Difference between revisions of "Avot and Mitzvot – Was Avraham the First Jew/2/en"
(Original Author: Rabbi Hillel Novetsky) |
(Original Author: Rabbi Hillel Novetsky) |
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<multilink><a href="NeofitiBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targumim</a><a href="NeofitiBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targum Neofiti Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="PsJBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targum Pseudo-Jonathan Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="Neofiti" data-aht="parshan">About Neofiti</a><a href="Targum Pseudo-Jonathan" data-aht="parshan">About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan</a></multilink>, | <multilink><a href="NeofitiBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targumim</a><a href="NeofitiBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targum Neofiti Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="PsJBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Targum Pseudo-Jonathan Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="Neofiti" data-aht="parshan">About Neofiti</a><a href="Targum Pseudo-Jonathan" data-aht="parshan">About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan</a></multilink>, | ||
<multilink><a href="AvotDRN2-21" data-aht="source">Avot DeRabbi Natan</a><a href="AvotDRN2-21" data-aht="source">Version 2, Chapter 21</a><a href="Avot DeRabbi Natan" data-aht="parshan">About Avot DeRabbi Natan</a></multilink>, | <multilink><a href="AvotDRN2-21" data-aht="source">Avot DeRabbi Natan</a><a href="AvotDRN2-21" data-aht="source">Version 2, Chapter 21</a><a href="Avot DeRabbi Natan" data-aht="parshan">About Avot DeRabbi Natan</a></multilink>, | ||
− | <multilink><a href="PirkeiDRE11" data-aht="source">Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer</a><!--<a href="PirkeiDRE8" data-aht="source">8</a><a href="PirkeiDRE10" data-aht="source">10</a>--><a href="PirkeiDRE11" data-aht="source">11</a><a href="PirkeiDRE20" data-aht="source">20</a><a href="PirkeiDRE21" data-aht="source">21</a><a href="PirkeiDRE31" data-aht="source">31</a><a href="Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer" data-aht="parshan">About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer</a></multilink>,<fn>See also <multilink><a href="LekachTovBereshit43-16" data-aht="source">Lekach Tov</a><a href="LekachTovBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="LekachTovBereshit43-16" data-aht="source">Bereshit 43:16</a><a href="Lekach Tov" data-aht="parshan">About R. Toviah b. Eliezer</a></multilink> which links <a href="Bereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Bereshit 2:15</a> to the following verse which serves as the source of Noachide laws in many Rabbinic sources.</fn> | + | <multilink><a href="PirkeiDRE11" data-aht="source">Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer</a><!--<a href="PirkeiDRE8" data-aht="source">8</a><a href="PirkeiDRE10" data-aht="source">10</a>--><a href="PirkeiDRE11" data-aht="source">11</a><a href="PirkeiDRE20" data-aht="source">20</a><a href="PirkeiDRE21" data-aht="source">21</a><a href="PirkeiDRE31" data-aht="source">31</a><a href="Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer" data-aht="parshan">About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer</a></multilink>,<fn>See also <multilink><a href="LekachTovBereshit43-16" data-aht="source">Lekach Tov</a><a href="LekachTovBereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Bereshit 2:15</a><a href="LekachTovBereshit43-16" data-aht="source">Bereshit 43:16</a><a href="R. Toviah b. Eliezer (Lekach Tov)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Toviah b. Eliezer</a></multilink> which links <a href="Bereshit2-15" data-aht="source">Bereshit 2:15</a> to the following verse which serves as the source of Noachide laws in many Rabbinic sources.</fn> |
