Shmiras HaLashon כ"ז כּסלו - Kislev 27 - Eighty-Seventh Day

© 2006 by Robert Lepor. All rights reserved.

Please go and see [of] the incident [recorded in maseches] Shabbos (127b), from which the honest person will learn [from this teaching] that he must judge his fellow favorably, even if the manner in which [to arrive at his] innocence is the most remote [of the possible explanations]. The gemara [in maseches Shabbos, states as follows]: “Our rabbis taught [in a Baraisa]: One who judges his fellow favorably, [is] judged favorably [in Heaven]. There was an incident involving one person who went down from the upper-Galil [and] was hired [to work for a given] employer in the south [of Israel] for three years.[1] On erev Yom Kippur, [at the conclusion of the three years of work, the employee] said to [his employer]: “Give me my wage [for my three years of work] and I shall go [home] and provide sustenance to my wife and my children.” [The employer responded]: “I do not have money.” [Whereupon, the worker said to the employer]: “Give me fruits [equivalent to the value of my work.” The employer responded]: “I do not have [fruits of that value in my possession.” The worker then said], “Give me cattle [equivalent to the value of my work.” Thereupon, the employer responded], “I do not have [sufficient cattle in my possession.” Then give me the value of my work with] pillows and sheets.” [The employer responded], “I do not have [them in my possession.” Whereupon, the worker] rolled up his vessels behind him and he went home in despair. After the holiday [of Succos], the employer took [the] wage of his [former employee] in his hand, accompanied with three fully laden donkeys. One of [the donkeys was laden] with food, and one [was laden] with drink, and one [was laden] with types of delicacies, and he went to [the] house [of his former employee]. After they [both] ate and drank, [the employer] gave him his wage. [The employer then] said to [his former employee], “At the time that you said to me, ‘Give me my wage’, and I said to you, ‘I do not have money’; what did you suspect me of?” – “I said: Perhaps goods became available to [you] for an inexpensive price, and you acquired [those goods] with [your available money]. – “At the time that you said to me, ‘Give me cattle’, and I said, ‘I do not have cattle’; for what did you suspect me?” – “I said: Perhaps [your cattle] are being rented out by other [people].” – “At the time that you said to me ‘Give me land’, and I said to you, ‘I do not have land’, what did you suspect me of?” – “I said: Perhaps it is being leased by others.” – “At the time that I said to you ‘I do not have fruits’, what did you suspect me of?” – “I said: Perhaps [the fruits] are not tithed”. “At the time that I said to you ‘I do not have pillows and blankets’, what did you suspect me of?” – “I said: Perhaps he dedicated all of his property to Heaven.” [The employer] said to him: “That was precisely what happened; I vowed all of my property [to be dedicated to Heaven] because of my son Hurkenos, who did not involve himself in Torah, and when I arrived by my friend in the south [of Israel], he nullified my entire vow. Just as you have judged [me] favorably, [HaShem’s] Presence will judge you favorably!” Similarly, other matters [in this context] are brought in the gemara, that [even when] the [situation] made it so that the side of innocence was [apparently] more distant than the side of guilt, nevertheless, they were careful to judge favorably.

[1] According to She’iltos #40, the worker was Rabbi Akiva, the future Torah leader and great scholar, and the employer was Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurkenos, who was also a great Torah scholar and Torah leader of the generation.