Search Results

The Holiday of Passover, when the Jewish People were emancipated from slavery in Egypt, is described in our liturgy as Zman Cheiruteinu, “the Time of our Freedom.” However, as we shall see in the coming lines, the word cheirut is not the only Hebrew word for “freedom”. When the Bible refers to freeing slaves it uses two other words for “freedom”: chofesh and dror. An additional, conceptually-related word is hefker (“ownerless”), which is also related to freedom. We will seek to understand the differences between these four words and what lies at the roots of these words. We begin with the words dror and chofesh. The word dror first appears in the Bible when discussing the freeing of slaves in the Juiblee Year (Lev. 25:10). Rashi, based on Rosh Hashana 9b, explains that the word dror is related to the word dar (“dwells”), and refers to one who dwells within his own domain, and does not fall under others’ control. Dror is also a type of bird whose very essence expresses this notion. Ibn Ezra explains that the Dror Bird happily sings when free to its own devices, but if captured and stuck in man’s domain, it refuses to eat until it dies. Sefer HaAruch also tells that the Dror Bird is suicidal when it loses its freedom. Radak in Sefer HaShorashim explains that a Dror Bird is called so because it builds nests inside people’s homes without fear of being captured, as if it was completely free from the possibility of capture (see also Beitzah 24a). In this way, dror denotes being “free as a bird.” When the Torah calls for “pure myrrh” to be used in the anointing oil (Exodus 30:23), the word dror is used for “pure”. Rabbi Yonah Ibn Janach and Nachmanides explain that this is because the Torah requires they use myrrh that is free from outside impurities and forgeries. Interestingly, the word dror can sometimes be abbreviated as dar,like in Esther 1:6 when it refers to Achashverosh granting merchants a special tax exemption (see Megillah 12a). The word chofesh also appears in the Bible in the context of freeing slaves (most notably in Ex. 21, Deut. 15, and Jer. 34), although it means “vacation” in Modern Hebrew. In terms of their mutual association with the concept of “freedom”, Rabbi Shlomo Aharon Wertheimer (1866-1935) explains that dror and chofesh do not refer to the exact same phenomenon. Chofshi refers to freedom from an obligation to work, while dror refers to the freedom from subjugation to a specific person who lords over him. The word cheirut does not appear in the Bible in the context of freedom. Nonetheless, it is the standard word for freeing a slave in Rabbinical parlance. In the Birkat HaChodesh prayer, which we say on the Sabbath before Rosh Chodesh, we beseech G-d to redeem us from avdut (“servitude”) to cheirut (“freedom”). Moreover, the Mishnaic term shichrur is a cognate of cheirut that refers to the formal act of freeing a slave, and the Mishnaic phrase eved she’nishtachrar refers to a freed slave. On Passover Night we strive to act like Bnei Chorin — “free men.” Although the Bible itself never uses the word cheirut in the context of freedom, Rabbinical tradition (Avot 6:2) finds a Scriptural allusion to such a meaning. The Bible describes the Tablets that Moshe brought from Mount Sinai as “the work of G-d, and the writing was the writing of G-d, engraved (charut) on the tablets” (Ex. 32:16). The root for the Hebrew word which means “engraved” is generally spelled CHET-REISH-TET. However, in this context a variant spelling is used, replacing the ultimate TET with a TAV. Because of this slight deviance from the norm, the Rabbis found something deeper alluded to in this verse: “Do not read it as not charut (‘engraved’), but as cheirut (‘freedom’), for the only person who is truly free is one who occupies himself with Torah study.” It seems fairly clear that if the ultimate purpose of the Exodus was to give the Jewish People the Torah at Mount Sinai, then the word for freedom resulting from the Exodus should appropriately be cheirut — and the holiday which celebrates that freedom should be termed Zman Cheiruteinu. Nevertheless, our understanding of cheirut does not address its meaning vis-à-vis the other words for “freedom.” Why did the Rabbis decide to use the word cheirut for “freedom” instead of the words found in the Bible? The British philosopher Isaiah Berlin (1909-1997) famously differentiated between two distinct types of freedom: “negative liberty” and “positive liberty.” Based on this philosophical distinction, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (Chief Rabbi Emeritus of the United Kingdom), offers a deeper understanding as to the difference between chofesh and cheirut. He explains that the adjective chofshi denotes what a slave becomes when he goes free. It means that he can do whatever his heart desires. The word chofesh is related to chafetz (desire) and chapess (search out). Rabbi Sacks, philosopher, identifies this type of freedom with “negative liberty” because it simply denotes the lack of coercion. Negative liberty may be worthwhile on an individual level, but on a society level there must be some form of rules — one cannot simply do whatever one pleases. On the other hand, law and order must not be imposed in a coercive manner, because then the masses will resent and resist said law. Instead, the law must be presented and taught in a way in which everyone willingly accepts it of their own volition. When this happens, the law becomes a part of them — engrained in their very essence — for the greater good. To that effect, the Rabbis coined a new term cheirut,which denotes a sort of freedom that comes to society where people not only know the law, but study it constantly until it is engraved on their hearts (so charut and cheirut become one). On the surface, this “positive liberty” seems restrictive, but actually it proves quite liberating. Truth be told, the cheirut-cognate chorim does actually appear in the Bible, just not in the context of freedom, per se. Chorim appears thirteen times in the Bible in reference to noblemen and other dignitaries (see Rashi to Jer. 27:20). Rashi (to Sotah 49a) explains that chorin are people of lineage. The illustrious Wurzberger Rav, Rabbi Yitzchok Dov Bamberger (1807-1878), explains that chorim is related to the Aramaic words whose root is CHET-VAV-REISH, which means “white.” He explains that dignitaries are called “white” because their reputation must be untarnished, and because only important people were allowed to wear white clothes in the ancient world. (Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenburg (1785-1865) associates cheirut with the Hebrew root chor, which means“hole” and uses those exact letters, but we will not delve into his approach here.) That said, it seems to me that the Rabbis chose to use the word cheirut and various conjugations thereof in order to convey the idea of freedom on Passover for a very important reason. They wished to stress that newly-freed slaves begin their new lives with a clean slate, and they have the potential to become important people in their own right. On Passover we recognize and celebrate this potential for greatness. This optimistic, yet challenging, look at a freedman’s bright future warranted the Rabbis’ adoption of a new word for “freedom,” even though the Bible already has two words for that concept. Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr

Merciful Skipping שמ’ יב:יג – וראיתי את הדם ופסחתי עלכם. Ex. 12:13 – I will see the blood and pass over you. מכילתא (בא פרשה ז): וראיתי את הדם. היה ר’ ישמעאל אומר והלא הכל גלוי לפניו, שנאמר: ידע מה בחשוכא ונהורא עמיה שרא (דנ’ ב:כב), ואומר: גם חשך לא יחשיך ממך (תה’ קלט:יב), ומה ת”ל וראיתי את הדם. אלא בשכר מצוה שאתם עושים אני נגלה וחס עליכם, שנאמר: ופסחתי עליכם, אין פסיחה אלא חייס, שנאמר: כצפרים עפות כן יגן ה’ צבאות על ירושלם גנון והציל פסוח והמליט (ישע’ לא:ה). ופסחתי עליכם. ר’ יאשיה אומר אל תקרי ופסחתי אלא ופסעתי שהב”ה מדלג על בתי בני ישראל במצרים. שנאמר: קול דודי הנה זה בא מדלג על ההרים (שה”ש ב:ח). Mechilta (Bo, Parsha 7): And I shall see the blood – Rabbi Ishmael said, is not everything revealed to Him, as it is written: in the merit of the Mitzva which you perform I will reveal Myself and spare you, as it is written: He knows what is in the dark, and light dwells with Him (Dan. 2:22), and furthermore: Even darkness will not obscure [anything] from You (Ps. 139:12); Wherefore then, “And I shall see the blood”? Rather, in the merit of of the Mitzva that you have performed I reveal Myself and pity you, as it is written: and pass over you (ופסחתי). This term denotes mercy, as it is written: Like flying birds, so shall the Lord of Hosts protect Jerusalem, protecting and saving, passing over and rescuing (Is. 35:5). And pass over you – Rabbi Josiah said, read not ופסחתי (pass over) but ופסעתי (skip over), for the Holy One, blessed be He skipped over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. As it is written: The sound of my beloved! Behold, he is coming, skipping over the mountains (Song 2:8). Rabbi Josiah employs the Rabbinic tool of אל תיקרי to support his exposition that פסחתי (passing over) is similar in meaning (and close linguistically) to פסעתי (skipping), and an אסמכתא (quasi-proof) from the verse in the Song of Songs, which refers to skipping, which his tradition taught him referred to the Israelite houses which were skipped over. This is, after all the common understanding of the word פסחתי. Rabbi Ishmael’s discourse on the other hand, is somewhat puzzling. What is the practical difference between “showing mercy” on the one hand and “skipping over” on the other – is the end result not the same… the Israelites’ houses will be skipped over, i.e. spared. And what is the purpose of quoting the verse in Isaiah; the word פסוח does not appear to add anything to our understanding of פסחתי – if both mean skipping, then why quote it? And if the point is to demonstrate that the word means “mercy” – how does this verse prove it? Rashi paraphrases the two views from the Mechilta: רש”י שמ’ יב:יג – ופסחתי – וחמלתי, ודומה לו: פסוח והמליט (ישע’ לא:ה). ואני אומר כל פסיחה לשון דלוג וקפיצה ופסחתי מדלג הי’ מבתי ישראל לבתי מצרים שהיו שרוים זה בתוך זה. Rashi Ex. 12:13 – hˆT‰j‹xŠpU [is rendered] and I will have pity, and similar to it: “sparing ‹jIxŠP and rescuing” (Isa. 31:5). I say, however, that every [expression of] vŠjhˆx‰P is an expression of skipping and jumping. [Hence,] hˆT‰j‹xŠpU [means that] He was skipping from the houses of the Israelites to the houses of the Egyptians, for they were living one in the midst of the other. By saying “and I say”, Rashi implies that he prefers the opinion of Rabbi Josiah over that of Rabbi Ishmael (and Onkelos, usually favored by Rashi). What is it that troubles Rashi about this opinion? It must first be said that we English speakers are automatically prejudiced to the view of Rabbi Josiah by the mere use of the term “Passover.” This name presumes that the meaning of the word פסיחה is “skipping,” as Rabbi Josiah says. However, Rashi’s comments remind us that this definition is not accepted universally, and the literal definition may be completely different. Rabbi Ishmael is troubled first and formost by the image of Hashem (Himself, and not through an angel or messenger, as the Haggadah reminds us) “skipping” from house to house to check for evidence of blood, since there is no need whatsoever for G-d in His Omniscence to do so. Therefore Rabbi Ishmael believes that the word פסיחה may mean something different entirely. But why “mercy” specifically and how does he derive this from the verse in Isaiah? Benignly Sheltering Let’s examine the word חס, here translated as mercy. This term is actually the source of the word מחסה (refuge), as in: תה‘ סא:ה – אחסה בסתר כנפיך. Ps. 61:5 – I will take shelter in the cover of Your wings forever. תה‘ ה:יב – וישמחו כל חוסי בך לעולם ירננו. Ps. 5:12 – And let all who take refuge in You rejoice. . According to this, Rabbi Ishmael would be saying that פסיחה means refuge and shelter, a definition that indeed provides a very different understanding of the mechanism of the salvation of the Israelites on that fateful night. The