This is the fourth part of a six-part series, on the occasion of the upcoming Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Part 1 is here; Part 2 is here; Part 3 is here; Part 4 is here; the outline of the series is at Part 1.
It is bad for the wicked to escape punishment in this world - Proverbs 18:5
(See footnote.)1
״שאת פני רשע לא טוב״ —
לא טוב להם לרשעים
שנושאין להם פנים בעולם הזה.
§ It was further taught:
“It is not good to respect (שאת פני) the person of the wicked” (Proverbs 18:5),
meaning, it is not good for wicked people
when they are respected (נושאין להם פנים) in this world
and are not punished for their sins.
... As with Ahab - I Kings 21:29
לא טוב לו לאחאב
שנשאו לו פנים בעולם הזה,
שנאמר:
״יען כי נכנע (אחאב מלפני)
לא אביא הרעה בימיו״.
For example:
it was not good for Ahab
that he was respected in this world,
as it is stated:
“Because he humbled himself before Me,
I will not bring the evil in his days” (I Kings 21:29),
and Ahab thereby lost his share in the World-to-Come.
Punishment in this world can benefit the righteous - Proverbs 18:5
״להטות צדיק במשפט״ —
טוב להם לצדיקים
שאין נושאין להם פנים בעולם הזה.
The opposite is also true.
The complete verse states: “It is not good to respect the person of the wicked,
to turn aside the righteous in judgment” (Proverbs 18:5),
meaning:
It is good for the righteous
when they are not respected in this world
and are punished in this world for their sins.
... As with Moses - Numbers 20:12
טוב לו למשה
שלא נשאו לו פנים בעולם הזה,
שנאמר:
״יען לא האמנתם בי
להקדישני״,
הא אילו האמנתם בי —
עדיין לא הגיע זמנם ליפטר מן העולם.
For example:
it was good for Moses
that he was not respected in this world,
as it is stated:
“Because you did not believe in Me,
to sanctify Me” (Numbers 20:12).2
Had you believed in Me —
your time still would not have come to depart the world.
The merit of the righteous benefits descendants,
אשריהם לצדיקים,
לא דיין שהן זוכין,
אלא שמזכין
לבניהם
ולבני בניהם
עד סוף כל הדורות.
Fortunate are the righteous
because not only3 do they accumulate merit for themselves,
but they accumulate merit
for their children
and their children’s children
until the end of all generations;
As with Aaron’s sons - Leviticus 10:16
שכמה בנים היו לו לאהרן
שראויין לישרף כנדב ואביהוא,
שנאמר:
״הנותרים״,
אלא שעמד להם זכות אביהם.
as there were several sons of Aaron
who deserved to be burned like Nadav and Avihu,
as it is stated:
“The sons of Aaron who were left” (Leviticus 10:16),4
But the merit of their father [Aaron] protected them,
and they and their descendants were priests for all time.
In contrast, the guilt of the wicked burdens descendants
אוי להם לרשעים,
לא דיין שמחייבין עצמן,
אלא שמחייבין
לבניהם
ולבני בניהם
עד סוף כל הדורות.
On the other hand:
Woe to the wicked,
as not only do they render liable (מחייבין) themselves,
but they also render liable
their children
and children’s children
until the end of all generations.
As with Canaan
הרבה בנים היו לו לכנען
שראויין ליסמך כטבי עבדו של רבן גמליאל,
אלא שחובת אביהם גרמה להן.
For example:
who deserved to be ordained as rabbis and instructors of the public due to their great stature in Torah study, like Tavi, the servant of Rabban Gamliel, who was famous for his wisdom;
but their father’s liability caused (גרמה) them6
One who brings merit to the public is protected from sin; one who causes the public to sin is impeded from repentance
(See footnote.)7
כל המזכה את הרבים —
אין חטא בא על ידו,
וכל המחטיא את הרבים —
כמעט אין מספיקין בידו לעשות תשובה.
[...]
Furthermore:
Whoever accumulates merit for the public
will not have sin come to his hand, and God protects him from failing;
but whoever causes the public to sin
has almost no ability to repent.
[...]
R’ Abbahu, responding to Rav Yosef bar Ḥavu - For interpersonal wrongdoing, judicial or interpersonal rectification is required; for sins against God, repentance and good deeds obtain forgiveness - I Samuel 2:25
עבירות שבין אדם למקום וכו׳.
