| 93b. אלא שש סאין,וכי דרכה של אשה ליטול שש סאין אלא רמז [רמז] לה שעתידין ששה בנים לצאת ממנה שמתברכין בשש [שש] ברכות ואלו הן דוד ומשיח דניאל חנניה מישאל ועזריה דוד דכתיב (שמואל א טז, יח) ויען אחד מהנערים ויאמר הנה ראיתי בן לישי בית הלחמי יודע נגן וגבור חיל ואיש מלחמה ונבון דבר ואיש תואר וה' עמו וגו',ואמר רב יהודה אמר רב כל הפסוק הזה לא אמרו דואג אלא בלשון הרע יודע נגן שיודע לישאל גבור שיודע להשיב איש מלחמה שיודע לישא וליתן במלחמתה של תורה (איש תואר שמראה פנים בהלכה ונבון דבר שמבין דבר מתוך דבר) וה' עמו שהלכה כמותו בכל מקום,בכולהו אמר להו יהונתן בני כמוהו כיון דאמר ליה [וה' עמו] מילתא דבדידיה נמי לא הוה ביה חלש דעתיה ואיקניא ביה דבשאול כתיב (שמואל א יד, מז) ובכל אשר יפנה ירשיע ובדוד כתיב ובכל אשר יפנה יצליח,מנלן דדואג הוה כתיב הכא (שמואל א טז, יח) ויען אחד מהנערים מיוחד שבנערים וכתיב התם (שמואל א כא, ח) ושם איש מעבדי שאול ביום ההוא נעצר לפני ה' ושמו דואג האדומי אביר הרועים אשר לשאול,משיח דכתיב (ישעיהו יא, ב) ונחה עליו רוח ה' רוח חכמה ובינה רוח עצה וגבורה רוח דעת ויראת ה' וגו' וכתיב (ישעיהו יא, ג) והריחו ביראת ה',אמר רבי אלכסנדרי מלמד שהטעינו מצות ויסורין כריחיים רבא אמר דמורח ודאין דכתיב (ישעיהו יא, ג) ולא למראה עיניו ישפוט (ישעיהו יא, ד) ושפט בצדק דלים והוכיח במישור לענוי ארץ,בר כוזיבא מלך תרתין שנין ופלגא אמר להו לרבנן אנא משיח אמרו ליה במשיח כתיב דמורח ודאין נחזי אנן אי מורח ודאין כיון דחזיוהו דלא מורח ודאין קטלוהו,דניאל חנניה מישאל ועזריה דכתיב בהו (דניאל א, ד) אשר אין בהם כל מאום וטובי מראה ומשכילים בכל חכמה ויודעי דעת ומביני מדע ואשר כח בהם לעמוד בהיכל המלך וללמדם ספר ולשון כשדים,מאי אשר אין בהם כל מום אמר רבי חמא (בר חנניא) אפילו כריבדא דכוסילתא לא הוה בהו מאי ואשר כח בהם לעמוד בהיכל המלך אמר רבי חמא ברבי חנינא מלמד שהיו אונסין את עצמן מן השחוק ומן השיחה ומן השינה ומעמידין על עצמן בשעה שנצרכין לנקביהם מפני אימת מלכות,(דניאל א, ו) ויהיו בהם מבני יהודה דניאל חנניה מישאל ועזריה אמר רבי (אליעזר) כולן מבני יהודה הם ורבי שמואל בר נחמני אמר דניאל מבני יהודה חנניה מישאל ועזריה משאר שבטים,(ישעיהו לט, ז) ומבניך אשר יצאו ממך אשר תוליד יקחו והיו סריסים בהיכל מלך בבל מאי סריסים רב אמר סריסים ממש ורבי חנינא אמר שנסתרסה ע"ז בימיהם,בשלמא למאן דאמר שנסתרסה ע"ז בימיהם היינו דכתיב (דניאל ג, כה) וחבל לא איתי בהון אלא למאן דאמר סריסים ממש מאי וחבל לא איתי בהון חבלא דנורא והכתיב (דניאל ג, כז) וריח נור לא עדת בהן לא חבלא ולא ריחא,בשלמא למאן דאמר שנסתרסה ע"ז בימיהם היינו דכתיב (ישעיהו נו, ד) כה אמר ה' לסריסים אשר ישמרו את שבתותי וגו' אלא למאן דאמר סריסים ממש משתעי קרא בגנותא דצדיקי הא והא הוה בהו,בשלמא למאן דאמר סריסים ממש היינו דכתיב (ישעיהו נו, ה) בביתי ובחומותי יד ושם טוב מבנים ומבנות אלא למאן דאמר שנסתרסה ע"ז בימיהם מאי טוב מבנים ומבנות אמר רב נחמן בר יצחק מבנים שהיו להם כבר ומתו מאי שם עולם אתן לו אשר לא יכרת אמר ר' תנחום דרש בר קפרא בצפורי זה ספר דניאל שנקרא על שמו,מכדי כל מילי דעזרא נחמיה בן חכליה אמרינהו ונחמיה בן חכליה מ"ט לא איקרי סיפרא על שמיה אמר רבי ירמיה בר אבא מפני שהחזיק טובה לעצמו שנאמר (נחמיה ה, יט) זכרה לי אלהי לטובה דוד נמי מימר אמר (תהלים קו, ד) זכרני ה' ברצון עמך פקדני בישועתך דוד רחמי הוא דקבעי,רב יוסף אמר מפני שסיפר בגנותן של ראשונים שנאמר (נחמיה ה, טו) והפחות הראשונים אשר לפני הכבידו על העם ויקחו מהם בלחם ויין אחד כסף שקלים ארבעים וגו' ואף על דניאל שגדול ממנו סיפר,ומנלן דגדול ממנו דכתיב (דניאל י, ז) וראיתי אני דניאל לבדי את המראה והאנשים אשר היו עמי לא ראו את המראה אבל חרדה גדולה נפלה עליהם ויברחו בהחבא והאנשים אשר היו עמי לא ראו את המראה ומאן נינהו אנשים אמר רבי ירמיה ואיתימא ר' חייא בר אבא זה חגי זכריה ומלאכי | 93b. bRather,he gave her bsix ise’a /i. /b,The Gemara asks: bAnd isit bthetypical bmanner of a woman to takea heavy burden of bsix ise’a /iof barley? bRather,Boaz