(18) Judges and officers you shall set for yourself in all your tribes, in all the settlements that the LORD your God is giving you, and they shall govern the people with due justice. (19) You shall not judge unfairly: you shall show no partiality; you shall not take bribes, for bribes blind the eyes of the discerning and upset the plea of the just. (20) Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may live and inherit the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
~ What are the main messages in these verses?
~ Why is this important?
שפטים ושטרים JUDGES AND BAILIFFS — שופטים are the judges who pronounce sentence, and שוטרים are those who chastise the people at their (the judges’) order [beating and binding] with a stick and a strap until he accepts the judge’s sentence (Sanhedrin 16b; cf. Sifrei Devarim 144:6).
~ Rashi up to here is explaining the text locally. From here on, notice what will happen.
~ Why do the judges need to be warned?
~ What does this mean? Why is it important?
~ What is, in your opinion, a reliable court? [Note that the Hebrew has "beautiful"] How do you know if a court beautiful? Does this applies to us today? Do we have such a choice?
~ What lesson does Rashi bring in the second part of the verse?
שופטים ושוטרים אחר המצות לההמון צוה עניני מנהיגיו והם המלכי' והשופטים והכהנים והנביאים אשר בתקונם יתוקן ענין ההמון ובקלקולם יקולקל כמו שהעיר הנביא באמרו שריה בקרבה אריות שואגים שופטיה זאבי ערב לא גרמו לבקר נביאיה פוחזים אנשי בוגדות כהניה חללו קדש חמסו תורה:
Judges and officers - after Moses had addressed a number of commandments to the people at large, he now turned to instruct the leaders of the people in commandments of special concern for them. By paying especial attention to observing these laws, the leaders, which are judges, priests, kings and prophets, maintain the people at large, and in destroying them they destroy the people at large. As the prophet warned: "The officials within her are roaring lions; her judges are wolves of the steppe, they leave no bone until morning. Her prophets are reckless, faithless fellows; her priests profane what is holy, they pervert Torah." (Zephania 3:3-4)
~ What is the influence of the leaders on the people?
(א) צדק צדק תרדוף כשתתן לך שופטים אתה הממנה את השופטים בחר את היותר שופטי צדק אע''פ שאין בהם כל כך שאר תכסיסים הראוים לדיין כמו שלמות הקנין ושלמות הגוף כענין אל תבט אל מראהו ואל גבה קומתו:
(1) Justice justice you shall pursue - When you setting the judges, you, the one who selects judges, need to chose those already known for their sense of fair play and righteousness, even if they do not have all the qualifications which are desirable in a judge such as possessions and being able bodied, just as (when the prophet Samuel was told by God when he had to look for a replacement of King Shaul among the sons of Yishai) "Pay no attention to his appearance or his height" (Samuel I 16:7).
~ What is the influence of the people on the leaders?
(ב) למען תחיה וירשת תצטרך לזה יותר בארץ כי חסרון זה ימנע הירושה בה כאמרו בעון בצעו קצפתי:
(2) that you may live and inherit the land - such qualities are of even greater importance in the Land of Israel, as a failure to comply would result in the ancestral right to that country being denied to you, as it says "for their sinful greed I was angry " (Isaiah 57:17)
~ What is the collective responsibility?
