Weekly Torah Insights.

In the Tanach the word Elokim does not always mean Hashem. It also has the meaning of judge or court. In today’s Sidra we are told, if someone accepts the responsibility of watching another person’s item and it is stolen or lost, the law depends on what kind of a watchman he was. If he was paid for watching, he is obligated to make good the loss and must pay the owner the value of the item. If, however, he had promised to watch the item without remuneration, he is not compelled to make good the loss. This does not mean, though, that he is completely without any obligation. He must appear in court and swear to the fact that the item was stolen or lost and he had not laid his hand on it, meaning, he had not used it for his own purposes.

The language the Torah uses to tell us about this obligation is: וְנִקְרַב בַּעַל הַבַּיִת אֶל הָאֱלֹהִים “…and the householder (the watchman) shall approach the court that he has not laid his hand upon his fellow’s property.” (Ex. 22,7) The word הָאֱלֹהִים here does not refer to Hashem but to the judge.

A Rabbi once explained that regardless of the real meaning of the text, the fact that the Torah uses this expression teaches us another worthwhile message. If a person wants to come close to Hashem (הָאֱלֹקִים), he must be sure that he had not laid a hand upon, harmed or hurt another fellow Jew. To come spiritually close to Hashem one must be sure that he is innocent and had not offended another person.