The Haftarah for Rosh Chodesh Av That Falls on Shabbos
[1] (Halacha 867)
Question: Which haftarah do we read on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av that falls on Shabbos, which is also the second Shabbos of the three haftaros of calamity (purayanusa)?
Answer: In order to clarify the minhag in this matter, we must preface that there are three haftaros that have a connection to this Shabbos: 1) On every Shabbos Rosh Chodesh we read a haftarah in which Rosh Chodesh is mentioned, the haftarah of 'HaShamayim Kis'i' (The heavens are My throne)1. 2) The third haftarah of calamity, the haftarah of 'Chazon Yeshayahu' (The vision of Yeshayahu)2, in which the matter of the month is mentioned - 'Your new moons and your appointed seasons My soul hates'. 3) The haftarah of the second Shabbos of calamity, which is the haftarah of 'Shimu devar Hashem' (Hear the word of Hashem)3.
a) The Gemara in Maseches Megillah4 says: 'Rosh Chodesh that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another" .. Rav Huna said: Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "Your new moons and your appointed seasons My soul hates; they are a burden upon Me". What is meant by "they are a burden upon Me"? The Holy One, blessed be He, said: It is not enough for Israel that they sin before Me, but they also trouble Me to know which harsh decree to bring upon them'.
So too wrote the Rambam5 'Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "Your new moons and your appointed seasons My soul hates"'.
b) However, Tosfos in Megillah6 and the Mordechai7 wrote on the words of the Gemara: 'But we do not do so; rather we read as haftarah in Yirmiyahu "Hear the word of Hashem", and on the Shabbos before Tishah B'Av "Chazon Yeshayahu". And the reason is that we follow the Pesikta to recite three haftaros of calamity before Tishah B'Av, and these are "Divrei Yirmiyahu", "Shimu devar Hashem", "Chazon Yeshayahu", and after Tishah B'Av seven of consolation and two of repentance .. and your mnemonic is Dalet-Shin-Ches, Nun-Vav-Ayin, Aleph-Resh-Kuf, Shin-Dalet-Shin .. and this minhag will never change, in accordance with the Pesikta, and so explained Rabbeinu Tam .. And the reason we do not read "Chazon" as haftarah on the Shabbos on which Rosh Chodesh Av falls is because we hold that mourning takes effect only in the week in which Tishah B'Av falls, and Rav who said that we read "Chazon" as haftarah holds that mourning takes effect immediately when Rosh Chodesh enters, but the halacha is not so, and so explained Rabbeinu Eliezer of Metz, and therefore we read "Shimu" as haftarah'.
So too wrote the Abudraham8: 'But the haftaros of Dalet-Shin-Ches, Nun-Vav-Ayin, Aleph-Resh-Kuf, Shin-Dalet-Shin are never exchanged for others'.
c) On the other hand, Tosfos in Pesachim9 wrote: 'And in several matters we rely on external books and set aside our Gemara, for in the last chapter of Megillah we say: Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "Your new moons and your appointed seasons", which is "Chazon Yeshayahu", but we read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i", and so it is in the Pesikta'.
So too wrote the Terumas HaDeshen10: 'It appears that in every place where there is a known minhag as to what it is, one should not change it at all, for in this matter there is a dispute among the earlier and later authorities, and so "each river follows its own course"; but in a place where there is no known minhag, it appears that one should read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i" as I will explain, for in the chapter Benei HaIr we read: Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "Your new moons and your appointed seasons My soul hates", which is the haftarah of "Chazon Yeshayahu", and Tosfos in the chapter Kol Sha'ah wrote that we set aside our Talmud and rely on the Pesikta and read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i" .. and in this vein the Maharam mentioned, and he concludes there as well that we read as haftarah "HaShamayim". However, in the Semag, and likewise in the Ashiri and Mordechai, chapter Benei HaIr, it is written in these terms that we rely on the Pesikta and read as haftarah "Shimu", with the mnemonic Dalet-Shin-Ches. And in the Or Zarua it is also implied that we do not read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i", since he needed to write two or three reasons regarding Rosh Chodesh Elul that falls on Shabbos that we read as haftarah "HaShamayim", and those reasons do not apply here. And behold, one of the great authorities wrote in his minhogim that one should read "Shimu" as haftarah, like the words of the Semag and Ashiri and Mordechai, and as is implied in the Or Zarua, however, one of the great authorities, his colleague, disagreed with him, and testified that there was already an incident in Vienna where they asked a great authority who was leading there during that chapter of the year what to read as haftarah, and at first he said to read "Shimu" as haftarah, as it is found in the rulings of the Geonim mentioned above, and one of his students said to him that Tosfos in the chapter Kol Sha'ah wrote to read "HaShamayim" as haftarah, and he retracted and said: Since we drink from the waters of Tosfos, we should follow them, and on the basis of that incident one of the great authorities mentioned above directed to read "HaShamayim" as haftarah, like the words of Tosfos, and it appears that this is the main view. And although I have heard that in the Tosfos of Benei HaIr it is found that one should read "Shimu" as haftarah, I do not know whether it is the Tosfos of Shantz or the Tosfos of the other Geonim, and we drink from the waters of the Tosfos of Shantz, which the Maharam of Touques abridged, and moreover, we see that the Maharam, who is among the later authorities, also wrote thus, and so he concludes in a gloss on the Maimon that we are accustomed to read "HaShamayim" as haftarah. And it further appears that since the earlier and later authorities are divided on this matter, one should decide based on another reasoning, and we should adopt another rule that we state everywhere: a frequent matter and a non-frequent matter — the frequent matter comes first, and the mention of Rosh Chodesh is more frequent than the mention of the calamity of Tishah B'Av'.
