Mishpatim תשע”ט
A משפט (mishpat- mishpatim is the plural) in the Torah refers to a specific type of law, one that is logical, such as don’t steal, or that one must pay damages for injuring someone. Mishpatim are common sense laws that even if Hashem had not given them, society would have to enact them in order to function. Anarchy and chaos are the death knell of any government. All organized civilizations have basic rules of civil conduct.
And, Parshat Mishpatim starts off in a peculiar way. The Hebrew text begins with a “ו“, which translates as “And,” a word usually used to connect two ideas or concepts. But this is the beginning of a new portion!
ספר שמות פרק כא
(א) וְאֵלֶּה הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים אֲשֶׁר תָּשִׂים לִפְנֵיהֶם:
(1) And these are the common sense laws (mishpatim) that you should place before them:
What two things does the “and” connect?
Rashi provides the answer:
מסיני מה הראשונים מסיני אף אלו
Just as the first ones are from Sinai, these, too, are from Sinai.
Last week, in Parshat Yitro, Hashem gave the Ten Commandments to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai. The And, this week, connects these laws to those. Just as those ten were clearly from Sinai, so too all the mishpatim, even though they are common sense laws, also come from Sinai.
These are the Ten Commandments.
- I am the Lord Your G-d
- Do not have other gods
- Do not take the name of G-d in vain
- Keep the Shabbat
- Honor your father and mother
- Do not murder
- Do not commit adultery
- Do not steal
- Do not bear false witness
- Do not covet
The Sages tell us an interesting fact about commandment #8, do not steal. The act of stealing referred to in this commandment, is one which is punishable by the death penalty. This is derived from one of the 13 methods for understanding the Torah, called a בנין אב – binyan av. It teaches us to view the law in context. Hence, since commandments 6 & 7 adultery and murder are crimes punishable by the death penalty, #8 stealing, must also be one which is punishable by the death penalty.
What could a person possibly steal that would make him liable to the death penalty? The answer lies in a verse in this week’s portion. (Exodus 21:15)
ספר שמות פרק כא
טז) וְגֹנֵב אִישׁ וּמְכָרוֹ וְנִמְצָא בְיָדוֹ מוֹת יוּמָת
15) If a person steals another person and sells him, and he is found in his hands, he shall surely die.
One who kidnaps another human being and sells him as if he were a piece of meat, is guilty of the death penalty. This is the stealing referred to in the 8th commandment. Only a theft of this magnitude, stealing a human being, is worthy of the death penalty, nothing less.
On second thought though, maybe this crime is not worthy of the death penalty, after all, the person is alive and well. True, he has lost his personal freedom, but if he has been sold as a slave, his material needs may very well be taken care of by his master. What is so terrible about kidnapping a person that the thief is punished with the death penalty as if he has killed him?
Rabbi Shamshon Rephael Hirsch provides us with the following explanation.
Not only is the physical existence of a fellow protected by the Torah, but the whole personality, freedom and human dignity, must be inviolable in the Jewish national society. Therefore, if it becomes known to the court through witnesses, that a person treated his fellow man as though he was an object, and forcibly took control of him, took him into his possession, made him work for him, and finally sold him, this kidnapper is liable to the death punishment just as a murderer who takes physical life is liable to the death penalty.
The Torah teaches us that one’s personal freedom is the essence of his life, and stealing that from him is tantamount to physically killing him. We understand why one who takes a human life, forfeits his own right to life and must give it up, but why the death penalty for a kidnapper? Why is taking one’s freedom like killing him?
The Ten Commandments were written on two tablets, identical in size, with five commandments on each tablet. This is how the Ten Commandments were written on each of the tablets.
- I am the Lord Your G-d
- Do not have other gods
- Do not take the name of G-d in vain
- Keep the Shabbat
- Honor your father and mother
- Do not murder
- Do not commit adultery
- Do not steal
- Do not bear false witness
- Do not covet
A careful look at the commandments on the different tablets reveals an obvious difference between them. The commandments on the left tablet deal with matters that apply to man’s relationship with Hashem (#5 seems to be an exception, but that will be covered later), and the commandments on the right tablet deal with matters that are between man and man.
