Haftorah Yom Kippur Isaiah 57:14-58:14 Commentaries by Me & Folks Much Wiser

Haftorah Yom Kippur
Isaiah 57:14-58:14
Commentary
First, let’s read the text…
Yeshayahu (Isaiah) Chapter 57

14And he shall say, "Pave, pave, clear the way; remove the obstacles from the way of My people."

15For so said the High and Exalted One, Who dwells to eternity, and His name is Holy, "With the lofty and the holy ones I dwell, and with the crushed and humble in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the crushed.

16For I will not contend forever, neither will I be wroth to eternity, when a spirit from before Me humbles itself,
and souls which I have made.

17For the iniquity of his thievery I became wroth, and I smote him, I hid Myself and became wroth, for he went rebelliously
in the way of his heart.

18I saw his ways and I will heal him, and I will lead him and requite with consolations him and his mourners.

19I create the speech of the lips; peace, peace to the far and to the near," says the Lord, "and I will heal him."
The sages agree that this is referring to those far is referring to both Israelites who have turned away from the Presence of G-d, as well as those who are not if Israel.

20But the wicked are like the turbulent sea, for it cannot rest, and its waters cast up mud and dirt.

21"There is no peace," says my God, "for the wicked."

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) Chapter 58

1Call with a full throat, do not spare, like a shofar raise your voice, and relate to My people their transgression, and to the house of Jacob their sins.

2Yet they seek Me daily, and they wish to know My ways, like a nation that performed righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of its God: they ask Me ordinances of righteousness;
they desire nearness to God.

3"Why have we fasted, and You did not see; we have afflicted our soul, and You do not know?" Behold, on the day of your fast you pursue business, and from all your debtors, you exact payment.

4Behold, for quarrel and strife you fast, and to strike with a fist of wickedness. Do not fast like this day,
to make your voice heard on high.

5Will such be the fast I will choose, a day of man's afflicting his soul? Is it to bend his head like a fishhook and spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast
and an acceptable day to the Lord?

6Is this not the fast I will choose? To undo the fetters of wickedness, to untie the bands of perverseness, and to let out the oppressed free, and all perverseness you shall eliminate.

7Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and moaning poor you shall bring home; when you see a naked one, you shall clothe him, and from your flesh you shall not hide.

8Then your light shall break forth as the dawn, and your healing shall quickly sprout, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall gather you in.
Remember that this is the Haftorah read on the Shabbat of Yom Kippur. This year, Yom Kippur falls on Shabbat. So those who are reading it and those who are hearing it are all in the midst of a fast. Faithful Israelites will taste no food, will drink no water, neither will the bath, perfume their body or have intimate relationships.
And yet, G-d is instructing us that He is not at all pleased with these efforts.

9Then you shall call and the Lord shall answer, you shall cry and He shall say, "Here I am," if you remove perverseness from your midst, putting forth the finger and speaking wickedness.

10And you draw out your soul to the hungry, and an afflicted soul you sate, then your light shall shine in the darkness, and your darkness shall be like noon.

11And the Lord shall always lead you, and He shall satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; and you shall be like a well-watered garden and like a spring of water whose water does not fail.

12And those coming from you shall build ancient ruins, foundations of generations you shall erect, and you shall be called the repairer of the breaches, restorer of the paths, to dwell in.

13If you restrain your foot because of the Sabbath, from performing your affairs on My holy day, and you call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord honored, and you honor it by not doing your wonted ways, by not pursuing your affairs and speaking words.

14Then, you shall delight with the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the high places of the land, and I will give you to eat the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

This promise it for all Israel, those who are faithful & those who are not. And it is also for the strangers with whom we worship.

Now, let’s enjoy the teachings of the Conservative Jewish Movement from www.MyJewishLearning.com

It is noteworthy that the ancient rabbis chose this particular section of the book of Isaiah for Yom Kippur morning. On the most important fast day of the Jewish year, the haftarah carries the message the God does not desire fasting. Isaiah’s lesson is that fasting alone is not enough, unless there is a moral and ethical foundation to the ritual behavior. For Jews who use the Reform mahzor, the haftarah reading begins with Isaiah, Chapter 58.

Well, that was short & sweet. Now let’s check in with www.Sefaria.org:

Isaiah 57:14 [Adonai] say: The speaker is unspecified. The assumption that God is the speaker (R. Joseph Kara, R. Eliezer of Beaugency) joins this verse to verse 15 Such a reading reinforce the literary coherence of the haftarah, which begins at verse 14. A Masoretic tradition puts a setumah or minor paragraph break after verse 14 a sign that connects this verse to the preceding one and assumes that the speaker is the one who "trusts in god in verse 13 (Kimchi) Alternatively , it is the prophet who speaks God's word (Rashi).