d) The Beis Yosef11 agreed with Tosfos in Megillah and the Abudraham, except that he wrote that one must add (on the seven of consolation) the first and last pasuk of "HaShamayim Kis'i": 'And Rav R. David Abudraham wrote that one does not skip the three of calamity and the seven of consolation for any other haftarah at all, and he was very expert in these matters, and therefore it is fitting to rely on his words, and so we are accustomed to read the seven of consolation as haftarah even when Rosh Chodesh falls on Shabbos, and after they finish the haftarah they recite the first pasuk of the haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i" and the pasuk "And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another" as a remembrance that today is Rosh Chodesh'.
And the Rema in Darchei Moshe12 wrote: 'And Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, according to the words of the Abudraham it is implied that we read as haftarah "Shimu" and not "HaShamayim Kis'i", and so ruled the Mordechai in the chapter Benei HaIr, and so it is in our minhogim13, but in the minhagim of the Maharak14 he wrote that we read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i", and so too wrote the Mahari in the Terumas HaDeshen, siman 19, that in a place where there is no minhag one should read "HaShamayim Kis'i" as haftarah, and in a place where there is a minhag one should follow the minhag. And to me it appears that one should do as the words of the Beis Yosef, to read as haftarah "Shimu" and one pasuk from "HaShamayim Kis'i" and the pasuk "from one new moon to another", and in this way we fulfill the views of all, and specifically in a place where they were accustomed to read two haftaros, but in a place where they were not accustomed thus, one should read only "Shimu" as haftarah.
Thus we have seen: a) That in the Gemara it is written that on Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av that falls on Shabbos we read as haftarah the haftarah of "Chazon Yeshayahu". b) Tosfos in Megillah and the Abudraham wrote to read as haftarah "Shimu devar Hashem". c) Tosfos in Pesachim and the Terumas HaDeshen wrote to read as haftarah "HaShamayim Kis'i". d) The Beis Yosef wrote to read "Shimu" as haftarah and to add the first and last pasuk of "HaShamayim Kis'i". (And the Rema agreed with him, unless it is a place where the minhag was to read only "Shimu" as haftarah, in which case one should not add).
In the next halacha we will see how the practice is conducted in actuality.
Footnotes:
1 ישעיהו סו ↩
2 ישעיהו א ↩
3 ירמיהו ב ↩
4 לא, א ↩
5 הל' תפילה פי"ג ה"ד, (אלא שלדעת הרמב"ם הפטרה זו היא בלא"ה גם ההפטרה של השבת השניה של פורענותא ראה שם הי"ט, אלא החידוש הוא שאינו קורא השמים כסאי כבשאר ר"ח), וכתב בהגהות מיימוניות: 'וכן איתא פרק בני העיר *וכן צוה רבינו אפרים וכן רבי יצחק ב"ר יהודה יצא מבית הכנסת בכעס שלא שמעו לו לעשות כן בגרמיז"א* וכתב רבינו שמחה אבל מה נעשה המנהג עוקר את ההלכה ומפטיר דש"ח כסדרן וכ"כ בספר המצות שר"ח אב שחל להיות בשבת שנהגו להפטיר שמעו דבר ה' אמנם אנו נוהגים להפטיר השמים כסאי ע"כ' ↩
6 שם ד"ה ר"ח אב ↩
7 מגילה רמז תתלא, וראה גם הגמ"י שבהע' 5 ↩
8 סדר הפרשיות וההפטרות ↩
9 מ, ב ד"ה אבל עושהו ↩
10 סי' יט ↩
11 או"ח סי' תכה ↩
12 שם ס"ק ג ↩
13 מנהגי טירנא מנהג חדש אב עמוד עז ↩
14 מנהג חדש אב עמוד ע"ב הגהה ב ↩
[2] (Halacha 868)
In the previous halacha we saw the various opinions regarding the haftarah read on this Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos.
