From The Masters Of Kabbalah and Chumash (5 Books of
Moses)
13th century - "RambaN" - Rabbi Moshe ben
Nachman
14th century - "Bachya" - Rabbi Bachya ben
Asher
16th century - "Alsheich" - Rabbi Moshe
Alshech of Tsfat
18th century - "Ohr HaChayim" - Rabbi Chaim
Ben Attar
Ramban
"When you offer a peace offering unto the Eternal, you shall
do so of your own free will." [19:5]
He states, And when you offer a peace offering unto the Eternal etc,
for after He prohibited the slaughtering of sacrifices, and all manner
of worship to idols and to molten gods, and ordered that all Services
be devoted to the Proper Name [i.e., the Tetragrammaton] exclusively,
He stated here that when you shall bring an offering to the Eternal, it
shall be lirtzonchem [of your own free will/ of your desire], in order
that your worship should be acceptable to Him and that He should be pleased
with you, even as a servant reconciles himself to his master by doing
all that he commands him to do, the expression [lirtzonchem] being
similar to: 'v'nirtzah' (and it shall be accepted) for him to make
atonement for him [Above, 1:4]; but by the light of Thy countenance, because
'retzitham' (Thou wast favorable unto them) [Psalms 44:4]
And the meaning of the verse is to state that you are not to think that
there is any benefit in idol worship, neither are you to do the service
of the Glorious Name in order to receive a reward, but only to do His
Will, for it is His simple Will that is proper and incumbent upon us [to
do]. He states this with reference to the peace-offerings because they
are of the lesser degree of holy offerings, which are eaten by the owners
themselves [unlike the most holy offerings, such as the sin-offering,
which may be eaten only by the priests, the verse thus saying] that the
owners are to guard their thoughts, so that the offerings be brought with
the proper intention, and this applies all the more so to the most holy
offerings. Or it may be that [the verse here mentions peace-offerings]
because peace-offerings are the [unique] attribute of Israel, just as
our Rabbis have said; "Noachides did not offer peace-offerings."
The student learned [in the mysteries of the Kabbalah] will understand.
And our Rabbis have said: "Lirtzonchem [lit.: 'to you intent']
slaughter the offering, meaning that you are to have the intention to
slaughter it," for if he merely "handles" an offering [i.e.,
if he does the act of slaughtering without the intention of so doing],
he invalidates [the offering].
(credits)
Rabbeinu Bachya
(credits)
Alsheich
"You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in measuring, in
weight.... Therefore shall you observe all my statutes, and all my judgments,
and do them: I am the Lord." [19:35,37]
If Israel were to ask why G-d ties this legislation to His being our
G-d, since every nation considers honesty in weights and measures as something
basic to civilization, G-d says that one cannot compare honesty due to
G-d's having commanded it, with honesty as a practical behavior. If honesty
is based also on fulfilling G-d's imperatives instead of being just an
enlightened form of self interest, it is morally on a higher level. Therefore,
a gentile who is honest does not thereby create positive forces in the
world. A Jew does.
(credits)
Ohr HaChayim
"Do not oppress your fellow Jew." [19:13]
This verse also contains an allusion to the well known statement by our
sages (Berachot 28) that Torah scholars do not find much sustenance in
this life. We also have a Yalkut Shimoni (item 934 on Proverbs) on Proverbs
3:3 which appears to promise much temporal reward for Torah study. The
Torah is supposed to have wanted to know why people studying it are usually
so poor.
I have heard a good answer to this question in the name of the AriZal.
He explained that the physical universe we live in would be unable to
absorb all the goodness G-d would have to bestow on the Torah scholars.
G-d therefore decided to bestow such goodness only on the average individuals
who in turn are charged with looking after the material needs of the Torah
scholars.
This teaches that the only reason there are apparently undeserving wealthy
people in this world is that the serve as a marzev, a channel to
furnish sustenance to the Torah scholars. G-d has commanded here that
a (wealthy) person must not oppress a Torah scholar by withholding the
material benefits from him which it is his function to provide for his
fellow Jew, the Torah scholar.
(credits)
Sources
Ramban
- credits
Adapted from the 13th century classic by the illustrious scholar, philosopher
and defender of the faith, Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman-known as 'RAMBAN' or
'Nachmanides', a master kabbalist in his own right and a major link in
the transmission of Jewish mysticism-based on the excellent annotated
English translation, Nachmanides on the Torah, by Rabbi Dr. Charles B.
Chavel
Bachya
- credits
Selected with permission from the seven-volume English edition of The
Torah Commentary of Rabbeinu Bachya, as translated and annotated by Eliyahu
Munk. Rabbi Bachya ben Asher [1255-1340] of Saragosa, Spain, was the outstanding
pupil of Rabbi Shlomo ben Aderet (the "Rashba"), a main disciple
of Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (the "Ramban"). Several books have
been written about the Kabballah-based portions of R. Bachya's commentary.
Alsheich
- credits
Adapted from Torat Moshe - the 16th commentary of Rabbi Moshe Alshech,
the "Preacher of Zefat" on the Torah, as translated and condensed
in the English version of Eliyahu Munk)
Ohr HaChayim
- credits
Selected with permission from the five-volume English edition of Ohr HaChaim:
the Torah Commentary of Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar, as translated and annotated
by Eliyahu Munk.
The holy Rabbi Chayim ben Moses Attar was born in Sale, Western Morocco,
on the Atlantic in 1696. His immortal commentary on the Five Books Of
Moses, Or Hachayim, was printed in Venice in 1741, while the author was
on his way to the Holy Land. He acquired a reputation as a miracle worker,
hence his title "the holy," although some apply this title only
to his Torah commentary.
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