Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: You shall be holy, for holy am I, Yahweh, your God. (Leviticus 19:2)

Rabbi Chiyya taught: This section was spoken in the presence of a gathering of the whole community, because most of the essential principles of the Torah are appended to it.

Rabbi Levi said: Because the Ten Commandments are included therein:

1) "I am the Yahweh your God," and here it is written, "I am the Yahweh your God" (19:3, et al).

2) "You shall have no other gods before me," and here it is written, "Nor make to yourselves molten gods" (19:4).

3) "You shall not take the name of the Yahweh your God in vain," and here it is written, "And you shall not swear by My name falsely" (19:12).

4) "Remember the Sabbath day", and here it is written, "And keep My sabbaths" (19:3).

5) "Honor your father and your mother," and here it is written, "Every man shall fear his mother and his father" (19:3).

6) "You shall not murder," and here it is written, "You shall not stand by the blood of your fellow" (19:16).

7) "You shall not commit adultery," and here it is written, "Both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death" (19:10).

8) "You shall not steal," and here it is written, "You shall not steal, [neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another]" (19:11).

9) "You shall not bear false witness," and here it is written, "You shall not go about as a talebearer" (19:16).

10) "You shalt not covet... any thing that is your fellow's," and here it is written, "Love your fellow as yourself" (19:18).

(Midrash Rabbah)


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You shall be holy (19:2)

Sanctify yourself also regarding that which is permissible to you.

(Talmud, Yevamot 20a)

The meaning of this is that since the Torah has warned against forbidden sexual relations and forbidden foods, while permitting relations with one's wife and eating meat and wine, the lustful person can find a place to wallow in fornication with his wife or wives and be of "the guzzlers of wine and the gluttons of meat", and converse at will of all licentious things (since no prohibition against this is specified in the Torah). He can be a hedonist with the Torah's permission. Therefore, after enumerating the things which it forbids entirely, the Torah says: "Be holy." Constrain yourself also in that which is permitted.

(Nachmanides)

The first dictum we heard from the Rebbe (Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi) was: "What is forbidden, one must not; what is permitted, one need not."

(Rabbi Mordechai of Horadok)