In terms of practical halacha the Rema1 wrote: 'Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, we read as haftarah "Shimu", and some say "HaShamayim Kis'i", and so is the main view in a place where there is no minhag'.
And the Levush2 wrote: 'Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, in most places they are accustomed to read as haftarah "Shimu" and not "HaShamayim Kis'i", for "HaShamayim Kis'i" does not displace the mnemonic Dalet-Shin-Ches of the three of calamity, and it is not comparable to Rosh Chodesh Elul that falls on Shabbos, where they displace "Aniyah So'arah" and recite "HaShamayim Kis'i", for "Aniyah So'arah" is different in that it comes for the sake of consolation, one of the seven of consolation, and "HaShamayim Kis'i" also contains consolation, and moreover "Aniyah So'arah" has a make-up reading, as will be explained below in siman 581, and these two reasons do not apply to the haftarah of "Shimu", which is one of the three of calamity and has no make-up reading; therefore it is not displaced by "HaShamayim Kis'i". Nevertheless, some say that in a place where there is no fixed minhag one should recite "HaShamayim Kis'i" (and so they were accustomed in Posen)3 so as not to slight this Rosh Chodesh so much; and in a place where they have a minhag, they follow their minhag'.
Thus we have seen that there are those who held that the main view is the haftarah of Rosh Chodesh, "HaShamayim Kis'i", and the Aruch HaShulchan4 explained [regarding Rosh Chodesh Elul]: 'And moreover, since the maftir reads in the Torah from that of Rosh Chodesh, he must also read the haftarah of Rosh Chodesh', and he concludes: 'And so too regarding the three of calamity, such as Rosh Chodesh Av that falls on Shabbos, some say that the one of Rosh Chodesh is displaced, and some say that "Shimu" is displaced and we read "HaShamayim Kis'i", and so is the main view as a matter of law in a place where there is no minhag to the contrary, and so they were accustomed in Posen [Levush and Magen Avraham], and so we are accustomed, because that is the main view, but the haftarah of "Machar Chodesh" is certainly displaced, whether on account of "Shimu" or on account of "Aniyah So'arah", since it has no Torah reading'.
[And for those who are accustomed to recite "HaShamayim Kis'i", there are those who were accustomed to recite, on the Shabbos preceding the Shabbos of Rosh Chodesh, also the haftarah of "Shimu"5].
However, the Eliyah Rabbah6, and the Dagul MeRevavah7 wrote that in Prague they were accustomed to read "Shimu" as haftarah. And so too wrote the Gra8 that the minhag is to read "Shimu" as haftarah. And so too wrote the Maharikash9, and the Chida10 that this is how one should conduct oneself.
Chabad minhag:
In the Sefer HaMinhagim11 it is written: 'Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av: "Shimu". And in the footnote it is explained: 'Reshimos al Megillas Eichah p. 61, the note of the Rebbe שליט"א there is copied here: For the opinions on this, see Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim siman 425 and in the commentaries on it. Shaarei Efraim, sha'ar 9, se'if 22. And in my Reshimos from the year 5690, when Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av also fell on Shabbos, the wording is: Motzaei Shabbos Kodesh, 9 Menachem Av 5690, may it be transformed into joy, Berlin. I was by my father-in-law the Rebbe שליט"א. He was lying on the sofa. He related concerning the minhag of reciting the haftarah on Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av: My revered father once recited "HaShamayim Kis'i". Some years later, when Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av again fell on Shabbos, he recited "Shimu devar Hashem". And he said then that he regretted having recited "HaShamayim Kis'i" some years earlier'.
And so the Rebbe directed R. Sh. Levitin to conduct himself in the year 5710, and so the Rebbe himself conducted in the year 571412.
