10. Anon., Jubilees, 1.1-1.7, 1.9-1.29, 2.2, 2.19, 3.8-3.11, 5.13, 6.1-6.38, 10.9, 15.1, 15.3, 15.7-15.34, 21.1, 21.3, 21.6, 21.10, 21.12-21.18, 21.21, 21.23, 23.11-23.32, 30.11-30.12, 32.1-32.15, 32.20-32.29, 33.13-33.18, 34.18-34.19, 41.23-41.27, 49.1-49.2, 49.7-49.8, 49.11, 49.22-49.23, 50.4, 50.6-50.13 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 1.1. THIS is the history of the division of the days of the law and of the testimony, of the events of the years, of their (year) weeks, of their jubilees throughout all the years of the world, as the Lord spake to Moses on Mount Sinai when he went up to receive the tables of the law and of the commandment, according to the voice of God as He said unto him, "Go up to the top of the Mount." br) And it came to pass in the first year of the A.M. (A.M. = Anno Mundi) exodus of the children of Israel out of Egypt, in the third month, on the sixteenth day of the month, that God spake to Moses, saying: 1.2. Come up to Me on the Mount, and I will give thee two tables of stone of the law and of the commandment, which I have written, that thou mayst teach them. 1.3. And Moses went up into the mount of God, and the glory of the Lord abode on Mount Sinai, and a cloud overshadowed it six days. brAnd He called to Moses on the seventh day out of the midst of the cloud 1.4. and the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a flaming fire on the top of the Mount. 1.5. And Moses was on the Mount forty days and forty nights, and God taught him the earlier and the later history 1.6. of the division of all the days of the law and of the testimony. 1.7. And He said: "Incline thine heart to every word which I shall speak to thee on this Mount, and write them in a book in order that their generations may see how I have not forsaken them for all the evil which they have wrought in transgressing the covet which I establish between Me and thee for their generations this day on Mount Sinai. 1.9. And do thou write for thyself all these words which I declare unto thee this day, for I know their rebellion and their stiff neck, before I bring them into the land of which I sware to their fathers, to Abraham and to Isaac and to Jacob, saying: "Unto your seed will I give a land flowing with milk and honey 1.10. And they will eat and be satisfied, and they will turn to strange gods, to (gods) which cannot deliver them from aught of their tribulation: 1.11. and this witness shall be heard for a witness against them. brFor they will forget all My commandments, (even) all that I command them, and they will walk after the Gentiles 1.12. and after their uncleanness, and after their shame, and will serve their gods, and these will prove unto them an offence and a tribulation and an affliction and a snare. 1.13. And many will perish and they will be taken captive, and will fall into the hands of the enemy, because they have forsaken My ordices and My commandments, and the festivals of My covet 1.14. and My sabbaths, and My holy place which I have hallowed for Myself in their midst, and My tabernacle, and My sanctuary, which I have hallowed for Myself in the midst of the land, that I should set My name upon it, and that it should dwell (there). 1.15. And they will make to themselves high places and groves and graven images, and they will worship, each his own (graven image), so as to go astray, and they will sacrifice their children to demons, and to all the works of the error of their hearts. 1.16. And I will send witnesses unto them, that I may witness against them, but they will not hear, and will slay the witnesses also 1.17. and they will persecute those who seek the law, and they will abrogate and change everything so as to work evil before My eyes. 1.18. And I shall hide My face from them, and I shall deliver them into the hand of the Gentiles for captivity, and for a prey, and for devouring, and I shall remove them from the midst of the land, and I shall scatter them amongst the Gentiles. 1.19. And they will forget all My law and all My commandments and all My judgments, and will go astray as to new moons, and sabbaths, and festivals, and jubilees, and ordices. 1.20. And after this they will turn to Me from amongst the Gentiles with all their heart and with all their soul and with all their strength 1.21. and I shall gather them from amongst all the Gentiles, and they will seek Me, so that I shall be found of them 1.22. when they seek Me with all their heart and with all their soul. brAnd I shall disclose to them abounding peace with righteousness, and I shall remove them the plant of uprightness, with all My heart and with all My soul 1.23. and they will be for a blessing and not for a curse, and they will be the head and not the tail. 1.24. And I shall build My sanctuary in their midst, and I shall dwell with them, and I shall be their God and they will be My people in truth and righteousness. 1.25. And I shall not forsake them nor fail them; for I am the Lord their God. 1.26. And Moses fell on his face and prayed and said 1.27. O Lord my God, do not forsake Thy people and Thy inheritance, so that they should wander in the error of their hearts, and do not deliver them into the hands of their enemies, the Gentiles, lest they should rule over them and cause them to sin against Thee. 1.28. Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be lifted up upon Thy people, and create in them an upright spirit 1.29. and let not the spirit of Beliar rule over them to accuse them before Thee, and to ensnare them from all the paths of righteousness, so that they may perish from before Thy face. 2.2. Write the complete history of the creation, how in six days the Lord God finished all His works and all that He created, and kept Sabbath on the seventh day and hallowed it for all ages, and appointed it as a sign for all His works. 