<multilink><a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Anan and other Karaite exegetes</a><a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Kirkisani</a><a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet b. Eli</a><a href="OtzarNechmad" data-aht="source">Otzar Nechmad</a><a href="KaraiteCommentary" data-aht="source">Karaite Commentary</a><a href="KaraiteTract" data-aht="source">Karaite Tract</a></multilink><fn>See also <multilink><a href="RMubashir" data-aht="source">R. Mubashir HaLevi</a><a href="RMubashir" data-aht="source">Critique of the Writings of R. Saadia Gaon (p. 78)</a><a href="R. Mubashir HaLevi" data-aht="parshan">About R. Mubashir HaLevi</a></multilink> and the opinions cited by <multilink><a href="RasagCommentaryBereshit4" data-aht="source">R. Saadia Gaon</a><a href="RasagCommentaryBereshit4" data-aht="source">Commentary Bereshit 4</a><a href="R. Saadia Gaon" data-aht="parshan">About R. Saadia Gaon</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="IbnBalaamBereshit8-2" data-aht="source">R. Yehuda ibn Balaam</a><a href="IbnBalaamBereshit8-2" data-aht="source"></a>Bereshit 8:2<a href="R. Yehuda ibn Balaam" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yehuda ibn Balaam</a></multilink>.</fn> | <multilink><a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Anan and other Karaite exegetes</a><a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Kirkisani</a><a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet b. Eli</a><a href="OtzarNechmad" data-aht="source">Otzar Nechmad</a><a href="KaraiteCommentary" data-aht="source">Karaite Commentary</a><a href="KaraiteTract" data-aht="source">Karaite Tract</a></multilink><fn>See also <multilink><a href="RMubashir" data-aht="source">R. Mubashir HaLevi</a><a href="RMubashir" data-aht="source">Critique of the Writings of R. Saadia Gaon (p. 78)</a><a href="R. Mubashir HaLevi" data-aht="parshan">About R. Mubashir HaLevi</a></multilink> and the opinions cited by <multilink><a href="RasagCommentaryBereshit4" data-aht="source">R. Saadia Gaon</a><a href="RasagCommentaryBereshit4" data-aht="source">Commentary Bereshit 4</a><a href="R. Saadia Gaon" data-aht="parshan">About R. Saadia Gaon</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="IbnBalaamBereshit8-2" data-aht="source">R. Yehuda ibn Balaam</a><a href="IbnBalaamBereshit8-2" data-aht="source"></a>Bereshit 8:2<a href="R. Yehuda ibn Balaam" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yehuda ibn Balaam</a></multilink>.</fn> | ||
</mekorot> | </mekorot> | ||
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<point><b>Punishments for violators</b> – Some <a href="KaraiteTract" data-aht="source">Karaite sources</a> assert that the bringing of the Flood, the punishment meted out to the Canaanites for their sins, and the verses in Yechezkel which say that the Israelites deserved to be wiped out in Egypt demonstrate that the commandments existed before Sinai.<fn>Contrast with commentators below who explain that these punishments resulted from a violation of only a select group of laws, rather than the entire Torah.</fn></point> | <point><b>Punishments for violators</b> – Some <a href="KaraiteTract" data-aht="source">Karaite sources</a> assert that the bringing of the Flood, the punishment meted out to the Canaanites for their sins, and the verses in Yechezkel which say that the Israelites deserved to be wiped out in Egypt demonstrate that the commandments existed before Sinai.<fn>Contrast with commentators below who explain that these punishments resulted from a violation of only a select group of laws, rather than the entire Torah.</fn></point> | ||
<point><b>Religiosity of the Patriarchs</b> – This position takes for granted that the Patriarchs observed all of the Torah's commandments.<fn>Cf. the formulation in <multilink><a href="BavliNedarim32a" data-aht="source">Bavli Nedarim</a><a href="BavliNedarim32a" data-aht="source">Nedarim 32a</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> "שאין לך מי שנתעסק במצות כאברהם אבינו".</fn></point> | <point><b>Religiosity of the Patriarchs</b> – This position takes for granted that the Patriarchs observed all of the Torah's commandments.<fn>Cf. the formulation in <multilink><a href="BavliNedarim32a" data-aht="source">Bavli Nedarim</a><a href="BavliNedarim32a" data-aht="source">Nedarim 32a</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> "שאין לך מי שנתעסק במצות כאברהם אבינו".</fn></point> | ||
