Readings for Saturday, February 10, 2024
Shabbat coincides with Rosh Chodesh Adar I so we read from two scrolls. The scroll is the regular weekly reading. The Second Scroll is for Rosh Chodesh.
Mishpatim
(Variously: Judgments, Ordinances or
Rules)
21:1-24:18 Shemot (Exodus)
Mishpatim is the sixth sedrah in Shemot (Exodus). It takes its name from the second Hebrew word in the opening verse “These are the ordinances (Mishpatim) that you shall set before them.” Mishpatim marks a shift in the style of the Torah. Up until now, the Torah has primarily been a narrative with a smattering of laws mixed in with the text. Starting with Mishpatim, the Torah shifts to a compilation of laws with a smattering of narrative mixed in with the text. Mishpatim lives up to its name since it contains fifty-three separate rules. Different commentators use different methods for dividing this sedrah, none of which are totally satisfactory. The Plaut Chumash uses the following: Laws about Slavery and Injuries (21:1-21:37); Laws on Property and Moral Behavior (22:1-23:9); Laws on Cultic Ordinances and the Affirmation of the Covenant. On the other hand, the commentators in Etz Hayim take a more traditional approach. They point out that the chapters that make up Mishpatim are called Sefer Ha-Brit or the Book of the Covenant. The name comes from two verses in Chapter 24. Verse 4 reads: “Moshe then wrote down all the commands of the Lord.” Verse 7 reads, “Then he took the record of the covenant and read it aloud to the people. And they said, ‘All that the Lord has spoken we will faithfully do.’” These commentators divide the sedrah as follows: Civil and Criminal Matters; A Variety of Topics with Special Emphasis on Humanitarian Consideration; Affirmation of the Divine Promises to Israel and Warnings Against the Dangers of Assimilation to Paganism; Conclusion of the Sefer Ha-Brit (including the ratification of the document and Moshe’s ascent to receive the tablets containing the Decalogue). A third, and simpler, way of dividing the sedrah is: Laws, Ordinances and Commands (21:2-23:30); Ratification (24:1-12); Moshe’s Ascent of the Mountain and the Stone Tablets (24:13-24:17).
Laws, Ordinances and Commands (21:2-23:30)
There is far too
much material for inclusion in this guide.
In keeping with our custom, the commandments contained in this sedrah
are listed below. All Chumashim
including Etz Hayim, the Stone and those edited by Rabbi Hertz or Rabbi
Plaut, have copious notes on the commandments and how they should be
categorized. You may want to make
special note of the comments concerning the famous section calling for “an eye
for an eye,” etc. In reading the
commandments, we should try and understand what they meant to the ancient
Israelites. At the same time, we should
consider how we can carry out the commandments in our own lives, even when it
means we are only able to obey the spirit of the law because the actual words
do not apply to our times. Here are a
few items of interest. The first series
of commands has to do with the treatment of slaves. Slavery was a fact of life in the days of the
ancient Israelites. However, the
condition and treatment of slavery described here stands in stark contrast to
the condition of servitude that the Israelites had just experienced in Egypt.
The theme of
personal responsibility and the obligation to make financial restitution when
one fails to act in a responsible manner runs throughout the list. Whether tending your livestock, digging a pit
or burning off vegetation, avoiding harm to others is a critical
consideration. The commandments
concerning widows, orphans, strangers and the impoverished show God’s special
concern for the weak and powerless. They
have given rise to what some call the “Social Action” aspect of Judaism. Failure to follow these commandments is the
source of much of the material contained in the message of the Prophets. The detailed list of commands concerning
judges, judicial proceedings and capital cases provides the cornerstone for
much of the Oral Law to follow. In
Judaism, justice is even-handed. We do
not kow-tow to the rich. Nor do we
assume that the poor are naturally virtuous.
