own [possessions] in atonement.-[Midrash Aggadah]

a red cow This can be compared to the son of a maidservant who soiled the king’s palace. They said, “Let his mother come and clean up the mess.” Similarly, let the cow come and atone for the calf.-[Midrash Aggadah and Tanchuma Chukath 8]

red Alluding to [the verse], “if they [your sins] prove to be as red as crimson dye” (Isa. 1:18), for sin is described as [being] ‘red.’ -[Midrash Aggadah]

perfectly An allusion to the Israelites, who were perfect, but became blemished. Let this come and atone for them so that they regain their perfection.-[See Midrash Aggadah.]

and upon which no yoke was laid Just as they cast off from themselves the yoke of Heaven.-[Midrash Aggadah] [3]

to Eleazar the kohen -just as they assembled against Aaron, who was a kohen, to make the calf, but because Aaron made the calf, this service was not performed through him, for the prosecution cannot serve as the defense.-[Midrash Aggadah] [5]

The cow shall then be burned just as the calf was burned. -[Midrash Aggadah

a piece of cedar wood, hyssop, and of crimson wool These three types [of objects] correspond to the three thousand men who fell because of the [sin of the golden] calf. The cedar is the highest of all trees, and the hyssop is the lowest of them all. This symbolizes that the one of high standing who acts haughtily and sins should lower himself like a hyssop and a worm [for the תּוֹלַעַת means ‘worm’ as well as ‘crimson.’ See Rashi on Isa. 1:18], and he will then gain atonement. -[Midrash Aggadah] [9]

a keepsake Just as the transgression of the calf is preserved throughout the generations for retribution, for there is no reckoning [punishment] which does include a reckoning for the calf, as it says, “But on the day I make an accounting [of sins upon them], I will bring their sin to account...” (Exod. 32:34). Just as the calf defiled all those who were involved in it, so does the cow render unclean all those involved with it. And just as they were cleansed through its ashes, as it says, “[he] scattered [the ashes of the burned calf] upon the surface of the water” (ibid. 20), so [with the cow], “They shall take for that unclean person from the ashes of the burnt purification offering...” (verse 17). -[Midrash Aggadah]

Chapter 20

1 The entire congregation The complete congregation, for the ones destined to die in the desert had already died and these were assigned for life.- [Midrash Tanchuma Chukath 14]

Miriam died there Why is the passage relating Miriam’s death juxtaposed with the passage of the Red Cow? To teach you that just as sacrifices bring atonement, so the death of the righteous secure atonement.-[M.K. 28a].

Miriam died there She too died through a kiss [from God’s mouth rather than by the angel of death]. Why does it not say “by God’s mouth” [as it does with Moses]? Because it is not respectful to speak of the Most High in this way (M.K. 28a). Concerning Aaron it does say “by God’s mouth” in [the portion beginning] “These are the Journeys” (33:38).

2 had no water From here [we learn that] all forty years they had the well in Miriam’s merit.-[Ta’anith 9a]

3 If only we had died We wish that we had died.-[Onkelos]

with the death of our brothers With the death of our brothers from plague. This teaches us that death from thirst is more dreadful than it [death by plague].

with the death Heb. בִּגְוַע אַחֵינוּ . This is a noun, like בְּמִיתַת אַחֵינוּ , with our brothers’ death [that is, in the way they died]. But it is incorrect to explain it as meaning, ‘ when our brothers died’ for in that case, Scripture would have punctuated it בִּגְוֽעַ .

8 and their livestock From here we learn that the Holy One, blessed is He, has regard for the property of Israel.-[Midrash Tanchuma Chukath 9, Lev. Rabbah 10:9, Num. Rabbah 19:9]

10 assembled This is one of the places where we find that a small area held a large number [of people].-[Midrash Tanchuma Chukath 9, Lev. Rabbah 10:9, Num. Rabbah 19:9]

Shall we draw water... from this rock? Since they did not recognize it, for the rock had gone and settled among the other rocks when the well departed. The Israelites said to them, “What difference is it to you from which rock you draw water for us?” Therefore, he said to them, הַמּוֹרִים , obstinate ones; in Greek, ‘fools,’ those who teach (מוֹרִים) their teachers. [He said,] “Can we draw water from this rock regarding which we were not commanded?”-[Midrash Tanchuma Chukath 9, Num. Rabbah 19:9]

11 twice Because the first time he drew out only a few drops, since God had not commanded him to strike it, but, “you shall speak to the rock.” However, they spoke to a different rock, and nothing came out. They said, “Perhaps we ought to strike it first,” as it says, “and strike the rock” (Exod. 17:6). They came upon that very rock and struck it.-[Midrash Tanchuma Chukath 9, Num. Rabbah 19:9]

12 Since you did not have faith in Me Scripture reveals that if it were not for this sin alone, they would have entered the Land, so that it should not be said of them, “The sin of Moses and Aaron was like the sin of the generation of the desert against whom it was decreed that they should not enter [the Land].” But was not [the question asked by Moses] “If sheep and cattle were slaughtered for them...” (11:22) [a] more grievous [sin] than this? However, there he [Moses] said it in private, so Scripture spares him [and refrains from punishing him]. Here, on the other hand, it was said in the presence of all Israel, so Scripture does not spare him because of the sanctification of the Name.-[Tanchuma Chukath 10, Num. Rabbah 19:10]

to sanctify Me For had you spoken to the rock and it had given forth [water], I would have been sanctified in the eyes of the congregation. They would have said, "If this rock, which neither speaks nor hears, and does not require sustenance, fulfills the word of the Omnipresent, how much more should we! -[Midrash Aggadah]

therefore, you shall not bring Heb. לָכֵן , by an oath, as in, “Therefore (וְלָכֵן) , I have sworn to the house of Eli” (I Sam. 3:14) [Tanchuma Va’era 2]. He hurried to take an oath so that they should not engage in lengthy prayer concerning it [i.e. to repeal the decree].

13 These are the waters of dispute These are the ones mentioned elsewhere. Pharaoh’s astrologers saw these [when they foresaw that] the savior of Israel would be smitten through water, and that is why they decreed: "Every son who is born you shall cast into the Nile.-[Sanh. 101b]

and He was sanctified through them For Moses and Aaron died because of them. When God judges His holy ones, He is feared and sanctified by mankind. Similarly, it says, “You are awesome, O God, because of Your holy ones” (Ps. 68:36). And likewise it says, “I am sanctified by those close to Me” (Lev. 10:3) -[Zev. 115b]

Tehillim (Psalms) 103:10-14

Rashi	Targum
1. Of David. My soul, bless the Lord, and all my innards, His holy name.	1. Composed by David, spoken in prophecy. Bless, O my soul, the name of the LORD, and let all my viscera bless His holy name.
2. My soul, bless the Lord and do not forget any of His benefits.	2. Bless, O my soul, the name of the LORD, and do not forget all His nourishment, for He made breasts for your mother instead of insight.
3. Who forgives all your iniquity, Who heals all your illnesses.	3. Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases.
4. Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with kindness and mercy.	4. Who redeems your life from Gehinnom, who crowned you with kindness and mercy.
5. Who sates your mouth with goodness, that your youth renews itself like the eagle.	5. Who satisfies the days of your old age with goodness, and in the age to come, your youth will be renewed like the eagle of the canopy.
6. The Lord performs charitable deeds and judgment for all oppressed people.	6. The LORD does acts of righteousness/generosity, and judgments for all the oppressed.
7. He makes His ways known to Moses, to the children of Israel His deeds.	7. He revealed His ways to Moses, His deeds to the children of Israel.
8. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and with much kindness.	8. The LORD is merciful and compassionate; He loathes anger and does many deeds of goodness and truth.
9. He will not quarrel to eternity, and He will not bear a grudge forever.	9. He will not quarrel always, nor will He retain hostility forever.
10. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor has He repaid us according to our iniquities.	10. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor has He repaid us according to our iniquities.
11. For, as the height of the heavens over the earth, so great is His kindness toward those who fear Him.	11. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His goodness to those who fear Him.
12. As the distance of east from west, He distanced our transgressions from us.	12. As far as the east is from the west, thus far has He removed from us our transgressions.
13. As a father has mercy on sons, the Lord had mercy on those who fear Him.	13. As a father (Abba) who loves the children, so the LORD loves those who fear Him.
14. For He knows our creation; He remembers that we are dust.	14. For He knows our evil impulse that makes us sin; in His presence it is remembered, for we are from dust.

Rashi’s Commentary to Psalm 103:10-14

14 He remembers that we are dust He remembers and has not forgotten that we are dust and He knows that: “As for manhis days, etc.”

Meditation from the Psalms

Psalms 103:10-14

By: H.Em. Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David

For the sake of continuity, I will repeat my opening from last week.

In this psalm David thanks G-d for the greatest gift He bestowed upon man, the soul. Without a soul man is merely a two-legged creature competing against all other animals in the bitter struggle for survival. With a soul, he becomes a reflection of the sacred heavens, a semblance of the Divine.

The tragic irony of life is that people are often oblivious to their own souls, unaware of the essence of their being and the true purpose of their existence. All too often, this Divine fragment is smothered by the flesh; this ray of eternal light is engulfed in darkness.

Modern psychology has yet to acknowledge what to every believing Jew is a fundamental of daily life: humans have souls. This cannot be proven empirically, because the soul is beyond the grasp of the microscope and computer analysis. It is not physical, and therefore, it cannot be tracked or traced. Belief in the soul is a matter of faith, and the only logical answer to the mystery of life. It is the invisible source (battery pack, if you will) of life that leaves as secretly as it comes.

The fundamental lesson of Judaism is to foster an awareness of the Divine Soul and to teach man how to enhance and enrich this most precious possession so that it will be worthy of standing in G-d’s presence to praise Him. Thus, the Psalmist recites the refrain, repeated five times in this psalm and the next,^[1] Bless HaShem, O my soul!^[2]

Our section of Psalms chapter 103 deals with sin and HaShem’s dealing with our sins.

Tehillim (Psalms) 103:10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins, nor requited us according to our iniquities.

In this paper, I would like to look at how sins were corrected in the Tanach.

Tikkun is the Hebrew word for correction or repair. Thus, if a person sins and damages the world, HaShem will send one of his descendants to correct the problem. Megillat Ruth, at one level, is all about corrections. The sin of Adam HaRishon must be corrected and ultimately the Mashiach will provide the tikkun as He sums up Israel into one new man. To understand how this works will require some understanding of the genealogy of the messianic line.

Terach had three sons: Avraham, Haran, and Nachor. Our Patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaaqov all married daughters of Haran. Ruth was also a grand-daughter of Haran. Thus we see that from Avraham and his descendants we have the male side of the messianic line that includes Lot,  Judah, Elimelech, Machlon, and Boaz, and from Haran and his descendants we have the female side that included Lot’s daughters and Ruth. These are the patriarchs and matriarch, the mothers and fathers of the royal Messianic line.

From the male side we get the ideas that will shape the messianic line. From the female side we get the binah, the understanding as to how to apply these ideas from the male side. The spark of the male is fanned into the flame of reality by the female side.

In the evening meeting between Ruth and Boaz,^[3] the story alludes to two similar situations, Lot’s daughters,^[4] and Tamar, Yehuda’s daughter-in-law.^[5] The three situations have common features, most notably, that there are women who have little prospect of having further children who take actions to insure their own offspring. In both stories, a mitzva^[6] has the appearance of immorality. Additionally, each of the cases has the death of two husbands.

Chazal^[7] teach that the acts of the daughters of Lot were intended to extract two good sparks, or portions. One is Ruth the Moabite and the other is Naamah the Ammonite.^[8] Clearly these two sparks are related to the rectification of the two daughters of Lot who gave birth to the two peoples of Moab and Amon. They erroneously thought that the entire world had been destroyed, as in the time of the Flood, and that they had to retain the existence of the human race. Their good intention, which is the good spark within them, returned as the two converts, Ruth the Moabite and Naamah the Ammonite. Mashiach, whose role is to bring the earth to its final rectification, also descends from them.

