Jonathan Sacks – A Life of Vertical & Horizontal Responsibility: Shavuot During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Join the Chief Rabbi and Rabbi Lord Sacks as they explore the powerful dual responsibility conferred upon us at Sinai.
Coming up to Shavuot, let us look at one tiny detail of the Rabbinical understanding of Z’man Matan Torahteinu, the actual event of the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. One little detail which, as it were, was lying there in the tradition and only in much more recent times has it had significant impact. This is an interesting dimension of the understanding of the event, and also one that explains something very important that’s happened to Judaism in the past century.
Before God could reveal the Torah to Israel at Mt. Sinai, Moshe had to propose the covenant to the Israelites, and only after their acceptance could Matan Torah proceed:
The end of the third verse contains a tautology, or double language. Why is the same idea repeated twice, in different words? Rabbinic tradition examines this repetition:
(ג) וּמֹשֶׁ֥ה עָלָ֖ה אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּקְרָ֨א אֵלָ֤יו יְהוָה֙ מִן־הָהָ֣ר לֵאמֹ֔ר כֹּ֤ה תֹאמַר֙ לְבֵ֣ית יַעֲקֹ֔ב וְתַגֵּ֖יד לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (ד) אַתֶּ֣ם רְאִיתֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשִׂ֖יתִי לְמִצְרָ֑יִם וָאֶשָּׂ֤א אֶתְכֶם֙ עַל־כַּנְפֵ֣י נְשָׁרִ֔ים וָאָבִ֥א אֶתְכֶ֖ם אֵלָֽי׃ (ה) וְעַתָּ֗ה אִם־שָׁמ֤וֹעַ תִּשְׁמְעוּ֙ בְּקֹלִ֔י וּשְׁמַרְתֶּ֖ם אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֑י וִהְיִ֨יתֶם לִ֤י סְגֻלָּה֙ מִכָּל־הָ֣עַמִּ֔ים כִּי־לִ֖י כָּל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (ו) וְאַתֶּ֧ם תִּהְיוּ־לִ֛י מַמְלֶ֥כֶת כֹּהֲנִ֖ים וְג֣וֹי קָד֑וֹשׁ אֵ֚לֶּה הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר תְּדַבֵּ֖ר אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
(3) and Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob and declare to the children of Israel: (4) ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Me. (5) Now then, if you will obey Me faithfully and keep My covenant, you shall be My treasured possession among all the peoples. Indeed, all the earth is Mine, (6) but you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel.”
כה תאמר לבית יעקב, אלו הנשים; ותגד לבני ישראל, אלו האנשים. [ד”א כה תאמר לבית יעקב, בזכות יעקב; ותגד לבני ישראל, בזכות ישראל] ד”א כה תאמר לבית יעקב, אמור בלשון רכה, אמור ראשי דברים לנשים; ותגד לבני ישראל, ותדקדק עמהם ואמור להם.
.(Exodus 19:3) “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob” — the women, “and speak to the children of Israel” — the men. “Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob” — “gently”; “say” — Give the women the basic ideas. “…and speak to the children of Israel” – “speak” in detail to the men.
This early Midrash, which comes from the same time as the Mishnah, claims that God told Moses to first give the Torah to the women, before giving it to the men.
But why do the Rabbis say this? They didn’t have to make this argument. Another Midrashic tradition explains:
(ב) דָּבָר אַחֵר, לָמָּה לַנָּשִׁים תְּחִלָּה, שֶׁהֵן מִזְדָּרְזוֹת בְּמִצְווֹת. דָּבָר אַחֵר, כְּדֵי שֶׁיְהוּ מַנְהִיגוֹת אֶת בְּנֵיהֶן לַתּוֹרָה. אָמַר רַבִּי תַּחְלִיפָא דְּקֵיסָרִין, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא כְּשֶׁבָּרָאתִי אֶת הָעוֹלָם, לֹא צִוִּיתִי אֶלָּא לְאָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן, וְאַחַר כָּךְ נִצְטַוֵּית חַוָּה וְעָבְרָה וְקִלְקְלָה אֶת הָעוֹלָם, עַכְשָׁיו אִם אֵינִי קוֹרֵא לַנָּשִׁים תְּחִלָּה, הֵן מְבַטְּלוֹת אֶת הַתּוֹרָה, לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר: כֹּה תֹאמַר לְבֵית יַעֲקֹב. וְרַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר:
(2) Another explanation: why were the women first? Since they are keen with mitzvot. Another explanation, so that they could accustom their children to Torah. Rabbi Tachlifa Dekeisarin [“kingmaker”?] said, the Holy Blessed One said ‘When I created the world, I commanded only the First Man; and after that Chava was commanded, and she transgressed and corrupted the world. Now, if I do not call to the women first, they will nullify the Torah.’ So it says, “So say to the House of Jacob”.
