Bris and Os Bris
מיכאל ריטש
Bris (covenant)
I’ve written earlier (Parshas Matos-Masei) about the idea behind a שבועה, an oath: A person needs a way to strengthen his words, so that they must be true. Perhaps he needs to convince a court or another person, or to strengthen his own resolve to fulfil them. The “strengthener”, the penalty clause, is called an אלה in the Torah. It usually works by bonding one’s words to one’s belief in Hashem, but there are other possible penalties as well, as I discussed there.
There is a second type of “strengthener” in the Torah, a second way to guarantee one’s words: a ברית, a covenant. ת"א of ברית is always קיימא, which the Targum of שבועה in many places as well. But a bris is not built on punishment and fear, but rather on connection and love. Each of the two sides in a bris will not falsify it, not from fear of punishment, but because each values the connection with the other and wants to draw him near, and never distance him. If there is fear in a bris, it is the fear of harming the relationship.
[Tur and נושאי כלים, יו"ד רל"ט: even though it is possible to get התרה in beis din for an oath, it may be that a handshake (תקיעת כף) cannot have התרה, as “it is similar to making a bris”, ע"ש. That is, in a שבועה, even one made ע"ד חבירו, the strengthening is between the man and G-d. Thus, if one finds a היתר in beis din there is no problem - even if the matter involves his friend as well. But a bris is fundamentally between him and his friend, thus there is an עוולה involved in cancelling it.]
וע‘ דברי הגר“א על ספר יצירה א(ח) ומחידושיו על ברכות לב• (מובאים בס‘ קימו וקיבלו להרה“ג שלמה ברעוודא שליט“א) שבברית כשאחד אוהב חבירו וצריך ליפרד ממנו, יתן אוהבו דבר ממנו שיקח עמו ועי"ז עדיין הוא קרוב לחבירו, והיינו לוחות הברית שנטל מרע"ה מהקב"ה והביאן למטה ע"ש כל דבריו הנפלאים. וב“ה מצאתי מקור לדבריו ממסכת שבת פג: דתניא (שופטים ח') וישימו להם בעל ברית לאלהים, זה זבוב בעל עקרון, מלמד שכל אחד ואחד עשה דמות יראתו ומניחה בתוך כיסו, כיון שזוכרה מוציאה מתוך כיסו ומחבקה ומנשקה עכ“ל. הלא תראה שדרשו כל זה מלשון "ברית" בפסוק, וכדברי הגאון.
ושמעתי בשם הרש“ז ברוידה זצ“ל, שמש“ה אמרו חז“ל שהפוטר מחבירו צריך לטול ממנו רשות (רפ“ה דכלה רבתי). שבזמן קורבתם נעשו כאחד, עם קשר ביניהם, ויש בכל אחד מהם חלק מחבירו. וליקח חלק שמחבירו ולילך לו צריך רשות.]
In such a bris, the two become one, and doing good for one’s friend does good for oneself as well, as the verse says, “You shall love your friend as yourself.”
There is no bris like the one between a man and his wife, מלאכי ב(יד) והיא חברתך ואשת בריתך.
And thus explained Onkelos on D’varim 13(7): אשת חיקך - אתת קימך. A marriage certainly involves obligations in law, the kesuvah from the man, kinyanim to him from her side. Nevertheless, the bond is fundamentally based on love.
Os Bris - sign of the covenant
[This part was first presented at the seudas bris milah for my son Avraham, נ"י.]
בראשית ט(ח-טז) ויאמר אלהים אל נח כו‘ ואני הנני מקים את בריתי אתכם כו‘ (פירש“י שהיה נח דואג לעסוק בפריה ורביה, עד שהבטיחו הקב"ה שלא לשחת העולם עוד, וכן עשה, ובאחרונה אמר לו הנני מסכים לעשות קיום וחוזק ברית להבטחתי ואתן לך אות) ויאמר אלהים זאת אות הברית אשר אני נתן ביני וביניכם כו‘ את קשתי נתתי בענן כו‘ והיה בענני ענן על הארץ (פירש“י כשתעלה במחשבה לפני להביא חשך ואבדון לעולם) ונראתה הקשת בענן. וזכרתי את בריתי כו‘ ולא יהיה עוד המים למבול לשחת כל בשר. והיתה הקשת בענן וראיתיה לזכר ברית עולם כו‘ ע“ש.
Breishis 9(8-16) “Hashem said to Noach... Behold, I am establishing my bris with you. (Rashi: Noach had been afraid to have more children, until Hashem promised him not to destroy the world again. And so Hashem did; and in the end he said, “I agree to make a bris-strengthener for my promise: I will give you an אות.”) Hashem said, ‘This is the os bris that I am placing between us... My rainbow I have placed in the clouds... It will be, when clouds gather over the earth (Rashi: when it occurs to me to bring darkness and destruction on the world) I will see the rainbow in the clouds. I will remember my covenant... and there will never be another flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow will be in the clouds, and I will see it, to remember the bris forever...
