The One Who Sees is Also a Thief:
The Ibn Ezra states: “Why is ‘signovu’ in the plural? Because one who sees and is silent is also a thief.”
Lo Signovu... For Important People:
It is asked why in the Aseres Hadibros, the command of “Lo Signov” is in the singular, whereas in this pasuk, the command of “Lo Signovu” is in the plural. A tongue-in-cheek answer is said that “Lo Signov” refers to kidnapping. Only lowly people would kidnap another person. Therefore, we refer to them in the less distinguished, singular tense and say “you” should not steal (du zalst night ganvenen). “Lo Signov” refers to stealing money, which is done by important, respected people. Such people are referred to with the more honorable, plural tense, and are told “you shouldn’t steal” (ihr zalst nisht ganvenen).
A shochet, who was also a big talmid chochom and yarei shomayim, once came to Rav Yisroel Salanter zt”l and said that he wants to leave his profession because he is afraid of the responsibility of ensuring that everyone’s meat is fully kosher. Rav Yisroel asked, “So what will you do for parnassah?” The man answered, “I will open a store.” Rav Yisroel told him, “You are scared to be a shochet but this only involves one potential prohibition, that of neveilah. If you open a store, you will have to worry about many prohibitions, such as theft, jealousy, cheating customers, lying, having bad scales, etc.”
One Should Accustom Himself to Say That “I Am Holy”:
The Medrash (Rabbah 24:9) states: “’You shall be holy.’ You might think like Me; therefore, the pasuk states: ‘Because I am holy.’ My holiness is higher than yours.” The Ruzhiner Rebbe zy”a explains that every Jew should say “I am holy because I am a Jew.” If we constantly say that we are holy, we can keep away the yeitzer hara. Whenever it tries to lure us to sin, we should repeat that we are holy and, therefore, it is unfitting for us to sin. And when the yeitzer hatov tells us to do a mitzvah, we should say that we are holy and, therefore, we should do it.
לֹא תִּ גְנֹבוּ וְלֹא תְ כַחֲשׁוּ וְלֹא תְ שַׁקְּרוּ וגו' (יט, יא)
You shall not steal. You shall not deny falsely. You shall not lie, one man to his fellow. (19:11)
Do Not Swear Falsely:
The Ben Ish Chai (Drashos, Parshas Mishpatim) relates the following story of how his grandfather, Rav Moshe Chaim, saved a man from swearing falsely:
Two men once came to Rav Moshe Chaim for a din Torah, with each one claiming that the other was lying. With his wisdom, he realized which man was lying and understood that the man was prepared to swear falsely. He told that man, “You think I am going to make you swear on a Sefer Torah. That isn’t what I’m going to do. I’m going to make you swear with the ‘Shnei Luchos Habris’!” Rav Moshe Chaim then said to his shamash, “Quick, bring the Shnei Luchos Habris!”
The unlearned man had no idea that “Shnei Luchos Habris” is the name of a sefer (the sefer of the Shlah Hakadosh). He thought that the Rov was going to make him swear on the actual luchos that Moshe brought down from Shomayim. He got very scared and said, “I don’t want to swear. I will pay.” The Rov replied, “You can’t do that. You have already obligated yourself to swear.” The man then admitted that he was lying and said the truth.
וְלֹא תִ שָּׁבְעוּ בִשְׁ מִ י לַשָּׁקֶר וְחִלַּלְתָּ אֶת שֵׁם אֱלֹקֶיךָ וגו' (יט, יב)
You shall not swear falsely by My Name, thereby profaning the Name of your G-d.... (19:12)
A Curse Destroys the Curser:
The Ran (Drashos HaRan, Drush 12) asks why the Torah only says that it is forbidden to curse a deaf man. Isn’t it forbidden to curse anyone?
He answers that the Torah is teaching us an important lesson. It is understandable why it is forbidden to steal or hurt someone else, as the Torah doesn’t want anyone to suffer. One might think that this is why it is forbidden to curse someone, as this would cause that person to feel pain. If this were true, it should seemingly be permitted to curse a deaf person, as he cannot hear the curse and won’t be insulted.
However, the Torah does forbid cursing a deaf man. The reason for this must be that although the one being cursed won’t be harmed, the one uttering the curse will. The Torah is concerned for the curser because he is destroying his own neshama by spewing vitriol against someone else.
לֹא תְ קַלֵּל חֵרֵ שׁ וגו' וְיָרֵ אתָ מֵּאֱלֹקֶיךָ אֲנִי ה' (יט, יד)
Do not curse... and fear your G-d. I am Hashem. (19:14)
Therefore, one should accustom himself to forgive others and not to speak badly about anyone, even if the person cannot hear what is being said about him. We also see from here that the prohibition to steal or to hurt someone else is also for the benefit of the thief or the damager. The Torah knows that such actions harm the soul and avoiding them can only benefit a person.
