Shoftim 2nd-4th Portions
The King
14 When
you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken
possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us
like all the nations around us,”
15 be
sure to appoint over you a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be
from among your fellow Israelites. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who
is not an Israelite.
Sanhedrin 22a:11
MISHNA: One may not ride on the king’s horse, and one may not sit on his throne, and one
may not use his scepter, and one may not see him when he is having his hair
cut, nor when he is naked, nor when he is in the bathhouse, as it is stated: “Appoint
over you a king” (Deu 17:15), meaning, ensure that his fear should be
upon you. All of these actions would lessen one’s fear of and reverence for
the king.
Sifrei Devarim 157:1
Be sure to appoint over you a king—If he dies, appoint
another in his place.
16 The
king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself [but only
what he needs for his chariots] or make the people return to Egypt [the center
of horses] to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are
not to go back that way again.”
Sanhedrin 21b:7
GEMARA: The Sages taught in a baraita with regard to the verse: “The king . . .
must not accumulate great numbers of horses for himself or return the
people to Egypt for the sake of accumulating them” (Deu 17:16): One might
have thought that he shall not have even enough horses for his
chariot and riders. Therefore, the verse states: “For himself,”
teaching that only if the horses are for himself, for personal pleasure,
he must not accumulate them, but he may accumulate horses for
his chariot and riders. How, then, do I realize the meaning of “horses”
in the verse? It is referring to idle horses, which serve no purpose
other than glorifying the king. From where is it derived that even
if the king has one horse that is idle, that he transgresses “he must
not accumulate?” The verse states: “For the sake of accumulating them,” with
the term for horses written in the singular.
SifreiDevarim 158:1
The king . . . must not acquire
great numbers of horses for himself—I might think
not (even enough) for his chariot and his charioteers; it is, therefore,
written “the king . . . must not acquire great numbers . . . for himself”—but
he may acquire great numbers for his chariot and his charioteers.
17 He
must not take many wives [beyond eighteen], or his heart will be led astray. He
must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold [but only as much as he
needs to maintain his army].
Rashi’s Commentary
He must not accumulate large amounts
of silver and gold—But only as much
as he needs for his soldiers’ pay (Sanhedrin 21a).
18 When
[as a reward for fulfilling the above] he takes [secure] the throne of his
kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law [i.e., two
Torah scrolls: one to be reposited in his treasury, and one to accompany him
constantly], taken from that of the Levitical priests.
Rashi’s Commentary
When he takes the throne of his
kingdom—If he acts thus (as
prescribed in the previous verses) he is worthy that his kingdom should endure (Sifrei
Devarim 160:1).
A copy of this law—i.e. two scrolls of the law, one that is placed in
his treasury and the other that goes out and comes in with him (i.e. a small
scroll which he carries everywhere with him) (Sanhedrin 21b). Onkelos,
however, renders פַּתְשֶׁגֶן,
copy; he thus interpreted the word מִשְׁנֵה in the sense of
repeating and uttering.
Sanhedrin 21b:20
The Gemara dismisses Abaye’s objection:
No, the ruling of that baraita is necessary to teach that
the king is commanded to write two Torah scrolls; he writes one scroll
as does any Jew, and he writes an additional scroll because he is king. And
this is as it is taught in a baraita: The verse states: “He is
to write for himself a second Torah in a scroll, taken from that of the
Levitical priests” (Deu 17:18). This teaches that he writes for his sake two
Torah scrolls, one that goes out and comes in with him at all times,
and one that is placed in his treasury.
Sifrei Devarim 160:1
When he shall sit on the throne of
his kingdom—If he does all that is written in this
regard, he is worthy of sitting on the throne of his kingdom.
19 It
is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may
learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words
of this law and these decrees
Rashi’s Commentary
The words of this law—Take it as what it literally implies.
Sifrei Devarim 161:1
It is to be with him—From here they ruled: When the king goes out to war, it is with
him. When he presides in judgment, it is by him. When he sits down, it is
beside him.
20 and
not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law [even
a “light” commandment of a prophet] to the right or to the left. Then he and
his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom [but if he does not
fulfill the commandments, he shall not reign a long time, e.g., 1Sa 10:8; 13:8,
13-14] in Israel [if his son is fit to rule, he takes precedence to others].
