#*#*#*# (C) 2000-2005, RashiYomi Inc. Dr Hendel President #*#*#*#
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| Rashi is Simple Version 2.0 |
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VERSE: Dt10-15a
RASHIS COVERED: Dt10-15a Dt11-02b Dt11-07a
Dt10-10a Dt10-13a Dt03-23c
Ex32-10a Dt10-13a Ex20-01c Lv01-01f
==================== Dt10-15a =======================
SUCCINCT SUMMARY
----------------
One of Rashis 10 main tasks is to explain
GRAMMAR the same way modern Hebrew books
explain GRAMMAR. We call this the Rashi GRAMMAR rule.
Rashi had three broad sub-rules in explaining GRAMMAR
(1) A major component of Hebrew GRAMMAR are the rules
governing conjugations of VERBS, or HEBREW ROOTS.
There are 7 grammatical modes with half a dozen
parameters: tense, person, gender, plurality,
connective words...
(2) Another component of GRAMMAR deals with
PREFIXES-SUFFIXES and other letters, or small words,
that indicate changes in meanings.This PREFIX-SUFFIX
subrule includes the rules governing the rules of
plural, gender, pronouns etc. We are still making
discoveries of PREFIX-SUFFIX rules today.
(3) Finally a more advanced part of GRAMMAR deals
with the rules of entire SENTENCES. The SENTENCE
rules includes the rules governing sentence order,
apposition, and compound sentences
EXAMPLE 1: Dt10-15a
-----------------
Dt10-15 states
----------------------------------------------
God only loved your Fore-Fathers
and therefore he chose their progeny, YOU,
from all the nations....
----------------------------------------------
Rashi
--------------------------------------------
The word YOU in the above verse is in
APPOSITION to THEIR PROGENY. That is
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
God chose their PROGENY from all nations
God chose ------ YOU--- from all nations
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[The APPOSITION of the word YOU is easily
understood to most English users because
of the use of Commas.]
--------------------------------------------
LIST075a below summarizes this apposition and
brings in many more examples.
EXAMPLE 2: Nu05-19:22
-------------------
Dt11-02:07 is a 6-verse sentence. It basically
says
---------------------------------------------------
- I am not talking to your CHILDREN who DID NOT SEE
- Rather I am talking to YOU who DID SEE
---------------------------------------------------
The actual Full text is given below Rashi's sole
job in Dt11-02b and Dt11-07a is to indicate the
multi-verse sentence structure
-------------------------------------------------------
VERSE TEXT OF VERSE
------- -----------------------------------------------
Dt11-02 YOU should know today
You are not your CHILDREN
who did not see
- Gods greatness
Dt11-03 - the 10 plagues in Egypt
Dt11-04 - the splitting of the sea
Dt11-05 - all done in the dessert
Dt11-06 - overthrow of Korach
Dt11-07 But rather YOU SEE
-------------------------------------------------------
So eg Rashi states
---------------------------------------------
The phrase BUT RATHER YOU SEE refers back
to the phrase YOUR CHILDREN DID NOT SEE
---------------------------------------------
LIST070k summarizes this argument.
EXAMPLE 3: Dt10-10a
-------------------
The paragraph Dt10-01:10 reads as follows
-----------------------------------------------
Dt10-01:05 God told me to make 2nd tablets-
I did so and placed them in Ark
(Dt10-06:09 We journeyed; Aaron died;
Levites separated for God)
Dt10-10 I HAD STAYED in mount 40 days
-----------------------------------------------
Rashi:
-------
Dt10-10, I HAD STAYED IN MOUNT, refers to
BEGINNING/OPENING of chapter Dt10-01:05 when God
told me to make second tablets.