There are three ideas presented: The first is that women are more punctilious about mitzvot. Alternatively, perhaps it is because women are enablers, and will bring their children to study Torah. Finally, a third opinion explains that the first commandment ever was given to a man, and it was a woman who transgressed. This time, God gives the mitzvot to women first, to ensure that they are on board.
While these three opinions differ greatly on reasoning, their is no doubt presented in this Midrashic tradition about the fact that women received the Torah first. Yet the legal tradition does not pick up on this Midrash.
(יג) אִשָּׁה שֶׁלָּמְדָה תּוֹרָה יֵשׁ לָהּ שָׂכָר אֲבָל אֵינוֹ כִּשְׂכַר הָאִישׁ. מִפְּנֵי שֶׁלֹּא נִצְטַוֵּית. וְכָל הָעוֹשֶׂה דָּבָר שֶׁאֵינוֹ מְצֻוֶּה עָלָיו לַעֲשׂוֹתוֹ אֵין שְׂכָרוֹ כִּשְׂכַר הַמְצֻוֶּה שֶׁעָשָׂה אֶלָּא פָּחוֹת מִמֶּנּוּ. וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁיֵּשׁ לָהּ שָׂכָר צִוּוּ חֲכָמִים שֶׁלֹּא יְלַמֵּד אָדָם אֶת בִּתּוֹ תּוֹרָה. מִפְּנֵי שֶׁרֹב הַנָּשִׁים אֵין דַּעְתָּם מְכֻוֶּנֶת לְהִתְלַמֵּד אֶלָּא הֵן מוֹצִיאוֹת דִּבְרֵי תּוֹרָה לְדִבְרֵי הֲבַאי לְפִי עֲנִיּוּת דַּעְתָּן. אָמְרוּ חֲכָמִים כָּל הַמְלַמֵּד אֶת בִּתּוֹ תּוֹרָה כְּאִלּוּ לִמְּדָהּ תִּפְלוּת. בַּמֶּה דְּבָרִים אֲמוּרִים בְּתוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה אֲבָל תּוֹרָה שֶׁבִּכְתָב לֹא יְלַמֵּד אוֹתָהּ לְכַתְּחִלָּה וְאִם לִמְּדָהּ אֵינוֹ כִּמְלַמְּדָהּ תִּפְלוּת:
(13) A woman who studied the Torah has a reward coming to her but it is incomparable to the reward of a man because she was not commanded to do so, and whosoever does something which is not mandatory upon him to perform receives not a hire equal to the hire of him who is commanded to perform it but less than he. And, although she has a reward coming the sages commanded that a man shall not instruct his daughter in the Torah, because most women have no set mind to be instructed therein, but, on the contrary, are apt to divert matters of the Torah to nonsensical matters, of course, in proportion to the inferiority of their mind. The sages said: “Whosoever instructs his daughter in Torah does no better than if he instructed her in matters of profanity.” (Sotah, 21b). These matters are thus spoken of only concerning the Oral Torah, but respecting Holy Writ it is best not to begin to instruct her therein but if he did instruct her it is not as if he instruct her in profanity.14Abodah Zarah, 3b; Kiddushin, 31a. C.
For the better part of 2,000 years, women were not given the same Torah education as men. This was how Torah learning Judaism functioned practically speaking until 1917:
Pictured here is the second graduating class of the Bais Ya’akov in Lodz, Poland, in 1934.
Institution/Owner: Yehudis Bobker, Sydney, Australia.
In 1917, Sarah Schenirer founded the first Bais Ya’akov school for women, and she named it after this verse that we have been examining.
Since then, women have risen in the ranks of Torah scholars. The Belzer Rebbe, a great Chasidic leader, and the Chofetz Chaim, the major Torah scholar of his generation, both blessed this endeavor. After World War II, in America, Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik and the Lubavitcher rebbe promoted the role of women as students of Torah and teachers of Torah.
