BE CAREFUL TO OBSERVE ALL THAT I ENJOIN UPON YOU; NEITHER ADD TO IT NOR TAKE AWAY FROM IT.

(Devarim 13:1)

 

Neither add to it - [i.e.,] five [rather than four] sections in tefillin, five [rather than four] types of plant in a lulav, four [rather than three] priestly blessings.

(Rashi Devarim 13:1)

 

All [that I enjoin upon you] - This connects with that which was written above it - not to serve God with gentile forms of worship, rather be careful to perform only the commandments and the methods of worship that I have commanded you, without additions or deletions.

(HaRYShaR Reggio, ad loc)

 

Neither add to it - additional measures [beyond the sacrificial service] peculiar to the land [of Israel in order to ensure prosperity in the land].

Inasmuch as God, may He be exalted, knew that the commandments of this Law will need in every time and place - as far as some of them are concerned - to be added to or subtracted from according to the diversity of places, happenings, and conjectures of circumstances, He forbade adding to them or subtracting from them, saying: neither add to it nor take away from it. For this might have led to the corruption of the rules of the Law and to the belief that the latter did not come from God. He permitted the men of knowledge of every period, I refer to the Great Court of Law, to take precautions with a view to consolidating the ordinances of the Law by means of regulations in which they innovate with a view to repairing fissures, and to perpetuate these precautionary measures according to what has been said by [the Sages]: "Build a hedge for the Torah." Similarly they were permitted in certain circumstances or with a view to certain events to abolish certain actions prescribed by the Law or to permit some of the things forbidden by it; but these measures may not be perpetuated, as we have explained it in the Introduction to the Commentary on the Mishnah in speaking of temporary decisions. Through this kind of governance the Law remains one, and one is governed in every time and with a view to every happening in accordance with that happening. If, however, every man of knowledge had been permitted to engage in this speculation concerning particulars, the people would have perished because of the multiplicity of the differences of opinion and the subdivisions of doctrines. Consequently He, may He be exalted, has forbidden all the men of knowledge with the single exception of the Great Court of Law to undertake this...

(RaMBaM, Guide of the Perplexed 3:41, following the Pines translation)

 

 

So that you shall remember: On the Shaping of Memory

Yehuda Pinchover

It may be said without a doubt that the Egyptian servitude and the redemption from it are among the Jewish People's foundational events and are inscribed deeply in our consciousnesses. The story of enslavement is harsh. The Torah gives a succinct and objective account of the oppression, suffering, and attempted annihilation inflicted by the Egyptians upon our people. It offers no moral explanation of these events. The Egyptians work us brutally, they embitter our lives, hit us and goad us to work. Worst of all, they order the midwives and the Egyptians to kill the newborn sons. The Israelites, sigh, moan, and cry out to God from Egypt's iron furnace. And the Holy One blessed be He hears them and redeems His people.

The story is mentioned often by Scripture, and the Torah memorializes it through various commandments. We are commanded to remember it always, as is said by our parasha in explanation of the Sukkot holiday: In order that you remember the day that you left Egypt all the days of your life (Devarim 16:3).

The Torah's revealed reason for eating matzah is also connected with the Exodus from Egypt: You shall observe the [Feast of] the Matzot, for on this very day I brought your ranks out of the land of Egypt (Shemot 12:17). That reason is explained in greater detail in a latter verse: And they baked matzah cakes of the dough that they had taken out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, since they had been driven out of Egypt and could not delay; nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves (Shemot 12:39).

In their book Lo Kakh Katuv BaTorah (That is Not How It is Written in the Torah), professors Ya'ir Zakovitz and Avigdor Shenan wonder why the Torah decided to emphasize the story of salvation as the reason for eating matzah. After all, the Torah conceals an additional reason, found in our parasha: For seven days upon it you shall eat matzot, bread of distress - for you departed from the land of Egypt hurriedly - so that you may remember the day of your departure from the land of Egypt all the days of your life (Devarim 16:3). That is to say, the Torah tells us that the matzah is the bread of distress that our ancestors ate in Egypt; it would seem that it comes to remind us of the enslavement and suffering we endured there, as we recite in the Haggadah: "This is the bread of distress that our fathers ate in the land of Egypt." Even in the verse just quoted, the expression bread of distress is hidden, while the Exodus - the redemption - is emphasized. One receives the impression that when we eat the matzah, the Torah deliberately tries to leave the taste of miracles and redemption in our mouths, rather than the taste of suffering and enslavement.

Similarly, we read in Meshekh Hokhmah: "That is why it is not recalled in connection to Pesah, the Feast of Matzot, that during it God inflicted severe punishments [upon the Egyptians], rather it is only [mentioned] that God took the Children of Israel out of Egypt."