In other words, because of the PAST PERFECT, Rashi
views Dt10-06:09 as a parenthetical insert(The
reasons for this parenthetical insert are explained
in another Rashi---our task here is to show the
use of the PAST PERFECT)
EXAMPLE 4: USE OF INFINITIVE Dt10-13a
-------------------------------------
The infinitive combined with the
preposition TO indicates purpose
and goal. Here are simple examples
- Ex20-01c God spoke 10 commandments TO SAY
Rashi: TO SAY Back an AFFIRMATION (We will do them)
- Lv01-01f God spoke to Moses TO SAY
Rashi: God only gave prophecy so Moses could TEACH
Rashi: TO SAY back an AFFIRMATION (We will do them)
- Ex32-10a Dt09-13 God said to me TO SAY:I-ll punish
Rashi: God requested Moses TO SAY BACK to him,
a prayer, to supplicate for mercy
- Dt03-23c I Moses supplicated to God TO SAY
Rashi: Moses DEMANDED that God SAY BACK to him
an answer
- Dt10-13a God asks you TO watch commandments TO
better oneself
RASHI: That is, TO watch the commandments FOR
the purpose of improving oneself
In the last example Rashi shows how a NESTED
or ITERATED infinitive is interpreted.
These examples are summarized in LIST704a below
======================================================
ITEM DETAIL
======================== =============================
RASHI RULE CLASS: GRAMMARr
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS: APPOSITION
RASHI WORKBOOK PRINCIPLE #9
SEE BELOW LIST075a
List of verses with Use of APPOSITION
----------------------- ----------------------------
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS MULTI-VERSE SENTENCES
SEE BELOW LIST070k
List of clauses in Dt11-02:07
----------------------- ----------------------------
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS VERB CONJUGATIONS
SEE BELOW LIST703g
List of verses with PAST=past perfect-HAD ALREADY
----------------------- -----------------------------
RASHI SUBRULE CLASS INFINITIVE
SEE BELOW LIST704a
List of verses with INFINITIVE
======================================================
====================== LIST704f ============================
List of verses with INFINITIVE
============================================================
VERSE TEXT OF VERSE MEANING OF TO SAY
======== =========================== =======================
Ex20-01c Say 10 commandments TO SAY Nation affirms*1
Lv01-01f God spoke to Moses TO SAY Nation affirms*1
Ex32-10a God spoke to Moses TO SAY Moses:pray mercy*2 *3
Dt03-23c Moses prayed to God TO SAY Forced God to answer*2
Dt10-13a TO OBSERVE...TO BETTER YOU Observe FOR bettermnt*4
NOTES
-----
*1 That is God told Moses TO SAY...so that the people
should SAY BACK that they accept the commandments
*2 In these dialogues TO SAY means that either the
person praying or God wants a response
- So God threatened to destroy the Jewish people
because of the Golden calf...he told this to
Moses TO SAY...so that Moses should pray for mercy
- Moses prayed for mercy TO SAY...and insisted
that God respond to him
*3 Ex32-10 is identical to Dt09-13 except that
Dt09-13 has one extra word TO SAY. Hence we
infer that God told Moses about the punishment
in order that Moses SHOULD SAY BACK AND REQUEST
mercy
*4 Rashi here explains how to interpret a NESTED
or ITERATED infinitive
--------------------------------------------
God asks people
- TO OBSERVE the commandments
- FOR THE purpose of bettering themselves
--------------------------------------------
======================================================
======================= LIST070k ========================
List of clauses in Dt11-02:07
=========================================================
VERSE TEXT OF VERSE GODS GREATNESS
======= ===================== ===========================
Dt11-02 YOU should know today
' *1- not your CHILDREN
' --- who did not see
' - Gods greatness
Dt11-03 ' - the 10 plagues in Egypt
Dt11-04 ' - the splitting of the sea
Dt11-05 ' - all done in the dessert
Dt11-06 ' - overthrow of Korach
Dt11-07 But rather YOU SEE*2
NOTES
-----
*1 Rashi Dt11-02b
--------------
The verse creates a contrast
- You DID see
- your children DID NOT see
*2 The multi-verse sentence creates a contrat
- your children did NOT see
- you DID see
Because of the large amount of material in
the intervening verses it is easy to lose
site of the overall structure. Hence the
need for Rashi to comment.
