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Surfing the Talmudic Seas
(C) Dr Russell Jay Hendel, 2000
Volume 7 Number 3
Produced Aug 03 2000
WARNING: USE FIX WIDTH FONTS (eg COURIER (NEW) 10)
Verses/Topics Discussed in This Issue with quicky explanations
v9-8-3a WEB PAGE UPDATED
* Web Version of RULES OF RASHI with hyperlinks
Please Visit in the WHATS NEW & HOT section
* Volume 7 Postings added to BY VERSE, BY RULE
* Volume 7 digests hyperlinked
* RashiYomi Summaries updated weekly
v9-8-3b SMALL BUT BEAUTIFUL--2 RASHI PEACHES
On Dt01-15d Rashi comments 6 times on the
Biblical phrase "Officers of 1000" that it
means "Officers over 1000". Why comment on something
so obvious? Using advanced database methods find out
In Dt01-15f we show how the one letter root SHIN
means to FACILITATE. Thus the POLICEMAN(Shtr)
facilitates(Shin) keeping people in line(TR)
Visit this posting to see 4 levels of Rashis that
give translations--everything from Raw Tradition
to pure logic.
Dt01-15d RASHIS SHOWS ADVANCED DATABASE METHODS
On Dt01-15d Rashi comments 6 times on the
Biblical phrase "Officers of 1000" that it
means "Officers over 1000". Why comment on something
so obvious? Using advanced database methods find out
Dt01-15f LEARN THE MEANING OF ANY ROOT BEGINNING WITH SHIN!
In Dt01-15f we show how the one letter root SHIN
means to FACILITATE. Thus the POLICEMAN(Shtr)
facilitates(Shin) keeping people in line(TR)
Visit this posting to see 4 levels of Rashis that
give translations--everything from Raw Tradition
to pure logic.
Rashis covered in this issue
----------------------------
VERSE RULE BRIEF EXPLANATION
======== ============== =================
Dt01-15d WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Dt01-15e WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Ex18-21e WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Ex18-21f WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Ex18-21g WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Ex18-21h WORD MEANINGS Rashi presents 3 meanings of 'SR'
Dt01-15f SYNONYMS ShTR means POLICE: ShFT means JUDGE
--------------------------------------------------------------
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NOTATION: eg Gn01-02a refers to Rashi "a" on Genesis 1:2
SPECIALS:...on Parshah,Rambam,Ramban,Pedagogy,Symbolism
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VERSE: Dt01-15d
RASHIS COVERED: Dt01-15d Dt01-15e Ex18-21e
Ex18-21f Ex18-21g Ex18-21h
BACKGROUND
----------
Dt01-15c says "I will appoint CHIEFS OF THOUSAND" Rashi
comments "CHIEFS OF A THOUSAND" means CHIEFS OVER A THOUSAND
This rustic Rashi with its almost country like naivitee looks
innocent. Yet it is a peach of Rashi. In fact it is one of
the most profound Rashis in all of Chumash.
RULE:
----
The Hebrew word SR has 3 usages. It is best translated
as CHIEF or MASTER--for example MASTER BAKER or CHIEF
BAKER.
EXAMPLES
--------
USAGE 1:
-----------------------------------------------------------
In the following verses the Hebrew word 'SR' means
MASTER or CHIEF--for example, MASTER CHEF, MASTER BAKER
-----------------------------------------------------------
VERSE TEXT
------- --------------------------
Gn37-36 Master Chef
Gn39-21 Master of Prisons
Gn40-02 Master Bartender
Gn40-16 Master Baker
Ex01-11 Master of Taxes
Jud9-30 Master of the city(Mayor)
2C32-06 Masters of War
USAGE 2:
-----------------------------------------------------------
In the following verses the Hebrew word 'SR' means
MASTER or CHIEF. The verse USES the word to indicate
WHERE the master or chef came from
-----------------------------------------------------------
VERSE TEXT
------- ---------------------------
Jud7-25 Midianite Masters
Jud8-6 Succothian Masters
Nu22-12 Moabite Masters
Nu22-12 Balaks Masters
Jos5-14 Master (0fficer) of the Army
COMMENT
-------
We now understand WHY Rashi commented as he did. EVERY other
place where SR occurs in the Bible it means either a
(a) CHIEF from some place
(b) MASTER of some activity (master baker, master chef...)
Therefore in Dt01-15 and Dt18-21 it would be natural to interpret
the word 'SR' the same way. Since the word ALF means BOTH
1000 and TEACHER/TRAINER we would therefore interpret SR ALF
as 'CHIEF TRAINER' or MASTER TEACHER. We could similarly
interpret SR CHMASIM as MASTER OF ARMS since CHMASH besides
meaning 50 also means ARMS.
Rashi must therefore WARN us against such a natural attempt.
Rashi does this by emphasizing a 3rd usage of the Hebrew word
SR.
