Derasha 2 on Shoftim 17:02

TT #27 · Parashas Shoftim · First Aliyah · Passuk 2

The Complete Passuk

כִּֽי־יִמָּצֵ֤א בְקִרְבְּךָ֙ בְּאַחַ֣ד שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁר־יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ נֹתֵ֣ן לָ֑ךְ אִ֣ישׁ אוֹ־אִשָּׁ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר יַעֲשֶׂ֧ה אֶת־הָרַ֛ע בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהֹוָה־אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ לַעֲבֹ֥ר בְּרִיתֽוֹ׃

If there is found among you, in one of the settlements that the Eternal your God is giving you, a man or woman who has affronted the Eternal your God and transgressed the covenant—

Chabad / Judaica Press

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Sifrei Devarim (same as previous unit).

Sefaria · Sifrei Devarim

Core Text of Chazal

איש או אשה. מה תלמוד לומר, אלא לפי שמצינו שאין עושין עיר הנדחת על פי יחיד וע״פ נשים, יכול אף כאן פטור בכאלה, תלמוד לומר איש או אשה.

English: “A man or a woman.” What does this teach? Because we find that an ir ha-nidachat is not made on the testimony of a single person or of women, one might think that here too such persons are exempt. Therefore the verse states “a man or a woman.”

On the daf / in context

The explicit inclusion of both man and woman teaches that individual idolaters are liable even when the rules for a condemned city would exclude certain categories of testimony or defendants.

Type of Learning

Derash on the verse (Sifrei) — not a formal named middah of the 13. The phrase “ish o ishah” is read as an inclusion that prevents exemption by analogy to ir ha-nidachat.

What Is Learned

An individual man or woman who worships idols is liable to the death penalty; the special rules of ir ha-nidachat do not create an exemption for them.