Sanhedrin 081
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BET MIDRASH VIRTUALI
of the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel
RABIN MISHNAH STUDY GROUP
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TRACTATE SANHEDRIN, CHAPTER SIX, MISHNAH TWO:
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הָיָה רָחוֹק מִבֵּית הַסְּקִילָה כְּעֶשֶׂר אַמּוֹת, אוֹמְרִים לוֹ "הִתְוַדֵּה", שֶׁכֵּן דֶּרֶךְ הַמּוּמָתִין מִתְוַדִּין, שֶׁכָּל הַמִּתְוַדֶּה יֶשׁ לוֹ חֵלֶק לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא. שֶׁכֵּן מָצִינוּ בְעָכָן שֶׁאָמַר לוֹ יְהוֹשֻׁעַ, "בְּנִי שִׂים נָא כָבוֹד לַה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְתֶן לוֹ תוֹדָה" וְגוֹ', וַיַּעַן עָכָן אֶת יְהוֹשֻׁעַ וַיֹּאמַר "אָמְנָה אָנֹכִי חָטָאתִי לַה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל" וְכָזֹאת וְגוֹ'. וּמִנַּיִן שֶׁכִּפֶּר לוֹ וִדּוּיוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹשֻׁעַ "מֶה עֲכַרְתָּנוּ יַעְכָּרְךָ ה' בַּיּוֹם הַזֶּה" – הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה אַתָּה עָכוּר וְאִי אַתָּה עָכוּר לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא. וְאִם אֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ לְהִתְוַדּוֹת, אוֹמְרִים לוֹ אֱמוֹר תְּהֵא מִיתָתִי כַּפָּרָה עַל כָּל עֲוֹנוֹתָי. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר: אִם הָיָה יוֹדֵעַ שֶׁהוּא מְזֻמָּם, אוֹמֵר תְּהֵא מִיתָתִי כַּפָּרָה עַל כָּל עֲוֹנוֹתַי חוּץ מֵעָוֹן זֶה. אָמְרוּ לו:, אִם כֵּן, יְהוּ כָל אָדָם אוֹמְרִים כָּךְ כְּדֵי לְנַקּוֹת אֶת עַצְמָן:
When he [the condemned person] arrives within ten cubits of the place of execution he is told to make his confession, just as all those condemned to die make confession; for all who make confession have a share in the Afterlife. This we know from the story of Akhan to whom Joshua says, "My son, pay homage to the Lord God of Israel and make your confession to him…" 'And Akhan spoke up and said, "Truly, I have sinned towards the Lord God of Israel and this [is what I did]…"' How do we know that such confession assures absolution? – It says, 'And Joshua said, "Just as you have caused us suffering, so God will cause you to suffer this day."' – This day you will suffer, but you will not suffer in the Afterlife. If he [the condemned person] does not know how to make confession he should be told to say, "May my death atone for all my sins". Rabbi Yehudah says that if he knows that he has been the object of a trumped up charge [brought by conspiratorial witnesses] he should say, "May my death atone for all my sins except this one." But they [the sages] told him that under such circumstances everybody would say so in order to exculpate themselves.
EXPLANATIONS:
1:
Assuming that all attempts (as described in the previous mishnah) to secure a reversal of the verdict fail for want of evidence, the condemned person is led to his death. When still some distance from the place of execution it is suggested to him that he make his death-bed confession. Rambam [Moses Maimonides, North Africa, 12th century] in his Mishnah Commentary suggests that the reason why the confession is made while still some distance from the place of execution is because it may be assumed that his seeing the place of execution will so fill the condemned man with fear and trepidation that he would be unable to do anything competently. 2:
My God and God of my ancestors, accept my prayer. Do not turn away. Forgive me for all the times I may have disappointed You. I am aware of the wrongs I have committed. May my pain and suffering serve as atonement. Forgive my shortcomings, for against You have I sinned. Guardian of the bereaved, protect my beloved family; our souls are bound together. In Your hands lies my spirit. Hear, O Israel: Adonai is our God, Adonai is One. Adonai is God. Adonai is God.
In his edition of the Siddur published over half a century ago, Rabbi Joseph Hertz suggests the following (also in part):-
I acknowledge unto thee, O Lord my God and God of my fathers, that both my cure and my death are in thy hands. May it be thy will to send me a perfect healing. Yet if my death be fully determined by thee, I will in love accept it at thy hand. May my death be an atonement for all the sins, iniquities and transgressions of which I have been guilty against thee. Thou who are the father of the fatherless and judge of the widow, protect my beloved kindred with whose soul my own is knit. Into thy hand I commend my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. Amen.
This version too concludes ("when the end is approaching") with the recital of Shema preceded by other verses.
It could well be that the patient is not capable of making confession. The Rabbi's Manual suggests that the following may be recited by someone else at their side:-
Adonai our God and God of our Ancestors, we acknowledge that all life is in Your hands. May it be Your will to send healing to … Yet if the end is imminent, may it reflect Your love and atone for all those times … could have done better. Grant him/her the reward of the righteous and give him/her eternal life in Your Presence.
3:
Our mishnah draws the idea of a death-bed confession (and its efficacy) from the fate of Akhan as recounted in the book of Joshua. Perhaps it would be helpful to give the outlines of the story so that the mishnah can be followed with greater ease. The Israelite attack on Jericho was a "War of ĥerem", which means that no prisoners or booty were to be taken, since it was not a war for profit. One soldier however, Akhan by name, did loot surreptitiously. This caused the defeat of Israel at the next battle. Joshua realized that defeat could only be as the result of divine displeasure, so he consulted the lots to see who it was that had brought disaster upon Israel. The lot fell on Akhan.
And Joshua said to Akhan, 'My son, pay homage to the Lord God of Israel and make your confession to him and tell me what you did: hide nothing from me.' Akhan replied, 'Truly, I have sinned towards the Lord God of Israel and I have done such and such. I saw among the loot a goodly cloak, two hundred silver shekels and a gold ingot weighing fifty shekels. I wanted them so I took them. You can find them hidden in my tent.' … And Joshua said, 'Just as you have caused us suffering, so God will cause you to suffer this day.' All Israel stoned him to death…
4:
Rambam, ever watchful for inconsistencies, points out in his Mishnah Commentary that about the only thing in this story that has any resemblance to later rabbinic jurisprudence is the idea of confession. The rest of the story runs counter to such practice:
Please be aware that the execution of Akhan by Joshua was a one-time occurrence. Our true Torah does not permit the execution of a criminal based on his own confession, nor does a prophet have the right to require such a procedure.
5:
The suggestion made by Rabbi Yehudah ben-Ilai that the condemned man be permitted to indicate that he has been framed by asking that his death be an effective atonement for all his wrongdoings "except this one" in which he has been wrongfully condemned is roundly rejected by the rest of the sages – and for obvious reasons: everyone would want to appear as an innocent martyr. 6: |