1)JUDGING AN ACQUAINTANCE & A SMALL CASE IS LIKE A LARGE CASE
אושפיזכניה דרב אתא לקמיה לדינא אמר לו לאו אושפיזכני את אמר לו אין אמר ליה דינא אית לי אמר ליה פסילנא לך לדינא אמר ליה רב לרב כהנא פוק דייניה חזייה דהוה קא גאיס (ביה) א״ל אי צייתא צייתא ואי לא מפיקנא לך רב מאונך כקטן כגדול תשמעון אמר ריש לקיש שיהא חביב עליך דין של פרוטה כדין של מאה מנה למאי הלכתא אילימא לעיוני ביה ומיפסקיה פשיטא אלא לאקדומיה
Translation: A former host of Rav came before him for judgment, and said to him, "Were you not my guest once?" Rav said to him, "Yes." He said to Rav, "I have a case to be judged." Rav said, I am disqualified from judging your case. Rav then said to Rav Kahana: Go and judge the case. Rav Kahana noticed that the man was acting friendly (with Rav), so he said to him: If you want to accept my judgment (literally: listen) then accept it. But if not, I will put Rav out of your mind. (Literally: I will get Rav out of your ears. I will excommunicate you, and Rav will not be able to help you.) (Devarim 1:17) "You will hear the small and the great alike." Reish Lakish said: The Pasuk teaches that a case involving a Perutah (the smallest coin) should be as precious to you as one involving one hundred maneh (a significant amount of money). What Halachah was this said about? If you say it teaches that you must investigate a case of a single Perutah and issue a verdict on it, it is obvious! Rather, it is about giving the case of a Perutah priority over a case of one hundred maneh (when the case of a Perutah came before the Beis Din first). (Devarim 1:17) "You will not be afraid of the face of any man." (Rav Chanan said: Do not gather in your words because of any man.) (See above, 6b.)
(a)Surely it is also obvious that if the case of Perutah came first to Beis Din, that they would need to judge it first?
1.Maharsha: A Dayan may deduct from the money under question as payment for his missed work (as he must take time away from his job in order to judge). This would not be relevant in a dispute over a Perutah, as after he deducts his payment, it will be worth less than a Perutah or will be spent completely. Therefore, the Dayan might think that he should first judge the case of a 100 Manah in order to take his payment from there.
2.Iyun Yaakov: One would have thought to give precedence to the case of the rich man, since we find that Rebbi would give honor to the rich (Eiruvin 86a).
3.Ben Yehoyada (2nd answer): One might have thought that the 100 Mana should be judged first, as there is more concern that a litigant might escape or hide the money.
2)'TROUBLING' HASH-M TO RETURN UNJUSTLY TAKEN MONEY
לא תגורו מפני איש (א״ר חנן אל תכניס דבריך מפני איש) כי המשפט לאלהים הוא א״ר חמא ברבי חנינא אמר הקב״ה לא דיין לרשעים שנוטלין מזה ממון ונותנים לזה שלא כדין אלא שמטריחין אותי להחזיר ממון לבעליו
Translation: (Devarim 1:17) "You will not be afraid of the face of any man." (Rav Chanan said: Do not gather in your words because of any man.) (See above, 6b.) (Devarim 1:17) "For the judgment is God's." R. Chama, son of R. Chanina, said: The Holy One, blessed is He, said: It is not enough for the wicked judges that they take money away from this one and give it to that one, unjustly, but they trouble Me to return the money to its rightful owner.
(a)What does the Gemara mean by 'they trouble Me'?
1.Maharsha, Ben Yehoyada: Sometimes, in order to return the money to the rightful owner, Hash-m will need to put to death and reincarnate people and even reincarnate a man as a woman and vice-versa.
3)BAD THROUGH THE GUILTY AND GOOD THROUGH THE INNOCENT.
