Rashi-Is-Simple Mailing List
VISIT the RASHI DATABASE archives AT
http://www.shamash.org/rashi
(C) Dr Russell Jay Hendel, 2000
Volume 5 Number 12
Produced Mar, 01 2000
WARNING: USE FIX WIDTH FONTS (eg COURIER (NEW) 10)
____ _ |_ ||/
| | | | |/
| _| | /
Verses/Topics Discussed in This Issue with quicky explanations
--------------------------------------------------------------
v6-3-01
NEW...NEW...HEBREW ASCII FONTS...IN THIS ISSUE. Also an
explanation of HOW we break things up into smaller
chunks. Thus the 2 dozen examples of Rabbi Ishmael's
prinicple will be spread over several issues with each
issue broken up by EXAMPLES.
PLEASE SEND IN COMMENTS SO WE CAN IMPROVE THE FONTS
v2-40-35
If a newspaper said "BARAK signs agreement with Arabs"
vs "ISRAEL signs agreement with Arabs" then we
understand that BARAK is the representative of Israel.
We give 8 examples where 2 ASPECTS of the SAME THING are
listed in 2 different verses
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1999 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
RASHI IS SIMPLE
GOALS: To grammatically defend all 8000 Rashis on Chumash.
METHOD:Every Rashi will be defended with a LIST of comparable cases
INTENDED AUDIENCE: Laymen, Academicians, Rabbis, Yeshiva students
COMMENTS,QUESTIONS: EMail to address below; (minor edits may occur)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:Always given unless 'anonymous' is explicitly asked
(UN)SUBSCRIBE: Email to above with keyword "(UN)subscribe"
JOURNAL REFERECE: Pshat & Drash, TRADITION, Win 1980, R Hendel
NOTATION: eg v2b1-8 refers to Ex(Book 2) Chap 1 Verse 8 Rashi b(#2)
SPECIALS:...on Rambam,Ramban,Symbolism,Pedagogy,Daily Questions
EMAIL: RJHendel@Juno.Com,rashi-is-simple@shamash.org,
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1999 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: v2-40-35
======
v2-40-35 and Moses couldn't come to the MEETING TENT
v4-7-89 And when Moses came to the tent to speak with HIM
v2z25-22 And I(God) will ...speak to you from above the
Kaporeth
v2c20-19 You(Jews) see that I spoke to you from Heaven
v2-19-20 And God descended on mount sinai
v2d15-1 he has has LIFTED (Egyptian) horses & chariots into
the sea
v2-28-37 And place it (the TziTz) on an azure thread
v4-21-21 And Israel sent agents to Edom
RASHI TEXT:
===========
v2-40-35 and Moses couldn't come to the MEETING TENT
\ | |_ _
|\| | |
| \ / |
|_ _ -- _
| | | |
/ | --
___ ||/ ____
| |/ | |
| | | _|
|_ \ | \ | _ ___ |_
| |\| |\| | | |
/ | \ | \ | --- /
___ \ | _ ____ |_ ___ \ |
| \/ | | | | | |\|
| / | | _| / | | | \
v2-40-35 says
>Moses could NOT come to the MEETING TENT
By contrast v4-7-89 says
>When Moses (DID) come to the MEETING TENT
The reconciliation of these two verses is accomplished by the phrase
at the end of v2-40-35
>Moses could not come to the meeting tent WHEN the cloud
>of Glory was there
In other words as long as Gods cloud of Glory rested on the tent
Moses could not come. When God wished to speak to Moses the cloud
withdrew (which signaled to Moses), and Moses came to the tent