USAGE 3
-------------------------------------------------------------
In the following verses the Hebrew word 'SR' means
MASTER or CHIEF. The verse USES the word to indicate
HOW MANY subordinates worked under the CHIEF
-------------------------------------------------------------
VERSE TEXT
------- ------------------
Dt01-15 CHIEFS over a 1000
Dt01-15 CHIEFS over a 100
Ex18-21 CHIEFS over a 1000
Ex18-21 CHIEFS over a 100
Ex18-21 CHIEFS over 50
Ex18-21 CHIEFS over 10
Isa3-03 CHIEFS over 50
2Kn1-10 CHIEFS over 50
SUMMARY
-------
A popular English translation of the Hebrew word 'SR' is
OFFICER or GENERAL since the word frequently occurs in
military situations. Hence if you know nothing else it is
natural to interpret 'SR 1000' to mean OFFICER OVER A THOUSAND
In such a case you do not need Rashi
However if you were familiar with other Biblical usage of
'SR' you would know that it almost always means CHIEF OF
SOME ACTIVITY or else it refers to CHIEFS FROM SOME PLACE
Because of these other occurences it becomes natural to
think that eg the phrase CHIEF (of) 50 really means CHIEF
OF ARMS since the Hebrew word for 50 can also mean ARMS
Therefore Rashi ingeniously, consistenly and meticuously
makes it clear that we have a 3rd usage of SR in these
verses: In these verses the phrase 'SR' identifies the
CHIEF or MASTER by HOW MANY work under him. So Rashi
on each Biblical phrase 'CHIEF 1000' 'CHIEF 100' CHIEF 50...
says the same thing: 'CHIEF over a 1000'
It is Rashis like this that led me to call Rashi the
King Of Databases.
RULE USED: WORD MEANINGS
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: Dt01-15f
RULE: The two Hebrew words STR vs SFT mean the following
(a) ShTR means POLICE
(b) ShFT means JUDGE
COMMENT
-------
Rashi frequently explains the difference between two words that
have almost identical meanings. We call this the RULE OF
SYNONYMS. Frequently such Rashis look TALMUDIC and HAIR
SPLITTING since most people don't have a fluency in the nuances
of Biblical Hebrew.
However in this verse Dt01-15f, most people DO understand the
difference between POLICE and JUDGE. This affords us a unique
opportunity to understand Rashi on multiple levels.
At the simplest level Rashi is simply giving us a TRADITION--
a dictionary meaning. But at the profound level Rashi is
teaching us the RULES BY WHICH MEANING MAY BE INFERRED.
In other words, the MEANING OF WORDS can be approached both
thru a method of TRADITION as well as thru a method of LOGIC
EXAMPLES
--------
THE SIMPLE APPROACH
-------------------
POLICE and JUDGE both are words denoting LEADERSHIP.
Many Verses have the phrase "POLICE and JUDGES"
Therefore Rashi is simply giving the dictionary meaning:
POLICE means POLICE while JUDGES means JUDGES. Compare
the following verses where JUDGE and POLICE simply
refer to types of LEADERS.
At the elementary level Rashi is using a method of TRADITION
VERSE TEXT WITH JUDGE and POLICE
-------- ---------------------------
Jos24-01 Elder Leaders Judge Police
Jos23-02 Elder Leaders Judge Police
1C23-04 Police Judge
1C26-29 Police Judge
Jos08-32 Elder Police Judge
Dt16-18 Judge Police
THE INTERMEDIATE LEVEL
----------------------
At the intermediate level we review OTHER meanings of the
roots involved. For example the root ShFT can refer both to
the ACTIVITY of Judging eg Ex18-22
the PEOPLE who are judges eg Dt01-16
Thus at the intermediate level we combine meaning
with SUPPORTIVE arguments based on the roots involved
THE ADVANCED LEVEL
------------------
At the advanced level we review the USAGE of these terms
in verses in which only one term occurs. This provides
further supportive arguments for the meanings suggested
In the following verses only the term POLICE occurs;
the term JUDGE does not occur. The translation POLICE fits
these verses; the translation JUDGE does not fit these
verses. Such an analysis while not providing a proof
of meaning nevertheless gives support for translation.
VERSE TEXT
----- ----
Dt20-05 Military POLICE remove unwanted soldiers before a war
Ex05-14 Jewish POLICE were held responsible by Egypt for workload
Jos1-10 POLICE prepare the entire nation for entry into Israel
Prv6-7 Learn from the ant who works hard without POLICE
COMMENT
-------
The root POLICE occurs only 2 dozen times in the Bible. The
above 4 examples (and similar verses) constitute about 40%
of the occurences of SHTR. In these examples the translation
SHTR=POLICE seems much better than SHTR=JUDGE. An analysis
like this enables us to guess at meaning EVEN if we did not
have a tradition.
THE PROFOUND LEVEL
------------------
At the profound level we DERIVE the meaning of SHTR=POLICE
not from tradition but from universal semantic rules.
According to Rashi (followed by Rav Hirsch) the meaning
of a 3 letter root can be obtained by breaking it up into
a 2 letter root and a one letter root which has meaning.