Judging Favorably:
On the topic of judging others favorably, it is related that Rav Zelmele of Volozhin zt”l’s shirt was stolen one erev Shabbos while he was in the mikveh. Rav Zelmele did not say a word. He simply put on his coat and went home.
When he got home, his wife asked him where his coat was. He answered, “Someone must have accidentally put on my shirt, thinking it was his.” She then asked, “If so, why didn’t you put on that person’s shirt?” He replied, “What could I have done? He also forgot to leave his shirt there!”
לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ עָוֶל בַּמִ ּשְ ׁפָּט וגו' בְ ּצֶדֶק תִ ּשְ ׁפֹּט עֲמִ יתֶךָ (יט, טו)
You shall commit no injustice in judgment...you shall judge your fellow with righteousness. (19:15)
לֹא תִ שְ ׂנָא וגו' הוֹכֵחַ תּוֹכִיחַ אֶת עֲמִ יתֶךָ וְלֹא תִ שָ ּׂא עָלָיו חֵטְ א (יט, יז)
You shall not hate... You shall surely rebuke your fellow and you shall not bear a sin on his account. (19:17)
Rebuke That Will be Accepted:
It is stated in Sefer Hachasidim that if one rebukes his friend and the friend doesn’t listen, the rebuker takes the friend’s zechusim from him.
The Chida zt”l (Sefer Bris Olam) uses this concept to explain the pasuk as saying that one is obligated to rebuke his friend if he sees him doing an aveirah. However, he should not “bear a sin on his account’, meaning that he shouldn’t deliberately give the mussar in a way that it won’t be accepted because he wants to take his zechusim from him. Rather, one should give mussar in a gentle way so that his friend will accept it and change his ways.
Rebuke in an Honorable Way:
The pasuk (Mishlei 9:8) says: “Do not rebuke a scoffer, lest he come to hate you. Rebuke a wise man and he will love you.” The Shlah Hakadosh explains this to mean that one should not rebuke someone in a demeaning way. One should not rebuke him by telling him that he is a scoffer and is guilty of terrible sins. If one speaks to a person this way, that person will surely come to hate him and won’t accept the mussar.
Rather, one should treat his friend like a wise and good man. He should tell him that he is so smart and good that it is unbecoming for him to sin. Such words will be well-received. The one being gently rebuked will love you for speaking to him this way and he will accept the mussar.
He explains this pasuk in the same manner. The Torah is saying that when one rebukes his friend, he should not “bear a sin”, meaning that he shouldn’t focus on his sins and tell him how bad he is. Rather, he should tell him that he is a good person and such conduct is unbecoming of him.
Rebuke Oneself and Then Others:
The Toldos Yaakov Yosef (Parshas Vayeilech) quotes the Baal Shem Tov zy”a as saying that a Torah leader must first rebuke himself before rebuking others. He explains that a generation follows the lead of its leaders. If they create a good atmosphere, the general public will be free of sin. If they do not, others will follow their negative example. Therefore, if a Torah leader sees people committing aveiros, he must realize that he is somewhat to blame.
Accordingly, the pasuk is saying: “Hochiach” – first rebuke yourself. “Tochiach es amisecha” – and only then may you rebuke others. “And you shall not bear a sin” – do not ignore your own sin and only chastise others.
Even if Only One Person Accepts the Rebuke:
The Chofetz Chaim zt”l once encouraged a Magid Meisharim by telling him that he should not be disheartened if it seems like almost no one is listening to his words of mussar. He should not think that he is working in vain, as even if one person gets the message and does teshuva, it is all worth it.
He compared this to noblemen who spend a lot of time and money on hunting trips. Sometimes, they spend days in the forest searching for prey and still come home emptyhanded. Still and all, they continue to do this because they know that if they can catch one bear or one deer, it is all worth it for the pleasure they get from that catch. So too, he said, you may think that very few people listen to you, but you must remember that if you catch one R’ Dov or one R’ Tzvi, and get him to do teshuva, it is all worth it.
לֹא תִ קֹּם וגו' וְאָהַבְתָ ּ לְרֵ עֲךָ כָּמוֹךָ אֲנִי ה' (יט, יח)
You shall not take revenge... you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am Hashem. (19:18)
Rejoicing for One’s Friend:
Sefer Ohr Yitzchok (Avos, Perek 3) asks how one can be expected to fulfill this mitzvah. If one buys himself a new coat, does he also have to buy one for this friend? How can anyone be expected to buy coats for everyone he knows? Furthermore, a poor man can’t afford to do this, so how could the Torah command him to do something he cannot do?