Ratification (24:1-12)
Some
commentators think that all of Chapter 24 is out of sync from a narrative point
of view. Regardless, this chapter begins
with a unique acceptance process. The
Torah is not accepted by just Moshe, or just the leaders of the
Israelites. It is accepted by all the
people in “one voice.” In describing the
acceptances the Torah speaks of “devarim” (Commands) and “mishpatim” (Judgments
or Ordinances). God enforces
commands. Law courts enforce
ordinances. This explains the heavy
emphasis on the role of judges and the judicial process in Mishpatim.
Moshe’s Ascent of the Mountain and the Stone
Tablets (24:13-17)
The sedrah ends
with Moshe going up to the top of Mount Sinai alone to receive the stone
tablets on which God will engrave the “teachings and commandments.” Moshe tells the elders that he is leaving
Aaron and Hur behind to serve in his place while he is gone. Remember this when we read the story of the
Golden Calf. In a subsequent sedrah,
Moshe will show the Stone Tablets to all of the people. According to some commentators, the people
could see the same thing no matter where they were standing. What kind of stone might have made this
possible? The answer is found in
Mishpatim. “And under His feet the
likeness of sapphire brickwork, and it was like the essence of the heaven in
its purity” (24:10). In his history of
the Jews called Wanderings, Chaim Potok raises the question of who saw
what at Sinai. He contends that what we
may be reading is an amalgamation of many versions of the same event. But whoever compiled Shemot did not try and
edit the various versions. Instead he or
they presented them all to us and left it to the commentators to sift through
to the ultimate reality. This in no way
denigrates the reality of Sinai. On the
other hand, it does provide at least one explanation for the apparent
chronological inconsistency that we find in the sidrot, which tell the tale of
the Sinaitic Revelation.
Themes for Mishpatim:
Commandments:
42. The obligation of an owner of a Hebrew
slave to free the slave after a maximum of six years (21:2).
43. A master’s obligation to provisionally
designate a female Hebrew slave as his bride (21:8).
44. A master’s obligation to let a female
Hebrew slave be redeemed if she is not pleasing to him (21:8).
45.
The
prohibition against a master selling a female Hebrew slave whom he decides not
to marry (21:8).
46.
The
specified rights of a wife (21:9).
47.
The
obligation to execute a murderer (
48.
The
prohibition against hitting one’s parents (
49.
The
specification of fines for those who physically harm others (
50.
The
mandating of capital punishment for those who murder slaves (
51.
The
action to be taken when one’s animal kills a person (
52.
The
prohibition against eating the meat of an ox executed for killing a person (
53.
The
obligation of one who dug or uncovered a pit and left it uncovered to pay
damages for any ensuring injuries (
54.
The
mandating of a special onerous fine on thieves who steal oxen or sheep (
55.
The
commandment to hold a person financially responsible for the damage caused by
his or her livestock (22:4).
56.
The
commandment to hold a person financially responsible for the damage caused by a
fire he or she has started (22:5).
57.
The
specifying of responsibilities for one who is the guardian of another’s
property (22:6).
58.
The
obligation of judges to adjudicate cases between plaintiffs and defendants
(22:8).
59.
The
specification of damages against one who is entrusted with guarding an animal
and is unable, or fails, to do so (22:9-12).
60.
The
obligations devolving on one who borrows an animal from another (
61.
The
punishment imposed on one who seduces a virgin (
62.
The
prohibition of witchcraft (
63.
The
prohibition against wronging a stranger (
64.
The
prohibition against oppressing a stranger (
65.
The
prohibition against oppressing a widow or orphan (
66.
The
obligation to lend money interest-free to those in need (
67.
The
prohibition against dunning a poor person unable to repay his or her debt (
68.
The
prohibition against helping a borrower or a lender transact an interest-bearing
loan (
69.
The
prohibition against cursing God (
70.
The
prohibition against cursing a judge. (
71.
The
prohibition against cursing the leader of one’s nation (
72.
The
obligation to make proper payment of tithes and other dues (
73.
The
prohibition against eating the meat of an animal killed by other animals (
74.
The
commandment not to spread false rumors (23:1).
75.
