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Surfing the Talmudic Seas
(C) Dr Russell Jay Hendel, 2000
Volume 6 Number 18
Produced Jul 6, 2000
WARNING: USE FIX WIDTH FONTS (eg COURIER (NEW) 10)
Verses/Topics Discussed in This Issue with quicky explanations
--------------------------------------------------------------
v9-7-6a New website is up. Postings on weekly sedra.
New list of Rashi rules. Many other goodies.
v9-7-6b ADVERTISEMENT for new Rashi website
Nu20-12a Moses' sin by the waters of Merivah was that he wasn't
on the level of the Patriarchs in faith. Numerous verses
are brought to prove this.
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
RASHI IS SIMPLE
GOALS: To grammatically defend all 8000 Rashis on Chumash.
METHOD:Every Rashi will be defended with a LIST of comparable cases
INTENDED AUDIENCE: Laymen, Academicians, Rabbis, Yeshiva students
COMMENTS,QUESTIONS: EMail to address below; (minor edits may occur)
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JOURNAL REFERECE: Pshat & Drash, TRADITION, Win 1980, R Hendel
NOTATION: eg v2b1-8 refers to Ex(Book 2) Chap 1 Verse 8 Rashi b(#2)
SPECIALS:...on Rambam,Ramban,Symbolism,Pedagogy,Daily Questions
RASHI-IS-SIMPLE RULES...Complete set with examples ON BOTTOM
EMAIL: RJHendel@Juno.Com,rashi-is-simple@shamash.org,
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VERSE: v9-7-6a
Hi everybody. We have lots of good news.
FIRST: The new Rashi Yomi website is up.
The ad for it is attached below
Please visit it.
I rewrote the whole Rashi database
The average posting was reduced 90%
SECOND: I have been spending alot of issues
on the word "ALL". The reason for
this is to give me time to rewrite
the whole database.
Now that I have completed rewriting
the database it is good to get back
to a richer variety of Rashi research
I will complete the "ALL" series in
the next day or two
THIRD: The 3 most serious complaints about
Rashi is Simple have been remedied
* Length(We reduced size by 90%)
* Notation (We are back to standard notation)
* Website navigation(Visit the new website)
The 4th most serious complaint is
* Why don't you do things by the Parshah
So I will try and do things by Parshah.
Chukkath is coming up with the enigmatic story
of the Forbidden waters. By coincidence I had
the privilege of hearing Rabbi Leibtag this week
who spoke about this topic (Rabbi Leibtag is a
noted author of Rashi and publishes his own email
So he interested me in the topic. I have my own
slant on the topic which I will present.
This will also give us the opportunity to explain
the difference between "my" approach and the
"approach" of other people.
FOURTH: I am going to start spending more time answering
questions even if it means reducing the number
of new Rashis. There is no law that I have to
finish all of Rashi in 10 years. If I take 12-15
years and answer questions it will be better.
Russell Jay Hendel; Moderator Rashi is Simple
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VERSE: Announcement
Its new
Its cute
Its Punchy
Its
Come visit us at
http://www.RashiYomi.Com/
Our goal is the explanation of all 7800 Rashis on Chumash as simple
and grammatical We also host the 10 YEAR AYELET RASHI YOMI SERIES,
now in its 3rd month You can browse all 100 or so Rashi Yomis on line.
Formerly at http://www.shamash.org/rashi, our new website is vastly
improved. The 3 main complaints on our version 1 website have been
remedied
* BREVITY: Posting size was reduced a wopping 90%
* NOTATION: Biblical notation is used: eg Ex13-03a
* NAVIGATION: A One page website with pulldowns to other postings
Here are some sample rashis
From our OTHER VERSE page we have the following Rashi on Gn35-22a
--------------------------------------------------------------------
It explicitly says (Gn49-04)
..you PLAYED with your father's bedS
Hence we are forced to say that Reuven did NOT sleep with Bilhah
but rather tried to discourage his father from moving in with her
(by rearranging bedspreads)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
From our DOUBLE PARSHAH series we have the Rashi
--------------------------------------------------------------------
EXAMPLE 2
---------
Ex21-13 Whoever hits a man & he dies,is punished with death
Lv24-17 A MAN hits a soul is punished with death
*1 *2 *3
NOTES
-----
The 3 differences above show 3 prerequisites to using a
death penalty.
