May You Hate a Fellow Jew?

You shall not see your brother’s donkey nor his ox fallen down by the way and hide yourself from them; you shall surely help him lift it up again.                                              Deuteronomy 22:4

The parallel verse in Parashat Mishpatim [Exodus 23:5] reads:

If you meet your enemy’s donkey lying under its burden, you may not allow yourself to leave it to him, but must forsake everything and hasten to his aid.

            Meshech Ḥochma notes the difference between the verses and explains the discrepancy based upon the Talmud's comment on the verse in Mishpatim. Our Sages [Babylonian Talmud, Pesaḥim 113b] raise the question of how it is permissible to hate a fellow Jew, since the Torah commands: "You shall not hate your brother in your heart." [Leviticus 19:17] The Sages answer that in a case where one sees another Jew committing a sin, he may hate that Jew (until the sinner repents).

            Meshech Ḥochma asserts that it was permissible to hate a sinner only before the sin of the golden calf. Only at a time when the individual Israelite was truly on the level of a "holy nation" was one allowed to hate a sinner. After the sin of the golden calf (and subsequent sins of the generation of the exodus), the situation changed. Only one who is himself completely above reproach and "completely righteous in his ways" has the right to hate his fellow Jew who is a sinner. Such people are indeed rare, hence, in practice, one no longer has the right to hate a fellow Jew, even if he is a sinner. Thus, Moses, in his repetition of the mitzva, refers to the donkey of one’s brother, not one’s enemy.

          Meshech Ḥochma’s approach has great relevance to an additional Talmudic comment. Our Sages taught [Talmud Bavli; Yoma 9b] that the Second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred (sinat ḥinam) among the Jews. We must be able to realize and appreciate the unity of the People of Israel. Ultimately, any hatred among Jews is baseless.