1. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 66.24 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 66.24. וְיָצְאוּ וְרָאוּ בְּפִגְרֵי הָאֲנָשִׁים הַפֹּשְׁעִים בִּי כִּי תוֹלַעְתָּם לֹא תָמוּת וְאִשָּׁם לֹא תִכְבֶּה וְהָיוּ דֵרָאוֹן לְכָל־בָּשָׂר׃ | 66.24. And they shall go forth, and look Upon the carcasses of the men that have rebelled against Me; For their worm shall not die, Neither shall their fire be quenched; And they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. " |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Ezekiel, 38.22 (6th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 38.22. וְנִשְׁפַּטְתִּי אִתּוֹ בְּדֶבֶר וּבְדָם וְגֶשֶׁם שׁוֹטֵף וְאַבְנֵי אֶלְגָּבִישׁ אֵשׁ וְגָפְרִית אַמְטִיר עָלָיו וְעַל־אֲגַפָּיו וְעַל־עַמִּים רַבִּים אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ׃ | 38.22. And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will cause to rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone." |
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3. Anon., 1 Enoch, 10.4-10.6, 15.7, 18.15, 21.3-21.10, 38.2, 38.4, 41.2, 43.4, 45.1, 45.5, 46.4, 46.7, 48.6, 48.8, 51.4, 53.5, 54.1, 54.5-54.6, 62.9, 63.1, 90.24-90.25, 91.9, 98.3, 99.6-99.9, 99.14, 100.7, 100.9, 103.8, 104.9, 108.3-108.5 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 10.4. and his seed may be preserved for all the generations of the world.' And again the Lord said to Raphael: 'Bind Azazel hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening 10.5. in the desert, which is in Dudael, and cast him therein. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may 15.7. piritual, living the eternal life, and immortal for all generations of the world. And therefore I have not appointed wives for you; for as for the spiritual ones of the heaven, in heaven is their dwelling. 21.3. a heaven above nor a firmly founded earth, but a place chaotic and horrible. And there I saw 21.4. even stars of the heaven bound together in it, like great mountains and burning with fire. Then 21.5. I said: 'For what sin are they bound, and on what account have they been cast in hither' Then said Uriel, one of the holy angels, who was with me, and was chief over them, and said: 'Enoch, why 21.6. dost thou ask, and why art thou eager for the truth These are of the number of the stars of heaven, which have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and are bound here till ten thousand years 21.7. the time entailed by their sins, are consummated.' And from thence I went to another place, which was still more horrible than the former, and I saw a horrible thing: a great fire there which burnt and blazed, and the place was cleft as far as the abyss, being full of great descending columns of 21.8. fire: neither its extent or magnitude could I see, nor could I conjecture. Then I said: 'How 21.9. fearful is the place and how terrible to look upon!' Then Uriel answered me, one of the holy angels who was with me, and said unto me: 'Enoch, why hast thou such fear and affright' And 38.2. And when the Righteous One shall appear before the eyes of the righteous, Whose elect works hang upon the Lord of Spirits, And light shall appear to the righteous and the elect who dwell on the earth,Where then will be the dwelling of the sinners,And where the resting-place of those who have denied the Lord of Spirits It had been good for them if they had not been born. 38.4. From that time those that possess the earth shall no longer be powerful and exalted: And they shall not be able to behold the face of the holy, For the Lord of Spirits has caused His light to appear On the face of the holy, righteous, and elect. 41.2. actions of men are weighed in the balance. And there I saw the mansions of the elect and the mansions of the holy, and mine eyes saw there all the sinners being driven from thence which deny the name of the Lord of Spirits, and being dragged off: and they could not abide because of the punishment which proceeds from the Lord of Spirits. 43.4. with me who showed me what was hidden: 'What are these' And he said to me: 'The Lord of Spirits hath showed thee their parabolic meaning (lit. 'their parable'): these are the names of the holy who dwell on the earth and believe in the name of the Lord of Spirits for ever and ever.' 45.1. And this is the second Parable concerning those who deny the name of the dwelling of the holy ones and the Lord of Spirits. 45.5. And I will transform the earth and make it a blessing:And I will cause Mine elect ones to dwell upon it: But the sinners and evil-doers shall not set foot thereon. 