This is the third part of a five-part series, on the occasion of the upcoming Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Part 1 is here; Part 2 is here; the outline of the series is at Part 1.
R’ Ḥama bar Ḥanina - Repentance is great because it brings healing to the world - Hosea 14:5
אמר רבי חמא (בר) חנינא:
גדולה תשובה
שמביאה רפאות לעולם,
שנאמר:
״ארפא משובתם
אוהבם נדבה״.
§ Further on the topic of repentance,
R’ Ḥama bar Ḥanina said:
Great is repentance,
as it brings healing to the world,
as it is stated:
“I will heal their backsliding (משובתם),
I will love them freely (נדבה)” (Hosea 14:5),
which teaches that repentance from sin brings healing.
R’ Ḥama bar Ḥanina - Repentance from love removes the status of rebelliousness more completely than repentance from fear - Jeremiah 3:14, 22
רבי חמא (בר) חנינא רמי,
כתיב:
״שובו בנים שובבים״,
דמעיקרא שובבים אתם,
וכתיב:
״ארפא משובותיכם״
R’ Ḥama bar Ḥanina raised a contradiction between two verses.
It is written in one verse:
“Return, you backsliding (שובבים) children” (Jeremiah 3:14),
implying that initially when you sinned, it was only because you were backsliding, i.e., rebelling.1
But it is written:
“I will heal your backsliding (משובותיכם)” (Jeremiah 3:22),
implying that He will heal the sin from this point onward, and that they are still sinners.
לא קשיא:
כאן
מאהבה,
כאן
מיראה.
He resolved this contradiction, explaining that this is not difficult:
Here, where everything is forgiven as if the Jewish people never sinned,
it is referring to repentance out of love of God;
There, where the sin is still remembered despite the forgiveness and repentance,
it is referring to repentance out of fear of punishment.2
Rav Yehuda - Repentance from love or fear is effective directly, whereas repentance produced through suffering is a different category - Jeremiah 3:14, 22
רב יהודה רמי,
כתיב:
״שובו בנים שובבים, ארפא משובותיכם״,
וכתיב:
״(הנה) אנכי בעלתי בכם, ולקחתי אתכם אחד מעיר, ושנים ממשפחה״
Similarly, R’ Yehuda raised a contradiction between two verses.
It is written:
“Return, you backsliding children, I will heal your backsliding” (Jeremiah 3:22),
implying that anyone can achieve healing, which is dependent only on repentance.
But it also written:
“Return, O backsliding children, says YHWH, for I am a lord to you, and I will take you one from a city, and two from a family” (Jeremiah 3:14),
implying that repentance is available only to certain individuals.
לא קשיא:
כאן
מאהבה או מיראה,
כאן
על ידי יסורין.
He resolved the contradiction and explained that this is not difficult:
Here,
it is referring to repentance out of love or fear, which few people achieve;
There,
it referring is repentance through suffering (יסורין), as people typically have thoughts of repentance when they suffer.
R’ Levi - Repentance reaches as far as God’s throne - Hosea 14:2
אמר רבי לוי:
גדולה תשובה
שמגעת עד כסא הכבוד,
שנאמר:
״שובה ישראל
עד ה׳ אלהיך״.
R’ Levi said:
Great is repentance,
as it reaches the heavenly throne,
as it is stated:
“Return, Israel,
to YHWH your God” (Hosea 14:2).
This implies that repentance literally reaches “to God”.
R’ Yoḥanan - Repentance is so powerful that it overrides even a Torah prohibition
אמר רבי יוחנן:
גדולה תשובה
שדוחה את לא תעשה שבתורה,
§ R’ Yoḥanan said:
Great is repentance,
as it overrides even a prohibition of the Torah.
Prooftext - God accepts Israel back despite the Torah’s analogy to a divorced wife who married another and may not return to her first husband - Jeremiah 3:1
שנאמר:
״לאמר:
הן ישלח איש את אשתו
והלכה מאתו
והיתה לאיש אחר
הישוב אליה עוד?!
