Today is the song of the Wolf, from Shemot 22,8.
Before we read the pasuk, we need a little context. It's talking about a person who steals money and is found as a thief. He has to pay double.
זְאֵב אוֹמֵר. עַל כָּל דְּבַר פֶּשַׁע עַל שׁוֹר עַל חֲמוֹר עַל שֶׂה עַל שַׂלְמָה עַל כָּל אֲבֵדָה אֲשֶׁר יֹאמַר כִּי הוּא זֶה עַד הָאֱלֹהִים יָבֹא דְּבַר שְׁנֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר יַרְשִׁיעֻן אֱלֹהִים יְשַׁלֵּם שְׁנַיִם לְרֵעֵהוּ: (שמות כב ח)
Every item of liability, whether an ox, a donkey, a sheep, or a garment regarding any lost item about which he says, this is it, to the court shall come both their claims. Whoever the court finds guilty shall pay double to his fellow.
What does this have to do with the wolf?
We have two beautiful explanations, one on a simple level and one on a deeper level. But in order to understand this, we have to know that in our Torah, there is are two terms for a thief- the Ganav and the Gazlan. When a ganav is caught, he pays double. When a gazlan is caught he pays face value.
A ganav is someone that steals stealthily. He comes at night, he hides and he steals. The gazlan goes out in the open; he doesn't care. He comes out in the open and mugs the guy and takes his wallet.
If anything, one would think the gazlan should be worse. He's the one who's out in the open.
But the Gemara in Bava Kama 79B says, No. Students asked Rabbi Yochanan ben Zachai why it's stricter on the Ganav than the Gazlan, and the answer was, the Gazlan doesn't care about anybody. He equates the respect of people with the respect of God. But the Ganav says, I'm afraid of people but I'm not afraid of God. I do it in hiding. That is worse.
So, what does this have to do with our wolf? The Gemara in Taanit 8A says there's a difference between a lion and a wolf in how they attack. A lion attacks in the open. He grabs and devours his prey. The lion is not afraid of people.The wolf first kills his prey, then drags it away to his den and eats it there. Rashi says this is because he's afraid of people. The wolf knows the shepherd can come and hit him over the head with a stick, so he must hide. Therefore, the wolf is like the Ganav that pays double. So, he's telling those thieves out there, let me sing you the song, because his essence is the essence of the ganav.
All people have all the different creatures are inside of us, with all their different tendencies. The tendency of the thief is wolf like, and therefore the song of the wolf is about stealing and paying double. That's the simple, beautiful explanation on how we connect the Ganav to the pasuk, cited in sefer Shira HaShalem, from Sefer HaMeir.
The next explanation is a little deeper. As we may know, the Jewish people are compared to a sheep that's surrounded by seventy wolves. Wolves symbolize the negative, destructive forces in the world.
What is the cause of these destructive forces?
זְאֵב אוֹמֵר the wolf says,
. עַל כָּל דְּבַר פֶּשַׁע
On any liability- and in this context, liability could mean a sin…
So the song of the wolf is saying, I'm doing what I'm doing, but don't blame me. It's due to somebody's sins. I'm just a messenger. What ever happens to a person, they have to understand it's due to their sins. That might not be popular, but that's the fact. Until when is this going to continue? Simply, we're talking about two people that are arguing over how much they owe each other. But in this deeper way of reading it, the problems are going to continue, the wolves are going to come until you say, Ki Hu Zeh/ This is it. I know why it's happening. I did something wrong. Middah Kneged Middah. I did this sin. When that happens, then it says, אֲשֶׁר יַרְשִׁיעֻן אֱלֹהִים יְשַׁלֵּם שְׁנַיִם לְרֵעֵהוּ: you pay double.
That means you paid off your sins. Why double? There's a famous explanation, the pasuk in the Haftara of VaetHanan, the famous Nachamu Nachamu that comes after Tisha B'Av, that says, "Speak on the heart of Yerushalayim, calm her down and say she has received from the hand of Hashem, double for all her sins."
That's why it says twice, Nachumu, Nachamu/ be comforted, be comforted. Because you got a double punishment. The Midrash Raba in Eicha 1,57 asks, What's going on? Double comfort for double sins? The pasuk says in Eicha, 1,8A חֵ֤טְא חָֽטְאָה֙ יְר֣וּשָׁלַ֔͏ִם Again a double sin. Double comfort , double punishment. The Chida says in sefer Savareh Shalal on the Haftara of VaetHanan that when a person sins a sin between man and man, it's really a double sin, because he's also ignoring God. This is the Ganav. He stole from his fellow man and he also showed that he doesn't care about God. It's a double sin. And therefore, he gets a double punishment. He gets kefel, for his double sin. But when he realizes Ki Hu Zeh, when he realizes his sins, it says, He pays two to his friend, The Gemara in Masechet Shabbat 31A, in the famous statement of Hillel to the one who said Pur the whole Torah one foot,answered What you hate, don't do to your friend- What does that have to do with God?
Rashi says Your friend can also refer to God.
Like a pasuk in Mishleh 27 says, Your friend, the friend of your father, al Taazov, which refers to God. He's your friend and your father's friend. So V'Ahavta L'Reecha Kamocha is the two friends. The two friends that you sin towards. And when you get the punishment, God is called your friend again.
This is the beautiful song of the wolf. The wolf is the attacker, and he tells us, I'm not attacking you. Don't look at me. I'm only the stick. Look back at the cause. And the cause isn't God. Like the pasuk says, What should a living man complain about? A man on his sins. That's the message of the wolf. Don't blame me. Don't blame God. Take responsibility. Figure out what's wrong, fix it, and repair the relationship.