The
prohibition against helping a guilty man gain acquittal (23:1).
76.
The
stricture against joining with a majority to do wrong (23:2).
77.
The
prohibition against perverting testimony (23:2).
78.
The
commandment to follow the majority decision in legal cases (23:2).
79.
The
requirement that a judge not permit pity for a poor man to affect his rulings
(23:3).
80.
The
obligation to help another person, including one’s enemy, to unload a burden
from her or her animal (23:5).
81.
A
prohibition forbidding judges to discriminate again a poor person in judicial
proceeding (23:6).
82.
The
obligation to take particular care in capital cases not to execute an innocent
person (23:7).
83.
The
prohibition against judges taking bribes (23:8).
84.
The
commandment to let the land lie fallow every seventh year (
85.
The
mandate to rest on the Sabbath and to allow both people and animals who work
for you to do so as well (
86.
The
prohibition against mentioning or invoking false gods (
87.
The
prohibition against leading Israelites into idolatry (
88.
The
commandment to celebrate the three pilgrimage festivals of Pesach, Shavuot and
Sukkoth (
89.
The
prohibition against slaughtering the Paschal lamb Erev Pesach while one still
has chametz in one’s possession (
90.
The
prohibition against waiting until morning to offer parts of the Paschal lamb
that are to be sacrificed on the altar (
91.
The
commandment to bring the harvest’s first fruits to the sanctuary (
92.
The
prohibition against cooking meat with milk (23:19).
93.
The
stricture against making a treaty with the seven idolatrous nations resident in
94.
The
commandment against allowing idolaters to settle in
Biblical
Literacy by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin
Commandments
There
are three types of commandments: Judgments
or (Mishpatim), Testimonies (Edut) and Statutes (Chukim). “Judgments (Mishpatim) is a technical term in
the Torah, referring in general to social legislation of the kind which, had it
not been given by God, man could have devised for himself on rational grounds. It is to be contrasted with Testimonies (Edut)
such as the Shabbat and festivals, which though they are rationally
comprehensible, could not have been invented by man; and Statutes (Chukim)
which are laws whose purpose lies altogether beyond our understanding…. We obey them simply because they are the word
of G-d.” Chukim include things like the
Red Heifer and Kashrut. However, we must
observe Mishpatim and Edut in the same way we that observe Chukim, because they
are commanded by God. If we observe
Mishpatim because they make sense to us instead of because God commanded us to
do these things, then we might decide that since some Judgments do not make
sense to our intellect, we can ignore them.
This will lead us to replace the Will of God with our intellect, which will
eventually lead us to disregard the Chukim because to rational man they appear
irrational. This does not mean we should
blindly follow the commandments. We need
to know them. We need to understand
them. And even when we miss the mark and
violate them, we should not decide that we can dismiss them as irrelevant or
meaningless.
Commentary and the Oral
Law
The
laws of Mishpatim drive home the point of how important the Oral Law and other
commentaries are in understanding and giving meaning to the words of the
Torah. For example the laws pertaining
to cursing one's parents and hitting one’s parents need a great deal of
explication. Another example would be
the directive about not cooking a kid in its mother’s milk. The trick is to constantly re-evaluate the
commentary to make sure it is still valid and meaningful. At the same time, new commentary must be thoroughly
grounded on a full understanding of what has gone before. This is the delicate balancing act of real
Torah Study.
The Message of Mishpatim
This
is a sedrah thick with laws. It is very
easy to get caught up in the minutia of each command. I would suggest that to truly understand the
full import of the sedrah, we should step back and look at it in its totality. As they would say in the world of art, do not
get lost in the color and shape of each tile.