− | <point><b>Patriarchal transgressions</b> – This approach encounters difficulties in explaining the instances in which our forefathers seem to have violated the Torah's prohibitions, particularly those of forbidden sexual relationships.<fn><a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet</a> attempts to also address why Avraham did not circumcise himself until he was 99 years old, by drawing a parallel to the Children of Israel not performing circumcision in the desert.</fn> Thus, <a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet</a> goes so far as to assert that Leah and Rachel were merely relatives and not sisters,<fn>Cf. <multilink><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a><a href="RYBSBereshit18-8" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:8</a><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 30:9</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink>, <multilink><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink>, and Sefer Nizachon Yashan 34 that they were born from two different mothers.</fn> and that Yocheved was Amram's cousin rather than his aunt.<fn>This matches the position of the LXX, Neofiti, and Peshitta who translate "דֹּדָתוֹ" in Shemot 6:20 as "daughter of his aunt" rather than just "aunt". The earliest source for this position is Demetrius the Chronographer. For more on this position and its chronological implications, see <a href="Duration of the Egyptian Exile" data-aht="page">Duration of the Egyptian Exile</a>.</fn> Alternatively, these actions were, in fact, problematic.<fn>Cf. <multilink><a href="BavliPesachim119b" data-aht="source">Bavli Pesachim</a><a href="Pesachim119b" data-aht="source">Pesachim 119b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink>, <multilink><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Daat Zekeinim</a><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Bereshit 37:35</a><a href="DaatZekeinimShemot6-20" data-aht="source">Shemot 6:20</a><a href="Daat Zekeinim" data-aht="parshan">About Daat Zekeinim</a></multilink>, and <multilink><a href="MinchatYehudaVayikra20-19" data-aht="source">Minchat Yehuda</a><a href="MinchatYehudaVayikra20-19" data-aht="source">Vayikra 20:19</a><a href="Minchat Yehuda" data-aht="parshan">About Minchat Yehuda</a></multilink>.</fn></point> | + | <point><b>Patriarchal transgressions</b> – This approach encounters difficulties in explaining the instances in which our forefathers seem to have violated the Torah's prohibitions, particularly those of forbidden sexual relationships.<fn><a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet</a> attempts to also address why Avraham did not circumcise himself until he was 99 years old, by drawing a parallel to the Children of Israel not performing circumcision in the desert.</fn> Thus, <a href="Yefet" data-aht="source">Yefet</a> goes so far as to assert that Leah and Rachel were merely relatives and not sisters,<fn>Cf. <multilink><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a><a href="RYBSBereshit18-8" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:8</a><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 30:9</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink>, <multilink><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink>, and Sefer Nizachon Yashan 34 that they were born from two different mothers.</fn> and that Yocheved was Amram's cousin rather than his aunt.<fn>This matches the position of the LXX, Neofiti, and Peshitta who translate "דֹּדָתוֹ" in Shemot 6:20 as "daughter of his aunt" rather than just "aunt". The earliest source for this position is Demetrius the Chronographer. For more on this position and its chronological implications, see <a href="Duration of the Egyptian Exile" data-aht="page">Duration of the Egyptian Exile</a>.</fn> Alternatively, these actions were, in fact, problematic.<fn>Cf. <multilink><a href="BavliPesachim119b" data-aht="source">Bavli Pesachim</a><a href="Pesachim119b" data-aht="source">Pesachim 119b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink>, <multilink><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Daat Zekeinim</a><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Bereshit 37:35</a><a href="DaatZekeinimShemot6-20" data-aht="source">Shemot 6:20</a><a href="Daat Zekeinim" data-aht="parshan">About Daat Zekeinim</a></multilink>, and <multilink><a href="MinchatYehudaVayikra20-19" data-aht="source">Minchat Yehuda</a><a href="MinchatYehudaVayikra20-19" data-aht="source">Vayikra 20:19</a><a href="Minchat Yehuda" data-aht="parshan">About Minchat Yehuda</a></multilink>.</fn></point> |