Let us illustrate:
* SHAL means TO ASK
* AL, the last two letters of shAL, means TO ME
* We conjecture that the one letter root
* SHIN, means TO FACILITATE, MAKE EASY*3
So we derive the semantic equation
* ASK(Shal) means FACILITATE(S) Coming to me(EL)
ROOT BEGINNING WITH Shn MEANS Shn=Facilitate Last 2 letters
----------------------- ----- -------------- ------------------
Ask(SAL) means Facilitate(S) (coming) to me(EL)
Breathe heavily(SAF) means Facilitate(S) breathing(AF)*1
Leftover (SAR) means Facilitate(S) being plucked(ARH)
Lofty(SFV) means Facilitates(S) being high(GVH)
StripTease(SGL) means Facilitates(S) uncovering(GLH)
Throw (SLC) means Facilitates(S) motion(LCH)
Insects (SRTz) means Facile(S) in running(RTz)
Spilling (SFCh) means Facilitates(S) dripping(PCH)
Flirting (SKR) means Facilitates(S) calling(KR) (men)
Police*2 (STR) means Facilitates(S) keeping in line(TR
NOTES
-----
*1 AF means NOSE. Breathing is activity of the nose.
*2 Compare the English idiom "keeping in line"
*3 Here is a cute mnemonic.
SHIN is a silibant
It is pronounced like the letter S, a hissing sound.
Thus the emphasis in SHIN is the expulsion of air--
Hence SHIN means "LIKE A BREEZE"--EASY, FACILITATED."
SUMMARY:
-------
Rashi appears to be giving a dictionary meaning:SHTR means POLICE
However support for Rashi can be obtained
*from the meaning of SHFT, to Judge, and hence SHFT=Judge
*from the usage of ShTR which denotes POLICE action
*from the semantic derivation of ShTR:
A Policeman is someone
who faciliates(S) staying in line(TR)
RULE USED: WORD MEANINGS
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
THE 2 DOZEN RASHI-IS-SIMPLE RASHI RULES
http://www.RashiYomi.Com/rules.htm
=======================================
I: RASHI gives MEANING
======================
A: NEW MEANINGS--(eg)"on the face of"=during the lifetime
Volume 2 Number 9, http://www.rashiyomi.Com/Nu04-04a.htm
B: SPECIAL WORDS--(eg)ACH=USUALLY;USUALLY observe shabbath!
Rashi Yomi Summaries,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ach-6.htm
C: SYNONYMS--(eg)AMR=to speak; DBR=to cite or to quote;
Volume 2 Number 1, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Lv20-02a.htm
D: WORD MEANINGS-Thermos(TzNTzNTh)=doubly(TZN TZN) Cold(TZN)
Volume 1 Number 9,23,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex31-15a.htm
E: UNIFIED MEANINGS-PAAM=Repeated action:To Ring,Hammer,Step
Volume 1 Number 3,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn41-08a.htm
II: RASHI teaches GRAMMAR/STYLE
===============================
F: CLASSICAL GRAMMAR--(eg)QUESTION = HEY+CHATAF PATACH
Volume 3 Number 22,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn04-09z.htm
G: USAGE(NEW GRAMMAR)--(eg)INFINITIVE="be involved in";
Volume 5 Number 24,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex13-03a.htm
H: ROOT+PREPOSITION--(eg)ChZK B="to hold";ChZK M="overpower"
Volume 1 Number 7,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex04-04a.htm
I: THE SENTENCE--2 verses can make 1 sentence-eg Dt02-16:17
Volume 3 Number 7,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt19-06a.htm
J: STYLE--REPETITION denotes Endearment;eg 'Jacob Jacob'
Volume 1 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn46-02a.htm
K: DOUBLE NOUNS--(eg)"GIVE GIVE";if not CHARITY then LOAN
Double Noun page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/DN.htm
L: PRONOUNS-(eg)IMCHAH=with you; ITCHAH=Accompanying you;
Volume 3 Number 13,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex22-24c.htm
III: OVERALL TEXTUAL STRUCTURE
==============================
M: OTHER VERSES--Aaron SAW(Ex32-05)...the brawl(Ex32-18)
OTHER VERSE page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/ov.htm
N: EXTRA SENTENCES-eg[GIVE HIM][WHAT HE NEEDS](Not if rich)
Volume 2 Number 20,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt15-08c.htm
O: DOUBLE PARSHAS-'he WILL pray'-'he WON'T pray';So Optional
Volume 3 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt24-14a.htm
P: CLIMAX-(eg Dt19-11)(a)Hate, (b)spy, (c)confront,(d)Murder
Climax Page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Climax.htm
Q: OVERALL STRUCTURE-growing nails=despisement(from context)
Volume 3 Number 8,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt21-11a.htm
R: SPREADSHEETS-What is the marriage loophole in inheritance
Volume 2 Number 23,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Nu36-03a.htm
IV: BEYOND THE TEXT
===================
S: MORAL LESSONS/REASONS-God explains BEFORE punishing;
Volume 2 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Nu12-09a.htm
T: RabbiIshmael-(eg)"When an OX gores";(Or ANY animal gores)
Volume 4 Number 21,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt25-04a.htm
End of Rashi-Is-Simple Digest
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