Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Deuteronomy 14:21/רמב"ן על דברים י״ד:כ״א
אוְטַעַם כִּי עַם קָדוֹשׁ אַתָּה לַה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ, דָּבֵק עִם לֹא תְבַשֵּׁל גְּדִי בַּחֲלֵב אִמּוֹ, כִּי אֵינֶנּוּ מַאֲכָל נִתְעָב אֲבָל יֶאֱסֹר אוֹתוֹ לִהְיוֹתֵנוּ קְדוֹשִׁים בַּמַּאֲכָלִים, אוֹ לִהְיוֹתֵנוּ קְדוֹשִׁים שֶׁלֹּא נִהְיֶה עַם אַכְזָרִי לֹא יְרַחֵמוּ, שֶׁנַּחְלֹב אֶת הָאֵם וְנוֹצִיא מִמֶּנָּה הֶחָלָב שֶׁנְּבַשֵּׁל בּוֹ הַבֵּן. וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁכָּל בָּשָׂר בְּחָלָב יִכָּנֵס בַּלָּאו הַזֶּה, כִּי כָל מֵינֶקֶת תִּקָּרֵא אֵם וְכָל יוֹנֵק יִקָּרֵא גְּדִי, וְהוּא דֶּרֶךְ הַבִּשּׁוּל וְהִנֵּה בְּכֻלָּם אַכְזָרִיּוּת. וְכָתַב רַשִׁ"י (רש"י על דברים י"ד:כ"א) לֹא תְבַשֵּׁל גְּדִי בַּחֲלֵב אִמּוֹ שְׁלֹשָׁה פְּעָמִים, פְּרָט לְחַיָּה וּלְעוֹפוֹת וְלִבְהֵמָה טְמֵאָה. וְהַמִּדְרָשׁ הַזֶּה הוֹצִיאוּ אוֹתוֹ (ספרי קג וחולין קיג) מִמִּלַּת גְּדִי, אֲבָל הַלָּאו עַצְמוֹ אֶחָד לְאִסּוּר אֲכִילָה וְאֶחָד לְאִסּוּר הֲנָאָה וְאֶחָד לְאִסּוּר בִּשּׁוּל. וְכֵן כָּתַב הָרַב בְּסֵדֶר וְאֵלֶּה הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים (שמות כג יט):
1FOR THOU ART A HOLY PEOPLE UNTO THE ETERNAL THY G-D. The purport thereof is connected with [the following prohibition], Thou shalt not seethe a kid in its mother’s milk. Although it is not an abhorrent food [for both meat and milk are permitted separately] He prohibited it because we are to be holy in [choice of] foods — or because we [ourselves] are holy — that we not become a cruel people that is not compassionate222 by milking the mother and extracting its milk to seethe therein its kid. And although any meat [cooked] in milk is included in this prohibition [even though it is not its own mother’s milk, a situation without apparent cruelty, nevertheless it is forbidden] because any nursing animal is called “mother” and any suckling offspring is called “kid,” and if they are together in the process of cooking there is [an element of] cruelty in all [cases whether a kid in its own mother’s milk or not].Now, Rashi wrote: “Thou shalt not seethe a kid in its mother’s milk. This is stated three times223 in order to exclude a wild beast, fowls,224 (clean wild beast) or fowl with milk is forbidden though by the Rabbis (Yoreh Deiah 57:3). and unclean animals” [from this prohibition]. This interpretation is derived from the Scriptural use of the term kid [an expression that does not apply to any of the excluded categories]. However, the [thrice repeated] prohibition itself [teaches the following:] one forbids eating [meat cooked with milk], one forbids deriving benefit from it, and one forbids cooking it. And so did the Rabbi [Rashi] write in the section of And these are the ordinances.225