Cursing (ארר)

Sources

§ The Gemara proceeds to define a related term. It is taught with regard to the term arur: There is an element of ostracism within it, there is an element of curse within it, and there is an element of oath within it. The Gemara elaborates: There is an element of ostracism within it, as it is written in the song of Deborah: “Curse [oru] Meroz, said the angel of God; cursed with a curse [oru aror] are its inhabitants” (Judges 5:23)…

Shevuot 36a:3-6

[The same laws apply whether] one took an oath - or another person administered an oath to him - with God's ineffable name - or with one of the descriptive terms used to refer to Him, e.g., he took an oath "on He whose name is Gracious," "on He whose name is Merciful," or "on He whose name is Patient," regardless of the language he used. The statement is considered an oath in the full sense of the term.
Similarly, a statement with the terms eleh or erur is considered as an oath, provided one mentions one of God's names or one of the terms used to describe Him…

Mishneh Torah, Oaths 2:2

CURSE (arah) FOR ME. R. Abba said: ‘Balak used two expressions to Balaam, arah (curse) and kaboh (imprecate). What is the difference? The word arah means cursing by the use of herbs and snakes’ heads. When he saw that Balaam had more power in his mouth, he said kaboh.

Zohar, Balak 19:254

CURSE ME. The word arah (curse) is an imperative. It comes from a double root with one of the double letters missing. The same is true of with the word kavah (curse) in curse me (v. 18). The word kov (curse) is vocalized according to the paradigm of shemor (keep). Kavah in kavah li (curse me) minus the heh follows the paradigm of shechav (lie), rekhav (ride), and tzelach (rested on).

Ibn Ezra on Numbers 22:6:1

ארור אפם, they shall not succeed to take revenge in their anger and to wreak destruction when it is vented on the innocent. Seeing that they abused their brotherliness in the past, I do not wish to be associated with their method of operation. Their close association is potentially dangerous.

Rashbam on Genesis 49:7:1

Now let us explain the difference between the terms קבה, and ארה respectively, though both are forms of curses. The word קבה means to possess the power to curse with one's mouth at the moment G–d is angry. The word ארה has two meanings. One meaning is also a form of curse, the other is derived from כמלא אורה וסלו, "like the space required by the collector (of figs) to fill his basket" (Mishnah Shvi-it 1,2). In other words, it means "collection." The Zohar (Sullam edition Balak, page 92) explains that this expression alludes to Balak asking Bileam to gather different herbs used…

Shenei Luchot HaBerit, Torah Shebikhtav, Balak, Torah Ohr 41-42

A RULER OF THY PEOPLE. In secret or in public. The Geonim differentiated between revile and curse. The ruler spoken of in our verse is the king noted in Deuteronomy. When we examined all the verses that come one after the other until And in all things that I have said unto you take ye heed (Ex. 23:13), we discovered that most of them deal with the poor. They appear to be connected to the section If thou lend money…to the poor (v. 24). Yefet says the reason Scripture mentions Thou shalt not revile God is that if the lender should violate the law and not return the pledge…

Ibn Ezra on Exodus 22:27:2

ארור אתה מכל. The serpent was condemned henceforth to attain its needs as well as its desires only through experiencing more pain and greater lack of pleasure than all the other creatures. Compare Kidushin 82 ראית חיה ועוף שהם בני אומנות והם מתפרנסים שלא בצער, “Did you ever see a beast or bird practicing a vocation, and yet they find their livelihood without pain?” [the scholar makes the point that our parnassah lies in the hands of G’d and is not due to our professional level. Ed.] G’d’s curse is explained in detail by the words על גחונך תלך, “you will have to crawl on your belly…

Sforno on Genesis 3:14:1

CURSED ART THOU FROM THE GROUND — more than it has already been cursed on account of its sin. In this, too, it has further sinned in that it hath opened its mouth to take thy brother’s blood. Therefore, I impose upon it an additional curse: it shall not continue to give unto thee her strength. Thus the words of Rashi.
But this is not correct since here He did not curse the ground because of him as He did in the case of his father, rather He said that he be cursed through the ground…

Ramban on Genesis 4:11:1

Therefore, “the men of his city shall stone him with stones”: these are the other peoples who hurled stones at them and cast down their walls and towers and did not help them at all. When Moses heard this, he wrote this section.

Zohar, Balak 17:242

“He gave to Moses, as He concluded speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of Testimony, stone tablets, written with the finger of God” (Exodus 31:18).
“He gave to Moses, as He concluded.” Rabbi Tanḥuma bar Abba began in this way: “With You, Lord, is the righteousness, and with us the shame” (Daniel 9:7). What is the reason that this is so? Rabbi Neḥemya said: Even when we are performing acts of righteousness, we look at our actions and we experience shame. There is no time that we come with demands, other than when we are taking out our tithes…

Shemot Rabbah 41:1

Relatedראו גם

Curses (קבייה)

Disgracing (נאץ)

Sheetsדפי מקורות

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