[Moderator: There is a subtle point here which might be overlooked
Rashi is suggesting that the Hebrew word
_ --
| |
--
be translated as
>WHEN (Moses couldn't come to the tent WHEN the cloud was there
versus
>BECAUSE(Moses couldn't come to the tent BECAUSE the cloud was there
v4-7-89 And when Moses came to the tent to speak with HIM
\ | ___ ___ _
|\| | | |
| \ --- --- |
___ ||/ ____
| |/ | |
| | | _|
|_ ___ \ | |_
| | |\| |
/ | | | \ /
___ \ | _ ____
| |\| | | |
| | \ | | _|
_ __ \ | __ ___ ___ |_
| | | |\| | | | |
| _| | | \ | --- | /
On the one hand v2-25-22 says that God spoke to Moses
>from above the KAPORETH
While on the other hand v3-1-1 says that God spoke to Moses
>from the MEETING TENT
The reconciliation of these two verses is accomplished by 4-7-89
>And when Moses came to the MEETING TENT (then)
>he heard the voice speaking to him from above the KAPORETH
v2z25-22 And I(God) will ...speak to you from above the Kaporeth
_ __ __ ___ ___ _
| | | | | | |
_| | | --- | |
|_ \ | ____ -- __ \ |
| \/ | | | | | |\|
/ / | _| -- _| | | \
__ __ _ _ -- ___
| | | | | | | |
_| | | | __| -- | |
On the one hand v2-25-22 says that God spoke to Moses
>from above the KAPORETH
While on the other hand v3-1-1 says that God spoke to Moses
>from the MEETING TENT
The reconciliation of these two verses is accomplished by 4-7-89
>And when Moses came to the MEETING TENT (then)
>he heard the voice speaking to him from above the KAPORETH
(In other words, Moses stood at the entrance but heard the
voice from the KAPORETH)
v2c20-19 You(Jews) see that I spoke to you from Heaven
_ ____ _ --
| | | | |
__| | _| --
____ _ ____ ||/ ___
| | | | | |/ |
| _| | _| | |
_ __ __ ___ ___
| | | | | |
_| | | --- |
____ -- ____ \ |
| | | | | \/
| _| -- | _| /
But 2-19-20 says
>And God DESCENDED on the mountain
while 2-20-19 says
>I have spoken to you FROM HEAVEN
The reconciliation of these 2 verses is accomplished by 5-4-36
>From HEAVEN He let you hear his VOICE..
>and on EARTH he showed you his great FIRE
Thus we see that
>God's HONOR is in HEAVEN
>God's FIRE is on EARTH
Another interpretation is based on Ps18-6
>God bended over heaven until it reached the mountain
v2-19-20 And God descended on mount sinai
___ ___ __ _ _
| | | | |
| | | | |
__ ___ |_ \ |
| | | \/
| | | / /
_ _ _ ___
| | | | |
__| \_/
But 2-19-20 says
>And God DESCENDED on the mountain
while 2-20-19 says
>I have spoken to you FROM HEAVEN
The reconciliation of these 2 verses is accomplished by 5-4-36
>From HEAVEN he let you hear his VOICE..
>and on EARTH he showed you his great FIRE
Thus we see that
>God's HONOR is in HEAVEN
>God's FIRE is on EARTH
Another interpretation is based on Ps18-6
>God bended over heaven until it reached the mountain
v2d15-1 he has THROWN (Egyptian) horses & chariots in the sea
___ _ ___
| | | | |
\_/ | \_/
_ ___ -- __ _
| | | | |
| --- -- | |
____ _ ___ ___ ____ __
| | | | | | | |
| _| --- | | | _| |
On the one hand 2-15-1 says that God
___ ____ __
| | | |
| | | _| |
>LIFTED
the Egyptians into the sea
while 2-15-4 says that God
@yrh
>SHOT
the Egyptian army in the sea.