2.19. These three kinds He made on the fourth day. 3.8. And He awaked Adam out of his sleep and on awaking he rose on the sixth day, and He brought her to him, and he knew her, and said unto her: 3.9. This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she will be called [my] wife; because she was taken from her husband. 3.10. Therefore shall man and wife be one, and therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh. 3.11. In the first week was Adam created, and the rib--his wife: in the second week He showed her unto him: 5.13. And He sent His sword into their midst that each should slay his neighbour, and they began to slay each other till they all fell by the sword and were destroyed from the earth. 6.1. And on the new moon of the third month he went forth from the ark, and built an altar on that mountain. 6.2. And he made atonement for the earth, and took a kid and made atonement by its blood for all the guilt of the earth; for everything that had been on it had been destroyed, save those that were in the ark with Noah. 6.3. And he placed the fat thereof on the altar, and he took an ox, and a goat, and a sheep and kids, and salt, and a turtle-dove, and the young of a dove 6.4. and placed a burnt sacrifice on the altar, and poured thereon an offering mingled with oil, and sprinkled wine and strewed frankincense over everything, and caused a goodly savour to arise, acceptable before the Lord. 6.5. And the Lord smelt the goodly savour, and He made a covet with him that there should not be any more a flood to destroy the earth; 6.6. that all the days of the earth seed-time and harvest should never cease; cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night should not change their order, nor cease for ever. 6.7. And you, increase ye and multiply upon the earth, and become many upon it, and be a blessing upon it. 6.8. The fear of you and the dread of you I shall inspire in everything that is on earth and in the sea. 6.9. And behold I have given unto you all beasts, and all winged things, and everything that moveth on the earth, and the fish in the waters, and all things for food; as the green herbs, I have given you all things to eat. 6.10. But flesh, with the life thereof, with the blood, ye shall not eat; for the life of all flesh is in the blood, lest your blood of your lives be required. 6.11. At the hand of every man, at the hand of every (beast), shall I require the blood of man. 6.12. Whoso sheddeth man's blood by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God made He man. 6.13. And you, increase ye, and multiply on the earth. 6.14. And Noah and his sons swore that they would not eat any blood that was in any flesh 6.15. and he made a covet before the Lord God for ever throughout all the generations of the earth in this month. 6.16. On this account He spake to thee that thou shouldst make a covet with the children of Israel in this month upon the mountain with an oath, and that thou shouldst sprinkle blood upon them because of all the words of the covet, which the Lord made with them for ever. 6.17. And this testimony is written concerning you that you should observe it continually, so that you should not eat on any day any blood of beasts or birds or cattle during all the days of the earth 6.18. and the man who eateth the blood of beast or of cattle or of birds during all the days of the earth, he and his seed shall be rooted out of the land. 6.19. And do thou command the children of Israel to eat no blood, so that their names and their seed may be before the Lord our God continually. 6.20. And for this law there is no limit of days, for it is for ever. They shall observe it throughout their generations, so that they may continue supplicating on your behalf with blood before the altar; 6.21. every day and at the time of morning and evening they shall seek forgiveness on your behalf perpetually before the Lord that they may keep it and not be rooted out. 6.22. And He gave to Noah and his sons a sign that there should not again be a flood on the earth. 6.23. He set His bow in the cloud for a sign of the eternal covet that there should not again be a flood on the earth to destroy it all the days of the earth. 6.24. For this reason it is ordained and written on the heavenly tables, that they should celebrate the feast of weeks in this month once a year, to renew the covet every year. 6.25. And this whole festival was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation till the days of Noah-twenty-six jubilees and five weeks of years:... 6.26. and Noah and his sons observed it for seven jubilees and one week of years, till the day of Noah's death, and from the day of Noah's death his sons did away with (it) until the days of Abraham, and they ate blood. 6.27. But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days 6.28. and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated it anew on this mountain. 6.29. And do thou command the children of Israel to observe this festival in all their generations for a commandment unto them: 6.30. one day in the year in this month they shall celebrate the festival. 