וַיִּוָּדַ֤ע הַדָּבָר֙ לְמָרְדֳּכַ֔י וַיַּגֵּ֖ד לְאֶסְתֵּ֣ר הַמַּלְכָּ֑ה וַתֹּ֧אמֶר אֶסְתֵּ֛ר לַמֶּ֖לֶךְ בְּשֵׁ֥ם מָרְדֳּכָֽי׃
모르드개가 알고 왕후 에스더에게 고하니 에스더가 모르드개의 이름으로 왕에게 고한지라
English Explanation of Pirkei Avot
[Learning of Torah is also acquired by one]
Who recognizes his place,
Who rejoices in his portion,
Who makes a fence about his words,
Who takes no credit for himself,
Who is loved,
Who loves God,
Who loves [his fellow] creatures, Who loves righteous ways,
Who loves reproof,
Who loves uprightness,
Who keeps himself far from honors,
Who does not let his heart become swelled on account of his learning,
Who does not delight in giving legal decisions,
Who shares in the bearing of a burden with his colleague,
Who judges with the scales weighted in his favor,
Who leads him on to truth,
Who leads him on to peace,
Who composes himself at his study,
Who asks and answers,
Who listens [to others], and [himself] adds [to his knowledge],
Who learns in order to teach,
Who learns in order to practice,
Who makes his teacher wiser,
Who is exact in what he has learned,
And who says a thing in the name of him who said it. Thus you have learned: everyone who says a thing in the name of him who said it, brings deliverance into the world, as it is said: “And Esther told the king in Mordecai’s name” (Esther 2:22).
This mishnah is a continuation of the previous mishnah which listed ways in which Torah is acquired. The first twenty-four were in mishnah five and the final twenty-four are here. [Note that 31a is not counted to the forty-eight. According to some commentators this line should not be part of the mishnah.]
As I did in the previous mishnah, I will only explain those things which require explanation.
Who recognizes his place: Some say that this means that he comes early to the bet midrash (study house). Others interpret it to mean that the person knows in which study house it is appropriate for him to learn.
Who rejoices in his portion: he is satisfied with the abilities that God has given him and is not jealous of others. This is similar to one “who recognizes his place.”
Who makes a fence about his words: this refers to one who is careful with his words, so that others should not come to err by them.
Who loves [his fellow] creatures: if a Torah scholar hates humanity, others who observe him will begin to hate Torah. In such a way he will desecrate God’s name. A true student of Torah must also love God’s human creations, as much as he loves God’s legal/theological manifesto.
Who loves reproof: one who seeks wisdom must also appreciate the necessity of reproof. Only by accepting criticism for his errors will he grow, both as a human being and as a scholar.
Who keeps himself far from honors: as we learned above in mishnah four.
Who does not delight not in giving legal decisions: see above, chapter four, mishnah seven.
Who shares in the bearing of a burden with his colleague: when a fellow student bears a burden, such as having to act on behalf of the government, he should help him complete his duty, and together resume learning as quickly as possible. This also may mean that when a fellow student grieves, he must grieve with him.
Who judges with the scales weighted in his favor: as we learned in tractate Sanhedrin, it is always preferable to seek to exculpate the accused.
Who leads him on to truth: this statement balances out the previous statement. Although the judge should look to weigh the scales in favor of the accused, this does not come at the expense of truth.
Who leads him on to peace: one who learns and teaches Torah should use his knowledge to bring peace and friendship between others.
Who composes himself at his study: he learns cautiously and not with excess haste.
Who asks and answers: note that asking the right questions is as important if not more important than giving the right answers.
Who listens [to others], and [himself] adds [to his knowledge]: although he may be the teacher, he learns from his students. See above, chapter one, mishnah thirteen.
Who learns in order to teach: see above, chapter four, mishnah five.
Who makes his teacher wiser: by asking intelligent questions. Thus his teacher will be able to say that he “has learned most from my students”.
Who is exact in what he has learned: he does not add to the tradition that he has received, nor detract from it.
And who says a thing in the name of him who said it: he does not attribute that which he has learned from his teacher, to himself.
Thus you have learned: everyone that says a thing in the name of him who said it, brings deliverance into the world, as it is said: “And Esther told the king in Mordecai’s name” (Esther 2:22): and it was through Esther’s words to the king that the Jewish people were saved.
