Chasidut zu Dewarim 15:18
לֹא־יִקְשֶׁ֣ה בְעֵינֶ֗ךָ בְּשַׁלֵּֽחֲךָ֙ אֹת֤וֹ חָפְשִׁי֙ מֵֽעִמָּ֔ךְ כִּ֗י מִשְׁנֶה֙ שְׂכַ֣ר שָׂכִ֔יר עֲבָֽדְךָ֖ שֵׁ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֑ים וּבֵֽרַכְךָ֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ בְּכֹ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר תַּעֲשֶֽׂה׃ (פ)
Es wird dir nicht schwer erscheinen, wenn du ihn von dir befreien lässt; denn zum Doppelten der Miete eines Mieters hat er dir sechs Jahre gedient; und der HERR, dein Gott, wird dich in allem segnen, was du tust.
Kedushat Levi
Deuteronomy 16,18. “Judges and law enforcers you shall appoint in your “gates” who will judge the people fairly.”
While it is true, as we all know that G’d sits in judgment of the people of Israel on New Year’s Day, at which time He exercises His love as well as His mercy, there is still a need for justice being meted out down here on earth by human, i.e. mortal judges. The judges meting out justice on earth must also reflect the attribute of Mercy employed in the celestial spheres. When judges here on earth emulate the approach to the accused displayed in the celestial spheres, i.e. to assume that even if guilty, there are some excuses to be found for the conduct of the accused, then we can hope that, by taking this into consideration, our own judgment on New Year’s day will also reflect this consideration shown to sinners who had fallen victim to the evil urge.
From the above, it is clear that it is within our power, down here on earth to ”open” the gates of loving kindness, the source of G’d’s blessings for mankind. This is the reason that the Torah linked the dispensation of fair justice to “all your gates.” The Torah tells us that we ourselves must initiate the process of justice by giving anyone who appears to commit a wrong the benefit of the doubt, i.e. as the Talmud in Megillah 12 words it: ”man is measured by the yardsticks he applies to others.”
While it is true, as we all know that G’d sits in judgment of the people of Israel on New Year’s Day, at which time He exercises His love as well as His mercy, there is still a need for justice being meted out down here on earth by human, i.e. mortal judges. The judges meting out justice on earth must also reflect the attribute of Mercy employed in the celestial spheres. When judges here on earth emulate the approach to the accused displayed in the celestial spheres, i.e. to assume that even if guilty, there are some excuses to be found for the conduct of the accused, then we can hope that, by taking this into consideration, our own judgment on New Year’s day will also reflect this consideration shown to sinners who had fallen victim to the evil urge.
From the above, it is clear that it is within our power, down here on earth to ”open” the gates of loving kindness, the source of G’d’s blessings for mankind. This is the reason that the Torah linked the dispensation of fair justice to “all your gates.” The Torah tells us that we ourselves must initiate the process of justice by giving anyone who appears to commit a wrong the benefit of the doubt, i.e. as the Talmud in Megillah 12 words it: ”man is measured by the yardsticks he applies to others.”
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