Rashi-Is-Simple Mailing List
(C) Dr Russell Jay Hendel, 1998
Vol 01, Number 05
Produced Dec 30,1998
Topics Discussed in This Issue
------------------------------
v-cbrow1 --Posting by Chaiim Brown (Meaning of Classifications)
V-ANS-1 --My answer to Chaiim Brown's posting
v1a47-29 --"Come near to death"= Dying prematurely
(because of Tzaroth)
v1e47-29 --Egypt was known for its
a)immorality b)idolatry c) hedonism
v1d47-29 --"True favors" are favors where
you don't expect reciprocation
v1-47-30 --"TO LIE" = TO DIE; "WITH" = LIKE; "AND" = BECAUSE
v1b48-2 --Showing respect for evil kings (Jacob, Moses, Elijah)
v1-50-21 --SPEAK ON HEART=Soothing; Cf Rashi with BRabbah;
Workbook Methods
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VERSE: v-cbrow1
From: C1A1Brown@aol.com
To: rashi-is-simple@shamash.org
Subject: Re: RASHI-IS-SIMPLE digest 5
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Could you please explain what you mean by rule classification?
Are there a finite list of rules you are trying to fit all Rashi
into, or are you developing categories of rules as you address
the individual Rashis?
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VERSE: v-ans-1
A brief answer to Chaiim Brown.
My goal is for both educators and Posayks.
Let me give a simple example: Suppose
(see Vol 1 Num 4) we taught in
a 3rd or 10th grade class that the Verse
..the wagons that Joseph
sent ONLY to Jacob" implied that there was
some hidden message..something
personal...ONLY to Jacob... in what Joseph sent (Gen 45:27)
It would be useful for a teacher to be
able to take many other verses
with OTHO and ask students to derive
themselves the appropriate midrash.
Then they could compare what they derived
with the actual midrashim
as occur in Chazal and in Rashi.
Such an approach would add great depth to the class.
To implement the above teaching approach
we would need a list of
comparable examples. Such a list
will be provided in the Red room of
my web site (which I hope will be up
by the end of January). It will
enable teachers to view comparable
examples and thereby strengthen their
lessons by having students practicing the examples they displayed.
Similarly a Posayk who was speaking
about a law derived from some posook
would find it useful to have many
examples to back up the claim that the
law was objective and not subjective derush.
The keywords used in the classification will trigger
off flags in a computer program which will
enable me to construct and update the
yellow room of the website with
such lists of comparable examples.
Historically lists of principles are
given in several places: e.g. the
13 principles of Rabbi Ishmael, or the
32 principles of Rabbi Eliezer
or the 7 principles of Hillel or the
613 principles of Malbim. It seems
to me that sometimes the principles are
too few and sometimes too many.
For example if I read Rabbi IShmael's
principles it is not immediately
clear how to derive the Rashi on OTHO
in the above mentioned verse. True
Malbim gives this principle but he gives
613 principles making it unweildy
to see comparability. I am striving for a
hierarchical listing that will do both.
For the while you may regard these
classifications as useful constructs
that organize the various principles used.
I hope this clarifies and answers your question.
Russell Jay Hendel; ListOwner and Moderator; Rashi-Is-Simple
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: v1a47-29 And Jacob was prematurely dying
------
RASHI TEXT:
----------
The verse should be translated as "he was dying prematurely"
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
----------------------------------------
Rashi explains the phrase"Came near to die" by looking at comparable
verses where it occurs. By examining these verses he arrived at
the conclusion that the proper translation is "prematurely dying"
Thus Jacob (1-47-29), David (1R-2-1), & Moses (5-31-4)
all have this phrase (when the Bible describes their
imminent death), & these people all died before their expected ages
(i.e. before the age at which their father died)
Rashi notes the prerequisite: "The person's lifetime was shorter
than his fathers lifetime." However
the principle cannot be that whenever someone dies before his
fathers age than you say "prematurely" because
Joseph also did not live as long as his father. Nevertheless we
do not find this phrase ("dying prematurely") by Joseph.
Rather the principle seems to be that when
someone dies prematurely because
OF ALL THE SUFFERING THEY EXPERIENCED then you use the phrase
he was dying prematurely. (So Moses, Jacob, and David had much
strife and suffering during their life and the phrase occurs by
them)
RASHI'S FORM
------------
As is his usual custom Rashi does not give the whole rule.
He gives a list and notes that these people
died at a young age relative to their fathers
age.
