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NUMBERS — 30:3 break

NUM353 The sixth category [of liars] consists of those who assure their fellow man of some benefit, so assuring him until he is implicitly trusted. This trust should not be violated, and if one is false in this, he incurs greater punishment than the aforementioned falsifier who only spoke in general terms, being like the breaker of a covenant. And if one told his neighbor that he would give him a small gift, even though he used no terms of assurance, about this our Rabbis have stated (Bava Metzia 49a): "Retracting one's words constitutes a breach of faith," for his neighbor relies upon him and trusts him, since the gift in question is only a small one. And if the one who is thus told is a poor man, although the gift pledged is a large one, going back up on the pledge constitutes a great evil, for a vow has been made and he transgresses [this verse]: "He shall not break his word." Similarly, one who preens himself in public on the gift he will give to another, since he has accorded himself praise for his magnanimity, it is not right that he go back on his word once he has appropriated honor and praise through it.

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NUMBERS — 32:14 brood

NUM377 Although anger is an extremely evil trait, one must sometimes conduct himself in accordance with this trait, like when it is necessary to chastise the wicked, or to instill fear in the members of his household, or to cast his fear upon his students. And when one is angry with transgressors, he must weigh the extent of his anger. Because Moshe our teacher, may peace be upon him, said to the children of Reuven and Gad [this verse]: "You are a brood of sinful men," his descendant became a priest of idols--even though he was angry for the sake of Heaven. All of man's actions require the proper measure. He must deliberate how to perform the mitzvos, both when angry and when in good spirits. If a man has the trait of anger and he suppresses his trait and his habit as if he were not one of the angry ones, about him it is written (Mishlei 16:32): "Better is he who withholds his wrath than the hero, and he who rules his spirit than a conqueror of a city"; and withholding of wrath is one of the thirteen attributes stated in relation to the Blessed Creator. The Sage has said, "He whose anger comes upon him with thought, upon him you will see composure and grace, and he whose anger comes upon him with thoughtlessness, upon him you will see folly." The Sage has said further: "He whose anger is strong and his wrath intent is not far from the demented." And he who is given to anger, his life is no life (Pesachim 113b), and he is never happy. And since he is never happy, he does not accept what transpires with love and joy, he does not acknowledge the rightness of God's justice with him, and he cannot serve the Blessed One with joy.

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DEUTERONOMY — 1:17 afraid

DEUT17 Flattery is divided into nine categories. The first category consists of the flatterer who recognizes his fellow man as wicked and deceitful, as spreading evil reports about the innocent, and as stealing from others, and who, nevertheless, comes and flatters him – – not flattering and praising him, but smoothing over his tongue for him, saying: "You committed no wrong in what you did." In this there are several transgressions and many punishments. First, he should have rebuked him for his sins. Not only does he not rebuke him, but he tells him, "You have not sinned," thus strengthening the hand of the evildoer. This flatterer further incurs punishment for not having been zealous on behalf of the truth and for abetting falsehood. And he is punished, in addition, for placing a stumbling block before the sinner, who, when being told that he has not sinned, does not repent of his evil and sins even more. Aside from the punishment he incurs because of the injury and affliction suffered by those the sinner has wronged, he will not reimburse or placate them because of his flattery. And he justifies a wicked man, about which it is written (Mishlei 17:15): "He who justifies the wicked and condemns the righteous--both of them are the abomination of Hashem." This applies all the more when the wrong of the sinner is known to others, and this one flatters him in public, telling him "You are pure and upright." He thereby desecrates the Blessed One's name and demeans law and judgment. A man must expose himself to danger rather than fall into this sin. Our Sages of blessed memory have told us (Sotah 41a-b) that once Agrippas [the King] was reading the Torah, and when he reached the verse (Devarim 17:15): "You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother," his eyes streamed tears [since he was a descendent of slaves], at which those who were with him said "Do not fear, Agrippas, you are our brother." At that moment the Jews brought down upon themselves the sentence of destruction, because they flattered Agrippas. Also one who sits in judgment must not fear any man, as it is written [this verse]. And flattery in this area increases punishment both for falsehood and flattery.

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