Question: If someone did not finish Sh’nayim Mikra V’Echad Targum for the previous week, should he first finish last week’s parshah or should he first do Sh’nayim Mikra V’Echad Targum (“SMVT”) for the current week’s parshah and then go back and finish last week’s parshah?
Short Answer: Most poskim hold that it is preferable to first do SMVT for the current week and only then complete last week’s SMVT, especially if you already started doing the current week’s SMVT. There are a few poskim who hold that you should start with last week’s parshah so that you can do the parshiyos in order.
Explanation:
I. Last Chance
The Tur (Orach Chayim 285:3) writes that one may perform Sh’nayim Mikra V’Echad Targum (“SMVT”) at any point during the week leading up to the Shabbos when that parshah is read. The Beis Yisrael (ibid) cites Tosafos and the Rosh as the source of this opinion. The Tur continues (Orach Chayim 285:4), still citing Tosafos and the Rosh, that the “mitzvah min ha’muvchar” (the ideal time) to finish SMVT is before you eat on Shabbos morning. However, if not, you may finish SMVT until Minchah on Shabbos afternoon. If you do not finish by Minchah, “azav z’manah” – “it’s time has passed.”
The Beis Yosef (ibid) cites the Hagahos Maimoniyos (Hilchos T’filah, perek 13, shin) who cites Rabbi Meir who holds that SMVT may be performed until Tuesday night, similar to Havdalah. The Hagahos Maimoniyos also cites R’ Simcha who holds that SMVT may be performed until Sh’mini Atzeres (in Eretz Yisrael), as this is the day that the community actually completes the reading of the Torah.
The Shulchan Aruch (285:4) brings all the above opinions, including (i) the “ideal” opinion until you eat on Shabbos morning, (ii) until after Minchah, (iii) until Tuesday night, and (iv) until Sh’mini Atzeres. The Rama explains that in chutz la’aretz, the fourth opinion would allow until Simchas Torah. The Mishnah B’rurah (12) and the Shaar HaTziyun (15) cite a machlokes whether the fourth opinion allows you to finish SMVT any time until Simchas Torah or only on Simchas Torah itself. The Mishnah B’rurah rules like the P’ri M’gadim, that it may be finished until Simchas Torah, and not like the Tosfos Shabbos who hold only on Simchas Torah itself.
As an aside, the Biur Halachah (ibid) cites a machlokes whether it is preferable to complete SMVT on Friday or to actually wait to complete it on Shabbos morning. Sefer HaKavanos writes that it is preferable to finish SMVT on Friday, while the Beis Yosef writes that it is better to complete it on Shabbos.
II. The Ideal Opinion
The clear understanding of the above Shulchan Aruch is that ideally a person should ensure that he has finished SMVT before eating on Shabbos morning. But are there any limitations? Also, what does it mean before “eating”?
The Mishnah B’rurah (9) explains that although it is ideal to complete SMVT before your Shabbos meal, it is certainly better to eat before chatzos ha’yom on Shabbos (so that you are not fasting on Shabbos). Thus, if one cannot complete SMVT after davening Shabbos morning before chatzos, he should eat first and then finish SMVT. The Shaar HaTziyun (14) adds that the same rule applies if you have guests for lunch; it is better to eat first rather than keep your guests waiting while you complete SMVT.
Notably, the Chazon Ish (cited in Orchos Rabbeinu, Volume 3, p. 234) explained that the Shulchan Aruch would actually only require you to complete SMVT by shalosh s’udos, your final eating on Shabbos. This is not the standard explanation, though.
According to the “ideal,” what constitutes “eating”? In other words, may a person eat at a kiddush and then do SMVT before his s’udah? The Ohel Yaakov (SMVT 5:6) cites HaRav Simcha Bunim Londinski shlita, who explains that this issue depends on the reasons why it is important to finish SMVT before eating. According to the Sh’eilas Yaavetz, the reason is because of z’rizus, so that you ensure that SMVT is finished as soon as possible after K’rias HaTorah (if you have not already completed it!). Thus, even tasting would be “forbidden” until you finish SMVT. According to the Bach, who says that you want to finish SMVT as close as possible to the time that the community finished K’rias HaTorah, you also should not attend a kiddush before finishing SMVT. According to the Eishel Avraham, you want to finish all “speaking” before “eating,” similar to Eliezer Eved Avraham, who told Besuel and Lavan that “lo uchal ad asher dibarti d’varai” – “I cannot eat until I finish speaking.” Thus, again here, you should finish SMVT before even making Kiddush.
On the other hand, the Or Zarua says we are concerned that if you eat before finishing SMVT, you will forget to finish SMVT. Thus, making Kiddush should be permitted, because we are only concerned about the s’udah taking a long time, not a short Kiddush. Similarly, the Ateres Tzvi, who is worried that by the time your s’udah is finished, it will already be after Minchah and time for the next week of SMVT, would allow you to make Kiddush before finishing SMVT.
The Ohel Yaakov concludes that he has spoken with poskim about this issue, and they generally allow one to make Kiddush before finishing SMVT.
III. You Botched It!
But what if you botch it and do not finish SMVT by the time the following week rolls around? Which SMVT should you now recite first: last week’s parshah, which you didn’t yet finish, or next week’s parshah, which is your current obligation to perform?
The Maharsham (1:213) addresses this exact case, framing the issue as a case where “tadir v’she’eino tadir, tadir kodem” (a common or timely mitzvah takes precedence over an uncommon or untimely mitzvah) is pitted against the importance of reading the Torah in order. The Maharsham holds that tadir is the more important principle here, because even if you did SMVT on last week’s parshah first, you might still not achieve leining the Torah in order. Since we have a rule that “Ein mukdam u’m’uchar baTorah” (i.e., that there is no order to the Torah) concerning two different sections in the Torah, it is not clear that last week’s parshah actually precedes this week’s parshah in the correct order. Thus, you should do SMVT for this week before finishing last week’s SMVT.
The Maharsham notes, though, that there is an exception for parshiyos in Sefer D’varim. Since we hold that there is an order to Sefer D’varim, if you can’t finish SMVT for a parshah in Sefer D’varim, you should finish that parshah before you move on to the current week’s parshah. The Maharsham concludes, however, by backtracking on the Sefer D’varim exception. Even in Sefer D’varim, you should always do this week’s SMVT before completing last week’s SMVT, as it is similar to tashlumin by davening, where you always should recite the current t’filah ahead of the prior t’filah that you are making up.
Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l (cited in Ohel Yaakov, SMVT 5:11) agrees that it is preferable to do SMVT for this week before going back and doing last week’s SMVT. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach zt”l (Halichos Shlomo 12:36) initially rules otherwise. He holds that if it is past Monday of the following week, you should first complete last week’s SMVT and only then start SMVT for the current week. Nevertheless, he concludes that if you already started the upcoming week, you may finish it first and then go back to last week’s parshah, because truthfully there is no requirement that you recite SMVT in order.
Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l (cited in Gam Ani Odecha, SMVT, siman 101), on the other hand, holds that you should do SMVT in order, thereby starting first with last week’s parshah.
Next Week’s Topic: Is it preferable to fulfill Sh’nayim Mikra V’Echad Targum with actual Targum Onkelos or with Rashi?
Rabbi Ephraim Glatt, Esq. is Associate Rabbi at the Young Israel of Kew Gardens Hills and a practicing litigation attorney. Questions? Comments? Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
