(א) וְאֵ֙לֶּה֙ הַמִּשְׁפָּטִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר תָּשִׂ֖ים לִפְנֵיהֶֽם׃
(1) These are the mishpatim [laws, rules] that you shall set before them:
(37) When a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox, and four sheep for the sheep.— (1) If the thief is seized while tunneling, and he is beaten to death, there is no bloodguilt in his case. (2) If the sun has risen on him, there is bloodguilt in that case.—He must make restitution; if he lacks the means, he shall be sold for his theft. (3) But if what he stole—whether ox or ass or sheep—is found alive in his possession, he shall pay double.
(יז) וַֽיהֹוָ֖ה אָמָ֑ר הַֽמְכַסֶּ֤ה אֲנִי֙ מֵֽאַבְרָהָ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֖ר אֲנִ֥י עֹשֶֽׂה׃ (יח) וְאַ֨בְרָהָ֔ם הָי֧וֹ יִֽהְיֶ֛ה לְג֥וֹי גָּד֖וֹל וְעָצ֑וּם וְנִ֨בְרְכוּ־ב֔וֹ כֹּ֖ל גּוֹיֵ֥י הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (יט) כִּ֣י יְדַעְתִּ֗יו לְמַ֩עַן֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְצַוֶּ֜ה אֶת־בָּנָ֤יו וְאֶת־בֵּיתוֹ֙ אַחֲרָ֔יו וְשָֽׁמְרוּ֙ דֶּ֣רֶךְ יְהֹוָ֔ה לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת צְדָקָ֖ה וּמִשְׁפָּ֑ט לְמַ֗עַן הָבִ֤יא יְהֹוָה֙ עַל־אַבְרָהָ֔ם אֵ֥ת אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֖ר עָלָֽיו׃
(כ) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהֹוָ֔ה זַעֲקַ֛ת סְדֹ֥ם וַעֲמֹרָ֖ה כִּי־רָ֑בָּה וְחַ֨טָּאתָ֔ם כִּ֥י כָבְדָ֖ה מְאֹֽד׃ (כא) אֵֽרְדָה־נָּ֣א וְאֶרְאֶ֔ה הַכְּצַעֲקָתָ֛הּ הַבָּ֥אָה אֵלַ֖י עָשׂ֣וּ ׀ כָּלָ֑ה וְאִם־לֹ֖א אֵדָֽעָה׃ (כב) וַיִּפְנ֤וּ מִשָּׁם֙ הָֽאֲנָשִׁ֔ים וַיֵּלְכ֖וּ סְדֹ֑מָה וְאַ֨בְרָהָ֔ם עוֹדֶ֥נּוּ עֹמֵ֖ד לִפְנֵ֥י יְהֹוָֽה׃ (כג) וַיִּגַּ֥שׁ אַבְרָהָ֖ם וַיֹּאמַ֑ר הַאַ֣ף תִּסְפֶּ֔ה צַדִּ֖יק עִם־רָשָֽׁע׃ (כד) אוּלַ֥י יֵ֛שׁ חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים צַדִּיקִ֖ם בְּת֣וֹךְ הָעִ֑יר הַאַ֤ף תִּסְפֶּה֙ וְלֹא־תִשָּׂ֣א לַמָּק֔וֹם לְמַ֛עַן חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים הַצַּדִּיקִ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר בְּקִרְבָּֽהּ׃ (כה) חָלִ֨לָה לְּךָ֜ מֵעֲשֹׂ֣ת ׀ כַּדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֗ה לְהָמִ֤ית צַדִּיק֙ עִם־רָשָׁ֔ע וְהָיָ֥ה כַצַּדִּ֖יק כָּרָשָׁ֑ע חָלִ֣לָה לָּ֔ךְ הֲשֹׁפֵט֙ כׇּל־הָאָ֔רֶץ לֹ֥א יַעֲשֶׂ֖ה מִשְׁפָּֽט׃
(כו) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהֹוָ֔ה אִם־אֶמְצָ֥א בִסְדֹ֛ם חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים צַדִּיקִ֖ם בְּת֣וֹךְ הָעִ֑יר וְנָשָׂ֥אתִי לְכׇל־הַמָּק֖וֹם בַּעֲבוּרָֽם׃
(17) Now the Eternal said, “Shall I hide from Avraham what I am about to do, (18) since Avraham is to become a great and populous nation and all the nations of the earth are to bless themselves by him? (19) For I have singled him out, that he may instruct his children and his posterity to keep the Way of the Eternal, by doing tzedakah and mishpat, in order that the Eternal may bring about for Avraham what God has promised him.”
(20) Then the Eternal said, “The outrage of Sodom and Gomorrah is so great, and their sin so grave! (21) I will go down to see whether they have acted altogether according to the outcry that has reached Me; if not, I will take note.” (22) The men went on from there to Sodom, while Avraham remained standing before the Eternal. (23) Avraham came forward and said, “Will You sweep away the righteous (tzadik) along with the wicked (rasha)? (24) What if there should be fifty righteous within the city; will You then wipe out the place and not forgive it for the sake of the righteous fifty who are in it? (25) Far be it from You to do such a thing, to bring death upon the righteous as well as the wicked, so that righteous and wicked fare alike. It would be a disgrace to You! Shall the Judge of all the earth not do mishpat [Justice]?”