It took ten years in Moab for the family to disappear. It took less than a year in Bethlehem for the ghostly remnants of the family to be rebuilt. A family of four, father, mother, and two sons, left Bethlehem, and a family of four was rebuilt in Bethlehem, Boaz, with Ruth and Naomi, acting as Obed’s mothers, and Ruth acting as Naomi’s daughter. Thus we have a father, a mother, a son, and a daughter.

The Tikkun of Yehudah and Tamar

Most folks see the encounter between Tamar and Yehudah as a sin of immorality. Torah, on the other hand, sees this encounter as a very great mitzva. It is a mitzva because Tamar was a childless widow, and her dead husband’s family was commanded[9] to raise up seed for the deceased. The family was required to raise up seed for the deceased on his land. When Yehudah failed to give his son, Shelah, to fulfill this mitzva, Tamar enticed Yehudah himself to fulfill it. The Midrash records[10] that HaShem sent an angel to “force” Yehudah, against his will, to turn in to Tamar’s tent. The angel asked Yehudah, “If you fail to turn to Tamar; from where will the Kings come?” So, Yehuda’s sin in not giving his son Shelah, the first in line for this mitzva, was corrected when Boaz gave way to Ploni Almoni, for the same mitzva, because he was first in line. This tikkun, this rectification, required enormous strength.

The Daughters Of Tzelofchad

Yosef is the lost son who returns to his family, and the place from which he was dispossessed of his inheritance, Dotan Valley, is given later as an inheritance to his descendants, the daughters of Tzelofchad.

“Our father died in the desert... He died because of his own sin, and he had no sons.” [Num. 27:3]

There they resurrect their dead father’s name, and there they also resurrect the name of Yosef, who had been exiled by brothers.

In the case of Yehuda, Yoseph was made homeless and exiled from the land much as Elimelech and Lot, albeit involuntarily. Yoseph is the lost son who returns to his family, and the place from which he was dispossessed of his inheritance, Dothan Valley, is given later as an inheritance to his descendants, the daughters of Zelophehad. There they resurrect their dead father’s name, and there they also resurrect the name of Yoseph, who had been exiled by brothers.

The most prominent case of return to lost property appears in our Megillah, where the acquisition of Ruth overlaps with the purchase of the field of Machlon.

Ruth 4:5 When you acquire the property from Naomi and from Ruth the Moabite, you must also acquire the wife of the deceased so as to perpetuate the name of the deceased.

Redemption thus occurs when the name of the deceased is resurrected on his property. Parallel to this, in Parashat Behar we find the term redemption used with regard to the return of the freed slave to his property and the return of family estates in the Jubilee year.

When a slave, who sold himself to a foreigner and went out from amongst his nation, is returned to his property, that is called redemption. The prophet Yechezkel[11] describes the redemption of the nation of Israel in a similar manner. First, the nation will return to the land of its inheritance. Immediately afterwards, HaShem purifies Israel:

Yehezechel (Ezekiel) 36:25 I will sprinkle pure water on you and you will be pure.

Here, the parallel to the red heifer is clear (and therefore these verses are known to us from the Haftarah of Parashat Parah), purification from the impurity caused by contact with the dead. After these verses comes the chapter on the dry bones, “I will cause breath to enter you and you shall live”.^[12] Thus, the redemption of the nation of Israel begins as the redemption of the land, and on the redeemed land the dry bones arise and live.

The land, the inheritance, gives man his connection to eternity. The days of the land are “like the days of the world”, as Rashi explains, and even though man’s days are limited, his connection to the land gives him eternal life. When a person is rooted in his property and passes it to his son and grandson, only then does he taste immortality. Cain’s punishment for the murder is that “You shall become a ceaseless wanderer on earth”.[13] In parallel, when the nation of Israel is punished with exile, when it is evicted from the land of the living, it turns temporarily into a “dead” nation until the redemption of the bones, the resurrection of the dead on his property. The same rooting in the land is described by the verse:

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 65:22 For the days of My people shall be as long as the days of a tree.

The tree embodies eternal existence, as described in:

Iyov (Job) 14:7-9 There is hope for a tree; if it is cut down it will renew itself ... at the scent of water it will bud.

Even after the tree has dried out, it can still revive itself through its attachment to the land. But the death of man, who is not attached to the land, is an eternal death.

The Tikkun of Lot and His Eldest Daughter

Many folks see the encounter between Lot and his eldest daughter [From the younger descended Naamah the mother of Rehoboam^[14] the first King of Judah.] as incest. The Torah, however, records this encounter as a GREAT mitzva. The eldest daughter truly believed that the only way to fulfill the mitzva of filling the earth, was through her father. So, as repulsive as the act was, she endured it in order to sanctify the name of HaShem. So great was the effort that she was rewarded with offspring (Ruth) who were a part of the Messianic line.

When the sun came up on the day HaShem was to destroy Sodom, the angels told Lot, “Get up and take your wife and your two daughters who are found”.^[15] Why did the Torah write, “who are found”? The verse would be easy to understand without writing the phrase, “who are found”!

Rabbi Yitzchak^[16] says that this word is connected with the verse in:

Tehilim (Psalms 89:21 I have found David my servant

This refers to Mashiach. And where did HaShem find Mashiach? In Sodom!

But how does Mashiach come from Sodom? Because from one of Lot’s daughters, came Ruth, from whom came King David, from whom comes Mashiach. In fact, the reason Lot’s daughters were saved was for the sake of King David and Mashiach.

The sin of Lot’s eldest daughter was not incest. Her sin was in not consulting Lot so that He could bring his wisdom to bear on this situation. This sin had its tikkun, its rectification, on the threshing floor, when Ruth deferred to Boaz to tell her what to do. She did this even though it resulted in great disappointment and a potential loss of Boaz.

There is another connection to this tikkun: Just as Lot abandoned the land of Israel and went away from Avraham, so too did Elimelech. Lot left Avraham’s house for a land that became known as part of Moab. Lot’s departure constituted not only a geographic exit from Israel but also a cultural and religious exit, from the Godly nation of Avraham to a foreign nation, from Avraham’s way of life, which followed the path of God, a way of charity and justice, to its opposite, the Sodomite way. According to Chazal, Lot declared: “I do not want Avraham and his God”.

Elimelech repeats the same act,^[17] and there is no doubt that it has the same significance; as Chazal say, “One who lives outside of Israel is like one who has no God”. Elimelech’s sons marry non-Jewish women.^[18] He becomes immersed in foreign culture, and, essentially, he leaves Avraham and his God, attaching himself to the culture of Moab. For this reason, his punishment is also great.

Lot in his time was punished in a similar manner, his wife dies, his sons-in-law and married daughters are destroyed, and he remains an old man with daughters who cannot marry. Elimelech, too, leaves behind a wife who cannot bear children, and two daughters-in-law whom no man in Israel will come forward to redeem.

In Megillat Ruth there is a meeting between the House of Yehuda and the family of Lot. We find a similar sin with a similar punishment with regard to Yehuda. Although Yehuda did not leave the country and did not abandon his father’s culture, he did force this fate onto his brother Yosef, causing him to leave his father’s home and culture with the intent that he should become defiled by the culture of a foreign nation. The punishment exacted of Yehuda is similar to that which befalls both Lot and Elimelech. Immediately after selling Yosef, Yehuda marries; his wife later dies, his two sons die, and in his opinion, his third son cannot perform the act of yibum^[19] (levirate marriage) with his daughter-in-law. He is left without any assured continuity.

The tie that binds these cases is that in all three stories there is almost a total loss of family, but at the last minute a solution is found through the act of yibum. With regard to Yehuda, the yibum is mentioned expressly in the text. With regard to Lot, the matter is hinted at. Professor Benno Jacob points out a linguistic anomaly in the statement of Lot’s daughters: “And there is not a man on earth to consort with us”.^[20] In Hebrew, the word “Aleinu” is unusual; usually the word “eleinu” would be used in this context. The only other time that “Aleinu” appears in a similar context is in the chapter on yibum: “Her husband’s brother shall unite with her”^[21]. In other words, this hints that yibum was at the heart of Lot’s daughters’ attempts to revive their father’s seed and rebuild the name of the family that perished.

In the third case, that of Boaz and Ruth, there is no expression relating to yibum, but the text does state, “So as to perpetuate the name of the deceased on his estate”^[22], similar to what is written in the parsha on yibum, “... shall be accounted to his dead brother, that his name not be blotted out in Israel“.^[23] Yibum in all three cases is the solution to the problem, but in all three cases, the yibum is irregular. We do not find here a standard case of yibum between the brother of the deceased and the widow; rather, we have a father (Lot) with his daughter, a father (Yehuda) with his daughter-in-law, and the father’s brother (Boaz) with the father’s daughter-in-law. These irregular, surprising acts of yibum are what return the families to the land of the living.^[24]

With Ruth, a beautiful tapestry of tikkun, intricately woven across the centuries, is revealed for all to see. Ruth “returns” to Eretz Yisrael and she “returns” to the God of Avraham. She takes the disparate threads of her ancestors and displays them as the tapestry of majesty! she rectifies the sin of Lot, in a spectacular way, and carried Machlon back to the land to rectify the sin of Elimelech. In Ruth and Boaz, the Kingly qualities of both Avraham and Yehudah are reunited in a spectacular display of intricacy that only HaShem could have done. Rightly has the story of Ruth been called “A Harvest of Majesty”!

But wait! There is much more to this tikkun! Rabbi Moshe Alshich^[25] suggests that Ruth is a gilgul^[26] of Lot’s eldest daughter. When we compare Ruth and Lot’s eldest daughter, we see that they share many common points.

Man’s existence depends on passing his property to his sons or to those who come in their place due to yibum. We have mentioned three stories: the first (Lot) is the story of the birth of Moab. The second is the story of the birth of the House of Yehuda. The third is the story of the meeting between the two, between Ruth (Moab) and Boaz (Yehuda). The theme uniting the three is the resurrection of the name of the dead on his property. This is redemption, and this is the goal of the House of David, to reestablish the People of Israel on its land. When all hope is gone, there is still the possibility of yibum, even in an irregular, unnatural manner, which allows the name of the deceased to be resurrected on his property. When this “irregular tapestry is turned over, we can see that all of those odd threads have been perfectly placed by HaShem. They have been perfectly woven into the tapestry of our redemption.

As we begin comparing the events of Megillat Ruth with the story of Lot and His daughter, along with the story of Yehuda and Tamar, we will begin to see how the protagonists of Megillat Ruth will effect a tikkun, a rectification of the sins of their ancestors. In Sefer Ruth, there is an emphasis on Ruth’s modesty and Boaz’s self-control. Ruth, unlike Lot’s daughters, makes only a symbolic advance to Boaz, who had been drinking of his own accord. Lot’s daughters, on the other hand, get their father drunk and have relations with him. Boaz’s self-control, in contrast to Yehuda’s impulsive behavior, allows him to follow the proper procedure regarding the more rightful redeemer. Rabbi Sassoon^[27] explained that the meeting between Ruth and Boaz is a tikkun, rectification, of the previous two encounters. Ruth is the descendant of the product of the first encounter (Lot and his eldest daughter), Moab, and Boaz is a descendant of a product of the second encounter (Judah and Tamar), Peretz. It is the correction of these earlier encounters that eventually leads to the birth of the ruling dynasty in Israel, and ultimately to the Mashiach.

Ruth the Moabite joins the tribe of Judah, through an act of kindness, and she becomes the great-grandmother of David ben Yishai, the king of Israel. Predictably, Sefer Shmuel summarizes his reign as follows:

2 Shmuel (Samuel) 8:15 “And David reigned over all of Israel, and David performed Torah law and Charity for his entire nation.”