Step back and look at the mosaic the tiles create. Mishpatim presents the picture of a Just
Society. It is a society based on law,
justice and mercy. Poverty is not a
virtue (23:3). But it is a society where
amassing wealth for its own sake is also not a virtue. Squeezing every penny out life is not
acceptable (21:2 and
The Power of “Vav”
The
Hebrew word for “these” is ay-leh. If
the sedrah had begun with the word ay-leh, it would read “These are the
ordinances….” Instead the letter Vav was
put in front of the word ay-leh. The
letter Vav in this case means “and.” So
the verse begins, “V’ay-leh ha-Mishpatim…” or “And these are the ordinances.…” By putting the letter Vav at the beginning, we
are tying the laws of Mishpatim with the Ten Commandments given in the previous
sedrah. In other words the civil law
which is embodied in Mishpatim is inseparable from the Decalogue. All laws come from God and we must strive to
obey all of them. Ah what a difference
one little letter can make.
The Mosaic Difference
Many
commentators love to point out the similarities between the laws in the Torah
and other Near Eastern law codes.
However, there are major differences.
The one that is most glaring is the relationship between human life and
property rights. Under Torah law the
illegal taking of property is not to be punished by death. At the same time, murder is not a crime for
which one can escape punishment by making restitution to the victim’s
family. Under other law codes, thieves
got the death penalty and the wealthy could buy their way out of a murder
conviction.
The Fetus
Is
the fetus a person? Based on what we
read in Shemot (
Thief
and Robber
The
sedrah talks about the punishment for a thief.
In Jewish law there is a difference between a thief and a robber. They both steal. The robber steals out in the open. He shows equal contempt for man and God. But a thief steals by stealth. He steals in secret. By stealing in this manner he is saying that
he is afraid of people, but he is not afraid of God. In fact he is denying the essence of God. By his action, he is denying that God is
everywhere, seeing all that we do.
Therefore the thief was always punished more harshly than the
robber. He was punished for the taking
and he was punished for the blasphemy.
Holidays
This
sedrah includes laws concerning the timing and observance of the Three
Pilgrimage Festivals - Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkoth. The command here is for all “men” to appear
while in Devarim, the same command is not sex specific. The sedrah also includes rules for observing Shabbat. Even before the development of the Oral Law,
it was obvious that the “Fourth Commandment” alone would not suffice in telling
the people how to observe the seventh day.
While the commands to observe Shabbat in Yitro and Mishpatim are
universal (not just for the ruling class or a privileged few) the reasons given
are different. In Yitro Shabbat is tied
to Creation. In Mishpatim, Shabbat is to
be observed so that we may be refreshed.
The curse of the twentieth-first century is the complaints about stress,
being over-worked, not being able to sleep.
Yet, if we would just follow the commandments, all of our needs would be
met including the one to relax, change pace and rest.
Kashrut
This
sedrah marks the first of three times that we are enjoined from cooking meat
with milk. This particular reference may
have to do with the fact that pagans did this when worshipping idols and God
wants us to differentiate our customs from theirs. Regardless, this repeated injunction has
given rise to the body of law regarding the separation of meat and dairy when
cooking and eating.
Quick Quiz
1.
According to Chapters 21 and 22 which transgression could result in the death
penalty?
- Striking and killing another (
- Cursing one’s father and mother (
- Owning a bull that gores a human to
death if the bull is known to be a killer and is not properly penned (
- Being a sorceress (
2.
Which four men went up the mountain along with the seventy elders? (24:9)
- Moses;
- Aaron;
- Nabib;
- Abihu.
3.
How long did Moses stay on
- Forty Days and Forty Nights.
Based
on Nelson’s Amazing Bible Trivia
Forty Days and Forty
Nights
- “And Moses
remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights.” Thus ends the weekly portion. According to at least one commentator,
when the Bible talks about “forty days,” it is conveying the idea of a
long time. For people who live in a
lunar cycle, a period beyond a month would be a long time indeed. But even if one accepts this
explanation, it still does not answer why the text says “Forty Days and
Forty Nights” instead of just “forty days.”
Where does the Bible use the term “forty
days?”
- It takes a full forty days
to embalm the body of Jacob, according to Egyptian practice (Gen 50:3).
- The Israelite spies scout out the
Promised Land for forty days (Num
- The Philistine Goliath taunts the
Israelite army for forty days before David fights him (1 Sam 17:16).
