Commentaire sur Horayot 3:8

לוי קודם לישראל – [see Tractate Gittin, Chapter 5, Mishnah 8]. As it is written (Deuteronomy 10:8): “At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi [to carry the Ark of he LORD’s Covenant, to stand in attendance upon the LORD…].”

Introduction The mishnah continues to provide rules of precedence.

ישראל קודם לממזר – this one (i.e., the Israelite) is of legitimate descent and that one (i.e., the Mamzer) is not of legitimate descent.

A priest takes precedence over a levite, a levite over an israelite, an israelite over a mamzer, a mamzer over a natin, a natin over a convert, and a convert over a freed slave. When is this so? When all these were in other respects equal. However, if the mamzer was a scholar and the high priest an ignoramus, the scholar mamzer takes precedence over the ignorant high priest. According to commentaries, this mishnah deals with precedence in any matter of honor or profit. The mishnah considers certain genealogical lines of Jews to be inherently more holy than others. A priest is holier than a levite and a levite is holier than an Israelite. A mamzer is someone who was born of an illicit sexual union of two Jews, therefore an israelite takes precedence over a mamzer. A natin is a descendent of the Gibeonites who converted during the time of Joshua (see above 1:4). Since a mamzer does not have any foreign descent, he is holier than a natin. A natin is holier than a current convert, because a natin was part of Israel from before his birth, whereas a convert has only just now converted. A convert is holier than a freed slave for a convert was never part of such a lowly occupation. Up until now the mishnah has stated what must be considered something similar to a genealogical caste system. Each person is born into a certain status, and these separate statuses are ranked. We might think that at least during a person’s lifetime, he could not move up or down in status. The last clause of the mishnah radically undercuts that ideology. While in theory a person’s “holiness” is attributed to birth, a person’s true holiness is attained through the study of Torah. A mamzer who studies Torah is higher than a high priest who does not, even though the latter has the highest pedigree of genealogical status. In practice, this will become the only criteria for “ranking” individuals, for no two individuals will be exactly the same in their Torah learning. This statement in essence is one of the supreme value statements for the entire Mishnah. The rabbinic social system was a meritocracy, where one merited one’s position based on commitment to Torah study, and not based on one’s filial connections. Congratulations! We have finished Horayoth and all of Seder Nezikin. As I have mentioned at the end of every tractate, it is a tradition at this point to thank God for helping us to finish learning the tractate and to commit ourselves to going back and relearning it, so that we may not forget it and so that its lessons will stay with us for all of our lives. This time we have not only finished Horayoth, but we have finished all of Seder Nezikin, one sixth of the entire Mishnah. This is a great accomplishment and for those of you who have been studying with us from the beginning, give yourselves hearty yasher koach, and a big pat on the back (those who haven’t been learning since the beginning may do so as well). The next Seder (order) which we will learn is Nashim. As you will note, we are not learning the Mishnah in its order. In truth, there is not really order between different seders of the mishnah, nor even between different tractates. The only order internal to the Mishnah is inside the tractate. Therefore, there is no reason to learn or not to learn the Mishnah in the order that its tractates appear. Again, congratulations and good luck with your continuing learning. Tomorrow we begin tractate Yevamoth.

ממזר קודם לנתין – this one (i.e., the Mamzer) comes from a fit drop and that one (i.e., the Nattin) comes from an unfit drop.

נתין קודם לגר – this one grew among us in holiness where as that one (i.e., the convert) did not grow among us in holiness.

גר קודם לעבד – this one was not included among those who were cursed and that one (i.e., the servant) was among those who were cursed (see Genesis, chapter 9, verse 25: “Cursed be Canaan; The lowest of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”).

ממזר תלמיד חכם קודם לכהן גדול עם הארץ – as it is written (Proverbs 3:15): “She is more precious than rubies; [All your goods cannot equal her.]” She is more precious than a High Priest who enters into the innermost place.