46.4. And this Son of Man whom thou hast seen Shall raise up the kings and the mighty from their seats, [And the strong from their thrones] And shall loosen the reins of the strong, And break the teeth of the sinners. 46.7. And these are they who judge the stars of heaven, [And raise their hands against the Most High], And tread upon the earth and dwell upon it. And all their deeds manifest unrighteousness, And their power rests upon their riches, And their faith is in the gods which they have made with their hands, And they deny the name of the Lord of Spirits 48.6. And for this reason hath he been chosen and hidden before Him, Before the creation of the world and for evermore. 48.8. In these days downcast in countece shall the kings of the earth have become, And the strong who possess the land because of the works of their hands, For on the day of their anguish and affliction they shall not (be able to) save themselves. And I will give them over into the hands of Mine elect: As straw in the fire so shall they burn before the face of the holy: As lead in the water shall they sink before the face of the righteous, And no trace of them shall any more be found. 51.4. And in those days shall the mountains leap like rams, And the hills also shall skip like lambs satisfied with milk, And the faces of [all] the angels in heaven shall be lighted up with joy. 53.5. And he said unto me: ' They prepare these for the kings and the mighty of this earth, that they may thereby be destroyed. 54.1. And I looked and turned to another part of the earth, and saw there a deep valley with burning 54.1. on the earth and those who dwell under the ends of the heaven. And when they have recognized their unrighteousness which they have wrought on the earth, then by these shall they perish. 54.6. And Michael, and Gabriel, and Raphael, and Phanuel shall take hold of them on that great day, and cast them on that day into the burning furnace, that the Lord of Spirits may take vengeance on them for their unrighteousness in becoming subject to Satan and leading astray those who dwell on the earth.' 62.9. And all the kings and the mighty and the exalted and those who rule the earth Shall fall down before him on their faces, And worship and set their hope upon that Son of Man, And petition him and supplicate for mercy at his hands. 63.1. In those days shall the mighty and the kings who possess the earth implore (Him) to grant them a little respite from His angels of punishment to whom they were delivered, that they might fall 63.1. Now they shall say unto themselves: ' Our souls are full of unrighteous gain, but it does not prevent us from descending from the midst thereof into the burden of Sheol.' 90.24. And the judgement was held first over the stars, and they were judged and found guilty, and went to the place of condemnation, and they were cast into an abyss, full of fire and flaming, and full 90.25. of pillars of fire. And those seventy shepherds were judged and found guilty, and they were cast 91.9. And all the idols of the heathen shall be abandoned, And the temples burned with fire, And they shall remove them from the whole earth,And they (i.e. the heathen) shall be cast into the judgement of fire, And shall perish in wrath and in grievous judgement for ever. 98.3. Therefore they shall be wanting in doctrine and wisdom, And they shall perish thereby together with their possessions; And with all their glory and their splendour, And in shame and in slaughter and in great destitution, Their spirits shall be cast into the furnace of fire. 98.3. off your necks and slay you, and have no mercy upon you. Woe to you who rejoice in the tribulation of the righteous; for no grave shall be dug for you. Woe to you who set at nought the words of 99.7. And again I swear to you, ye sinners, that sin is prepared for a day of unceasing bloodshed. And they who worship stones, and grave images of gold and silver and wood (and stone) and clay, and those who worship impure spirits and demons, and all kinds of idols not according to knowledge, shall get no manner of help from them. 99.8. And they shall become godless by reason of the folly of their hearts, And their eyes shall be blinded through the fear of their hearts And through visions in their dreams. 99.9. Through these they shall become godless and fearful; For they shall have wrought all their work in a lie, And shall have worshiped a stone: Therefore in an instant shall they perish. 