balluded toRuth bthat six descendants are destined to emerge from her who would each be blessed with six blessings, and these are they: David, andthe bMessiah, Daniel, Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah.The Gemara elaborates: bDavidwas blessed with six virtues, bas it is written: “And one of the servants answered and said: Behold, I have seen a son of Yishai of the house of Bethlehem who knows to play, and is a fine warrior, and a man of war, and prudent in speech, and a comely man, and the Lord is with him”(I Samuel 16:18)., bRav Yehuda saysthat bRav says: Doegthe Edomite, one of Saul’s servants, bstated this entire verse only as malicious speech,in an attempt to incite Saul to be jealous of David. b“Who knows how to play”means bthat he knowshow bto askcomplex and germane questions about Torah matters. “A fine bwarrior”means bthat he knowshow bto answerquestions raised with regard to matters of Torah. b“A man of war,”means bthat he knows to negotiatehis way bin the battleto understand the bTorah. “A comely man”is one bwho displays understanding infacets of ihalakha /iand explains it well. b“And prudent in speech [ idavar /i]”means bthat he infersone bmatter [ idavar /i] fromanother bmatter. “And the Lord is with him”means bthat the ihalakhaisruled bin accordance with hisopinion bin every areaof ihalakha /i.,The Gemara relates: bInresponse to ball ofthese virtues listed in praise of David, Saul bsaid tohis servants: bMy son Jonathan is his equal. OnceDoeg bsaid toSaul: b“And the Lord is with him,”meaning that the ihalakhais ruled in accordance with his opinion in every area of ihalakha /i, ba matter that did notapply beven toSaul bhimself, he was offended and grew jealousof David. bAs with regard to Saul it is written: “And wherever he turned he put them to the worse”(I Samuel 14:47), band with regard to David it is written: And wherever he turns he does prosper.Although the verse about Saul is referring to his victories and his prominence in Torah, he was not privileged to have all of his conclusions accepted as ihalakha /i.,The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive bthatit bwas Doegwho listed the virtues in this verse? The Gemara answers that bit is written here: “And one [ ieḥad /i] of the servants answered,”meaning bthe most notable [ imeyuḥad /i] of the servants. And it is written there: “And a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord, and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of the herdsmen that belonged to Saul”(I Samuel 21:8).,The bMessiahwas blessed with six virtues, bas it is written: “And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord”(Isaiah 11:2); band it is written: “And his delight [ ivahariḥo /i] shall be the fear of the Lord,and he shall neither judge after the sight of his eyes, nor decide after the hearing of his ears” (Isaiah 11:3)., bRabbi Alexandri saysthat the term ihariḥo bteaches thatGod bburdenedthe Messiah bwith mitzvot and afflictions like millstones [ ireiḥayim /i]. Rava saysthat ihariḥoteaches bthatthe Messiah will bsmell [ idemoraḥ /i] andthen bjudgeon that basis, sensing who is right, bas it is written: “And he shall neither judge after the sight of [ ilemareh /i] his eyes,nor decide after the hearing of his ears; band with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and decide equity for the meek of the earth”(Isaiah 11:3–4).,The Gemara relates: bBar Koziva,i.e., bar Kokheva, bruled for two and a half years. He said to the Sages: I amthe bMessiah. They