The 10 RashiYomi Rules
Their presence in Rashis on Parshath EMOR
Volume 18, Number 8
This weeks Weekly Rashi with Hebrew/English source tables
will be accessible, on Sunday, at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule18087.htm
(c) RashiYomi Incorporated, Dr. Hendel, President, May `0 2012
Visit the Rashi website http://www.Rashiyomi.com

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. Although I frequently use my own English translations of biblical verses and Rashi comments, the Hebrew and English translations in the source tables are derived from online parshah files at chabad.org who in turn acknowledges the Judaica Press Complete Tanach, copyright by Judaica Press.

FULL HOUSE THIS WEEK ALL RASHI RULES ILLUSTRATED

    1. RASHI METHOD: REFERENCES
    BRIEF EXPLANATION: Commentary on a verse is provided thru a cross-reference to another verse. The cross references can either provide
    • (1a) further details,
    • (1b) confirm citations, or
    • (1c) clarify word meaning.
    This examples applies to Rashis Lv23-39b
    URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
    Brief Summary: Passover is in SPRING; Succoth is in HARVEST season. So leap years are made if necessary

Verse Lv23-39b
Hebrew Verse אַךְ בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר יוֹם לַחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי בְּאָסְפְּכֶם אֶת תְּבוּאַת הָאָרֶץ תָּחֹגּוּ אֶת חַג יְ־הֹוָ־ה שִׁבְעַת יָמִים בַּיּוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן שַׁבָּתוֹן וּבַיּוֹם הַשְּׁמִינִי שַׁבָּתוֹן:
English Verse But on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you gather in the produce of the land, you shall celebrate the festival of the Lord for a seven day period; the first day shall be a rest day, and the eighth day shall be a rest day.
Rashi Header Hebrew באספכם את תבואת הארץ
Rashi Text Hebrew שיהא חדש שביעי זה בא בזמן אסיפה, מכאן שנצטוו לעבר את השנים, שאם אין העבור, פעמים שהוא בא באמצע הקיץ או החורף:
Rashi Header Enlish when you gather in the produce of the land
Rashi Text English [This teaches us] that this seventh month must occur at the time of ingathering, [namely, in the fall]. From here, [we learn] that they were commanded to proclaim leap years [i.e., to add an extra, thirteenth month to the lunar year], for if there were no leap years, [the lunar years would eventually no longer coincide with the solar years, and] sometimes [the seventh month] would occur in midsummer or midwinter [not in the time of ingathering]. - [Torath Kohanim 23:192]

Verse Lv23-39b discussing when to celebrate the holiday of Succoth states Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep a feast to the Lord seven days; on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. Rashi clarifies the underlined words when you have gathered in the fruit of the land by referencing verses Dt16-01 which states Watch for the month of Spring, and keep the Passover to the Lord your God; for in the month of Spring the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night. Hence the Rashi comment: The Bible ties Passover to Spring and Succoth to harvest. From this requirement we infer that calendar months must be watched (adding if necessary extra months) so that Passover always falls out in Spring and Succoth at Harvest time.

Text of Target verse Lv23-39b Text of Reference Verse Dt16-01
Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep a feast to the Lord seven days; on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. Dt11-10:17 which states Watch for the month of Spring, and keep the Passover to the Lord your God; for in the month of Spring the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night.
Rashi comments: The Bible ties Passover to Spring and Succoth to harvest. From this requirement we infer that calendar months must be watched (adding if necessary extra months and making a leap year) so that Passover always falls out in Spring and Succoth at Harvest time.

Advanced Rashi: Rashi literally states From here - Verse Lv23-39b, discussing Succoth and harvest - we learn that calendar months must be adjusted so that Succoth coincides with harvest. Ah! But that is not true! It is not true that we learn this law (adjusting the calendar) from Succoth. In fact we learn the law requirement of adjusting the calendar from the explicit Biblical verse at Dt16-01 Watch [for] the Spring time and make a Passover. It appears to me that this Rashi text is proof that when Rashi say we learn from here this phrase should not be taken literally. It rather should be interpreted as This is one of the possibly many places where we learn from and it is not even the main place. Throughout this email list I have encouraged such reinterpretations of exclusive statements by Rashi. The serious student of Rashi should carefully review the Rashi text and the arguments presented above to convince him/her self of this. For this reason we always feel free to supplement a Rashi statement we learn from here with other derivations. The more skeptical reader is encouraged to read the Rashi on Dt16-01 which proves that Rashi did not learn the calendar law requirement from here. For another application of this fundamental principle in reading Rashi please see below rule #4, alignment.