Build up, Build up: Doubling of words is a stylistic hallmark of Isaiah 40-66. Compare to Isa. 40:1; 51:9, 12 17; 52:1; 57:19 This feature serves to reinforce the speech (see Kimhi on Isa. 40:1)

15. He who high aloft/Forever dwells: Hebrew ram ve-nisa shokhen 'ad .. a depiction divine transcendence that is joined to a statement of immanence. These are two poles of Biblical theology

Yet with the contrite and lowly of spirit: Despite God exalted status, Adonai is preset to the lowly as well (Kimhi; R. Jospeh Kaspi) Elsewhere this theology is expressed in liturgy; "Adonai is close to the brokenhearted; those crushed in spirit God delivers." (Ps. 34:19) Later rabbinic teachings repeatedly celebrated this combination of divine attributes (B. Sotah 5a Tanhuma Va-yera' 2; Yalkut Shimoni 1:856) Medieval Jewish moral literature considers contrition and lowly spirit to exemplify the ideal of humility and frequently invokes this passage.

17. their That is of Israel, "My People" (V.14) (Transl.)

19. It shall be well, /Well with the far and the near: God's blessing of shalom ins extended to all those who merit divine healing and comfort (V. 18) An old tradition interpreted "the far" as the righteous who observes the Torah from "of old," and "the near" as those who repent and now turn to Torah (Targum Jonathan; and later R. Isaiah di Trani) R. Abbahu used this passage to exalt the newly penitent over the righteous (B. Berakhot 34 b) but Rashi stressed that "both are equal" as the formulation suggests.

20. the wicked are like the troubled sea: The image is one of agitation, violently buffeted to and from (Ibn Bil'am) the inner turbulence gives them no rest and keeps them far from God.

Isaiah 58:3-9 The instruction is dominated by patterns of questions and answer. It begins with the query of the people, "Why (lamah) when we fasted, did You not see?" and the divine response, "Because (Hen) you fast in strife" (vv 3-4). There then follows a rhetorical question, "Is such (hakhazeh) the fast I desire? and the rhythmic answer that echoes it, "No , (surely) this (halo'zeh) is the fast I desire:... It is (halo') to share your bread with the hungry" (vv5-7).

13-14 These verses are an appendix to the rebuke in verses 1-13. They are linked to it by the key terms hafetz (vv. 2-3, 13) and derekh (vv 2, 13),

13. go not your ways/ Nor look to your affairs: Hebrew me'asot derakhekha and mi-metzo' heftzekha, These are technical expression having to do with business affairs. Their exact Akkadian cognates are both used in mercantile contexts.

14. For the Mouth of Adonai has spoken: This is a technical formula; Hebrew ki pi YHVH dibber. It gives authority to the prophet's words and is used to cite and reapply an earlier prophecy or instruction. In the present case, the divine promise "I will set you astride (ve-hirkavtikah) the heights of the earth (al bamotei 'aretz) , and let you enjoy (Va-ha'akhlatikah) the heritage (nahalta) of your father Jacob" evokes Moses' song in Deut. 32:9 and 13. There, with precisely similar language, the people are told that Jacob is Adonai's "allotment (nahalato)" and that God sustained him (va-yo'khal) and "set him atop the highlands (yarkivehu 'al bamotei 'aretz) That account of divine care is now transformed into a prophecy of future beneficence a new settlement in the land, made conditional upon Shabbat observance. For another use of this formula with a reapplied prophecy, see the citation of Num. 24:18-19 in Obadiah 1:18 in (in the haftarah for Va-yishlach for Sephardim).

The haftarah is cited as the prophetic reading for Yom Kippur morning in the Talmud (B. Megillah 31a) Rashi adds that this is because it deals with repentance, emphasizing the phrase "No, this is the fast I desire" (Isa. 58:6), which introduces a series of instructions for a reformed religious life. According to an ancient tradition, the various phrases of Isa. 58:13 were reinterpreted in terms of various events in the sacral calendar. The words li-kdosh YHWH mekhubad, "Adonai's holy day (you call ) 'honored"", are applied there to Yom Kippur (Leviticus Rabbah 34:16) One may also observe that the language of fasting and self-affliction in Isa. 58:3-5), especially the phrase "we starve our bodies ("iniynu nafsheinu)" echoes the terminology of the Torah reading for the morning of Yom Kippur. Specifically, one of the injunctions of that day is you shall practice self-denial (ve'iniytem 'et nafshoteikhem) " (Lev. 16:31).

it is possible that the prophet himself had this Pentateuchal source in mind, even as he reinterprets it. Whatever the case, the juxtaposition of these two reading in the synagogue service invites the listener to reflect on the relationship between ritual acts and their spiritual purpose. The moral challenge that this haftarah offers is at the center of Jewish piety.

