Mishpatim
Parashah 18: Mishpatim (Rulings)
SH'MOT 21:1-24:18; Ex. 21:1-24:18;
Haftarah Mishpatim: Yirmeyahu 34:8-22; 33:25-26 (Jer. 34:8-22; 33:25-26);
B'rit Hadashah: Matt. 5:38-42; 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23; Acts 23:1-11
Heb. 9:15-22; 10:28-39
Haftarah Mishpatim: Yirmeyahu 34:8-22; 33:25-26 (Jer. 34:8-22; 33:25-26);
B'rit Hadashah: Matt. 5:38-42; 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23; Acts 23:1-11
Heb. 9:15-22; 10:28-39
1 Now these are the mishpatim which thou shalt set before them.
2 If thou acquire an eved Ivri, shesh shanim he shall serve; and in the seventh he shall go out lachafeshi (to the freedom) for no charge. 3 If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he were a ba'al isha, then his isha shall go out with him. 4 If his adon have given him an isha, and to him she gives birth to banim or banot; the isha and her yeledim shall be her adon's, and he shall go out [free] by himself. 5 And if the eved shall plainly say, I love adoni, my isha, and my banim; I will not go out lachafeshi (to the freedom); 6 Then his adon shall bring him unto HaElohim;he shall also bring him to the delet (door), or unto the mezuzah; and his adon shall pierce through his ozen (ear) with a piercing-tool; then he shall serve him l'olam.
7 And if an ish sell his bat to be an amah (maidservant), she shall not go out as the avadim [go free]. 8 If she please not her adon, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed [T.N. i.e., let her freedom be purchased]; to sell her unto an am nochri (foreign people) he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her. 9 And if he have betrothed her unto his ben, he shall deal with her according to the mishpat habanot (rights of [free] daughters; T.N. i.e., those rights of verse 10). 10 If he take him another, her food, her covering of clothing, and her onah (conjugal rights) shall he not deprive. 11 And if he does not perform these three unto her, then shall she go out free without kesef.
12 He that strikes down an ish, so that the ish die, shall be surely put to death.13 And if he lie not in ambush, but HaElohim deliver him into his yad, then I will appoint thee a makom (T.N. i.e., city of refuge) where he shall flee there. 14 But if an ish come premeditatedly upon his re'a, to murder him by guile; thou shalt take him from Mine Mizbe'ach for capital punishment.
15 And he that striketh down his av, or his em, shall be surely put to death.
16 And he that kidnaps an ish, and selleth him, or if he be found in his power, the kidnapper shall surely be put to death.
17 And he that curseth his av, or his em, shall surely be put to death.
18 And if anashim quarrel, and one strike another with an even (stone), or with his egrof (fist), and he die not, but is bedfast; 19 If he rise again, and walk around outside upon his staff, then shall he that struck down him be absolved; only shivto yiten (he shall give for his lost time), and shall provide for him to be thoroughly healed.
20 And if an ish strikes his eved, or his amah, with a shevet (rod), and he die under his yad; he shall be surely avenged. 21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a yom or two, he shall not be avenged; for he is his kesef.
22 If men fight, and hurt an isha harah (pregnant woman), so that she gives birth prematurely but not with any injury; he shall be surely punished, according as the ba'al haisha will assess a fine upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.23 And if any ason (harm, fatality) follow, then thou shalt take nefesh for nefesh,24 Ayin for ayin, shen for shen, yad for yad, regel for regel, 25 Burn for burn, wound for wound, chaburah (stripe laceration) for chaburah.
Haftarah Mishpatim: Yirmeyahu 34:8-22; 33:25-26 (Jer. 34:8-22; 33:25-26);
8 This is the Davar that came unto Jeremiah from YeHoVaH, after that Tzidkiyah HaMelech had cut a Brit with kol HaAm which were at Yerushalayim, to proclaim deror (liberty) unto them; 9 That every ish should set free his eved, and every ish his shifchah, being Ivri (Hebrew man) or Ivriyah (Hebrew woman); that none should hold another brother Yehudi in bondage. 10 Now when all the sarim, and kol HaAm, which had entered into the brit (covenant), heard that every one should set free his eved, and every one his shifchah, that none should keep them in bondage, then they obeyed, and let them go. 11 But afterward they changed their minds, and caused avadim and the shfakhot, whom they had set free, to return, and brought them into subjection for avadim and for shfakhot.
