Rabbi Ishmael Example Method:#35 of 36 ########################################################### # 10 YEAR Ayelet DAILY-RASHI-YOMI CYCLE # # Sep 16, 2000 # # Rashis 272-322 Of 7800 (4.1%) # # # # Reprinted with permission from Rashi-is-Simple, # # (c) 1999-Present, Dr. Hendel # # http://www.RashiYomi.Com/ # # # #Permission to reprint with this header but not for profit# # # # WARNING: READ with COURIER 10 (Fixed width) FONTS # ########################################################### BACKGROUND EXAMPLE ------------------ Dt25-04a Dont muzzle an OX while threshing: RASHI: Dont muzzle ANY ANIMAL Lv01-02c Offer ANIMALS--Offer OX and SHEEP animals RASHI: You can **ONLY** offer OX & SHEEP animals Dt18-03b These are the laws for those who offer sacrifices Whether from Oxen or Sheep RASHI: So these laws only apply to OXEN and SHEEP not to beasts and birds Why the difference? Why in one verse do we generalize OXEN to any animal, while in the other verse we restrict the law to ONLY oxen OVERVIEW -------- This module (which we have called CLIMAX) deals with the rules governing the interpretation of Biblical examples. If the Torah for example said "Eat apple pies" how should this be interpretd? --Should we say "Eat apple pies" means **ONLY** eat apple pies --Should we say "Eat apple pies" means eat ANYTHING TASTY --Should we say "Eat apple pies" means eat FRUIT pies In other words, how do we interpret the Biblical EXAMPLE apple pie. Here are the rules governing interpretation of Biblical EXAMPLES---the EXAMPLES summarizing the past month will follow. --GRAND SUMMARY-- --METHOD 3b-- --RASHI REINTERPRETS VERSES FROM CONTEXT-- --HERE IS A DESCRIPTION FROM THE SUCCINCT SUMMARY-- METHOD 3b: ---------- Dt20-03 in a war do not be SOFT-HEARTED do not be AFRAID do not be ANXIOUS do not be STUNNEd RASHI: The verse outlines the 4 components of fear of enemy Do not be afraid of enemy TRANSPORTATION(horses) Do not be afraid of enemy RESOURCES (shields) Do not be afraid of enemy COMMUNICATION(horns) Do not be afraid of enemy MORAL (battle crys) Notice how Rashi interprets eg SOFT-HEARTED as referring to fear of HORSES and enemy TRANSPORTATION. But the phrase SOFT HEARTED doesn't only refer to HORSES & TRANSPORTATION In method 2b we infer from the UNIFYING CONTEXT. It is the CONTEXT, not grammar or dictionary, that justifys the reinterpretation of words. Very often Rashi appears 'forced' or 'not clear'. To help clarify Rashi we should at least remember that he is using the principle of CONTEXT. --WE NOW CONTINUE WITH THE EXAMPLES-- The best way to explain what the principle of CONTEXT does is to actually read the examples. ---------------------------------------------------- In the following 3 sets of verses, Rashi interpreted the verses as describing all cases according to some set of PARAMETERS or ISSUES or QUESTIONS ---------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (50) Lv18-07a The nakedness of your father dont uncover (51) Lv18-07b She is your mother (52) Lv18-08a The nakedness of your fathers wife dont uncover These 3 phrases correspond to 3 types of sins with your fathers wife. The 3 sins could involve both INCEST and ADULTERY or just INCEST or NEITHER of them (and still be prohibited.) The above 3 phrases correspond to Lv18-07a INCEST&ADULTERY(Fathers wife during lifetime) Lv18-07b INCEST (mother after fathers death) Lv18-08a (Fathers 2nd wife after his death) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (53) Dt13-09a (54) Dt13-09b (55) Dt13-09c (56) Dt13-09d (57) Dt13-09e BACKGROUND: The Bible is speaking about someone who tries to seduce you to worship idols. The Bible asks for no mercy on these people whether BEFORE, DURING or AFTER both the ACT and TRIAL. ---Don't ACQUIESCE (BEFORE the ACT--dont' DEBATE him) ---Don't LISTEN (DURING the ACT--WARN him it is wrong) ---Don't PITY him (AFTER the ACT---bring him to COURT) ---Don't CARE (DURING TRIAL-argue AGAINST him)*2 ---Don't CONCEAL*1 (AFTER TRIAL-APPEAL mistrials)*2 NOTES ----- *1 Clearly these 5 words have nothing to do with the classification scheme. Thus it is the rule of CONTEXT that dictates meaning not the grammar *2 In ordinary cases you canNOT appeal a mistrial of acquital Similarly there are restrictions on who can offer arguments against the accused But in this case these laws of 'mercy' are suspended. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (58) Ex22-09a (59) Ex22-12c (60) Ex22-13a What types of deposits are there?