==========================================================
==================== LIST075a =============================
List of verses with Use of APPOSITION
===========================================================
VERSE WORDS IN APPOSITION IN VERSE are CAPPED*1
======== ==================================================
Dt10-15a God chose the THEIR PROGENY, YOU, from all nations
Nu34-06a The Mediteranean Sea... is the WESTERN BORDER
Nu04-49a By Gods order were census act & CENSUSES OF GOD*2
Gn19-12b WHO ELSE is with you--CHILDREN IN-LAWS--leave city
Gn14-23a FROM THREAD TO SHOELACE...If I take ANYTHING
Ex23-33a Dont intermarry lest you SIN--ie SERVE OTHER GODS
Isa63-7 I will remember GODS GRACE--ie HIS PRAISES
Ps147-9 God gives ANIMALS food-(even) to RAVENS that pray
Gn01-29a I God give to MAN plant food---& to the ANIMALS
Lv06-13a This is the INAUGURATION SACRIFICE-DAILY MNCH
NOTES
------
*1 So the verse should be read with all the CAPPED words
brought together. For example Gn14-23a is UNDERSTOOD as
-----------------------------------------------------
If I take ANYTHING---FROM THREAD TO SHOELACE-from you
-----------------------------------------------------
*2 So the Biblical text
--------------------
he CENSUSED them
--------------------
refers to the ACT of census.
The Biblical text
----------------------
CENSUSES OF GOD TO MOSES
----------------------
would refer to the CENSUS categories, Age 30-50, that
God ordered Moses.
===========================================================
============================ LIST703g ==============================
List of verses with PAST=past perfect(HAD ALREADY...)*7
====================================================================
VERSE TEXT WITH PAST PERFECT WHY PAST PERFECT
======= ========================================== =================
Dt10-10 I had STAYED on mount 40 days*9 Refers to opening
Gn19-11 Angels HAD ALREADY SMIT people at entrance Shows breakin*8
Gn01-02 The earth HAD ALREADY been astonishing Previous worlds*1
Gn01-05 God HAD ALREADY called the darkness NIGHT Previous worlds*1
Gn04-01 Adam HAD ALREADY (sexually) known his wife Causal link*2
Gn21-01 God HAD ALREADY remembered Sarah Causal link*2
Gn25-34 Jacob HAD ALREADY given Esauv food No blackmail*3
Ex12-36 God HAD ALREADY given grace to the Jews Loaned twice*4
Gn37-36 And the MDANIM HAD ALREADY sold Joseph*5 Reversal of order
Ex24-01 And God HAD ALREADY told Moses to come up Reversal of order
Gn22-23 Bethuayl HAD GIVEN BIRTH to Rivkah*6 Rivkah 5 at Akydh
NOTES
-----
*1 The Genesis Rabbah Chapter 3, Braiitha 7 states
>God had created many worlds before this one
>He however destroyed them and it is only
>this world that pleased him.
The Midrash Rabbah learns this from various sources
but the PAST PERFECT verbs brought here are the main
source. (For example the Midrash also learns this from
the phrase
>1-1-31 & God saw all he had made and
>BEHOLD it was good
which has the connotation of
>BEHOLD it was good this time but not the
>previous times
While this is supportive it is not conclusive. The
main argument is from the PAST PERFECT verbs as
indicated above
Although the TEXT of the Genesis Rabbah 3:7 does not
seem to indicate that the creation of previous worlds
is derived from the PAST PERFECT nevertheless I found
an explicit statement of this connection between the
PAST PERFECT and the creation of previous worlds in
the Soncino Translation of the Zohar, 16a.
*2 Rashi suggests that the PAST PERFECT (HAD DONE) allows
>rearranging the sequence of chapters
thereby indicating
>causal links.
For example the natural sequence
>1-2-26:28 Intimacy
>1-4-1 Pregnancy/birth
>1-3 Snake gets Eve to sin/expulsion from Paradise
is changed to
>1-2-26:28 Intimacy
>1-3 Snake gets Eve to sin/expulsion from Paradise
>1-4-1 Pregnancy birth
The changed sequence suggests a
>CAUSAL LINK
between
>INTIMACY & SIN OF SNAKE
In other words, because Adam and Eve were cohabiting before
everybody the snake (a nickname for a slimy person) desired
her and plotted to kill Adam (by having Eve give him the
forbidden food) whereby he could marry her. Although this
appears speculative it is bolstered by the use of the PAST
PERFECT which allows a rearrangement of order.