Recall that David had earlier hidden out in a CAVE (not unlike the cave when Lot encountered his daughters) in the area of the Dead Sea (Ein Gedi), where he performed an act of kindness by not injuring Shaul.^[28]

The Kingship of David constitutes the tikkun for the descendants of Lot. His kingdom was characterized by the performance of tzedaka (charity) and mishpat (Torah law), the antithesis of Sodom, Moab, and Ammon.

One of the most important roles for Mashiach to fulfill, is this tikkun:

II Luqas (Acts) 3:19-21 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, And that he may send Mashiach, who has been appointed for you--even Yeshua. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.

This correction, this return to the faith and obedience of the Patriarchs is forcefully proclaimed in the closing verses of Malachi:

Malachi 4:4-6 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of HaShem comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse.”

The father, in this context, is one’s Torah teacher. The Son’s are the talmidim of the teacher. This return to the fathers is nothing less than a return to the Torah of Moses, as we can see from the context.

All of the basic soul-roots from Adam on, become gilgulim^[29] in order to continue to elevate their tikkun, their rectification.

Is it logical to expect that another gilgul of that soul will appear just before the coming of Mashiach?

Why did HaShem consistently look outside of the Jewish nation, when compiling the gene pool for our Savior?

What was Ruth doing in the field of Boaz? She was performing Leket,^[30] gathering ears of corn. She gleaned and picked up. Leket is a halachic and metaphysical institution, HaShem gleaned and gathered beautiful inclinations and virtues from people all over the world in order to weave the soul of the king Mashiach. HaShem was preoccupied with the Mashiach’s personality. He disregarded race and religion and instead looked through all of mankind to find special qualities and capabilities. This is the Almighty’s approach to culture, to sift and glean through the nations of the world noting outstanding moral traits and ethical accomplishments.

Ruth was chosen because of her unique heroism. She came from pagan royalty, a life intoxicated with orgiastic pleasures and unlimited luxury. Ruth sacrificed all this to identify with a strange and mysterious people, to adopt a religion that demanded superhuman discipline.

Leah and Rachel

Why is Ruth, who was alone, being compared to Rachel and Leah “the TWO of whom together built the house of Israel”?^[31] What did they mean by saying that Rachel and Leah were two and that they were together and how does this relate to the current situation? Why did they put it into the double context of Ephrath and Bethlehem?

I think that the intent is to call attention to Naomi, to the role that Naomi will play together with Ruth. Throughout this book we have encountered the symbiotic relationship between Ruth and Naomi. These two women function almost as one, distinct in bodies but united in outlook, values and spirit. It is as if Ruth is a proxy for Naomi for Naomi is not only a mentor but a partner in everything that Ruth does. Naomi is Ruth and Ruth is Naomi and the two share accomplishment and fulfillment. These two kindred spirits rectify the conflict and lack of harmony between the two sisters, Rachel and Leah that ultimately expressed itself in strife between the Kingdom of Israel, led by Ephraim who stemmed from Rachel, and the Kingdom of Judah, descendant from Leah. This lack of unity directly led to the long and bitter exile in which we still find ourselves. The Bach^[32] and Ben Ish Chai^[33] both suggest that Ephrath is mentioned as an allusion to Ephraim whereas Bethlehem is associated closely with the tribe of Judah. Davidic monarchy is then a reflection and a re-enactment of the birth of the nation. In this fashion the destiny of Ruth is tied not only to the past but also to the future, separation is transformed into harmony and redemption shines out upon the world.

Trembling – Yitzchak vs. Boaz

There is a question concerning another prominent woman in Tanach,^[34] Rivka,^[35] who orders Yaaqov to seize deceptively the blessings intended for his brother. Convinced that Yaaqov deserved the blessings, by virtue of both his character and the explicit prophecy she had received from God, “the older will serve the younger”,^[36] Rivka instructs Yaaqov to deceive his father and take his brother’s blessing. In both instances, the women felt assured of their scheme’s success, despite the considerable risk entailed. The Midrash^[37] indeed draws a comparison between these two incidents:

Mishlei (Proverbs) 29:25 A man’s trembling becomes a trap for him.

This refers to the trembling Yaaqov caused Yitzchak, as it says, ‘Yitzchak was seized with very violent trembling.’ He should have cursed him, only ‘But he who trusts in HaShem shall be safeguarded’, You placed [an idea] in his heart to bless him, as it says, ‘Now he must remain blessed’. [This verse also refers to] the trembling Ruth caused Boaz, as it says, ‘The man trembled and pulled back’. He should have cursed her, only ‘But he who trusts in the Lord shall be safeguarded’, You placed [an idea] in his heart that he would bless her, as it says, ‘You are blessed to the Lord, my daughter’”.

It is doubtful, however, whether this comparison between Naomi and Rivka could justify what Naomi did. The commentaries have noted that Yaaqov’s deception was the direct cause of his exile, not only practically, but also on the level of reward and punishment. Many sources have also observed the clear parallel between Lavan’s duplicity towards Yaaqov, particularly in substituting Rachel with Leah, and Yaaqov’s seizing of Esav’s blessing. The Midrash comments:

Bereshit Rabba 70:19 “Throughout the night, he would call to her, ‘Rachel’, and she would respond. In the morning, ‘Behold, she was Leah’. He said: You are a trickster, the daughter of a trickster! She said to him: Is there a teacher without students? Did your father not similarly call to you, ‘Esav’, and you responded? You, too, called to me and I responded.”

This Midrash clearly equates Yaaqov’s experiences with Lavan as a punishment measure for measure for deceiving his father.^[38]

In our context, too, the Midrash^[39] emphasizes the chillul HaShem^[40] that could have resulted from Ruth’s visit to the threshing floor:

“Rabbi Chonya and Rabbi Yirmiya said in the name of Rav Shemuel bar Rav Yitzchak: That entire night, Boaz was spread out on the floor crying, ‘Master of the worlds! It is revealed and known to You that I did not touch her. May it be Your will that it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor, so that the Name of HaShem not be desecrated through me!’”

We have spent a bit of time exploring the tikkuns of Megilat Ruth. This will help us to appreciate the consolation of our section of this chapter of psalms:

Tehillim (Psalms) 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.

Ashlamata: Shoftim (Judges) 11:1-11

Rashi	Targum
1. Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a woman harlot, and Gilead begot Jephthah.	1. And Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, and he was the son of a harlot woman. And Gilead begat Jephthah.
2. And Gilead's wife bore him sons; and his wife's sons grew up and drove Jephthah out, and they said to him, "You shall not inherit in our father's house for you are the son of another woman."	2. And the wife of Gilead bore to him sons, and the sons of the wife grew up and drove out Jephthah. And they said to him: “You will not inherit in our father's house, for you are the son of another woman.”
3. And Jephthah fled from his brothers and he dwelt in the land of Tob; and idle men were gathered to Jephthah, and they went out with him.{P}	3. And Jephthah fled from before his brothers, and he dwelt in the land of Tob. And idle men were gathered unto Jephthah, and they went forth with him.
4. And it was after many days, and the children of Ammon made war with Israel.	4. And at the time of days the sons of Ammon waged battle? with Israel.
5. And it was, when the children of Ammon fought with Israel; and the elders of Gilead went to take Jephthah from the land of Tob.	5. And when the sons of Ammon waged battle with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob.
6. And they said to Jephthah, "Come and become our chief, and we will fight with the children of Ammon."	6. And they said to Jephthah: “Come, and be our leader, and we will wage battle against the sons of Ammon.”
7. And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "Did you not hate me, and drive me from my father's house? So why have you come to me now when you are in distress?"	7. And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead: “Did you not hate me and drive me out from my father's house? And why have you come unto me now when you are in distress?”
8. And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "Therefore we returned to you now, and you shall go with us, and you will fight with the children of Ammon, and you shall become our head, over all the inhabitants of Gilead."	8. And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah: “Because now we have turned back unto you, may you come with us and wage battle against the sons of Ammon, and be our head for all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
9. And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "If you bring me back to fight with the children of Ammon, and the Lord delivers them before me, I will become your head."	9. And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead: “If you bring me back to wage battle against the sons of Ammon and the LORD will hand them over before me, I will be your head.”
10. And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "The Lord shall hear between us, if not according to your word so will we do."	10. And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah: “The Memra of the LORD will be a witness between us if we do not act thus according to your word.”

Rashi’s Commentary for: Shoftim (Judges) 11:1-11

4 and the children of Ammon made war: (The war) referred to above.

11 all his words: The stipulation which was between them.

before the Lord in Mizpah: At the place where they all gathered (above 10:17), since the Divine Presence resides amongst the multitudes of the congregation.

Special Ashlamatah: Hosea 14:2-10 & Micah 7:18-20

Rashi	Targum
2. ¶ Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled in your iniquity.	2. ¶ Return, O Israel, to the fear of the LORD your God, for you have fallen because of your sin.
3. Take words with yourselves and return to the Lord. Say, "You shall forgive all iniquity and teach us [the] good [way], and let us render [for] bulls [the offering of] our lips.	3. Bring' with you words of confession' and return to the worship of the LORD. Say before Him, "It is near before You to forgive iniquities: then we will be accepted as good. Let the words of our lips be accepted before You with favour like bullocks on Your altar!”
4. Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses, nor will we say any longer, our gods, to the work of our hands, for in You, by Whom the orphan is granted mercy."	4. The kings of Assyria will not save us. We will not put our trust in horsemen, and no more will we say "Our god" to the works of our hands. For it was from before You that mercy was shown to our forefathers when they were like orphans in Egypt.
5. I will remedy their backsliding; I will love them freely, for My wrath has turned away from them.	5. I will accept them in their repentance, I will forgive their sins, I will have compassion on them when they freely repent, for My anger has turned away from them.
6. I will be like dew to Israel, they shall blossom like a rose, and it shall strike its roots like the Lebanon.	6. My Memra will be like dew to Israel; they will bloom like the lily, and they will dwell in their fortified land like the tree of Lebanon which puts forth its branches.
7. Its branches shall go forth, and its beauty shall be like the olive tree, and its fragrance like the Lebanon.	7. Sons and daughters will multiply, and their light will be like the light of the holy candelabrum and their fragrance like the fragrance of incense.
8. Those who dwelt in its shade shall return; they shall revive [like] corn and blossom like the vine; its fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.	8. They will be gathered from among their exiles, they will dwell in the shade of their anointed One. The dead will be resurrected, and goodness will increase in the land. The mention of their goodness will go in and not cease, like the memorial of the blast of the trumpets made over the matured wine when it was poured out in the Sanctuary.
9. Ephraim; What more do I need the images? I will answer him, and I will look upon him: I am like a leafy cypress tree; from Me your fruit is found.	9. The house of Israel will say. "Why should we worship idols anymore?" I. by My Memra, will hear the prayer of ‘Israel and have compassion on them, I. by My Memra, will make them like a beautiful cypress tree, because forgiveness for their waywardness is found before Me.
10. Who is wise and will understand these, discerning and will know them; for the ways of the Lord are straight, and the righteous shall walk in them, and the rebellious shall stumble on them. {P}	10. Who is wise "and will consider these things? Who is prudent and will take note of them? For the ways of the LORD are right; and the righteous/generous who walk in them will live in everlasting life through them, but the wicked will be delivered to Gehinnam" because they have not walked in them.{P}
18. Who is a God like You, Who forgives iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not maintain His anger forever, for He desires loving-kindness.	18. There is none besides You; you are the God forgiving iniquities and passing over the transgressions of the remnant of His inheritance, who does not extend His anger forever, because He delights in doing good.
19. He shall return and grant us compassion; He shall hide our iniquities, and You shall cast into the depths of the sea all their sins.	19. His Memra will again have mercy on us, He will tread upon our transgressions in His love and He will cast all the sins of Israel into the depths of the sea.
20. You shall give the truth of Jacob, the loving-kindness of Abraham, which You swore to our forefathers from days of yore. {P}	20. You will show (Your) faithfulness to Jacob to his sons, as you swore to him in Bethel, Your kindness to Abraham to his seed after him, as You swore to him between the pieces; You will remember for us the binding of Isaac who was bound upon the altar before You. You will perform kind deeds with us as You swore to our fathers in days of old. {P}

Rashi’s Commentary for: Hos 14:2-10 + Mic. 7:18-20

Return, O Israel You, who are in the land of Judah, lest what happens to Samaria happens to you. Therefore, the topics are juxtaposed. This can be compared to a king against whom a province rebelled. The king sent a general and commanded him to destroy it. That general was expert and deliberate. He said to them, “Take for yourselves days (sic); otherwise, I will do to you as I have done to such-and-such a province and to its allies, and to such-and-such a prefecture and to its allies.” Therefore it says, “Samaria shall be accounted guilty,” and then Scripture says: “Return, O Israel.” As is found in Sifrei in the section commencing. (Num. 25:1), “And Israel abode in Shittim.”

to the Lord your God One taught in the name of Rabbi Meir: Return, O Israel, while He is still יהוה , with the Divine Attribute of Mercy; otherwise, He is אֶלֹהֶיךָ with the Divine Attribute of Justice, before the defense becomes the prosecution. [from Pesikta d’Rav Kahana, p. 164a]

for you have stumbled in your iniquity Obstacles have come to you because of your iniquity.