One might ask why the Torah decided to follow this policy. The author of Meshekh Hokhmah - as well as Zakowitz and Shenan - give answers to this question, but I would like to suggest a different solution. Clearly, by requiring of us to remember the story of Egypt, the Torah is setting out its opinion regarding the content of the memory; what should be remembered and how. The form given to the memory of this important event is supposed to influence our identity, our world view, and our modes of action.

I believe that we must differentiate between the memory of servitude and the memory of the Exodus - the story of escape from servitude. The memory of the Exodus appears in many places, but I would like to concentrate upon the memory of the servitude. The question is if and why the Torah wants us to recall the suffering we endured without our knowing its explanation. The memory of suffering and enslavement bears a danger within it. The memory could encourage hatred, awaken demands for revenge, or at least bring ostracization and seclusion in its wake. On the other hand, just as it is inadvisable for a person to repress traumas that he suffered in his life, it is not healthy for a nation to suppress difficult events of its history.

I believe that in order to focus on how the Torah has shaped this traumatic memory, we must proceed through a process of elimination, checking how and in what context the Torah asks us to remember the servitude by itself, without mentioning the later redemption from it. Every place where the servitude is mentioned together with the story of redemption emphasizes God's greatness and power, and the kindness He did His people by saving them. Such contexts principally bring to our attention the story of the miracles and wonders performed for our ancestors in Egypt - positive, rather than bitter memories. In addition, when memory of the suffering appears together with that of our salvation, its traumatic aspect is weakened and pacified. Consider, for example, the first verse of the Ten Commandments: I am the Lord your God Who took you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage (Shemot 20:2). The house of bondage is indeed mentioned, but the emphasis is placed upon our being saved from it.

In addition, we should differentiate between active and passive memories. Let us check how and when we are required to recall the experience of poverty, slavery, and suffering in Egypt without taking any corresponding action. Contrastingly, we can observe when and how we are required to act upon the memory of the suffering inflicted upon us in Egypt.

The Torah contains no commandment (of the kind we find regarding Amalek) to remember the Egyptians' wickedness and injustice,. There is also no rejoicing over the enemy's downfall (as the Meshekh Hokhmah points out), and there is no promise or hope for further punishment and vengeance against the Egyptians. On the other hand, at the end of the passage of rebuke, we find in the Torah the demand that we inculcate the traumas we underwent in Egypt into our consciousness in a passive form:

The Lord will send you back to Egypt in galleys, by a route which I told you you should not see again. There you shall offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but none will buy. (Devarim 28:68)

The Torah commands us to remember and internalize that the danger always exists that we will return to a state of servitude, and that there is no guarantee of eternal, unconditional, redemption.

On the other hand, we are required to act from the remembrance of the enslavement just so long as we are engaged in those commandments that are dedicated to concern for the weaker elements of society. Here the memory comes to validate such demands, as in the commandment of rejoicing that appears in our parasha:

You shall rejoice before the Lord your God with your son and daughter, your male slave and female slave, the Levite in your communities, and the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow in your midst, at the place where the Lord your God will choose to establish His name. Bear in mind that you were slaves in Egypt, and take care to obey these laws. (Devarim 16:11-12)

The commandment to love the stranger and the full equality of rights granted him are also founded upon the memory of the Egyptian servitude and of our existence in a foreign land:

When a stranger resides with you in your land, you shall not wrong him. The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of you citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I the Lord am your God. (Vayikra 19:33-4)

Our harsh memories allow us to understand that servitude is painful, wicked, and immoral. This consciousness obligates us to identify with the stranger's distress and to do everything possible to make the stranger feel like our brother.

The Jewish People has been through many traumas, but it seems that the lesson which Israeli society chooses to learn from its hard past is often partial, particularistic, and incompatible with the way of Torah. Instead of taking it upon ourselves to care for all those who are weak and who suffer, wherever they may be, the common Israeli viewpoint often focuses on seeing ourselves as a victim, a persecuted community. As a result, we hold to the opinion that "we must be strong," that "we can only depend upon our strength" and we promise that "Massada will not fall again." The Torah's way of relating to national traumas is expressed in the verse, and you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, therefore keep and observe these laws.

Yehudah Pinchover is one of Netivot Shalom's founders.

 

 

The higher man does not rejoice at his enemy's downfall, since that joy is evil in the eyes of God, and that which is evil in God's eyes should be hated. That is why it is not recalled in connection to Pesah, the Feast of Matzot, that during it God inflicted severe punishments [upon the Egyptians], rather it is only [mentioned] that God took the Children of Israel out of Egypt. However, there is no holiday for Israel that celebrates the downfall of enemies.

(Meshekh Hokhmah on Shemot 12:15)

 

The throne of Israel is established and the religion of truth is upheld only through charity [tzedakah], as it is said, In righteousness [tzedakah] you shall be established (Isaiah 54:14). Israel is redeemed only through charity, as it is written, Zion shall be redeemed with judgment and they that return with righteousness [tzedakah] (ibid. 1:27).

