parshaמפרשי הפרשה

ספורנו — להיות לכם לאלהים

Pasuk 25:38 — "אני ה' אלקיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם... לתת לכם את ארץ כנען להיות לכם לאלקים" — closes the section on interest-laws and supporting the impoverished אח. But the preceding verses (25:35-37) are written in *singular* ("וכי ימוך אחיך... והחזקת בו... אל תקח מאתו"). Why does this concluding verse suddenly switch to *plural*?

להיות לכם לאלהים. שיהיה התכלית המכוון ממנו מושג בין כולכם, ולכן ראוי שיהיה סדר המדינות בכם באופן שתוכלו כולכם לחיות זה עם זה ותעזרו זה את זה להשלים המכוון.

1 source · all verified

Opens as a working sheet — explore, annotate, and export.

Source 1 · Rishonim

Verified

ספורנו

ספורנו על ויקרא כ״ה:ל״ח

Sforno on Leviticus 25:38

Behar

Q — Pasuk 25:38 — "אני ה' אלקיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם... לתת לכם את ארץ כנען להיות לכם לאלקים" — closes the section on interest-laws and supporting the impoverished אח. But the preceding verses (25:35-37) are written in *singular* ("וכי ימוך אחיך... והחזקת בו... אל תקח מאתו"). Why does this concluding verse suddenly switch to *plural*?

A — For Sforno the switch is the chiddush. The mitzvot in the section are performed by יחידים, but their *תכלית* — "להיות לכם לאלקים" — is achieved only by Klal Yisrael together. "שיהיה התכלית המכוון ממנו מושג בין כולכם, ולכן ראוי שיהיה סדר המדינות בכם באופן שתוכלו כולכם לחיות זה עם זה ותעזרו זה את זה להשלים המכוון." Social-economic mitzvot — prohibitions on interest, obligations to lift up the impoverished — are not merely ethical add-ons; they are *structural preconditions* for the goal of the entire Torah. A society where the weak are crushed cannot collectively become a people for whom Hashem is אלקים. The plural ending grounds the whole section: individual acts of chesed and mishpat aggregate into the שלמות הכלל that is the Torah's actual aim.

Full text on Sefaria ↗

Related sheets

Machshavaמחשבה

Eretz Yisrael and the Process of Teshuvah

Sources examine the spiritual connection between return to the Land of Israel and the process of repentance and national restoration. Tannaitic, medieval, and modern sources frame dwelling in Eretz Yisrael as integral to both individual and collective spiritual renewal.

View Sources38 sources

Halachaהלכה

Shofar and Shabbat: Why the Mitzvah Is Suspended

Rosh Hashanah

These sources explain the rabbinic enactment that prohibits sounding the shofar when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, despite the Torah's association of the holiday with the shofar blast. The sources address the reasoning behind the decree—a concern that people might carry the shofar to an expert—and discuss exceptions that applied in the Temple and among established courts.

View Sources37 sources

Halachaהלכה

The Halacha of Canaanite Slaves

The Torah and rabbinic sources establish the laws governing the acquisition, status, treatment, and release of non-Israelite slaves. These sources address the biblical foundations, the detailed mechanisms of acquisition and emancipation, ethical obligations toward such slaves, and protections afforded to fugitives.

View Sources35 sources

Israelארץ ישראל

Redemption: End of Exile or Beginning of Geulah

These sources explore the theological and textual frameworks for understanding whether contemporary historical changes represent the conclusion of exile, the onset of redemption, or an intermediate stage. They draw on biblical prophecies of restoration, rabbinic teaching about the messianic birth-pangs and the conditions of redemption, and medieval commentary on covenantal exile and return.

View Sources35 sources

Yamim Tovimימים טובים

Shofar on Rosh Hashanah When It Falls on Shabbat

Rosh Hashanah

Sources examine the biblical foundations for shofar-blowing on Rosh Hashanah and the rabbinic rulings that prohibit it outside the Temple when the holiday coincides with Shabbat. The passages address the tension between the Torah's command and Shabbat restrictions, as well as the historical shift in practice after the Temple's destruction.

View Sources30 sources

Machshavaמחשבה

Agricultural Cycles and Divine Service

Jewish sources explore how the rhythms of the agricultural year—planting, growth, harvest, and rest—serve as mirrors for spiritual practice and devotion to God. From the Torah's festival cycles to rabbinic and mystical teachings, these sources illustrate how natural processes embody and reinforce principles of divine worship.

View Sources29 sources

Explore more

Eretz Yisrael and the Process of Teshuvah Shofar and Shabbat: Why the Mitzvah Is Suspended The Halacha of Canaanite Slaves

Find sources for your own idea