Deborah's Teaching That Charity and Justice Redeem Israel

"Then sang Deborah" (Judges 5:1). What did Deborah prophesy to Israel? Thus said Deborah to Israel: By what merit does the Holy One, blessed be He, take vengeance for Israel against the idolaters? By those who rise early and stay late to the synagogue and to the house of study, and answer Amen and bless the Holy One, blessed be He, every day continually. And concerning one who rises early and stays late to the synagogue and the house of study to complete a quorum of ten, it says, "He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle against me, for they were many who were with me" (Psalms 55:19). And likewise one who has a disciple of the wise in his neighborhood and knows of him that he reads for the sake of Heaven and studies for the sake of Heaven, and he feeds him and sustains him and supports him - he is found to uphold the disciple of the wise and his wife and his children and all who read and study with him; concerning him it says, "He has redeemed my soul in peace." And the sages taught: Whoever sustains one soul of Israel, Scripture credits him as though he sustained a whole world. And there is no remedy of life against the angel of death except the attribute of charity alone, as it is said, "For I was afraid of the anger and the wrath" (Deuteronomy 9:19), and it says, "A gift in secret subdues anger, and a bribe in the bosom strong wrath" (Proverbs 21:14). There was an incident with two families of priests who came before Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, who were dying before their time. Rabbi Yochanan said to them: Perhaps you are from the family of the sons of Eli, of whom it is written, "And all the increase of your house shall die as men" (1 Samuel 2:33). They said to him: Rabbi, what shall we do? He said to them: When a son of yours reaches his stage, see what his value is and give to charity according to his value, and there will come upon you what is written, "And charity delivers from death" (Proverbs 10:2). And they went and did so and saved themselves from death. And not this alone, but whoever does justice and charity and upholds it, it is as though he redeemed the Holy One, blessed be He, and Israel from the idolaters; and concerning him Scripture says, "He has redeemed my soul in peace." At that hour the Holy One, blessed be He, says: Who redeemed Me and My Presence and Israel from among the idolaters? One who does justice and charity. And if they did not do so, what is said of them? "And truth is lacking" (Isaiah 59:15). Our Father in heaven, may Your great name be blessed forever and ever, and may You have contentment from Israel Your servants - for You said, Who redeemed Me and My Presence and Israel from among the idolaters? Yet are You not the One who redeems and delivers all who come into the world and all the works of Your hands that You created, as it is said, "Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles" (Psalms 25:22), and it says, "O Israel, hope in the LORD, for with the LORD there is lovingkindness and with Him is abundant redemption, and He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities" (Psalms 130:7-8)? The Holy One, blessed be He, said to the house of David: Why do you sit still? If you seek the days of the son of David and you seek to redeem Israel, do justice and charity, as it is said, "O house of David, thus says the LORD: Execute justice in the morning, and deliver the robbed from the hand of the oppressor" (Jeremiah 21:12). Deborah said: Since the Torah is contentment above and contentment below, as it is said, "It is a tree of life to those who hold fast to it" (Proverbs 3:18), therefore "my heart is toward the lawgivers of Israel, who offered themselves willingly among the people; bless the LORD" (Judges 5:9). "Riders on white donkeys" (Judges 5:10) - "white" means nothing but cleanness, for they are clean from robbery. "You who sit on judgment" - these are people who set the matter on true judgment, for "judgment" means nothing but law, as it is said, "to turn aside the needy from judgment" (Isaiah 10:2). "And you who walk along the way, tell of it" - these are the Sanhedrin upon whom the world rests, who never speak idle talk, as it is said, "Hear, O kings; give ear, O rulers" (Judges 5:3). "Louder than the voice of the archers" - these are those who say of the impure "impure" and of the pure "pure," each thing in its place and its time: the laws of the Sabbath on the Sabbath, the laws of the festival on the festival, the laws of the festival-offering and the trespass-offerings and the laws of arrows in a person. "At the watering places" - "watering places" means nothing but drawing, as it is said, "And she drew for all his camels" (Genesis 24:20), and it says, "You shall draw water in joy" (Isaiah 12:3). Another interpretation: "at the watering places" - because they learn and draw words of Torah. "There they recount the righteous acts of the LORD, the righteous acts of His leadership in Israel" - a great kindness did the Holy One, blessed be He, do, that He scattered Israel among the idolaters.