Afterward, in a sicha on the night before Erev Shabbos Kodesh, Erev Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av, 573413 the Rebbe introduced14 to conduct oneself also according to the words of the Beis Yosef [regarding Elul], and the Darchei Moshe [regarding Menachem Av] - and to add the first and last pasuk of the haftarah of Rosh Chodesh: 'A further matter concerning the conduct of this Shabbos, Shabbos Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av: The Chabad minhag is to recite (in public) the haftarah of "Shimu", and not the haftarah of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh, and as is well known the story regarding this from the Rebbe נ"ע concerning it. Nevertheless – according to the Chabad minhag whereby on a Shabbos that falls on the first day of Rosh Chodesh we add the first and last pasuk of the haftarah of "Machar Chodesh" (as is the minhag of the Sephardim - see Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim siman 425 se'if 2) - it stands to reason to say that on this Shabbos too, after the haftarah of "Shimu", they should add the first and last pasuk of the haftarah of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh. And all the more so, since there are opinions [and so conducted (once) the Rebbe נ"ע, as brought in the aforementioned story] to recite on this Shabbos the haftarah of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh. (Seemingly one might have said that since the haftarah of "Shimu" is from the "three of calamity" there is no room to add after it the pesukim of the haftarah of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh. But this is not so, for in the haftaros of "Bein HaMetzarim" too there are also matters of joy. To the extent that the conclusion and end of the haftarah of "Chazon Yeshayahu" [which within the "three of calamity" itself is the last, etc. And see Tosfos Megillah (31b) that for this reason 'we do not read "Chazon" as haftarah on the Shabbos on which Rosh Chodesh Av falls, because we hold that mourning, etc.'] is "Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and her returnees with righteousness". And even though the addition to the haftarah of Shabbos Rosh Chodesh is also in a matter of Rosh Chodesh, which is not the case in our matter — nevertheless, the addition of "Sos asis" is likewise a new matter (see Rema, Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim, end of siman 425)'.
And so the Rebbe conducted in practice in such a configuration in the years 5734 and 5737.
However, afterward in the year 5741 in such a configuration the Rebbe did not add the pesukim of "HaShamayim Kis'i"15.
But afterward in a likut that came out in Chanukah 575216 the Rebbe states plainly: 'And similarly for us, who read as haftarah "Shimu" on Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av - one should add the pesukim of "HaShamayim Kis'i"'.
Thus, in practice, in such a configuration where Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av falls on Shabbos, the minhag of the Sephardim17, and likewise the minhag of Chabad, is that we read as haftarah "Shimu" and add the first and last pasuk of "HaShamayim Kis'i".
--------------
Footnotes:
1 שו"ע או"ח סי' תכה ס"א בהג"ה ↩
2 או"ח סי' תקמט ס"א ↩
3 וכתב החת"ס בהגהות על השו"ע שכן נוהגים ↩
4 או"ח סי' תכה ס"ה ↩
5 ראה הנסמן בפסקי תשובות סי' תכה הע' 15 ↩
6 או"ח סי' תקמט ס"ק ג ↩
7 או"ח סי' תכה ↩
8 אות ז. ובאות ח כתב שמ"ש התוס' בפסחים שמפטירים השמים כסאי זה טעות סופר: 'ותוס' דפרק כל שעה טעות סופר הוא שהרי כתבו שם וכן הוא בפסיקתא, והביאו במגילה ושם הוא שמעו .. וכן פסק הרא"ש שם ומרדכי וסמ"ג ודבריהם ידוע שהן ע"פ תוס' שלנו ולא הזכירו כלל תוס' דפרק כל שעה וכ' תה"ד שכן משמע באו"ז כס' ראשונה וכ"ה במנהגים שלנו וכ"פ בדרכי משה'. (אך להעיר ממ"ש בשו"ת הר"א ארלוזורוב (כת"י) סי' קכז) ↩
9 או"ח סי' תכה ↩
10 לדוד אמת סי' כא אות ג. וכ"כ כף החיים סי' תכה סק"י ↩
11 סדר ההפטרות עמוד 33 ↩
12 ימי בראשית ע' 201 הערה 3 ↩
13 לקו"ש חי"ג ע' 278 ↩
14 וראה ימי בראשית שם בהערה ↩
15 ולהעיר שהרבי אמר את ההפטרה של השבת שלפני כן - 'דברי ירמיהו', ולאחמ"כ הפטרת שמעו, ובהתוועדות שלאחמ"כ (שיחו"ק תשמ"א ש"פ מסעי סכ"ג ואילך) הרבי הבהיר לגבי זה שקרא ג"כ את הפטרת דברי ירמיהו שלא ילמדו מזה. לאחמ"כ ביומן שנת הקהל תשמ"א ע' 161 כתבו שהרבי אמר ג"כ את הפסוק הראשון והאחרון של השמים כסאי, ובש"פ וארא התשמ"ב סל"ג (תו"מ ח"ב ע' 747) הרבי התייחס לזה ואמר שלהד"ם ↩
16 לקו"ש חל"ה ע' 190 ↩
17 ראה הע' 10 וראה ג"כ מה שהאריך בזה בשו"ת יחוה דעת ח"ד סי' לה לבאר שכן דעת המחבר, ושכן נהגו הספרדים ↩
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