The Torah is explaining to us the idea of an os bris, the sign of a covenant. Two make a covenant, and agree that forevermore they will do only good for one another. They even strengthen their resolve by means of an oath.
A covenant is very serious, and so is an oath. But after all that, it is still possible for one of them to violate the oath and the bris. How could that happen? If he forgets. He surely has no right to do that, and he would be called a שוגג and have to bring a korbon. Nevertheless, the fact is that a man cannot keep a promise unless he remembers it.
Therefore, he can do a קיום וחיזוק, a strengthener for his words: He sets aside an object to be a sign, to remind him before he breaks his word. From then on, it is not possible for him to violate his word בשוגג - only intentionally and with malice.
The sign needs to be placed in the location where the promise could be violated. Only there can it remind him at his time of forgetfulness.
Thus did Yaakov and Lavan:
בראשית לא(נב) עד הגל הזה ועדה המצבה אם אני לא אעבר אליך את הגל הזה ואם אתה לא תעבר אלי את הגל הזה ואת המצבה הזאת לרעה.
Breishis 31(52) “This גל and this מצבה will be witnesses, that I will never cross the גל to you, that you will never cross the גל or the מצבה to me, to do bad.” By means of the אותות, neither could claim to have forgotten; they would remember when they saw them on the way. If they crossed the signs, they would be נתפסו עליו כגנב (ב“ב ו:) - caught in the act.
בראשית כא(כח-ל) כתיב ויצב אברהם את שבע כבשת הצאן לבדהן. כו‘ ויאמר כי את שבע כבשת תקח מידי בעבור תהיה לי לעדה כי חפרתי את הבאר הזאת.
Breishis 21(28-30) “Avraham set seven lambs alone... He said, Take the seven lambs from me; they will be a witness that I dug this well.”
Avimelech had claimed that he knew nothing about the theft of the well. So Avraham gave him the seven lambs as a sign. If Avimelech would come to steal the water afterwards, and bring his flocks, he would see those lambs and remember.
Just as an אות can strengthen an oath of human beings, so too it can help with Hashem’s promise כביכול. This is what I quoted from the bris of Noach according to Rashi. Hashem had said he would bring no more flood, and he had sworn. Noach was still afraid. שמא יגרום החטא, perhaps man’s sins would cause Hashem to turn away his eyes and his face, and כביכול בכיכול it would be as if he forgot his promise: and the flood could return.
Therefore, Hashem put the rainbow in the clouds, the place where the oath would have been violated, and כביכול Hashem would be reminded of his promise. Then could Hashem assure Noach with absolute certainty: there will be no more flood.
The truth is that all this is explicit in the Ramban, Breishis 9(12):
בא“ד אם תבקש מה טעם בקשת להיות אות, הנה הוא כטעם עד הגל הזה ועדה המצבה. וכן כי את שבע כבשות כו‘, כי כל הדבר הנראה שיושם לפני שנים להזכירם ענין נדור ביניהם יקרא אות, וכל הסכמה ברית עכ“ל.
The Ramban adds there “So too for bris milah, he said ‘It shall be a covenant between us’, because of the agreement to circumcize the descendents of Avraham, to serve Hashem together...”
And so too wrote the Radak in his peirush:
צוהו האל באותו אבר, לפי שרוב העבירות יעשה ע“י אותו האבר כו‘ וכשיבא אדם לעשות עבירה באותו אבר יהיה רואה אותו האות ויזכור מה שצוהו האל וימנע כו‘.
“Hashem commanded it to be on that limb, as most aveiros are done there... if a person comes to do an aveirah, he sees the sign and remembers what Hashem commanded, and desists...”
All these describe the sign from the side of the man. I am wondering if the bris is also an אות from the side of Hashem. For he promised Avraham that he would establish his bris with his descendents as well, (17(7)) והקמתי את בריתי ביני ובינך ובין זרעך אחריך כו‘. Hashem is a partner in creating a child, and he gives it a neshamah appropriate for this covenant. [וע‘ נדרים לא: שישראל בעצם נקראים מולים ועכו“ם נקראים ערלים.]
Therefore, Hashem said to Avraham,
שם(ט-יא) ואתה את בריתי תשמר כו‘ ונמלתם את בשר ערלתכם והיה לאות ברית ביני וביניכם
That is, by means of this the bris will be preserved; Hashem will see the bris milah at the time of creation of the child; כביכול he will remember the bris at the necessary time.
(יד) וערל זכר אשר לא ימול כו‘ ונכרתה הנפש ההוא מעמיה את בריתי הפר.