Rashi now gives two explanations
By analogy with Dan3-6 we have the right to translate
___ ____ __
| | | |
| | | _| |
as
>THREW
A second approach would translate, based on Job38-6
___ __ _
| | |
| | |
>LIFT UP and let SHOOT DOWN
In other words, God did not just
>toss (horizontally) the Egyptians into the sea
but rather God
>tossed them up (vertically) and then
>let them sink into the sea
[Moderator: Since in actuality the sea closed in on the Egyptians
perhaps Rashi's idea is that instead of God destroying the Egyptians
in Egypt God deliberately RAISED there hopes and let them pursue the
Jews and then just as they were about to overtake God plunged them
to their death. Such a punishment shows God's TOTAL mastery over the
situation since He could precisely control when the Egyptians would
be terminated]
v2-28-37 And place it (the TziTz) on an azure thread
__ ____ ||/ _
| | | | |/ |
_| | | _| |
|_ \ | _ __ \ |
| \/ | | | |\|
/ / | _| | | \
|_ _ __ _
| | | | | |
/ _| | __|
__ |_ -- __
| | | | | |
_| | / -- _| |
If we compare 2-28-37 and 2-39-30
we have numerous contradictory phrases
>place the Tzitz on an azure thread
>the Tzitz will be on the Turban(on the top of the head)
>the Tzitz will be opposite the Turban
>the Tzitz will be on the forehead
>place on azure thread on the Tzitzh
>place the tzith on the Turban above
There contradictory phrases are all seen to be true when we describe
HOW the Tzith was on the high Priests head. Here is a brief summary
>The Priest had his HAT (TURBAN) on Top of his head
>The Tzitz was like a make over his forehead
>Two threads at the end of the Tzitz held the tzitzh
>these 2 threads were tied at the back of the head
>additionally a 3rd thread was on top of the Tzitz
>the thread went over the head and Turban &
>was tied to the other two threads at back
Thus we see that
>the Turban was on top
>the threads hung from the sides of the Tzizth-mask
But also
>the tzitz('s 3rd thread) went OVER the Turban
>the tzitz hung from the 3rd thread
In other words by providing us with a picture we reconcile
the verses
v4-21-21 And Israel sent agents to Edom
___ |_ ||/ _ _
| | | |/ | |
| | / |
|_ \ | __ ||/ _
| |\| | |/ |
/ | \ |
____ _ -- \ | |_ ____
| | | | |\| | | |
| _| -- | \ / | _|
On the one hand 4-21-21 states that it was
>ISRAEL that sent the messengers
while 5-2-26 says that it was
>MOSES who sent the messengers.
But this is simply resolved by observing that
>MOSES was the representative of ISRAEL
>MOSES ACTED ON BEHALF OF ISRAEL
Similarly deputazation language is
found by the leader YIPTHACH(Jud11-17)
BRIEF BUT COMPLETE NARRATIVE EXPLANATION:
=========================================
The above 8 verses are part of a multi part series dealing
with the stylistic principle of
>complementary verses.
Before going into the technicalities of this let us give
a simple example.
You pick up a newspaper and the SAME article says both
>Barak and Arafat make peace
and
>Israel and the PLO make peace
Such alternations (Barak vs Israel) would not bother anybody.
Indeed we all understand that
>Barak is the elected REPRESENTATIVE of ISRAEL
and hence we can equally say that
>Barak signed the agreement
or
>Israel signed the agreement.
EXAMPLE 1
---------
In a similar manner the two verses 4-21-21 and 5-2-26 state
>ISRAEL sent delegates to Edom
>MOSES sent delegates to Edom
So Rashi is Simple
>Moses represented Israel.
Note that Chazal formulate the above principle in terms of
>CONTRADICTION
For this is one of the 13 Exegetical principles of Rabbi Ishmael
>Two verses that CONTRADICT each other
>until a 3rd verse comes and reconciles them
However In Example 1 ("Moses sent" vs "Israel sent") modern ears
find it peculiar
>to call the use of MOSES vs ISRAEL as a contradiction
Also note that
>there is no 3rd verse 'reconciling' the contradiction
>but rather we learn it from plain logic.
In summary, the 2 verses WHEN TAKEN LITERALLY say different
things but we simply understand the 2 verses as
>indicating two components of the same entity.
This perspective
>2 verses indicating two components of an entity
is the BASIC idea that we are reviewing today. As this multi
series develops we will see other uses of 'two contradictory
verses' besides the approach we just presented of
>two components of the same entity
We now give 4 other examples.