No surprise of the depth of this commentary from the world’s foremost Jewish library.
No, let’s check in with United Torah Judaism:

Build up, Build up: Doubling of words is a stylistic hallmark of Isaiah 40-66. Compare to Isa. 40:1; 51:9, 12 17; 52:1; 57:19 This feature serves to reinforce the speech (see Kimhi on Isa. 40:1)

15. He who high aloft/Forever dwells: Hebrew ram ve-nisa shokhen 'ad .. a depiction divine transcendence that is joined to a statement of immanence. These are two poles of Biblical theology

17. their That is of Israel, "My People" (V.14) (Transl.)

20. the wicked are like the troubled sea: The image is one of agitation, violently buffeted to and from (Ibn Bil'am) the inner turbulence gives them no rest and keeps them far from God.

13-14 These verses are an appendix to the rebuke in verses 1-13. They are linked to it by the key terms hafetz (vv. 2-3, 13) and derekh (vv 2, 13),

Here are some rich commentaries from their footnotes:

4 Note the juxtaposition of God as “Lofty” and “dwell[ing] in the high and holy place” but also being “with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit.” Similarly, in 58:7 the people are exhorted to “bring the lowly poor into thy house” (translated by JPS as “bring the poor cast out to thy house). 5 Metzudat David explains “עליהם לרחם לי ראוי ולכן עשיתי אני הלא כולם והנשמות Did I not created all the souls; therefore it is fitting for me to have mercy upon them.” The Hertz humash comments: “The verse explains why God is near to the contrite in spirit. Divine anger lasts only for a time, until chastisement had produced the desired purification and humility of spirit. Long continuance of His wrath and judgment would have utterly destroyed the souls He had created.” 6 According to the Hertz humash, the “near” is a reference to those who had returned to Jerusalem from exile while the “far off” refers to those who remained in exile. In the Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 34b, however, the terms “far off” and “near” are taken to compare one who repents versus one who has always been righteous. Rabbi Abahu cites this verse as the basis for saying that “עומדין אינם גמורים צדיקים - עומדין תשובה שבעלי מקום where those who repent stand, the fully righteous (i.e. those who were always righteous) cannot stand,” since this verse mentions those that are “far off” before those who are “near.” Rabbi Yohanan takes the opposite view, arguing that the “far off” in the verse are those that have been distant from sin. Commenting on this verse, Rashi takes a middle ground, writing, “ מנעוריו ועבודתי בתורתי והורגל שנתיישן מי שוין שניהם עתה שנתקרב ומי the two are equal, one who is long practiced in My Torah and my service from his youth and one who has drawn close now.” 7 Rashi notes that on the heels of informing us that there is peace both for the repentant as well as those who have always been righteous (see footnote 6 above), the prophet tells us there is no peace for the wicked. 8 Here, God is addressing the prophet, as noted by Metzudat David. Similarly, in the haftarah of Shabbat Nahamu, God calls on the prophets to comfort the people from the exile destruction of Jerusalem (see Isaiah 40:1 and Metzudat David thereon). 9 JPS notes that the phrase “afflicted our soul” is particularly evocative of Leviticus 16:31, which is part of the Torah reading on Yom Kippur morning and says regarding Yom Kippur “םֶׁיכ ֵתֹש ְפ ַנ ת ֶׁא ם ֶׁיתִּנּ ִּעְו and you shall afflict your souls.”

10 JPS notes the “jarring connection” between “וּומּצ ָת ה ָצ ַומּ יב ִּר ְל in strife and contention (matsa) " you fast (tatsumu) in 58:4. It strikes me that a similar connection could be made in the phrase “ ץ ֶׁפ ֵח וּא ְצ ְמ ִּת םֶׁכ ְמֹצ וםֹי ְב on the day of your fast (tsomkhem) you seek out (timts’u) your business.” Also note the language “you fast in strife (לריב lariv)” which seems to call to mind “.you with) ariv (strive always not will) God (I כִּי לֹא לְ עֹולָ ם אָ רִּ יב” 57:16 verse 11 Better “bring the lowly poor into thy house.” See footnote 4 above. 12 The Hertz humash explains, “i.e. shall encourage and protect you. This is a figurative use of the word. In war the rearward would collect the stragglers and provide protection against surprise attack.” 13 In the Babylonian Talmud Bava Batra 9b Rabbi Yitzchack refers to this verse and the following verses as proof for the blessings that come from speaking kindly (בדברים המפייסו (] [when providing for the poor (לעני פרוטה הנותן(. C.f. Rashi and Metzudat David on “draw[ing] out thy soul to the hungry.” Thus, the lesson is that tending to the needs of the poor involves tending both to the person’s physical and psychological wellbeing. 14 The expectations of Shabbat are the same as the expectations of a fast – setting aside personal desires and avoiding wanton ways.
15 JPS notes that “for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it” is a technical formula that “gives authority to the prophet’s word and is used to cite and reapply an earlier prophecy or instruction.” JPS reads this verse as reflecting Moses’ song
at Deuteronomy 32:9 and 32:13.
JPS writes that the “account of divine care” in Deuteronomy “is now transformed into a prophecy of future beneficence – a new settlement in the land, made conditional upon Shabbat observance.”