- The prophet Ezekiel lies on his
right side for forty days to symbolize the sins of the people of
Judah (Ezek 4:6).
- The prophet Jonah preaches in the
Assyrian capital, "Forty days more, and Ninevah shall be
overthrown" (Jonah 3:4).
Where does the Bible use the
term “forty days and forty nights?”
- In the story of Noah and the Great Flood, it
rains for "forty days and forty nights" (Gen 7:4, 12, 17;
8:6).
- The prophet Elijah travels “forty days and forty nights” to
- Moses spends "forty days and
forty nights" on
- Moses spends another "forty days
and forty nights" on the mountain, encountering God a second time
(Exodus 34:28; cf. Deut 10:10).
The
term “forty days” is used when the matter is temporal or a man - man
relationship. The term forty days and
nights is used when the matter is spiritual or involves a God-man relationship. In other words, in matters concerning the
Divine, the matter calls for total involvement; for total commitment. Is this the last answer on the topic? No. Is
it the best answer? Certainly it is
not. But at least it provides a point of
departure for better minds than the author of this guide.
Questions
about Slavery (in case you run out of topics at your next Seder)
- Since slavery has been outlawed in
the
- Why were Southern slave owners and
their Northern apologists wrong to cite the rules about slavery in Exodus
as proof that “their peculiar institution” was Biblically and therefore
divinely acceptable?
- What does the text mean when it
says “If you buy a Hebrew servant” (Shemot 21:2)?
- When the Torah says “And then the
servant shall serve his master forever” (Shemot 21:6), what length of time
is “forever?”
- According to Shemot, when can a
servant be set free?
- What does The Talmud (as cited by
Rabbi Weisblum) mean when it says, “Whoever buys a Hebrew servant, buys
himself a master?”
How
do Jews Exercise Power?
In reading
Nachum Rabinovitch’s commentary on Mishpatim one is reminded that for centuries
Jews read Mishpatim in a vacuum. In most
places, in most times, we were a downtrodden, marginalized people. Even in places where some Jews attained a
measure of prominence, the fall from grace could come quickly, without
warning. This is not the case in Israel
or, it would appear, in the United States.
In both places Jews have enough power and authority to affect the nature
of the government and the society. It is
easy to demand a just society when you cannot make it happen because of a lack
of power. The question is how Jews
behave when they have the power. Are
they constructing a society where caring for the widow, orphan and the stranger
in your midst are driving forces and where justice is dispensed in an even
handed manner? Or are they constructing
a society where they build mikvahs that look like ritzy health spas while
others go hungry, where corner-cutting business men are lionized as pillars of
the community and where the strong prey on the weak? In which case this reading should be called
Hitpatlut which is the Hebrew word for Meanderings for as we Meander from
Mishpatim so do we Meander from God which means we continue to Meander in the
Wilderness of Spiritual Exile.
Interest
After providing
commentary about the rules pertaining to lending and interest (22:24) Rashi
provides an interesting warning about the dangers of interest. The Hebrew word for interest “is from the
same word that means ‘bite.’ For
interest is like the bite of a snake which makes a little wound on someone’s
foot, which he does not even feel, and suddenly the swelling goes up to the top
of his head. Interest is the same - he
does not feel it or even notice it until it mounts up and costs him a huge
amount of money.” (The Commentators’
Bible edited by Michael Carasik)
This is another
example of how the Torah speaks to modern man.
If people had read this and taken it to heart, how many would have
avoided the trap of credit card abuse?
How many of them would have supported government policies of fiscal
responsibility that would have kept the United States from drowning in the
interest on the National Debt? Rashi’s
comments show a very practical bent.
Could this insight about the dangers of interest come from his
experience as a wine merchant? Is this
another example of why we are told that a man should combine the study of Torah
with an occupation? To paraphrase
Hillel, the more answers, the more questions.
