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Mishpatim - The First of the Laws - the Commandment of Freedom

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(Yirmiyahu 34:8-22, and ending with the last two pesukim of chapter 33)

 

One. One prophecy as opposed to several laws

 

Parashat Mishpatim is exactly as its name implies - a parasha containing many laws, full of details and instances. It is very difficult to find a central subject running through this type of parasha, or even a common theme among the various issues discussed. When seeking a suitable haftora to accompany such a parasha, the difficulty is two-fold. Firstly, it is difficult to find a prophetic excerpt appropriate to a parasha that contains mostly laws. Secondly, it is difficult to choose one prophecy suitable for different issues that pertain to different spheres, such as we find in our parasha.

 

Two. Halakhot of slavery or halakhot of freedom

 

A study of the haftora selected for this parasha shows that the choice of haftora was made with a focus on the first halakha of the parasha: the laws of the "eved ivri" (Hebrew servant). We could say that since the parasha has no central theme, a haftora was chosen that matches the first subject. But it is more likely that the very fact that the parasha begins with the subject of servitude indicates that this is indeed the central subject of the parasha.  Therefore, it is appropriate that the haftora was selected in accordance with this theme. And the haftora highlights the crux of this matter, for it speaks not of servitude but rather the opposite, of freedom: freeing of the slaves and freedom for the nation from this misfortune called slavery. And against the background of the haftora, we return to the pesukim of the parasha and see that the Torah speaks not of the laws of slaves - neither the laws for buying them nor the rules of their service and their obligations to their masters - but rather of the way in which the slave and the nation attain freedom. Thus, the beginning of the parasha speaks about the freedom of the citizen of Israel.

 

Three.     The yoke of heaven as opposed to the yoke of man

 

We find that in parashat Mishpatim, the Torah discusses in more detail the general rules codified in the Ten Commandments. To which of these commandments do the laws of freeing slaves correspond? At first glance, it would appear that these laws fall under the category of "between man and his fellow man," since if someone keeps his indentured servant and does not free him at the required time in accordance with Torah law, it appears to reflect some degree of coveting and of stealing. But at its root, this subject pertains in a more intimate sense to the relationship between man and God. For if the point of the commandment "I am the Lord..." is faith in God and the acceptance by man of His mastery and the yoke of His kingdom in the world, then one person's agreement to subject himself to the mastery of someone else, or the enslavement of a Jew by his fellow Jew, contains a certain element of rebellion against that command. A person cannot have two masters; if he accepts a lord over himself other than God, then he is diminishing God's kingship over him.

 

We learn this from a teaching of our Sages: 

 

Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai would explain this biblical text as a precious stone [i.e., with a nice interpretation]: What differentiates the ear from all other organs of the body? [Why is it specifically the ear of the servant who wishes to remain enslaved that is pierced?] God said: the ear that heard My voice at Mount Sinai at the time when I said, "for Bnei Yisrael are servants to Me" (Vayikra 25:55) - and not servants to other servants – and this person [nevertheless] went and acquired a master for himself - let [his ear] be pierced. (Kiddushin 22b) 

 

Four. The first commandment given to Israel

 

This helps us to understand the words of Yirmiyahu regarding the covenant made between God and the nation of Israel: "So says God...I made a covenant with your fathers on the day I took them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery, saying: At the end of seven years each of you shall free his fellow Hebrew, who was sold to you and served you for six years, and you shall free him from you" (34:13-14).

 

Where do we find mention of such a covenant? Apparently what is meant is not that this covenant was made literally on the day of the exodus from Egypt, but rather at the time of the exodus from Egypt - i.e., the covenant represented by the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.