6.31. For it is the feast of weeks and the feast of first-fruits: 6.32. this feast is twofold and of a double nature: according to what is written and engraven concerning it celebrate it. 6.33. For I have written in the book of the first law, in that which I have written for thee, that thou shouldst celebrate it in its season, one day in the year 6.34. and I explained to thee its sacrifices that the children of Israel should remember and should celebrate it throughout their generations in this month, one day in every year. 6.35. And on the new moon of the first month, and on the new moon of the fourth month, and on the new moon of the seventh month, and on the new moon of the tenth month are the days of remembrance, and the days of the seasons in the four divisions of the year. 6.36. These are written and ordained as a testimony for ever. 6.37. And Noah ordained them for himself as feasts for the generations for ever, so that they have become thereby a memorial unto him. 6.38. And on the new moon of the first month he was bidden to make for himself an ark, and on that (day) the earth became dry and he opened (the ark) and saw the earth. 10.9. And let them not rule over the spirits of the living; for Thou alone canst exercise dominion over them. And let them not have power over the sons of the righteous from henceforth and for evermore. 15.1. And in the fifth year of the fourth week of this jubilee, in the third month, in the middle of the month, Abram celebrated the feast of the first-fruits of the grain harvest. 15.3. And the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him: "I am God Almighty; approve thyself before Me and be thou perfect. And I will make My covet between 15.7. Neither will thy name any more be called Abram, But thy name from henceforth, even for ever, shall be Abraham. For the father of many nations have I made thee. 15.8. And I shall make thee very great, And I shall make thee into nations, And kings will come forth from thee. 15.9. And I shall establish My covet between Me and thee, and thy seed after thee, throughout their generations, for an eternal covet, so that I may be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 15.10. (And I shall give to thee and to thy seed after thee) the land where thou hast been a sojourner, the land of Canaan, that thou mayst possess it for ever, and I shall be their God. 15.11. And the Lord said unto Abraham: "And as for thee, do thou keep My Covet, thou and thy seed after thee 15.12. and circumcise ye every male among you, and circumcise your foreskins, and it will be a token of an eternal covet between Me and you. 15.13. And the child on the eighth day ye will circumcise, every male throughout your generations, him that is born in the house, or whom ye have bought with money from any stranger, whom ye have acquired 15.14. who is not of thy seed. brHe that is born in thy house will surely be circumcised, and those whom thou hast bought with money will be circumcised, and My covet will be in your flesh for an eternal ordice. 15.15. And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin on the eighth day, that soul will be cut off from his people, for he hath broken My covet. 15.16. And God said unto Abraham: "As for Sarai thy wife, her name will no more be called Sarai, but Sarah will be her name. 15.17. And I shall bless her, and give thee a son by her, and I shall bless him, and he will become a nation, and kings of nations will proceed from him. 15.18. And Abraham fell on his face, and rejoiced, and said in his heart: "Shall a son be born to him that is a hundred years old, and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bring forth? 15.19. And Abraham said unto God: "O that Ishmael might live before thee! 15.20. And God said: "Yea, and Sarah also will bear thee a son, and thou wilt call his name Isaac, and I shall establish My covet with him, an everlasting covet, and for his seed after him. 15.21. And as for Ishmael also have I heard thee, and behold I shall bless him, and make him great, and multiply him exceedingly, and he will beget twelve princes, and I shall make him a great nation. 15.22. But My covet shall I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to thee, in these days, in the next year. 15.23. And He left off speaking with him, and God went up from Abraham. 15.24. And Abraham did according as God had said unto him, and he took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and whom he had bought with his money, every male in his house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin. 15.25. And on the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and all the men of his house, (and those born in the house), and all those, whom he had bought with money from the children of the stranger, were circumcised with him. 15.26. This law is for all the generations for ever 15.27. and there is no circumcision of the days, and no omission of one day out of the eight days; for it is an eternal ordice, ordained and written on the heavenly tables. 15.28. And every one that is born, the flesh of whose foreskin is not circumcised on the eighth day, belongeth not to the children of the covet which the Lord made with Abraham, but to the children of destruction; 15.29. nor is there, moreover, any sign on him that he is the Lord's, but (he is destined) to be destroyed and slain from the earth, and to be rooted out of the earth, for he hath broken the covet of the Lord our God. 15.30. For all the angels of the presence and all the angels of sanctification have been so created from the day of their creation, and before the angels of the presence and the angels of sanctification He hath sanctified Israel, that they should be with Him and with His holy angels. 