הלא חנוף תחנף הארץ ההיא?!
ואת זנית רעים רבים
ושוב אלי
נאם ה׳״.
How so?
As it is stated that God said:
“…Saying:
If a man sends away his wife
and she goes from him
and becomes another man’s,
may he return to her again?!
Will not that land be greatly polluted?!
But you have committed adultery with many lovers;
and would you yet return to Me,
said YHWH” (Jeremiah 3:1).3
R’ Yonatan - Repentance brings (messianic) redemption - Isaiah 59:20
אמר רבי יונתן:
גדולה תשובה
שמקרבת את הגאולה,
R’ Yonatan said:
Great is repentance,
which hastens the messianic redemption,
שנאמר:
״ובא לציון גואל
ולשבי פשע ביעקב״,
מה טעם ״ובא לציון גואל״ ?
משום ד״שבי פשע ביעקב״.
as it is stated:
“And a redeemer will come to Zion,
and to those who repent from transgression in Jacob” (Isaiah 59:20).
What is the reason that “a redeemer will come to Zion”?
It is because there are “those who repent from transgression in Jacob”.
Reish Lakish - Repentance from fear converts intentional sins into unwitting ones - Hosea 14:2
אמר ריש לקיש:
גדולה תשובה
שזדונות נעשות לו כשגגות,
שנאמר:
״שובה ישראל
עד ה׳ אלהיך
כי כשלת בעונך״
[...]
Reish Lakish said:
Great is repentance,
as the penitent’s intentional sins (זדונות) are counted for him as unwitting transgressions,4
as it is stated:
“Return, Israel,
to YHWH your God,
for you have stumbled in your iniquity” (Hosea 14:2).
[...]
R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani citing R’ Yonatan - Repentance lengthens a person’s life - Ezekiel 18:27
אמר רבי שמואל בר נחמני, אמר רבי יונתן:
גדולה תשובה
שמארכת שנותיו של אדם,
שנאמר:
״ובשוב רשע מרשעתו
(חיו) יחיה״.
R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani said that R’ Yonatan said:
Great is repentance,
As it lengthens the years of a person’s life,
as it is stated:
“When the wicked man turns from his wickedness that he has committed,
and does that which is lawful and right, he will preserve his life” (Ezekiel 18:27).
R’ Yitzḥak citing Rabba bar Mari - Unlike humans, God can be appeased by words of repentance; verbal repentance is accepted like an offering - Hosea 14:3, 5
(See footnote.)5
אמר רבי יצחק:
אמרי במערבא, משמיה דרבה בר מרי:
בא וראה שלא כמדת הקדוש ברוך הוא מדת בשר ודם:
מדת בשר ודם,
מקניט את חבירו בדברים —
ספק מתפייס הימנו,
ספק אין מתפייס הימנו.
§ R’ Yitzḥak said:
They say in the West, Eretz Yisrael, in the name of Rabba bar Mari:
Come and see that the attribute of flesh and blood is unlike the attribute of God:
With flesh and blood people,
if one insults his friend with words,
it is uncertain whether the victim will be appeased6 by him
or will not be appeased by him.
ואם תאמר מתפייס הימנו —
ספק מתפייס בדברים,
ספק אין מתפייס בדברים,
And if you say he will be appeased,
it is still uncertain whether he will be appeased by words alone
or will not be appeased by words alone, and one must try to appease him in other ways.
אבל הקדוש ברוך הוא,
אדם עובר עבירה בסתר —
מתפייס ממנו בדברים,
שנאמר:
״קחו עמכם דברים
ושובו אל ה׳״.
But with regard to God,
if a person commits a transgression in private,7
God is appeased by words,
as it is stated:
“Take with you words
and return to God” (Hosea 14:3).
ולא עוד,
אלא שמחזיק לו טובה,
שנאמר:
״וקח טוב״.
And not only that,
but God considers it as though he has done a favor8 for God by repenting,
as it is stated:
“Accept that which is good” (Hosea 14:3).
