Below is a collection of Parashat Shoftim resources created by The Lookstein Center staff or contributed to the site by Jewish educators.

This is a growing collection. Check back soon or write to us at content@lookstein.org if you didn’t find what you’re looking for. 

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Parasha Points

Multiple models of leadership are presented, each serving a different purpose. The judge is responsible for upholding justice and treating everyone equally under the law and is forbidden to take bribes; the kohen (priest) is responsible for protecting and preserving the sacred places and practices; the king is responsible for the welfare of society, and is restricted from have too many wives, too many horses, and too much wealth; the prophet conveys God’s messages to the people and must speak only that which God tells him.

Major Mitzvot
  • Courts may not base their judgments on the testimony of fewer than two witnesses.
  • If witnesses are found to have falsified their testimony, then they are to receive the consequence that they intended their victim to receive. 
  • One who kills by accident does not receive the death penalty but must be exiled to a city of refuge.
  • In case of war, people who are newly married, or who recently planted crops or built houses, may be exempt from going to battle. Similarly, extremely fearful people may be excused from battle.
  • The nation must offer peace before going to battle against another. When battling the seven Canaanite nations, there is to be no mercy.
  • When laying siege upon a city, it is forbidden to destroy its fruit trees.
  • If a dead crime victim is found outside a city, the leaders of the city are to perform a purification ceremony.
Educational Themes
  • Leaders must remember that ultimate authority is not theirs, but God’s.
  • It is important to try to break cycles of violence. 
  • More than leaders have power, they have great responsibilities.
Notable Quotes
  • The responsibility to maintain societal health – ובערת הרע מישראל
  • Bribery blinds – כי השוחד יעור עיני חכמים ויסלף דברי צדיקים
  • The requirement to listen to leaders – לא תסור מן הדבר אשר יגידו לך ימין ושמאל
  • The obligation to be straightforward in our relationship with God – תמים תהיה עם ה’ אלקיך

DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION QUESTIONS

Question #1: Parashat Shoftim teaches us about different types of leadership. Although very few countries have kings today, it was the most common form of rulership in much of the world for centuries. Kings would have absolute power, but the Torah demands a different kind of king. Among other rules, a king was not allowed to accumulate too much gold and silver or too many horses. Why is this an important rule? Can it ever be a bad thing to have too much money? The king is also commanded not to be arrogant and think he is better than others. What is the purpose of this rule? Have you ever known of someone who is in a position of authority and feels they are “better than anyone else”?

Look inside the text (Devarim 17:15-20),

שׂוֹם תָּשִׂים עָלֶיךָ מֶלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר ה’ אֱלֹהֶיךָ בּוֹ מִקֶּרֶב אַחֶיךָ תָּשִׂים עָלֶיךָ מֶלֶךְ לֹא תוּכַל לָתֵת עָלֶיךָ אִישׁ נָכְרִי אֲשֶׁר לֹא אָחִיךָ הוּא – You should be free to set a king over yourself, one chosen by God. Be sure to set as king over yourself one of your own people; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your relative.

רַק לֹא יַרְבֶּה לּוֹ סוּסִים וְלֹא יָשִׁיב אֶת הָעָם מִצְרַיְמָה לְמַעַן הַרְבּוֹת סוּס וה’ אָמַר לָכֶם לֹא תֹסִפוּן לָשׁוּב בַּדֶּרֶךְ הַזֶּה עוֹד – Also, he should not keep many horses or send people back to Egypt to add to his horses, since God has warned you, “You must not go back that way again.”

וְלֹא יַרְבֶּה לּוֹ נָשִׁים וְלֹא יָסוּר לְבָבוֹ וְכֶסֶף וְזָהָב לֹא יַרְבֶּה לּוֹ מְאֹד – And he should not have many wives, so that his heart does not go astray; nor should he have too much silver and gold.

וְהָיָה כְשִׁבְתּוֹ עַל כִּסֵּא מַמְלַכְתּוֹ וְכָתַב לוֹ אֶת מִשְׁנֵה הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת עַל סֵפֶר מִלִּפְנֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים הַלְוִיִּם – When he is seated on his royal throne, he shall have a copy of this Teaching written for him on a scroll by the Levites and kohanim (priests).

וְהָיְתָה עִמּוֹ וְקָרָא בוֹ כָּל יְמֵי חַיָּיו לְמַעַן יִלְמַד לְיִרְאָה אֶת ה’ אֱלֹהָיו לִשְׁמֹר אֶת כָּל דִּבְרֵי הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת וְאֶת הַחֻקִּים הָאֵלֶּה לַעֲשׂתָם – Let it remain with him and let him read in it all his life, so that he may learn to fear God, to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching as well as these laws.

לְבִלְתִּי רוּם לְבָבוֹ מֵאֶחָיו וּלְבִלְתִּי סוּר מִן הַמִּצְוָה יָמִין וּשְׂמֹאול לְמַעַן יַאֲרִיךְ יָמִים עַל מַמְלַכְתּוֹ הוּא וּבָנָיו בְּקֶרֶב יִשְׂרָאֵל – So, he will not act in an arrogant way toward his fellows or deviate from the Instruction to the right or to the left, to the end that he and his descendants may reign long in the midst of Israel.

Question #2: In this week’s parasha, we read about the laws of a judge and leader. How can money, and bribery make even a wise person blind? Can you think of an example? 

Look inside the text (Devarim 16:19),

לֹא תַטֶּה מִשְׁפָּט לֹא תַכִּיר פָּנִים וְלֹא תִקַּח שֹׁחַד כִּי הַשֹּׁחַד יְעַוֵּר עֵינֵי חֲכָמִים וִיסַלֵּף דִּבְרֵי צַדִּיקִם – You should not judge unfairly: you should show no partiality; you shall not take bribes, for bribes blind the eyes of the discerning and upset the plea of the just.

Question #3: The Torah mandates the death penalty for a number of different kinds of crimes, especially those which threaten to undermine the very fabric of society. Rabbinic interpretation and legislation limited the death penalty so much that it is nearly impossible to ever carry out. Can you imagine a case in which there should be a death penalty? For what kinds of crimes would it apply? Are there alternatives? What is its purpose? What is the purpose of any form of punishment?

Question #4: We are commanded to pursue justice. Does justice mean that everyone gets the same treatment? Is it reasonable to expect the same behavior from a fifteen-year-old and a fifty-year-old? Is justice served when a wealthy businessperson who shoplifts a candy bar is treated the same as a hungry homeless person who shoplifts the same candy bar? Think about two people who drove through a red light – one was driving his wife to the hospital while she is in labor and the other didn’t want to miss me opening scene of a movie. How do we decide what is just?