Similarly the sequence
>1-18:19 The 3 angels
>1-18 prophecy that Sarah will give birth
>1-19 Destrucion of Sedom/Saving of Lot
>1-21-1 Sarah gave birth
>1-20 Abduction of Sarah
>1-20-14:18 Sarah saved; Abraham prays for Avimelech
is reversed to
>1-18:19 The 3 angels
>1-18 prophecy that Sarah will give birth
>1-19 Destrucion of Sedom/Saving of Lot
>1-20 Abduction of Sarah
>1-20-14:18 Sarah saved; Abraham prays for Avimelech
>1-21-1 Sarah gave birth
The changed sequence suggests a
>CAUSAL LINK
between
>Abraham praying that Avimelech should give birth
>Abraham-Sarah having a child
Chazal in fact say
>Whoever prays for his friend
>gets answered first (if he needs the same thing)
*3 1-25-29:34 describes Esauv coming home hungry and asking
Jacob for food who in turn asks Esauv to sell him the birthright.
The verses (without proper translation) appear to say that Jacob
only gave the weary Esauv food AFTER he sold his birthright. In
other words he blackmailed him into selling his birthright.
However with the proper translation the verses says
>Esauv asked for food
>Jacob asked for the birthright
>Jacob HAD ALREADY given food to Esauv.
Thus there was no blackmail. It is curious that some major
midrashim do not mention this (I in fact learned the
interpretation of this verse from my 8-th grade Chumash
Teacher, Rabbi Nathan Belitsky who taught us at an early
age that there were grammatical methods to refute slander
on Biblical characters).
*4 In other words we read the verses that
>1-12-34 the Jews exodused form Egypt
>1-12-35 they loaned silver/gold vessels
>1-12-36 they HAD ALREADY been loaning vessels
I would imagine the simple interpretation is that eg
>as slaves they loaned utensils
>they acted like they lost them
>"I lost what you gave me; can you spare me another"
>and because God HAD ALREADY given them grace
>they ended up loaning more vessels
*5 This simple but elegant example was provided by Harry
Rashbaum in my Shomray Emunah Rashi class
*6 See LIST690b for a discussion
*7 To indicate the ordinary past the Bible uses
- the Hebrew letter VAV followed by
- the future tense
All examples in the above list use the pure past which
according to Rashi means HAD ALREADY (PAST PERFECT)
*8 See LIST313t and Rashi Gn19-09b and Gn19-11a. Rashi
interprets the text Gn19-06:11 as follows
We now read the verses Gn19-06:11 as follows
------------------------------------------------------------
- Lot left the house to dissuade the Sedomites from rape
- Lot closed the door of the house
- The crowd did not listen---they tried to break in
- The Angels brought Lot into the house
- While bringing Lot in some people entered the ENTRANCE
- But Angels (re)closed the [DOOR]
- Because the angels [HAD ALREADY BLINDED] the Sedomites in
the doors [ENTRANCE]
------------------------------------------------------------
Rashi makes his inferences based on
- the contrast of DOOR vs ENTRANCE
- use of the past perfect (HAD ALREADY BLINDED
*9 Here is the structure of the Dt10-01:10
-----------------------------------------------
Dt10-01:05 God told me to make 2nd tablets-
I did so and placed them in Ark
(Dt10-06:09 We journeyed; Aaron died;
Levites separated for God)
Dt10-10 I HAD STAYED in mount 40 days
-----------------------------------------------
Rashi:
-------
Dt10-10, I HAD STAYED IN MOUNT, refers to
BEGINNING/OPENING of chapter Dt10-01:05 when God told
me to make second tablets.
===============================================================
---------------------------------------------------
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Volume 26 Number 25
#*#*#*# (C) 2000-2005, RashiYomi Inc. Dr Hendel President #*#*#*#
Volume 26 Number 25