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"When a man opens up a pit" – one already dug. This possibility is included because God does not want an animal to die needlessly, and also, the animal's owner will suffer damage. (Ibn Ezra, Shemot 21:33)

Our Sages taught: One may not transfer stones from his private property to public domain (reshut harabim). A man once moved stones from his property to public domain. A chassid saw him, and said: Scoundrel, why do you move stones from property which is not yours to property which is yours? The man ridiculed the chassid. After some time, the man had to sell his field. Once, as he was walking, he stumbled on those very same stones. He said: That chassid was right when he said: Why do you removes stones from property which is not yours to property which is yours? (Bavli, Bava Kama 50b)

Scripture deals with man's responsibility for his dealings and behavior which create danger. He is called "owner of the pit", he is "owner of the mishap". And Scripture teaches us that one is liable for damage caused by his property, even such as a "pit in private domain" , For example, one who relinquiishes his ownership of his private domain but not of its pit – he is considered to be owner of the pit, and responsibility for the pit remains his."

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"Now all of the people were seeing the sounds"

Immediately following revelation at Mount Sinai the command is given: "Now these are the regulations that you are to set before them: When you acquire a Hebrew serf, he is to serve for six years, but in the seventh he is to go free, for nothing." Seemingly, this sublime assembly at Sinai, which establishes the Jewish nation as one chosen from among all the nations, incorporates in itsef a reality which condones purchase of slaves.

The midrash (Mekhilta D'Rashbi, 21:2) says: "When you acquire a Hebrew serf" – from where do we learn that when you do purchase, purchase only a Hebrew slave? Scripture says: When you acquire a Hebrew serf." And from where do we learn that when he is sold, he may be sold only to you? Scripture says: "And sells himself to you". (Vayikra 25:39)

According to the midrash, it is preferable to purchase a Hebrew slave than a Canaanite slave. The "Ohr HaChayim" explains:

Owning a slave obligates one to behave as a master, a situation which can lead to mistreatment of the other. Further on in the parasha, we find a commandment relating to strangers: "A sojourner you are not to maltreat, you are not to oppress him, for sojourners were you in the land of Egypt." The command appears in different versions in the Book of Vayikra: "But the land must not be sold beyond reclaim, for the land is mine, for you are sojourners and resident-settlers with me." And in description of the reality in which an indigent brother is sold into serfdom, it says: "For it is to me that the Children of Israel are servants, my servants are they, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt . . . " The adjacency of the subjects indicates that from the revelation at Sinai, from complete equality before God, there may evolve a master-slave reality. Therefore the Torah warns that it is preferable to purchase a 'passing' slave, a temporary one. This warning is based upon the personal-nation memory — we were strangers in the land of Egypt.

This year, our parasha is read on Rosh Hodesh Adar and Parashat Shekalim. In the Maftir we shall read about the New Moon and the half-Shekel. The Haftara (Kings II, 12:1-17) describes the Temple repairs in the reign of King Yehoash; this chapter was chosen because of its mention of the half-Shekel, the money of atonement which was to atone for Israel's souls and was donated to the Tent of Appointment. The connection of the parasha to the Haftara is relevant to our discussion.

The historical background to our Haftara: Upon the death of Ahaziah, King of Yehuda, his mother, Athaliah, murders all the royal descendents. Ahaziah's son, Yehoash, is hidden in the House of the Lord by Yehosheva, daughter of the king Yoram and sister of Ahazia. After seven years of hiding in the House of the Lord: " . . . he [Yehoyada the priest] then brought out the king's son, and placed upon him the crown and the insignia. They anointed him and proclaimed him king: they clapped their hands and shouted, "Long live the king!" Immediately after this, "Yehoyada solemnized the covenant between the Lord, on one hand, and the king and the people, on the other – as well as between the king and the people – that they should be the people of the Lord." The people smash the alters of Baal, kill his priest Mattan, and place Yehoash on the throne, "All the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet."

