The goal of this Weekly Rashi Digest is to use the weekly Torah portion to expose students at all levels to the ten major methods of commentary used by Rashi. It is hoped that continual weekly exposure to these ten major methods will enable students of all levels to acquire a familiarity and facility with the major exegetical methods.

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Russell http://www.RashiYomi.com/
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Dt32-21d states They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities; and I will move them to jealousy with those who are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a despicable nation. Rashi explains the underlined word Despicable by citing Other Verses which provide further details to its meaning. In fact verse P014-01 states To the chief Musician of David. The despicable has said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable deeds, there is none that does good. Hence the Rashi comment The word despicable means an aetheist someone who denies God, who says, There is no God

It should be clear that the essence of the Rashi comment is clarification from an other verse. In the spirit of Rashi we could take other verses with the word despicable and derive further nuances of this word (We need not assume that Rashi sought to exhaust the meaning of despicable with aetheism based on one verse). The reader is invited to try this interesting exercise.

One of Rashi's 10 major methods is the word meaning method. One word meaning sub-method is the grammar sub-method. New meanings may be obtained thru grammatical transformations of words. A typical example is the noun-verb transformation which is reflected in such common-place examples as to dust, to flower, to hammer.

Verse Dt32-26a states I said, I would make them into side issues, I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men. Here the Hebrew word used has a root, Pay Alpeh Hey which literally is a noun meaning side. The verb-noun transformation would change the noun side into the verb to make into a side issue which has a connotation of making someone worthless.

Interestingly, Rashi supplements the noun-verb transformation with the other verse rule. Verse Ne09-22 states And you gave them kingdoms and peoples, and made these other kingdoms into side issues before the Jews so that they took possession of the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan. Here we see confirmation of the idiom make into a side issue meaning make worthless.

The actual Rashi text cites several other possible translations some of which Rashi refutes. We do not think it necessary to become so technical. Instead we have sufficed with the Rashi explanation most consistent with the Biblical textual meaning.

The area of grammar is very broad covering many domains. One grammatical issue is the mode of verb usage. Unlike tense which deals with the time when an activity will take place, the mode of a verb deals with its relation to the real world. For example
• I will go to the store is the real mode
• I wish to go to the store is the wish mode, technically known as the jussive, cohortive mode. Here the verb indicates a wish vs. actual reality.

On verse Dt30-19b which states I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; I wish you to choose life, that both you and your seed may live. Rashi, as we indicated in the above translation, interprets the literal Biblical words choose life as a jussive or wish expression: I wish you to chose life.

Some would argue that we have deviated from the literal meaning of the Rashi text. We therefore cite it. Rashi states: We interpret the text analogous to a father telling a son: You can take a portion...take the good portion. Clearly the underlined phrase take the good portion doesn't refer to a command or future statement about the world but rather a wish of the father: I wish you the good portion.

True, Rashi does start out his comment with the cryptic phrase: I advise you to choose life. But we need not see this as a command, especially in light of the second part of Rashi listed above. To recap and sum up we see the total Rashi as follows: I advise you to choose life. This is analogous to a father telling a son: You can chose a portion..[I wish you to ] take the good portion.

Note the alignment of the underlined words in the following verses
• Verse Dt30-19 presenting Moses' farewell comments states I call
  • heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing;
  • therefore [you] choose life, that both you and your seed may live;
• Verse Dt31-28b,Dt32-01 states Gather to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears,
  • and call heaven and earth to witness against them. ...
  • Give ear, O you heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

The alignment indicated by the underlined words immediately suggests the following Rashi comment There are two mentions of heaven and earth as witnesses
• The first mention addresses the Jews as it says You chose the good life
• The second mention addresses the Heaven and earth themselves as it says Give ear O you heavens...O earth

In other words Rashi very simply identifies both aligned passages as asking heaven and earth to be witnesses against the Jews: In one passage Moses speaks to the Jews while in a second passage Moses speaks to the heaven and earth themselves.

Notice the contradiction indicated by the underlined passages in Dt31-10 discussing the pilgrimage to hear the law by the Jewish nation. And Moses commanded them, saying,
• At the end of every seven years,
• in the year of release, during the holiday of Succoth.

We see the contradiction indicated by the underlined words: Which is it? Do the Jews come at the end of the 7th year or during the year of release (The 7th year).

Rashi resolves this contradiction using the 2 aspects method. The 2 aspects of the year of release is explicitly indicated in verses Lv25-20:22
• And if you shall say, What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we shall not sow, nor gather in our produce;
• Then I will command my blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years.
• And you shall sow the eighth year,
• and eat still of old fruit until the ninth year; until its fruits come in you shall eat of the old store.

