[Avodah] Truth, Absolute Truth, Prophecy

[Micha Berger]

On Fri, Dec 12, 2025 at 05:38:38AM -0500, Akiva Miller via Avodah wrote:
> This problem appears in many other situations as well. To me, the above is
> very similar to the practice of writing a will (in a halachically
> acceptable manner, of course) which has the practical effect of overriding
> Hashem's ideas about asset distribution. To state it more clearly: Hashem's
> ratzon is that daughters (and certainly outsiders) get nothing from the
> estate, and sons get equal portions, except the bechor who gets double. But
> what do we do? In RMGR's words, we "mix in" and "meddle" and find a way to
> do it differently.

I am not sure Hashem's ratzon is that all daughter and outsiders get
nothing, and that bechorim get double. After all, He Knows about the
gift thing, and didn't prohibit using this loophole.

The Ran in a derashah notes that Yitzchaq couldn't have been the one
giving the berakhah. It is absurd to think that someone can bless the
wrong thing by accident and it still sticks. Rather, the Ran holds,
Yaaqov had nevu'ah and thereby became the conduit for Hashem to give
a berakhah. Which fits Yaaqov's need to get delecacies to help his
mood -- simchah is a precondition for nevu'ah.

So in our case, Hashem Himself relayed the berakhah for Yitzchaq to
say. It couldn't have been circumventing Retzhon haBorei. Hashem could
have instead simply not given Yitchaq the nevu'ah.

> Another example: For over a thousand years, it was assur to write down
> Torah Sheb'al Peh...

Off topic, but I don't think that's necessarily true. "I atah resha'i"
sounds a lot weaker than "assur".

Second, I don't think it's deOraisa. For the simple reason that Nach was
written before it was canonized. Which means each sefer was written TSBP
first before becoming TSBK.

Third, the first half, "devarim shebikhsav i atah resha'i le'omeram
ba"p" doesn't apply to things like Pesuqei deZimra or Qeri'as Shema.
It is specifically about leining for the tzibbur. (And even that had
an exception -- the kohein gadol on YK.) Similarly, you could write
down personal notes. Rashi limits this to chiddushim (Shabbos 6b) but
the Netziv seems not to think this limitation is important. (Intro to
Ha'ameq Davar)

Last, "lekosevam" can't mean writing down, because the discussion on
Temurah 14b which has "devarim SBP i atah resha'i lekosvan" happened
before the text Rebbe standardized into the mishnah was "published"
for public distribution. (Rashi, Shevu'os 4a, "umishnah lo zaza".) When
it says "tana tana kamei deRav ..." the gemara means someonne who had
Rebbe's compilation memorized repeated before the gien amora.

The quote appears to mean: You aren't up to the task of freezing /
It is inappropiate for you to freeze the TSBP by pinning it down to a
specific formulation.

But not precisely that writing it down physically is assur.

> The answer I've often been given to these questions is "Eis Laasos Lashem",

WHich is what the gemara says. However, in every other usage this is about
a one-time event. Like Eliyahu beHar haCarmel using a bamah. It is hard
to call a ruling in play for the past 1900+ years a "hora'as *sha'ah*".
I think the expression is used more as a "ke'ilu", and the comparison is
only sufficient because we are talking about what Hashem said would be
a "bad idea", and not about ignoring an actual issur.

Still, I agree with:
> This is a very powerful dispensation, and could create havoc if misused.
> Which is why this power is given only to the top tier of our people, which
> would certainly include Rivka Imeinu.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 I long to accomplish a great and noble task,
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   but it is my chief duty to accomplish small
Author: Widen Your Tent      tasks as if they were great and noble.
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF                            - Helen Keller