20:20 for 2020 - Four Torah Verses


Just for fun, in honor of 2020, here are all the 20:20 verses in the Torah (Note: Genesis 20 only goes to v.18), plus some thoughts, and related pieces from TheTorah.com.

Exod 20:20 (23)

לֹא תַעֲשׂוּן אִתִּי אֱלֹהֵי כֶסֶף וֵאלֹהֵי זָהָב לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ לָכֶם׃

With Me, therefore, you shall not make any gods of silver,
nor shall you make for yourselves any gods of gold.

Par. Yitro, just after the 10 Commandments are given. Why is there an idolatry prohibition so soon after the 2nd Commandment? Rashi quotes a midrash that this verse contains prohibitions relating to the Cherubim. Some academic scholars suggest that this verse and the next several laws comprise a different version of what was on the tablets (e.g. W. Propp, AB). See Understanding Idolatry by Dr. Uri Gabbay.

Lev 20:20

וְאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁכַּב אֶת־דֹּדָתוֹ עֶרְוַת דֹּדוֹ גִּלָּה חֶטְאָם יִשָּׂאוּ עֲרִירִים יָמֻתוּ׃

If a man lies with his uncle’s wife, it is his uncle’s nakedness that he has uncovered. They shall bear their guilt: they shall die childless.

Par. Kedoshim, in a list of forbidden sexual relations. We had a similar list in Lev 18. Why a second one? Some consider this list to comprise the "punishments," but others see it as a different law collection altogether (e.g. Berlin & Brettler, JSB). See Which Relatives Are You Prohibited from Marrying? by Prof. Rabbi Marty Lockshin.

Num 20:20

וַיֹּאמֶר לֹא תַעֲבֹר וַיֵּצֵא אֱדוֹם לִקְרָאתוֹ בְּעַם כָּבֵד וּבְיָד חֲזָקָה׃

But they replied, “You shall not pass through!” And Edom went out against them in heavy force, strongly armed.

Par. Chukat, where the king of Edom denies Moses' request to travel through their territory. Edom is to the south and east of the Dead Sea, and the Kings' Highway, the major N–S route through the Transjordan, cuts through it. The highway is mentioned explicitly in v. 17. See the map here: If Jacob Is Returning to Canaan, Why Send Messengers to Esau in Seir? by Dr. David Ben-Gad HaCohen.

Deut 20:20

רַק עֵץ אֲשֶׁר־תֵּדַע כִּי־לֹא־עֵץ מַאֲכָל הוּא אֹתוֹ תַשְׁחִית וְכָרָתָּ וּבָנִיתָ מָצוֹר עַל־הָעִיר אֲשֶׁר־הִוא עֹשָׂה עִמְּךָ מִלְחָמָה עַד רִדְתָּהּ׃

Only trees that you know do not yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siegeworks against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced.

Par. Shoftim, a brief (2-verse) law about chopping down trees when waging war against a city. Fruit trees must be spared, whereas non-fruit-bearing trees can be cut down and their wood used to conduct the siege. The previous verse offers a cryptic rationale: "For are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the besieged town?" But in the wake of v. 16, "you shall not let a soul remain alive," if we spare trees for the reason that they can't withdraw (see Rashi), how much more so human noncombatants who aren't able to escape? See Are Trees of the Field Human? by Dr. Shai Secunda.

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