conventional image is that of death skipping from house to house and passing over those houses with the blood smeared on the doorposts; this leaves the impression that the blood is somehow itself imbued with a measure of power to ward off evil. But R. Ishmael asserts that since ועברתי denotes that Hashem Himself is carrying out the deeds, the word וראיתי cannot mean seeing the blood. Rather the word וראיתי here is like the הָפעל, i.e. like הראית בהר – I revealed myself to spare, to shelter your household. This, then is what is learned from the verse in Isaiah; the entire context there:גנן, הציל, המליט instills an iron-clad confidence that no harm could possibly come to the city – as if it is utterly surrounded by an impenetrable spiritual forcefield, a fortified and indestructible refuge – מחסה. III. How a Garden Grows This is also reinforced by the etymology of the terms of salvation used in in the verse in Isaiah. Rabbi S. R. Hirsch explains the interrelationship between the root גנן and its derivatives: רש”ר הירש בר’ ב:ח – גן בעדן – ‘גן’ משרש ‘גנן’, ומכאן: ‘הגן’. נמצא ‘גן’: מקום גדור ושמור לצורך אדם (מצינו יחס זה גם בלע”ז: “garden” מיסוד “guard”). Rabbi S. R. Hirsch Gen. 2:8 – A garden in Eden – גן (garden) is from the root גנן, from which derivesהגן (protecting) as well. Therefore גן means: an area enclosed and guarded for the enjoyment of people (this relationship exists in other languages as well: garden from guard). Shade me, O L-rd The next word used in the verse is הציל. According to the 10th-century grammarian Menachem Ibn Saruk, the root of הציל are the two letters צל, the same word as shade or shadow. The implication is that the type of salvation specified by הציל is not e.g. extrication or destruction of the enemy, but simple shelter from danger, in the comforting shadow of the savior[1]. From Rescuing to Cementing The final word used in the passage in Isaiah, המליט, is usually translated as rescuing or deliverance, as in: יר’ יח:לט – כי מלט אמלטך ובחרב לא תפל. Jer. 18:39 – For I will surely deliver you and you shall not fall by the sword. Many commentators point out the similarity between the two words מלט and פלט, also meaning rescuing: תה’ יח:ג – ה’ סלעי ומצודתי ומפלטי. Ps. 18:3 – The Lord is my rock and my fortress, and a rescuer to me. The early 20th-century linguist, Rabbi S. J. Shteiger, suggests a link to the word שלט as well, meaning shield[2] in the Tanach: ש”ב ח:ז – ויקח דוד את שלטי הזהב . II Sam. 8:7 – And David took the shields of gold. And I humbly suggest adding the following word meaning refuge to the list: במ’ לה:יא – ערי מקלט. Num. 35:11 – Cities of refuge. All of these words have two things in common: 1. the concept of protection and salvation.2. the letters לט.Indeed, we find the root לט in a similar sense as well: מ”א יט:יג – ויהי כשמע אליהו וילט פניו באדרתו. I Kings 19:13 And as Elijah heard, he wrapped his face in his mantle The underlying concept of protection and salvation are actally illustrated by the seemingly unrelated noun form of the root מלט: יר’ מג:ט – קח בידך אבנים גדלות וטמנתם במלט. Jer. 43:9 – Take in your hand large stones and hide them in the mortar. Mortar? Yes, mortar was used not only to hold bricks together, but to cover and protect them from the elements, or even to hide precious items when necessary to safekeeping, as here. In short, Rabbi Ishmael looked at the context of the verse in Isaiah, and examined the context in which the word פסוח was used. Since all the other terms point to salvation though shelter, so too must פסוח mean shelter, which he refers to as חייס, as in מחסה – refuge. Let us pray that the Hashem’s everlasting assurance to the Jewish People and His Eternal city continue to be fulfilled, that we be sheltered and protected even as evil is purged from the earth. במהרה בימינו אמן. [1] This is also the source of the Aramaic term for prayer: צלותא . [2] This is why a government is called a שלטון – its principle purpose is to shield the population from harm. Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr #Passover #Pesach

You Can Take Slaves out of the country, but… The Zohar Chadash tells of two types of salvation in Egypt: זוהר חדש (פ’ יתרו, דף נב.): אני ה’ אלהיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם וכו’ – בהאי פסוקא שאל רבי ייסא זעירא דמן חברייא מרשב”י וא”ל, אית [לי] למשאל שאילתא חדא מינך ומשבשא לי בלבאי, ואנא דחיל מלמשאל מינך, ואמינא אי נשאל דחילנא דילמא איתענש; אי לא נשאל משבשא לי בלבאי. א”ל ר”ש אימא. א”ל האי דקב”ה מדכר להון לישראל בכל אתר ואתר אני ה’ אלהיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים. מאי רבותא אוליף הכא? תנאה שלים הוא הדא דאמר לאברהם: כי גר יהיה זרעך בארץ לא להם וגו’ ואחרי כן יצאו ברכוש גדול (בר’ טו:יג-יד), א”כ למה לאדכרא להון מילתא דא בכל אתר ואתר? א”ל תא חזי ברי, קב”ה לא אתני עם אברהם אלא דיפיק ית ישראל מן גלותא דמצרים – ולא מתחות שעבודא דדחלא אחרא, דודאי ישראל כד הוו במצרים אסתאבו ואתטנפו גרמיהון בכל זיני מסאבו, [עד דהוו] שראן תחות ארבעים ותשע חילי דמסאבותא. וקב”ה אפיק יתהון מתחות פולחן כל שאר חילין. Zohar Chadash (Yisro, 52a): “I am the Lord, your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt” (Lev. 19:36) – R. Yeisa the Small of the Colleagues posed a question on this verse to R. Shimon bar Yochai. He said: I would like to ask a question of you which pounds in my heart, but I am afraid to ask it. On the one hand, if I ask it I fear I may deserve punishment; but if I don’t, I shall remain confused. Rabbi Shimon told him to ask. So he asked: “I am the Lord, your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt” – what is the novelty being taught us [in the fulfillment of this promise], did not Hashem fully stipulate in his covenant with Abraham: “You shall surely know that your seed will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and they will enslave them and oppress them, for four hundred years… and afterwards they will go forth with great possessions.” (Gen. 15:13, 14) – If so, why is the verse repeated so often? Rabbi Shimon answered him: come and see my son, the Holy One Blessed be He stipulated only that he would remove Israel from the Egyptian exile – but not from the influence of foreign deities; for the Israelites in Egypt had surely defiled and contaminated themselves with all manner of abominations, until they lived under the influence of the forty-nine powers of impurity – and the Holy One, blessed be He separated them from the service of all these forces. What is Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s source to distinguish between these two paradigms? Inharmonious Homonyms גאל – Terms of redemption: גאולה is one of the four expressions the Torah uses to foretell the emancipation from Egypt: שמות ו:ו – לכן אמר לבני ישראל אני ה’ והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלת מצרים והצלתי אתכם מעבדתם וגאלתי אתכם בזרוע נטויה ובשפטים גדלים. פסוק ז: …ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם. Ex. 6:6 – Therefore, say to the children of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will take you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will save you from their labor, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7. And I will take you to Me as a people. גאולה is used in other contexts to denote redemption as well: בר’ מח:טז – המלאך הגאל אתי מכל רע יברך את הנערים. Gen. 48:16 – may the angel who redeemed me from all harm שמות טו:יג – נחית בחסדך עם זו גאלת נהלת בעזך אל נוה קדשך. Ex. 15:13 – With Your loving kindness You led the people You redeemed ויקרא כה:כד – ובכל ארץ אחזתכם גאלה תתנו לארץ. Lev. 25:24 – Therefore, throughout the land of your possession, you shall give redemption for the land. _____________ On the other hand, the term is used many times in the Tanach with a very different meaning: גאל – Terms of defilement: ישע’ נט:ג – כי כפיכם נגֹאֲלו בדם. Isa. 1:3 – For your hands were defiled with blood. מלאכי א:ז – מגישים על מזבחי לחם מגֻאל. Mal. 1:7 – You offer on My altar defiled food. מלאכי א:יב – שלחן אדני מגֹאָל הוא. Mal. 1:12 – The Lord’s table is defiled. _____________ A similar term to גאל in this sense is געל: געל – Terms of rejection: וי‘ כו:יא – ולא תגעל נפשי. Lev. 26:11 –  and My Spirit will not reject you וי‘ כו:ל – וגעלה נפשי אתכם. Lev. 26:30 – And My Spirit will reject you. ש“ב א:כא – כי שם נגְעַל מגן גבורים. II Sam. 1:21 – For there the shield of the mighty was rejected יר‘ יד:יט – אם בציון געלה נפשך. Jer. 14:19 – Has Your soul despised Zion? _____________ The commentators equate the two: When גאל meets געל: עזרא ב:סב – ויגֹאֲלו מן הכהנה. Ez. 2:62 – they were disqualified from the priesthood רש”י (שם): ויגאלו – שהיו מגואלים ומגועלים. Rashi: Heb. Uk©t»d‰h©u, for they were defiled and purged איוב ג:ה – יגְאָלֻהו חשך וצלמות. Job 3:5 – May darkness and the shadow of death defile it מצ”צ (שם): יגאלהו – כמו יגעלהו ב’ע’, ועניינו טנוף ולכלוך. וכן: לחם מגואל (מלאכי א:ז). Metudas Zion: Defile it – יגאלנו here is like יגאלנו with an ‘ע’. The meaning is soiling and filth. Comp. “polluted bread” (Mal. 1:7). _____________ III. Opposites Attract? Rabbi S. R.Hirsch compares גאל  to other seemingly self-contradictory verbs: רשר”ה שמות ו:ו – וגאלתי אתכם בזרוע נטויה – מעניין דל”גאל” בבואו בבנין פיעל משמעות הפוכה (בדומה ל’שרש’, ‘סקל’ ועוד). ההוראה בבנין קל היא: למשוך אל עצמו דבר כדי למלטו מהשפלה. ובפיעל: לדחות מעל עצמו דבר, כדי להימלט מההשפלה שבחזקתו. כן קרוב לזה ‘געל’: להשליך מעל עצמו, וכן בלשון חכמים ‘הגעלה’. Rabbi S. R. Hirsch Ex. 6:6 – It is interesting that (like e.g. שרש and סקל) when גאל appears in the פיעל form, it has the opposite meaning[1]. In the קל it means: to draw something towards oneself in order to spare it from disgrace. In the פיעל it means: to repel something from oneself in order to spare oneself the disgrace of holding it. Related to this sense of  גאל is געל, “to cast off oneself,” and the Rabbinic term הגעלה, “the purging of an absorbed substance.” _____________ Examples of words with opposite meanings: שרש – Terms of planting/implanting: תה’ פ:י – ותַּשְרֵש שרשיה ותמלא הארץ. Ps. 80:10 – It took root and filled the land איוב ה:ג – אני ראיתי אויל משריש. Job 5:3 –  I have seen a fool taking root. _____________ שרש – Terms of uprooting: איוב לא:יב – ובכל תבואתי תְשָרֵש. Job 31:12 – and it uproots all my grain To plant a shrub or sapling with its roots, it has to have been uprooted from its previous locale. _____________ סקל – Terms of stoning: מ”א כא:יג – ויסקלוהו באבנים. I Kings 21:13 – And they stoned him with stones, and he died. _____________ סקל – Terms of removing stones[2]: ישע’ ה:ב – ויעזקהו ויְסַקְּלֵהו. Isa. 5:2 – And he fenced it in, and he cleared it of stones. ישע’ סב:י – סַקּלוּ מֵאֶבֶן. Isa. 62:10 – clear it of stones. In order to accomplish the act of stoning, the stones must be removed from another location. _____________ גדד – Terms of slashing/splitting: דב‘ יד:א – לא תתגדדו. Deut. 14:1 – You shall not cut yourselves. יר‘ מח:לז – ידים גדדת. Jer. 48:37 – on all hands are lacerations. _____________ גדד – Terms of assemblage: מיכה ד:יד – עתה תתגֹדְדי. Micah 4:14 – Now you shall gather yourself in troops. תה‘ צד:כא –  יגודו על נפש צדיק. Ps. 94:21 – They gather upon the soul of the righteous. An action that appears to unify and mend can actually divide and rend. The Sages teach: יבמות יג: – לא תתגודדו (דב’ יד:א) – לא תעשו אגודות אגודות. Yevamos 13b – Lo tithgodedu (Deut. 14:1) –  you shall not form separate sects. The reverse is true as well: the act of rending one’s garment in mourning can serve to unify the family during the week of mourning, and unifies the entire Jewish people who observe the laws of mourning! Likewise, an act of dismantling organizations which cause strife is actually an act of unity. _____________ גרר – Terms of streaming/dispersing: מיכה א:ד – כמים מֻגָרים במורד. Micah 1:4 – as water poured down a steep place. יר‘ יח:כא – וְהַגִרֵם על ידי חרב. Jer. 18:21 – and spill their blood by the sword. _____________ גרר – Terms of gathering: משלי ו:ח – אָגְרָה בקציר מאכלה. Prov. 6:8 – she gathers her food in the harvest. יואל א:יז – נשמו אֹצרות נהרסו מַמְגֻרות. Joel 1:17 –  the storehouses are laid desolate, garners are demolished. From the individual’s perspective, the waters cascading away seem irretrievably gone. But from a larger perspective, the