*1--shows the murderer must be an adult (male or female)
*2--shows the murder victim must be viable (not a still born)
*3--shows that a death penalty only applies if the blow was lethal
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Come experience the flavor of crisp Briskian distinctions,
simmered to taste in the finest database engines,
sauteed with the finest Rashiian puns and wit.
Refresh your evenings with the springwater clarity of pure
simple explanations.
Come visit Rashi, King of commentators. FAQ: Rashi was the first
lawgiver to accomplish a revolution thru phrases and words. All
previous lawgivers from Moses thru the Geonim used the "book and
chapter" as vehicles of presenting law. Rashi was the first to
implement the Joshuan tradition of presenting law thru murmurs,
utterances, and phrases (cf Jos 1:8) Aren't you a bit curious how
a few words can change our understanding of God the Bible and Jewish
law? Won't you visit our Rashi database at
http://www.RashiYomi.Com/
Raise Praises
To He who Gallops thru History in clouds of dust
Whose reputation is
What I said will be
Dance wildly before Him
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
VERSE: Nu20-12a
---------------------------------
RASHIS COVERED IN THIS POSTING
---------------------------------
RASHI RULE USED
======== ============
Ex05-22a THE SENTENCE
Ex06-01a OTHER VERSES
Ex06-03b GRAMMAR
Ex17-04a NEW MEANINGS
Ex17-05a DOUBLE PARSHAS
Nu11-22a OVERALL STRUCTURE
Nu20-12a OVERALL STRUCTURE
---------------------------------
Nu20 relates the story of the "Waters of Merivah". Recall
that the Jews complained about lack of water. God promised
to give the Jews water and asked Moses to speak to the
rock to give them water. But Moses angrily insulted the
Jews in speaking to the rock. God's enigmatic response in
Nu20-12a is
Since you did NOT BELIEVE in me, therefore
you will not lead the Jews into Israel
The simple meaning of this verse is that Moses did not
have enough BELIEF in God. To justify this we make a
{LIST} of all incidents where Moses did not believe in
God Notice that this {LIST} cannot be made with a CD
ROM. You have to know where Moses did not believe in God
{LIST1} {Incidents where Moses did not believe in God}
VERSE INCIDENT TEXT
======== =========================== ============================
Ex05-22a Pharoh worsened the slavery Why did you mistreat Jews
Ex17-04a People had no water They will kill me
Nu11-11 People didnt like Manna Why did you mistreat me
Nu11-22a God promises meat to Jews Can you give meat to 600,000
Nu20-12a People had no water Moses insults Jews(Nu20-10)
A glance at this list shows that Moses constantly doubted
God and complained. We easily understand God's response
Nu20-12a Because you did NOT BELIEVE in me
therefore you will not bring the Jews
into Israel
In other words the reference of "you did NOT BELIEVE IN ME"
is a reference to the continuous doubts, slander and complaints
of Moses on the Jews
The technique used here is the technique of OVERALL STRUCTURE
It is the OVERALL impression of all these verses that gives
rise to the conclusion that Moses did not believe in God.
No one verse by itself would lead us to that conclusion.
For example on Nu11-22a Rashi brings 2 interpretations of
the verse (one interpretation says Moses doubted God while
the other avoids this). True...one can interpret any particular
verse so as to avoid ascribing doubt to Moses. But the overall
structure of all 5 incidents clearly shows Moses had doubts.
Thus Rashi is using this overall structure.
This interpretation is supported BOTH by the language of
the Bible and the Rashis on the verses. Let us now go over
each of the above 5 examples
EXAMPLE 1: Ex05-22a
---------
God sent Moses to Pharoh with signs. But Pharoh besides NOT
LISTENING TO MOSES, in fact increased the slavery workload
of the Jews. Moses complains
>Ex05-22a WHY did you mistreat this nation
WHY did you send me
>RASHI: The repeated KEYWORD "WHY" creates a BULLET LIKE
Structure emphasizing two points
* WHY are the Jews being mistreated
* WHY did you send me (I now look like a fool)
The idea that KEYWORDS can create a bullet like structure
was developed in Ex18-01d with half a dozen examples
Gods response to Moses as well as Rashis comments clearly
show a lack of faith in Moses Here is Gods response
EXAMPLE 1 continued: Ex06-01a
--------------------
>Ex06-01a You will see what I do to Pharoh
>Rashi: You,Moses, have doubts and are not like the Patriarchs
Rashi uses the technique of OTHER VERSES. For in the next 3
verses it says explicitly
Ex06-02:03 The patriarchs just knew me by my attributes
of Power. They did not know me by my attribute of
"making things happen" *1 They did not require
proof or explanation but you do.