3 You shall forgive all iniquity Heb. עָוֹן כָּל-תִּשָׂא . Forgive all our iniquities.

and teach [us the] good [way] Heb. וְקַח-טוֹב . And teach us the good way. Another explanation: The few good deeds in our hands take in Your hand and judge us accordingly. And so does David say (Psalms 17:2): “Let my sentence come forth from before You, may Your eyes behold the right.” Another explanation: And accept good And accept confession from us, as it is said (Psalms 92:2): “It is good to confess to the Lord.”

and let us render [for] bulls that we should have sacrificed before you, let us render them with the placation of the words of our lips.

4 Assyria shall not save us Say this also before Him, “We no longer seek the aid of man, neither from Assyria nor from Egypt.”

we will not ride on horses This is the aid from Egypt, who would send them horses, as they said to Isaiah (30:16), “No, but on horses will we flee... And on swift steeds will we ride.”

nor will we say any longer to the work of our hands that they are our gods.

for in You alone shall our hope be, You Who grant mercy to the orphans.

5 I will remedy their backsliding Said the prophet: So has the Holy Spirit said to me. After they say this before Me, I will remedy their backsliding, and I will love them with My charitable spirit. Although they do not deserve the love, I will love them charitably since My wrath has turned away from them.

6 and it shall strike I. e. the dew shall strike its roots and cause them to prosper.

like the Lebanon like the roots of the trees of the Lebanon, which are large.

7 Its branches shall go forth Sons and daughters shall increase.

and it shall be Their beauty shall be like the beauty of the menorah of the Temple, and their fragrance like the fragrance of the incense.

like the Lebanon Like the Temple.

8 Those who dwelt in its shade shall return Those who already dwelt in the shade of the Lebanon, to which He compared Israel and the Temple, and now were exiled there from, shall return to it.

its fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon Jonathan renders: Like the remembrance of the blasts of the trumpets over the old wine poured for libations in the Temple. For they would blow the trumpets over the libations when the Levites would recite the song.

9 Ephraim will say, “What more do I need to follow the images?” And they will turn away from idolatry.

I will answer him I will answer him from his trouble.

and I will look upon him I will look upon his affliction.

I am like a leafy cypress tree I will bend down for him to hold his hand on Me as the leafy cypress which is bent down to the ground, which a man holds by its branches; i.e., I will be accessible to him.

from Me your fruit is found Am I not He? For all your good emanates from Me.

10 Who is wise and will understand these Who among you is wise and will ponder to put his heart to all these and return to Me?

and the rebellious shall stumble on them i.e., because of them, because they did not walk in them. Jonathan renders in this manner.

20 You shall give the truth of Jacob - Jonathan paraphrases: You shall give the truth of Jacob to his sons, as You swore to him in Bethel; the loving-kindness of Abraham to his seed after him, as you swore to him ‘between the parts.’ You shall remember for us the binding of Isaac, etc. Give us the truth that You promised Jacob. Cause to come true Your word that You promised Jacob (Gen. 28:15): “For I will not forsake you.”

the loving-kindness of Abraham The reward for the loving-kindness of Abraham, [out of] which he commanded his sons to keep the way of the Lord: to perform righteousness and justice. Therefore, it does not say, “And the loving-kindness,” but “the loving-kindness.” The truth - that you will make come true the promise to Jacob - that will be the payment of the reward for Abraham’s loving-kindness. which you swore -at the binding of Isaac, (Gen 22:16) “I swore by Myself, says the Lord, that because you did this thing, etc.”

Pesiqta de Rab Kahana for Shabbat Shuba: Pisqa Twenty-Four

Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy (Hosea 14:1-3).

XXIV:I

Is a shofar blown in a city and the people are not afraid? Does evil befall a city [unless the Lord has done it?] (Amos 3:6): The matter may be compared to the case of a town besieged by marauders, in which there was an elder who would warn all the people of the town [about the danger]. Whoever listened to him was saved, and whoever did not listen was overcome by the guerillas, who killed him. So it is written: So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel; [whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me] (Ez. 33:7). If I say to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die, [and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life] (Ez. 33:8). So too: Is a shofar blown in a city on the New Year, ... and the people are not afraid: this refers to Israel. Does evil befall a city unless the Lord has done it? (Amos 3:6): The Holy One, blessed be He, does not want the death of the wicked, in line with the following verse: As I live, says the Lord G-d, I have no desire for the death of the wicked. [I would rather that a wicked man should mend his ways and live. Give up your evil ways, give them up, O Israelites, why should you die?] (Ez. 33:11). [In Aramaic:] "O people, what do I want from you, but Give up your evil ways, give them up, O Israelites. There are those who prefer to derive the same lesson from the following: Seek me and live (Amos 5:4). [In Aramaic]: "O people, what do I want of you, but: Seek me and live,” Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel, saying to them, Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, [for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[14]

XXIV:II

By awesome deeds answer us with victory, O G-d of our deliverance, [in whom men trust from the ends of the earth and far-off seas; you are girded with strength and by your might you fix the mountains in their place, calm the rage of the seas and their raging waves. The dwellers at the ends of the earth hold your signs in awe; you make morning and evening sing aloud in triumph]:^[15] R. Judah in the name of R. Isaac: "The awesome deeds that you have done with us in this world are [recompense] for the suffering that you bring upon us in this world." R. Haggai in the name of R. Isaac: "The awesome deeds that you are destined to do with us in this world are [recompense] for the suffering that you bring upon us in this world."

...in whom men trust from the ends of the earth: You are the trust of [even] strong men who [wrongly] call on your name too.^[16] Wayfarers trust in your name, seafarers trust in your name, those who go forth on caravans trust in your name.

... far-off seas: R. Hinena bar Pappa asked R. Samuel bar Nahman, saying to him, "What is the meaning of the phrase, far-off seas?” He said to him, "Repentance is compared to a sea. Just as a sea is eternally open, so the gates of repentance are eternally open. And prayer is to be compared to a purification-pool. Just as a purification pool sometimes is open, sometimes locked, so the gates of prayer sometimes are open, sometimes are locked. Just as in the case of a purification-pool, sometimes someone may wish to immerse himself but finds his father or his master there and is embarrassed and goes away ... But in the case of the sea, he just goes a short distance away and goes down and immerses [without having to come back some other day].”

R. Berekhiah, R. Helob in the name of R. Anan bar Yose: “Even the gates of prayer are always open.” That view accords with what R. Yose bar Halapta said, “There are particular times for prayer: David came along and spelled them out: But as for me, may my prayer be for you, O Lord, at a propitious time:^[17] Said David before the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘Lord of the ages, when I pray before you, may it be a propitious time,’”

G-d, in the abundance of your mercy, answer me with your true salvation:^[18] It has been taught on Tannaite authority in the name of R. Eliezer, "The Lord is the purification pool of Israel:^[19] Just as a purification pool purifies the unclean, so the Holy One, blessed be He, purifies Israel." Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[20]

XXIV:III

The Lord thunders before his host, [his is a mighty army, countless are those who do his bidding. Great is the day of the Lord and terrible, who can endure it? And yet, the Lord says, even now turn back to men with your whole heart, fast and weep and beat your breasts, rend your hearts and not your garments, turn back to the Lord your G-d; for he is gracious and compassionate, long-suffering and ever constant, always ready to repent of the threatened evil. It may be he will turn back and repent and leave a blessing behind him]:^[21]

The Lord thunders before his host: on the New Year. ... his is a mighty army: this refers to Israel. ... countless are those who do his bidding: for he makes abundant the strength of the righteous who have done his will. Great is the day of the Lord and terrible: this refers to the Day of Atonement. ...who can endure it.

For said R. Qerispa [Chrispus] in the name of R. Yohanan, "There are three account books, one for the completely righteous, one for the completely wicked, and one for the in-betweens. These are for eternal life:^[22] Said Rabbi, "This refers to the completely righteous." These are for shame and eternal derision:^[23] This refers to the completely wicked. They are blotted out of the book (Ps. 69:29): These are the wicked. ...of the living: these are the righteous. ...and with the righteous they are not inscribed: these are the in-betweens. To these the Holy One, blessed be He, has given the ten days between the New Year and the Day of Atonement. If they repent, they are inscribed with the righteous, and if not, there are inscribed with the wicked. Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.^[24]

XXIV:IV

However angry your hearts, do not do wrong; though you lie abed [resentful, do not break silence; pay your due of sacrifice and trust in the Lord]:^[25] R. Jacob bar Abinah and Rabbis: R. Jacob bar Abinah said, "[The sense is:] Let your impulse to do evil be angry with you, but do not let it make you sin." Rabbis said, "Make your impulse to do evil angry but do not come into the toils of sin."

It was taught on Tannaite authority in the name of R. Eleazar, "The purification-pool of Israel (Jer. 17:13): "Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to Israel, 'I have said to you to pray in the synagogue that is in your town, and if not, then you can pray in your field, and if not, then you can pray in your house, and if not then you can pray in your bed, and if not, you can meditate in your heart.'"

...though you lie abed resentful, [do not break silence}: Said R. Yudan, "Keep silence from that transgression that is in your hand." Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return 0 Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him. Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[26]

XXIV:V

The sacrifices of G-d are a broken spirit, a wounded heart, [O G-d, you will not despise. Let it be your pleasure to do good to Zion, to build anew the walls of Jerusalem. Then only shall you delight in the appointed sacrifices, then shall young bulls be offered on your altar]:^[27] Zabedee bar Levi and R. Yose bar Paitres and rabbis: One said, “Said David before the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘Lord of the ages, If you accept me as a penitent, I know that my son, Solomon, is going to go and build the sanctuary and offer on it all of the required offerings.’ It is in accord with this verse of Scripture: The sacrifices of G-d are a broken spirit, a wounded heart, [O G-d, you will not despise. Let it be your pleasure to do good to Zion, to build a new the walls of Jerusalem. Then only shall you delight in the appointed sacrifices, then shall young bulls be offered on your altar].^[28] And I know that you will do good to Zion, to build a new the walls of Jerusalem. Then only shall you delight in the appointed sacrifices, then shall young bulls be offered on your altar].^[29]’”

Another said, "How do we know of one who carries out penitence that the Holy One, blessed be He, regards it as though he had gone up to Jerusalem, built the house of the sanctuary, built the altar, and offered on it all required offerings? It is in accord with this verse of Scripture: The sacrifices of G-d are a broken spirit, a wounded heart, O G-d, you will not despise. And it is further written: Let it be your pleasure to do good to Zion, to build a new the walls of Jerusalem. Then only shall you delight in the appointed sacrifices, [then shall young bulls be offered on your altar].^[30]”

Rabbis said, “How do we know of him who passes before the ark [to recite the communal prayers] that he has to make mention of the building of the house of the sanctuary and of the offerings and also to mediate? It is on the basis of this blessing: ‘Favor us, O our G-d, and dwell in Zion, your city, and may your children serve you in Jerusalem.’”