<point><b>Polemical motivations</b> – The implication of this position is that the laws of the Torah are immutable and eternal. It thus served as a direct response<fn>See <multilink><a href="DialogueTrypho20" data-aht="source">Trypho</a><a href="DialogueTrypho20" data-aht="source">Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho 20</a></multilink>'s argument in his debate with Justin Martyr.</fn> to both Christian contentions that the precepts were given only as a corrective for the sin of the Golden Calf, and Islamic claims that the Law is always subject to change.<fn>This is made explicit by <a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Kirkisani</a>. For the possible influence of polemical concerns on Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, see M. Zucker, על תרגום רס"ג לתורה, (New York, 1959): 450 n.6.</fn></point> | <point><b>Polemical motivations</b> – The implication of this position is that the laws of the Torah are immutable and eternal. It thus served as a direct response<fn>See <multilink><a href="DialogueTrypho20" data-aht="source">Trypho</a><a href="DialogueTrypho20" data-aht="source">Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho 20</a></multilink>'s argument in his debate with Justin Martyr.</fn> to both Christian contentions that the precepts were given only as a corrective for the sin of the Golden Calf, and Islamic claims that the Law is always subject to change.<fn>This is made explicit by <a href="Kirkisani" data-aht="source">Kirkisani</a>. For the possible influence of polemical concerns on Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, see M. Zucker, על תרגום רס"ג לתורה, (New York, 1959): 450 n.6.</fn></point> | ||
</opinion> | </opinion> | ||
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<ul> | <ul> | ||
<li><b>Torah observance was still optional and not yet obligatory</b> – This appears to be the approach adopted by <multilink><a href="BavliPesachim119b" data-aht="source">Bavli Pesachim</a><a href="Pesachim119b" data-aht="source">Pesachim 119b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink>, and is explicitly taken by <multilink><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Daat Zekeinim</a><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Bereshit 37:35</a><a href="DaatZekeinimShemot6-20" data-aht="source">Shemot 6:20</a><a href="Daat Zekeinim" data-aht="parshan">About Daat Zekeinim</a></multilink>.</li> | <li><b>Torah observance was still optional and not yet obligatory</b> – This appears to be the approach adopted by <multilink><a href="BavliPesachim119b" data-aht="source">Bavli Pesachim</a><a href="Pesachim119b" data-aht="source">Pesachim 119b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink>, and is explicitly taken by <multilink><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Daat Zekeinim</a><a href="DaatZekeinimBereshit37-35" data-aht="source">Bereshit 37:35</a><a href="DaatZekeinimShemot6-20" data-aht="source">Shemot 6:20</a><a href="Daat Zekeinim" data-aht="parshan">About Daat Zekeinim</a></multilink>.</li> | ||
− | <li><b>The specifics of the implementation of these laws was affected by Noachide status</b> – See <multilink><a href="BavliYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Bavli Yevamot</a><a href="Yevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a-b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> that there is no paternal lineage or familial relationships for Noachides. This principle is applied by <multilink><a href="BavliSanhedrin58b" data-aht="source">Bavli Sanhedrin</a><a href="Sanhedrin58b" data-aht="source">Sanhedrin 58b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a><a href="RYBSBereshit18-8" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:8</a><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 30:9</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> to dispose of the apparent Patriarchal violations.<fn>See also <multilink><a href="RCPaltielDevarim23-9" data-aht="source">R. Chaim Paltiel</a><a href="RCPaltielDevarim23-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 23:9</a><a href="R. Chaim Paltiel" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chaim Paltiel</a></multilink>.</fn></li> | + | <li><b>The specifics of the implementation of these laws was affected by Noachide status</b> – See <multilink><a href="BavliYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Bavli Yevamot</a><a href="Yevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a-b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> that there is no paternal lineage or familial relationships for Noachides. This principle is applied by <multilink><a href="BavliSanhedrin58b" data-aht="source">Bavli Sanhedrin</a><a href="Sanhedrin58b" data-aht="source">Sanhedrin 58b</a><a href="Talmud Bavli" data-aht="parshan">About the Bavli</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a><a href="RYBSBereshit18-8" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:8</a><a href="RYBSBereshit30-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 30:9</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanYevamot98a" data-aht="source">Yevamot 98a</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> to dispose of the apparent Patriarchal violations.<fn>See also <multilink><a href="RCPaltielDevarim23-9" data-aht="source">R. Chaim Paltiel</a><a href="RCPaltielDevarim23-9" data-aht="source">Bereshit 23:9</a><a href="R. Chaim Paltiel" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chaim Paltiel</a></multilink>.</fn></li> |
