SUCCINCT SUMMARY
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Rashi frequently made inferences based on the Biblical STYLE. We
call this Rashi Rule the RABBI ISHMAEL STYLE rule.
A powerful style rule was the painting of a verse in a
CLIMACTIC DEVELOPMENT manner. We call this the RASHI SUBRULE of
CLIMAX
EXAMPLE Lv26-14:15
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The Biblical text at Lv26-14:15 states
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If you
do not listen to ME
do not do ALL these commandments
If you my statutes you despise
If my justices you loathe
in order not to do ANY MY commandments
in order to annul my TREATY
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The GENERAL IDEA is: You disobey me.
The SPECIFIC development uses 5 motifs
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- PERSONAL: Use of the word ME, MY
- ORDER:VERB-OBJECT (dont do laws) vs OBJECT-VERB(justice loathe)
- COMPREHENSIVENESS: Use of the word ALL, ANY
- COMMANDMENT REFERENCE: TREATY vs COMMANDMENTS
- GOAL EMPHASIS: IN ORDER
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Based on the General principle of CLIMAX and the 5 motifs
Rashi indicates a CLIMACTIC development
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- NO LEARNING -- don't listen
- NO DOING -- don't do
- Redicule religious code -- MY STATUTES despise
- Redicule judicial code -- MY JUSTICES loathe
- Prevent others from doing--not to do ANY commandments
- Break Divine Treaty -------to ANNUL my treaty
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To fully understand this we emphasize the concept of
CLIMAX. Rashi is not emphasizing that
- LISTEN means LEARNING
- DO means PERFORMANCE
Rather Rashi is emphasizing
- 1st) you don't learn
- 2nd) you don't do
That is Rashi took the sequence of actions that lead
to total rejection of Judaism and in effect pegged
them on the 6 verselets. True, there is tremendous
support for each of Rashi's ideas in the words used
- LISTEN does connote LEARNING
- DO does connote PERFORMANCE
- not to do ANY commandments connotes stopping all performance
- ANNUL my treaty connotes leaving Judaism
but these words should be seen as SUPPORTIVE to the
general idea of CLIMAX. It is the CLIMAX which is the
driving force behind the derivation---the emphasis
on words and phrases is supportive not primary.
LIST450y summarizes this climactic structure
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