רמי ליה רב יוסף בר חבו לרבי אבהו:
עבירות שבין אדם לחבירו אין יום הכפורים מכפר?
והא כתיב:
״אם יחטא איש לאיש
ופללו אלהים״
§ It was taught in the Mishnah:
Yom Kippur atones for sins committed against God, but does not atone for sins committed against another person.
Rav Yosef bar Ḥavu raised a contradiction before R’ Abbahu:
The Mishnah states that Yom Kippur does not atone for sins committed against a fellow person,
but isn’t it written:
“If one man sin against another,
God [Elohim] should judge him”.8 (I Samuel 2:25)
מאן אלהים?
דיינא.
[...]
R’ Abbahu answered Rav Yosef bar Ḥavu:
Who is Elohim mentioned in the verse?
It is referring to a judge [elohim] .9
[...]
R’ Yitzḥak - Even verbal injury requires appeasing the offended person
אמר רבי יצחק:
כל המקניט את חבירו,
אפילו בדברים —
צריך לפייסו,
§ R’ Yitzḥak said:
One who angers (מקניט) his friend,
even only verbally,
must appease him,
Prooftext - one should repay money when relevant or enlist others to help secure forgiveness - Proverbs 6:1–3
שנאמר:
״בני!
אם ערבת לרעך
תקעת לזר כפיך
נוקשת באמרי פיך
עשה זאת אפוא בני
והנצל
כי באת בכף רעך
לך התרפס
ורהב רעיך״.
as it is stated:
“My son!
if you have become a guarantor for your neighbor,
if you have struck your hands for a stranger,
you are snared by the words of your mouth…
Do this now, my son,
and deliver yourself,
seeing you have come into the hand of your neighbor.
Go, humble yourself10
and urge11 your neighbor” (Proverbs 6:1–3).
אם ממון יש בידך —
התר לו פסת יד,
ואם לאו —
הרבה עליו ריעים.
This verse should be understood as follows:
If you have money that you owe him,
open the palm of12 your hand to your neighbor and pay the money that you owe;
and if not, if you have sinned against him verbally,
increase13 friends for him, i.e., send many people as your messengers to ask him for forgiveness.
The following passage is built through a series of balanced contrasts.
First comes a chiastic reading of Proverbs 18:5: leniency toward the wicked is interpreted as ultimately harmful, while harsh judgment of the righteous is ultimately beneficial. Ahab and Moses then serve as paired exempla.
The next unit expands the same righteous/wicked polarity from the individual to descendants. The formulations are parallel: “Fortunate are the righteous... not only... but...” versus “Woe to the wicked... not only... but...” Aaron and Canaan provide the corresponding positive and negative examples.
The final maxim universalizes the pattern once more, from family influence to public influence: one who benefits the many is protected from sin, while one who corrupts the many is impeded from repentance.
Thus the literary progression is: individual fate → descendants → public consequences, organized through repeated righteous/wicked antitheses.
The governing theme is that moral consequences extend beyond immediate appearances and beyond the individual actor.
This son of Moses was also reference earlier in the sugya by the same verse, in Part 4 of this series, section “Moses wanted his sin publicized, whereas David wanted his hidden - Numbers 20:12“, see my note there that it’s referring to Moses’ sin of “the water of Meriva” (מי מריבה).
Steinsaltz:
implying that others were left as well although they deserved to be burned with their brothers.
Aaron’s other sons were Eleazar and Itamar, see Wikipedia, “Aaron“, section “Descendants“.
בנים - alternatively: “descendants”.
This statement is paralleled elsewhere, see my “Pt2 Aggadic Lists of Ten, Seven, Four, and Two Items in Tractate Avot Chapter 5 (Avot 5:1-19)“, section “Influence - 2 outcomes - One who benefits the public is protected from sin (Moses - Deut. 33:21); one who causes others to sin is denied repentance (Jeroboam - I Kings 15:30) (5:18)“.
פללו - filelo.
Steinsaltz:
The word filelo, which may also refer to “prayer”, implies that if he prays, God will grant the sinner forgiveness.
Steinsaltz:
It is referring to “a judge” [elohim] and not to God, and the word filelo in the verse indicates “judgment”. Atonement occurs only after justice has been done toward the injured party by means of a court ruling.
On “Elohim” meaning judge, see Wikipedia, “Elohim“, section “Angels and judges“.
hater pisat - a homiletic interpretation (backronym) of התרפס.
harbe - a homiletic interpretation of רהב.