Daily Rambam (1) Sanhedrin Chapter 26: The prohibition against cursing a judge or any other Jew (Tuesday 19th Kisleiv)

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Chapter 26: The prohibition against cursing a judge or any other Jew

Halacha 1: The prohibition against cursing a Jew

  • A Judge, King, and Nassi: Whoever curses a judge of Israel, or the leader of the Sanhedrin, or a king, transgresses a negative command.
  • A regular Jew: Furthermore, even one who curses a regular Jew transgresses a negative command.
  • The prohibition applies even if the person did not hear and was not offended by the curse.
  • A deaf-mute: One who curses a deaf-mute receives lashes.
  • A child: One who curses a child who becomes embarrassed receives lashes.

Halacha 2:

  • The dead: One who curses a dead person is exempt.
  • A woman: One who curses a woman is liable.
  • Two negative commands by judges: Whoever curses a judge of Israel transgresses two negative commands and is liable for double lashes.
  • Three negative commands by a Nassi: Whoever curses a leader of the Sanhedrin, or a king, transgresses three negative commands, and is liable for double lashes.
  • The son of a leader who curses his father: A son who curses his father who is a Nassi, transgresses four negative commands.

Halacha 3: Cursing oneself, and liability only when using G-d’s name

  • A person who curses himself: Even one who curses himself is held liable for lashes.
  • Cursing using one of G-d’s names: No matter whom one curses, one is only liable for lashes if one cursed the individual using one of the names of G-d, whether a nickname or a real name.
  • Cursing using one of G-d’s names in a foreign language: One who cursed a person using G-d’s name in a foreign language, is nonetheless held liable.

Halacha 4: The need for witnesses and prior warning to be liable

  • One is only held liable if he cursed in in the presence of witnesses who warned him beforehand.
  • Cursed without warning: If there was no prior warning, then he is not liable for lashes.
  • Cursed without mentioning G-d: If he cursed without mentioning one of G-d’s names, neither a nickname or real name, such as if he simply said “cursed be so-and-so,” then he is not liable for lashes.

Halacha 5: One who shames a Torah scholar or ignoramus

  • A Torah scholar: One who curses or shames a Torah scholar, even if he is not held liable for lashes, is ostracized, and can be given rabbinical lashes by the court.
  • An ignoramus: One who shames an ignoramus is to be punished by the court in accordance to that which they see fit.

Halacha 6: Forgiving one’s disrespect and curse

  • A judge and Nassi can forgive their respect, such as to forgo justified excommunications, although they do not have the right to forgive their curse.
  • The same applies with anyone else, that lashes are given to one who cursed someone even if the person who was cursed already for gave them.

Halacha 7: Secular courts

  • It is forbidden to go to a secular court even if they judge the same way as Jewish courts.
  • Whoever goes to a Court of Gentiles for judgment is considered to have blasphemed the Torah of Moses.
  • If he refuses to show up or pay: If one is unable to get a judgment through a Jewish court of law due to them not having any power to enforce the liable side, and due to that the liable side will refuse to listen to the verdict, then he is to first summon the person to a Jewish court, and if he refuses to come, he may then get permission from the Jewish court to bring him to a secular court.

About The Author

Rabbi Yaakov Goldstein is a 6th generation descendent of the famous Chief Rabbi of Izhmir, Rav Yehoshua Avraham Krispin, who authored a number of Sefarim, and was a colleague of Rav Chaim Falagi, and father in-law of the Pesach Hadvir. He currently lives with his wife Shayna, and twelve children K”H, in Tzfas, Israel. Rabbi Goldstein received Semicha from Rabbi Schneur Zalman Labkowski of the Tomchei Temimim headquarters in 2005 and served as a chaplain in the Lotar/Kalatz and K9 unit of the IDF from years 2005-2008. He is also a certified Shochet, and has performed Hashgacha work in slaughterhouses. Rabbi Goldstein is the director of Shulchanaruchharav.com, the world’s leading web-based Halacha database, and is the director of the Home Study Semicha Program, a self-study web-based Semicha program. He is a prolific author of over 50 Sefarim studied by a wide range of readers throughout the world, which is used regularly in Semicha programs around the globe. He is a world renowned Posek, answering questions to a web-based market, and serves as a local Posek, Rav, and Lecturer, in the Tzemach Tzedek community Shul in Tzefas, Israel. His many classes can be heard both from his website, Vimeo and YouTube channel. Students can join live to classes given in the Tzemach Tzedek Shul, through the “בית חבד צפת Chabad Tsfat” YouTube channel.