      2. RASHI METHOD: WORD MEANING
      BRIEF EXPLANATION: The meaning of words can be explained either by
      • (2a) translating an idiom, a group of words whose collective meaning transcends the meaning of its individual component words,
      • (2b) explaining the nuances and commonality of synonyms-homographs,
      • (2c) describing the usages of connective words like also,because,if-then, when,
      • (2d) indicating how grammatical conjugation can change word meaning
      • (2e) changing word meaning using the figures of speech common to all languages such as irony and oxymorons.
      This examples applies to Rashis Lv24-02c
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
      Brief Summary: English uses two words: CONTINUOUS and CONTINUALLY: Hebrew uses one word-TAUV-MEM-YUD-DALET to refer to either.

Verse Lv24-02c
Hebrew Verse צַו אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ אֵלֶיךָ שֶׁמֶן זַיִת זָךְ כָּתִית לַמָּאוֹר לְהַעֲלֹת נֵר תָּמִיד:
English Verse Command the children of Israel, and they shall take to you pure olive oil, crushed for lighting, to kindle the lamps continually.
Rashi Header Hebrew תמיד
Rashi Text Hebrew מלילה ללילה, כמו עולת תמיד שאינה אלא מיום ליום:
Rashi Header Enlish continually
Rashi Text English Heb. תָּמִיד. From [one] night to the next [i.e., even though it was to burn only until the morning-see verse 3-it was continual (תָּמִיד) in that it was to be lit each night]. This is similar to the continual burnt offering (עוֹלַת תָּמִיד) which was only from day to day, [as in Num. 28:18].

When Rashi uses the synonym method he does not explain the meaning of a word but rather the distinction or commonality between several similar words both of whose meanings we already know.

    In today's example we switch things. Instead of presenting two Hebrew words with common meaning we present two English words with common meaning which however are both translated to the same word in Hebrew.
    • Continual, means e.g. every day, while
    • continuous, means every second, all the time.
    Both continual and continuous are translated in Hebrew as Tauv-Mem-Yud-Daleth, TaMeeD. Hence when verse Lv24-02c states Command the people of Israel, that they bring to you pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually, Rashi correctly interprets the underlined word which in Hebrew is Tauv-Mem-Yud-Daleth as meaning continually, - that is, every day - rather than as meaning continuously, which would require that the Temple Candellabrah burn 24 hours a day.

      3. RASHI METHOD: GRAMMAR
      BRIEF EXPLANATION: Rashi explains verses using grammar principles, that is, rules which relate reproducable word form to word meaning. Grammatical rules neatly fall into 3 categories
      • (a) the rules governing conjugation of individual words,Biblical roots,
      • (b) the rules governing collections of words,clauses, sentences
      • (c) miscellaneous grammatical, or form-meaning, rules.
      This examples applies to Rashis Lv21-12a
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
      Brief Summary: (1) Don't LEAVE the temple for parent's funeral, rather (2) stay REMAIN in Temple [and continue to offer sacs].

Verse Lv21-12a
Hebrew Verse וּמִן הַמִּקְדָּשׁ לֹא יֵצֵא וְלֹא יְחַלֵּל אֵת מִקְדַּשׁ אֱלֹהָיו כִּי נֵזֶר שֶׁמֶן מִשְׁחַת אֱלֹהָיו עָלָיו אֲנִי יְ־הֹוָ־ה:
English Verse He shall not leave the Sanctuary, and he will not desecrate the holy things of his God, for the crown of his God's anointing oil is upon him. I am the Lord.
Rashi Header Hebrew ומן המקדש לא יצא
Rashi Text Hebrew אינו הולך אחר המטה. ועוד מכאן למדו רבותינו שכהן גדול מקריב אונן, וכן משמעו, אף אם מתו אביו ואמו אינו צריך לצאת מן המקדש אלא עובד עבודה:
Rashi Header Enlish He shall not leave the Sanctuary
Rashi Text English He shall not [leave the precincts of the Sanctuary to] follow the funeral procession [even of a relative]. — [Sanh. 18a] Furthermore, from here, our Rabbis learned that a Kohen Gadol may offer up sacrifices [even] if he is an onen [i.e., if his close relative died on that day]. [The following, therefore], is its meaning [i.e., the meaning of the verse]: Even if his father or mother died, [the Kohen Gadol] need not leave the Sanctuary, but he may perform the service. — [Sanh.. 84a]