Said R. Abba bar Yudan, “Whatever blemish G-d has declared in the case of a beast, he has declared valid in the case of a man. Just as he declared invalid in the case of a beast to be brought for a sacrifice one that was blind or broken,^[31] so he declared the same valid in the case of a man: a broken spirit, a wounded heart, (O G-d, you will not despise.]”

Said R. Alexandri, “In the case of an ordinary person, if he should make use of a broken pot, it is demeaning to him. But as to the Holy One, blessed be He, all the utensils that he uses are broken, as it is written, The Lord is near those of broken heart,^[32] he heals broken hearts,^[33] I dwell in the high and holy place with him that is of a contrite and humble spirit,^[34] a broken spirit, a wounded heart, 0 G-d, you will not despise.^[35]" Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[36]

XXIV:VI

Behold (then] G-d builds a man's strength, who is a teacher like him:^[37] Said R. Berekhiah, “The word behold (HN) is Greek, hina, meaning one, as you say, One is our G-d. ... G-d builds a man's strength: For he adds to the strength of the righteous, who carry out his will. ...who is a teacher like him: teacher for the sinners, telling them to carry out repentance. Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[38]

XXIV:VII

Good and upright is the Lord, because he teaches sinners in the way:^[39] They asked wisdom, "As to the sinner, what is his punishment?" She said to them, "Evil pursues sinners.^[40]" They asked prophecy, "As to the sinner, what is his punishment?" She said to them, "The soul that sins shall die.^[41]" They asked the Torah, "As to the sinner, what is his punishment?" She said to them, "Let him bring a guilt-offering and it will attain atonement for him." They asked the Holy One, blessed be He, "As to the sinner, what is his punishment?" He said to them, "Let him repent, and it will attain atonement for him," That is in line with the verse of Scripture: Good and upright is the Lord, because he teaches sinners in the way.^[42]

[Good and upright is the Lord, because he teaches sinners in the way:^[43]] Said R. Phineas, "Why is he good? Because he is upright. Why is he upright? Because he is good."

... because he teaches sinners in the way:^[44] For he teaches sinners the way in which to repent. Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy].^[45]

XXIV:VIII

Conceal your faults and you will not prosper; [confess and give them up and you will find mercy]:^[46] R. Simeon, R. Joshua b. Levi in the name of R. Simeon b. Halapta: "In the case of all plants the roots of which you cover up, they will flourish. But in the case of a nut tree, if you cover up its roots, it will not prosper. The matter may be compared to the case of a mugger on trial before a magistrate. So long as he denies the crime, he is flogged. Once he confesses, he receives the decree. But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not that way. But before one confesses, he gives out the decree. Once one confesses, he provides forgiveness. That is in line with this verse of Scripture: Conceal your faults and you will not prosper; [confess and give them up and you will find mercy].^[47]"

Said R. Judah, "...confess and give them up and you will find mercy." Therefore Hosea admonishes Israel saying to them, Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.^[48]

XXIV:IX

A man shall have his fill of good by the fruit of his mouth:^[49] It is written, When Reuben returned to the pit [and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he tore his clothes and returned to his brothers and said, The lad is gone, and I, where shall I go?' Then they took Joseph's robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood, and they sent the long robe with sleeves and brought it to their father and said, This we have found; see now whether it is your son's robe or not'}]:^[50] R. Eliezer, R. Joshua, and Rabbis: [Where had he been?] R. Eliezer says, "He had been occupied with his sackcloth and ashes [on account of his earlier sin with his father's concubine]^[51], and when he had a free moment from his sack cloth and ashes, he went and looked into the pit. That is in line with this verse: And behold Joseph was not in the pit." R. Joshua said, "All of the management of the household was assigned to him. When he had a moment free of the cares of management of the household, he went and looked into the pit. That is in line with this verse: And behold Joseph was not in the pit." And rabbis said, "Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to him, 'You sought to restore the beloved son to his father. By your life, your son's son will restore Israel to their father in heaven. And who is that? It is Hosea.' The word of the Lord which came to Hosea ben Beeri,^[52] and it is written, his son Beerah.^[53]"

Why is he called Beeri? Because he is the well (beerah) of the Torah. And why did Beerah die in exile? So that the ten tribes should return on account of his merit. And why did Moses die in the wilderness? So that the generation of the wilderness should return on account of his merit.

R. Berekhiah said, "Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to him, 'You have opened the way to repentance first of all. By your life, the son of your son will come and open the way to repentance first of all: "Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy] (Hosea 14:1-3).

XXIV:X

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, [and your ways are not my ways This is the very word of the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts] (Is. 55:8-9): The matter may be compared to the case of a thug on trial before a magistrate. First he reads the charge, then he beats him, then he puts a bit in his mouth [so that he cannot retract his confession], then he lays down the verdict, then he goes forth to be put to death. But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not that way. First he announces the charge against the tribes: Now they sin more and more and have made molten images of their silver (Hos. 13:2). Then he beats them: Ephraim is beaten, their root is dried up (Hos. 9:16). Then he puts a bit in their mouth: The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up, his sin is stored up (Hos. 13:12). Then he announces the verdict: Samaria shall bear her guilt for she has rebelled against her G-d (Hos. 14:1). And then he draws them back in repentance: Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy (Hosea 14:1-3).

XXIV:XI

What is written prior to [the base-verse, Hos. 14:2]? It is the following: Samaria shall bear her guilt [for she has rebelled against her G-d] (Hos. 14:1). And thereafter: Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy] (Hosea 14:1-3). R. Eleazar in the name of R. Samuel bar Nahman: "The matter may be compared to the case of a town that rebelled against the king, who sent against it a general of the army to destroy it. The general was skilled and cool. He said to them, 'Take time for yourselves, so that the king not do to you what he did to such-and-such a town and its environs, and to such and such a district and its area.' So said Hosea to Israel, 'My children, repent, so that the Holy One, blessed be He, will not do to you what he did to Samaria and its environs.' Said Israel before the Holy One, blessed be He, 'Lord of the ages, if we repent, will you accept us?' He said to them, 'The repentance of Cain I accepted, will I not accept yours?' For a harsh decree was issued against him." That is in line with this verse of Scripture: When you till the ground, it will no more yield its strength to you; a fugitive and a wanderer shall you be (Gen. 4:12). But since he repented, he was relieved of half of the harsh decree. How do we know that he repented? And Cain said to the Lord, Too great is my sin for me to bear it (Gen. 4:13). And how do we know that he was relieved of half of the harsh decree? And Cain went away from the presence of the Lord and dwelled in the land of the wanderer (Gen. 4: 17). What is written is not in the land of the fugitive and the wanderer, but only, in the land of the wanderer, to the east of Eden. What is the meaning of And Cain went away [from the presence of the Lord]? R. Yudan in the name of R. Aibu said, "He shouted over the shoulder and went away, as if to deceive the ones above. [Freedman, Genesis Rabbah, p. 192, n. 1: He rejected G-d's reproof, as though murder was a light matter.]" R. Berekhiah in the name of R. Eleazarb. R. Simeon: "He went away like the [pig] that shows a cloven hoof [pretending to be a valid animal, when it is not,] like one who would deceive the creator." R. Hunah in the name of R. Hinena bar Isaac said, "He went out rejoicing, in line with this verse: He goes forth to meet you and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart (Ex. 4: 14). Adam met him and said to him, 'What happened at your trial?' He said to him, ‘I repented and am reconciled.' Then Adam began to beat on his face: 'So great is the power of repentance, and I never knew it!' He forthwith went and said: It is a good thing to confess to the Lord (Ps. 92:1)." Said R. Levi, "It was Adam who stated this psalm: A Psalm for the Sabbath day (Ps. 92:1).

"And shall I not accept your repentance? I accepted the repentance of Ahab, and shall I not accept your repentance?" For a harsh decree was issued against him, in line with this verse: You shall speak to him saying, Have you killed and also taken possession? And you shall speak to him saying Thus says the Lord: In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your blood, even yours (1 Kgs. 21 :29).

And it came to pass when Ahab heard these words that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and lay in sackcloth (1 Kgs. 21:27). How did he fast? If he was accustomed to eat at three hours, he would eat at six, and if he was accustomed to eat at six, he ate at nine. What is the meaning of And he walked softly?(1 Kgs. 21:29) R. Joshua b. Levi said, "He went barefooted." What is written there? The word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite saying, Do you see that Ahab humbles himself before me? Because he humbles himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days (1 Kgs. 21:28-29). Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to Elijah, "You have seen that Ahab repented: Do you see that Ahab humbles himself before me? {Because he humbles himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days.]

"And shall 1 not accept your repentance? I accepted the repentance of the men of Anathoth, and shall I not accept your repentance? For a harsh decree was issued against them: Thus says the Lord concerning the men of Anathoth who seek your life. saying You shall not prophesy in the name of the Lord that you die not by our hand: therefore thus says the Lord, Behold I will punish them ... there shall be no remnant of them (Jer. 11:21, 23). But when they repented, they had the merit of producing descendants: Themen of Anathoth a hundred and twenty-eight (Ezra 2:23).

"And shall 1 not accept your repentance? I accepted the repentance of the men of Nineveh, and shall 1 not accept your repentance?" For a harsh decree was issued against them, in line with this verse of Scripture: Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey [and he proclaimed and said, Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown] (Jonah 3:4). And the tidings reached the king of Nineveh and he arose from his throne and laid his robe from him and covered himself with sackcloth and proclaimed through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles. saying, ['Let neither man nor beast ... taste anything; let them not feed nor drink water; but let them be covered with sackcloth both man and beast and let them cry mightily to G-d'] (Jonah 3:7-8). Said R. Simeon b. Laqish, "The men of Nineveh carried out an essentially deceitful repentance. What did they do? R. Huniah in the name of R. Simeon b. Halputa: "They set up calves inside with their mothers outside, and these lowed from inside and the mothers from outside, so these groaned on this side and those on that side. They said, if you do not have mercy on us, we shall not have mercy on them.'" Said R. Aha, "This is what they do also in Arabia: How are the beasts groaning! the herds of cattle are confused [because they have no pasture] (Joel 1:18)."

... but let them be covered with sackcloth both man and beast and let them cry mightily to G-d' (Jonah 3:7-8): What is the meaning of mightily? Said R. Simeon b. Halputa, "The impudent one conquers even the wicked one, all the more so the One who is the goodness of the world."

Let them turn everyone [from his evil way. from the violence that is in their hands] (Jonah 3:8): Said R. Yohanan, "What they had in hand they returned, but what they had put away in boxes, arks, and cupboards they did not return." And rend your hearts and not your garments (Joel 2:13): Said R. Joshua b. Levi, "If you rend your hearts in repentance, you will not have to render your garments on account of the death of your sons and daughters. Why not? "Because he is merciful and long-suffering (Joel 2:13)." R. Aha and R. Tanhum in the name of R. Hiyya in the name of R. Yohanan, "What is written is not long-suffering [in the singular] but longer-suffering [in the dual], indicating that he is patient with the righteous but also patient with the wicked. He is patient with the righteous and collects from them the modicum on account of the bad deeds which they did in this world so as to give them their full and complete reward in the world to come. And he accords prosperity to the wicked in this world so as to give them the modicum of the reward for the good deeds that they have done in this world in order to exact from them full and complete penalty in the world to come." R. Samuel bar Nahman in the name of R. Yohanan: "What is written is not long-suffering [in the singular] but longer-suffering [in the dual], indicating that he is patient before he comes to collect [exacting punishment], and what he comes to collect, he extends the time [same word as patience] for collecting payment." Said R. Hanina, "Whoever has said that the All-Merciful is [loose in] forgiving will get loose bowels. But he is indeed patient but then collects what is coming to him." Said R. Levi, "What is the meaning of long-suffering? He is very far from anger. The matter may be compared to the case of a king who had two tough legions. Said the king, 'If the legions stay with me in the town, then when the townsfolk make me angry, they will take off on their own against them and wipe them out. Lo, I shall send them some distance away. If the people make me angry, while I am still sending for them, the people will come and make their peace with me, and I shall accept their appeasement.'