99.14. Woe to them who reject the measure and eternal heritage of their fathers And whose souls follow after idols; For they shall have no rest. 100.7. Woe to you, Sinners, on the day of strong anguish, Ye who afflict the righteous and burn them with fire: Ye shall be requited according to your works. 100.9. Woe to you, ye sinners, on account of the words of your mouth, And on account of the deeds of your hands which your godlessness as wrought, In blazing flames burning worse than fire shall ye burn. 103.8. And into darkness and chains and a burning flame where there is grievous judgement shall your spirits enter; And the great judgement shall be for all the generations of the world. Woe to you, for ye shall have no peace. 104.9. day and night, see all your sins. Be not godless in your hearts, and lie not and alter not the words of uprightness, nor charge with lying the words of the Holy Great One, nor take account of your 108.5. mountains circling and sweeping to and fro. And I asked one of the holy angels who was with me and said unto him: ' What is this shining thing for it is not a heaven but only the flame of a blazing |
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4. Septuagint, Ecclesiasticus (Siracides), 21.9 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 21.9. An assembly of the wicked is like tow gathered together,and their end is a flame of fire. |
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5. Septuagint, Judith, 16.17 (2nd cent. BCE - 0th cent. CE)
| 16.17. Woe to the nations that rise up against my people! The Lord Almighty will take vengeance on them in the day of judgment; fire and worms he will give to their flesh; they shall weep in pain for ever. |
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6. Septuagint, 4 Maccabees, 9.9, 12.12 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 9.9. but you, because of your bloodthirstiness toward us, will deservedly undergo from the divine justice eternal torment by fire. 12.12. Because of this, justice has laid up for you intense and eternal fire and tortures, and these throughout all time will never let you go. |
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7. Anon., Sibylline Oracles, 2.303-2.305 (1st cent. BCE - 5th cent. CE)
| 2.303. of impious men. And Moses, the great friend 2.304. of the Most High, shall come enrobed in flesh 2.305. 305 Also great Abraham himself shall come |
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8. New Testament, 2 Peter, 2.4, 3.10 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.4. For if God didn't spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and committed them to pits of darkness, to be reserved to judgment; 3.10. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. |
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9. New Testament, Luke, 3.9, 3.17, 8.30, 16.24 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 3.9. Even now the ax also lies at the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that doesn't bring forth good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire. 3.17. whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. 8.30. Jesus asked him, "What is your name?"He said, "Legion," for many demons had entered into him. 16.24. He cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue! For I am in anguish in this flame.' |
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10. New Testament, Mark, 5.5, 5.9 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 5.5. Always, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out, and cutting himself with stones. 5.9. He asked him, "What is your name?"He said to him, "My name is Legion, for we are many. |
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11. New Testament, Matthew, 3.10, 3.12, 13.50, 25.41 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 3.10. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn't bring forth good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire. 3.12. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire. 13.50. and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. 25.41. Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; |
