Midrash halakha

Midrash halakha was the ancient rabbinic Jewish method of verifying the traditionally received laws by identifying their sources in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), and by interpreting these passages as proofs of the law's authenticity.¹ The term is applied also to the derivation of new laws, either by means of a correct interpretation of the obvious meaning of scriptural words themselves or by the application of certain hermeneutic rules. These interpretations were often regarded as corresponding to the real meaning of the Scriptural texts; thus it was held that a correct elucidation of the Torah carried with it the proof of the Halakah and the reason for its existence. In the Midrash Halakah three divisions may be distinguished: (1) the midrash of the older Halakah, that is, the midrash of the Soferim and the Tannaim of the first two generations; (2) the midrash of the younger Halakah, or the midrash of the Tannaim of the three following generations; (3) the midrash of several younger tannaim and of a large number of amoraim who did not interpret a Biblical passage as an actual proof of the Halakah, but merely as a suggestion or a support for it ("zeker le-dabar"; "asmakta"). The early Halakha sought only to define the compass and scope of individual laws, asking under what circumstances of practical life a given rule was to be applied and what would be its consequences. The earlier Midrash, therefore, aims at an exact definition of the laws contained in the Scriptures by an accurate interpretation of the text and a correct determination of the meaning of the various words. The form of exegesis adopted is frequently one of simple lexicography, and is remarkably brief. A few examples will serve to illustrate the style of the older Midrash Halakah. It translates the word "ra'ah" (Ex. xxi. 8) "displease" (Mek., Mishpatim), which is contrary to the interpretation of Rabbi Eliezer. From the expression "be-miksat" (Ex. xii. 4), which, according to it, can mean only "number," the older Halakah deduces the rule that when killing the Passover lamb the slaughterer must be aware of the number of persons who are about to partake of it (Mek., Bo, 3 [ed. The statement that the determination of the calendar of feasts depends wholly on the decision of the nasi and his council is derived from Lev. xxiii. 37, the defectively written "otam" (them) being read as "attem" (ye) and the interpretation, "which ye shall proclaim," being regarded as conforming to the original meaning of the phrase (R. When two different forms of the same word in a given passage have been transmitted, one written in the text ("ketib"), and the other being the traditional reading ("ḳere"), the Halakah, not wishing to designate either as wrong, interprets the word in such a way that both forms may be regarded as correct. Thus it explains Lev. xxv. 30-where according to the ḳere the meaning is "in the walled city," but according to the ketib, "in the city which is not walled"-as referring to a city that once had walls, but no longer has them ('Ar. 32b). In a similar way it explains Lev. xi. 29 (Ḥul. 65a). The Midrash of the Younger Halakah: The younger Halakah did not confine itself to the mere literal meaning of single passages, but sought to draw conclusions from the wording of the texts in question by logical deductions, by combinations with other passages, etc. Hence its midrash differs from the simple exegesis of the older Halakah. It treats the Bible according to certain general principles, which in the course of time became more and more amplified and developed (see Talmud); and its interpretations depart further and further from the simple meaning of the words. A few examples will illustrate this difference in the method of interpretation between the older and the younger Halakah. It was a generally accepted opinion that the first Passover celebrated in Egypt, that of the Exodus, differed from those which followed it, in that at the first one the prohibition of leavened bread was for a single day only, whereas at subsequent Passovers this restriction extended to seven days. The older Halakah (in Mek., Bo, 16 [ed. Weiss, 24a]), represented by R.Jose the Galilean, bases its interpretation on a different division of the sentences in Ex. xiii. than the one generally received; connecting the word "ha-yom" (= "this day"), which is the first word of verse 4, with verse 3 and so making the passage read: "There shall no leavened bread be eaten this day." The younger Halakah reads "ha-yom" with verse 4, and finds its support for the traditional halakah by means of the principle of "semukot" (collocation); that is to say, the two sentences, "There shall no leavened bread be eaten," and "This day came ye out," though they are separated grammatically, are immediately contiguous in the text, and exert an influence over each other (Pes. 28b, 96b). What the older Halakah regarded as the obvious meaning of the words of the text, the younger infers from the collocation of the sentences. The wide divergence between the simple exegesis of the older Halakah and the artificiality of the younger is illustrated also by the difference in the method of explaining the Law, cited above, in regard to uncleanness. Both halakot regard it as self-evident that if a man be unclean, whether it be from contact with a corpse or from any other cause, he may not share in the Passover (Pes. 93a). The younger Halakah, despite the dot over the ה, reads "reḥoḳah" and makes it refer to "derek," even determining how far away one must be to be excluded from participation in the feast. In order, however, to find a ground for the halakah that those who are unclean through contact with other objects than a corpse may have no share in the Passover, it explains the repetition of the word "ish" in this passage (Lev. ix. 10) as intending to include all other cases of defilement. Despite this difference in method, the midrashim of the older and of the younger Halakah alike believed that they had sought only the true meaning of the Scriptures. Their interpretations and deductions appeared to them to be really contained in the text; and they wished them to be considered correct Biblical expositions. Hence they both have the form of Scriptural exegesis, in that each mentions the Biblical passage and the halakah which is given in explanation of it, or, more correctly speaking, which is derived from it.²