waters all flow in a predictable direction and can be harnessed or gathered for future use. _____________ כרת – Terms of excision: בר’ יז:יד – ונכרתה הנפש ההוא מעמיה. Gen. 17:14 – that soul will be cut off from its people. ויק’ יז:י – ונתתי פני בנפש האכלת את הדם והכרתי אתה מקרב עמה. Lev. 17:10 – and I will cut him off from among his people. _____________ כרת – Terms of covenant: שמ‘ לד:י – הנה אנכי כרת ברית. Ex. 34:10 – And He said: “Behold! I will form a covenant.” בר‘ כא:כז – ויכרתו שניהם ברית. Gen. 21:27 – and they both formed a covenant. בר’ כו:כח – ונכרתה ברית עמך. Gen. 26:28 – and let us form a covenant with you. The act of  entering into a covenant is itself an act of “excision” from previous contrary commitments. _____________ The Still, Small Monster… We have seen to this point several examples of the Divine Tongue’s unique quality of integrating apparently opposite meanings in a single word. גאל is no exception, meaning sublime redemption on the one hand and revilement on the other hand. But what can we learn from this about our forebears in Egypt, indeed about ourselves? We asked earlier about Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s source differentiating between two kinds of redemption. We preface the answer with another passage from the Zohar questioning the order of the verse describing the four stages of salvation: זוהר ב:כד:-כה. – לכן אמר לבני ישראל אני ה’ והוצאתי אתכם, רבי יהודה אמר, האי קרא אפכא הוא, דכתיב והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלות מצרים בקדמיתא, ולבתר והצלתי אתכם מעבודתם, ולבתר וגאלתי אתכם, הוה ליה למימר מעיקרא וגאלתי אתכם, ולבתר והוצאתי אתכם – אלא עקרא דכלא בקדמיתא דבעא קודשא בריך הוא לבשרא לון בשבחא דכלא בקדמיתא, אמר רבי יוסי והא שבחא דכלא ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם והייתי לכם לאלהים ואמר ליה לבתר, א”ל בההוא זמנא לית להו שבחא אלא יציאה, דחשיבי דלא יפקון מעבדותהון לעלמין בגין דהוו חמאן תמן דכל אסירי דהוו בינייהו מקשרו לון בקשרא דחרשי ולא יכלין לנפקא מבינייהו לעלמין, ובגין כך מה דחביב עלייהו מכלא אתבשרו ביה, ואי תימא אף על גב דנפקו הא דילמא יזלון (חיליהון) בתרייהו לאבאשא לון כתיב והצלתי אתכם מעבודתם, ואי תימא הא יפקון וישתזבון ולא יהא לון פריקא ת”ל וגאלתי אתכם. Zohar 2:24b-25a – THEREFORE SAY UNTO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, I AM THE LORD, AND I WILL BRING YOU OUT FROM UNDER THE BURDENS OF THE EGYPTIANS, ETC. Said R. Judah: These words are in the wrong order, and should read, firstly, “I will redeem you”, and then “I will bring you out”. The reason, however, why bringing out is put first is that God desired to announce to them first the best promise of all. To which R. Jose remarked: But does not the greatest promise of all come last, namely, I will take you to me for a people and I will be to you a God (v. 7)? R. Judah replied: Deliverance from Egypt was the chief concern of the people then, because they despaired of escaping on account of the magical arts with which the Egyptians held fast their prisoners; hence it came first in order in the proclamation, followed by the promise of deliverance from bondage once and for all, as they might have been afraid that the Egyptians would enslave them again. Then came the promise of redemption, namely, that He would not merely free them from Egypt and then leave them to themselves! The Israelites wished to end their suffering as slaves, but on the other hand, many had become enamored of the decadent trappings of the pagan Egyptian culture – had come to believe in the magical power of the strage deities. The true redemption was twofold. Hashem opened their eyes to their own defilement – their own גיאול –  upon which they finally purged themselves of their abominations once and for all. Having purified themselves, Hashem’s גאולה came instantaneously. The lessons for our own times should not be lost on us. Let us do our part of the גאולה, and Hashem will do His. We purge, and Hashem will cause us to surge! !במהרה בימינו אמן. [1] See Rashi on Ex. 27:3 for other examples of  roots with derivatives of opposite meanings. [2]  ‘סקל’ = ‘סלק’ בחילוף מיקום האותיות (כמו כבש-כשב). לשון ‘סלק’ מציינת הוצאה בארמית (ע’ עזרא ד:יב). Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr

Purim טֶבַע: nature מַטְבֵּעַ: coin לִטְבּוֹעַ: to drown, sink טַבַּעַת: ring טֶבַע: Nature If you have ever witnessed a total solar eclipse, you will no doubt be amazed at this spectacular act of nature, but have you ever stopped to ask yourself how the mechanics of it all comes about? The remarkable answer is that while the moon is exactly 1/400ththe size of the sun, its distance from the earth is exactly 1/400ththe distance of the sun from the earth. Indeed a most unlikely coincidence, although real, this perfect fit of lunar and solar discs is more aptly engineered to be an optical illusion designed especially from the perspective of a human being, because it only works from the viewpoint of man standing on the earth’s surface. We, though, call it nature.1 הַטֶבַעandאֶ-לֹהִיםhave the same gematriaof eighty-six. The name of י-ה-ו-הrepresents the aspect of Hashem, Who transcends this world, whereas the nameאֶ-לֹהִיםrepresents the aspect of Hashem Whose powers control the order of the natural world. These two aspects of Hashem’s names are said in the Shema. When we read the Shema, we could understand it in the following way: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ה’אֶ-לֹהֵינוּ ה’אֶחָד — Listen all of you, people of Israel, ה’ — Hashem who transcends this world אֶ-לֹהֵינוּ — [is] the power that controls nature; ה’אֶחָד — Hashemי-ה-ו-ה, who transcends the world, and אֶ-לֹהִים, the powers that control nature, are one. Everything we see is Hashem, only that Hashem masks Himself within nature. Rav Shimshon Pincus, in his seferon Purim, gives a wonderful analogy on how to perceive the world. When you go to the local store to buy some milk, along with the bag of milk that you end up buying are another 500 bags of milk. You can therefore look at the situation in one of two ways: Either Hashem has organized that there will be enough milk to fulfill the needs of