15.31. And do thou command the children of Israel and let them observe the sign of this covet for their generations as an eternal ordice, and they will not be rooted out of the land. 15.32. For the command is ordained for a covet, that they should observe it for ever among all the children of Israel. 15.33. For Ishmael and his sons and his brothers and Esau, the Lord did not cause to approach Him, and he chose them not because they are the children of Abraham, because He knew them, but He chose Israel to be His people. 15.34. And He sanctified it, and gathered it from amongst all the children of men ; 21.1. And in the sixth year of the seventh week of this jubilee Abraham called Isaac his son, and commanded him, saying: 21.3. And behold, I am one hundred and seventy-five years old, and throughout all the days of my life I have remembered the Lord, and sought with all my heart to do His will, and to walk uprightly in all His ways. 21.6. And do thou, my son, observe His commandments and His ordices and His judgments, and walk not after the abominations and after the graven images and after the molten images. brAnd eat no blood at all of animals or cattle, or of any bird which flieth in the heaven. 21.10. and the two kidneys, and all the fat that is upon them, and upon the loins and liver thou shalt remove together with the kidneys. 21.12. And eat its meat on that day and on the second day, and let not the sun on the second day go down upon it till it is eaten 21.13. and let nothing be left over for the third day; for it is not acceptable [for it is not approved] and let it no longer be eaten 21.14. and all who eat thereof will bring sin upon themselves; for thus I have found it written in the books of my forefathers, and in the words of Enoch, and in the words of Noah. 21.15. And on all thy oblations thou shalt strew salt, and let not the salt of the covet be lacking in all thy oblations before the Lord. 21.16. And as regards the wood of the sacrifices, beware lest thou bring (other) wood for the altar in addition to these: cypress, dêfrân, sagâd, pine, fir, cedar, savin, palm, olive, myrrh, laurel, and citron, juniper, and balsam. 21.17. And of these kinds of wood lay upon the altar under the sacrifice, such as have been tested as to their appearance, and do not lay (thereon) any split or dark wood 21.18. (but) hard and clean, without fault, a sound and new growth; and do not lay (thereon) old wood, [for its fragrance is gone] for there is no longer fragrance in it as before. 21.21. And at all times be clean in thy body, and wash thyself with water before thou approachest to offer on the altar, and wash thy hands and thy feet before thou drawest near to the altar; 21.23. be on thy guard, my son, against blood, be on thy guard exceedingly; cover it with dust. brAnd do not eat any blood, for it is the soul; eat no blood whatever. 23.11. and they wept for him forty days, all the men of his house, and Isaac and Ishmael, and all their sons, and all the sons of Keturah in their places, and the days of weeping for Abraham were ended. 23.12. And he lived three jubilees and four weeks of years, one hundred and seventy-five years, and completed the days of his life, being old and full of days. 23.13. For the days of the forefathers, of their life, were nineteen jubilees; and after the Flood they began to grow less than nineteen jubilees 23.14. and to decrease in jubilees, and to grow old quickly, and to be full of their days by reason of manifold tribulation and the wickedness of their ways 23.15. with the exception of Abraham. brFor Abraham was perfect in all his deeds with the Lord, and well-pleasing in righteousness all the days of his life; 23.16. and behold, he did not complete four jubilees in his life, when he had grown old by reason of the wickedness and was full of his days. 23.17. And all the generations which will arise from this time until the day of the great judgment will grow old quickly, before they complete two jubilees 23.18. and their knowledge will forsake them by reason of their old age [and all their knowledge will vanish away]. 23.19. And in those days, if a man live a jubilee and a half of years, they will say regarding him: "He hath lived long 23.20. and the greater part of his days are pain and sorrow and tribulation, and there is no peace: 23.21. For calamity followeth on calamity, and wound on wound, and tribulation on tribulation, and evil tidings on evil tidings, and illness on illness, and all evil judgments such as these, one with another 23.22. illness and overthrow, and snow and frost and ice, and fever, and chills, and torpor, and famine, and death, and sword, and captivity, and all kinds of calamities and pains. 23.23. And all these will come on an evil generation, which transgresseth on the earth: their works are uncleanness and fornication, and pollution and abominations. 23.24. Then they will say: "The days of the forefathers were many (even), unto a thousand years, and were good; but, behold, the days of our life, if a man hath lived many, are three score years and ten, and, if he is strong, four score years, and those evil 23.25. and there is no peace in the days of this evil generation. 23.26. And in that generation the sons will convict their fathers and their elders of sin and unrighteousness, and of the words of their mouth 23.27. and the great wickednesses which they perpetrate, and concerning their forsaking the covet which the Lord made between them and Him, that they should observe and do all His commandments and His ordices and all His laws, without departing either to the right hand or to the left. 23.28. For all have done evil, and every mouth speaketh iniquity and all their works are an uncleanness and an abomination, and all their ways are pollution, uncleanness and destruction. 