GEN1585 With some minor exceptions, promises are not enforceable.   The law that reflects   common cynical appraisal of promises.   They are hollow words spoken by someone eager to make a good impression.   There are several reasons for the failure of the law to give promises binding force.   A promise may be a declaration of intent rather than a formulation of an irrevocable decision. Promises flow from sudden impulses and do not represent a reasoned conclusion. The extemporaneous phraseology of a promise lacks careful framing. Promises are frequently made in jest. From a legal point of view, promises may be broken with impunity.   [Note: The reader should be cautious; this is not necessarily true under American law – AJL].   What about the moral point of view? Does a person who has no regard for his word brand himself as untrustworthy? Does a breach of promise constitute a breach of faith and trust? Most biblical passages and injunctions dealing with promises relate to oaths and vows, which are legally binding. Jacob made Joseph swear that he would transport this body for burial at the Cave of Machpelah [this verse]. Jacob realized that Joseph’s responsibilities might make it difficult for him to get a leave of absence. This might force him to break a promise, but he would never violate an oath. Prior to Joseph’s death, he too made his kinsmen swear that his skeleton would be removed from Egypt when all the Hebrew slaves departed the land. Genesis 50:25 A later generation might not feel bound by a mere promise made several centuries earlier, especially if circumstances rendered such a time-consuming task a most difficult assignment. He therefore demanded an oath. To preclude the possibility of retraction, all promises made to God were put in the form of a vow. “And Jacob vowed a vow, saying: ‘If God will be with me … of all that thou shalt give me, I will give a tenth unto thee’” Genesis 28:20-22.  And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said …” Numbers 21:2   Ecclesiastes warned people against breaking a vow on the excuse that it was unintentional and “made in error” Ecclesiastes 5:5.   Apparently there was no significant opprobrium attached to a breach of a verbal promise to a fellowman.   BLOCH 248-9

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GEN1617 See [[GEN1585]] Genesis 47:31 swear BLOCH 248-9

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EXOD140 The Hebrew term for friend is re-a. The root meaning of this word is "a person in whose company one delights" or "a very desired friend." By its very definition, re-a originally designated an intimate friend. The word re-a appears for the first time in the Bible in the description of the relationship between Judah and Hirah the Adullamite (Genesis 38:20). Hirah was obviously an intimate friend of Judah. He was privy to Judah's amorous adventure with Tamar. Hirah was also the man whom Judah entrusted with the delicate mission of retrieving the pledge which he had left with Tamar and suppressing news of an incident which might prove embarrassing. Hirah was described as a re-a of Judah. The term re-a appears next in [this verse]. The slaves were instructed to accept "every man from his [Egyptian] friend" silver and gold jewels. Here the word re-a is no longer used in its original etymological sense of an intimate friend but rather in its broader connotation of a neighbor or any friendly person. It is in this sense that re-a is used thereafter in the Bible. Thus the text of the Golden Rule, "Love thy neighbor [re-a] as thyself" (Leviticus 19:18), mandates love of all people. The broadening of the term "friend" to include every human being reflects a generous and civilized impulse. However, it did not erase the distinction between various grades of friendship. When one finds it important to underline that a particular person is a very close friend, a descriptive phrase is added. Thus in the biblical admonition against undesirable influences of an intimate friend, the text reads: "thy friend who is as thy own soul" (Deuteronomy 13:7). (Continued at [[GEN295]] Genesis 2:18 friend BLOCH 140-1.

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EXOD182 Parental care of children is motivated by love and instinctive inclination. Yet if love is the sole force shaping parental attitudes, it may destroy the goal which most parents seek to achieve. Loving parents frequently shrink from taking disciplinary measures to enforce their instructions. The erring child of a doting father and mother is even spared stern admonitions. Innate love must be balanced by a mature sense of responsibility if the child's moral development is not to suffer. In addition to parents who love foolishly, there are, at the other end, parents who are bereft of affection for their children and do not have the true interest of their offspring at heart. To protect children against parents who love too much or too little, religious and civil laws have been promulgated, detailing specific parental duties. The Bible stresses parental responsibility for the education of children. Religious principles which are fundamental to the national psyche must be implanted into the child's consciousness. Thus the message of the festival of Passover, eternal opposition to oppression and enslavement, is a mandatory subject of parental instruction [this verse]. In addition to the transmission of ideals which are central to the faith, it is a parent's duty to acquaint his children with all the rules and regulations of the Torah (Deuteronomy 6:7). The importance attached to education was reiterated by Ecclesiasticus (2nd cent. B.C.E.): "Hast thou children? Instruct them, and bow down their neck from the youth" (7:23). Education of children is so basic to Judaism that Josephus wrote in the first century: "Our principal duty of all is thus to educate our children well" (Apion, bk. I, 12).