many, including you, or Hashem has arranged one particular bag of milk especially for you but wishes to hide Himself, so He arranges that there will be another 500 bags. Purim is the day to overturn the way one looks at the world, נַהַפֹךְ הוּא, and see the true reality that Hashem loves you and has placed you in this world to play with Him within nature. The nature of the game is “hide-and-seek,” and your mission is to seek Him out. When we dress up on Purim and put on masks, we somehow get in touch with the fact that Hashem too is wearing the mask of nature, and weמְגַלֶה/reveal (from the word megillah) to ourselves the truth that we are the stars in Hashem’s “all-star” show. Everything revolves around the Jewish People; all the eyes of the world are focused on us because we are Hashem’s stars, the leading role. Gil Locks, in his book One, also gives a wonderful analogy. Hashem wants to share His goodness, so He invites everyone to a big feast. Everyone is sitting around the table wearing a mask, having a great time. At the end of the meal, Hashem, the baal habayis,tells us to take off our masks. When we all take off our masks, we realize we are all one. מַטְבֵּעַ: Coin The connection of טֶבַע/natureto מַטְבֵּעַis that just like a coin is imprinted with the king’s signature on the face of the coin, so too Hashem has imprinted his signature within nature. Either you see it or you don’t. לִטְבּוֹעַ: To Drown, Sink The imprint on a coin is נִטְבַּע/sunken into its surface. As we have said above, Hashem has sunken His impression within nature. There are places in the world, some more than others, where Hashem has sunken Himself into nature to the point where it is very hard to see Him. One of those places in the times of the Tanach was Egypt. Egypt is represented by the עֵגֶל/calf, which comes from the word מַעַגַל/circle.2The circle has no beginning and no end, and like the שָׁנָה/year, it just goes around and around without שִׁנוּי/change. The sun was one of the main gods in Egypt, representing the idea of an unchanging world, as it says in Koheles:אֵין כָּל חָדָשׁ תַּחַת הַשֶׁמֶשׁ/there is nothing new under the sun.3The letter ס/samech, which is in itself a circle, first appears in the Torah in connection with the Nile River: הוּא הַסֹּבֵב אֵת כָּל אֶרֶץ הַחֲוִילָה/which circles the land of Chavilah, known as Egypt.4The Nile, another Egyptian god, was worshipped for being the main source of water. Egypt, with all its gods, was a G-d-forsaken place,נִטְבַּע/sunken within the unchanging cycle we call טֶבַע/nature. It comes as no surprise that Pharaoh and his army wereנִטְבַּע/drowned in the Yam Suf, a fitting end to a people who worshippedטֶבַע/nature. טַבַּעַת: Ring Just like a ring is circular, so too nature is circular. The sun and the planets are round, whereas all that is square in the world is manmade. Have you ever seen a square pebble washed up on the beach? Just like Hashem signs his name within nature, so too a ring can be used as a signet ring. Whoever the king chooses to give his ring to has the power to rule over everything, becoming מִשְׁנֶה לְמֶלֶךְ/second only to the king. There are three occasions in Tanach where the king gives over his ring: the first time is to Yosef, the second time is to Haman, and the last to Mordechai. When it is given to Yosef, the verse says the following: וַיָּסַר פַּרְעֹה אֶת טַבַּעְתּוֹ מֵעַל יָדוֹ וַיִּתֵּן אֹתָהּ עַל יַד יוֹסֵף And Pharaoh removed his ring from upon his hand and placed it on the hand of Yosef.5 When it is given to Haman, however, there is a change in the language: וַיָּסַר הַמֶּלֶךְ אֶת טַבַּעְתּוֹ מֵעַל יָדוֹ וַיִּתְּנָהּ לְהָמָן And the king removed his ring from upon his hand and gave it to Haman.6 The difference between the two verses is that the king placed the ring on the hand of Yosef, whereas with Haman, the ring was given to him and he placed it on himself. The difference, although subtle, is quite significant. Rashi, in his commentary to the verse regarding the giving of the ring to Yosef, says it was an אוֹת/sign of greatness. With regards to Haman, Rashi makes no comment to the ring being a sign of greatness. Since Haman had no inherent greatness, he had to put the ring on his own hand, whereas with Yosef, who exemplified greatness, the ring was placed on his hand by the king himself. A subtle difference, but really worlds apart. When it comes to Mordechai, the verse says the following: וַיָּסַר הַמֶּלֶךְ אֶת טַבַּעְתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר הֶעֱבִיר מֵהָמָן וַיִּתְּנָהּ לְמָרְדֳּכָי And the king removed his ring that he passed over to Haman and gave it to Mordechai.7 One may ask why, since Mordechai too exemplified greatness, the ring was not directly placed on his hand by the king as it was with Yosef. The reason is that previously it was not on the hand of the king, but it was merely transferred from the hand of Haman to the hand of Mordechai. There is an expression “how the mighty have fallen.” This was Haman. Someone who is not inherently great cannot sustain his position. Haman fell because he could not stand the fact that Mordechai the Jew would not bow down to him. Even though Haman was extremely wealthy, had great honor, and was second to the king, it was not enough. Instead of focusing on all the good that he had, he focused his attention on what he lacked. The same is true with Adam and Chava; the whole world was open to them, and yet they focused on their limitations. The Gemara in Megillahasks: where is Haman found in the Torah? Hamin Ha’Eitz, referring to the Tree of Knowledge of good and bad. There is one more place where Haman is explicitly mentioned in the Torah —where the Bnei Yisrael complain about the manna: וְעַתָּה נַפְשֵׁנוּ יְבֵשָׁה אֵין כֹּל בִּלְתִּי אֶל הַמָּן עֵינֵינוּ/and now our souls are parched, there is nothing but the manna.8Again, instead of focusing on all the good that Hashem had given them, they chose to focus on their lack. This is the middahof Haman, the Amalek within us, who denies the workings of Hashem. The true reality is that all that we have right now is