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The lord said to moshe,
"go down, warn the
people
Not to break through to the lord to gaze,
lest many of them perish".
(Shemot 19:21)
Warn the people not to break through - when I will speak with them, lest, having risen to the level face-to-face prophecy like you, they will think that they can ascend to be close to you.
(Seforno
ibid. ibid.)
Moshe was charged: "You
shall set bounds for the people round about, saying, 'Beware of going up the
mountain" (19:12), and this is
followed by another command: "Go down and warn the people not to break
through to the lord to gaze, lest many of them perish" Moshe replies: "The people cannot come
up to Mt. Sinai, for You warned us saying, 'Set bounds about the mountain and
sanctify it" (19:23).
R. Menachem Mendel of Kotsk, explaining Moshe's reply, had sharp and scathing words to say. He explained that Moshe did not understand how an Israelite could even conceive of disobeying the Lord's word and ascend the mountain. Therefore he found it difficult to comprehend why, after the order had already been given, and Moshe has passed it on to the people, the order was repeated. Therefore the Lord answers him further on: "Go down" (19:24), in the sense of go down from you greatness 'because others are not like you and they are in need of additional warning'.
This means that Moshe was obliged to descend from that spiritual level where he was and from which he looked out upon the people, and to tell them again and again, and to warn the masses of Israel who need repeated warning, so that the words are assimilated.
(Y. Leibowitz: Seven Years of
Discussions on the Weekly Portion, (Heb.), pp. 294-295)
Hornet or teacher of torah
Yael Levin
Moshe
received Torah from Sinai and passed it on to Joshua... to Devorah
and Barak... to Hulda... to Ezra and Ezra to The Great Assembly
Rav Yehudah Edri published three books about women in the Bible. The first "Women in the Tanakh" was published in 5770; a composition devoted to Moshe Rabeinu appeared in 5771; and soon after, also in 5771, appeared "Prophets in the Tanakh". "Women in the Tanakh" and "Prophets in the Tanaakh" share the same format, and include articles about Biblical figures. The articles begin with background material about the respective figures, followed by a selection of Talmudic quotes. In "Prophets in the Tanakh", articles about Devorah and Hulda are republished, but, for some unclear reason, the entry on Miriam does not reappear.
Rav Edri's books quickly gained popularity among the general public. But there is room for criticism of his work, and this article is dedicated to examination of a selection of Talmudic dicta relating to Devorah, as an example of the problematical nature of this and other entries.
Rav Edri chose to begin the Talmudic selections with a quotation from Talmud Bavli, Tractate Megilla (14b), which looks at Devora and Hulda through a negative prism: "Said Rav Nachman: Haughtiness does not befit women. There were two haughty women, and their names are hateful, one being called a hornet [Devorah] and the other a weasel [Hulda]. Of the hornet it is written, 'And she sent and called Barak', instead of going to him. Of the weasel it is written, 'Say to the man' instead of 'say to the king'."
Rav Nachman explains the significance of Devorah and Hulda's names in the context of the animal world. Dvorah is perceived as having a negative image because she sent for Barak instead of going to him.
Further on, Rav Edri quotes the item appearing a bit earlier in Megilla (14a) regarding Dvorah's being one of the seven prophetesses. But the decision to place the quote denigrating Devorah and Hulda at the outset of the Talmudic quotes lifts more than one eyebrow, especially since it reverses the order of appearance in the Talmud itself. Thus Devorah is unjustly drawn in a negative light from the beginning, an unfortunate decision.
It seems that
Rav Nachman's critical slant towards Devorah is based
upon the Talmudic statement which uses Devorah to illustrate the perception
that when one is haughty, his prophecy departs from him: "Said Rav Yehuda in the name of Rav:
Every one who is haughty, if he is a scholar, his wisdom leaves him, if he is a
prophet, his prophecy leaves him [...] from Devorah, as is written 'Deliverance
ceased, ceased in Israel, Till you arose, O Devorah, Arose, O mother, in Israel
etc.'and it is further written 'Awake, awake, O
Devorah! Awake, awake, strike up the chant, etc.'" (Pesahim 66b).
Rav Nahman's dictum is
problematic in light of the fact that Devorah, in her call to Barak, was
executing the command of God, and this was a prophecy which had to be realized (see RaDaK loc.cit.). There is a basis for
assuming that Rav Nachman's
pronouncements resulted from his personal experience with his wife, Yilta, and
allude to her. Yilta, daughter of the Head of the Diaspora, is revealed in
Talmudic sources to be a person with strong opinions who is cognizant of her
position and values her worth. It is especially worth recalling the story in
which she broke 400 jugs of wine because Ulah did not give her the respect warranted
by her wisdom and her station, and did not send her a cup of blessing [the cup
of wine over which the Grace after Meals was recited] (Berhachot 51b).