---------------------------------------
| QUESTION 1: |
| =========== |
| Can you find many examples of this |
| principle of two verses that |
| complement each other. What tools |
| would you use? We intend to cover |
| this principle over several issues |
| and have a giant summary list at the|
| end. Perhaps you can think of some |
| examples not already found. Try and |
| make your own list. |
---------------------------------------
EXAMPLE 2
---------
2-15-1 and 2-15-4 describe the destruction of the Egyptian
Army using the words
>God LIFTED them into the sea
>God SHOT them into the sea
So Rashi Is Simple
>Like an archer SHOOTING an arrow UPWARD
>which then falls down
First the Egyptians come to the sea elated and convinced
that they had the upper hand (LIFTED) and then they drown--
so it appears that God SHOT them from Egypt into the sea.
Such a statement heightens the miracle (since it shows
Gods TOTAL CONTROL over the situation--He could kill the
Egyptians at the exact moment He chose)
EXAMPLE 3
---------
v2-28-37 and v2-39-30 give about 5 different (contradictory)
descriptions of the PRIESTLY MASK (TZITZ). This is because
the Torah is trying to describe a
>PICTURE
using
>WORDS
To illustrate this let us discuss the PRIESTLY MASK.
Consider the MASKS of say Robin (Batman and Robin) or Zorro.
The mask goes across the forehead and is tied by two strings
attached at both ends. (Imagine the two strings tied in back)
Robin and Zorro wore their masks over their eyes while the
the Priest wore the make ON HIS FOREHEAD.
Now augment this mask with two items. First have a 3rd string
which attaches to the top of the mask, goes over the head
and is tied in back to the traditional two strings that masks
have
Further suppose that Zorro or Robin is wearing a hat. Then
the mask with its 2 side strings and the extra string that
goes over the head will now also go over the hat.
If we look at this set-up
>Robin or Zorro is wearing a hat
>he puts a mask on his forehead
>the mask has two side strings which are joined at back
>there is a 3rd string which goes over the hat,
>is tied to the other 2 strings in back
>and is tied to the top of the mask
then Rashi Is Simple---we can now easily say
>the hat is ABOVE the mask (it is)
>the mask is ABOVE the hat (because of the extra 3rd string
>the mask HANGS from the string (that is the 3rd string)
>the strings (on the side) HANGS from the mask
In fact this is exactly how the PRIESTLY MASK looked. The MASK
>had written on it the words HOLY TO GOD
>it was attached by azure threads in 3 places
>it went over the PRIESTLY TURBAN (hat).
As indicated the complications in these verses happened because
the Torah was trying to describe
>a PICTURE
with
>WORDS
Accordingly I have created a new interpretive category called
>PICTURES
This refers to Rashis, especially in the portions of the Torah
dealing with the Tabernacle and Sacrifices where Rashi tries
to VERBALLY DESCRIBE A PICTURE---the approach to such Rashis
must be different than the approach to other Rashis. In effect
Rashi is looking for a PICTORIAL MODEL that fits all the verses.
There are now many books and websites containing pictures and
these make certain Rashis simpler.
EXAMPLE 4
---------
2-20-19 and 2-19-20 state that
>God spoke to the Jews from HEAVEN
>God DESCENDED on the mountain to speak to them
So Rashi Is Simple--prophecy combines the earthly and heavenly,
the spiritual and material. In fact there are many examples
of this in Jewish Law--for example prayer requires a BELT to
separate the LOWER and UPPER half of the body.
----------------------------------------------
|QUESTION 2: |
|=========== |
|Can you come up with a list showing how |
|prophecy combines the spiritual and physical|
|What tools would you use? {LIST1} below |
|gives a partial list. |
----------------------------------------------
EXAMPLE 5
----------
v2-40-35, 2-25-22 and 4-7-89 state that
>Moses could NOT come to the MEETING TENT when the cloud was there
>Moses DID come to the MEETING TENT to speak to God
>God spoke to Moses from the CAPORETH
So Rashi is simple
>While the cloud was on the tent Moses could not approach it
>When the cloud lifted Moses could come to the tent entrance
>from the tent entrance Moses would prophetically hear God
speaking to him from the Caporeth.