We can appreciate this with a {LIST} comparing Moses to
Abraham in comparable situations
{LIST2} {Comparison of reactions of Moses and Abraham to God}
INCIDENT VERSE ABRAHAM VERSE MOSES
====================== ======= =============== ======= ==========
Fear of being murdered Gn12-12 Didn't complain Ex17-04 complained
Promise to save Jews Gn15 Didn't complain Ex05-22 complained
Rediculous Promise Gn15-06 Believed in God Ex05 ---------
In other words BOTH Abraham and Moses felt they were going
to be murdered--but ONLY Moses complained to God. Both Abraham
and Moses were promised the salvation of the Jews and did not
see it fulfilled but ONLY Moses complained. God promised Moses
to deliver the Jews but it never says that Moses BELIEVED GOD
God promised to make Abraham a great nation and it says that
he believed in God.
The picture is clear---as Rashi says
"You Moses have doubts and are not like the Patriarchs"
EXAMPLE 2: Ex17-04a
--------------------
The Jews lacked water and complained to Moses. Moses in
turn complained to God
>Ex17-04a IN A LITTLE BIT they will kill me
>RASHI: The Hebrew phrase A LITTLE (mat) MORE (OD) means
in a LITTLE BIT.
Rashi is using the technique of NEW MEANINGS. The two words
LITTLE (maat) and MORE (OD) form a new phrase LITTLE MORE
which means in a LITTLE BIT or in a LITTLE WHILE. This
phrase only occurs 5 times in the Bible and in each case
it means the same thing.
Again Gods response and Rashis comments clearly show that
Moses lacked faith.
{LIST3} {The 5 verses with the words A LITTLE BIT}
VERSE: TEXT WITH THE PHRASE "A LITTLE BIT"
======= ===================================
Ex17-04 IN A LITTLE BIT they will stone me
Is10-25 IN A LITTLE BIT there will be destructive anger
Is29-17 IN A LITTLE BIT Lebanon will become like a rich meadow
Jr51-33 IN A LITTLE BIT Babylon will be threshed
Hs01-04 IN A LITTLE BIT I will avenge Yizriel
Here is Gods response to Moses on his fear of being
murdered
EXAMPLE 2 CONTINUED: Ex17-05a
-----------------------------
>Ex17-05a Go before the nation and ...I will give them water
>RASHI: go BEFORE the nation..let us see if anyone will kill you
Rashis comments gain significance when we compare the verses
where Moses is commanded to do something. THIS IS THE ONLY
VERSE WHERE GOD EXPLICITLY SAYS "GO BEFORE THE NATION".
-------------------------------------------------------------
{LIST4} {Commands of God to Moses. In only 1 verse does
God say GO BEFORE THE NATION}
VERSE TEXT
======= ===========
Nu27-18 Take Joshua *2
Nu25-04 Take the leaders and hang them
Nu20-08 Take the stick *2
Nu08-01 Take Aaron *2
Nu08-06 Take the levites
Nu03-45 Take the levites
Ex17-05 GO BEFORE THE NATION & Take the elders
Ex16-33 Take a thermos of manna
---------------------------------------------------------------
Thus Rashi is using the technique of DOUBLE PARSHAS. The
alignment of these verses clearly shows hidden nuances
in the phrase GO BEFORE THE NATION
In conclusion Both God and Rashi exhibit numerous times
when Moses had doubt. It is because of this overall
structure that Rashi interprets Nu11-22a as meaning
that Moses had doubt. Indeed Moses says
Can you give food to 600000 people
And God responds
Does MY(God) hand lack power
Thus we see that the tone of the verses clearly
says that Moses had doubts.
SUMMARY
=======
Throughout the wilderness Moses showed doubts and bitterness
when dealing with the Jews--he was not on the level of the
Patriarchs. God did not punish him earlier since his doubts
were private. But in Nu20 Moses publicly insulted the Jews
(He called them "rebellious" and there only crime was to
want water). So God punished Moses
Nu20-12a "Since you are not on the level of
faith of the Patriarchs therefore you will not
lead the people into Israel."
