Torah Community Connections

Week 40 - Sunday- 27 August 2000

ROSH HASHANAH: CHAPTER 1: MISHNAH 2

The world is judged at four periods: on Pesah for the produce; on Atzeret for the fruits of the tree; on Rosh Hashanah all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him like flocks of sheep, as it is written, "He that fashioned the hearts of them all [yahad], Who understands all their doings" (Ps. 33:15); and on the Festival they are judged for water.

Kehati

The world is judged - by the Creator, at four periods - during the year: on the Festival of Pesah the Creator judges for the produce - whether the produce of the year will be blessed, for at this time the produce begins to ripen; on Atzeret - the Festival of Shavuot, for the fruits of the tree - whether the trees will bring forth an abundance of fruits, or whether it will be a lean year, for the early fruits ripen at this time;

On Rosh Hashanah all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him - before the Holy One, blessed be He, like flocks of sheep - the Gemara explains, like sheep which are let out through a narrow opening, one by one, when being counted for tithing. According to another interpretation of benei maron in the Gemara, as the king's soldiers (maron from marut, authority, and adnut, lordship), as it is written, "He that fashioned the hearts of them all [yahad], Who understands all their doings" - the Gemara explains, the Creator sees the hearts of all the inhabitants of the world and understands all their doings, and judges each one according to his deeds. According to another interpretation, even though the human beings pass before Him one by one, all of them are nevertheless reviewed together (yahad) (Rashi; Bartenura). Maharsha queries this interpretation, for then the verse does not relate at all to what was taught before it, that all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him as flocks of sheep. He therefore explains that the mishnah does not mean to say that all human beings literally pass before Him one by one like sheep, but rather like a flock of sheep. For a person cannot see each sheep of a flock at one time, but only when they pass before him one at a time. However, the Holy One, blessed be He, sees each one of them with one look. This, then, is the meaning of the passage taught in the mishnah: "all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him as flocks of sheep, as it is written, 'He that fashioned the hearts of them all [yahad] (the Creator sees their hearts together [yahad], i.e., at one time, as human beings can see sheep that go one after the other, Who understands all their doings'" (the details of the doings of each individual);

And on the Festival - Sukkot, they are judged for water - for the rainy season begins at that time. The Gemara quotes a baraita: "Why did the Torah say, Bring the omer on Pesah? Because Pesah is the time of judgement (so Rashi, ad. Loc.) of the produce. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, Offer to Me the omer on Pesah, so that the produce in the fields will be blessed for you. And why did the Torah say, Bring two loaves on Atzeret? Because Atzeret is the time of the fruits of the tree. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, Bring before Me two loaves on Atzeret, so that the fruits of the tree will be blessed for you. And why did the Torah say, Pour water on the Festival? Because the Festival is the time of the year's rains. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, Pour water before Me on the Festival, so that the year's rains will be blessed for you."

Rabbeinu Nissim asks: Since man is judged on Rosh Hashanah, he undoubtedly is judged regarding all matters, his produce, fruits, and other affairs, and if everything is judged on Rosh Hashanah, why is it taught that the world is judged on Pesah for the produce, on Atzeret for the fruits of the tree, and on the Festival for water? Rabbeinu Nissim replies that for the three matters mentioned in the mishnah (produce, fruits, and water) the entire world is judged at their respective times, but on Rosh Hashanah, all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him one by one, and each individual's portion in these three things is decreed.

ROSH HASHANAH: CHAPTER 1: MISHNAH 3

On six months the messengers go forth : on Nisan, because of Pesah; on Av, because of the fast; on Elul because of Rosh Hashanah; on Tishrei, because of the determination of the holy day; on Kislev, because of Hanukkah; and on Adar because of Purim. And when the Temple was in existence, they went forth also on Iyar, because of Pesah Katan.

Kehati

During the Mishnaic period, the new month was declared on the basis of the testimony by witnesses who sighted the new moon (see the Introduction to the Tractate). This mishnah teaches that after the Court had declared the new month, messengers would go forth to distant places, both in Eretz Yisrael and abroad, to announce on which day the new month had been determined. The messengers would go forth, however, only in months in which a holiday or a fast fell.

On the following six months the messengers go forth - to distant places, to announce on which day the new month had been determined:

On Nisan, because of Pesah - so that people would know on which day Pesah falls, and consequently, they would know on which day Shavuot falls, for it is the fiftieth day after Pesah. They therefore did not need to go forth on Sivan; the messengers would go forth on Av - to announce on which day Rosh Hodesh Av fell, because of the fast - so that people would know on which day the fast of the Ninth of Av falls, for it is more stringent than the other fast days;

On Elul because of Rosh Hashanah - for they would count twenty-nine days in the month of Elul, and the thirtieth day of the count would be Rosh Hashanah, for they relied on the ruling of the Sages, that since the time of Ezra there had not been a full month of Elul (i.e., of thirty days), and they accordingly would follow the majority of years; according to another interpretation, due to the doubt they would observe two days Rosh Hashanah, the thirtieth and the thirty-first day, as is the current practice (Tosafot); however, they would have to know when Rosh Hodesh Elul fell, in order to know when the thirtieth day of the count fell;

On Tishrei, because of the determination of the holy days - even though they determined Rosh Hashanah on the thirtieth day of Elul, the messengers would nevertheless go forth to announce on which day Rosh Hodesh Tishrei had been determined, so that people would know with certainty when Yom Kippur and Sukkot would fall, and they would have a clear conscience. And if Elul was a full month, they would determine the other holy days accordingly, so that they would be observed at their proper time, as fixed by the Court;

On Kislev, because of Hanukkah; and on Adar because of Purim. And when the Temple was in existence, they go forth also on Iyar, because of Pesah Katan - i.e., Pesah Sheni, which falls on the fourteenth day of Iyar, for all those who were unclean or far away at the time of the first Pesah, and could not offer the Passover sacrifice then, offered it on the fourteenth day of Iyar, as it is stated in the Torah (Num. 9:10-11); see the laws of Pesah Sheni in Tractate Pesahim (9:1).

Some commentators note that when the Temple was still in existence, the messengers would only go forth on six months, for then they would not go forth on the month of Av, as it is stated, "When there is peace, there is not fast" (Gemara), i.e., when the Temple is in existence, the fast of the Ninth of Av is not observed (Hameiri; Tiferet Yisrael).

Return to Mishna Yomit Index

Visit the Mishna Yomit Archives