    An important task for any writer is sentence unification within each paragraph and paragraph unification within each chapter. Rashi used three main methods of unification:
    • unification by contrast
    • unification by cause-effect-consequence
    • unification by commonality.
    The unification principle is not cosmetic. It is powerful leading to novelty in meaning and interpretation. Today's example shows this.

    Verse Lv21-10:12a discussing the prohibition of the High Priest from becoming ritually impure at funerals of his parents uses a contrastive sentence unification method as shown below:
    • And he who is the high priest among his brothers, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured,...shall not uncover his head, ... Neither shall he go to any dead body, ... for his father, or ... mother;
    • [but rather]Neither shall he go out of the sanctuary,... for the crown of the anointing oil of his God is upon him; I am the Lord.
    We have indicated Rashi's contrastive intepretation by interpolating the bracketed words [but rather]. Rashi interprets The High priest shall not become ritually impure by leaving the temple to attend funerals of parents but rather he shall remain in the Temple and continue to offer sacrifices. Rashi continues Hence we infer that a High Priest should offer sacrifices even if his parents have died and it is pre-burial (Note that other Israelites are exempt from positive commandments during this period.)

The advanced student may wish to supplement his reading of this Rashi with a sister Rashi presented below on Rule #6, style.
    4. RASHI METHOD: ALIGNMENT
    BRIEF EXPLANATION: Aligning two almost identically worded verselets can suggest
    • (4a) 2 cases of the same incident or law
    • (4b) emphasis on the nuances of a case
    • (4c) use of broad vs literal usage of words
    This examples applies to Rashis Lv21-01e
    URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
    Brief Summary: Don't DEFILE/COME to dead souls [IN THE NATION] But if he accidentally BUMPED into dead ON ROAD he buries

Verse Lv21-01e
Hebrew Verse וַיֹּאמֶר יְ־הֹוָ־ה אֶל מֹשֶׁה אֱמֹר אֶל הַכֹּהֲנִים בְּנֵי אַהֲרֹן וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם לְנֶפֶשׁ לֹא יִטַּמָּא בְּעַמָּיו:
English Verse And the Lord said to Moses: Speak to the kohanim, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: Let none [of you] defile himself for a dead person among his people
Rashi Header Hebrew לא יטמא בעמיו
Rashi Text Hebrew בעוד שהמת בתוך עמיו, יצא מת מצוה:
Rashi Header Enlish Let none [of you] defile himself [for a dead person] among his people
Rashi Text English While the dead person is among his people [and therefore has people, non- kohanim, to bury him]. This comes to exclude [from the prohibition a kohen who comes across] a מֵתמִצְוָה, [a dead person for whom no one is in calling distance to attend to his burial and thus it is incumbent for people to attend to him]. — [Torath Kohanim 21:4]

The table below presents an aligned extract of verses in Lv21-01e,Lv21-11. Both verses discuss the prohibition of priests becoming ritually impure by contact with a dead person The alignment justifies the Rashi assertions that The priest should not come to a dead body in ordinary funerals in the country. But if he bumped into the dead body (strewn on say a road) the priest should defile himself and bury the person.

Verse Text of Verse Rashi comment
Lv21-01e
  1. to a soul
  2. in the country
  3. the priest should
  4. not become defiled
  • He shouldn't come to ordinary funerals in the country
  • But if he bumps unexpectedly to a dead person on the road then he should bury it.
Lv21-11
  1. to any dead soul
  2. -----
  3. the High priest should
  4. not come
  • He shouldn't come to ordinary funerals in the country
  • But if he bumps unexpectedly to a dead person on the road then he should bury it.

