SHOFTIM_DEUTERONOMY XVI,18 – XXI,9
The Torah mandates the establishment of a system of administration of justice for all cities in the country. Our text demands the location of the Shoftim, the judges, in the Sha’ar, the gate of the city. Apparently, this Sha’ar was not a simple gate, but a specific place where several community institutions were located. The functions performed in the Sha’ar include the administration of justice. (In the biblical book Ruth, we read that Bo’az, the wealthy relative of the family of the late husband of Ruth, goes to the Sha’ar, place of the religious authorities, to claim his right to become her husband.
The concept of justice is an essential factor in biblical teaching. The Sages, our Chachamim, echo the fundamental importance of this idea, affirming that the world is anchored on three pillars. Justice is one of them. For some, the emphasis on justice reflects severity, a lack of feeling of love, pointing out that Judaism is intransigent and inflexible. Those of us who live in nascent democracies where justice is not entirely independent of the other political interests of society, know the effects of compromised judgments and decisions. Can justice be present where equality before the law does not exist?
Many Jewish communities include an arbitration commission that serves to iron out or resolve differences among its members. Isaac Bashevis Singer tells of the different individuals who went to the Beit Din Shtibel, the room in his father’s home, a Rabbi in Warsaw, which was used to listen to the demands and complaints of litigants. For centuries, in villages and towns, the homes of the Rabbis served as courts of justice.
The biblical King Shlomoh, who stands out for his keen intelligence, is the prototype of the referee and judge who sought the right solution in conflictive situations. We recall Shlomoh’s sagacity in the case of a newborn who was claimed as theirs by two mothers.
According to Yalkut Shimoni, one of the texts of Midrash that collects commentaries on the Sacred Scriptures, there were six steps in front of the throne of King Shlomoh. When Shlomoh began his ascension to the throne, one of the ordinances of our text was announced on each of the steps.
The first step was Lo tate mishpat, which means, do not twist the judgment. According to the Talmud, falsehoods and half-truths drive away and exile the Divine Presence from among us. One of the characteristics of the Supreme Being is truth, as affirmed by our tradition by declaring: Chotatamo shel HaKadosh Baruch Hu emet, “the seal of God is the truth”. There are those who observe that the seal is applied in one step. A seal does not require a process, such as writing a word that has a beginning and continues with additional traces in order to reach its end. A seal, on the other hand, is imprinted with one stroke on the paper. The same goes for truth. Truth has to be complete and immediate. There are no half-truths, revealed as a process as time passes.
As he climbed the second rung, Shlomoh heard the admonition, Lo takir panim, “you will not make exceptions among people”. Everyone must be equal before the Law, in front of the judges. Our folklore tells that on one occasion a woman told her husband that she was going to take the maid before the rabbi because she suspected she was stealing, the husband replied that he would accompany her. The wife argued that it was not necessary because she knew how to defend herself; the husband replied that his purpose was rather to protect the maid, who could feel intimidated in the presence of the Rabbi.
Some recall that in the room that Rabbi Shmelke Nickelsburger used for his decisions in litigation cases, a cane and a purse were hanging on the wall. These objects were present at all times, as palpable evidence that the incorruptible Rabbiwas willing to leave the city at any moment, rather than allowing the merchants of power to try to influence his decisions.
Lo tikach shochad, do not admit bribes, was the exhortation on the third rung. Our text warns us, that no judge escapes the consequences of the gift of one of the parties, Ki hashochad ye’aver einei Chachamim, because bribery blinds the eyes of the wise. (In the Midrash we find the case of a judge who received Shochad, who became blind before he died).
(With reference to this assertion, a tongue-in-cheek story is told about the inhabitants of a certain village who questioned the Midrash because the local judge who had a reputation for acting in a dubious manner had become deaf. This contradicts our Midrash which claims that the result of the behavior in question is blindness, based on the biblical text that points out that bribery blinds the eyes of the sage. The contradiction was resolved by pointing out that the judge in question had not physically received Shochad. It had only been promised to him, he only heard about it and did not see it).
The Talmud suggests that the word Shochad comes from the root chad, which means sharp, thus insinuating that Shochad cuts and lacerates both, the one who offers it and the one who receives the bribe.
The ascent to the fourth rung corresponded to the proclamation of Lo tita lecha asherah, which means, you will not plant a tree (as idolators do) next to the altar. According to the Treatise Sanhedrin, the election of a judge who is unprepared to perform his role is tantamount to encouraging idolatry in the community. In the vision of our Chachamim, idolatry is identified with arbitrariness and chance. The Torah, on the other hand, is the manifest will of God, it is immutable, does not depend on whims nor permit ignorance. Every ruling must be based on clear and transparent rules. Only the presentation of robust arguments, based on Halachah, can lead to the review of any previous decision.