12 Therefore the Devar YeHoVaH came to Jeremiah from YeHoVaH, saying, 13 Thus saith YeHoVaH Elohei Yisrael; I cut a Brit with avoteichem in the day that I brought them forth out of Eretz Mitzrayim, out of the bais avadim, saying, 14 At the end of sheva shanim let ye go free every ish his brother HaIvri, which hath been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee shesh shanim, thou shalt let him go chofshi (free) from thee; but avoteichem paid heed not unto Me, neither inclined their ozen.15 And recently ye turned, and did hayashar (the right) in My sight, in proclaiming deror (liberty) every ish to his neighbor; and ye cut a Brit (covenant) before Me in the Beis which is called by Shmi; 16 But ye turned around and profaned Shmi, and caused every ish his eved, and every ish his shifchah, whom he had set at liberty at their desire, to return, and brought them into subjection, to be unto you for avadim and for shfakhot.
17 Therefore thus saith YeHoVaH; Ye have not paid heed unto Me, in proclaiming deror (freedom), everyone to his brother, and every ish to his neighbor; hineni, I proclaim deror (“freedom”) for you, saith YeHoVaH, to the cherev, to the dever, and to the ra'av; and I will make you to be a horror to all the mamlechot ha'aretz. 18 And I will give the anashim that have transgressed My Brit, which have not performed the Devarim of the Brit (covenant) which they had cut before Me, when they cut the egel (calf) in two, and passed between the parts thereof, 19 The sarim of Yehudah, and the sarim of Yerushalayim, the sarisim, and the kohanim, and kol Am HaAretz, which passed between the parts of the egel (calf); 20 I will even give them into the yad of their oyevim, and into the yad of them that seek their nefesh: and their nevilah (dead body) shall be for food unto the oph HaShomayim, and to the behemat ha'aretz. 21 And Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah and his sarim will I give into the yad of their oyevim, and into the yad of them that seek their nefesh, and into the yad of Melech Bavel's army, which hast withdrawn from you. 22 Hineni, I will command, saith YeHoVaH, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and capture it, and burn it with eish; and I will make the towns of Yehudah a desolation without an inhabitant.
Yirmeyahu 33:25-26 (Jer. 33:25-26);
25 Thus saith YeHoVaH; If My Brit be not with yomam valailah, and if I have not appointed the chukkot of Shomayim vaAretz; 26 Then will I cast away the zera Ya'akov and Dovid Avdi, so that I will not take any of his zera to be moshelim (rulers) over the zera Avraham, Yitzchak, and Ya'akov; for I will cause their captives to return, and have mercy on them.
B'rit Hadashah: Matt. 5:38-42; 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23; Acts 23:1-11;
Heb. 9:15-22; 10:28-39
Matt. 5:38-42;
38 You have heard that it was said, AYIN TACHAT AYIN, SHEN TACHAT SHEN (An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth SHEMOT 21:24). 39 But I say to you, Do not set yourself against the rasha (evil person), but whoever hits you on your right cheek, turn to him also the other cheek. 40 And the one wishing to sue you and take your tunic, give to him also your kaftan. 41 And whoever will force you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 And the one asking you to give and the one wishing to borrow from you, from these do not turn away.
Matt. 15:1-20;
1 Then Perushim and Sofrim (rabbonim) from Yerushalayim approach Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, saying, 2 Why do your talmidim transgress the Masoret HaZekenim (the Tradition of the Elders)? For they do not do the netilat yadayim before meals. 3 But Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, in reply to them, said, Why [do] also you transgress the mitzvat YeHoVaH for the sake of your own masoros? 4 For YeHoVaH has said, KABED ES AVICHA VES IMMECHA (honor your father and your mother, SHEMOT 20:12; DEVARIM 5:16), and MKALEL AVIV VIMMO MOT YUMAT (the one cursing his father and mother to die he must die, SHEMOT 21:17; VAYIKRA 20:9). 5 But you say, Whoever says to his abba or his em, whatever support you might have had from me, [it is] a gift [i.e., korban, dedicated to G-d].6 By no means does [anyone who says this] honor his abba or em. And you nullify the Dvar YeHoVaH on account of your masoros. 7 You tzevuim, well did Isaiah give a dvar hanevuah concerning you, saying,
8 YAAN KI NIGASH HAAM HAZEH BEFIV UVISHFATAV KI-BDUNI VLIBO RICHAK MIMENI VATEHI YIRATAM OTI MITZVAT ANASHIM MELUMADAH (This people with their lips honor me, but their heart is far away from me,
9 and in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the mitzvot of [mere] men, YESHAYAH 29:13.)
10 And having summoned the multitude, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to them, Listen and understand! 11 It is not the thing entering into the mouth that makes the man tameh (unclean), but the thing going out from the mouth this makes the man tameh.
12 Then Moshiach's talmidim approached and say to him, Do you know that the Perushim took offense when they heard [this] dvar? 13 But Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, in reply, said, Every plant which Avi shbaShomayim did not plant will be uprooted. 14 Leave them. They are blind morei derech (guides, teachers) of [the] blind. And if the ivver (blind man) leads the ivrim (blind), both will fall into a pit.
