Vayikra: Chapter 29

"If a soul shall sin"

Synopsis

Rabbi Yosi says that before the soul is born, God advises it with promises and punishments so that it will observe His commandments. When the soul is in the body and it sins, the Torah wonders how this can be. Rabbi Yosi and Rabbi Elazar agree that the soul must repent of its sins before the time comes to die. Rabbi Shimon says that anyone who forgets the words of the Torah or refuses to study it acts as though he has forgotten God altogether.