욥기 1:12의 인용 해설

V. 11. Im feindlichen Sinne Hand an jemanden legen, heißt in der Regel: שלח יד ב־ (es kommt allerdings in diesem Sinne zweimal auch שלח יד אל־ vor: Bereschit 22, 12 u. Job 1, 12). Es dürfte auch schwerlich hier gesagt sein, es seien die V. 9 genannten Erlesenen Israels von Gott nicht feindlich berührt worden, obgleich sie zu seiner Erscheinung hinangetreten waren. Es war ja gar keine Veranlassung dazu, da sie auf ausdrückliches Geheiß Gottes hinangegangen waren. Dagegen heißt יד ה׳ auch die Gewalt des Gottesgeistes, die den Propheten fasst und ihn in das Bereich der Prophetie emporhebt. — אצל, wovon אֵצֶל: neben, heißt zunächst eine räumliche Absonderung, und Jesaias 41, 9, wo אצילם noch einmal vorkommt, ומאציליה קראתיך, scheint es, synonym mit dem vorangehenden אשר החזקתיך מקצות הארץ, die räumlich Gesonderten, Entfernten zu bedeuten. Wir vermuten daher, daß mit אצילי בני ישראל auch hier die in der Entfernung Stehenden, aus der Nähe des Berges und der Gotteserscheinung Ferngehaltenen, somit das in seiner Umgrenzung verharrende Volk bezeichnet sei. Die den Berg hinan in die Gottesnähe Berufenen (V. 9) wurden von der יד ד׳ ergriffen, und darum ויראו, sahen sie את אלקי ישראל usw. Bis zu den ferner Stehenden sendete aber Gott את ידו nicht, vielmehr ויחזו ( — im Verhältnis zu ראה, dem mehr konkreten und nahen Sehen, heißt חזה [wovon חָוֶה Brust] ein inneres oder ein Fernsehen —) "sie schauten Gott innerlich im Geiste" oder: "sie schauten zu der fernen Gotteserscheinung hinan", ויאכלו וישתו, ohne daß sie dem gewöhnlichen, normalen, von Sinnlichkeit umschränkten irdischen Standpunkte enthoben worden wären. Die von der Prophetie Ergriffenen wurden zu Gott emporgehoben, den zu dieser Stufe nicht emporgehobenen Israelssöhnen trat Gott im Bewusstsein nahe, sie fühlten die Nähe Gottes in ihrem Innern beim Opfermahle (V. 5), sie genossen die Seligkeit der Gottesnähe mitten im irdischen Leben, jene höchste, normale Blüte des jüdischen Lebens und Strebens vor Gott, die ja auch Dewarim 27, 7 bei dem erneueten Ausdruck des am Sinai geschlossenen nationalen Bundes mit dem Gesetze (vergl. das. 5-7 mit unserm Kap. V. 4 u. 5) also lautet: וזבחת שלמים ואכלת שם ושמחת לפני ד׳ אלדיך. — Megilla 9a wird das אצילי בני ישראל nicht auf das ganze Volk, sondern auf die נערי בני ישראל V. 5) bezogen, die als die für die gottesdienstliche Familienrepräsentanz geweihten Erstgeborenen אצילים, die "Ausgesonderten" genannt werden. Auch dann dürfte das לא שלח ידו und das ויחזו וגו׳ in dem von uns geglaubten Sinne zu verstehen sein.

והבגד או השתי או הערב או כל כלי העור אשר תכבס וסר מהם הנגע, “but if the garment, or the warp or the woof or any leather utensil which has been washed and then the affliction left them, etc.” The Torah mentioned already in verses 56-57 that a garment on which a nega tzoraat had been identified and that stain had dimmed after washing the area afflicted, has to be ripped out. If however, the stain appears to grow, the whole garment has to be burned. If the stain has been removed through washing it, the garment must then be immersed in a ritual bath in order to regain its state of purity. This is the meaning of the additional words וכבס שני וטהר, “it must be washed a second time to become purified.” This “second” washing refers to immersion in a ritual bath.
Everything connected with the legislation of afflictions to garments or skin (or houses) is of a miraculous nature (Tanchuma Metzora 4). Let us illustrate the subject by means of a parable. An unsatisfactory slave had been sold by his master. When the new master buys him he is perfectly aware that the previous master had been dissatisfied with that slave and that this is why he wanted to divest himself of him. Seeing that this is so, the new master equipped himself with handcuffs in order to restrain the slave in case of need. Similarly, G’d. When G’d created man He was perfectly aware that man (the servant) would in due course commit sins, etc. G’d therefore arranged for means of afflictions to serve to straighten out man’s behaviour pattern. When G’d felt He needed to employ means of restraining man, He would first afflict man’s house. This is the meaning of Leviticus 14,34: “I shall afflict a house in the land of your inheritance with an affliction of tzoraat.” If, as a result of seeing the stones of his house afflicted, the person concerned becomes a penitent, all well and good; if not, G’d will smite his clothing as a second warning. This is the meaning of the words והבגד אשר יהיה בו נגע צרעת, “and the garment which will be afflicted with a nega tzoraat” (13,47). If the afflicted person now does teshuvah, all well and good; only if both of these warnings were ignored will G’d actually afflict the skin of the sinner. Even then He will only afflict a small area of skin initially. If after being quarantined and ostracised temporarily, such a person still does not learn his lesson then the affliction is allowed to spread, eventually resulting in his becoming for all intents and purposes an outcast. Apparently, the initial stages of personal afflictions are the loss of hair on a man’s head (13,40). This is still not a conclusive symptom and his isolation is only of a provisional nature. If that person persists in his asocial conduct, etc., he will be smitten with a skin affliction such as שאת או ספחת as mentioned in 13,2.
In their commentary on Ruth in Ruth Rabbah 2,10 the sages stated that the merciful Lord does not punish the sinner on his body in the first instance but first exacts retribution from his possessions. Only when such “hints” fail to have a sobering effect on the people concerned does He proceed to inflict harm on the body of the person. We observe such a phenomenon in the case of Job. G’d had told Satan initially to test Job’s piety only by depriving him of his material goods (Job 1,12). Subsequently, after he had stood that test saying: “the Lord gave the Lord took may the name of the Lord be praised,” did He give permission for Job to experience the loss of his children and, eventually, he was subjected to personal suffering on his body.
The same happened when G’d struck the Egyptians with the 10 plagues. In the first instance, when the river turned into blood, this was merely a financial blow to the people as they had to buy water from the Israelites or had to dig for it (Exodus 7,21-25). G’d afflicted their livestock next, and eventually He killed their firstborn.
The afflictions mentioned both in this portion and in the next follow a similar pattern although they are not recorded in the order in which they occur. First G’d afflicts a man’s house. If he becomes a penitent, taking the hint, the afflicted stones on his house have to be removed and replaced (14,40). If he fails to respond to the implied warning to become a penitent, the entire house will have to be razed to the ground (14,45). If this also fails to produce the desired result, G’d will afflict that sinner’s clothing (13,56). If this does not produce the desired result G’d will afflict the person of the sinner. Thus far the Midrash.