X. "That is in line with this verse of Scripture: They come from a country far away, from the end of heaven the weapons of his indignation (Is. 13:5)." Said R. Isaac, "And not only so, but he locks the gate against [his own legions], in line with this verse of Scripture: The Lord has unlocked his armory and has brought forth the weapons of his indignation (Jer. 50:25). While he is opening up, while he is still occupied, his mercy will be aroused. "

It was taught on Tannaite authority in the name of R. Meir, "For lo, the Lord goes forth from his place (Is. 26:21). He goes forth from the attribute of justice to the attribute of mercy for Israel."

"I accepted the repentance of Manasseh, and shall I not accept your repentance?" For a harsh decree was issued against him. This is in line with this verse of Scripture: The Lord spoke to Manasseh and to his people but they did not listen. Therefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hooks (2 Chr. 33:10, 11). What is the meaning of hooks? R. Abba bar Kahana said, "Manacles." And they imprisoned him in fetters (2 Chr. 33:11): What are fetters? R. Levi bar Haita, "They made him a kind of copper pot and made holes in it and put him into it and began to heat it from beneath. And when the pain of it began to affect him, there was not a single idol in the world on which he did not call: 'idol of so-and-so, come and save me.' But when nothing helped, he said, 'I remember that father would recite for me this verse: In your distress when all these things come upon you in the end of days return to the Lord your G-d and listen to his voice, for the Lord your G-d is a merciful G-d, he will not fail you nor destroy you (Deut. 4:30, 31). Lo, I shall call on him. If he answers me, well and good, and if not, then they're all alike.' Now the ministering angels were closing the windows of the firmament, so that the prayer of Manasseh would not come before the Holy One, blessed be He, 'Lord of the ages, a man who set up an idol in the temple - should such a man be able to repent?’ Said to them the Holy One, blessed be He, 'If I do not accept him in repentance, I shall lock the door before all those who come to repent.' What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do for him? He dug a little opening under the throne of glory that was his, and through it he listened to his supplication. That is in line with this verse of Scripture: And he prayed to the Lord and he was entreated of him (2 Chr. 33:13). "What is written in the verse for the word for entreat is dug for him." And he listened to his supplications (2 Chr. 33:13): Said R. Eleazar b. R. Simeon, "In Arabia they shift the ayin for a het [so yielding the word-exchange just now cited]."

And he brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom (2 Chr. 33:13): How did he he bring him back?. R. Samuel bar Nahman in the name of R. Aha: "He brought him back with a wind, as you say [in the Prayer], Who brings back the wind.'" Manasseh knew that the Lord is G-d (2 Chr. 33:13): At that time said Manasseh, "There is justice and a Judge." "I accepted the repentance of Jeconiaiah, and shall I not accept your repentance?"

"I accepted the repentance of Jeconaiah, and shall I not accept your repentance?" For a harsh decree was issued against him. That is in line with the following verse of Scripture: Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land which they do not know? (Jer. 22:28). R. Abba bar Kahana said, "[A broken pot] is like a bone of marrow, which, when you break it open, turns out to be worthless." R. Helbo said, "It is like a date wrapper, which, when you shake it out, turns out to contain nothing."

... a vessel no one cares for: R. Hama b. R. Hanina said, "It may be compared to a piss pot." R. Samuel bar Nachman: "[It is] like a vessel of those who take blood." Said R. Meir, "The Holy One, blessed be He, took an oath that he would not bring from Jeonaiah son of Jehoiakim, another king of Judah, in line with this verse: As I live says the Lord, if Coniah the son of Jehoiakim were the signet on a hand, yet by my right hand I would pluck you hence (Jer. 22:24). R. Hinena bar Isaac said, "'From there [that is, from Jeconaiah] I shall pull up the kingdom from the house of David.'" Another explanation: What is written is not I shall remove you but rather I shall restore you; the meaning is, 'From there I shall restore in you in repentance.' The source of his retribution turned into the source of his restoration." Said R. Zeira, I heard something from R. Ishmael b. R. Isaac, who expounded the present passage, but I don't remember what it was." Said to him R. Aha arika, "Perhaps this is what it was: Thus says the Lord, Write this man as childless, a man who will not prosper in his days [for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah] (Jer. 22:30)." He said to him, "Yes, in his days he will not succeed, but in the days of his son he will succeed." R. Aha bar Abun bar Benjamin in the name of R. Abba son of R. Pappi: "Great is the power of repentance for it annulled both an oath and a decree. How do we know that it annulled an oath? As I live says the Lord, if Coniah the son of Jehoiakim were the signet on a hand, yet by my right hand I would pluck you hence (Jer. 22:24). Yet it is written, In that day says the Lord of hosts I will take you 0 Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, [and make you as a signet] (Haggai 2:23). And how do we know that it annulled a decree? It is written, Thus says the Lord, Write this man as childless, [a man who will not prosper in his days for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah] (Jer. 22:30). Yet it is written, The sons of Jeconiah, Assir Shealtiel, his son (1 Chr. 3:17)."

Said R. Tanhum bar Jeremiah, 'The meaning of the name Assir is that he was imprisoned in a prison [with the same letters serving the name Assir and the word for prison]. Shealtiel; For from him a sapling of the kingdom of the house of David was planted. Said R. Tanhuma, "Assir [the prisoner] refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, who imprisoned himself through an oath. Shealtiel [which uses the letters for the world for ask] is because G-d brought the question of the validity of the oath to the heavenly court, which released him from his vow."

XXIV:XII

R. Judah the Patriarch in the name of R. Judah bar Simon: "Under ordinary circumstances if someone shoots an arrow, it may go a distance of a kor or two. But so great is the power of repentance that it reaches the throne of glory." Said R. Yose, "It is written, Open to me (Song 5:2). Said the Holy One, blessed be He, Open to me an opening as small as a hole of a needle and I shall open for you a space through which military camps and siege engines can enter." R. Tanhuma in the name of R. Haninah, R. Aibu in the name of R. Simeon b. Laqish: "Repent for a brief moment and know that I am the Lord (Ps. 46:11)." Said R. Levi, "If the Israelites repented for a single day, they would be redeemed. What verse of Scripture makes that point? [He tends one flock in his care.] Today if you listen to his voice (Ps. 95:7)." Said R. Judah bar Simon, "Return, Israel, to the Lord your G-d (Hosea 14:2), even if you have denied the very principle [of the faith]." Said R. Eleazar, "Under ordinary circumstances, if someone humiliates his fellow in public and after a while wants to conciliate him, the other says, 'Are you going to humiliate me in public and then conciliate me in private? Go and bring those people before whom you humiliated me and in their presence I shall be conciliated with you.' But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not that way. Rather, a person may go and blaspheme and curse in the market place but the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him to repent 'even between you and me and I shall accept you.'"

XXIV:XIII

R. Issachar of Kefar Mindi expounded, "For he knows false men, indeed he sees iniquity, and will he not consider it? (Job 11:11): "Under ordinary circumstances if a person does heaps and heaps of transgressions, but if he repents, it is as if indeed he sees iniquity, and will not consider it."

It was taught on Tannaite authority in the name of R. Meir: "Return O Israel [to the Lord your G-d]: "[Since the name, Lord, stands for the attribute of mercy, and your G-d for the attribute of justice,] return while he is still subject to the attribute of mercy, and if not, then he is your G-d. Do it before the defense attorney is made into your prosecutor."

XXIV:XIV

Samuel Patrigrisa in the name of R. Meir: Rejoice O young man in your youth [and walk in the ways of your heart] (Qoh. 11:9)." Said R. Samuel b. R. Isaac, "Sages proposed to hide away the scroll of Qohelet, for they found in it[s teachings] matters that tended toward heresy. They said, 'Lo, is this the whole of Solomon's wisdom, which he came along to teach: Rejoice, 0 young man, in your youth, [and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you into judgment] (Qoh. 11 :9)? But Moses stated, ... not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, [which you are inclined to go after wantonly]' (Num. 15:39), and yet [Solomon] has said, Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes! [Accordingly, he would imply] there is neither justice nor a Judge, so the penalty of flogging has been annulled!' But when [Solomon further] stated, But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11 :9), they stated, 'Well has Solomon spoken.'" R. Hiyya the Elder and R. Simeon b. Halapta: R. Hiyya the Elder said, "The matter may be compared to a bandit who was fleeing from a magistrate. They said to him, 'Cut down on running, so you won't be exhausted for the dragging [when they take you out to be sentenced].'

"But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11:9)." R. Simeon b. Halapta said, "The matter may be compared to the case of someone who was swimming. They said to him, 'Cut down on the trip out, so you won't be too tired for the trip back.' "But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11:9)." Said R. Josiah, "The matter may be compared to the case of one who stole tax money. When he was caught, they said to him, 'Produce the tax money.' He said to them, 'Take it.' They said to him, 'What are you thinking? That we want only the money you stole this time? We want the money you stole every time.' "But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11:9)." Said R. Levi, "The matter may be compared to the case of a bird caught in a cage, and his fellow stood near by and said to him, 'How lucky you are! How easy it is for your to get your food.' The other said to him, 'Are you looking at the food and not looking at the cage? "But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11:9)." Said R. Tanhuma, "The matter may be compared to the case of a wise guy who went into a cafe and said to the owner, 'Give me wine, give me good quality bread, and fat meat.' When the man had eaten and drunk, he said to him, 'Pay up.' He said to him, 'Here is the belly of "that man," [me] before you - split it open [and take it all back].' He said to him, 'Is that how you think you're going to get away from me?' Now the restaurant-owner was smart. What did he do? He took the man and wrapped him up in a reed mat and set him at the door of the cafe, and to whoever went by he would say, 'Attain merit [by giving money] for this corpse, because I want to buy him a decent burial.' A wise guy came by and asked, 'How long are you going to do this to him?’ He said to him, 'Until I get what is owing to me for the bill.' When the man had collected what was owing for the bill, he said to the other, 'Get up and go to your father's grave and say to him that you are going to reach a bad end.' "But know that for all these things, G-d will bring you judgment (Qoh. 11:9)."

XXIV:XV

R. Eleazar, son of R. Y ose the Galilean, says, "Israel said before the Holy One, blessed be He, 'Lord of the ages, if we repent, who will testify for us [that we have done so]?' He said to them, 'If when it comes to bad I testify for you, if it is for good shall I not testify for you?' "... when it comes to bad I testify for you: I will come near you to judgment and I will be a swift witness [against the sorcerers and against the adulterers] (Mal. 3:5). "...if it is for good shall I not testify for you?"