והדבר אשר יקשה מכם א״ר חנינא ואיתימא רבי יאשיה על דבר זה נענש משה שנאמר ויקרב משה את משפטן לפני ה׳ מתקיף לה רב נחמן בר יצחק מי כתיב ואשמיעכם ושמעתיו כתיב אי גמירנא גמירנא ואי לא אזלינא וגמירנא אלא כדתניא ראויה פרשת נחלות שתיכתב על ידי משה רבינו אלא שזכו בנות צלפחד ונכתב על ידן ראויה היתה פרשת מקושש שתיכתב ע״י משה רבינו אלא שנתחייב מקושש ונכתבה על ידו ללמדך שמגלגלין חובה ע״י חייב וזכות על ידי זכאי
Translation: (Devarim 1:17) "And the case that is too difficult for you, you will bring to Me." R. Chanina said, or some say, R. Yoshiah said: Because of this statement Moshe was punished, (Because he attributed too much authority to himself.) as it is said: (Bamidbar 27:5) "And Moshe brought their cause before Hash-m." (The case of the daughters of Tzelofchad, which Moshe was unable to decide.) Rav Nachman challenged this teaching: Does it say, "You will bring to Me and I will let you hear it"? No. It says: "And I will hear it," meaning, "If I know it (the answer), I know it, and if not, I will go and learn it." Rather, the story of the daughters of Tzelofchad is as it is taught in a Baraisa (Bava Basra 119a): The section dealing with the laws of inheritance should have been written in the Torah through Moshe our teacher, but the daughters of Tzelofchad were worthy, and the section was written through them. Similarly, the section about the stick gatherer (Mekoshesh; Bamidbar 15:32; see Shabbos 96b) should have been written in the Torah through Moshe our teacher, but the stick gatherer was found guilty, and the section was written through him. This is to teach you that bad is brought about through the guilty, and good through the innocent.
4)FEARING THE JUDGES AND TOLERATING THE PEOPLE
כתיב ואצוה את שופטיכם בעת ההיא וכתיב ואצוה אתכם בעת ההיא אמר רבי אלעזר אמר רבי שמלאי אזהרה לציבור שתהא אימת דיין עליהן ואזהרה לדיין שיסבול את הציבור עד כמה אמר רבי חנן ואיתימא רבי שבתאי כאשר ישא האומן את היונק כתיב כי אתה תבוא וכתיב כי אתה תביא אמר רבי יוחנן אמר לו משה ליהושע אתה והזקנים שבדור עמהם אמר לו הקב״ה טול מקל והך על קדקדם דבר אחד לדור ואין שני דברין לדור
Translation: It is written, (Devarim 1:16) "And I commanded your judges at that time," and again it is written, (Devarim 1:18) "I commanded you at that time." R. Elazar said that R. Simlai said: This is a warning to the congregation that the fear of the judges should be upon them, and a warning to the judge that he should tolerate the congregation. To what extent? R. Chanan said, or some say that R. Shabsai said: (Bamidbar 11:12) "As a nurse carries a sucking." It is written: (Devarim 31:7) "You Yehoshua should come with this people." (Yehoshua should be together with the people.) And it is also written: (Devarim 31:23) "For you should bring the people." (Yehoshua should lead them.) R. Yochanan said: Moshe said to Yehoshua: You and the elders of the generation are with them. (You will lead together with the elders.) But the Holy One, blessed is He, said to him (Yehoshua): Take a stick and bang them on their skulls. (Show your authority.) There is only one leader to a generation, there are not two leaders to a generation.
(a)What is the meaning of the judge tolerating the people 'like a nurse carries a suckling'?
1.Netziv: They must bear the people, like a parent who carries a young child, even though the child often makes the parent dirty.
2.Einei Kol Chai (Rav Chaim Palagi): Chazal tell us (Pesachim 112a) 'More than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to give milk'. This should be the attitude of the Dayan towards to people - a desire to benefit them.
(b)HaKadosh Baruch Hu seems to be correcting Moshe, that Yehoshua should not be 'together' with the elders, but rather, 'only one leader to a generation' - he should be the only authority. Why did Moshe not realize this himself?
1.Ksav Sofer (Devarim 31:7): Although Moshe knew this, it was his extreme humility that brought him to his conclusion. Since he did not assert his authority and he found that the people feared him and followed his word, he assumed that the way of the nation is to always honor their leader. In his great humility, he viewed himself on a par with Yehoshua and felt that if Yehoshua acted the same way, he would achieve the same results.
