“Can
we see the trace of G-d in the face of a stranger?” - Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
The Ten Commandments have engaged Jewish and non-Jewish scholars over the centuries.
Many believe that they can be divided into two columns. The first five, on the right, address the Mitzvot governing the interactions between Man and G-d. The left column, many claim, addresses the interpersonal and social intercourse with our fellow Man. I doubt that anyone can disagree with that claim, except, perhaps, question the fifth Commandment, the Mitzvah of honouring our parents, which is placed in the right column and may be perceived as one relating more to human interaction rather than to Man and G-d.
This might, indeed, be the case, unless we fail to notice that it is the
only Commandment which is rewarded, “so that your days may be long upon the
land which the Lord your G-d gives you.” The Divine incentive for following the
fifth Commandment explicitly keeps G-d in the equation of human interaction.
Chaza”l teach us, on several occasions,
that though the Mitzvot, in both columns, are equally important, the last five bear significant weight with regards to conducting our daily affairs as members
the human race.
In this article, I will try to show
that the practice of morality between Man and his fellow Man reflects the
character of G-d and serves Him no less than it serves us, humans. In other words,
breaching any of the last five Commandments is not only a transgression
against our fellow Man but against G-d as well.
“You shall not murder,” is
the sixth Commandment, the first in the left column. This prohibition stems
from the concept that Man was created in G-d’s image. This hints at the unique
and high status of Man that somewhat resembles G-d. Hence “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man
shall his blood be shed, for G-d made man in his own image” (Bresheet 9:6). An act of murder disrupts the order of the universe.
Therefore, the blood of the murdered cries out from the ground (Bresheet 4:10).
It is a crime against G-d and is irremediable. The following law in Shemot
21:28 sheds light on the severity of this violation: “If a bull gores a man or
woman to death, the bull is to be stones to death, and its meat must not be
eaten.” Why is the bull punished? Does it have criminal
responsibility? The only way to make sense of this law is through the
underlying principle of the Biblical law. The animal ravaged an image of G-d.
For such a heinous deed, it must pay the price. It must be stoned, and its meat
prohibited for consumption. Furthermore, the Biblical view of the uniqueness
and superiority of human life leads to another conclusion. The value of the
life of a human being is above and beyond all values. It cannot be measured by
money nor by another human’s life. Neither can it be compensated. The Torah is
very clear about that: “Do not accept a ransom for the life of a murderer, who
deserves to die.” (Bamidbar 35:31).
The seventh Commandment is “Lo
Tin’af.” In English it translates into, “Thou shall not commit adultery.”
The Hebrew root of “Na’af” means, betrayal or disloyalty. Here,
is used to describe infidelity in a matrimonial relationship when one of the parties
engages in an extramarital affair. Since the marriage contract is of Divine
origin and Divinely sanctioned, it is clear why any
violation of it will offend G-d. It is well evident in the case of Yoseph when
his master’s wife asks him “to come to bed” with her. Yoseph’s response is “My
master has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. How
then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against G-d?” (Bresheet 39:9).
As some commentators note, the term became a metaphor for Idolatry. Jewish
tradition uses marriage as a metaphor to the relationship between Am Yisrael
and G-d. Therefore, Am Yisrael needs to give G-d the same absolute fidelity that
a wife exercises for her husband. The use of term intimating adultery to
describe the worship of other gods is already made in Shemot 34:16: “and you
take of their daughters for your sons, and their daughters whore after their
gods and make your sons whore after their gods.”
Later, Ezekiel and Jeremiah,
explicitly use the term when allegorizing Am Yisrael to a prostitute and
adulteress: “How sick is your heart, declares the Lord G-d, because you did all
these things, the deeds of a brazen prostitute……Adulterous wife, who receives
strangers instead of her husband!” (Ezekiel 16:30-32). “For the land is full of
adulterers,” (Jeremiah 23:10).
“You shall not steal,” is the
eight Commandment. Everyone knows that theft in any shape of form is an immoral
act.
Aside from theft in its common meaning, I wish to draw the readers’ attention to
another, more serious kind of robbery, where it becomes an act against G-d. In
his interpretation of the Ten Commandments, the great Jewish philosopher Philo
of Alexandria (200 CE) perceives that it is not merely an act committed against
individuals when their assets are stolen. He believes that it is also aimed at
acts committed by bigger and more powerful robbers. He refers to those in power,
the law givers who use their power to enrich themselves, rob whole cities
without worries since, allegedly, they are above the law, while in the name of
ruling and leadership commit what is, in fact, theft. That is precisely what
Samuel warned Am Yisrael against in his harsh and famous sermon when they demanded to appoint
a king (Shmuel 1, Chapter 1:10-18).
The ninth Commandment, likewise, states that which is, clearly, obvious, “Thou
shall not bear false witness,” which is translated into the prohibition to lie.
Again, as in the previous Commandments, it is not merely a transgression
against our fellow Man but also against G-d. The Midrash wishes to stress the
necessity to adhere to the truth, to reality. If a person testifies falsely, it
means that what happened did not happen. It implies that there is no
significance to existential concepts such as, honesty, truth reality and
existence which are so important to Man and thus turns reality into something
meaningless. If anyone can describe the world as they wish, then there is no
Creator, no creation, there is nothing and everything is relative. In the words
of the prophet Isiah (43:10), “’You are my witnesses,” Declares the Lord.’” Man’s
vocation is to be a witness to the existence of G-d.
Finally, the tenth Commandment,
warns us not covet our neighbour’s house, his wife his
male or female servant, his ox, donkey or anything that belongs to them. On the
surface, it seems that this Commandment strictly relates to interpersonal
relations. Here, again, Jewish scholars debate its Divine rationale.
Rabbi Avraham Ibn Ezra (Spain
1164-1092), for instance, clams that this prohibition is not meant to protect
our neighbour from the act of coveting. He, asserts, rather, that one is
prohibited from coveting that which G-d forbids or refuses to give us. Man, he
believes, should be content with that which G-d has bestowed upon him.
Ramba”m sees the divine
prohibition in this Commandment from another angle. According to him, it serves
as a safeguard from other, worse offences. Lust, he believes,
leads to covet which in turn leads to theft quoting Micah 2:2 “The covet lusts
after the fields and seize them.” That eventually may induce bloodshed as the
example of Ahab and Navot shows.
The Ahab and Navot sorrowful matter
recounted in Melachim I (Kings I) chapter 21, is indeed a typical
example where coveting the property of one’s neighbour’s leads to murder. And,
as was established earlier, murder is not only a crime against our fellow Man
but an offence against G-d as well.
Whichever way we interpret or
understand the Ten Commandments, one fact remains clear. They are meant to
improve Mankind and keep the order of the universe intact. What then is a
better way to achieve it than, as Rabbi Sacks, ZT”L suggests, seeking to “see
the trace of G-d in the face of a stranger?”
Shavua tov, Am Yisrael and a wonderful weekend to all
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