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12. Babylonian Talmud, Hagigah, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 15b. לינוקא פסוק לי פסוקך א"ל (ירמיהו ד, ל) ואת שדוד מה תעשי כי תלבשי שני כי תעדי עדי זהב כי תקרעי בפוך עיניך לשוא תתיפי וגו',עייליה לבי כנישתא אחריתי עד דעייליה לתליסר בי כנישתא כולהו פסקו ליה כי האי גוונא לבתרא א"ל פסוק לי פסוקך א"ל (תהלים נ, טז) ולרשע אמר אלהים מה לך לספר חקי וגו' ההוא ינוקא הוה מגמגם בלישניה אשתמע כמה דאמר ליה ולאלישע אמר אלהים איכא דאמרי סכינא הוה בהדיה וקרעיה ושדריה לתליסר בי כנישתי ואיכא דאמרי אמר אי הואי בידי סכינא הוה קרענא ליה,כי נח נפשיה דאחר אמרי לא מידן לידייניה ולא לעלמא דאתי ליתי לא מידן לידייניה משום דעסק באורייתא ולא לעלמא דאתי ליתי משום דחטא אמר ר"מ מוטב דלידייניה וליתי לעלמא דאתי מתי אמות ואעלה עשן מקברו כי נח נפשיה דר' מאיר סליק קוטרא מקבריה דאחר,אמר ר' יוחנן גבורתא למיקלא רביה חד הוה ביננא ולא מצינן לאצוליה אי נקטיה ביד מאן מרמי ליה מאן אמר מתי אמות ואכבה עשן מקברו כי נח נפשיה דר' יוחנן פסק קוטרא מקבריה דאחר פתח עליה ההוא ספדנא אפילו שומר הפתח לא עמד לפניך רבינו,בתו של אחר אתיא לקמיה דרבי אמרה ליה רבי פרנסני אמר לה בת מי את אמרה לו בתו של אחר אני אמר לה עדיין יש מזרעו בעולם והא כתיב (איוב יח, יט) לא נין לו ולא נכד בעמו ואין שריד במגוריו אמרה לו זכור לתורתו ואל תזכור מעשיו מיד ירדה אש וסכסכה ספסלו של רבי בכה ואמר רבי ומה למתגנין בה כך למשתבחין בה על אחת כמה וכמה,ור"מ היכי גמר תורה מפומיה דאחר והאמר רבה בר בר חנה אמר רבי יוחנן מאי דכתיב (מלאכי ב, ז) כי שפתי כהן ישמרו דעת ותורה יבקשו מפיהו כי מלאך ה' צבאות הוא אם דומה הרב למלאך ה' צבאות יבקשו תורה מפיהו ואם לאו אל יבקשו תורה מפיהו,אמר ר"ל ר"מ קרא אשכח ודרש (משלי כב, יז) הט אזנך ושמע דברי חכמים ולבך תשית לדעתי לדעתם לא נאמר אלא לדעתי,רב חנינא אמר מהכא (תהלים מה, יא) שמעי בת וראי והטי אזנך ושכחי עמך ובית אביך וגו',קשו קראי אהדדי לא קשיא הא בגדול הא בקטן,כי אתא רב דימי אמר אמרי במערבא ר"מ אכל תחלא ושדא שיחלא לברא דרש רבא מאי דכתיב (שיר השירים ו, יא) אל גנת אגוז ירדתי לראות באבי הנחל וגו' למה נמשלו ת"ח לאגוז לומר לך מה אגוז זה אע"פ שמלוכלך בטיט ובצואה אין מה שבתוכו נמאס אף ת"ח אע"פ שסרח אין תורתו נמאסת,אשכחיה רבה בר שילא לאליהו א"ל מאי קא עביד הקב"ה א"ל קאמר שמעתא מפומייהו דכולהו רבנן ומפומיה דר"מ לא קאמר א"ל אמאי משום דקא גמר שמעתא מפומיה דאחר א"ל אמאי ר"מ רמון מצא תוכו אכל קליפתו זרק א"ל השתא קאמר מאיר בני אומר בזמן שאדם מצטער שכינה מה לשון אומרת קלני מראשי קלני מזרועי אם כך הקב"ה מצטער על דמן של רשעים ק"ו על דמן של צדיקים שנשפך,אשכחיה שמואל לרב יהודה דתלי בעיברא דדשא וקא בכי א"ל שיננא מאי קא בכית א"ל מי זוטרא מאי דכתיב בהו ברבנן (ישעיהו לג, יח) איה סופר איה שוקל איה סופר את המגדלים איה סופר שהיו סופרים כל אותיות שבתורה איה שוקל שהיו שוקלים קלין וחמורין שבתורה איה סופר את המגדלים שהיו שונין ג' מאות הלכות במגדל הפורח באויר,ואמר רבי אמי תלת מאה בעיי בעו דואג ואחיתופל במגדל הפורח באויר ותנן ג' מלכים וארבעה הדיוטות אין להם חלק לעולם הבא אנן מה תהוי עלן א"ל שיננא טינא היתה בלבם,אחר מאי זמר יווני לא פסק מפומיה אמרו עליו על אחר בשעה שהיה עומד מבית המדרש הרבה ספרי מינין נושרין מחיקו,שאל נימוס הגרדי את ר"מ כל עמר דנחית ליורה סליק א"ל כל מאן דהוה נקי אגב אימיה סליק כל דלא הוה נקי אגב אימיה לא סליק,ר"ע עלה בשלום וירד בשלום ועליו הכתוב אומר (שיר השירים א, ד) משכני אחריך נרוצה ואף רבי עקיבא בקשו מלאכי השרת לדוחפו אמר להם הקב"ה הניחו לזקן זה שראוי להשתמש בכבודי | 15b. ba child: Recite your verse to me. He recited to him: “And you, spoiled one, what are you doing, that you clothe yourself with scarlet, that you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, that you enlarge your eyes with paint? In vain you make yourself fair”(Jeremiah 4:30)., bHe brought him to another synagogue, until he had brought him into thirteen synagogues,where ballthe children brecited to him similarverses that speak of the hopeless situation of the wicked. bAt the last one, he said to him: Recite your verse to me. He recited to him: “And to the wicked [ ivelerasha /i] God says, what is it for you to declare My statutes”(Psalms 50:16). The Gemara relates: bThat child had a stutter,so bit sounded as though he were saying to him: iVele’elisha /i,i.e., and to Elisha, bGod says.This made Elisha think the child was deliberately insulting him. bSome say iAḥer bhad a knife, and he torethe child bapart and sent him tothe bthirteen synagogues. And others saythat iAḥermerely bsaid: Had I a knife, I would have torn him apart. /b,The Gemara relates: bWhen iAḥer bpassed away,the Heavenly Court bdeclaredthat bhe should not be judged, nor brought into the World-to-Come. He should not be judgedin a manner befitting his deeds, bbecause he occupiedhimself bwith Torah,whose merit protects him. bAnd he should not be brought into the World-to-Come because he sinned. Rabbi Meir said: It is better that he be judgedproperly band be brought into the World-to-Come. When I dieI will request this of Heaven, band I will cause smoke to rise up from his grave,as a sign that he is being sentenced in Gehenna. The Gemara