Rashi’s Commentary
And not . . . turn from the law—Not even from a less important command given to him
by means of a prophet.
He and his descendants—This tells you that if his son is worthy of
becoming king he has to be given preference to any other person (Horayot 11b).
Sifrei Devarim 162:1
And not consider himself better than
his fellow Israelites—And not (not rise) above
idolators.
Offerings for Priests and Levites
1 The
Levitical priests—indeed, the whole tribe of Levi [both the unblemished and the
blemished]—are to have no allotment [in the spoils] or inheritance [in the
land] with Israel. They shall live on the food offerings presented to
the Lord [the Temple offerings], for that is their inheritance [the
boundary offerings, i.e., the terumoth and the tithes].
Rashi’s Commentary
The whole tribe of Levi—All the tribe, whether they be able-bodied or
whether they be blemished (Sifrei Devarim 163:1).
No allotment—i.e. in the spoil that is taken in battle (Sifrei
Devarim 163:2).
Or inheritance—In the land (Sifrei Devarim 163:3).
The food offerings presented to
the Lord—The holy things
brought into the Temple (Sifrei Devarim 163:4).
Sifrei Devarim 163:1
The Levitical priests—indeed, the
whole tribe of Levi—are to have no allotment or inheritance with Israel—From (Ibid. 7) “And he (a priest) may minister in the name
of the Lord his God,” I know only of the priest. Whence do I derive
(the same for) the Levites? From (Ibid. 1) “the whole tribe of Levi.”
2 They
shall have no [absolute] inheritance among their fellow Israelites;
the Lord is their inheritance, as he promised them [Num 18:20].
Sifrei Devarim 164:1
No inheritance they shall have among their fellow Israelites—This is the inheritance of the three (peoples—the Kenites,
Kenizzites, Kadmonites).
3 This
is the share due the priests from the people [but not from the priests (who
slaughter for themselves)] who sacrifice a bull or a sheep [animals (as opposed
to beasts) are excluded]: the shoulder [from the knee-joint to the shoulder
blade], the internal organs and the meat from the head [with the tongue].
Rashi’s Commentary
From the people—But not from the priest (i.e. if a priest
slaughters animals for his own use he is exempt from giving these dues to
another priest) (Sifrei Devarim 165:3; cf. Chullin 132b).
A bull or a sheep—This excludes an undomesticated beast (חַיָּה).
The shoulder is the portion from the knee-joint to the
shoulder-blade that is called espalte in old French (cf. Rashi on Chullin 134b).
Sifrei Devarim 165:1
This is the share of the
priests—We are hereby taught that the priestly
gifts (shoulder, internal organs and meat from the head) are “law” (to the end
of extracting them by court order from a thief who stole them from a priest who had acquired them from ownerless property).
4 You
are to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the
first wool from the [annual] shearing of your sheep,
Sifrei Devarim 166:1
The firstfruits of your grain—We are hereby taught that the first is given only of the
choicest.
Your grain, new wine and olive oil—We are hereby taught that the first is not given from one
for the other. And just as we find that we do not give the first from
two of these kinds from one for the other, so, we do not give the first from
grains and from greens from one kind for the other.
5 for
the Lord your God has chosen them and their descendants out of all
your tribes to stand and minister [whence it is derived that the ministrant
must stand] in the Lord’s name always.
Rashi’s Commentary
To stand and minister—From here we may derive the law that the
sacrificial service must be performed standing (Sifrei Devarim 167:1;
Sota 38a).
Sanhedrin 84a:5
The Gemara asks: From where do we
derive that it is prohibited for a priest who is seated to
perform the Temple service? Rava says that Rav Naḥman says: The verse
states: “For the Lord your God has chosen them from among all your
tribes, to stand and minister in the Lord’s name” (Deu 18:5). God states in
the verse that I chose him for service while he is standing, but not
for service while seated.
Sifrei Devarim 167:1
For the Lord your God has
chosen them (the priests) and their descendants
out of all your tribes to stand and serve in the Lord’s name—We are hereby
taught that his service is valid only standing, and if he sat and served, his
service is invalid.