But as pointed out this cannot be the whole explanation since Joseph
died at 110 way before his expected age of 147(Jacobs age)
Thus we must more closely examine the list. It appears to me that
the true explanation is that
* these people died prematurely
* their death was hastened by all the tribulations they had during
their lifetime
Rashi frequently uses WORKBOOK methods---he gives a partial answer &
expects the reader to fill in the rest.
LISTS:
------
{LIST1} {A list of people who were about to die. Sometimes this is
indicated with the phrase "I am dying" while sometimes it
is indicated with the phrase "I am dying prematurely". All
the people where premature death is mentiond have 2
attributes:
a) They died way before their father's age of death
b) There premature death was hastened by all the troubles
they had}
WHO WAS DYING VERSE PHRASE
------------- ------ -------
Jacob 1-47-29 Dying prematurely
David 1R-2-1 Dying prematurely
Moses 5-31-4 Dying prematurely
Jospeh 1-50-24 I am dying
David 1R2-2 I am going the way
of the world
FOOTNOTES:
===========
Note how the lists are rather small here
("come near" only occurs about
a dozen times and only 2-3 of them
refer to death). In general many
nifty nuances come from generalizations
from such short lists. I would
invite discussion on how strong a proof
it is to demonstrate something
from a small list. In the future I will
refer to this problem as the
statistical problem of small lists]
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: SYNONYMS
--------------------
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VERSE: v1e47-29 Don't bury me in Egypt
------
RASHI TEXT:
----------
Rashi gives 3 possible reasons why he didn't want to be buried
in Egypt
a) The shouldn't worship me
b) The land would eventually rot
c) At resurrection one would have to travel to Israel
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
----------------------------------------
Rashi wanted to know why Jacob did not want to
be buried in Egypt. Rashi simply looked thru
the Bible and found bad things listed about Egypt. Any one of these
(or all together) could have been the reason.
{LIST1} gives 3 bad attributes of egypt: Egypt was
* Immoral (sexually)
* Idolatrous
* Hedonistic
Corresponding to each of these faults Jacob had a concern:
Thus corresponding to the fact that Egypt thinks the Nile is a
god Jacob could have been concerned that they would think of him
as a god. Similarly corresponding to the fact that Egypt uses up
its resources Jacob could have been concerned that the land would
rot and become wormy (and his grave would be eaten up).
We have
RASHI'S FORM:
------------
Rashi's real point is
Don't bury me in Egypt because Egypt is BAD
Instead of stating his GENERAL POINT (Egypt is BAD)
Rashi instead gives
a POSSIBLE list of POTENTIAL bad points of Egypt.
[NOTE: This list is not a list of verses or roots. But rather a list
of texts describing some phenomena--we will refer to this as
LIST BY MEANING and will add it to our list of possible list types
Also note that traditional computer searchs could not help you here]
LISTS:
------
{LIS1} {Of bad things said about Egypt in the Bible #}
VERSE BAD THING SAID ABOUT EGYPT
----- --------------------------
3-18-3 A land of (sexual) immorality
1-41 A land that used up its resources
Ez 29:3 they thought that they and the nile were gods
FOOTNOTES:
==========
One can make other lists...e.g. lists showing that
it was justified that Jacob might be worshipped...cf Dan 2:46-49
We however do not pursue this here.
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: MORAL LESSONS
--------------------
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VERSE: v1d47-29 ...and do me a truthful favor
------
RASHI TEXT:
----------
Truthful favor is a term used for favors where the recipient
will probably never reciprocate. (Hence it is truly a favor
since nothing in return is expected)
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
----------------------------------------
There are two types of favors
*A favor where you expect something in return(e.g. I give a monetary
wedding present and expect my friend to give me one when I
get married)
* A favor where nothing is expected in return.
Rashi points out that "truthful favor" is always used by "favors"
where nothing is expected in return.
{LIST1} below allows us to review many cases of verses with either
the phrase CHESEDD VEEMETH or just CHESED.
CHESED VEEMETH is used for example by a)the spies promise not to
hurt Rahab the prostitute when they invade the land(Jos2-14),b)
Eliezer's request for Laban to allow Rivkah to marry Isaac (1-24-49)
or c) the burial of Saul by the inhabitants of Yavaish Gilad 2S2-6)
In all these cases the person doing the favor did not expect
anything in return (See{LIST1} for further details).
RASHI'S FORM:
------------
As I explained in my article PESHAT and DERASH, the proof
of a translation is from USAGE not from pilpulic arguments.
Rashi's statement "TRUE FAVOR"--A FAVOR which is truly a favor
("you expect nothing back") should NOT be regarded as the reason
for the Midrash!!
