Lifnei iver

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Lifnei iver (Hebrew: "before the blind") is one of the 613 mitzvot (commandments) in Jewish law. It is based on: "Before the blind, do not put a stumbling block" (Leviticus 19:14). It is one of the offenses spoken of in the Talmud as punishable by the Cherem.

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Derivative laws

Many halakhic principles are derived from this commandment. The oral law expands the ramifications of this law from its literal sense. The Sifra (a midrash from the time of the Mishna) states that, in its figurative sense, the commandment forbids one to give bad or damaging advice; after all, the receiving party is "blind" in this matter and will "stumble" as a result of the improper guidance (Sifra de-vei Rav, Kedoshim 2:14). It is therefore figurative for misleading anyone.

The Talmud (tractate Avodah Zarah 6b) expands the principle to include giving anyone the means or opportunity to commit a sin where that person would otherwise lack these. Examples given there include giving a cup of wine to a person who has taken the nazirite vow (which forbids him/her to partake in wine or grape products).

Lifnei iver as a principle recurs many times in practical Jewish law. The authoritative Shulkhan Arukh, for example, warns a father not to physically chastise older children, as this will only entice them to hit back, which is a capital offence (Shulkhan Arukh, Yorei Deah 240:20).

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Degree of culpability

One of the operative principles in this Mitzvah is whether the blind one, or the violator of the precept, could or would have been able to offend without the actions of the enabler. This is known in the Talmud as "Trei Ivrah DeNaharah" which means, two sides of the river. The term refers to one who is forbidden to drink wine, and the enabler hands him wine. Was the wine on the other side of the river or the same side?

If the enabler was not the sole means in which the blind one transgresses, then the violation is only Rabbinic in nature.

A full exposition on this Mitzvah has been published in a work entitled Misguiding the Perplexed.

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Reference

  • Hoffman, Yair. Misguiding the perplexed; the laws of lifnei iver. Lakewood, Israel Books Shop 2004.
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