Parashat Shoftim - Sixth Aliyah
Read the biblical text and try to understand it on your own, before reading the commentary.
From the Boundary of a Field to the Boundaries of Justice
The aliyah opens by protecting the boundaries of the inheritance. The Torah forbids moving a neighbor’s boundary marker, set in place by earlier generations in the land. From there it turns to boundaries of another kind, the boundaries of justice. One witness is not enough to convict a person of any iniquity or sin; two witnesses or three are required. And if there is suspicion that a witness has come to testify falsely in order to harm his brother, the matter is brought before the priests and the judges, and they are required to investigate thoroughly.
If the witness turns out to be false, the Torah rules that he is done to as he schemed to do to his brother. The aim is not only to punish that particular person, but to create a public deterrent that keeps others from repeating such an act. The aliyah closes its legal section with a principle of correspondence between the deed and the outcome a person tried to bring about for another.
From here the Torah turns to war. When Israel goes out to battle and sees horse, chariot and a people more numerous than they are, the Torah warns them not to fear, because Adonai their God is with them, the One who brought them up from the land of Egypt. Before the battle the priest approaches the people and strengthens them, that their heart not grow faint, that they not fear, not panic, and not be terrified before the enemy.
After him the officers speak, and they release from the ranks men whose lives are not yet complete: one who built a house and has not dedicated it, one who planted a vineyard and has not redeemed its fruit, and one who betrothed a woman and has not yet taken her. Then one more is added, the man who is afraid and soft of heart, so that his fear will not melt the hearts of his brothers. Only after the announcements are finished are commanders of the armies appointed at the head of the people.
Insights from the Aliyah
A physical boundary and a moral boundary are the same principle
The aliyah begins with a prohibition on moving a boundary of land, and immediately turns to the laws of testimony. In both places the Torah protects what belongs to someone else: once his ground, once his name, his rights and his freedom. Harm done through the courts can be no less severe than harm done to property.
Justice is not built on a single voice
One witness is not enough to decide. This teaches that a serious system of justice does not act on an impression, a rumor, or one persuasive person. Before a person is harmed there must be a sufficient evidentiary basis.
“Vedarshu hashoftim heitev”, the responsibility rests on the one who decides too
It is not enough to hear two sides and respond quickly. The judges are required to examine deeply (and the judges shall investigate thoroughly, 19:18). The more a ruling can harm a person, the higher the duty of inquiry rises.
A false witness turns the courtroom into a weapon
One who testifies falsely is not merely lying. He is trying to use the system of justice itself to injure another person. That is why the Torah treats him with particular severity: he introduces injustice into the very instrument meant to protect against injustice.
Before war, you treat the heart
Even before commanders are appointed, the Torah deals with fear. The priest speaks to the people, and only afterward do the officers arrange the ranks. This teaches that a campaign is not decided by numbers and equipment alone. The state of the fighters’ hearts is part of the campaign itself.
Not everyone who can fight belongs at the front
A house not yet dedicated, a vineyard that has not reached its stage, and a woman who has not yet entered married life, all of these create a strong tie to the life left behind. The Torah recognizes that a person is not only a soldier. He is a person with a home, a future, a partnership and roots.
Fear can pass from person to person
The reason for sending home the man who is afraid and soft of heart is not only his own good. Unchecked fear can spread to others and collapse an entire group. From here comes an important principle of leadership: an emotional state is also a social force, for good and for bad.
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