It is
important to note that, in contrast to Rav Nachman's derasha which deprecates Devora and Hulda, in
Midrash Tehillim are found explicit expressions of praise for Devorah and
Esther, and here too the point of departure is the comparison of the women to
animals: "[...] "To the leader; on ayyeleth ha-shahar".
This refers to two gazelles, Devorah and Esther; Devora who came from the
tribe of Naftali, regarding whom Yaakov said 'Naftali
is a gazelle let loose', and Esther who was compared to a gazelle 'the gazelle
of dawn' - this refers to Esther" (22a,
Buber ed. P.180)
Continuing his
entry on Devorah, Rav Edri quotes the famous midrash from "Seder Eliyahu Raba": "'And Devorah, wife of Lappidoth,
was a prophetess etc'. And what was the nature of Devorah
that she was able to judge Israel and prophesy about them [...] I call upon
heaven and earth to testify: Whether gentile or Israelite, whether man or
woman, manservant or maidservant, the divine spirit rests upon him according to
his actions" (10, Ish Shalom ed., p. 48).
Further on in this quote - brought by Rav Edri but not
in juxtaposition to the first part, Devorah serves as
example of the possibility that the Holy Spirit can rest upon a person
according to his behavior. Devorah would urge her
husband, Lappidoth, who was uneducated, to prepare the wicks for the
In "Seder
Eliyahu Rabba" are
found additional articles and derashot in praise of Devorah.
One makes explicit reference to her Torah scholarship; she is presented as one
who taught Torah in public: "A difference explanation for 'And she was
sitting' [etc.] Just as it is not proper for a woman to be alone [with a man
other than her husband] inside the house, so Devorah would go and sit under the
palm tree and teach Torah in public. There it is written 'And
she was sitting' [etc.] between Ramma and Bet-El'" (10. p. 50).
The motif of Devorah sitting under the palm because of her strict
observance of the rule forbidding being secreted with a man other than her
husband ("yichud") is
mentioned in the section about her in the chapter on the seven prophetesses,
but the claim that she taught Torah in public is unique, as far as we know, to "Seder
Eliyahu Rabba". A
detailed analysis of this source will appear elsewhere, but it is worthwhile to
note that later in the text it becomes evident that the editor of the
compilation was personally acquainted with women who studied Torah: "Remember
how many orphans and widows there are in
Yet Rav Edri does not include the
source which teaches that Devorah taught Torah in public. This derasha
appears in the Yalkut Shimoni; no doubt Rav Edri was familiar with this source,
yet he chose not to include it. Rav Edri does mention that Devorah
was, among other things, one of the honest women of
On the one hand, Talmudic literature presents unique sources in praise of Devorah; on the other there are a few sources which are not complementary, aside from the above-mentioned two sources in the Babylonian Talmud. Rav Edri himself quotes the item in Midrash Tehillim "Dark [perhaps 'unfortunate'] the generation which has a woman for its leader" which has a thematic parallel in the Book of the Zohar": Woe to the generation which has no one to judge the people but a woman" (Vayikra 19b). It would seem that the two sources share the same ideological perception.
In contrast to
these isolated sources, there exists a line of sources lavish in their praise
for Devorah. For example, in the classic midrash Ruth Rabba, Yael,
too, is a judge; Devorah and Yael are both perceived most positively as two
judges who served concurrently (See Y. Levin, "Vatishpot Yael et Yisrael", in "Hashmiini
et Kolech). Most renowned are
the complimentary articles in "Seder Eliyahu Rabba", and even the Zohar contains delightful
articles praising Devorah; it is important to point out that the Zohar has Devorah standing at the
head of one of the women's palaces in Gan Eden (Shelach, 167b).
Noteworthy are two exceptional sources
dealing with Devorah, which would seem to preclude any doubt about her stature
and her greatness. The first includes Devorah and
Hulda in a list of those who pass on the Torah (beginning of Seder Tanaim V'Amoraim", composed in Gaonic period, 9th
cent., Babylon): "Moshe
received Torah from Sinai and passed it to Joshua, and Joshua to the Elders,
and the Elders to Othniel, and Othniel to Ehud, to Shamgar, to Devorah and
Barak, to Gideon [...] to Isaiah, to Micah Hamorashti, to Yoel, to Nahum, to
Havakkuk, to Zephania, to Jeremiah, to Ezekiel, to Hulda, to Haggai, to
Zecharia, to Ezra and Ezra to the Great Assembly" (Seder Tanaim
Va'Amoraim, K. Kahana ed., Frankfort Am Main, 5695,
pp.1-2). Another noteworthy
selection appears in "Taamei Mesoret
HaMikra", attributed to R. Yehuda HaChasid (died 1217) in which Dvorah is equated with the
matriarchs (p.