At this point, our Haftara begins: "All his days Yehoash did what was pleasing to the Lord, as the priest Yehoyada instructed him." At first blush, an ideal situation. Indeed, the chapter continues with a report of regulations ordering taxation for Yehoash's renovation of the House of the Lord and a description of the work: "No check was kept on the men to whom the money was delivered to pay the workers; for they dealt honestly." The Haftara ends with the heartening account of the entire nation enlisting in the endeavor – both through donation and with actual labor. But further on we read of the capture of Gat by Hazael, King of Aram, as his troops move towards Yerushalayim. Yehoash saves Yerushalayim by surrendering the treasures of the Temple to Hazael in return for peace. The consequences are bitter: "His courtiers formed a conspiracy against Yehoash and assassinated him at Beth-Millo . . ."

The Book of Kings does not provide an explanation for the tragic end of a king who repaired the Temple and did good in the eyes of God. Chronicles II helps fill in the picture. "Yehoash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Yehoyada the Priest." Yehoash does what is right only during the life of Yehoyada the Priest, but not during all of his own life. Further on, Scripture reports the king's complaint; why were the people not asked to bring the tax imposed upon Moshe (the atonement levy) to the Tent of the Pact. The people answer, "For the children of the wicked Athaliah had violated the House of God and had even used the sacred things of House of the Lord for the Baals." The King's reaction: "A proclamation was issued in Yehuda and Yerushalayim to bring the tax imposed on Israel in the wilderness by Moshe, the servant of God." Until this point, as in Kings II, an idyllic picture – the Divine service is performed, Moshe's levy is reinstated, the House of God is restored. The author of Chronicles adds: "But after the death of Yehoyada, the officers of Yehuda came, bowing low to the king; and the king listened to them. They forsook the House of the Lord God of their fathers to serve the sacred posts and idols; and there was wrath upon Yehuda and Yerushalayim because of their guilt. The Lord sent prophets among them to bring them back to Him; they admonished them but they would not pay heed." It seems reasonable to conclude that the King was under the influence of his officers, and turned to idolatry. And as if it were not enough that he does not heed the prophets — Zecharia son of Yehoyada admonishes the people — but the King also "disregarded the loyalty that his faYehoyada had shown to him"; he orders that Zecharia be bound and pelted with stones.

Scripture relates that as punishment for this conduct, Yehoash was killed by the servants of the King of Aram. "At the turn of the year, the army of Aram marched against him; they invaded Yehuda and Yerushalayim, and wiped out all of the officers of the people from among the people, and sent all the booty they took to the king of Damascus . . . When they withdrew, having left him many wounds, his courtiers plotted against him because of the murder of the sons of Yehoyada the priest and they killed him in bed. He died and he was buried in the City of David, he was not buried in the tombs of the kings." The loss of the Temple treasures to the King of Aram, and the rebellion of his courtiers, were a consequence of Yehoash's behavior.

We return to the end of Parashat Mishpatim: "They said: All that God has spoken, we will do and we will hearken!" Really? We are acquainted with the Talmud's statement: ". . . they stationed themselves beneath the mountain" – said Rav Dimi bar Chana: "This teaches us that the Holy One, Blessed Be He, [coerced them by] holding the mountain over them like a tub, and said to them: If you accept the Torah, fine, and if not – here will be your burial place." (Avoda Zara, 2b; Shabbat 88a) From this, one can conclude that it was doubtful that the declaration "We will do and we will hearken" was made in good faith. Indeed, in the Tosefta we read, "There are seven types of thief: The first and foremost is one who deceives his fellow man . . . and yet more – we assume that if he were able to deceive the Almighty, he would have done so . . . And so have we seen, that when Israel stood at Mount Sinai, they attempted to deceive the Almighty, as is written: "All that God has spoken, we will do and we will hearken" – is it possible that He was deceived by them? [To correct this impression] we are taught: "Who would give that this heart of theirs would (always) belong to them, to hold me in awe, etc." (Bava Kama, (Lieberman) 7:8-9) The Tosefta assumes that the declaration "All that God has spoken, we will do and we will hearken" was a pretense; but God, who knew that these words were uttered insincerely, was not deceived by them.

Thus have we seen that immediately following the revelation at Mount Sinai and prior to the affirmation "we will do and we will hearken" there already exists a desire for mastery. This year, as we read in the Haftara about King Yehoash and the renovation of the Temple, we see that sometimes even the king is liable be led astray by his inclination and to rebel against his master, like a slave who rules. And, in conclusion, this year our parasha falls on Rosh Hodesh. According to Resh Lakish (Hullin, 60b), the Almighty, as it were, utilizes the goat offering of Rosh Hodesh – which is referred to as "for God" (Bemidbar 28:15) in order to atone for His own transgressions. Let this be a lesson for us, i.e., that even in the highest spheres, it is known how to repair the house and to request atonement.