23.29. Behold the earth will be destroyed on account of all their works, and there will be no seed of the vine, and no oil; for their works are altogether faithless 23.30. and they will all perish together, beasts and cattle and birds, and all the fish of the sea, on account of the children of men. 23.31. And they will strive one with another, the young with the old, and the old with the young, the poor with the rich, and the lowly with the great, and the beggar with the prince 23.32. on account of the law and the covet; for they have forgotten commandment, and covet, and feasts, and months, and Sabbaths, and jubilees, and all judgments. 30.11. And if there is any man who wisheth in Israel to give his daughter or his sister to any man who is of the seed of the Gentiles he shall surely die, and they shall stone him with stones; for he hath wrought shame in Israel; 30.12. and they shall burn the woman with fire, because she hath dishonoured the name of the house of her father, and she shall be rooted out of Israel. 32.1. And he abode that night at Bethel, and Levi dreamed that they had ordained and made him the priest of the Most High God,him and his sons for ever; 32.2. and he awoke from his sleep and blessed the Lord. 32.3. And Jacob rose early in the morning, on the fourteenth of this month, and he gave a tithe of all that came with him, both of men and cattle, both of gold and every vessel and garment, yea, he gave tithes of all. 32.4. And in those days Rachel became pregt with her son Benjamin. And Jacob counted his sons from him upwards and Levi fell to the portion of the Lord 32.5. and his father clothed him in the garments of the priesthood and filled his hands. 32.6. And on the fifteenth of this month, he brought to the altar fourteen oxen from amongst the cattle, and twenty-eight rams, and forty-nine sheep, and seven lambs, and twenty-one kids of the goats as a burnt-offering on the altar of sacrifice, well pleasing for a sweet savour before God 32.7. This was his offering, in consequence of the vow which he had vowed that he would give a tenth, with their fruit-offerings and their drink-offerings. 32.8. And when the fire had consumed it, he burnt incense on the fire over the fire 32.9. and for a thank-offering two oxen and four rams and four sheep, four he-goats, and two sheep of a year old, and two kids of the goats; 32.10. and thus he did daily for seven days. brAnd he and all his sons and his men were eating (this) with joy there during seven day 32.11. and blessing and thanking the Lord, who had delivered him out of all his tribulation and had given him his vow. 32.12. And he tithed all the clean animals, and made a burnt sacrifice, but the unclean animals he gave (not) to Levi his son, and he gave him all the souls of the men 32.13. And Levi discharged the priestly office at Bethel before Jacob his father in preference to his ten brothers, and he was a priest there 32.14. and Jacob gave his vow: thus he tithed again the tithe to the Lord and sanctified it, and it became holy unto Him. 32.15. And for this reason it is ordained on the heavenly tables as a law for the tithing again the tithe to eat before the Lord from year to year 32.20. And all the tithes of the oxen and sheep shall be holy unto the Lord, and shall belong to His priests, which they will eat before Him from year to year; for thus is it ordained and engraven regarding the tithe on the heavenly tables. 32.21. And on the following night, on the twenty-second day of this month, Jacob resolved to build that place, and to surround the court with a wall, and to sanctify it and make it holy for ever, for himself and his children after him. 32.22. And the Lord appeared to him by night and blessed him and said unto him: "Thy name shall not be called Jacob, but Israel shall they name thy name. 32.23. And He said unto him again: "I am the Lord who created the heaven and the earth, and I shall increase thee and multiply thee exceedingly, and kings will come forth from thee, and they will judge everywhere wherever the foot of the sons of men hath trodden. 32.24. Ana I shall give to thy seed all the earth which is under heaven, and they will judge all the nations according to their desires, and after that they will get possession of the whole earth and inherit it for ever. 32.25. And He finished speaking with him, and He went up from him, and Jacob looked till He had ascended into heaven. 32.26. And he saw in a vision of the night, and behold an angel descended from heaven with seven tablets in his hands, and he gave them to Jacob, and he read them and knew all that was written therein which would befall him and his sons through-out all the ages. 32.27. And he showed him all that was written on the tablets, and said unto him: "Do not build this place, and do not make it an eternal sanctuary, and do not dwell here; for this is not the place. 32.28. Go to the house of Abraham thy father and dwell with Isaac thy father until the day of the death of thy father. 32.29. For in Egypt thou wilt die in peace, and in this land thou wilt be buried with honour in the sepulchre of thy fathers, with Abraham and Isaac. 33.13. And do thou, Moses, command the children of Israel that they observe this word; for it (entaileth) a punishment of death; and it is unclean, and there is no atonement for ever to atone for the man who hath committed this, but he is to be put to death and slain, and stoned with stones, and rooted out from the midst of the people of our God. 33.14. For to no man who doeth so in Israel is it permitted to remain alive a single day on the earth, for he is abominable and unclean. 