20).
From an educational standpoint, Rav Edri's entry on Devorah is disastrous, a cause for tears.
His books are widespread (in part because of special sales in "Tsomet" bookstores), but they never underwent
professional critique or benefitted from an advisory committee; it is essential
that they undergo revision. The national-religious public would do well to
avoid using these compositions until they are updated, or at least to exercise
selectivity in their use, and the educators should be aware of the situation as
described. Length considerations permitted focusing on a single female figure
in this article. It should be noted that in his composition on women in the
Tanakh, there are also other problematic entries, among them the entries on
Miriam the prophetess.
In contrast to the unreliable portrait of
Devorah in Rav Edri's books, perusal of sources
relating to her generally conceive of her as an image of splendor and example:
one of the prophetesses who arose for the Jewish nation, a judge alongside
Yael, one who passed on the Torah, the equivalent of the matriarchs, one
standing at the head of the woman's palace in Gan Eden. Dvorah is an
inspirational figure worthy of emulation, a worthy paradigm for female
leadership. This is the image of Devorah which should
always be before our eyes.
(Dr. Yael Levin is, among other things, editor of a
recently published anthology of prayer, "Sim
Shalom", prayers for the peace of he world, a compilation from 'Likutei Tefillot'", published
by "Magid" (Koren)
in Yerushalayim)
"You shall also seek out
from among all the people capable men who fear God, trustworthy men, who spurn ill-gotten
gain"
It is told that at the time of the establishment of the State, Rabbi Yehuda Leib Maimon, z"l, first Minister of Religions of the State of Israel, proposed to Ben Gurion the reestablishment of the Sanhedrin. Ben Gurion's reply was: "Let's assume that you will be able to find among the Jewish people seventy men who are "men of caliber" and also "God-fearing and men of truth." But "men who spurn ill-gotten gain"?!!
Replied Rabbi Maimon: "For money you can get that too."
"Other gods"
"You shall have no other
gods" - are they really gods? Is it not
written, "And have committed their gods to the flames and have
destroyed them, for they are not gods"? What then are we to learn from
"other gods"? But [the meaning is that] others consider
them to be gods. An alternative explanation: "other gods" - they
delay the good from coming into the world. [Translator note: The root a'ch'r' means both 'other' and 'to delay"] Another
explanation: "Other gods" - they are others
to their worshippers, as is written, "If they cry out to it, it does
not answer; it cannot save them from distress" (Isaiah 46:7)
(Mechilta, Parashat
Yitro, Mashechet D'BaChodesh, Parasha 5)
"Please do not bury me in
(Yalkut Shimoni,
Bereishit, Chap. 47, 156)
Let us now discuss anger. There is the short-tempered person of whom it is written "One who is quick to anger is like one who worships idolatrously". This is the person who becomes furious whenever his will is contradicted, becoming filled with rage, to the point where he loses good judgment. Such a person would destroy the world if only he could, because his intelligence has no control over him; like all animals of prey, he is unreasonable, and of him it is written (Job 8): "You who tear yourself to pieces in anger - will earth's order be disrupted for your sake?" It is easy for him to transgress all sorts of sins in the world if his fury carries him there, for he has no motivation other than his anger - wherever it leads him, he follows.
(Mesillot Yesharim,
Chapter 11)
Included in the widespread idolatry in today's world is a powerful reality: the concentration of all thought and activity towards the accumulation of wealth and the success of possessions. They are the mighty gods upon whom they lean, they are supported by their faith; by sanctification of their names, they deny the existence of God above.
(Quoted from the "Baal HaAkedah" by
Prof. Nechama Leibowitz z"l, in "New Studies in the Book of Shemot" , p. 234)
The names change, the multiplicity remains. Culture and civilization, nation and state, nationality and race, economy and class - here you see an partial list of the pantheon of contemporary gods. Who can deny the existence of these gods? Never had an 'idol worshipper' bowed to his god with greater sacrifice, greater faith, than does modern man... therefore, even until this day, in man's heart a war is waged - between the worship of the One and worship of the many, and the outcome of this battle is uncertain.
(From "Franz Rosenzweig: Jehuda Halevi - Anmerkungen", translated and quoted by Prof. Nechama Leibowitz z"l)
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