The message is clear: Repairs of the House do not guarantee good deeds. We need the "expiation money" at the onset of Adar in preparation for "Remember what Amalek did to you." We need the "half-Shekel" to remind us that we are not whole unless we approach together with others. Perhaps when we will acknowledge that even dwelling in "the court of the House of the Lord" for seven years, coupled with readiness to carry out an extensive renovation of the Temple, does not necessarily meet the criteria of service of the Lord; when we truly understand how difficult it is to purchase a Hebrew servant without accepting "a package deal" which includes mastery; when we learn how to say "we will do and we will hearken" without dissembling — then will the "half-Shekel" become the "money of expiation" and we will be able to do a true "restoration of the House".

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These explanations of Torah which we have established come to us by tradition from Moshe. For from their [the rabbis] teachings we learn that the entire Torah – its general rules, its details, and its fine points – were all given at Sinai. One may then ask: What are these particular laws which we call "Halacha l'Moshe miSinai – "laws given to Moshe at Sinai?" This is a basic principle, and we must probe its deep meaning. These are explications which have come by tradition from Moshe without any debate. From then until now we have found no argument about them among our sages at any time, from the days of Moshe until Rav Ashi. For example, [we find no argument in which one claims] that the punishment for removing an eye is the removal of the culprit's eye, as is written "an eye for an eye," and the other claiming he must make monetary atonement.

In general, when one has transgressed against another, what he did to the other is done to him. If he hurt another's body, we hurt his, and if he damages another's property, we damage his. But the murderer, because of the severity of his sin, cannot be forgiven, we do not accept ransom, "The land will not be purged of the blood that has been shed upon it except through the blood of him who shed it." Therefore, even if the victim were to remain alive for some hours or days, and he speaks with a clear mind, and he requests: "Leave my attacker alone, I have already forgiven him," we do not heed him. But "A soul for a soul" is imperative, with absolute equality between great and small, servant and free man, wise man and fool, because there is no greater human crime than this. And if one has destroyed another's limb, we amputate his, "as he has rendered a defect in (another) human, thus is to be rendered to him." Do not be disturbed by the fact that we now inflict monetary punishment, for the intention here is to offer ratiocination for Scriptures, not to justify the oral law; my theory regarding this law I will express verbally.

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Rabbi Yehuda bar Simon said: Moshe heard three things from the Almighty, was frightened, and recoiled. When God said "And they shall make for Me a sanctuary, and I will dwell therein", Moshe said: Master of the Universe, "Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain you!" He replied: "Moshe, not like you imagine, but twenty boards at the north, twenty at the south, eight at the west, and eight at the east, and I will compress My Presence and I will dwell among you." And it is written, "I will appoint-meeting with you there and I will speak with you".

And when He said: "Command the Children of Israel and say to them: Of my near-offering, my food . . ." Said Moshe: "Master of the Universe, were I to gather all the animals of the world and all the cattle, they would not suffice for a single offering, and all the trees in the world would not supply a single fire, as is written: "Lebanon is not fuel enough, nor its beasts enough for sacrifice!" He replied: "Moshe, not as you imagine, but "One lamb are you to sacrifice in the morning", and not two together, because I neither eat nor drink [Literally, "there are neither food nor drink before me"]. Why? If indeed there were food before me, when you spent forty days and forty nights with, and food you did not eat, and if there were food before, you would have eaten. But "a pleasing odor" –be punctilious in offering a pleasing odor." And when He said, "they are to give, each man, a ransom for his life", Moshe wondered and asked, "Who can give full ransom for his life? For it is written "The price of life is too high, and so one ceases to be, forever," "A brother cannot redeem a man, or pay his ransom to God." He replied to him: "Not as you imagine, but rather this shall you give, as this shall you give." Said Rav Huna in the name of Rav, "Shaddai – we cannot attain to Him, He is great in power . . ." (Job 37:23) The Holy One, Blessed Be He, does not inconvenience Israel. When Moshe heard this, he proclaimed "Happy the people who have it so." (Psalms 144:15) and "Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help (Ibid. 146:5)