If the sign is not there ח"ו at that time, Hashem will not give the right neshama to the children, etc.
שמות יב(ז) ולקחו מן הדם ונתנו על שתי המזוזת ועל המשקוף כו‘ (יג) והיה הדם לכם לאת על הבתים אשר אתם שם וראיתי את הדם ופסחתי עלכם כו‘ (פירש“י לכם לאות - ולא לאחרים לאות, מכאן שלא נתנו הדם אלא מבפנים. וראיתי את הדם - נותן אני את עיני לראות שאתם עסוקים במצותי, ופוסח אני עליכם).
That is the sign from Hashem’s side: he will see the sign and not pass it.
(כב) והגעתם אל המשקוף ואל שתי המזוזת מן הדם אשר בסף, ואתם לא תצאו איש מפתח ביתו עד בקר.
I’m wondering if the verse might be describing a purpose of the blood on the door even from the side of Israel: that they shouldn’t leave the house. And Hashem will see them keeping his mitzvos, and he also will not enter to destroy.
שמות לב(ט-יד) ויאמר ה‘ אל משה כו‘ ועתה הניחה לי ויחר אפי בהם ואכלם ואעשה אותך לגוי גדול. ויחל משה כו‘ כו‘ זכר לאברהם ליצחק ולישראל עבדיך אשר נשבעת להם בך כו‘ וינחם ה‘ על הרעה כו‘
These pesukim are very difficult. The mefarshim ask many questions on them. Was it really possible for Hashem to violate his oath and destroy them? The Midrash says, Moshe argued, “If a chair with three legs cannot stand at a time of your anger, how will a chair of one leg stand?” It seems that from then on, there would have been only one leg. (But see the Maharsha Brachos 32a).
But others explain that no, the oath would still have been in operation, and would have been fulfilled by Moshe’s raising up a great nation. But that is difficult in the opposite direction: why then is Moshe mentioning the oath that Hashem took - it will be fulfilled either way! (See Malbim, Seforno, Or Hachaim.)
It seems to me that this event was itself the fulfillment of Hashem’s promise to the avos hakedoshim. Hashem promised them that even “forgetfulness” will not cancel his oath to them. And how? Because in every generation, Hashem has placed tzaddikim, תורת ה' בקרבם, and the generation depends on them. Before Hashem punishes a generation ח"ו, he will always check with the tzaddik, as he said (Breishis 18(17-18)): “Can I hide what I’m doing from Avraham; Avraham will become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the world will draw blessing from him.”
But when Hashem checks with the tzaddik, he will remind Hashem of his “forgotten” oath כביכול, and Hashem will relent. Moshe: “Remember Avraham... that you swore to them.” Tehillim 106(23) “He thought to destroy them: were it not for Moshe my chosen one, who stood in the breach before him, to turn back his anger. (See the peirush of RSR Hirsch.) Moshe was the גל עד, between הקב"ה and his people. So shall it always be, ה‘ יגן עלינו ברחמיו.
This is not the desire of the tzaddik against Hashem’s will, ח"ו; on the contrary, Hashem set it up this way to make sure that his bris is kept. [See Pesachim 87a for a case where the tzaddik Hoshea didn’t do his job properly, and how Hashem set him straight.]
שמות ב(כג) ויאנחו בני ישראל מן העבדה ויזעקו כו‘ וישמע אלהים כו‘ ויזכר אלהים את בריתו כו‘
Shmos 2(23) “Israel groaned from their labors and cried... Hashem heard... and Hashem remembered his covenant...” The cries reminded him.
We see a similar idea in Midrash Esther by the gezeirah of Haman. The children learned Torah and davened and fasted with tremendous mesiras nefesh. Their cries were the cause for Hashem to turn his ear, כביכול, and he got up from the כסא דין and moved to the כסא רחמים to tear up his decree. The King’s sleep was disturbed, he opened the “book of remembrance” and remembered כביכול the merit of Mordechai and the merit of his nation - and his covenant with them.
The children cried, as children always will when they are suffering. Even in a time of total הסתר פנים, Hashem planted the “cries of the children” in the situation to remind him.
A couple of other thoughts:
Many of the examples have involved an אות that applies to each of the parties. A bris is a covenant that the two will be one, to join together for a common goal; therefore it is possible to have a sign between them that is effective for both. Of course the best-known bris is between a man and his wife, as Malachi says, והיא חברתך ואשת בריתך, etc.
By means of a אות, there is a greater security about fulfillment of a promise, as we’ve discussed. But there is a negative side as well, for if one of them doesn’t take care of the אות, he therefore shows to the second that the covenant is not very important to him.
This is what is said about bris milah, את בריתי הפר - “he has nullified my covenant”. ואבד המשכון אבדו מעותיו (ב"מ פא:).