Rashi in his commentary to Shir HaShirim (4:5) explains, based on that verse, that there is a correlation between the commandments on the left and right tablets.
שני שדיך על שם הלוחות תאומי צביה שהם מכוונות במדה אחת וחמשה דברות על זו וחמשה על זו מכוונין דבור כנגד דבור, אנכי כנגד לא תרצח שהרוצח ממעט את הדמות של הקב”ה,
The tablets of the Ten Commandments, were like twins. With five commandments on one tablet and five on the other, each commandment corresponded to the one opposite it. I am the Lord your G-d corresponds to Do not murder, for one who murders diminishes the image of Hashem.
How is that? Hashem revealed to us in the Torah that He created man in His image (Genesis 1:27).
ספר בראשית פרק א
כז) וַיִּבְרָא אֱלֹהִים אֶת הָאָדָם בְּצַלְמוֹ בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים בָּרָא אֹתוֹ
27) Hashem created man in His image, in the image of Hashem He created him.
We know that Hashem has no physical components. Maimonides’ third principle of faith is: He is not corporeal and those who are corporeal cannot comprehend him and there is nothing that can compare to him in any way. In what way was man created in the image of Hashem?
The Sages explain that the image of G-d is manifest in our ability to make a moral choice between right and wrong. Only the human being understands the concept of good verses bad, and is able to choose freely between them. No other creature on the planet makes a moral choice. They all just follow their instincts, the innate system Hashem created in them, so they can live and survive.
The human being is the only creature on planet Earth, that must make a moral choice every moment of his day, and through every step of his life. From the first time our toddler took a toy from another child, we taught him, “Give that back! He had it first! Or, It’s not yours! When he is done with it, you may play with it.” We gave our children a myriad of instructions from the time they were very young, attempting to properly educate them in right and wrong – good and bad.
When a boy reaches the age of 13 and a girl 12, they become full- fledged adults, and must take full responsibility for all their choices.
This is how man was created in the image of Hashem. Just as Hashem has complete freedom to do as He chooses, so too man, has complete freedom to choose as he pleases. He can select the right choice, or he can select the wrong choice. It is completely up to him; Hashem does not intervene. Therefore, when a person kills another human being, he is diminishing the image of Hashem, a) by acting like an animal, and b) by killing someone who is endowed with free will – a model of Hashem.
From the moment Adam was created, he was faced with a choice. Hashem put him into the Garden of Eden and instructed him (Genesis 2:16-17).
ספר בראשית פרק ב
טז) וַיְצַו יְדֹוָד אֱלֹהִים עַל הָאָדָם לֵאמֹר מִכֹּל עֵץ הַגָּן אָכֹל תֹּאכֵל:
יז) וּמֵעֵץ הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע לֹא תֹאכַל מִמֶּנּוּ
16) And Hashem commanded man saying, from all the trees in the garden you may eat. 17) And from the tree of knowledge good and bad, do not eat from it.
Why did Hashem have to place the tree of knowledge good and bad into the garden? Why bait him by giving him a block to stumble on?
Of course, Hashem did not place the block before Adam so that he should stumble on it. Au contrair! Hashem put the block there for Adam to climb up on – to elevate himself through it. Man comprises a miraculous combination of a material body, crafted from the earth, and a spiritual soul, a spark of Hashem that is the true person. The body serves as the “space suit” for the soul so that it can exist and do physical deeds in this material world. Man has a natural desire to satisfy the urges and desires of his body, which do not discriminate between good and bad, right and wrong. When he sees a delicious doughnut sitting on the table, his mouth waters for it, regardless if it belongs to someone else, or not. He wants to eat it NOW! Without thinking about whether he is permitted to eat it or not, he would surely take it and eat it. That is exactly what animals do, for they are not able to make a moral choice. But a human being is given a soul, a mind with which he is obligated to think before he acts, and decide if the action he is about to take is right or wrong. He is obligated to ask himself a number of questions before eating that doughnut. “Does it belong to someone else? Is it kosher? Is it wormy? Is it poisonous?”
