Komentarz do Wyjścia 20:6

Doing kindness. That a person does, [so God will] repay a reward to the thousandth generation. When we find a good characteristic, it is greater than even one evil deed in five hundred, for this one is to four generations, and that one is to the thousandth.

AND HE SHOWETH MERCY UNTO THE THOUSANDTH GENERATION OF THEM THAT LOVE ME AND KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS. It appears from the sense of the verse that this Divine assurance is with respect to the subject-matter of the commandments that He mentioned. He is thus saying that to those that love Him, He will show mercy to their thousandth generation. These are the ones who sacrifice their lives for Him, for they are the ones who acknowledge only the Glorious Name and His G-dship and deny all strange gods, refusing to worship them even if they are in mortal danger. They are called “the lovers [of G-d],” for this is the kind of love that we have been obligated to observe even at the sacrifice of life, just as He has said, And thou shalt love the Eternal thy G-d with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might,³⁶³Deuteronomy 6:5. meaning that you should give your very life because of your love of Him, that you should not alter Him for another god, nor join Him together with a strange god. It is for this reason that [the prophet] said of Abraham, the seed of Abraham my friend,³⁶⁴Isaiah 41:8. See Maimonides’ “The Commandments,” Vol. I, p. 4. since he risked his life in order not to worship the idols in Ur of the Chaldees.³⁶⁵See Ramban on Genesis 11:28 (Vol. I, pp. 156-161). The rest of the righteous are called those that keep My commandments.
Now many scholars³⁶⁶So it appears from Rashi’s commentary to Sotah 31 a, and from Rambam’s introduction to the tenth chapter of Sanhedrin. See my Hebrew commentary here, p. 395. have explained that “His lovers” are those who worship Him without the intention of receiving a reward, just as our Sages have mentioned.³⁶⁷Aboth 1:3, “Be not like servants who minister to their Master with the intention of receiving a reward; but be like the servants who minister to their Master without the intention of receiving a reward.” But I have found in the Mechilta that it is said:³⁶⁸Mechilta on the verse here. “Of them that love Me. This refers to Abraham and those like him. And those that keep My commandments. This refers to the prophets and the elders. Rabbi Nathan says that the verse, of them that love Me and keep My commandments, refers to those who dwell in the Land of Israel and give their lives for the commandments.³⁶⁹The reference is obviously to the persecutions by the Roman emperor Hadrian (117-138 Common Era), when the Jews in the Land of Israel were forbidden the practice of Judaism, including the study of Torah. Their determination to remain in the Land of Israel and practice their faith instead of emigrating to more peaceful lands such as Babylon, was at those times constituted as a special manifestation of their love of G-d. ‘Why are you being led out to be executed?’ ‘Because I have circumcised my son.’ ‘Why are you being led out to be burned?’ ‘Because I read the Torah.’ ‘Why are you being led out to be hanged?’ ‘Because I ate the unleavened bread.’ ‘Why are you being lashed with the whip?’³⁷⁰In our Mechilta: “Why are you whipped with a hundred lashes?” ‘Because I took the lulav.’³⁷¹“The Palm-branch.” See Leviticus 23:40. And it says, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.³⁷²Zechariah 13:6. These are the wounds which have caused me to become beloved of My Father in heaven.” Thus Rabbi Nathan explained that the love [of G-d, which is referred to in the verse before us], meant the sacrifice of life for the sake of the commandments. Now the verse here certainly refers to idolatry, for it is with reference to it that we are obligated at all times forever to suffer death rather than transgress [the law].³⁷³Sanhedrin 74a. See Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchoth Yesodei Hatorah 5:2-3. But [Rabbi Nathan] broadened the matter to include all the commandments, [such as circumcision, the study of Torah, the eating of unleavened bread on Passover, the taking of the lulav³⁷¹“The Palm-branch.” See Leviticus 23:40. on Succoth — as mentioned above] — because in the time of religious persecutions, we are obligated to suffer death for any of the commandments³⁷³Sanhedrin 74a. See Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Hilchoth Yesodei Hatorah 5:2-3. [rather than transgress them], as derived from the other verse, And ye shall not profane My holy Name.³⁷⁴Leviticus 22:32. For full discussion of this topic, see my translation of Maimonides’ “The Commandments.” Vol. II, commandment 63, pp. 61-63. And it would also be incorrect to say of the first Sage [in the above Mechilta] — i.e., who said that [those who love Me] refers to Abraham, while [those who keep My commandments] refers to the prophets — that he is of the opinion that the prophets kept the commandments with the intention that they receive a reward! [Thus the explanation of “the many scholars”³⁶⁶So it appears from Rashi’s commentary to Sotah 31 a, and from Rambam’s introduction to the tenth chapter of Sanhedrin. See my Hebrew commentary here, p. 395. mentioned above is refuted by the Mechilta.] However, there is a secret in this [Mechilta]: Abraham risked his life in love³⁷⁵Abusaula, in his commentary on the mystic passages in Ramban, explains this as follows: “Abraham’s power revealed itself in mercy, while that of the rest of the prophets in the ameliorated Divine attribute of justice.” See Ramban, Genesis Vol. I, p. 543. — something like it is written, mercy to Abraham³⁷⁶Micah 7:20. “Know that mercy is love” (Ma’or V’shamesh). — and the rest of the prophets in g’vurah (might).³⁷⁵Abusaula, in his commentary on the mystic passages in Ramban, explains this as follows: “Abraham’s power revealed itself in mercy, while that of the rest of the prophets in the ameliorated Divine attribute of justice.” See Ramban, Genesis Vol. I, p. 543. Understand this.

ועושה חסד לאלפים, on other occasions the reason why retribution is so long delayed is due to the good deeds of someone’s forbears which I have sworn to requite by extending such patience in tolerating the errors of their offspring. [some of our sages attribute the continued existence of the Ishmaelites and their enmity to the Jews to the merit their founding father acquired when voluntarily submitting to circumcision at the tender age of 13. Ed.]