This was truly a revolution. From this revolution came thousands of new Torah teachers and hundreds of thousands of new Torah learners. And this revolution happened in part through permission granted by the Gedolei Hador, the greatest rabbis of the generation, because they had the support and groundwork of the Midrashic tradition.
What did these rabbis see to make them overturn generations of tradition that excluded women? The answer is: This midrash, which was an underutilized force until this revoluation took place.
But why is this Midrash so insistent on the idea that women were offered the Torah before the men? What is special about the women’s voice in Torah?
Compare these two places in Tanakh where Torah is discussed in conjunction with an abstract ethical term. The first is from the book of Malachi, the last of the prophets:
(ו) תּוֹרַ֤ת אֱמֶת֙ הָיְתָ֣ה בְּפִ֔יהוּ וְעַוְלָ֖ה לֹא־נִמְצָ֣א בִשְׂפָתָ֑יו בְּשָׁל֤וֹם וּבְמִישׁוֹר֙ הָלַ֣ךְ אִתִּ֔י וְרַבִּ֖ים הֵשִׁ֥יב מֵעָוֺֽן׃
(6) Proper rulings were in his mouth, And nothing perverse was on his lips; He served Me with complete loyalty And held the many back from iniquity.
This verse speak of men, but the second source, from the book of Proverbs, is about women:
(כו) פִּ֭יהָ פָּתְחָ֣ה בְחָכְמָ֑ה וְתֽוֹרַת־חֶ֝֗סֶד עַל־לְשׁוֹנָֽהּ׃
(26) Her mouth is full of wisdom, Her tongue with kindly teaching.
If male-centric Torah is of “Emet” and female-centric torah is of “Chesed” now consider in the Torah what happens when those two values appear next to one another:
(כז) וַיֹּ֗אמֶר בָּר֤וּךְ יְהוָה֙ אֱלֹהֵי֙ אֲדֹנִ֣י אַבְרָהָ֔ם אֲ֠שֶׁר לֹֽא־עָזַ֥ב חַסְדּ֛וֹ וַאֲמִתּ֖וֹ מֵעִ֣ם אֲדֹנִ֑י אָנֹכִ֗י בַּדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ נָחַ֣נִי יְהוָ֔ה בֵּ֖ית אֲחֵ֥י אֲדֹנִֽי׃
(27) and said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld His steadfast faithfulness from my master. For I have been guided on my errand by the LORD, to the house of my master’s kinsmen.”
In the verse above, Abraham’s servant is praying that he find an appropriate wife for his master’s son, and praises God for God’s “chesed” and “emet” – kindness, and then truth.
(יא) קָטֹ֜נְתִּי מִכֹּ֤ל הַחֲסָדִים֙ וּמִכָּל־הָ֣אֱמֶ֔ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשִׂ֖יתָ אֶת־עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ כִּ֣י בְמַקְלִ֗י עָבַ֙רְתִּי֙ אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֣ן הַזֶּ֔ה וְעַתָּ֥ה הָיִ֖יתִי לִשְׁנֵ֥י מַחֲנֽוֹת׃
(11) I am unworthy of all the kindness that You have so steadfastly shown Your servant: with my staff alone I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.
When Jacob is about to encounter his brother Esau, and prays for God’s assistance, he says that he is unworthy of both the chesed, kindness, and the emet, the truth or steadfastness, that God has shown.
(ו) וַיַּעֲבֹ֨ר יְהוָ֥ה ׀ עַל־פָּנָיו֮ וַיִּקְרָא֒ יְהוָ֣ה ׀ יְהוָ֔ה אֵ֥ל רַח֖וּם וְחַנּ֑וּן אֶ֥רֶךְ אַפַּ֖יִם וְרַב־חֶ֥סֶד וֶאֱמֶֽת ׀
(6) The LORD passed before him and proclaimed: “The LORD! the LORD! a God compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness,
Finally, in this speech, known as the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, which God shares with Moses, kindness is mentioned first, followed by “truth” or “faithfulness.”
In Torah it seems “Chesed” always comes before, and takes precedence over “Emet.” This is why women’s Torah must come first. All along it seems there should have been more than the Torah of Emet. Only now it seems are we able to learn Torah as it should have been all along, as expressed in these verses that tell us that at Mt. Sinai, God chose to give the Torah to the women first, before the men.