NOTES
-----
*1 This Rashi is learned from the conjugation of grammatical
roots. As Rashi himself says
It uses the passive not the active mode. It doesn't
say "I didn't tell them" my name "IT WILL BE" but
rather "I wasn't KNOWN to them" by the name IT WILL
BE. In other words they didn't directly experience
this name--I made promises but did not fulfill it
in their lifetime.
Thus Rashi uses the principle of GRAMMAR.
*2 In these verses it says GATHER THE NATION.
But it does not say GO BEFORE THE NATION.
Furthermore in Ex17-05 it says BOTH
GATHER THE NATION and GO BEFORE THE NATION
Thus indeed GO BEFORE THE NATION
#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*# (C) Dr Hendel, 2000 *#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*
THE 2 DOZEN RASHI-IS-SIMPLE RASHI RULES
=======================================
I: RASHI gives MEANING
======================
A: NEW MEANINGS--(eg)"on the face of"=during the lifetime
Volume 2 Number 9, http://www.rashiyomi.Com/Nu04-04a.htm
B: SPECIAL WORDS--(eg)ACH=USUALLY;USUALLY observe shabbath!
Rashi Yomi Summaries,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ach-6.htm
C: SYNONYMS--(eg)AMR=to speak; DBR=to cite or to quote;
Volume 2 Number 1, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Lv20-02a.htm
D: WORD MEANINGS-Thermos(TzNTzNTh)=doubly(TZN TZN) Cold(TZN)
Volume 1 Number 9,23,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex31-15a.htm
E: UNIFIED MEANINGS-PAAM=Repeated action:To Ring,Hammer,Step
Volume 1 Number 3,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn41-08a.htm
II: RASHI teaches GRAMMAR/STYLE
===============================
F: CLASSICAL GRAMMAR--(eg)QUESTION = HEY+CHATAF PATACH
Volume 3 Number 22,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn04-09z.htm
G: USAGE(NEW GRAMMAR)--(eg)INFINITIVE="be involved in";
Volume 5 Number 24,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex13-03a.htm
H: ROOT+PREPOSITION--(eg)ChZK B="to hold";ChZK M="overpower"
Volume 1 Number 7,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex04-04a.htm
I: THE SENTENCE--2 verses can make 1 sentence-eg Dt02-16:17
Volume 3 Number 7,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt19-06a.htm
J: STYLE--REPETITION denotes Endearment;eg 'Jacob Jacob'
Volume 1 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Gn46-02a.htm
K: DOUBLE NOUNS--(eg)"GIVE GIVE";if not CHARITY then LOAN
Double Noun page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/DN.htm
L: PRONOUNS-(eg)IMCHAH=with you; ITCHAH=Accompanying you;
Volume 3 Number 13,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Ex22-24c.htm
III: OVERALL TEXTUAL STRUCTURE
==============================
M: OTHER VERSES--Aaron SAW(Ex32-05)...the brawl(Ex32-18)
OTHER VERSE page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/ov.htm
N: EXTRA SENTENCES-eg[GIVE HIM][WHAT HE NEEDS](Not if rich)
Volume 2 Number 20,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt15-08c.htm
O: DOUBLE PARSHAS-'he WILL pray'-'he WON'T pray';So Optional
Volume 3 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt24-14a.htm
P: CLIMAX-(eg Dt19-11)(a)Hate, (b)spy, (c)confront,(d)Murder
Climax Page, http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Climax.htm
Q: OVERALL STRUCTURE-growing nails=despisement(from context)
Volume 3 Number 8,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt21-11a.htm
R: SPREADSHEETS-What is the marriage loophole in inheritance
Volume 2 Number 23,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Nu36-03a.htm
IV: BEYOND THE TEXT
===================
S: MORAL LESSONS/REASONS-God explains BEFORE punishing;
Volume 2 Number 12,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Nu12-09a.htm
T: RabbiIshmael-(eg)"When an OX gores";(Or ANY animal gores)
Volume 4 Number 21,http://www.RashiYomi.Com/Dt25-04a.htm
End of Rashi-Is-Simple Digest
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