Rabbi Nachum Shatkhin
On Shabbat Shuvah, we read a passage from the prophet Hosea—but only the fourteenth chapter, which consists of just ten verses. What is most puzzling, however, is that the reading begins with the second verse of chapter 14, rather than the first. Why is this? It is a well-known fact that the division into chapters in the Tanakh (Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim) was the work of Christians.
Christian priests pursued several goals when numbering the chapters and verses of the Tanakh. On the one hand, there was a need to make it easier to refer to a particular passage in the sources during theological disputes with Jewish sages. But there was another goal as well—to distort the true meaning of what was written in the Tanakh in order to slander the people of Israel.
Usually, when a new topic or passage begins, its opening—the first verse—serves as a symbolic signpost for the narrative that follows. Chapter 32 recounts one of the most terrible sins of the people of Israel—the sin of the Golden Calf.
According to our tradition, however, this topic opens with verse 18: “And when He had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two tablets of testimony, stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God.”
In this way, the Torah hints to us that even after such a terrible sin, the people of Israel still have the opportunity to repair its consequences, because Moses had previously received the tablets of the covenant.
Our Haftarah, too, did not escape attempts to distort its true meaning.
Chapter 14 of the Book of the Prophet Hosea offers consolation to the people of Israel unlike anything else in the entire Tanakh.
The Midrash says that all the prophets, when speaking of the Jews’ sins, used the word “fell” (meaning a spiritual fall), while the prophet Hosea used the word nichshal (stumbled, tripped), meaning that the sin was committed unintentionally. Chapter 14, the chapter of the greatest consolation, should begin with the verse: “Return, Israel, to the L-rd your G-d, for you have stumbled through your iniquity.” But the aforementioned “authors of the numbering” were bothered by the fact that the Almighty is ready to forgive, and will forgive, the people of Israel. Therefore, the last verse of the previous chapter, chapter 13, which speaks unfavorably of the sins of the Northern Kingdom, was placed as the first verse of chapter 14, the chapter of consolation. “Samaria will be condemned for rebelling against its G-d: they will fall by the sword; their infants will be cut to pieces, and their pregnant women will be ripped open.” Now it is clear why, on Shabbat Shuvah, we begin reading the Haftarah specifically with the second verse, as our tradition requires.
“Return, Israel, to the L-rd your G-d, for you have stumbled through your iniquity. Take words with you and return to the L-rd; say to Him: ‘Forgive all transgressions and accept what is good; and (instead of) bulls, we will offer (the words of) our lips.’”
What does lachzor bi-teshuvah mean?
Some mistakenly translate this phrase as “to come to an answer”—that is, to bring oneself to account for what one has done. In meaning, this is repentance for the sins one has committed. But its precise meaning is a return to the original starting point, a return to the initial, pure state in which the Almighty created all of us. In the Book of Samuel (2, 11:1), the word teshuvah – «Vayehi li-teshuvat ha-shanah» appears, translated as: “And it came to pass at the turn of the year…” Radak explains: “ …And ‘at the turn of the year’ means after a year has passed, when the sun is where it was a year before,” that is, at its starting point.
The prophet Hosea calls on the Jews to repent, yet he calls the people of Israel an orphan. Why should an orphan, in particular, necessarily merit the Almighty’s mercy?
Tractate Bava Metzia tells a story of how Rabbi was once walking down the street when a calf that had escaped from the shochet suddenly tried to shelter under the fold of his garment. The calf hoped to find refuge there, but Rabbi handed it over to the shochet, saying: “Go, for this is what you were created for.”
For treating the calf that sought refuge in this way, the Almighty sent Rabbi illnesses accompanied by terrible suffering. When he went out to relieve himself, his workers would take the horses out to feed. The horses, growing excited before eating, would make many noises that were meant to drown out Rabbi’s cries, but it is said that even amid such noise, Rabbi’s groans could be heard on ships at sea. This continued for thirteen years (by comparison, the suffering described in the Book of Job lasted one year).
Continuing the story, the Gemara says that his suffering departed for the same reason that it had come. One day, a maidservant discovered a rats’ nest with young in the house. She decided to throw the rats out of the house, but Rabbi stopped her, saying: “…and His mercy is upon all His creatures.” At that very moment, his suffering ceased.
Why was such suffering sent to him? Was it only because he told the calf to go to the shochet, since that was what it had been created for?
When guests came to Lot in Sodom and the local people demanded that he hand these men over to them, Lot pleaded: “…only do not harm these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof.” The Chafetz Chaim says that if people come to you and ask for protection, it is you who must help them, for they put their trust in you.
And although Rabbi Yochanan says in tractate Berachot that the fate of every animal is to be slaughtered in accordance with kosher law, if a calf suddenly tries to find refuge with you, then even if you cannot save it, at least treat it with compassion, for it has come “under the shelter of your roof.” [This, however, is not a complete explanation of why Rabbi was punished so severely. For a deeper examination of the issue, see the book “Da’at Tevunot,” paragraph 170. Editor’s note.]
Now we can answer the question raised above: why does the Almighty defend orphans and widows so strongly?
“Do not oppress any widow or orphan. If you oppress any of them, then when they cry out to Me, I will hear their cry.”
When someone hurts a child, the first person the child goes to with a complaint is their father. A woman who has been wronged relies on her husband’s help. But when there is no father or husband, there is no one to rely on except the Almighty, and those who are suffering and have “come under the shelter of your roof” must not be left without help.