שֹׁפְטִים וְשֹׁטְרִים תִּתֶּן לְךָ בְּכָל שְׁעָרֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר ה' אֱלֹקֶיךָ נֹתֵן לְךָ לִשְׁבָטֶיךָ וְשָׁפְטוּ אֶת הָעָם מִשְׁפַּט צֶדֶק (דברים טז, יח), הֲלָכָה, קְרוֹבוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם מַהוּ שֶׁיְהֵא מֻתָּר לוֹ לֵישֵׁב בְּדִינוֹ, כָּךְ שָׁנוּ חֲכָמִים אֵלּוּ הֵן הַקְּרוֹבִים אָבִיו וְאֶחָיו וַאֲחֵי אָבִיו וַאֲחֵי אִמּוֹ וכו', לָמָּה כֵן, אֶלָּא כְּשֵׁם שֶׁהַקָּרוֹב פָּסוּל לְהָעִיד כֵּן הוּא פָּסוּל לָדוּן, וּמָה רָאִיתָ לוֹמַר כֵּן, אָמַר רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹחָאי כְּתִיב (דברים כא, ה): וְנִגְשׁוּ הַכֹּהֲנִים בְּנֵי לֵוִי כִּי בָם בָּחַר ה' אֱלֹקֶיךָ לְשָׁרְתוֹ וּלְבָרֵךְ בְּשֵׁם ה' וְעַל פִּיהֶם יִהְיֶה כָּל רִיב וְכָל נָגַע. בּוֹא וּרְאֵה הִקִּישׁ נְגָעִים לְרִיבִים וְרִיבִים לִנְגָעִים, מַה נְּגָעִים בַּיּוֹם אַף דִּינִים בַּיּוֹם, וּמָה רִיבִים פְּרַט לְקָרוֹב, אַף נְגָעִים פְּרַט לְקָרוֹב. אָמַר רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל, אַל תְּהִי מְלַגְלֵג בַּדִּין, שֶׁהוּא אֶחָד מִשְּׁלשָׁה רַגְלֵי הָעוֹלָם, לָמָּה, שֶׁשָּׁנוּ חֲכָמִים עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַדִּין וְעַל הָאֱמֶת וְעַל הַשָּׁלוֹם, תֵּן דַּעְתְּךָ שֶׁאִם הִטֵּיתָ אֶת הַדִּין שֶׁאַתְּ מְזַעֲזֵעַ אֶת הָעוֹלָם שֶׁהוּא אֶחָד מֵרַגְלָיו. רַבָּנָן אָמְרֵי קָשֶׁה הוּא כֹּחוֹ שֶׁל דִּין שֶׁהוּא אֶחָד מֵרַגְלֵי כִּסֵּא הַכָּבוֹד, מִנַּיִן (תהלים פט, טו): צֶדֶק וּמִשְׁפָּט מְכוֹן כִּסְאֶךָ חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת יְקַדְמוּ פָנֶיךָ. אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא הוֹאִיל וְכָךְ עָנְשׁוֹ שֶׁל דִּין קָשֶׁה, הֱווּ זְהִירִין, מִנַּיִן, מִמַּה שֶּׁקָּרִינוּ בָּעִנְיָן שֹׁפְטִים וְשֹׁטְרִים.
(Deuteronomy 16:18) "You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment." - Halacha: Can one sit in judgement for one's relative? Such taught the sages: These are the relatives: father/mother, brother/sister, paternal uncle/aunt, maternal uncle/aunt, etc. Why is this so? Because just like a relative is invalid to testify [regarding a person], so too a person is invalid to judge [that relative]. What did you see to say this? Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said: It is written (Deuteronomy 21:5), "Then the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister to God and to bless in the name of the Lord, and by their word every dispute and every skin affliction shall be settled." Come and see the relationship between skin afflictions and disputes. Just like skin afflictions [are examined] during the day, so too judgement [are done] during the day. Just like disputes are to the exclusion of relatives [as witnesses], so too skin afflictions are to the exclusion of relatives [as examiners].
Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: Do not mock judgment, for it is one of the three legs of the world. Why? For the sages taught, (Pirkei Avot 1:18) "On three things the world stands: On judgment, on truth, and on peace." Pay attention that if you pervert the law, you have shocked the world, for it is one of its legs. Our rabbis say: The power of judgement is fierce, for it is one of the legs of the Chair of Glory. How do we know? (Psalms 89:15) "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you." The Holy One of Blessing says: Since the punishment of judgment is fierce, be careful. From where do we know this? From that which we read on the subject, (Deuteronomy 16:18) "Judges and officers."
~ What is the first lesson of the midrash, and what is the second?
~ How do you understand "the punishment of judgment is fierce"?
