Rabbinic JudaismSifrei Devarim 87HOLYMAP · SACRED TEXTS
Sifrei on DeuteronomySifrei Devarim 87

Sifrei on Deuteronomy

Sifrei Devarim 87

1
English · Shraga Silverstein

(Devarim 13:7) "If there shall incite you (yesitecha) your brother, the son of your mother": "hasatah" (as in "yesitecha") connotes deception, as in (I Kings 21:25) "… wherein Jezebel his (Achav's) wife hesatah."

2
English · Shraga Silverstein

Others say "hasatah" connotes incitement, as in (I Samuel 26:19) "And now, let my lord (Saul) listen to the words of his servant (David). If the L-rd hesitecha you against me, He will be pacified with an offering." "your brother":

3
English · Shraga Silverstein

From (Devarim 24:16) "Fathers shall not be put to death by cause of sons, and sons shall not be put to death by cause of fathers," we learn that they (i.e., kin) do not testify against each other. We hereby infer (that to secure testimony against an inciter to idolatry) witnesses are sequestered against him.

4
English · Shraga Silverstein

"your brother" — your brother from your father.

5
English · Shraga Silverstein

"the son of your mother" — your brother from your mother.

6
English · Shraga Silverstein

"or your son" — in any event (i.e., even if he is a mamzer).

7
English · Shraga Silverstein

"or your daughter" — in any event.

8
English · Shraga Silverstein

"or the wife" — betrothed.

9
English · Shraga Silverstein

"of your bosom" — married.

10
English · Shraga Silverstein

"or re'acha" — your friend.

11
English · Shraga Silverstein

"who is as your soul" — your father and your mother.

12
English · Shraga Silverstein

"in secret, saying": We are hereby taught they utter their words (of incitement) only in secret, as it is written (Proverbs 7:9) "In the evening, in the close of day, in the midst of night and darkness." But words of Torah are uttered only in the open, as it is written (Ibid. 1:20) "Wisdom (Torah) sings in the streets, etc."

13
English · Shraga Silverstein

(Devarim, Ibid.) "Let us go and serve other gods, whom you did not know, you, nor your fathers": R. Yossi Haglili says: This is in denigration of Israel. For the idolators do not forsake what their fathers have bequeathed to them, but Israel (are amenable to) forsaking what their fathers have bequeathed to them to go and serve idolatry.

1
Sifrei Devarim 87English
2
Sifrei Devarim 870%

Sifrei on Deuteronomy

Find your chapter.

357 chapters

Make yourself comfortable.

PAGE COLOUR

TEXT SIZE

100%

Your preferences stay with you on this device.

ORIGINALS & TRANSLATIONS

Choose your edition.

Select one edition for quiet reading, or several to compare the words.

Public-domain Hebrew editions, digitized by Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

Mechilta, Sifra and Sifrei, translated by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein. CC BY. Text from Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

English translation: Sifrei Devarim, translated by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein, via Sefaria (sefaria.org). Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). Changes: footnotes and HTML formatting removed.

↑
Explore the atlas
↑ ↓ to explore   ·   Enter to open   ·   Esc to close