창세기 32:29 할라카: Mishneh Torah, Reading the Shema & Sefer HaChinukh

When reciting the Shema, after concluding the first verse, one repeats in a low tone the sentence, "Blessed be the name of His glorious sovereignty for ever and ever" and then resumes the reading of the first section in the regular order from the verse, "And thou shalt love the Lord, thy God,…"to the end of the section. Why is the sentence above mentioned interpolated? We have a tradition that when the patriarch Jacob, residing in Egypt, gathered his sons about him, in his dying hour, he earnestly charged them concerning the Unity of God and the Way of the Lord in which Abraham and his father Isaac had walked. He questioned them, saying to them, "Possibly, my sons, there is some one among you who is unworthy, and is not at one with me on the doctrine of the Unity of the Creator of the World," in the same way as our teacher Moses charged the people in the words, "Lest there be among you a man or a woman … whose heart turneth away this day" (Deuteronomy 29:17). They all answered, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one." This means, "Our father, Israel, hear this, our [confession of faith]: 'the Lord our God is one Lord'". The aged patriarch then ejaculated, "Blessed be the name of His glorious Sovereignty for ever and ever." Hence, all Israelites keep the custom of reciting, after the first verse of the Shema, the thanksgiving uttered by the Patriarch Israel.

And this prohibition is practiced in every place and at all times by males and females. And one who transgresses it and makes himself a clairvoyant in one of the ways from all the matters we have mentioned or in another matter, and tells people things that he sees through his clairvoyance, is liable for lashes — and that is when he does some act in the thing, as we do not administer lashes without an act. But one who asks [something] from a clairvoyant is not under the liability of lashes. Nonetheless, very disgusting is anyone who fixes his thoughts or expends his time on these vanities. As it is not appropriate for one whom God has graced with knowledge and given the true religion as an inheritance to think about these vanities. Rather, he should fix his thoughts on the service of the Creator, may He be elevated, and not fear the words of the clairvoyant; since God, in His kindnesses will change the system of the stars, and nullify the power of the constellations, [so] as to do good to His pious ones. And it is known that we are the holy people, such that we are not under [the power of] a star or constellation — “the Lord is our inheritance, as He spoke to us.” And [it is] like the matter that we found with the forefathers, that God placed their stature above the ministers above: Like that which is written about Yaakov, “but rather Yisrael will be your name” (Genesis 35:10), “for you have dominated (sarita) with powers, etc.” (Genesis 32:29); meaning that God made him a minister (sar) over the [celestial] ministers. And so [too,] is Yitschak called Yisrael, as it is stated (Genesis 46:8), “these are the Children of Israel that were coming to Egypt, Yaakov and his children.” And so [too,] Avraham is called Yisrael, as we wrote in the Introduction of the book. And this is [the meaning of] what is written about the matter of the disagreement of the prophet, Eliyahu, with the prophets of Baal, as is stated (I Kings 18:31), “like the number of tribes of the children of Yaakov,” whose name was called Yisrael: As he was rebuking them [about] why they were leaving the service of the Master, the Lord of Hosts, who has in His hand to nullify all the actions of the powers and the constellations; and like the matter that He did with the forefathers, such that He put the constellations under their hand. And that is [the meaning] of its stating in that place (I Kings 18:31), “like the number of tribes of the children of Yaakov, to whom was the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Yisrael will be your name,’” — meaning to say, that He made him a minister over the [celestial] ministers, to change their system and their power with his merit. [This is] meaning to say, Israel, who are the children of Yaakov, are also ministers over the celestial ministers; and hence it would be fitting for them to not worship anything besides God alone. And so did we find with Yehoshua, who decreed to the sun and the moon to stand — as it is written in Joshua 10:12, “Sun, be still in Giveon, moon in the Ayalon Valley” — and they stood. And so [too,] several pious ones of Israel who changed the system of the constellations [and their power] with their merit. The matter would [take too] long, to bring [the] several stories that happened in Israel about this matter.