 

But we find another explanation in Massekhet Kiddushin:

 

R. Shimon b. Rabbi used to explain this biblical passage as a precious stone [i.e., with a nice interpretation]: What differentiates a door and a mezuzah [doorpost] from all the other household vessels? [Why is the ear of the Hebrew servant pierced specifically at the doorpost?] God said: the door and the mezuzah, which were witnesses in Egypt when I passed over the lintel and the two doorposts and said, "for Bnei Yisrael are servants unto Me" - and not servants to other servants - and I took them out from slavery to freedom, and this person [nevertheless] went and acquired a master for himself - let [his ear] be pierced in their presence. (Kiddushin 22b)

 

Thus, on the day of the exodus from Egypt there was a sort of Divine declaration echoing in the ears of the nation of Yisrael, impressing upon the people that "Bnei Yisrael are servants unto Me."

 

In fact, there is a view which explicitly maintains that Bnei Yisrael were commanded with regard to the freeing of slaves before their departure from Egypt: "And God spoke to Moshe and to Aharon and charged them regarding Bnei Yisrael and Paro, king of Egypt..." (Shemot 6:13). "With what did He charge them? With regard to the freeing of slaves" (Yerushalmi Rosh Ha-shanah, 3:5).

 

The command to Bnei Yisrael was closely related to the command to Paro: just as Paro was being commanded to free his slaves, the children of Israel were also being commanded to free their servants. The command to the Israelites preceded the command to Paro, for if they accepted upon themselves to honor the right to freedom of each person among them, then they themselves would merit to be set free. If they, heaven forbid, were found to be harming the freedom in their midst, they would be in danger of losing their national freedom. As the gemara Yerushalmi quoted above continues, "The Israelites were punished only on account of the requirement to free slaves, as it is written: "At the end of seven years each of you shall free his fellow Hebrew..." (Yirmiyahu 34:14)."

 

Five. Parasha of the covenant

 

Another subject highlighted in the prophecy of the haftora is that of the covenant. God made a covenant with the children of Israel on the day He took them out of Egypt, that their Hebrew servants should be freed after six years of service. This covenant, which had been disregarded by the people, was reaffirmed in Jerusalem - and now it had been breached again. The 'covenant' ['brit'] is mentioned six times in this prophecy. But we cannot conclude with a covenant that has been disregarded (it is customary never to end a haftora with words of reproof or a promise of destruction and punishment) and therefore two more pesukim are added which also speak about the covenant (although it is most unusual that we skip a portion of text BACKWARDS in order to finish a haftora). This seventh mention of the covenant is what remains with us: "So says God, just as I have made My covenant with day and night...so I would not cast away the seed of Ya'akov and David my servant...and I shall cause their captivity to return and have mercy on them." (33:25-26)

 

Perhaps this too is one of the reasons for the selection of this prophecy as the haftora for parashat Mishpatim. Our parasha is the parasha of the covenant; in it we read of Moshe declaring the "book of the covenant" (24:7), and we read of him sprinkling the "blood of the covenant" (24:8) over the nation. The covenant referred to in the parasha is that of Sinai, and the prophet apparently refers to this covenant, too - a covenant made at the time of the exodus from Egypt.

 

Six. The kingdom will survive only as a kingdom of priests

 

This covenant teaches us that national freedom is bound up with internal freedom. At the time of their redemption, Bnei Yisrael are commanded not to subjugate their brethren, for they have not left the slavery of flesh and blood in order to be subjugated once again by the rule of flesh and blood. This prophecy of Yirmiyahu closes the circle by warning that if the people go back to subjugation of one person by another, the nation will once again be given over to be subjugated by another nation.

 

Moreover, the "book of the covenant" also speaks about the destiny of the nation to be a "kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Shemot 19:6). The haftora teaches that Israel cannot be a kingdom like all other kingdoms, for if the people are not 'priests' and if they are not 'holy', if they breach the covenant made with them and they subjugate one another, then they cannot exist as a kingdom at all.

 

But more than anything else, the haftora teaches that the key to everything that happens to the people is in their own hands. Even when it seems as though there is no hope in the face of a cruel enemy, the internal corrective measure of freeing the slaves has the power to save them.

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