Advanced Rashi: In our analysis we have emphasized the two contrastive aligned pairs come-defile and in the country indicated in bullets (2) and (4) in the above table. The combined nuances of these two bullets - come vs. bump into- and - in the country vs on the road - make it plausible that the Bible makes an exception if either the priest or High Priest bumped unexpectedly into a dead body on the road with no one attending to the person to bury it. In such a case the Priest must defile himself and bury the body. In presenting this explanation we have deviated from Rashi's literal statement that we infer this law from the extra phrase in the country (bullet #(2)). We instead offer a combined approach come vs bumped into unexpectedly (bullet #(4)) and in the country vs on the road (bullet #(2)). The combined approach makes Rashi more plausible. Such a reading of Rashi where we interpret Rashi's statement we learn from here to mean We learn from a variety of places inclding here is consistent with the approach to Rashi laid down in rule #1, references above.

There are some further subtleties in this Rashi which we have not gone into. For example the Bible splits the aligned nuances between the chapters dealing with Priest and High Priest. The High Priest should not come to a dead body but he may defile himself to a dead body he bumps into unexpectedly. Similarly the ordinary priest should not let himself be defiled for funerals in the country; but for a dead body on the road he may or even should let himself be defiled. It is my opinion that Rashi simply noted one difference in the country. He expected each student to supplement this one observation with other differences.

      5. RASHI METHOD: CONTRADICTION
      BRIEF EXPLANATION:Rashi resolves contradictory verses using 3 methods.
      • (5a) Resolution using two aspects of the same event
      • (5b) Resolution using two stages of the same process
      • (5c) Resolution using broad-literal interpretation.
      This example applies to Rashis Lv19-20e
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule1216.htm
      Brief Summary: (1)There is a DEATH penalty for KILLING a person (2) There is a MONETARY penalty for WOUNDING an animal. (3) There is a DEATH penalty for WOUNDING a person (parents).

Verse Lv19-20e
Hebrew Verse ְאִישׁ כִּי יִשְׁכַּב אֶת אִשָּׁה שִׁכְבַת זֶרַע וְהִוא שִׁפְחָה נֶחֱרֶפֶת לְאִישׁ וְהָפְדֵּה לֹא נִפְדָּתָה אוֹ חֻפְשָׁה לֹא נִתַּן לָהּ בִּקֹּרֶת תִּהְיֶה לֹא יוּמְתוּ כִּי לֹא חֻפָּשָׁה:
English Verse If a man lies carnally with a woman, and she is a handmaid designated for a man, and she had not been [fully] redeemed nor had her document of emancipation been granted her, there shall be an investigation; they shall not be put to death, because she had not been [completely] freed.
Rashi Header Hebrew כי לא חפשה
Rashi Text Hebrew לפיכך אין חייב עליה מיתה, שאין קידושיה קידושין, הא אם חופשה, קידושיה קידושין וחייב מיתה:
Rashi Header Enlish because she had not been [completely] freed
Rashi Text English And therefore, the man is not liable to the death penalty because of [his intimacy with] her, since her marriage is not binding. It follows then, that if she had been freed, her marriage would be binding, and he would be liable to the death penalty. — [Torath Kohanim 19:55; Gittin 43b]

The table below presents presents two contradictory verses. Both verses talk about penalties for damages. The underlined words highlight the contradiction. One verse says a death penalty applies when you smite the entire soul of a person while the other verse says a death penalty applies when you smite a person. Which is it? Is there a death penalty simply for wounding / smiting or does the death penalty require murder / smiting the whole soul? Rashi simply resolves this using the 2 Aspects method: (1) There is a death penalty for smiting people only if death occurs. (2) There is a death penalty for smiting parents even if wounding, not death, occurs.

Summary Verse / Source Text of verse / Source
There is a death penalty for killing people Lv24-17 And he who the smites the entire soul of a human shall surely be put to death.
There is a death penalty for smiting parents Lv24-21 And he who kills a beast, he shall restore it; and he who smites a man, shall be put to death
Resolution: 2 Aspects: (1) There is a death penalty for smiting people only if death occurs. (2) There is a death penalty for smiting parents even if wounding, not death, occurs.

    Advanced Rashi: But how did Rashi know to apply the 2nd verse to parents? The contradiction method frequently (not always) finds supportive resolution from other verses. In this case Ex21-14:17 explicitly states
    • But if a man comes wilfully upon his neighbor, to slay him treacherously; you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.
    • And he who strikes his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.
    • And he who steals a man, and sells him, or if he is found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
    • And he who curses his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
    Here the context of four items deserving a death penalty
    • Murder
    • Smiting parents
    • Kidnapping
    • Cursing parents
    lends credibility to the suggestion that just striking parents requires a death penalty.