said to him: With regard to the Messiah it is written that heis able to bsmell and judge,so blet us see ourselves whether he,bar Kokheva, is able to bsmell and judge. Once they saw thathe was bnotable to bsmell and judge,the gentiles bkilled him. /b,Six virtues were ascribed to bDaniel, Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah, as it is written in theirregard: “Youths bin whom was found no blemish, and well favored, and skillful in all wisdom, and discerning in knowledge, and perceptive in understanding, and who had strength in them to stand in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans”(Daniel 1:4).,The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of the phrase b“in whom was found no blemish”? Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina says: Evena scratch blike the woundthat remains bafter bloodletting was notfound bin them. Whatis the meaning of the phrase b“and who had strength in them to stand in the king’s place”?What strength is needed to do so? bRabbi Ḥama, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, says:This bteaches that they would force themselvesto refrain bfrom laughter, and from conversation, and from sleep, and would restrain themselves when theyfelt the burgeto relieve themselves via btheir orifices, due to fear of the monarchy. /b,§ The Gemara explores more of their attributes. The verse states: b“Now among these were, of the descendants of Judah: Daniel, Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah”(Daniel 1:6). bRabbi Eliezer says: They were all of the descendants of Judah. And Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani says: Daniel was of the descendants of Judah, and Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah weredescendants bof other tribes. /b,Isaiah prophesied to Hezekiah: b“And of your sons that shall issue from you, they shall be taken away; and they shall be officers [ isarisim /i] in the palace of the king of Babylonia”(Isaiah 39:7). The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of isarisim /i? Rav says:It means bliterally eunuchs,whom the Babylonians castrated to render them suitable for employment in all aspects of the king’s service. bAnd Rabbi Ḥanina says:It means bthat idol worship was emasculated during their lifetime,as it became clear to all that it lacks substance.,The Gemara asks: bGranted, according to the one who says that idol worship was emasculated during their lifetime, that is as it is written: “And they have no hurt”(Daniel 3:25), indicating that the bodies of Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah were intact and they were not castrated. bBut according to the one who saysthat they were bliterally eunuchs, what isthe meaning of the phrase b“And they have no hurt”?The Gemara answers: It means they had no bhurt from the fireof the furnace, not that their bodies were completely intact. The Gemara asks: bBut isn’t italready bwritten: “Nor had the odor of fire passed over them”(Daniel 3:27)? There was no need to repeat that they were unaffected by the fire. The Gemara answers: This means that there was bneither hurtfrom the fire bnorharm from the bodorof the fire.,The Gemara asks: bGranted, according to the one who says that idol worship was emasculated during their lifetime, that is as it is written: “For so says the Lord to the isarisimwho observe My iShabbatot /i,and choose what pleases Me, and keep My covet” (Isaiah 56:4). This verse calls them isarisimdue to their miraculous deliverance from the furnace. bBut