The principals taught by R’ Yishmael in the breisa at the beginning of sifra include thirteen methods of learning specific halachos from the context of a specific pasuk.  These range from the more familiar “Kal V’chomer“ (If something is true in such a circumstance, it is obviously true in a more extreme example) and “Gezeira Shava” (where we learn halachos from one circumstance to another different circumstance because of the use of an identical word or phrase in both).  There are also more complicated methods of application including Klal U’prat U’klal (A general halacha followed by a specific example followed by a confirmation of the general halacha) and Prat U’klal U’prat (A specific example of a prohibition followed by a general rule followed by another specific example).  These manifestations of P’sukim find themselves in multiple places throughout the Torah and the Gemara uses them to determine practical applications.  In this weeks Parsha however, we have an anomaly.  In the Aseres Hadibros, by the Isssur of Lo Sachmod (One shall not covet), we have the only example in the Torah of a Prat, Prat, Prat, Prat, Prat Prat U’klal – 6 Specific examples of a prohibition followed by a general rule which seemingly would cover all of the prior specific examples.

 The Pauk says (Yisro 20:14) “One shall not covet his neighbors house, nor his wife, nor his servant nor his maidservant, his ox , his donkey nor anything that he has”.  This unprecedented language of six specific examples of things you shall not covet followed by a general rule that one shall not covet anything of his neighbors must lead to some grand deducements of specialized halachos. Except it doesn’t.   The gemara ascribes no particular or expansive limud from such an unusual formatting of the Pasuk.  What then could be the reason that Hashem chose to frame this bedrock halacha in the Aseres Hadibros in such an unusual format?

I heard many years ago a beautiful explanation for the use of this structure by this Mitzvah.  There is an ancient aphorism that explains that if 10 people were seated around a table and each person emptied their “bag” of all their good things as well as all their trials and tribulations onto the table, upon looking around the table at everyone else “lot”, virtually everyone would choose to take their own bag back as opposed to swapping it with somebody else.  Perhaps that is the message the Torah is trying to convey – You covet your friends house? You want his servants? You get “V’chal Asher Lereiecha”, you get all his trails and tribulations as well.  You get his fantastic house but you also get the illnesses and other misfortunes he has.  It’s a package deal.  As the Mishna in Avos explains, a happy person is one who is satisfied with what he has.   The grass is not always greener.  We all have good in our life and we also all have challenges.  The measure is how we deal with the package.  Appreciating the good while tackling the challenges.  That is what defines us.  There can be no better place for this profound Limud than in the Aseres Hadibros.