We are all familiar with sinat chinam, baseless hatred, being the cause of the destruction. However, Rabbi Yochanan offers another explanation – one so surprising that we would never dare express it if not for it coming from one of our greatest Talmudic sages. His insight gave me great pause, shifted my worldview, and revealed not only the immeasurable power of Torah for good, but also its potential, if misused, to cause havoc and destruction.
Rabbi Yochanan states that Jerusalem was destroyed because people followed the laws and judgments of the Torah. The Talmud immediately challenges this, asking how this could be when Torah law is precisely what we are commanded to follow. The Talmud clarifies: “Jerusalem was destroyed because people followed the letter of the law and didn’t go beyond the letter of the law” (Bava Metzia 30b).
This mind-boggling paradigm shift reveals a profound truth – the laws and judgments of Torah, when divorced from their spirit, are not only incomplete but can become a source of destruction. This realization helped me understand the limits of absolute truth. While nothing exceeds the truth of Hashem’s Torah, truth alone is insufficient. It must incorporate other foundational Torah values to preserve its spirit and prevent it from tearing society apart.
‘This is the Torah’ – a source of life and death
I later encountered equally challenging Talmudic statements that shook me. The Torah itself can somehow be both a source of life and, Heaven forbid, of death. As bewildering as this seems, evidence for the Torah’s dual nature appears throughout rabbinic literature.
The first source comes from a verse we recite when taking out the Torah. Either before the Torah reading (Sephardim) or immediately after (Ashkenazim), we point at the scroll and chant: “וְזֹאת הַתּוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר שָׂם מֹשֶׁה לִפְנֵי בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, This is the Torah that Moshe placed before the Children of Israel” (Devarim 4:44).
The Hebrew word sam means not only “placed” but also refers to medicine or an elixir. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi expounds: “What is meant by, ‘And this is the Torah which Moshe placed before the Children of Israel’? If one merits, it becomes for him a sam hachayim – an elixir of life; if one does not merit, it becomes for him a sam hamavet – poison of death” (Yoma 72b).
Similarly, commenting on the Ha’azinu song, our sages convey this sobering idea: “Rava raised a contradiction – at the beginning of the verse it states: ‘My doctrine shall drop [ya’arof] as the rain,’ in a harsh manner, yet later it reads: ‘My speech shall distill as the dew,’ in a gentle tone. How can it be both? If one is a worthy Torah scholar, the Torah flows through him like gentle dew, but if not worthy, it breaks his neck [orfehu] like powerful rain. A baraita teaches that Rabbi Bena’a would say: Anyone engaging in Torah for its own sake finds it an elixir of life, as stated: ‘It is a tree of life to them who uphold it’ (Mishlei 3:18)… But anyone engaging in Torah not for its own sake finds it an elixir of death, as stated: ‘My doctrine shall drop [ya’arof] as the rain,’ where arifa signifies killing, as in: ‘And they shall break the heifer’s neck [arefu] there in the valley’ (Devarim 21:4)” (Ta’anit 7a).
One final analogy compares Torah to a powerful prince: “Rabbi Chananel bar Papa asked: What is meant by, ‘Hear, for I will speak princely things’ (Mishlei 8:6)? Why are Torah’s words compared to a prince? To teach that just as a prince holds power over life and death, so too do the words of Torah have potential for life or death” (Shabbat 88b).
The warning is clear – Torah resembles a drug, rain, and a powerful ruler. Each carries potential for tremendous good and terrible harm: a drug can be either life-giving medicine or deadly poison; rain can bring gentle, life-sustaining moisture or devastating floods; a ruler can protect or destroy.
How can it be that the holy and pure revealed word of G-d might become a source of such destruction?
Perhaps one of life’s greatest truisms is that whatever has the most potential for good also has the most potential for harm. When correctly understood and implemented, Torah creates immeasurable good, but in the wrong hands, it can yield horrific results. Torah resembles a nuclear weapon – in righteous hands, it deters and eliminates evil, but in the hands of the misguided, it can cause immeasurable destruction. Or a powerful ruler who can decide on the life or death of his subjects.
Beneath the letter of the law
How can we ensure that Torah serves only as a source of life?
