Questions tagged [reward-punishment]
The concept of reward and punishment in Judaism- theologically, halachically, and philosophically
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Does Rambam hold of eternal punishment?
In chapter 3 of Hilchos Teshuva, Rambam says
The following individuals do not have a portion in the world to come. Rather, their [souls] are cut off and they are judged for their great wickedness ...
4
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1answer
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Does Teshuva protect from punishment or not?
The Rambam says in Hilchos Teshuva, chapter 6:
There are other sins for which justice determines that retribution be
exacted in the world to come with no damages coming to the
transgressor in ...
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0answers
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What was the consequence of Yael's sin?
The gemarah (Horiyot 10b, Nazir 23b) states that Yael sinned for the sake of God in sleeping with Sisra. I would like to know what consequence, if any, there was for this sin. Was her husband ...
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1answer
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Why are some sins counted twice?
I am looking to understand the theology behind a negative commandment being repeated in the Torah in order to make whomever transgresses it punishable for 2 sins.
See for example Rashi on Vayikra 25:...
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2answers
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What are the “major” and “minor” commandments?
The Mishna says:
Be quick in performing a minor commandment as a major one. [Avot 4:2]
But we do not rank the commandments. The Mishna also says:
Be as scrupulous in observing a minor ...
3
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4answers
311 views
Egalitarian references in Chazal
I'm trying to find references in Chazal to the principle that people are judged/rewarded based on the choices they make, regardless of their specific role in society. For example, I believe I have ...
2
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3answers
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What is my status with God?
I am asking in a manner where “I” represents people like me, in the sense that the answer might apply to me but also more broadly to others.
By “status with God” Interpret as “what consequences may ...
3
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1answer
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How did Bilaam know that illicit relations was the way to trip up Klal Yisrael?
As recounted by Rashi to Numbers 25:1 and Sanhedrin 106a- after Bilaam's "cursing" of Klal Yisrael was unsuccessful, he advised Balak that the way to take down Klal Yisrael was to entice them with ...
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Why were Er and Onan punished if they were under 20?
As seen from this question, the Heavenly Court does not punish an individual (at least in this life) if he or she is under 20.
However, according to Seder Hadoros (Year 2217) Er and Onan were 7 or 8 ...
3
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0answers
35 views
Getting Back Mitzvot One Regretted
Can one get the reward for mitzvot he regretted back, if he does teshuva for regretting them, or regrets that he regretted doing them?
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1answer
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Is the punishment for loshan hara death or tzaraas?
What is worse loshan hara about a thing or about a person?
We see that Miriam said Lashan Hara about a person and got Tzoraas
We see the meraglim said Lashan Hara about trees and stones and received ...
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2answers
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Comprehensive list of punishments for all 365 negative commandments
Is there a comprehensive list of all the punishments for the 365 negative commandments?
The Rambam in Hilchos Sanhedrin reveals 243 (see below)--
what are the punishments for transgressing the ...
6
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2answers
173 views
Freewill and rewarding dogs
If animals don't have freewill, why are dogs rewarded for not having barked at Jewish people during the Exodus from Egypt? (Exodus 11 and Exodus 22)
4
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1answer
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Motivation for Miztvot
According to Bava Kamma 79b, the penalty difference between a ganav and a gazlan is that the robber does not disrespect Hashem -- he commits his crime in full view of anyone, man or God but the thief ...
3
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2answers
238 views
Does Hashem care about Halachah Lemaase?
Upfront: this is a metaphysical/theological question
In many (almost all?) areas of Jewish practice, there are a number of different and at times diametrically opposed opinions as to what the ...
3
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2answers
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'Alcoholic drinks' and 'reward' are both “שכר”
Alcoholic drinks (and drunkenness) and reward seem like rather disparate ideas! Is there a reason why they might imply one another and do any commentaries interchange between the two to bring some ...
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1answer
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Source of a quote about the value of mitzvot involving pain
This quote is attributed to the Yerushalmi:
One mitzvah involving pain is worth a hundred mitzvot that do not.
Do you have the exact reference? Is this the only place this thought is expressed?
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Does the hell exist? [duplicate]
Does the hell exist? As in the book of Isaiah, there is a reference to "fire" that is not "quenched".
Isaiah 66:24
"And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men that have ...
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1answer
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What if the wicked son didn’t know better?
