Vayikra 5:4 · unit 7

Parashas Vayikra · Aliyah 6 · Passuk 5:4 · Unit 7 of 14

Complete Passuk

אוֹ נֶפֶשׁ כִּי תִשָּׁבַע לְבַטֵּא בִשְׂפָתַיִם לְהָרַע אוֹ לְהֵיטִיב לְכֹל אֲשֶׁר יְבַטֵּא הָאָדָם בִּשְׁבֻעָה וְנֶעְלַם מִמֶּנּוּ וְהוּא־יָדַע וְאָשֵׁם לְאַחַת מֵאֵלֶּה׃

Chabad / Judaica Press

Source Citation

Torah Temimah cites Nazir 62b.

Sefaria — Nazir 62b
E-Daf · Nazir 62b

Core Text — Nazir 62b
יָכוֹל נִשְׁבַּע לְהָרַע לַאֲחֵרִים וְלֹא הֵרַע יְהֵא חַיָּיב — תַּלְמוּד לוֹמַר ״לְהָרַע אוֹ לְהֵיטִיב״, מַה הֲטָבָה רְשׁוּת אַף הֲרָעָה רְשׁוּת.

One might think that if he swore to harm others and did not, he would be liable — Scripture says “to harm or to benefit”: just as benefit is optional, so harm is optional.

Harm to others that is not within his rights is excluded from the oleh ve-yored of shevu’as bitui by the parallel to optional benefit.

Type of Learning: Miyut — harm to others that is not within his rights is outside shevu’as bitui.
What Is Learned: An oath to harm others in a way he has no right to do does not create this korban liability when he fails to carry it out. The verse’s parallel of optional benefit limits “lehara” to optional, permitted harm.