Group None

“Thou shalt not utter a false report” (Exod. 23:1). This is also a warning to those who listen to evil talk.1Pesahim 118a. However, if a man comes to you complaining about his neighbor because his neighbor reproved him in your presence and for this reason he is angry with him and he says, “That one who dared to reprove, himself does such and such,” and he continues to relate unpleasant things about him; if you know that after he tells you he will not go and tell others, because he does not care to inform the public, but tells you in order to unburden his heart, because it weighs upon him, it is a meritorious deed to listen to him. That which you are able to improve in making him beloved to his friend, do and arrange. Say to him, “so and so loves you, why then do you speak so?”2Aboth of Rabbi Nathan, ed. Schechter, Chapter XII, p. 48. If he accepts, good, if not, even though you listened to his talk do not believe it. But you should not tell others in order to help him remove it from his heart.3The Perush suggests we read, “but he will not tell this to others,” since you heard him out and thereby helped to remove the matter from his heart I don’t feel that this emandation is necessary. The original seems to convey a more cogent line of argument. For others will be recipients of a false report and they will believe him. What will they do? They will relate to the other man the evil talk that this one spread about him, and he too will come to quarrel with him. The result is that the quarrel comes about through you because you did not listen to him. But if he tells others because he intends to spread an evil report about him, neither oblige nor listen to him. Rebuke him and dismiss him with anger. Go to them, to whom he had spoken and say, “Do not believe him, he speaks falsely about his neighbor.” And when you speak about a man or woman don’t relate the bad, tell about their good deeds. Do not praise a man in the presence of his enemy,4Tosafoth, Abodah Zarah, Chapter I. because he cannot bear to hear a good thing about him. As a result he will relate about him that which is shameful saying, “Why do you praise him because he did such and such, but did he not do such and such?” 5Maimonides, Hilkhoth Deoth, 7:4.Let him not praise a rich man before another rich man, nor a scribe before another scribe (similarly) or anyone who is in a like pursuit.6Midrash Rabbah, ed. Soncino, Genesis, I, 150, “For every person hates his fellow craftsman.” If he is God-fearing he may speak of him before another God-fearing person, 7Taanith 20b.because the other rejoices in the fact that he is even more God-fearing. He is not envious of him but rather increases his wisdom saying, “I will do as he does.”8Baba Bathra 21a. And thus is it written, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets” (Num. 11:29). Anyone who quarrels with a person and then tells about him something which he did not disclose before, do not believe him.9Kiddushin 70b. As a general rule, to all the matters which they speak of, do not give credence, merely act as if believing, but do not actually believe.10Niddah 61a. Similarly, a person who is profuse in the praise of his neighbor, but also benefits from this neighbor, do not believe him. Perhaps he speaks about him so because of the profit which the neighbor invites him to share. And so if you hear a man invoke God’s name, for example, he wishes to relate what the Holy One, blessed be He, did for him for the good, namely such and such, do not jump and interrupt him. He may become silent in order to listen to your words and will speak no further about his matters. The result being that he recited the name of God in vain because of you.11Nedarim 10a. But if he invokes it (God’s name) to curse his neighbor it is meritorious to interrupt him so that he does not come to sin.12Temurah 3b.