All midrash has as its proof USAGE which in turn is proved by
examining lists. Those who understand this will achieve more
satisfaction in learning Rashi
We note in passing that burial in only ONE good example of
a chesed where the recipient does not pay you back--(the dead
cannot pay you back). However, as shown by the list, there are
many other examples besides burial. Thus Rashi was using his
famous workbook methods here...he chose one good example and
let the reader find others.
LISTS:
-----
{LIS1} {Of the phrase "Chesed Vemeth"}
VERESE CONTEXT
------ -------
1-24-49 # Eliezer's request to Laban to get Rivkah for a wife
1-47-29 Jacob's request for burial
2-34-6 # God's 13 attributes
Jos 2-14 The spies promise to spear Rahabs life
2S2,6 Yavesh Gilad's burial of Saul
2S15-20 # Itais going with David(during the Avshalom rebellion
Ps 25-10 % Nothing special
Ps 61-8 % Nothing special
Ps 85-11 % Nothing special
Ps 89-15 % Nothing special
Prv 20-28 % Nothing special
Prv 14-22 % Nothing special
FOOTNOTES:
==========
# For those who like to interpret Rashi literally (Rashi applies
the phrase CHESED VEEMETH to burial) there are several verses
where CHESED VEEMETH is used but have nothing to do with burial
There are at least two examples
that have nothing to do with burial
See 1-24-49 (Eliezer's request for
Rivkah..the implication is he would
not return there and they would get
nothing in return. Also see 2-34-6
which has nothing to do with burial
nothing else).
As to 2S15-20 there seems to be a 2 way controversy
between Rashi, Radack and Ralbag vs
the Targum and Rav Yeshaia)
% Note the verses in Ps and Prv--
there does not seem to be anything
special here. This is an important
principle of lists. Very often you
can justify something on a certain set
of verses but there are nevertheless
many verses where the principle is
NEITHER SUPPORTED nor REFUTED.
Those who want to learn Midrashic method
seriously should pay attention
to such examples when they come up
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: SYNONYMS
--------------------
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: v1-47-30 And I will die like my parents
------
RASHI TEXT:
-----------
The verse should be trasnlated "I will DIE like my parents".
It should NOT be translated "I will be BURIED with my parents"
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
-----------------------------------------
Rashi's translation of v1-47-30 lies on 3 facts:
* The verb TO LIE designates DEATH not BURIAL (See {LIST1})
* The preposition WITH (IM) can mean LIKE (Ke).
* The connective VAV can mean AND, BECAUSE or any conjunction.
So the whole request of Jacob should be translated as follows{LIST2}
* Do me a non-returnable favor
* don't bury me in Egypt
* Because
* I am dying
* like
* my parents;
* Take me up from Egypt
* And bury me at their gravesite
RASHI'S FORM
------------
LISTS:
------
{LIST1} {Of verses where it says "To lie" . In all these
verses the verb "to lie" clearly refers to DEATH
and not to BURIAL. #}
VERSE WHO DIED
----- --------
1R 11-21 David
2S7-12 David
Job 3-13 Job
2R14-22 Death of a king
1R1-21 Death of a king
1R2-10 # Death of David
2Chr9-31 Death of kings
2Chr12-16 Death of kings
2Chr13-23 Death of kings
2Chr16-13 Death of Kings
2Chr21-5 Death of Kings
FOOTNOTES:
==========
# Rashi brilliantly points out that"TO LIE"&"BURIAL" are mentioned
in 1R2-10 further strengthening the point that "to lie" means DEATH
and NOT BURIAL.
However the main proof that TO LIE cannot mean burial comes from
the fact that TO LIE never refers to BURIAL, only to Death.
{LIST2} {Phrase by Phrase translation of 1-47-30 with
assumptions made explicit}
TEXT ASSUMPTION USED
==== ======================
Do me a true favor --%
don't bury me in Egypt --%
Because VAV = Because #
I am dying LIE = Death *
like IM = with #
my parents; --%
Take me up from Egypt --%
And bury me at their gravesite --%
FOOTNOTES:
=========
% These phrases are translated normally and have no assumptions.
# It is a well know principle that VAV does NOT mean AND.
It rather can mean ANY CONJUNCTION (and, or, because)
Is is also known that WITH (IM) can mean LIKE (K).
Technically we should give lists justifying that WITH can mean LIKE
or that VAV can mean because.
In general the meanings of all connectives are poorly understood.
