| When you go out to war against your enemies, and G-d puts them within our hands, and you take captives, | Ki teitze lamilchama al oyvecha, venatno h’ el-keicha beyadecha, vashavita shivyo, | כִּי־תֵצֵא לַמִּלְחָמָה עַל־אֹיְבֶיךָ וּנְתָנוֹ ה’ אֱ-לֹהֶיךָ בְּיָדֶךָ וְשָׁבִיתָ שִׁבְיוֹ׃ |
Torah Thoughts
Parashat Ki Teitze focuses on kindness and not abusing power: returning found belongings (even if no one would know if you kept it), not allowing a mother bird to see you take her eggs or young (to avoid causing her emotional distress), a shopkeeper’s obligation to make sure his scales are absolutely correct (so as not to cheat customers), and not to yoke two different animals to a plow (causing both to suffer).