We say at the Seder:
רָשָׁע מָה הוּא אוֹמֵר? מָה הָעֲבוֹדָה הַזּאֹת לָכֶם. לָכֶם – וְלֹא לוֹ. וּלְפִי שֶׁהוֹצִיא אֶת עַצְמוֹ מִן הַכְּלָל כָּפַר בְּעִקָּר. וְאַף אַתָּה הַקְהֵה אֶת שִׁנָּיו ...
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1answer
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Does God care about things that don't affect the Jews?
There is a trope in Judaism that God smites even the greatest Empires when they oppress the Jews.
Does God ever smite nations that are wicked to other non-Jews?
We do have the example of Sodom, but ...
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2answers
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Cursing Adam and Eve in addition to punishment?
When Adam was commanded not to eat from the tree of knowledge, G-d presented him with the punishment (Ber 2.17):
וּמֵעֵץ הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע לֹא תֹאכַל מִמֶּנּוּ כִּי בְּיוֹם אֲכָלְךָ מִמֶּנּוּ ...
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How can Kares be greater than execution by beis din (and also eternal according to R' Kapach)?
In this exposition of what kares means, the following view is quoted:
[...] R. Yosef Kafach (Mishneh Torah, Hilkhos Teshuvah ch. 8 n. 4) offers a different interpretation. He suggests that the ...
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2answers
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Is kares a greater punishment than capital punishment, or vice versa?
In many cases (e.g., no warning, no witnesses) a capital crime is not punished by a beis din, but instead the offender gets kares. Let's assume for the purposes of this question that kares includes ...
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2answers
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Which sins are beyond punishment?
Yishai said in a comment elsewhere on this forum :
It has been pointed out in Rishonim that some sins are so bad they
can't get a punishment - because the punishment creates forgiveness,
but ...
3
votes
2answers
115 views
Why are future generations still paying for the sin of the Golden Calf?
Parshas Ki Tisa recounts the episode of the golden calf, and the immediate punishment that was meted out for the sin. In addition to this, Rashi on Shemos 32:34 (quoting Sanhedrin 102a ) writes:
...
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1answer
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Is a sin only counted if it was committed three times or more?
According to the Rambam (Teshuvah 3,5):
"בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁשּׁוֹקְלִין עֲוֹנוֹת אָדָם עִם זְכֻיּוֹתָיו אֵין מְחַשְּׁבִין עָלָיו עָוֹן שֶׁחָטָא בּוֹ תְּחִלָּה וְלֹא שֵׁנִי אֶלָּא מִשְּׁלִישִׁי וְאֵילָךְ."...
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Does Hashem reward you for keeping negative mitzvot?
Does Hashem reward you for keeping negative mitzvot or only punishes for trangressions?
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0answers
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Does a Ben Noach, who keeps the seven mitzvot but has bad hashkafah, get punished by Hashem?
Does a Ben Noach, who keeps the seven mitzvot but has bad Hashkafah, get punished by Hashem?
For example, if the B'nei Noach says things that are kefira for a Jew like saying that the Oral Torah is ...
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2answers
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The purpose of punishment in the Afterlife
This follows my previous question "can-one's-merits-in-the-world-to-come-be-traded"
In my humble understanding, the general purpose of punishment is to make someone better, to make a person change, ...
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2answers
44 views
Can one's merits or one's part in the World To Come be traded?
Say, someone is very afraid of his sins and the future punishment in Afterdeath. However, he did a lot of Mitzvos also and he's promised a part in the WTC as all Jews are.
Can he trade in the ...
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1answer
92 views
Karet and No Share in ha'olam Haba
What is the difference between a person who died without doing teshuva on his sins on Karet, Eternal gehinnom and having no share in the world to come?
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0answers
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Why does the Torah not include jail as punishment? [duplicate]
The Torah does not include jail as punishment for transgressions. Death, flogging, fines, shunning, yes, but not jail. Do our sources comment on that? Where?
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1answer
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Why was Chizqia losing Olam Haba?
Talmud Berachot 10a tells the discussion between Yeshaya and Chizqia about children:
מת אתה בעולם הזה ולא תחיה לעולם הבא! אמר לו מאי כולי האי?! אמר לו משום דלא עסקת בפריה ורביה. אמר לו וכולי
Dead ...
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0answers
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Reward for saying Asher Yatzar
Is saying Asher Yatzar, the blessing after using the bathroom, something that one will get rewarded for? Will one get rewarded for each time he said Asher Yatzar?
Please cite sources.
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1answer
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Even though “ayn shliach l'dvar aveirah” does the person who sent him also get a punishment?