(RaMBaM Matanot Aniyyim 10:1, Yale translation)

 

There shall be no needy among you - For there will never cease to be needy ones in the land: A Promise? A Demand?

Regarding the annulment of loans, it is said: There shall be no needy among you - since the Lord your God will bless you in the land. Yet regarding charity - the commandment of Do not shut your hand... Rather, you must open your hand - it is said: For there will never cease to be needy ones in the land.

The contradiction between the two verses is only imaginary. There shall be no needy among you should not be understood as a promise, but rather as a demand addressed to humans. It is incumbent upon us to prevent the existence of needy people among us by observing the commandments of the annulment of loans and all the other laws of social significance. Without these arrangements, which we are required to follow, the other verse will be realized: For there will never cease to be needy ones in the land. The impoverished do not disappear by themselves, that is to say: A regime containing poverty does not disappear by itself, and its removal cannot be set upon the shoulders of He who opens His hand and satiates the needs of all the living. Rather, God demands of us to see to it that there should be no needy people in the land.

(Prof. Yeshayahu Leibowitz z"l, He'arot le'Parshiyot Ha'Shavu'a)

 

They even offer up their sons and daughters in fire to their gods (Devarim 12:31)

 

Be careful to observe all that I enjoin upon you; neither add to it nor take away from it.

(Devarim 13:1)

 

The Holy One, Blessed Be He, Wants Life, and Is Not Interested In Human Sacrifice

"Neither add to it" - because you are liable to add something which He abominates. Such would be the case were you to desire to add forms of worship of the Blessed God, for sometimes the additional forms of worship may be abominable to him, like the burning of the sons.

(S'forno, Devarim ibid., ibid.)

 

It is written Neither add to it nor take away from it. Immediately preceding and adjacent to that we read they even offer up their sons and daughters in fire to their gods. But regarding commandments in general, the Holy One, Blessed Be He, did not warn against adding laws in order to create barriers and restrictions for the protection of the Torah.

(Hizkuni, Devarim 4:2)

 

It is not sufficient that you avoid worshipping their gods in these ways; it will be a transgression if these forms of worship be directed to the one God, your Lord. For the significance of worship of their gods is the complete opposite of what is desirable to your God, just as the way of your God is the total negation of their gods. Your God is the God of Life; their gods are gods of death. Their gods of nonsense take pleasure from destruction; the desire of your God is self-elevation and renewal of life.

(Rabbi Shimshon R. Hirsch, ibid., ibid.)

 

The Connection Between "Expansion of Boundaries" and the Appetite for Meat

When the Lord enlarges your territory, as He has promised you, and you say, "I shall eat some meat" - teaches that man yearns [to satisfy] his appetite only upon excess expansion, "The lion does not roar unless he has a vessel full with meat" (Berachot 32). Therefore He said: When the Lord enlarges your territory - this will lead to the tearing away of the mask of shame from your face to the point where you outspokenly declare "I shall eat some meat". This is somewhat similar to the throwing off of the yoke of heaven and to investigate the place of sacrifices. The reason for all this is the place where the Lord has chosen to establish his name is too far from you - the closer one is to God's sanctuary, the greater is one's fear of the Kingdom of Heaven, as is written, And you shall be in awe of My sanctuary. This means that the sanctuary will be the source of your awe of the Kingdom of Heaven. The place... is too far from you distances God from your inner organs, and therefore you will constantly have a voracious appetite, and you will not be ashamed to say "I shall eat some meat", so I permit it to you, and you may slaughter from your cattle... as I have instructed you - not at all times, but only occasionally, when the appetite is overwhelming.

(Kli Yakar, Devarim 12:21)

 

A Holy People and a Treasured People: Fate, Destiny, or Challenge?

All families are presumed to be of valid descent, and it is permitted to intermarry with them in the first instance. Nevertheless, should you see two families continually striving with one another, or a family which is constantly engaged in quarrels and altercations, or an individual who is exceedingly contentious with everyone, or is excessively impudent, apprehension should be felt concerning them, and it is advisable to keep one's distance from them, for these traits are indicative of invalid descent. Similarly, if a man always casts aspersions upon other people's descent - for instance, if he alleges that certain families and individuals are of blemished descent and refers to them as being bastards - suspicion is justified that he himself may be a bastard. And if he says that they are slaves, one may suspect that he himself is a slave, since whosoever blemishes others projects upon them his own blemish. Similarly, if a person exhibits impudence, cruelty, or misanthropy, and never performs an act of kindness, one should strongly suspect that he is of Gibeonite descent, since the distinctive traits of Israel, the holy nation, are modesty, mercy, and lovingkindness.

(RaMBaM Hilkhot Issurei Biya 19:17, Yale translation)

 

 

 

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