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Why would a murderer accept witnesses' warnings and ensure his own execution? Rashi (רש"י) explains that hatred violates "lo tisnah et achicha bilvavcha," leading to murder through avera goreret avera. But the deeper pathology is how repeated sin destroys self-esteem, making the murderer suicidal enough to accept hasra'ah rather than stay silent and escape punishment.
Rabbi Zweig analyzes a perplexing aspect of the Torah (תורה)'s discussion of premeditated murder in Parshas Shoftim. The Torah describes a murderer who must be executed without mercy, and Rashi (רש"י) explains this as an example of avera goreret avera - one sin leading to another, beginning with hatred (violating "lo tisnah et achicha bilvavcha") and escalating to murder. However, Rabbi Zweig identifies a fundamental question: if someone's motivation is hatred and murder, why would they be foolish enough to accept the witnesses' warning (hasra'ah) and guarantee their own execution, when they could simply remain silent or wait a few seconds and escape punishment entirely? The shiur explains that under Jewish law, executing a murderer requires extremely specific conditions: qualified witnesses, proper warning, the perpetrator's acceptance of the warning, and immediate action without delay. Any murderer who wanted to survive would easily avoid these conditions. The fact that the Torah discusses someone who doesn't avoid them indicates we're dealing with a self-destructive individual who wants to die.
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Parshas Shoftim
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