This is what Scripture says, "Lazybones, go to the ant; study its ways and learn. Without leaders, officers, or rulers, it lays up its stores during the summer, gathers in its food at the harvest."(Proverbs 6:6-6:8) What did Solomon see to learn from the ant regarding the lazy person? Our rabbis say that the ant has three houses (or floors), and it does not congregate in the top (floor) because of rain, nor does in the bottom because of mud, but rather in the middle. And it only lives for six months. Why? Because anything that does not have sinews or bones only lives six months. And all of its food is a grain and a half. And it goes and gathers in the summer all that it finds, grain and barley and lentils. Rabbi Tanchuma said: All of its life is a grain and a half and (yet) it gathers these? And why does it do this? Because it says: Perhaps the Holy One Blessed of Blessing will decree life and it will be prepared for me to eat. Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai said: It once happened that they found a pit of it (an ant) that had three hundred kor (of food grains, 1 kor = 60 gallons). What they gather from the summer is for the winter, therefore Solomon said: "Lazybones, go to the ant; study its ways and learn." So to you shall fix for yourselves mitzvot from this world for the world to come. And what is "study its ways and learn"? Our rabbis say study its manners, because it flees from theft. Rabbi Shimon ben Halafta said: It once happened that a single ant dropped a grain. And all of them (the ants) were coming by and smelling it, and yet not one of them took it. The one who it belonged to came and took it. See the wisdom that there is in it (the ant). And all of this praise that it has it did not learn from a creation, and it does not have a judge or an officer. As it is stated, "Without leaders, officers, or rulers." You for whom I have designated judges and officers, all the more so that you shall listen to them, and there will be judges and officers set for you in all of your gates.
~ Why do the rabbis say we can learn from ants? What are the lessons?
~ Why do we need judges and officers?
שופטים ושוטרים תתן לך בכל שעריך כו' ושפטו את העם משפט צדק (דברים טו, יח). דהנה הקדוש ברוך הוא שופט את הכנסת ישראל בבוא יום המשפט בגודל רחמיו וחסדיו. אך צריכין אתערותא דלתתא לעורר את המדה של רחמנות למעלה. ועל ידי מה נתעורר אותו המדה של חסד, כשאנו למטה מתנהגים בחסד ולמדים זכות על כל איש מישראל לדונן לכף זכות ואז על ידי זה גם מלמעלה נתעורר אותו המדה ולמדין גם עליו וגם על כל זרע ישראל חסדים. ואם כן האדם מעורר בעובדא שלמטה השער העליון לפתוח שערי חסד להריק ברכה על כל זרע ישראל. וזה שכתוב שופטים ושוטרים תתן לך בכל שעריך, רוצה לומר שאתה בעצמך תתקן ותכין המשפט של מעלה על ידי שעריך, והוא השערים שלך שאתה עושה ומעורר במעשיך. וזהו ושפטו את העם משפט צדק, רוצה לומר כל איש ילמוד את עצמו להתנהג לשפוט את העם משפט צדק ללמד צדקה וזכות על כל זרע ישראל ואז האדם מעורר השער של מעלה ועל ידי זה יוצא בדין זכאי במשפט של מעלה, כי במדה שאדם מודד מודדין לו:
Deuteronomy 16:18. “Judges and officers you will set for yourself in your gates and they will judge the people with a just judgment.” We know that the Holy One of Blessing judges the people of Israel on the Day of Judgment, with all of God's mercy and God's lovingkindness. But there needs to be an awakening from below to awaken the quality of mercy from above. And how do we awaken the quality of lovingkindness? When we below behave with lovingkindness and find merit with any person to judge assuming the benefit of doubt, and so through this also Above that same quality will be awakened and lovingkindness will be bestowed to all Israel. And if so a person, through the work/service of below the High Gate is able to open the Gates of Lovingkindness and so all blessings will be poured out to Israel. And this is what it is written "judges and officers you will set for yourself in all your gates" - that is to say that you, yourself, are able to fix and prepare the judgment of Above through your gates, and those are the gates that you make and awaken through your deeds. And this is "and they will judge the people with just judgement" - that is to say that every person needs to teach themselves to behave with just judgement while judging the people, giving the benefit of the doubt and finding righteousness to all people, and this is how a person awakens the gates of Above and through that one receives a sentence of being innocent in the judgement of Above,
since "a person is measured by the yardsticks that person applies to others” [Megillah 12b]
~ What are the gates in this reading? Who are the judges?
~ How do our judging of each other affect God's judgment of us?
~ What is our personal responsibility in the "trial"?