(This is like the description of the PRIESTLY MASK above...it is
sort of a PICTURE with many components which have to be described
together). The point of such a picture of prophecy is that
>God must have privacy vis a vis man (Hence the cloud--
there is something unknowable about God)
>Although Moses spoke to God he could not get too close
(He could only go to the entrance--but was privileged
to hear Gods voice from the entrance)
>God spoke to Moses from the Ark which had the Tablets of
the law with Gods voice supported by the Kruvim. This shows
that Gods primary purpose in prophecy is transmission of
law
This gives us a clear statement that EVEN a prophet can not
get too near God but rather must separate in both TIME (cloud)
and SPACE (ENTRANCE vs KRUVIM).
As pointed out earlier, their is a subtlety to Rashi. Rashi
translates the Hebrew word
_ --
| |
--
as meaning
>WHEN
vs
>BECAUSE
So Rashi translates 2-40-35 as
>Moses couldn't come to the Meeting tent WHEN the cloud
>was there
Since KY has 4 meanings one of which is WHEN this is admissable.
COMMENTS ON RASHI'S FORM:
=========================
We have already commented on the LANGUAGE of this principle
in Rabbi Ishmael's list of principles of style---Rabbi
Ishmael uses the language of
>2 contradictory verses until a
>3rd verse reconciles them
As we have pointed out
>we needn't call the verses contradictory
>we needn't have a 3rd verse reconciling them
(sometimes logic will reconcile them).
Why then did Rabbi Ishmael call the verses contradictory?
In my opinion he did so because the goal was not only
to UNDERSTAND but also to MEMORIZE the laws. And as every
good memory expert will tell you, CONTRADICTION and
EXAGGERATION facilitate memory. It is for this exact
same reason that Rashi frequently phrases his midrashim
in the form of exaggerations (in order that the points
should be memorized). That is exactly why we have so
vigorously defended Rashi as having a grammatical simple
meaning, in this list.
LISTS {For ADVANCED students and for those with more time}:
===========================================================
{LIST1} {Places in Jewish law where Prophecy addresses the
distinction / harmony of the earthly-heavenly. This
list cannot be made with a CD ROM but rather must
be made based on knowledge of Jewish law and folklore
This list is used to show the importance of 2-20-19
vs 2-19-20--God addresses the PHYSICAL & SPIRITUAL}
ISSUE RELATION TO HEAVEN RELATION TO EARTH
===== ================== =================
Prayer Belt separating UPPER/LOWER parts of Body*1
Ez.'s Vision Ez-1-27 differentiates betwwen UPPER/LOWER body*2
Hebrew word SMYM Comes from words ESH(Fire) MYM (Water) *3
Red Heiffer*4 4-19-17 says man is DUST(physical) & WATER(spirit)
Revelation 2-19-20 & 2-20-19 show God spoke from HEAVEN/EARTH
FOOTNOTES
---------
*1 This is known as the GARTLE in Jewish law. The source for
this custom comes from Ez-1-27 (see next record)
*2 As indicated this is the source for wearing a BELT during prayer
*3 This is one popular etymology from Genesis Rabbah
*4 This interpretation is due to Rav Hirsch
CROSS REFERENCES:
=================
See v2z40-35 and v2y40-35 in the coming issues
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
=================
RULE CLASSIFICATION {See the web site for comparable examples}:
===============================================================
RabbiIshmael
RabbiIshmael
RabbiIshmael
RabbiIshmael
RabbiIshmael
RabbiIshmael
PICTURES
RabbiIshmael
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1999 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
End of Rashi-Is-Simple Digest
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 1999 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*