LEV501 [This verse] is interpreted by the Rabbis to mean that if one has information that can benefit his neighbor in a lawsuit, he is obligated to testify even though it may involve great risk or inconvenience. And if one sees a man drowning or being attacked by robbers or beasts, or being pursued by a murderer, he is bound to come to his aid even at great risk to his own possessions or to his life and limb. Sanhedrin 73a Though the Rabbis taught that one must be prepared to risk one's life in behalf of an endangered fellow man, they do not teach, as Jesus is said to have taught, that the ultimate test of friendship is "that a man lay down his life for his friends (John 15:12-13). Interpreter's Bible, where in the notes to 15:13-17, the same sentiment is attributed to Buddha.

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LEV502 As for the meaning of the word moral or ethical, it has often been quite distorted. For instance, when asked to define an ethical person, one's response will often be "a person who does not hurt anyone else." This definition, however, is far from the Jewish one. A person whose good conduct consists only of not hurting anyone is not a criminal, but is not necessarily an ethical person. To be an ethical person as Judaism understands it is to be a person who actively pursues the good in life. To cite a few examples: It is not adequate to simply refrain from hurting other people. One must get involved when one sees a wrong being committed. The Torah says, "Do not stand by on the blood of your neighbor" [this verse]. Similarly, it is not enough to merely refrain from doing unjust things. To be a good and ethical person, one must actively seek out and try to correct a wrong done by another: "Justice, justice, shall you pursue" [Deuteronomy 16:20], and "you shall burn the evil from out of your midst" [Deuteronomy 17:7]. In short, being and behaving in an ethical way means to act and respond positively to anything that is wrong in the world. As Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin once succinctly put it: "The entire Bible may be understood as a positive response to the question which Cain posed after murdering his brother Abel: 'Am I my brother's keeper?'"

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LEV508 See [[LEV1119]] Leviticus 26:16 wreak OXFORD 313-4

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LEV503 During recent decades military forces were deployed in some cases of humanitarian intervention that involved combat. Usually such wars cannot be portrayed as wars of self-defense. Are they justifiable? Although there is no official Jewish view of such interventions, a starting point can be offered. It is the biblical precept "you shall not… stand against the blood of your neighbor" [this verse]. That verse is usually interpreted as pertaining to proper interactions between individuals--that, for example, one must seek to rescue a person who is drowning or accosted by highway robbers (B. Sanhedrin 73a)--but it can and should serve as grounds for a conception of proper humanitarian intervention in telling us that we as a society may, and maybe even should, engage in such wars if there is no alternative to protecting innocent lives. (By Asa Kasher, "Jewish Ethics and War")

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LEV506 Rabbi Joseph H. Prouser contends that it is obligatory for Jews to donate their organs upon their own death, and arrangements should be made while one is still alive to that effect. Furthermore, the family that refuses to allow the deceased's organs to be harvested is in violation of [this verse]. https://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/sites/default/files/public/halakhah/teshuvot/19912000/prouser_chesed.pdf; https://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/sites/default/files/public/halakhah/teshuvot/19912000/prouser_organ.pdf (By Shai Cherry, "Ethical Theories in the Conservative Movement"

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LEV509 The obligation to save a person from any hazard to his life or health devolves on anyone able to do so. Every person is duty-bound not only to protect his own life and health, (Yoreh De'ah, 116; Hoshen Mishpat, 427:9-10) but also those of his neighbor (Hoshen Mishpat, 426:1, 427:1-10). Anyone refusing to come to the rescue of a person in danger of losing life, limb or property is guilty of transgressing the biblical law "Thou shall not stand upon the blood of thy neighbor" [this verse, Rashi a.l.] It is questionable, however how far one must, or may, be prepared to risk one's own life or health in an effort to save one's fellow; the duty, and possibly the right, to do so may be limited to risking a less likely loss for a more likely gain. (Bet Yosef, Hoshen Mishpat, 426; for details, see Jakobovits, Jewish Medical Ethics, p. 96f). In any event, when there is no risk involved, the obligation to save one's neighbor from any danger is unconditional. Hence the refusal of a doctor to extend medical aid when required is deemed tantamount to bloodshed, unless a more competent doctor is readily available (Yoreh De'ah, 336:1).

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LEV500 … the law of the rodef, the "pursuer"… states that if A is pursuing B to kill him, either directly or indirectly, anyone may save B even at the cost of A's life. This is inferred from the biblical law that a betrothed woman may be saved from rape at the cost of the assailant's life [this verse, Sanhedrin 73a]. The traditional capital charge with its formal court proceedings applied to acts that have already been committed; when the person himself had committed the murder and only when a human life had been taken. By contrast, the rule of the rodef applies to individuals before they have committed the crime and are only threatening. In other words, we are dealing here with prevention rather than punishment. The law of the rodef applies to crimes that are indirectly caused, even if the action is directed only against the property of the victim ... This kind of sentence does not depend upon properly constituted courts and formal rules of procedure, but any person who is witness to such a pursuit is obligated to take action.

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LEV504 Jewish moralists have been quick to point out, in considering our ongoing obligation to rescue the lives and property of others when they are in danger [this verse], that we must train ourselves to make quick and effective responses to new situations and must develop ability to make a realistic judgment as to what is possible. Rabbi Jonah Gerondi makes this important practical suggestion: "It is good and very proper that there be in every community volunteers consisting of intelligent people who should be prepared and equipped for all means of rescue work [hatzalah] in the event that any man or woman be in trouble. For behold, we are obligated to bestir ourselves for the lost ox or sheep of our neighbor and mind it until the owner claims it, how much more should we be prepared to work for the well-being of their owners themselves. As the prophet Isaiah says: "… Bring the poor that are cast out to the house" (Gerondi, Sha'arei Teshuvah, p. 68. Isaiah 58:7).

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LEV507 See [[EXOD803]] Exodus 23:5 burden TAMARI 300

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LEV511 Whence is it derived that if one sees his neighbor drowning in the sea, being dragged by an animal, or being waylaid by robbers -- whence is it derived that he is obliged to save him? From: "Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor" (Sanhedrin 73a)

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