Judges [shoftim] and Officers etc - we explain this through what is written in the Gemarah "the righteous are ruled [shoftan] by their inclination to good etc." (Berakhot 61b). The explanation is that the way of the righteous is that they have (internally) a rebuker that rebukes them on every action they take, it rebukes them on their faces and shows them that even in their good deeds how they are lacking, and how they did not do them appropriately (lit. according to the halakha) so as to do them for the sake of the Creator Praised Be, and this is "the impulse to do good rules them". This is not what happens to the evil ones, to whom all is upside down, since all their deeds are good in their eyes, and even the evil deeds they do the impulse to do evil shows them that they did a good thing, and this is "the impulse to do evil rules them." "Middling people are ruled by both", as the tanna says "like us, middling". That is, a person needs to strengthen oneself with these two ways, to always dispute internally regarding one's deeds, seeing oneself all the time as lacking in one's work (avodah, also worship) to the Holy One, and that one has not fulfilled one's obligation. As a person does one of the mitzvot of God, one needs to understand and comprehend very well that one did not do it with all the requirements regarding clearness (lucidity) and merit as fitting for Hashem The Blessed One, and then one will see oneself as humble and despised in one's eyes, and yet one should not, God forbid, hold oneself to be evil, because in that case one won't be able to have heart to do a mitzvah or [study] Torah or pray, and what would this be? A kosher and direct happening? [Of course not] One [in that case] despairs and says that one is not capable to do this. We find that a person needs to strengthen these two levels (internally) together so they will be perfect within oneself, as the rabbis of blessed memory say "with all your hearts - with your two inclinations", and this is "like us, middling" and "middlings are ruled by both." And this is "judges and officers you shall appoint" (Deuteronomy 16:18): a hint to the two judges spoken above which are the impulse to good and the impulse to evil, and the text designates the impulse to good with the expression "officers", since it is like the police officer who controls the people without doing them harm/evil, also the impulse to good is the one that rebukes and chastises a person with the staff of its mouth, and shows to the person what is lacking in his/her devotion. "At/In all your gates" [is used] because to every thing connected to a mitzvah and to holiness there is a gate of its own, and every thing that a person does in this world, be it Torah, prayer or some holy [act], the person opens the gate of that mitzvah, and this is "in all your gates."
~ What are the gates in this reading? Who are the judges?
~ Who are the evil people, and how are they controlled by evil?
~ Who are the middling? What is the awareness that the Noam Elimelech requires of us?
אא"ז מו"ר ז"ל פ' פ' שופטים כו' אשר ה"א נותן כו'. שידע כל אדם כי כל מה שנפתח לו מעט שער כ"א לפום שיעורין דליבי' הכל אשר ה' נותן כו' ע"ש. וגם הפי' כפשוטו להיות שופט ושוטר משגיח על כל הרגשה מפתיחת הרצון והחשק שבלב. שזה נק' שער ופתח בפנימיות האדם יהי' רק לה' בלבד. ושלא להיות ברגילות תוך הטבע רק בישוב הדעת. והאמת כי כפי הישוב הדעת והידיעה שהוא רק ממנו ית'. כמו כן זוכה להיות נפתח לו השער. כמ"ש אזמר בשבחין למיעל גו פתחין כי השבח להש"י מסיר ההסתר מחיצוניות וזה ענין פסוקי דזמרה קודם התפלה לגרש הסט"א:
My teacher of blessed memory [the Chidushei HaRim] said on the verse "judges etc that the Holy One gives you" - that every person should know that everything that opens for her/him even a little gate, every opening is according to the opening of one's heart, everything that Hashem gives to a person, see there. And also, the simple meaning is to be a judge and an officer, an overseer, of all the feelings of the desires and wishes of the heart. The heart is called gate, and the opening in the internal awareness of a person should be for Hashem alone. And one should not the immersed in one's natural instincts, one should have awareness. And the truth is that awareness and calmness of heart can only come from the Blessed One. And through this one becomes able to see that a gate was opened for that person. And so too when we prepare ourselves for the Shabbat meal with "I will sing praises to the One that opens" - because praise to the Holy One of Blessing removes the hidden from the externalities, and this is the issue in the Pesukei deZimra, which is said before the Tefilah - to separate us from the Other Side.
~ What are the gates? Who are the judges? Who are the officers?
~ Why do we have Pesukei DeZimra, the section of song, at the beginning of the morning service?