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EXOD210 The Judaic definition of beauty is not limited to visual physical charms. It also includes refined human traits, such as dignity, deportment, and character, which are pleasing to people's minds. This comprehensive view of beauty is projected by the author of Proverbs: "The glory of young men is their strength, and the beauty of old man is the hoary head" (Proverbs 20:29). The old man who acts with the dignity of his age and does not compete in areas which belong to youth is a beautiful person. Beauty is an adjunct of religious acts. The Pentateuchal verse "This is my God and I will beautify him" [this verse] was interpreted by the Rabbis as an injunction to give an attractive appearance to religious articles (Shabbat 133b). Thus one should build a beautiful sukkah, affix an attractive mezuzah, and write a distinctive Torah (Masechet Soferim 3:11).

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EXOD270 The order to eradicate the ancient nation of Amalek [this verse] was a unique and exceptional measure which did not establish a precedent. Its severity is justified in the Bible by an historical encounter in which the Amalekites were guilty of an unprovoked attack on the Hebrews, with the intent of committing genocide. There is no other explanation for the attack. Surely they were not motivated by considerations of self-defense or even by a desire to rob a neighboring nation of its land. There was to be no compassion for a people possessed of such irrational and pathological hatred. Amalek was the ancient prototype of the modern Nazis, killers without any redeeming features. The ancient law of the eradication of the entire nation would surely be unacceptable under modern progressive standards. Yet the biblical admonition against mercy for Amalek is surely binding with regard to Nazis whose guilt has been proven. A rising demand for leniency toward criminals and forgiveness of their crimes does an injustice to the future of mankind. In a statement of profound insight, the rabbis alleged [based on author's preceding discussion, reference may be to Makkot 7a-b--AJL] that a person who is moved to express pity for cruel people will in the end adopt some of their cruel traits. (Continued at [[NUM408]] Numbers 35:19 death BLOCH 65-6).

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EXOD295 (Continued from [[DEUT584]] Deuteronomy 12:28 good BLOCH 113-4). The rabbis of the third century coined the phrase "beyond the prescription of the law" (lifnim mishurat hadin) to define the moral principle of equity (Baba Kama 89b). There are two biblical sources from which this principle derives; one is in the Pentateuch, and the other in the Hagiographa. The Pentateuchal source reads: [this verse]. The text appears to imply that abiding by the law is essential but there are additional paths beyond the law which also need to be pursued. According to Rabbi Joseph (3rd cent.), "deeds" refers to conduct within the letter of the law, "they must perform" refers to acts beyond the prescription of the law (Baba Metzia 30b). The Hagiographical source of equity is a verse in the Book of Proverbs: "That thou mayest walk in the way of good men and keep the paths of the righteous" (Proverbs 2:20). The rabbis assumed that only persons who are motivated by ideals of equity may be considered good and righteous (Baba Metzia 83a). The principle of equity is reflected in many decisions and rules promulgated by the talmudic sages. Rabbi Yochanan b. Zakkai (1st cent.) suspended the biblical ritual for testing a wife suspected by her husband of adultery [Numbers 11:5-31--AJL]. He ruled that the test is effective only if the conduct of the husband is above reproach (the ancient doctrine of clean hands). He obviously considered it inequitable to subject wives to a ritual test of morality in a generation when the moral stance of husbands was under a cloud of suspicion (Sotah 47a).

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EXOD345 The need for circumspection in one's manner of dressing is inherent in the Bible. A preliminary period before the giving of the law on Mount Sinai was set aside to allow the people to launder their clothes so that they would be properly dressed for the occasion [this verse]. Ecclesiasticus admonished: "Let thy garment be always white, and let thy head lack no oil" (Ecclus. 9:8). Warnings against the wearing of improper clothes abound in the Talmud (see "Appearance and Attire"). This includes provocative clothes (Yevamot 63b) and soiled garments (Shabbat 114a).

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EXOD357 For jealousy is the rage of a man, and he will not spare in the day of vengeance. (Proverbs 6:34) Jealousy is defined as a state of apprehension of being displaced by a rival. All types of human relationships, religious, economic, and domestic, are susceptible to attacks of jealousy. The first commandment, "Thou shall have no other gods before me" [this verse], is reinforced with the declaration "for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God" as a warning that God is vigilant in the protection of monotheism from pagan encroachments. Top executives are jealous of underlings who scheme to replace them in their dominant positions. They react to such threats with sharpened alertness and undisguised hatred. Husbands and wives are jealous of rivals who attempt to steal the affection of a spouse. A threatened mate reacts with a heightened sense of suspicion and vindictiveness. Most people regard jealousy as a legitimate and justifiable reaction, if facts and circumstances warrant it. Unfortunately, jealousy is an explosive emotion which thrives on suspicion more often than on facts. This is particularly true of jealousy arising from romantic involvements. A biblical verse warns of its a dangerous intensity. "For love is strong as death, jealousy is cruel as the grave; the flash thereof are flashes of fire" (Song of Songs 8:6). Groundless jealousy is an emotional aberration which does not respond to logic or moral admonitions. An unreasonably jealous individual is not impressed by charges of unethical conduct. On the contrary, his conviction that he is motivated by moral dictates for the preservation of chastity is progressively hardened and insulated by a sense of self-righteousness. Psychologists attribute extreme jealousy to an inferiority complex. This diagnosis offers little hope for short-range relief.

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EXOD365 See [[DEUT1038]] Deuteronomy 21:11 beautiful BLOCH 47

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