</ul> | </ul> | ||
</point> | </point> | ||
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<p>The Patriarchs fulfilled only what they were explicitly commanded in Sefer Bereshit, and these did not include mitzvot other than circumcision.</p> | <p>The Patriarchs fulfilled only what they were explicitly commanded in Sefer Bereshit, and these did not include mitzvot other than circumcision.</p> | ||
<mekorot> | <mekorot> | ||
− | <multilink><a href="TosafotRidBB120a" data-aht="source">R. Yeshayah MiTrani</a><a href="TosafotRidBB120a" data-aht="source">Tosafot Rid Bava Batra 120a</a><a href="R. Yeshayah | + | <multilink><a href="TosafotRidBB120a" data-aht="source">R. Yeshayah MiTrani</a><a href="TosafotRidBB120a" data-aht="source">Tosafot Rid Bava Batra 120a</a><a href="R. Yeshayah of Trani (Rid)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yeshayah MiTrani</a></multilink>, |
<multilink><a href="RAvrahamBereshit35-4" data-aht="source">R. Avraham b. HaRambam</a><a href="RAvrahamBereshit35-4" data-aht="source">Bereshit 35:4</a><a href="R. Avraham Maimonides" data-aht="parshan">About R. Avraham Maimonides</a></multilink>, | <multilink><a href="RAvrahamBereshit35-4" data-aht="source">R. Avraham b. HaRambam</a><a href="RAvrahamBereshit35-4" data-aht="source">Bereshit 35:4</a><a href="R. Avraham Maimonides" data-aht="parshan">About R. Avraham Maimonides</a></multilink>, | ||
<multilink><a href="IbnKaspiTiratKesef" data-aht="source">R. Yosef ibn Kaspi</a><a href="IbnKaspiTiratKesef" data-aht="source">Tirat Kesef p. 96</a><a href="R. Yosef ibn Kaspi" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef ibn Kaspi</a></multilink> | <multilink><a href="IbnKaspiTiratKesef" data-aht="source">R. Yosef ibn Kaspi</a><a href="IbnKaspiTiratKesef" data-aht="source">Tirat Kesef p. 96</a><a href="R. Yosef ibn Kaspi" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef ibn Kaspi</a></multilink> | ||
</mekorot> | </mekorot> | ||
− | <point><b>Evidence of adherence</b> – <a href="Bereshit18-19" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:19</a> and <a href="Bereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a> refer merely to ethical laws or to ad hoc instructions given to the Patriarchs.<fn>This is similar to the "peshat" interpretation offered by <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> below.</fn></point> | + | <point><b>Evidence of adherence</b> – <a href="Bereshit18-19" data-aht="source">Bereshit 18:19</a> and <a href="Bereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a> refer merely to ethical laws or to ad hoc instructions given to the Patriarchs.<fn>This is similar to the "peshat" interpretation offered by <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> below.</fn></point> |
<point><b>Punishments for violators</b> – The generation of the Flood, the inhabitants of Sedom, and the Canaanites were punished for violating natural law.<fn>This approach would likely maintain that Noachide laws were also not given explicitly, but rather were part of natural law.</fn> This position is presented by <multilink><a href="ChizkuniBereshit7-21" data-aht="source">Chizkuni</a><a href="ChizkuniBereshit7-21" data-aht="source">Bereshit 7:21</a><a href="ChizkuniBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach (Chizkuni)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach</a></multilink>.</point> | <point><b>Punishments for violators</b> – The generation of the Flood, the inhabitants of Sedom, and the Canaanites were punished for violating natural law.<fn>This approach would likely maintain that Noachide laws were also not given explicitly, but rather were part of natural law.</fn> This position is presented by <multilink><a href="ChizkuniBereshit7-21" data-aht="source">Chizkuni</a><a href="ChizkuniBereshit7-21" data-aht="source">Bereshit 7:21</a><a href="ChizkuniBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach (Chizkuni)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach</a></multilink>.</point> | ||
