사무엘상 25:6의 유대 사상

3) It is on the third plane, man's relationship with society at large, that man's duty to act morally is most evident. Concerning all his business dealings, man needs to observe justice and fairness, as well as to ensure that no fellow human being suffers physical harm on his account. When David dispatched a servant to Naval, (Samuel I 25,6) bidding him "may you be at peace, may your household be at peace, may all that is yours be at peace," he may well have referred to the three areas in which man has to assure himself of his moral well being. "Peace is only attained when one has satisfied the moral demands made upon one." When Michah identifies the Lord's demands on mankind, (Michah 6,5) he refers to the very same thing when he proclaims "what does the Lord demand of you except to do justice, loving kindness and to walk humbly with your G-d." Justice refers to one's conduct vis a vis society at large, loving kindness to one's conduct vis a vis one's family who may not have a legal claim on one. Finally, humility is an area in which one is least restricted, namely one's conduct vis a vis oneself. When Moses describes G-d’s attributes, (Deut. 32,4) he refers to the same thing. "All His ways are justice," refers to G-d’s conduct in His very own domain. "A G-d of faithfulness," refers to His relationship with His creatures. "He is righteous and upright," refers to His relationship with the universe at large. Psalms 145,17, "G-d is just in all His ways, fair in all His deeds," explains that there are two kinds of justice. Tzedek is the justice that applies to most men in similar circumstances. Chessed is the allowance made for special circumstances when the law, which is after all designed to cover only most situations, fails to allow for special circumstances. The right to grant pardon is based on the recognition that strict application of the law does not always mean that true justice is being meted out. G-d, of course, is the ultimate judge who can make allowances for all exceptions, since He is the only one aware of all circumstances. Tzaddik, just means the norm are His guidelines. Chassid, He adjusts for individual need. Here are some examples of the inadequacies of normal assumptions which Jewish law is based on. "Debtors do not repay loans before the due date." (Baba Batra 5) The underlying assumption of this statement may not always be correct. "Claimants have to furnish proof of their claim." G-d has instructed Jewish judges in Deut. 17,10, that if doubts arise as to the adequacy of existing provisions in law, the Supreme Court may give a decision based on their deliberations, and such decision is binding, even (as the Sifrey puts it) if "they say that left is right or right is left." The idea is: even if the decision of the Supreme Court appears in direct conflict with normative Jewish practice. Of course, all this is applicable only when the Supreme Court's decision is based on accepted Jewish guidelines. Anyone who disputes the authority of such a Jewish Supreme Court, i.e. Sanhedrin, is liable to the death penalty. The Talmud Shabbat 10, states "whosoever judges truly, is a partner to G-d." This is also the reason that Torah frequently refers to judges by the term "elohim." This is also what the serpent had in mind when it said to Eve "you will be like elohim, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3,5) The Midrash explains the meaning as "like creators of worlds." He who invariably feels himself bound to the general rules, even though he may be meticulous in applying them, is destroying worlds rather than building them. The Talmud Baba Metzia 38, claims that it was this kind of bureaucratic zeal that caused the destruction of Jerusalem.

Man's achievements are basically in two separate spheres. 1) He can achieve moral perfection, something that the Torah expresses by saying "you who are cleaving to the Lord your G'd are all alive this day" (Deut. 4,4.) The second sphere in which man can achieve accomplishments is that of material and physical well being. This in turn, in order to be meaningful, comprises three parts. A) good health; B) possession of an adequate amount of the material needs to support a comfortable life. C) peaceful surroundings, absence of the threat of war. We find in Samuel I, 12,6, that David hinted at these three blessings when he sent greetings to Naval, saying to him "may you be at peace, may your household be at peace, and may all that is yours be at peace." The reverse of these three accomplishments apply when punishments are under discussion. When David, in Samuel II 24, 12, is offered the choice of three categories of punishment for having subjected the nation to a census, something that the Torah had forbidden, he is offered the choice between a) famine, i.e. lack of life's necessities and comforts, b) War, absence of peace, c) Pestilence, i.e. absence of good health. We see from the above that there are four categories of reward. One is spiritual in nature, the other three are material in nature.

Our sages illustrate the function of the red heifer by means of a parable. The child of a slave woman had dirtied the king's palace. The king decrees that the mother has to atone for the child, since the accident occurred due to faulty upbringing of the child by its mother. This had lead to its misdemeanour. The sin of the golden calf is to be atoned for by the mother cow, the red heifer. She endeavours to rehabilitate her young. Whoever helps the mother cow in her labours, helps bring about the rehabilitation of the young. At the same time, whoever assists in the preparation of the ash of the red heifer, also helps to bear the guilt that the red heifer is trying to remove from earth. Once the source of evil has been dealt with, its emanations can dissipate. Concerning our opening premise that in order to be the cause of certain phenomena, the relevant ingredients must be present in the cause itself, the question that can be raised is that many blind parents sire children with perfect vision. However, we must distinguish between such causes as are really only channels, conduits for the achievement of certain results, and others that are ultimate causes. If one is only involved in converting raw materials, the qualities of the end product need not be present in the refiner of such raw materials. Since G'd has already created all raw materials, no one can be more than a refiner, a converter. We do not expect the anvil to possess the qualities of the needle, i.e. one of its end products. The reason this is so, is that the anvil does not impart a new quality to the needle. All of this is true when the creative activity is merely of a preparatory nature. When the creative activity however, involves the final phase of manufacture or craftsmanship, such as the final shape and finish of a porcelain vase, the artist surely possesses the qualities he wishes his masterpiece to reflect. Therefore, as we have said, a honeycake cannot be produced by a baker who does not himself embody some of the honey's sweetness. The Creator surely embodies all the qualities we observe in the sun, the moon, the planets etc. Were this not the case, how could He have fashioned them? On the other hand, natural phenomena, plants, animals etc. are merely the results of the functions of celestial bodies. Similarly, the parents' function when begetting children is like that of the sun in promoting the growth of plants. In the larger scheme of the cosmos, men and women are the tools that fashion human offspring, though they can hardly produce a specific personality. That, i.e. the specific mix of genes, is contributed by G'd. It was He, after all, who had said "let Us make man in Our image." It is true to say that G'd is the original father. (Deut. 32,6) "He is your father, He has acquired you, He has made you, He has established you firmly."