[These are the words of the Lord of hosts, the G-d of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who prophesy falsely to you in my name. I will hand them over to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylonia, and he will put them to death before your eyes. Their names shall be used by all the exiles of Judea in Babylonia when they curse a man. They shall say, May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylonia roasted in fire. For their conduct in Israel was an outrage. They committed adultery with other men's wives and without my authority prophesied in my name, and what they prophesied was false. I know, I can testify. This is the very word of the Lord (Jer. 29:21-23):] Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah were false prophets and committed adultery with the wives of their fellows. That is in line with this verse: For their conduct in Israel was an outrage. They committed adultery with other men's wives and without my authority prophesied in my name, [and what they prophesied was false] (Jer. 29:23). What did they do? One of them would go to a woman and say to her, "I have seen by my prophetic gift that my fellow will come to you [and have sexual relations with you, so that] you will bring forth a prophet in Israel.” One would set things up for the other, and the other would set things up for the one. When a woman's time came to give birth, they went [even] to the wife of Nebuchadnezzar, saying to her thus and so. [Receiving their claim to produce a prophet also through her,] she said to them, "I can do nothing without the king's knowledge." When Nebuchadnezzar came, she told him the story. He said, "Is such a thing possible? The G-d of this nation hates fornication. Lo, I am going to test them just the way I tested Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. If they survive, well and good, and if not then they are false prophets.' What did he do? He made a kind of copper frying pan with holes, and put them in it, and began to heat it up from the bottom. When they saw that they were in real trouble, they implicated Joshua b. Yehosedeq, high priest, with them, saying, "Perhaps through his merit we too may be saved." What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do to them? They were burned up and he was saved: Is this one not a brand saved from the fire (Zech. 3:2). That is in line with this statement: Their names shall be used by all the exiles of Judea in Babylonia when they curse a man. [They shall say, May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylonia roasted in fire] (Jer 29:22) What is stated is not, whom the king of Babylonia burned, but rather, whom the king of Babylonia roasted in fire, like popcorn.

XXIV:XVI

R. Levi and R. Isaac: R. Levi said, "Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to Jeremiah, 'Go, say to Israel, Repent.' He went and said it to them. They said to him, 'Our lord, Jeremiah, how shall we repent? How shall we have the impudence to come before the Omnipresent? Have we not angered him, and have we not made him jealous? Those mountains and hills on which we served idols - do they not yet endure [to testify against us]? They sacrifice on the tops of mountains [and make offerings on the hills] (Hos. 4: 13). Let us lie down in our shame and let our confusion cover us (Jer. 3:25).' He went before the Holy One, blessed be He, and repeated this. He said to him, 'Go, tell them, 'Did I not write for you in my Torah, [The one who consults ghosts and familiar spirits to go astray after them -] I will set my face against that person and cast him off from among his people (Lev. 20:6)? Have I ever done so to you? Rather: I will not frown on you, for I am merciful, says the Lord. I will not bear a grudge forever (Jer. 3:12).'"

R. Isaac said, "Said the Holy One, blessed be He, to Jeremiah, 'Go, say to Israel, Repent.' He went and said it to them. They said to him, 'Our lord, Jeremiah, how shall we repent? How shall we have the impudence to come before the Omnipresent? Have we not angered him, and have we not made him jealous? Those mountains and hills on which we served idols - do they not yet endure [to testify against us]? They sacrifice on the tops of mountains [and make offerings on the hills] (Hos. 4: 13). Let us lie down in our shame [and let our confusion cover us] (Jer. 3:25).' "He went before the Holy One, blessed be He, and repeated this. He said to him, 'Go, tell them, 'If you come, is it not to your father who is in heaven that you are coming? [For so I have been a father for Israel, and Ephraim has been my first born] (Jer. 31:8).'"

XXIV:XVII

… for you have stumbled because of your iniquity (Hosea 14:2): Said R. Simon, "The matter may be compared to a tall rock, which was standing at a crossroads. People would stumble on it. Said the king to them, 'Cut it down little by little, so that when the time comes, I can remove it from the world.' So said the Holy One, blessed be He, to Israel, 'My children, the impulse to do evil is a great obstacle in the world. But cut it down little by little, so that when the time comes I shall remove it from the world.' That is in line with this verse: And I shall remove the stony heart from your flesh (Ez. 36:26)." Said R. Isaac, "As matters go in the world, if someone stumbles in transgression and he becomes liable for the death penalty at the hands of heaven, his ox may expire, his chicken perish, his flask break, he may stub his toe, for part of the soul is tantamount to the whole of it."

Another comment: ...reasoning things out one by one, [after searching long without success: I have found one man in a thousand worthy the name, but I have not found one woman among them all. This alone I have found, that G-d, when he made man, made him straightforward, but man invents endless subtleties of his own] (Qoh. 7:27-29): One joins the other transgression until the account adds up [Mandelbaum].

XXIV:XVIII

[Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.] Take with you words (Hosea 14:1) [and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy (Hosea 14: 1-3)]

...Take with you words: R. Judah and R. Nehemiah: R. Judah said, "Was it not with words that you seduced him at Sinai: They seduced him with their mouth and lied to him with their tongue (Ps. 78:36). [So too now you can seduce me with mere words (Mandelbaum).]" R. Nehemiah said, "Take with you words. Let people who are good with words come, people who do well in proclaiming the words of Scripture, people who do well in expounding it, for example, Levi b. Sisi and his colleagues."

As to Levi b. Sisi: troops came to his town. The troops were breaking in, and he took the scroll of the Torah and went up to the roof and said before him, "Lord of the ages, if a single word of this scroll I have treated as null, let the troops get in, but if not, let them go their way." Forthwith [the troops] were sought out but not found. His disciples did the same thing, and his right hand withered, but the troops went their way. A disciple of a disciple of his did the same thing, and, while his right hand did not wither, the troops did not go their way. They concluded: a fool cannot be insulted, nor a corpse feel the scalpel.

XXIV:XIX

[Return O Israel to the Lord your G-d, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words] and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; [accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips. Assyria shall not save us, we will not ride upon horses; and we will say no more, Our G-d to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy (Hosea 14:1-3)]...and return to the Lord and say to him, Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good, and we will render the fruit of our lips: R. Judah and R. Nehemniah: R. Judah said, "[Reading the phrase, Take away all iniquity, so that the word for take away bears the sense of, you bear, you tolerate,] [The prophet says,] 'You can tolerate everything, but our transgressions you cannot bear?'" And R. Nehemiah said, "[Reading the phrase, Take away all iniquity, so that the word for take away bears the sense of, you collect payment for,] [the prophet says,] 'Do not collect the whole of the debt, collect for half and forgive half,'"

... accept that which is good: R. Nathan, R. Aha in the name of R. Simeon, "The letters of the word for good add up to the same number as the letters of the word for soul: take good means take life."

... and we will render the fruit of our lips: Said R. Abbahu, "[Since the words for fruit and for oxen use the same letters, we interpret as follows:] Who will pay? Those oxen which we would offer before you."

... [the fruit of] our lips: The prayer that we offer before you. Said R. Isaac, "[... the fruit of our lips:] This atonement that you render for our souls. What a great goodness do you do for our souls, and what is it our duty to say? It is the word good: It is good to confess to the Lord (Ps. 92:2). Confess to the Lord for he is good (Ps. 118:1),"

Verbal Tallies

By: H. Em. Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David

& HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah

Bamidbar (Numbers) 19:1 – 20:13

Tehillim (Psalms) 103:10-14

Mk 10:35:41, Lk 12:49-53

The verbal tallies between the Torah and the Psalm are:

LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.

Children / Son - בן, Strong’s number 01121.

The verbal tallies between the Torah and the Ashlamata are:

LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.

Spake / Uttered / Speak - דבר, Strong’s number 01696.

Saying / Said - אמר, Strong’s number 0559.

Children / Son - בן, Strong’s number 01121.

Israel - ישראל, Strong’s number 03478.

Bring / Fetch - לקח, Strong’s number 03947.

Bamidbar (Numbers) 19:1 And the LORD <03068> spake <01696> (8762) unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying <0559> (8800), 2  This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD <03068> hath commanded, saying <0559> (8800), Speak <01696> (8761) unto the children <01121> of Israel <03478>, that they bring <03947> (8799) thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke:

Tehillim (Psalms) 103:13 Like as a father pitieth his children <01121>, so the LORD <03068> pitieth them that fear him.

Hebrew:

Hebrew	English	Torah Reading Num. 19:1 – 20:13	Psalms 103:10-14
#r,a,	land, earth, ground	Num. 20:12	Ps. 103:11
!Be	son, children	Num. 19:2 Num. 19:9 Num. 19:10 Num. 20:1 Num. 20:12 Num. 20:13	Ps. 103:13
hw"hoy>	LORD	Num. 19:1 Num. 19:2 Num. 19:13 Num. 19:20 Num. 20:3 Num. 20:4 Num. 20:6 Num. 20:7 Num. 20:9 Num. 20:12 Num. 20:13	Ps. 103:13
rp'['	ashes, dust	Num. 19:17	Ps. 103:14

Greek:

GREEK	ENGLISH	Torah Reading Num. 19:1 – 20:13	Psalms 103:10-14	Ashlamatah Judg. 11:1-11	Peshat Mishnah of Mark, 1-2 Peter, & Jude Mk 10:35:41	Tosefta of Luke Lk 12:49-53
ἀκούω	hear, heard	Num. 20:10		Jdg. 11:10	Mk. 10:41
βαπτίζω	baptized				Mk. 10:38 Mk. 10:39	Lk. 12:50
βάπτισμα	baptism				Mk. 10:38 Mk. 10:39	Lk. 12:50
γῆ	land, earth, ground	Num. 20:12	Ps. 103:11	Jdg. 11:3 Jdg. 11:5		Lk. 12:49 Lk. 12:51
δίδωμι	give	Num 19:3 Num 20:8  Num 20:12			Mk. 10:37 Mk. 10:40	Lk. 12:51
δόξα	glory	Num 20:6			Mk. 10:37
εἷς	one				Mk. 10:37	Lk. 12:52
ἔπω	said	Num 20:10  Num 20:12		Jdg 11:2 Jdg 11:6  Jdg 11:7 Jdg 11:8 Jdg 11:9 Jdg 11:10	Mk. 10:36 Mk. 10:37 Mk. 10:38 Mk. 10:39
ἔρχομαι	come, came	Num 20:1 Num 20:6		Jdg 11:7		Lk. 12:49
θέλω  /  ἐθέλω	want				Mk. 10:35 Mk. 10:36	Lk. 12:49
συναγωγή	houses, synagogue	Num 19:18		Jdg 11:2 Jdg 11:7		Lk. 12:52
παραγίνομαι	come, came	Num 20:5				Lk. 12:51
πατήρ	father		Ps. 103:13	Jdg. 11:2 Jdg. 11:7		Lk. 12:53
πίνω  /  πίω	drink	Num 20:5 Num 20:11			Mk. 10:38 Mk. 10:39
ποιέω	do, did, done, made, make		Ps. 103:10	Jdg. 11:10	Mk. 10:35 Mk. 10:36
υἱός	son, children	Num. 19:2 Num. 19:9 Num. 19:10 Num. 20:1 Num. 20:12 Num. 20:13	Ps. 103:13	Jdg. 11:1 Jdg. 11:2 Jdg. 11:4 Jdg. 11:5 Jdg. 11:6 Jdg. 11:8 Jdg. 11:9	Mk. 10:35	Lk. 12:53

Nazarean Talmud

Sidra of B’midbar (Numbers) 19:1 – 20:13

By: H. Em Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham

Hakham Shaul’s School of Tosefta - Luqas (Lk)

of Hakham Tsefet’s School Peshat Mordechai (Mk)

“I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish that it had been kindled already! But I have an immersion to be immersed with, and I am distressed until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to grant peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! For from now on there will be five in one household, divided three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” (Micah 7:6)

¶ And Yaakov and Yochanan, the sons of Zavdeyel, approached Him (Yeshua), and said, Rabbi (Hakham), we have a request that whatever we may request, you would grant us. And he (Yeshua) asked them, what do you desire for me to do for you? And they said to him, allow us (permit us the honor) that we may sit one on the right hand of you and one on the left hand of you in your seat of honor. But Yeshua said to them, you do not know what you are asking for. Do you have the ability to drink from the cup, which I now drink from, and to be immersed with the immersion that I am now immersed with? And they said to him, we are able. However, Yeshua said to them, certainly you will drink from my cup, and you will be immersed with the immersion with which I am immersed. But to sit on my right hand or on my left hand is not mine to give, but for whom it has been appointed. ¶And the other ten hearing, began to be indignant about at Yaakov and Yochanan.