This Rashi is a good example of the contradiction method since the contradiction is inferred from the alignment of the entire soul of a person vs. person. Furthermore the resolution is supported by an explicit verse stating that smiting parents in and of itself is punished by a death penalty.

      6. RASHI METHOD: STYLE
      Rashi examines how rules of style influences inferences between general and detail statements in paragraphs.
      • Example: Every solo example stated by the Bible must be broadly generalized;
      • Theme-Detail: A general principle followed by an example is interpreted restrictively---the general theme statement only applies in the case of the example;
      • Theme-Detail-Theme: A Theme-Detail-Theme unit is interpreted as a paragraph. Consequently the details of the paragraph are generalized so that they are seen as illustrative of the theme.
      This examples applies to Rashis Lv14-09a
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule1216.htm
      Brief Summary: GENERAL: They are holy DETAIL: They shall not marry prostititues...divorcees GENERAL: Make them holy RASHI: So if they did marry incorrectly make them get divorced.

Verse Lv14-09a
Hebrew Verse וְהָיָה בַיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי יְגַלַּח אֶת כָּל שְׂעָרוֹ אֶת רֹאשׁוֹ וְאֶת זְקָנוֹ וְאֵת גַּבֹּת עֵינָיו וְאֶת כָּל שְׂעָרוֹ יְגַלֵּחַ וְכִבֶּס אֶת בְּגָדָיו וְרָחַץ אֶת בְּשָׂרוֹ בַּמַּיִם וְטָהֵר:
English Verse And it shall be, on the seventh day, that he shall shave off all his hair: [that of] his head, his beard, his eyebrows; indeed, all his hair, he shall shave off. He shall then immerse his garments and immerse his flesh in water, thus becoming clean.
Rashi Header Hebrew את כל שערו וגו'
Rashi Text Hebrew כלל ופרט וכלל. להביא כל מקום כנוס שער ונראה:
Rashi Header Enlish all his hair…
Rashi Text English [This is] a general statement, followed by a specific statement [namely, “that of his head, his beard, his eyebrows,”] followed, in turn, by another general statement [namely, “all his hair,]” to include [the shaving of] every place where hair grows in a bunch and is visible, [bearing a similarity to the hair of the head, the beard, and the eyebrows]. — [Sotah 16a]

Certain Biblical paragraphs are stated in a Theme-Development-Theme form. In other words a broad general idea is stated first followed by the development of this broad general theme in specific details. The paragraph-like unit is then closed with a repetition of the broad theme. The Theme-Detail-Theme form creates a unified paragraph. The detailed section of this paragraph is therefore seen as an extension of the general theme sentences. Today's example illustrates this as shown immediately below.

    Verse Lv21-06:08 discussing the holiness of the Priests states
  • General: They shall be holy to their God, and not profane the name of their God; for the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and the bread of their God, they do offer; therefore they shall be holy.
  • Detail:
    • They shall not take a wife who is a harlot, or defiled
    • nor shall they take a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy to his God.
  • General:You shall sanctify him therefore; for he offers the bread of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the Lord, which sanctify you, am holy.

Rashi generalizes the detail clause they shouldn't marry a prostitute or divorcee as illustrative of the general clause, they shall be holy and states: Make them holy! If the priest violates the commandments and marries a divorcee then force him, against his will, to divorce her! We believe this comment evident and consistent with the Rabbi Ishmael style guidelines.

    Advanced Rashi: A typical Rashi-ist would approach these verses by emphasizing the 6-fold repetition of the holiness requirement:
    • They shall be holy
    • They shall not descecrate God's name
    • they will be holy
    • they are holy
    • Make them holy
    • They shall be holy to you
    A typical Rashi-ist would comment: The verse repeats the idea 6 times. Notice the emphasis in the repetitions. Not only should they be holy but also they shall not descecrate; not only should they become holy but also they are holy; not only should they be holy but make them holy. All these repeated phrases clearly require coercion into holiness if they do not comply!!

