LEV301 … the basic ethical tradition of Judaism [is] the sacredness of each individual human being. Humans, formed in God's image, possess the divine spirit and are the crown of God's creation. In Judaism, it is this concept of the human being, created in the image of God, which forms the foundation of Jewish ethics. Indeed, whenever something is left to a person's conscience, the Bible adds, "You shall Revere God," or "I am God." For example, [this verse] states that every person shall fear his or her mother and father and keep God's Sabbaths: "I am God." Other examples are found in Leviticus 19:10-11, 14, 16, 18, 34, and 37: leaving a corner of one's field for the poor; laws prohibiting stealing, lying, and profaning God's name; and being a talebearer or hating one's neighbor. Each of these laws is followed by the phrase "I am God." Thus, the foundation of biblical ethics includes the belief that every human being is created in the image of God and is therefore entitled to respect and courtesy. In the Bible, the root tzedek, meaning righteousness, occurs more than 500 times, including all of its inflections. Doing what is right and just is the essence of biblical ethics. The person who refrains from wrongdoing and makes an effort to establish what is right is called righteous. For the rabbis, too, the ethical ideal was the tzaddik -- the righteous and good person. According to the Talmud (Yoma 38b), one righteous person can ensure the very existence of the world itself.

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LEV305 Both Mother and Father Should Be Treated Equally with Respect: "Honor your father and your mother." I might have understood that because the word "father" proceeds in the text, he should actually take precedence over the mother. But in another passage it states, "You shall each revere his mother and his father" [this verse]; the mother precedes. Scripture thus declares that both are equal [Mechilta of Rabbi Ishmael, Pisha, Chapter 1].

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LEV306 Concerning the duty to parents, it is said: "You shall fear every man his mother and his father" [this verse]; and concerning duty to God, it is said: "You shall fear God" [Deuteronomy 6:13]. We are thus enjoined to honor and revere them in the manner that we are enjoined to honor and revere God's great name. (Mishneh Torah, Book of Judges, Mamrim, Chapter 6:1).

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LEV392 See [[LEV301]] Leviticus 19:3 "I" ISSACS 7-8

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LEV467 Gossip Mongering. "Do not go about as a gossip monger among your people" (this verse). "Such gossip mongering is the same as lashon hara" (Jerusalem Talmud, Peah 2:1).

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LEV469 See [[LEV301]] Leviticus 19:3 "I" ISSACS 7-8

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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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LEV571 We turn now specifically to wishing harm to one's spouse. Our masters, may their memories be a blessing, say, "It is forbidden for one to marry a woman before he sees her lest when he sees her he find something detestable in her and she be disgraced by him--for the Merciful One said, 'You should love your neighbor as yourself.'" Kiddushin 83a. This verse, a central rule in the Torah, applies also to one's husband or wife. [Its point is that you should not get yourself in a position in which you might wish harm to your spouse.] We learn the same thing from the Talmud: "One should not marry a woman with the intention of divorcing her, for it says (in Proverbs 3:29), 'Do not plot evil against your fellow who lives trustingly with you' [i.e., your spouse] ...." Yebamot 37b. It is also stated in Avot d'Rabbi Nathan (Solomon Schechter, ed. (Vienna, 1887), chap. 26), "Rabbi Akiba says, 'Anyone who marries a woman who is not suitable for him transgresses five negative commands: (1) 'Do not take vengeance (Leviticus 19:18)', (2) 'Do not bear a grudge (ibid.)', (3) 'Do not hate your neighbor in your heart (this verse)', (4) 'Love your neighbor as yourself (ibid.)', (5) 'That your brother may live with you (Leviticus 25:36).' Further, in so far as he hates her and wishes she would die, he refrains from the command 'Be fruitful and multiply.'" [All of the above speak about wishing harm to one spouse. But the law also speaks specifically about wishing for the spouse's death.] Our masters report, for example, "He used to say, 'As for one who wishes his wife to die that he may marry her sister, or anyone who wishes his brother to die that he may marry his wife, his end will be that they [i.e., the intended victims] will bury him during their lifetimes.' As regards such a person, Scripture says (Ecclesiastes 10:8), 'The one who digs the pit will fall into it; and a serpent will bite the one who breaks through the wall.'" This is to say that if one hopes his wife will die so he might marry another woman, heaven will arrange for the opposite to occur.

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LEV640 If we look again carefully at that central verse commanding the Jew to treat all people like he would want to be treated, we see that the verse ends with the words "I am God" [this verse]. Why end the most man-to-man verse in the Torah with "I am God"? God is teaching us that every action between men is also an action between man and God. Why and how is this so? Just as man shows honor to an artist by admiring his painting or respecting his work, by treating a human being with honor, Jews also showed respect to the "Artist," the Creator of that human being-God. Thus, every act towards man also brings with it respect for God, the Artist, and transforms it into a man-to-God act as well. One contemporary thinker compared how Jews treat each other to the treatment between siblings, because God is called the Father of the Jewish people (and of all people, for that matter) and Jews are His children (Malachi 2:10). What would any parent prefer experiencing: a child who shows love and devotion to the parent exclusively, or two siblings who show love and devotion to each other? Just as any normal parent would certainly prefer the latter, God also prefers for Jews to demonstrate love for one another, even more than love for Him. This idea seems to be echoed by King Solomon when he tells us that God prefers justice and Tzedaka (charity) between men over man's sacrifices to God, and the Rabbis reiterate this idea as well in the Talmud (Proverbs 21:3, Sukkah 49b). Apparently, how Jews behave towards each other will help them endure until the Messiah arrives. One prophet predicts (Zephaniah 3:13) that the only Jews who will survive the onslaught of Jewish history and endure the test of assimilation and anti-Semitism will be those Jews who do not hurt their fellow Jews, who do not speak lies and deceive one another, and who feed those that are hungry.

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LEV671 Love Your Neighbor. "Love your neighbor as yourself" (this verse) - "This is the major principle of the Torah" (Jerusalem Talmud, Nedarim 9:4).

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