relates: bWhen Rabbi Meir passed away, smoke rose up fromthe bgrave of iAḥer /i,implying that Rabbi Meir’s wish was granted., bRabbi Yoḥa said:Was this ba mightydeed on Rabbi Meir’s part, bto burn his teacher?Was this the only remedy available? Can it be that there bwas oneSage bamong uswho left the path band we cannot save him? If we hold him by the hand, who will remove himfrom our protection; bwho?Rabbi Yoḥa continued and bsaid: When I die I will havethe bsmoke extinguished from his grave,as a sign that he has been released from the sentence of Gehenna and brought to the World-to-Come. Indeed, bwhen Rabbi Yoḥa passed away,the bsmoke ceasedto rise up bfromthe bgrave of iAḥer /i. A certain eulogizerbegan his eulogy of Rabbi Yoḥa with the following: bEven the guard at the entrance could not stand before you, our rabbi.The guard at the entrance to Gehenna could not prevent Rabbi Yoḥa from arranging the release of iAḥer /i.,The Gemara relates: bThe daughter of iAḥercame before RabbiYehuda HaNasi and bsaid to him: Rabbi, provide me with sustece,as she was in need of food. bHe said to her: Whose daughter are you? She said to him: I am the daughter of iAḥer /i. He said to her,angrily: bIs there still of his seedremaining bin the world? But isn’t it stated: “He shall have neither son nor grandson among his people or any remaining in his dwellings”(Job 18:19)? bShe said to him: Remember his Torah, and do not remember his deeds. Immediately, fire descended and licked RabbiYehuda HaNasi’s bbench. RabbiYehuda HaNasi bwept and said: IfGod protects the honor of bthose who treatthe Torah bwith contemptin bsucha manner, as iAḥerdespised the Torah and relinquished its teachings, bhow much more sowould He do bfor those who treat it with honor. /b,The Gemara poses a question: bAnd Rabbi Meir, how could he learn Torah fromthe bmouth of iAḥer /i? But didn’t Rabba bar bar Ḥana saythat bRabbi Yoḥa said: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek Torah from his mouth; for he is an angel of the Lord of hosts”(Malachi 2:7)? The verse teaches: bIf the rabbi is similar to an angel of the Lord of hosts,perfect in his ways, bthey should seek Torah from his mouth; but if not, they should not seek Torah from his mouth. /b, bReish Lakish said: Rabbi Meir found a verse and interpreted it homiletically: “Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to My knowledge”(Proverbs 22:17). bIt does not state “to their knowledge,” but “to My knowledge.”In other words, one must listen to the words of bthe Sages,despite their flaws, provided that their opinion concurs with that of God., bRav Ḥanina saidthat one can find support for this idea bfrom here: “Listen, daughter and consider, and incline your ear; forget also your own people and your father’s house”(Psalms 45:11), which likewise indicates that one must listen to the words of a Sage while forgetting, i.e., ignoring, the faulty aspects of his teachings.,The Gemara asks: If so, bthe verses contradict each other,for one source states that one may learn only from a scholar who is perfect in his ways, while the other indicates that it is permitted even to learn from one whose character is flawed. The Gemara answers: This is bnot difficult. Thiscase, in which it is permitted to a flawed scholar, is referring bto an adult;whereas bthatcase, which prohibits doing so, is referring bto a minor,who should learn only from a righteous person, so that his ways are not corrupted by a teacher with flawed character., bWhen Rav Dimi camefrom Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, bhe said: In the West,Eretz Yisrael, they bsay: Rabbi Meir ate a half-ripe date and threw the peel away.In other words, he was able to extract the important content from the inedible shell. bRava taught: What isthe meaning of that bwhich is written: “I went down into the garden of nuts, to look at the green plants of the valley”(Song of Songs 6:11)? bWhy are Torah scholars compared to nuts? To tell you: Just as this nut, despite being soiled with mud and excrement, its content is not made repulsive,as only its shell is soiled; bso too a Torah scholar, although he has sinned, his Torah is not made repulsive. /b,The Gemara relates: bRabba bar Sheila found Elijahthe prophet, who had appeared to him. He bsaid toElijah: bWhat is the Holy One, Blessed be He, doing?Elijah bsaid to him: He is stating ihalakhottransmitted by all of the Sages, but in the name of Rabbi Meir He will not speak. He said to him: Why?He replied: bBecause he learned ihalakhotfrom the