We totally agree with this analysis. But we point out that without the paragraph structure we would interpret make them holy to refer to symbolic gestures of giving Priests preference and treatment with honor. By embedding the detailed prohibition of forbidden marriages inside the general clauses of requiring them to be holy we infer that the general clauses apply to the detailed clauses and require them in all circumstances - hence the prohibition of marrying a divorcee applies even if it was inadvertently done - that is, a divorce is required.

      7. RASHI METHOD: FORMATTING
      BRIEF EXPLANATION:Inferences from Biblical formatting: #NAME?
      • Use of repetition to indicate formatting effects: bold,italics,...;
      • use of repeated keywords to indicate a bullet effect;
      • rules governing use and interpretation of climactic sequence;
      • rules governing paragraph development and discourse
      This example applies to Rashis Lv21-02a
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule1216.htm
      Brief Summary: A priest cannot ritually defile himself to dead people EXCEPT for his a) wife b) mother c) father d) son e) daughter f) virgin sister.

Verse Lv21-02a
Hebrew Verse כִּי אִם לִשְׁאֵרוֹ הַקָּרֹב אֵלָיו לְאִמּוֹ וּלְאָבִיו וְלִבְנוֹ וּלְבִתּוֹ וּלְאָחִיו:
English Verse except for his relative who is close to him, his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother,
Rashi Header Hebrew כי אם לשארו
Rashi Text Hebrew אין שארו אלא אשתו:
Rashi Header Enlish except for his relative
Rashi Text English [The expression שְׁאֵרוֹ] “his relative” refers only [here] to his wife. — [Torath Kohanim 21:5; Yev. . 22b]

We have explained in our article Biblical Formatting located on the world wide web at http://www.Rashiyomi.com/biblicalformatting.pdf, that the Biblical Author indicated bullets by using repeating keywords.

That is, if a modern author wanted to get a point across using bullets - a list of similar but contrastive items - then the Biblical Author would use repeating keywords. Today's verse illustrates this principle.

Bullets whether indicated through modern notation or through the Biblical method of repeating keywords always indicate contrastive emphasis - that is, each bullet is presumed to be a distinct item contrasted to the other items on the list. Very often the bullets are also used to indicate that the entire list is exhaustive of some spectrum.

    Verse(s) Lv21-01:03 discussing the prohibition of a Priest ritually defiling himself to the dead as well as the exceptions to this rule states And the Lord said to Moses, Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them,
    • There shall be none defiled for the dead among his people;
    • Except
      • for his relative, who is near to him,[ his wife]
      • for his mother, and
      • for his father, and
      • for his son, and
      • for his daughter, and
      • for his brother,
      • And for his sister a virgin, who is near to him, which has had no husband; for her may he be defiled.
    The repeated underlined phrase for creates a bullet effect. The bullet effect in turn creates an emphasis on the distinctness of all enumerated items. Rashi interprets the distinctness as follows The phrase his relavite who is near to him refers to his wife.

Advanced Rashi: We have embedded this Rashi comment in the above translation. It is important to emphasize that Rashi is not deriving this translation from the meaning of the Hebrew word which is translated as relative. Indeed there are many verses where this Hebrew word (Shin-Aleph-Resh, Sher) means any relative; for example Lv18-06, Lv25-49. Rather the driving force motivating Rashi to translate the word relative as meaning wife comes from the bulleted structure which requires that each bullet item be regarded as distinctive. Reviewing the list shows that wife is a logical complement to the other items and fits nicely at the beginning of the list.

What emerges from this analysis is that the formatting method is a separate and distinct exegetical tool, alongside with grammar, meaning and alignment, by which to understand textual material.

    8. RASHI METHOD: DATABASES
    BRIEF EXPLANATION:Rashi makes inferences from Database queries. The precise definition of database query has been identified in modern times with the 8 operations of Sequential Query Language (SQL).

    This example applies to Rashis Lv24-14c
    URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
    Brief Summary: LEANING symbolizes TRANSFERENCE of AUTHORITY. LEANING on an executed criminal symbolizes that he is responsible for this own death.