33.15. And let them not say: to Reuben was granted life and forgiveness after he had lain with his father's concubine, and to her also though she had a husband, and her husband Jacob, his father, was still alive. 33.16. For until that time there had not been revealed the ordice and judgment and law in its completeness for all 33.17. but in thy days (it hath been revealed) as a law of seasons and of days, and an everlasting law for the everlasting generations. 33.18. And for this law there is no consummation of days, and no atonement for it, but they must both be rooted out in the midst of the nation: on the day whereon they committed it they shall slay them. 34.18. And his sons and his daughter rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted for his son. 34.19. And on that day Bilhah heard that Joseph had perished, and she died mourning him, and she was living in Qafrâtêf 41.23. And after that she bare two sons, Perez and Zerah, in the seventh year of this second week. brAnd thereupon the seven years of fruitfulness were accomplished, of which Joseph spake to Pharaoh. 41.24. And Judah acknowledged that the deed which he had done was evil, for he had lain with his daughter-in-law, and he esteemed it hateful in his eyes, and he acknowledged that he had transgressed and gone astray; for he had uncovered the skirt of his son 41.25. and he began to lament and to supplicate before the Lord because of his transgression.<>br>And we told him in a dream that it was forgiven him because he supplicated earnestly, and lamented, and did not again commit it. 41.26. And he received forgiveness because he turned from his sin and from his ignorance, for he transgressed greatly before our God; 41.27. and every one that acteth thus, every one who lieth with his mother-in-law, let them burn him with fire that he may burn therein 49.1. Remember the commandment which the Lord commanded thee concerning the passover, that thou shouldst celebrate it in its season on the fourteenth of the first month 49.2. that thou shouldst kill it before it is evening, and that they should eat it by night on the evening of the fifteenth from the time of the setting of the sun. 49.7. and the plague came not upon them to destroy from amongst them any soul either of cattle, or man, or dog. 49.8. And the plague was very grievous in Egypt, and there was no house in Egypt where there was not one dead, and weeping and lamentation. 49.11. For it is an eternal ordice, and engraven on the heavenly tables regarding all the children of Israel that they should observe it every year on its day once a year, throughout all their generations; and there is no limit of days, for this is ordained for ever. 49.22. And do thou command the children of Israel to observe the passover throughout their days, every year, once a year on the day of its fixed time, and it will come for a memorial well pleasing before the Lord, and no plague will come upon them to slay or to smite 49.23. in that year in which they celebrate the passover in its season in every respect according to His command. brAnd they shall not eat it outside the sanctuary of the Lord 50.4. And the land also will keep its sabbaths while they dwell upon it, and they will know the jubilee year. 50.6. and there are yet forty years to come (lit. "distant for learning the commandments of the Lord, until they pass over into the land of Canaan, crossing the Jordan to the west. 50.7. And the jubilees will pass by, until Israel is cleansed from all guilt of fornication, and uncleanness, and pollution, and sin, and error, and dwelleth with confidence in all the land, and there will be no more a Satan or any evil one, and the land will be clean from that time for evermore. 50.8. And behold the commandment regarding the Sabbaths--I have written (them) down for thee and all the judgments of its laws. brSix days wilt thou labour, but on the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. 50.9. In it ye shall do no manner of work, ye and your sons, and your men-servants and your maid-servants, and all your cattle and the sojourner also who is with you. brAnd the man that doeth any work on it shall die: 50.10. whoever desecrateth that day, whoever lieth with (his) wife or whoever saith he will do something on it, that he will set out on a journey thereon in regard to any buying or selling: and whoever draweth water thereon which he had not prepared for himself on the sixth day, and whoever taketh up any burden to carry it out of his tent or out of his house shall die. 50.11. Ye shall do no work whatever on the Sabbath day save that ye have prepared for yourselves on the sixth day, so as to eat, and drink, and rest, and keep Sabbath from all work on that day, and to bless the Lord your God, who has given you a day of festival 50.12. and a holy day: and a day of the holy kingdom for all Israel is this day among their days for ever. 50.13. For great is the honour which the Lord hath given to Israel that they should eat and drink and be satisfied on this festival day, and rest thereon from all labour which belongeth to the labour of the children of men, save burning frankincense and bringing oblations and sacrifices before the Lord for days and for Sabbaths. |
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21. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot, None (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