Now, let’s wind down with Haftorah in a Nutshell from www.Chabad.org

Yom Kippur Morning:

Isaiah 57:14-58:14

Today's haftorah discusses the concepts of repentance and fasting, the theme du jour of Yom Kippur.

The prophecy begins with the words "Pave, pave, clear the way; remove the obstacles from the way of My people." A reference to the Yetzer Hara ("evil inclination") which must be removed to pave the way for sincere repentance. G‑d assures that He will not be forever angry at those who repent, and that instead He will heal them and lead them. The wicked, on the other hand, are compared to a turbulent sea: "there is no peace for the wicked."

G‑d exhorts the prophet Isaiah to admonish the people regarding their fasting ways which G‑d finds reprehensible — a message which resonated to this very day:

"Daily they pretend to seek Me, desiring knowledge of My ways . . . 'Why have we fasted and You did not see?' they ask. 'We have afflicted our soul and You do not know?' Behold, on the day of your fast you pursue your affairs, and from all your debtors you forcibly exact payment. Behold, for quarrel and strife you fast, and to strike with a fist of wickedness. You do not fast in keeping with the spirit of the day, to make your voice heard on high. Is this a fast that I will choose? . . . Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush and spread out sackcloth and ashes beneath him?"

Instead, Isaiah teaches the Jews the proper way to fast:

"Loosen the fetters of wickedness, untie the bands of perverseness, send the oppressed free, and break every oppressive yoke. Offer your bread to the hungry, bring the wandering poor into your home. When you see someone naked, clothe him . . . Then you shall call and the L-rd shall answer, you shall cry and He shall say, 'Here I am.' . . . G‑d will always guide you and satiate your soul with radiance; He will strengthen your bones and you will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never cease..."

The haftorah concludes with the promise of great rewards for those who honor and take delight in the Shabbat.

Yom Kippur Afternoon:

Book of Jonah; Micha 7:18-20.

The entire Book of Jonah is read today as it contains an important and timely message on prayer and repentance. Click here for more on the connection between the Book of Jonah and Yom Kippur.

G‑d ordered the prophet Jonah to travel to Nineveh and present its wicked inhabitants with an ultimatum: repent or be destroyed. Jonah refused to comply with this directive, and fled on a boat. Strong winds threatened to destroy the ship, lots were cast among the crew and passengers and the lottery indicated that Jonah was the cause of the turbulent storm. He admitted his guilt and requested to be cast into the sea. Jonah was thrown into the raging sea and the storm abated.

Jonah was swallowed by a big fish, and while in its belly, was moved to repent. The fish regurgitated Jonah.

Jonah proceeded to Nineveh and broadcasted G‑d's word that Nineveh would be overturned in forty days. The people fasted and repented and the divine decree was annulled. When Jonah expressed his displeasure with this result, G‑d taught him a lesson. As Jonah sat on the outskirts of the city, the kikayon plant which was providing him with shade was destroyed by a worm, and Jonah was very upset. "And G‑d said: You took pity on the kikayon, for which you did not toil nor did you make it grow, which one night came into being and the next night perished. Now should I not take pity on Nineveh, the great city, in which there are many more than one hundred twenty thousand people?..."

The haftorah concludes with a brief portion from the Book of Micah, which describes G‑d's kindness in forgiving the sins of His people. "He does not maintain His anger forever, for He is a lover of kindness. He will have mercy on us, He will grasp our iniquities and cast all our sins into the depths of the sea." Micah concludes with an enjoinder to G‑d to remember the pacts He made with the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

My desire is for you to share this teaching with everyone you know and that you continue to pray that Debra & I remain in strength with good health so that we may continue to serve HaShem through
our service to His people.

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And please share this teaching with those
whom you suspect could do with a little insight
into G-d’s Word & His Ways…

Although I claimed last week as my last teaching on the Haftorah readings each week, I was racing ahead of myself. After this one, there will be one more Haftorah lesson.

Then I will return to my weekly Torah Commentaries…

Marty Cohen