Nazarean Codicil to be read in conjunction with the following Torah Seder

Num 19.1 – 20.13

Ps 103:10-14

Mordecai 10:35.41

1 Luqas 12.49-53

Commentary to Hakham Tsefet’s School of Peshat

My Cup and Immersion

Mar 10:38 But Yeshua said to them, you do not know what you are asking (for). Do you have the ability to drink from the cup, which I now drink, and to be immersed with the immersion that I am now immersed with? Do you have the ability to drink from the cup, which I drink?

Yeshua makes a direct link to the ideas of, light, education and consecration. Can you drink of the cup (of suffering)? Many people have desired to become a Torah Scholar when they hear a Hakham teaching the Torah. However, they do not comprehend the countless hours required for study, learning (education) and devotion to thresh for kernels, which will be the bread upon which they feast. The Menorah was to only be fueled by purest oil. This teaches us how dedicated we must be to truth and Torah study. However, Yeshua is not simply alluding to this sort of pain. The pain and suffering that Yeshua alludes to is the rebirth of the priesthood of the firstborn. The Torah is permeated with connections to the understanding of why the Kohanim were selected and what would happen in the future. See for example the readings which help us understand the cleansing (immersion) of the Kohanim in B’midbar chapter 8.

B’Midbar 8:21. The Levites cleansed themselves and washed their clothes. Then Aaron lifted them as a waving before the Lord, and Aaron atoned for them to cleanse them.

Do you have the ability to … be immersed with the immersion that I am now immersed with?

Rashi translates B’Midbar 8:21 in a very interesting way.  “Then Aaron lifted them” alluding to the Kohanim rather than the offerings offered. This satisfies the idea of a Korban, which “brings near” the offeror. Therefore, the olah (burnt offering) elevates the offeror of those for whom the offering is offered.

The “mikvah” is also an elevation. Specifically, it is an elevation of status. Therefore, just as the oil, being consumed in the Menorah brings light through the elevation of the flame the olah elevates the Kohanim and the Mikvah elevates the immersed.

On the other hand, why did Hakham Tsefet, through his scribe Mordechai pen the words that we have?

B’Midbar 8:11. Then Aaron shall lift up the Levites as a waving before the LORD on behalf of the children of Israel, that they may serve in the Lord's service.

B’Midbar 8:11. And Aharon will present the Levites, (as) an elevation before the LORD from the sons of Israel, and they will be for the work of the service of the LORD.

Verses 11, 13 and 15 are most unusual. They all contain the Hebrew word תְּנוּפָה, meaning wave or shake indicating the waving towards the altar indicating a threefold dedication of the Kohanim. Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch defines תְּנוּפָה as dedication, designation and direction.^[41]

This begs the question of why the Kohanim had to be dedicated three times.

The threefold dedication bespeaks method. The method of complete dedication requires a dedication by the whole community and by G-d. Yisrael dedicated the Kohanim to G-d. G-d dedicated the Kohanim to His service and Aaron dedicated the Kohanim to G-d and the service of the Mishkan.

B’Midbar 8:7. This is what you shall do to them so as to cleanse them: sprinkle them with cleansing water and pass a razor over all their flesh; then they shall wash their garments and cleanse themselves.

B’Midbar 8:7. And this will you do to purify them. Sprinkle upon them the water for uncleanness through sin (chattata), and let the razor pass over all their flesh, and let them wash their raiment, and wash themselves in forty seahs of water.

Note the connection between the Mikvah and the dedication of the Kohanim. The dedication ceremony demands their death in a matter of speaking. Mikvah is a picture of death as well as elevation. The elevation comes from death to a previous status of way of life. The Kohanim were accustomed to a way of life that died when they were dedicated to HaShem’s service.

Therefore, we could reword Yeshua’s statement to read as follows.

Mar 10:38 Do you have the ability to suffer in the manner in which I suffer, and to die to the life you now possess as I do?

Hakham Tsefet is most astute. He notes that triple play on the word תְּנוּפָה in these Torah passages and makes his own double play of triple word use.

Mar 10:38 But Yeshua said to them, you do not know what you are asking (for). Do you have the ability to drink from the cup, which I now drink [from], and to be immersed with the immersion that I am now immersed with?

Mar 10:39 And they said to him, we are able. However, Yeshua said to them, certainly you will drink from my cup, and you will be immersed with the immersion with which I am immersed?

Why does Hakham Tsefet use the word “immerse” or “immersion” three times in two verses? As noted above the Hebrew word תְּנוּפָה means dedication. We have also noted that the idea of immersion is that of elevation. Consequently, Hakham Tsefet uses the word immersion and the elevation of status in the same way that the Torah Seder uses the idea of תְּנוּפָה. The threefold immersion means complete and whole immersion in the study of Torah and pursuit of the position of Hakham.

Some Questions to Ponder:

1. From all the readings for this week, which particular verse or passage caught your attention and fired your heart and imagination?

2. In your opinion, and taking into consideration all of the above readings for this Sabbath, what is the prophetic message (the idea that encapsulates all the Scripture passages read) for this week

Upcoming Fast: Yom Kippur

10^th of Tishri … Evening of Wednesday, 15^th of September thru Thursday, 16^th of September

https://www.betemunah.org/kippur.html

Next Shabbat:

Shabbat: “Vayishlach Mosheh” – Sabbath: “Then Sent Moses”

Shabbat	Torah Reading:	Weekday Torah Reading:
וַיִּשְׁלַח מֹשֶׁה		Saturday Afternoon
“Vayishlach Mosheh”	Reader 1 – B’Midbar 20:14-21	Reader 1 – Shemot 33:12-16
“Then Sent Moses”	Reader 2 – B’Midbar 20:22-29	Reader 2 – Shemot 33:17-19
“Y Envió Moisés”	Reader 3 – B’Midbar 21:1-3	Reader 3 – Shemot 33:20-23
B’Midbar (Num.) 20:14 – 22:1	Reader 4 – B’Midbar 21:4-9
Judges 11:12-21	Reader 5 – B’Midbar 21:10-16	Monday and Thursday Mornings
	Reader 6 – B’Midbar 21:17-20	Reader 1 – Shemot 33:12-16
Psalms: 103:15-22	Reader 7 – B’Midbar 21:21 - 22:1	Reader 2 – Shemot 33:17-19
Mk 10:42-45: Lk 22:24-30	Maftir – B’Midbar 21:34 – 22:1	Reader 3 – Shemot 33:20-23

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!”

Hakham Dr. Yosef ben Haggai

Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David

Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham

Edited by Adon Ovadyah ben Abraham and Adon Aviner ben Abraham

Please send any comments, questions or suggestions to chozenppl@gmail.com

---

[1] Also corresponds to the five times the term nefesh is mentioned in the Yom Kippurim Torah reading.

[2] These opening remarks are excerpted, and edited, from: 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.

[3] Ruth chapter 3

[4] Bereshit (Genesis) 19:31ff

[5] Bereshit (Genesis) 38

[6] Mitzva = a good deed

[7] Chazal (Hebrew: חז"ל), an acronym for the Hebrew "Ḥakhameinu Zikhram Liv'rakha" (חכמינו זכרונם לברכה, "Our Sages, may their memory be blessed"), refers to all Jewish sages of the Mishna, Tosefta and Talmud eras, spanning from the times of the final 300 years of the Second Temple of Jerusalem until the 6th century CE, or c. 250 BCE – c. 625 CE.

[8] Melachim alev (I Kings) 14:21:  And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which HaShem had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name there; and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess.

[9] Devarim (Deuteronomy) 25:5

[10] Midrash Rabbah - Genesis 85:8

[11] Chapter 36

[12] Yehezechel (Ezekiel) 37:5

[13] Bereshit (Genesis) 4:12

[14] Melachim alev (I Kings) 14:21

[15] Bereshit (Genesis) 19:15

[16] Bereshit Rabbah 41:4

[17] This section was adapted from Rav Yaakov Medan.

[18] According to Rashi and Chazal but not according to Ibn Ezra

[19] Yibum, or levirate marriage in Judaism, is one of the most complex types of marriages mandated by Torah law (Deuteronomy 25:5-10) by which, according to the law, the brother of a man who died without children has an obligation to marry the widow.

[20] Bereshit 19:31

[21] Devarim 25:5

[22] Ruth 4:5

[23] Devarim 25:6

[24] The land of the living is Israel.

[25] Moshe Alshich, (1508–1593), known as the Alshich Hakadosh (the Holy), was a prominent rabbi, preacher, and biblical commentator in the latter part of the 16th century. The Alshich was born in 1508 in the Ottoman Empire, and was the son of Hayyim Alshich. He later moved to Safed where he became a student of Rabbi Joseph Caro. His students included Rabbi Hayim Vital and Rabbi Yom Tov Tzahalon. He died in Safed in 1593.

[26] A transmigrated soul. When Yeshua calls Yochanan (John) ‘The Elijah who was to come’, He was indicating that Yochanan had the soul of Elijah.

[27] Isaac S. D. Sassoon is an observant Sephardic rabbi (hakham), scholar and educator. Hakham Sassoon, who is currently one of the leading scholars in the Sephardic world, was born into the Sassoon family of London.

[28] See I Shmuel (I Samuel) 24:1-15; note especially 24:12-15. See also Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 22:1-5

[29] Gilgul, (plural: גלגולים Gilgulim) describes a Kabbalistic concept of reincarnation. In Hebrew, the word gilgul means "cycle" or "wheel" and neshamot is the plural for "souls." Souls are seen to "cycle" through "lives" or "incarnations", being attached to different human bodies over time. Which body they associate with depends on their particular task in the physical world, spiritual levels of the bodies of predecessors and so on. The concept relates to the wider processes of history in Kabbalah, involving Cosmic Tikkun (Messianic rectification), and the historical dynamic of ascending Lights and descending Vessels from generation to generation. The esoteric explanations of gilgul were articulated in Jewish mysticism by Isaac Luria in the 16th century, as part of the metaphysical purpose of Creation.

[30] Vayikra (Leviticus) 19:9-10 The mitzvah of Leket requires that when a few ears of grain fall to the ground at the time of harvest, they are to be left to the poor.

[31] Ruth 4:11

[32] Joel ben Samuel Sirkis, also known as the Bach - בית חדש) ב"ח)—an abbreviation of his magnum opus, Bayit Chadash—was a prominent Jewish posek and halakhist. He lived in central Europe and held rabbinical positions in Belz, Brest-Litovsk and Kraków. He lived from 1561 to 1640.

[33] Yosef Hayim (1 September 1835 – 30 August 1909) was a leading Baghdadi hakham (Sephardi rabbi), authority on halakha (Jewish law), and Master Kabbalist. He is best known as author of the work on Halakha Ben Ish Ḥai (בן איש חי) ("Son of Man (who) Lives"), a collection of the laws of everyday life interspersed with mystical insights and customs, addressed to the masses and arranged by the weekly Torah portion.

[34] Tanach is an acronym for Torah, Neviim, and Ketuvim. These are the Hebrew words for Law, Prophets, and Writings. This is what Jews call the Old Testament.

[35] Rebecca

[36] see Targum Onkelos and Rashbam to Bereishit 27:13

[37] Ruth Rabba 6:1

[38] For further elaboration on this subject, see Nechama Leibowitz’s “Studies on Sefer Bereishit.”

[39] Ruth Rabbah 7:1

[40] Desecration of God’s Name

[41] Hirsch, Rav Samson Raphael, The Hirsch Chumash, Sefer B’Midbar, Feldheim Publishers –Judaica Press, 2008 p.158