שופטים ושוטרים תתן כו'. כמ"ש כבר להיות נשקל כל הרגש שבאדם. תנועה גדולה וקטנה. במשפט אמת. ובחי' שופטים הוא בשכל האדם. ושוטרים לבטל כל השכל והחכמה עבור ציווי השי"ת ע"י יראה בחי' שוטר. ובאמת ע"י המשפט בדעת יכולין לבא להשגה זו להיות בטל הדעת ג"כ עבור רצונו ית' כנ"ל:
"Judges and officers you shall set etc" - as we said before, a person needs to examine every feeling they have, whether a small or a large movement, with true judgement. And the aspect of "judges" is the mind. The aspect of "officers" is the subsuming of the mind and the wisdom to do God's will, through Awe, which is the aspect of officer. And in truth, through the judgment of awareness one is able to attain comprehension of what it means to subsume one's mind, also in the service of the Holy One as explained.
~ Who are the judges, and what is being judged?
~ Should we judge every feeling? Why or why not?
~ What do you make of a feeling that is a small movement, and a feeling that is a large movement?
ושפטו כו' העם משפט צדק ע"פ מ"ש בס' נועם אלימלך פי' עם הארץ מלשון גחלים עוממות כו' ע"ש. כן י"ל כאן שעיקר המשפט והשגחה על הגשמיות שאין ניכר ונגלה הארה הקדושה שנגנז בה. וכן מ"ש צדק צדק תרדוף מקום שצריך רדיפה למצוא הצדק. הוא בעניני עוה"ז. שנק' עלמא דשיקרא. עכ"ז צריך האדם להאמין שיש בכ"ד הארה גנוזה כנ"ל. וע"י הרדיפה למצוא הצדק. מתגלה לו בכל מקום. והוא בתנאי שלא להתדבק בגשמיות. וזה ולא תקח שוחד כו'. שע"י הנאות עוה"ז מתכסה האמת והצדק. ומתחזק כח השקר וחיצוניות כמ"ש החושך יכסה ארץ כו':
"And they will judge the people with righteous judgement" ... One needs to say here that the essence of judgement and supervision over physicality is that the holy light hidden inside it is not recognized not revealed. And this is "justice, justice you shall pursue" - in a place where pursuing is necessary to find justice, this is particularly true in the issues of this world, which is also called the world of lies. And despite all this a person needs to believe that there is in every instance a hidden light as explained. And through pursuing, justice will be found, and will be revealed in every place. All this is provided that one does not cling to physicality - which is "do not take bribes" etc. since it is through the pleasures of this world that truth and justice are covered, and the strength of lies and externalities is reinforced, as it is written "darkness will cover the land" (Isaiah 60:2).
~ How do we bring justice to the world?
~ How does the Sefat Emet understand the externalities as preventing justice to happen? What does it mean to pursue justice?
~ Why is the Sefat Emet so keen in calling this world "the world of lies"?
שמעתי ממורי זלה"ה פירוש הפסוק (ישעיהו ס׳:ב׳) כי הנה החושך יכסה ארץ וגו', ופסוק (משלי י׳:י״ב) ועל כל פשעים תכסה אהבה, כי היסוד הוא עיקר ושורש הבנין, ואם היסוד רעוע כל הבנין נופל, כך האדם אם היסוד רעוע, כמו האדם שיש לו גסות הרוח, אז כל מעשיו הטובים נבנו על יסוד רעוע, מה שאין כן ביסוד נכון, גם השנאה ופשע תכסה אהבה ודפח"ח:
(צפנת פענח לפ' תרומה ד"צ ע"א).
I heard from my teacher (the Baal Shem Tov) regarding the verse "behold, darkness will cover the land etc" (Isaiah 60:2) and on the verse "love covers all sins" (Prov. 10:12) that the base is the center and the root of all construction. If the base is unstable and weak the building will fall. So too a person whose base is unstable and weak, such as when a person has arrogance, then all that person's good deeds are built on a basis that is weak and unstable. This is not the case with a strong base, that is able to deal lovingly with hatred and sin, covering them. And those are words of a wise mouth. (Tzfonat Paneach, Terumah, 5:36)
~ The Tzfonat Paneach ad. loc. continues "this is what is meant by 'consider from where the vegetable lives' (Mishnah Baba Metzia 10:6) - one needs to consider the source of every deed.
~ How do we judge the source of our deeds? What is your rereading of the verse "judges and officers you must set for yourself in all your gates"?