The Mishnah in Bava Kamma 59a tells us that if Reuven sent a חרש שוטה וקטן (a person who does not understand the repercussions of his actions or under Bar Mitzva) to do a destructive action e.g ...
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2answers
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Benefits of and punishments for Shabbat
I really wish to know with sources what are the benefits or rewards of observing Shabbat and what are the punishments for someone who desecrates it. Furthermore, what are the disadvantages of being a ...
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1answer
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What is the origin of “Olam Haba”?
I believe that the Talmud is the first place where the notion of Olam Haba - The world to come - is mentioned. This question explains why it is not mentioned in the Torah but doesn't quite explain how ...
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1answer
179 views
Why should we be punished for Adam's sin?
My kid asked:
I understand that Adam and Eve violated God's command by eating from the tree of knowledge and thus deserved punishment: as described in Genesis, Adam would have to work for his food ...
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1answer
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Are gentiles obligated to fear Hashem (or at least fear punishment)?
As Jews we are commanded to fear Hashem and fear punishment to help us avoid sinning.
See Chinuch 432 for example:
ונוהגת מצוה זו בכל מקום ובכל זמן ובכל מין האדם, וזאת אחת מן המצות התמידיות על ...
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1answer
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Is there any reward for the intent or attempt to do a mitzvah?
As per the title, does one earn any reward/s'char for the attempt (or even just the intent) to perform a mitzvah?
This evening, we all piled out of shul to say Kiddush Levana only to find that the ...
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2answers
100 views
Torah Study in English
Will one receive the reward of Learning Torah if they read the Tanach, Gemara, Shulchan Aruch, etc. in English if English is their mother tongue? Please cite sources.
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Judaism's view of pagans/polytheists [duplicate]
How does Judaism view pagans or polytheists? Will they be burnt in hell for eternity like what Christianity and Islam say?
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2answers
100 views
Reward for keeping Minhagim and Chumros
Over the years many Chumros and Minhagim have been created. For example, waiting 6 hours between meat and milk for Ashkenazim. Or not eating gebrochts on Pesach. So if it is a Minhag that cannot be ...
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1answer
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Implications of “According to Your fear is Your anger” (“כיראתך עברתך”)
It says in Tehillim 90 (a chapter attributed to Moshe Rabbeinu, if that affects anything):
יא: מִֽי־י֖וֹדֵעַ עֹ֥ז אַפֶּ֑ךָ וּ֜כְיִרְאָֽתְךָ֗ עֶבְרָתֶֽךָ: לִמְנ֣וֹת
יָ֖מֵינוּ כֵּ֥ן הוֹדַ֑ע ...
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1answer
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Giving your z'chus to someone else
B"H, I did - or almost did - a good deed. (It will be finalized bez"H in a mazeldiker shoh.) However, when I found out a few months ago that a good result from my actions was on the horizon, I decided ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Why does one receive reward for saying they will give tzedaka?
The Tosefta in Peah (4:17) states that if a person says they will give tzedaka and then gives it, they receive divine reward both for the "saying" and for the "giving." And in a case where the person ...
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0answers
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A man tells us he raped a woman
The Torah says the following about a man who rapes a woman (Deuteronomy 22:29).
וְ֠נָתַן הָאִ֨ישׁ הַשֹּׁכֵ֥ב עִמָּ֛הּ לַאֲבִ֥י הנער [הַֽנַּעֲרָ֖ה] חֲמִשִּׁ֣ים כָּ֑סֶף וְלֽוֹ־תִהְיֶ֣ה לְאִשָּׁ֗ה ...
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0answers
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Was Iyov rewarded for passing his first test?
In Iyov chapter 1 Satan proposes to God to test Iyov's fidelity to God by striking Iyov's possessions. God agrees and Iyov loses essentially everything. At the end of chapter 1 and again in chapter 2 ...
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Using אוהביו, יראיו, חסידיו in Chovas Halevavos referring to those who receive additional reward
ספר חובות הלבבות - שער הביטחון - פרק רביעי
Chovos Halevavos (Duties of the Heart) Shaar Habitachon (Gate of Trust) Chapter 4:
ועניני העולם הבא יחלקו לשני חלקים ... והשני שהוא מחסד הבורא יתעלה על ...
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2answers
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What is the punishment for someone who talks another person into committing suicide?
There's a famous case in the US of a young woman who basically pressures her online boyfriend to kill himself. The evidence was particularly damning against her and the case is clear that if she hadn'...
