When we talk about the Good Samaritan, we usually miss the whole point of the story. In normal conversation a “good Samaritan” is a person who does something they didn’t have to, some unexpected good deed. I don’t think that’s how it ought to be.
“You shall not stand upon the blood of your neighbor” Leviticus 19:16. This is an idiom that means to stand idly by while someone dies, or even suffers any kind of harm. If you can prevent someone from losing money, or from being hurt physically, both of those fall under this commandment (R. Israel Meir Kagan, ztz”l, The Concise Book of Mitzvoth, negative commandment 82). The Torah doesn’t view this as an additional good deed, but as something necessary.
When R. Yeshua tells the story of the Good Samaritan he is telling us about a commandment. No matter how good our excuse is, we have a duty to save lives. He doesn’t end with “This is a good idea,” but with “Go and do the same.” Luke 10:37
Any time we see a person in danger, even if it’s only in danger of being hurt, it is our duty to do whatever we can to help them, or prevent them from getting hurt. If we can warn them, we should warn them. If we can’t stop someone from getting hurt, we are should help them, and if someone is killed, we should do everything in our power to bring the responsible party to justice, and to take care of the remains of the deceased.
It might be pointed out that this even requires us to do things ahead of time to prevent loss of life. We may need to take safety precautions, learn first aid, or donate blood to make certain that we do not stand upon the blood of our neighbor.
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