<point><b>Religiosity of the Patriarchs</b> – The religiosity of our forefathers was manifest in their monotheistic dedication to following Hashem's instructions and in their moral and ethical standard of behavior, but it did not generally reflect itself through ritual performance.</point> | <point><b>Religiosity of the Patriarchs</b> – The religiosity of our forefathers was manifest in their monotheistic dedication to following Hashem's instructions and in their moral and ethical standard of behavior, but it did not generally reflect itself through ritual performance.</point> | ||
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<p></p> | <p></p> | ||
<mekorot> | <mekorot> | ||
− | <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> | + | <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit26-5" data-aht="source">Bereshit 26:5</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe Nachmanides</a></multilink> |
</mekorot> | </mekorot> | ||
<point><b>Who observed?</b> Avraham and his descendants kept all of the commandments of their own volition ("as one who is permitted but not obligated"), but they did so only while living in Israel.<fn>Ramban points out that Yosef was exceptional and kept Shabbat even when in Egypt. As Shabbat serves as a testimonial to God's creation, observing the commandment helped Yosef teach his children to believe in Hashem.</fn></point> | <point><b>Who observed?</b> Avraham and his descendants kept all of the commandments of their own volition ("as one who is permitted but not obligated"), but they did so only while living in Israel.<fn>Ramban points out that Yosef was exceptional and kept Shabbat even when in Egypt. As Shabbat serves as a testimonial to God's creation, observing the commandment helped Yosef teach his children to believe in Hashem.</fn></point> |
Version as of 03:43, 1 January 2015
Avot and Mitzvot – Was Avraham the First Jew?
Exegetical Approaches
Overview
In discussing to what extent the Patriarchs kept the Torah's commandments, commentators offer a full range of possibilities, from full observance to no observance at all. Some sources portray the founding fathers as voluntary pioneers of performance and not just faith, with some even going so far as to claim that they kept even rabbinic ordinances. Others attempt to demonstrate that the Torah is eternal, and that the mitzvot were given already to Adam.
As these positions encounter difficulties in explaining the Patriarch's apparent violations of some Biblical prohibitions, other commentators take the opposite tack, suggesting that the vast majority of the Torah's commandments began only at Sinai. A few different variations of a compromise approach suggest that there was partial observance by the Avot. This has the advantage of being able to explain away transgressions, while simultaneously maintaining a portrait of some early ritual observance.
Full Observance
All of the mitzvot existed and were observed before their transmission at Sinai. This position subdivides over whether there was a pre-Sinai Divine obligation to keep the mitzvot or whether it was man's voluntary initiative.
Hashem Commanded
Human Choice
- Torah observance was still optional and not yet obligatory – This appears to be the approach adopted by Bavli Pesachim, and is explicitly taken by Daat Zekeinim.
- The specifics of the implementation of these laws was affected by Noachide status – See Bavli Yevamot that there is no paternal lineage or familial relationships for Noachides. This principle is applied by Bavli Sanhedrin and R. Yosef Bekhor Shor and Ramban to dispose of the apparent Patriarchal violations.29
No Observance
The Patriarchs fulfilled only what they were explicitly commanded in Sefer Bereshit, and these did not include mitzvot other than circumcision.
Partial Observance
The Patriarchs only partially observed the commandments. The multiple variations of this approach maintain that distinctions existed between different Patriarchs, types of commandments, and locations.
Only Avraham
Only Selected Commandments
- Rashbam suggests that only rational mitzvot which relate to a moral ethic were observed.39
- According to the Maharal, since the mitzvot had not yet been commanded, there was a constructive purpose in keeping only the positive, but not the negative, commandments.