A Short Tribute

"Hillel says: Do not separate yourself from the community. Do not believe in yourself until the day of your death." As for the connection between these two sayings, one might consider that a righteous person's credit protects that generation. Meaning that when the People of Israel are united and can be considered as a single body, they share in each other's credit. But if their hearts are separate and there is no unity between them, then each one is considered on their own and the credit of one is of no benefit to the other… This is what is meant by Hillel's saying "Do not separate yourself from the community". It means that one should not be in conflict with the community or be detached from it, the reason being "Do not believe in yourself until the day of your death" – as if to say that you will have no transgressions for which to be punished. For even if at this moment you have no transgressions, you may have transgressions at some other time, and if you are in unity with the community, you will benefit from the credit of righteous people.