(26) And the Eternal answered, “If I find within the city of Sodom fifty righteous ones, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.”
תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן, ״אֶת מִשְׁפָּטַי תַּעֲשׂוּ״ — דְּבָרִים שֶׁאִלְמָלֵא (לֹא) נִכְתְּבוּ דִּין הוּא שֶׁיִּכָּתְבוּ, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן: עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה, וְגִלּוּי עֲרָיוֹת, וּשְׁפִיכוּת דָּמִים, וְגָזֵל, וּבִרְכַּת הַשֵּׁם.
״אֶת חוּקּוֹתַי תִּשְׁמְרוּ״ — דְּבָרִים שֶׁהַשָּׂטָן מֵשִׁיב עֲלֵיהֶן, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן: אֲכִילַת חֲזִיר, וּלְבִישַׁת שַׁעַטְנֵז, וַחֲלִיצַת יְבָמָה, וְטׇהֳרַת מְצוֹרָע, וְשָׂעִיר הַמִּשְׁתַּלֵּחַ. וְשֶׁמָּא תֹּאמַר מַעֲשֵׂה תוֹהוּ הֵם, תַּלְמוּד לוֹמַר: ״אֲנִי ה׳״, אֲנִי ה׳ חֲקַקְתִּיו, וְאֵין לְךָ רְשׁוּת לְהַרְהֵר בָּהֶן.
Our Rabbis taught: (It says in Leviticus 18) “My laws (mishpatai) you shall perform...” i.e., such commandments which, even if had not been written, justice would demand that they should be written. And these are: idolatry, sexual immorality, murder, theft and blasphemy.
“...and My decrees (chukotai) you shall keep...” i.e., such commandments that the Satan challenges. And they are: not eating pork, not wearing wool and linen, the exemption procedure from the obligation to marry a widowed sister-in-law, the purification of the leper, and the Yom Kippur scapegoat sacrifice. Perhaps you will say, these are empty things! Therefore, the verse ends: “...I am the Eternal.” In other words, I, the Eternal, have decreed it, and you are not allowed to question it!
(ז) גַּם־חֲסִידָ֣ה בַשָּׁמַ֗יִם יָֽדְעָה֙ מוֹעֲדֶ֔יהָ
וְתֹ֤ר (וסוס) [וְסִיס֙] וְעָג֔וּר
שָׁמְר֖וּ אֶת־עֵ֣ת בֹּאָ֑נָה
וְעַמִּ֕י לֹ֣א יָדְע֔וּ
אֵ֖ת מִשְׁפַּ֥ט יְהֹוָֽה׃
Even the stork in the sky knows her seasons,
And the turtledove, swift, and crane
Keep the time of their coming;
But My people pay no heed
To the mishpat of the Eternal.
Rabbi Eliezer Berkovitz, “The Biblical Principle of Justice” (1969)
If we understand mishpat to mean ordinance, law, or commandment, the comparison between Israel and the seasonal birds who follow their instincts is difficult to interpret. If, however, the mishpat of the Eternal is a cosmic principle of measured, balanced relatedness which applies to the whole of life, to the realm of the spirit no less than to the realm of nature, then the meaning of these words of Jeremiah becomes clear. These seasonal birds know their appointed times, they sense the orderliness and interrelatedness in nature, thus they know when to come and when to go; but Israel does not acknowledge the same mishpat as it prevails in the spiritual life of the world.
How shall we formulate this cosmic principle of mishpat when it is projected onto the scene in which human beings find themselves in contact with each other? Is it not also a weighing and measuring of claims, drives, and desires, a balancing and harmonizing of the whole with a view to its preservation and its God-intended functioning? Justice and law are like God’s mishpat in the act of creation: An appropriateness, determined not by abstract consideration, but by the reality of man’s condition and subserving the meaningful preservation of human life.
כִּי מִשְׁפָּט הוּא עַמּוּדָא דְּאֶמְצָעִיתָא, הַיְנוּ בְּחִינַת דֶּרֶךְ הַמְמֻצָּע, שֶׁאֵינוֹ נוֹטֶה לְיָמִין וְלִשְׂמֹאל…
(ג) הַיְנוּ, כִּי כָל הַלִּמּוּדִים שֶׁהָאָדָם לוֹמֵד, צָרִיךְ שֶׁיְּקַבֵּל וְיוֹצִיא מֵהֶם מִשְׁפְּטֵי אֱמֶת, שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיֶה בִּבְחִינַת מִשְׁפָּט מְעֻקָּל, דְּהַיְנוּ שֶׁיְּקַבֵּל וְיִלְמַד מִכָּל הַלִּמּוּדִים שֶׁלּוֹמֵד מִשְׁפְּטֵי הַנְהָגוֹת, שֶׁיֵּדַע אֵיךְ לְהִתְנַהֵג, הֵן לְעַצְמוֹ, הֵן לַאֲחֵרִים שֶׁמִּתְנַהֲגִים לְפִי דַּעְתּוֹ.
Mishpat is called [in the Tikkunei Zohar] the “center pillar,” which has the aspect of “the middle path,” which tends neither right nor left…
And so, anything that a person studies, that person should receive from it, and then derive from it “true mishpat,” so as not to be in the aspect of “distorted mishpat.” So from all one’s, studies one must receive and learn mishpatim-of-conduct, so that one knows both how to conduct oneself and how to direct others who seek one’s guidance.