according to the one who saysthat they were bliterally eunuchs,would bthe verse speak in denigration of the righteous?Would the verse identify Haiah, Mishael, and Azariah by their blemish rather than by their names? The Gemara answers: According to the one who says that they were literally eunuchs, both bthis,the physical imperfection, band that,the fact that idol worship was emasculated during their lifetime, bweretrue bconcerning them. /b,The Gemara asks from another perspective: bGranted, according to the one who saysthat they were bliterally eunuchs, that is as it is writtenin the next verse: “And to them I will give bin My house and within My walls a memorial better than sons and daughters:I will give him an everlasting name, that shall not be excised” (Isaiah 56:5). bBut according to the one who says that idol worship was emasculated during their lifetime, whatis the meaning of the phrase b“better than sons and daughters”? Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak says:It is consolation that bconcerning children that they already had andwho bdied,that they would also be memorialized. The Gemara asks: bWhatis the meaning of the phrase b“an everlasting name that shall not be excised”? Rabbi Tanḥum saysthat bbar Kappara taught in Tzippori: Thisis referring to bthe book of Daniel, which is called by his name. /b,§ Apropos books of the Bible named for a prominent person, the Gemara asks: bNowwith regard to ball the matters ofthe book of bEzra, Nehemiah, son of Hacaliah, said themand wrote most of them; bandwith regard to bNehemiah, son of Hacaliah, what is the reasonthat ba book was not called by his name?Over the course of many generations, extending many years after the talmudic period, the book that is today named for Nehemiah was not a separate book and was included in the book of Ezra. bRabbi Yirmeya bar Abba says:The book was not named for Nehemiah bbecause he took credit for himselfand boasted about his good deeds, bas it is stated: “Remember me, God, for good”(Nehemiah 13:31). The Gemara asks: Is that a shortcoming? King bDavid also said: “Remember me, Lord, when You show favor to Your people; visit me with Your salvation”(Psalms 106:4). The Gemara answers: bDavid was asking for compassionand formulated his words as a prayer. Nehemiah stated them as a fact and a demand., bRav Yosef says:Nehemiah was punished bbecause he spoke in denigration ofhis bpredecessors, as it is stated: “But the former governors who were before me placed burdens upon the people, and took from them for bread and wine beyond forty shekelsof silver; even their servants ruled over the people; but I did not do so, due to the fear of God” (Nehemiah 5:15). bAnd he relatedthese disparaging statements beven about Daniel, who was greater than hewas.,The Gemara asks: bFrom where do wederive bthatDaniel was bgreater than hewas? The Gemara answers: It is derived from a verse, bas it is written: “And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, and the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great trembling fell upon them, and they fled to hide”(Daniel 10:7). The Gemara asks: b“And the men who were with me did not see the vision”; and who werethese bmen? Rabbi Yirmeya, and some say Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba, says: Thatis referring to bHaggai, Zechariah, and Malachi,who were with him and did not see. Evidently, Daniel was greater than these prophets, and all the more so was he greater than Nehemiah, who was never privileged to prophesy. |