Perhaps we will have a special issue on this in the future. For the
present we suffice with the RDQ who points this out in his book ROOTS
He points out that prepositions frequently interchange in
meaning--so IN can mean ON or FROM etc]
* LIE means Die not bury. See {LIST1} for a full justification.
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: SYNONYMS
--------------------
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: v1-48-2 And Israel strengthened himself and sat on the bed
------
RASHI TEXT:
-----------
Rashi explains that the reason Jacob sat up was
in order to show respect for the monarchy (Rashi then gives
other examples of people who showed respect for the monarchy)
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
-----------------------------------------
Rashi explains Jacob's behavior--sitting up on his bed even
though he was sick--as being done in order to show respect
to Joseph who was vice-King. Rashi then generalizes this
concept that one should show kings respect: Rashi gives a list
{LIST1} of people who showed respect for the monarchy.
Furthermore, as {LIST1} shows, the monarchy should be shown respect
* even though the monarchs involved are evil people (like Pharoh,
or Achav)
* & even though the people showing the respect are righteous
people and/or prophets (like Moses and Elijah).
RASHI'S FORM
------------
Rashi in this verse justifies what he says with an actual list.
Note that this is a LIST BY MEANING (not a list of WORDS
or a list of ROOTS)--it would be hard to construct this list
with a CD ROM)
LISTS:
------
{LIST1} {Of people who showed respect for the monarchy. Note that
* the kings involved were WICKED KINGS(Pharoh,Achav);
* the people showing them respect were righteous (e.g
Moses, Elijah)}
THE THE VERSE WHERE HE SHOWED
PERSON KING RESPECT FOR THE MONARCHY
------ --------- ----------------------------------------
Jacob To Joseph v1-48-2
Moses To Pharoh v2-11-8 #
Elijah To Achav 1R18,46
FOOTNOTES:
=========
# The point behid v2-11-8 is that in v2-12-30 Pharoh himself
WITHOUT any of his servants came down to Moses but nevertheless
Moses said "These servants of yours will come down"--in other words
he criticized Pharoh's servants not Pharoh himself,
apparently to show him respect
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: MORAL REASONS
--------------------
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: v1-50-21 And he spoke soothingly to them
------
RASHI TEXT:
----------
Speak on ones heart = Speak Soothingly
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
----------------------------------------
Rashi translates the phrase "SPEAK ON HIS HEART" as meaning
SOOTHINGLY {LIST1}.So Rashi says that Joseph spoke SOOTHINGLY to his
brothers.
Having introduced the general idea, that Joseph spoke smoothingly,
Rashi next tries to guess some of the arguments he used:
* If the 10 of you couldn't kill me how can I kill 10 of you
* You freed my name (they thought I was a slave-
now they know I am free)
* If I kill you people will lose respect for my reign
These 3 examples are citations from Midrash Rabbah. The Midrash
gives further arguments and presumably Rashi expected his readers
to try and guess further arguments themselves. (See comments on
RASHI'S FORM below)
RASHI'S FORM
------------
I've deliberately brought down this Rashi to justify my thesis that
Rashi is only interested in MAIN IDEAS and lets the reader try
and fill in details (using workbook methods)
Indeed: The BERAISHITH RABBAH gives about 6 explanations. Yet Rashi
only selects 3. (One argument NOT brought by Rashi is the following:
-the Midrash Rabbah mentions that "Jews are compared to stars
and stars are indestructable).
A careful perusal of the Midrash Rabbah and Rashi, will, I think,
convince the reader that Rashi was mainly interested in the BASIC
IDEA and he let the details up to further research by the students.
Please review this and write in your comments.
LISTS:
------
{LIST1} {Verses where SPEAK ON HIS HEART occur. In all of them
------- the meaning seems to be speaking SOOTHINGLY, COMFORTING
CONVINCINGLY or APPEASINGLY. If anyone has a more
focused succinct translation let us know}
VERSE PERSON TOPIC
----- ------- -----
1-34-3 Dinah Schem tries to WINOVER Dinah as a wife
2S19-8 David APPEASE the people after the civil war
Is40-2 God God will COMFORT us on the exile
Jud19-3 A Man To CONVINCE his runaway wife
to come back to him
1Sm1-13 Chana Chana PRAYING to God for a child
Hos2:16 God COMFORTING Israel
CROSS REFERENCES:
----------------
BERAISHITH RABBAH
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
----------------
RULE CLASSIFICATION: ROOT+PREPOSITION
--------------------
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
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End of Rashi-Is-Simple Digest
Vol 01, Number 05
Produced Dec 30,1998
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1998 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*