Perek Shira: The Song of the Fox
The Fox says: “Woe is he who builds his house unjustly, and his upper rooms unlawfully. He works his fellow without remuneration; he does not pay him for his labor.”(Yirmiyah 22:13)
The fox is classically known to be sly and cunning. Not only is it highly intelligent and keenly alert to its surroundings, but it also has a sharp appearance, with a sinuous form, a pointed maw bearing twisted, jagged teeth, and sharply-pointed ears.
The fox trots through the wild stealthily, often glancing behind to see if it is being followed. It is extremely difficult to catch. Both fast and nimble, it can leap and dodge, and slip into narrow crannies, and one species can even climb trees. The fox is also known to employ tricks to shake off pursuers. For example, it may double back over its own tracks, or it may abruptly change direction and leap away from its tracks, or it may run over a shallow creek so as not to leave any tracks at all.
The fox's burrow is typical of its craftiness. It may dig its own burrow, but more often, it will seize the burrow of smaller animals. It will then make renovations, enlarging its length to 15 or 20 feet, and adding many openings for air circulation and for escape.
Sometimes, however, the fox’s craftiness proves to be its own undoing. Indeed, cunning and wisdom do not always go together. Although the fox is omnivorous, with a widely varied diet, its nocturnal scavenging excursions often take it into nearby farmlands, and if it's lucky, into the chicken-coop. Due to this, it is a notorious pest and a long-time enemy of farmers, who will do their best to get rid of it. In addition, their practice of stealing burrows works proves to be their own undoing, as this makes it possible for hunters to outsmart them by trapping a burrow that a fox may choose to occupy.
Although the fox obviously intends no evil, it symbolizes one who takes advantage over others by trickery, and its feud with the farmers demonstrates that even the most cunning of thieves eventually pays for his greediness. Thus, the fox's song is the lamentation of the prophet Yirmiyahu: “Woe is he who builds his house unjustly, and his upper rooms unlawfully. He works his fellow without remuneration; he does not pay him for his labor.” With these words, the prophet admonishes one who hires workers to build him a mansion and then neglects to pay them. This is fittingly the song of the fox, which seizes of others’ burrows, amongst other forms of thievery. The fox's behavior brings to heart that it is the hard-working laborer who truly deserves to eat the fruit of his toil — not the cunning trickster. This is the fox’s message, and its song.
The Sages employed fox parables to convey important moral lessons. Sometimes, the fox represented the wily yetzer hara, the evil inclination; at other times, it represented how one must resort to counter-trickery to outfox the yetzer hara. Instead of allowing ourselves to become its daily prey, naïvely falling into the same pitfalls over and over, we can choose to seek ways to avoid the temptation of sin entirely. As our Sages teach, one must be cunning in the service of Hashem.
When people cannot trust one another, society falls apart. This is reflected in the Mishna in Pirkei Avot that states that the world stands on truth, justice, and peace. The glory of Yerushalayim in the times of the Beit Hamikdash was unimaginable, and it was largely due to the impeccable standard of justice and honesty that was prevalent. It was only when this standard decayed that this great metropolis fell into ruin. Quite poignantly, on account of the people's foxlike social conduct, the ruins of the holy Temple Mount became inhabited by foxes.
Hashem’s seal is truth and He abhors falsehood and guile. Trickery may appear to be profitable, but ultimately, that which is unjust cannot last in Hashem's world. We must build our lives, brick by brick, with straight honesty. It may be hard to do so at times, but the fox’s song reminds us that only such a structure is worth building.
- Sources:Pirkei Avos (2:15); Midrash Rabbah (Shir Hashirim 2:33);Berachos 17a;Shabbos 55a, 104a, and 119b; Birkas Shir;Rabbi Amitai Ben-David; Otzar HaYedios; Knaf Renanim
*In loving memory of Harav Zeev Shlomo ben Zecharia Leib
