Rashi on Zechariah Chapter 7
Can copy this into an AI, or connect the whole library to your assistant. For deeper learning, you can directly use the original seforim, sites, and apps.
וַיִּשְׁלַח בֵּית אֵל שַׂרְאֶצֶר וְרֶגֶם מֶלֶךְ וַאֲנָשָׁיו. אֲנָשִׁים צַדִּיקִים הָיוּ, וְשָׁלְחוּ מִבָּבֶל לִקְרוֹבֵיהֶם שֶׁבְּבֵית אֵל לָבֹא לְחַלּוֹת אֶת פְּנֵי ה׳ בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם בַּעֲדָם, וְלִשְׁאֹל מֵאֵת הַכֹּהֲנִים לְהוֹדִיעָם אִם יִבְכּוּ בְּחֹדֶשׁ אָב, אַחֲרֵי אֲשֶׁר חָזַר הַבַּיִת לְהִבָּנוֹת:
And Sharezer and Regem Melech and his men sent to Bethel They were righteous men, and they sent [word] to their kinsmen in Bethel to come to pray before the Lord in Jerusalem for them, and to ask the priests to let them know if they should [still] weep in the month of Av, since the Temple had been rebuilt.
הַנָּזֵר. לִפְרוֹשׁ מִן הַתַּעֲנוּג כַּאֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי זֶה שִׁבְעִים שָׁנָה. אֵין נְזִירָה בְּכָל מָקוֹם אֶלָּא פְּרִישׁוּת (ספרא אמור פרשה ד, א):
abstaining To abstain from pleasure, as I have done these seventy years. The word נְזִירָה always means separation.
וּבַשְּׁבִיעִי. הוּא צוֹם גְּדַלְיָה (ראש השנה יח:):
and in the seventh [month] That is the fast of Gedaliah.
הֲצוֹם צַמְתֻּנִי אָנִי. הֵ״א נְקוּדָה חֲטַף פַּתָּח, לְפִי שֶׁהִיא מְשַׁמֶּשֶׁת לְשׁוֹן תְּמִיהָא: שֶׁמָּא לִכְבוֹדִי צַמְתֶּם, שֶׁתִּהְיוּ צְרִיכִים לָצוּם גַּם עַתָּה?:
did you fast for Me, even for Me The ‘he’ is vowelized with a ‘hataf pattah’ because it is used as the interrogative: Did you fast in My honor that you should be required to fast now, too?
וְכִי תֹאכְלוּ וְכִי תִשְׁתּוּ. וְאִם לֹא תָצוּמוּ, מַה לִּי גַּם בָּזוֹ? הֲלֹא אַתֶּם לַהֲנָאַתְכֶם הוּא הַמַּאֲכָל וְהַמִּשְׁתֶּה:
And when you eat and when you drink And, if you do not fast, that, too, means nothing to Me. Are not the food and the drink for your own pleasure?
הֲלֹא אֶת הַדְּבָרִים. מִי גָּרַם לָכֶם הַצּוֹם וְהַמִּסְפֵּד? הֲלֹא דִבְרֵי תוֹכָחוֹת אֲשֶׁר קָרָא ה׳ וְגוֹ׳, הֵם הֶחֱרִיבוּ אֶתְכֶם, וְעַל כֵּן צַמְתֶּם. וְאֵלֶּה הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר קָרָא: ״מִשְׁפַּט אֱמֶת שְׁפֹטוּ״ (זכריה ז:ט):
Was it not the words Who caused you the fast and the mourning? Was it not the words of reproof that the Lord proclaimed, etc.? They brought about your destruction, and therefore you fasted. And these are the words that He proclaimed: Execute true judgment.
שָׂמוּ שָׁמִיר. תּוֹלַעַת חָזָק מִצּוּר, מַרְאִין אוֹתוֹ עַל הָאֶבֶן וְהִיא מִתְבַּקַּעַת (סוטה מח:):
shamir A worm stronger than flint. They would show it to the stone, which would split.
וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר קָרָא וְלֹא שָׁמֵעוּ. אָמַר ה׳ צְבָאוֹת עֲלֵיהֶן בְּאוֹתָן הַיָּמִים כֵּן יִקְרְאוּ וְלֹא אֶשְׁמָע:
And it came about; as He called and they did not hearken the Lord said concerning them in those days: So shall they call and I will not hearken.
וָאֵסָעֲרֵם. בַּגָּלוּת, וְכֵן עָשִׂיתִי:
I will scatter them in exile. And so I did.
וַיָּשִׂימוּ. בַּעֲוֹנָם:
they made with their iniquity.
אֶרֶץ חֶמְדָּה לְשַׁמָּה. וְהוּא גָּרַם לָהֶם הַצּוֹם וְהַמִּסְפֵּד, אֲבָל עַתָּה: ״קִנֵּאתִי לְצִיּוֹן״ (זכריה ח:ב) – בִּשְׁבִיל צִיּוֹן אֲקַנֵּא אֶת הַכַּשְׂדִּים:
desolation And that brought about the fast (and the mourning), but now [I am jealous for Zion, etc.]