6 If a
Levite [i.e., a priest] moves from one of your towns anywhere in Israel where
he is living, and comes in all earnestness [to sacrifice his gift or obligatory
offerings] to the place the Lord will choose,
Bava Kamma 109b:15
The Gemara records another baraita
concerning the rights of a priest to offerings he sacrifices. The Sages
taught (Tosefta, Menaḥot 13:17): From where is it
derived that a priest may come and sacrifice his offerings at any
time and at any hour that he wishes and does not have to wait for his
priestly watch to serve in the Temple? The verse states: “If a Levite comes
from one of your towns anywhere in Israel where he sojourns, and comes in
all earnestness to the place the Lord will choose, he may
minister in the name of the Lord his God” (Deu 18:6-7).
Rashi’s Commentary
If the Levite moves—One might think that Scripture speaks of a “Levite”
in the usual sense of the word (i.e., not a priest)! Scripture, however, goes
on to state, (v. 7) “He may minister;” thus the Levites
must be excluded for they are not fit for (not entitled to) service in the
Temple (Sifrei Devarim 168:1).
Sifrei Devarim 168:1
If a Levite moves—I might think that Scripture speaks of a Levite per se; it is,
therefore, written (7) And he may minister—(Scripture speaks of) those
who are qualified to minister (i.e., the priests, who perform the sacrificial
service), to exclude the Levites, who are not thus qualified.
7 [even
if his watch is not officiating] he may minister in the name of the Lord his
God like all his fellow Levites [i.e., the priests] who serve there in the
presence of the Lord.
Sifrei Devarim 169:1
And he may minister in the name of
the Lord his God like all his fellow Levites who serve there
in the presence of the Lord—He stands upon
the floor. From here they ruled: If he sat or stood upon vessels or upon a
beast or upon the feet of his fellow, (his service) is invalid.
8 He is
to share equally [along with the priest of the watch] in their benefits [of the
hides (of the burnt-offerings) and the flesh of the he-goat sin-offerings],
even though he has received money from the sale of family possessions [i.e.,
those sacrifices offered not by virtue of the festival, e.g., the daily
burnt-offerings, additional offerings of the Sabbath, and gift and vow
offerings, the rights to which were sold by their fathers in the days of David
and Samuel, when the rotation of priestly watches was instituted].
Sukkah 56a:2
One might have thought that all
the watches should be equal even with regard to obligations that come not
due to the Festival but are brought on the Festival nevertheless, as
there were many vow-offerings and free-will offerings brought to the Temple
that were not part of the Festival rite, but simply the result of people taking
advantage of their presence in Jerusalem to fulfill their outstanding
obligations. Therefore, the verse states: “Besides the transactions of their
fathers’ houses” (Deu 18:8). What did the forefathers of each watch sell
each other? They agreed with regard to the service of the watches: I
will serve during my week, and you will serve during your week.
Each watch has the right to perform the Temple service during its appointed
weeks and to receive all priestly gifts offered during those weeks.
Occult Practices
9 When
you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to
imitate the detestable ways of the nations there [but you may learn to
understand the falsity of their ways and to teach your children, by identifying
them as heathen practices, not to emulate them].
Rashi’s Commentary
Do not learn to imitate the
detestable ways of the nations there—But you may learn their practices in order to understand them and to
teach others, that is to say, to understand their doings, how depraved they
are, and thus to be able to teach your children, “Do not so
and so because these are the religious observances of the heathens!” (Sanhedrin
68a; Sifrei Devarim 170:3)
10 Let
no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire [this
is the service of the Molek (see Lev 18:21)], who practices divination [one who
“divines” by holding his stick, whether to go or not to go] or sorcery,
interprets omens [one who interprets natural happenings as signs and portents],
engages in witchcraft [one who assigns an auspicious “time” for a particular
undertaking],
Rashi’s Commentary
Who sacrifices their son or daughter
in the fire—This was the way of
worshiping Molek. They made two pyres, one on this side
and one on the other (one opposite the other) and passed it (the child) between
them (cf. Sanhedrin 64b).
Sorcery, interprets omens—One who draws prognostications from the fact
that the bread fell from his mouth, or that a stag
crossed his path, or that his stick fell from his hand (Sanhedrin 65b;
Sifrei Devarim 171:10; cf. Rashi on Lev 19:26).