*1 The Bible interprets these 3 paragraphs using 2 parameters or questions: QUESTION 1: Was it done for HIRE or for FREE QUESTION 2: Did YOU ask HIM or did HE ask YOU Ex22-09a---You can WATCH someone elses property for FREE Ex22-12c---You can WATCH someone elses property for HIRE ---You can LOAN someone elses property for HIRE Ex22-13a---You can LOAN someone elses property for FREE NOTES ----- *1 The Torah *does* identify the FREE LOANER. Ex22-13a says "When you loan from a friend" But the Torah *does not* identify the paragraph with the WATCHER FOR HIRE. It no where says this paragraph is about the watcher for hire. Rather this is an inference based on CONTEXT and the different laws. Thus the intepretation of the paragraph is derived from the principle of CONTEXT and not from the actual words. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------- In the following verses the Bible uses a DETAIL-GENERAL style. All we know is that the DETAILS are part of a GENERAL idea. Rashi does NOT reinterpret the details but just points out that the details are GENERALIZED to all ------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (61) Dt27-26a The Torah curses those who don't fulfill the Torah using a DETAIL-GENERAL form. --------------------------------- The following verses are DETAILS --------------------------------- Dt27-15 Cursed be the person who worships IDOLS Dt27-16 Cursed be who despiseth his PARENTS Dt27-17 Cursed be who stealeth his neighbors BOUNDARY Dt27-18 Cursed be who stumbles a BLIND person... (DETAIL) .... --------------------------------- The following verses are GENERAL --------------------------------- Dt27-26 Cursed be who doesn't fulfill this Torah (GENERAL) RASHI: This last verse is GENERAL and includes the whole Torah (So the other curses are components that include all aspects of Torah--such as IDOLATRY, RESPECTING PARENTS..) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (62) Dt33-29a Moses gave blessings using a GENERAL-DETAIL-GENERAL form. --------------------------------- The following verses are GENERAL --------------------------------- Dt33-01 This is the blessing that Moses gave ALL JEWS(GENERAL) --------------------------------- The following verses are DETAILS --------------------------------- Dt33-06 To May REUBEN Live----------------------------DETAILS Dt33-07 May JUDAH be part of his nation Dt33-08 May LEVI teach torah Dt33-12 May BINYAMIN be the BELOVED of God Dt33-13 May JOSEPH have a blessed land .... --------------------------------- The following verses are GENERAL --------------------------------- Dt33-29 Happy are you ALL JEWS GENERAL RASHI: (This chapter has a GENERAL-DETAIL-GENERAL form.) After blessing each tribe in detail Moses said "Why should I give a specific Blessing to each of you... I instead mingle blessings to ALL of you" (Thus Rashi used the GENERAL-DETAIL-GENERAL form.) Apparently the Blessings to each tribe list components of blessings such PHYSICAL (Asher), Good neighborhood (Joseph), Intellectual (Levi) etc. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------- In the remaining examples Rashi interprets the 3 or 4 examples as indicating COMPONENTS of some attribute. Very often Rashi will take synonyms and reinterpret them to correspond to these components. These reinterpretations come from the principle of CONTEXT not from the words. Furthermore the interpretation is not forced. These types of verses lend themselves best to multiple legitimate interpretations from several commentaries. ----------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (63) Dt01-22a The Bible describes 4 types of LEADERSHIP --Leaders --Heads --Elders --Judges ----------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------ (64) Nu17-23a (65) Nu17-23b (66) Nu17-23c The Bible gives 3 stages in development of fruit --BUD --FRUIT --RIPEN*1 NOTES ----- *1 As the Sifsay Chachamim points out several of the words in this verse have multiple meanings. But Rashi uses the principles of CONTEXT to interpret the various words Thus the final determination of the word comes from the principle of CONTEXT. ------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------- (67) Nu18-19b (68) Nu18-19c (69) Nu18-19d "A WORLDLY SALTED TREATY" The Bible lists 3 stages in keeping a treaty --Intent of both sides to keep-------------------------TREATY --Intent to keep even if new circumstances arise-------SALTED*1 --Intent to help outsiders(besides the treaty parties)-WORLDLY*2 NOTES ----- *1 SALT is used to denote BOTH destruction and giving TASTE To resolve this apparent contradiciton we see that SALT is a PRESERVATIVE--it preserves destruction (by preventing growth) and preserves taste Hence it is symbolic of PRESERVING the treaty (EVEN If new circumstances arise) *2 eg The Hebrew word LOLAM means both WORLDLY and FOREVER Rashi here selects meanings according to the principles of CONTEXT. It is this principle which determines which meaning will be used. