Shemos 2:13 · unit 2 — why do you strike your fellow

Parashas Shemos

The Complete Passuk

וַיֵּצֵא֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשֵּׁנִ֔י וְהִנֵּ֛ה שְׁנֵֽי־אֲנָשִׁ֥ים עִבְרִ֖ים נִצִּ֑ים וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לָֽרָשָׁ֔ע לָ֥מָּה תַכֶּ֖ה רֵעֶֽךָ׃

When he went out the next day, he found two Hebrews fighting; so he said to the offender, “Why do you strike your fellow?”

Chabad.org — 2:13

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Reish Lakish — Sanhedrin 58b (verified).

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text

ויאמר לרשע — אמר ריש לקיש: המגביה ידו על חבירו אע״פ שלא הכהו נקרא רשע, שנאמר ויאמר לרשע למה תכה רעך — למה הכית לא נאמר אלא למה תכה.

English: “And he said to the wicked one” — Reish Lakish said: One who raises his hand against his fellow, even though he has not [yet] struck him, is called wicked, as it is said, “Why do you strike (takeh) your fellow?” — it does not say “why did you strike,” but “why do you [intend to] strike.”

On the daf / in context: The future/imperfect form is taken to show that the mere raising of the hand already confers the status of rasha.

Type of Learning

Custom

What Is Learned

Chazal teach that raising a hand to strike is itself enough to be labeled wicked, even before the blow lands.