Verse Lv24-14c
Hebrew Verse הוֹצֵא אֶת הַמְקַלֵּל אֶל מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה וְסָמְכוּ כָל הַשֹּׁמְעִים אֶת יְדֵיהֶם עַל רֹאשׁוֹ וְרָגְמוּ אֹתוֹ כָּל הָעֵדָה:
English Verse Take the blasphemer outside the camp, and all who heard [his blasphemy] shall lean their hands on his head. And the entire community shall stone him.
Rashi Header Hebrew את ידיהם
Rashi Text Hebrew אומרים לו דמך בראשך ואין אנו נענשים במיתתך שאתה גרמת לך:
Rashi Header Enlish [shall lean] their hands [on his head]
Rashi Text English They say to him: “Your blood is on your own head! We are not to be punished for your death, for you brought this upon yourself!” - [Torath Kohanim 24:239]

    Today we ask the database query: When is leaning used in Biblical commandments / procedures? The query uncovers 3 examples of commandments with leaning. An examination of these 3 examples shows that leaning symbolically indicates transfer of responsibility.
  • Physically the leaner is now supported by the object he leans on.
  • This symbolically affirms that the leaner is now supported morally by the object he leans on - that is, there has been transfer of responsibility.

The table below presents the 3 commandments as well as their symbolic interpretation. We also include a non-commandment example of leaning. It follows that this Rashi combines the database and symbolism methods.

Commandment Verse Text Of Verse Symbolic meaning of leaning
Offerings Lv01-04 And he shall lean with his hands upon the head of the elevation-offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. The offerer transfers his obligations to the offered animal. Hence what is done to the offered animal (e.g. sprinkling the life-force blood towards the Godly altar fires) is what he himself should do.
Executions Lv24-14b Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lean their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him. The stoners transfer the responsibility of stoning to the executed: You are responsible for this stoning not us (Rashi).
Levite Induction Ceremony Nu08-09a And thou shalt present the Levites before the tent of meeting; and thou shalt assemble the whole congregation of the children of Israel. And thou shalt present the Levites before HaShem; and the children of Israel shall lean their hands upon the Levites. The Israelites transfer their responsibility of performing correct offering procedures to the Levites who now minister in the Temple as the representatives of the Israelite community.
Joshua's induction ceremony Nu27-18 And HaShem said unto Moses: 'Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is spirit, and lean thy hand upon him; Moses leans or finds support thru Joshua who will succeed Moses and perform his duties of leadership.

Sermonic points: The idea of symbolically affirming a serious moment such as transfer of responsibility occurs in many cultures with many diverse symbols. All cultures recognize the need to symbolically affirm serious moments and values. The symbolism here identifes support in the physical realm with moral support in the social realm. It is a symbol based on function.

    9. RASHI METHOD: NonVerse
    BRIEF EXPLANATION: The common denominator of the 3 submethods of the NonVerse method is that inferences are made from non textual material. The 3 submethods are as follows:
    • Spreadsheet: Rashi makes inferences of a numerical nature that can be summarized in a traditional spreadsheet
    • Geometric: Rashi clarifies a Biblical text using descriptions of geometric diagrams
    • Fill-ins: Rashi supplies either real-world background material or indicates real-world inferences from a verse. The emphasis here is on the real-world, non-textual nature of the material.
    This examples applies to Rashis Lv24-11e
    URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule1412.htm
    Brief Summary: The Bible lists the tribes of both sinners and meritorious people thereby IMPLYING that individual behavior casts light on the entire family and tribe.

Verse Lv24-11e
Hebrew Verse וַיִּקֹּב בֶּן הָאִשָּׁה הַיִּשְׂרְאֵלִית אֶת הַשֵּׁם וַיְקַלֵּל וַיָּבִיאוּ אֹתוֹ אֶל מֹשֶׁה וְשֵׁם אִמּוֹ שְׁלֹמִית בַּת דִּבְרִי לְמַטֵּה דָן:
English Verse And the son of the Israelite woman pronounced the [Divine] Name and cursed. So they brought him to Moses. His mother's name was Shelomith the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.
Rashi Header Hebrew למטה דן
Rashi Text Hebrew מגיד שהרשע גורם גנאי לו גנאי לאביו גנאי לשבטו, כיוצא בו (שמות לא ו) אהליאב בן אחיסמך למטה דן, שבח לו שבח לאביו שבח לשבטו:
Rashi Header Enlish of the tribe of Dan
Rashi Text English [This] tells us that a wicked person brings disgrace to himself, disgrace to his father, and disgrace to his [entire] tribe. Likewise, [the converse is true regarding a righteous man,] “Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan” (Exod. 35:34), [for Oholiab brought about] praise to himself, praise to his father, and praise to his [entire] tribe. — [Torath Kohanim 24:237]