ולא עוד
אלא שמעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו הקריב פרים,
שנאמר:
״ונשלמה פרים שפתינו״.
And not only that,
but the verse ascribes him credit as though he had sacrificed bulls,
as it is stated:
“So we will render for bulls the offering of our lips” (Hosea 14:3).
שמא תאמר פרי חובה?
תלמוד לומר:
״ארפא משובתם
אוהבם נדבה״.
Lest you say he is considered only like one who offers obligatory bulls,
therefore the verse states:
“I will heal their backsliding,
I will love them freely” (Hosea 14:5).9
R’ Meir - One individual’s repentance can bring forgiveness to the whole world
תניא,
היה רבי מאיר אומר:
גדולה תשובה,
שבשביל יחיד שעשה תשובה —
מוחלין לכל העולם כולו,
It was taught in a baraita that
R’ Meir would say:
Great is repentance
As on account of one individual who repents --
the entire world is forgiven (מוחלין)
Prooftext - Hosea 14:5
שנאמר:
״ארפא משובתם
אוהבם נדבה
כי שב אפי ממנו״.
״מהם״ לא נאמר,
אלא ״ממנו״.
as it is stated:
“I will heal their backsliding,
I will love them freely;
for My anger has turned away from him” (Hosea 14:5).
It does not say: “From them,” i.e., from the sinners,
but “from him,” i.e., from that individual.
Because he repented, everyone will be healed.
Rav Yehuda - Complete repentance is demonstrated when the same opportunity to commit the same sin recurs and the person refrains
היכי דמי בעל תשובה?
אמר רב יהודה:
כגון שבאת לידו דבר עבירה פעם ראשונה ושניה
וניצל הימנה.
§ With regard to repentance, the Talmud asks:
What are the circumstances that demonstrate that one has completely repented?10
Rav Yehuda said:
For example:
the prohibited matter came to his hand a first time and a second time,
and he was saved from it,
thereby proving that he has completely repented.
מחוי רב יהודה:
באותה אשה,
באותו פרק,
באותו מקום.
Rav Yehuda demonstrated what he meant:
If one has the opportunity to sin
with the same woman that he previously sexually sinned with,
at the same time (פרק)
and the same place11
Rav Yehuda citing Rav - Public sins should be publicly acknowledged; private sins should not be publicized - Psalms 32:1; Proverbs 28:13
אמר רב יהודה,
רב רמי —
כתיב:
״אשרי נשוי פשע, כסוי חטאה״,
וכתיב:
״מכסה פשעיו לא יצליח״
Rav Yehuda said that
Rav raised a contradiction:
It is written:
“Fortunate is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is hidden” (Psalms 32:1),
implying that it is inappropriate for one to reveal his sins,
and it is written:
“He who hides his transgressions should not prosper” (Proverbs 28:13).
לא קשיא:
הא בחטא מפורסם,
הא בחטא שאינו מפורסם.
He resolved the contradiction as follows:
This is not difficult:
Here
it is referring to a publicized12 sin;
since his sin is public knowledge it is fitting for him to also publicize his repentance.
There,
it is referring to a sin that is not publicized,
in which case it is inappropriate to publicize one’s repentance.
Rav Zutra bar Toviya citing Rav Naḥman - Interpersonal sins should be publicly confessed, whereas sins against God should remain private - Psalms 32:1; Proverbs 28:13
רב זוטרא בר טוביה, אמר רב נחמן:
כאן
בעבירות שבין אדם לחבירו,
כאן
בעבירות שבין אדם למקום.
Rav Zutra bar Toviya said that Rav Naḥman said:
Here,
it is referring to sins a person commits against another;
he must publicize his repentance so that those who hear him may persuade the other to forgive him.
There,
it is referring to sins a person commits against God,
in which case he need not repent publicly.
Steinsaltz:
It was merely an act of immaturity and foolishness and could be ignored as if it had never happened.
See discussion in Hebrew Wikipedia, “תשובה (יהדות)“, section “המניעים לתשובה“.
Steinsaltz:
Indeed, the Torah states: “Her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife after she has been made impure” (Deuteronomy 24:4).