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(ישעיהו מה, ז) יוצר אור ובורא חשך,לימא יוצר אור ובורא נוגה,כדכתיב קאמרינן,אלא מעתה (ישעיהו מה, ז) עושה שלום ובורא רע מי קא אמרינן כדכתיב אלא כתיב רע וקרינן הכל לישנא מעליא הכא נמי לימא נוגה לישנא מעליא,אלא אמר רבא כדי להזכיר מדת יום בלילה ומדת לילה ביום,בשלמא מדת לילה ביום כדאמרינן יוצר אור ובורא חשך אלא מדת יום בלילה היכי משכחת לה,אמר אביי גולל אור מפני חשך וחשך מפני אור,ואידך מאי היא אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל אהבה רבה וכן אורי ליה רבי אלעזר לר' פדת בריה אהבה רבה,תניא נמי הכי אין אומרים אהבת עולם אלא אהבה רבה ורבנן אמרי אהבת עולם וכן הוא אומר (ירמיהו לא, ג) ואהבת עולם אהבתיך על כן משכתיך חסד,א"ר יהודה אמר שמואל השכים לשנות עד שלא קרא ק"ש צריך לברך משקרא ק"ש א"צ לברך שכבר נפטר באהבה רבה,אמר רב הונא למקרא צריך לברך ולמדרש א"צ לברך,ור' אלעזר אמר למקרא ולמדרש צריך לברך למשנה א"צ לברך,ור' יוחנן אמר אף למשנה נמי צריך לברך [אבל לתלמוד א"צ לברך],ורבא אמר אף לתלמוד צריך (לחזור ו) לברך,דאמר רב חייא בר אשי זימנין סגיאין הוה קאימנא קמיה דרב לתנויי פרקין בספרא דבי רב הוה מקדים וקא משי ידיה ובריך ומתני לן פרקין.,מאי מברך א"ר יהודה אמר שמואל אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו לעסוק בדברי תורה,ור' יוחנן מסיים בה הכי הערב נא ה' אלהינו את דברי תורתך בפינו ובפיפיות עמך בית ישראל ונהיה אנחנו וצאצאינו וצאצאי עמך בית ישראל כלנו יודעי שמך ועוסקי תורתך ברוך אתה ה' המלמד תורה לעמו ישראל,ורב המנונא אמר אשר בחר בנו מכל העמים ונתן לנו את תורתו ברוך אתה ה' נותן התורה אמר רב המנונא זו היא מעולה שבברכות,הלכך לימרינהו לכולהו:,תנן התם אמר להם הממונה ברכו ברכה אחת והם ברכו וקראו עשרת הדברות שמע והיה אם שמוע ויאמר וברכו את העם ג' ברכות אמת ויציב ועבודה וברכת כהנים ובשבת מוסיפין ברכה אחת למשמר היוצא,מאי ברכה אחת כי הא דרבי אבא ור' יוסי בר אבא אקלעו לההוא אתרא בעו מנייהו מאי ברכה אחת לא הוה בידייהו ואתו שיילוהו לרב מתנה לא הוה בידיה אתו שיילוהו לרב יהודה אמר להו הכי אמר שמואל אהבה רבה,ואמר רבי זריקא אמר רבי אמי א"ר שמעון בן לקיש יוצר אור כי אתא רב יצחק בר יוסף אמר הא דרבי זריקא לאו בפירוש אתמר אלא מכללא אתמר דאמר ר' זריקא א"ר אמי אמר ר' שמעון בן לקיש זאת אומרת ברכות אין מעכבות זו את זו,אי אמרת בשלמא יוצר אור הוו אמרי היינו דברכות אין מעכבות זו את זו דלא קא אמרי אהבה רבה | 11b. b“Who forms light and creates darkness,Who makes peace and creates evil, I am the Lord Who does all these things” (Isaiah 45:7).,With regard to this formula of the blessing, the Gemara asks: bLet him saythe following formula instead: bWho forms light and creates brightness,so as not to mention darkness, which has negative connotations.,The Gemara answers: bWe saythe blessing basthe verse bis writtenin the Bible and do not alter the formula that appears in the verse.,The Gemara strongly objects: bBut if so,what about the continuation of the verse: b“Who makes peace and creates evil”? Do we saythis blessing bas it is writtenin the Bible? bRather, it is written evil and we euphemistically recitethe blessing ball thingsto avoid mention of evil. bHere, too, let us euphemistically say brightnessinstead of darkness., bRather, Rava said:The reason we recite: “Who creates darkness” is bin order to mention the attribute of day at night and the attribute of night during the day,and thereby unify day and night as different parts of a single entity.,The Gemara continues and asks: bGranted, the attribute of nightis mentioned bduring the day, as we say: Who forms light and creates darkness, but where do you find the attribute of daymentioned bat night?In the blessing over the radiant lights recited at night there is no mention of “Who forms light.”, bAbaye said:Nevertheless, the attribute of day is mentioned at night in the words: bRolling away light before the darkness and darkness before the light. /b,The Gemara asks: bAnd what isthe formula of bthe otherblessing recited before iShema /i? bRav Yehuda said in the name of Shmuel: An abounding love [ iahava rabba /i]. And Rabbi Elazar instructed his son, Rabbi Pedat,to balsosay: bAn abounding love. /b, bThat was also taughtin a ibaraita /i: bOne does not recite: An eternal love [ iahavat olam /i]; rather,one recites: bAn abounding love. And the Rabbis saythat one recites: bAn eternal love, and so it says: “And an eternal love I have loved you, therefore I have drawn you with kindness”(Jeremiah 31:2).,The blessing: An abounding love, is about God’s love for us and includes praise for His giving us the Torah. Therefore, bRav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said: One who arose to study, until he recites iShemahe must recite aspecial bblessingover the Torah. bIf healready brecited iShemahe need not recitethat bblessing, as he has exemptedhimself bbyreciting the blessing of: bAn abounding love,which includes the components of the blessing over the Torah.,Having mentioned the blessing recited over Torah, the Gemara focuses on a dispute over what constitutes Torah in terms of requiring a blessing. bRav Huna said: Forthe study of bBible, one must recite a blessing,as it is the word of God, band forhalakhic bmidrash,the derivation of ihalakhotfrom verses, bone need not recite a blessing. /b, bAnd Rabbi Elazar said: For Bible and midrash,which includes ihalakhotderived from verses themselves, bone must recite a blessing; for Mishna,which is only comprised of halakhic rulings issued by the Sages, bone need not recite a blessing. /b, bAnd Rabbi Yoḥa said: Even for Mishna,which includes final, binding halakhic rulings, bone must recite a blessing as well, but for Talmud,which comprises a study of the Mishna and the rationales for its rulings, bone need not recite a blessing. /b, bAnd Rava said: Even for Talmud,which is the means to analyze the significance of the ihalakhot /i, and is the only form