Ilustration Credit: Rivka Tsinman
Commentary פַּרְשָׁנוּת
What’s wrong with trying to get back at someone who hurts you?
Our parashah emphasizes that we shouldn’t take revenge: לֹא תִקֹּם וְלֹא תִטֹּר (lo tikom ve-lo titor) (Vayikra 19:18).
“Lo tikom” and “lo titor” seem to mean the same thing: Don’t take revenge. Why does the Torah use two different phrases to say this?
[י] "לֹא תִּקֹּם" – עַד הֵיכָן הוּא כּוֹחָהּ שֶׁל נְקִימָה? אָמַר לוֹ "הַשְׁאִילֵנִי מִגַּלְּךָ", וְלֹא הִשְׁאִילוֹ. לְמָחָר אָמַר לוֹ "הַשְׁאִילֵנִי קַרְדֻּמְּךָ". אָמַר לוֹ "אֵינִי מַשְׁאִילֵךְ כְּשֵׁם שֶׁלֹּא הִשְׁאַלְתָּ לִי מִגַּלְּךָ", לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר "לֹא תִּקֹּם".
[יא] "לֹא תִּטֹּר" – עַד הֵיכָן כֹּחָהּ שֶׁל נְטִירָה? אָמַר לוֹ "הַשְׁאִילֵנִי קַרְדֻּמְּךָ" וְלֹא הִשְׁאִילוֹ. לְמָחָר אָמַר לוֹ "הַשְׁאִילֵנִי מִגַּלְּךָ". אָמַר לוֹ "הֵא לְךָ, אֵינִי כְּמוֹתְךָ שֶׁלֹּא הִשְׁאַלְתָּ לִי קַרְדֻּמְּךָ", לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר "לֹא תִּטֹּר".
(10) 10) (Vayikra 19:18) ("You shall not take revenge, and you shall not bear a grudge against the children of your people. And you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the L–rd.") "You shall not take revenge": How far does the "power" of revenge extend? If one said to another: Lend me your sickle, and he did not lend him, and the next day the other said to him: Lend me your spade, and he answered: No, just as you did not lend me your sickle.
(11) 11) "you shall not bear a grudge": How far does the "power" of grudge-bearing extend? If one said to another: Lend me your spade, and he did not lend him, and the next day the other said to him: Lend me your sickle, and he answered: Here it is; I am not like you, who did not lend me your spade.
- Can you see why people want to take revenge? Why might it be so tempting? Why is the Torah telling us not to?
- What are some things you can try besides taking revenge?
- How are “lo tikom” and “lot titor” different from each other? How are they similar?
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