perfectly measured out for us by Hashem to facilitate all of our needs. However, the Amalek within us deceives us into thinking that we are nevertheless lacking something essential. בָּרוּךְמָרְדְּכַי,אָרוּר הָמָן/ blessed is Mordechai, cursed is Haman. Both are given authority by the king, which is really Hashem. Sometimes the ring is in the hands of מָרְדְּכַי,and sometimes it is in the hands of הָמָן, but it is all in the name of the King. The ring on one hand is to get the Jewish People to do teshuvah, i.e., when we have lost Hashem to doubt and He sends עַמָלֵק, e.g., Hitler, to wake us up. On the other hand, when we are doing Hashem’s will, we are in the blessed safe hands of מָרְדְּכַי. Not only did Hashem give the טַבַּעַת/the signet ring to Mordechai, Haman, and Yosef, He also gave it to each and every one of us. We are the children of אַבְרָהָם,יִצְחָק,וְיַעַקֹב;we all have the ability to achieve greatness and become second to the King. We are Hashem’s chosen nation, where we are obligated to choose to see beyond טֶבַע/nature, to see beyond the world of Egypt. Instead of leading an accursed life like Haman and focusing on our lackings, we can choose to focus on the good and lead a blessed life. We are no less than Hashem’s signatories in the world. Every time we go against our nature, we sign Hashem’s name in the world — “All in the name of the King.” 1See Sarah Shapiro, “The Moon over Mexico,” http://www.aish.com. 2See above, Parshas Pikudei. 3Koheles 1:9. 4See Ramban to Bereishis2:11. 5Bereishis 41:42. 6Esther 3:10. 7Ibid., 8:2. 8Bamidbar11:6. Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr

Each of the three meals that we eat on Shabbat (Tractate Shabbat 117b) is called a seudah. On Purim we also have a festive meal, but that meal is called a mishteh. What is the difference between the word seudah and the word mishteh if both mean “meal”? Moreover, there is a third word which also means “meal” — mesibah. In what way does the word mesibah differ from the other two words? In order to illustrate the differences between these three words and their connotations we will focus on the lexical roots of each word and draw from them deeper insights into their meanings. What is the root of the word seudah? The truth is that the word seudah never appears in the Bible, but Radak in Sefer HaShorashim explains the etymology of seudah by noting that the Rabbis modified the Biblical word saad to become seudah. What does saad mean? The word saad means “support” or “sustenance”, both in a rhetorical way (proof that supports an argument) and in a physical way (food that sustains a person’s body). In a handful of places the Bible uses the verb saad in conjunction with bread (see Psalms 104:15, Judges 19:5, and Genesis 18:5). The name Saadia, most famously borne by Rabbeinu Saadia Gaon (882-942), means “support (from) G-d”. Thus, the word seudah refers to the benefits of a festive feast for sustaining one’s physical body. The word mishteh or derivatives thereof appear close to fifty times in the entire Bible. Its root is the verb shoteh, “drink”. The type of meal, or party, denoted by the word mishteh, focuses on drinking. In differentiating between the words seudah and mishteh, Rabbi Tzaddok HaKohen of Lublin (1823-1900) writes that while they both refer to festive meals, the former focusing on eating and the latter focusing on drinking. Thus, seudah is generally associated with bread — the focus of the Shabbat meal — because one eats bread (which fills one’s stomach and physically supports him). On the other hand, the word mishteh denotes a meal whose focus is on wine — like the festive Purim meal which commemorates/mimics the banquets of wine in the Book of Esther — because one drinks wine. (See, however, Rashi to Song of Songs 1:2, to Ecclesiastes 2:3, and to Esther 5:4, who writes that the defining element of an enjoyable, joyous meal (seudah) is the wine.) The word mesibah arguably appears once in the Bible (see Rashbam to Song of Songs 1:12). Rashi (to Amos 2:8) writes that the word mesibah refers to the fact that the participants in the meal would customarily recline (a practice known as haseibah). Case in point: At the Passover Seder we customarily ask four questions about why “this” night is different from all other nights. The last of those questions asks why “all other nights we eat either sitting or reclining (mesubin), but tonight we eat only while reclining”. Thus, the root of the word mesibah is related to the Hebrew word for reclining, and refers to the type of meal where people would sit slouched about, as opposed to sitting erect. It has since been borrowed to refer in general to any type of “party”. One contemporary linguist argues that the word mesibah is related to the word sovev/sevivah (“around”), and refers to the fact that everyone “gathers around” for a party. However, this claim remains unsubstantiated. In short, seudah, mishteh, and mesibah are all words for “meal”, but are not quite synonymous. Seudah focuses on the bread eaten at the meal, while mishteh refers to a meal which focuses on drinking wine. The word mesibah focuses neither on the food nor the drink, but on the posture of the participants, because mesibah refers to a meal or party in which the party-goers are seated in couches or lazy-chairs, allowing them to lounge about. Rabbi Levi Yitzchok of Berditchiv (1740-1810) in Kedushat Levi (Parshat Vayera) writes that the word mishteh denotes a “happy meal”. Based on that he explains that the party to which Esther invited Haman and Achashverosh is called a mishteh in the Bible because that party brought happiness to the Jews. Through that party Esther persuaded Achashverosh to execute Haman and rescind the horrible decree looming over the Jews. The resulting victory for the Jewish People brought happiness for generations to come and is celebrated yearly on Purim. Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr