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (70) Dt20-03c (71) Dt20-03d (72) Dt20-03e (73) Dt20-03f (74) Dt20-03g BACKGROUND: Dt20-03 speaks about What you should you not be afraid of in a war Dt20-03 One should not be afraid of enemy TRANSPORT ability One should not be afraid of enemy WEAPONS One should not be afraid of enemy COMMUNICATIONS One should not be afraid of enemy TROOP MORALE*1 NOTES ----- *1 The Rashis on Dt20-03 list 4 components to a war Dt20-03c The 4 words in the verse correspond to 4 fears Dt20-03d "Dont be soft hearted" RASHI: From HORSE TRAMPLING Dt20-03e "Dont be afraid" RASHI: From sheild clapping Dt20-03f "Dont be hurried(?anxious)" RASHI: From horn blasts Dt20-03g "Dont be shattered" RASHI: From Troop cries How does Rashi eg connect the word SOFT HEARTED with horse trampling? The answer is he doesn't (There in fact is no connection)*2 Rather Rashi connects the 4 terms in Dt20-03 with the 4 terms in Dt20-01 as shown in the following table. Because of this we are prone to suggest that Rashi simply used the verse as a vehicle for enumerating the 4 major fears in war. In other words it is CONTEXT not grammar and the dictionary that determines meaning. {LIST1} {The left column contains the 4 words of fear in Dt20-03. The next column contains the Rashis on these words followed by the associated military concept. As can be seen eg HORSES in Rashi (column 2 row 1) does NOT correspond to SOFT HEARTED in the verse (col 1) But HORSES in Rashi **does** correspond to HORSES in Dt20-01} Words in Rashi on Military Words in Dt20-03 Dt20-03 Concept Dt20-01 ------- -------- -------- --------- soft hearted From Horses Transportation Horses Fear From Shields Weapons Chariots Hurried From horns Communications Nation Shattered Troop crys Troop morale More than you *2 RASHI IS NOT BEING PICKY ON WORDS ------------------------------ Our Goal here is to show that Rashi did NOT derive the meanings of the terms from these terms but rather from the context. In this footnote we show that there is no correspondence between the terms in the verse and the terms in Rashi by themselves without context EXAMPLES (Of how Rashi was not being picky on words) ---------------------------------------------------- 2a)SOFT HEARTED denotes any lack of steadfastness or inability to stand and stick to something(eg 2Ch13-07 "Rechavan was young and soft hearted (and couldn't stand up to Yaravam)" So there is no correspondence between SOFT HEARTED and CRY OF HORSES 2b)The Hebrew word CHAFAZ means "HURRIED" as in Ex12-11 "Eat the passover HURRIEDLY" or 2S4-4 "They hurried to leave and ..he fell, laming him" Why then should HORN BLASTS be associated with a feeling of HURRIEDNESS (Anxiety) 2c)The Hebrew word ARATZ seems to mean SHATTERED (physically or emotionally) as in Isa10-33 ("Twigging a tree with a TREE SHATTERER"). Why then should TROOP CRIES be associated with SHATTERED. 2d) There is no CLIMACTIC DEVELOPMENT in this verse eg. Dt01-29 says "Dont be SHATTERED or AFRAID" vs Dt31-06 says "Dont be AFRAID or SHATTERED" So neither of these words (SHATTERED vs AFRAID) is worse than the other. (This corresponds to the principle that MORE important items are ALWAYS listed first while EQUAL items are sometimes listed in either order (see http://www.rashiYomi.com/nu27-01b.htm) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (75) Dt11-25a Using Dt07-22 Rashi lists 4 stages in destroying a nation(in war) ----Destroy the COUNTRY ----Destroy the LEADERS who might be left over & rebuilt ----Eradicate their GOOD NAME (It might inspire rebuilding) ----Don't allow any ESCAPEES (who might rebuild out of revenge) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (76) Ex18-21b (77) Ex18-21c (78) Ex18-21d How do you become a Good Businessman*3 --------------------------------------------- Here are the details. Good business requires --------------------------------------------- ---Business Skills *1 ---Honesty ---Creditors*2 ---They Waive won lawsuits in minor matters NOTES ----- *1 The Hebrew word ChaYiL means SKILLEd not strong. This has been defended on Gn47-06 (eg Proverbs 31:10 means "who will find a SKILLED wife" not 'who will find a POWERFUL or STRONG wife') *2 "People of TRUTH"=People who advance credits in the Business world *3 The actual context is to get good Judges. Jethro suggests that the best judges come from good businessmen. Note Rambam Chapter 2 of Sanhedrin gives a different bent on this verse. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (79) Dt32-02a (80) Dt32-02c The Bible lists components of RAIN The Bible/Rashi compares TEACHING to RAIN ----RAIN------Teaching ----DEW ------Short pithy summaries ----MIST------Light interplay between students reviewing dialogue ----DOWNPOURS-Rich applications ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (81) Dt07-05a (82) Dt07-05b (83) Dt07-05c (84) Dt07-05d (85) Dt12-03a (86) Dt12-03b (87) Dt12-03c These Biblical verses lists 4 components of idolatrous religions ---ALTARS (For sacrifices) ---MONUMENTS(For social gatherings of adherents) ---Idol TREES(For beauty & physical appeal) ---Actual IDOLS (Symbolizing their gods) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (88) Ex23-01a (89) Ex23-01b (90) Ex23-02a (91) Ex23-02b (92) Ex23-02d (93) Ex23-02e (94) Ex23-02f BACKGROUND: The Bible is discussing components of a good Judicial system. --------------------------------- The Bible lists 5 components --------------------------------- --Listen to both LITIGANTS*1 --Have good(not false) WITNESSES --Have good JUDICIAL PROCESS*2 --each Judge JUDGES INDEPENDENTLY*3 --avoid SOCIETY CONSIDERATIONS*4 NOTES ----- *1 Most of these correspondences are explicit. However for the first correspondence the Bible says 'Don't bear a worthless listening' which is INTERPRETED to mean 'Dont hear 1 side without the other'. As we have continuously emphasized, the guiding principle of interpretation in these verses is the principle of CONTEXT not the grammar or words. This is a legitimate literary approach. *2 Convictions required a majority of 2 in capital cases Acquitals only required a majority of 1 *3 Younger judges should not 'vote along party lines' but rather should defend the case as they see it *4 eg Do not say "The litigant is poor..if we take money from him we will have to give him charity Anyway...so let me acquit him)" ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- (95) Gn36-39a BACKGROUND: The Bible is simply listing names. However there was a strong movement(because of the multiple names each person had) to interpret these names as describing world situations. With names like GOLD & SPLENDOR Rashi felt it legitimate to interpret these as descriptions of the society which apparently was RICH and SPLENDID. Rashi shows the components of a RICH SOCIETY The actual verse reads (translating the names) "and his name was LUXURY from the city DESIRE whose wife was HOW-GOOD-GOD-IS daughter of GOLD." Thus The LUXURIOUS SOCIETY MUST HAVE ---LUXURY (not just bare necessities) ---DESIRE (From the root PAH) ---SATISFACTION (MHAYTAVAYL=How (MH) Good (TV) is God(AYL)) ---GOLD (MONEY) ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- BACKGROUND: The Bible discusses the punishment for murder. The Bible lists several types of murder (eg in front of witnesses, by accident, suicide, with animals etc). Here are the verses and here is how Rashi and Rambam interpret them (96)Gn09-05b I'll seek the blood of your souls SUICIDE (97)Gn09-05c I'll seek from all animals MURDER BY ANIMAL*1 (98)Gn09-05d I'll seek from men MURDER-NO WITNESS (99)Gn09-05e from your brothers*2 ACCIDENTAL MURDER (100)Gn09-06a Murder will be punished by courtsMURDER & WITNESSES NOTES: ----- *1 Rashi gives a reason (why the law has to emphasize murder by animals is a punishable crime). 'Since the generation of the flood behaved like animals I might think that only deterministic murder is prohibited but exposing people, who behave like animals, to animals is not full fledged murder' Therefore the verse explicitly prohibits it *2 On these two phrases Rambam says 'I will seek from men from your brothers' MURDER BY AGENT Rambam (Murder Chapter 2) agrees with Rashi on 3 out of 5 cases. The Rambam is much more logical than Rashi here. The Rambam only lists 3 (not 5) cases corresponding to the 3 repeating "I WILL SEEK" in the verse. Furthermore the Rambam deals with different METHODS of murder but not with problems of INTENT and EVIDENCE (which is what Rashi deals with) ----------------------------------------------------------------- #*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#