The relationship between the Jewish people and God is compared [here, by this verse in Jeremiah] to that between a husband and wife.
Just as it is prohibited for an adulterous wife to return to her husband, it should be prohibited for the Jewish people to return to God from their sins, yet repentance overrides this prohibition.
See discussion in Hebrew Wikipedia, “מחזיר גרושתו“, section “לאחר שנישאת לאחר“.
שגגות.
On this word (cognate with שגג , שגיאה, שָׁגָה), see Jastrow (modernized), entry “שְׁגָגָה”:
(Biblical Hebrew; the preceding word)
inadvertent act, error.
Mishnah Keritot 1:2 על אלו … ועל שִׁגְגָתָם חטאת for the following acts one incurs the punishment of extinction if wilfully committed, and is bound to bring a sin-offering if committed inadvertently.
Mishnah Keritot 2:2 אלו … הזדון כש׳ the following must offer a sacrifice for their wilful acts as if they were inadvertent ones.
Shabbat 70a:1 (in Aramaic dict.) קרבן דחייב רחמנא אמאי אש׳ for what act does the Law demand a sacrifice? Only for an inadvertent act.
Shabbat 69a:2 שִׁגְגַת קרבן שמה ש׳ ignorance as to eventual liability to a sacrifice is called inadvertency; Shevuot 26b:3.
Shevuot 26b:1 איזוהי שגגת שבועת וכ׳ how is inadvertency in a vain oath with regard to a past event possible?;
and very frequently.
Moed Katan 18a, and frequently. והואי כש׳ שיוצאה מלפני השליט (from Ecclesiastes 10:5) and it was as an error proceeding from the ruler, i.e. his ominous words, although not meant as such, came true.
Plural: שְׁגָגוֹת.
Shabbat 70a:1 (in Aramaic dict.) התם חדא שגגה הכא טובא ש׳ הוייו there it is only one error, here there are several.
Bava Metzia 33b, see זָרוֹן.
Jerusalem Talmud Shevuot 1:2:4 חטאתם אלו הש׳ ‘their sins’ (Leviticus 16:21) this refers to inadvertent acts;
and frequently.
I cite this passage in my “ ‘God’s Character Isn’t Like a Human’s Character’: Rhetorically Contrasting God and Human in the Talmud“, section “R’ Yitzḥak - Humans’ character: Forgiveness uncertain, God’s character: Forgiveness certain and generous - Hosea 14:3-5 (Yoma 86b) “ (p. 18ff).
On this idiomatic expression, see Jastrow (modernized), entry “חָזַק“, section “Hif’il - הֶחֱזִיק 1”
ה׳ טובה ל־ - to attach merit to, to account as merit, to be grateful.
Pirkei Avot 2:8 אל תַּחֲזִיק ט׳ לעצמך do not claim credit for it (be not proud).
Yoma 86b:6 אלא שמַחֲזִיק לו ט׳ but He even gives him credit (for his sins when he repents).
Menachot 53a:15 הַחֲזֵק לי וכ׳ give me credit for making Thee known etc.
Ketubot 68a, and elsewhere. בואו ונַחֲזִיק וכ׳ let us be thankful to the fraudulent poor etc.;
and frequently.
נדבה.
Steinsaltz:
Repentance is considered as though it were the sacrifice of a free-will offering.
On this type of animal sacrifice, see Hebrew Wikipedia, “קורבן (יהדות)“, section “קורבן חובה וקורבן נדבה“.
בעל תשובה - ba’al teshuva.
On this expression, see Hebrew Wikipedia, “תשובה (יהדות)“, especially section “האפשרות לעשות תשובה“. And see Wikipedia, “Baal teshuva“, especially section “Definition“. And see Hebrew Wikipedia, “מקום שבעלי תשובה עומדין צדיקים גמורים אינם עומדין“.
Steinsaltz:
[i.e] everything is aligned as it was that first time when he sinned, but this time he overcomes his inclination, it proves his repentance is complete, and he is forgiven.