Velo takim lecha matsevah, “and do not erect statues (or monuments)”, is the exhortation of the fifth step. A judge should not separate himself from the conditions prevailing in the society that surrounds him, place himself above or outside his environment. In order to understand what litigation is about, it is necessary to identify and live the reality of your time. At the time of the worship of the Egel Hazahav, the golden calf, God suggests to Moses that he cannot appreciate the real situation of the Hebrew people from the heights of Mount Sinai. God commands him, Lech red, “surely go down,” because only by seeing and living in the midst of the situation will Mosesbe able to decide what action to take.
On the sixth and final rung it was announced, Lo tizbach laShem Elohecha… kol davar ra, which means, do not sacrifice before the Eternal thy God… anything bad (faulty). This is a wake-up call to remember that in the Jewish tradition the end does not justify the means. A ruling cannot be used to alleviate suffering and ailments, nor to correct other ills of society. Every judgment has to be entirely fair and correct for the parties involved.
Our chapters list different additional laws that are necessary to regulate relationships between community members. Although compassion, understanding and sensitivity to the evils that afflict others are moral qualities of the first caliber, justice and equity are unparalleled in the ordering and hierarchy of imperatives that are essential for the coexistence, harmony, material and spiritual development of any society.
MITSVAH: ORDINANCE OF THE TORAH IN THIS PARASHAH
CONTAINS 14 POSITIVE MITSVOT AND 27 BANS
491. Deuteronomy 16:18 Appoint judges and officers in each Jewish community
492. Deuteronomy 16:21 Do not plant a tree by the Altar
493. Deuteronomy 16:22 Do not erect an idolatrous pillar
494. Deuteronomy 17:1 Do not offer an animal with a blemish, even if it is a temporary blemish
495. Deuteronomy 17:10 Abide by what the Jewish Supreme Court rules in each generation
496. Deuteronomy 17:11 Do not disobey the word of the Jewish Supreme Court
497. Deuteronomy 17:15 Name a Jewish King
498. Deuteronomy 17:15 Do not name a Jewish King who is not a native Israelite
499. Deuteronomy 17:15 A king should not accumulate more horses than he needs
500. Deuteronomy 17:16 Do not reside in the Land of Egypt
501. Deuteronomy 17:17 A king should not have too many wives
502. Deuteronomy 17:17 A king shall not accumulate excess gold and silver
503. Deuteronomy 17:18 A king must write a Torah, in addition to the one every other Jew must write
504. Deuteronomy 18:1 The Levites should not inherit land in the Land of Israel
505. Deuteronomy 18:1 The Levites should not participate in the spoils during the conquest of the Land of Israel
506. Deuteronomy 18:3 Deliver to a Kohen the shoulder, jaw, and last stomach of an animal offering
507. Deuteronomy 18:4 Separate Terumah from the products
508. Deuteronomy 18:4 Handing the Kohanim the first shearing
509. Deuteronomy 18:4 The Kohanim should serve in the Temple according to guards and in times of festivities should serve in unison
510. Deuteronomy 18:10 Do not practice divinations
511. Deuteronomy 18:10 Do not practice witchcraft
512. Deuteronomy 18:10-11 Do not use amulets
513. Deuteronomy 18:10-11 Do not consult a medium
514. Deuteronomy 18:10-11 Do not consult a Yidoni (magician)
515. Deuteronomy 18:10-11 Do not attempt contact with a dead person
516. Deuteronomy 18:15 Listen to every prophet of the generation unless he adds or reduces what is in the Torah
517. Deuteronomy 18:20 Do not issue false prophecy
518. Deuteronomy 18:20 Do not issue prophecy in the name of an idol
519. Deuteronomy 18:22 Do not stop the execution of a false prophet nor fear him
520. Deuteronomy 19:3, 6 Prepare 6 Cities of Refuge
521. Deuteronomy 19:13, 21 Have no mercy on a person who deals a fatal blow during a capital punishment trial
522. Deuteronomy 19:14 Do not move your boundaries falsely
523. Deuteronomy 19:15 Do not judge based on the word of a single witness
524. Deuteronomy 19:19 Do unto a false witness what he tried to do to a victim with his testimony
525. Deuteronomy 20:3; 7:21 Do not fear the enemy in battle
526. Deuteronomy 20:5-7 Anoint the Kohen for the time of war
527. Deuteronomy 20:10 Behave in an Elective War according to the rules of the Torah
528. Deuteronomy 20:16 Do not allow to live any of the 7 nations that inhabited the Land of Israel
529. Deuteronomy 21:1 Do not destroy fruit trees during a siege, nor cause pointless destruction
530. Deuteronomy 21:1 Break the calf’s neck in the riverbed
531. Deuteronomy 21:4 Do not plow nor sow in the riverbed where the calf’s neck was broken