Who recognizes his place,
Who rejoices in his portion,
Who makes a fence about his words,
Who takes no credit for himself,
Who is loved,
Who loves God,
Who loves [his fellow] creatures, Who loves righteous ways,
Who loves reproof,
Who loves uprightness,
Who keeps himself far from honors,
Who does not let his heart become swelled on account of his learning,
Who does not delight in giving legal decisions,
Who shares in the bearing of a burden with his colleague,
Who judges with the scales weighted in his favor,
Who leads him on to truth,
Who leads him on to peace,
Who composes himself at his study,
Who asks and answers,
Who listens [to others], and [himself] adds [to his knowledge],
Who learns in order to teach,
Who learns in order to practice,
Who makes his teacher wiser,
Who is exact in what he has learned,
And who says a thing in the name of him who said it. Thus you have learned: everyone who says a thing in the name of him who said it, brings deliverance into the world, as it is said: “And Esther told the king in Mordecai’s name” (Esther 2:22).
This mishnah is a continuation of the previous mishnah which listed ways in which Torah is acquired. The first twenty-four were in mishnah five and the final twenty-four are here. [Note that 31a is not counted to the forty-eight. According to some commentators this line should not be part of the mishnah.]
As I did in the previous mishnah, I will only explain those things which require explanation.
Who recognizes his place: Some say that this means that he comes early to the bet midrash (study house). Others interpret it to mean that the person knows in which study house it is appropriate for him to learn.
Who rejoices in his portion: he is satisfied with the abilities that God has given him and is not jealous of others. This is similar to one “who recognizes his place.”
Who makes a fence about his words: this refers to one who is careful with his words, so that others should not come to err by them.
Who loves [his fellow] creatures: if a Torah scholar hates humanity, others who observe him will begin to hate Torah. In such a way he will desecrate God’s name. A true student of Torah must also love God’s human creations, as much as he loves God’s legal/theological manifesto.
Who loves reproof: one who seeks wisdom must also appreciate the necessity of reproof. Only by accepting criticism for his errors will he grow, both as a human being and as a scholar.
Who keeps himself far from honors: as we learned above in mishnah four.
Who does not delight not in giving legal decisions: see above, chapter four, mishnah seven.
Who shares in the bearing of a burden with his colleague: when a fellow student bears a burden, such as having to act on behalf of the government, he should help him complete his duty, and together resume learning as quickly as possible. This also may mean that when a fellow student grieves, he must grieve with him.
Who judges with the scales weighted in his favor: as we learned in tractate Sanhedrin, it is always preferable to seek to exculpate the accused.
Who leads him on to truth: this statement balances out the previous statement. Although the judge should look to weigh the scales in favor of the accused, this does not come at the expense of truth.
Who leads him on to peace: one who learns and teaches Torah should use his knowledge to bring peace and friendship between others.
Who composes himself at his study: he learns cautiously and not with excess haste.
Who asks and answers: note that asking the right questions is as important if not more important than giving the right answers.
Who listens [to others], and [himself] adds [to his knowledge]: although he may be the teacher, he learns from his students. See above, chapter one, mishnah thirteen.
Who learns in order to teach: see above, chapter four, mishnah five.
Who makes his teacher wiser: by asking intelligent questions. Thus his teacher will be able to say that he “has learned most from my students”.
Who is exact in what he has learned: he does not add to the tradition that he has received, nor detract from it.
And who says a thing in the name of him who said it: he does not attribute that which he has learned from his teacher, to himself.
Thus you have learned: everyone that says a thing in the name of him who said it, brings deliverance into the world, as it is said: “And Esther told the king in Mordecai’s name” (Esther 2:22): and it was through Esther’s words to the king that the Jewish people were saved.
A New Israeli Commentary
Behold, you have learned, "Whoever reports a saying in the name of he who said it brings redemption to the world. As it is stated (Esther 2:22), 'And Esther reported it to the king in the name of Mordecai.'" (Megillah 15a:20) Esther informed Ahasuerus in the name of Mordekhai about the plan of Bigtan and Teresh to kill him. The thing was recorded in the book of Chronicles of the Kings of Persia and Media, which was the book that Ahasuerus read when his sleep would not come (Esther 6:1). It was that event that began the redemption of the Jewish people from the decree of annihilation against them advised by Haman.
Rashi
הוסדה means [FROM THE DAY] WHEN IT WAS FOUNDED (נתיסדה). Every word (verb) the first root-letter of which is י, as יסד and ילד and ידע and יסר, when it is used in the Hithpael sense (Rashi means our Niphal which often is the reflexive of the Kal), a ו replaces this י; e. g., הוסדה here, from יסד; (Hosea 2:5) “her being born (הִוָלְדָּהּ)”; (Esther 2:22) “and it was known (ויודע)”; (Genesis 66:20) “and there was born (ויולד) to Joseph”; (Proverbs 29:19) A servant will not be corrected (יוסר) by words”.