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Week 136 - Shabbat - 6 July 2002

PIRKEI AVOT: CHAPTER 4: MISHNAH 22

He used to say: Those who are born are destined to die; and those who die, to be revived; and the living, to be judged; to know and to make known so that it be known that He is God, He is the Maker, He is the Creator, He is the Discerner; He is the Judge, He is the Witness, He is the complainant and it is He who will judge. Blessed be He, before Whom there is no unrighteousness, nor forgetfulness, nor favoritism, nor bribe-taking, for all is His. And know that everything is according to the reckoning. And let not your (evil) urge assure you that the grave will be your refuge, for despite yourself were you formed; and despite yourself were you born; and despite yourself you live; and despite yourself you die, and despite yourself, will you give account and reckoning before the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One Blessed be He.

Kehati

In this further saying of Rabbi Eliezer HaKappar, man is warned that he is destined to give account and reckoning for his deeds; therefore, let him care for his soul, improve his behavior, and repent.

He - Rabbi Eliezer HaKappar used to say: Those who are born are destined to die; and those who die, to be revived - for God will raise the dead, as it is written (Dan. 12:2): "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to reproach and everlasting abhorrence." and the living, to be judged - those still alive, or alternatively, those who will be revived, are destined to be judged on the Day of Judgment (Rashi). Man is to know - in his own mind, and to make known - to others, so that it be known - in the world at large (Mahzor·Vitri, Hameiri), that He is God - mighty, zealous, and avenging (Hameiri); He is the Maker -(Yoter· connotes both maker and potter· -tr.) before whom the world is like clay in the hands of the potter (Bartenura); He is the Creator - who created the whole world out of nothing, and can do with it as He wills (ibid); He is the Discerner - who understands all the deeds of man, as it is written (Ps. 33:15): "Hayotzer - He who fashions the hearts of them all, Hamevin - Who discerns all their doings." Another comment: He is the Maker - in design; He is the Creator· - in fact, He is the Discerner - who perceives all the deeds of man even before they are effected (Remah); He is the Judge - who determines the fate of all mankind, He is the Witness - who attests to the deeds of men, for everything is revealed and known to Him, as it is written (Mal. 3:5): "And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness." He is the Complainant - who brings the sinner to trial, and it is He Who will judge - in the hereafter.

Blessed be He, before whom there is no unrighteousness, nor forgetfulness, nor favoritism, nor bribe-taking - as it is written (II Chr: 19:7): "for there is no unrighteousness with the Lord our God, nor favoritism, nor taking of bribes.” Rambam comments: and no bribe-taking - He will not accept a mitzvah as a bribe in order to ignore a transgression, but will reward the mitzvah and punish the transgression, for all is His - and there is nothing with which to attract Him; And know that everything is according to the reckoning -just as single pennies add up to a large bill, so also numerous petty transgressions accumulate into a substantial account (Bartenura; Gemara Sotah 8b). Tiferet Yisrael comments that man is rewarded or punished according to the circumstances of his choice to perform either a mitzvah or a sin (see above Chapt. 3, Mishnah 15: "And yet all is according to the predominance of the deeds"). And let not your (evil) urge assure you that the grave will be your refuge - that after death there is no judgment or punishment, for you are destined to account for all your deeds, and be answerable for your transgressions, for despite yourself were you formed - as the soul refuses to emerge from behind the veil (i.e. Heaven - tr.), the abode of purity where the souls are deposited until forcibly removed by an angel (Bartenura), and despite yourself were you born - the fetus refuses to leave the womb of its mother, for "its vision spans the universe from one end to the other," as it is written (Job 29:3): "When His lamp shined above my head," and it has to be brought out against its will (Rashi; Nid. 30b); and despite yourself you live - there are persons afflicted with suffering who prefer to die, but cannot, and despite yourself you die, and despite yourself, will you give account and reckoning before the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One Blessed be He.

Some comment: Even though you are born against your will, you cannot escape judgment on this basis, for you die against your will, i.e. you cling to life with all your power; therefore, will you give account and reckoning (Gaon of Vilna). Rambam points out that the Mishnah mentions "natural events in which man has no choice, concerning which our Sages said (Ber. 33b): 'Everything is in the hand of heaven, except the fear-of-heaven.' Accordingly it does not say: perforce you sin, or transgress, walk, or stand, etc., for all these are within man's power and there is no compulsion in them."

PIRKEI AVOT: CHAPTER 5: MISHNAH 1

By ten Sayings was the world created. What does Scripture teach us thereby? Could it not have been created by one Saying? But it is to punish the wicked, who destroy the world which was created by ten Sayings, and to give a handsome reward to the righteous, who preserve the world which was created by ten Sayings.

Kehati

This chapter presents anonymous statements arranged according to the numerical element contained in them, e.g., ten, seven, four. These are followed by anonymous sayings which begin with kol (i.e., any. or all, translated here as whoever whatever or He Who... - tr.). Our Mishnah opens with the theme of the Creation of the world.

By ten Sayings was the world created - the phrase "and God said" appears nine times in the account of the Creation of the world; the tenth saying is "In the beginning God created" as the Psalmist said (Ps. 33:6): "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made" (Meg. 21b); hence the statement that by ten Sayings was the world created. What does Scripture teach us thereby? Could it not have been created by one Saying? - so why the repetition? But - the Torah speaks of the ten Divine utterances so as to enhance the importance of the world, that it is - all the more necessary to punish the wicked, who destroy the world which was created by ten Sayings - for they tip the balance of mankind to the side of guilt, and thereby cause universal destruction.

And to give a handsome reward to the righteous, who preserve the world which was created by ten Sayings - for by their merits the world continues to exist. Alternatively: the wicked ruin their own lives, and whoever destroys a single Jewish life. it is as if he destroyed the whole world; whereas the righteous preserve their own lives, and thus it is as if they preserved the whole world (Avot de Rabbi Natan).

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