15 And Kefa said in reply to Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, Explain to us the mashal.16 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said, Are you still devoid of binah (understanding)? 17 Do you not have daas that everything which enters into the mouth goes into the stomach and passes into a latrine? 18 But the things coming out from the mouth come out from the lev (heart), which makes tameh. 19 For out of the lev comes evil machshavot (thoughts): retzichot (murders), niufim (adulteries), zenunim (fornications), genevot (thefts), eduyot sheker (false testimonies), giddufim (revilements). 20 These are the things making the man tameh, but eating with hands lacking the netilat yadayim (ritual of the washing of the hands, see Mt 27:24), this does not make the man tameh.
Mark 7:1-23;
1 And, when they had come down from Yerushalayim, the Perushim and some of the Sofrim come together around Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, 2 And they had observed that some of his talmidim were eating their lechem with yadayim temeiot, that is, hands ritually unclean. 3 [For the Perushim, and indeed this was the Jewish minhag, do not eat without doing netilat yadayim (ritual of the washing of the hands) and also observing the Masoret HaZekenim (the Torah Shebal peh, Oral Torah, see Ga 1:14). 4 And when they come from [the] marketplace, unless they do so, they do not eat. And there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the tevilah of cups and pitchers and copper pots. 5 And the Perushim and the Sofrim question Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, Why do your talmidim not follow the halachah according to the Masoret HaZekenim, but eat their lechem with yadayim temeiot?
6 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to them, Isaiah rightly gave a dvar nevuah of you tzevuim, as it has been written, HAAM HAZEH BISFATAV KIBDUNI VLIBO RIKHAK MIMENI VATEHI YIRATAM OTI MITZVAT ANASHIM MELUMMADAH (This people with [their] lips honor me, but their heart is removed far away from me.
7 And in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the mitzvot of men.) [YESHAYAH 29:13]
8 Abandoning the mitzvat YeHoVaH, you are holding to the Masoret HaBnei Adam.
9 And he was saying to them, You have a fine knack for setting aside the mitzvat YeHoVaH in order that your own Masorot might stand undisturbed. 10 For Moshe [Rabbeinu] said, KABED ES AVICHA VES IMMECHA (Honor your father and your mother), and, The one reviling AVIV VIMMO MOT YUMAT (father or mother let him be put to death. [SHEMOT 20:12, DEVARIM 5:16, SHEMOT 21:17, VAYIKRA 20:9]11 But you say, If a man says to his Abba or to his Em, whatever by me you might have benefited is Korban [that is, the taitsh (translation) of korban is an offering to YeHoVaH], 12 Then no longer do you permit him to do anything for his Abba or his Em. 13 You nullify and make void the dvar YeHoVaH by means of your Masoret you received. And you do many similar things.
14 And having summoned again the multitude, he was saying to them, Give ear to me and have binah (understanding). 15 There is nothing outside of a ben Adam (human being) entering into him which is able to make him tameh, but it is the things coming out from the ben Adam that make him tameh. 16 He who has oznayim to hear, let him hear.
17 And when he left the multitude and entered a bais, his talmidim were asking him [about] the mashal. 18 And he says to them, Are you so lacking in binah also? Do you not have binah that it is not what is outside and entering into the ben Adam that is able to make him tameh (unclean)? 19 Because it does not enter into his lev, but into his stomach and goes out into the latrine, making all the okhel tohar [T.N. See Ro 14:14-23]. 20 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach was saying, It is the thing proceeding out of the ben Adam that makes him tameh. 21 For from within the lev of the ben Adam comes evil cravings and machshavot: then zenunim (fornications), gneyvot (thefts), retzichot (murders), 22 Niufim (adulteries), chamdanut (greediness), rishah (wickedness), nechalim (scheming deceitfulness), zimmah (lewdness, sensuality), an ayin horo or roah ayin (an envious evil eye), lashon hora, gaavah (pride), and ivvelet (foolishness). 23 All these evil things proceed from within and make the ben Adam tameh.
Acts 23:1-11;
1 And as he gazed at the Sanhedrin, Rav Sha'ul said, " Anashim, Achim, I have lived before YeHoVaH until this day with a lev tahor." 2 And the Kohen Gadol Chananyah ordered the ones standing by Rav Sha'ul to strike his mouth. 3 Then Rav Sha'ul said to him, " YeHoVaH is about to strike you, you white-washed wall! You sit judging me according to Torah and yet in violation of the Torah you command me to be struck?" [Lv 19:15; Dt 25:1,2] 4 And the ones standing by said, Do you revile the Kohen Gadol of YeHoVaH? 5 And Rav Sha'ul said, I was without da'as, Achim, that he is the Kohen Gadol, for it has been written, NASI V'AMMECHA LO TA'OR (A ruler of your people you will not speak evil of, curse, Ex 22:27(28)
6 And Rav Sha'ul, having da'as that one kat is of Tzedukim (Sadducees) and the other of Perushim (Pharisees), was crying out in the Sanhedrin, " Anashim, Achim, I am a Parush ben Parush and it is for the tikvah of the Techiyas HaMesim that I am being judged." 7 Now when Rav Sha'ul said this, there came about a machlochet (controversy) between the Perushim and Tzedukim, and the multitude was divided.8 Loit (according to) the Tzedukim, there is no Techiyas HaMesim nor a malach nor ruchot, but Perushim acknowledge all these things. 9 And there was a kol gadol and some of the Sofrim of the kat of the Perushim were arguing vigorously, saying, " Nothing rah do we find keneged this ish, and what if a ruach did speak to him or a malach?" 10 And fearing much more machloket was coming, the Roman tribune ordered the troops to go down to take Rav Sha'ul away from the midst of them and to bring him into the barracks lest he be torn to pieces by them.