Slavery
We have just
finished observing the Sesquicentennial
of the Civil War. In the
course of these observances, we were reminded of the pro-Slavery argument that
this “peculiar institution” was acceptable because it was sanctioned in the
Bible. As we can see in Mishpatim, this
argument is bogus on many counts. Among
them is the basic fact that in the Bible the slave was first and foremost a
human being, one of God’s creations. In
the 19th century, the slave was chattel i.e., property. Obviously the two institutions shared nothing
in common except the same name.
Shabbos Goy
There is a
practice among some Jews of hiring gentiles to perform work on Shabbat that is
forbidden under halachah. Regardless of
whatever “fictions” have been created to allow this practice, it is a clear
violation of the spirit of the command “Six days thou shalt do thy work, but on
the seventh day thou shalt rest; that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and
the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.” (23:16). Shabbat is a day of rest so that all workers
“may be refreshed” including the stranger, not just Jewish workers. Instead of finding ways around the
fulfillment of the commandment, it would seem that we should be finding ways to
see to it that all enjoy real rest, especially in the hustle and bustle of the
nightmarish 24/7 world that we have created.
Enemies and Anger
“When you
encounter your enemy’s ox or ass wandering, you must take it back to him. When you see the ass of your enemy lying
under its burden and would refrain from raising it, you must nevertheless raise
it with him.” (23: 4&5). In the
first instance, the Jewish command about returning property to its rightful
owner is not abrogated by human enmity.
We do it because it is the right thing to do. In the second instance, human enmity does not
abrogate our responsible to care for the weak; in this, case animals. The Torah commands us to love our
neighbor. It does not command us to love
our enemy. But it does teach us not to
be consumed with anger even when that anger comes from dealing with an
enemy. These two commands are a reminder
that there should be a limit to our anger and that we cannot blame our anger on
our enemy. After all, if your enemy is
really your enemy, do you want to give him or her control over your behavior?
Goals and Objectives
Whether it is
in the world of business, the military, or improving human behavior, the planning process always
begin with setting Goals following by the setting of Objectives. Goals are those broad pronouncements that
state what it is we are trying to accomplish.
Objectives are the steps we perform to reach those goals. This is one way of looking at the connection
between the Ten spare statements found in Yitro with the welter of detailed
ordinances found in Mishpatim. Yitro
tells us what we want to accomplish while Mishaptim tells us how to accomplish
them. Broad statements are all well and
good but in the case of Judaism where we say that it is more than just a
religion, it is a way of life, these detailed commands are the way the Jews
know are to lead their daily lives so that in the end they will be reaching the
heights of Mt. Sinai.
God is in the Details
In one of his
commentaries on Mishpatim Rabbi Jonathan Sacks tells the story of the “Danish
architect Arne Jacobson who in the 1960’s designed a new college campus in
Oxford. Not content with designing the
building, he went on to design the cutlery and crockery to be used in the
dining hall, and supervised the planting of every shrub in the college garden. When asked why, he replied in the words of
another architect, Mies van der Rohe:
‘God is in the details.’” This is one way of looking at the relationship
between Yitro and Mishpatim. The “words”
spoken in Yitro (the Ten Commandments) are like the edifice of the empty
building - a beautiful edifice that cannot fulfill its mission without all of
the proper accoutrements. And so it is
with the Torah. Just as it would be
impossible to dine in the new campus building with tables, chairs, dishes, etc.
so it is only possible to live the fullest of Jewish lives if we follow the Ten
Commandments and all of the “supporting” commands that follow which reinforce
these basic statements.
Eugene Borowitz, Z"L
Rabbi Eugene
Borowitz Z"L passed away just before we began reading Yitro and Mishpatim.
I do not pretend to understand most of
what this marvelous mind tried to teach us.
But I could not help but notice that the obituaries described a man who
saw the connection between religion, religious observance and ethics. While he believed in the “internal
conversation of with God” he also “encouraged the discipline of regular
religious practice, like daily prayer and study, as well as taking action to
better the lives of other human beings.
I would submit that there would be no better of honoring the memory of
this modern day sage than by following the commands of these two weekly
portions.