He answers with a moshol: There once was a father who had several sons, all of whom caused him tremendous grief. One of them had been arrested and was locked up in jail, another was sick, another had stolen from him, and another had no children. The father was greatly pained by the fact that all of his sons had so many problems, and he felt incredible pain and compassion for each one of them as an individual. Of course, each son was suffering due to his own problems, but their pain didn’t come close to the pain the father felt for each son.
We are all children of Hashem, as is stated (Devarim 14:1): “You are children of Hashem, your G-d.” Therefore, we cannot even imagine how much pain He feels as a result of the various forms of suffering His children endure, and how much pleasure He gets when His children succeed.
The mitzvah to love one’s friend like himself does not mean to give him whatever you have, as we are commanded not to give away more than one-fifth of our possessions to others (Kesuvos 50A). Rather, it means that we should genuinely and sincerely desire for them to be successful and to be happy. If one’s friend makes money, he should be as happy as if he himself made money. If one’s friend suffers a loss, one should be as upset as he would be if he himself suffered that loss. If one’s friend is in need, he should daven for him as much as he would if he himself were in need.
The Mitzvah is For One’s Own Benefit:
One should realize that this mitzvah is for his own benefit. If one cannot feel happy for his friend’s success, he is only harming himself.
Chazal say (Avos 4:21) that “jealousy, desire and honor remove a person from this world.” It is clear that it is easier to feel bad for a person in a dire situation than to feel good for a person who is successful. When a person is going through a hard time, everyone wants to help him, but when a person is doing well, it is very hard not to be jealous.
If one is able to bring himself to rejoice with the success of others, it will be for his benefit as he will not feel bitter or angry and he will enjoy life more.
Hashem Treats People the Way They Treat Others:
Why does this pasuk end with the words “ani Hashem”? The Baal Shem Tov Hakadosh zy”a notes that Dovid Hamelech compares Hashem to a shadow (Tehilim 121:5). A shadow always mimics the movements of the person. So too, Hashem always acts towards us the same way we act towards Him. Accordingly, the pasuk is saying that one should love his friend like himself because “I am Hashem”, and I will act lovingly towards you if you act lovingly towards others.
One Who Considers Himself Lowly Loves His Friend:
The Sar Shalom of Belz zy”a explains how one can truly love his friend like himself by saying that if one is humble and lowly in his own eyes, it is not hard to love his fellow Jews. If one believes that his friends are better than himself, he won’t think that he deserves wealth or honor more than they do, so he won’t be jealous of them and he will be able to feel happy for them.
The letters immediately after the letters of the word “reacha” (your friend) spell “shafel” (lowly). This indicates that if one chooses to go after his friend by considering himself lowly and unworthy, he will be able to love him like himself.
Hating Oneself and Loving One’s Friend:
One year on Parshas Kedoshim, a chasid of the Kotzker Rebbe hid behind his door to listen to how he reads this Parshah as he does “shnayim mikrah v’echad targum”. When the Rebbe reached the words “v’ahavta l’reacha komocha”, the chasid heard him say them in a questioning way: “And you shall love your friend? Huh? Like yourself?”
After a short pause, he heard the Rebbe say, “Yes. Like yourself!” The chasid didn’t understand. He asked the Rebbe’s close chasid, Rav Tzvi Hirsch of Tomachov zy”a for an explanation, and Rav Hirsch Tzvi explained: “The Rebbe was asking himself: How can the Torah command someone to love himself ‘like himself’? Is it permitted to love yourself? Kotzk teaches that loving oneself leads to laziness, dishonesty, and other bad middos. His answer was that the Torah is saying that one is obligated to love his friend as much as he is obligated to hate himself. Just like one must completely dislike himself, he must completely love his friend.”
A Small Klal and a Big Klal:
Rav Shlomo of Zhvil zy”a once asked his shamash, R’ Eliyahu Roth zt”l, “It is stated in the Torah that loving one’s friend like oneself is the ‘klal gadol’ (big rule) in the Torah. This infers that there also is a ‘klal koton’ (small rule) in the Torah. What is the klal koton?”
He answered, “If you hear that an esrog merchant is being very successful, the klal koton is not to begrudge him. You wouldn’t want someone to begrudge you of your success, so you shouldn’t do the same to anyone else. The klal godol is that not only should you not be upset at his success, you also should be happy for him.”
In this vein, the Kotzker Rebbe (quoted in Siach Sarfei Kodesg, Parshas Mishpatim) would explain the verse (Shemos 22:30): “V’anshei kodesh tihiyu li” (you shall be holy people to Me) by saying, “You shall serve Me by making your human tendencies holy.” In other words, the main way to serve Hashem is to overcome one’s inborn tendencies of jealousy and hatred towards others, and to treat everyone nicely and kindly.