Verse Lv24-11e presenting the blasphemer mentions the name of her mother and tribe. Similarly verse Ex31-06 mentioning the craftmanship of Bezalel mentions his father and tribe. Rashi comments From this we can infer that generally good and bad people bring honor and disgrace respectively on their family and tribe. Here Rashi infers real-world consequences from the verse and therefore we classified this Rashi as a non-verse method. We could have alternatively perceived this Rashi as generalizing two cases - one bad and one good. As such it would be classified under the rule 6, style the Rabbi Ishmael rules. In this email newsletter we have frequently emphasized that the generalization rule applies to non-legal domains. This verse would be one example of such an application.

      10. RASHI METHOD: SYMBOLISM
      BRIEF EXPLANATION: Rashi provides symbolic interpretations of words, verses, and chapters. Rashi can symbolically interpret either
      • (10a) entire Biblical chapters such as the gifts of the princes, Nu-07
      • (10b) individual items, verses and words
      The rules governing symbolism and symbolic interpretation are presented in detail on my website.

      This examples applies to Rashis Lv24-14c
      URL Reference: (c) http://www.Rashiyomi.com/w33n17.htm
      Brief Summary: LEANING symbolizes TRANSFERENCE of AUTHORITY. LEANING on an executed criminal symbolizes that he is responsible for this own death.

Verse Lv24-14c
Hebrew Verse הוֹצֵא אֶת הַמְקַלֵּל אֶל מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה וְסָמְכוּ כָל הַשֹּׁמְעִים אֶת יְדֵיהֶם עַל רֹאשׁוֹ וְרָגְמוּ אֹתוֹ כָּל הָעֵדָה:
English Verse Take the blasphemer outside the camp, and all who heard [his blasphemy] shall lean their hands on his head. And the entire community shall stone him.
Rashi Header Hebrew את ידיהם
Rashi Text Hebrew אומרים לו דמך בראשך ואין אנו נענשים במיתתך שאתה גרמת לך:
Rashi Header Enlish [shall lean] their hands [on his head]
Rashi Text English They say to him: “Your blood is on your own head! We are not to be punished for your death, for you brought this upon yourself!” - [Torath Kohanim 24:239]

    Today we ask the database query: When is leaning used in Biblical commandments / procedures? The query uncovers 3 examples of commandments with leaning. An examination of these 3 examples shows that leaning symbolically indicates transfer of responsibility.
  • Physically the leaner is now supported by the object he leans on.
  • This symbolically affirms that the leaner is now supported morally by the object he leans on - that is, there has been transfer of responsibility.

The table below presents the 3 commandments as well as their symbolic interpretation. We also include a non-commandment example of leaning. It follows that this Rashi combines the database and symbolism methods.

Commandment Verse Text Of Verse Symbolic meaning of leaning
Offerings Lv01-04 And he shall lean with his hands upon the head of the elevation-offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. The offerer transfers his obligations to the offered animal. Hence what is done to the offered animal (e.g. sprinkling the life-force blood towards the Godly altar fires) is what he himself should do.
Executions Lv24-14b Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lean their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him. The stoners transfer the responsibility of stoning to the executed: You are responsible for this stoning not us (Rashi).
Levite Induction Ceremony Nu08-09a And thou shalt present the Levites before the tent of meeting; and thou shalt assemble the whole congregation of the children of Israel. And thou shalt present the Levites before HaShem; and the children of Israel shall lean their hands upon the Levites. The Israelites transfer their responsibility of performing correct offering procedures to the Levites who now minister in the Temple as the representatives of the Israelite community.
Joshua's induction ceremony Nu27-18 And HaShem said unto Moses: 'Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is spirit, and lean thy hand upon him; Moses leans or finds support thru Joshua who will succeed Moses and perform his duties of leadership.

Sermonic points: The idea of symbolically affirming a serious moment such as transfer of responsibility occurs in many cultures with many diverse symbols. All cultures recognize the need to symbolically affirm serious moments and values. The symbolism here identifes support in the physical realm with moral support in the social realm. It is a symbol based on function.

Conclusion

This week's parshah contains examples of all Rashi method. Visit the RashiYomi website at http://www.Rashiyomi.com and http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rule.htm for further details and examples.