Second Scroll
Special Reading for Rosh
Chodesh Adar I
28:9-15 Bamidbar (Numbers)
Rosh Chodesh is
the name of the minor holiday that marks the start of each month. The term Rosh Chodesh is translated as New
Moon. The first day of the month is
referred to as Rosh Chodesh because the months are lunar and the first day of
each month comes with the start of the new moon. In the days of the Temple special sacrifices
were brought in honor of the new moon.
With the destruction of the Temple, the sacrificial system ended. In place of the sacrifices, Jews read a
description of the sacrificial offerings, which is described in the first
fifteen verses of chapter 28 in the book of Numbers. The Torah reading takes place during the
daily morning service. There are many
Jews who have no desire to return to the sacrificial system. They use these readings as a way of providing
a connection with the past which is one of the keys to our future preservation. Because of its connection with the moon, Rosh
Chodesh is thought to have special meaning for women. There are some sages who suggest that wives
and mothers should be presented with gifts on this, their holiday. In lieu of gifts, others suggest giving
Tzdekah in their honor. The month of Adar
I is a Two Day Rosh Chodesh. The first
day actually falls on the last day of the month of Shevat. When Rosh Chodesh falls on Shabbat, as it
does this year, the special Torah reading only covers verses 9 through 15 of
the 20th chapter of Numbers.
Adar I is the 12th month counting from Pesach
and the 6th month counting from Rosh Hashanah. A second month of Adar is added to the
calendar during a leap year. In a leap
year all Adar related observances such as Purim are observed in Adar II. Adar is mentioned by name numerous times in
the Bible, most frequently in the Scroll of Esther but also in the Book of
Ezra. As reported in the Book of Ezra,
the Second Temple was dedicated on the third of Adar. According to tradition, Moses was born and
died on the 7th of the month. For this reason, officers of Jewish Burial
Societies observed 7th of Adar as a minor fast day. During the Maccabees’ war with the Syrians,
Judah Maccabee defeated the Syrian General Nicacnor on the 13th of
Adar. Purim, which falls on the 14th
of Adar, is the most famous event connected with this month. Because of Purim, Adar is viewed as a joyful
month causing the Rabbis to write, “When Adar comes in, rejoicing is
increased.”
Haftarah
Special
for Rosh Chodesh
66:
1-24; 66: 23 Isaiah
The Man: The reading is the entire last chapter of the
Book of Isaiah. This is one of the
chapters attributed to the Second Isaiah or the Isaiah of the Exile. We know nothing about the biography of this
anonymous author. He (or she for the
matter) lived during the last days of the Babylonian Exile. There are only two things we know with any
surety. First, this person was a
skillful author who could really turn a phrase.
Second, this person was humble, allowing his writings to be attached to
those of the historic prophet Isaiah.
This kind of humility is a highly valued trait in Judaism. For example, at the Seder, the Haggadah
includes the words of Joshua reminding us that originally our ancestors were
pagans. In Rabbinic writings, such as
Pirke Avot (Sayings of the Fathers), sages will attribute their words to those
of their teachers, giving them credit for any learning they might have
acquired. “Imagine a world where people
were more concerned doing the work than getting credit for doing the work.” (Author unknown)
The
Message: Isaiah offers words of comfort
as he describes the ultimate destruction of the nations who have made war
against Israel. Yes, God will gather in
the exiles and the Temple will be rebuilt.
But in the opening verses, Isaiah reminds the people that holding
Jerusalem is not enough. God demands
that we follow His laws. “But it is to
this that I look: to the poor and
broken-spirited person who is zealous regarding My word.”
Theme-Link: Usually the prophetic portion has a
connection with the Torah portion. This
is one of the exceptions when the prophetic portion is tied to an event on the
calendar - in this case Rosh Chodesh.
Verse 23 which is read and then re-read connects the observance of Rosh
Chodesh to the final redemption.
Copyright; February 2024:
Mitchell A. Levin
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