135 Torah Book & Portion, Book of Deuteronomy, Re'eh (Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17), Source Book Keys, SINAI1 DEUTERONOMY | 15:9 evil — DEUT762 Said he [Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai] to th... DEUT762 Said he [Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai] to them: Go out and see which is the good way to which a man should cling. Rabbi Eliezer said, A good, kindly eye; Pirkei Avot, Perek II, mishnah 13. In the next mishnah (14) they seek to describe "the evil, bad way" which a person should strongly avoid. Rabbi Eliezer answers, An evil eye. This implies envy, jealousy, constant discontent, and a niggardly spirit which abhors sharing with others or serving others. With "an evil eye" a person will say, "What I have is never enough, and what the other has is always too much." This is what the Torah warns against: "Beware lest… your eye be evil against your needy brother, and you give him nothing" [this verse]. The person with a "good eye "finds deep gratification in teaching others and in helping others. As we find in the Book of Proverbs, "He who has a good eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor" (Proverbs 22:9). Share Print Source KeySINAI1Verse15:9Keyword(s)evilSource Page(s)178 Switch article DEUTERONOMY | 15:9 evil — DEUT763 We must refrain from slandering a poor pe... Previous Article DEUTERONOMY | 15:9 give — DEUT764 The celebrated case of prosbul (B. Gittin... Next Article