When man exercises his soul to control his bodily urges, he elevates himself above his material element, and becomes a more spiritual person. Our purpose in life, is to negotiate the infinite number of choices that present themselves to us in the course of our lives day after day, and to make the proper choice each and every time. Doing this, allows us to constantly grow in our spirituality, and become closer and closer to Hashem. The degree of connection a person has to Hashem, is commensurate to the degree of spirituality that he has created in himself, through the choices he makes. The more spiritual a person becomes, the more G-d-like he is, and therefore is better able to connect to Hashem, who is all spiritual.
Living a holy life in this world is very rewarding and satisfying, but the real payoff comes in the eternal world, the place our soul goes when we die, and leaves this world. In that world, only spirituality counts. The only measure of a person there, is his spiritual accomplishments in this world through the choices that he made in the course of his life. There, a person will experience the most sublime pleasure, a strong and deep connection to Hashem. The more spiritual the person is, the greater the connection, and the more intense the reward.
It was so that we could experience that indescribable pleasure, that Hashem put us in this world to begin with. So that we would become spiritual through our good choices, and then, reap the reward for them in the world to come. Hashem’s purpose for creating us is to give us that amazing pleasure in the world to come. We are put here first to earn it, and then it is very sweet indeed, for it is the product of our very own sweat and tears.
This is why commandment #5 – Honor your father and mother – is on the tablet with the commandments between man and Hashem. Parents are partners with Hashem in the creation of a child. Hashem has endowed them with the power to create, just like He. Why should parents have children? For the very same reason Hashem created us. To give their children the opportunity to earn that most sublime and indescribable pleasure in the world to come.
Hashem had the most amazing pleasure to be enjoyed. Before man was created, there was no one to enjoy it. To Hashem, this is no problem, He could just create someone to enjoy it. So, Hashem set up a system whereby His creation, man, could earn reward and then receive that amazing pleasure as his reward.
Hashem wants to give that reward to as many people as possible. Therefore, He commanded us to have many children, educate them in the ways of the Torah which defines right and wrong, give them the opportunity to earn and receive the amazing reward Hashem has waiting for them in the world to come.
The Talmud in Tractate Nidda 31a says:
תלמוד בבלי מסכת נדה דף לא/א
תנו רבנן שלשה שותפין יש באדם הקדוש ברוך הוא ואביו ואמו אביו מזריע הלובן שממנו עצמות וגידים וצפרנים ומוח שבראשו ולובן שבעין אמו מזרעת אודם שממנו עור ובשר ושערות ושחור שבעין והקדוש ברוך הוא נותן בו רוח ונשמה וקלסתר פנים וראיית העין ושמיעת האוזן ודבור פה והלוך רגלים ובינה והשכל וכיון שהגיע זמנו להפטר מן העולם הקדוש ברוך הוא נוטל חלקו וחלק אביו ואמו מניח לפניהם
The Sages taught: There are three partners in the creation of every person, Hashem, father and mother. Father and mother provide the physical body and Hashem provides the spirit and soul, his facial features, his eyesight and the ability to hear speak and walk, his intelligence and understanding. When it comes time for the person to leave this world, Hashem takes back his part of the partnership, and the parts of the father and mother remain before them.
It sounds metaphoric, but it isn’t. Hashem has a multitude of souls in His storage house, so to speak, ready to begin life on this planet. However, without a receptacle, a space suit, for that soul, it cannot begin its mission. A father and mother must create the receptacle for Hashem, before He can send that soul to this world. Thus, father and mother are real partners with Hashem, since He can’t do without their partnership.
This is why commandment #5 is on the left tablet. Parents are to children, what Hashem is to man, our creator.
Because every human being is a unique combination of body and soul, no two are alike, each person has different choices to make, unlike the choices of any other person on the planet. This combination of body and soul that we are, represents our unique mission in this world; to exercise our unique soul and not to let our personal earthy urges trip us up.
When someone kidnaps another human being, and sells him, subjecting him to the whims of his master and denying him the ability to express himself and his unique mission in the world, he has essentially killed that person. From a spiritual standpoint, this person is like dead, since he cannot accomplish the mission he was put here to accomplish. This is why kidnapping a person and selling him for a slave is punishable by the death penalty.
