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LEVITICUS — 25:36 interest

LEV1064 Usury and interest are prohibited by a negative commandment, as the pasuk says [this verse], "Do not take from him usury and interest" (the two terms used in this verse, נשך and תרבית ("usury and interest"), are synonymous; the Torah mentions both to prohibit this offence with two negative commandments (Rashi)), and it can be rectified by [fulfilling] a positive commandment, as the pasuk continues (ibid.), "and let your brother live with you." What this means is: if you have taken from another usury and interest, you must return it to him so that he may live with you (See Bava Metzia 62a). As long as one has not rectified his corruption, the punishment awaiting him is very severe -- he will not be included in the resurrection of the dead, as the pasuk says (Yechezkel 18:13), "He has given with usury and taken interest--should he live? He shall not live!" Our Sages, z"l, have said (Pirkei d'Rabi Eliezer 33) that ["He shall not live!"] refers to the resurrection of the dead, because one who lends with usury and interest is not penalized with the death penalty (I.e., not even death administered by Heaven. Thus, the pasuk must mean, "He shall not live with the resurrection of the dead.") Our Sages, z"l, also said (Shemos Rabbah 31:14) that one who possesses the sin of interest, the defending angel will not put in a favorable plea on his behalf. This is the implication of "should he live?" as a rhetorical question: Is there a defender who will say that he has the right to live?! They will all respond: "He shall not live!"

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LEVITICUS — 25:46 ruthlessly

LEV1095 "Among your brethren, the Children of Yisrael, you must not subject one another to oppressive work" [this verse]. One may not subjugate other Jews. If they fear him or they are too embarrassed to ignore his wishes, he should not require anything of them -- neither minor nor major--not even to warm a flask of water on to go on an errand for him, even if only to buy a loaf of bread in the town square, unless it is something that they themselves desire to do and it is for their benefit. Nonetheless, one can demand of another who does not act properly whatever he wants (Bava Metzia 73b).

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LEVITICUS — 26:18 afflict

LEV1121 … if one does not repent from his evil ways on the day of misfortune, and if when painfully reminded he does not return to the One who has reprimanded him [he knows that his distress is the outcome of his sins, but he is still not motivated enough to complete his repentance (Zeh Hasha'ar)], his sin will be compounded, and his punishment will increase twofold (he will be punished for the actual sin he has committed and also for not heeding the signs that Hashem has sent him--consequently, it is twofold). For observe -- if one is punished by a king for sinning against him and he does not learn his lesson, the king will increase his punishment and bear down upon him heavily. Similarly, the pesukim state [this verse], "If despite these you do not listen to Me, I will further afflict you," and (Iyov 36:13), "Those who flatter their [own] hearts (I.e., sinners who give into their heart's desire) incur wrath, for they do not beseech [Him] when He afflicts them." If he fails to realize and to contemplate that the hardships that have befallen him are due to his own sins [he knows that he is sinning, but believes that his misfortune is a chance occurrence and not the result of his sinning (Zeh Hasha'ar)], but rather says, as the Pelishtim said (I Shmuel 6:9): "It was not His hand that struck us; it was all by chance that this occurred to us" -- by doing so he incurs Hashem's wrath upon himself. The transgression of this class of sinners is greater than that of the previous class [Those of the previous class have simply not aroused themselves to repentance; the sinners in the second group, however, deny Divine providence and, as such cannot be aroused to repentance in their present state of mind.] For this reason it states first, regarding the prior class, "I will further afflict you," and only subsequently does the pasuk state regarding the second class mentioned (Vayikra 26:21), "If you walk with Me in a random way [I.e., You do not see Hashem's providence in your affliction, as punishment for your sins, but attribute it to random chance.] and refuse to listen to Me, I will then further bring upon you seven plagues corresponding to your sins" -- because the sin of each successive class referred to in this portion of the Torah is more severe than that of the preceding one. Following this the pasuk states (ibid., 23–24) "If with these you will not be chastened before Me, and you walk with Me in a random way, I, too, will walk with you in randomness." Following this the pasuk states (ibid., 27-28), "If despite this you do not listen to Me, and you walk with Me in a random way, I will then walk with you in a fury of randomness" (The sin of each succeeding class of sinners becomes progressively more severe, and therefore, the Divine response becomes progressively harsher.). The meaning of "you walk with Me in a random way" is that you will say, "This all happened to us as a chance occurrence."

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LEVITICUS — 26:37 stumble

LEV1134 The sixth category (of The Stringency of Mitzvos and Classification of Punishment) -- one who is in a position to express his disapproval but does not do so, and he voices no reproof [Tehillim 38:15; This too is a form of flattery and a way of ingratiating oneself]. He does not give a sharp look (Iyov 16:9) when sinning takes place, takes no notice, and refuses to be the one who admonishes. Now the Torah has commanded us to eliminate evil from the midst of our people, as the pasuk says (Devarim 13:6), "You shall eradicate the evil from among you." Our Sages further said (Shabbos 54b): "One who is in a position to object [over the actions] of members of his household and does not do so is held accountable for [the sins committed by] the members of his household; one who is in a position to object [over the actions] of the inhabitants of his city and does not do so is held responsible for [the sins committed by] the habitants of his city; one who is in a position to object [over the actions] of the entire world and does not do so is held responsible for [the sins committed by] the entire world." In addition, the pasuk says [this verse], "They will stumble over each other," and our Sages, z"l, expanded on this (Sanhedrin 27b), "One [will stumble] over the sins of the other." [Based on this,] they said (ibid.) "All Yisrael are responsible for one another."

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NUMBERS — 6:4 grapevine

NUM37 Regarding the mitzvah of nazir, [One who becomes a Nazarite (see Bemidbar 6:1-21) must abstain from consuming any grape part or product, from defilement through contact with the dead, and from cutting his hair], we find that the primary concern of one's Nazaritism is lest he drink [wine] and forget the law, [I.e., the Torah and its mitzvos (Sha'arei Teshuvah Hamevo'ar)] or be led astray by a spirit of wantonness. As such, the Torah forbids him "from anything that is produced by the grapevine, [from the seeds to the skin]" (this verse) – – all of this, as a precautionary measure from the drinking of wine. Our Sages, z"l, commented similarly in the Midrash (Shemos Rabbah 16:2). Cf. Mesillas Yesharim, chapter 11.

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