Page 136 - Tzurba M'Rabanan Volume1

134 · Halachot of Sorcery, Magic, and Superstition Tzurba M’Rabanan

Despite the prohibition against divination, these types of activities are not always necessarily forbidden. In
fact, there are a few times in Tanach where righteous individuals apparently did employ signs and omens:

h Masechet Chullin 95b :הצ ןילוח תכסמ 7 .
Doesn’t Rav say that any divination that is not like the דבע רזעילאכ וניאש שחנ לכ :בר רמאהו
divination of Eliezer, the servant of Avraham, when he went !שחנ וניא לואש ןב ןתנויכו םהרבא
to seek a bride for Yitzchak (see Bereishit 24:14), or like the
divination of Yonatan, son of Shaul, who sought an omen as
to whether he and his arms bearer would defeat the Philistines
(see Shmuel I 14:8-12), is not divination?

r Rashi, ibid. םש | י"שר 8 .
Any divination that is not – [I.e., one does not] rely on it רזעילאכ שממ וילע ךמוס – וניאש שחנ לכ
completely; similar to Eliezer the servant of Avraham [who ואל םאו הב רבדא ינקשת םאש םהרבא דבע
said that] if she gives me to drink I will speak with her, but if .הב רבדא אל
she doesn’t, I will not speak with her.
ונילעו ולע ונילא ורמאי םא – לואש ןב ןתנויכו
Or like Yonatan ben Shaul – [Who said:] If they tell us to go )י:די ,א לאומש(
up [to them] we shall go up (Shmuel I 14:10).

According to Rashi’s understanding of the Gemara, it seems that both Eliezer and Yonatan employed
divination and relied on it entirely. Why, then, does this not violate the prohibition of menacheish?
Tosafot explain how these two individuals could have acted in such a manner in light of the prohibition.

r Tosafot, ibid. םש | תופסות 9 .
Like Eliezer the servant of Avraham – If one asks: How רזעילא רמאת םאו – םהרבא דבע רזעילאכ
could Eliezer divine [in this manner] according to the opinion ןירדהנס( תותימ העברא 'פב ד"מל שחינ ךאיה
in chapter “Arba Mitot” (Sanhedrin 56b) that everything that רהזומ חנ ןב ףשכמ תשרפב רומאה לכ ):ונ
was stated in the Torah regarding sorcery, is also commanded הל ןתנ אלש רבס אנת אוההד ל"יו וילע
to the gentiles? One can answer that this tanna held that he לע ףאו איה ימ תב ול הדיגהש דע םידימצה
[Eliezer] didn’t give her the bracelets until she told him םזנ שיאה חקיו )בכ:דכ תישארב( ביתכד בג
whose daughter she was. Even though it states that “the man
gave her a gold ring, etc.” (Bereishit 24:22); and [only] after ןיא תא ימ תב רמאיו ביתכ רדהו 'וגו בהז
does the verse state: “And he said: Who are you the daughter רפסשכ חכומ ןכו הרותב רחואמו םדקומ
of,” there is no order of chronology in the Torah. This is also .תא ימ תב רמואו התוא לאשאו ביתכד
proven [by the fact] that when he related the story, as it is רמול שיו שחינ ךאיה ת"או – לואש ןב ןתנויכו
written: “And I asked her, and said whose daughter are you…”
[and only then gave her the ring]. .הלוע היה ימנ יכה ואלבו ןכ רמא ורענ תא זרזלד
And like Yonatan the son of Shaul –If one asks, how could he
divine? One can answer that he did it to hasten his armor boy,
but without it he would have also ascended.

This volume is not to be distributed. Copies are for the personal use of purchaser only.