Witchcraft—Heb. מְעוֹנֵן.
Rabbi Akiva said, Such are people who assign times (עוֹנוֹת)—who say, “This time is auspicious to begin some work.” The Sages, however, say, It refers to those “who hold your eyes (עֵינַיִם) under control” (who delude by optical deception) (Sifrei
Devarim 171:9).
Sanhedrin 65b:19
The Sages taught: What is the definition of who . . . engages in witchcraft mentioned
in the verse: “Let no one be found among you who . . . engages in witchcraft”
(Deu 18:10)? Rabbi Shimon says: This is one who applies seven types of semen
to one’s eye in order to perform sorcery. And the Rabbis say:
This is one who deceives the eyes, as though he is performing sorcery. Rabbi
Akiva says: This is one who calculates the fortune of times and hours,
and says, for example: Today is a propitious day for going
away on a journey; tomorrow is propitious for purchasing property
successfully. Or he says that on the eve of the Sabbatical Years, the wheat
harvest is generally good; uprooting legumes rather than cutting them
from above the ground prevents them from going bad.
Sanhedrin 65b:20
The Sages taught: The one who practices sorcery, interprets omens mentioned
in the verse (Deu 18:10) is one who relies on superstitious signs, e.g.,
one who says: If one’s bread fell from his mouth, that is a bad
sign for him; or: If one’s staff fell from his hand, it is a bad sign;
or: If one’s son calls him from behind, it is a sign that he should
return from his journey; or: If a raven calls to him, or if a deer
blocks him on the way, or if a snake is to his right, or if a fox
is to his left, all of these are bad signs. The one who practices sorcery,
interprets omens is one who relies on these as bad signs and consequently
changes his course of action.
11 or
casts spells [“congregates” snakes or scorpions and the like into one spot], or
who is a medium [one who raises the spirit of the dead, which speaks from his
arm-pit] or spiritist [see Lev 19:31] or who consults the dead [e.g., via a
skull].
Rashi’s Commentary
Or casts spells—One who charms snakes or scorpions or other
creatures into one spot (Sifrei Devarim 172:1).
A medium—This is a kind of sorcery brought about by a spirit
who speaks out of his (the charmer’s) arm-pit, having raised a corpse beneath
his arm-pit (Sifrei Devarim 172:2).
A . . . spiritist is one who puts a bone of an animal, the name of
which is יִדּוֹעַ,
into his mouth and the bone speaks by way of sorcery (Sanhedrin 65a; cf. Rashi on Lev 19:31 and Note
thereon).
Or who consults the dead—As, for instance, one who raises a corpse, placing
it on his genitals, or who consults a skull (Sifrei Devarim 172:4; cf. Sanhedrin
65b).
Sanhedrin 65a:5
The Gemara asks: And according
to the opinion of Rabbi Yoḥanan, that a sorcerer is not listed because
sorcery is included in the same prohibition as that of necromancy, what is
different about one who consults the dead that the mishna uses
specifically that example, and not the example of a sorcerer? The Gemara
answers: The mishna chooses to mention the example of one who consults the dead
because the verse introduces the prohibition with it; the case of
a sorcerer is mentioned in the verse afterward (see Deu 18:11).
Sifrei Devarim 172:1
Or casts spells (or gathers animals into one spot and divines through them)—Whether
he gathers snakes or scorpions.
12
Anyone who does [even one of] these things is detestable to the Lord;
because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will
drive out those nations before you.
Rashi’s Commentary
Anyone who does these things is
detestable to the Lord—It does
not say, “he who does all these things”, but “anyone who does these
things”—who do even only one of them (Sifrei Devarim
173:1; cf. Makkot 24a).
Sifrei Devarim 173:1
Anyone who does these things is
detestable to the Lord—Because it is written
(Ibid.) because of these . . . detestable practices, I
might think that he is not liable until he transgresses all of them; it is,
therefore, written anyone who does these—even one of these.
13 You
must be blameless before the Lord your God [i.e., if you repose all
of your trust in him, without probing the future, but accepting wholeheartedly
all that befalls you, then you shall be “before the Lord your God,”
and his portion].
Rashi’s Commentary
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