of Torah study that leads one to its true meaning, bone must recite a blessing. /b,This statement is supported by the practical ihalakhaderived from observation of Rav’s practice. His student, bRav Ḥiyya bar Ashi, said: Many times I stood before Rav to study our chapter in the iSifra /i,also known as iTorat Kohanim /i, the halakhic midrash on Leviticus, bof the school of Rav,and I saw that Rav bwould first wash his hands,then brecite a blessing,and only then bhe would teach us our chapter.This demonstrates that even before their study of iTorat Kohanim /i, which, due to Rav’s explanation of the reasons behind the ihalakhot /i, was the equivalent of studying Talmud, one must recite a blessing.,The Gemara clarifies: bWhatformula of bblessings does he recite?There is a dispute over the formula of the blessings as well. bRav Yehuda saidthat bShmuel said:The formula of this blessing is like the standard formula for blessings recited over other mitzvot: Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, bWho sanctified us with his mitzvot and commanded us to engage in matters of Torah. /b, bAnd Rabbi Yoḥa concludesthe blessing by adding bthe following: Lord our God, make the words of Your Torah sweet in our mouths and in the mouths of Your people, the house of Israel, so that we and our descendants and the descendants of Your people, the house of Israel, may be those who know Your name and engage in Your Torah. Blessed are You, Lord, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. /b, bAnd Rav Hamnuna saidan additional formula: bWho has chosen us from all the peoples and given us His Torah. Blessed are You, Lord, Giver of the Torah.With regard to this formula, bRav Hamnuna said: Thisconcise blessing bis the most outstanding of all the blessingsover the Torah, as it combines thanks to God for giving us the Torah as well as acclaim for the Torah and for Israel.,Since several formulas for the blessing over Torah were suggested, each with its own distinct advantage, the Gemara concludes: bTherefore, let us recite them allas blessings over the Torah.,The Gemara returns to dealing with the blessings that accompany iShema /i, and describes the practice in the Temple. bWe learned there,in a mishna in tractate iTamid /i: In the morning bthedeputy High Priest bappointedto oversee activity in the Temple, bsaid tothe priests who were members of the priestly watch [ imishmar /i] on duty that week: bRecite a single blessing.The members of the priestly watch brecited a blessing, and read the Ten Commandments, iShema /i, iVeHaya im Shamoaand iVaYomer /i,the standard recitation of iShema /i. Additionally, bthey blessed the peoplewith bthree blessings.These blessings were: bTrue and Firm,the blessing of redemption recited after iShema /i; iAvoda /i,service, the special blessing recited over God’s acceptance of the sacrifices with favor, similar to the blessing of Temple Service recited in the iAmidaprayer; band the priestly benediction,recited in the form of a prayer without the outstretched hands that usually accompany that blessing ( iTosafot /i). bAnd on Shabbat one blessing is added tobless bthe outgoing priestly watch,as the watch serving in the Temple was replaced on Shabbat.,Certain details in this mishna are not sufficiently clear. First, bwhat is the single blessingthat the deputy High Priest instructed the guards to recite? The Gemara relates: It is blikethe incident bwhere Rabbi Abba and Rabbi Yosei bar Abba happened tovisit ba certainunnamed bplace,and the people there basked them: What is the single blessingmentioned in the mishna? They bdid not havean answer breadily available.So bthey came and asked Rav Mattana, and hetoo bdid not havean answer breadily available. They came and asked Rav Yehuda,and bhe told them: Shmuel said as follows: An abounding loveis the single blessing recited by the priestly watch., bRabbi Zerika saidthat bRabbi Ami saidthat bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish saida different answer: This single blessing is: bWho creates light.That was how Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish’s statement was received in Babylonia, yet bwhen Rav Yitzḥak bar Yosef camefrom Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, bhe saidthat this ihalakhawas not a direct quote of a statement by Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish. bThat which Rabbi Zerika said was not stated explicitlyby Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, but brather it was inferred fromanother statement. bAs Rabbi Zerika saidthat bRabbi Ami saidthat bRabbi Shimon ben Lakish said:From the expression: Recite a single blessing, in the mishna in tractate iTamid /i, bit followsthat failure to recite one of the bblessingsrecited before iShema bdoes not preventone from reciting the bother.This means that if only one of the blessings was recited, the obligation to recite that blessing was fulfilled, as the two blessings are not mutually dependent.,The conclusion was drawn from Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish’s statement that he held that the single blessing recited was: Who creates light. The considerations that led the Sages to that conclusion were: bGranted, if you say that they would recite: Who creates light,then the conclusion of Reish Lakish, that failure to recite one of the bblessingsrecited before iShema bdoes not prevent onefrom reciting the bother,is understandable, as they recited: Who creates light, band did not recite: An abounding love,and they nonetheless fulfilled their obligation. |
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