The eighth of ten plagues which G-d brought upon the Egyptians in the lead-up to the Exodus was the Plague of Arbeh — locust. Locust is the word for a Borg-like collective of grasshoppers that swarm about and destroy produce. These flying grasshoppers devastated the Land of Egypt by devouring its remaining crops. About this plague the Torah testifies, “Before it there was never a locust-swarm like it, and after it there will never be so.” (Exodus 10:14) Nonetheless, a similar story appears elsewhere in the Bible and that opens up our discussion about the grasshopper-related synonyms in the Hebrew language. The prophet Yoel foretells a calamitous famine and grasshopper infestation. He actually uses four different words to describe the invading grasshoppers in his time: first, the gazam will come and eat from the produce, then the arbeh will come and eat what the gazam left over, then the yelek will arrive and eat what the arbeh allowed to remain, and finally the chasil will come and eat what the yelek passed over. (Yoel 1:4) Nonetheless, Yoel prophesizes that if the Jewish People will subsequently repent their sins and pray to G-d: “I (G-d) will distance the tzfoni from you.” (Yoel 2:20) Rashi and Radak explain that tzfoni is also a term that refers to grasshoppers, because those pests usually migrate from north (tzafon) of the Holy Land. With this background information in mind we can now discuss the different terms used in the Bible for grasshoppers. So far we have encountered five different words for grasshoppers: arbeh, gazam, yelek, chasil, and tzfoni. When the Torah discusses the types of insects that are considered ritually clean and therefore fit for consumption, the Torah lists four species of grasshoppers which fall into that category: arbeh, sal’am, chargol, and chagav. (Leviticus 11:22) This adds another three words for grasshoppers to our list. Moreover, in Psalms’ retelling of the Ten Plagues, it mentions the word chanamal,which Rashi (to Ps. 78:47) explains refers to grasshoppers (although other commentaries explain that it refers to a type of hail). If you haven’t been keeping track, we have now a total of nine different words that are used as references to grasshoppers. It seems that these different words for grasshoppers are not just synonyms, but are actually names of different types of grasshoppers. We don’t know for sure, but they are probably different forms of grasshoppers, crickets, katydids (also known as bush crickets), and other orthoptera. The word arbeh cannot only be used to denote a certain type of grasshopper, but it is also an umbrella term that includes all types of grasshoppers. Similarly, Rabbi Menachem Meiri (1249-1315) in Beit HaBechirah, and Rabbi Shmuel ben Meshullam of Gerona (circa. 1335) in Ohel Mo’ed write that the word chagav cannot only denote a specific type of grasshopper, but is also a general term for all kosher grasshoppers. (For more about this, see Rav Chaim Kanievsky’s Karnei Chagavim §2). Midrash HaGadol (to Ex. 10:14) records that seven of nine types of grasshoppers comprised the Plague of Arbeh in Egypt: arbeh, sal’am, chargol, chagav, gazam, yelek, and chasil. Rabbi Menachem Tzioni (a 14th century German Kabbalist) adds that chanamal was also one of the species of grasshoppers in Egypt, making the total number eight. He explains that each of these eight types of grasshoppers included one hundred different sub-species, so there were really eight-hundred different types of locust which swarmed over Egypt. (Midrash Sechel Tov records the same tradition, but instead of chanamal, it mentions tzlatzel (see below).) This mirrors the Talmud’s assertion (Chullin 63b) that there are eight-hundred types of chagav! Radak gives us some insight into the meanings of the Hebrew words for grasshoppers mentioned by Yoel. He writes that gazam are called so because they cut (gozez) the grain. Arbeh bear that name because of their multitudes (related to the word harbeh, “a lot”). The name yelek is related to the word melakek (“lick”) and focuses on this grasshoppers’ habit of licking and chewing grass. The prophet Nachum described yelek as a type of grasshopper that “spreads out and then flies away.” (Nachum 3:15) Based on this description, Malbim explains the yelek as a type of grasshopper that is originally born as a sort of worm, but then enters a cocoon from which it emerges as winged grasshopper. (After consulting with Ohr Somayach’s resident zoologist, Rabbi Richard Jacobs, I have been unable to confirm the existence of such a grasshopper.) The word chasil is given to another type of locust because those grasshoppers were said to “finish off” the remaining produce in Yoel’s time. (The word chasal means to “finish” or “conclude”, like we say at the end of the Passover Seder, “Chasal siddur Pesach…” or at the end of a Tractate). The Targum to Yoel gives us the Aramaic words for the four species of grasshoppers mentioned by Yoel. Gazam is translated as zachala (which literally means “crawling thing”, see Deut. 32:24 where it means snake), arbeh is govai, yelek is parcha (“flying thing”), and chasil is shmota. The Talmud (Chullin 65a) also offers Aramaic translations, specifically of the four types of kosher grasshoppers: arbeh is govai, sal’am is rishon, chargol is nipol, and chagav is gadyan. (See also Radak to Amos 7:1.) I forgot to tell you about another possible word for grasshopper: Rashi (to Deut. 28:42 and Bava Kama 116b) writes that tzlatzel is also another type of grasshopper. Rabbeinu Bachaya (to Deut. 28:42) and in the commentary to Chronicles printed under Rashi’s name (I Chron. 13:8) explain that the word tzlatzel is related to mitzaltayim (“cymbals”) in reference to the clamorous noises associated with this type of grasshopper. Pirush HaRokeach adds that grasshoppers are related to the word tzel (“shade”) because when these invading pests swarm across the sky they cast a shadow over the earth below them. Nonetheless, other commentators disagree with Rashi and explain tzlatzel differently: Rav Saadia Gaon writes that they are butterflies; Gersonides, that they are worms; and Nachmanides, that tzlatzel refer to the clamoring sound of enemy armies. Share this: WhatsApp More Telegram Email Print Share on Tumblr