In our first source, Rabbi Yochanan himself offers the solution – lifnim mishurat hadin. Often translated as “beyond the letter of the law” or “the spirit of the law,” it literally means “within” or “beneath” the letter of the law – the foundation of the law itself. Just as we see only the tip of an iceberg projecting above water while the majority lies beneath the surface, Torah has deep roots and foundations. Just as a building without solid underpinnings endangers the entire structure, law without foundational values can cause the collapse of the entire system.
What are these critical foundations? I will highlight three as described by our sages:
1. A Torah of life – “See, I set before you this day life and good, death and evil” (Devarim 30:15). The traditional interpretation of Rashi and Seforno understands this to mean that Torah itself represents life and good, while departing from Torah leads to death and evil. However, Rabbeinu Bachya ben Asher presents a strikingly different view that aligns with the Talmudic perspectives we’ve discussed. He suggests that the verse is actually teaching us that Torah itself can be either “life and good” or “death and evil,” depending on how it is understood and applied.
This means Torah, when properly understood, becomes the ultimate source of life and goodness. Yet when misunderstood or misapplied, this same Torah can tragically become a source of death and destruction. We see this contrast starkly illustrated in our world: Hamas and radical Islam have twisted G-d’s Word into a culture that glorifies death and destruction, while Judaism has consistently championed a culture of life.
This is why the Torah explicitly urges us to “choose life.” We must choose the path of Torah that brings life to the world rather than death and destruction. Authentic Torah must perpetuate life, foster hope in humanity’s future, and advance the principle of “live and let live” rather than “murder and die.”
2. Derech eretz precedes the Torah – According to our sages, the principle of derech eretz precedes Torah (Vayikra Rabbah 9:3) and forms one of its foundations. In his commentary on Pirkei Avot (2:2), Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch provides a comprehensive definition:
“Derech eretz includes everything that flows from the human being’s necessity to perfect his destiny and his shared life with others in society, through the medium and circumstances available to him on earth. The term is used in reference to earning a livelihood, establishing civic order, and referring also to the paths of morality with manners and decency that correct social life requires, and related to the ongoing universal and civil development of humanity.”
Derech eretz thus embodies the dual ethics of civility and civic virtue. Civility means treating everyone with consideration, decency, and respect. Civic virtue means striving to act for the good of society and fellow citizens. It implies living in a manner beneficial not only to ourselves but focused on the greater good.
If Torah makes us selfish and self-centered – unconcerned for others’ welfare and unwilling to contribute positively to society or treat others respectfully – then it becomes destructive, severed from its foundations.
3. To be good and upright – “You must do that which is right and good in the sight of Hashem…” (Devarim 6:18).
The Ramban explains that this represents the essence of the entire Torah. It is possible, he argues, to behave in morally questionable ways in business and political dealings – overtly bullying others or subtly manipulating them, never agreeing to any compromise in dispute or legal matter – even when doing so would be inequitable – and never seeking peaceful and harmonious solutions. One could always stand on “principles” and never see the other person – being obstinate and divisive instead of generous and peace-loving, while simultaneously arguing that the Torah doesn’t explicitly forbid any of this. On the contrary, one could argue that the law and halacha support such behavior, thereby justifying these means to achieve desired ends. One could be divisive, litigious and self-righteous, always perpetuating machloket and argument, never seeking peace, compromise, or mutually beneficial solutions.
Therefore, the Torah must establish that the principle governing civil laws is to be upright and good. In defending individual rights and personal truths, we can destroy the fabric of society and damage relationships. A good person seeks to treat others well, find harmonious solutions, forgive others’ mistakes, and treat others as we wish to be treated – with kindness and generosity of spirit.
Hillel and Shammai
May our Torah be like that of Hillel and Shammai who, despite endless arguments, always maintained good relations, even arranging marriages between their children (Yevamot 14b). Like Hillel, who always quoted Shammai’s opposing view before his own, showing deep respect for differing perspectives – which is why we generally follow Beit Hillel’s rulings (Eruvin 13b).
They taught us that arguments must always be for Heaven’s sake – pursuing both emet (truth) and shalom (peace), not dividing the Jewish world into “us” and “them.” Righteousness must not become self-righteousness where people convince themselves they are absolutely right and everyone else absolutely wrong. Authentic Torah living means recognizing that Hashem seems less concerned with who is right and more concerned that His children get along with each other.
Like any parent would.
Rabbi Doron Perez is the Executive Chairman of World Mizrachi.