11 And on the following lailah, HaAdon stood by Rav Sha'ul and said, Chazak! For as you gave solemn edut about me in Yerushalayim, thus it is necessary for you also to bear solemn eidus in Rome.
Heb. 9:15-22;
15 And for this reason Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach is the Metavekh of a Brit Chadasha in order that those who are HaKeru'im (the Called ones) may receive the nachalat olam (eternal inheritance) of the Havtachah (Promise), because a mavet, a kapparat hapeysha'im has taken place that gives them pedut (ransom for redemption, Geulah) from peysha'im (transgressions, Isa 53:5) that were committed under HaBrit HaRishonah. 16 For where there is a brit or a tzavva'a (will), it is aizen (well founded, incontrovertible) that the histalkus (passing) of the one who made it must be established. 17 For a Brit, a tzavv'a (covenant, will) is valid only when Bnei Adam have died, for it is never validly executed as long as the ba'al tzavva'a (testator, person who makes the will) lives. 18 Hence the Brit HaRishonah was not cut without DAHM. [Ex 24:8] 19 For when every mitzvah had been spoken by Moshe Rabbeinu to all the Am Brit according to the Torah, he took the dahm of se'irim and of agalim with mayim and scarlet wool and hyssop and sprinkled both the sefer itself and all the people, 20 Saying, " HINEI DAHM HABRIT (" This is the blood of the Covenant" --Ex 24:8) which YeHoVaH commanded you.21 And in the same way he sprinkled both the Mishkan and also all the k'lei haSherut (vessels of service in the Mishkan) with dahm. 22 Indeed, according to the Torah, almost everything is metohar (purified) by dahm, and without a kapporah by means of shefach dahm (the shedding of blood) there is no selicha (forgiveness).
Heb. 10:28-39
28 Anyone who was doiche (rejecting or setting aside) the Torah of Moshe Rabbeinu, upon the dvar of SHNI EDIM O AL PI SHLOSHA EDIM (" Testimony of two or three witnesses" DEVARIM 19:15), dies without rachamim. 29 By how much worse onesh (penalty) do you think the one will be considered worthy who trampled on the Zun fun der Oybershter and also treated as mechallel kodesh (profane) the Dahm HaBrit which set him apart mekudash and also committed Chillul YeHoVaH gidduf against the Ruach Hakodesh of YeHoVaH's chesed? 30 For we have da'as of the One who said, LI NAKAM V'SHILEM (" Vengeance is mine and I will repay" ) [DEVARIM 32:35] and again YADIN YeHoVaH AMMO (" The L-rd will judge his people" DEVARIM 32:36). 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Elohim Chayyim.
32 But have zikaron of the yamim mikedem (earlier days) in which, when you had received the Ohr YeHoVaH, you endured a great tzoros, a great " Kristallnacht" of yissurim (suffering), 33 sometimes being publicly abused with baleidikung (insult) and fargolgung (persecution) yourselves; other times being oppressed chavrusa partners with the ones so treated. 34 For you showed Gemilut Chasadim for the Achim b'Moshiach in the beis hasohar and with simcha you accepted the pogrom-like confiscation of your property because you have da'as that you possess a better and more enduring yerushah (inheritance). 35 Do not discard, then, your bitachon (confident trust) which has gadol sachar (great reward). 36 You are nitzrach (needy) of the kind of zitzfleisch (patience) that has endurance, in order that, having accomplished the ratzon YeHoVaH, you will receive the havtachah (promise).
37 For yet a little while and Hu HaBah [Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach] YAVO LO YE'ACHER (" He will come, he will not delay" )
38 V'TZADDIK VE'EMUNATO YICHEYEH (" And my tzaddik will live by Emunah" --CHABAKUK 2:34) And, if he shrinks back as a shmad defector, LO YASHRAH NAFSHO BO (" his desire is not upright in him" ).
39 But we are not of those who shrink back as shmad defectors toward churban destruction, but we are of those with Emunah whose neshamah is preserved in Yeshu'at Eloheinu.