The above verses shows us that Although the 7th year is the year of release--people absolve debts and do no agriculture--nevertheless, there is still some abstention in the beginning of the 8th year. Consequently although the pilgramage to hear the law happens at the end of the seventh year, that is, at the beginning of the eighth year nevertheless we can still call the beginning of the eighth year the release year since release year laws apply to both the full seventh year and the beginning of the eighth year.

Verse Dt31-02b states And he said to them, I am one hundred and twenty years old this day;
• I can no more go out and come in;
• the Lord has said to me, You shall not go over this Jordan.

Rashi interprets the above verse using the Rabbi Ishmael Style rules. Rashi sees the first clause I can no more go out and come in; as general while the second clause-- the Lord has said to me, You shall not go over this Jordan-- Rashi sees as detailed and particular. In accordance with the Rabbi Ishmael style rules Rashi sees the detailed clause as restricting the meaning of the general clause. Consequently Rashi interprets the verse as follows And he said to them, I am one hundred and twenty years old this day;
• I can no more go out and come in;
• because the Lord has said to me, You shall not go over this Jordan.

In other words: Moses, despite his age of 120, was in good health and could still lead a war. The reason why he didn't lead the Jews into Israel was because he was prohibited from going in.

Modern writing uses a variety of formatting vehicles, such as bold, italics, and underline to indicate effect and emphasis. The Bible occasionally uses similar formatting vehicles.

The Bible uses a Dotting of a word---placing a sequence of dots above the word--to indicate a strikeout effect. Most readers of the Bible are unaware that the Bible uses this dot-strikeout feature but several Biblical words are actually dotted.

Verse Dt29-28 states The secret things belong to the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this Torah. Rashi comments on the dot-strikeout: The word revealed is dotted to indicate a certain deficiency and weakness in what is being said: Gods punishment on revealed vs hidden matters was ony warned, not actualized, in this passage. The purpose of this delay was to let the Jews adjust to the new requirements. The actual punishments (of the whole community) on the revealed sins of individuals took place after the Jews crossed the Jordan and accepted Gods curses and blessings in the ceremony on the mountain.

Sometimes a verse will have a perfectly clear meaning.It has a clear
• meaning
• grammar
• and relation with other verses

Nevertheless Rashi will make a comment indicating a consequence or implication of the verse. We say that such Rashis use the spreadsheet method. We call the method, spreadsheet since very often spreadsheets are use to compute and infer consequences.

Verse Dt31-21b states And it shall come to pass, when many evils and troubles have befallen them, that this poem [Dt32] shall testify against them as a witness; for it [The poem] shall not be forgotten in the mouths of their seed; .... Rashi comments: Since the one chapter poem, Dt32, is not forgotten, it follows that the Torah itself which contains this poem, will also not be totally forgotten.

We see here that Rashi's comment informs us of a consequence and hence we classify this Rashi as an example of the spreadsheet method.

Verses Dt30-19 and later Dt32-01 use Heaven and earth as symbols. Rashi's challenge is to identify the specific symbolic meaning. As is typical with symbols Rashi gives a variety of possible symbolic meanings and lets the reader chose the meaning most appropriate to them.

The text of the verses are as follows I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live; ... Give ear, O you heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

Rashi on two verses lists at least 3 meanings
• Heaven and earth are eternal....so the admonition is eternal also
• Heaven and earth are role models since they obey God's natural law; Similarly the Jews should obey God's moral laws
• Heaven and earth behave the same way witnesses behave. If witnesses see a crime then it is the witnesses themselves who perform the execution as clearly indicated in Dt17-06:07 By the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he who deserves death be put to death; but by the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death. The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hands of all the people. So you shall put the evil away from among you. In an analogous manner when Jews sin then, Heaven and earth, the witnesses are called upon to punish the Jews as is clearly indicated in Dt11-16:17 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and you turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; And then the Lord’s anger be kindled against you, and He will close the Heaven, that there should be no rain; and the earth will not yield her fruit;...

In the last symbolic explanation Rashi, besides interpreting heaven and earth anthropomorphically, also interprets witness symbolically. As indicated above, symbolism is by its very nature suggestive and not necessarily committed to one interpretation.

This week's parshah contains no examples of the database, method. This concludes this weeks edition. Visit the RashiYomi website at http://www.Rashiyomi.com for further details and examples.