mouth of iAḥer /i. He said to him: Whyshould he be judged unfavorably for that? bRabbi Meir found a pomegranateand bate its contentswhile bthrowing away its peel. He said to him:Indeed, your defense has been heard above. bNowGod bis saying: My son, Meir, says: When a person suffers,e.g., by receiving lashes or the death penalty at the hands of the court, bhow does the Divine Presence express itself? Woe is Me from My head, woe is Me from My arm,as God empathizes with the sufferer. bIf the Holy One, Blessed be He, suffersto bsuchan extent bover the blood of the wicked, how much more sodoes He suffer bover the blood of the righteous that is spilled. /b,The Gemara relates: bShmuel found Rav Yehuda leaning on the bar of the door, crying. He said to him: Long-toothed one [ ishina /i], what are you cryingfor? bHe said to him: Isit ba smallmatter, bthat which is written with regard to Sageswho have sinned: b“Where is he who counted, where is he who weighed? Where is he who counted the towers?”(Isaiah 33:18). He proceeded to explain: b“Where is he who counted”; for they would count all the letters of the Torah. “Where is he who weighed”; for they would weighand compare the bminor and majortransgressions bof the Torah. “Where is he who counted the towers”; for they would teach three hundred ihalakhot /iconcerning the details of tent impurity binvolvinga wooden bcloset floating in the air.If they studied a subject so removed from reality in such depths, how much more so did they analyze other issues., bAnd Rabbi Ami said: Doeg asked Ahithophel three hundred questions with regard to a closet floating in the air,as they were both great Torah scholars. bAnd we learnedin a mishna ( iSanhedrin90a): bThree kings and four commoners have no portion in the World-to-Come,a list that includes Doeg and Ahithophel. If such great Sages could sin and forfeit their share in the World-to-Come, bwe,who are less knowledgeable than they, bwhat will be of us? He said to him: Long-toothed one, there was mud [ itina /i] in their hearts,i.e., they had certain flaws that prevented their Torah learning from protecting them.,The Gemara explains: iAḥer /i, whatwas his failing? bGreek tunes never ceased from his mouth.He would constantly hum Greek songs, even when he was among the Sages. This shows that from the outset he was drawn to gentile culture and beliefs. Similarly, bthey said about iAḥer /i: When he would standafter learning bin the study hall, many heretical books,which he had been reading, would bfall from his lap.Therefore, he was somewhat unsound even when among the Sages.,The gentile philosopher, bNimos HaGardi, asked Rabbi Meir:Does ball wool that enters the cauldronto be dyed bemerge colored?In other words, do all those who learn Torah emerge as decent and worthy? bHe said to him: Whoever was clean whenhe was bwith his mother,from the outset, will bemergedecent and worthy, but ballthose who were bnot clean whenthey were bwith their motherwill bnot emergeworthy. One who approaches Torah study having been flawed from the outset will not be properly influenced by it.,§ The Gemara returns to the four who entered the orchard. It is stated above that bRabbi Akiva ascended in safety and descended safely. With regard to him, the verse states: “Draw me, we will run after you;the king has brought me into his chambers” (Song of Songs 1:4). The Gemara relates: bAnd even Rabbi Akiva, the ministering angels sought to pushhim out of the orchard. bThe Holy One, Blessed be He, said to them: Leave this Elder, for he is fit to serve My glory. /b |
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13. Anon., 3 Baruch, 4.16
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14. Anon., 4 Ezra, 7.33, 7.36-7.38
| 7.33. And the Most High shall be revealed upon the seat of judgment, and compassion shall pass away, and patience shall be withdrawn; 7.36. Then the pit of torment shall appear, and opposite it shall be the place of rest; and the furnace of hell shall be disclosed, and opposite it the paradise of delight. 7.37. Then the Most High will say to the nations that have been raised from the dead, `Look now, and understand whom you have denied, whom you have not served, whose commandments you have despised! 7.38. Look on this side and on that; here are delight and rest, and there are fire and torments!' Thus he will speak to them on the day of judgment -- |
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15. Anon., Joseph And Aseneth, 12.11
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